1

Casestudy analysis

TheGeneral Motors automobile brand Buick one of the older models of thecar manufacturing company provides a framework for analysis oforganizations venture into modern marketing methods and techniquesthat appeal to the connected younger groups of people while stillrelevant to the elderly who are the major customers of theautomobiles. The company has employed a marketing strategy to usesocial media to promote their newly developed automobile that gavethem a product mix that now includes a compact crossover andturbocharged sports sedan. The analysis of the three approaches toadvertisement media employed that is Vine, a smartphone app that creates and shares video snippets that loops in 6 seconds, YouTubevideo and a TV commercial is typically based on segmentationmarketing.

1. Which segments were identified in the case study? What were the distinguishing characteristic of each segment?

Marketsegmentation concentrates market demand, it represents a more preciseand rational adjustment of the product and the marketing strategyemployed to the consumer or the user specifications. Productdifferentiation go hand in hand with market segmentation sinceproduct differentiation aims at shifting demand to suit supply and sodoes the identification of proper market segments will(Smith, W. R.1956).This area of analysis is very crucial in this case, as it answers akey question raised, on which segments were identified and theirdistinctive characteristics. The market segments identified in thiscase are two (1) The youth (2) The loyal elderly group of customers.The case study employed social media to target the youth and topromote the brand name while still preserving their major customerswho are the elderly. The youths who were targeted are 25-year-old menand women majority of whom are socially networked while the elderlytargeted group is that of the range between 65 to 74 years of agethat were looking to enjoy retirement benefits. Since the goal of theautomobile company is to reach all the two target groups withoutlosing the later it has employed a TV commercial that appeals to bothage groups but the untapped targeted marked in this case study isstill the youth. For Buick to outreach the youth market segment ithas incorporated a product differentiation by design, turbochargedsports sedan and a compact crossover to reach the youth segment andthrough social media promotion and advertisement soon, they will beable to shift demand and supply.

2. How were the segments defined? What was the basis of the segmentation? How will you improve on this strategy?

Anotherkey question raised in the analysis of the market segmentation washow the segments were defined, the basis of the segmentation andrecommendations in improving this strategy. The youth market wasdefined through the desire of the company to expand into new marketsthat recorded poor performance over the years and to meet the needsof the younger generation of having fun. On the other hand, theelderly target group was defined through looking at the IHS data thatshow that about 25% of the Buicks new automobiles are being bought bythe elderly and majorly by their need to enjoy luxury and classyvehicles. The company aim at satisfying the needs of both age groupsbased on demographic, but the main basis for this market segment isPsychographic. This is not aimed at targeting specific age groups inthe sense of demographic approach, but rather targeting them throughthe way they think and what they like to do(Schmidt &amp Martyshenko, 2015).The vice president of AutoPacific says in the case that it takes on apsychographic approach to the marketing of the new vehicles thisshows clearly their goal in employing the type of advertisement andpromotional designs to use. This strategy is good, but also usingdemographics first enables them to do the psychographic approach andachieve better results like in the case using a 24-year-old Vinevideo creator.

3. Explain the implication of changing or evolving market segments

Marketsegmentation has several implications, one of them is that it mayresult in trial and error because one has no exact means to measurethe performance of the products differentiated in our case theintroduction of the new designs of vehicles may perform better inwith the youth segment and ineffective in the elderly segment or viceversa. The probable solution is to shift emphasis on one segment andconsequently return to the same situation the Buick Company isfacing. On the other hand the newly developed products may gain,especially those involved in the social media marketing strategies,The Buick’s vine account has enabled many videos go top with 64revines so the demand on the youth segment who are the ones who aremore connected to the internet. These programs in accordance with theYouTube video promotion may give the product a wider acceptance thanwhat the company had planned before, thereby satisfying the marketdemand becomes a problem. Hence the company has come up with a moregeneralized marketing plan in case this problem occurs, which is agood decision because it offers flexibility in marketing. Due toever-changing human wants and desire it may cause an evolving marketdemand that may also lead to an evolving marketing strategy. Thiswill cause an increase in marketing costs and human needs cannot befully satisfied.

