What four main corporate strategy options a diversified company can employ for solidifying its strategy and improving company performance?

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CORPORATE STRATEGY: DIVERSIFICATION AND THE MULTIBUSINESS COMPANY

McGraw-Hill/Irwin

Copyright © 2013 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

LO1 Understand when and how diversifying into multiple businesses can enhance shareholder value. LO2 Gain an understanding of how related diversification strategies can produce crossbusiness strategic fit capable of delivering competitive advantage. LO3 Become aware of the merits and risks of corporate strategies keyed to unrelated diversification.

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(cont’d) LO4 Gain command of the analytical tools for evaluating a company’s diversification strategy.

LO5 Understand a diversified company’s four main corporate strategy options for solidifying its diversification strategy and improving company performance.

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The Four Main Tasks in Crafting Corporate Strategy 1. Picking new industries to enter and deciding on the means of entry 2. Pursuing opportunities to leverage crossbusiness value chain relationships into competitive advantage 3. Establishing investment priorities and steering corporate resources into the most attractive business units

4. Initiating actions to boost the combined performance of the corporation’s collection of businesses 8-4

Strategic Options for Diversified Corporations Sticking with the existing business lineup and pursuing opportunities presented by these businesses Broadening the scope of diversification by entering additional industries

Strategic Options

Retrenching to a narrower scope of diversification by divesting poorly performing businesses Broadly restructuring the business lineup with multiple divestitures and/or acquisitions 8-5

Corporate Strategy Alternatives Vertical Integration

Diversify into Related Businesses

PostDiversification Strategic Alternatives

l

Single Business Concentration

Diversify into Unrelated Businesses

Diversify into Related & Unrelated Businesses

l

l

Make new acquisitions Divest weak units Restructure portfolio

l

Retrench

l

Liquidate

Corporate Strategy Alternatives Vertical Integration

Diversify into Related Businesses

PostDiversification Strategic Alternatives

Make new acquisitions

l

Single Business Concentration

Diversify into Unrelated Businesses

Diversify into Related & Unrelated Businesses

Divest weak units

l

Restructure portfolio

l

l

Retrench

l

Liquidate

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Competitive Strengths of a Single-Business Strategy  Less

ambiguity about “Who we are,” “What we do,” “Where we are headed”  Energies of firm can be directed down one business path and keeping strategy responsive to industry change.  Less chance resources will be stretched too thinly.  Top Executives can maintain hands-on contact with core business. 8-8

Risks of a Single Business Strategy  Putting

all the “eggs” in one industry basket

 If

market becomes unattractive, a firm’s prospects can quickly dim

 Unforeseen

changes can undermine a single business firm’s prospects

 Changing customer needs  Technological innovation  New substitutes

8-9

When Business Diversification Becomes a Consideration 

Diversification is called for when:  There are diminishing growth prospects in the present business  An expansion opportunity exists in an industry whose

technologies and products complement the present business  Existing competencies and capabilities can be leveraged by

expanding into an industry that requires similar resource strengths  Costs can be reduced by diversifying into closely related

businesses  A powerful brand name can be transferred to the products of

other businesses

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Building Shareholder Value: The Ultimate Justification for Business Diversification Tests for building shareholder value through diversification

Industry attractiveness test

Cost of entry test

Better-off test

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Building Shareholder Value: The Ultimate Justification for Business Diversification  Diversification

may result in building shareholder value if it passes three tests:

 Industry Attractiveness Test—the target industry

presents good long-term profit opportunities  Cost of Entry Test—the costs of entering the target

industry do not erode its long-term profit potential  Better-Off Test—the firm’s businesses will perform

better together than as stand-alone firms, producing a synergistic 1+1=3 effect on shareholder value

8-12

Approaches to Diversifying the Business Lineup Options for entering new industries and lines of business

Diversification by acquisition of an existing business

Entering a new line of business through internal development

Using joint ventures to achieve diversification

8-13

Diversification by Acquisition of an Existing Business  Most

popular approach to diversification  Advantages:  Quicker entry into target market  Easier to hurdle certain entry barriers: Acquiring technological know-how  Establishing supplier relationships  Securing adequate distribution access 

 The

big dilemma is whether to pay a premium price to buy a successful firm or to buy a struggling firm at a bargain price 8-14

Entering a New Line of Business through Internal Development  Is

more attractive when:

