Vsm Group: Examination of Strategic Position and Development of a Competitive Strategy
1. INTRODUCTION Johnson, Scholes and Whittington (2005, p. 9) define strategy as the direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of resources and competencies with the aim of fulfilling stakeholder expectations. Strategy is therefore the long term direction of an organisation.
Strategic Management can be defined as the art and science of formulating, implementing, and evaluating cross-functional decisions that enable an organisation to achieve its objectives (David 1999, p. 9). Strategic management therefore focuses on the activities of the organisation that contribute to the achievement of organisational success. These activities include management, marketing, financial management, operations management, research and development, and information systems.
The strategic position of the VSM will be analysed by applying the analytical models of strategic management to the current situation in the company. The following models will be used to analyse both the internal and external environment of the company, namely, PESTEL, Five Forces Model, and the SWOT analysis The examination of the strategic position of VSM will involve analysing the strategy of the company with emphasis on the environment it operates in, its strategic capabilities, and how expectations affect organisational purposes and strategies. The analysis will conclude with a clear statement of the Key Issues and Critical Success factors. The strategic position of VSM will then be used as a base to develop an appropriate competitive strategy for the company. The development of the strategy will also take into account the organisational cultural issues prevailing in the company.
2. COMPANY OVERVIEW The VSM (Viking Sewing Machines) Group AB engages in the development, production, marketing, and sale of household sewing machines and related accessories, and software
Strategic Management can be defined as the art and science of formulating, implementing, and evaluating cross-functional decisions that enable an organisation to achieve its objectives (David 1999, p. 9). Strategic management therefore focuses on the activities of the organisation that contribute to the achievement of organisational success. These activities include management, marketing, financial management, operations management, research and development, and information systems.
The strategic position of the VSM will be analysed by applying the analytical models of strategic management to the current situation in the company. The following models will be used to analyse both the internal and external environment of the company, namely, PESTEL, Five Forces Model, and the SWOT analysis The examination of the strategic position of VSM will involve analysing the strategy of the company with emphasis on the environment it operates in, its strategic capabilities, and how expectations affect organisational purposes and strategies. The analysis will conclude with a clear statement of the Key Issues and Critical Success factors. The strategic position of VSM will then be used as a base to develop an appropriate competitive strategy for the company. The development of the strategy will also take into account the organisational cultural issues prevailing in the company.
2. COMPANY OVERVIEW The VSM (Viking Sewing Machines) Group AB engages in the development, production, marketing, and sale of household sewing machines and related accessories, and software
Bibliography: 1. David, F.R., 1999. Strategic Management. 7th ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. 2. http://investing.businessweek.com [accessed 08 May 2008] 3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VSM_Group_AB [accessed 08 May 2008] 4. Johnson, G. Scholes, K. & Whittington, R., 2005. Exploring Corporate Strategy. 7th ed. Financial Times Prentice Hall. 5. Lynch, R., 2003. Corporate Strategy. 3rd ed. Financial Times Prentice Hall.