Strategic Management: Balance Scorecard and Evaluation

This document comprises four essays on strategic management, exploring key concepts and frameworks. The first essay examines Porter's generic strategies (cost leadership, differentiation, and focus) and their application, using Nestle as a case study. The second essay analyzes Porter's five forces (bargaining power of buyers and suppliers, threat of new entrants and substitutes, and rivalry among existing competitors) to assess the competitive environment, with Samsung as an example. The third essay focuses on strategic evaluation using the Balance Scorecard and its implementation in Bahrain's Ministry of Work. The essays provide valuable insights into strategic decision-making and competitive analysis, offering practical examples and theoretical frameworks to understand how companies can achieve and maintain a competitive advantage. The document provides a comprehensive overview of strategic management tools and their practical applications in various business contexts.

Strategic management

Strategic management
Contents
Essay 1.............................................................................................................................................2
Essay 2.............................................................................................................................................4
Essay 3.............................................................................................................................................7
Essay 4...........................................................................................................................................10
References......................................................................................................................................13
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Strategic management
Essay 1
Strategy is one of the essential aspects which are considered by the company so that it can be
easy to attain the competitive advantage prevailing in the market. Strategy is one of the dynamic
alignments of the overall working pattern that minimizes the cost and also enhances
performance. So, the best strategy that can be used is “PORTER GENERIC STARETGIES”. In
this there are 3 steps cost leadership, differentiation focus and differentiation leadership. The
thesis statement will be “How Porter generic strategy will help the company to achieve
competitive advantage”.
Porter generic strategies are considered so that it can be easy to maintain the competitive
advantage as these strategies are concerned with the scope of the overall operations and also it
emphasizes on differentiation of the products. This strategy is used so that the company can
survive for long time in the competitive market and also through this it can be easy to attain the
overall competitive advantage (Bayraktar, Hancerliogullari, Cetinguc & Calisir, 2017). For
example: Nestle consider Porter generic strategy so that it can be easy to attain the competitive
advantage prevailing in the market and Nestle emphasized on differentiation and cost leadership
strategies which assisted in maintaining the competitive advantage in the wide range of the
market. The differentiations focus and cost focus strategies are taken into consideration in the
narrow market. According to porter, it has been stated that organization can consider one of the
three strategies to cope up with the competitive edges within the five forces. The three strategies
in this model are related to differentiation, low cost leadership and also focus. In relation to the
Nestle company it has been observed that Nestle consider business principles and strategies. It
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Strategic management
has also been stated that the company considers the use of differentiation and low cost leadership
strategy to set itself apart from the overall competition level in the industry.
It has been analyzed that this strategy helps to attain and maintain the competitive advantage of
the company. The four points related to the strategy are
(Source: Commercestudyguide, 2018).
 Cost leadership: By considering this strategy, the aim is to be one of the low cost
producers in the industry. It has been seen that company uses this strategy so that cost can
be maintained which will help in attaining the competitive advantage in the market
(Belton, 2017). This strategy is related with large scale companies like Nestle use this
strategy and it has been stated that company is offering the standard products with little
differentiation that are acceptable by the customers. It has been observed that Nestle
chocolate and confectionary can be known as the lowest cost producer in the industry of
chocolate and confectionary. The company does not compromise with the quality of the
products and services. To cut down the costs, the factory in Switzerland has been
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equipped with the chocolate box filler which is one of the machines that helps the
company to reduce the overall cost of production.
 Cost focus: It has been observed that in this the company seeks low cost advantage in
one or more number of segments of the customers. In this the product will focus on the
similar products with the high prices and also it is featured as the market leader but it is
important that it should be acceptable by the customers (Bertozzi, Ali & Gul, 2017).
These products are also known as “Me- Too’s”. In this, Nestle consider the traditional
principles which enhances the communication ability with the customers and also it
create the value chain management in reference to the preference of the customers. Nestle
also emphasizes on the maintaining the overall cost of the products by maintaining the
quality.
 Differentiation focus: In this the company aims to differentiate with one or small
number of the market segments. In this the focus is given on the niche marketing strategy
and also emphasizes is given on attaining the higher prices that the undifferentiated
products (Burns & Dewhurst, 2016). Nestle position its products on the basis of the
strategic differentiation and also the competitors are analyzed which are Hershey and
Jacobs Suchard.
 Differentiation leadership: It has been analyzed that this is related with charging the
high prices for the product and also emphasis is given on the high production cost and
extra value added features offered to the customers. Nestle considered heavy
manufacturing and marketing costs for its top brands. This strategy has boosted the
market share of the company in the highly competitive market.
Conclusion
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Strategic management
It has been concluded that the strategy related to “Porter generic strategy” is beneficial as
it helps the company to maintain its competitive advantage. This also helps to grow in the
market which boosts the goodwill in the highly competitive market. So, this is one of the
best strategies that should be considered so that competitive advantage can be attained in
an easy manner. This strategy has also given competitive advantage to the Nestle
Company in the highly competitive market. Therefore, this strategy should be considered
by the companies.
Essay 2
It has been evaluated that Porter five force analyses is related with analyzing the competitive
forces which are important for the business. In this framework, there are five competitive forces
which operate in the different areas. The five forces in this model are Bargaining power of the
customers, bargaining power of the suppliers, and rivalry among the current players, new
entrants and threat of substitutes. It has been analyzed these forces help to evaluate the overall
environment of the business. The attractive characteristic of this model is related with low threats
in market and unattractive are just opposite to it. Thesis statement is “How porter five forces help
