American International Group, Inc is a company whose operation began back in 1919. It was established back then by Cornelius Vander Starr as an insurance agency in Shanghai, China. AIG left china in 1949 after Starr had established himself as the westerner the sell insurance to the Chinese people. AIG headquarters then shifted from china to New York City, which is still the headquarters up to date. It is from here that AIG began its expansion tapping into other markets such as the Latin America, Asia, Middle East and Europe through use of its subsidiaries. It was in 1962 when Starr transferred management of AIG United states holdings to Maurice R. Greenberg. Greenberg introduced policies that made the company shift from its original personal insurance background to anew high market corporate targeted cover. The new management under Greenberg went on to focus mainly on selling AIGs’ insurance packages through independent 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: MasterCard’s Business Model
What is MasterCard? But what does MasterCard exactly do? It provides credit, debit, and prepaid cards from over 25,000 financial institutions. However, MasterCard is primarily a credit card company and specializes in the innovation of these cards throughout the world. It is a also a payment solutions company and through its three tiered business model as franchisor, processor and adviser, the company has developed a new world for its card holders and merchants. The company provides marketing, approval, and transaction services for a variety of payment products in more than 210 countries and territories. Regardless of the type of card, all of them act under the “four-party” payment system. Under this system there are obviously four types of people, the card holder, the issuing bank, the merchant, and the acquiring bank. First, the issuing bank provides their customer with a card that they market and issue throughout their locations. Then Continue reading
Case Study: Zara’s Operational Model
Founded in 1975, ZARA, a Spanish clothing and accessories retailer was originally the brainchild of the Inditex Group owned by Amancio Ortega. Headquartered in A Coruña, Galicia, Spain, Inditex is the world’s largest fashion retailer with ZARA as its international flagship chain store. Beginning with the single store in Spain to the recent launch into Australia, ZARA currently has over 1,700 stores in 78 countries providing exclusive fashion worldwide. ZARA, alone accounted for 64.6% of the Inditex group turnover in 2010. Over time, it has become one of the notable leaders amongst the fashion brands. ZARA was described by Louis Vuitton fashion director, Daniel Piette as “possibly the most innovative and devastating retailer in the world” and CNN described the brand as a “Spanish’s success story” Zara’s Operational Model Shifting from “mass standardization” to “customization” on a global scale is the most interesting aspect of the Zara’s business model. The Continue reading
Case Study of Dupont: Marketing of “Disappearing” Products
Imagine how tough it would be to be responsible for marketing a “disappearing” product. That’s the challenge faced by a group of marketers at DuPont, a company with a portfolio of brands that, for the most part, reach final consumers only as ingredients in finished products. Teflon non-stick coating, Lycra fibers, Freon refrigerant, Kevlar bullet-resistant fabric, Stainmaster carpet–these well-known DuPont products share the distinction of being used in the manufacture of products that ultimately bear some other company’s brand. Jamie Murray, the person in charge of managing what people think of the overall DuPont brand, doesn’t mind marketing products that can’t be found on store shelves or ordered from catalogs. “We are the youngest 200 year-old company you will ever meet. We are always out there searching for those needs that we can invent something to satisfy.” The company’s slogan, “better things for better living,” hints broadly at the variety Continue reading
Case Study: Nestle’s Growth Strategy
Nestle is one of the oldest of all multinational businesses. The company was founded in Switzerland in 1866 by Heinrich Nestle, who established Nestle to distribute “milk food,” a type of infant food he had invented that was made from powdered milk, baked food, and sugar. From its very early days, the company looked to other countries for growth opportunities, establishing its first foreign offices in London in 1868. In 1905, the company merged with the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk, thereby broadening the company’s product line to include both condensed milk and infant formulas. Forced by Switzer land’s small size to look outside’ its borders for growth opportunities, Nestle established condensed milk and infant food processing plants in the United States and Britain in the late 19th century and in Australia, South America, Africa, and Asia in the first three decades of the 20th century. In 1929, Nestle moved into the Continue reading
Case Study: General Electrics “Imagination At Work” Ad Campaign
Throughout its history General Electric Co. enjoyed the benefits of a consistent marketing message. From the 1930s to the 1950s the company relied on the slogan ‘‘Live better electrically,’’ which was followed by two decades of variations on the word ‘‘progress,’’ such as ‘‘Progress is our most important product.’’ In 1979 GE unveiled ‘‘We bring good things to life,’’ a cornerstone to one of the most successful corporate branding campaigns in history, backed by about $1 billion in advertising. The company also had consistent leadership in the form of John F. ‘‘Jack’’ Welch, who became chairman and CEO in 1981. The charismatic leader sought to build up GE’s status in all of the technology, service, and manufacturing areas that the company participated in. By the time Welch announced that he would retiring in 2001, GE, fast growing and profitable, had a market capitalization of $505 billion, making it second only Continue reading