HBR Case Study, Competing Against Bling

docx

School

Technical University of Mombasa *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

STRATEGIC

Subject

Management

Date

Nov 24, 2024

Type

docx

Pages

Uploaded by CountDonkeyMaster365

1 HBR Case Study: Competing Against Bling Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation Course Date

2 Organizational Strategy Defender As the name implies, this company will work hard to maintain its current market position over the years. Instead of spending time and resources developing new products to introduce to the market, this type of organization will sit back and enjoy the benefits of what they have already created ( Yoshikuni and Albertin, 2018 ) . Of course, no company can survive by doing nothing, so minor improvements will be required to remain relevant and competitive. These advancements frequently occur "behind the scenes" in the form of cost reductions or manufacturing upgrades. It should be noted that a company's entire existence can be spent in more than one of these strategy categories. Businesses frequently switch between markets as they evolve. Companies once considered innovative in their industry often revert to defender status as less and less innovation is possible in their specific need. To maintain profits and market share, it is critical to understand when and how to switch from one strategy to another. In the Chinese branch of Rochat & Schmid To compete with competotors, Pearl Zhang, Song's VP of Marketing, wants to launch a campaign with a Chinese singer who has a sizable Millennial social media following. Simon Carbonnier, R&S's chief creative officer in Switzerland, is staunchly opposed to celebrity endorsements and anything that deviates from the company's core values of "understated elegance." The company has over relied on the aim to maintain its current market position over the years. Instead of spending time and resources developing new products to introduce to the market, the R&S's chief creative officer in Switzerland displays his dissatisfaction when Song’s idea is presented. The idea involves adding ‘bling’ to the

3 watches they sell so as to have a competitive edge but the creative officer is fully opposed stating the value of the company that prioritizes understated elegance. Reactor There is no single way of doing business in the reactor category. It should go without saying that organizations do not want to be labeled as reactors because this implies that they are merely attempting to keep up with the market as it evolves over time (Kowo et al., 2018). . Many large corporations lose market share over time as a result of their reactive business strategy. Even companies with excellent ideas, products, and employees risk falling behind if the management team makes decisions in a reactionary manner. Businesses that respond to the market will almost certainly lose out to those that successfully innovate, defend, or analyze. R&S’s competitive strategy cannot be classified here since they already have a marketing strategy that barely changes with innovation in the market Prospector If an organization falls into the Prospector category, it is expected to consistently be at the forefront of innovation and development. Prospective companies are constantly looking for the "next big thing" rather than resting on their laurels with previously developed and commercialized products. By definition, this type of organization will have significant successes and failures. Of course, the goal is to have more successes than failures so that the company can continue to invest in innovation for a long time ( Osorio, et al., 2020) . R&S’s competitive strategy cannot be classified here since it has stuck to its old styles of watch designs.

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version

Access to all documents
Unlimited textbook solutions
24/7 expert homework help

4 Analyzer These companies are typically among the largest because they can develop new technologies and products while defending the market for those they have already established. Businesses that are accurate analysts are unlikely to be the first to develop something, but they may help another company develop ( Dzwigol, et al., 2020) . To some extent, they are thus innovators, but not in the truest sense. This type of company will usually take a back seat and observe the market and its needs before attempting to meet them as effectively as possible. R&S’s competitive strategy cannot be classified here due to its dormant state of seeking new innovative ideas. The organization structure and Global Strategy Globalization strategy A company uses a globalization strategy when it sees the entire world as one market with a few minor but significant differences (Peng, 2021). One product should be able to meet everyone's needs. Many business-to-business organizations benefit from a standardization strategy. Information technologies, tools, and machines are universal, requiring only minor adaptations to local conditions. R&S uses a globalization strategy whereby its watches have a similar unique design meant for all markets. The watches as seen in the video cases study are not tailor made for specific countries or populations. The aim of the company is to provide watches with understated elegance as a unique trait of the product. A standardization strategy increases efficiencies by centralizing routine tasks such as product design, gaining manufacturing scale economies, streamlining the supply chain, and lowering marketing costs.

