Page 1
LEARNING OUTCOMES
CORPORATE LEVEL
STRATEGIES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to -
? Understand and identify corporate strategies.
? Identify the various types of corporate strategies.
? Comprehend the relevance and application of various types of
corporate strategies.
? Understand the reasons for adoption of various types of
corporate strategies.
Know about combination strategies and strategic alliances.
Chance favours the prepared mind. Louis Pasteur
Strategy is a deliberate search for a plan of action that will develop a business
competitive advantage and compound it.
Bruce D. Henderson
CHAPTER
4
Page 2
LEARNING OUTCOMES
CORPORATE LEVEL
STRATEGIES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to -
? Understand and identify corporate strategies.
? Identify the various types of corporate strategies.
? Comprehend the relevance and application of various types of
corporate strategies.
? Understand the reasons for adoption of various types of
corporate strategies.
Know about combination strategies and strategic alliances.
Chance favours the prepared mind. Louis Pasteur
Strategy is a deliberate search for a plan of action that will develop a business
competitive advantage and compound it.
Bruce D. Henderson
CHAPTER
4
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 4.2
4.1 INTRODUCTION
Strategies are formulated at different levels of an organization – corporate, business
and functional. Corporate level strategies occupy the highest level of strategic
decision making and cover actions dealing with the objective of the firm, acquisition
and allocation of resources and coordination of strategies of various Strategic
Business Units for optimal performance. Top management of the organization makes
strategic decisions. The nature of strategic decisions tends to be value-oriented,
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
Corporate Strategy Alternatives
Stability
Growth/
Expansion
Internal Growth
Strategies
Intensification
Market
Penetration
Market
Development
Product
Development
Diversification
Vertically
Integrated
Backward
Forward
Horizontally
Integrated
Concentric
Diversification
Conglomerate
Diversification
External Growth
Strategies
Merger &
Acquisition
Strategic
Alliance
Retrenchment
Turnaround
Divestment
Liquidation
Combination
Page 3
LEARNING OUTCOMES
CORPORATE LEVEL
STRATEGIES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to -
? Understand and identify corporate strategies.
? Identify the various types of corporate strategies.
? Comprehend the relevance and application of various types of
corporate strategies.
? Understand the reasons for adoption of various types of
corporate strategies.
Know about combination strategies and strategic alliances.
Chance favours the prepared mind. Louis Pasteur
Strategy is a deliberate search for a plan of action that will develop a business
competitive advantage and compound it.
Bruce D. Henderson
CHAPTER
4
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 4.2
4.1 INTRODUCTION
Strategies are formulated at different levels of an organization – corporate, business
and functional. Corporate level strategies occupy the highest level of strategic
decision making and cover actions dealing with the objective of the firm, acquisition
and allocation of resources and coordination of strategies of various Strategic
Business Units for optimal performance. Top management of the organization makes
strategic decisions. The nature of strategic decisions tends to be value-oriented,
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
Corporate Strategy Alternatives
Stability
Growth/
Expansion
Internal Growth
Strategies
Intensification
Market
Penetration
Market
Development
Product
Development
Diversification
Vertically
Integrated
Backward
Forward
Horizontally
Integrated
Concentric
Diversification
Conglomerate
Diversification
External Growth
Strategies
Merger &
Acquisition
Strategic
Alliance
Retrenchment
Turnaround
Divestment
Liquidation
Combination
4.3
CORPORATE LEVEL STRATEGIES
conceptual and less concrete than decisions at the business or functional level. This
chapter deals with corporate level strategies and their various types.
4.2 TYPOLOGIES OF STRATEGIES
Businesses follow different types of strategies to enter the market and to stay and
grow in the market. A large number of strategies with different nomenclatures
have been employed by different businesses and also suggested by different
authors on strategy. For instance, William F Glueck and Lawrence R Jauch
discussed four generic strategies including stability, growth, retrenchment and
combination. These strategies have also been called Grand Strategies/Directional
Strategies by many other authors. Michael E. Porter suggested competitive
strategies including Cost Leadership, Differentiation, Focus Cost Leadership and
Focus Differentiation which could be used by the corporates for their different
business units. Besides these, we come across functional strategies in the
literature on Strategic Management and Business Policy. Functional Strategies are
meant for strategic management of distinct functions such as Marketing,
Financial, Human Resource, Logistics, Production etc.
