Business Unit Strategy Research Articles

SWOT Analysis Based on A Marketing Mix to Optimize Marketing Strategy Al-Qur'an Learning Services

This study aims to describe how SWOT analysis based on the marketing mix is used in Qur'anic instruction at MI Islamiyah Jombang. This research answers: 1) How does SWOT analysis based on marketing mix place the quadrant of Al-Qur'an learning? 2) How can the SWOT analysis results based on the marketing mix optimize the marketing strategy of Al-Qur'an Learning? The results showed that TPQ Al-Ichsany became part of the business unit strategy managed by MI Islamiyah Jombang to serve Qur'anic learning. The analysis of the total IFAS score for strengths is 3.025, and for weaknesses is 1.122. The EFAS score for opportunities is 2,392; for threats, it is 1,012. The position of Al-Qur'an learning at MI Islamiyah Jombang is in Quadrant I (+,+). Al-Qur'an learning is in excellent and steady condition. A marketing services strategy was used to support the aggressive growth policy. Intensive strategies through market penetration and market development are strategies to expand, enlarge growth, and seize maximum opportunities for the continuous progress of Qur'anic education.

The model of dynamic capability on slow fashion: A dynamic view

In the past, the research on slow fashion was always directed into business unit strategy or resource-based theory as the main point of view for the enhancement of competitive advantages; however, the discussion on business unit in the past, focused on the sharing and expansion of the firm and structural unit more. In addition, the resource-based theory also focused on the controversy of dynamic point of view caused by the internal resource uniqueness of the firm too much. In this study, in order to understand the real situation of slow fashion, CHANEL, DIOR, BURBERRY and HERMES, were selected as the objects, focusing on 32 high-level managers of slow fashion. This study used grounded theory, open coding, axial coding, select coding to analyze and proposed theoretical propositions in the end. The contribution of this study is to show the insights of “the model of dynamic capability on slow fashion”, in hoping to propose the academic referential index and a good operational direction of retail market managers in slow fashion.

STRATEGI PEMASARAN WEDDING PACKAGES PADA MY WEDDING ORGANIZER

In developing a business in the field of marriage, My Wedding Organizer has designed several wedding packages for brides who want a party that is only attended by a few people (privacy). By working with several reception venues and several other wedding organizers, My wedding organizer has succeeded in making customers feel satisfied with the wedding packages offered. However, in 2019 My Wedding Organizer was not able to achieve the expected target, thus we conducted research aimed at increasing sales of wedding packages on My Wedding Organizer by making a strategy formulation by analyzing the marketing mix of 7P services consisting of products and services, prices, channels. / place of distribution, promotion, people, facilities (physical evidence) and processes based on a SWOT analysis. Based on the research of this study in increase of sales of wedding packages which decreased especially in 2019, namely the creation of a new strategy formulation is based on the SWOT analysis 7P. The conclusions of the study are based on the marketing mix by creating a SWOT matrix, from strategy SO, WO, ST and WT in strategy formulation it can be based on the 7P include product, price, distribution channels / place, promotion, people, processes, and the physical evidence. It is recommended to use the hotel management corporate strategy formulation and business unit strategy formulation, with the wedding venue evaluate and innovate to create a new wedding packages to explore creativity in the promotional aspect of wedding.

Valuation of firms with multiple business units

Corporate valuation often relies on the assumption of a constant and homogenous growth rate. However, large firms frequently (re)balance their activities by diverting cash flows from some business units to fund investments in other units. We develop a value driver model of terminal value for a firm with two units. The model relaxes common assumptions and allows for cross-unit differences in the return on invested capital. We consider intra-unit and cross-unit investments and show their implications for firm value and the long-term development of key accounting variables. Our results help characterize business unit strategies that can be reconciled with popular firm strategies such as the constant payout and constant growth strategies. We find that popular valuation methods that assume both constant payout ratios and constant growth rates (e.g., Gordon and Shapiro, Manage Sci 3:102–110, 1956) constitute a restrictive special case of our model and should only be applied to firms with homogenous business units. We use a simulation analysis to compare our results with alternative valuation models and to illustrate the economic relevance of our findings. The simulation shows that an accurate depiction of business unit strategy is particularly useful if firms plan large-scale cross-unit investments into business units with high returns and if the cost of capital is low.