4. How does the selection of segments impact 4Ps?

The4Ps also known as the marketing mix has a direct link to marketsegmentation (Musungwini&amp Zhou, 2014).The organization needs to identify the market segments first that istheir target customers, then the organization can now define/designthe product, price the product, decide how and where to sell theproduct, and finally the promotional techniques to employ to reachthe targeted customers. The four P’s are Product, Price, Place andPromotion. A properly selected market segment will ensure that theapplied 4P’s provide a means for a successful business plan. Thetargeted market will influence price with respect to the income ofthe customers, their willingness to buy and also their taste inproducts influence the design of the product to be sold. The designedproduct should be able to satisfy the customer needs and demands. Thepromotional methods should reach their targeted groups and place ofsale of the goods and services are essential to reach strategicallythe customers.

5. Describe the factors impacting the buying of at least one segment. How does these factors impact marketing?

Pricewill affect the buying of the newly produced vehicles since manyyouths are not stable financially to buy and maintain a car that istechnologically modified and marketing of the vehicles is costlyhence increasing the vehicle prices. Consequently the target youthsegment may lead to the company making losses in the long run sincethey have invested heavily in promoting the vehicles and there isuncertainty in returns on investment regarding this segment.

Inconclusion, the promotional strategy of the company can yield verypositive results in reestablishing the brand name Buick Company sincesocial media provides a large platform to reach a large group ofpotential customers worldwide. Re branding has always proved achallenge for many business organizations, especially with theemergence of new technologies in the recent posts. Marketsegmentation analysis of this case study offers a great platform forGeneral Motors Company to evaluate their plans and come to aconclusion on whether to proceed with the laid out strategy or not.

References

Jr.,V. B. (n.d.). Buick lets blue hair down. Retrieved November 09, 2016,fromhttp://www.autonews.com/article/20140609/RETAIL03/306099989/buick-lets-blue-hair-downSmith,W. R. (1956). Product differentiation and market segmentation asalternative marketing strategies.&nbspJournalof marketing,&nbsp21(1),3-8.

Musungwini,S., &amp Zhou, T. G. (2014). An Investigation of the Role ofProduct, Place, Promotion and Price (4Ps) in Market Basket Analysis:A Case Study of Retail Shops in Gweru Zimbabwe.

Schmidt,J. D., &amp Martyshenko, N. S. (2015). Modern Approaches to ConsumerMarkets Segmenting. MJSSMediterranean Journal of Social Sciences.

1

CaseStudy Analysis

CaseStudy Analysis

Moststudies on business organizations and leadership point out the factthat organizations are operating in an increasingly dynamic andcomplex environment. Many aspects in the business world are changing,and this necessitates major changes in individual organizations(Entrepreneur Contributors, 2013). Transformations are also seen tobe crucial to the organizational success as the changes ensure thebusiness stays relevant and enhances its competitive advantage. Inany transformation, there may be changes experienced in theorganization culture and structure. Leadership is also important inthe process of transformation in organizations (Schein, 2010).Leaders are tasked with ensuring smooth changes in the organization`sculture and structure, and they ensure that the operations in theorganization continue smoothly. This paper will examine howleadership practices in organizational change can be applied toGlobal Delivery Direct Company (GDD) to ensure it enhances itsperformance. GDD is experiencing some rough times mostly due tocompetition, and as is shown in this case study, it is considering tohave a merger with Mail on Wheels to ensure it remains relevant. Partone of the paper will examine leadership roles in creating anorganizational structure in Global Delivery Direct. Part two willthen examine how organizational transformation, during mergers affectits culture as well as leadership roles in the change in culture.

