Strategic Management: IMI's Competitive Advantage and Growth

This report provides a detailed analysis of strategic management principles applied to IMI, a global engineering company, focusing on how its business strategies contribute to its competitive advantage, market position, and future goals. It examines IMI's strategies for gaining a competitive edge through expertise, innovation, and customer satisfaction, highlighting its focus on maximizing returns, expanding into new markets, and adapting to environmental changes. The report emphasizes the importance of knowledge management in building competitive advantage and explores IMI's approach to entering niche markets by leveraging specialized knowledge and technology. Furthermore, it discusses the impact of external factors, strategic choices, and operational models on IMI's long-term sustainability, recommending strategies for adapting to market trends and customer needs while optimizing resource allocation and financial performance. The report concludes that effective strategic management is crucial for IMI to achieve its goals, improve its strategies, and navigate the complexities of the business environment and students can find similar documents on Desklib.

STRATEGIC
MANAGMENT

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Question 1....................................................................................................................................3
Question 2....................................................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................1

INTRODUCTION
Strategic Management is the process of managing organization's resources to achieve the
objectives of the company and involves it includes various activities such as setting up
objectives, analyse the external and internal factors affecting the business operations, evaluating
the business strategies and ensuring that the strategies is implemented in the organization.
Established companies find it easy to modify its strategies whereas non established companies
find it difficult. This process also helps to analyse its areas of operation and improve in order to
operate its business efficiently(Doktoralina, and Apollo, 2019). The main benefits is it gives a
direction to the company and helps in increasing the efficiency. By implementing these plans, it
increases its market share and increases its profitability. As a result it ensures its substantiality in
the market.
This report illustrates the business strategies with the help of case study of the company
IMI which is global engineering industry and how that contributes its competitive advantage in
the market, its position in the existing market and its future goals to secure its position. Along
with this various strategies choices and models are explained for long term sustainability in the
market.
MAIN BODY
Question 1
Business strategy is defined as setting up plans, policies and goals that gives an idea how
business should compete in the marketplace with the limited resources a company possess. These
strategies help to create a vision and direction in order to survive in the market. The focus is on
fulfilling the objectives of the organization. IMI's being an engineering company main purpose is
to frame its business strategies is to gain competitive advantage in the market, expansion and
satisfying customer needs. Main reason which differentiate it from other companies is its
expertise knowledge and innovating new products in the market. The company not only focused
on improving the products in the market but also focused on the needs and requirements and also
provided better comfort of the customers(Klumpes, et.al, 2019). It followed successful business
strategy and it helps to focus on maximizing the returns and make progress. The company
created vision that is necessary got achieving the goals and gave a clear picture to the employees
so that they can carry out its responsibilities efficiently. The company focused on expand its
business by making investments in the new market and reducing the costs and increase its

profits. The company followed three aspects that is its skills in fluid technology, its market
positions in the niche, market and long term structural growth such as changes in the
environmental factors. Business strategies helps to identify the trends and analyse the changes in
the market and customers requirements so that the company could modify the strategies and
generate better results which helps in making future decisions for the company. The company
identified the requirement and added value to the customers such as it reduced the carbon
emissions and improved the energy efficiency(Shams, et.al, 2020). It is very important for a
business to identify the environmental factors that influence the business and the company
focused in identifying its threats and achieve the strategies they framed. The strategies of the
company are framed that it identified the global trends in the external surroundings which helped
them in modifying its business for growth. For example, it focused on developing those products
that provided cleaner energy and also saved the consumption of energy in the organization. As
most of the companies have limited resources, and they have to operate within the available
resources so the company managed its resources to ensure that they do not get drained before
the period and well managed by the company. The company has adopted the health and safety
culture which focused on the reducing the risk in the society and providing them with the eco-
friendly environment. The company has framed its business plans In such a way maximize its
productivity, provide more value to the customers and create its products which are different
from other company's products and to achieve the competitive advantage and survive in the
marketplace.
The management of knowledge skill ensures that the right information is received to the
right person at the right time. Gaining knowledge about the customers preferences and choices is
the focus for improving the quality of information in different organizations. Many companies
have critically analysed to increase the customer loyalty and expand its market and challenge its
competitors(Cao, et.al,2019). By managing the knowledge skills, IMI can build its competitive
advantage by providing products and services and identifying the customers needs to meet long
term goals of the organization. Every employee in the company has knowledge about the work
and job they are doing and it enables the companies to utilize and capture the knowledge to the
full extent. It is very important for a company to use the knowledge effectively in the
organization and then respond to the people differently. The success of the company depends
upon the quality of knowledge that is applied by the firms in their business. The competition in

