The resource-based theory points out the direction for the long-term development of enterprises, that is, to cultivate and obtain special resources that can bring competitive advantages to enterprises. Since the resource-based theory is still under development, enterprise decision-making is always faced with many uncertainties and complexities. The resource-based theory cannot provide enterprises with a set of specific operational methods for obtaining special resources, but can only provide some directional suggestions. Specifically, enterprises can start to develop their unique advantageous resources from the following aspects.
① Organizational learning. Almost without exception, researchers of the resource-based theory point to the knowledge and capabilities of enterprises as the special resources of enterprises, and the basic way to obtain knowledge and capabilities is learning. Since the knowledge and capabilities of an enterprise are not the simple sum of the knowledge and capabilities of each employee, but the organic combination of the knowledge and capabilities of employees, organized learning can not only improve personal knowledge and capabilities, but also promote the transformation of personal knowledge and capabilities into organizational knowledge and capabilities, so that knowledge and capabilities can be focused and produce greater synergy.
② Knowledge management. Knowledge can only play a corresponding role when it is mastered by people in specific jobs, and the knowledge of an enterprise can only be reflected through the activities of employees. In business activities, enterprises need to constantly absorb knowledge from the outside world, constantly process and organize the knowledge created by employees, and pass specific knowledge to people in specific positions. The efficiency and speed of enterprises’ disposal of knowledge will affect the competitive advantage of enterprises. Therefore, enterprises manage the micro-activity process of knowledge, which helps enterprises obtain special resources and enhance their competitive advantages.
③ Establish external networks. For weak enterprises, it is a costly and ineffective thing to rely solely on their own strength to develop all the knowledge and capabilities they need. It is much more convenient to learn the knowledge and skills of superior enterprises by establishing strategic alliances and knowledge alliances. Employees from different companies working and learning together can also stimulate employees’ creativity, promote knowledge creation and ability cultivation.
In short, the core logic of enterprise resource management theory lies in its revelation of the role of resources in organizations obtaining sustainable competitive advantages. The essential problem is how enterprises can use the least investment to obtain and maintain unique resources, and the uniqueness of such resources is crucial to the operation and products of enterprises. However, the existing internal resources and capabilities of enterprises often do not match the actual resources and capabilities required, that is, a certain gap in resources and capabilities is generated. In order to achieve strategic goals, enterprises need to fill the gap in resources and capabilities.
Enterprise resource management theory believes that enterprises can gain competitive advantages by using unique resources, and resources that can generate sustainable competitive advantages must have certain attributes, namely value, scarcity, difficulty in imitation and irreplaceability.
Enterprise resource management should not only focus on existing internal resources, but also develop and acquire more external resources. Through collaboration with external suppliers, enterprises can increase the current resource pool (Source Pool) and expand their internal capabilities and gain more strategic opportunities. Outsourcing provides a strategic option for enterprises to obtain compensatory resources, and is driven by the increasing management pressure caused by the shortage of internal resources faced by organizations in order to gain sustainable competitive advantages.
Therefore, enterprise resource management theory provides an effective analytical framework for enterprises to examine their key resources and capabilities in cross-border e-commerce business decisions.