Backgroundinformation

GlobalDelivery Direct is a medium sized company that was founded in theyear 1968 in Norfolk, England. The company was started by fourcollege classmates by the names Joseph Knoll, Andrew Rockfish (anAmerican), Giles Hartford and John Smyth. These friends considered ita good idea to purchase retired cargo planes and use them for courierservices. The company started to grow serving Europe and America.Rockfish decided to expand the service of their company to America inan effort to increase its customer base and make it a multinational.The 1980s saw the rapid growth of UPS and Fed Ex as global deliverycompanies. These two companies offered stiff competition to GDD whichwas forced to expand its market to Asia. The fierce competition madeGDD experience a drop in sales. Other factors that affect the companyare its planes are aging, rising fuel costs, airport fees, andstringent regulations. The company is in turmoil and needs to find away to remain relevant.

Thecompany is owned by the four founders who equally hold 60% of thestock and capital investors hold the other 40%. The company’smission is to provide cargo as well as mail services across the worldin a simple and direct manner. GDD`s long-term goal planning patternanalysis is done after only two years so as to ensure changefrequently occurs which would result in the company gaining acompetitive edge and continuously developing. The company is alsofacing organizational culture and structure changes so as tointroduce collaborative decision-making style of management. Thechanges would also ensure that the company brings its many divisionscloser through sharing of information and resources. The company hasalso launched customer innovation workshops to boost their customerbase. The company has a corporate structure that treats employeeslike family. Its culture can be termed as a hybrid collaborative andclan. This collaborative culture is due to the company’s need forcommunication and structure. GDD has a geographical divisionstructure, and each division has its specific functional structure.Decision-making on core operations starts from the lower levels ofthe management.

PartOne

Roleof a leader when change in organizational structure is implemented

Inany given company, effective leaders must solve challenges that theyencounter in a productive manner (Pratch, 2014). To do this, theyneed to have some set of skills. Skills needed by a leader forhim/her to be considered effective include their adaptability tochange, strategic thinking, integrity, good communication skills,being open and trustworthy, should be visionary, ability to developand foster diverse teams, delegation skills, positive mind-set andhigh self-awareness (Filipkowski &amp Donlon, 2014). The 21^stcentury is characterized by dynamism which requires organizations tochange their way of operations. Leaders in the organization are thepeople tasked with ensuring change is undertaken and may be needed tochange the organizational structure and culture to fit into the newconcept. This can be seen to be the case when Rockfish comes up withthe idea of merging with mail store on wheels. This situationnecessitates change in the organization’s culture and structure.

AndrewRockfish approached the situation in an excellent manner. First ofall, he was the one that came up with the strategy. This shows thathe is a visionary leader and this is a core skill for an effectiveleader (Fuller &amp Green, 2005). As a leader, he chose the strategythat the organization would adopt and set up its foals andobjectives. He also acted as a collaborative leader by involving theemployees in the decision-making process. He called for a meetingwhere one employee suggested they act like the Mail on WheelsCompany. A collaborative leader has connections to his followers ashe makes them feel free to voice their opinions (Madella, 2013). Itis because of this that the employee felt that he could give hisopinion and went ahead to do so. Rockfish also acted as atransformational leader. A transformational leader is efficient infacilitating change in an organization (Lam, 2011). They helpemployees to rise above their narrow focus in their specificdepartments and see the bigger picture or, the wider vision. This isexactly what Rockfish has done in GDD.

Rockfishstudied the structure of mail on wheels and determined that is hadthe owner who was supported by two managers and 45 employees. Becausehe liked the work done by this people, it would be to assimilate theminto GDD as the two companies merge. The new structure would notaffect that of GDD which is a geographical division structure.Therefore, the overall structure of the company would not experiencesignificant changes. Changes would only affect the U.S divisionbecause GDD’s divisions are run separately. The U.S division wouldexperience some changes in its structure as the leader and manager ofMail on Wheels would have to be allocated some positions in themerger. This would change the division’s structure as newdepartments may be created and these departments will requireleaders.

