I would assume this to be considered as a high level threat because of the threat of an attack, taxations to the residents, and their persistent efforts to capture Robin Hood and his Merrymen. Suppliers would also be a high level threat because at any point those who support Robin Hood could be captured by Prince John and the Sherriff, thus cutting off supplies. The bargaining power of suppliers is high because of the kind of business Robin does; it’s illegal and therefore a high level threat to anyone who supplies to him as they could be jailed.

1) Assign a spy division or spies from some of his Merrymen, since they have a plethora of them. Robin Hood could consult with his already established lieutenants to discuss and assign to this fleet of spies. They could send them out around the sheriff’s office and around the towns village, this could encompass some of the new recruits possibly. This could also give them an advantage of always knowing where and what Prince John and the Sheriff are up to. They could try to get people from prince’s court on their payroll, acting as a spy keeping them aware of the sheriff’s and Prince’s every move. The disadvantage might be that the spies are trained very well, the prince and sheriff catch wind and these people are now jailed or punished and Robin Hood just lost good men and now the Prince and sheriff are more inclined to be cautious.

2) Maybe Robin Hood and his band of Merrymen should diversify more, turning some of the men into merchants and traders. Then they can use their power to threaten other merchants as well as the prince and sheriff. The plan could backfire and the men that that devote to becoming merchants or traders become greedy and now have become more like Prince John and the Sheriff thus perpetuating their bad behavior all financed by Robin Hood and his Merrymen.

3) They could increase their social relations with the farmers. Most of their new recruits could be farmers as it would serve as a strong economic backup and also an abundant supply of food. Also teaching some of the men to farm would ensure that there was an abundance of food for all of the Merryman in the future. The Prince and sheriff could put an end to this if they caught wind by jailing or taxing harshly all farmers because a few decide to.

A) What action steps are required to implement this action and make it work effectively?
B) How will Robin Hood's current mission, objectives, strategy, and business model need to change to if at all?

Part A - Steps: 1) Create a Business model that gives them a competitive advantage
2) Assign a division of spies, train, and implement where they will be stationed (areas that are only most beneficial for Intel) and only highly trained men.
3) Test positions for a limited period of time to see how much and how useful these positions can be.
4) If very useful, keep spies in placing while recruiting or using as a promote from within position amongst team (only the higher performers are offered these positions) which makes people not only want to join your team but stay there.
5) Implement a mission to rescue King Richard and work as his liaison for keeping fair laws throughout the villages.

B) Currently, The organizational structure of the Merrymen is that of a typical top-down management style, with Robin Hood as the CEO and a few lieutenants serving in roles that have been delegated, information gathering, discipline, finances and provisioning, the four tasks that have been delegated. Robin Hood’s personal vendetta serve as the basis for many of the problems encountered by the
Merrymen. I think this strategy could still work. Robin Hood would need to become more organized and his mission may fluctuate a bit but will stay within the realm of being a do- gooder.