Terminal Value for Firms with Multiple Business Units and Heterogeneous Return on Investment

Corporate valuation often relies on the assumption of a constant and homogenous growth rate. However, large firms frequently (re)balance their activities by diverting cash flows from some business units to fund investments in other units. We develop a value driver model of terminal value for a firm with two units. The model relaxes common assumptions and allows for cross-unit differences in the return on invested capital. We consider intra-unit and cross-unit investments and show their implications for firm value and the long-term development of key accounting variables. Our results help characterize business unit strategies that can be reconciled with popular firm strategies such as the constant payout and constant growth strategies. We find that popular valuation methods that assume both constant payout ratios and constant growth rates (e.g., Gordon and Shapiro 1956) constitute a restrictive special case of our model and should only be applied to firms with homogenous business units. We use a simulation analysis to compare our results with alternative valuation models and to illustrate the economic relevance of our findings. The simulation shows that an accurate depiction of business unit strategy is particularly useful if firms plan large-scale cross-unit investments into business units with high returns and if the cost of capital is low.

USING IT GOVERNANCE BALANCED SCORECARD AND IMPORTANCE-PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS FOR DEVELOPING IT GOVERNANCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION (AN EMPIRICAL STUDY IN EAST JAVA, INDONESIA)

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the validity of the higher education academic staffs in IT governance studies and the future improvement for IT governance and controls. This research used a quantitative survey to identify the current state of IT governance for five higher education institutions in East Java, Indonesia. The questionnaires were distributed to post-graduate student as IT executives in their higher education institution. A total of 34 out of 40 post academic staffs completed the questionnaire, representing a response rate of 85 percent. This study found that attributes for deliver value (V2), attainment and retain people with key competencies (V6), capture knowledge to improve performance (V10), stakeholder satisfaction (V11), reach economies of scale (V17) , deliver successul IT project (V19), understand business unit strategies (V20), and understand emerging technologies (V22) show no significant difference (p 0.05) between mean interests and performance. In addition to these, other 15 attributes show significant differences in the t-test in the negative direction. This points to the fact that actual control of IT governance in colleges is monitored less than expected. Therefore, five higher education institutions in East Java should pay more attention to the identified attributes important to balance the gap between the importance and performance of these attributes.

Corporate Strategy for Medium Scale Manufacturing Enterprises in Kenya

Sustainable Development Goals and Africa Agenda 2063 acknowledges Small and Medium Enterprises as critical in promoting sustainable global economic development. However, most studies on corporate strategy in Kenya have mainly examined micro, small and large enterprises creating a missing middle with inadequate empirical data on medium scale enterprises, including those in the manufacturing sector. Moreover, Kenya’s big four agenda proposes support to the manufacturing sector so as to raise its GDP share to 15 percent by 2022 in support of the realization of Vision 2030. Unfortunately, growth in the manufacturing sector has stagnated at about USD 5 billion for over a decade and continues to lose market share and competitiveness internationally. This study therefore investigated corporate strategy and competitiveness of medium scale manufacturing enterprises in Kenya. Data was collected from 56 senior management staff. Mean responses received in a Likert scale of 1 – 5 for each of the tested item was calculated by summing up all the codes and getting the average of the 56 respondents. This study established MSMEs which are within the SME sector are on average performing below par on issues to do with business strategy. The results show that in 56.1% of the MSMEs, there is a clearly written business unit mission statement (mean response of 4.3). In 54.5% of the firms, the business unit strategy is not adequate in light of competitive pressure (mean response 2.5) and the business unit strategy is not appropriate for exploiting opportunities in the future. In 48.5% of the firms, the business unit strategy is not formulated carefully by all levels of management (mean response 2.7) and there is no clearly developed long term business unit strategy (mean response 2.9). In 39.4% of these firms, the business unit strategy does not adequately reflect the strengths of the business unit (mean response 2.8). The study concluded that lack of an effective business strategy to direct the efforts of human resources in the desired direction would result in inability to realize the set organizational objectives. This means these MSMEs are struggling to operate, manage and improve their businesses efficiency and effectiveness in order to deliver quality products and services consistently and on time. This has a negative effect on MSMEs performance as it implies internal inefficiencies, ineffectiveness and negative bottom line, reduced job opportunities and low contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) in Kenya. The study recommended that the MSMEs should organise strategic focus workshops and use a combination of Porter’s five force model components to plan, organise and formulate their business strategy mechanism after a comprehensive SWOT analysis. The MSMEs should periodically review their strategy in line with the prevailing competitive pressures using the following criteria to identify crucial strategic issues: (a) The impact they could have on their enterprises, (b) the likelihood that the identified issues would materialize, and (c) the time frame over which they could develop. The number of these issues needs to be limited to a manageable number (three to nine) to enhance the chances of securing the commitment and resources necessary to effectively act on them. The expected study output would be enhanced competitiveness of MSME and realization of Kenya’s vision 2030.

