1. Competitive five Forces model
1.1. The rivalry among existing competitors
1.1.1. A measure of the extent of competition among existing firms.
1.1.2. Intense rivalry can limit profits and lead to competitive moves, including price cutting, increased advertising expenditures, or spending on service/product improvements and innovation.
1.2. The threat of new entrants
1.2.1. Potential of a new entrance into an industry where the company power affected by the new entrance into its market.
1.3. The threat of substitute products and services
1.3.1. Companies are concerned that substitute products or services may displace their own. The threat of substitution is high when rivals, or companies outside the industry, offer more attractive and/or lower cost products.
1.3.2. The availability of close substitute products can make an industry more competitive and decrease profit potential for the firms in the industry.
1.4. The bargaining power of buyers
1.4.1. Buyers have the power to influence price and the quantity of products sold.
1.4.2. The pressure consumers can exert on businesses to get them to provide higher quality products, better customer service, and lower prices.
1.4.3. The bargaining power of buyers in an industry affects the competitive environment for the seller and influences the seller’s ability to achieve profitability.
1.5. The bargaining power of suppliers
1.5.1. Suppliers have the power to influence price, as well as the availability of resources/inputs.
1.5.2. Supplier power refers to the pressure suppliers can exert on businesses by raising prices, lowering quality, or reducing availability of their products.
1.5.3. Suppliers are most powerful when companies are dependent on them and cannot switch to other suppliers because of higher costs or lack of alternative sources.
2. Competitive Strategies
2.1. Cost Leadership
2.1.1. Reducing the cost of the raw material
2.1.2. Some companies use outsourcing to cut costs when making products or completing services.
2.2. Differentiation Strategy
2.2.1. Differentiate (Quality) a firm’s products from its competitors’ .
2.2.2. Focus on a particular segment or niche of market.
2.3. Innovation Strategy
2.3.1. Unique products, services, or markets
2.3.2. Radical changes to business processes
2.4. Growth Strategy
2.4.1. Expand company’s capacity to produce
2.4.2. Expand into global markets
2.4.3. Diversify into new products or services
2.5. Alliance Strategy
2.5.1. Establish linkages and alliances with customers, suppliers, competitors, consultants, and other companies
2.5.2. Includes mergers, joint ventures, virtual companies
3. Customer-focused Business
3.1. business value in being customer-focused
3.1.1. Keep customers loyal
3.1.2. Anticipate their future needs
3.1.3. Respond to customer concerns
3.1.4. Provide top-quality customer service
3.2. Focus on customer value
3.2.1. Quality, not price, has become the primary determinant of value
3.2.2. Consistently
3.3. Companies that consistently offer the best value from the customer’s perspective
3.3.1. Track individual preferences
3.3.2. Keep up with market trends
3.3.3. Supply products, services, and information anytime, anywhere
3.3.4. Tailor customer services to the individual
3.3.5. Use Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems to focus on the customer
4. Organizational Structure
4.1. Traditional Organizational Structure
4.1.1. Defination
4.1.1.1. Which the hierarchy of decision making & authority flows from the strategic management at the top down to operational management and non-management employees.
4.1.2. Strengths
4.1.2.1. Formal reporting relationship are clearly defined
4.1.2.2. Each employee reports to one manager
4.1.3. Weaknesses
4.1.3.1. Limits departmental interaction and communication
4.2. Flat Organizational Structure
4.2.1. Defination
4.2.1.1. Empowers employees at lower levels to make decisions and solve problems without needing permission from midlevel managers.
4.2.2. Strengths
4.2.2.1. Less layers leads to better communication
4.2.2.2. More autonomy and responsibility for employees
4.2.2.3. Employees may feel more motivated, therefore being more productive
4.2.3. Weaknesses
4.2.3.1. Lack of progression opportunities
4.2.3.2. Higher workloads for managers
4.2.3.3. Managers have more subordinates
4.3. Matrix Organizational Structure
4.3.1. Defination
4.3.1.1. Individual has two reporting superiors(managers)-one functional and one operational and commonly used in multinational organizations that operate in various region of the world.
4.3.2. Strengths
4.3.2.1. Enables both functional and operational manager to focus on their strengths
4.3.2.2. Employees have an opportunity to develop a broader set of skills
4.3.3. Weaknesses
4.3.3.1. Potential conflicts on work assignments
4.3.3.2. Employee morale may be low due to stress and conflicts
4.4. Project Organizational Structure
4.4.1. Defination
4.4.1.1. Focused on major products or services, with program managers responsible for directing one or more projects.
4.4.2. Strengths
4.4.2.1. Facilitates team decision making
4.4.2.2. Good communication among team members
4.4.3. Weaknesses
4.4.3.1. Limited contact with other teams result in less sharing of learning across projects
4.4.4. Matrix Organizational Structure
4.4.4.1. Defination
4.4.4.1.1. Individual has two reporting superiors(managers)-one functional and one operational and commonly used in multinational organizations that operate in various region of the world.
4.4.4.2. Strengths
4.4.4.2.1. Enables both functional and operational manager to focus on their strengths
4.4.4.2.2. Employees have an opportunity to develop a broader set of skills
4.4.4.3. Weaknesses
4.4.4.3.1. Potential conflicts on work assignments
4.4.4.3.2. Employee morale may be low due to stress and conflicts
4.5. Virtual Teams and Collaborative Work
4.5.1. Defination
4.5.1.1. Group of individual whose members are distributed geographically, but who work as a coherent unit through the use of IST
4.5.2. Strengths
4.5.2.1. Ensures participation of best available people to solve important organizational problems
4.5.2.2. Opportunity to learn about the cultures and practices of people in foreign countries.
4.5.3. Weaknesses
4.5.3.1. Time zone differences
4.5.3.2. Lack of face to face meetings lessen quality of communication
5. Reengineering Business Processes
5.1. Definitions
5.1.1. Fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes
5.1.2. Seeks to achieve improvements in cost, quality, speed, and service
5.1.3. Potential payback is high, but so is risk of disruption and failure
5.1.4. IT that supports this process
5.1.4.1. CRM systems using intranets and the Internet
5.1.4.2. Supplier-managed inventory systems using the Internet and extranets
5.1.4.3. Cross-functional ERP software to integrate manufacturing, distribution, finance, and human resource processes
5.1.5. Customer-accessible e-commerce websites for order entry, status checking, payment, and service
5.1.6. Customer, product, and order status databases accessed via intranets and extranets