Swot Analysis

Microsoft is an American multinational company that was started in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Since Microsoft’s founding, the company has risen to be a technological giant, especially with its introduction of the Windows operating systems. The strong points of Microsoft are in operating systems, productivity software, gaming consoles, tablet PCs, and cloud computing.

There is no doubt that Microsoft is one of the leading technology giants in the world. Microsoft Windows OS is one of the most user-friendly operating system, one of the reasons for its very fast adoption and usage across the world. It is also the reason that Microsoft is one of the toughest brands in the software market to beat. It is literally dominant due to its Office software and Operating system.

Microsoft is omnipresent. Its Windows operating system and Office suite of productivity software dominate their markets. The company’s cloud computing platform, Azure, is one of the leaders in that burgeoning market. Customers range from individuals and small businesses to the world’s biggest companies and government agencies. Microsoft makes tablets (Surface), game consoles (Xbox), and even laptop computers (introduced in 2015), and it also owns Skype, the video meeting service. And in 2016, Microsoft added LinkedIn, the business-oriented social network, to its portfolio in a $26 billion deal. Microsoft’s software is included in most personal computers including those from Dell Technologies, HP Inc., and Lenovo.

SWOT Analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in a project or in a business venture. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieving that objective.

Strengths

The Microsoft brand is one of the strongest in the computer hardware and software market. This strength contributes to the company’s ability to attract customers, especially those who view brand strength in relation to reliability.

Diversified product portfolio is a considerable strength possessed by Microsoft. Microsoft offers a comprehensive range of software, services, and hardware solutions across different customer classes, which enable it to enjoy a leading market position. Microsoft generates revenue by developing, manufacturing, licensing, and supporting software and services across a wide variety of computing devices. Microsoft also provides consulting and product and solution support service, and trains and certifies computer system integrators and developers.

The company works with all the major computer hardware producers such as Lenovo, Dell, Toshiba and Samsung and major computer retailers to make sure computers would be sold with already pre-installed Windows software. The company has a worldwide network of distributors, and also it indulges in co-branding with hardware makers of computers, which enables it to have strategic depth and a breadth of a user base that is unparalleled.

Microsoft is an undisputed leader in the global marketplace in cloud segment. Microsoft offers a wide range of cloud-based computing services that include Bing, Microsoft Azure, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, Microsoft Office 365, OneDrive, Skype, Xbox Live, and Yammer. Moreover, public announcement of plans by Satya Nadella that Microsoft will be earning USD 20 billion per year from cloud business by 2018 is a clear illustration of further commitment of the company to further increase its presence in the highly profitable cloud business.

Weaknesses

Microsoft has lagged behind of its major competitors such as Apple, Samsung and Google in terms of introducing innovative products and services and adding innovative features and capabilities to its current portfolio of products and services. While competitors have been busy to introduce innovative products such as Apple Watch and Samsung SMART TV, Microsoft has not launched an innovative product or services during the past several years. Moreover, several companies are offering software’s which are free and more user-friendly thus offering stiff competition to Microsoft.

Loss of leadership position in Internet browser segment is a noteworthy weakness associated with Microsoft. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer was a leading browser application with a market share of more than 90% for about two decades since the beginning of the 1990s. However, Internet Explorer has been quickly losing its market share since the launch of Google Chrome in September 2008.

Also, Windows OS, the main Microsoft product has been heavily criticized for being so weak against various viruses’ attacks. Compared to other OS, Windows is the least protected against such attacks.

Opportunities

Microsoft seems to have plenty of money lying around. They have a great opportunity to develop the world’s best software with their talented programmers and large chunks of money to invest. Microsoft is widely accepted by customers, so if they can bring some dynamic to the status quo, then there is plenty for them to earn. In essence, Microsoft has the ability to convert their existing customer base, who typically pay for expensive products only every few years, into more active spenders.

Microsoft Corporation is primarily a software business that heavily relies on the popularity of the Windows operating system. In this regard, the company has the opportunity to grow based on diversification.

Microsoft has made nine acquisitions worth over one billion dollars: Skype (2011), aQuantive (2007), Fast Search ; Transfer (2008), Navision (2002), Visio Corporation (2000), Yammer (2012), Nokia (2013), Mojang (2014) and LinkedIn (2016). Microsoft can capitalize on the growing demand for smartphones which is emerging as a major growth opportunity in both developed ; developing nations. Microsoft acquired Nokia, but the deal did not prove a major success. Still, the brand has major opportunities open before it in the smartphone market. Microsoft will likely keep growing its business with additional acquisitions in the near future.

Threats

The software market is highly competitive, which may impact the company’s performance. The company faces tough competition in all its segments. The company’s server and tools products compete against the related offering of IBM and Oracle. Internet Explorer product faces stiff competition from the browsers developed by Google (Chrome), Apple (Safari), Mozilla, and Opera Software Company.

Every product of Microsoft is priced at a premium, thus it has a fewer customer base as compared to the competition. Certain products which are offered free of cost to the customers are highly priced by Microsoft which derails the customer away from Microsoft. A little more flexible pricing can help build a higher customer base.

Microsoft has already been sued for many times and lost quite a few large scale lawsuits. Lawsuits are expensive as they require time and money. And as Microsoft continues to operate more or less the same way, there is a high probability for more expensive lawsuits to come.

Conclusion

Microsoft Corporation has the necessary business characteristics to remain one of the leading players in the computer hardware and software industry. The strong brand image and positive externalities are among the major contributors to such market position. Microsoft must focus on competition and new areas of growth.  Only new innovative products and services can help the brand see faster growth.

References

• Microsoft Corporation Company Information [http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.microsoft_corporation.c86cc6059119a54b.html]
• Microsoft SWOT analysis [http://research-methodology.net/microsoft-swot-analysis-2-2/]
• Microsoft Corporation’s SWOT Analysis ; Recommendations [http://panmore.com/microsoft-corporation-swot-analysis-recommendations]
• Microsoft Corporation at a Glance [http://www.vault.com/company-profiles/computer-software/microsoft-corporation/company-overview.aspx]
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  threshold capabilities

And so, below will be a brief intro to what Strategic management is about. Strategic Management is a dynamic process that requires a long term perspective and flexibility. Top executives are usually responsible for strategic management. It also includes analysis of the internal and external environment of the firm, definition of the company’s mission, formulation and implementation of strategies to create or continue a competitive advantage. Gomez-Mejia ; Balkan, 2011)

The Strategic Management process involves 5 steps: Analyze internal and external environments Define strategic intent and mission Formulate strategies Implement strategies Assess strategic outcomes (Gomez-Mejia ; Balkan, 2011)

Introduction of IKEA

IKEA was started by Angina Kampala in SMS?land in southern Sweden. He single handedly sees the development I KEA into a turner retailer. His ideas see the exploration of furniture design, self assembly, advertising, the use of a catalogue and a showroom to reach his potential customers.

IKEA originally sells pens, wallets, picture frames, table runners, watches, Jewelry and nylon stockings, meeting the increased needs with products at cheaper prices and still earning a sizeable profit. It has since expanded into 40 countries/territories around the world, including Singapore in 1978 which I will be focusing mainly on throughout this case study. Mission To offer a wide range of well-designed, functional home furnishing products at prices so low that as many people as possible will be able to afford them. Vision To create a better everyday life for the many people.

Values Humbleness ; Willpower – Respect whoever we meet be it customers or fellow workers and by using willpower, it means getting things done Leadership by example – All the leaders in KEA try and set a good example and fellow co workers are expected to do the same Daring to be different – We eliminate old solutions if we have better idea Togetherness ; enthusiasm – Together, we have the ability to solve seemingly unsolvable problem Cost consciousness – We achieve good results with small resources Constant desire for renewal – Adapting to customer demands with innovative solutions saves money and contributes to a better everyday life at home Accept and delegate responsibility – We promote staffs with potential and drive them to surpass their expectation and being encouraged to learn from mistakes (KEA, N. D)

SWOT Analysis

The SOOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities ; Threats) is a commonly used strategic tool. The SOOT analysis allows the firm to analyze the internal and external factors that can influence the organization’s success. Gomez- Mejia & Balkan, 2011) Strengths Threats I Weaknesses I Opportunities I I Owns their own restaurant and I Not durable as compared to other I Growing demand of CEO friendly I More competitors I home furnishing company I products I Market hall Affordable I Economy recession products I Not appealing to the older I Growing demand of lower priced I generations I I CEO friendly products I Younger generations looking for I I more unique and innovative I I I Encourages innovative and unique I ideas In this case, by owning their own restaurant and market hall, KEA already has an edge over its competitors as foods and snacks hailing all the way from Sweden can be found.

By living up to their value of cost consciousness, IKEA are able to attract customers through the affordable prices by ordering through bulk at a cheaper rate & saving handling fees by delivering products directly from suppliers to IKEA stores worldwide. IKEA has always been an ambassador for CEO friendly products through TTS increased and smarter use of renewable or reclaimed waste materials. In order to keep improving and also be CEO friendly, feedbacks from customers are taken seriously and workers from various departments contribute ideas to one another so more unique and innovative ideas can be generated within IKEA itself. Weakness Firstly, as they are using cost conscious approach to produce their products. There’s only a certain limit the quality to the product can be. So, most to their products aren’t as durable as of those of other furniture company.