The role of corporate controls and business-level strategy in business unit performance

PurposeCorporate controls are mechanisms that corporations use to ensure that the processes and/or outcomes of their business units meet corporate expectations. Challenges in measurement of corporate controls have led many researchers to operationalize them as part of the more ambiguous corporate effects construct, instead of addressing them separately. The purpose of this paper is to examine the significance of “fit” between corporate control mechanisms and business unit strategy in performance of business units.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use ordinary least squares regression analysis on data collected between 2010 and 2012 from surveys from managers of 142 Iranian corporations and 1,822 of their subsidiaries. The authors also use financial and market data collected by an IDRO division and accessed through partnership in a joint project.FindingsThe authors found that while the fit between business unit strategy and corporate controls has a significant effect on business unit financial performance, it does not have a similar effect on market performance. The findings demonstrate that when business unit managers perceive that they are subject to a balance of strategic and financial controls with a slightly greater emphasis on strategic controls, then business units have higher financial and market performance, although the difference in financial performance is not significant.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors find that the misfit between corporate controls and business strategies in such cases could negatively affect the performance of the business unit. However, this research also contributes to a better understanding of the importance of strategic controls to the successful performance of business units. The findings show that while the fit between controls and strategy is most critical for achieving financial performance in business units that pursue product leadership, strategic controls play a more prominent role than financial controls in achieving higher financial or market share performance for all business units.Practical implicationsThe findings of the propositions in this research would discourage corporations with tight financial control from engaging in acquisition of businesses considered to be product leaders in their relative product markets.Originality/valuePast research focusing on the fit between corporate-level factors and business-level factors and their role on business performance are largely limited to conceptual work. The limited empirical studies completed in the past generally reduce control mechanisms to lack or absence of autonomy. This shortcoming has been mainly due to difficulties in measurement of control mechanisms. The empirical study overcomes these barriers and in doing so, reveals surprising findings related to the effectiveness of different control mechanisms.

Improving the M&A Decision-Making Process: Learning from Serial Acquirers

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) represent a substantial means to implement corporate and business unit strategy. However, capturing expected value proves to be very challenging. While previous studies on acquisition decision-making have identified a number of impediments to process, they lack a rich and theoretically grounded description of how to systematically mitigate those obstacles. Our research setting is four firms from the German industry sector. Using a multi-case inductive study, we analyze how serial strategic acquirers—all equipped with a dedicated M&A function—have designed their M&A decision-making process. We find that firms rely on group decision-making mechanisms, following three procedural strategies and one governance strategy.

An integrated method to plan, structure and validate a business strategy using fuzzy DEMATEL and the balanced scorecard

Strategy literature has mainly focused on conceptual tools to support stages of the planning and structuring of the strategy within the context of a Balanced Scorecard (BSC). Recently, quantitative tools based on multi-criteria decision-making methods (MCDM) have received more attention; however, studies still have limitations. Such is the case of Fuzzy DEMATEL, which has been proposed in the literature, but not integrated within the whole process of strategy formulation. In addition, studies have presented weaknesses by not considering, for instance, the logical structure of a strategy map.Hence, the main objective of this study is to propose the development of a method that supports the overall process of planning, structuring and validating a business unit strategy while overcoming the limitations of previous works, considering the subjectivity of decision-making in the construction of strategy maps. To fulfil these purposes, this study proposes an extension of the work of Lopez-Ospina et al. (2017) entitled “A method for designing strategy maps using DEMATEL and linear programming”, by integrating fuzzy logic and traditional, conceptual and qualitative tools to support the diagnosis and strategy design. The significant contributions of this work is that it overcomes limitations of previous methods by providing: (1) a logic structure of strategy maps; (2) integration of subjectivity within the overall formulation process of the strategy; (3) selection of the most important relationships between strategy objectives to explain efficiently, functionally, and easily the route map of a strategy; and (4) integration of traditional qualitative tools with quantitative tools, making the process robust and holistic. The proposed method was applied to an Official Banking business unit of a Colombian bank, where expert judgment for strategy formulation helps to test the effect of the methodological design.

