...CHAPTER 2 THE CONTEXT OF MANAGING STRATEGICALLY DESCRIBE THE DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES ON COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE A. Managing strategically means formulating and implementing strategies that allow an organization to develop and maintain competitive advantage. B. Competitive advantage is what sets an organization apart or its competitive edge. 1. Having something that competitors don't 2. Doing something better than other organizations do 3. Doing something other organizations can't C. Competitive advantage is a key ingredient for long-term success and survival of all organizations, including not-for-profits and governments. 4. Failure can be traced to: a) Failure to recognize the impact of important external factors b) Failure to capitalize on organizational resources and capabilities D. Represent different perspectives on what it takes to capture competitive advantage—that is, how to manage strategically (refer to Table 2.1). 5. Industrial Organization View (I/O) The industrial organization (I/O) view suggests organizations look at the impact of important external factors. Focus is on: a) The structural forces within an industry b) The competitive environment (i.e., the firm's position within the industry) c) How these influence competitive advantage 1) Firm’s position in the industry and the underlying industry characteristics will, determine profitability...
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...responsible for managing product placement within a local supermarket. Our shelving units have 6 shelves each and are numbered from 1 to 6—with 1 being the lowest shelf and proceeding upward until the highest shelf is assigned the number 6. While there are many placement options that we should consider, we decide to look for any correlations between the row a product is placed on and its sales. Since we have our data stored in a data warehouse, it is easily accessible and responds quickly to our data request. Consider each of the following: · What judgments can you make regarding the placement of each type of product being considered? Answer - I think that we are more likely to place those items that are in higher demand by customers and those items that the company wants to generate the greatest profit from on the shelves that have the best sales · What is the consequence of making the wrong choice? Answer - Profit decreases, inventory doesn’t turn over · What types of products do you think each of the product groupings represent? Answer - Most likely to sell/greatest profitability to least likely to sell/lowest profitability · What target markets can you associate with each product group? Answer - ? Problem 2: Market Basket Analysis: Association Analysis Example 1: Our data mining program has performed association analysis and has generated a listing of items that are typically purchased together. Two sets of items currently have...
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...due to the rapidly aging population resulting from the baby-boom after World War II. While the CAGR of dollar stores was forecasted to slow to 6.2% during 2005-2009, the actual decrease is likely to be smaller as more consumers try to stretch their dollars further through these retail outlets because of the global economic downturn of 2008. Industry Analysis Dollar General (DG) operates as an extreme-value retailer in the dollar store segment of the retail industry. Other categories that dollar stores fall under are single-price-point retailers, close-out retailers, and limited assortment grocery retailers. These retailers often operate in a small-box format offering a focused assortment of goods. This combined segment achieved significant growth starting in the 1990’s because of a shift in their product mix. Much of DG’s growth during this period resulted from adding household and highly consumable products at everyday low prices (EDLP) in addition...
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...was the result of their reaction? 4.What should the organization have done ? 5.Identify significant symptoms and root causes ? 6. What must they now do to rectify the issues ? Summary : Faced of declining revenues (an average of 8% per year for the past three years), shrinking market share (an average of 3 % per year for the past five years) and an increasingly competitive market (with an average increase of 20% in automotive stores over the past three years). the management of Sears, failed to raise their level of thinking to the Explore, Discover and Design phase of the Model. Instead they implemented a series of policies and procedures which gave pressure to bringing sales lead to the motivate of employees that misleading and selling unnecessary parts and services to the customers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Answer ISSUE STATEMENT : Facing an average of 8% per year decline on revenues for the past three years, shrinking market share of 3% per year for the past 5 years, as well as the increasing number of competitors, the management of Sear roebuck & co. had failed to think critically and strategically in order to come up with a new, suitable plan but spurring performance of its employees via a flawed incentive compensation scheme which resulted in misleading and selling customer unnecessary goods. 1. Due to the face of declining revenues (an average of 8% per year...
