Title: Analysis of the relationship between competency-based factors of competitive advantages: a case of the insurance industry

Authors: Samad Rahimiaghdam; Reza Babazadeh; Meisam Shamsi

Addresses: Faculty of Economics and Management, Department of Management, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran ' Faculty of Engineering, Urmia University, Urmia, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran ' Faculty of Engineering, Urmia University, Urmia, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran

Abstract: This research studies the relationship between the sustainable competitive advantage (SCA) competency-based factors in Iran insurance companies. Section 1 of this study is descriptive and qualitative, carried out based on documentary studies and the Delphi method. The sampling is done as purposeful, and the snowball method is used for the identification of the specialists. Applying the Delphi method extracts six major factors, including technical knowledge, organisational commitment, flexibility, creativity, job satisfaction, and occupational ethics as the main human resources pivotal factors to achieve competitive advantage in the insurance industry. The relationship and sequence of these factors are determined by fuzzy interpretive structural modelling (FISM). Since the intensity (the impact and influence) between some factors is not clear in FISM and some of them are placed near the border point, so, the fuzzy DEMATEL method is utilised to deal with this shortcoming of FISM. According to the role of intangible strategic resources in creating SCA, this research can solve the problems of the chief mangers in the expansion of the human resources competencies aligned.

Keywords: competency; Delphi method; resource based view; SCA; sustainable competitive advantage; FISM; fuzzy interpretive structural modelling; fuzzy DEMATEL.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTPM.2022.126138

International Journal of Technology, Policy and Management, 2022 Vol.22 No.4, pp.306 - 324

Received: 18 Aug 2020
Accepted: 03 Mar 2021
Published online: 13 Oct 2022 *

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