Firm Resources, Industry Environment and Competitive Advantage: An Improved Model Based on RBT

The quest to understand the determinants of competitive advantage has created a bifurcated view. On one side of the debate are the structural characteristics of industries. On the other side of the debate are the resource-based theory (RBT). However, in recent years, the nature of competition and the shifting og economic conditions have led to increased challenges of the above theories. The results of much research suggest that structural characteristics of industries are becoming, less relevant determinants of performance while firm resources are becoming the basis upon which firms compete. Therefore, this article proposes that the industry environment should be added into the analysis framework of RBT.