Strategic management. Analysis of a potential merge between two hidden champions (PDF)

Seminar paper from the year 2018 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, grade: 1,0, University of Applied Sciences Riedlingen, course: Strategic Management, language: English, abstract: Taking a closer look at two fictional companies, "Natura corporation" and "Wasserspiel GmbH & Co. KG", strategic options will be discussed which need to be considered for a possible merger of those companies by conducting a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats)-Analysis for both.
To identify their position in the competitive environment, a Stakeholder-Analysis will be developed and discussed. In a final step, Wasserspiel's role as a hidden champion will be analysed along with a proposal, if it is of any benefit to continue a focussed strategy.

First, ground theories of strategic management will be explained, including a brief definition of what strategy is, followed by an overview of strategic management. As it is necessary for comprehending the subject of this paper, a detailed look on the strategic position analysis will be done by explaining the concepts of SWOT-Analyses and the Stake-holder-Approach. To conclude the theoretical fundamentals, an explanation of strategic choices will be given, followed by a detailed look on the benefits and risks of following a focussed differentiation approach.

The following chapter will conduct the SWOT approaches for both fictional companies, followed by a Stakeholder-analysis and their implications on both companies. Furthermore, Wasserspiel's strategic choices towards a niche strategy will be discussed and conclude the chapter.

Being a young field of management theory, strategic management has become increasingly important over the last 20 years. While originally being handled by external consultant agencies, nowadays every - even small - company must consider its strategic and competitive approach. This is a result of the increasing competition due to globalization and digitalization and their impact on whole industries. Additionally, customers and suppliers have changing demands and expectations, creating an everchanging environment the business has to adapt to if they want to stay competitive.

To be able to adapt to these changing requirements and to be successful in the long term, strategic management offers a set of tools. Due to their vast complexity and quantity, it is necessary for the leadership team to know which of these tools and approaches fits their strategic needs and their intended strategic process.