The bargaining power of suppliers

Suppliers have a relatively high bargaining power. On a market like organic foods, suppliers are very important for companies' activity. In other words, they practically depend on their suppliers.

As a consequence, suppliers represent the most important environmental factor of influence for Whole Foods, and the same situation applies in the case of any organic foods company. This business consists mainly in the raw materials that the company uses to produce the goods it sells under this brand. The company's activity depends on the quality of the raw materials, and on any potential delays from suppliers. The prices negotiated with suppliers have a direct impact on the production costs, and on the end-user price.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

The company's strong position on the market in ensured by the numerous strengths the company benefits from. First of all, the company is renowned by the quality of its products. This further creates…...

mla

Reference list:

1. Industry Statistics and Projected Growth (2008). Organic Trade Association. Retrieved February 8, 2010 from  http://www.ota.com/organic/mt/business.html .

2. Hunt, N. & Dorfman, B. (2009). How green is my wallet? Organic food growth slows. Reuters. Retrieved February 8, 2010 from  http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE50R01C20090128 .

Over time, this solution became less and less effective as the sheer volume of YouTube uploads increased and the studios and companies were unable to keep up with the inflow of illegally posted material. Currently, many studios and companies have entered into a revenue sharing agreement with sites like YouTube to help make up for the potential in lost revenue that the illegally posted content presents. In this structure, studios present advertisements before the posted video content where ad revenues are split between both YouTube and the studios themselves. This has become a common way of trying to recoup some of the lost revenues due to video sharing sites while also opening up new avenues for companies to promote their products online on these sites. The movie industry can learn much from the music industry because they are experiencing what the music industry experienced only a decade or so…...

Competitive Forces Analysis for Gilt Groupe
Five Forces Analysis of Gilt Groupe company

Many managers look at competition too narrowly. According to Michael Porter, there are different forces of competition that should be looked at by any business. A business will not gain a return on investment of the forces are too intense in the industry. When the competitive forces are favorable, many of the companies in the industry are profitable. When formulating a strategy, the manager needs to understand that some forces are stronger than other forces. These strong forces will determine the industry's profitability. Focusing on the strong forces more than the weak forces, allows a manager to develop a strategy that will ensure the business remains profitable. An industry's structure will set the industry's profitability in the end and will provide a model for influencing and anticipating competition and profitability. The five competitive forces identified by Porter Michael…...

mla

References

Afuah, Allan N, and James M. Utterback. "Responding to Structural Industry Changes: A Technological Evolution Perspective." Industrial and corporate change 6.1 (1997): 183-202. Print.

Cox, Andrew. "Understanding Buyer and Supplier Power: A Framework for Procurement and Supply Competence." Journal of Supply Chain Management 37.2 (2001): 8-15. Print.

Matthew Carrol. "The Rise of Gilt Groupe: The Great Recession Fuels the Perfect Storm." New York, NY: Forbes, 2012. Print.

Michael E. Porter. How Competitive Forces Shape Strategy. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review, 1979. Print.

Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy
Accurate comprehension of the article = blue

Critical analysis of the strengths and weakness of the ideas, concepts or theories = yellow

* Provision of specific comments in the form of criticism, disagreement, synthesis, paradox, curiosity or genuine confusion= green

Assessment of Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy

In the article The Five Competitive Forces that Shape Strategy (Porter, 2008) the well-known framework of the Five Forces Model originally defined by Dr. Michael Porter in 1979 is updated to reflect the current realities and uncertainties of industries included in his original article and book that expanded on the model's core concepts (Porter, 2008). The value of the Five Forces Model has been questioned over the last two decades, and several of the most valid criticisms of the framework are analyzed and responded to by Dr. Porter in this article. He also brings in an analysis of eturn on Invested…...

mla

Reference

Porter, M.E. 2008, The Five Competitive Forces that Shape Strategy, Boston, United States, Boston.

Porter Five Forces Model
The Five Forces Model has over the last two decades become one of the most cited and used strategic frameworks relied on by both academicians and practitioners globally to explain the dynamics of their enterprises. It's pervasive use can be attributed to the ability to quantify the five forces that define the competitive dynamics that affect industries and enterprises, as the framework is used for evaluating each (Porter, 2008). The intent of this analysis is to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of this framework, in addition to making recommendations for how it can be improved given the exceptional uncertainty and chaotic nature of many industries today.

