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Page 1: 2. Understanding Strategies

2. Understanding

StrategiesChapter 2.

1

Page 2: 2. Understanding Strategies

2. Management control

systems and strategies

Management control systems are tools to implement strategies.

Strategies differ between organizations, and their systems should be tailored to the requirements of specific strategies.

Different strategies require

different task priorities;

different key success factors; and

different skills, perspectives, and behaviors.

Thus, a continuing concern in the design of controlsystems should be whether the behavior inducedby the system is the one called for by the strategy.

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2.1. Goals

Although we often refer to the goals of a Corporation, a Corporation does not have goals;

Corporate is an artificial being with no mind or decision-making ability of its own.

Corporate goals are determined by the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Corporation,

with the advice of other members of seniormanagement,

and they are usually ratified by the board of directors.

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2.1.1. Profitability

In a business, profitability is usually the most important goal.

Profitability is expressed, by an equation that is the product of two ratios:

= ROI

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2.1.1. Example

The first ratio in this equation is the profit

margin percentage:

($10,000 - $9,500)/$10,000 = 5%

The second ratio is the investment turnover:

$10,000/$4,000 = 2.5 times

If we consider the value of the whole business

as an investment, the formula is the same as

the ROA

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2.1.1. 1Investment

“Investment” refers to the shareholders’ investment,

which consists of proceeds from the issuance of stock, plus retained earnings

One of management’s responsibilities is to arrive at the right balance between the two main sources of financing:

debt and equity.

The shareholders’ investment (i.e., equity) is the amount of financing that was not obtained by debt(by borrowing)

For many purposes, the source of financing is not relevant;

„Investment” thus means the total of debt capitaland equity capital.

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“Profitability” refers to profits in the long run,

rather than in the current quarter or year.

Many current expenditures (e.g., amounts

spent on advertising or research and

development)

reduce current profits but increase profits

over time.

2.1.1. Profitability7

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2.1.1. Examples 1.

Some CEOs stress only part of the profitability

equation.

Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric

Company, explicitly focused just on revenue;

he stated that General Electric should not be in

any business in which its sales revenues were

not the largest or the second largest of any

company in that business

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2.1.1. Examples 2

Other CEOs, however, emphasize revenuesfor a different reason:

For them, company size is a goal.

Such a priority can lead to problems.

If expenses are too high,

the profit margin will not give shareholdersa good return on their investment.

Even if the profit margin is satisfactory,

the organization may still not earn a goodreturn if the investment is too large.

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2.1.1. Examples 3

Some CEOs focus on profit either

as a monetary amount or

as a percentage of revenue.

This focus does not recognize the simple

fact, that

if additional profits are obtained by a

greater-than-proportional increase in

investment,

each dollar of investment has earned less

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2.1.2. Maximizing Shareholder Value

In the 1980s and 1990s the term shareholdervalue appeared frequently in the business literature.

This concept is that the appropriate goal of a for-profit Corporation is to maximizeshareholder value.

Although the meaning of this term, it probablyrefers to the market price of the corporation’sstock.

Achieving satisfactory profit is a better way ofstating a corporation’s goal, for two reasons:

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2.1.2. Maximizing Shareholder Value

First, “maximizing”means that there is a way of finding the maximum amount that a company can earn. This is not the case.

In deciding between two courses of action,

management usually selects the one it believes will increase profitability the most.

But management rarely, if ever, identifiesall the possible alternatives and theirspective effects on profitability.

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2.1.2. Maximizing Shareholder Value

Furthermore, profit maximization requires that marginal costs and a demand curve be calculated,

and managers usually do not know what these are!!!

If maximization were the goal,

managers would spend every workinghour (and many sleepless nights) thinking about endless alternatives for increasing profitability.

Life is generally considered to be too short to warrant such an effort….

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Second, although optimizing shareholder value may be a major goal, it is by no means the only goal for most organizations.

Certainly a business that does not earn a profit atleast equal to its cost of capital is not doing its job;

unless it does so, it cannot discharge any other responsibilities.

But

economic performance is not the soleresponsibility of a business,

nor is shareholder value.

Most managers want to behave ethically, and most feel an obligation to other stakeholders in the organization in addition to shareholders.

2.1.2. Maximizing Shareholder Value14

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Maximizing Shareholder Value

By rejecting the maximization concept, it does not mean to question the validity of certain obvious principles.

