Comprehensive Business Strategy Analysis of Sony Mobile Communications

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Sony Mobile Communications' (SMC) business strategy. It begins with a company overview, highlighting Sony's position in the global smartphone market and the competitive landscape. The report then delves into SMC's mission, vision, objectives, goals, and core competencies, emphasizing its focus on communication and entertainment. It identifies key factors SMC should consider when formulating its strategic plans, such as sales volume, competitiveness, and innovation. The report explores effective strategic planning techniques like SWOT analysis, market research, and cost-benefit analysis. It includes detailed SWOT and PESTLE analyses to evaluate internal and external factors. Furthermore, it applies Porter's Five Forces model and conducts a stakeholder analysis, focusing on employees, shareholders, and customers. The report concludes with a recommended strategy for SMC, emphasizing product development, improved marketing, and technological innovation to enhance its market position. References to relevant business strategy literature are also included.

BUSINESS STRATEGY

Company overview
Sony is a multinational smartphone and tablets
manufacturing company headquartered in Tokyo,
Japan, London and Sweden. It is a privately owned
subsidiary of Sony Corporation. It is positioned at the
fourth rank in the world of phone manufacturing
market, thus it operates their business in both
developed and developing countries. In the current
scenario, the company is facing a high level of
competition from the companies like Nokia, Samsung
and Motorola.

INTRODUCTION
This presentation is based on the information about the business strategy
used by the Sony Mobile Communications (SMC). It also covers the
information related to the company's objectives and stakeholders by
analysing the organisational and environmental factors in the context to
SMC.

Mission statements, company visions, objectives,
goals and core competencies of SMC
Mission – The mission of SMC is “To become the communication
entertainment brand.”
Vision – “To create a new level of exciting and innovative digital
entertainment that gives better experience to their consumers through
providing them a wide range of cutting-edge products with the latest
generation content, technologies and services.” is the vision of the
company.
Goals – It main is to achieve the mission by inspiring people to
communicate and utilize all the mobile applications to entertain
themselves (Stonehouse and Houston, 2013). They want to be a
successful mobile communication company which integrates and outlines
all the factors of communication and entertainment.

Contd.
Objectives – SMC has specified a particular set of objectives of their business and that are:
 Strengthening core businesses: Digital Imaging, Game, Mobile
 Turning around the Television business
 Expanding business in emerging markets
 Creating new businesses and accelerating innovation
 Realigning the business portfolio and optimizing resources
Core competencies – It is determined that there are mainly two aspects which creates core
competencies for SMC and they are:
 Human resource – By recruiting creative and retaining innovative employees within the
company.
 Effective leadership – Employing the best and effective leader in technical and research
department helps in innovating new ideas.

The factors need to consider by SMC when
formulating their strategic plans
The main factors that are to be considered by the company
while creating a strategic plan are:
 Raise the sales volume
 Attain better competitiveness
 Reduce the profit margin
 Identifying new sources of innovation
 Implementing a better strategy of pricing and
producing the product (Etengoff, 2010).

The effectiveness of the techniques for developing
strategic business
plans
The determined strategic business plan techniques which are effective
and beneficial for SMC are:
 SWOT Analysis: The company can opt the method of analysing the
internal factors for identifying their strengths and weaknesses
areas and level.
 Market Research: This strategic plan will be highly beneficial for
Sony in formulating the best business strategy by considering all
the market and organisational factors. This technique is very
effective as it analyses the market condition and situation for
determining the plan.

Contd.
 Cost benefit Analysis: It would also be advantageous for Sony,
as the company can identify the method of allocating the
resources for specifying the cost and attain benefits.
 General Electric Approach: This would assist the SMC's
management to develop a sound strategy for defeating the
negative situation and achieve the mission and the objectives.
 Critical success factor: This method will help in SMC in
creating the best planning session for all the factors that would
be helpful in boosting the market share and growth for the
company.

Organisational audit
The best method of analysing the organisational is to identify the
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of their business and that
could be done by SWOT analysis.

Swot Analysis
Strengths
 High innovation and maintained
quality.
 Competitive brand image and
loyalty.
 Ease to understand and use the
products.
Weaknesses
 High price products
 Products issues reduces its
stability
 Extremely focused on teenagers
and youngsters, avoids
businessman and corporates.
Opportunities
 Rising market for smartphones
and tablets.
 Increasing adoption of new
gadgets and software.
 Emerging markets of China and
India facilitate SMC in earning
high profits and market share.
Threats
 Rising number of competitors
generates high level of
competition.
 High level of customer's
bargaining power
 Maximizing pressure for
reducing the prices.

Environmental audit
PESTLE analysis
Political Factors
 No issues or restrictions on expanding the mobile market
 Changes in political policies and regulation
 Instability in product's prices
 High taxation
Economical Factors
 Inflation in prices and foreign exchange rate.
 Instability issues in monetary terms (Makos, 2012).
 Rising disposable income
 Declining potentiality of customers

Social factors
 High acceptance of branded products
 Rising interest among the youngsters and teenagers.
 Increasing standard of living
Technological factors
 Necessity of advance techniques and technology
 Rising usage of internet and games over smartphones.
 Ease methods of E-payments and money transfer.
Environmental factors
 Environment-friendly products
 Adopts global market and declaration
Legal factors
 Fairness and equality in all the business practices and activities
 Genuine products avoids legal formalities and obligation.

Porter's five model
Forces and their impacts
Rising rivalry – High level of competitors to Sony is reducing its market
share and declining growth. As they offer similar products with low prices
and with more advance features (Competitive Analysis of the Retail Sector in the
UK, 2003). These competitors are Windows, Samsung, Nokia, Motorola
etc.
Threats of substitute products – Rising number of substitutes products
impacts the customer's attention and interest to some other brand, due to
which the company faces threats.
Threats to new entrants – Due to no restrictions and regularities, there is
an ease in entering the mobile market and this creates more competition
for SMC. However, due to high brand value and image the company's
business is unaffected.

Stakeholder analysis
 Employees – It has been analysed that SMC employs around
131,700 in total number employees all over the world. The
Human Resource team of the company is highly focused on
employing effective and innovative recruits to their business.
 Shareholders – SMC has 549,040 investors which were having
their shares till the end of 2015. These are termed as the real
owners for the company who has highly invested and retain the
equity shares against their capital.
 Customers – The company main aim is to attract the customers
and increase their profitability. The impact of customers value
and loyalty directly affects the company's working and business.

RECOMMENDED STRATEGY
Considering the market and condition of Sony company and
ascertained information about the current position and
scenario, it has been determined that the best strategy for the
company is to develop their products and increase their
promotional techniques. The management of the company
should improve the marketing and advertisement techniques.
Along with this, they should bring a change in product
innovations and introduce new technology.

REFERENCES
Stonehouse, G. and Houston, B., 2013. Business Strategy. Routledge.
Competitive Analysis of the Retail Sector in the UK. 2003. [pdf] Available through: <
http://www.bis.gov.uk/files/file11029.pdf>.[Accessed on 19th February 2016].
Makos, J., 2012.PESTLE and SWOT Analysis: When to use SWOT. [Online].
Available through:<http://pestleanalysis.com/pestle-and-swot-analysis/>. [Accessed
on 19th February 2016].
Etengoff, A., 2010. Sony Ericsson alters mobile strategy. [Online]. Available
through: <http://www.tgdaily.com/mobility-features/52139-sony-ericsson-alters-
mobile-strategy>.[Accessed on 22nd April 2016].