Saturated Model in Dynamic Theory on Chain Channel of Taiwan 3C Electric Appliances: Perspective of Dynamic Competition

In the past, the research on 3C electric appliances was always directed into business unit strategy or resource-based theory as the main point of view for the enhancement of competitive advantages; however, the discussion on business unit in the past, focused on the sharing and expansion of the firm and structural unit more. In addition, the resource-based theory also focused on the controversy of dynamic point of view caused by the internal resource uniqueness of the firm too much. In this study, in order to understand the real situation of chain channel of Taiwan 3C electric appliances, E-Life Mall, Tsann Kuen 3C, Sunfar 3C, and U-LITE ELECTRIC CO., LTD, were selected as the objects, focusing on 32 high-level managers of chain of 3C electric appliances. This study used grounded theory, open coding, axial coding, select coding to analyze and proposed theoretical propositions in the end. The contribution of this study is to show the insights of “Saturated Model in Dynamic Theory on Chain Channel of Taiwan 3C Electric Appliances”, in hoping to propose the academic referential index and a good operational direction of retail market managers in chain channel of Taiwan 3C electric appliances.

A study of the linkages between rolling budget forms, uncertainty and strategy

Addressing the dearth of studies on rolling budgets, we investigate how the importance of rolling budgets for various planning, control and evaluation reasons relate to a business unit's strategy and uncertainty, and report on the variation in these responses when partitioned into quarterly and monthly rolling budget types. We use a survey instrument with responses from 182 rolling budget firms in our investigation. Our findings reveal consistencies as well as deviations between our sub-samples (quarterly and monthly rolling budgets), and the total rolling budget sample. We report that the way rolling budgets relate to uncertainty and strategy in organisations are substantively different for monthly and quarterly rolling budget types, and vary across planning, control and evaluation budget reasons. Our findings show a greater sensitivity between monthly rolling budgets and uncertainty/strategy, and virtually nil relations between quarterly rolling budgets and uncertainty/strategy. We posit that monthly rolling budgets are used in a manner more traditionally associated to rolling budgets in prior studies, while quarterly rolling budgets might be used relatively more symbolically or in response to external pressures such as earnings forecast requirements, and are less sensitive to established organisational antecedents such as uncertainty/strategy.

Analyzing and Evaluating Critically Tesco’s Current Operations Management

This essay analyses and evaluates critically Tesco’s current operations management. The essay discusses from 3 major perspectives namely, operations strategy, operations design and operations management. Firstly, it will show an introduction. The second section will analyze Tesco’s formats and international expansion at corporate strategy level. And then, based on the customer-centric conception, it will discuss the low price policy, cost control, loyalty card strategy, supply chain management, delivery system management and inventory management at the business unit strategy level and functional strategy level. Following this, it will make a comprehensive conclusion and show the strengths and weakness of Tesco’ operations management. Finally, the article will give some appropriate recommendations to Tesco’s sustainable development.

Don't mind the gap

When researchers are interested in capturing perceived discrepancies--for example, the perceived alignment between organizational and business-unit strategies, or the perceived gap between expected and received service delivery--many different measurement approaches are available. This paper presents a psychometric analysis of the various measures available to capture perceived discrepancies or gaps. More specifically, a set of comparative survey-based measures, drawn from published research across various disciplines, including marketing, information systems, and organizational behavior, are examined for their applicability.

OS DESAFIOS ADMINISTRATIVOS NA ADOÇÃO DE SISTEMAS DE CONTROLE PARA EMPRESAS GLOBALIZADAS

O artigo objetiva apresentar a evolução dos estudos sobre internacionalização, bem como os entraves administrativos enfrentados pelas organizações na adaptação de seus sistemas de controle gerencial para atender as características de uma empresa globalizada. Foi empreendida uma revisão bibliográfica a fim de evidenciar a importância de estudos na área de controle gerencial. Os resultados apontam que a decisão de uma empresa em ampliar suas operações para outros países deve estar amparada em um estudo aprofundado sobre as implicações práticas desta decisão. Adicionalmente, o seu sistema de controle gerencial deve ser modificado, buscando retratar uma nova estratégia da unidade de negócios.

