Jurnal Manajemen Bisnis Vol. 10, No.1 (2023) March, Page.

77-83
e-ISSN: 2621-1971|p-ISSN: 2088-7086

Application of Business Strategy to Create Competitive

Advantage in Indonesian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
Grace Citra Dewi1*, Yulianah2, Ria Sandra Alimbudiono3, Daniel Kurniawan4
1*
Department of Management, Universitas Ciputra Surabaya
2
Department of Management, Universitas Bina Sarana Informatika
3
Department of Management, Universitas Surabaya
4
Department of Management, Universitas Ciputra
ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT
This research is the result of a review of the importance of formulating,
designing, and implementing long-term strategies. The purpose of this
research is to discuss how business strategies enable competitive advantage
in organizations through their design, formulation, implementation, and
control. This review was conducted as part of this research. Companies can
no longer achieve a competitive advantage solely through the prices of their
goods and/or services, nor can they achieve profitability in the short term;
instead, their focus has shifted to the development of long-term strategies.
Methodologies such as descriptive qualitative research from a theoretical
point of view, analysis, synthesis, and documentary review of bibliographic
Email Correspondence:
references related to business strategy, as a generator of business
grace.dewi@ciputra.ac.id
competitive advantage, and how to achieve returns through long-term
strategic planning are utilized in this study. As one of the conclusions, it
is clear that the importance of developing, designing, and putting into
action strategies that make it possible to achieve long-term results cannot
Keywords:
be overstated, given that the role of managers is currently restricted to the
Business Strategy; Competitive
production of financial performance.
Advantage; Micro, Small and Medium
Enterprises
ABSTRAK
Penelitian ini merupakan hasil kajian tentang pentingnya merumuskan,
merancang, dan menerapkan strategi jangka panjang. Tujuan dari
DOI:
penelitian ini adalah untuk membahas bagaimana strategi bisnis
memungkinkan keunggulan kompetitif dalam organisasi melalui desain,
https://doi.org/10.33096/jmb.v10i1.481
formulasi, implementasi, dan kontrolnya. Tinjauan ini dilakukan sebagai
bagian dari penelitian ini. Perusahaan tidak dapat lagi mencapai
keunggulan kompetitif hanya melalui harga barang dan/atau jasa mereka,
juga tidak dapat mencapai profitabilitas dalam jangka pendek; sebaliknya,
fokus mereka telah bergeser ke pengembangan strategi jangka panjang.
Metodologi seperti penelitian kualitatif deskriptif dari sudut pandang
teoritis, analisis, sintesis, dan tinjauan dokumenter referensi bibliografi
yang terkait dengan strategi bisnis, sebagai generator keunggulan
kompetitif bisnis, dan bagaimana mencapai pengembalian melalui
perencanaan strategis jangka panjang digunakan dalam penelitian ini.
Sebagai salah satu kesimpulan, jelas bahwa pentingnya mengembangkan,
merancang, dan menerapkan strategi yang memungkinkan untuk
mencapai hasil jangka panjang tidak dapat dilebih-lebihkan, mengingat
bahwa peran manajer saat ini terbatas pada produksi kinerja keuangan.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

INTRODUCTION
Currently, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Indonesia, of the number of
business units in Indonesia, are MSMEs where 97% (116.9 million) of the total workforce in
Indonesia are absorbed in MSMEs. Furthermore, 61.07% (8,573,895 billion) of Indonesia's GDP

