Ikea BUSINESS STRATEGY

Ikea BUSINESS STRATEGY Order Description Coursework Group Project guideline 1- Report In the Business strategy research project, students will develop a full industry and company analysis and critics. The group will need to analyze and critically assess a company strategic orientation based on data collection, data analysis, and methodology (qualitative/quantitative), topics covered in class and literature research. The research project will address strategic management issues in order to assess your abilities to critically analyze organizations’ strategic decisions and ultimately to recommend a set of actions. The evaluation of your papers is with particular attention being paid to your application of course reading material, concepts and research references. The research question must be identified and addressed in depth and using strategic frameworks. Key Structural Elements in Depth A Key Strategic Issue/Problem Identification section a) A brief background of key relevant information/facts pertinent to the company b) State the key research issue/problem facing the organization. The statement should be direct and actionable, e.g., the problem must be stated in some way that the organization can take action to solve the problem. It should also be strategically focused, not tactically or operationally focused. One (of many ways) to determine whether an issue is strategic is to ask yourself “what happens to the organization within the next 3-5 years if the issue is not addressed?” If your answer is “not much” then it is probably not a strategic issue. c) Evaluate and critically analysis the best case, likely case, and worst case scenarios if the strategic issue/problem is not addressed(i.e., no action is taken) An Alternatives section to address the key issues a) Alternatives must be strategic, and they must be mutually exclusive. For example, two alter natives for an issue could be to 1) buy the competitor, or 2) not to buy the competitor—obviously the organization cannot do both. You will usually develop 2 or 3 alternatives in an analysis. Rarely, if ever, is “do nothing” or “continue to do what they are doing” a strategic alternative for a case. b) Critically asses your alternatives and then: i)Discuss 2-3 strategic advantages of the alternative ii)Discuss 2-3 strategic disadvantages of the alternatives Recommendation section where you select 1 (and only 1) alternative from the list above as the recommendation—this answers the question of “what should the organization do?” a) Describe 1-3 key decision criteria and/or assumptions, with rationale, that will serve as the basis of the decision. b) State the recommended course of action (from your list of alternatives) and possibly provide a little more elaboration of the recommendation beyond its description in the alternative section c) Describe why the recommended course of action is the best alternative and the weaknesses of the other alternatives that prevent them from being selected as the recommendation d) Describe the goals and objectives the recommendation. This must include: 1) a stated time frame for achieving; 2) appropriate specific goals (profit, market share); 3) expected costs and benefits A section discussing the Implementation/Action Plan—this answers the question of “how should the organization go about achieving the recommendation”. This is in many respects the most important part of the entire case analysis. This section describes how the organization should go about making the recommendation happen. This section needs to be described in as much detail as possible given the constraints in the case—when you are missing specific data, fill in using sound business judgment. Items to include (this is not necessarily a complete list): a)Description of specific activities that need to be undertaken b)Assignation of responsibilities c)Costs of each activity d)Time frames for each activity e)Measures of success/failure for each activity f) Possible coordination issues g)Possible obstacles/impediments (might be HRM, Finances, Operations, Ethics,…problems) that need to be considered/dealt with to successfully implement the recommendation * The paper must be double-spaced, use 1” margins, and use a standard (Times or Times New Roman) 12 pt. font. The case study report should be concise and coherent. The name of the case should be on the first page of the text with your names, date, and course number. The limit is 7500 words (+/- 10%), plus exhibits. * Exhibits should contain specific types of analyses (application of a framework, table of comparisons, cost analysis, competitive features, data form the field and information that supports and is relevant) * Please proofread/spell check your paper before turning it in. Papers for this course should be of the same quality that you would provide to the management of the business. The paper will be comprehensive in scope and include a/an: • Executive Summary and abstract • The rational of the strategic analysis • Research method and design • Data collection and data analysis • Analysis of findings • Critical analysis of the current company’s strategy • Recommended scenarios • Discussion • Conclusion • References Details of Research Proposal To establish that the candidate has: ♣ a viable and researchable problem ♣ an acceptable plan of action for undertaking the research ♣ done sufficient preparation to establish the rationale for the research ♣ a feasible chance of completing the research For a master’s thesis, candidates must prove that they have an advanced knowledge in a particular problem in the industry in which they have done their research, are able to analyse and set it out logically, are able to arrive at logical conclusions or a diagnosis, and are then able to make proposals for the improvement/elimination of the problem. (QFE Level 9) Title The title should be concise, as long titles are cumbersome to accommodate in information retrieval systems. Select appropriate key words or phrases, and avoid rambling and meaningless statements such as: An investigation into the possibility of conducting research in . . . Do not start a title with a present participle, such as Investigating, or Analysing. The title should rather read: An analysis of….. Keywords Give up to 5 specific keywords or phrases, which will be used to index your research in relevant databases. Statement of research problem - – Problem identification This is the heart of the proposal. Normally a sentence, or at most a paragraph, is all that is required to describe exactly what the problem is. Many candidates have difficulty in describing the problem: instead they list the objectives, outcomes, needs or other irrelevant aspects. Furthermore, “researchers often indulge in jargon, which seems to obscure rather than explain what the research problem