دانلود رایگان مقاله شناسایی استراتژی های رقابتی برای هر مرحله از چرخه عمر پایانی اینترمدال

abstract

This paper applies the marketing strategy literature to the four phases of the intermodal terminal life cycle (ITLC) to identify the appropriate competitive strategy to be undertaken at each phase, based on fluctuating markets and competitor behaviour. Not only can applying the correct strategy at each phase help to obtain a competitive advantage, but anticipating future strategies in advance can underpin the success of current strategies and ensure that both public and private stakeholders are prepared for future challenges. The paper derives the appropriate strategies, provides empirical examples and discusses the opportunities and challenges inherent in each strategy. The paper concludes with suggestions for future research on strategy options that go beyond the traditional view of terminals as homogeneous interchangeable assets. Rather than simple improvement of factor conditions by investing in the infrastructure, innovative strategies to obtain competitive advantage should focus on partnerships with external stakeholders such as rail operators, 3PLs and shippers.

7. Conclusion

The findings in this paper are relevant for academics, policymakers, planners and terminal managers. For academics, the strategic framework helps guide understanding and analysis, while for policymakers and planners it aids future planning. The framework also allows terminal managers to integrate their short-term operational decisions with the longer-term strategic and tactical focus of the other stakeholder groups. Overall, it allows all of these groups to coordinate their plans in an integrated manner. This leads to significant policy implications regarding terminal development, in which we include both high level policymakers and local transport and land-use planners. The ways in which the public sector supports the initial terminal development or subsidises later investments must be based on an integrated life cycle plan underpinning a long-term understanding of the terminal's changing market position throughout its life. Fundamental to the best use of this framework is to provide policymakers with a temporal perspective, the ability to anticipate future needs and thus reduce delays and uncertainties at key moments. The remainder of this section outlines the nature of these challenges and the aid to policymakers and planners that can be derived from the use of the framework.