Dewi, et., al. 77

came from MSMEs and 14.37% (293,840 billion) of Indonesia's non-oil and gas exports came
from MSMEs; Finally, 60.42% (2,564,549 billion) of the total investment in Indonesia came from
MSMEs. (Muttaqin et al, 2021).
Business managers, when designing a business structure must start with the formulation,
implementation and control of organizational strategy, being a fundamental problem for all
managers. However, in a business environment, analysis of the competitiveness situation is
considered an important management tool (Yunus, 2016). Musa (2013) considers that it is not
always evaluated as a variable resulting from the interaction of many variables, both internal to
the company and those present in the external environment.
In Indonesia, due to the financial economic crisis, it forces stakeholders to reflect on the
characteristics of micro, small and medium enterprises, realizing the importance of MSMEs for
the growth of the country. Because it is an instrument of social cohesion and stability by
providing employment opportunities (formal or informal) to people with or without
professional training (Sholikhah, 2021).
The Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas in its annual report considers
that the behavior of the productive sector is useful for understanding the dynamics of the factors
driving the growth of economic and financial activity. Therefore, in companies to improve the
country's economy and generate economic benefits, you must consider planning that allows you
to control the implementation of goals, therefore the term to be used is strategic planning
(Wibowo, 2008).
Steiner (2005), shows that through strategic planning, the direction of organizational goals
is set, risks are eliminated and conditions for success are guaranteed, which is why strategic
planning is the starting point of organizational processes. There are several advantages of
strategic planning such as:
a) Defining the direction of the company enables better directing and utilizing efforts and
resources.
b) Reducing the level of uncertainty that may arise in the future of the business.
c) Minimizing risks, and taking advantage of opportunities that exist in the environment.
Companies will no longer be able to gain profits solely through the price of their products
and/or services, or managed to gain profitability in the short term, the vision of the new
organization must be oriented towards determining long-term goals, namely by designing
business strategies that become fundamental management tools to achieve excellence.
competitive (Alwi, 2018).
According to Porter & Lee (2015), strategists must take into account three elements, 1) the
position of the company to defend itself against the dominant forces in the industry, 2) the
influence of their own company on this balance through strategic moves, and 3) anticipate
possible moves by competitive forces. Porter & Lee (2015) considers that consumers are the
starting point for designing strategies. which suggests three general strategies: like; 1)
Differentiation, 2) Cost leadership, and 3) Focus on a niche or segment. The adoption of the
strategy will depend on the market it is directed at.
By managing to determine the business strategy in accordance with the interests of the
company, competitive advantage is achieved. To meet the proposed objectives, this document
is developed at a descriptive level. Documentary investigations are carried out that allow the
main investigative explanation of the sustainability of companies through long-term strategies,
and how through them competitive advantage is generated in organizations.

Application of Business Strategy to Create,... 78

RESEARCH METHODS
In this particular investigation, a descriptive research approach is combined with a
qualitative analysis methodology. Gunawan (2022) defines qualitative research as research that
intends to understand phenomena, about what is experienced by research subjects. This is in
accordance with the aforementioned definition. According to Subadi (2006), qualitative research
is a method of research that generates descriptive data in the form of written or spoken words
from people as well as behavior that is observed. Primary data are what were collected for this
study, and these were gleaned from a variety of pertinent research literature. Secondary data is
gathered by researchers from sources such as books, magazines, field results, and the internet.
A qualitative descriptive model is utilized in the process of data analysis. This model is utilized
in the form of data collection, data reduction, data display, and conclusions.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The business strategy enables the fulfillment of objectives, just like MSMEs in Indonesia,
their plans are oriented towards reducing operating costs associated with production,
commercialization of their products and/or services, however, it is difficult to comply with the
strategy due to external factors. Considering the changing dynamics of the market that demand
better processes, capacity for creativity, and adaptability to changing environments, one of the
key factors for improvement is the ability of an organization to bring its products and/or
services to market through the design and implementation of strategies. Strategy is a way to
achieve long-term goals (Sulistiani, 2013).
The importance of referring to the right strategy is needed by MSME actors in Indonesia,
by recognizing the opportunities offered by the market, therefore; organizations will be able to
formulate new, efficient, effective and more effective strategies that enable differentiation with
the competition, managers have a difficult task when integrating workforce in strategy design
and implementation, the question arises: What will managers do to keep their workforce
focused on goals corporate strategy?
Trout (2014), asserts that the term strategy was used throughout the years in the army with
the sole aim of destroying grand plans or an advantage that the enemy does not have, in this
sense, strategy guides business decisions that enable operational plans to be made. carried out
simultaneously with the achievement of goals. Strategy began to appear since the Second World
War, the need to use it in every business activity is increasingly needed, according to Robbins et
al (2014), strategic management is a company's ability to achieve its goals. It is considered a
business strategy of a series of operations that lead to competitive advantage, through
technological, human, infrastructure and material resources that will enable MSMEs in
Indonesia to provide quality services through the generation of added value in products. and/or
services.
Kaplinsky & Morris (2017), states that when talking about strategy, value chains must be
considered where various aspects are intervened so that a product and/or service obtains added
value, as a differentiator from competition, from start to competition. arrive. to the final
consumer. Many companies in the process emphasize the value chain, consisting of different
links and each of them contributes to development. In addition, innovation is considered in the
value chain, because it is related to information technology, as well as being a tool that enables
the creation and development of new products and/or services.

