Inquiry Based Learning Report: Nokia's Business Failures and Analysis

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Nokia's business failures, examining its history, market position, and strategic decisions. The report begins with an executive summary and table of contents, followed by an introduction that outlines the report's purpose and provides background information on Nokia. The report then delves into Nokia's company history, highlighting its rise to prominence and eventual decline. A key focus of the report is identifying the areas of failure, such as the inability to adapt to technological advancements, lack of innovation, and poor strategic planning. The report also explores current market trends and competition during Nokia's decline, including the rise of competitors like Apple and Samsung. Furthermore, the report includes SWOT and PESTLE analyses to evaluate Nokia's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats, and the external factors impacting its business. Finally, the report offers recommendations for Nokia's improvement and concludes with a summary of the findings. The report references several academic sources to support its analysis.

Module: (FY028) Inquiry Based Learning
Topic: (Title: Research Title)
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 Executive Summary
In this report, the topic covers are the overview of the company Nokia and the
competition at that time and different areas of failure and reason such as poor
management, competition and not adopting the innovation and many more. The
report summarised the models of analysis such as SWOT analysis and pestle
analysis and the recommendation to it.
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 Table of Contents
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Contents
 Executive Summary...................................................................................................................................2
 Introduction (150-200 words)..............................................................................................................5
 Company history background (400 words).....................................................................................5
 Identify areas of failure and why (400 words)................................................................................6
 Current trends and competition at that time (250-300)................................................................7
 Models of Analysis (at least two).......................................................................................................8
 Recommendations...................................................................................................................................10
 Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................10
 References (at least 7).............................................................................................................................11
 Appendix.....................................................................................................................................................12
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 Introduction (150-200 words)
Nokia Corporation is a global leader in the production of telecommunications
equipment. It has since established a strong total presence in a wide range of local
marketplaces, and its business has grown significantly in all sectors to meet
consumer demands as well as the expansion of the telecommunications industry.
Nokia also buildings mobile setup and various telecommunications tools for
applications such as traditional voice telephony, ISDN, broadband access, skilled
mobile radio, phonation IP, wireless LAN, and a receiver line. The report includes the
history of company, different areas of failure and the reason of failure. The file
includes the swot analysis and the pestle analysis of Nokia (Alibage, A. and Weber, C.,
2018).
 Company history background (400 words)
Nokia was founded in Finland in 1865 and is currently one of the most well-known
and well-liked companies in the world. It's an international telecommunications
company that used to be one of the top portable manufacturers. Nokia, formerly the
market leader, failed terribly due to its inability to compete with its competitors and
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technological advancements When I mention Nokia, you might think of a phone, but
you might also think of something a little more abstract and deeper. It might also
conjure up memories of happier times. There was a period when you were only
known by one person, and that person was your phone. Nokia was the company that
coined the phrase "Connecting People."
Fredrik Idestam, a technologist from the Republic of Finland, founded a mill that
would later become Nokia in 1865. The name Nokia comes from the location of the
second mill, which was built on the banks of the Nokianvirta stream in 1871. After
that, the company expanded into power generation, and three companies merged:
Finnish Rubber Works, Finnish Cable Works, and Nokia. Nokia Corporation was
formed in 1967. The company even constructed its own power plants. The hiring of
Kari Kairamo as CEO in 1975 was critical to the company's growth. The company
grew fast in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark before eventually settling in the United
States. Back then, the Nokia Corporation specialised in paper, electronics, rubber,
and cable. It invented, among other things, toilet paper, rubber boots, televisions,
and communication wires.
Nokia made its initial foray into the cellphone business in 1979, when it formed
Mobira Oy in collaboration with Salora, a Finnish television maker, and launched the
Nordic Mobile Telephone (NMT) service. This became the world's first worldwide
mobile network, and Nokia released its first vehicle phone, the Mobira Senator, in the
1980s. Nokia released the DX200, the company's first virtual cellphone switch, in
1982. (Baxter, K., 2019)..
 Identify areas of failure and why (400 words)
In 2013, the same Nokia Company, which had a 50% market share in 2013, had
dropped to less than 5% of the total market. Nokia's management, stockholders, and
customers have all been kept informed about the company's impending insolvency.
