Strategic marketing management

STRATEGIC MARKETING
MANAGEMENT
MKTM 3161
ECTS-6

CHAPTER ONE
Introduction to Strategic Marketing
Learning Objective
After completing this chapter, the student will be able to:
 Describe the Nature and scope of strategy
 Examines historical evolution of strategic management,
 Identify and explain the marked differences between
strategic planning and marketing planning,
 Explore the Principal Areas of Strategic Decisions,
 Examines Phases of Strategic Marketing

Nature and scope of strategy
 A strategy is a plan that integrates an organization’s major goals,
policies, decisions and sequences of action into a cohesive whole.
 It can apply at all levels in an organization and pertain to any of
the functional areas of management.
 Thus there may be production, financial, marketing, personnel
and corporate strategies, just to name a few. If we look
specifically at marketing then there may be pricing, product,
promotion, distribution, marketing research, sales, advertising,
merchandising, and etc. strategies.
 Strategy is concerned with effectiveness rather than efficiency
and is the process of analyzing the environment and designing
the fit between the organization, its resources and objectives and
the environment.

Historical Evolution of Strategic Management
 Over a period of some thirty years, we have seen the
concept of strategy evolve. Aaker (1995) provides a
historical perspective showing how this evolution has
progressed and acknowledges that strategic activity
has been described over the years as:
 Budgeting. Early strategic activity was concerned with
budgetary and control mechanisms. Structured
methods of allocating, monitoring and investigating
variances from budget provided a means of managing
complex processes. The process was often based on past
trends and assumed incremental development.

 Long-range planning. Here greater emphasis was
placed on forecasting. Planning systems and processes
tended to extrapolate current trends (with varying
degrees of sophistication) and predict factors such as
sales, profits and cost. Management could use such
forecasts as a basis for decision making.
 Strategic planning. The 1970s and 1980s were the era
of strategic planning, with emphasis placed on:
 specifying the overall direction, and
 centralized control of planning activities.
While still based around forecasting and extrapolation
of past trends, far greater attention was paid to
understanding the business environment.

 Strategic management. We are currently in the age
of strategic management. Strategic management
concerns both the formulation of strategy and how
such strategy is put into practice. While still
undertaking analysis and forecasting, far greater
prominence is placed on implementation. The concern
is with managing change and transforming the
organization within an increasingly turbulent business
environment.

 Porter (1998) provides an interesting perspective
and views strategy in terms of:
 developing a unique position by choosing to perform
differently from the opposition;
 making ‘trade-offs’ with other possible competitive
positions, in order to protect the organization’s
competitive advantage;
 combining activities to fit into, and reinforce, an overall
competitive position;
 Ensuring operational effectiveness when executing
activities.

Elements of strategic management (Source: Johnson
and Scholes, 1999)

Principal Areas of Strategic Decisions
Strategic decisions are concerned with seven principal areas:
• They are concerned with the scope of an organization’s
activities, and hence with the definition of an organization’s
boundaries.
• They relate to the matching of the organization’s activities with
the opportunities of its substantive environment. Since the
environment is continually changing, it is necessary for this to
be accommodated via adaptive decision-making that
anticipates outcomes – as in playing a game of chess.
• They require the matching of an organization’s activities with
its resources. In order to take advantage of strategic
opportunities it will be necessary to have funds, capacity,
personnel, etc., available when required
• They have major resource implications for organizations –
such as acquiring additional capacity, disposing of capacity, or
reallocating resources in a fundamental way.

• They are influenced by the values and expectations
of those who determine the organization’s strategy.
Any repositioning of organizational boundaries will
be influenced by managerial preferences and
conceptions as much as by environmental
possibilities.
• They will affect the organization’s long-term
direction.
• They are complex in nature, since they tend to be
non-routine and involve a large number of variables.
As a result, their implications will typically extend
throughout the organization.

Differences between strategic planning and marketing planning

Elements of a competitive strategy (source: Milton and
Reiss, 1985)

Change – shaping strategy
 Change is an accepted consequence of modern life. Indeed,
the phrase ‘change is the only certainty’ has become
something of a business mantra.
 All organizations are subject to increasing levels of change.
We can view change in terms of cyclical change and
evolutionary change.
 Cyclical change involves variation that is repetitive and
often predictable (e.g. seasonal variation in demand or
fluctuation in economic circumstances).
 Evolutionary change involves a more fundamental shift. It
may mean sudden innovation or a gradual ‘creeping’
process. Either way, the result can have drastic
consequences for strategic development.

 Given that strategic management is concerned with
moving the organization to some future desired state,
which has been defined in terms of a corporate vision and
corporate-wide issues, it is important to see the concept of
‘change’ as an integral part of strategy.
 We can examine this in terms of the following questions:
 What drives change?
 How does change impact on our markets/business
environment?
 What is the result of change on the organization’s strategy?

