Skoda: Business Strategy Analysis

Skoda: Business Strategy Analysis Skoda Company and its business 1.1 Introduction to Skoda Company The two cyclists, who were known as Vaclav Laurin and Vaclav Klement, are considered as the founders of Skoda Company. The two cyclists were used to design and produce their own bicycles and eventually it was established as Skoda. In 1925, Skoda was established in Czechoslovakia and gradually, it was expanded towards Eastern Europe by producing cars, farm ploughs, and aero planes other than bicycles. Skoda has to cope with hard times in company history such as war, economic problems and also the changes in the political environment. While the Skoda is grown up internationally, there was a requirement of a strong foreign partner. By, 1990 Volkswagen AG had dominated by joining Skoda. Volkswagen AG is known as the leading car manufacturer in Europe by manufacturing variety of branded products such as Volkswagen, Skoda, and Audi (Skoda Auto, 2011). The remarkable thing is the Skoda UK is selling Skoda cars through its independent network of certified dealers. 1.2 Business as a transformation process In common, there is an input and output can be clearly identified in a business. Input may consist of working force, entrepreneurship, capital and land. Output may be goods and services. Therefore, the process of transformation is common for all the organizations and most of the time, output can be considered as a combination of goods and services (Oxford University Press 2007). For an example considering the hospitality as a business foods and beverage can be the goods they serve and the lodging may be the service they offer. The critical thing is to be produce outputs which may worth higher than the inputs. In financial terms, it is known as the profit in relation to the organizations which are expecting profits. But, in the case of non profit oriented organizations such as schools and hospitals other indicators are used to measure the progress. Transformation may differ from business wise. The critical thing is to implementing innovative methodologies of value addition for the pro ducts and services while cost cutting (Oxford University Press 2007). Value addition can be done by manufacturing outputs that the customers are ready to pay money more than usual price. Since the brand name may be incorporated with customers lifestyle and preferences, effective branding result in improved sales. For an example, plain pair of shoe can be marketed to a higher price by branding it with brands like Nike or Addidas. Chapter 2 Organizational audit and the business environment 2.1 Organizational Audit Organizational audit is critical for a business to meet the following objectives. To analyze the businesss organizational framework, procedures and flow chart. To investigate the contest between the job descriptions, responsibilities and the flow chart of the business.    To emphasize the unsatisfactory aspects of the current structure of the business. To define development paths for improvement of the business. To satisfy these objectives organizational audit is being done by analysis of existing data, summary reporting, individual interviewing processes and analysis of raw data gathered through the surveys. Organizational audit is crucial for a business to cope with the business environment. 2.2 Business environment It is believed that business transformation process may not occur in a vacuum. Firms are driven in particular frameworks and subjected by the business environment. Business environment can be divided in to two. Micro Macro Micro environment consist of individuals or organizations which the business deal with a regular basis. It may include customers, employees, distributors and suppliers which are known as the stakeholders. That all components may have the direct involvement of the business activities and it can be affected by the actions of the business. Therefore, it can be concluded that micro environment play a vital role in the success and the behavior of a business. The macro environment may consist of factors which are lying outside of the direct control of the business. It includes economy, policies of the government and also the social changes. Since these macro factors can primarily change the environment of a business one individual business can rarely do much on its own to shape them. Theoretically, the macro environment can be analyzed by using PESTEL analysis. (Scott, 1982) Chapter 3 The PESTEL analysis for Skoda Company PESTEL Analysis PEST analysis is the methodology of analyzing the macro environment in most of the countries. But, the expanded PEST model which is known as PESTEL is commonly used in UK (CIPD, 2009). PESTEL is stand for Political, Economical, Social, Technological, Environmental and Legal analysis. It describes the outline of macro environment in relation to the business environment. Referring to the political factors, it consists of policies implemented by the government such as the involvement in the economy. It also includes what kind of goods and services to be produced and the priorities in relation to the business support. The political decisions may play a vital role for some businesses which are related to education health and also in the infra structure facilities. Considering the Skoda Company, the changes in laws and regulations such as accounting standards, taxation requirements and environmental laws and legal power of the foreign states may affect on their business