Questions and Answers of Strategic Management

Which of the following approaches bases the measurement of performance on an array of quantitative and qualitative factors instead of a single quantitative measure in the organization, such as
Allstate was founded in 1930 as a subsidiary of Sears. As the giant retailer embarked on its great expansion, Allstate sold auto insurance through all of the new stores. Following World War II, the
In 1994, recent Princeton graduate and Wall Street executive Jeff Bezos left his job, began working out of the garage of his rented home, and raised several million dollars of start-up capital to
American Express was formed in 1850 as a delivery services company but soon emerged as a leader in travel-related services. In 1868, the firm developed a money order to compete with the
George Schneider founded Anheuser-Busch in St. Louis in 1852. In 1860, the brewery was sold to Eberhard Anheuser and several other investors, although Anheuser later bought out the others.Adolphus
Joseph “Pitt” Hyde opened the first Auto Shack auto parts store in 1979 in Forrest City, Arkansas.Having served on the board of directors at Wal-Mart for 7 years, Hyde built on the big box’s
Avon Products, Inc., is a global manufacturer and marketer of beauty and related products, including cosmetics, toiletries, fragrances, jewelry, gifts, home furnishings, and health and wellness
Bank of America is the third-largest bank by assets in the United States behind Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase. Following its 2004 acquisition of Fleet Boston, the bank boasted the most extensive
Warren Eisenberg and Leonard Feinstein launched Bed ’n Bath in 1971 with one small linens store in New York and another in New Jersey. The firm expanded into two other states—California and
Stanley has been a prominent manufacturer of high-quality tools since 1843. Stanley’s reputation has been a key strength and has contributed to its success throughout the years. Black & Decker has
Cici’s Enterprises was founded in Plano, Texas, in 1985. The firm operates and franchises a chain of Cici’s Pizza restaurants in the United States. Most locations can be found in strip malls in
The first Price Club Warehouse was opened in San Diego in 1975 by Sol Price, Robert Price(Sol’s son), Rick Libenson, and Giles Bateman. The firm originally sought to sell merchandise in volume at
By the time Michael Dell enrolled at the University of Texas in 1983, he was already a successful entrepreneur. Although his initial academic interest was not business, Dell launched a venture
Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo throughout the United States and around the world. Delta serves over 350 cities in more than 60 countries.
In 1986, Douglas Perry, Macon Brock, and Ray Compton founded Dollar Tree Stores as an offshoot of retail chain K & K Toys. K & K was divested in 1991 in order to place full emphasis on developing the
Between 1969 and 1971, Fred Smith secured $90 million in financing to launch Federal Express(now known as FedEx), a service that originally provided overnight and second-day delivery to 22 major
Henry Ford founded Ford Motor Company in 1903 in Dearborn, Michigan. In 1908, Ford assembly lines produced the company’s first car, the Model T. Henry Ford is often quoted as saying that a customer
Bernard Marcus and Arthur Blank founded Home Depot after losing their jobs in the home improvement industry in 1978. Home Depot focused on the needs of the DIY market, specializing in building
International Paper (IP) was launched in 1898 when 18 northeastern pulp and paper firms consolidated to reduce costs. Growth was not rapid in much of the 1900s, although the firm acquired a number of
In 1951, Robert Peterson launched a chain of drive-thru restaurants located primarily in California, Texas, and Arizona. From the beginning, Jack in the Box restaurants featured a clown named Jack
Bernard Kroger was only 22 when he launched the Great Western Tea Company in 1883.Growing to 40 stores in the Cincinnati area, the company became known as Kroger Grocery and Baking Company in 1902.