the market is increasing so the area of knowledge should also increase at that rate. The
production of the company depends upon the manpower and human capital. The goal of the
company is to acquire the niche market which is less competitive and to achieve this the
company should apply skills and knowledge to meet the demands which are prevailing in that
market through proper use of the individuals capabilities to achieve competitive advantage over
other companies. At present, the company offers knowledge by delivering products to meet long
term needs of the customers that other companies unable to do which increases the profit
margins of the company and creates barrier to entry for the competitors(Ahammad, et.al, 2018).
The company should establish better knowledge to deal with the competitors in the market. It is
knowledge and ability of a person to create and manage the operation within the company and is
the main source of competitive advantage within the business environment. Applying the
combination of knowledge and skills enables IMI to find solutions for its customers requirement
and also to achieve competitive advantage in the market. The company's strategy to enter into
the niche market will enable the company to bring together its knowledge and expertise in order
to meet the challenges in the competitive marketplace.
Question 2
The companies strategies is defined as the long term plans that it aims to achieve the
goals of the firm. The main motive of IMI is to achieve is to achieve the increase and expand its
operation in niche market. Niche market is marketing strategy that focuses on the unique target
market that focuses more on the customers requirements. Every business should be clear with the
type of products they will offer in the market. This market has its own requirements and
preferences. For entering the niche market for the existing firms, it has focused on developing
new products and improving its products by applying the latest technology and specialized
knowledge which is very necessary for any company as they are considered as the assets of the
firm as diversifying the products will attract the niche market in the business as well. It has also
faced negative impact like the products are not satisfactory as the market requires or lack of
some technology(Palmer, et.al, 2018). It has added value to the needs of the customer by
reducing the carbon emissions and improved the efficiency of the energy. It has also focused on
innovating the products which makes it different from other products in the market in order to
take competitive advantage in the market. It is not necessary that company can fulfil all its
customers requirement but focus on meeting the needs of most of the customers. The company

analysed and understood the areas to attract new markets and communicating with the customers
to understand the present requirements related to the products of the company and where they are
lacking behind and areas of improvement and modifications required. There are various factors
which affects efficiency of the business. It includes the internal as well as the external factor
which affects the working of the organization. There are some factors which are beyond the
control of the business and affects its operations. Social, legal, political, economic and
technological factors affects the business but the company monitored these factors and threats
and opportunities and framed its policies and plans to achieve its goals. It identified the trends of
the external environment and reshaped its plans and policies to accomplish its objectives. It
reacted to the climatic change and initiated to manufacture the products to supply cleaner energy
and reduce the energy consumption of the company(Vogtlander, et.al, 2017). It also identified
the scarcity of the resources and took measures to manage and utilized according to the need and
avoid misuse of the resources in the working of the business. Strategic choices refers to the
analysis which is based on the growth, acquisition and diversification of business. It helps to
determine the future strategies and alternatives which helps in working of the company.
Change in the strategic choices depends upon the changes in the customer need and preferences
and presenting new services to take competitive advantage over other competitors. It is
recommended to choose the strategies which will give the overview and help to create its
strategies according to it. Many companies initiate their plans and strategies according to the
financial performance of the company as it helps to build the structure and develop the base of
the objectives and their long term effect on the company. It is suggested that a company can use
different evaluation methods to calculate the performance level for long term survival in today's
market. If the company produces the expected amount of cash flow, the return to shareholder
will be cost of equity. The other factor is market environment that provide the companies to
identify the growth within the prevailing section and assess the strategies according to the
situations. By using this strategic choice, the group can allocate its resources in the product
development and marketing for high-end goods and other regions and helps to balance the
profits in all the areas. The company should evaluate the marketing strategies and trends in the
market to identify the demands and requirements of the customers and for long term survival in
the marketplace(Smith, et.al, 2017). Operational model is sequence of steps that defines the
working of the organization. The company's operational model should be created such that it

provides better to the customers in the market. The working in the organization should be
established every aspect of the market and of the company. It is recommended for the company
to have a clear vision about what the company wants to achieve, its financial performance and
resources. All the external factors should also be considered while operating within the market
and according to it create strategies for long term growth of the company. The company should
look into the financial possibility by implementing the strategic plans. The company should give
due diligence while making plans in case of expansion and mergers.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it is concluded that strategic management plays an important part
in any business as it monitors and analyse the requirements of the organization to meet the goals
of the organization. It helps in the arrangement of the resources and allocating these resources for
its effective management. The company should emphasis more on modifying and improving its
strategies and examine the various factors that affects the business and take steps to improve
those areas. Business strategy gives an idea to the company how to compete with given
resources. IMI focused on customer satisfaction and changes its policies according to the market
situations. Its focus was on capturing the niche market which is a unique market having its own
needs and preferences, the company found ways to enter the market by manufacturing new
products and understanding the needs of the customers. Various strategic choices have been
recommended to the company to take competitive advantage and for long term survival in the
marketplace.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Ahammad, et.al, 2018. Strategic talent management in emerging markets. Thunderbird
International Business Review 60(1) pp.5-8.
Cao, et.al,2019. The link between information processing capability and competitive advantage
mediated through decision-making effectiveness. International Journal of Information
Management 44 pp.121-131.
Doktoralina, C. and Apollo, A., 2019. The contribution of strategic management accounting in
supply chain outcomes and logistic firm profitability. Uncertain Supply Chain
Management 7(2) pp.145-156.
Klumpes, et.al, 2019. Climate risk reporting practices by UK insurance companies and pension
schemes. British Actuarial Journal, 24.
Palmer, et.al, 2018. Total cost of ownership and market share for hybrid and electric vehicles in
the UK, US and Japan. Applied energy 209 pp.108-119.
Shams, et.al, 2020. Stakeholder dynamics of contextual ambidextrous capabilities and
authenticity: A conceptual synchronisation for competitive advantage. Journal of
General Management 46(1) pp.26-35.
Smith, et.al, 2017. Illegal diversification strategies in the farming community from a UK
perspective. Journal of Rural Studies 53 pp.122-131.
Vogtlander, et.al, 2017. Combined analyses of costs, market value and eco-costs in circular
business models: eco-efficient value creation in remanufacturing. Journal of
Remanufacturing 7(1) pp.1-17.
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