Assignment 1: Discussion

Research the case of Corona Extra and the strategy they used to become a global brand. Identify the generic market positioning used by Corona in the U.S. market. Discuss the cross-country differences in culture, demographic, and market conditions between Mexico and the U.S. Finally analyze the strategy used to enter and compete in the U.S. market.

Assignment 2

Select one of the following companies: eBay, StubHub, Skype, or Amazon. In a 9-10-page paper, answer questions 1-8 of the LASA paper outline. In addition, identify the competencies and capabilities the company will need to achieve the vision and mission identified in your paper.

1. Identify the company and their product(s)/service(s) you will focus on in this paper (if relevant) and give a half page description of the each.

2. Using the tools you've learned in class, do an environmental scan of the industry in which this company operates. Your scan should include a discussion of the market situation and structure of this industry and all change agents relevant to the industry and firm, including but not limited to major indicators of the economy, societal/demographic trends, technological trends, and legal/regulatory issues.

3. Using the Five Forces and your other analytical tools, use critical thinking skills to discuss the impact of the change agents identified in #2 on market situation, structure, and competitiveness of this industry.

4. Using the tools learned in class, identify the generic strategies used by the firm for the products/services you identified in #1. Critically discuss the impact of the change agents identified in #2 on all generic strategies you've identified. If your firm employs a differentiated strategy, discuss the points of differentiation and explain why they are or are not competitively sustainable. Defend or challenge the alignment of the current generic strategies with the new environment. This section should include an analysis of competitors and price for your identified product(s)/services(s).

5. Propose and defend an appropriate mission, vision, and strategy for your firm and product(s)/services(s) with regard to:
a. Change agents and competitor actions in the environment
b. Social responsibility and ethical strategic behavior

6. Using the tools learned in class, recommend tactics for achieving the strategy and vision, including but not limited to marketing, branding, alliances, mergers/acquisitions, integration, product development, diversification or divestiture, and globalization. If you recommend your company go global, you MUST include a supply chain analysis and an analysis of your firm's global capabilities.

7. Using the tools learned in class, state and discuss the ability of this firm to execute this strategy and achieve this vision. You must include, but are not limited to, a discussion of corporate culture and leadership as it pertains to strategy execution. You must be specific and use tools, skills, and knowledge covered in the MBA program.

8. Prove the financial ability of this firm to execute this vision and strategy using tools, skills, and knowledge learned in the MBA program. You must provide hard numbers to defend your position.

9. Using Balanced Scorecard or another similar tool, recommend indicators and measurements that will tell you if the company is successful/unsuccessful in progressing towards your vision through execution of strategy.