IMI's Business Strategy: Managing Knowledge and Skills for Competitive Advantage

IMI is a global engineering group that focuses on niche markets and providing customised products and services to its clients. The company's objective is to lead in these markets and provide services that are not offered by its competitors. IMI's niche market strategy is dependent on engineering skills, market leading position, and exposure to long-term structural growth trends. Managing knowledge and skills is crucial for IMI's competitive advantage and long-term sustainability. The company can differentiate its business within global markets by focusing on digital marketing, leadership style, and market entry strategy.

Case study of IMI

INTRODUCTION
Imperial metal industries commonly known as IMI is a engineering solutions providing
company. It is a global engineering group that knows how to use its system, technology and
knowledge to maintain its presence and achieve competitive advantage in the global market. The
company is full of ideal engineering specialists (Kasemsap, 2017). The company is recognised
worldwide through its expertise and innovative engineering solutions and deals in more than 50
countries. IMI focus on the needs and wants of its target customers with deep understanding
through a great research team. It also focuses on the welfare of its employees and identify their
strong areas of knowledge and skills which promotes them to maximise their productivity and its
quality. It deals in B2B (business to business) environment and focus to target giant business
entities. Some of the examples of its leading clients are – Coca-Cola, McDonald's and Volvo.
The firm has long history of working in valve and fluid engineering technology. The following
report is divided into two tasks. The first task includes the company's different objectives, their
purpose and meaning of 'managing knowledge' and 'competitive advantage linked with the
provided case study.
TASK 1
Objective are the goals of a company which help it to create targets and it also gives it the
motivation to work more for achieving the objective. IMI's objective is to lead the niche markets.
These markets are the specific segments of market that are relatively small. The targetting of
these markets leads the company to put their full focus on a specific market which has less
suppliers and higher demand. This helps in decreasing the competitive factor and leads to
increment in profit margins. The company's another objective is to provide different services
which are not provided by its competitors and have the ability to fulfil customer's long term
needs (Lavery, 2019). IMI focus on their hiring talented employees and also provide several
training programs in order to achieve this objectives. IMI named this strategy as “ engineering
advantage “. To provide the market with customised products and services, it have to understand
the needs of its customers. The providing of desired services creates a loyal bond of the company
with its clients which gives it a competitive advantage. IMI uses KAM (key account
management) in which the control of gases and fluids is focused and it requires its employees to
be highly talented and customer focused to maintain the company's in-depth insights. Use of

KAM technique, state the want of entrepreneurial spirited employees. These employees find new
and creative ways that add value to the satisfaction of customers. The key account management
academy, practised in trainings of IMI trains its employees according to this factor. This also
promotes the efficient use management practises with customers (Nayak, Bhattacharyya and
Krishnamoorthy, 2019).
Critically evaluate the implementation of IMI’s niche market strategy in the light of its
competitive advantage and external environment, and recommend other three strategic
choices by which IMI might differentiate its business within global markets to achieve and
sustain long term market leadership objectives. Analyse strategies at IMI. Define those three
strategies and explain how IMI can implement those strategies
IMI's niche market strategy is dependent on three main key aspects which include
engineering skills in fluid technology and innovation, its market leading position in the chosen
niche markets and its exposure to markets which are benefited from long term structural growth
trends such as urbanisation and climate change. In their niche market they provide customised
products to their customers in order to create competitive advantage in the market. In terms of
market strategy of IMI, they have to develop business competencies which require talented and
highly focused customer employees so that they can provide best services to their customers. The
weak point of their market strategy is that they have to evaluate the market into deeper manner
so that their products can retain in the market for longer period of time (North and Kumta, 2018).
The market strategy have to be implemented by considering all factors of external environment
because UK is country where BREXIT situation has made the market condition unfavourable. As
economic condition is good but there are other factors like inflation and other criteria affect the
market into negative spectrum due to which it has affected sales part of an organisation. Due to
global recession it also impact the market strategy of an organisation. Due to this condition the
legal parameters also get affected due to which business market strategies have4 to face
challenges in terms of standing out it into competitive manner.
It has been recommended that they have to focus on digital marketing in terms of
sustaining into the market for longer period of time. They have to adopt innovative ways in order
to attract customers on large scale. They have to focus on partnership so that they can create