Dewi, et., al. 79

 The MSME sector in Indonesia is not always represented by the organizational structure,
business planning needed to solve problems. However, when problems arise, new strategies
and possibly reorganizations are devised and implemented. Structural changes can take the
form of: action plans, management tools, process innovation, budget reports. In 1977, business
concerns emerged with issues of management effectiveness, efficiency, and effectiveness, and
concerns with the nature of the relationships between strategy, process effectiveness,
organizational structure, and design. It can be said that the structure follows the business
strategy, a good strategic plan and a suitable organizational structure will emerge easily.
Because of that; a broadly diversified strategy requires a decentralized structure (Hendrawan et
al, 2019).
How much time is devoted by business managers to planning, organizing, motivating and
controlling administrative processes is a question that must be analyzed from a methodological
point of view, i.e., managers have room to design strategies, develop social or interpersonal
skills among staff, make decisions, communicate effectively, foster organizational culture,
process simplicity, product and/or service quality, organizational design. In this sense, it is
worth mentioning how strategic management represents what managers do to develop an
organization's strategy. Being an important task in which all the basic managerial functions are
involved.
What is a business strategy? They represent plans that will determine how one will achieve
business objectives, how one will compete successfully, how one will design competitive
advantages, how one will generate value in one's products and/or services, how one will meet
product demands, and finally how one will someone will attract customers to fulfill his goals.
When designing a business strategy, a business model is created, which refers to the set of
actions that companies practice to generate economic income.
The history of the evolution and development of strategic thinking, according to Booth
(2021), is divided into four stages: the first focuses on budget-centered financial planning,
assigned to each area, such as: production, finance and marketing. The second stage of thought
evolution in formulating organizational strategy is oriented towards long-term financial
planning. Booth (2021), considers that in the second stage, strategic thinking is basically oriented
by the functional vision of the company, where its various functional areas are analyzed
individually and, based on this functional analysis, more global answers are sought. for
company needs.
The third stage is characterized by having a more global strategic vision, bringing together
each business area. According to Riege (2005), in their research they considered the need to
formulate strategies in a more articulate and dynamic way, bringing together individual ideas
for each functional area, linking them to the competitive environment in which the strategy
operates. Therefore, an important characteristic of the third stage is the focus on visualizing
organizations from a global way, analyzing the markets and competitors they face. Booth (2021),
states that the fourth stage of strategic thinking is characterized by a focus on organizational
learning and analysis of the business environment. This stage focuses on strategy formulation
which begins with an analysis of the company's environment from the perspective of
weaknesses, strengths, opportunities and threats.
From the conceptualization of business strategy, we mention several authors, such as:
Shapiro (1989), defines strategy as a pattern of decisions within a company that determines goals
and objectives, generates plans and policies for achieving the same and takes into account
economic and human factors for the benefit of stakeholders (shareholders). stocks, suppliers,