Analysis of the Five Forces Model

The strengths of this model include the ability to quickly analyze complex industries and quantify the effects of the five forces that define their competitive dynamics, in addition to the ability to project the relative level of…...

mla

References

Porter, M.E. 2008, The Five Competitive Forces that Shape Strategy, Boston, United States, Boston.

Thus, the competitive intelligence assisted the company to align its strategic plan as well as keeping executive informed about the key element of decision-making. The company also derived advantages from market intelligence advantages and the advantages assisted the company to understand the market activities and competitive market environment. Typically, Avnet also used the competitive intelligence to create a Strategic Leverage Matrix (SLM) that the company literarily plots to understand the competitors in 2X 2 matrixes. Using this strategy, the company was able to understand the sales growth and the working capital of the competitors. The CI process includes:

Plan and Collect

Analyze and Access

Make ecommendations

Distribute EIS.

Using CI analysis, the company will able to analyze the industry and be able to make an informed decision about the market and the competitors.

Conclusion

The report shows how the Avnet could use the competitive intelligence tool to achieve a competitive market advantages. The CI is an intelligent…...

mla

References

Cavalcanti, E.P.(2005). The Relationship between Business Success and Business Intelligence. Journal of Competitive Intelligence and Management: 3 (1 ).

Downey, J. (2007) Strategic Analysis Tools Topic Gateway Series No. 34. The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants

Haag, S. (2006). Management Information Systems for the Information Age. (Third Edition). McGraw-Hill Ryerson.

Hovis, J.H. (2000). CI at Avnet: A Bottom-Line Impact . Competitive Intelligence Review.11(3): 5.15.

Competitive Strategy
In a free economy, a multitude of firms compete for the business of the same customer segment. Therefore, if a firm is to succeed in attracting and retaining the maximum number of customers from the targeted segment, it must develop and successfully execute a strategy that has a distinct competitive advantage over its rivals. Thus, a competitive strategy is defined as a plan that attempts to define a position for the business, which utilizes the competitive advantages that the business has over its competitors (American Marketing Association, 2004).

Of course, it is important for any competitive strategy to focus on competitive advantages, which can offer customers greater value, either by means of lower prices or by providing a greater benefit or service that justifies a higher price. In other words, it is key that a competitive strategy is consumer centric. Developing a competitive strategy, therefore, involves closely analyzing the competitive…...

mla

Works Cited

American Marketing Association. "Competitive Strategy." Dictionary of Marketing Terms.

Accessed July 6, 2004: http://www.marketingpower.com/live/mg-dictionary-view667.php

Nickols, F. "Competitive Strategy: The Basics a la Michael Porter." Accessed July 6, 2004:

http://home.att.net/~nickols/competitive_strategy_basics.htm

Competitive Market Analysis to Determine the Product's Potential Success
Issues that the automobile industry faces that affect its competitiveness and long-term profitability

The relevance of a competitive strategy for Car Company A is to establish a position within the 4-cylinder engine car market. This will help the company to compete with Toyota Corolla (LE) 1.8L four-cylinder engine competitive forces. As a potential entrant, Car Company A is at a disadvantage in capital markets. Unless it penetrates the Cylinder engine market through diversification, its four-cylinder car will be at an inherently riskier position than the established (LE) 1.8L four cylinder engine of Toyota (Maxton & Wormald, 2013). This will be reflected in the risk premiums Car Company A will be forced to pay to attract capital.

Car Company A will face barriers because other players like Toyota enjoy economies of scale in the industry. This means a decline in a product's unit costs leads…...

mla

Reference

Maxton, G. & Wormald, J. (2013). Time for a model change: Re-engineering the global automobile industry. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press

Forces Analysis: What industry definition? Why? Analyze 5 forces (list high low medium reasons bullets essay style. End a summary bottom's important analysis Snapple end case. 2. Draw recommended positioning diagrams Snapple end case.
Five Forces Analysis: What is your industry definition? Why?

Snapple is competing in an almost perfectly competitive market, with a high degree of competitive rivalry and few barriers to entry.

The threat of the entry of new competitors: The thereat of entry of new competitors is extremely high. Snapple sells a beverage that can be easily replicated using iced tea or fruit juice. Although it markets itself as a unique natural beverage, people have been making fruit drinks and other iced drinks for a long time, and could easily carry such drinks with them in their own containers. Local brands as well as national brands could compete with Snapple in almost every subset of the market.

