Organizational Strategy

Answer the questions in a professional style with complete sentences. Please read each question VERY carefully and be sure that you have answered in the way I've asked you to. You can use your notes, readings, and other materials. You may NOT consult with any other student (or person).

The point of this assessment is to see your ability to understand and apply the concepts we've been studying. It is not to have you play back to me the concepts. I'm looking to see that you can use them. Reference them specifically as you write. The lengths I've listed are just suggestions, btw.

1. A company adopts a new corporate strategy: buying a firm to increase vertical integration. How might this impact their development of new knowledge?

2. Describe two criteria used for selection of companies to be bought (or kept) in GE's portfolio of companies, based on the case. For each of those two criteria note how pursuing such a criteria was a matter of exploration or exploitation.

3. An investment management company famous for its cheap index mutual funds wants to move from a cost leadership strategy to a differentiation strategy based on superior investment research. What sort of changes would you recommend they make in terms of organizational structure, knowledge management, or other strategic implementation methods?

4. Assume you did a thorough analysis of an industry as a consultant and determined that this industry had poor profitability and few growth prospects. Discuss two strategic alternatives that you could reasonably take in order to generate stronger growth and/or profits.

5. List one industry that you think is currently exhibiting low profitability and growth potential, and explain, using terms and ideas from the course, why you think the profitability and growth potential are low in this industry.

6. List and briefly describe two things you could do as CEO if you want your company to become more innovative and entrepreneurial.