I do not agree that corporate entrepreneurship is an oxymoron. On the contrary, the most successful companies of the present day heavily rely on innovation in all parts of their business to gain necessary competitive advantage and stay on top of the market. Hence, the discussion provides examples of companies such as Amazon and Tesco to prove the point that corporations are able of innovations.
Corporate entrepreneurship relates to the concept of competitive advantage and different ways of accomplishing it. One of the key elements that contribute to the success of the business is the ability to offer a product or a service that is superior to the existing alternatives. Amazon provides a clear example of that principle as it is constantly posed with challenges. Constant innovations provided Amazon with a competitive advantage over competitors in the areas where the company pioneered, hence, did not experience the pressure to react to the trends set by others. A fine example of it is the development of Alexa. Although there were voice-recognition technologies, such as Siri, the idea of a computer that was managed solely by voice was fresh and innovative, hence, it was a market success. The development of such innovative product resembles a bottom-up approach, which is an example of the autonomous strategic behavior.
The example of the induced strategic behavior can be seen in innovative supply-chain of Tesco. Multi-channel retailing has emerged as a new trend in the retail industry bearing a number of great advantages to those who adopt the trend. Tesco has not been left behind and is doing the most to reap the benefits that come with exploiting multichannel retailing. Tesco has adopted multi-channel retailing by exploiting the online stores, physical stores, small supermarkets, and convenience stores; these channels are expected to experience more rapid growth then hypermarkets over the next couple of years (Sparks, 2019). By exploiting these channels, Tesco has been able to meet the industry’s needs, which reflect the ever expanding demand for flexible stores that offer a narrower and constantly updated product portfolio.
References
Sparks, L. (2019). Tesco: How supply chain strategy supports retail success. The Business & Management Collection. Web.