The designs of Kike’s home runtime are quite very modern and therefore, won’t be as appealing to the older generation as it is to the younger ones.

Opportunities The future looks bright for IKEA due to the fact they are able to increase the variety of green products and it only helps because of the environment’s current condition while also meeting the demand of greener products. As IKEA are producing more green products, the production cost will be cheaper as recycled and waste materials are used instead. Thus, sales price won’t be as expensive, meeting the demand of lower priced products. The cost of production of furniture are pretty low at the moment and so, new impetigo will surface and it don’t take as much money as it did in the past to set up a furniture company.

Economy recession is another factor that will threaten IKEA status as lesser people will be spending their money to replace their existing furniture.

External Analysis

There will be 2 parts to external analysis; it will be done based on general environment and competitive environment. External analysis is basically analyzing the factors that are not within the control of an organization for the general environment part. As for the competitive environment part, the strength of an organization’s current competitive position, and the strength of a position it is considering moving into will be identified to help prepare itself for every possible happenings in the near future.

General Environment External analysis of general environment will be done using PESTLE which refers to how the political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal environment affects an organization. Below will be a diagram of PESTLE, followed by a brief explanation of each factor and their examples. Monsoon, Gerry, Schools, Whittling, 2006) [pick] Political Factors – basically to what extent the government intervenes in the economy. It includes areas such as tax policy, labor law, environmental law, trade restrictions and political stability. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) Furthermore, governments have great influence on the health, education, and infrastructure of a nation.

An example will be the political stability in Singapore, even though it is such a tiny country, it is home to 2 IKEA outlets including 1 which is the biggest in SEA.

Economical Factors

– How doctors such as unemployment rate, disposable income levels, income per household, interest rate and inflation can affect an organization. Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) An example will be if the unemployment rate is high, IKEA will naturally generate lesser profit as lesser people will go shopping for furniture when they are unemployed.

Social Factors

– The population, demographics distribution of wealth, changes in lifestyles and trends and education levels in the country the organization is in can also affect them. Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) An example will be comparing the profit generated in Singapore and Thailand. Singapore has a higher educational level and their citizens more well off than those in Thailand.

Technological Factors

– New innovations and discoveries, pace of technological innovations and advances and new technological platforms in this modern world can also greatly affect an organization. Furthermore, technological shifts can affect costs, quality, and lead to innovation. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) An example will be KEA having an online catalogue, they cut a lot of cost on printing

Environmental Factors

– An organization can also be affected by a country’s it. Environmental protection law, waste disposal laws, energy consumption regulation and even climate’s change. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) For example, KEA who has en a go green ambassador, having increase production of green products over the Legal Factors – Influence the company’s operation, cost and the demand for years. Its product. They include consumer law, antitrust law, employment law, discrimination law and health and safety law. (Pander, 2011) For example, in Singapore, all workers working in the kitchen must go for health and safety course before they start working. Therefore, there is no exception for workers in IKEA restaurant.

Competitive Environment

External analysis of competitive environment will be done using Porter’s Five Forces Model which refers to how the threat of new entrants, threat of substitutes, suppliers, customers and intensity of rivalry affects an organization.

Below will be a diagram of Porter’s Five Forces Model. It will be followed by a brief explanation of each factor and their examples. (Pander, 2011) The intensity of rivalry among competitor increases with the number of competitors, when industry growth is slow, when there is unused capacity, and when there are high exit barriers. (Gomez-Mejia ; Balkan, 2011)

In this case, the threat of rivalry is medium to the Golden Village.

This is because various large equally balanced imitators such as Fragrance, Courts and local furniture stores do sell furniture, but they aren’t as complete as IKEA is as they even have their own restaurant which gives them the edge. Therefore, IKEA has generally medium rivalry because there are few organizations competing in the same industry but none are as accomplished and complete as KEA is. The threat of new entrants Barriers to entry such as high capital requirements, government regulations, and strong brand identification can minimize the threat that new competitors will enter market (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) With the strong brand identification and high UAPITA required to penetrate in the industry, the threat of new entrants in the home furnishing industry is low.

People tend to go for the established ones as it can be trusted and they already have knowledge of the quality and durability of the furniture. The threat of substitute Technological advances can lead to the development of new products that supplant existing ones. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011)

The power of substitute is low for the home furnishing industry, which has slight risk to the market. The accessibility to green products in the home furnishing industry is little and KEA has made a roughhouse by being able to increase the usage of recyclable and disposal waste materials to produce its products. This gather gather more supporters for them and their rivals in Singapore have yet to implement the go green rule as well as KEA had, or I would say nowhere near ‘IKEA.