The company was on the point of going bankrupt, but Microsoft's participation in the
marketplace helped it regain its footing. Microsoft did this to keep the Windows
platform on cellphones, but it also gave the firm a new lease of life.
Reason for the failure of the Nokia is given as-
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NOKIA DID NOT ADAPT TO CHANGE: The mobile industry has seen
significant technological advancements. Nokia remained the same when old phones
morphed into smartphones. Nonetheless, it was the predecessor of the first
smartphones. The first Symbian smartphones were released in 2002, but the
company was unable to keep up with the rapid pace of technical advancement.
Nokia was unable to succeed as a result of this. While competitors began to
introduce more powerful smartphones, Apple continued to offer the older model.
Users were willing to pay for these smartphones, and society as a whole adapted to
them. Nokia had no idea what was going on at the time and had made no changes
as a result. As a result, Nokia's target demographic moved to a more modern and
sophisticated one over time. (Neokleous, M., 2020).
Lack of innovation Due to the company's rapid growth during this period,
management was forced to choose between innovation and growth finance. As a
result, the company's innovation or research and development department was
practically depleted, and the company was unable to manage the launch of the latest
handsets. Aside from phones specialised for corporate communication, most mobile
characteristics were more or less the same during the mobile phone's penetration
era. It was the primary reason why the aggression of the competing brands was not
addressed.
Lack of strategic plan: Apple and Samsung were able to understand the
superior gaming setup that Nokia couldn't. Apple and Samsung have collaborated on
a flagship product. Every year, these businesses release a new version of their
goods with new features. As soon as the new unharness is accessible, consumers of
those brands, as well as target market, keep a watch on it. This excitement about a
new product that is free and has new features may enhance shopper interest in the
product, which is exactly what is happening. Despite the fact that the smartphone
market is saturated, the launch of a latest iteration of the phone stimulates public
attention. In the case of Nokia, though, this was not the case.
 Current trends and competition at that time (250-300)
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Nokia faces many challenges and issues conducting the operation of various types
of product lines such as mobiles, accessories, and other devices. There was
presence of many companies which were creating the biggest competition in the
marketplace at that time such as Motorola, apple, Samsung and many more. When
Nokia was at its peak, the other companies were adapting the new technologies
such as reduction in the size of smartphone, innovative phones such as smart
screen touch mobiles and many more. The biggest mistakes that Nokia does is not
accepting the innovation and it focus on the old technology which decrease the sales
of the company and market shares which decreases the overall profitability of
company. Company needs to invest more amount of financial aspect and refocus on
high end smartphones for better operation process. Due to rise in the competition
level, the large amount of customer base shifted towards other brands such as
Samsung and Motorola. To face the competition, Nokia used the collaboration
process with the Microsoft but it results in failure of the company. Nokia failed in
marketing strategies and companies like apples surpass Nokia in branding model.
 Models of Analysis (at least two)
Swot analysis is tool which is used to identify the strength, weaknesses,
opportunities and threat of the company. The strength and weaknesses are
considered as the internal factor whereas the opportunity and threat are measured
as the external factor. The SWOT analysis of Nokia will provide an overview that will
lead to a more in-depth elaboration of the strategy of company and its current value
and position(Panigrahi, C.M.A., 2020).
Strength- the strength of the company is its brand name. because of the
durability, dependability and inventiveness, Nokia products are preferred by lots of
peoples. The majority of highly qualified employees of Nokia have linked with
Microsoft expertise. The products of Nokia are easy to operate and come with the
variety of useful accessories.
Weakness- the one of the biggest weaknesses of the company is its criticism
after poor sales services. The company took long time in the highly innovative
market. Because of this the company losses many of its market shares. Because of
present of continuous rivalry in the market from android and iOS, development of
business of its window Lumia smartphones line has slowed.
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Opportunity The Microsoft-Nokia alliance might be a win-win situation for
both firms. The deal has a lot of promise if both parties use their resources wisely.
Possibilities to expand the product line and cut prices. Also, update the Windows
operating system with new options and programmes.
