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• Exercise | June 2013 (Revised November 2020)

  Competition Simulator Exercise

  Eric J. Van den Steen

  In the Competition Simulator Exercise, students explore through trial and error some important economic foundations of competitive strategy and managerial economics. In particular, the nine simulator exercises let students explore horizontal differentiation with and without price setting, strategic complements and substitutes and their implications for commitment and for first-mover advantage, the effect of the number of competitors on the competitiveness of a market, capacity limitations and judo economics, natural monopoly and the effect of market size, technology choice as entry deterrence, endogenous economies of scale, and capacity limitation in commodity markets. It can be used to introduce these concepts without necessarily relying on a lot of math or as an intuitive complement to a more mathematical exposition.

  Keywords: Competition; Economics; Game Theory; Competitive Strategy;

  Citation:

  Van den Steen, Eric J. "Competition Simulator Exercise." Harvard Business School Exercise 713-804, June 2013. (Revised November 2020.)  View Details

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• Case | HBS Case Collection | August 2013 (Revised November 2020)

  Tesla Motors

  Eric Van den Steen

  In mid-2013, Tesla Motors was riding a wave of success: It had launched its first really mass-produced car—the model S—to rave reviews; had recently raised first-year production targets; and had started taking orders for its next car, the Model X. Tesla seemed to be on its way to defying the skeptics and becoming the first US company to enter the car industry with a mass-produced car since WWII and the first to successfully launch a fully electric car. Or was it not?

  Keywords: Barriers to entry; economic analysis; Learning Curve; Economies of Scale; innovation; Market entry; sustainable competitive advantage; vision; strategy and leadership; Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Market Entry and Exit; Competitive Advantage; Technological Innovation; Leadership; Learning; Economics; Analysis; Auto Industry;

  Citation:

  Van den Steen, Eric. "Tesla Motors." Harvard Business School Case 714-413, August 2013. (Revised November 2020.)  View Details

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• Case | HBS Case Collection | January 2018 (Revised October 2020)

  The Rise and Rise (?) of Walmart (A): Battling Kmart

  Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Eric Van den Steen and Karen Elterman

  This case, set in 1990, describes the history of Walmart and asks what competitive strategies Kmart might adopt in response to Walmart's success. It discusses the strategy and organization of both companies in terms of HR practices, store location, distribution, information technology, procurement, pricing, and company culture. This (A) case is the first in a multi-part series that goes on to describe the results of Kmart's competition with Walmart, as well as Walmart's later grappling with ecommerce and Amazon.

  Keywords: walmart; Kmart; organization; company culture; pricing; procurement; Supercenter; Strategy; Competition; Organizational Culture; Competitive Strategy; Retail Industry; United States; Bentonville; Arkansas;

  Citation:

  Casadesus-Masanell, Ramon, Eric Van den Steen, and Karen Elterman. "The Rise and Rise (?) of Walmart (A): Battling Kmart." Harvard Business School Case 718-431, January 2018. (Revised October 2020.)  View Details

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