1. A course of action that decreases expenseswithout affecting another element, such as marketshare, is sound.

2. So is a course of action that increases expenseswith a greater-than-proportional increase in revenues, Such as expanding the advertisingbudget.

3. So, too, are actions that increase profit with a less than proportional increase in shareholderinvestment (or, of course, with no such increase at all), such as purchasing a cost-saving machine.

These principles assume, in all cases, that the courseof action is ethical and consistent with the corporation’s other goals.

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2.1.3. Risk

An organization’s aspiration of profitability is

affected by management’s willingness to

take risks.

The degree of risk-taking varies with the

personalities of individual managers.

Nevertheless, there is always an upper limit;

some organizations explicitly state that

management’s primary responsibility is to preserve

the company’s assets,

The profitability is considered as a secondary goal.

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2.1.4. Multiple Stakeholder Approach

Organizations participate in three markets:

1. the Capital market,

2. the product market, and

3. the factor market.

1. A firm raises funds in the Capital market,

the public stockholders are therefore an important actors

2. The firm sells its goods and services in the Productmarket,

and customers form a key actors

3. It competes for resources such as human capitaland raw materials in the Factor market,

and the prime actors are the company’s employees

and suppliers and the various communities in which the resources and the company’s operations are located

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The firm has a responsibility to all these

multiple stakeholders:

shareholders, customers, employees,

suppliers, and communities.

Ideally, its management control system should

identify

the goals for each of these groups

and develop scorecards to track

performance

2.1.4. Multiple Stakeholder Approach18

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2.2. The Concept of Strategy

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2.2. Strategy

Although definitions differ, there is general

agreement that a strategy describes the

general direction in which an organization

plans to move to attain its goals.

Every well-managed organization has one

or more strategies, although they may not

be stated explicitly.

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2.2. Strategy formulation

A firm develops its strategies by matching its

core competencies with industry opportunities.

Strategy formulation is a process that senior

executives use to evaluate

a company’s strengths and weaknesses in light

of the opportunities and threats present in the

environment

and then to decide on strategies

that fit the company’s core competencies with

environmental opportunities

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2.2. Strategy formulation22

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2.2. Strategies at two levels

Strategies can be found at two levels:

1. strategies for a whole organization,

2. strategies for business units within the

organization

Although strategic choices are different at

different hierarchical levels, there is a clear

need for consistency in strategies across

business unit and corporate levels.

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2.2. Two Levels of Strategy24

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2.3. Corporate-Level

Strategy

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Corporate Controlling 126

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Corporate Controlling 227

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Corporate controlling 3 28

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Essence of controlling of the enterprise's

activities29

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Tasks of controlling30

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2.3. Corporate strategy

Corporate strategy is about being in the right mix of businesses.

It is concerned more with the question of where to compete than with how to compete in a particularindustry;

At the corporate level, the issues are

(1) the definition of businesses in which the firm will participate and

(2) the deployment of resources among those businesses.

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2.3. Corporate strategy

Corporatewide strategic analysis results in

decisions involving

businesses to add,

businesses to retain,

businesses to emphasize,

businesses to deemphasize, and

businesses to divest

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2.3. Corporate strategyIn terms of their corporate-level strategy,

companies can be classified into one of threecategories.

1. A single industry firm operates in one line of business.

2. An unrelated business firm operates in businesses that are not related to one another; the connection between business units is purely financial.

3. A related diversified firm operates in severalindustries, and the business units benefit from a common set of core competencies

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2.3. Corporate strategy

1. A single industry:

Exxon-Mobil, which is in the petroleum industry, is an example.

2. An unrelated business firm Textron is an example.

Textron operates in businesses as diverse as writinginstruments, helicopters, chain saws, aircraftengine components, forklifts, machine tools, specialty fasteners, and gas turbine engines

3. A related diversified firm :

Procter & Gamble (P&G) is an example of a relateddiversified firm

P&G has two core competencies that benefit all of its business units:

(1) core skills in several chemical technologies and

(2) marketing and distribution expertise in low-ticketbranded consumer products moving through supermarkets

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2.3. Corporate strategy

One axis: extent of diversification relates to the

number of industries in which the company operates.

Refers to

the

nature of

linkages

across

the

multiple

business

units.

