Assessment of simulation:

Any company starts from a mission statement. The goal of our company ( company# 6)was to make changes in a downhill performance of a existing company by taking a corrective actions and implementing a right strategy in order to see a positive performance at the end of semester. The main stakeholders were stock holders and our customers whom we want to make satisfied and happy by giving them a good value for their money, selling them our dinner plates.

External analysis : Porter's five forces model

Rivalry within the industry-Low Attractiveness
The dinnerware was a competitive industry, because seven different companies were competing against each other, that's why I give a low attractiveness for a rivalry within the industry.

Threat of new entrants- Medium Attractiveness
There is a low prices of raw materials and also capital requirement is minimum too. However no threat of a new entry was in our case.

Power of buyers-Low Attractiveness
Customers have a lot of varieties to choose from. (7 companies)

Power of suppliers-Low Attractiveness
The raw material is a very simple, in general can be bought anywhere.

Substitutes-High Attractiveness
There is no substitutes for plates, may be paper or plastic, or dining out.
So, by applying Porter's 5 forces model, an overall evaluation is LOW ATTRACTIVENESS.

Internal analysis:

It was not easy compete against another six companies, we had to find a right strategy to make our company profitable. We thought that price is everything, when we lowered the price and sold more quantities. However, our company had some profit loss. So, we decided to cut cost and increase the sales price of our product and it worked out well, because our company became profitable. Our sales growth was up to 45% at the end of Q4 2006.

Business strategy:

Our company issued some bonds and also bought back shares of stock in order to raise the stock price. We also were trying to increase earnings per share.

Performance assessment:

Our company didn't do well as other two companies, because we made some mistakes. First of all, we didn't expand capacity from the beginning and than later we had to pay to subcontractors. Second, we didn't invest enough in R&D, Engineering.

Changes:

We would probably focused on more upscale products by selling more unique and luxury plates.

Strategic problems

Strategic problems can be crucial for any businesses and companies. There are so many problems that can affect performance of business. One of them might occur when auto makers limit themselves to narrow product line and don't invest in new- product development and innovation. Product development requires a lot of capital and time and when management refuse to look into the future the company will suffer, because it is not easy to satisfy customer's needs in today fast changing environment.

Ford is known as one of the largest US car maker. For many years their focus and concentration was on trucks and SUV. In a such competitive industry American legend have problems to attract customers due to high gas prices and tough competition from Japanese car makers: Toyota and Honda. Customers want to drive some mid-size and small hybrid cars and Ford is working hard to get loyalty of their customers back by improving quality of their cars and investing in a new products such as crossover vehicles. Company also face a big financial problems (net loss in 2007 was $ 2,7 compare to 2006 $12.7 billion). They had to put a lot of assets as collateral, reduced operating cost, cut workforce and sold their luxury brand Aston Martin . Hopefully, the management of the company will find the right solution in a such challenging time.

Niche dominance and product/service differentiation.

Niche dominance and product/service differentiation are marketing strategies that help company achieve a competitive advantages. Differentiation might be in terms of price, customers, distribution, location, something unique, different from others and special. There are so many companies that become a very successful, because they develop and follow this type of strategies. For example, Whole Foods Market,Inc. is a largest organic food store in the U.S. that target health-conscious customers. This supermarket is a different from others, because sells natural products. Who knew in 1980 when this store opened that would be a such success? But because of the product differentiation the store is so popular and always busy. Another example in terms of price and service differentiation is the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company which known as a luxury hotel all over the world. This is a five star hotel offers to wealthy customers the best hotel accommodations and unforgettable experience. Customers are willing to pay top money for exclusive service and royal treatment.

In terms of niche dominance there is an example of Williams-Sonoma store which carries a different home items like furnishing, cooking and operates through retail stores, catalogs and Internet. This store achieve niche dominance by being a specialty home retailer in the U.S. and by giving customers a shopping experience that they can't get somewhere else. Another example of a clothing retailer BEBE stores, Inc. which also have a niche dominanance by targeting fit young females (16-35) years old.

Porter's five forces model:

It's important to understand structure of any businesses before entering the market. Five forces model , in my opinion, an important factor in analyzing industry in strategic processes. I want to determine how attractive or not the boat and watercraft's industry is. First I have to look at barriers to entry: to enter this type of business is going to be a difficult for a new company because of a couple reasons, 1)there are so many establishing businesses for a long time, 2) there is a high initial investment cost involve because of an inventory, service, tools, overhead and 3) there is a selling commitment, company have to sell a certain amount of boats, jet ski and other things in order to be profitable and to keep their dealership. Second factor is a degree of rivalry among existing firms: this is a competitive business and prices can be a very different from one dealership to another, sometimes a company have to sell below normal margin in order to get rid of inventory. Third, bargaining power of suppliers are high, because the market is dominated by a few large suppliers and they have a total control of the cost, how many units and to whom to sell . Forth factor is a bargaining power of buyers. I would say that buyers have a medium power; when customers, for example, want to purchase a boat it is more convenient for them to go to the nearest dealership because of the territorial restrictions , however, when customers need jet ski or other things they are not loyal and they like to shop around. Fifth, closeness of substitute products : there is no substitute for a particular products, so threat of substitutes is low. Based on my analyses, I can say that this type of industry is unattractive .

"Our Mission:The mission of our sales staff is to be different. Unlike other dealerships, our sales agenda is designed to build relationships first and sell product second.Our qualified staff is trained to work with each and every customer with the same, passive, demeanor and ensure that they are properly informed of all options before making the right purchase.To Jet Ski of Miami, a purchase is more then a sale, it is the start of a relationship.
The mission of our service staff is to not only meet, but to exceed all of your boating expectations. Our staff is schooled to utilize a combination of efficiency, customer concern, and attention to detail in order to keep our top priority at the forefront of our service agenda, keeping your vessel safely on the water and not in our service bays.This is the goal of Jet Ski of Miami and Fisherman’s Boat Group." In my opinion this is a good example of a clear and meaningful mission statement. The company shows concern more for customers rather than for products, their sales people want first to establish relationship with customers by helping them to make a right purchase . It also states that the company top priority is a safety of their customers on the water. The mission statement tells us that this company provides the best service for their customers in efficient way.

I am a senior at Baruch College. My major is finance. I have been in United States for almost ten years. I am originally from Estonia. I like ocean, sun and warm weather. It is nice to get away from cold days in New York to Florida or San Juan in Puerto Rico. I also enjoy spending some time with my family, back in my country, because I don't have chance to see them often. My favorite cuisine is Japanese, I like sushi very much.