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...IMPLEMENTING A CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP IMPLEMENTING A CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME IN AN EMERGING MARKET Adele Berndt, Frikkie Herbst, and Lindie Roux1 ABSTRACT Retail financial services in all markets, including emerging markets, are undergoing major transformation, driven by change, deregulation and customer sophistication. Customer service and specifically relationship management, in particular, are crucial to attaining a sustainable competitive advantage in the marketplace. The implementation of a one-to-one programme within an emerging economy is the focus of this paper, specifically in the financial services environment. The steps in the implementation of CRM as proposed by Peppers, Rogers and Dorf (1999b) are examined and the effect on customer service in an emerging market is investigated. The findings indicate that there are positive associations with these steps and customer service. INTRODUCTION Changes in customer expectations can be identified throughout the world. Customer relationship management (CRM) strategies have become increasingly important worldwide due to these changes in expectations from customers as well as changes in the nature of markets. Changes have been noted across the world, but opportunities present themselves in South Africa and other developing countries for CRM strategies. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a managerial philosophy that seeks to build long term relationships with customers. CRM can be defined as...
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...edu EXECUTIVE SUMMARY "Market orientation," may actually encompass several different approaches to the strategic alignment of the organization with the external environment. This article develops a market orientation typology matrix as a pedagogical and heuristic tool to summarize these distinct approaches. Specifically, firms can decide to focus primarily on either competitors or customers as the situation dictates, or perhaps attempt the difficult task of simultaneously monitoring both with equal emphasis. The proposed matrix includes four distinct approaches to market orientation: "customer preoccupied," "marketing warriors," "strategically integrated," and "strategically inept". Firms which emphasize customer-focused intelligence gathering activities at the expense of competitor information may be classified as "customer preoccupied". Because the marketing concept promotes putting the interests of customers first, many researchers consider a customer-focus to be the most fundamental aspect of market orientation. Because the marketing concept encourages a business to be forward looking, a customer-focused business is likely to be more interested in long-term business success as opposed to short-term profits. Firms that emphasize competitors in their external market analyses have been labeled "marketing warriors". Using target rivals as a frame of reference, competitor-focused firms seek to identify their own strengths and weaknesses and to keep pace with or stay ahead of the...
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...Attractive markets[3] Framework for choice of markets[2] Low High Gradual Entry Rapid Entry High Disregard for now Establish a reasonable foothold Low Strategic importance of the market Firm’s determination to enter the market It is important that the firm has the ability to exploit the markets, which means it has to be willing to take (reasonable) risks. Strategic markets change over time, not long ago North America and Europe were the first choice, but as we can see Africa and Asia are now taking over that position. Factors impacting market attractiveness[4] Examples “Deloitte announces significant investment in strategic markets: Additional US$750 million over next three years”[5] “India is a strategically important market for us: David Redfern, GSK Plc”[6] “Emerging Markets Strategically Important For Unilever Despite High Inflation”[7] “Emerging...
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...sellers and now moving into providing web technology infrastructure development. The business model core of the company is a 'customer-centric' long term market leadership continually providing the lowest prices possible and wider selection in order to continually improve the customer experience. Amazon's Long Tail strategy relies on three pillars, all supported by its continual commitment to innovation and investing in the future: - selection: Amazon provides the widest selection of products from retail products to software and Cloud Computing offerings. - price: Amazon is committed to price leadership with no sacrifice to quality. - convenience: Amazon strives to continually 'please' its customers by offering customer review and feedback forms on all of its product. In order to fulfill the customer experience, the company opened strategically located centers in a number of cities in North America, Europe and Asia, often near airports and recruits 'tightly' around their need to service the customer, strengthening its management team with senior managers from a variety of companies such as Wal-Mart, Apple, Delta Airlines and Microsoft. Moreover Amazon invests continually in technological innovation, improving efficiency thus lowering operating costs and enabling the company to offer lower prices to customers and invests heavily in R&D to improve customer experience. Its best competency was to build a...
