Josh Wagner's Blog

This class has taught me that I sometimes allow my nervousness to overshadow any enthusiasm or interest I have in a certain topic. Through the whole process of the job interviews, I learnt that it could be very difficult to hide nervous tendencies. It is not completely a bad thing to be nervous about an interview, in fact you probably should be nervous for these important meetings. However if you allow your nervous tendencies to take over, it can distract the interviewer from listening to what you have to say. As a result, this class has allowed me to address this issue and practice answering questions in an interview in a calm and confident manner.

Boeing has been in heavy competition with Airbus for a long time now, struggling to maintain and grow it’s market share of the airline industry. Although the barriers of entry are too high for Boeing to have to worry about new companies entering the market, they have been placed in a highly competitive situation ever since their rival Airbus constructed the A380. Therefore when Qatar airways, a major airline, criticizes the development of the new Boeing Dreamliner, there arises some large issues. Their competitor has successfully marketed their latest plane as an innovation in flight technology, being the largest commercial aircraft to-date. Therefore I suggest that Boeing needs to somehow positively position their brand whilst repositioning their competitors in the mind of their consumers. This may be most effectively accomplished by a strong marketing campaign that may be launched along with that of the official plane launch. As a result, airlines that have not yet ordered a new Boeing plane may find it necessary to order one as a means of competing in their market.

More details on the Boeing Dreamliner delays can be found at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11842597

Although the global economy has been hit by an economic down-turn, Starbucks has seen increasing sales globally and is optimistic about the future of the company particularly with regard to the Chinese market. Typically marketing departments of companies attempt to brand their product such that customers recognise their brand and its associated values. Starbucks has illustrated that this can effectively done as market research shows that the company can expect even greater revenue increases when it further expands through mainland China. One such product that has been designed to secure further market share is the  instant coffee that is otherwise seen in a negative light. However Starbucks has managed to portray effective marketing by positioning the instant coffee product with the Starbucks brand that has shown to be associated with quality coffee. As a result, customers have continued to buy this product and greatly increase the company’s revenue. Additionally, the CEOy mentions that they do not want to rush into the Chinese market. This is a a very strategic move as a slow movement into the Chinese market will allow the company to increase brand recognition and the appropriate association with that brand within the Chinese market.

An interview detailing some of these ideas may be found at: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2010/12/01/n_starbucks_schultz_china.cnnmoney/

Many potential investors are finding it difficult to find start-up companies that are worth investing in because of their lack of flexibility in business plans. Investors are finding that managers are reluctant to simply drop old failing business strategies and construct new more innovative means of running the business.By looking at some aspects of Porter’s 5 forces, it is evident that companies can formulate strategies and tactics to overcome issues and gain a competitive advantage in their respective industry. Therefore these start up companies that are having problems succeeding, need to find new and potentially less conventional means of securing market share and acquiring customers. I recommend that these companies evaluate their own business plans and their effectiveness in their respective markets by utilizing some effective business analysis tools such as a SWOT analysis or a fish-bone diagram. Moreover internal efficiency may be an issue that is deterring potential investors from investing in these companies. Therefore, these companies may need to build a richer organizational culture and instil these values within the employees to improve their commitment to the company success.

Some more specific information on start-up issues and investor reluctance can be found at: http://www.economist.com/node/17633101

The company google may be seen as a fairly entrepreneurial company and still remains relatively new to the market. Google has grown exponentially since starting out, buying out various websites such as youtube. The company has seen so handsome returns from the investment projects that it has een involved with. Also, the company prides itself on being very organic in its structure, supporting and encouraging innovation. However recent trends have shown Google’s revenues are not rising as drastically as they were before. Therefore Google is in need of new sources of revenue that will once more spark confidence in investors that eh company will maintain its high levels of revenue. A large issue is that in many of the markets that Google has positioned itself, there are massive competitors. As a result, Google has found themselves being restricted by competing companies that have obtained significant market share. I would recommend that Google focus on and invest in more solid projects such as their Android operating system for smart phones. Perhaps some level of market research may also show that there is a market for various online innovations tat have yet to be capitalized upon by large corporations.

