Organizational Competitive Advantage Analysis using SWOT Matrix and Hybrid Approach of Fuzzy-DEMATEL, ANP, and DEA

Subject Areas : Decision theory

Ali  Taherinezhad ¹ (PhD Candidate, Department of Industrial Engineering, Qazvin branch, Islamic Azad University, Qazvin, Iran)
Alireza  Alinezhad ² (Associate Prof., Department of Industrial Engineering, Qazvin branch, Islamic Azad University, Qazvin, Iran)
Saber  Gholami ³ (MSc Graduate of Industrial Engineering, Caspian Higher Education Institute, Qazvin, Iran)
Mahsa  Abdolvand ⁴ (M.Sc., Department of Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Qom, Qom, Iran.)

Received: 2024-05-05 Accepted : 2024-06-09 Published : 2024-06-26

Keywords: organizational competitive advantage, SWOT technique, fuzzy DEMATEL, analytic network process, data envelopment analysis.,

Abstract :

Today, due to the expansion of organizational competition, the growth of technology, and the increasing demand for customers, organizations that gain a competitive advantage over competitors by adopting scientific strategies can survive. There are various approaches to create a competitive advantage in organizations. On the other hand, in the scientific literature of this field, there is no integrated model that can cover the gap between these approaches. The aim of this paper is to present a new hybrid model for determining organizational competition strategies and criteria through decision-making tools. In this research, brands of dairy products listed in Iran were selected as a case study to demonstrate the application of the methodology. First, competitive strategies were determined through the Delphi method and expert judgment based on the SWOT technique. Then, relying on the SWOT technique, appropriate evaluation criteria were extracted through the fuzzy DEMATEL method. In the next step, each brand was considered as a decision-making unit (DMU). In addition, the output of the fuzzy DEMATEL method formed the initial values (inputs-outputs) of data envelopment analysis (DEA). Finally, after determining DEA weights via analytic network process (ANP), the efficiency of DMUs was measured by the Russell DEA model. The results of DEA showed that based on the strategies of the SWOT technique, 38% of the units under investigation are efficient. Also, the lowest efficiency obtained from the units was 82%, which shows that there is no noticeable dispersion in the efficiency values. In other words, it shows that the performance of all brands of dairy products is at a suitable level. The rest of the results and discussion are presented in detail. Analysis shows that the model of this research can be a suitable model for survival in today’s tight organizational competition in the world.

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