Posted: April 15th, 2015

Sara Lee in 2011: Retrenchment strategy

Study Books Used in Class:
Thompson, A. A. (2012). Strategy: Core concepts and analytical approaches. Glo-Bus.com. Retrieved from http://www.glo-bus.com/
Description:
The case study provided in Glo-Bus Premium must be the primary source material for your analysis. You may supplement your work with other source material. However, the focus of these assignments is analysis. The case study has been done, your job is to make sense out of it in terms of our course material.

While it is important to understand the basic principles of writing a case study, it is useful to remember that in this assignment the case study has already been prepared and presented. Analysis, then, is the examination of a case study with special attention to understanding its value as an example of a particular theory. In this context, instead of theory we seek to evaluate the use of strategy and its implementation.

Each case study includes a list of analytical questions. These questions are not part of the assignment, which consists of writing an analysis of the case study per the recommended approach below. However, addressing these questions is an excellent and valuable exercise that will help you complete the required analysis.

I strongly recommend a four part presentation for your analysis consisting, in this order, of sections on background material, strategy identification, analysis of performance and implementation, and recommendations for future decisions. Nonetheless, begin the process of analyzing the case with section 2. Identify the company’s strategy in terms of one of the generic strategies presented in Chapter 5 of our text. Consider how the five forces identified by Michael Porter affects the industry in which the company competes and how these forces determine strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threat for the company based on its internal and external environments. Now that you understand the strategy, prepare the first section of your analysis by identifying the background material that is relevant to understanding the strategy. Then use this foundation to explain the strategy in your second section. Next, evaluate the performance of the company in terms of expectations created by the strategy. Did the strategy produce a sustainable competitive advantage, and if so, how? How did implementation and operations correspond with what such a strategy required? Finally, based on the company’s chosen strategy and its performance what recommendations do you have for the company’s future operations? Remember that your recommendations require a foundation. Your opinion is not a sufficient foundation. Sound management theory that reflects the accumulated learning about strategy is what provides you with authority to make recommendations. You must specify a basis for your recommendations. This is what distinguishes you as a professional from an amateur who thinks they are bright and intuitive. Consider material in Chapter 6 about industry evolution and how it affects the strategic choices available to a firm.

Also, in your analysis of strategy formulation and implementation pay special attention to how data analysis (or analytics) contributes to the creation of a distinctive capability that provides a sustainable competitive advantage.

Your analysis should not be innovative or creative in terms of structure, and should not rely on significant contributions of additional research. Do not present material on strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities without relating them to Porter’s five forces and most certainly do not present a table or bullet formatted lists of these items without narrative exposition as to why they are relevant. As a general rule any table, figure, or list presented in an analytical report must be accompanied by an explanation of its relevance.

Finally, remember that you are writing about the company’s strategy rather than the company. Company history may be a minor element of your background section, but the competitive forces the company’s strategy addresses is the major element here. Performance concerns the strategy and how well it is being implemented. It is relevant that a company’s revenue may have increased, for example, but to the extent this indicates the strategy is working the important focus of this section is a) the strategy is successful and b) why it is successful, especially in terms of how it is being utilized in the competitive environment. It’s all about the strategy.