 The parent firm already possesses the resources

needed to compete effectively.  There is ample time to launch a new business.  Internal entry will cost less than entry via acquisition.  The start-up does not have to compete head-to-head against powerful rivals.  Adding capacity will not adversely impact supplydemand balance in industry.  Incumbent firms are likely to be slow or ineffective in responding to an entrant’s efforts to crack the market. 8-15

Using Joint Ventures to Achieve Diversification A

good way to diversify when:

 The expansion opportunity is too complex,

uneconomical, or risky to go it alone.  The opportunity in a new industry requires a

broader range of competencies and know-how than an expansion-minded firm can marshal.  Drawbacks:

 Potential for conflicting objectives  Operational and control disagreements  Culture clashes 8-16

Choosing the Diversification Path: Related Versus Unrelated Businesses  Related

Businesses

 Have value chains with competitively valuable

cross-business relationships that present opportunities for the businesses to perform better operating under the same corporate umbrella than they could as stand-alone entities.  Unrelated

Businesses

 Have value chains and resource requirements

that are so dissimilar that no competitively valuable cross-business relationships are present.

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 Core Concept  Related businesses possess competitively valuable cross-business value chain and resource matchups; unrelated businesses have dissimilar value chains and resources requirements, with no competitively important cross-business value chain relationships.

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FIGURE 8.1 Strategic Themes of Multibusiness Corporations

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The Case For Related Diversification  Strategic

Fit

 Exists whenever one or more activities comprising

the value chains of different businesses are sufficiently similar to present opportunities for: 

Transferring competitively valuable resources, expertise, technological know-how, or other capabilities from one business to another.

Cost sharing between separate businesses where value chain activities can be combined.

Brand sharing between business units that have common customers or that draw upon common core competencies.

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 Core Concept  Strategic fit exists when the value chains of different businesses present opportunities for cross-business skills transfer, cost sharing, or brand sharing.

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FIGURE 8.2

Related Diversification Is Built upon Competitively Valuable Strategic Fit in Value Chain Activities

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Strategic Fit and Economies of Scope 

Stem directly from strategic fit along the value chains of related businesses when costs can be cut by:  Operating businesses under same corporate umbrella  Taking advantage of the interrelationships anywhere

along the value chains of different businesses 

Advantage:  The greater the cross-business economies associated with

cost-saving strategic fit, the greater the potential for a related diversification strategy to yield a competitive advantage based on lower costs than rivals.

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 Core Concept  Economies of scope are cost reductions stemming from strategic fit along the value chains of related businesses (thereby, a larger scope of operations), whereas economies of scale accrue from a larger operation.

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Diversifying into Unrelated Businesses  Involves

diversifying into businesses with:

 No strategic fit  No meaningful value chain relationships  No unifying strategic theme  Strategic

approach:

 Diversify through acquisition into any industry where

potential exists for enhancing shareholder value through upward-trending corporate revenues and earnings and/or a stock price that rises yearly.  While industry attractiveness and cost-of-entry tests

are important, better-off test is secondary. 8-25

Criteria for Acquisition Candidates in Unrelated Diversification Strategies 

Can the business meet corporate targets for profitability and ROI?

Is the business in an industry with growth potential?

Is the business big enough to contribute to the parent firm’s bottom line?

Does the business have burdensome capital requirements?

Is the industry vulnerable to inflation, tough government regulations, or other negative factors?

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Criteria for Acquisition Candidates in Unrelated Diversification Strategies Businesses with bright growth prospects but short on investment capital

Candidates for Acquisition

Undervalued firms that can be acquired at a bargain price Struggling firms that can be turned around with parent firm’s financial resources and managerial know-how

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Building Shareholder Value Through Unrelated Diversification  Corporate

managers must:

 Do a superior job of identifying and acquiring new

businesses that can produce consistently good earnings and returns on investment.  Do an excellent job of negotiating favorable

acquisition prices.  Do such a good job overseeing and parenting the

firm’s businesses that they perform at a higher level than they would otherwise be able to do through their own efforts alone.

