...Statement of the Problem We don’t know the best strategy to successfully merge and capitalize on the competencies of EDS and A.T. Kearney to help the new entity reach its maximum potential and to “significantly differentiate the new enterprise from its competition” (Spiro, Rich & Stanton, 2008, p.524). This must be achieved while ensuring that A.T. Kearney not be “viewed as a front end for EDS by its current and potential customers” (Spiro, p. 533). Summary of the Facts A.T. Kearney, one of the largest global management consulting firms was acquired by Electronic Data Systems (EDS), a leader in global information services, in 1995 for an estimated $600 million. The acquisition would allow EDS/ A.T. Kearney to be a “one stop shop” (p. 525) that could offer a broad range of services to their clients. This potential opportunity would be challenged by the potential difficulty of merging the two companies together. A.T. Kearney conducted a survey of “senior executives at Global 1000 companies to explore their attitudes towards the role of information technology in their businesses” (p. 525). The survey revealed that information technology was evolving. It was no longer being viewed as just a tool to increase productivity. Technology was being recognized as an important part of an organization’s strategic objectives because it could be used to “help solve problems, set new levels of service and create new distribution” (p. 525). The study reached the following main conclusions: ...
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...PT. Perusahaan Gas Negara (Persero) Tbk Final Design Stage Report ‘Logistics Transformation’ 12th February 2011 © Copyright 2011 A.T. Kearney, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced in any form without written permission from A.T. Kearney Diagnostic Summary: Strategy, Organization and Procurement Process are the key areas that should be addressed on a higher priority High priority areas 1 Logistics strategy: Focuses mainly on execution and cost reduction by meeting its SLAs and KPIs – limited value-add. Need a comprehensive strategy / roadmap Other areas 4 Supplier management: No established preferred supplier list leading to long lead time. Lack of supplier evaluation leading to lower quality 2 Logistics organization: Decentralized organisation with limited oversight from HO ~20% spend influence. Limited volume pooling and cost savings. 5 Procurement Strategy Procurement Organization Strategic Sourcing Operating process management Supplier Relationship Management Material management: Formal planning and communication could be improved. Lack of material categorisation to determine category level storage strategy 3 Strategic sourcing / Operating process: High time requirements, leading to suboptimal budget realization (80% PGN source-able(1) spend, compared to ~20% currently 1 Strategic Sourcing & Category Mgmt 1 Strategic Sourcing • Conduct strategic sourcing activity for center led categories 0 ...
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...Make vs. Buy Revisited Reassessing your company’s manufacturing strategy M ake or buy? The classic manufacturing question still has no easy answer. Amid signs of demand recovery, but with capital still limited and resources thinned by restructuring, top executives today are revisiting the issue. To come to the right make-or-buy decision, leading companies resist the temptation to “feed the beast.” Instead of focusing only on short-term gains, these leaders keep their long-term strategy and corresponding core competencies in mind. They adopt a clearly defined manufacturing strategy, and then adopt the right tactics that can lead to smart decisions and a competitive advantage. The trade-offs between making a product inhouse and buying it externally are well known to most senior executives. The “buy” approach— a manufacturer purchasing a necessary part from an outside source—frees up resources, reduces capital demands, increases flexibility and improves returns on capital employed, but in a tough market companies may seek to avoid potential quality concerns and supply risks. On the other hand, a “make” approach—developing and building that same necessary part internally—enables the company to utilize available internal capacity, absorb fixed costs and protect intellectual property, but it can lead to unnecessary complexity and divert time and attention away from highervalue activities. Choosing “make” simply because the capacity already exists, or “buy”...
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...Internet Value Chain Economics Gaining a deeper understanding of the Internet economy W hen considering the technological innovations of the past 50 years, the Internet is probably the one that has had the greatest impact on everyday life in developed economies. Nearly six out of 10 Americans now shop online and more than four out of 10 bank online. Twenty hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute, while 5 percent of all time online is spent on the social networking site, Facebook. The Internet has also changed the way in which businesses operate—today, 64 percent of C-level executives conduct six or more searches per day to locate business information. The Internet has been a source of great good—as evidenced by the role played by Internet-based mapping and communications in the relief effort following the recent Haiti earthquake. The Internet also has shown a negative side—more than 97 percent of all emails are spam, while more than 70 percent of Americans fear online identity theft and 57 percent feel that their personal privacy has been greatly diminished by the Internet.1 Behind these statistics and headlines, however, there remains a low level of understanding of how the Internet economy works. Who are the different players involved in the Internet, beyond the flagship names? How is the industry structured and how concentrated is it? How do players make money and how do revenues flow across the value chain? Is the industry attractive in terms of growth...
