Strategy is considered as one of the interesting and engaging subject to discuss in business management schools. The strategy can be described or can be explained as a detail and systematic plan of particular action that has to be performed when it is required or when a requirement is envisaged. Different types of strategic problems form part of the strategic management process. Is it necessary for the companies or the organizations to focus more on the market share or focus on the revenue capital of the company or the organization? What are the plans and the processes required and necessary for the organization to focus on as to reach its goal and to reach the market shares? The great authors of Strategy Safari like Henry Mintzberg, Bruce Ahlstrand, and Joseph Lampel have explained strategies in their own words with their experiences. The strategy is explained in different approaches which includes Continue reading
Strategic Management
Strategic management is the art and science of formulating, implementing and evaluating cross-functional decisions that will enable an organization to achieve its objectives. It involves the systematic identification of specifying the firm’s objectives, nurturing policies and strategies to achieve these objectives, and acquiring and making available these resources to implement the policies and strategies to achieve the firm’s objectives. Strategic management, therefore, integrates the activities of the various functional sectors of a business, such as marketing, sales, production etc. , to achieve organizational goals. It is generally the highest level of managerial activity, usually initiate by the board of directors and executed by the firm’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and executive team.
Technology Adoption Life Cycle
Geoffrey Moore, An American organizational theorist, management consultant and author, in his books Crossing the Chasm (1991) and Inside the Tornado (1995), draws on marketing theory and high-tech experience to describe the elements of the product life cycle for technology innovations. His work examines how communities respond to discontinuous innovations – or any new products or services that require the end user in the marketplace to dramatically change their past behavior. He describes how companies must position their products differently through the cycle to reach their full sales potential and become an industry standard instead of a novelty. Many new technologies start along a classic new product diffusion curve, but fail soon thereafter. Through the various phases of the technology adoption life cycle, very different strategies for product and service offering and positioning are called for. The basis of the technology adoption life cycle is similar to the Continue reading
Merger Approaches
Irrespective of the type of merger, there are at least two firms involved. One, the buying company that acquires the other company, and survives after merger. This firm is known as an acquiring firm or transferee company. The other is the company, which is merged and loses its identity in the process. This is called the acquired company, or transferor company or the target firm. There are various modes in which the acquiring firm can attempt a merger move and therefore, merger can also be classified on the basis of initiative style or the procedure adopted by the acquiring firm. The most important merger approaches are as follows: 1. Negotiated Merger It is also called friendly merger. In this case, the management/owners of both the firms sit together and negotiate for merger. The acquiring firm negotiates directly with the management of the target firm. So, the willingness of the management Continue reading
The Role of HRM in Developing Organizational Strategy
Human Resource Management (HRM) business strategy emphasizes the importance of individual relationships against collective relations between managers or managers and workers. Human Resource Management (HRM) refers to an activity that depends less on hierarchies, orders and mandates, and stresses the importance of active participation of all employees of the company. The aim is to foster a cooperative relationship between management and workers to prevent frequent clashes resulting from a traditional hierarchical relationship. When HRM is working properly, employees are committed to long-term goals of the organization, allowing it to adapt better to changes in markets. Human Resource Management (HRM) involves taking a range of measures which include: the commitment of employees with corporate objectives, the payment of wages according to productivity of each employee, fair treatment to them, continuing vocational training and link procurement policy to other aspects of organizing work and production, marketing and sales. Some companies carry out Continue reading
Selection of the Target Firm and it’s Valuing in Acquisitions
Once a firm has an acquisition motive, there are two key questions that need to be answered. The first relates to how to best identify a potential target firm for an acquisition, given the motives. The second is the more concrete question of how to value a target firm. Choosing a Target Firm Once a firm has identified the reason for its acquisition program, it has to find the appropriate target firm. If the motive for acquisitions is under valuation, the target firm must be under valued. How such a firm will be identified depends upon the valuation approach and model used. With relative valuation, an under valued stock is one that trades at a multiple (of earnings, book value or sales) well below that of the rest of the industry, after controlling for significant differences on fundamentals. Thus, a bank with a price to book value ratio of 1.2 Continue reading
Grand Strategy Matrix
The Grand Strategy Matrix has become a popular tool for formulating feasible strategies, along with the SWOT Analysis, SPACE Matrix, BCG Matrix, and IE Matrix. Grand strategy matrix is the instrument for creating alternative and different strategies for the organization. All companies and divisions can be positioned in one of the Grand Strategy Matrix’s four strategy quadrants. The Grand Strategy Matrix is based on two dimensions: competitive position and market growth. Data needed for positioning SBUs in the matrix is derived from the portfolio analysis. This matrix offers feasible strategies for a company to consider which are listed in sequential order of attractiveness in each quadrant of the matrix. Quadrant I (Strong Competitive Position and Rapid Market Growth) – Firms located in Quadrant I of the Grand Strategy Matrix are in an excellent strategic position. The first quadrant refers to the firms or divisions with strong competitive base and operating Continue reading