ATT FÖRSTÅ TILLVÄXT MED ETT RESURSBASERAT SYNSÄTT

Sammanfattning: With the book The Theory of the Growth of the Firm, published in 1959, takes the researcher Edith Penrose the first step towards what will later be known as the resource based view. Many scholars have since taken up where Penrose left and has further developed the approach to something that can now be described as almost a philosophy. Today is the resource based view synonymous with an internal focus on the enterprises own resources and the unique skills that are in place to use them. The authors aim with this work is to use the resource based view to analyze the target company from a life cycle perspective according to Adizes Churchill and Lewis. Doing this highlights how the companys resources and capabilities affect its ability and capacity to achieve a desired phase of company growth. In this thesis the above mentioned theories is applied to the target company Svenska Goodwood Chemical AB, a small privately owned company engaged in the manufacturing of specialty chemicals. The target company are looking, with the help of a newly launched product category, to achieve long term competitiveness and growth in the market. To enable this, the existing resources and capabilities that the company possesses will be analyzed. When these resources are specified they will be fitted into a theoretically defined position in the life cycle. After that it is possible to compare the availability of resources and competencies with those that are desirable to reach and thrive in the next phase of growth. To make another connection to ordinary problems of growth and to have a reference point outside the theory, an interview with Johan Crona was carried out. Johan Crona who is a entrepreneur with experience to lead innovative, growing companies will supply insights that will be utilized next to the results of the applied theories to gain a broad empirical base. The result is then the basis for the action alternatives the authors presents the discussion. Based on empirical data and analysis, six areas is compiled, in which measures can be done to strengthen companys opportunities to move toward the next phase of growth in the organization. Within these six areas a number of possible actions is developed to address these inadequate areas. These measures are seen as common to all the firms in the target companys situation, but which of the measures a company chooses and in what order they are implemented is a more company-specific issue. The conclusion of this work is that it is quite possible to perform an analysis of a companys ability to achieve growth in the life cycle of a resource based approach. The combination of theories as used in this work is the authors opinion generalizable, except for special cases. Identified gaps in the literature is theories of the companys lifecycle has a tendency to build on a two dimensional scale, which gives problems when businesses do not align the defined characteristics. Suggestions for further research are already well established enterprises to innovate using the appropriate mix of resources.