Flexible Work Practices (FWP) – An effective instrument in the retention of talent: A survey of selected JSE-listed companies

There is a paucity of research available on the use of flexible work practices (FWP) in South African companies. The primary aim of this study was to close this gap by determining to what extent listed companies on the JSE in the very important sectors of Finance, Telecommunications and Technology make use of these practices. A secondary aim was to establish whether companies perceived any advantages, disadvantages, barriers and solutions when implementing or thinking to implement these practices. Although neither disadvantages nor barriers were found, significant differences between the usage of these practices and some corpographic variables such as the size of staff, nature of competition and the business unit strategies followed, were found. It also became clear that although these practices were available within companies, the percentage of staff making use of them were very small. However, a number of advantages regarding the use of these practices were identified by companies, as well as a number of solutions to successfully implement these practices in companies. The study concludes that companies should seriously consider expanding the use of these practices as numerous benefits exist for the company, the employee and the larger community.

Organizing and executing a strategy for firms operating in and from the Islamic World

“Strategy without action is futile, and action without strategy is fatal” (Sun-Tzu).Strategy and organization are closely interlinked. If a firm's strategies can greatly influence the organizational structure, the organizational environment can also make certain business unit strategies very unlikely or sometimes totally impractical for the managers. Establishing close links between a firm's human resource, organizational design and strategy is therefore very crucial for a strategy to become successful. Managers in Islamic firms, on the other hand often fail to create excellent coordination between a firm's strategy and its functional departments, processes, systems and people. Where Islamic firms need to learn the art of converting their strategy into strategic action efficiently, it is also equally important to align their organizations with their strategies. This article is specifically aimed at providing some clear cut guidelines to the mangers of the firms operating in an Islamic environment as to how they can create an excellent coordination between different organizational units and once created, how they can use such a coordination for mobilizing each and every ounce of intelligence available to a firm and putting together all the intellectual resources of their employees for achievement of their strategic goals. Key words: Islam, strategy, leadership, alignment, religion, organization, execution, implementation.

Linking corporate strategy and supply chain management

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to research the nature of supply chain strategy (SCS). It represents one stage of an on‐going research initiative aimed at providing a framework for systematic understanding of the linkages between corporate strategy (CS) making and supply chain management (SCM).Design/methodology/approachThe paper explored the theory and literature related to strategic management and SCM. Four generic levels of strategy were linked to SCM, and synthesized into an explanatory SCS‐framework. Propositions for future research were presented based on the framework.FindingsThe paper shows that most of the literature on SCS relates to the functional level. Largely undiscovered are the links between corporate and business unit strategies with supply chain strategies and capabilities, especially on the network level (NL).Practical implicationsA fit between CS and SCM positively impacts the performance of a firm. The framework developed can be used by managers to assist in thinking through possibilities to link supply chain capabilities with the CS making processes.Originality/valueBy distinguishing between functional, business, corporate, and NLs, the paper provides a framework for future research to enhance knowledge related to supply chain strategies and capabilities.

Factors influencing the relative importance of marketing strategy creativity and marketing strategy implementation effectiveness

It seems logical that performance is maximized when a business produces a creative marketing strategy and achieves marketing strategy implementation effectiveness. However, cultural tensions and resource competition may make it difficult, or impossible, to achieve both. Contingency theory suggests that market and/or firm level influences may exist that make one or the other more important. Thus, it is important for researchers to investigate those conditions so that we can provide managers with guidance regarding where to allocate their resources. The study reported in this article assesses the impact that environmental conditions and business unit strategy have on the relative importance of marketing strategy creativity and marketing strategy implementation effectiveness. We discuss implications for managers and scholars.

Transformational leadership style, market competition and departmental performance: Evidence from luxury hotels in Australia

This study examined the relationship between hotel departments’ financial and non-financial performance, market competition, and transformational leadership style. A self-administered postal survey was used to collect the data. Completed and usable questionnaires were received from rooms and food and beverage department managers of 56 hotels and resorts. The transformational leadership style, market competition, and departmental performance were measured using instruments adapted from previous studies [Bass, B., Avolio, B., 1994. Improving organisational effectiveness through transformational leadership. Sage Publication, Thousand Oaks, CA; Gupta, A., Govindarajan, V., 1984. Business unit strategy, managerial characteristics and business unit effectiveness at strategy implementation . Academy of Management Journal, 27 (1), 25–41; Khandwalla, P., 1972. The effects of different types of competition on the use of management control. Journal of Accounting Research, Autumn, 275–285]. The results of the study indicated that transformational leadership style was positively associated with the non-financial performance, which, in turn, was positively associated with the financial performance of the departments. However, no such relationship was found between market competition and the non-financial, and financial performance.