BUS300 - Competitive Strategy Report: Coles vs. Telstra Analysis

This report offers a comparative analysis of the competitive strategies employed by Coles and Telstra, two prominent Australian companies. It delves into Coles' strategies, highlighting its focus on affordability, differentiation, innovation, and the utilization of the CAGE model to navigate diverse markets. The report examines Telstra's approach, emphasizing its customer-centric focus, technological advancements, innovation labs, and the application of the CAGE model to manage international operations. The report discusses the business models, strategic choices, and innovation efforts of both companies, providing a comprehensive overview of their market positioning and competitive advantages within their respective industries. It also highlights the importance of customer service, supply chain networks, and digital transformation in achieving business objectives and sustaining competitive advantage. The analysis includes a review of the companies' strategies to adapt to market changes and maintain a strong position against competitors.

RUNNING HEAD: Competitive Strategy
Competitive Strategy
Coles and Telstra

Coles and Telstra 1
Table of Contents
Coles......................................................................................................................................................2
About Coles.......................................................................................................................................2
Strategies, Innovation and Models used by Coles.............................................................................2
Telstra....................................................................................................................................................4
About Telstra.....................................................................................................................................4
Strategies, Innovation and Models used by Telstra...........................................................................4
References.............................................................................................................................................6

Coles and Telstra 2
Coles
About Coles
Coles is one of the leading supermarket chains of Australia The brand has more than 800
supermarkets in Australia and it has been chosen for the assignment because the brand has
been awarded as the rising star of the industry because it has contributed in providing great
support and services to the customers of Australia (Coles, 2017). It provides new shopping
experience to the population of the local areas. The brand is excellent in its field as it is
operating from more than a century and has good experience of delivering value to its
customers (Bartholomeusz, 2016). It is different from its competitors like Woolworths
because it operates in different countries while Woolworths operates only in Australia and
New Zealand (Coles, 2017).
Strategies, Innovation and Models used by Coles
Coles is one of the largest food chains of Australia. The brand has gained huge success
because of its improved balance between the buyer power and seller power. They provide
affordable products to their customers and have achieved their goals and objectives by
building strategies. The brand has developed their strategies by keeping in mind their target
market and the requirements of the customers which are need to be fulfilled. The brand has
positioned itself differently by focusing on the value and range of goods provided to the
customers. The brand adopts the differentiation strategy in the market to acquire more
customers and to pursue global markets too. The brand also focuses on its marketing
strategies to sustain in the tough competition in the market. The brand focuses on the urban
and rural markets and provides unique quality products and services to the customers. The
company has a brand name and it uses its good supply chain networks to sustain in the
market. Selling value products is the USP of Coles which gives a feeling to the customers
that they are buying value and not cheap products (Keupp, Palmié and Gassmann, 2012).
Innovation is another factor which helps the company to grow and sustain in the market. The
company continuously focuses on its choice of products and services which it provides to the
customers. Innovation helps company in increasing the customer value and also in lowering
down the costs which in turn brings competitive advantage for the company in the market.
The brand is focussing on the future needs of the customers which are why it is concentrating
on opening the convenience stores. The business model of the company suggests that it has

Coles and Telstra 3
focussed on how the value can be created for the target customers and what should be
provided to them for maximising their satisfaction (Mitchell & Coles, 2004).
The brand also has adopted the CAGE model in which it has considered culture of the
customers to manage the differences of choice of customers between different countries. The
political ties and relations are also considered under the Administration. The companies
consider the geographical distance and also economic differences in the population. The
consideration of these factors can bring success to the business i9n the industry. Coles has
always focussed on the customer service and relationships and have made the choices about
pricing, services, products, location, etc. which helps it in designing the subtle strategies
which helps it in accomplishing its goals of achieving cost benefits and maximising the
revenue. It has collaborated with Woolworths to tap the uncovered market. This would help
the brand to gain advantages over the competitors (Amit and Zott, 2010).