Suppliers The power of supplier increases when there are few other sources of supply, when the supplier has many other buyers, when there are no satisfactory substitutes, and when the cost of switching suppliers is high. (Gomez-Mejia ; Balkan, 2011) The power of suppliers is medium for home furnishing industry. As IKEA adopt a save cost on livery cost and by ordering in bulk which enables them to cut the cost price in which their products are being sold, not a lot of suppliers will be willing to deliver directly to KEA but a lot of suppliers will welcome the idea of ordering in bulk. Therefore, I can conclude that the leverage suppliers can use on all the home furnishing companies is that they can increase the price if they provide direct delivery.

Customers The bargaining power of customer increases when they purchase a large share of the firm’s output, the product is important to them, close substitutes are readily available, ND the product is relatively standardized. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) The threat of losing customers is somewhere near medium. IKEA is known for their affordable furniture and their restaurant also serve food of reasonable price as well. But, they will have to look into some of their product durability if they want to reduce the threat of losing current customers to a lower level. Internal Environment Analysis An analysis that examines the internal environment to identity internal resources, capabilities, and knowledge that can help the firm capitalize on opportunities and minimize threats. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011)

There are two types of internal analysis, resources types and firm capabilities. Resources types Tangible are resources that can be quantified and observed. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 2011) The company’s profits, high-tech equipment and assets are the tangible resources. In this case, KEA Singapore tangible resources are its steady growth of profit due to its 2 stores and its low turnover of staffs Intangible are resources that are difficult to quantify and include on a balance sheet, but can provide the firm with the strongest competitive advantage (Gomez-Mejia, L ; Balkan, D. 011) The Company’s reputation and relationship with customers, staff and employee skills and commitments are the intangible resources.

In this case, IKEA Singapore has a fairly good reputation, other than customers complaining about the durability of some of their products, the staffs have a very good relationship with one another, very qualified as they are often sent for courses to upgrade themselves and respectable inter-relation skills. This upholds the reputation of IKEA Singapore as the top home furnishings organization locally. Firm capabilities There are three ways to analyze a firm’s capabilities. They are functional analysis, value chain analysis and benchmarking. Functional analysis: establishes organizational capabilities for each of the major functional areas of business. Gomez-Mejia ; Balkan, 2011) The company’s major functional areas are their own restaurant and market hall, customer service and marketing strategies which includes advertisements in a lot of areas and the creation of catalogue every few months.

Value chain analysis:

breaks the firm down into sequential series of activities and attempts to identify the value added of each activity. (Gomez-Mejia & Balkan, 011)

IKEA Singapore are known as the market leader in home furnishing, this credits goes to their staffs from every departments as they show great capabilities working as team.

Benchmarking:

assesses capabilities by comparing the firm’s activities or functions with those of other firms. (Gomez-Mejia ; Balkan, 2011) KEA Singapore has good marketing strategies.

However, there are areas for improvement such as some of its products quality and the delivery prices for customers Conclusion To conclude, IKEA Singapore has managed to maintain its status to being the market leader in home furnishing industry. Based on analysis, KEA Singapore focus a lot on advertising and the fact they own their own restaurant and market hall to have the edge over its competitors. There have not been any signs that it will be changing any time soon as it has grown from strength to strength, never taking a step back and constantly looking forward. I would say the boss of IKEA Singapore has done a very good Job in managing it so well. I have also learnt that from the help of SWOT analysis, managers will be able to identify their strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats which will give a clearer picture on which areas the company should coco and improve on.

External analysis (General Environment) helps the firm to analyze the 6 important factors before making any decision as every single factor will affect the organization in various manner

External analysis (Competitive Environment) enables the firm to have a clearer picture of their competitors, customers and suppliers through the use of Porter’s Five Forces Model which will in turn help them in making future decisions. Internal environment analysis enables the company to have a better understanding on the places for improvement within he company itself as nobody will ever be considered too good to continue improving.

Recommendations

My recommendations for KEA Singapore are to look into some of their product quality and revise the delivery charges. Yes, it’s good to go green, but that does not mean lowering the standard of a product. I would suggest the use of global strategy. This will help them to improve despite being the market leader.

In doing so, the price of its products can be further revised and the quality of its products can be higher too. This will not only help them stay competitive but it can be also regarded as a wreath to its competitors. For achieving its goal, I suggest to use the concentric diversification strategy. This is because with lesser competitors and more branches, there will be lesser threats and more opportunities. If they are able to acquire both of it, the chances of them to control or even further penetrate the market are very high. Lastly, I really do hope KEA Singapore will expand the size of their restaurant. Everyone will be surprised by how much the restaurant contributes to the total profit of KEA Singapore.

