Reconfiguring competitiveness through dynamic capabilities: revisiting the structure–conduct–performance paradigm in a crisis context

Purpose Systemic crises disrupt the explanations of competitiveness by destabilizing the relationships between market structure, conduct and performance. This study aims to revisit the structure–conduct–performance (SCP) paradigm by examining how dynamic capabilities (DC) mediate competitiveness reconfiguration across longitudinal crisis phases to achieve superior performance. Design/methodology/approach This study adopts a longitudinal single-case, theory-building design using archival evidence from PT Bayu Buana Tbk from 2020 to 2024. The analysis combines temporal crisis phases – collapse, lagged impact, recovery take-off and stabilization – with SCP classification, dynamic capability coding, pattern matching and cross-phase comparison to trace how structural disruption, conduct, capability deployment and performance outcomes evolve over time. Findings The findings indicate a dynamic SCP process in which structural disruption does not immediately translate into performance. DC mediate this relationship through phase-dependent sensing, seizing and reconfiguration. The case reveals a lagged shock effect in 2021 and nonlinear recovery in 2022, showing that capability-mediated adaptation shapes the timing and magnitude of competitiveness recovery. Originality/value This study makes three consistent contributions. First, it reconceptualizes SCP as a temporally dynamic process rather than as a static sequence. Second, it positions DC as the adaptive mechanism through which structural change is translated into organizational behavior. Third, it explains temporal competitiveness through lagged shock effects and nonlinear recovery, showing why performance need not move proportionately to structural change. Together, these contributions integrate SCP and DC without creating separate novelty claims for crisis responsiveness, adaptive advantage or the emerging-market context. The resulting dynamic SCP framework is positioned as an initial theory-building explanation that requires validation across firms, industries and institutional settings in crisis contexts.