Coles and Telstra 4
Telstra
About Telstra
Telstra is the leading mobile services provider and Technology Company in Australia. This
company is selected because it is performing excellent in its field. The company is excellent
in its field as it has wide network of services and improve continuously in its connections and
networks. The company works on the three pillars i.e. to deliver brilliant customer
experiences, to drive value and growth and to work on the core business operations. The
business has access to over 1000 business specialists where it provides right advice to them
(Telstra, 2017). Telstra is better than competitors because they are using right technology
which gives them clear market advantage. It serves the largest number of customers in
Australia and his makes them the market leader. It gains almost double the revenue of the
other companies (Battersby, 2016).
Strategies, Innovation and Models used by Telstra
The company uses its tactics to build up strategy and to achieve its ultimate goals and
objectives. The company choses its market wisely and offer the services which are unique
and are not provided by any other competitor. The company works on its specialised services.
It focuses on the future networks form where it can build its business well. The company
works on long term leadership strategies in the relevant sectors (Telstra Corporation Limited,
2015). Also, it adopts digitisation which is need of the hour. The company also focuses on its
culture and capabilities to achieve its vision and to make strategies so that the business can
sustain well in the industry competing with the emerging competitors (Bariacto & Nunzio,
2014). The company also believes in innovation. Telstra has its own innovation Lab where
the innovation and technology co-exist to make changes in the market. It helps the brand to
innovate new services and to lower down the cost of providing services to the service users. It
helps the company in creating competitive advantage in the industry. This helps company to
face the changes in the demands of the service users and to develop its status in the global
enterprises (Qehaja, Kutllovci and Pula, 2017).
According to Telstra Corporation Limited (2015), the company is transforming technology
and creating the opportunities and challenges for the existing businesses of the industry. The
company uses Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) approach to operate more in international

Coles and Telstra 5
markets. The leaders of the company try to bring change so that the business could cater the
needs and requirements of the customers in the current competitive business environment
(Amit and Zott, 2010). The business also adopts the model of CAGE in which the business
gets assistance in covering the distance which is automatically created due to the business
indifferent countries. Telstra has successfully achieved success in fulfilling the requirements
of its customers which belongs to different cultures and is administered differently. The
company fulfils different laws and policies which are to be followed while having business in
many countries. They are able to fulfil different geographical requirements by providing the
services at distant places and locations. In terms of economic dimensions, the company has
been successful because it is serving different customers as per their economic capabilities
and differences in infrastructure or knowledge. This framework helps business in choosing
where it should invest. The business analyses the attractive locations based on the access to
markets, costs of the material and future growth opportunities which helps business in
expanding its business operations (Teece, 2010).

Coles and Telstra 6
References
Amit, R and Zott, C 2010, ‘Business model innovation: Creating value in times of change’.
Bariacto, N & Nunzio, J D 2014, ‘Market Power in the Australian Food System’, Global
Food and Water Crises Research Programme.
Bartholomeusz, S 2016, ‘Competition catches up with Coles’, The Australian.
Battersby, L 2016, ‘Telstra's fight to keep mobile network to itself, The Sydney Morning
Herald.
Coles, 2017, ‘About Us’. Retrieved from https://www.coles.com.au/about-coles.
Keupp, M M, Palmié, M and Gassmann, O 2012, ‘The strategic management of innovation:
A systematic review and paths for future research’, International Journal of Management
Reviews, 14(4), pp.367-390.
Mitchell, D W & Coles, C B 2004, ‘Business Model Innovation Breakthrough Moves’.
Qehaja, A B, Kutllovci, E and Pula, J S 2017, ‘Strategic Management Tools and Techniques
Usage: a Qualitative Review’, Acta Universitatis Agriculturae et Silviculturae Mendelianae
Brunensis, 65(2), pp.585-600.
Teece, D J 2010, ‘Business models, business strategy and innovation’, Long range
planning, 43(2), pp.172-194.
Telstra Corporation Limited, 2015, ‘Strategic growth Investing’, Retrieved from
https://www.telstra.com.au/content/dam/tcom/personal/ventures/Telstra%20CVC
%20paper_FINAL.pdf
Telstra, 2017, ‘Our Corporate Strategy ‘, Retrieved from
https://www.telstra.com.au/aboutus/our-company/future/Ourcorporatestrategy.