Formulating Technological Innovation Strategy
Discussion Questions
- What were Musk’s and Eberhard’s goals in founding Tesla?
- How would you characterize competition in the auto industry?
- What do you think are Tesla’s core competencies? Does it have any sources of sustainable competitive advantage?
- What is your assessment of Tesla’s moves into (a) mass-market cars, (b) batteries (car batteries and Powerwall), (c) solar panels?Consider both the motivation for the moves, and the opportunities and challenges for Tesla to compete in these businesses.
- Do you think Tesla will be profitable in all of these businesses? Why or why not?
- What do you think Tesla’s (or Elon Musk’s) strategic intent is?