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2.3.1. Single Industry Firms

At one extreme, the company may be totally

committed to one industry.

Firms that pursue a single industry strategy include

Maytag (major household appliances), Wrigley

(chewing gum), Perdue Farms (poultry), and NuCor

(steel).

A single industry firm uses its core competencies to

pursue growth within that industry.

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2.3.2.Unrelated Diversified Firms

(conglomerates)

At the other extreme, there are firms, such as Textron, that operate in a number of different industries.

Here we refer to operating synergies across businesses based on common core competencies and on sharing of common resources.

In the case of Textron, except for financialtransactions, its business units have little in common.

There are few operating synergies acrossbusiness units within Textron

Textron headquarters functions like a holdingcompany, lending money to business units that are expected to generate high financial returns

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2.3.3. Related Diversified Firms

Another group consists of firms that operate in a

number of industries and their businesses are

connected to each other through operating

synergies.

We refer to these firms as related diversified firms.

Operating synergies consist of two types of linkagesacross business units:

1) ability to share common resources, and

2) ability to share common core competencies.

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2.3.3. Operating synergies

One way related diversified firms create operatingsynergies is by having two or more business unitsshare resources such as

a common sales force,

common manufacturing facilities, and

a common procurement function.

Such sharing of resources helps the firm reapbenefits of economies of scale and economies of scope.

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2.3.3. Example

Most of Procter & Gamble’s individual products

share a common salesforce

and a common logistics;

And most of its products are distributed through

supermarkets.

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2.3.3. Related Diversified Firms

Another key characteristic of relateddiversified firms is that they possess corecompetencies that benefit many of their business units.

They grow by leveraging core competencies developed in one business when they diversify into other businesses.

Related diversified firms typically growinternally through research anddevelopment

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2.3.3. The role of the corporate

office

This role in a related diversified firm is twofold:

(1) similar to a conglomerate,

the chief executive of a related diversified firm must

make resource allocation decisions across business

units;

(2) but, unlike a conglomerate,

the chief executive of a related diversified firm must

also identify, nurture, deepen, and leverage

corporate wide core competencies that benefit

multiple business units.

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2.3.4. Core Competence and

Corporate Diversification

Research has shown that, on average,

related diversified firms perform the best,

single industry firms perform next best,

and unrelated diversified firms do not perform well over the long term

This is because corporate headquarters, in a relateddiversified firm, has the ability to transfer corecompetencies from one business unit to another.

A core competency is what a firm excels at and what adds significant value for customers.

Competency-based growth and diversification therefore have significant potential for success.

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2.3.4. Core Competence and

Corporate Diversification

The business units of a related diversified firm might be worse off if they were split up into separate companies

since a related diversified firm can exploit operatingsynergies across its business units.

For instance, if the business units of Honda (motorcycles, automobiles, lawn mowers, etc.) were split up as separate companies,

they would then lose the benefit of Honda’s expertise in small engine technology.

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2.3.4. Unrelated diversified firms

Unrelated diversified firms, do not have

operating synergies.

Most of the failed corporate diversification

attempts in the past were of this type,

But, some unrelated diversified firms (e.g.,

General Electric) are highly profitable.

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2.3.5. Implications of Control

System Design

Corporate strategy is a continuum with single industry strategy at one end of the spectrum and unrelated diversificationat the other end (related diversification is in the middle of the spectrum).

Many companies do not fit into one of the three classes.

However, most companies can be classified along the continuum.

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2.3.5. Implications of Control

System Design

A firm’s location on this continuum

depends on the extent and type of

its diversification.

The following Exhibit summarizes the

key characteristics of the generic

corporate strategies:

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2.3.5. Corporate-Level Strategies:

Summary of Three Generic

Strategies

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2.4. Business Unit Strategies

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2.4. Business Unit Strategies

Competition between diversified firms does not take place at the corporate level.

Rather, a business unit in one firm (Procter & Gamble’s Pampers unit) competes with a business unit in another firm (Kimberly Clark’s Huggies unit).

The corporate central office of a diversified firmdoes not produce profit by itself;

Revenues are generated and costs are incurred in the business units.

Business unit strategies deal with how to create and maintain competitive advantage in each of the industries in which a company has chosen to participate.

