And United Stationers Inc.
3. Analysis of potential new entrants
Threat of new entrants (Source: Datamonitor,2007)
The threats of new entrants into new entrants in this industry are noted to be very string. This is because most of the supplies are in the form of commoditized products that never benefit greatly from the brand loyalty. This when coupled with the low end-user switching costs as well as easy access to the suppliers and distribution channels makes it very conducive for new players to come into the market. The market is however very stagnant at the moment and this reduces its attractiveness to the potential new players.
4. Analysis of substitute products
Substitute products (Datmonitor,2007)
An analysis of threat of substitutes within this sector is moderate. This is because most of the modern companies are involved in strategies that minimize cost as well as reduce environmental impact of their operations. The strategy they mostly adopt is paperless office. The switching costs are not too much since most of the companies have already put in place appropriate information technology (IT) systems. The revenue generated from paper-based office products is threatened by this shift in operational strategies.
5. Analysis of suppliers
The firms within the office equipment supplies & services sector deal in a diverse variety of products and services and this means that they must source their materials from various suppliers. The main materials that are used in the manufacture of office supplies are plastic resins, pulp and paper and metals. The general lack of raw material differentiation leads to a detraction from the supplier power. The importance of the quality of raw materials as well as cost when coupled with the lack of a targeted and specific importance of the office services and supplies industry to the suppliers adds to the already existing supplier power. The key suppliers are paper mills. These integrate forwards for the purpose of providing paper-based office supplies. The supplier power within this industry is therefore moderate. The supplier power of technology-based solutions and equipment such as printers is also moderate.
6. Analysis of buyers
An analysis of the buyer power in the office supplies and services market segment reveals that it is moderate. This is because the office supplies and services market sector serves a very diverse number of clients in the business community. This effectively limits the buying power of individual clients. There is however low customer switching costs as well as low customer loyalty which helps in providing the customer with degree of choice that therefore enhances the buyer power. The degree of buyer power in this market segment is however dependent on the size of the customer. Most office supplies firms require tendering for contracts with large organizations and businesses that can result in high purchasing power. Smaller businesses also practice group purchasing of office supplies in order for them to realize discounts associated with bulk purchasing.
Buyer power (Datamonitor,2007).
7. Summary of industry opportunities and threats
The industry opportunities include engaging in products that are eco-friendly such as paper-less office equipment. This trend can be captured by this industry by investing in marketing strategies to support eco-friendliness. The benefits of cost reduction and efficiency associated with paper-less office must also be promoted by these companies as it is the current trend on office technologies.
The threats that the traditional office supplies and services industry faces is associated with technology. The paperless technology is both a threat and an opportunity in this market segment. This is because it posses a threat to the traditional office supplies and services industry while offering a future in the same market segment.
8. Implications for strategy development
This therefore has implications in the formulation of current and future strategies. The company must come up with ways of marketing its traditional products while offering a smooth transition towards paper-less technologies and office automation.
c. Firm
1. Objectives and constraints
Office Depot has several objectives and constraints. The company has sales and marketing objectives, training objectives as well as customer service objectives.
Sales objectives
In regards to sales, the company aims at having all of its transactions processed in a timely an orderly manner. This is important because a smooth interaction between the sales function and the finance function is crucial in all companies since a communication breakdown between the company and its customers in regard to payments would result in an unpleasant experience. The company's financial department must be asked for the customer's credit rating in order to evaluate their credit worthiness (will they pay for their products and service?).Items...
Psychotherapeutic Case Formulation Salomon has clearly evidenced educational and emotional problems at least since the 6th grade; however, this 9th grader has apparently neither been thoroughly physically and psychiatrically evaluated, nor received an Individual Education Plan, evincing a stunning level of neglect by his educators, the school psychologist and his Nurse-mother, all of whom theoretically know better. The system for identification, triage, referral and management of care will be followed. His
Differential Diagnosis The patient has been given a diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Major Depressive Disorder. Since depressive symptoms are common in PTSD we would need to consider whether the depression or the PTSD is the primary diagnosis. An essential step in the assessment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is to identify major traumas in the client's. We know that Sarah reports being raped at a young age, but we
Cognitive Behavior Therapy- A Case Study Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) Case Study Case report K is a forty-eight-year female who referred to Midlothian's clinical psychology psychosis service. K has a twenty-year history of mental health conditions. She first decided to contact mental health services because of the episodes of paranoia and severe depression she had experienced. During her initial contact with the mental health services she was diagnosed with schizo-affective disorder in 1996.
Katheryn Case Study Clinical vignette Caucasian girl, Katheryn, aged 10, was referred on account of her increasingly aggressive behavior towards her 8-year-old brother, Carl. Mrs. Smith, their maternal grandma, has been raising the two children. Carl was a baby when she had taken him under her wing. In fact, she was responsible for their upbringing since their infancy; the two kids were taken away from Mrs. Smith's daughter (the children's mother) because
Cognitive Behavior Therapy- A Case Study Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) Case Study Case report K is a forty-eight-year female who referred to Midlothian's clinical psychology psychosis service. K has a twenty-year history of mental health conditions. She first decided to contact mental health services because of the episodes of paranoia and severe depression she had experienced. During her initial contact with the mental health services she was diagnosed with schizo-affective disorder in 1996.
Vignette Jasmin is a 21-year-old Asian woman who immigrated to the United States 10 years ago. She is an intelligent college student and she likes to study, although she has been diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia. She lives together with her parents, young sister and older brother. Jasmin's younger sister is in high school and her brother works at the father's grocery store. Her father has high blood pressure and needs
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now