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Case: African Communication Group Essay

Decent Essays

Case: African Communication Group

This case presented describes the business model developed by African Communication Group (ACG) in, Tanzania, led by Monique Maddy (CEO) and Come Lague(COO) in the last mid-1990s. ACG tried to install a pay-phone system, well-priced card-operated phone service, in Dar es Salaam, based on the wireless radio technology, the most innovative concept among other competitors. They saw the most promising opportunity, a pay-phone network business, in the last major geographic market, Africa. Hereby, I would access ACG’s business model with the “Who”, “What”, and “How” tool, and see whether these choices are mutually reinforcing.

Assessment of ACG’s Business Model
Who (the target customers)
1) ACG …show more content…

Administration
ACG recruited a large-size of experienced expatriate team to oversee its projects based in Tanzania. Maddy and Lague coordinated the most main issues from Cambridge.
Financing
1) ACG attracted 3.5M US dollars in debt and equity to fund working capital and equipment purchases.
2) ACG investment plans qualified for eight years of tax exemptions. All of ACG’s profits were fully convertible to US dollars.

With the assessment of ACG’s business model, I would argue that “Who” does NOT fit to “What”. I mean, the Tanzanian market (“Who”), relatively much low in technically, socially and politically, were not ready to accept the highly sophisticated and innovative product (“What”). The two young passionate just went straightforward overlooking the huge risks of the immature market. In addition to this discrepancy, its business process (“How”) was leaning toward (“What”), without enough consideration of “Who”. ACG approached the undeveloped market completely as a foreign investor. They only focused on how to sell their amazing products(“What”) to the low-leveled customers without respecting their social improvement (“Who”). They developed the investment plan to the direction of not paying any tax to the country and all their profits would convert to foreign currencies. ACG had no mind to contribute to the

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