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Harvard Design School
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Strategic Management |
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| in the Design and Construction Value System | 7305 |
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Assignments |
last revised November 23, 2005 (Class 12) |
| HOME | ADMINISTRATION | CALENDAR | ASSIGNMENTS | ||
| LIBRARY | MIT CENTER REAL ESTATE | MACOMBER CONSTRUCTION | BUILDINGVISION | 1.464 I.T. STRATEGY | JOHN D. MACOMBER |
Go to assignment number: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
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Class Number |
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Case |
None |
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Topics |
Purpose of Strategic Planning Industry Value System - Structure |
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Assignment |
None |
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Discussion Questions |
About You: What is your background? What do you hope to take away from this course? About Strategic Planning: Why do firms feel the urge to plan? Why does this matter to you? What issues might one address? About the Real Estate, Design, and Construction Industry: Who are the participants in the real estate and construction value system? How are firms organized individually to deliver and own projects? How are they collectively organized to deliver projects? How does the physical product flow through this supply chain? How does the money flow? Where do you think are the major areas of economic reward? Of risk? How are firms individually organized to contain risk and to receive reward? Where are there inefficiencies in the system? How is the whole value system optimized for best performance, if at all? What are some of the characteristics of the industry as a whole - from a strategic point of view? |
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Reading |
None |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
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Case |
Waltz on the Danube |
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Topics |
Steps in Planning Industry Value System - Risk and Reward |
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Assignment |
No written assignment. If you have questions about vocabulary and technical terms, be prepared to ask them. Prepare to discuss the case in class, including incorporating your judgment of the issues and considering key concepts from the reading. How would you go about organizing a planning discussion among the principals? |
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Discussion Questions |
What is going on in this situation? What are the key questions they are they trying to decide? Who are the participant firms in the Real Estate, Design, and Construction "value system" that is trying to execute this project? How does the money flow on this project? How does the money flow through the firm on an ongoing basis? How would you articulate the mission of ECE as an ongoing business entity? What is going on in the business, political, and competitive environment around them? What do you find in scrutinizing the corporate internal situation at ECE: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats? For this particular project, what design recommendation would you make? Why? |
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Additional Reading |
Optional: Hammond, "Learning by the Case Method" |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
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Case |
SOHO China |
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Topics |
Market Segmentation: How to Analyze? |
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Assignment |
All: Problem Set #1 due ( 3 pages MAXIMUM due at START of class. Please draw some exhibits to illustrate your approach). Consider your options as Mr. Pin and Ms. Zhang, co-CEOs of SOHO China. As an introduction, list your thoughts about mission of the firm, external scan, internal scrutiny (also as indicated in the discussion questions below). How would you represent the firm in the Industry Value System? How would you approach the issue of preparing a useful segmentation matrix using the concepts in Chapter 7 of Competitive Advantage, or with one of the matrices in the "Magic Matrix" reading? Prepare your proposed segmentation matrix. Deploy the tool by making some notes or comments about some of the cells as you would if you were to rely on this exhibit to make a point during a planning discussion. ***Segmentation matrices and other diagrams for this problem set may be hand drawn. I am looking for thinking, not for computer formatting skills. |
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Discussion Questions |
Consider the options of the principals of SOHO China. What is going on in the external environment in which the company competes at the time of the case? What are some of the items that might arise under internal scrutiny - strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats? How might they prepare a market segmentation matrix using the concepts in Chapter 7 of Competitive Advantage or in the "Magic Matrix" reading? Be sure to consider the types of services provided or potentially provided as well as ways to classify the customers. What does SOHO China sell to whom? What could they sell to whom? What other services might they provide or buyer markets might they serve? Using your services/products segmentation matrix, how would you analyze the question of expansion? Do you think that different market segments have different requirements for this service? Are there larger markets than the ones they currently pursue? Using the Five Forces model from Chapter 1, discuss how some of these segments might or might not be attractive for SOHO from a strategic point of view. Is it useful to consider how the Five Forces have changed over time and are expected to change? How might you represent this consideration in your work? What action choices does the company have? What would you do? |
