Final answer:
Determining the relative competitive strength of each business within a diversified company helps in resource analysis, contribution to revenue, and profitability, as well as assessing competitive advantages, which is essential for strategic business decisions and maximizing shareholder value in line with the concept of dynamic comparative advantage.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to the concept of dynamic comparative advantage within the context of diversification strategy in business. Determining the relative competitive strength of each business unit within a diversified company facilitates several vital analyses. These include identifying resource strengths and weaknesses, providing a quantitative basis for rating businesses in terms of contribution to revenue growth and profitability, assessing competitive advantages or disadvantages, and ultimately, guiding strategic decisions related to potential synergies and shareholder value maximization.
Understanding the dynamic nature of comparative advantage is crucial for business strategy. It implies that comparative advantages evolve over time due to factors such as learning, specialization, and the exploitation of economies of scale. These dynamic aspects can lead to competitive gains, and businesses can leverage these by focusing on their core competencies—a strategy that often results in more successful outcomes compared to those trying to offer a wide range of products. Economic base analysis and the location quotient formula come into play when identifying economic bases at various geographic scales, which can also inform business strategies about where to locate aspects of their operations to maximize their comparative advantage and success in specific markets.