FedEx, an international company that provides shipping by air and ground and a range of logistics and trade consulting services, must provide speed and dependability globally not only for its core businesses with customers but also in its communications with constituencies about key business objectives. Employees at FedEx work in 200 countries 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. The corporate communication function must operate in as broad a landscape with speed, high impact, and precision. Given the company’s core businesses, communication challenges can arise in many quarters–in anything from crisis management, such as managing communications in the aftermath of a plane crash or computer outage, to e-commerce initiatives, to the rapid implementation of a new business model. According to corporate vice president Bill Margaritis, the corporate communication function needs to add significant value to the business and must be fully aligned with those making high-impact strategic decisions for Continue reading
Management Case Studies
Management case studies are real-life examples of issues and problems found in particular workplaces or business organisations. Case study assignments give the opportunity to relate theoretical concepts to practical situations. Most case studies are written in such a way that the reader takes the place of the manager whose responsibility is to make decisions to help solve the problem. In almost all case studies, a decision must be made, although that decision might be to leave the situation as it is and do nothing.
Case Study: A Critical Analysis of Restructurings by Sony Corporation
Restructuring is considered to be the corporate management term of reorganizing an organisations ownership, operations, legal and other structures within in order to make the company more profitable and more organized with its needs to be successful. There are many reasons for why restructuring includes the changes of the owner ships or the organisational structure, or a reaction towards a crisis or a change such as a change in the financial position, the company becomes bankrupt or it repositions or it bought out. Sony had restructured themselves approximately five times over nine years. They have reorganized operation systems, they have restructured management teams, and they have added structures in the purpose to make profits. Due to all their problems they faced, Sony tried to correct them by changing structures and even eliminating some to try solving the problems. Sony has restructured itself firstly by restructuring of electronics business, It has Continue reading
Case Study: The International Growth of Zara
The emergence of global fashion has transformed the way fashion is perceived in the contemporary world. In the recent years, there has been a surge of global fashion brands; triggered by the intensive involvement of internationalization processes in the fashion industry. Large retailers in search of sustained growth increasingly decide to expand overseas, responding and contributing to the globalization process. Operating internationally is an increasingly common option for organisational growth. The process becomes a necessity when the domestic market shows increasing levels of competition and commercial saturation. Incidentally, there are increasing numbers of born-global companies deciding to internationalize their businesses from the beginning of their activities, regardless of the domestic market situations. The desire to benefit from the exposure of exclusive brands to foreign markets was one of the key motive for internationalization. Notwithstanding, internationalization strategies differ across retailers and also their results. During the initiation of an internationalization strategy, Continue reading
Case Study: Acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover by Tata Motors
In 2008 Tata Motors, an Indian automaker wanted to expand its product portfolio and diversify its market base. It acquired the two iconic British brands Jaguar and Land Rover from the American automaker Ford Motor Corporation. This acquisition gave the company access to premium cars, a chance to add two iconic luxury brands to its stable and a global footprint. It gave struggling Ford a chance to rid itself of two loss-making vehicle units. The deal was transformational. It catapulted Tata Motors from a commercial vehicle and small-car manufacturer to a global player with marquee brands in its portfolio. The scale of the acquisition also was large relative to the size of Tata Motors. The purchase especially that of Jaguar, by an Indian company was viewed as toppling of the world order and many critics expressed doubts about Tata’s ability to retain the quality and standard of Jaguar Land Rover. Continue reading
Case Study: Dell’s Competitive Advantage
Dell Computer is a leader in the e-commerce computer hardware market. It is an established brand that leads personal computer manufacturers both in U.S. sales and overall online sales. Its trademark method of selling products to customers, corporate and individual consumers, originates from the Dell Direct model, a Web-enabled infrastructure that allows customers to customize their PCs and order other products they need or desire. This virtual integration structure eliminates the need to manufacture everything, and instead uses the power of the Internet to share and exchange information with suppliers and vendors to build a truly superior supply chain that keeps inventory turnover low and costs to a minimum. The primary method Dell uses in order to achieve and sustain their competitive advantage is a unique, direct to customer business model. The model is known as Dell Direct, referring to the relationship between the company and its customers as being Continue reading
Case study: Tata Motor’s Acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover
Tata Motors is the largest multi-holding automobile company in India and it is the fourth largest truck producer in the world. In addition, Tata Motors is also the second largest bus producer in the world, with the revenues of US$ 8.8 billion in the financial year 2008. Since its establishment in 1945, Tata Motors has grown significantly in the past 60years with the strategies of joint venture, acquisition and launched new products in different market segments (i.e. passenger cars, commercial vehicles and utility vehicles). A significant breakthrough for Tata was the development and commercialization of the truly Indian cars and they are Tata Indica (1998) and Tata Indigo (2002). Tata Motors has experienced many joint ventures with Daimler Benz, Cummis Engine Co. Inc., and Fiat. In the year 2008, there were two most significant events which have had a momentous impact on the scale of the Company’s operations and its Continue reading