especially in the international trade. Therefore, it is critical to monitor the governments policies and regulations in a continuous manner. (Lynch, 1999) Economic factors may include economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates as well as the inflation rate. Those are the factors that may have the potential to make effects on operations and decisions. Referring to Skoda, interest rate may affect its  cost of capital. Therefore, it determines the extent of the growth of the business and expansion. Exchange rates may affect the costs of exporting goods and the supply and price of imported goods. Social  factors include cultural aspects, health perception, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitudes and emphasis on safety. Changes in social factors influence in the product demand and operation. For example, aging process may generate smaller and less-willing workforce .This may lead to increasing the labour cost. Therefore, referring Skoda to cope with these trends there should be various management strategies to be adopted. For an example, it should be more concerned on age limit of the workers when recruiting new workers. The factors such as rate of technological changes, automation and the technical inducements altogether considered as technological factors. Those factors may influence with the outsourcing decisions, market entry barriers and efficient production level of a company. When considering the Skoda, it is producing branded motor cars. Therefore, technology should be their main focus. Because, it creates opportunities for new products and product improvement in relation to the marketing. As the technology advances, new products may launch. (Scott, 1982) Ecological and environmental aspects such as weather, climate, and climate changes can be considered as environmental factors. Those factors may especially influences industries such as tourism, farming, and insurance. Furthermore, growing awareness of the potential impacts of climate change is affecting how companies operate and the products they offer, both creating new markets and diminishing or demolishing existing ones. Discrimination law,  consumer law,  antitrust law,  employment law, and  health and safety law can be considered as the component of the legal factor. These factors can influence with the operation process, cost of production and the demand for the products. Legal aspect mainly focuses on the effect of the national and world legislation. The Skoda Company receives all the rights applicable in the nature of their business and every inventions and product developments are always going into the patented process. I.e. Audi, Skoda. The PESTEL factors are combined with external micro-environmental factors and internal drivers in relation to the business. Furthermore, it can be explained as opportunities and threats in a  SWOT analysis. Chapter 4 The SWOT analysis for Skoda Company SWOT Analysis SWOT is stand for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Strengths can be described as internal components of a business that lead to its growth. Weaknesses can be identified as the attributes that will make disturbances business or make the business susceptible. The external conditions that could lead to future growth are known as the opportunities in SWOT. Threats are described as the external elements which could make negative effects on a business. (Lynch, 1999) To recognize its strengths, Skoda gathered information through researches from both customers and also from the reliable independent surveys. For an example, annual JD Power customer satisfaction survey had questioned the vehicle owners about their feelings on their vehicle for last six months by using questionnaire for about 20,000 owners. According to the results Skoda dominated in the top five car manufacturers for last 13 years (JD Power 2010). Not only that, in 2007, Top Gears survey revealed that among the 56,000 viewers Skoda dominated as the number one car manufacturer (Top Gear 2007). According to those results, Skoda found that the company excelled at satisfying its customers when focusing the owner experience rather than on sales alone. Almost all of Skodas customers would recommend Skoda branded vehicle to others, means that Skoda had a distinctive strength. As a result, Skoda manufactured cars that their customers could enjoy, rather than simply maximizing the sales. The refore, Skoda branded themselves as a quality product that satisfies its customers. Skodas analysis showed that in order to grow the business required to address issues about how the small company fit into the highly competitive market. An out-dated perception of the Skoda brand, related to the companys Eastern European origins, contributed to the business small size. By 1999, Volkswagen AG ownership had changed this negative attitude about Skoda. But, in 2006 brand Health Check revealed that the weak and neutral image in mid market range is still existing when compare to the Ford, Peugeot and Renault like brands (UK Branding 2006). Though, Skoda still deficient of a strong appeal, it is realized that the company needed to reduce the defensive campaigns exemplifying what the brand was not and begin new campaigns illustrating what Skoda had to offer. The change was simple and Skoda knew that its owners were satisfied with their cars. Skoda had realized that its rivals marketing approaches are mainly focused on the product itself. But in contrast, Skoda tends to focus its attention on emphasizing