My initial observation is that CanGo is a company that has had some success so far. Liz and her company have many great ideas for the future of the company. However, they still need to create a mission statement to show what the company is trying to accomplish as well as what they are about. Liz was given an award, and just glossed over the story, because she had no idea how CanGo came to where they are. There was lack of planning, and didn’t even have a vision for her company. CanGo has identified a growing trend within the gaming industry that they want to use to bring them success, which is online gaming.

They only problem is that they have taken on an area that is not within their normal range of business. Without looking at the challenges or risks, CanGo has jumped on board.

SWOT

When looking into the SWOT analysis of the company. It is sad to say but the strength that I could come up with is luck. Due to the lack of planning, and many other areas, I am surprised CanGo has made the success that it has. Yes, CanGo does have some employees that know what they are doing, and did help contribute to that success. But overall I would say they had luck on their side.

Unfortunately, I have seen a wide array of weaknesses for the company. One of the biggest is communication. There isn’t any. When they had a meeting to discuss online gaming, there were never any decisions being discussed. It was, this is going to happen, hope you can deal type of situation, which leads to the strategic management of the company, or in this case lack thereof. The management of the company has no decision making processes, they just jump in head first without looking for the consequences or risks. Yes, there are benefits, but you need to check into things before making rash decisions.

The company contains many levels of organization and a variety of people on their staff. Debbie seems to be the most knowledgeable and organized of the group. She is willing to help others, as well as do her own work. Nick on the other hand feels he is on top of everything and well organized. When in actuality is very far from it. Then there is Warren aka “Coach”. He has a direct approach when talking to his team members. However, gives very little guidelines. Another area that needs addressed is the work ethic of the employees, as well as giving assignments and tasks to qualified individuals.

The entire project was basically put on Nick’s shoulders. He is not organized, and is not even prepared for this kind of work

Recommendations

The first recommendation we have for the CanGo Company is to develop a mission A professional development program would aid the CanGo staff in learning the strategic management process. This program would also aid in dealing with the dysfunction between the Operations Manager and the staff. Through study of the strategic management process, the Operations Manager would learn that moderately difficult goals are more likely to be met than impossible ones.

His assignment for handling the entire online gaming project to one unorganized staff member, shows he needs this training. For example, Liz stated that their goal was to provide customers a one-stop shopping experience. Therefore, in a way stated one area of the mission for the company. Going into the entertainment service of online gaming is a step in the wrong direction, and would go against the mission statement. When giving out projects, make sure to assign it to the correct employee(s). Giving a project to the wrong employee can make or break the project, especially if they have poor organizational skills.

The management also needs to follow through and give tasks to the correct person, but also give more direction. The Operations Manager needs to be more hands on. CanGo also announced an expected 500% increase in orders during the holiday season. Instead of making the online project the most important aspect or project, they need to work on the increase and making sure every area is covered. The company’s success is not based on the online gaming. They made their success through their one-stop shopping site, and they need to deal with the number of challenges that they are being faced with dealing with that.

It is has a higher priority as well as is more in line with their business goals for the company. I would recommend making Debbie the Operations Manager for this project. She is well organized, is able to help teach how to best prioritize, as well as brings everyone together. I think she would accomplish more, because she is able to identify the problem without much difficulty and creates specific goals for each person for their daily activities. Plus she shows things in diagrams, such as a Gantt chart, to let everyone know within the group what needs to be done and what is a priority.

The final recommendation I would make is to have CanGo go through some communication changes. They need to make a clear communications path between everyone. If someone is overwhelmed or confused, they need to be able to ask questions. If they are going to take on a new project, make sure it is discussed. So you can find out all aspects, such as challenges, risks, etc.

References

1. Prentice-Hall, Inc. , 2002. Class Videos. CanGo Quicktime Videos Week 1. Retrieved on 05/07/09.
2. Prentice-Hall, Inc. , 2002. Class Videos. CanGo Quicktime Videos Week 2. Retrieved on 05/07/09.

This paper seeks to prepare a SWOT analysis of Maytag for 2002 from which will be based a recommendation for the company’s strategic plan. SWOT stands for company’s strengths and weaknesses and industry opportunities and threats, thus, any strategic plan recommended should be one that will take advantage of industry opportunities, should protect the company from industry, should make use of company’s strengths and should correct or improve on company’s weaknesses. 2. Analysis and Discussion 2. 1. What are the key external trends/forces in Maytag’s external environment? What opportunities are available?

What forces in the environment might threaten Maytag? The key external trends/forces in Maytag’s environment that may produce the industry opportunities and threats are being derived using the Porter’s five forces model (Porter, 1980). Size of Suppliers As to size of suppliers, there appears to be strong force coming from these suppliers of capital, particularly long-term creditors. This can be considered as industry threat since it could drive down the profitability industry by making it hard to secure credits with stringent conditions like making it costly to secure them.