Chicago-based mail-order supplier of sailboat hardware and equipment. In the mid-1970s, Comer began to emphasize clothing and soft luggage and subsequently eliminated sailboat hardware from the
Founded in 1948 by Elliot and Ruth Handler, Mattel, Inc., designs, manufactures, and markets a variety of toy products for infants, boys, and girls worldwide. Mattel distributes most of its toys
Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman met at the University of Oregon in 1957. Five years later, they formed Blue Ribbon Sports to manufacture high-quality running shoes. In 1963, they began selling Tiger
Papa John’s is the third largest pizza chain in the United States behind Pizza Hut and Domino’s.The company operates more than 3,500 pizzerias—about 600 company-owned and the remainder
Pfizer was founded in 1849 in Brooklyn, New York, by Charles Pfizer and Charles Erhart and was incorporated in 1942. The company experienced considerable growth during the half century following its
Texas businessman Rollin King and attorney Herb Kelleher founded Air Southwest in 1967 as a regional airline linking Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. Southwest made its first scheduled flight in
Starbucks was founded in 1971 in Seattle by Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin, and Ziv Siegl.By 1982, Starbucks had five retail stores and was selling high-quality whole bean and ground coffee products to
Walgreens was founded in 1901 and incorporated in 1909 in Chicago. Like other drugstores in the early 20th century, Walgreens emphasized a soda fountain and a lunch counter. By 1929, the firm had
Sam Walton began his career in retailing as a J. C. Penney management trainee. He later leased a five-and-dime store in the rural community of Newport, Arkansas, in 1945. Five years later, he
In 1997, PepsiCo spun off three of its restaurant holdings—(1) Pizza Hut, (2) Taco Bell, and(3) Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC)—in order to focus more on its core beverage business. The resulting
Among the enterprises that you know, can you identify one that qualifies as a global company? Why?
In Figure 1.9, why are saving accounts positioned low on global approach and high on local approach while investment banking is high on global approach and low on local approach?Figure 1.9
In Figure 1.8, food retail is positioned as a local business, with a very low globalization score.However, in the press, companies like Tesco, Walmart or Carrefour are described as ‘global
What are the social factors that have pushed for globalization, and which have been pushing against it?
What are the benefits of having a local approach?
When the Otis Elevator Company introduced the change described in Example 1.1, there was a lot of resistance from the various heads of the European subsidiaries. Why?What arguments do you think the
Can Apple be classified as a global firm? Why did you make that assessment?
Can we qualify the champions of the digital economy such as Facebook, Amazon and Netflix as global?
What are the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on globalization of industries and firms?
The discovery and crafting of drugs dates back to antiquity, however, small-scale production began in the late eighteenth century. This was followed in the mid-nineteenth century by mass production
Founded in 1987 by Marco Stefanini in Brazil, Stefanini became one of the largest ICT service providers in Latin America. However, unlike most Latin American companies, Stefanini focused on
When in 1920 the Chia brothers opened their first shop in Bangkok selling seeds for farmers, they did not know that they were on the way to launching the development of one of the most successful
Founded in 1995 by Mr Wang Chuanfu in Shenzhen, Southern China, BYD (Build Your Dreams) is today the largest supplier of rechargeable batteries in the world and has diversified into electronic
What are the differences between an emerging country and a developing country?
Why does a growing middle class contribute to growth?
What benefits do emerging markets champions get from OEM contracts?
What are the threats coming from emerging markets champions to Western global firms?
How do you explain the paradoxical position of China being the second largest economy in the world and still classified as an emerging economy?
In mid-2005 Gunawan Wiboto (Gunawan), an ethnic Chinese Indonesian entrepreneur and founder of the Ramayana Group, decided to build a steel mill incorporated as a new company: PT Hanuman Steel. His
Brazil The Republic of Brazil is the largest country in South and Central America. Numerous indigenous tribes predated the arrival of the explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral who claimed the territory for
What types of cultural differences can business managers experience? Give examples.
What is the ‘silent language’ of negotiation?
A lower-level manager discovers that his boss has made a wrong decision that could affect the company negatively. Looking at the various cultural norms described in the chapter, how would you expect
What consequences can you draw from Laurent’s assumptions of management differences for the organization of a subsidiary in China?
Looking at Erin Meyer’s cultural mapping, what kind of problems would you anticipate for a German manager in Indonesia?
What cultural issues would you anticipate in a planned partnership between a UK listed e-company and a Korean family conglomerate?
Why have East Asian counties been more efficient in containing the Covid-19 pandemic?
How would you recommend an American manager plan a negotiation with a Japanese counterpart?
What real-life examples of ‘cultural misbehaviour’or misunderstandings have you experienced personally, or heard of? How could these have been avoided?
In your opinion, what is the usefulness of doing a business system analysis when considering whether to invest in a country?
Are the theories, models and principles taught in business schools all over the world progressively eliminating cultural differences in the management of business enterprises?
