M25293 CORPORATE STRATEGY

Section B

Answer only OΝΕ of the below questions in an essay format (50 marks).

1. Cirque du Soleil challenged the conventions of the circus industry. It created uncontested market space that made competition irrelevant, by shifting away from the traditional circus show. It moved towards creating impressive professional dancing and acrobats’ performances. Actually, one of the first Cirque du Soleil productions was titled “We Reinvent the Circus.” What kind of strategy has Cirque du Soleil followed? To what extent is this kind of strategy sustainable for the medium to long term survival of an organization? You can use this example or/and other examples from any industry to support your answer.

2. The company ‘China Wings’, a newly established Chinese company in the airlines industry, is thinking of expanding its activities into the UK. Examine and discuss on any three strategic internationalization decisions that ‘China Wings’ has to make before coming to the UK.

3. Critically evaluate one technique that can be used to analyze the external environment of a company. Use any company as an example to show how this technique can be used in practice.