We can classify the different types of strategies on the basis of levels of the
organisation, stages of business life cycle and competition as given in the Table –1.
Table : 1- Different types of strategies on the basis of their classification
Basis of Classification Types
Level of the
organisation
Corporate Level
Business Level
Functional Level
Stages of Business Life
Cycle
Entry/Introduction Stage - Market Penetration
Strategy
Growth Stage - Growth/Expansion Strategy
Maturity Stage - Stability Strategy
Decline Stage - Retrenchment/ Turnaround Strategy
Competition oriented Competitive Strategies - Cost Leadership,
Differentiation, Focus
Collaboration Strategies - Joint Venture, Merger &
Acquisition, Strategic Alliance
Above are the various types of strategies available for an organisation to adopt.
The organisation adopt either of these depending upon their needs and
Page 4
LEARNING OUTCOMES
CORPORATE LEVEL
STRATEGIES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to -
? Understand and identify corporate strategies.
? Identify the various types of corporate strategies.
? Comprehend the relevance and application of various types of
corporate strategies.
? Understand the reasons for adoption of various types of
corporate strategies.
Know about combination strategies and strategic alliances.
Chance favours the prepared mind. Louis Pasteur
Strategy is a deliberate search for a plan of action that will develop a business
competitive advantage and compound it.
Bruce D. Henderson
CHAPTER
4
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 4.2
4.1 INTRODUCTION
Strategies are formulated at different levels of an organization – corporate, business
and functional. Corporate level strategies occupy the highest level of strategic
decision making and cover actions dealing with the objective of the firm, acquisition
and allocation of resources and coordination of strategies of various Strategic
Business Units for optimal performance. Top management of the organization makes
strategic decisions. The nature of strategic decisions tends to be value-oriented,
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
Corporate Strategy Alternatives
Stability
Growth/
Expansion
Internal Growth
Strategies
Intensification
Market
Penetration
Market
Development
Product
Development
Diversification
Vertically
Integrated
Backward
Forward
Horizontally
Integrated
Concentric
Diversification
Conglomerate
Diversification
External Growth
Strategies
Merger &
Acquisition
Strategic
Alliance
Retrenchment
Turnaround
Divestment
Liquidation
Combination
4.3
CORPORATE LEVEL STRATEGIES
conceptual and less concrete than decisions at the business or functional level. This
chapter deals with corporate level strategies and their various types.
4.2 TYPOLOGIES OF STRATEGIES
Businesses follow different types of strategies to enter the market and to stay and
grow in the market. A large number of strategies with different nomenclatures
have been employed by different businesses and also suggested by different
authors on strategy. For instance, William F Glueck and Lawrence R Jauch
discussed four generic strategies including stability, growth, retrenchment and
combination. These strategies have also been called Grand Strategies/Directional
Strategies by many other authors. Michael E. Porter suggested competitive
strategies including Cost Leadership, Differentiation, Focus Cost Leadership and
Focus Differentiation which could be used by the corporates for their different
business units. Besides these, we come across functional strategies in the
literature on Strategic Management and Business Policy. Functional Strategies are
meant for strategic management of distinct functions such as Marketing,
Financial, Human Resource, Logistics, Production etc.
We can classify the different types of strategies on the basis of levels of the
organisation, stages of business life cycle and competition as given in the Table –1.
Table : 1- Different types of strategies on the basis of their classification
Basis of Classification Types
Level of the
organisation
Corporate Level
Business Level
Functional Level
Stages of Business Life
Cycle
Entry/Introduction Stage - Market Penetration
Strategy
Growth Stage - Growth/Expansion Strategy
Maturity Stage - Stability Strategy
Decline Stage - Retrenchment/ Turnaround Strategy
Competition oriented Competitive Strategies - Cost Leadership,
Differentiation, Focus
Collaboration Strategies - Joint Venture, Merger &
Acquisition, Strategic Alliance
Above are the various types of strategies available for an organisation to adopt.
