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IKEA Case Study
IKEA Case Study – Part 1 Origins and Early Strategy: From a Small Swedish Business to a Strategic Enterprise (1943–1960)1. IntroductionUnderstanding how a global organisation begins provides valuable insight into the nature of strategic success. The development of IKEA from a small mail-order business in rural Sweden into a multinational furniture retailer is one of the most significant examples of organic growth, cost leadership, and innovation in modern business history. This case study explores the origins of IKEA, the strategic decisions made during its formative...…
Strategic Methods in Strategic Management: Organic Growth, Mergers & Acquisitions, Strategic Alliances and Joint Ventures
1. IntroductionStrategic management not only concerns the analysis of internal and external environments and the selection of strategic direction but also the methods through which strategies are implemented. Once an organisation has chosen its growth path using tools such as the Ansoff Matrix or Porter’s Generic Strategies, it must decide how to achieve that growth in practice. These choices are known as strategic methods. Strategic methods refer to the mechanisms by which organisations pursue strategic objectives. The most widely recognised strategic methods include organic growth,...…
The BCG Matrix: Portfolio Strategy and Resource Allocation in Strategic Management
1. IntroductionStrategic management requires organisations not only to decide how to compete and how to grow, but also how to allocate limited resources across multiple products, business units, or markets. Large organisations in particular operate portfolios of products and services that vary in profitability, growth potential, and strategic importance. Effective portfolio management is therefore central to long-term organisational success. One of the most influential frameworks for portfolio analysis is the BCG Matrix, developed by the Boston Consulting Group in the late 1960s and early 1970s...…
Ansoff Matrix
1. IntroductionStrategic management is fundamentally concerned with how organisations grow and sustain competitive advantage in environments characterised by uncertainty, technological change, and increasing competition. After conducting internal and external analysis using tools such as SWOT, VRIO, and Porter’s Five Forces, organisations must make decisions about their future direction. These decisions often involve questions of market expansion, product innovation, and diversification. One of the most influential and enduring frameworks for guiding such growth decisions is the Ansoff Matrix. The Ansoff Matrix was developed by Igor Ansoff...…
Porter’s Generic Strategies
Executive SummaryPorter’s Generic Strategies framework explains how organisations achieve competitive advantage through three main strategic choices: cost leadership, differentiation, and focus. Developed by Porter (1985), the model provides a structured approach to competitive positioning by linking internal capabilities with market competition. This article examines the theoretical foundations and contemporary relevance of Porter’s framework. Cost leadership strategies focus on operational efficiency, economies of scale, and tight cost control in order to offer products or services at lower cost than competitors. Differentiation strategies aim to provide unique...…
Strategic Capabilities in Strategic Management: Building and Sustaining Competitive Advantage
1. IntroductionIn strategic management, organisations seek to achieve and sustain competitive advantage in environments characterised by uncertainty, competition, and rapid change. While external analysis tools such as PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces examine market conditions and industry pressures, internal analysis focuses on what an organisation can do well and how it can deploy its resources effectively. The concept of strategic capabilities lies at the heart of internal strategic analysis. Strategic capabilities refer to the organisational abilities that allow a firm to use its resources efficiently...…
Value Chain Analysis in Strategic Management: Understanding Sources of Competitive Advantage
1. IntroductionStrategic management seeks to explain why some organisations outperform others and how they can sustain competitive advantage over time. While external analysis tools such as PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces focus on environmental and industry-level factors, internal analysis examines how organisations create value through their activities and resources. One of the most influential frameworks for this purpose is Value Chain Analysis. Value Chain Analysis was introduced by Porter (1985) as a method for decomposing an organisation into a series of value-creating activities. By analysing...…
VRIO and VRIN Frameworks in Strategic Management: Analysing Internal Resources and Competitive Advantage
1. IntroductionStrategic success depends not only on external market conditions but also on the internal resources and capabilities that organisations possess. While tools such as PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces focus on the external environment, internal analysis seeks to understand what an organisation can do well and how it can sustain competitive advantage. The VRIO and VRIN frameworks are among the most widely used tools for evaluating internal resources and capabilities in strategic management. VRIO stands for Value, Rarity, Imitability, and Organisation, while VRIN stands...…
SWOT Analysis in Strategic Management: Integrating Internal and External Perspectives
1. IntroductionStrategic management requires organisations to understand both their internal capabilities and the external environment in which they operate. One of the most widely used tools for achieving this integrated understanding is SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. It provides a simple yet powerful framework for identifying internal resources and limitations while simultaneously considering external conditions that shape organisational performance (Helms and Nixon, 2010). SWOT analysis is widely applied in business planning, corporate strategy, marketing, and entrepreneurship. Its popularity stems from...…
Market Segmentation
1. IntroductionMarket segmentation is a fundamental concept in strategic management and marketing that enables organisations to divide heterogeneous markets into smaller, more homogeneous groups of customers with similar needs, characteristics, or behaviours. Rather than treating the market as a single mass, segmentation allows firms to tailor products, services, and strategies to specific customer groups, thereby improving customer satisfaction and competitive advantage (Kotler and Keller, 2016). In increasingly complex and globalised markets, customer needs and preferences are diverse and constantly evolving. Technological change, demographic shifts, and...…