The intensity of competitive…...

This is in direct contrast to the efforts afforded by the leagues to try to reduce competitive advantage all around. One reason why the teams with larger media and crowd resources do well could be the fact that as more talented players are able to move into free agency, they seek higher and higher compensation and attention through larger media and crowd outlets (Grant, 1991). A very talented player may not want to play in a small town because there would theoretically be less exposure to media and fans, and as a marketable good or commodity, that player knows that his or her talent would not be compensated for as well as it could be in a larger town.
The basis for argument with ottenberg's presentation of competitive advantage mitigation lies in the basic economic theories that govern other markets. It is only logical that these theories be applied to…...

mla

References

Coase, Ronald H. 1960. "The Problem of Social Cost." Journal of Law and Economics. Vol. 3,

No. 1. Pp. 1 -- 44.

Demsetz, Harold. 1972. "When Does the Rule of Liability Matter?" Journal of Legal Studies.

Vol. 31, No. 5. Pp. 13-28.

Cost leadership

Attracting more customers and gaining financial advantage over the competition as profits would increase

4

Forces the company to drastically reduce costs, meaning that product quality could suffer demises

-4

0

6.

Focus strategy

Can achieve either of cost advantage or differentiation

4

Addresses a niche market

-4

0

7.

Differentiation strategy

Product uniqueness which allows for the charging of a premium price to cover for the additionally incurred expenditure

5

Additional costs which will reduce overall financial gains (they will however be recuperated from the premium price)

2

3

7. Description of the Selected Strategy

Based on the analysis conducted at the previous stage, it becomes obvious that the most adequate course of action at this stage is that of implementing differentiation strategies. These actions basically translate into the promotion of new products onto existent markets, meaning that Porter's differentiation strategy is the analogue of Ansoff's product development strategy. The table above even reveals that both these strategies have received the highest scores, meaning that they are the…...

mla

References:

Kotelnikov, V., Differentiation Strategy -- How to Survive in the Era of Hypercompetition, 1000 Ventures,   last accessed on July 2, 2009http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/differentiation_strategy.html 

Kowalski, M., August 14, 2007, Chocolate Prices On the Rise, Business Week,   accessed on July 2, 2009http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/aug2007/gb20070814_776262.htmlast 

Rupani, S., August 31, 2007, The Sweet Business of Gourmet Chocolate, Business Week,   last accessed on July 2, 2009http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/aug2007/db20070829_846210.htm 

2009, Euphoria Chocolate Company, Hoovers,   -- /free-co-competition.xhtml last accessed on July 2, 2009http://hoovers.com/euphoria-chocolate/--ID__122582,FRIC__ 

Forced Early etirement & Employment -- the Catch
etirement & the Changing WorkForce

Catch

A logical paradox arising from a situation in which an individual needs something that can only be acquired by not being in that very situation that will allow access to what is needed.

Older American workers are in a quandary and embroiled in a policy making conundrum. Social Security funding is not expected to keep up with the current and future payout to beneficiaries. Fearful policymakers, frustrated economists, and pessimistic actuarial have cobbled together public policy that reflects the multiple and competing exigencies. Older Americans are encouraged to work longer by a Social Security schedule that is lowest at earliest payout and has pushed the official retirement age to 66 -- with regular and loud threats to push it higher still. For someone retiring at age 62 years who was born between 1943 and 1954, the percentage loss of benefits…...

mla

References

Gallo, W.T., Bradley, E.H., Siegel, M., and Kasl, S.V. (2000). Health effects of involuntary job loss among older workers: Findings from the Health and Retirement Survey, The Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 55B (3), S131-40.

McCormally. K. (2011, May). The Social Security Catch-22, Living Well, Kiplinger. Retrieved  http://www.kiplinger.com/features/archives/social-security-catch-22.html 

The Health & Retirement Study: Growing Older in America, U.S. National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging. Retrieved   / extramuralprograms/behavioralandsocialresearch/hrsfull.htmhttp://www.nia.nih.gov/researchinformation 

The Unemployment Situation -- October 30, 2011, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved  http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf

In addition, it will be necessary for the company to continue to use technology to stay on the cutting edge of shoe innovation.
eferences

Adidas." MarketLine 2006. Datamonitor database. Datamonitor. University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ. November 28, 2006 http://dbic.datamonitor.com.