The organisation adopt either of these depending upon their needs and
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 4.4
requirements. For instance, a start-up or a new enterprise might follow either a
competitive strategy i.e., entering the market where a number of rivals are already
operating, or a collaborative strategy, i.e., enter into a joint venture with an
established company. However, majority of startups are launched on a small scale
and their main strategy is to penetrate the market and to reach the breakeven
stage at the earliest and later pursue growth strategy. While a going concern can
continue with the competitive strategy or resort to collaborative strategy to
ensure business growth.
Reality Bite: Patanjali Ayurved adopted market penetration strategy and to be
successful. It concentrated on product development and high quality at low cost.
It is now at the growth stage and is following competitive strategies. It is
competing with both domestic and multinational companies.
Business conglomerates having multiple product folios formulate strategies at
different levels, viz., corporate, business unit and functional. Corporate level
strategies are meant to provide ‘direction’ to the company. Business level
strategies are formulated for each product/process division known as strategic
business unit. While for implementation of the corporate and business strategies,
functional strategies are formulated in business areas like production/operations,
marketing, finance, human resources etc. In fact, big corporates follow an
elaborate system of strategy formulation, implementation and control at different
levels in the company to survive and grow in the turbulent business environment.
In this chapter, we shall discuss the corporate level strategies.
The corporate strategies a firm can adopt may be classified into four broad
categories:
1. Stability strategy
2. Expansion strategy
3. Retrenchment strategy
4. Combination strategy
Figure:-Types of Corporate Strategies
Corporate Strategy
Stability
Growth/
Expansion
Retrenchment Combination
Page 5
LEARNING OUTCOMES
CORPORATE LEVEL
STRATEGIES
After studying this chapter, you will be able to -
? Understand and identify corporate strategies.
? Identify the various types of corporate strategies.
? Comprehend the relevance and application of various types of
corporate strategies.
? Understand the reasons for adoption of various types of
corporate strategies.
Know about combination strategies and strategic alliances.
Chance favours the prepared mind. Louis Pasteur
Strategy is a deliberate search for a plan of action that will develop a business
competitive advantage and compound it.
Bruce D. Henderson
CHAPTER
4
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 4.2
4.1 INTRODUCTION
Strategies are formulated at different levels of an organization – corporate, business
and functional. Corporate level strategies occupy the highest level of strategic
decision making and cover actions dealing with the objective of the firm, acquisition
and allocation of resources and coordination of strategies of various Strategic
Business Units for optimal performance. Top management of the organization makes
strategic decisions. The nature of strategic decisions tends to be value-oriented,
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
Corporate Strategy Alternatives
Stability
Growth/
Expansion
Internal Growth
Strategies
Intensification
Market
Penetration
Market
Development
Product
Development
Diversification
Vertically
Integrated
Backward
Forward
Horizontally
Integrated
Concentric
Diversification
Conglomerate
Diversification
External Growth
Strategies
Merger &
Acquisition
Strategic
Alliance
Retrenchment
Turnaround
Divestment
Liquidation
Combination
4.3
CORPORATE LEVEL STRATEGIES
conceptual and less concrete than decisions at the business or functional level. This
chapter deals with corporate level strategies and their various types.
4.2 TYPOLOGIES OF STRATEGIES
Businesses follow different types of strategies to enter the market and to stay and
grow in the market. A large number of strategies with different nomenclatures
have been employed by different businesses and also suggested by different
authors on strategy. For instance, William F Glueck and Lawrence R Jauch
discussed four generic strategies including stability, growth, retrenchment and
combination. These strategies have also been called Grand Strategies/Directional
Strategies by many other authors. Michael E. Porter suggested competitive
strategies including Cost Leadership, Differentiation, Focus Cost Leadership and
Focus Differentiation which could be used by the corporates for their different
business units. Besides these, we come across functional strategies in the
literature on Strategic Management and Business Policy. Functional Strategies are
meant for strategic management of distinct functions such as Marketing,
Financial, Human Resource, Logistics, Production etc.