the owners experience with their cars and the customers satisfaction with Skoda vehicles. This SWOT analysis may lead Skoda to distinguish its product from its competitors. Considering the UK market, there are 50 different car makers selling around 200 vehicle models. To survive in this large and competitive market, Skoda needed to ensure that its message would not be lost or drowned out within the crowded environment. As a result, Skoda had manufactured seven different cars such as city car, luxurious car, and family car addressing different market segments with subsequent levels of pricing. Chapter 5 The planning for a business and implementation a new strategy 5.1 Strategic planning, Tactical planning and Operational planning Depending on the PESTEL and SWOT analysis, the business plan for the business should be created by the management of the business. Planning process can be identified as three phases such as strategic planning, tactical planning and operational planning. Strategic Planning can be considered as a long term planning attempted by senior management of a business. I.e. the executives. It involves making decisions which will work toward reaching an organizations mission and vision statements. Tactical planning it the mid term planning. It may range from months up to about two years. This involves middle management those who plan strategies to achieve a businesss strategic goals. In contrast, operational planning is routine planning handled by front line managers. They may report to middle management and enact the leg work of the strategies developed by middle management to achieve strategic goals. 5.2 Implementation of the new strategy Novel business strategies are designed to improve the overall utility of a business, its employees and increase profitability of the business. But change may be troublemaking and can be costly within its own context as employees deal with new procedures, information technology, products or an organizational matrix. To reduce the cost, disturbances and negative effects of implementing new strategies, it should implement a strategy for implementation. Essentially, a well planned and accomplished implementation plan may lead to reduce confrontation to the changes. The process of implementing a new strategy can be identified as six major steps (Kaplan and Norton 2010). Split the new strategy into smaller portions. Aware the employees about the map of change Create and post a scorecard for the new implementation, helping as a cheerleader to employees throughout the process that success is reasonable step wise. Acquiring the feedback regarding the new strategy at each stage by employee surveys. Request customer satisfaction. Doing the correct adjustments in the new strategy, time scale and goals based on feedback and customer satisfaction. 5.3 Conclusion With the concentrated study of the PESTLE, the Skoda Company will continue to emerge and develop if they manage to find solutions in different challenges that the entire organization might face in the future. Since the external environment is extremely complex and dynamic it is important to conducting the PESTEL in a regular basis. Practically, it may not possible to identify almost all the significant changes in the business environment. But, still they may able to find some of those critical changes through their assumptions and that will lead them to take the correct decision in the future. At present the PESTEL structure is further expanded as STEEPLE and STEEPLED by considering the ethical and demographic factors. Therefore, it may be important to stick to this latest model, because in some businesses those factors considered to be critical. To improve its performance, it may be needed to conduct a brand positioning examination by obtaining market research data from both interna l and external audits, allowing Skoda to conduct a SWOT analysis.   Skodas SWOT analysis may facilitate the company to reveal that customer satisfaction by purchasing their products. Not only that, it also reveals that the brand was no longer seen as a poor, outdated car, the company was able to operate within a position in the market, and that a change in public perception was very important to Skodas ability to expand within a highly competitive market. SWOT analysis makes the raw information which may gathered from a survey in to an order therefore, it may support managers to investigate both internally and externally. Therefore, it may also highlight the key internal weaknesses of a business, and also the strengths what the management should be alert on their business. Depending on the SWOT and PESTEL analysis, it is required to implement a new business strategy. The critical thing is to implement that new business strategy without disrupting the business. Romeo and Juliet | Summary and Analysis Romeo and Juliet | Summary and Analysis The classic story line of star-crossed lovers has been replicated time and time again, but possibly the most renowned version is William Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet No matter what version is consulted, whether it be the original script or the movie rendition directed by Baz Luhrmann, this familiar plot of the age-old play ultimately ends in the tragic death of the romantic couple. However, no calamity to this magnitude merely comes about coincidentally. Rather, Romeos character is to blame for his and Juliets untimely death. Literary critic, Douglas Cole writes, â€Å"The sorry spectacle that Romeo, the