Strategic Fr

3. Given Stryker’s strategy and its long--‐run goals, what modifications to the current system— analytical, organizational, and/or procedural—would you recommend? Develop some specific proposals and explain how they address specific problems.

1. What is their business strategy to grow profitably and compete over the long term?

Honda has continued to embrace the changes that happen around its operations to ensure sustainability and profitability. The current global motorcycle manufacturing sector is full of competition. It, therefore, becomes crucial for every manufacturer to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses and then identify the opportunities to exploit to gain competitive advantage. Honda is Japanese based automobile company; it has numerous subsidiaries in Asia, Europe, and North America. Due to the advancements in technology, Honda will be required to make use of the latest technological trends to stay competitive. The business level strategy at Honda is in line with its enterprise and corporate strategy. The corporation also conducts Research and

     In 1981 several top managers, and true motorcycle advocates, acquired H-D from the AMF in a leveraged buyout. This group was lead by a man named Vaughn Beals. Beals and his associates in the company saw how poorly the AMF was doing and they felt they could significantly improve Harley-Davidson and bring it back to its family-owned, superior built roots. This is where Management becomes the richest asset in Harley’s empire (Harley-Davidson.com).

Beals realized the big necessity to implement Japanese techniques & programs in production for better quality products.

According to Porter’s Generic Strategies, Harley-Davidson has a Focus-Differentiation strategy. It focuses on the heavyweight motorcycles with customers who consider their motorcycles a luxury product. In the same time, it seeks to be unique in its industry, by creating the HOG worldwide family hammering on its heritage as being symbolic of the American Dream. When one purchases a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, he becomes a part of a family of owners that rides together and parties together. In other words, Harley-Davidson is not a transportation medium, it is a lifestyle.

Harley Davidson was established in 1903 by William Harley and Arthur Davidson in Milwaukee, WI where they built the first Harley motorcycle, a sports bike, in a small wooden shed. In 1906 the company built a new factory in Milwaukee, WI and also launched its first product catalog this year. The company began to gain a reputation for itself when Walter Davidson, Arthur’s brother, rode a Harley motorcycle to victory in a race in 1908. Harley became known as a company that offers heavy customization of its product for its customers and by 1910 Harley had sold 3,200 motorcycles in the US where its dealer network grew to over 200 separate locations. By the end of 1920, Harley had become the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world which was supported by over 2000 dealers in 67 countries. The company supplied over 90,000 motorcycles to the US military during the Second World War and it earned the Army-Navy E award for excellence in war time production for three consecutive years. After the World Wars, Harley shifted its focus to more recreational bikes due to increased competition of foreign imports, mostly from Europe. During the late 1950’s, competition from Japanese motorcycle manufacturers like Honda, Yamaha, and Kawasaki began to take over the US market share. By the late 1960’s Japanese motorcycle sales accounted for 85% of total motorcycle sales in the US due to their cheaper and technologically superior bikes. Between 1973 and 1983, Harley’s market share decreased

Evaluate Arch's industry and its strategic position vis-avis its major competitors. What does your analysis imply for Arch's future investment requirements and the company's ability to earn profits greater than its cost of capital?

Although Harley-Davidson has many opportunities, they still face several significant threats from external forces. For example, within the industry Harley faces threats from the intensity of competition and the threat of substitute products. Harley-Davidson is competing with Asian motorcycle makers such as Yamaha, Suzuki, and Honda. While these makers do not specialize in heavy bikes, they do have the potential to reduce Harley-Davidson’s market share as well as provide substitute products for consumers. Automobiles also pose a threat due to the ever-increasing amount of cars being produced and sold internationally. This has forced Harley-Davidson to spend more money on marketing in foreign markets.

Harley Davidson values its culture. They are more of a laid back company and one of the criteria they used to judge providers was how well their people fit in with Harley Davidson 's team and embraced its business values. These values are: Tell the truth, be fair, keep your promises, respect the individual, and encourage intellectual curiosity.

Harley-Davidson's mission statement is to "fulfill dreams through the experience of motorcycling, by providing to motorcyclists and to the general public an expanding line of motorcycles and branded products and services in selected market segments." (Harley Davidson, 1999). The company's main objective for the entire organization s is to have happy and satisfied stakeholder; this includes their customers, employees, suppliers, investors, and the entire society in general. Harley-Davidson makes the customer's experience with their products the core of their business and every effort is made to make this experience as enjoyable as possible. It is this strategy that has helped Harley Davidson meet its current level of success.

The major forces for change in the external environment of motorcycles industry are political, economic, social-cultural, technological, environmental and legal factors (Cadle, Paul, & Turner, 2010). The political factors affect the external environment of motorcycle industry by affecting the markets. The government has influenced changes through free trade agreements, ensuring patent protection and encouraging e-commerce. Political influences provide both opportunities and threats, the free trade agreements have allowed expansion into other markets but also has increased the inflow of cheaper substitutes into the market that a company operates in. Political factors affecting this industry has brought opportunities for the Harley-Davidson.

Harley-Davidson has managed to dominate the U.S. market by investing in research and development, experimenting with its designs and

Harley Davidson is known as one of the main motorcycle manufacturers and sellers in the United States. The company had good business and great market share in the early 1960s when it commanded a total of about 70% 0f the motorcycle market, before the invasion or the intrusion of a small Japanese firm that manufactured lighter motorcycles, known as the Honda. The case study as identifies that Harley Davidson assumed the invasion by the Japanese firm and instead of tackling the competition, it waited for a long time which resulted in the company losing its command in the motorcycle market in the United States. Lack of action by the management of Harley Davidson resulted in the failure of the company

This Assignment will develop your skills in industry analysis. This must be done as individual work, so you must not discuss the case with anyone else before completing the Assignment. Please use the following questions to structure your answer: