Harvard Business School Online

Building Competitive Advantage

Harvard Business School Online

Building Competitive Advantage

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Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
Beginner level

Recommended experience

3 hours to complete
Flexible schedule
Learn at your own pace
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
Beginner level

Recommended experience

3 hours to complete
Flexible schedule
Learn at your own pace

What you'll learn

  • Discover how complementary offerings and ecosystem relationships can unlock new sources of customer value.

  • Leverage complementary products, services, and platforms to increase demand and strengthen market position.

  • Build ecosystem strategies and relationships that support sustainable growth and long-term competitive advantage.

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Recently updated!

July 2026

Assessments

8 assignments¹

AI Graded see disclaimer
Taught in English

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Build your subject-matter expertise

This course is part of the Introduction to Business Strategy Specialization
When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Specialization.
  • Learn new concepts from industry experts
  • Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
  • Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
  • Earn a shareable career certificate

There are 5 modules in this course

Why do some products become more valuable when used together? In this module, you will examine how complements increase willingness to pay and create competitive advantage. Through strategic frameworks and company examples, you'll explore how firms identify complements, distinguish complements from product attributes, and design ecosystems that create more customer value. You'll also encounter customer journey mapping and examine how organizations use complements to expand beyond core offerings to strengthen their competitive position.

What's included

2 videos4 readings2 assignments

Why does value often migrate away from the product customers buy? In this module, you will examine how firms use complements to influence willingness to pay, shape customer behavior, and capture value across broader ecosystems. Through strategic frameworks and company examples, you'll explore complement pricing, ecosystem strategy, shifting profit pools, and delayed value capture. You'll also examine how organizations such as Apple and firms in the digital music industry redesigned their business models to create and capture value as complementary products and services transformed the industry.

What's included

3 videos4 readings2 assignments1 discussion prompt

Why does value often migrate away from a company’s core product? In this module, you will examine how firms use complements to shape customer behavior, ecosystem participation, and long-term value capture. Through strategic frameworks and company examples, you'll explore complement pricing, shifting profit pools, ecosystem strategy, and recurring revenue models. The module also examines how organizations such as Apple redesigned their ecosystems to capture value as complementary services and experiences became increasingly important sources of competitive advantage.

What's included

2 videos3 readings2 assignments1 discussion prompt

How should firms respond when a new technology appears to be both an opportunity and a threat? In this module, you will examine the strategic relationship between complements and substitutes and explore why those relationships are often difficult to classify in emerging markets. Through examples including Ripple and Farfetch, you'll analyze how technologies, channels, and business models can strengthen existing offerings, compete with them, or evolve between the two over time. The module highlights why successful strategists continually reassess ecosystem relationships as markets and technologies change.

What's included

3 videos4 readings2 assignments1 discussion prompt

How do firms design ecosystems that create and sustain competitive advantage? In this concluding module, you will integrate concepts from across the course to evaluate complement opportunities, ecosystem relationships, value-capture strategies, and emerging substitute threats. Through a strategic role play, you will assess how organizations can use complements to increase customer value, strengthen competitive position, and adapt as technologies and markets evolve. You will be challenged to move beyond individual frameworks and develop a coherent ecosystem strategy for long-term success.

What's included

2 readings

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Instructor

Harvard Business School Online
Harvard Business School Online
6 Courses72 learners

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¹ Some assignments in this course are AI-graded. For these assignments, your data will be used in accordance with Coursera's Privacy Notice.