Repositioning

The majority of companies that have turned themselves around in one fashion or another have revised their strategy. There are several areas that the company must analyze to create a new or revised strategic framework. It must analyze its own business, its current strategy, its management, and the market it is in.

Apple has been rightly dubbed the comeback kid of the business world. In 1976, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, two high school buddies, created Apple in a garage, just like Hewlett and Packard decades earlier. By 1982, Apple had reached $1 billion in sales, yet the pioneer of personal computers was unable to remain the industry leader. Ten years after Jobs left Apple in 1985, the company was in serious trouble. In September 1995, the company announced that its line of notebook computers could literally catch on fire. Over the following four months, Apple's CFO, its head of marketing, and four senior vice presidents resigned.

When Dell and Gateway entered the personal computer market, Apple was written off by many industry observers. However, in 1997, Jobs returned and helped reinvent Apple by using the Apple name to help the company with initiatives that the competition wasn't aggressively pursuing.

He debuted the iMac and Powerbook, inexpensive and efficient laptops and readied Apple for the 21st century by debuting the iBook (electronic book), iPod (a digital music player), and the iPhoto (a photo editing product used for digital camera images). By strategically analyzing and then devising a game plan to exploit the weaknesses of the new industry leaders Apple has succeeded in reestablishing its dormant brand name even though it was forced to reduce the prices of these innovative products in the process.

A company in distress should first look internally by analyzing its own business. This includes analyzing its strengths, weaknesses, and strategic barriers that have caused the firm to succeed in the past but currently cause it to flounder.

The initial analysis will provide the backbone necessary to redefine the strategy. What are the company's core competencies? Is it positioned incorrectly? What does it do to keep its employees motivated? Can it survive? These are just some of the questions that managers of these downtrodden firms must answer if they want to get their organizations back on track.

Next, a company should examine its current market. It cannot be complacent and simply concern itself with how it is positioned with customers and suppliers. It must also look outward to see if the environment around it is changing.

For Jones, this included the NBA's Mavericks, a regional competitor for the entertainment dollar. In fact, the year Jones acquired the Cowboys, the Mavericks had their first losing season in six years, a development that, if it became a trend (which it did), could provide Jones an opportunity to market his team to basketball fans in search of a winner.

Another key aspect that must be evaluated is the company's management and culture. These areas of the business can often become stale and stagnant. Entrenched in the past, these areas must constantly be evaluated to enable change. Corporate culture is often the single biggest factor that inhibits change. The organization does not want to change the way the business has been operating, especially if there are no visible problems. The appropriate management structure and management personnel will deliver the leadership necessary to implement change and a turnaround in an organization.

This is especially the case in small businesses that have grown accustomed to relying on the same way of doing business day after day, despite changes in the local business climate that must be addressed. When a Starbucks enters the neighborhood retail village, the owner of the decades-old donut store had better be quick to assess and respond to changing market conditions. After all, glazed donuts and coffee served in styrofoam cups might not satisfy a customer base that now wants an "experience" when picking up that cup of joe. Simply urging customers to support the little guy won't do it for most, especially if the product offering isn't compelling.

With a new leader like Jones taking over, the pain associated with the changes that needed to occur was dulled as he held less of an attachment to the team and what he perceived as its antiquated operations. Although he cared deeply about the team and its rich tradition, his primary interest in the Cowboys history was directly linked to what he could learn from it, as he hoped not to repeat mistakes made by previous management.

Reevaluating the company's management does not end after examining the structure. It is also necessary to view the management tools that are in place, or not in place, within the organization. These tools include, but are by no means limited to, appropriate and constructive supervision, as well as the opportunity for employees to raise objections. Without these tools in place, management will not operate effectively.



On the Ball. What You Can Learn About Business from America's Sports Leaders
On the Ball: What You Can Learn About Business From Americas Sports Leaders
ISBN: 013100963X
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 93

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