Formulating Technological Innovation Strategy
Discussion Questions
1. What were Musk’s and Eberhard’s goals in founding Tesla?
2. How would you characterize competition in the auto industry?
3. What do you think are Tesla’s core competencies? Does it have any
sources of sustainable competitive advantage?
4. What is your assessment of Tesla’s moves into (a) mass-market cars, (b)
batteries (car batteries and Powerwall), (c) solar panels? Please consider
both the motivation for the moves, and the opportunities and challenges for
Tesla to compete in these businesses.
5. Do you think Tesla will be profitable in all of these businesses? Why or why
not?
6. What do you think Tesla’s (or Elon Musk’s) strategic intent is?