5 Export Strategy An export strategy is used when a company primarily focuses on its domestic operations. Although it has no plans to expand internationally, it does export some products to capitalize on international business opportunities ( Osorio, et al., 2020) . It makes no effort to adapt its products to foreign markets. It does not desire to develop a comprehensive global strategy or adapt to specific circumstances in other countries. R&S company does not fall in this category since it had branches and sales in more than one country. Multidomestic strategy A multidomestic strategy tailors goods or procedures to the specifics of each country. The overall management of a multidomestic company is centralized in the home country, but country managers are given the flexibility to make changes ( Osorio, et al., 2020) . Businesses forego scale economies to be more responsive to local conditions. Companies benefit from a multidomestic strategy because country managers understand how to best cater to local laws, customs, and tastes. The multidomestic strategy is not applicable to R&S since they do not tailor make their products to suite the requirements of any specific country, and in this case study, China. Transnational strategy Globalization and multidomestic tactics are combined to create a transnational strategy. It is employed when a business is subject to intense cost pressure from foreign rivals while offering customers products that cater to their local needs. Because the business needs to standardize for economies of scale while remaining flexible to local conditions, maintaining a global strategy is challenging. R&S uses the

6 globalization strategy as seen here but does nor abide by the policy or characteristics of the multidomestic strategy. The organization structure and culture model The Mission Culture The mission culture is most appropriate for an organization that caters to specific customers in the external environment without requiring drastic change. The mission culture strongly emphasises having a clear understanding of the organization's purpose and setting and achieving goals to support that purpose, such as increasing sales, profitability, or market share ( Lubis and Hanum, 2020 ) . The aim of R&S is to increase sales by letting the employees understand and implement the organization's purpose and setting and achieving goals to support that purpose. Each employee of R&S may be expected to perform at a certain level, for which the company may provide specific rewards. Managers here influence behaviour by imagining and communicating the organization's desired future as Simon Carbonnier, R&S's chief creative officer in Switzerlandemphasises in the video case study. Mission cultures can occasionally exhibit high levels of competition ast that of R&S competing with Berlinger. The Adaptability Culture The adaptability culture is defined by a strategic focus on the external environment through flexibility and change to meet customer needs. The adaptability culture fosters entrepreneurial values, norms, and beliefs that help the organization recognize, analyze, and transform environmental signals into novel behavioural responses. However, this type of business actively initiates change rather than simply reacting to environmental changes. Risk-taking, creativity, and innovation are

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version

Access to all documents
Unlimited textbook solutions
24/7 expert homework help

7 admired and rewarded ( Lubis and Hanum, 2020 ) . Most Internet-based businesses and many businesses in the marketing, electronics, and cosmetics industries have an adaptability-type culture because they must move quickly to satisfy customers. The Clan Culture Clan culture revolves around the involvement and participation of the organization's members, as well as the rapidly shifting expectations of the outside world. This culture, more than any other, prioritizes addressing workers' needs to achieve high performance. Participation and involvement foster a sense of accountability and ownership, resulting in more substantial organisational commitment ( Lubis and Hanum, 2020 ) . A significant value in a clan culture is ensuring employees have everything they need to be happy and productive. The Bureaucratic Culture The internal focus and consistent orientation of bureaucratic culture contribute to a stable environment. This type of culture encourages organized business practices. Symbols, heroes, and ceremonies emphasize the value of cooperation, tradition, and following established rules and procedures. In this situation, personal involvement is slightly lower, but the high level of consistency, conformity, and cooperation among members more than compensates. Because it is well-integrated and practical, this organization is successful. In the modern world, most managers are moving away from bureaucratic cultures due to the need for greater flexibility. Others would feel suffocated and constrained by excessive discipline and prefer to work in another culture. Some people appreciate bureaucratic culture's order and predictability.