better image into the market and also need to take support of different kinds of apps so that they
can remain into the market in a very strong manner (Shaura and Lawanda, 2020). It has also been
recommended that they have to choose a particular leadership style so that their team members
work accordingly within the organisation. In order to enter into new market they have to choose
a particular market entry strategy so that they can capture the market into appropriate manner
and can retain into that market for longer period of time. They have to take risk in terms of
introducing something unique into the market so that customer can bound themselves to buy that
particular product.
These three strategies can be implemented by making a proper plan for it and strategy at
organisational level so that they can attract large amount of investment and customers as well.
Digital strategy can be implemented through introducing a particular app and leadership style
can be implemented through understanding the nature and strength point of that particular leader
(Prashar, 2018). For the last strategy they have to analyse and study the market into deeper
manner so that they can decide a particular market entry strategy for the organisational growth
and development. When proper market entry strategy has been decided then it is easier to enter
into new market and convenient to explore a new market into positive spectrum. So these are the
strategies which can be implemented at organisational level for further expansion and growth of
IMI organisation into positive manner. This kind of implementation is helpful in terms of profits
of an organisation.
What is managing knowledge ?
It is a process of gathering, warehousing, sharing and effectively controlling the
education and experience of workers to grow the workforce knowledge. It is the main motive
to develop the productivity, efficiency and their skills with in the company. It is an approach to
achieve institution goals by building the best utilization of knowledge. The best method of
managing the knowledge are maximising visibility, developing the personal skills, Create
collaboration networks and many more. It is essential because it raises the efficiency of an
company decisions making ability (Askarova, 2021). In assuring that all the workers have the
assess to the total expertise held within the company. Organisation builds a smarter
workforce that make the work more efficient and effective in the company. It improves the
capacity of the employees by motivating in a various ways.

It increases the competitive advantage of the organisation as the worker get the motivation
and they work more effectively in the company will get the benefits having the good brand
value in the target marketplace. It directly hit the goodwill of the company as the company
constantly works on the productivity of the employees and thus results in improvement of their
performance with in the company that leads to the fruitfulness in operations of institution. The
company takes advantage of competitiveness in various way which are described below.
Increases the long term sustainability - competitive advantage directly beneficial to the
organisational growth in the market place where the company is al ready providing services.
It also provides the expansion in the different markets too. The IMI company takes a
benefit by promoting their products and services in every segments of market that gives a
boom in the business of the company (Chelliah, and Swamy, 2018). The leading
perspective and high investment and efficiency needed sector gives it with less threats of
getting new competitors in the long term.
Grows the brand image - The competitiveness of the company increases the brand value in the
market and increment in the sales volume that gives a advantage in competing in varied
markets. Company enjoys the luxury treatment in the place where they are running the
business due to their market leading position in all of its operating niche and large markets.
Increase the profitability - These benefits in increase the revenue that helps the firm with
getting presence for long run in the market place. Every business wishes to have a profit
oriented organisation so that they can have the ability of competing with the big brands of
their particular segments. They constantly work on the quality of the service (Hallinger,
2020). The revenues and profitability of IMI are increasing every year, mainly of the niche
markets on which it is focusing on that particular year.
Increase the productivity - the company always adapts a various activity that directly links
the productivity of the employees and it motivates the employees performance that leads to
the increasing productivity with in the company. They uses the technology that is
changing rapidly so that they can save the overhead cost and time of the workers.
Thus, the above discussed point states that the advantages that company takes with the
managing the knowledge and constant working on the skills of the workers. Moreover it is
beneficial for the company. The IMI company constantly works on the improvement of the
concern in order to be in the sight of the target customers and to rise the brand value in the

existing marketplace and in varied market segments. They are required to manage the workers so
that they can feel familiar in the organisation. They regular works on employee's motivation
which make their employee feel valued and this motivates them to deal their customers with utter
responsibility and put their complete capabilities and skills in maintenance and building of new
and innovative services which can provide the market with attractive commodities and fill their
needs.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it is concluded that the IMI company works in providing
engineering solutions and deals in B2B environment. There are many type of engineering
solutions and it mostly works in providing fluid power, Sever services, Indoor climate and
beverage dispense related services. The company uses methods that are beneficial for the
workers in regards of increasing their ability of perform operations in the company, it increases
the creativity of the workers that directly related to the organisation's benefits as the company
services and product get to know by the public as much it will get the brand value in the target
market. It uses several different types of strategies to cope up with the competitive market. The
company constant adapts the changing technology so that they can help the employees in
making their work easy and creative. They uses the different activity in order to motivate them in
a positive way. The management wishes to have stability of the employees in the workplace.

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