MGT 599 All Weeks Discussions Strayer Latest

MGT 599 Week 1 Discussion

“Strategy Foundations”

• Read the article titled “Five Questions That Make Strategy Real” located at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/five-questions-make-strategy-real-jack-welch. Read the article titled “Eight Maxims of Strategy”, located here. From the two articles, specify the main differences between strategy and tactics. Provide support for your response.
• Compare and contrast the main characterization of strategy that both Welch and Sir Liddell-Hart present in their respective articles. Next, from Sir Liddell-Hart’s article, select one of the eight maxims of strategy and provide a real business world example which reflects the maxim you selected. Provide rationale to support your reasoning.

“Strategic Value Analysis”

• Read the article titled “2016 Oil and Gas Trends”,located at http://www.strategyand.pwc.com/trends/2016-oil-and-gas-trends. Next, argue for or against this statement: Acompany should determine its goals and values before performing an industry analysis”. Explain your reasoning– you may use examples from other industries as wellto support your response.
• Examine the main different types of values that a company could seek to maximize. Give your opinion as to whether or not a company should maximize its profits or social good, when these two (2) are in conflict.Provide a rationale and / or a real-world example to support your response.

“Game Theory  and Segmentation”

• Read the article titled “Game Theory” at http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc1/GameTheory.html. In the article, the authors discussed a classic case of game theory (zero-sum games) of the Prisoner’s Dilemma (PD). There are many variations of this game in use. Suggest the manner in which organizations could apply PD to their business’ strategy formulation. Provide support for your response.
• Refer to “Case 11 Ford and the World Automobile Industry in 2015” located in the “Excess Capacity” section, page 542 in your textbook, or use the Internet to research two to three (2-3) articles on the North American automobile and its market segments. Next, analyze the key ways that segmentation provides a competitive advantage or disadvantage to the North American automobile. Provide a rationale for your response.

“Organization Structure”

• Per the textbook, there are many possible structures that an organization can adopt. Give your opinion on the significant ways that an organization’s structure affects the organization’s ability to adapt to strategy initiatives. Provide a rationale and / or a real- world example to support your response.
• Per the textbook, strategy is concerned with matching a firm’s resources and capabilities to the opportunities that arise in the external environment. Resources sometimes can be a constraint to an organization. Speculate on the role of stakeholders in resource identification in order for value creation and establishing competitive advantage for an organization. Support your response.

“Competitive Advantages”

• One staple of consulting is to advise clients to so-called “re-invent” themselves. Suggest the fundamental ways in which innovation matures a company. Provide a rationale and / or a real-world example to support your response.
• It is well known that Apple has successfully established itself as the market leader in smartphones with its iPhone. Use the two primary dimensions (i.e., cost advantage and differentiation advantage) to recommend a strategy for Apple to sustain its competitive advantage in this market. Provide a rationale for your response.

“Change Management”

• Read the article titled “10 Principles of Change Management” at http://www.strategy-business.com/media/file/resilience-04-15-04-rebrand.pdf. In the article, the authors advocated for diagnosing an organization’s culture (i.e., 8. Address culture explicitly), often considered the most difficult aspect to evaluate when diagnosing organizations. Speculate on at least two (2) challenges that business leaders might face when diagnosing organizational culture during substantial business transition within a company. Propose key strategies to mitigate the challenges in question and support your response.
• From the article, select one (1) principle that you mostly agree with and examine its fundamental strengths and weaknesses. Include one (1) example or scenario in which you could apply the chosen principle to support your response.

“Competitive Advantage”

• Per the textbook, technology is a key driver of change and an important source of competitive advantage in business environments. Examine the overall manner in which an enterprise could exploit the opportunities that technology offers in order to establish or sustain a competitive advantage. Include a real-world example to support your response.
• Use the Internet or Strayer Library to research two to three (2-3) articles on soda wars among American soft drink manufacturers, primarily between Coca-Cola and Pepsi. Next, propose a strategy that one (1) of the soft drink manufacturers could use to increase its competitive advantage. Provide a rationale for your response.

“Vertical Integration”

• Use the Internet or Strayer Library to research two to three (2-3) articles on Standard Oil Co. Inc. and the related vertical integration. Analyze the rationale for the so called “Trust-busting” Standard Oil apart. Examine the main advantages and disadvantages of “Trust-busting”. Support your response.
• From Part 1 of this discussion, assess the value that the vertical integration have created or will create for Standard Oil Co. Inc. Support your response.

“Diversification”

• Read the article titled “Breaking Down the Ansoff Matrix”, located at http://www.atlbusinessjournal.com/?p=1481.
• In the article, the author discussed four (4) different types of product-market strategies: Market penetration, Market development, Product development, and Diversification. Select one (1 ) of these strategies that you would use for future growth of a business, and examine the main advantages and disadvantages of the selected strategy. Provide an example or scenario to support your response.
• It is well known that diversification across a portfolio sometimes can be challenging. Propose one to two (1-2) overall diversification strategies that you would use in order to improve operating excellence. Provide a rationale for your response.

“Diversification”

• Read the article titled “Breaking Down the Ansoff Matrix”, located at http://www.atlbusinessjournal.com/?p=1481.
• In the article, the author discussed four (4) different types of product-market strategies: Market penetration, Market development, Product development, and Diversification. Select one (1 ) of these strategies that you would use for future growth of a business, and examine the main advantages and disadvantages of the selected strategy. Provide an example or scenario to support your response.
• It is well known that diversification across a portfolio sometimes can be challenging. Propose one to two (1-2) overall diversification strategies that you would use in order to improve operating excellence. Provide a rationale for your response.