Some more detailed information on why investors are uneasy about the development of google can be found on the website as follows: http://www.economist.com/node/17633138

A company that i believe to be Entrepreneurial is the Virgin brand, created by Richard Branson. This well know entrepreneur pioneered change when he quickly built one of the largest and profitable companies in the US. Virgin began as a small record company and quickly grew to a massive company specializing in all forms of media, and even becoming a phone service provider. Therefore it could be debated that Richard Branson is one of the most successful entrepreneurs of recent history as he revolutionized the way that the media operated. Whole new markets were born when this entrepreneur brought multitudes of products to consumers particularly those located in the United States. Moreover, Branson generated superior returns from the innovation that arose from the Virgin empire. Entrepreneurial ventures are often high-risk operations, thus it is simply amazing that Branson was able to build such a widely successful company at an extremely quick rate. In my opinion, he is one of the most important and influential entrepreneurs in recent history.

Airbus has recently made the decision to offer customers engine  upgrades for their smaller one aisle planes. However one of Airbus’s top competitors, Bombardier, is working towards offering a whole new plane in their current series on of single aisle aircraft. I find this to be a great example of business strategy, as Bombardier has identified a number of issues within their competitor’s business plan and have capitalized on these issues which have the potential to force Airbus to forfeit a portion of the market share. Bombardier has clearly conducted appropriate levels of market research that allow them to design a method of operations that the markt most desires, most likely increasing revenue from existing and new customers. Moreover, the new plane will be introduced to the market before Airbus’s engine upgrade will be available. Therefore  Bombardier has the chance to steal market share from customers who would otherwise settle for the Airbus engine upgrade. In addition, it is evident that the market believes in this strategy through the increasing value of Bombardier’s shares.

More information can be found at: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20101201-713428.html

Tata Motor’s Nano car sales have plunged eighty five percent during the month of November. This is interesting because the total TATA Motors car sales has continued to rise one percent since last year. Therefore it is evident that it is the Nano model that the Indian consumer are no longer buying. This may be on account of bad press form various mechanical failures, but also perhaps a change in consumer demand and preferences. This is particularly interesting because Tata Motors has been conducting market research on North American consumer preferences. This research has been carried out with the hopes that Tata Motors may introduce the Nano to the North American Market as a cheaper and more efficient alternative to the North American market leader brands. Although the question is, with these new sales figures within india, what is the future for the Nano model? It is in the best interests of Tata Motors that the current sales figures for the Nano do not become a market trend away from this type of car. Thus it is my recommendation that Tata Motors further market the model to better position the model in the mind of the consumers. This said, a marketing campaign targeted towards the wrong audience is a waste of money. Consequently Tata must re-evaluate their target consumer and focus on a more specific market segment to reverse these new sales trends.

Further information may be found at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11886940

Social responsibility in regard to companies is quite a complex issue. This is because it is widely thought by some and pushed by NGO’s that corporations should maintain a focus on social responsibility. However others believe that simply by going about their normal business and simply offering their goods and services to the public, they are contributing sufficiently to society. An article focusing on such an issue describes this idea in context to South Africa, mentioning that it is not the lack of social responsibility upheld in companies that is the problem, but simply the lack of companies. I find this very interesting as it depicts a view that differs from the more traditional outlook on social responsibility with respect to companies. The general idea behind the argument being made in the article is that companies generate profit that is then dispersed to the surrounding society through shareholders, employees and many other outlets, effectively generating prosperity. I agree with this article in the sense that companies generally create economic activity, and therefore increase quality of life for those affected. However I believe that NGO’s still play an integral role in ensuring that companies maintain a sufficient level of social responsibility in their business transactions.

The article can be found at: http://www.economist.com/node/17305554