Free essay on reflective statement

At first sight, the case study appears daunting owing to its detailed analysis and business terminologies. These components have the likely effect of demotivating a reader who is trying to attain comprehension of the same. However, this changes as a reader goes on with their study. The reader gradually appreciates the terminologies used. As a business student, the reader starts identifying with key business terms in the case study such as competitive advantage, strategic management and brands. The skimming process of reading the case study gives the reader the much needed impression that his initial fears emanated from the jargon and the lack of understanding of the market strategies.
Whilst having an overview of the historical management strategies of the firm in acquiring its status as one of the leading global food companies, the reader is able to understand the reasons for the success of the firm in the competitive market. With the benefit of the importance of sound management strategies, the reader is able to appreciate the strategies adopted by the company in carving out a market niche in its area of operation. The succeeding sections show the strategies adopted by the company in emerging markets especially in developing countries. In equal measure, the case study does not lose sight of the attendant risks that arise as a result of the expanding and increasingly competitive market. Indeed, without its historical measures and strategies adopted by the company with due regard to the risks, the company would not in fact have attained its large market share. The discourse on the case study and the management strategies the firm has engaged in over the years is instructive to the reader to that end.
The historical account of the strategies employed by the firm indicates even the long term aspirations of the company. The account gives the reader the understanding that the firm has been able to expand its operations through acquisitions of other business entities thus enabling diversification of its products. The section also makes the case that the sales of the company in the developed world where it has a big foothold have been on the decline. As a management strategy, the firm sees the developing world owing to the increase in economy, technology and population in those countries. The firm is keen on entering the emerging markets in the fast expanding economies of developing countries before its competitors. Similarly, the firm seeks to maintain its share in the developed world as they account for the majority of its current sales.
Before hand knowledge on theories and business concepts of the reader is enhanced even further with the study of the case study. The link between the company’s strategic management and its strategy on the very fact that the company has employed managers from local areas who have better grounding of the local business climate and dynamics. The engagement of local employees, especially the managers in the respective countries where the company has set shop derives the benefits that emerge from the local know-how of these managers. Without an adequate coverage of the strategies that have been adopted by the company in the past and going into the future, the reader would not understand or appreciate the competitive edge of the firm. By knowing the origin of the firm’s competitive advantage, the prior knowledge of the reader of strategic management of a company grows tremendously.
With the assignment of the case study, the reader also is able to understand all facets of strategic management including the risks in the market wrought by increased competition by private brands. Similarly, the reader understands of the demographic changes in developed nations which have had the effect of reducing the market for the company’s goods due to decreasing population.
The module avails the opportunity to put to use the skimming process of learning owing to the assignment’s nature of length. As a result, the reader is able to derive the advantages of understanding lengthy discourses within a short period thus saving on time. This enables time management which enhances both the learning and the professional skills of the reader which could come in handy in the labor market. This learning process also enables the reader to find key words and titles so as to get a quick glimpse of what the case study entails. Such understanding contributes to a confident reader when he is able to read with comprehension.
In addition, the presentation of the case study builds on the reader’s ability to draw up a business report. As a business student, the case study and the format in which it is drawn improve on the presentation and writing skills which are essential in the professional sense. To a big extent, the case study gives an indication to the learner on how a narrative and explanatory business analysis report should be written.
Going through the learning process of this case study elicits a number of issues one of which is the need for prior reading of the case study before attempting to make of it. This is because the learner is able to understand the case study after skimming through the study. Similarly, a thorough understanding of the local business climate and practical experience is necessary especially for multinationals and this is informed by the hiring of local managers in the company’s subsidiaries.
A common difficulty evident to the reader is the ability to read with comprehension the huge corpus of material as in the case study. The difficulty gradually abates as the reader continues with the learning process by engaging in the skimming process. With this, the reader is able to integrate the knowledge he possesses with the case study so as to overcome the challenges that present themselves.

Bibliography

Abraham, S. C., 2012. Strategic Planning: A Practical Guide for Competitive Success. New York: Emerald Group Publishing.
Bonn, I., 2010. Sustainability: the missing ingredient in strategy. Journal of Business Strategy, p. 23.
Brigham, E. F. & Ehrhardt, M. C., 2011. Financial Management: Theory and Practice. New York: Cengage Learning.
Chandra, P., 2011. Financial Management. New York: Tata McGraw-Hill Education.
Davenport, T. H., Cohen, D. & Jacobson, A., 2005. Competing on Analytics. Babson Executive Education, pp. 1-12.
McAfee, A. & Brynjolfsson, E., 2012. Big Data: The Management Revolution. Havard Business Review, 2(2).
Porter, M. E., 2008. The Five Competitive Forces that Shape Strategy. Havard Business Review, January. pp. 78-94.
Spillan, J. E., 2009. Sustainability of Competitive Advantage. International Journal of Sustainable Strategic Management, pp. 12-14.