Phases of Strategic Marketing
Strategic marketing has three distinct phases:
1. Strategic Analysis
 To move forward we must first answer the question:
where are we? This stage entails a detailed
examination of the business environment, customers
and an internal review of the organization itself.
 Tools such as portfolio analysis and industry structure
models help management to assess objectively the
organization’s current position.
 Equally, it is important to develop some view regarding
future trends. This is achieved via forecasting and
defining assumptions about the future market trends.

2. Formulating Strategy
 Having analyzed our situation, we then determine a way
forward. Formulation involves defining strategic intent –
what are our overall goals and objectives? Managers need
to formulate a marketing strategy that generates
competitive advantage and positions the organization’s
products effectively.
 To be successful, this must be based on core competencies.
During this stage, product development and innovation are
strategic activities, offering the potential to enhance
competitive position and further develop products and
brands. Additionally, formulation emphasizes the need to
form relationships with customers and other businesses.

3. Implementation
 Consideration needs to be given to implementing the
strategy. Marketing managers will undertake programs
and actions that deliver strategic objectives. Such
actions will often focus on individual elements of the
marketing mix. Additionally, a process of monitoring
and control needs to be put in place. This ensures
compliance and aids decision making.

CHAPTER TWO
External Environment analysis

Learning Objectives
 Undertake an environmental audit
 Describe the importance of competitor analysis;
 Describes how firms can best identify against whom
they are competing;
 Evaluate competitive relationships;
 Identify competitors’ likely response profiles;
 Identify the factors that influence consumer behavior;
 Examine the structure of the consumer & organizational
buying decision process;

 An analysis of the external environment is undertaken
in order to discover the opportunities and threats that
are evolving and that need to be addressed by the
organization.
 An analysis of the external environment can be broken
down into three key steps, each becoming more
specific to the organization. The first step is an
analysis of the macro-environmental influences that
the organization faces. This is followed by an
examination of the competitive (micro) environment
the organization operates within. Finally, a specific
competitive analysis is undertaken.

There are four forms of scanning according to Aguilar
(1967):
 Undirected viewing. This activity concerns the viewer
exploring information in general without carrying a
specific agenda. The viewer is exposed to a large amount of
varied information but this is not an active search looking
for particular issues, just a broad attempt to be aware of
factors or areas that may have changed.
 Conditional viewing. Again this is not an organized
search but the viewer is sensitive to information that
identifies changes in specific areas of activity.

 Informal search. This is an organized but limited
search for information to support a specific goal.
 Formal search. This type of search is actively pursued
and specifically designed to seek particular
information.

 There is, of course, an unlimited amount of
information that can be scanned but any organization
can only scan a certain amount of this information. A
balance has to be struck between the resources
allocated to this activity and the potential benefits.
More information also does not lead to better decision
making. Understanding the dynamics of the
environment, not the volume of information reviewed,
is the critical aspect to this activity.

Manager’s search for information should be focused on
the following five broad areas
 Market intelligence
 Technical intelligence
 Acquisition intelligence
 Broad issues
 Other intelligence

 The study showed that 58 per cent of managers saw market
intelligence as the most important area for obtaining
external information, three times more important than the
next most significant area, technical intelligence at 18 per
cent. The importance placed on market intelligence was
true across all functional areas.
 The most significant categories of information within this
area were market potential, accounting for 30 per cent
alone, and structural change, accounting for 10 per cent.
The only other category that reached double figures was for
the category of new products, process and technology
under technical intelligence.

Macro-environmental Analysis
 The macro-environment audit examines the broad
range of environmental issues that may affect the
organization.
 This will include political/legal issues, economic
factors, social/cultural issues and technological
developments.
 This is normally referred to as a PEST (Political,
Economic, Social and Technological) analysis,
although some writers use the alternative acronym
STEP

Competitor Analysis
 The ‘five forces’ analysis has examined the overall
industry and is a starting point in assessing a
company’s competitive position.
 This is likely to be a rather broad definition of an
industry and contains a number of companies that
would not be direct competitors.

Strategic groups
 Strategic groups are made up of organizations within the
same industry that are pursuing equivalent strategies,
targeting groups of customers that have similar profiles
 There are a range of attributes that can be used to identify
strategic groups. Some examples are:
 size of the company
 assets and skills
 scope of the operation
 breadth of the product range
 choice of distribution channel
 relative product quality
 brand image

Competitor’s Objectives
 A competitor’s objectives can be identified by analyzing three
important factors:
 Whether the competitor’s current performance is likely to be fulfilling
their objectives. If not, the competitor may initiate a change of strategy.
 How likely the competitor is to commit further investment to the
business. Financial objectives may indicate this. Investment is more
likely from companies that have objectives which are long-term in
nature, such as market share and sales growth, rather than
organizations under pressure to produce short-term profitability. This
also reveals potential trade-offs the competitor may be willing to take.
If short-term profitability is the key objective then the rival is likely to
be willing to lose market share in the short term in order to achieve its
profitability targets.
 The likely future direction of the competitor’s strategy. The
organization may have non-financial objectives, such as gaining
technology leadership.

