Chapter 11: Organizational Structure, Systems, and Processes

Chapter 11 goes into detail about the organizational structure of a corporation. The organizational structure is the way a corporations sets up management and responsibilities.Coca Cola has a separate international division structure because its international employees operate separately and are isolated from the head office . Coca cola is present in over 200 countries so they have to divided in such a way. The company has various divisions in all continents around the world with presidents that control each continental divisions  .Each continental division has vice presidents that control sub-divisions  based on regions or countries .  Coca cola has 5 continental divisions:

1. Eurasia & Africa Group

2. Europe Group

3. Latin America Group

4. North America Group

5. Pacific Group 

Chapter 10: Mergers and Acquisitions

Chapter 10 talks about mergers and acquisitions, and how they benefit a corporations . When two companies merge,it means they join together as one company. When an acquisition takes place it means that ownership has been transferred completely. In recent news ,Coca Cola acquired the company , ZICO pure coconut water  . In the light of the society becoming more health conscious  ,Coca Cola figured it would be a great strategic idea to acquire this company .It helps build their brand portfolio and cater to a certain market . In addition ,Coca Cola will gain leading position in one of the fastest growing beverage categories in the world. The coconut water category has seen impressive sales growth and distributions is at all time highs . This acquisition will indeed be profitable for Coke and is a prime example of how acquisitions/mergers can help benefit a corporation . 

Chapter 9: Understanding Alliances and Cooperative Strategies

Chapter 9 discussed how corporations use alliances to help benefit from each other and create an advantage. Coca Cola utilizes a variety of strategic alliances all across the board.Creating these alliances helps enhance effectiveness. Coca Cola prefers to partner up with corporations that already have a good reputations and can benefit them to the fullest. These are some of the benefits that Coca Cola achieves with various alliance types: 

Partnerships with Bottlers and Distributors

• Lowers the costs of entering markets.
• Reduces the need for capital.
• Streamlines the company’s portfolio or operational activities.

Acquisition of Brands and Products
• Fills gaps in Coca-Cola’s brand portfolio.
• Reduces competition in the beverage industry.
• Prevents competitors (i.e. Pepsi Co.) from gaining the same market space.
• Grows total company revenue.

The strategy that Coke employs in forming alliances or acquiring other companies generally works well. While Coca-Cola generally partners with bottlers, they sometimes acquire other brands and products . 

Chapter 6 : Crafting Business Strategy for Dynamic Contexts

Being dynamic is crucial to a corporation's ability to thrive and grow.In order for ,Coca Cola to be more dynamic and specialized they have decided to classify their markets and develop targeted efforts for each consumer segment or distribution channel. The specific channels are small retailers such as restaurants ,bars ,supermarkets,and third party distributors .These purchases will help them evaluate purchasing patterns and consumer preferences.

Chapter 8 - Looking at International Strategies

Having a global presence is very important in today's economy . Coca Cola is a leading company in the international market and have implemented great international strategies . They provide a universal product that is known in every corner of the world . Coca Cola is now working to achieve global and local strategies to make sure all of their consumers enjoy every single can or bottle of coke and more importantly build valuable connections. Like I stated before ,Coca Cola is present in over 200 countries which enables us to know that they have achieved significant success when it come to using international strategies. 

Chapter 7: Developing Corporate Strategy

The main focus point in Chapter 7 was on the concept of diversification . It's what helps a company stand out above the rest and be known for their products . Diversification also refers to the way a company can do business in more than one field . In the text ,there were all types of ways describing how companies can be diversified.Coca Cola has been able to expand at quick rates due to their ability to diversify all across the board. They have mastered geographic diversification ,by being present in more than 200 countries . Coca Cola has been able to keep up with consumer trends and concerns. Their products have been portrayed to be unhealthy in the past ,so in order to change this negative view Coca Cola started to add  healthier alternatives. By expanding their product line ,they were able to capture a new target market.