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The Pitfalls of Unrelated Diversification  Demanding

Managerial Requirements:

1. Staying abreast of what’s happening in each

industry and each subsidiary. 2. Picking business-unit heads with the requisite

combination of managerial skills and know-how to drive gains in performance. 3. Discerning the difference between strategic

proposals that are prudent and those that are risky or unlikely to succeed. 4. Knowing what to do if a business unit stumbles and

its results suddenly head downhill. 8-29

The Pitfalls of Unrelated Diversification  Limited

Competitive Advantage Potential:

 Unrelated strategy offers limited competitive

advantage beyond what each individual business can generate on its own.  Without strategic fit, consolidated performance of an

unrelated group of businesses is unlikely to be better than the sum of what the individual business units could achieve independently.

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Misguided Reasons for Pursuing Unrelated Diversification Risk reduction

Growth

Misguided Reasons for Diversifying

Earnings stabilization

Managerial motives

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Corporate Strategies Combining Related and Unrelated Diversification 

Dominant-Business Firms  One major core business accounting for 50–80% of revenues

and a collection of small related or unrelated businesses account for the remainder 

Narrowly Diversified Firms  Diversification into a few (2–5) related or unrelated businesses

Broadly Diversified Firms  Diversification includes a wide collection of either related or

unrelated businesses or a mixture 

Multibusiness Enterprises  Diversification into several unrelated groups of related

businesses 8-32

Evaluating the Strategy of a Diversified Company Step 1

Assess the attractiveness of the industries the firm has diversified into.

Step 2

Assess the competitive strength of the firm’s business units.

Step 3

Evaluate the extent of cross-business strategic fit along the value chains of the firm’s various business units.

Step 4

Check whether the firm’s resources fit the requirements of its present business lineup.

Step 5

Rank the performance of the businesses from best to worst and determine a priority for allocating resources.

Step 6

Craft new strategic moves to improve overall corporate performance. 8-33

Evaluating the Strategy of a Diversified Company Step 1: Assess the attractiveness of the industries the firm has diversified into. Step 2: Assess the competitive strength of the firm’s business units. Step 3: Evaluate the extent of cross-business strategic fit along the value chains of the firm’s various business units. Step 4: Check whether the firm’s resources fit the requirements of its present business lineup. Step 5: Rank the performance prospects of the businesses from best to worst and determine a priority for allocating resources. Step 6: Craft new strategic moves to improve overall corporate performance. 8-34

Step 1: Evaluating Industry Attractiveness Market size and projected growth rate

The intensity of competition

Resource requirements

Industry Attractiveness Measures

Seasonal and cyclical factors

Emerging opportunities and threats

Social, political, regulatory, and environmental factors

The presence of crossindustry strategic fit

Industry profitability Industry uncertainty and business risk

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Step 1: Evaluating Industry Attractiveness 

Market size and projected growth rate

Seasonal and cyclical factors

Intensity of competition

Emerging opportunities and threats

Social, political, regulatory, and environmental factors

Presence of crossindustry strategic fit

Industry profitability

Degree of uncertainty and business

Resource requirements risk

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TABLE 8.1

Calculating Weighted Industry Attractiveness Scores

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Step 2: Evaluating Business-Unit Competitive Strength Relative market share

Costs relative to competitors’ costs

Strategic alliances and collaborative partnerships

Competitive Strength Factors

Brand image and reputation

Products or services that satisfy buyer expectations

Competitively valuable capabilities

Benefit from strategic fit with sibling businesses

Profitability relative to competitors

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Step 2: Evaluating Business-Unit Competitive Strength 

Relative market share

Costs relative to competitors’ costs

Products or services that satisfy buyer expectations

Ability to benefit from strategic fits with sibling businesses

Number and caliber of strategic alliances and collaborative partnerships

Brand image and reputation

Competitively valuable capabilities

Profitability relative to competitors 8-39

TABLE 8.2

Calculating Weighted Competitive Strength Scores for a Diversified Company’s Business Units

8-40

FIGURE 8.3 A Nine-Cell Industry Attractiveness– Competitive Strength Matrix

Note: Circle sizes are scaled to reflect the percentage of companywide revenues generated by the business unit.

8-41

Strategy Implications of the Attractiveness/Strength Matrix  Businesses

in the upper left corner

 Receive top investment priority  Strategic prescription: grow and build  Businesses

in the three diagonal cells

 Are given medium investment priority  Some businesses have brighter or dimmer

prospects than others.  Businesses

in the lower right corner

 Are candidates for divestiture or to be harvested to

take cash out of the business 8-42

Step 3: Determining the Competitive Value of Strategic Fit in Multibusiness Companies  Value

chain matchups offer competitive value/advantage when there are:

 Opportunities to combine the performance of

certain activities, thereby reducing costs and capturing economies of scope.  Opportunities to transfer skills, technology, or

intellectual capital from one business to another.  Opportunities to share a respected brand name

across multiple product and/or service categories.