Competitor’s current and past strategies
 There are three areas that should be explored in order to
establish a competitor’s current activities:
 Identification of the current markets, or market segments, within
which the competitor currently operates. This will indicate the
scope of the business
 Identification of the way the competitor has chosen to compete in
those markets. Is it based on quality of service, brand image or on
price? This may be an indication of whether a low cost or
differentiation strategy is being pursued.
 Comparison between the current strategy and past strategies can
be instructive. Firstly, it can illustrate the direction in which the
competitor is moving, in terms of product and market
development, over time. It can also highlight strategies that the
organization has tried in the past and which have failed. The
competitor is unlikely to attempt these approaches again without
considerable reservations.

Competitor’s capabilities
 An analysis of a competitor’s assets and competencies
allows a judgment to be made about how well
equipped they are to address the market, given the
dynamics in the industry and the trends in the
external environment. In order to evaluate a
competitor’s potential challenge to an organization a
number of areas need to be examined (Lehman and
Weiner, 1991):

Competitor’s capabilities
 Management capabilities.
 Marketing capabilities.
 Innovation capabilities.
 Production capabilities.
 Financial capabilities

Competitor’s future strategies and reactions
 Certain retaliation. The competitor is guaranteed to react in an aggressive
manner to any challenge. Market leaders, in particular, are likely to react in this
manner against any threat to their dominant position. Companies that have an
aggressive culture may also fall into this category.
 Failure to react. Competitors can be lulled into a false sense of security in an
industry that, over a long period of time, has seen very little change. In this
situation companies can be extremely slow to react to a competitive move. The
classic example is British motorcycle companies failing to react to the entry of
Japanese manufacturers into the lower end of the market.
 Specific reactions. Some competitors may react, but only to competitive
moves in certain areas. For instance, they may always react to any price
reductions, or sales promotions, as they believe these will have an important
impact on their business, but they may fail to respond to a competitor’s
increase in advertising expenditure. The more visible the competitor’s move
the more likely a competitor is to respond. Actions that are less visible, such as
support material for the sales force or dealerships, are less likely to face a
response.
 Inconsistent reactions. Other companies’ reactions are simply not
predictable. They react aggressively on occasion but at other times ignore
similar competitive challenges.

Problems in identifying competitors
 Overlooking smaller competitors by placing too much
emphasis on large, visible competitors.
 Focusing on established competitors and ignoring
potential new entrants.
 Concentrating on current domestic competitors and
disregarding international competitors who could
possibly enter the market.

The competitive intelligence cycle
Planning and Direction
Collections
Analyses
Dissemination

The Market Analysis
A market analysis will be made up of a range of factors
relevant to the particular situation under review, but would
normally include the following areas:
 Actual and potential market size. Estimating the total
sales in the market allows the organization to evaluate the
realism of particular market share objectives. Identifying
the key sub-markets of this market, and potential areas of
growth, is crucial to developing a marketing strategy, as is
establishing if any areas are in decline.
 Trends. Analyzing general trends in the market identifies
the changes that have actually taken place. This can help to
uncover the reasons for these changes and expose the
critical drivers underlying a market.

 Customers. The analysis needs to identify who the customer is
and what criteria they use to judge a product offering.
Information on where, when and how customers purchase the
product, or service, allows an organization to begin to
understand the needs of the customer (Chapter 4 will look at
consumer behavior in more detail). Identifying changing trends
in consumer behavior may begin to signal potential market
developments and opportunities.
 Customer segments. Identifying current market segments and
establishing the benefits each group requires allows an
organization to detect if it has the capability to serve particular
consumers’ needs.
 Distribution channels. Identifying the changes of importance
between channels of distribution, based on growth, cost or
effectiveness, permits a company to evaluate its current
arrangements. Establishing the key decision makers in a channel
of distribution also helps to inform strategic decisions.

Dimensions of Market Analysis
This varies somewhat according to the context. However,
the following are often included:
 Actual and potential market size
 market growth
 market profitability
 cost structure
 distribution systems
 trends and developments
 Key success factors.