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Additional Reading |
Required: Competitive Advantage, Chapter 1, Competitive Strategy: The Core Concepts Required: "Bridge the Gap Between Strategy and Tactics with the Magic Matrix" Optional: Competitive Advantage, Chapter 7, Market Segmentation (notably through the second section, "The Industry Segmentation Matrix.)" Optional Link: http://www.sohochina.com/english/aboutus.html |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
4 new |
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Case |
Southwest Airlines (Abridged) |
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Topics |
Determining Segment Attractiveness (Five Forces): Where to Compete? Generic Strategies: How to Compete? |
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Assignment |
No Written Assignment |
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Discussion Questions |
How would you approach a segmentation matrix for the commercial airline industry? Which segments do you think might be attractive? Why? What would be some of the ways to compete in these segments? Southwest Airlines is a famous cost leader. We can also use them to discuss differentiation. What are some of the ways in which Southwest Airlines follows a cost leadership strategy? How are they doing compared to the competition? What does Southwest sacrifice in order to focus on this strategy? Can you think of a differentiated airline company? What do the good ones do well? How do the "Firm Value Chains" compare across Southwest and its competitors following "differentiation strategies?" Does this help explain the drivers of their respective strategies? How do the concepts in the reading, "Marketing the Unmarketable" apply to commodities like plastic laminate? Airline services? Construction and real estate services? |
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Additional Reading |
Suggested: Nakache, "Marketing the Unmarketable" Optional Link: http://www.southwest.com/about_swa/press/factsheet.html#Distinctions |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
5 new |
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Case |
Arborite |
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Topics |
Firm Value Chain 1 What Drives a Low Cost Strategy? |
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Assignment |
Group A (Family Name A-L): Paper #1 due (5 pages MAXIMUM due at START of class) You work in Arborite's financial department. Brian Nutter has asked you to prepare a strategic analysis to help illustrate the issues as the firm enters strategy and budget discussions. As part of your analysis, prepare a market segmentation matrix for Arborite.
Can you use segmentation concepts to consider Arborite's competitors in a manner that is useful to your analysis? How does Arborite compete: What generic strategies is Arborite pursuing NOW in each segment? What strategies are their competitors pursuing? What strategies do you feel Arborite should be pursuing? Why? Now prepare diagrams of Arborite's "Firm Value Chain" at present, and then as you propose it should be. You may want to use graphic techniques, or two diagrams, to illustrate the changes. Can you make any recommendations regarding future budgets, say for trucking or for information technology or warehousing? Of particular note, on what areas would you focus in order to execute on your proposed strategy? ***All of the diagrams for this problem set may be hand drawn. I am looking for thinking, not for computer formatting skills. You might also think of other clever ways to efficiently convey the information by combining or modifying some of the tools. |
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Discussion Questions |
Arborite is a supplier to contractors. They have a complex firm value chain and many problems in their business. This is the kind of situation that you might be asked to analyze or even to manage! How would you articulate their mission, the external environment, internal issues? Where does Arborite fit in the industry value chain? Do the sales goals generally make sense in light of history and total market size? What would you do about plant capacity? Are there other opportunities that may not be evident in the case? What would you recommend they do? |
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Additional Reading |
Suggested: Competitive Advantage, Chapter 2, The Value Chain and Competitive Advantage (Section 1, "The Value Chain)." Suggested: Competitive Advantage, Chapter 3, Cost Advantage (skim with particular attention to high level lists and summaries of Cost Drivers, Policy Choices, and Steps in Strategic Cost Analysis as they occur in the chapter). Optional Links: http://www.arborite.com, http://www.formica.com, http://www.wilsonart.com, http://www.nevamar.com/CompanyInformation/ |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
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Case |
George B. H. Macomber Co. |
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Topics |
Firm Value Chain 2 What Drives a Differentiation Strategy? |
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Assignment |
Group A (Family Name M-Z): Paper #1 due (5 pages MAXIMUM due at START of class) You have been hired as Assistant to the President. John Macomber (in an corporate persona 15 years ago) has asked you to prepare a strategic analysis to help illustrate the issues as the firm enters strategy and budget discussions. As part of your analysis, prepare a market segmentation matrix for George M. H. Macomber Company.
