Sam Walton, a leader with an innovative vision, started his own company and made it into the leader in discount retailing that it is today. Through his savvy, and sometimes unusual, business practices, he and his associates led the company forward for thirty years. Today, four years after his death, the company is still growing steadily. Wal-Mart executives continue to rely on many of the traditional goals and philosophies that Sam’s legacy left behind, while simultaneously keeping one step ahead of the ever-changing technology and methods of today’s fast-paced business environment. The organization has faced, and is still facing, a significant amount of controversy over several different issues; however, none of these have done much more than scrape the exterior of this gigantic operation. The future also looks bright for Wal-Mart, especially if it is able to strike a comfortable balance between increasing its profits and recognizing its social and Continue reading
Business Strategies
Case Study: Lenovo’s “PC Plus” Strategy
Lenovo is the largest personal computers (PC) maker in the world as ranked by IDC, but global PC market is a hyper-competitive market with tough competition from competitors like HP, DELL and Acer. The industry also suffers from low profit margins too where Lenovo’s profit margin is around 2% only compared to Apple’s profit margin of 25-30%. Also the PC market itself is declining as consumers are buying more tablets and smartphones which is affecting the sales of desktop computers and laptops. All these factors have pushed Lenovo to adopt a new business strategy called as “PC Plus” Strategy, which covers terminal products like PCs, smart phones, table PCs and smart TVs. Lenovo’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility’s handset and tablet business from Google, following its acquisition of IBM’s x86 server business, puts the company exactly where it wants to be: at the forefront of the computing and smart devices businesses. Continue reading
Case Study: Cadbury Crisis Management (Worm Controversy)
In India chocolate consumption was very low in the early 90’s but as the decade advanced the consumption drastically increased. The late 90’s witnessed a good chocolate market condition. The chocolate market in India is dominated by two multinational companies — Cadbury and Nestle. The national companies – Amul and Campco are other candidates in this race. Cadbury holds more than 70% of the total share of the market. Nestle has emerged by holding almost 20% of the total share. Apart from chocolate segment, there is also a big confectionery segment which is flooded by companies like Parry’s, Ravalgaon, Candico and Nutrine. All these are leading national players. The multinational companies like the Cadbury, Nestle and Perfetti are the new entrants in the sugar confectionery market. (Management paradise) There are several others which have a minor share in these two segments. According to statistics, the chocolate consumption in India is Continue reading
Case Study: Intel’s Social Media Strategy
Intel is one of the most foremost American global technology companies and the world’s largest semiconductor chip producer, in term of revenue. It is the inventor of the x86 series of microprocessors where its processors nowadays can be seen in a various computing devices used. The company was founded in 1968, as Integrated Electronics Corporation with home-based in Santa Clara, California, USA. Intel also manufactures motherboard chipsets, integrated circuits, graphic chips, network interface controllers, and other communications and computing utility devices. Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore and widely cooperated with the executive leadership Andrew Grove initially founded the company. The company grew and later started integrating an advanced chip design with a leading capability support manufacturing. The company started its prominent advertising campaign with Intel’s “Intel Inside” in the 1990s and made its Pentium brand names as the home-used processor. The company is everywhere in the digital social media – Continue reading
Case Study of Zara: Sustainability in Fast Fashion Industry
Established in 1975, Zara is one of the most successful retailers of today’s world. Their clear focus and vision has made them to tap the power of the fashion. Operating in 62 different countries it has nearly around 2500 stores all over the world. Zara under the flagship of Inditex, (a holding company located in Northwest Spain) is a fashion imitator, it comprehends what its customer’s desire and then designs and manufactures according to their expectations. Zara’s business working model is quite diverse from the other retailers; this makes them set out in the market. It has promoted the message of high fashion at a lesser cost across all countries through its unique and different selling techniques. The Sustainability of Zara Understanding and comparing the Business strategy of Inditex and its major competitor will help in understanding the sustainability of Zara in the international apparel market. Gap which is one Continue reading
Concept of Industry Shakeout
Industry Shakeout marks a discontinuity or turning point, as the industry goes through a major upheaval. Some of the greatest risks which companies face are during times when the industry is witnessing a shake-out. An industry shakeout occurs when the rate of industry growth slows down as demand approaches saturation levels. A saturated market is one where there are few first-time buyers left. Most of the demand is limited to replacement demand. As an industry enters the shakeout stage, rivalry between companies becomes intense, with excess productive capacity and severe price discounting. Many firms exit the industry at this point. Industry shakeout provides an opportunity for those firms that are dedicated to success in this particular industry to consolidate their power, often by acquiring the assets of firms exiting the industry. At the growth stage of industry life cycle, a company should try to grow in pace with the growth Continue reading