romantic lover, makes of himselfpoints directly forward to the catastrophe†(108). In his play Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare leads the star-crossed lovers to their ultimate demise through the development of Romeos character traits. His strong emotions and rash impulsiveness result in Romeo and his beloved Juliets tragic death. Consentingly, Romeo must not assume full responsibility of his and Juliets deplorable collapse. However minor a role they may have assumed, other characters such as Juliet herself, Friar Lawrence, and the Nurse played their part in the journey to the final, cataclysmic outcome of the play. Nonetheless, Romeo plays a large role in bringing about his unfortunate downfall. Romeos excessively strong emotions such as rage, despair, and love are contributing factors to his ultimate demise. To begin with, Romeos frequent display of rage and anger throughout the play promotes his untimely death. A clear instance of this severe fury is when, at the end of the play, Romeo takes his anger of Juliets apparent death out on Paris and kills him. This scene takes place long enough after Romeo and Juliet are well on their way to their impending doom so as not to have a direct impact on the outcome. However, it clearly illustrates a detrimental mistake resulting from Romeos excessive anger. Furthermore, even though Romeo fully intended to commit suicide, he could not control his extreme rage at his entire predicament and felt the need to take his feelings out on Paris. A literary critic aptly explains, â€Å"In such conditions men were naturally more excitable and more subject to sudden panic and prevailing moods,†(Granville-Barker and Harrison 165). In this t ime of great stress, Romeo was more prone to behaving in an excessively fervent manor. To illustrate this, Shakespeare did not grant Romeo complete control of his emotions and instilled in him a superfluous amount of anger. Next, Romeos limitless rage is evident in one of the major climaxes of the theater piece. In Act 3, Scene 1, Romeo enters a confrontation with Tybalt, Juliets cousin. Romeo, with Juliet in mind, does everything he can to avoid a fight. Even so, when Mercutio is killed at Tybalts hand, Romeo cannot control his anger and murders Tybalt in an attempt to avenge Mercutios death. With this, it is extremely evident that â€Å"Romeo is weakened by his superfluous amount of emotion. This excess of rage resulted in his killing Tybalt†(Nardo 122). This murderous act directly leads to Romeo and Juliets tragic ending. Upon committing the crime, Romeo receives a sentence of banishment from Verona. Had Romeo refrained from killing Tybalt, and therefore never been exiled from Verona, Juliet may not have found it necessary to drink the potion that would render her dead. Without Juliets false death the romantic couple would not have encountered the disastrous situation that they would soon be f acing. Additionally, Romeos grief for his seemingly dead Juliet causes him to take actions that contribute to his demise. This is evident in the last scene of the play when Romeo commits suicide after seeing Juliet lying as though in death. One Shakespearean critic proclaims, â€Å"When Romeo perceives Juliet to be dead, the grand romantic lovers emotional state deteriorates to the point of suicide†(Cole 108). Romeo was completely and uncontrollably overcome by anguish and mourning. Without his surplus of uncontrolled emotion, he would not have immediately digressed to suicide. This would have given him the time to discover that Juliet was in fact, not dead. In short, the couple would ultimately survive. Furthermore, immediately after receiving the news of Juliets supposed death, Romeo is already overwhelmed by his grief and he instantly speaks his suicidal thoughts: Well, Juliet, I will lie with thee tonight. Lets see for means. O mischief, thou art swift To enter in the thoughts of desperate men! (Rom. 5.1.36-38) With this, Romeo is already plotting ways to take his own life. Had Romeo kept control of his emotions and investigated the matter for himself, he would have discovered soon enough that Juliet was not dead after all. He may even have come in contact with Friar Lawrence who would have been able to dispel the entire plight. Clearly, â€Å"This catastrophe is hastened by Romeo himself who, when he hears the false report of Juliets death, revealsa despair that turns instantly to thoughts of suicideand he perishes miserably†(Cole 108). Obviously Romeos utter grief for the apparent death of his beloved contributes to the unfortunate outcome at the end of the play. Also, Romeos deep and passionate love for Juliet is instrumental to his downfall. Over the entire duration of Romeos relationship with Juliet, he is obviously completely infatuated with her. One instance that shows Romeos undying love for Juliet is when he kills Tybalt. Romeo murders Tybalt while his thoughts are elsewhere, specifically on Juliet. His passion for her is all consuming (McLeish 215). If Romeo were able to set aside his deep passion for Juliet for a small amount of time, he would not have murdered Tybalt and, therefore, he would never have entered into the horrific situation that would lead to his downfall. In addition, perhaps the scene that best demonstrates this undying love is Romeos final act: his suicide. Upon hearing the false rumor that Juliet is dead, Romeo decides to take his own life. Shakespeare clearly reveals Romeos reasoning behind this decision: â€Å"Heres to my love! †¦ Thus I