the companies.
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Strategic management
Figure 3
Source: Research methodology, 2018.
There are several characteristics of the attractive industry that will help in determining the
industry profitability.
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Strategic management
 Threats of new entrants: One of the characteristics is related with Threats of new
entrants. This force helps to determine the entrants in a particular market. It has been
noted in this that if the industry is profitable and there are less barriers to enter then
rivalry intensifies. One of the best examples is of Samsung. It has been analyzed that the
threat of new entrants is high as in electronic industry the companies are entering with
low budget. So, it can be stated that barrier will be high for the new brands that are
entering into the market.
Figure: The market share of the leading smartphone manufacturer on the global platform
Source: Research methodology, 2018.
 Bargaining power of the suppliers: The second characteristic is bargaining power of the
suppliers in which if there is strong bargaining power then it allows the suppliers to sell
the high price raw materials to the buyers. It also impacts the profits of the companies. It
can be said that of the suppliers have the strong bargaining power then there are less
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Strategic management
suppliers but many buyers and also less substitute of the raw materials will exist (Sölvell,
2015). For example: In case of Samsung, it has been analyzed that the company is
offering the products which are also introduced by the different competitors in the
market. It has been seen that one of the major factors is related with the small size due to
which the bargaining power is weak. The suppliers of Samsung are present all over the
world and it can be simple for the company to switch to the new one. It can be stated that
company is one of the source of income for these suppliers so they does not switch to
other brand and there are rules which are set by the company and it is important to be
followed. So, the bargaining power of the suppliers is weak in the competitive market.
 Bargaining power of the buyers: The third characteristic is bargaining power of the
buyers in which it has been seen that the buyers have the power to demand low price
from the producers and it showcase that the bargaining power is strong. For example: It
has been analyzed that bargaining power of the consumer is weak in Samsung. It can be
easy for the consumers to have proper knowledge in relation to the products offered by
the company. The customers have the choice to select the best alternative and also the
bargaining power of the customers is weak to moderate as there are many options which
can be selected (Van Alstyne, Parker & Choudary, 2016). Samsung is one of the largest
companies and the focus is on the technological innovation which leads to the overall
bargaining power of the brand if compared with the customers.
 Rivalry among the current players: The fourth characteristic is rivalry among the
current players. The force focuses on the how the company in this sector can attain
competitive advantage and profits. The rivalry among the competitors is intense when
there are various competitors present in the market and also when the industry growth is
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slow with low customer loyalty (Harding, 2017). For example: In Samsung, the rivalry
among the overall present companies is Low. It has been observed that Samsung that
there are not many companies who can compete with the quality and services of the
products by the company. So, the competition level is low.
 Threat of substitutes: Fifth characteristic is threat of substitutes. It has been observed
that this force emphasizes to threatening when the buyers can easily search the
substitution of the products with the attractive prices and also it related with the better
quality. Like for example: to switch from coffee to team does not cost anything unlike
the switching form car to bicycle. For example: The threat of substitution can be few in
context to the Samsung company. In Samsung, visual display business threatened by the
substitution and it is concerned with the overall quality. One of the threats faced by the
company is related to substitution of products in which the company emphasizes on
target customer segment. So, the threat of substitution of the products and services are
few and it is because of the unique and quality products offered in the market.
So, it has been concluded that Low price simply states that there is low revenue for the producer.
There is strong bargaining of the buyers when only few buyers exist or there are many
substitutes. So, these factors are essential for the company to be considered as it can help to
enhance the market share of the company in the competitive market. By considering these factors
the analysis can also be made on the competitive forces which are necessary to be considered so
that growth can be attained.
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Strategic management
Essay 3
Strategic evaluation is an assessment process, which provides information to the executives and
senior managers for performance and design the programs and activities to achieve
organisational goals and objectives. This evaluation process comprises of many tools VMOST,
SWOT analysis, PESTLE Analysis, Boston Matrix including balance scorecard. Balance
scorecard is a performance evaluation model (Lorette, 2018). Balance score card helps to
translate the company`s mission, vision from strategic planning to operational action. It consists
of several components contributing value to stakeholders through financial, customer, processes,
and learning and growth. Ministry of work uses balance scorecard technique for the strategic
evaluation in Bahrain. The thesis statement is”how Bahrain used Balance scorecard?”
Balance Scorecard
When analysing and evaluating the implementation of balance scorecard in Bahrain based
company, the scorecard of ministry of work is analysed. It is used to identify and enhance the
various internal functions of business and their final external outcomes. It is reported that the
scorecard is aligned to the 2030 vision of the government of Bahrain who focuses on social and
economic transformation. In 2007, balance scorecard of company involves a mix of strategic
mapping and building techniques. Strategy Map outlined 14 strategic objectives from managing
the stakeholders, internal processes to learning and growth that aims to achieve and deliver
customer and financial outcomes (Tan, Zhang, & Khodaverdi, 2017).
Learning and growth perspective aims to serve the theme of leading professional organisation.
The three themes describe Balance scorecard as vertical, customer and supplier perspective and
cutting through process. This tool has aimed to achieve three objectives through effective PPP
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Strategic management
strategy to achieve improved PPP outcomes with the help of improved communication and
coordination processes. Whereas, the quality perspective theme describes to achieve objectives
by utilising the financial resources fully with enhanced service delivery (Marr, and Creelman,
2018).
Figure: Balance scorecard
(Source: Schmarzo, 2013)
With the help of casual relationship, coordination process and improved communication are the
key planning player objectives that affect the public private partnership (PPP) and the quality of
service theme as well. When preparing vision of 2030, Company`s present strategies especially
balance score card aims to strengthen the alignment to vision of Bahrain national. To align the
existing work, the company discovered several strategies embodied high degree of alignment
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