|
|
|
Without creating and adhering to a clear strategy, it is easy for a company to evolve by making business decisions which are not proactive and only respond to short-term market conditions or the actions (or inactions) of a few customers.
Sound strategic planning begins with an objective
assessment of current and expected performance, capabilities, and
competitive advantages. Then it is important for the company
to define its long and short-term goals and to develop processes
for evaluating performance and communicating results to the board, the management team, and the employees. Accurate and
objective measurement, reliable analysis, and an understanding of the
unique fit between a company and its markets are critical to the development
of business strategy and market entry planning.
 
SMG's Experience with
Business Strategy and Market Entry Planning
Simon Management Group has advised executive teams at
companies of all sizes, providing data-driven recommendations and analysis
that sharpen clients' growth strategies. Whether growth is
achieved organically, through existing products and services,
or through the acquisition of another technology or business (see
M&A),
sustaining high growth will depend heavily on creating a sound planning process,
measuring performance, and developing feedback mechanisms for evaluation and
future planning purposes.
Often, a company's growth can be slowed by the
divergent requirements of a fragmented customer base, distribution channel
limitations, maturing technologies or competitive activities.
SMG specializes in identifying and
measuring the impact of these business constraints through objective (and
often anonymous) data collection from a company's customers, competitors, partners, or other performance influencers.
We analyze our findings and deliver results to improve a
company's strategic or market entry planning decisions.
Examples of our Business Strategy and Market Entry
Planning experience include:
Fortune 100 Computer Manufacturer:
SMG
built a "services group" business model for a Fortune 100 computer
manufacturer that was considering the creation of a new services business unit
to support its handheld computing and other hardware product groups. SMG
forecasted the market opportunity and created a financial model for this
client by:
- Conducting market research to understand
the timing and quantify the adoption of certain handheld computing applications and
services.
- Facilitating a cross-functional team of
consultants and the client's product management members to measure and validate
the client's business opportunities.
- Building a series of spreadsheet models that
integrate with the client's strategic plan.
Mid-Tier Software Company:
SMG worked with the executive team to assess and prioritize its various options for business
growth. In addition to providing a systematic methodology for
identifying and ranking strategic options, SMG used a combination of
secondary research and industry interviews to test the viability of specific
growth opportunities. The result was a recommendation which prioritized the
most attractive options, and identified the keys to success and the major risks
associated with each.
Large Drug Development Contract Services Provider:
SMG worked with the executive team to analyze the technical requirements and the projected
market response to a pioneering new toxicology assessment technology by:
-
Interviewing pathologists at small, mid-tier and large proprietary pharmaceutical
companies to understand current scientific practices and
gauge the acceptance of this new technology.
-
Analyzing the leading digital technologies in use for early stage drug development to measure the
MIS infrastructure changes - connection speed, storage,
and processors - necessary for implementing the new product.
-
Proposing a timeline for introducing the product based on market
interest, available resources, and critical user requirements.
Venture-backed Managed Services Provider (MSP)
Company:
Through two phases of market interviews and analysis of
prospective demand, SMG provided the founding management team of an IP-based
voice services company with a better understanding of its initial
market opportunity by:
- Interviewing prospective enterprise
end-users by telephone to (a) determine the extent to which the market
would adopt such an innovative replacement for conventional
systems; (b) segment likely demand based on the size of the organizations
interviewed, targeting interviews across small, mid-tier, and large
businesses; and, (c) evaluate feature and functionality preferences across
the various segments.
- Conducting a series of interviews with
prospective channel partners including telecommunications
and data services providers.
- Quantifying and projecting the likely
market demand for this market based on measuring and ranking interest in the proposed solution.
|