 There are a number of conditions that need to be considered
when evaluating whether a high growth market is really as
attractive as it might seem. These are: whether the number of
competitors serving the market is really greater than can be
sustained by the growth opportunity.
 The following conditions are found in markets in which a
surplus of competitors is likely to be attracted and a subsequent
shakeout is likely:
o the market and its growth rate are highly visible to all and therefore
unlikely to be overlooked by any firms which may have an interest
o very high initial and forecast growth
o seemingly very few threats to the sustainability of the growth rate
o few initial barriers to entry
o products make use of an exiting technology rather than a risky or
protected technology
o Some of the potential entrants have low visibility and their
intentions are unknown or uncertain.

The shakeout itself often occurs over a relatively short period
of time. The trigger is likely to be a combination of:
 an unexpected slowing of market growth rate, either because
the market is close to saturation or a recession has intervened
 aggressive late entrants buying their way into the market by
cutting prices
 the market leader attempting to stem the erosion of its
market position with aggressive product and price retaliation
 The key success factors in the market changing as a result of
technological development, perhaps shifting the value-added
structure.

CHAPTER THREE
INTERNAL ANALYSIS

Introduction
 The unit on “Internal Analysis ” briefly describes
Internal analysis , Organizational Capabilities,
Initial Corporate-Wide Internal Audit, The
Organizational Climate,

 The internal analysis of an organization’s resources is the
final stage of the auditing process.
 It creates the information and analysis necessary for an
organization to identify the key assets and competencies
upon which a strategic position can be built.
 The chapter explores the nature of organizational assets,
competencies and capabilities.
 The auditing process used to identify these assets and
competencies includes the elements of an innovation
audit.
 The use of various auditing tools to facilitate this process,
in particular the portfolio models and the SWOT analysis,
are also covered.

Figure 4-1: Matching organizational capabilities to
market needs through competitive positioning

Organizational Capabilities
 In this chapter resources are defined as all the assets and
competencies to which the organization has access.
 Assets are given a broad definition to include both the
tangible and intangible capital of the organization.
 Competencies are the skills that are contained within the
organization.
 The application of these skills to deploy the available assets
effectively delivers the organization’s strategic capabilities
in the market.
 Corporate capabilities are therefore defined as the
combination of assets and competencies that denote the
organization’s competitive capacity.
 Establishing an organization’s current and potential
capabilities is therefore reliant upon an evaluation of two
aspects of its resources: assets and competencies.

Organizational Assets
 Organizational assets are the accumulated capital, both financial and
non-financial, that a company has at its disposal. These assets are both
tangible and intangible (Hooley et al., 1998) and include:
 Financial assets – such as working capital, or access/availability of
investment finance, and creditworthiness.
 Physical assets – ownership or control of facilities and property. In the
retail sector ownership of an outlet in a prime location could be a
significant asset.
 Operational assets – production plant, machinery and process
technologies.
 People assets – the quantity of human resources available to the
organization and the quality of this resource in terms of their background
and abilities.
 Legally enforceable assets – ownership of copyrights and patents,
franchise and licensing agreements.
 Systems – management information systems and databases and the
general infrastructure for supporting decision-making activities.
 Marketing assets – of particular concern in the development of marketing
strategy are of course marketing assets.

These marketing assets fall into
four main categories:
1. Customer-Based Assets
Customer-Based Assets: These are assets that the customer perceives as being important
such as:
 Image and reputation. These relate to the company and the recognition of its corporate
identity.
 Brand franchises. These are important because of the time and investment required in
building them. Once established effective brands have high levels of customer loyalty,
create competitive positions that are defendable and obtain higher margins because
customers feel a higher price is merited by the added value that the brand provides for
them. Weak brands of course show the opposite characteristics.
 Market leadership. A strong brand may not be the market leader but a brand leader
enjoys distinct advantages such as excellent market coverage, widespread distribution
and beneficial shelf positions in retail outlets.
 Country of origin. Consumer’s associate particular attributes with different countries;
these then become associated with an organization or a brand that derives from that
particular state. So for instance Germany is associated with efficiency and quality.
Products like Mercedes and BMW benefit from this perception of their country of origin
and it reinforces their quality positioning in the market.
 Unique products and services. These are key assets. Their distinctiveness in the market
can be built on a number of attributes such as price, quality, design or level of innovation.

2. Distribution-Based Assets
Distribution-Based Assets:-Distributing a product or service successfully into the market
is a critical marketing activity. Therefore, a number of potential assets lie in this area such as:
 The size and quality of the distribution network. The size of the distribution
network should be seen in terms not only of geographic spread but also of the intensity
of that coverage on the ground. An organization may only distribute over a specific
geographic region of a national market, but has built up a strong presence in that area
and is locally dominant. Quality should be seen in terms of fitness for purpose. There are
a range of factors that could be used to judge quality, such as ability to guarantee supply,
lead times, or ability to react quickly.
 Level of control over distribution channels. An organization that can exert control
over the main channels of distribution in a market is at a huge advantage, making control
a key marketing asset. For example, Irn-Bru is the market leader in the soft drinks market
in Scotland. However, Coca-Cola successfully stopped Irn- Bru being distributed through
McDonald’s fast food restaurants in favor of Coca-Cola. Coke was able to apply control
over that channel of distribution due to their global relationship with McDonald’s.