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2.4. Business Unit Strategies

The strategy of a business unit depends on two

interrelated aspects:

(1) its mission (“what are its overall objectives?”) and

(2) its competitive advantage (“how should the

business unit compete in its industry to accomplish its

mission?” )

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2.4.1.Business Unit Mission

In a diversified firm one of the important tasks of senior management is resource deployment, that is, make decisions regarding the use of the cash generated from some business units to finance growth in otherbusiness units.

Several planning models have been developed to help corporate level managersof diversified firms to effectively allocateresources.

These models suggest that a firm has businessunits in several categories, identified by their mission; the appropriate strategies for each category differ.

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2.4.1. Business Unit Mission

The several units make up a portfoliotogether, of which components differ as to their risk/reward characteristics just as the components of an investment portfolio differ.

Both the corporate office and the businessunit general manager are involved inidentifying the missions of individual businessunits.

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2.4.1. Planning models

Of the many planning models, two of the

most widely used are

Boston Consulting Group’s two-by-two

growth-share matrix and

General Electric Company/McKinsey & Company’s three-by-three industry

attractiveness-business strength matrix

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2.4.1. The BCG model55

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2.4.1. Planning models – missions

While these models differ in the methodologies they

use to develop the most appropriate missions for the

various business units,

they have the same set of missions from which to

choose:

build,

hold,

harvest, and

divest

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Build

This mission implies an objective of

increased market share,

even at the expense of short-term

earnings and cash flow

(e.g., Merck’s bio-technology,

Black and Decker’s handheld

electric tools).

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Hold

This strategic mission is geared to the

protection of the business unit’s

market share and competitive position

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Harvest

This mission has the objective of

maximizing short-term earnings and

cash flow,

even at the expense of market

share (e.g., American Brands’

tobacco products, General

Electric’s and Sylvania’s lightbulbs).

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Divest

This mission indicates a decision to

withdraw from the business either through

a process of

slow liquidation or

outright sale

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2.4.1. The GE planning model61

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planning models

While the planning models can aid

in the formulation of missions, they

are not cookbooks

A business unit’s position on a

planning grid should not be the

sole basis for deciding its mission.

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2.4.1.Boston Consulting Group

(BCG) model

every business unit is placed in one of four

categories:

question mark,

star,

cash cow, and

dog

That represent the four cells of a 2 X 2

matrix,

which measures industry growth rate

on one axis and relative market share

on the other

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BCGBCG views:

industry growth rate as an indicator of

relative industry attractiveness and

relative market share as an indicator of

the relative competitive position of a

business unit within a given industry.

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BCGBCG singles out market share as the primary

strategy variable because of the importance it places on the notion of experience curve.

cost per unit decreases predictably with the number of units produced over time (cumulative experience).

Since the market share leader will have thegreatest accumulated production experience, such a firm should have the lowest costs and highest profits in the industry.

The association between market share and profitability has also been empirically supportedby the Profit Impact of Market Strategy (PIMS) database

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Limitations No1

Although the experience curve is a powerful analytical tool, it has limitations:

1. The concept applies to undifferentiatedproducts where the primary basis of competition is on price. For these products, becoming the low-cost player is critical.

However, market share and low cost are not the only ways to succeed.

There are low market share firms (such as Porschein automobiles) that earn high profits by emphasizing product uniqueness rather than low cost

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Limitations No2

2. In certain situations improvements

in process technology may have a

greater impact on the reduction of

per-unit cost

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Limitations No3

3. An aggressive pursuit of reducing

cost via accumulated production of

standardized items can lead to loss

of flexibility in the marketplace.

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Limitations No4

4. Commitment to the experience

curve concept can be a severe

disadvantage if new technologies

emerge in the industry.

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Limitations No5

5. Experience is not the only cost driver.

Other drivers that affect cost behavior are:

scale, scope, technology, and

complexity

A firm needs to consider carefully the

relevant cost drivers at work to achieve

the low-cost position

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Question mark

BCG used the following logic to make strategicprescriptions for each of the four cells.

Business units that fall in the question mark quadrant are typically assigned the mission: “build” market share

The logic behind this recommendation is related to the beneficial effects of the experience curve

BCG argued that, by building market share early in the growth phase of an industry,

the business unit will enjoy a low-cost position.

These units are major users of cash,

since cash outlays are needed in the areas of product development, market development, and capacity expansion

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Question mark

These expenditures are aimed at

establishing market leadership in the

short term, which will depress short-term

profits.

the increased market share is intended

to result in long-term profitability.

