Assignment 2

Strategic management

Submitted by- Submitted to-

Amanjot Singh(2020992627) Dr. Tanvi Jindal

Case 1

In the year 1999, inspired by his family members shopping online during Christmas break, Jack
Welch, Chairman, General Electric company, challenged its managers to find out ways to sell
their product lines through the Internet. He further asked the top 600 managers in his
organization to find an internal Internet mentor who would guide them in adopting the World
Wide Web. He was seeking to develop a strategy for using the Internet for trading.

● Evaluate the scenario to identify which phase of strategic management is being adopted
at GE?
● Is this a feasible way for effective strategy formulation? What can be the probable
limitations?
● What other factors need to be considered to make it better?

Answers

● A strategic management phase undertaken by General Electric Company included

developing a strategy to engage an internal online mentor who is skilled and has access
to the Internet. It might be categorized as formulation because no plans have been
formed and the company is in the seed stage/early stage. In order to provide a prompt
answer to a query, a GE corporation will pay extra attention to details and monitor
operations during this phase.

● Despite the fact that the internet was created in 1983, the majority of people do not have
easy access to it in 1999. When we look at the current scenario, we can see that many
people either do not have access to the internet or do not know how to use it effectively.
They have the best chance of success if they can find an inside online mentor. In terms
of danger, this factor is difficult to evaluate. Managers analyze risk using statistical
analysis, decision analysis, and mathematical models.

● The ability to modify and adapt is an important attribute to think about while creating and
implementing a strategy. The environment is dynamic and changes on a regular basis.
Any plan that is to be implemented must undergo change. Some employees embrace
change while others reject it, depending on the firm. It is an iterative business process.
 Case 2

Assume a small scale start-up is planning to scale its business by adding a few more
customers. The product that they sell and the customers that they serve is a steady market. The
firm employs a few employees and all of them work together in a small office. They have a
friendly relationship with each other as well as the CEO of the start-up. Although a few of them
do not believe scaling is feasible right now, they agree to implement this strategy, however they
often discuss probable bad consequences if it fails.

● Which school of thought can be applied to the above scenario?

● If suppose all of them believed in the CEO's plan for implementation, would the school of
thought change?
● Can positioning school play a role here? Why or why not?

Answers

● The School of Design can help with the problem mentioned above (School of Thought).
This school of thought is largely concerned with the formulation of strategies. Internal
analyses were carried out using a SWOT analysis. The firm then attempts to adjust its
expertise to market developments. The corporation may respond to market
developments without fear of being disrupted by possible competitors as long as the
market remains steady. The term "stable market" is frequently used to describe this
market.

● Yes, the Entrepreneurial School will take over as the main school of thinking from the
School of Design. This school is made up entirely of CEOs. As a result of this strategic
approach, the firm, whether it is a small business wanting to develop into a large
corporation or a large organization that trusts its leaders, does as the CEO says.

● Yes, since they examine the market first, positioning schools consistently generate the
best results. Throughout the strategic planning process, managers choose which issues
to prioritize and make informed decisions. Managers must examine which competitors
exist on the market as well as the location of their company. To determine the quality of
its things, it can employ methodologies like the five armies, value chains, matrices, BCG,
and others.

Case 3

A global pharma company decided to discontinue the sale of tobacco products in its U.S. retail
locations. Although this resulted in a loss of billions of dollars in revenue from sales of these
products, the CEO was firm on his stand for discontinuation. The purpose of the company was
“Help people on their path to better health.”

● Do you think that the CEO's decision is justified?

 ● Which concept are we talking about here?
● What is the role of this concept in strategy design?

Answers

● It will be divided into two sections. The first is that if current trends continue, the firm will
be unable to satisfy its commitments and will be forced to depart the market. The CEO,
on the other hand, sees this as a positive because he is focused on the company's CSR
programmes as well as his goal of "assisting folks on their road to better health."

● We're discussing the corporation's corporate social responsibility. As a CEO, he is much

more focused on assisting individuals on their road to better health. He is considerably
more concerned with society in order to create a positive image in the eyes of the public.
This is because the company's sole objective is to improve society.

● Tobacco products generate revenue. Companies that voluntarily discontinue using them
will suffer enormous losses and may be compelled to commit bank fraud if they are
unable to pay their debts. Despite this, the losses may be manageable if the company
develops an appropriate plan and launches a new product. This is because new things
will balance some of the losses, and the firm will be able to gradually shrink Tabaco's
product line rather than abruptly abandoning the market.

Case 4

Learning from the success of sales of its motorbikes in Asian markets, Honda has successfully
made an entry into the U.S. motorcycle market. This has provided a battleground for the debate
between those who view strategy making as primarily a rational, analytical process of deliberate
planning (the design school) and those that envisage strategy as emerging from a complex
process of organizational decision making (the emergence or learning school).

● Which school of thought does it fall into in your opinion?

● Which strategy would this be termed as – Intended, Realized, Deliberate or Emergent?
Justify your answer.

Answers

● It will be incorporated into the Learning School project. Honda has achieved success in
the Asian motorcycle business and is now looking to emulate that success in the United
States. Honda should pursue a different strategy since our people and needs are vastly
different from those of the US market. It will fail because Honda will be unable to focus
on a single aim, and the prior strategy will not produce the same outcomes.
 ● Honda has chosen an Asian market strategy and intends to implement the same
strategy in the US market, which, in my perspective, is a realized strategy since it is a
plan that a corporation executes.

Case 5-
When HP and Compaq merged, it had a strong focus on business issues and an equally strong
focus on managing employee transition well. For this purpose, it provided an interactive forum
for employees using the Internet. Post-merger, they decided whether to retain or integrate ways
of doing business by different product divisions. For example, for the Printer division, HP culture
was kept intact, while for others, a roadmap for integration was proposed. The integration effort
began with a two-day leadership kickoff. Expectations and rules of engagement were set firmly
from the top down. Short deadlines were established to achieve clearly defined synergy targets.
This forced collaboration in the interest of achieving desired goals. An employee portal was
used to drive extensive communication and interaction, including feedback. On Day One alone,
that portal received 50,000 hits from employees.

● Analyze from the above scenario, how strategy formulation is a collective process?
● How can the cultural school of thought aid in mergers and acquisitions?

Answers

● Strategic planning is a collaborative activity since it involves a group of people.

Personnel from HP and Compaq must collaborate to handle personal transitions and
resolve organizational issues. The internet is being utilized to carry out a thorough plan.
In order to attain their synergy goals, they develop a coordinated strategy. Their success
is dependent on their ability to work together.

● An organization, according to the School of Cultural Thinking, is psychologically helpful

to individuals and has a high amount of social capital. A strong corporate culture may
help lead a company in the right direction. All staff from all departments are welcome to
attend the cultural school. It is useful during mergers and acquisitions. Decision-making
is influenced by social conventions, beliefs, and traditions. Cultural schools may be
adversarial since the people we're trying to reach detest change; as a result, they
combine, and the firm grows.