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...1. How do you manage your supply chain? * Close relationship with customer * Subcontracting * Plan strategically * Few suppliers * Many suppliers 2. How successful do you think is your company in managing its supply chain in general? * Not Successful at all * Not Successful * Somewhat Successful * Successful * Very Successful 3. Which of the following you think that your company needs to do in order to manage its supply chain better? | Improve | Start implementing | Satisfied already | Not appropriate | Close partnership with supplier | | | * | | Close partnership with customer | | | | | JIT supply | | | | | E- procurement | | * | | | EDI | | * | | | Outsourcing | | | | | 3PL | | | | | Plan strategically | | | | | Supply chain benchmarking | | | | | Vertical integration | | | | | Few suppliers | | | * | | Many suppliers | | | * | | Holding safety stock | | | | | Use of external consultant | | | | | Other specify | | | | | 4. Does your company have a separate logistics department? * Yes * No 5. Does your company have a clear logistics strategic plan? * Yes * No 6. What types of system are currently in use in your company to support supply chain management? | Custom made | Standard package | Not in use | Material requirements planning(MRP) | | * | | Manufacturing Resources Planning(MRPII)...
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...how customers perceive marketing strategies is significant because it is usually used in determining if marketing strategies employed by companies are effective and if they translate into what customers expect from products and services that they patronize. Specifically, the following will also benefit much from the study: Methods and Procedure This chapter presents the methods that the researchers will use in the study. It also describe the subjects of the study, the instruments used, the procedure of data gathering, and the statistical treatment of data. This study will determine the comparative assessment of the respondents of J.Co and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. INTRODUCTION Statement of the Problem This study aimed to compare the customers’ perception on the marketing strategies of J.Co Donuts & Coffee and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. It specifically aimed to answer the following problems: 1. What is the demographic profile of the respondents in terms of: 1.1 Age, 1.2 Gender, 1.3 Civil status, 1.4 Monthly income or allowance. 2. How do the customers perceive the marketing mix strategies of J.Co Donuts & Coffee and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts in terms of: 2.1 Product, 2.2 Price, 2.3 Place, 2.4 Promotion, and 2.5 People? 3. How do the marketing strategies of J.Co Donuts & Coffee and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts compare in terms of: 3.1 Product, 3.2 Price, 3.3 Place, 3.4 Promotion, and 3.5 People? 4. What are the problems encountered by the customer respondents...
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...by day. The management is required to optimally deploy its resources for enhancing profitability and growth of business. The need of minimizing to vulnerability of depending on single market is also crucial and required business expansion in different regions. It is therefore necessary for the management of the bank to strategically utilize its limited resources so that the growth of the bank can be maintained in the competitive environment. The role of management practices is crucial in ensuring the business growth but necessary to be aligned with the rapidly changing behavior of market. It was highlighted by Charles Hill & Dr. Jones (2007; pp. 335) that management enhances its skills for exploring new business opportunities and deploys its resources to fulfil the needs of market. In this regard the strategy of business is also required to be appropriate so that it can enable the management to attain its goals. These measures particularly enhance the management skills through which the influence of market environment on operations can be ascertained. It is therefore crucial for the management to adopt appropriate strategy because it helps in strategically managing the operations of bank. Through strategic management practices the growth of bank can be instigated in the market. In this project, strategic management practices of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are explored. 2. Research Questions The research questions facilitates in conducting the research work. The...