3. Internally-Based Assets
There are a number of internal organizational assets that lie outside the marketing function but can be
deployed to give advantages to marketing activities. It is important to identify the underlying asset rather
than just the activity. It is the asset that has the potential to be deployed in new ways to create additional
advantages. There is a range of organizational assets that may give advantages to marketing activities:
 Cost structure. The organization may be able to achieve lower costs than competitors through higher
capacity utilization, better economies of scale, or by applying newer or more innovatory technology.
This could allow marketing to set lower prices for their products and services than the competition.
The asset is the manufacturing cost base; this can be deployed to give advantage to the marketing
activity of pricing.
 Information systems. These can be applied to marketing research activities to collect and analyze
customer, competitor and market information. These systems could also be used to create customer
databases, a marketing asset that can be exploited. There are also some organizational competencies
that lie outside the marketing function that can be used to create advantages in marketing activities
such as:
 Innovatory culture. The ability to be able to create and maintain a culture for innovation is an
important competence. This competence facilitates activities such as new product development,
customer service through empowering front-line staff to develop creative solutions to customers’
problems, and advertising through a willingness to adopt creative ideas.
 Production skills. These may allow an organization’s production to have more flexibility, higher
quality or shorter lead times, all of which can be used to advantage by the marketing function.

4. Alliance-Based Assets
There are a number of areas where the asset is linked to a
formal, or informal, external relationship. These agreements
with third parties can allow an organization to gain:
 Access to markets – through local distributors that the
organization could not cover with its existing resource
base.
 Management expertise – from outside agencies not
available within the company.
 Access to technological developments or processes –
through licensing or joint ventures.
 Exclusive agreements – with third parties, such as Coca-
Cola and McDonald’s, that effectively exclude competitors.

Organizational Competencies
These are the abilities and skills available to the company to marshal the effective
exploitation of the company’s assets. The combination of assets and these skills
allows an organization to undertake specific activities.
Activities such as producing innovative products are a capability that arises out of
the underlying assets and competencies of the organization. These competencies
can lie at the three decision-making tiers: strategic, functional and operational;
and at three levels in the organizations Structure: corporate, team and individual
(Hooley et al., 1998):
 Strategic competencies. These relate to the management skills, the drive and
the strategic direction of the organization. Skills should be assessed in a range
of areas, including ability to create strategic vision, communicate, motivate,
implement strategy, assess changing circumstances, learn and innovate.
 Functional competencies. These refer to the skills available to the
organization to manage its activities in the various functional areas such as
finance, operations and marketing. The marketing function should be assessed
on its skills such as handling customer relationships, channel management,
product management, product innovation and new product development.

 Operational competencies. These skills are necessary to run the day
to- day operations across the functional areas of the organization. As an
example, in the marketing function these would include skills of co-
coordinating and implementing sales force activities, promotional
campaigns, public relations activities, special offers and discounts,
updating product packaging and labeling. Where these activities are
subcontracted to third parties such as PR agencies, the skills that need
to be assessed are the abilities of co-coordinating and controlling these
external relationships.
 Individual competencies. These are the abilities and skills that lie
with individuals in the organization. These competencies are based not
on individuals’ skills in isolation, but on whether individuals have the
required skills to execute the tasks they face in their area of
responsibility, whether at strategic, functional or operational level.

 Team competencies. It is necessary for individuals in organizations to
work together in teams. These may be teams formed on a formal or
informal basis. Despite the specific skill base of the individuals
involved, a group also requires the skills necessary to work together as a
team. A key element of successful project management relies on these
team competencies.
 Corporate-level competencies. These are the skills, that apply to the
organization in its entirety, to execute tasks at strategic, functional and
operational level. This could relate to the ability to foster innovation
throughout the organization, or the ability to exploit and continually
update the organizational knowledge base, by effective communication
of critical learning throughout the business. Once the assets and
competencies of an organization have been identified there are likely to
be some assets that are more important than others. The relationship
between these assets and competencies can be mapped to uncover the
key relationships