Now prepare diagrams of Macomber Company's "Firm Value Chain" at the time of the case, and then as you propose it should be. You may want to use graphic techniques, or two diagrams, to illustrate the changes. Can you make any recommendations regarding future budgets? Of particular note, on what areas would you focus in order to execute on your proposed strategy? ***All of the diagrams for this problem set may be hand drawn. I am looking for thinking, not for computer formatting skills. You might also think of other clever ways to efficiently convey the information by combining or modifying some of the tools. |
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Discussion Questions |
In addition to the above, how does the firm deploy some of the drivers of low cost or differentiation strategies? How should they? How does the article, "You Can Manage Construction Risk" fit into a plan to follow one of the generic strategies? How do these lessons fit into other service businesses like architecture and engineering? |
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Additional Reading |
Suggested: Competitive Advantage, Chapter 4, Differentiation (skim with particular attention to high level lists and summaries of Sources of Differentiation, Buyer Value and Differentiation, Signaling Criteria, and Pitfalls in Differentiation). Optional: Macomber, "You Can Manage Construction Risk" Optional: Link to http://www.macomberbuilders.com |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
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Case |
Otisline |
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Topics |
Changing the Game: How Information Gives You Competitive Advantage Industry Transformation |
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Assignment |
No written assignment |
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Discussion Questions |
What is/are Otis' place(s) in the industry value system? What does Otis' segmentation matrix look like? Where does Otis make money? What did the Five Forces look like before Otisline? What do you think they look like after Otisline? Was the elevator service business fragmented before Otisline? Is it fragmented now? How much of this change is due to regular corporate strategy decisions, and how much depends on innovative use of information technology? Do you see other opportunities to use these kinds of strategies in real estate, architecture, and construction? How do you think the advent of Otisline impacts the employees? |
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Additional Reading |
Required: Porter, "How Information Gives You Competitive Advantage," HBR Optional: Competitive Advantage, Chapter 5, Technology and Competitive Advantage (particularly the first section, "Technology and Competition)" Optional Link: Otis Maintenance Options Today (including Otisline) http://www.otis.com/maintenancelist/0,1423,CLI1,00.html |
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Last revised October 27, 2005 (sequence was class #8, now class #7) same day as before |
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Class Number |
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Case |
Poland's A2 Motorway |
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Topics |
Issues in Vertical Integration: How Much Risk do you Want? |
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Assignment |
Prepare to discuss the case as if you were a key assistant to Wojciech Gebicki. You and he will be leading a business strategy discussion with the other partners, regarding what roles the entity would like to play going forward both on this deal and on other prospective future deals. The partners of AWSA will be using your thoughts to discuss 1) the current credit issue, 2) their ongoing responsibilities (and suitability for those roles) assuming that the current issue is solved, and then 3) to consider how the entity might expand into other projects. |
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Discussion Questions |
(Note: This is a finance case about one project which we will use to illustrate issues in vertical integration, cash flow, and risk allocation, and shared expertise. Students are not expected to bring sophisticated financial analysis to the discussion). (Also, this is not really a vertically integrated ongoing business in the pure strategic sense; but we will be using this case to illustrate the concepts). (This is a hard case!!! See how far you can get using the concepts of the class). What is going on here? Who are the major parties and what are their interests? What is the mission of the entity, what is going on externally, what are the internal issues? What is the arrangement of this value system? Follow the money. In broad terms, how is the money supposed to flow if the project is successful? In broad terms, who is responsible for what? What are the major risks? How are they described? How well are they understood? Who do you think stands to reap the most reward? Who takes the most risk? Could you define "success" for the whole project including all organizations involved? As leader of one of the organizations, how would you go about planning to be the Owner? The Engineer? The General Contractor? What are the benefits of vertical integration? The pitfalls? How has AWSA addressed these issues? How might Dewberry Capital or George B. H. Macomber Co. or Arborite? Suppose the business leaders of the alliance chose to continue as an operating business on other projects. What roles should they play in the value system? What segments could they serve? What are the the opportunities and pitfalls of being as vertically integrated as they are? |
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Additional Reading |
Optional: Porter, Competitive Strategy, Chapter 14, Vertical Integration (to be handed out in class in advance) Optional Links: http://www.roadtraffic-technology.com/projects/a2_toll_motorway/, http://www.louisberger.com/berger/services2/toll_motorway.php |
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Last revised October 27, 2005 (sequence was class #7, now class #8) |
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Class Number |
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Case |
TAC: The Architect's Collaborative |
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Topics |
Market Segmentation in Design Review of Course Concepts |
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Assignment |
Family Name A-L: Paper # 2 Due (5 Pages Maximum, Due at Start of Class) You are the new business development partner for TAC (at the time of the case). Since you have background in business and in strategy, the other principals have asked you to write an analysis of their situation and of the big picture strategic issues they face. They would like to know how the information from the Salisbury situation and the learnings from CRS can be projected to chart the size, direction, and focus of the firm going forward. Use the tools of the course to describe the various options, and then to go into depth on implementation of the option that you feel most appropriate. Use the concepts of the course to inform and to defend your analysis. |
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Discussion Questions |
This is an old (ancient)! marketing and sales case. We will use it to discuss concepts in segmentation, industry attractiveness, and generic strategies. The firm was led by Walter Gropius, Dean of the Harvard Design School. Local signature projects include Harkness Commons at the Harvard Law School, the Science Center, and the Taubman Building at the Kennedy School of Government. Prepare to discuss the direction in which the firm should be going at the time of the case. Make your argument by using: Steps in Planning The Industry Value System Market Segmentation Matrix for TAC and its key competitors (as you interpret it to be). Segment Attractiveness: Including Five Forces. In which segments should TAC compete? Generic Strategies: In the chosen segments, how should TAC compete? Firm Value Chain: What are the key drivers to successfully implement your chosen strategy?