PartTwo

Roleof a leader when change in organizational culture is implemented

Organizationcultures are created and maintained by the people. However, theorganization’s leadership also plays a significant role in creationand maintenance of its culture (Schein, 2011). Organizational culturesimply means the shared understandings and feelings of a group ofpeople in the organization. It encompasses the behaviors and valuesthat make up a particular psychological and social environment in anorganization. Therefore, Rockfish will be tasked with influencing thechange in culture. Strategic leadership is needed in transforming anorganization`s culture. It is also crucial to note that culture isdifficult to change. However, a leader can influence theorganization’s culture through steps that include paying attentionto control and measure, role modeling and coaching, as well asproviding a good criterion for allocating rewards. Once a culture isattained, the organization will improve its performance (Schein,2011).

Itis important to note that an organization’s culture may beadversely affected by a merger. This is the case that was seen in theFedEx and Kinkos merger. In acquiring Kinkos, FedEx aimed atcountering the move by its rival, UPS to gain more physical space.The merger was meant to integrate the two companies and both teamsexpected synergy to occur and hence acquire more ground revenues.However, during the integration process hit snags with unforeseenflaws affecting the merger. The operating models for FedEx needed tobe changed as the market shifted from paper documents to digitalones. Profit margins for the merger plummeted as employee turnoverrates distracted the company from its objectives. Basing on thiscase, GDD and Wheels on Mail have to ensure that they analyze allfactors before going ahead with the merger. Organizational cultureand structure are some of the aspects that should be carefullyconsidered.

Beforedeciding on the merger, Andrew Rockfish analyzed the culture of theemployees in Mail on Wheels. He was impressed by how the personnelhad been given training on how to give excellent customer service.These employees had a positive attitude when it came to ensuringcustomer satisfaction. This would be a good addition to GDD. If themerger would be successfully implemented, then the organization’sculture in that particular division may have to change a little bit.The good culture that Rockfish saw in the Mails on Wheels employeeswould have to be introduced as part of the new culture of the merger.The existing employees in the company would have to learn to havecustomer skills like that depicted by the employees from Mail onWheels. The best way to do this is by offering training sessions forthe existing GDD employees on the importance and ways to ensurecustomer satisfaction.

Conclusion

Thebusiness world is constantly changing with new market trends as wellas consumer behavior always shifting from time to time. This dynamismrequires businesses to also change their practices so that they canmaintain their relevance in the marketplace. As has been discussed inthe paper, transformations in businesses necessitate changes in theorganization’s culture and structure. The paper has elaboratelyshown that leaders play a crucial role in managing organizationalchange. Leaders in the 21^stcentury need to have skills that would enable them to handle changein an effective manner. The paper has used the case of GlobalDelivery Direct to analyze the roles played by leaders in the changein organizations. GDD is opting for a merger with Mail on Wheels soas to increase its customer base and fight off competition. The paperhas discussed how its leader, Rockfish, may handle the change asefficiently as possible.

References

EntrepreneurContributors. (2013, 25 February). 5 influential CEOs weigh in whatmakes a good leader. Entrepreneur.Retrieved October 26, 2016 fromhttps://www.entrepreneur.com/article/225804

Filipkowski,J. &amp Donlon, P. J. 2014. Top10 skills needed for effective leadership.Retrieved October 26, 2016 fromhttp://chiefexecutive.net/op-10-skills-needed-for-effective-leadership-bcl14/

Fuller,J. N. &amp Green, J. C. 2005. Theleader’s role in strategy.Retrieved October 26, 2016 fromhttps://gbr.pepperdine.edu/2010/08/the-leaders-role-in-strategy/

Lam,T. 2011. Theleader as social architect.Retrieved October 26, 2016 fromhttps://tlisystems.wordpress.com/2011/11/01/the-leader-as-social-architect/

Madella,J. 2013. 7traits of executive presence.Retrieved October 26, 2016 fromhttp://www.businessinsider.com/the-7-traits-of-executive-presence-2013-9

Pratch,L. S. 2014. Onepersonality trait to look out for when hiring your next executive.Retrieved October 26, 2016 fromhttps://www.fastcompany.com/3032828/the-one-personality-trait-to-look-out-for-when-hiring-your-next-executive

Schein,E. H. (2010). Organizationalculture and leadership(Vol. 2). John Wiley &amp Sons.