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Identifying Cross-Business Strategic Fits

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Step 4: Evaluating Resource Fit A

diversified firm’s lineup of businesses exhibits good resource fit when: 1. Each of a firm’s businesses, individually, strengthen

the firm’s overall mix of resources and capabilities 2. A firm has sufficient resources to support its entire

group of businesses without spreading itself too thin

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 Core Concept  A diversified company exhibits resource fit when its businesses add to a company’s overall mix of resources and capabilities and when the parent company has sufficient resources to support its entire group of businesses without spreading itself too thin.

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 Core Concept  A strong internal capital market allows a diversified company to add value by shifting capital from business units generating free cash flow to those needing additional capital to expand and realize their growth potential.

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Determining Financial Resource Fit  Use

a portfolio approach to determine the firm’s internal capital market requirements:

 Which business units are cash hogs in need of capital

funds to maintain growth and expansion?  Which business units are cash cows with capital

surpluses available to fund growth and reinvestment?  Assessing

the portfolio’s overall condition:

 Which businesses are (or are not) capable of

contributing to achieving companywide performance targets?  Does the firm have the financial strength to fund all of

its businesses and maintain a healthy credit rating? 8-48

 Core Concept  A cash hog generates operating cash flows that are too small to fully fund its operations and growth; a cash hog must receive cash infusions from outside sources to cover its working capital and investment requirements.

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 Core Concept  A cash cow generates operating cash flows over and above its internal requirements, thereby providing financial resources that may be used to invest in cash hogs, finance new acquisitions, fund share buyback programs, or pay dividends.

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Examining a Firm’s Nonfinancial Resource Fits 

A diversified firm must ensure that it can meet the nonfinancial resource needs of its portfolio of businesses:  Does the firm presently have or can it develop the specific

resources and capabilities (e.g., managerial talent, technology and information systems, and marketing support) needed to be successful in each of its businesses?  Are the firm’s resources being stretched too thinly by the

requirements of one or more of its present businesses?  Have recent acquisitions strengthened the firm’s collection of

resources or are they overtaxing management’s ability to assimilate and oversee the expanded firm’s businesses?

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Step 5: Ranking Business Units and Setting a Priority for Resource Allocation Factors to consider in judging business-unit performance Sales growth

Profit growth Earnings contribution Cash flow generation

Return on investment

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Step 5: Ranking Business Units and Setting a Priority for Resource Allocation  Factors

to consider in judging business-unit performance:

 Sales growth  Profit growth  Contribution to company earnings  Cash flow generation  Return on capital employed in business

8-53

FIGURE 8.4 The Chief Strategic and Financial Options for Allocating

a Diversified Company’s Financial Resources Strategic Options for Allocating Company Financial Resources

Financial Options for Allocating Company Financial Resources

Invest in ways to strengthen or grow existing business

Pay off existing long-term or short-term debt

Make acquisitions to establish positions in new industries or to complement existing businesses

Increase dividend payments to shareholders

Repurchase shares of the company’s common stock Fund long-range R&D ventures aimed at opening market opportunities in new or existing businesses

Build cash reserves; invest in short-term securities

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Step 6: Crafting New Strategic Moves to Improve Overall Corporate Performance 1. Stick with existing business lineup and pursue opportunities it presents 2. Broaden the firm’s business scope by making acquisitions in new industries 3. Divest some businesses and retrench to a narrower base of business operations

4. Restructure the firm’s business lineup to put a new face on its business makeup

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Sticking Closely with the Existing Business Lineup  Choosing

not to expand beyond the current lineup of businesses makes sense when the firm’s present businesses:

 Offer attractive growth opportunities, good

earnings, and cash flows  Are well-positioned for the future and have good

strategic and resource fits  Have sufficient resources that management can

allocate into areas with the greatest performance and profit potentials 8-56

Broadening the Diversification Base  Multibusiness

firms may consider adding to the diversification base when:

 There is sluggish revenues and profit growth  There is potential for transfer resources and

capabilities to related businesses  Driving forces are hurting its core businesses  The acquisition of related businesses strengthens the

market positions of one or more of its business units

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Divesting Businesses and Retrenching to a Narrower Diversification Base  Retrenchment

to focus resources on building strength in fewer businesses requires divesting or eliminating:

 Once-attractive businesses in deteriorating markets  Businesses that will have a poor strategic or resource

fit in the firm’s future portfolio  Cash hog businesses with poor long-term investment

returns potential  Weakly competitively positioned businesses with little

prospect for earning a decent return on investment 8-58

 Core Concept  Corporate restructuring involves radically altering the business lineup by divesting businesses that lack strategic fit or are poor performers and acquiring new businesses that offer better promise for enhancing shareholder value.

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Broadly Restructuring the Business Lineup  Radical

surgery on the business lineup is necessary when portfolio performance is hampered by:

 Too many businesses in slow-growth, declining,

low-margin, or otherwise unattractive industries.  Too many competitively weak businesses.  An excessive debt burden with interest costs that

eat deeply into profitability.  Ill-chosen acquisitions that haven’t lived up to

expectations. 8-60

Concepts and Connections 8.1 VF’s Corporate Restructuring Strategy That Made It the Star of the Apparel Industry VF Corporation’s corporate restructuring that included a mix of divestitures and acquisitions has provided its shareholders with returns that are more than five times greater than shareholder returns provided by competing apparel manufacturers. In fact, VF delivered a total shareholder return of 21 percent between 2000 and 2010, and its 2010 revenues of $7.7 billion made it number 310 on Fortune ’s list of the 500 largest U.S. companies. The company’s corporate restructuring began in 2000 when it divested its slow-growing businesses including its namesake Vanity Fair brand of lingerie and sleepwear. The company’s $136 million acquisition of North Face in 2000 was the first in a series of many acquisitions of “lifestyle brands” that connected with the way people lived, worked, and played. Since the acquisition and turnaround of North Face, VF has spent nearly $5 billion to acquire 19 additional businesses, including about $2 billion in 2011 to acquire Timberland. New apparel brands acquired by VF Corporation include Timberland, Vans skateboard shoes, Nautica, John Varvatos, and 7 For All Mankind sportswear, Reef surf wear, and Lucy athletic wear. The company also acquired a variety of apparel companies specializing in apparel segments such as uniforms for professional baseball and football teams and law enforcement.

VF Corporation’s acquisitions came after years of researching each company and developing a relationship with an acquisition candidate’s chief managers before closing the deal. The company made a practice of leaving management of acquired companies in place, while bringing in new managers only when necessary talent and skills were lacking. In addition, companies acquired by VF were allowed to keep longstanding traditions that shaped culture and spurred creativity. For example, the Vans headquarters in Cypress, California, retained its half-pipe and concrete floor so that its employees could skateboard to and from meetings. In 2010, VF Corporation was among the most profitable apparel firms in the industry with net earnings of $571 million. The company expected new acquisitions that would push the company’s revenues to $8.5 billion in 2011. Sources: Suzanne Kapner, “How a 100-Year-Old Apparel Firm Changed Course,” Fortune, April 9, 2008, online edition; and www.vf.com, accessed July 26, 2011.

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What are 4 types of corporate strategy?

There are four types: stability, combination, retrenchment, and expansion strategy. It is different from the business strategy because business strategy surrounds and focuses on a specific business unit.

What are the 4 methods of diversification?

Diversification Strategies.
Concentric diversification. Concentric diversification involves adding similar products or services to the existing business. ... .
Horizontal diversification. ... .
Conglomerate diversification. ... .
General Electric. ... .
Walt Disney..

What are the four main strategic paths that a diversified company can employ to improve the performance of its overall business lineup?

The four main strategic options for diversified companies include sticking closely with the existing business lineup and pursuing the opportunities these businesses present, broadening the company's business scope by making new acquisitions in new industries, divesting certain businesses and retrenching to a narrower ...

What are the strategies of diversified companies?

Strategies of a Diversified Company.
Attractiveness of Industries. The company needs to assess if the industries it is diversifying into are attractive in terms of market demand and revenues. ... .
Strength of Business Units. ... .
Cross-Business Strategic Fit. ... .
Fit of Company's Resources. ... .
Allocation of Resources. ... .
New Strategic Moves..