8 Decision making process In the situation of R&S, Pearl Zhang and the company C.E.O know the problem and the solution to the issue. The rational decision-making model can been adopted in this situation. Mr. Zhang and the C.E.O have eradicated their emotions and decided to take the company to the revolutionary phase. The Rational Decision-Making Model eliminates emotion from decision-making by employing logical steps to conclude (Pei, 2013). The model compares various options or alternatives using objective research, data, and other information to make a decision. A rational decision-making model will provide a structured and ordered decision-making method. By implementing such a strategy, the company will ensure that the decision-making is governed by discipline and consistency. As the word rationale implies, this strategy will introduce reason and structure into decision-making. Simon Carbonnier, R&S's chief creative officer is aware of the issue and represents the creative department of the organisation. He is hesitant to adapting new ideas and insists on remaining on the old ways of making products. The idea of adopting bling to the watches is inapplicable to him. He states that the use of celebrities to market products is a lazy act for marketers. If he would pick up the incremental theory of decision making, he would arrive at a better decision that could bring prowess to the company. Decision-makers base their decisions on previous activities, programs, and policies, and they focus on gradually increasing, decreasing, or changing previous activities, programs, and policies, according to the incremental decision-making theory. Smaller decisions are combined to form larger decisions. 1. Focus on a structured process for moving from discovery to solution.

9 2. Identification Phase: Identifying problems 3. Development Phase: Developing possible solutions 4. Selection Phase: Selecting the best solution. A viewpoint on decision-making that holds that our choices are the product of experimentation or interference. Charles Lindblom argues that a few broadly theorized rational-comprehensive approaches to decision-making are preferable to many small comparisons. We break things down into smaller pieces, taking things stage by stage based on the experience of each previous stage and the techniques or ideas we test along the way, making it a less risky decision-making process. We can experiment and learn while pursuing a goal when the means are unclear but the end is obvious. It reduces the cost of any failure and makes adjustments simple. I conclusion, a proactive approach based on taking one small decision at a time is known as an incremental decision-making process. Small improvements add up in the big picture and help the stakeholder accomplish their objective. It is more practical to approach a goal in small steps rather than taking a giant leap and disappearing into the unknown. The decision-making process is broken down into manageable steps by the incremental model, and moving between them is referred to as "muddling through." It uses a variety of techniques, such as knowledge, instinct, speculation, and other impromptu techniques. Making decisions in stages makes it easier to manage complexity and change. It also allows stakeholders to focus on minor and major decisions. As a result, incremental decision-making can add value by reducing operational effort and opening up new opportunities.

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version

Access to all documents
Unlimited textbook solutions
24/7 expert homework help

10 References Dzwigol, H., Dzwigol-Barosz, M., & Kwilinski, A. (2020). Formation of global competitive enterprise environment based on industry 4.0 concept. International Journal of Entrepreneurship , 24 (1), 1-5. Kowo, S., Sabitu, O., & Adegbite, G. (2018). Influence of competitive strategies on corporate performance of small and medium enterprises: a case from Nigeria. Agricultural and Resource Economics: International Scientific E- Journal , 4 (1868-2019-371), 14-33. Lubis, F. R., & Hanum, F. (2020, December). Organizational culture. In 2nd Yogyakarta International Conference on Educational Management/Administration and Pedagogy (YICEMAP 2019) (pp. 88-91). Atlantis Press. Osorio‐Londoño, A. A., Naranjo‐Valencia, J. C., & Calderón‐Hernández, G. (2020). Training and its influence on competitive strategy implementation. Human Resource Development Quarterly , 31 (2), 149-172. Pei, Z. (2013). Rational decision making models with incomplete weight information for production line assessment. Information Sciences , 222 , 696-716. Peng, M. W. (2021). Global strategy . Cengage learning. Yoshikuni, A. C., & Albertin, A. L. (2018). Effects of strategic information systems on competitive strategy and performance. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management .

HBR Case Study, Competing Against Bling

Related Documents