Vertical integration is another key internal competency. As mentioned, this allows for customer-driven development, but it also has other benefits. Vertical integration allows Suzlon to have greater control of its supply chain, which helps the company to control margins. The home base in India gives Suzlon a large market from which it can draw capital to finance some of its international markets. Such home market advantages often help firms to expand overseas more quickly than companies from small markets. In addition, labor is cheap in India, which gives the company a production cost advantage over many of its competitors.

There are some internal weaknesses, however, that could present challenges for Suzlon. The company is relatively new to the...

On the production side, its acquisitions appear to have moved the company along the curve quickly, but in international operations Suzlon is still a relative newcomer. Additionally, the company -- and the wind power industry in general -- has relied on favorable political environment. Markets that have experienced strong subsidies have developed more quickly than other markets, but at some point these subsidies will dry up. As a result, the wind power industry may become more challenging for Suzlon and other companies as well. Suzlon needs to be well-positioned to drive market growth without subsidies, and to retain high profit margins by offering potential customers strong cost savings even without government assistance.