We can classify the different types of strategies on the basis of levels of the
organisation, stages of business life cycle and competition as given in the Table –1.
Table : 1- Different types of strategies on the basis of their classification
Basis of Classification Types
Level of the
organisation
Corporate Level
Business Level
Functional Level
Stages of Business Life
Cycle
Entry/Introduction Stage - Market Penetration
Strategy
Growth Stage - Growth/Expansion Strategy
Maturity Stage - Stability Strategy
Decline Stage - Retrenchment/ Turnaround Strategy
Competition oriented Competitive Strategies - Cost Leadership,
Differentiation, Focus
Collaboration Strategies - Joint Venture, Merger &
Acquisition, Strategic Alliance
Above are the various types of strategies available for an organisation to adopt.
The organisation adopt either of these depending upon their needs and
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT 4.4
requirements. For instance, a start-up or a new enterprise might follow either a
competitive strategy i.e., entering the market where a number of rivals are already
operating, or a collaborative strategy, i.e., enter into a joint venture with an
established company. However, majority of startups are launched on a small scale
and their main strategy is to penetrate the market and to reach the breakeven
stage at the earliest and later pursue growth strategy. While a going concern can
continue with the competitive strategy or resort to collaborative strategy to
ensure business growth.
Reality Bite: Patanjali Ayurved adopted market penetration strategy and to be
successful. It concentrated on product development and high quality at low cost.
It is now at the growth stage and is following competitive strategies. It is
competing with both domestic and multinational companies.
Business conglomerates having multiple product folios formulate strategies at
different levels, viz., corporate, business unit and functional. Corporate level
strategies are meant to provide ‘direction’ to the company. Business level
strategies are formulated for each product/process division known as strategic
business unit. While for implementation of the corporate and business strategies,
functional strategies are formulated in business areas like production/operations,
marketing, finance, human resources etc. In fact, big corporates follow an
elaborate system of strategy formulation, implementation and control at different
levels in the company to survive and grow in the turbulent business environment.
In this chapter, we shall discuss the corporate level strategies.
The corporate strategies a firm can adopt may be classified into four broad
categories:
1. Stability strategy
2. Expansion strategy
3. Retrenchment strategy
4. Combination strategy
Figure:-Types of Corporate Strategies
Corporate Strategy
Stability
Growth/
Expansion
Retrenchment Combination
4.5
CORPORATE LEVEL STRATEGIES
Before proceeding further, let us discuss the basic features of all the types of
corporate strategies to get the bird’s eye view. The basic features of the corporate
strategies are as follows:
Table:2- Basic Features of Corporate Strategies
Strategy Basic Feature
Stability The firm stays with its current businesses and product markets;
maintains the existing level of effort; and is satisfied with
incremental growth.
Expansion Here, the firm seeks significant growth-maybe within the
current businesses; maybe by entering new business that are
related to existing businesses; or by entering new businesses
that are unrelated to existing businesses.
Retrenchment The firm retrenches some of the activities in some business
(es), or drops the business as such through sell-out or
liquidation.
Combination The firm combines the above strategic alternatives in some
permutation/combination so as to suit the specific
requirements of the firm.
4.2.1. Stability Strategy
One of the important goals of a business enterprise is stability strategy is to
stabilise- it may be opted to safeguard its existing interests and strengths, to
pursue well established and tested objectives, to continue in the chosen business
path, to maintain operational efficiency on a sustained basis, to consolidate the
commanding position already reached, and to optimise returns on the resources
committed in the business.
A stability strategy is pursued by a firm when:
? It continues to serve in the same or similar markets and deals in same or
similar products and services.
? This strategy is typical for those firms whose product have reached the
maturity stage of product life cycle or those who have a sufficient market
share but need to retain that. They have to remain updated and have to
pace with the dynamic and volatile business world to preserve their market
share. Hence, stability strategy should not be confused with ‘do nothing’
strategy. Small organizations may also follow stability strategy to
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