Some businesses in the question mark

quadrant might also be divested if their

cash needs to build competitive position

are extremely high.

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Star

Business units that fall in the star quadrant are typically assigned the mission: “hold” market share.

These units already have a high market share intheir industry,

and the objective is to invest cash to maintain that position.

These units generate significant amounts of cash

(because of their market leadership),

but they also need significant cash outlays to maintain their competitive strength in a growingmarket.

these units are self-sufficient

and do not require cash from other parts of the organization.

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Cash cow

Business units that fall in the cash cow quadrant are the primary sources of cash for the firm.

Because these units have high relative marketshare, they probably have the lowest unit costs and consequently the highest profits.

these units operate in low-growth or decliningindustries, they do not need to reinvest all the cash generated.

these units generate significant amounts of positivecash flows

Such units are typically assigned the mission:

“harvest” for short-term profits and cash flows

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Dog

Businesses in the dog quadrant

have a weak competitive position

in unattractive industries.

They should be divested unless

there is a good possibility of

turning them around.

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The corporate office

The corporate office should identify

cash cows with positive cash flows

and

regroup these resources to build

market share in question marks

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BCG vs GE

The General Electric Company/McKinsey

& Company grid is similar to the BCG grid

in helping corporations assign missions

across business units

However, its methodology differs from the

BCG approach in the following respects:

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BCG vs GE

1. BCG uses industry growth rate as a

proxy for industry attractiveness.

In the General Electric grid, industry

attractiveness is based on weighted

judgments about such factors as market

size, market growth, entry barriers,

technological obsolescence, and the

like.

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BCG vs GE

2. BCG uses relative market share as a proxy

for the business unit’s current competitive

position.

The General Electric grid uses multiple factors

such as market share, distribution strengths,

and engineering strengths to assess the

competitive position of the business unit.

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The mission of a business unit

Control system designers need to know whatthe mission of a particular business unit is,

but not necessarily why the firm has chosen that particular mission

These missions constitute a continuum,

with“pure build” at one end and “pure

harvest” at the other end

A business unit could be anywhere on this

continuum

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2.4.2. Business Unit Competitive

Advantage

Every business unit should develop a competitive advantage in order to accomplishits mission.

Three interrelated questions have to be considered in developing the business unit’s competitive advantage:

First, what is the structure of the industry in which the business unit operates?

Second, how should the business unit exploit the industry’s structure?

Third, what will be the basis of the business unit’s competitive advantage?

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2.4.2. Analytical approaches

Michael Porter has described two

analytical approaches

industry analysis and

value chain analysis

as aids in developing a superior and

sustainable competitive advantage.

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2.4.2. Industry Analysis

Research has highlighted the important role

industry conditions play in the performance

of individual firms.

Studies have shown that average industry

profitability is, by far, the most significant

predictor of firm performance

According to Porter, the structure of an

industry should be analyzed in terms of the

collective strength of five competitive forces

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2.4.2. Porter’s five forces model84

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2.4.2. 5 competitive forces

1. The intensity of rivalry among existing competitors.

2. The bargaining power of customers.

3. The bargaining power of suppliers.

4. Threat from substitutes.

5. The threat of new entry.

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1. The intensity of rivalry

among existing competitors

Factors affecting direct rivalry are

industry growth,

product differentiability,

number and diversity of competitors,

level of fixed costs,

intermittent overcapacity,

and exit barriers.

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2. The bargaining power of

customers

Factors affecting buyer power are

number of buyers,

buyer’s switching costs,

buyer’s ability to integrate backward,

impact of the business unit’s product on buyer’s total costs,

impact of the business unit’s product on buyer’s product quality/performance, and

significance of the business unit’s volume to buyers.

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3. The bargaining power of

suppliers

Factors affecting supplier power are

number of suppliers,

supplier’s ability to integrate forward,

presence of substitute inputs, and

importance of the business unit’s

volume to suppliers.

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4. Threat from substitutes

Factors affecting substitute threat are

Relative price/performance of

substitutes,

buyer’s switching costs, and

buyer’s propensity to substitute.

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5. The threat of new entry

Factors affecting entry barriers are

capital requirements,

access to distribution channels,

economies of scale,

product differentiation,

technological complexity of product or process,

expected retaliation from existing firms, and

government policy.