Corporate-Wide Internal Audit
1. The internal marketing audit
The internal marketing audit is specifically aimed at reviewing the marketing activities of the enterprise and is
split into five distinct areas (Kotler et al., 1996):
 Marketing strategy audit. This analysis examines the organization’s current corporate and marketing
objectives to establish if they are relevant and explicit. The current strategy is evaluated in terms of its fit with
the set objectives. This element of the audit also highlights whether adequate resources have been allocated
for the successful implementation of the strategy.
 Marketing structures audit. This examines the structure of the marketing function and its relationship with
other areas of the business. In particular, the profile that the marketing function has within the business is
reviewed. For instance, is the head of marketing a member of the board of directors? This is an indicator of
how influential marketing considerations are in strategic decisions. Communication both within the
marketing function and between marketing and other functions should also be analyzed to see how effective
the function is at co-coordinating its activities. The internal structure should be examined to establish
whether marketing activities are carried out efficiently.
 Marketing systems audit. This part of the audit inspects the planning systems, control measures and new
product development processes in the organization, as well as examining the information systems that
support these activities.
 Productivity audit. This element of the audit examines the organization’s activities using financial criteria
such as profitability and cost effectiveness applied to assess the relative productivity of products, market
sectors, distribution channels and geographic markets.
 Marketing functions audit. This element of the audit looks in detail at all aspects of the marketing mix: the
products and services the organization produces, pricing policy, distribution arrangements, the organization
of the sales team, advertising policy, public relations and other promotional activities.

2. The Innovation Audit
 This part of the auditing process reviews how effectively the
organization is able to deliver the level of innovation necessary
to create new products, new services, and new ways of
undertaking activities. Success in these activities is likely to
depend on the company successfully harnessing the latent
creativity in individuals at all levels in the organization. The
innovation audit examines whether the necessary assets and
competencies are present and examines four key areas:
 The current organizational climate with regard to innovation.
 Hard measures of the organization’s current performance in
innovation.
 The organization’s policies and practices that are currently used to
support innovation.
 The balance of the cognitive styles of the senior management team.

Factors that act as constraints on innovation in an organization
include:
 Insufficient time – there is a lack of time in which to consider
alternative approaches to undertaking work.
 Status quo – a traditional approach, an unwillingness of managers
and other staff to change the current way of doing things.
 Political problems – battles over areas of responsibility and lack of
co-operation between different areas of the organization.
 Evaluation pressure – the evaluation or feedback systems are
perceived to be inappropriate. The environment is focused on criticism
and external evaluation.
 Creativity. How creative is the organization perceived to be overall?
 Productivity. How productive is the organization perceived to be?

The Organizational Climate
 There are two components to the audit of the organization’s climate: an attitude survey,
and the technique of metaphorical description. An attitude survey of key areas of the
organizational climate that affect creativity. The aim of this component of the audit is to
discover the current feelings of staff about the organizational climate. There are eight
influential factors that are crucial in supporting innovation and four areas that act as
constraints (Burnside, 1990). Support for creativity and innovation include:
 Teamwork – the level of commitment to the current work, the level of trust between team
members and the willingness to help each other.
 Resources – the amount of access to appropriate resources in terms of facilities, staff,
finance and information.
 Challenge – the challenge involved in the work undertaken in terms of its importance and
the very nature of the task. Is it intriguing in itself?
 Freedom – the amount of control individuals have over their work and ideas. How much
freedom are they allowed to decide how a project or task will be undertaken?
 Supervisor – managerial support in terms of clear goals, good communication and
building morale.
 Creativity infrastructure – level of senior management support and encouragement of
creativity and the structures necessary for developing creative ideas.
 Recognition – the level of recognition and the type of rewards given for innovative ideas.
 Unity and co-operation – factors such as a collaborative and cooperative atmosphere and
the amount of shared vision in the organization.

Learning Objectives
 Describe Mission statement
 Set Goals and Objectives
 Develop Long-term versus short-term goals
 Undertake a Strategic gap analysis

Introduction
 The unit on “Strategic Intent” briefly describes
Mission statements, goals and objectives, hierarchy of
objectives, long term and short term objectives, and
undertake strategic gap analysis

Mission Statement
 Before an organization starts to make judgments about
how it is going to compete, fundamental decisions
about the organization’s overall method of operation
and the areas it wishes to serve have to be articulated.
A conscious statement of the primary direction and
purpose of the organization has to be the key
foundation upon which objectives and strategy are
based. This rationale behind the company’s existence
usually comes in the form of a mission statement and
is meant to act as a guiding light to all personnel
within the organization.