In addition to the questions above, Why did TAC lose the Salisbury Hospital project? What are the major planning issues for the firm? As a young architect, would you prefer to work at TAC or at CRS? Why? Have the issues changed in the 30 years since the case took place? |
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Additional Reading |
Optional: Review Competitive Advantage, Chapter 2, particularly "The Value Chain," and Chapter 7, particularly "Industry Segmentation and Competitive Strategy" Suggested: Coxe, Success Strategies for Design Professionals, Chapters 5 and 6, The Superpositioning Matrix, and Master Strategies for Organizing and Managing by the SuperPositioning Principles (to be handed out in class in advance). |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
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Case |
The Holt Companies |
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Topics |
Putting it All Together: Planning, Strategy, Execution, and Leadership |
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Assignment |
Family Name M-Z: Paper # 2 Due (5 Pages Maximum, Due at Start of Class) "Lunsford had recently hired a group of 'young guns' with MBAs to fuel further expansion and eventually open new offices across the country, yet he had started to wonder if continued growth might strain the organization and its existing customer relationships. He needed a corporate strategy." He has selected you to write it. Using the tools of the class, and using your judgment in selecting which tools to use, write a strategic analysis including your recommendation for what Holt Lunsford should do with this business. How would you describe your recommended company in the long term, say five years out? What do they need to do in the short term to get there? DO NOT spend time analyzing the Staton Wholesale situation - this is part of Holt's client portfolio. Instead DO spend time analyzing the Holt ORGANIZATION as a business. What would you suggest they do and how? Remember that in addition to solving Holt Lunsford's business problem, this also is a chance to showcase your grasp of the tools of the course. |
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Discussion Questions |
What is going on here? What do they need to consider with respect to their portfolio? What do they need to consider with respect to their organization? What do they need to consider with respect to their competitors? What should they do? |
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Additional Reading |
Optional: Porter, Competitive Strategy, Chapter 9, Strategy in Fragmented Industries (to be handed out in class in advance) Optional Link: http://www.theholtcompanies.com/index.html |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
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Class Number |
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Case |
Herman Miller: Innovation By Design |
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Topics |
Disruptive Technology Integrated Design and Data Management |
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Assignment |
No written assignment |
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Discussion Questions |
This case is nominally about the furniture business. However, there are many choices in how this company organized its service business that can be used to discuss strategy for delivery of services like real estate development and management. There also are applications of technology including 3D modeling, visualization, and supply chain management that help to illustrate the potential of some of these tools. This case should help to reinforce some of the concepts from the course around vertical integration, market segmentation, leadership, and innovation. Where does SQA fit in the "industry value system" for office buildings? On what market segments have they chosen to focus? Why? What is Z-Axis? How does it work? Does it matter? What choices did they make? Does Z-Axis lead to sustainable competitive advantage? Why or why not? How do EnSync and the Product Metering Center (PMC) work? What choices did they make? Do EnSync and PMC lead to sustainable competitive advantage? Why or why not? How might Miller SQA grow beyond furniture - say to partitions, floors, ceilings, walls? Could these services apply to entire buildings in some market segments? Do you see any ways in which these kinds of capabilities might impact the business of construction? Of architecture? |
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Additional Reading |
Optional: Bower and Christensen, "Disruptive Technology: Catching the Wave." |
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Last revised September 18, 2005 |
(Class 12 deleted Nov 23, 2005)
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