die with a kiss†(Rom.5.3.129-131). With this, Romeo undoubtedly admits that he cannot live without his love and thus is ending his life out of passion for Juliet. It is also evident that Romeo completely loves Juliet even after she is seemingly dead at his feet (Goddard 289). The adoration that Romeo quite obviously feels toward Juliet is so exceptionally intense that he cannot control his emotions enough to think clearly. If Romeo would not have let his love become so alarmingly out of control, he may never have decided on the horrific action that was his self-murder. At the very least, he would have been able to think lucidly and postpone this unnatural self-destruction long enough to be present and, more importantly, alive, when Juliet would awake. This would have inevitably thwarted the romantic couples tragic death. Harold Clarke Goddard concurs, â€Å"in the case of Romeo, love puts him out of loveâ€Å"(16). In other words, Romeos suicide is a result of his endearment towards Juliet, and ending his life negates any possibility of findin g love with her. Shakespeare ingrains in Romeo a passion for Juliet so intense that it eradicates the possibility of love for the romantic couple, and ultimately brings about their tragic end. Finally, the impulsivity of Romeos actions plays a large role in the catastrophic ending. Throughout the entire story, Romeo is constantly carrying out actions that he has clearly yet to think through. Friar Lawrence even provides foreshadowing to the fact that this rashness will prove to bring about dire results when he says â€Å"they stumble that run fast†(Rom.2.3.94). This metaphorically states the rather simple fact that acting impulsively before considering the consequences can only result in complications. One example of Romeos impetuousness is when he makes a quick decision to seek out Juliet in her garden even though it is extremely dangerous. This rash decision could have been disastrous, but because Romeo was fortunate and was not discovered by Juliets father this particular instance left him relatively unscathed. It is noted that William Shakespeare particularly †emphasizes Romeos own impulsiveness†(Nardo 61). This action, though, just marks the beginni ng of a succession of hasty decisions. For example, Romeo decides that he wants to marry Juliet when he has known her for so short a time. Because Romeo decided to wed Juliet so hastily, the duo was met with problems stemming from the suddenness of their becoming a couple. Perhaps if the two had not rushed into what they considered to be their future so quickly, they would have avoided the ensuing issues. Instead, â€Å"Romeo insists upon the marriage, with an untimely haste†(Nardo 122). This ultimately leads to the rapid advancement of the tragic death. Simply because none of their plans were thought through, they were merely acted upon, Romeo and Juliets relationship was doomed to fail. The long chain of hasty mistakes by Romeo does not, by any means, end with his hasty marriage. Rather, Tybalts murder can also be described as rash and impulsive. Although Romeo does seem to consider the consequences of harming his enemy, as soon as Mercutio is killed, he does not so much as pause before he attacks Tybalt. This impulse that Romeo indulges himself in causes a great flood of events leading directly to his demise, which could have all been avoided had he taken the time to think about what he was doing. Indeed, â€Å"[Romeos] whole love affair betrays a cast of mind that isimpatient of cold reason, and this very quality helps to induce the tragic ending†(Nardo 122). Shakespeare urges Romeo to his demise by denying him the use of forethought that would allow him to make rational decisions. This small but significant character trait would have unquestionably been enough to prevent the romantic couple from advancing toward their deaths. Possibly the most consequential act of impulsive behavior on Romeo s part is in the last act of the play. To begin with, Romeo buys poison to kill himself immediately after hearing of Juliets supposed death. He wishes only to end his life at her side and refuses to investigate Juliets â€Å"death†(Nardo 61). Romeo could not take the necessary time to be sure that the rumor of Juliets death was true. Instead he acted on his very first impulse, which was to commit suicide. This resulted in the awful ending that was the romantic couples death, distinctively showing that â€Å"Romeros [tragic flaw] is his impulsive rashness†(Hammersmith 246). Additionally, Romeo did not waste any time in committing the heinous act of suicide after entering the Capulet tomb. Should he have paused for even a brief moment to contemplate what he was about to do, he would have lived long enough to see Juliet awaken from her death-like sleep. Unfortunately, he continued his trend of rash behavior and cut his life short, which in turn would cause Juliet to do the same. Surely, then, Romeos distinct character traits play an important role in his tragic ending. Uncontrolled emotions including rage, grief, and love, as well as a tendency to act on impulses are major contributing factors to this cataclysmic demise. Although Romeo could not have been alone in the creation of this catastrophic ending, he very clearly played the largest role in bringing about his downfall. The romantic lovers did everything in their power to make their love work. In the end, though, Romeo and Juliet could just not survive the harsh realities of their lives and Romeos flawed character traits.