 The mission of the organization is the unique purpose
that distinguishes it from other companies and defines
the boundaries of its operations. The mission
statement is a proclamation of the organization’s
primary objective that encapsulates its core values. The
organization’s aims and aspirations are the result of a
series of influences

There are four major sources of influence acting upon the core meaning behind
an organization’s existence. Johnson and Scholes (1999) refer to these as:
 Corporate governance. To whom should the organization be
accountable and within what regulatory framework should executive
decisions be overseen and reviewed? With any organization these
issues which relate to accountability will have an influence on the
overall direction of the institution.
 Stakeholders. Stakeholders in an organization include such groups as
customers, suppliers, shareholders, employees, financiers, and the
wider social community.
 Business ethics. An ethical dimension also affects the mission and
objectives that an organization should fulfill. This mainly relates to the
corporation’s social responsibility to stakeholder groups, in particular
those powers and influence is marginal, such as a local community.
 Cultural context. The aspects of mission that are prioritized will
reflect the cultural environment that surrounds the corporation.

Successful mission statements have to demonstrate the following
characteristics:
 Credibility. The mission statement has to set realistic ambitions for the
organization. In particular they have to be believable in the eyes of
stakeholders, and especially the employees.
 Uniqueness. The mission has to relate to the particular organization. It
should not be a statement that could be generically applied to a range of other
organizations. The mission has to relate to the company and its stakeholders in
a unique fashion.
 Specific capabilities. The mission should also embrace the core capabilities of
the organization and emphasize their core role in the future of the
organization.
 Aspirational. The mission needs to motivate individuals by giving them a
statement that has significance to the work they undertake – a vision that is
meaningful in terms of more than just making profits. It should engender a
vision to which individuals feel they wish to contribute.

 A mission statement should also define the boundaries
of the business’s ambitions. What is the territory that
the business wishes to operate within? This is
commonly referred to as the scope of the business or
the competitive domain.
 There are several dimensions that have to be
considered when defining the organization’s scope:

 Product scope. This is defined in terms of the goods and services
the enterprise supplies to customers. A critical aspect of defining
product scope is deciding how to categorize the organization’s
products. Some products may fit into a collective category easily,
some more important products may be better served listed
separately. The product could be defined in terms of its technology.
 Market scope. Market scope can be difficult to define but it is an
important exercise. Market scope should depict the consumers and
customers who utilize the company’s products. There are a number
of criteria that are helpful in defining market scope, such as:
 Type of industry sector targeted
 Channels of distribution
 Demographics
 Salient features of the consumer
 Geographical scope. This should be defined at an appropriate
level of aggregation – in strictly local terms, for a small business,
through to national and international regions for large
organizations.

Statement of strategic intent
 Some writers see strategic intent, or the corporate
vision, as a concept separate from the mission. They
would argue that a mission statement merely states
what the organization is currently doing and that a
statement of intent, or a vision statement, is also
needed.
 A statement of strategic intent describes what the
organization aspires to become. However, many
companies strive to achieve both objectives within the
single mechanism of the mission statement.

Goals and Objectives
 The mission statement acts as a guide and leads to the
development of a hierarchy of objectives. Objectives
are the specific intended outcomes of strategy. There
are differing views on the definition of goals and
objectives. Some writers see goals as being less specific
than objectives.

Strategic goals are general aspirations that the organization needs to
achieve but are difficult to measure or put within a specific timescale.
Objectives therefore are more specific than goals and state what is to be
achieved; they are given a quantifiable measure and a specific timescale.
These objectives are seen as needing to be:
 Specific. Objectives that are specific should be set so that there is
clarity throughout the organization as to what is to be achieved.
 Measurable. Objectives should state clearly, with tangible targets,
what is to be achieved. Objectives can then be measured over time.
 Aspirational. Objectives should be set at a level that provides a high
enough challenge to motivate individuals although not so high that
they are demoralized.
 Realistic. Objectives should be achievable, based on a thorough
strategic analysis.
 Time scaled. A timescale should be put on the achievement of an
objective. This again allows the organization to measure its
performance against a set deadline.
These quantifiable objectives are normally referred to by their acronym.
SMART. Examples of SMART objectives are 3M’s financial objectives.

Hierarchy of Objectives
 Objectives are not only developed across a range of key
areas; they also exist at a number of levels within an
organization. Objectives cascade down through an
organizational structure effectively forming a
hierarchy.

 Corporate objectives. Objectives at a corporate level
relate to the organization’s overall direction in terms of its
general attitude towards growth. At this higher level,
managers of the Edinburgh Hotel are likely to be
concerned with long-term profitability.
 Functional objectives. At a functional level expanding
market share becomes an objective. Each functional area –
finance, human resources, operations and marketing – will
develop a strategy to support this objective. In terms of the
marketing function it is concerned about which
products/services should be sold into which markets.

 Operational objectives. At this level the functional
level marketing strategy becomes the objective.
Strategies have to be developed for each element of the
marketing mix to support this operational objective.
This hierarchy ensures that at each level the objectives
developed are consistent with the objectives that lie at
the level above them.