Application of Business Strategy to Create,... 80

financial institutions, customers, employees, communities). Campbell et al (2002), highlighted
that the formulation of business strategy arises from planning from management, considered as
forecasting future scenarios and determining the results to be obtained, through environmental
analysis to minimize risks, with the aim of optimizing resources and determining the strategies
needed to achieve organization goals. However, Blumentritt & Danis (2006), defines strategy as
the art, science of formulating, implementing and evaluating multidisciplinary decisions that
enable a company to achieve its goals.
In today's business world where MSMEs in Indonesia operate, it is important to design,
implement and control strategies that enable them to achieve competitive advantage.
Companies that implement long-term strategies gain an advantage over their competitors by
innovating products and/or services. Suhaeni (2018), views that business organizations need to
equip themselves with new capabilities and attributes, which are significantly different from the
characteristics of traditional companies. However, MSMEs in Indonesia live in intense and
complex times; the increasing influence of information technology in economic and business
processes, in fact, the integration of technology and business is becoming one of the major
sources of innovation and value creation in enterprises.
Porter (1989) considers that the competitiveness of a country depends on the ability of its
industry to innovate and improve. In an increasingly globalized competitive world, the state is
becoming more important. According to Porter (1989), the structure of competition is
increasingly shifting towards the creation and assimilation of knowledge, the role of the nation
is growing. Competitive advantage is created and maintained through highly localized
processes through strategy.
Competitive strategy is one that determines how a company will compete within its
business units. Robbins & Coulter (2014), describes how they will compete in their main market.
However, when it comes to an organization participating in multiple businesses, each of them
will have its own competitive strategy and this will determine its competitive advantage. When
a company operates in several different lines of business, which are independent from others
and have their own competitive strategy, they are called strategic business units.
Meanwhile, Aldi (2005), defines business competitiveness with the relationship between
what is happening outside the organization such as: government policies, country's economic
structure, market characteristics, regional variables but highly dependent on performance.
organization. To develop an effective competitive business strategy, it is necessary to
understand what competitive advantage is, it is everything that differentiates one organization
from another. Air Asia has a competitive advantage thanks to its ability to provide what its
passengers want: comfortable and affordable air transportation services. This can be considered
as a competitive advantage in the allocation of company resources, Indomaret and Alfamart are
able to monitor and control its inventory and its relationship with suppliers with greater
efficiency, effectiveness and effectiveness than competitors can do; the company has turned this
into a cost advantage.
In companies, the term Competitive Strategy should be considered as a set of analytical
methods that will serve the company to study the industry as a whole and predict its future
evolution, understand competitors and their environment, translate the analysis into the
company's competitive strategy. Porter (1989), in his research, states that competitive strategy is
a combination of goals (goals) that companies seek and ways (policies) that try to achieve them.
The same author proposes a competitive strategy wheel as an instrument for integrating
important aspects in a single graph, at the center of the wheel the company's goals are

Dewi, et., al. 81

considered, they represent the broadest definition of how a company wants to compete and its
specific goals, economics among others; Wheel spokes is the basic operating policy to achieve
the goal.

CONCLUSION
The MSME sector in Indonesia must immediately change to carry out the process
towards a better one with the priority of achieving competitive advantage. Realizing a business
strategy through designing the MSME sector can actually be said to be something that can be
difficult but can also be something easy, this is only determined by the similarities or differences
in our views on the problems at hand. If we agree that the responsibility for achieving the goals
of realizing the MSME sector development strategy in Indonesia is a shared responsibility, then
this might be something easy. The importance of formulating, designing and implementing
strategies that enable long-term results is evident, currently the role of managers is limited to
generating financial benefits, namely; end oriented, not how to do it. It is important for MSME
actors to consider business strategies as added value that will ensure long-term sustainability,
allowing them to achieve competitive advantage through innovation and the quality of the
products and services they sell.

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