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...Development Paper: IKEA * Joe Purdoff CMB 533 Human Resource Strategies June 18, 2012 IKEA is at the top of the world’s leading furniture retailers, and has set new standards for competitiveness in household furnishings. The company has achieved this position by redefining the roles and interactions between the firm and its customers. Founded in 1943 by a poor Swedish farmer named Ingvar Kamprad, IKEA is now one of the largest furniture retailers in the world. From its inception, Kamprad wanted to create cheap, quality furniture that everyone could afford. This formula led to IKEA’s early success in Sweden and has carried over until today. IKEA's positive HR policies have supported a strong and nurturing culture that promotes diversity and creativity. To its customers, IKEA is not just a store but a way of life, which is evident through the impressive customer loyalty the company has achieved. IKEA has also been able to build a solid labor force that has helped meet the demands of its shoppers and create products that meet those demands at a reasonable price. IKEA products are sold at unique stores that serve strategically important, geographic markets. This paper examines the factors that have made IKEA such a big success and offers some recommendations for future growth. Today, IKEA has 332 stores in thirty-eight countries. In fiscal year 2010, it sold $23.1 billion worth of goods, a 7.7 percent increase over 2009 (Wikipedia). Revenues for IKEA double...
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...increasing global mobility, organization culture must shift to become forward-looking organizations. That is organizations which must rethink their approach to talent management to best attract talent. By doing so, this will result in organizations being positively positioned to succeed in a highly competitive marketplace. In addition, organizational culture, employee engagement and leadership development have a significant impact on talent retention. Taking these factors into consideration, what will develop will be an integrated approach to talent management which offers a pathway toward sustaining achievable, outstanding business results. Competitive Advantage Home Depot realized that in order to have and to maintain a competitive advantage its HR had to add more value to its corporation. With this mindset Home Depot realized that its organizational talent must be situated strategically to gain the competitive advantage needed to not only gain, but maintain a competitive advantage in the industry. Critical thinking along with logic would have the organization to strategically decide the best way to be innovative and to...
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...3. Performance Management System (PMS), its Design and Implementation for Achieving Strategic Advantage Introduction PMS are strategically vital to any given organisation to succeed in their strategic human resource management because they are the key makers that integrate organisational objectives, business plans, people and all other human resource systems in achieving its required goals. HRM is about deployment, engagement, development and training of employees to reach their full potentials. To measure their rate of improvement, we need the performance management systems to measure their performance. Without measuring these we cannot manage their progress. Philbeam and Corbridge (2002) believes that PMS helps organisations to develop performance culture where employers continuously observe different business processes in order to maximise their work superiority and often review their competencies to determine their personal development needs. Therefore any PMS must fully be integrated in the organisation’s objectives, its corporate strategies, culture and structure. On the other hand Bevan & Thompson (1992) defines PMS as a system that provides the departmental/business unit and individual performance targets that are drawn from the wider organisational objectives. PMS evolved from management by objective (MBO) which aims at improving profitability and growth by focusing on improving managerial effectiveness, moral and motivation. PMS is ‘a strategy which...
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... The major functions of channels for amazon includes: 1. Order Processing 2. Warehousing 3. Inventory Management 4. Transportation Amazon is known for its strategically located distribution facilities. Amazon Seller Services India Pvt Ltd have five Fulfillment Centres (FCs) in Delhi, Chennai, Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Tauru (outskirts of Gurgaon). All these FCs have been strategically placed to cater to high density areas (Metros) and also they are generally placed on the outskirts of the city, thereby reducing on the rental costs. Distribution channels for amazon: Online channel: It has a significant cost benefit over other traditional distribution channels. The online channel for amazon includes: * E-Books-Kindle reader: Downloadable books for online reading. * AmazonMP3 & Cloud Player * Instant Video: Allows for Buffering and downloading of music from the records of EMI, Warnerbros, Sony & Universal * Mac Dowload store: Provides software and apps for apple products * AppStore for Android * Amazon Cloud drive: Provides cloud services for small businesses * Amazon Game Studios & Software: Various games and softwares can be downloaded through Amazon Game Studios. Physical channel: Amazon has centralized distribution centres that are strategically placed. Amazon has almost doubled its total storage capacity to over half million square feet, offering world-class fulfillment services to thousands of retailers and small...
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