 Strategic business unit (SBU) objectives. In an
organization with a divisional structure this hierarchy
will have an additional level of the business (or SBU)
level objectives. These will be derived from the
corporate level objectives and strategy and then feed
into the functional level objectives.

CHAPTER FIVE
Generic Strategies and The Significance of
Competitive Advantage

Competitive advantage
 Before an organization starts to make judgments about
how it is going to compete, fundamental decisions
about the organization’s overall method of operation
and the areas it wishes to serve have to be articulated.
 The notions of competitive advantage and marketing
strategy are intrinsically linked. Competitive
advantage is the process of identifying a fundamental
and sustainable basis from which to compete.
Ultimately, marketing strategy aims to deliver this
advantage in the market place.

Generic strategies
 Porter (1980) identifies three generic strategies –
fundamental sources of competitive advantage. These
are: cost leadership, differentiation and focus.
Arguably, these provide a basis for all strategic activity
and underpin the large number of marketing
strategies available to the organization. Additionally,
management needs to define the competitive scope of
the business – targeting a broad or narrow range of
industries/customers, essentially either operating
industry-wide or targeting specific market segments.
Each generic strategy is examined in turn.

Competitive advantages (Source: Adapted from Porter, 1980)

Cost Leadership
 One potential source of competitive advantage is to
seek an overall cost leadership position within an
industry, or industry sector. Here the focus of strategic
activity is to maintain a low cost structure. The desired
structure is achievable via the aggressive pursuit of
policies such as controlling overhead cost, economies
of scale, cost minimization in areas such as marketing
and R&D, global sourcing of materials and experience
effects. Additionally, the application of new
technology to traditional activities offers significant
opportunity for cost reduction.

 Economy of scale. This is perhaps the single biggest influence on unit
cost. Correctly managed, volume can drive efficiency and enhance
purchasing leverage. Additionally, given large-scale operations,
learning and experience effects (see later) can be a source of cost
reduction.
 Linkages and relationships. Being able to link activities together and
form relationships can generate cost savings. For example, a ‘just-in-
time’ manufacturing system could reduce stockholding costs and
enhance quality. Forging relationships with external organizations is
also vital. If industry partners were to share development and
distribution costs, or activities were ‘outsourced’ to specialist operators,
a substantial reduction in overheads is possible.
 Infrastructure. Factors such as location, availability of skills and
governmental support greatly affect the firm’s cost base. Given the
development of information technology and the global economy it is
possible to have a worldwide infrastructure and selectively place
activities in low-cost areas.

Differentiation
 Here the product offered is distinct and differentiated
from the competition. The source of differentiation
must be on a basis of value to the customer. The
product offering should be perceived as unique and
ideally offer the opportunity to command a price
premium. Will customers pay more for factors such as
design, quality, branding and service levels?

Common sources of differentiation
include:
 Product performance. Does product performance enhance its value to the
customer? Factors such as quality, durability and capability all offer potential
points of differentiation. Performance is evaluated relative to competitors’
products and gives customers a reason to prefer one product over another.
 Product perception. Often the perception of a product is more important
than actual performance. Hopefully, the product has an enduring emotional
appeal generating brand loyalty (see Chapter 8). This is commonly achieved via
marketing communications (advertising, branding, endorsement, etc.) and
direct experience of customer groups.
 Product augmentation. We can differentiate by augmenting the product in a
way that adds value. For example, high levels of service, after-sales support,
affordable finance and competitive pricing all serve to enhance the basic
product offering. It is common for distributors, such as retailers, to provide the
added-value augmentation.

Focus
 The organization concentrates on a narrower range of
business activities. The aim is to specialize in a specific
market segment and derive detailed customer
knowledge.

A focus strategy is based on factors such as:
 Geographic area. Using geographic segmentation allows a product to be
tailored to local needs. The local association may offer the potential to
differentiate the offering (e.g. Champagne comes from a specific French
region) and protect the market from larger predators. Another rationale for
such segmentation is to serve markets too small or isolated to be viable on a
large scale (e.g. rural communities).
 End-user focus. It is possible to focus on a specific type of user as opposed to
the entire market. Specialization offers the opportunity to get ‘close’ to
customers and have a better understanding of their needs (e.g. specialist hi-fi
manufacturer). Additionally, within a narrow segment the focused
organization may be able to offer the choice, service and economy-of-scale not
available to more broadly-based competitors. This strategy often works by
selecting specific points on the price/quality spectrum within a given market
(e.g. discount food retailer).
 Product/product line specialist. The organization focuses on a single
product type or product line. Value is derived from the specialization in terms
of skills, volume and range (e.g. industrial power supplies).

Strategic marketing management

Strategic marketing management

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