Beckett, W. "Merging Performance and Fashion." Women's Wear Daily 192(39) 2006 Aug 24: 9. Business Source Complete. EBSCOHost. University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ. November 28, 2006 http://web.ebscohost.com.

Binole, G. "Asian Market Forces Could Affect Nike." Portland Business Journal. (1997 Nov 7). November 28, 2006 http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/1997/11/10/story3.html.

Callaway Golf." MarketLine 2006. Datamonitor database. Datamonitor. University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ. November 28, 2006 http://dbic.datamonitor.com.

Daley, W. The Emerging Minority Marketplace. No date. U.S. Department of Commerce. November 28, 2006 http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS70698.

Fredeen, B. Knowing Nike's Customers. 2000 Feb 1. Motley Fool. November 28, 2006 http://www.fool.com/news/foth/2000/foth000201.htm. v.

Ellis, K. "Global Competition Intensifies Industry Lobbying." Women's Wear Daily 191(86) 2006 April 24: 14-15. Business Source Complete. EBSCOHost. University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ. November 28,…...

mla

References

Adidas." MarketLine 2006. Datamonitor database. Datamonitor. University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ. November 28, 2006 http://dbic.datamonitor.com.

Beckett, W. "Merging Performance and Fashion." Women's Wear Daily 192(39) 2006 Aug 24: 9. Business Source Complete. EBSCOHost. University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ. November 28, 2006  http://web.ebscohost.com .

Binole, G. "Asian Market Forces Could Affect Nike." Portland Business Journal. (1997 Nov 7). November 28, 2006  http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/1997/11/10/story3.html .

Callaway Golf." MarketLine 2006. Datamonitor database. Datamonitor. University of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ. November 28, 2006 http://dbic.datamonitor.com.

For this reason, they have stepped out to pursue alternatives, especially foreign cars. On the contrary, as consumers become price oriented, they have minimal purchasing power because they are not buyers of large volume automobiles (Porter, 1985).
3.3 Threat of New Entrants

It is extremely difficult for new entrants penetrate the auto industry because of the existing high level of brand loyalty. Nevertheless, the few popular overseas firms and entered the American auto industry easily. For example, Honda Motors entered Ohio by opening a new office. This marked the beginning of a major stiff competition in the industry. Foreign entrants have expanded leading to decreased markets for American auto companies (ubenstein, 2011).

3.4 Bargaining Power of Buyers

In the current marketplace, consumers have been given various options, models, and brands to make their selection. However, various factors affect the buying decisions of consumers. They include price, appearance, and effect on the environment. Customers…...

mla

References

Beecroft, D. (2008). History of the American automobile industry. Toronto: CCH Canadian Limited.

Cooney, S., & Yacobucci, B.D. (2009). U.S. automotive industry: Policy overview and recent history. New York: Nova Science Publishers.

Porter, M.E. (1979) "How competitive forces shape strategy," Harvard Business Review, March/April 1979.

Porter, M.E. (1980) "Competitive Strategy," The Free Press, New York, 1980.

Five Forces
It is important for students to understand the relationships that formulate a business strategy. The five competitive forces that shape strategy, or more commonly known as Porter's five forces, help clarify and explain how business strategic approaches are influenced similarly across all industries. The purpose of this essay is to examine how business strategy and information technology relate in achieving competitive edge. I'll examine this subject by examining each of the five forces through the lens of information technology industries. Next, I'll identify and briefly describe the five specific areas in which information technology represents both a risk or may promote a company's competitive advantage within a particular industry. Furthermore, I'll identify certain steps to reduce the risk and promote how these processes can be leveraged to improve a firm's competitive edge.

THE FIVE FORCES

According to Porter, (2008) the five forces that determine the quality of the industry's competitive balance…...

mla

Works Cited

Ong, J. & Ismail, H. (2008). Sustainable competitive advantage through information technology competence. Communications of the IBIMA, Vol 1, 2008.

Porter, M. (1980) Competitive Strategy, Free Press, New York, 1980.

Porter, M. (2008). The five competitive forces that shape strategy. Harvard Business Review, Jan. 2008.

Powell, T. (1997). Information technology as competitive advantage; the role of human, business, and technology resources. Strategic Management Journal, Vol18, 375-405.