In June 2011, Royal Dutch Shell (usually known as Shell) and Cosan announced the start of operations at Raízen, a 50/50 joint venture to produce ethanol, sugar and electricity from sugar cane, as
Jack Cumberland was the Managing Director of IndoMedia, a leading advertising agency in[the fictional Southeast-Asian country] Indoland.IndoMedia was formed as a joint venture between EuroMedia from
Brazil, one of the world’s largest emerging markets with the ninth largest economy, has a population of 208 million and GDP of $1.8 trillion.97 In 2014, a federal police superintendent in Brazil
Enel was one of the largest power utilities companies in the world, with €80 billion in revenues for 2019. Its gross operating margin of €17.7 billion was generated from renewables (43 per cent),
Etisalat Group is a telecoms corporation from the United Arab Emirates, headquartered in Abu Dhabi.With revenues amounting to AED 51.7 billion (US$14 billion), it operates in seventeen countries
The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation was created in Shanghai in 1865. Its primary business was to finance trade with China. Up until the Second World War, it expanded rapidly in the Asia
Essilor is the result of the merger in 1972 of two French ophthalmological companies: Essel, a specialist in corrective glass lenses, and Silor, a specialist in plastic lenses. Its products used to
Quinta do Vallado (Vallado), a Portuguese vineyard founded in 1716 and situated in the Douro Valley, had been run by the Ferreira family and their descendants for 200 years. It produced Port wine and
In 2020 the global distribution of sales in the industrial gas industry was as follows:i What is Air Liquide’s position on a GCI/GRI mapping? Global industrial gas industry 82 billion The 2020
In your opinion, in which industries could the UK, Italy and Australia be considered ‘key’ countries?
What could be the benefits of positioning oneself as a standardized global niche differentiator? What kind of competitive advantages does this require?
What are the capabilities needed to be a broad adaptive cost leader?
What are the ways to sustain competitive advantage?
What types of competitive advantage does being a first mover provide?
Sketch the mapping of the value chain for:a A consulting firm b An airline c A trading firm d A corporate and investment bank e An internet-based platform (e.g. Airbnb, Netflix)?
For each of the entities in Question 7, can you represent a possible global distribution of their value chain, as illustrated in Figure 5.11?Question 7Sketch the mapping of the value chain for:a A
Schneider Electric calls itself ‘The Global Specialist in Energy Management’. With a turnover of €250 billion and employing 135,000 people in more than 100 countries in 2019, Schneider Electric
Lubricador SA is an Italian specialist chemical company with a wide range of products serving various industrial applications. The car division of the company specializes in lubricants for brake and
What are the relative advantages and disadvantages of setting up a wholly owned subsidiary instead of a joint venture?
What is a ‘window of opportunity’?
Under which conditions does being a first mover give sustainable competitive advantage?
What are the major problems associated with licensing?
What potential problems does a foreign investor experience in an industrial joint venture with an ex-local agent or distributor?
Why do joint ventures often fail?
In 2014, TAG Heuer, a Swiss luxury watchmaker and part of the LVMH group (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy) entered into the connected watch market driven by its CEO Jean-Claude Biver and the Head of
Izmir Industrial Electric (IZIEC) is a (fictional)Turkish medium-sized manufacturer of electronic data processing and office equipment including fibre optic data centre products, rack cabinets and
Take two countries of your choice and compare their country risk profiles.
What is the ‘middle-class effect’?
What determines the quality of demand?
What are the tools used by governments to promote foreign investments?
Can you give examples of a hub in Africa, an emerging giant in Latin America and a resource-rich country in Eastern Europe?
Make a CAGE analysis of Morocco, Romania and South Korea. What conclusions do you draw from the point of view of a South Korean firm willing to invest in an assembly plant in one of these two
On 16 April 2015 Nokia announced that it would buy Alcatel-Lucent for $16.6 billion. This announcement marked the latest in a swirl of global mergers and acquisitions in the fast-evolving telecoms
General Motors (GM) is a global US car company which produced 9.8 million vehicles in 2015, sold in 125 countries, split between ten brands:Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac, Opel, Vauxhall, Holden,
The chapter describes six examples of cross-border mergers: can you identify the source of long-term value creation in each case?
What are the problems in conducting due diligence in a global context?
What determines the bargaining range of a negotiation?
What are the critical issues in the post-acquisition transition phase?

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