Problem Definition
We are a warehouser (B2B) and have been facing a decline in profits since past 2 years. We would like you to figure out why this is happening and provide recommendations to reverse this trend.
We are a warehouser (B2B) and have been facing a decline in profits since past 2 years. We would like you to figure out why this is happening and provide recommendations to reverse this trend.
The case is designed to be presented to the candidate by an interviewer, who plays the role of a representative of a telephony technology warehouser.
The candidate should ask for more market information. The interviewer should provide all available information & data to candidate and it is up to candidate to define the issues that should be looked into based on the data/info provided.
We are the largest company in the industry. Apart from one competitor who is almost as large as us, there are several small players in the market. In recent years we have not seen any new market entrants and all firms sell at industry-wide prices.
The reseller market can be divided into Value-Added (largest), Corporate (medium), and E-tailer (smallest) segments.
After looking at the table, the candidate should be able to come up with the following observations:
From the above observations, the candidate should be able to make the following conclusion:
Since the overall volume has decreased, it could mean that the client and competitors are getting cut out from the value chain - the manufacturers maybe directly selling to the resellers or to the end consumers.
Falling prices can be a result of the price wars which are happening because of the shrinkage of the industry. We can see that the industry is rapidly ageing. Since there are no opportunities of product differentiation, there is little the firm can do to increase profitability. The firm should recognize this and look for options for exiting the industry.
The industry looks mature and is rapidly approaching obsolescence. There is little the firm can do to increase profitability. The firm should recognize this and look for options for exiting the industry.
What kind of options could the firm consider for exiting the industry?