is”. Candidates should ensure that the problem and their objectives remain the focus of their thinking and writing. Clarification of basic terms and concepts The same words may have different connotations to people, especially if they work in various disciplines. List and clarify or define the main words and concepts that you will use in your research. It may also be useful to provide a list of abbreviations and acronyms with their full names, e.g. SMME. Commonly used abbreviations/acronyms (such as UK, USA) need not be included Background to the research problem Since the statement of the problem should be very brief, it is necessary to explain separately what the background to the problem is. Clarify the area of concern, or what needs justify the research (this could be a sub-heading). Any information that helps the evaluator to understand the problem may be included. Indicate why you believe that it is, in fact, a researchable problem. This section could be combined with the literature review, or form a sub-section of it Literature review An adequate literature review is required in all research proposals, especially if funding is required. The purpose of the literature review should: ♣ Provide evidence to the faculty research committee that you are well acquainted with past and current research in the field of study. ♣ Prove that the thesis/dissertation will not duplicate past or current research. ♣ Indicate how the intended research relates to similar and past research; in other words, the literature review positions your research within the existing body of knowledge. Some faculties also require candidates to indicate, from their review of the relevant literature, what related aspects require further research. The literature review must provide a rationale for the choice of problem, or a theoretical framework for the study, and that too often, this is missing. In the final report, a much more complete and extensive list of References (all sources cited) or a Bibliography (more comprehensive) will have to be presented than in the initial review. Too often the literature review does not correspond with the aims of the research. A specific comment of faculty is that many candidates “took the review of literature as a perfunctory task and therefore there was no contribution to or advancement of the intellectual debate”. References to consult: ♣ ProQuest ♣ Business source complete (EBSCO) ♣ Global Data ♣ CBCA Complete The above are all available on CUD Electronic Resources It is important that doctoral candidates consult the international database listed above before registering a title. Consult librarians. They will assist you in searching the various periodical indexes and abstracting and full-text services. Indicate what key words/indexing terms, databases, vendors and search engines you have used. Databases and search engines should not be cited in your list of references Objectives of the research Clarify the aims and objectives of the research. Where feasible, objectives should be divided into main and subsidiary objectives, and should be numbered. The Faculty evaluate whether the objectives are well articulated and whether they are realistic and attainable. In writing the proposal, it is important to remain focused on the objectives. Theoretical Framework and Topic Statement In this section you are expected to describe in detail the context of the research. You will also highlight the questions that, in your opinion, are important for the field of Leadership and that need answers. In this section you will show a clear understanding of the topic you chose. Research design and Methodology This is a cornerstone of the research proposal, and therefore a critically important section. Failure to address it properly can lead to the research proposal’s rejection and even to the rejection of the final report. While you may not be able to give final details of your methodology at the research proposal stage, it is important to give a sound provisional indication so that the evaluator is satisfied that your methodology is relevant and acceptable. Here you will describe the methods you chose to use in order to reach your objective which is to find pertinent answers to the questions you developed in the topic statement. In the case of an empirical project (in which, for example, you would need to give a questionnaire to individuals or companies) you will be required to describe the sample’s characteristics (average age, gender representation, number of employees, questionnaire used, and all other important characteristics). In other words, you will be required to show that you know what you are doing. Clarify your method of investigation, e.g.: ♣ Questionnaires ♣ Personal interviews ♣ Focus groups ♣ Mathematical modelling ♣ Secondary data Indicate your sampling methodology, e.g.: ♣ Size of sample ♣ Population ♣ Experimental and control groups ♣ Prevention of bias, etc. Indicate statistical methods and substantiate why you intend using the proposed specific statistical methods. Indicate whether ethics approval is required, and apply for ethics clearance through the faculty ethics committee. Plan your investigation in phases, setting measurable target dates where feasible. Significance of the research Indicate the significance of the research. Why is it important? Whom, or what industry, will it benefit? This is usually vital for funding. Results and Recommendations Based upon the critical analysis of your findings you will be required to provide recommendations that, in your opinion, will help improve the field of strategy. What are the expected outcomes and what do you wish to achieve, e.g.: ♣ A new plant process ♣ A solution to a practical problem ♣ A specific aid to practitioners in a particular field ♣ An instrument of use in the mining industry, etc. What contribution will this research make to the body of knowledge in the particular field of study? Discussion This is the most important section of your work. You will analyse the results of your study. You will show a clear understanding of the nature and significance of your findings. Your analytical skills will clearly be of central importance to this section of your research. Conclusion One page maximum in which you will summarize your findings References cited This is a list of the literature referred to in your research proposal. Do not include titles not cited, or that have no relevance to your research problem. You should have read the references you list (or at least the relevant parts). Indicate how they relate to your research. Distinguish clearly between a list of References cited and a Bibliography. The latter includes all material consulted, including background reading not necessarily cited. Alternatively you may provide separate lists of References Cited and Other References.