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...of 26 percent. Although their motives differ from traditional M&A activity, it is clear that, in the near term, emerging competitors present a potential threat to companies in developed countries. Mergers and acquisitions have become a staple of newspaper headlines. Although most M&A activity is initiated by companies in the developed world, a recent A.T. Kearney study of global M&A reveals that a paradigm shift is occurring: Beginning in 2002, deals between developing and developed countries grew at an annual rate of 19 percent— far in excess of the industry average and four times faster than deals conducted within either developing or developed countries alone (see figure 1 on page 2). While not large in absolute terms, this rate of growth indicates how rapidly the developing world is catching up in the M&A business. In fact, the study found that companies from developing countries such as China, India, Malaysia, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and South Africa are snapping up established firms at an astonishing rate. Of the 2,168 majority acquisitions between developed and developing A.T. Kearney | countries in 2007, almost 20 percent — a total of 421 — were driven by companies from developing countries. Furthermore, this pattern is growing by 26 percent annually. This paper highlights the key findings of the global M&A study, and lays out a strategy...
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...Preparing For Your Case Interview Where your ideas make a difference. At A.T. Kearney we are looking for people who love to reach out. People who want to stretch their talents. People who will challenge themselves to achieve meaningful, measurable results for their clients, their firm, and themselves. People with ideas. Your interest in a consulting career with us suggests that you may be one of those people, and we have designed our interview process so that you will have every opportunity to show it. The A.T. Kearney interview sequence consists of two rounds, typically completed within a 3-week period. The first includes two 45-minute interviews conducted back-to-back on campus or in another convenient location. The second, which normally takes place at our nearest office, involves three 45-minute meetings with one or more of A.T. Kearney’s senior people. If you are invited to complete the full sequence, you can expect that both interviews in the first round and two in the second will be case-oriented. This means that in addition to discussing our firm and your future it, the A.T. Kearney consultants you meet will also present you with real-world business problems and ask you to develop solutions. Experience shows that the applicants who are the most successful in a case interview are those who enter it with the right frame of mind and the best preparation. The following information is designed to help you achieve both. Why The Case Format? While we look for many qualities...
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...Cracking the Growth Code in IT-BPO Mergers As the market matures, consolidation can be the key to growth. Most IT-BPO companies in India have a focused M&A strategy to build growth momentum. But what will it take for these strategies to pay off? Cracking the Growth Code in IT-BPO Mergers 1 India has been the world’s dominant destination for information technology (IT) and business process outsourcing (BPO) services. However, as the market matures the industry has experienced a slowdown in growth, pushing IT-BPO providers toward focused M&A strategies to build and sustain growth momentum. Growth through M&A is now a core strategy influenced by the need to: • Fill gaps in service portfolios or geographic presence, to meet client demands and compete with the global majors; examples include Infosys’ acquisition of Lodestone to tap its European customer base, Wipro’s acquisition of Opus CMC to tap into its capabilities in high-end mortgage BPO, and Genpact’s acquisition of Triumph Engineering to bolster engineering capabilities • Manage cash reserves more effectively to meet shareholders’ expectations • Capture opportunities from client divestitures of services assets; examples include Cognizant’s acquisition of ING’s and CoreLogic’s captives, TCS’ and Wipro’s acquisition of Citigroup’s captives, and Tech Mahindra’s acquisition of Hutch BPO Done well, M&A strategies can help Indian players tap into $2 billion to $4 billion in revenues each year. Yet, about 70 percent of...
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...Vertical View A Nano Car in Every Driveway? How to Succeed in the Ultra-Low-Cost Car Market Henry Ford’s historic promise in 1908 to “build a car for the great multitude” resulted in the production of more than 15 million Model Ts and created unprecedented mobility for consumers everywhere. Will India’s Tata Motors deliver on its equally bold promise to a new generation of consumers to bring the Nano to market for the “great multitude” at a price of $2,500? T o fulfill his promise “to build a car small enough for the individual to run and care for, [of ] the simplest designs that modern engineering can devise, [and] low in price,” Henry Ford exploited innovative product design, vendor relationships, manufacturing techniques and distribution methods. One hundred years later, entrants into the ultra-low-cost car (ULCC) market have the same agenda in their attempt to build a car with a price tag of $2,500 to $5,000, which is lower in comparable dollars than Henry Ford’s $850 Model T. Vertical View But this is not a history lesson that can be easily repeated. Today, all indicators point to an automotive industry in recession, requiring its leaders to balance the global economic crisis with future market demand. Industry consolidation and restructuring in global markets will accelerate, propelled by the lack of availability to capital and consumer financing, high fuel costs and low consumer confidence. Undoubtedly, a new and improved automotive...