Chapter 5: Creating Business Strategies

Chapter 5 discussed the various ways corporations create business strategies. The two main routes that corporations take are either being a low-cost leader or using differentiation. When using a low-cost strategy, companies are able to set themselves apart by manufacturing a good product at a lower cost than their competitors. When differentiation is used ,a corporation is able to distinguish themselves by differentiating their products from their competitors. Coca Cola is known for using a low-cost leadership strategy to help their corporations thrive against competitors . Throughout their existence ,Coca Cola has used pricing strategies to help them gain control markets and give their strong competitors like Pepsi a run for their money. Coca Cola uses low -costs all across the board but even more in markets that are very sensitive to price. Coca Cola believed that they needed to be perceived as different but still affordable.

Ch. 4:Exploring the External Environment: Macro and Industry Dynamics

Chapter 4 takes a look at the external factors that affect a firm and aspects that come into play. It is very important for a firm to understand the environment they are in and are able to adapt to change . Chapter 4 went into great detail about competition and they way firms should analyze this factor .Coca Cola is a leader in the beverage industry but competition in this industry is very high. Their biggest competitors are PepsiCo and Nestle,and they also compete with many local firms. Some of the main competitive factors include pricing,advertising,product innovation,and a number of other things. Coca Cola does have a number of competitive  strengths which are having a high level of consumer acceptance,unique marketing capabilities,and a worldwide network of bottlers/distributors. On the other hand, Coca Cola is faced with some challenges with strong competitors in some parts of the world and powerful buyers with concentrated retail sectors .

Ch.3 :Examining the Internal Environment: Resources, Capabilities, and Activities

Chapter 3 discusses examining the internal environment of a corporation and all the factors that are involved. Coca Cola is a leader in the beverage industry and they hold a very sustainable competitive advantage.Coca Cola has a distribution network in over 200 countries and with 3,500 different types of beverages produced. In order to serve that many markets efficiently ,they have close to 300 distributions centers which helps minimize shipping time to decrease costs and help increase revenue.They have enough resources and capabilities to service all of their consumers around the world and have built a very successful brand .  Chapter 3 also went into detail about a company's SWOT analysis . SWOT is the strengths,weaknesses,opportunities,and threats that an organization has.

Ch. 2: Vision and Mission

Chapter 2 discusses the purpose of a company's vision and mission statements. The mission of Coca Cola extends far beyond just manufacturing beverages .They strive to make an impact on the global community and satisfy all their loyal consumers. A company's vision and mission help with decisions and actions as a road map to success.

The Coca‑Cola Company Mission

Our mission is:

• To refresh the world - in mind, body and spirit
• To inspire moments of optimism - through our brands and actions
• To create value and make a difference everywhere we engage

The Coca‑Cola Company Vision
To achieve our mission, we have developed a set of goals, which we will work with our bottlers to deliver:

Profit: Maximising return to shareholders, while being mindful of our overall responsibilities

People: Being a great place to work, where people are inspired to be the best they can be

Portfolio: Bringing to the world a portfolio of beverage brands that anticipate and satisfy people's desires and needs

Partners: Nurturing a winning network of partners and building mutual loyalty

Planet: Being a responsible global citizen that makes a difference

Productivity: Be a highly effective, lean and fast-moving organisation

Chapter 1 : Introducing Strategic Management

The first chapter of our book begins by introducing the concept of strategic management.It is defined as the process by which a firm manages the formulation and implementation of a strategy . Implementing a good and efficient strategy is what helps a corporation thrive .Strategic management helps provide a framework that everyone in the organization can build from . Coca Cola strategically placed itself in the world's soft drink market and holds a great percentage of the market share. They are now working to expand their existing growth strategy and accelerate innovation .

Introduction

This will be my blog for MGMT 4710 at the University of Memphis.I will be using key concepts learned in strategic management throughout this semester to analyze a corporation .The Fortune 500 company that I will be focusing on will be Coca Cola.