An entrepreneur is starting a new online service for job seekers. He is assessing his internal resources to determine his distinctive competencies. He developed software capable of managing a large quantity of job applicants simultaneously without slowing down. The result is a system that operates more quickly than the competitors' systems. Which value chain activity does the software development represent?

Answer: Research and development

Explanation: Software development is a process that includes many steps, among which research and development is a major step. This process gives result after the research is carried out and introduces new solution for the software.

The more time given to the research and development part results in the durable and optimization system. Thus, the entrepreneur must have involved into a lot of research and then developed the system so that he does not face challenges in future and produce a sustained system.