This can be inferred with the company’s experience of having to reduce its debt from the proceeds of is sale on one of its acquired companies (Hunger, 2002). Threat to Entry There is low barrier to entry as evidenced by increasing competitors in the industry. This could be considered as threat since more players could mean more competition and therefore less profits. The industry is still expected to grow from 2000 to 2005 both in the US and the Canadian Market as per case facts (Hunger, 2002). Size of Buyers

The industry is characterized by high bargaining power of buyers because buyers who represent almost every family or individual that uses appliances and they have a wide array of choices from market. This is a threat to the industry as it could leave buyers shifting from one appliance manufacturer to the other. Availability of Substitutes The home appliance industry is characterized by low availability of substitutes as people of modern times may not go backward given the demand of the times to use appliances. This is therefore an opportunity for industry players which could create a further increase in demand for appliances.

This is has basis in the industry forecast of more sales and further growth in the industry (Hunger, 2002). Rivalry among Existing Firms There is a strong rivalry of among existing firms as declining profitability of the players. This is therefore a threat for players as they compete for the market, they would have to increase cost and thereby reduce their profitability. This is based on the maturity of industry in the Canadian and US markets with expected growth of only 1. 9% annually from 2000 to 2005. The rivalry has actually resulted to consolidation from more to few players (Hunger, 2002).

Then, about the methods, it will show you how can I collect the data and where did I gather the information. Findings part will show how the Vanilla promote their brand through their marketing mix. It will include two possible marketing mix for the product that how can they expanse and open more franchise in foreign countries. Next, the discussion part which contains bad points and good points of Vanilla if they want to expanses or open franchise in foreign countries and also assess the effectiveness of the research. Lastly, the conclusion will summaries all the ideas, thoughts, research and results come out.

Introduction

The research and interview conducted to find out the marketing mix of Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company also known as Vanilla is a company that produces and trades products that made from milk. According to the UN Development Program, it is the 1 5th largest company in Vietnam. The company is the leading enterprises of the milk processing industry and currently holds 75% ownership of the milk market in Vietnam. They have a strong distribution network in Vietnam with 183 distributes and nearly 94000 sales covered all 64 regions. Vanilla products are even exported to America, France, Canada, Poland, Germany, the Middle West and Southeast Asia. Vanilla produce variety types of product (milk, yoghurt, caramel) that made by milk which suitable for different group of people. As the famous milk company, Vanilla has a lot of competitors, especially HTH True Milk – a new milk company but get a lot of attention because of putting collagen into milk which the third part.

Research findings will tell more about it. The key success factor of Vanilla is the smart way of create and using strategies. This report will find out two possible marketing mix include SOOT analysis (Strength, Weakness, Opportunities, Threats) and outline the ups (Place, Product, Price, Promotion) and I believe that v name K NAS a inclement marketing mix to Decode stressful.

Methods

SWOT analysis will help emphasize exactly what Vanilla is doing correctly or incorrectly as a milk company, because a SWOT analysis allows the operators of the business to outline the internal and external factors that affect the operation of it. All the information such as the SOOT analysis of Vanilla and their competitor researched on the internet and two businesses was interviewed of what they thought about the marketing mix of Vanilla Company.

Research findings

Firstly, Vanilla has a number of competitors, the most prominent is HTH True Milk which is quite new brand that use a high quality cow milk and now they have produce a new kind of milk that contains collagen which attract a lot of women at the age of 30 – 50. Their strength is that they use modern technology techniques such as cows in their farm listen to ballad music and eat fresh grass every day to ensure a higher quality of product. They believe that it will make the milk to be more fresh and delicious.

This is first brand which claim that they use 100% of pure cow milk so hen the customer hear the word “Pure Milk”, they think of HTH True Milk – they succeed in the area that makes a good brand to customers. They have a lot of their own stores that design to attract customers. In addition, they have great ideas of putting collagen into milk that no brands have thinking about that before. The only weakness of HTH True Milk is that they do not have a large range of product, they only focus on the milk so that their market still weak compare to Vanilla where produce a lots kind of products made by milk.

Marketing Mix of Vanilla for milk market in Vietnam

Strength

They have a strong brand that produce diverse product made from milk and a competitive prices so they can gain trust and attract more customer. They also have a large market share, it’s about 75% all over. Moreover, they have a good relationship with their partners that create a good image in partners. Good management plus marketing team have an expert experience is a important thing that make their brand today.

Weakness

At the beginning, they started everything at Ho Chi Mini City, s until today, almost marketing activities mainly concentrate in the South of Vietnam. Another problem is that they only focus in Vietnam market.

Opportunities

They have the government’s preferential policies and also take part in the WTFO which they can have a lot of advantages in market expansion and business experience.

