Justin Jones3403615Question 1Samsung's execution of new product development, customer excellence, and rapid manufacturing are three competitive advantages the company has gained over Sony . Product development became a boon when Lee Kun Hee, the company's former president, visited the United States and realized that Samsung's products were being overshadowed by Sony's designs. This inspired him to hire hundreds of ambitious young designers. The number of designers employed by Samsung increased from around 100 to more than 450 over the next decade.” This large number of designer employees represents a competitive advantage for Samsung because, unlike Sony, the company's designers lead product development, as opposed to marketers who lead product development. In addition to having a large number of designers, Samsung also has numerous international design centers that allow them to gain a global perspective. Samsung has gained a competitive advantage with customer excellence with the use of tools such as the company's laboratory in Seoul that studies how consumers get products out of the box, read instructions, follow icons on cell phones and much more Still. Things like these help Samsung understand their customers' needs better than Sony, which allows them to more adequately meet consumer needs. Rapid manufacturing is another key competitive advantage that Samsung has gained over Sony. The textbook “Marketing” by Grewal Levy states that “a drive to improve, learn and implement faster processes” drives the entire market. Samsung's production pace is very fast and this keeps it at the top of the market. For example, over the years Samsung has reduced product development times from an average of 14 months... half of paper... conduits that combine technology with the active lifestyles of consumers in Europe. In addition to trying to find a way to match active lifestyles, Samsung wants to make many items accessible for people living in the European economy. Prices of many products in Europe could be lower for consumers in that part of the globe. In the strategies listed in the Samsung USA article, Samsung is more focused on acting aggressively towards innovation. Samsung's more global goal is to find what consumers need most and create products that incorporate consumers' unmet needs. A big part of the overall strategy mentioned in Samsung USA's article is to learn from the success of competitors to stay on top. For example, Samsung is a leader in cell phone technology and sales because it has been able to look at things that work, producing products quickly..