Strategic Choices at Harley-Davidson Motor Company
Assignment, read the information in the background material, look for more information and review some of your previous readings for this class, and then write a 3-page report for the executives of H-D corporation by answering the following questions:
i. What strategy (or combination of strategies) did Harley-Davidson use to become such a successful organization?
ii. To what extent has Harley-Davidson’s strategy (or combination of strategies) changed over the years, or been constant?
iii. How does Harley-Davidson’s strategy (or combination of strategies) “fit” with the environment of the motorcycle industry?
iv. How does Harley-Davidson’s strategy (or combination of strategies) “fit” with the internal resources and competencies of the firm?
v. Based on your analysis and findings, what would you recommend to the executives of Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Corporation?
BACKGROUND MATERIAL
Strategic Choices or Alternatives
Strategy formulation takes place at three different levels:
• Corporate Level: Concerned with the selection and management of a portfolio of businesses in which your company should compete.
• Business Level: Concerned with developing and sustaining a competitive advantage for the products/services the business produces.
• Functional Level: Concerned with the development and coordination of resources at the operating level.
Making the right choice strategically at each level of the company is what divides the successful company from the ones who are now in the pages of history. In this course, however, we have been focusing mainly on the business level of strategy and we will continue this focus in this module.
In formulating a strategy, which will then influence the day-to-day choices made by the firm in pursuit of its mission, the organization must:
• Take into account their resources and capabilities
• Accommodate the restrictions and opportunities imposed by the environment
• Integrate knowledge of strategy and organizational architecture
Although companies seem to follow an endless variety of different strategies, in truth, there are only a handful of generic strategies – though the choices of how to implement them may indeed be endless. To learn about the role of the basic four types of strategy in building a competitive advantage read:
Tutor2u.net (2011). Competitive advantage. Retrieved, from: https://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/competitive_advantage.htm
The key to organizational viability and growth is to stake out a position that is:
1. Less vulnerable to attack from competitors, both established and new, and
2. Less vulnerable to erosion from the direction of customers, suppliers, and substitute products/services.
Required Reading:
Pearson Custom (2014), Strategic Management and Planning Techniques. Retrieved from:
https://www.pearsoncustom.com/mct-comprehensive/asset.php?isbn=1269879944&id=12168
Review the materials from H-D’s investor Web page.
Harley-Davidson. (2012). Quick Links (Investor relations page). Retrieved from:
https://investor.harley-davidson.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=87981&p=irol-govhighlights&locale=en_US&bmLocale=en_US
Also review materials you have covered in previous modules that will provide you with insights for completing the assignments.
The following readings demonstrate the relationship between Porter’s generic strategies and the threats from competitors, customers, suppliers, and substitute products.
Quickmba.com (2010). Porter’s Generic Strategies. Quick MBA. Retrieved August 2011 from
https://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml
Tutor2u.net (2011). Competitive advantage. Retrieved, from: https://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/competitive_advantage.htm