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...Harvard Case Study Stryker Corporation: Capital Budgeting Term Paper Laini Tsang Golden Gate University MS Finance, FI 312 Summer 2013 Stryker’s Capital Budgeting Harvard Case Study Table of Content Case Background and Summary Pharmaceutical Industry’s Landscape Stryker’s New CERS and why it is “painful”? Propositions Conclusions 2 Stryker’s Capital Budgeting Harvard Case Study Case Background and Summary Founded in 1941 in Michigan, Stryker Corporation is a fast-paced company with continuously exceptional growth rates. Over the last 27 years, the company historically increased revenues by 20%. The company’s culture prides itself on service ethics, integrity, innovations, accountability, and customer relationships; it is one of the world’s leading medical technology companies with history of successful stories. Stryker’s products focus on implants for joint replacement, trauma, spinal surgical products, neurologic and endoscopic equipment. The company has well diversified product portfolios with solid fundamentals. Over the years, the company’s accretive mergers and acquisitions brought operational synergies and cost efficiency, strengthening the pipeline with increasing profitability. This paper examines Stryker’s capital budgeting process (CER – Capital Expense Request) and why this process, after its modifications in 2005, had slowed down the company’s internal capital project requests. From the company’s financials, we can see their capital...
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...Dr. A. Robert Wasson has spent over 18 years in management consulting roles with A.T. Kearney, Strategic Decisions Group, Toffler Associates, and, most recently, Kalypso. His consulting focus has largely been across all aspects of the idea-to-commercialization process, ranging from analyzing future business environments for ideation activities in the fuzzy front-end of innovation, to designing and implementing new technology and product development processes, to developing business strategies for emerging new businesses. Bob led transformational consulting engagements utilizing megatrend analysis with Toffler Associates, implemented new product development and portfolio management processes while with Kalypso, and developed marketing and commercialization plans for clients with Strategic Decisions Group. Complementing his consulting experience, Bob has over 12 years of experience with Fortune 100 companies including Alcoa, Chevron, and the Continental Group, mainly in corporate new venture activities and R&D centers. The speaker provided insights into stage gate process and its significance in the role of new product development. In a new product pyramid strategic excellence, portfolio excellence and development excellence are the major drivers and development excellence could be achieved by complying to stage gate process. The main objective of stage gate process is to manage pipe lines and execute pipelines. The idea would be reviewed at every gate and go or no go...
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...2/24/2015 Carolina Guerraz John Cabot University E-commerce Industry Analysis Contents Introduction 2 Industry Background 2 PEST Analysis 4 Political 4 Economic 5 Social 6 Technological 7 Michael Porter’s Five Forces Analysis 7 Threat of New Entrants 7 The Power of Suppliers 8 The Power of Buyers 8 Threat of Substitutes 9 Rivalry 9 Conclusion 9 Bibliography 11 Introduction The objective of this paper is to analyze e-commerce industry in Italy and to determine its attractiveness by applying PEST analysis and Michael Porter’s Five-Force Analysis. E-commerce is defined as the sale of products and services through computer networks. As the world changes and technology advances, firms must adapt to new trends so that new competitive advantages can become part of the industry. In e-commerce industries, information and communication technologies (ICT) and merchandise are the suppliers, online retailers are the players, and end-consumers are the buyers. After having described the e-commerce industry background and its trends, both on a global perspective and specifically in Italy, an environmental analysis will be described as a way to determine the industry attractiveness. Industry Background The e-commerce industry is one of the fastest growing industries throughout the world even though differences exist in the stage of development from country to country. According to Euromonitor, global online retail sales have increased 17% from 2007 to 2012. In addition...
