OUTLINE AND CLASS ASSIGNMENTS

SESSIONS 12 - 25

PART II - Corporate Strategy

Session 12. Business segmentation

March 18, 1997

INDO International. IESE ASE-300-E

Be prepared to address the following questions:

• Explain the reasons for the results Indo obtains in each of its business units.
• What makes the sectors Indo competes attractive economically?
• Is there any advantage for Indo being involved in three businesses? Are there synergies?
• Is Indo's current position sustainable? What would you recommend for frames and lenses?

Read: Hax & Majluf "Corporate Strategic tasks" European Management Journal December 1994

Hax and Majluf Chapters 9 and 10

Session 13. Review of Part I: Positioning, Valuation, Sustainability and Flexibility

April 1, 1997

NO CLASS: SNOW!!!!

Session 14. Review of Part I: Positioning, Valuation, Sustainability and Flexibility

April 3, 1997

• Ghemawat. "The risk of not investing" SMR Winter 1993 p51-58
• Canals, J "Strategy and Investment Decisions", IESE note ASE-353-E
• Hax and Majluf: Chapter 8.
• Ghemawat: Chapters 6 and 7
• Kaplan & Norton, ÒThe balanced scorecard.
• Measures that drive performanceÓ, HBR January-February 1992 p.71-79 (optional)

Session 15. Horizontal strategy

April 10, 1997

Masco Corporation (A) 9-389-186

The Household furniture industry in 1986 9-389-189

Be prepared to address the following questions:

• How can we explain Masco's success to date?
• Why has the faucet strategy been such a great success?
• How has Masco been able to make and integrate so many acquisitions?
• What went wrong with past diversification?
• Should Masco enter the furniture industry? Is the industry attractive to anyone?
• Can Masco achieve a sustainable advantage?
• What will be the cost of entry?
• What is the best entry strategy? Major acquisition? Several small acquisitions? Internal development? What is the best segment(s) To enter?
• How should Masco position itself for the long term?

Session 16. Diversification strategies

April 10, 1997

Asahi Glass Company: Diversification Strategy 5-795-150

Be prepared to address the following questions:

• How successful have AGCÕs diversifications been?
• Did the company need to diversify? - did it choose the appropriate businesses? - the correct mode of diversification?
• What should AGC do with the electronic business today?
• Are the differences between AGC and a typical U.S. firmÕs corporate strategies?

Optional: Read Hax and Majluf: Chapters 15 and 16.

Session 17. Large Scale IT Enabled Organizational Transformation: Promise or Pestilence

April 15, 1997

Guest: Prof. Robert Benjamin

Click to down load USA TODAY and Computerworld articles (Word file - 82Kb)

Session 18. Conglomerates

April 15, 1997

Textron, Inc. 373-337

Be prepared to address the following questions:

• How does Textron contribute to value to its twenty-eight business units?
• What structure, systems, procedures has Textron adopted to realize that value?
• Which businesses is it appropriate for Textron to compete in?
• Are there successful Textron-like conglomerates today? Where?\

Session 19. Diversification strategies

April 24, 1997

Guest: Prof. William Pounds, (former Board member of General Mills)

General Mills Inc. Corporate Strategy 9-388-123

Donaldson "Voluntary Restructuring: The case of General Mills", Journal of Corporate Finance

Assignment: Read the case and article.

Session 20. Lecture: Adaptive Management

April 29, 1997

Guest: Prof. Arnoldo Hax Assignment T.B.A.

Session 21. Corporate interdependencies

May 1, 1997

Cooper IndustriesÕ Corporate Strategy 391-095

Be prepared to address the following questions: -

• What is CooperÕs corporate strategy? How does it create value? What are its key resources? -
• Should Cooper Industries acquire Champion Spark Plugs? -
• What are the limits to CooperÕs corporate strategy?

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Session 22. Managing geography, products and functions

May 6, 1997

Smashing the cube: corporate transformation at Ciba-Geigy 795-041

Additional information on how Ciba-Geigy makes decisions is found in the case:

Portfolio Planning at CIBA-GEIGY and the Newport investment proposal 9-795-040

Be prepared to address the following questions: -

• Has the transformation at Ciba been a success/ What problems has it addressed? -
• Has it gone too far? far enough? -
• What should Ciba do now with respect to: -
• the corporate HR unit? -
• central purchasing? -
• who should be the next group company head in the U.K.?

Read: Hax and Majluf: Chapter 17.

Session 23. Technology strategies

May 8, 1997

Sharp corporation: technology strategy 793-064

Be prepared to address the following questions: -

• Why has Sharp been successful for so long? -
• Is Sharp today an end products or a components company? -
• Should Sharp enter into de Intel and Apple joint ventures? -
• How is Sharp able to coordinate and integrate activities across the corporation?

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Session 24. Strategic Blocs

May 13, 1997

Internationalization of Telefonica de España IESE case DG-1136-E

Gomes & Caseres "Group Versus Group: How alliance networks compete" HBR July-August 1994

Nhoria & Garcia-Pont "Global Strategic Linkages and Industry Structure" SMJ Vol 12, p105-124 1991.

Be prepared to address the following questions:

• What are the characteristics of the different business in the telecommunications industry?
• How do you think Telefonica can compete in this industry?
• How do you evaluate Telefonica's international strategy with respect to TISA?
• Who would you choose as a partner?

Hamel, Doz & Prahalad ÒCollaborate with your competitors and winÓ HBR January-February 1989 p133-139 (Optional)

Session 25 WRAP UP.

May 15, 1997

Drucker "The theory of business", HBR September-October 1994 p95-104

Collis & Montgomery "Competing on Resources", HBR July-August 1995 p118-128

Bleeke & Ernst "Is your strategic alliance really a sale?Ó HBR January-February 1995 p97-105. (Not in your package. Distributed in class.)

Optional readings: Stuckey and White ÒWhen and when not to vertically integrateÓ SMR Spring 1993 Porter ÒThe Competitive Advantage of NationsÓ HBR March-April 1990 (p.73-93)

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