Threats

Vanilla is unstable economy but the political situation in the world even more unstable. Also they have a lot of competitors in milk market. About their ups: Product, Price, Place and Promotion. Place: This is where people going to by the product so Vanilla need to choose the suitable place for their stores

Product

What good and different of their products Detente ten competitors. Price: Price Is a major problem. I en price need to sultan for Vietnamese people

Promotion

The promotion strategic will help attract customer to buy.

Place Price – More than 125000 retail stores.

• Almost stores place in the city centre where have a lot of people.
• Freezers, coolers, cold car investment also expended to demand growth of yoghurt.
• In 2008, Vanilla has invested more than 7000 freezers, coolers for cold distribution system and 300 trucks for distributors.
• Develop quality and distribution system in order to gain more market share in rural areas and small towns.
• Adjust price so it suitable with the income of employee.
• Have a lot of sales period.
• Increase milk volume in anniversary days.

Product Promotion

• All products of Vanilla provide full range of vitamins and minerals essential for health and development of the whole family.
• Develop the brand to become the nutritional science and most reliable brand in Vietnam through strategic application of scientific on nutritional needs for people.
• Expending more value product in order to improve the rate of return for the whole company.
• Have more than 200 reduces.
• Promoting product widely through TV, internet, newspaper.
• Regular change the content and forms of advertising. Sales promotion
• Experience employees.
• Donation (drink milk can donate to poor people)

Marketing Mix of Vanilla for expand or open franchise in foreign countries.

• Strengths: Being unique brand for using material from Vietnam. The price of products for people in foreign countries is quiet cheap. Also, Vanilla have a wide relationship and they create a really good image in them.
• Weakness: New brand. Nothing special or different from other product.
• Opportunities: Gain more knowledge about business skills and experiences. Also create more relationship between other countries and trust in foreign customer.
• Threats: More other popular milk brand from other countries which can be big obstacle in pathway becomes successful of Vanilla.

1. City Centre
2. Develop in small town
3. Place where Vietnamese people gather.
4. Material from Vietnam
5. A range of product that suitable for everyone.
6. TV, radio, newspaper, visual-ad
7. To introduce more about Vietnamese product to New Zealand people

Discussion

The two marketing mix help the Vanilla to become more success because of the smart strategies and competitive advantages: Vanilla is the leader of dairy milk market In Valetta. Nils Is trust EAI t Drain In ten mall AT Vietnamese people Tort ten last 34 years. Also, they have extensive distribution network located national widely and continued to expand more in the future. A range of modern factories located throughout Vietnam that helps to reduce transportation expenses and a system of machinery and equipment- being improved and expended every year.

I have interview two other business people which also work in milk market about what they think which marketing mix is the best for Vanilla and why? Vanilla can easily become successful with marketing mix because they already a top leader of milk market in Vietnam. They just have to try hard not to lose their popular within a lot of competitors.

Lastly, Vanilla have the management and marketing team with deep experience in dairy business and production. The only weakness that I see for Vanilla is they Just focus within Vietnam and all the activities mainly happened in the South of Vietnam.

Conclusion

To conclude, throughout the research above, although the weakness of Vanilla is only focus on the Vietnam market but the marketing mix is really success. They know what is their strength and weakness so that they can improve to be better.

CanGo Analysis Report Consultants BUSN 460-Team 1 CanGo Analysis Report Let me say first thank you for giving us the opportunity to evaluate your company’s operational process. It has been a tremendous experience to be in a company that started out small and grew to one of the leading businesses in the industry. CanGo does have a promising future ahead. During our evaluation over the past two weeks, we have noticed a few things that will be a problem in the future if not resolved. It seems that the company has been profitable by chance not because of planning.

At this point we feel the need to work on the planning aspect and all that it entails. There are six key issues and recommendations that we have made that we know would help improve CanGo. Mission Statement The first issue is to have a mission statement for the company. This statement is the back bone of the company. Every employee will strive day after day with the main purpose of the company. Can-Go’s purpose is to provide a somewhat all inclusive service to entertainment needs via books, CDs, DVDs, and its new prospect online gaming. There seems to be no set direction for the employees to reference.

Goals There are goals that Can-Go is going towards, but everyone isn’t on the same page. Unity among the employees is one of the most important aspects that you need to resolve. We witnesses during the management meeting about the online gaming idea, which no one seemed to be able to force their opinion or have an open decision to if the company should go forth with the idea. Andrew was very excited with the idea, but tried to almost push the company into the new market. You can’t go into a new market without seeing what is really involved in proceeding with the new move.

SWOT Analysis One key thing that was missing when we observed CanGo is that Liz should have created a SWOT Analysis. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats by conducting this analysis Liz would be able to see where the business was at in the current marketplace. It would also allow her to see where she could make changes in the company to increase profitability. A SWOT analysis allows you to view the internal and external factors of a company. The strengths should be a list of what makes CanGo better than the competitors.