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2.4.2. Observations to the

industry analysis

1. The more powerful the five forces are, the less profitable an industry is likely to be.

In industries where average profitability is high (such as soft drinks and pharmaceuticals), the five forces are weak (e.g., in the soft drink industry, entry barriers are high).

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2.4.2. Observations to the

industry analysis

2. Depending on the relative strength of the five forces, the key strategic issues facing the business unit will differ from one industry to another.

3. Understanding the nature of each forcehelps the firm to formulate effective strategies.

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2.4.2. Observations to the industry

analysis

Supplier selection (a strategic issue) is aidedby the analysis of

the relative power of several supplier groups;

the business unit should link with the supplier group for which it has the best competitive advantage.

similarly, analyzing the relative bargaining power of several buyergroups will facilitate selection of targetcustomer segments.

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2.4.2. Generic Competitive

Advantage

The five-force analysis is the starting point for

developing a competitive advantage since it

helps to identify the opportunities and threats in

the external environment.

Porter claims that the business unit has two

generic ways of responding to the opportunities

in the external environment and developing a

sustainable competitive advantage:

Low cost way

Differentiation way

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Low Cost

Cost leadership can be achieved through such approaches as

economies of scale in production,

experience curve effects,

tight cost control, and

cost minimization (in such areas as research and development, service, sales force, or advertising).

Some firms following this strategy include

Charles Schwab in discount brokerage,

Wal-Mart in discount retailing

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Differentiation

The primary focus of this strategy is to differentiate the product offering of the business unit,

creating something that is perceived by customersas being unique.

Approaches to product differentiation include

Brand loyalty (Coca-Cola and Pepsi Cola in soft drinks),

Superior customer service (Nordstrom in retailing),

Dealer network (Caterpillar Tractors in constructionequipment),

Product design and product features (Hewlett-Packard in electronics),

and Technology (Cisco in Communications infrastructure)

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2.4.2. Value Chain Analysis

Business units can develop competitive

advantage based on

low cost,

differentiation,

or both.

The most attractive competitive position is to

achieve cost-cum-differentiation

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2.4.2. Value Chain Analysis

Both intuitively and theoretically, competitiveadvantage in the marketplace ultimately derivesfrom

providing better customer value for an equivalentcost or

equivalent customer value for a lower cost.

Competitive advantage cannot be meaningfullyexamined at the level of the business unit as a whole.

The value chain disaggregates the firm into its distinct strategic activities.

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2.4.2. Value Chain Analysis

The value chain is the complete set of activities involved in a product,

beginning with extraction of raw material and

ending with post delivery support to customers.

A company chooses those activities

that it will carry out with its own resources and those

that it will obtain from outside parties

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2.4.2. Competitive advantage

and value chain analysis10

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2.4.2. Value chain analysis

Value chain analysis seeks to determine

where in the company’s operations

from design to distribution

customer value can be enhanced or

costs lowered

For each value-added activity, the

key questions are these:

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2.4.2. Key questions in VCA

1. Can we reduce costs in this activity,

holding value (revenues) constant?

2. Can we increase value (revenue) in this

activity, holding costs constant?

3. Can we reduce assets in this activity,

holding costs and revenue constant?

4. Most importantly, can we do (1), (2), and

(3) simultaneously?

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2.4.2. Value chain analysis

By systematically analyzing

costs,

revenues, and

assets

in each activity, the business unit can

achieve cost-cum-differentiation

advantage.

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2.4.2. The value chain

frameworkIt is a method for breaking down the chain

from basic raw materials to end-use customers

into specific activities

in order to understand the behavior of costs and the sources of differentiation

Few if any firms carry out the entire valuechain of a product with their own resources.

In fact, firms within the same industry vary in the proportion of activities that they carry outwith their own resources.

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2.4.2. Value chainThe value chain helps the firm to understand the entire value delivery system,

not just the portion of the value chain in which it participates.

Suppliers and customers, and suppliers’ suppliers, and customers’ customers have profit margins

that are important to identify in understanding a firm’s cost/differentiation positioning,

since the end-use customers ultimately pay for all the profit margins along the entire value chain.

Suppliers not only produce and deliver inputs used in a firm’s value activities, but they significantlyinfluence the firm’s cost/differentiation position

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THANKS FOR YOUR

ATTENTION!10

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