Solid Growth

The following sections are included:

• Preface
• About the Authors
• Contents
• Abbreviations

In this chapter, we discuss the role that business strategy planning plays in a company in addition to outlining the core components of a business strategy. We first present the most important factors that need to be determined prior to developing a business strategy before revealing the key global developments that affect multinational companies. In addition, we identify the main difficulties in implementing business strategies and reveal how they might be overcome. We conclude with an initial overview of the counter strategies that are examined in more detail in the other chapters of this book.

In the following chapter, we introduce companies that have achieved sustained market success through outstanding product quality. It is often not large corporations, but rather lesser-known medium-sized enterprises — so-called hidden champions — that have reached a leading position in specific industrial market segments. We analyze these companies’ success factors with a special emphasis on their technical expertise and ability to respond flexibly to customers’ needs. In addition, we examine how to establish a positive brand image as a B2B company before highlighting the limitations that should be considered when developing unique competitive advantages in industrial markets.

In this chapter, we discuss how companies can successfully deal with the global increase in demand for low-priced industrial products. We describe ways of how to adjust a company’s technologies and costs for this demand and which obstacles need to be surmounted during this process. In this context, we show different approaches to both product development and the design of business models. We analyze the pros and cons of whether to promote these products under a company’s umbrella brand or separately, and we demonstrate the impact that low-priced industrial products have on a company’s sales channels. Finally, we discuss the influence of no-frills or low-priced products on a company’s organizational structure.

In this chapter, we discuss how industrial companies can exploit digital technologies to develop complex service solutions. For this purpose, we first analyze the discrepancies between the high expectations and the sobering results inherent to this strategic option. We then show which targets are realistic for industrial companies and how to successfully develop complex service solutions. We discuss which communication policy to use when marketing them and analyze the financial logic of innovative business models — in particular, the risks and opportunities of usage-based or performance-based pricing. Additional emphasis is put on the need to reorganize a company’s sales system when introducing complex service solutions. We examine the qualifications that salespeople must have and the organizational structure that industrial companies need to create in order to successfully market complex service solutions worldwide. We also discuss the challenges that industrial companies face when bringing digital services to market — a common first step on their way toward complex service solutions.

In the following chapter, we present the fundamentals of corporate strategy — the strategy that reaches across all business units. We take an in-depth look at the opportunities for creating synergies among business units and the resulting challenges. This involves taking a particularly close look at the synergy effects of cross-border cooperation and its application in all three counter strategies (see Chapters 2–4). It also addresses the issues of intercultural cooperation as well as the leadership and organizational opportunities for overcoming them. Finally, we consider future developments in politics, economics, and technology, and the influence they have on corporate strategic decision-making.

The following section is included:

• Index