Threats- Nokia may face intense competition from several smartphone makers,
making it difficult for the company to stay competitive and gain market share. Threats
from China's moveable enterprises and others are inexpensive and have the ability
to cause huge problems.
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PESTLE analysis of Nokia
PESTLE analysis of Nokia helps in determine the external factors which
creates an impact on the business of the company. These factors involve such as-
Political factors- It's difficult to say how political considerations affect Nokia.
The company is entirely located in Finland, but the Finnish government has refused
to provide it with a bailout or special treatment. Nokia was forced into an uneasy
partnership with Microsoft, which has since broken down.
Economical factor- Nokia has been severely hurt as a result of the recent
European downturn. Europe's financial crisis has affected it significantly, owing to
dwindling purchasing power in its own markets. Nokia, unlike Apple, has failed to
break into China's rapidly growing market. Nokia also lacks the financial resources of
some of its competitors, such as Google, Apple, and Samsung.
Social factors- Nokia has been harmed by the widespread popularity of
smartphones, which has resulted in an increase in the use of apps. Several of the
most well-liked apps, such as WhatsApp, are designed for a variety of widely used
operating systems, including Google's Android and Apple's exclusive iOS. Nokia's
insistence on using Microsoft Windows Phone instead of robot turned off many
buyers.
Technology factor- Nokia's technological issues are at the root of the social
factors that limit its activities. The introduction of applications and the development of
ASCII text file operating systems like Android transformed the nomadic business.
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Mobile phones have progressed from simple communication devices to hand-held
computers.
Legal factor-Nokia's legal environment is challenging to navigate because it
operates within the European Union. The usage of robots by Google has been the
subject of a thorough inquiry by that body's regulators. The EU's action against
Google could result in significant changes in Nokia's market, similar to the split of
robots into their own companNokia is a legal entity because it operates within the
European Union.
Environmental factor- Increased prices for substances and components,
particularly lithium for batteries, are another environmental concern that could have
an impact on Nokia. Increased demand for lithium for a variety of applications,
including electric vehicles, might stifle supply and raise costs. (Poutanen, M., 2019).
 Recommendations
It has been recommended that Nokia pay close attention to the reliability of
their software updates to make better future of Nokia. The company should must
accept the innovation in order to increase the sales as well as brand awareness
of company. The company work on increasing the quality of its products. The
best in tool hardware (on all show panels and calibrations, audio chips, and so
on), as well as thermal responses and section attention for their products.
Overall, it has been recommended that the company should improve the overall
quality and stability of their devices.
 Conclusion
It has been concluded from the above study that Nokia phones are popular all
around the world. As a result, they require a significant portion of the mobile
market. Because of their great quality, cost-effectiveness, and extensive
functionality, Nokia mobile phones are easily repaired in mobile repair shops, and
the business also offers spare parts on the market. With the passage of time,
Nokia phones begin to imitate the most cutting-edge features.
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 References (at least 7)
Alibage, A. and Weber, C., 2018, August. Nokia phones: From a total success to a total fiasco: A
study on why Nokia eventually failed to connect people, and an analysis of what the new
home of Nokia Phones must do to succeed. In 2018 Portland International Conference on
Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET) (pp. 1-15). IEEE.
Baxter, K., 2019. Avoiding the “Nokia Fate” in Catholic Education: The Case of the United States and
the National Catholic Education Association. The review of faith & international
affairs, 17(4), pp.72-75.
Neokleous, M., 2020. Strategic drift, the case of Nokia Corporation.
Oxford Analytica, 2020. Corporate competition in 5G set to intensify. Emerald Expert Briefings, (oxan-
db).
Panigrahi, C.M.A., 2020. Failure of Nokia–Lessons from Losers. Published in the book'Emerging
Issues in Business Management'Published By: National Press Associates, New Delhi, ISBN,
(978-81), pp.944303-9.
Poutanen, M., 2019. Business logics: co-option of media discourse by pro-market arguments in the
case of Nokia in Finland. In Critical Policy Discourse Analysis. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Sulphey, M.M., 2019. Could the adoption of organizational ambidexterity have changed the history of
Nokia?. South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases, 8(2), pp.167-181.
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 Appendix
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