2. Business Strategies 2
Business Strategies
Responding To Uncertainty
Prospecting Strategy
Prospecting is a set of techniques to make contact with a prospect in order to provide
goods or services marketed by the company with the aim of transforming it into a customer.
Prospecting should be integrated as an ongoing process within the company. Indeed, because a
prospect is not always in the process of purchase, must be an organized and systematic return to
him in order to maintain a high level of attention to the products and services offered by your
company.
To win new customers and grow its sales - prospecting are a necessity for daily life and
the sustainability of the company. The aim of the survey is to strengthen existing business and to
secure the future of the company. Indeed, competition, loss of natural clients, the decline in
activity, changes in market, etc. are phenomena that directly influence the level of activity and
can have serious consequences for the company. Thus, the company must consider keeping these
risks erosion of its portfolio through the establishment of a prospecting strategy. In addition,
prospecting is also involved in referencing our products and services in the minds of consumers
or potential customers. Prospect, so it developed the reputation of his company (Amburgey&
Dacin, 1994).
Prospecting Tools
Prospecting should be a structured approach. To prospect, it requires both monitoring
tools and management of prospects and non-computer-but also commercial tools to present your
company and its activities, and facilitate the relationship with your prospects. Among the
commercial tools:
1. Direct Marketing
2. The event
3. Press relations
4. Advertising
All of these tools (but also others) are all investment for a company, whatever its size. As with all
pieces on a chessboard, it is prudent to use them with strategy.
Differentiating Strategy
Differentiation strategies should be considered for entry into a market already occupied
by competitors or when a market is maturing with a large number of competitors selling virtually
the same products to the same target and about the same way. The company must develop a
competitive advantage and address specific categories of customers to differentiate themselves
from competitors.
It can also develop innovative concepts that will provide him a better return. The
differentiation strategy is to create for the product or service something that is perceived
throughout the industry as unique. The differentiation strategy should be followed only after
careful study of the needs and preferences of buyers, in order to determine the feasibility of
incorporating a different characteristic or several at a unique product that includes the desired
attributes (Armour & Teece, 1978).
3. Business Strategies 3
A risk taken to pursue a strategy of differentiation is that customers might not value the
product unique enough to justify its high price. When this happens, a cost leadership strategy
easily outperforms a strategy of differentiation. Another risk of using a differentiation strategy is
that competitors could develop ways to copy quickly differentiating characteristics, thus;
companies must find sustainable sources of exclusivity that rival firms cannot imitate quickly or
at lower cost.
Threats of New Entrants
New entrants are a major threat to banking business because the latter by a desire to
conquer a market share bring with them considerable capital and know-how. Thus, this threat is
high if there are few barriers to entry or otherwise there is easy access. Threats of products or
services substitutable product substitutions can replace products if:
1. The prices are high;
2. Unique products or services can be easily replaced at competitive prices;
3. There are alternative technologies.
The bargaining power of suppliers is mainly due to the high concentration. In the banking
sector, banks are tending more and more towards a concentration of large and what to keep their
bargaining power vis-à-vis the establishment. Porter says a powerful group of suppliers is if
dominated by a few companies, if a product is unique or at least differentiated, if not forced to
fight against substitutable products in the market, while posing a credible threat of forward
integration of activity and whether the industry is not an important customer of the supplier
community (Barley & Tolbert, 1997).
Argentina is a traditionally urban country, with over 90% of the population residing in
urban and semi-urban settlements. Furthermore, the urban population enjoys a relatively high
standard of living compared to other Latin American countries. However, regional disparities,
crime, drug abuse among the young population and gender inequality in the employment market
have traditionally acted as stumbling blocks for the equitable development of the country. Fresh
investments generated in public healthcare and the comprehensive restructuring of the existing
education system will usher in better social development.
The government has set out plans for further curtailing the unemployment rate, which has
shown considerable deceleration over the past two years.
Current Strengths and Challenges
1. Strong healthcare system
2. Rapid urbanization
3. Regional disparity
4. Crime and drug abuse
Future Prospects and Risks
1. Overhaul of the educational system
2. Alarming school drop-out rates
3. Social security burden
4. Reduced healthcare budget
4. Business Strategies 4
Argentina
The Argentine economy achieved a robust recovery after the severe 2001–02 economic
crisis, with five consecutive years of GDP growth over 8%. Due to continued efforts by the
government through both stimulus packages and consolidation, the economy is expected to
record a recovery in 2010, with a growth a rate of 1.1% after registering a 2.6% contraction in
2009. • In May 2010, the Argentine government announced the creation of a financial-aid
package aimed at helping impoverished provinces to reduce their debt. The plan will allow
provinces to refinance up to 89% of their debt from the government. The culture is one of the
organizational pillars to support all those organizations who want to be competitive. Therefore,
the central point around is the study of organizational culture as a competitive advantage in a
social context of Argentina organizations.
In addition, to study the change as the cornerstone of organizational continuous
improvement of the organizations was also considered relevant to study the importance of
management of resources in human advancement of technology. The organizations are the
expression of a cultural reality, they are called to live in a world of constant change, both socially
and economically and technology, or, on the contrary, as a body, enclosed within its limits
formal. In both cases, this actually reflects a framework of cultural values, beliefs, ideas, feelings
and wills of a community institution. Today's organizations need to design structures more
flexible to change, and this change occurs as a result of learning of its members. This means
creating conditions to promote high-equipment performance, understanding that learning in
teams involves generating value to work and adaptability to change with a wide vision towards
innovation (Bartlett & Ghoshal, 1993).
While it is true that there have been many transformation efforts that have failed in both
public and private, is no less true that the lack of planning and leadership in these organizations
has resulted in the deterioration of their functions has, among other things, an urgent concern:
how to have a management commitment that really encourages change and creativity. One might
speak of two complementary areas of action. The first is associated with the exercise of a style
which, in addition to managing the work, also manages the brain and heart. For its part, the
second relates to the establishment of favorable organizational conditions.
5. Business Strategies 5
References
Amburgey, T. L. and Dacin, T. (1994),‘As the left foot follows the right? The dynamics of
strategic and structural change’Academy of Management Journal vol. 37 pp. 1427–52.
Armour, H. O. and Teece, D. J. (1978), Organizational structures and economic performance: a
test of the multidivisional programme' Bell Journal of Economics vol. 9 pp. 106–22.
Barley, S. and Tolbert, P. S. (1997), ‘Institutionalization and structuration: studying the links
between action and institution’ Organization Studies vol. 18 pp. 93–118.
Barley, S. R. and Kunda, G. (1992), ‘Design and devotion: surges of rational and normative
ideologies of control in managerial discourse’Administrative Science Quarterly vol. 37
pp. 363–99.
Barney, J. B. (1986), Organizational culture: can it be a source of sustainable competitive
advantage?' Academy of Management Review vol. 11 pp. 656–66.
Bartlett, C. A. and Ghoshal, S. (1989), Managing Beyond Borders. Boston: Harvard Business
School.
Bartlett, C. A. and Ghoshal, S. (1993), ‘Beyond the M-form, towards a managerial theory of the
firm’ Strategic Management Journal vol. 14 no. (Special Issue) pp. 23–46.