Liz made a great choice by giving her customers a $10 gift certificate and free shipping on the next order when they didn’t receive their orders in time for the holiday or received the incorrect order. They offer books and audio/visual entertainment online which is exactly where things are headed. They grew much faster than expected. By purchasing Webjouster they were opening up the door for online gaming. The download time for books and audio is fast. There are quite a few weaknesses that have been observed there seems to be a huge problem with organizational skills. There is no set vision for the company.

The company as a whole could use a course on professionalism. When Warren delegated the responsibility to Nick for the online gaming being that this was a very important task it should have been handled better. He should have sat down with Nick and went over the goal and the timeframe that he had to get it done versus being vague about it saying they had weeks to get it done. CanGo also needs to improve their technology in order to offer the online gaming. There needs to be improvement in the Human Resource Department because there are people in positions that cannot meet the expectations necessary to fulfill their job requirements.

The new opportunity they are faced with is being able to open up to online gaming. People have laptops, notebooks, and mobile phones with them at all times being able to entertain themselves with electronics is now a way of life. If the weaknesses are not addressed they will be threats because the competitors will be able to get in on the profits because of how unorganized CanGo is when it comes to handling business. I think there is room for CanGo to expand if they make the necessary changes to the company in order to stay on the track they are currently on. Short-term Objectives

Liz failed to have a list of short-term objectives. By making this list she would be able to evaluate the progress her company is making. These short-term goals should cover the different functions of the company. These objectives should be SMART. That means they should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timed. They should sit down as a team and develop premeditated plans to meet these objectives. Feedback Loop As a company you are also missing the feedback loop. This is an important part of the strategic management process. It allows you to monitor the execution of every part of the strategic management process.

It helps you know which goals and objectives are being met. Liz should sit down with her staff and make a list of short-term objectives and long-term goals. These goals and objectives should be evaluated after a set period of time to see how they are coming along with meeting their objectives and goals. After the goals and objectives are reviewed if they are not being met the process is reviewed and any necessary changes are made at that point. Teamwork There is a big organization problem that Nick has when dealing with getting a projection report for the new online gaming. Warren didn’t give him much to grow on.

There were no questions by Nick to get more clarification. Nick’s reaction towards this great opportunity showed that he was impressed for this chance. Gail was not too convinced that he could do it. There seems to be a little rivalry between to the two, but working together as a team will only make the process go smoother. Warren didn’t divide the work load with the entire team. He should have known that it could be too much for only one person to handle. He didn’t make this new venture a joint effort by doing so he could have utilized everyone’s talents. He also didn’t give him a timeline on when this will need to be taken care of.

Nick’s organization techniques are very poor. He didn’t even know how to prioritize the task that needed to be done. Pride shouldn’t stop you for asking for help. We were pleased that Debbie took the necessary time to help Nick produce a Gantt chart to help organize the tasks. This is what we like to see with all of your employees. A team is only as strong as its weakest link. Conclusion We would like to thank you for this opportunity to work with you. It has been a pleasure being able to be a part of the future of such a magnificent company. We can’t wait to work hand in hand with you to begin implementing these changes.

Opportunity underneath Analysis Strengths: Colgate has a history of producing quality products and a stellar reputation for oral health products. Colgate has strong channels of distribution not only on a national scale but also globally. Thereby, Colgate is the number one selling toothpaste in otherworld. [3]Colgate is accepted by the DAD as effectively helping to prevent and reduce tooth decay. Within Collage’s website is a social network that asks consumers to get involved with the brand called “Colgate Smile. ” Colgate has 40 product facings n stores, which is the most out of any toothpaste brand.

Colgate has 93% product penetration. Weakness: Within the product life cycle most of Colgate products are either mature or declining, creating the need for Colgate to keep introducing new products. Collage’s product line is broad with over 40 different products varying in tube size, quantity, flavor and desired effect. Toothpaste promotion is cutthroat. Products are frequently on sale, which appeals to price buyers and potential brand switchers. This may also cost the company profits due to regular users taking advantage of the discounted price. Opportunities:

Colgate commands 37% of the toothpaste market share opening the door to brand growth through marketing, acquisitions and mergers. Collage’s brand image is an ever-revolving door opening the opportunity for rebinding and new promotion/ marketing tactics to be explored. Threats: Aquifer’s products use innovative technology in packaging and development. Within the last several years Colgate has lost its leadership position to Crest. While Othello market share was regained, Colgate must remain aware of the competition. Both Crest and Aquifers products are cheaper per ounce than Collage’s SOOT analysis of Colgate By Jerkins-Babes