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...Research paper Supply chain management integration and implementation: a literature review Damien Power Department of Management, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review a sample of the literature relating to the integration and implementation of supply chain management practices from a strategic viewpoint. Design/methodology/approach – The literature is examined from three perspectives. First, supply chain integration covers issues relating to integration of core processes across organizational boundaries through improved communication, partnerships, alliances and cooperation. Second, strategy and planning examines supply chain management as a strategic matter for trading partners, along with factors relating to the amount of planning required. Third, implementation issues concern factors critical for successful implementation, as well as issues specific to inter and intraorganizational aspects of supply chain initiatives are contained in this sub-group Findings – An important emergent theme from the literature is the importance of taking a holistic view, and the systemic nature of interactions between the participants. At the same time, it is also apparent that this requirement to take such an holistic and systemic view of the supply chain acts as an impediment to more extensive implementation. The strategic nature of adopting a supply chain wide perspective, on the one hand provides significant potential...
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...SUPPLY CHAIN UPPLY HAIN MANAGEMENT ANAGEMENT Report produced for the EC funded project INNOREGIO: dissemination of innovation and knowledge management techniques Sotiris Zigiaris, MSc, BPR engineer by BPR HELLAS SA J ANUARY 2000 1 SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT Contents 1 Description 1.1 1.1.1 1.1.2 1.1.3 1.1.4 What is the Supply Chain Management (SCM) What is the importance of Supply Chain Management Supply Chain Management Today Supply Chain Management Tomorrow The Supply Chain Management Pipeline 1.2 Objectives of the Supply Chain Management 1.3 Supply Chain principles/ Methodology and Solutions 1.3.1 Supply Chain Principles 1.3.2 Methodology of a Supply Chain Management project-solutions 1.4 Expected results/ benefits 1.4.1 Opportunity areas (examples) 1.4.2 There for the Taking 1.5 Characteristics of firms/ organisations and service providers 2 Application 2.1 Where the technique has been applied 2.1.1 How can Supply Chain Management (SCM) be applied to an organisation? 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Types of firms/ organisations where SCM can be applied Duration and implementation cost of Supply Chain Management Conditions for implementation European organisations supporting the implementation of the method 3 Implementation procedure 3.1 Steps-actions/ phases 3.1.1 Implementing a competitive approach to Warehousing and Distribution 3.2 3.3 Partial techniques and tools included in each...
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...conduct a more thorough and accurate analysis in order to have a better comprehension of the possible issues, opportunities and challenges that may occur upon entering the market. 3.3.1 The economic environment Since the 2008 global financial crisis, the South African economy has demonstrated uneven growth, with an average increase of above 2%. This is largely due to the effect of the global economy in addition to the country’s strong ties to advanced economies (Statistics South Africa n.a.). According to Schwab et al. (2013), South Africa was ranked as the 53rd most competitive country worldwide, overtaking Brazil to take second place among BRICS-countries. Regardless of some soft macro- economic indicators such as an extremely high unemployment rate (25.4%) and rising inflation (5.9%) (Trading Economics 2014), direct foreign investments (FDI) continue to flow into the county. As shown in Figure 1, South Africa is ranked as the 13thmost attractive FDI destination globally, coming ahead of Switzerland, Spain and Italy. This positive rating is a result of numerous successful large merger and acquisition (M&A) deals. Figure 1. FDI Confidence Index 2014. Ranking and Scores For instance, the British oil giant BP has announced its decision to invest $550 million in its refinery, terminal and service station retail network in South Africa. It is also partnering with Pick n Pay1 to open 120 'Pick n Pay Express' stores across the country (A.T. Kearney 2014). Furthermore, South...
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...a similar trend to reorganize business processes and the trend was called offshore outsourcing. The major driving force for offshore outsourcing are customers who wants more of everything for less money. In MIDAS Bulletin Oct-Dec 2004 publication mentioned that, “ Malaysia is among the top three contenders for offshoring business in the world according to the 2004 Offshore Location Attractiveness Index compiled by the global management consulting firm A.T. Kearney, sources were quoted. Malaysia is ranked 3rd behind India (1st) and China (2nd) but ahead of Singapore (5th), Philippines (6th) and Thailand (13th). In its report, A.T. Kearney considers Malaysia a “ natural choice” for offshore services in view of its low costs, particularly for infrastructure, the most attractive business environment among emerging markets, strong global exposure of the workforce, and government support for the information and communications technology (ICT) sector. Other significant initiatives cited by A.T. Kearney include the government’s investments in infrastructure and developing the intelligent cities of Cyberjaya and Putrajaya as part of the Multimedia Super Corridor project. Thus, numerous companies –...
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