Strategic Planning and Implementation
Today's business environment is more challenging than ever, yet a small number of companies have succeeded in delivering above average financial performance,. Through
ACG is recognized as a leading consulting firm providing strategic business, market planning and technology planning services to the world wide automotive industry. Our extensive knowledge and experience enables us to address specific issues within the broad context of the industry, and to identify strategic implications that might help or hinder the client's efforts to increase sales and profitability.
ACG's principals profess that today is history. As such, we believe that current information is a picture of the past not a vision of the future. Our approach to each and every assignment is to evaluate historic information and to develop a framework of future industry, market, and customer needs based upon changing business, market, and technology trends. Using this approach, we provide our clients with strategic planning insight and direction that is unavailable elsewhere.
ACG's unique methodology has enabled us to identify emerging trends at their earliest stages, and to correctly predict new trends before they begin. Our clients, being at the forefront of impending change, have been the beneficiary of this exceptional knowledge and foresight.
Representative Assignments
A large powertrain component manufacturer was struggling with the realignment of the supply base and its relative position within the supplier hierarchy. As a result, ACG was retained to evaluate change within this product area and to assist in developing a corporate strategy that would allow the firm to capture emerging opportunities. ACG analyzed the firm's competitive position in terms of product portfolio, market share, and product development capabilities. Based upon this analysis, ACG recommended a series of actions that included product line expansion through a combination of internal product development and the acquisition of key core competencies that did not currently exist within the organization. Employing this strategy, the firm has become the market leader in its product area.
In a similar assignment, ACG was retained by a medium sized interior trim supplier. While the owner was intent on remaining a 1st tier supplier, he lacked the internal resources to become a full service supplier. Furthermore, he was unwilling to leverage the company to acquire complementary product line manufacturers which would have enabled his firm to supply full systems or modules. ACG documented the firm's core competencies and those of full system suppliers. Using this analysis, ACG was able to convince the owner that his firm would lose the impending competitive battle with larger, better financed companies. The owner accepted ACG's recommendation to reposition the firm as a 2nd tier supplier and it has thrived as a result.
ACG assists manufacturing and service companies develop growth strategies to successfully compete in today’s global marketplace.
- Developing strategies to meet today’s complex and fast changing market, technology and competitive forces is a major challenge for many manufacturing companies.
ACG has a proven record of helping manufacturers develop and implement strategies to capitalize on the new business growth opportunities arising from these changes.
- Our staff is comprised of former senior managers who had to formulate and execute new strategies at companies they managed -- many in turnaround situations.
Our strategic approach seeks to identify opportunities that integrate your company’s core capabilities with innovation – in products, manufacturing, and services – to achieve profitable growth and gain a competitive advantage.
- We assess future market, competitive, and technology trends, as well as the impact of regulatory and economic changes on the business. Using this research, we identify several alternate strategy scenarios. These are reviewed in working sessions with your team and a final strategy is chosen.
STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION
Once the strategy is selected, the hard work of implementation begins.
According to a recent global survey by the American Management Association, 62% of companies are only moderately successful – or worse – at their strategy implementation.
ACG works with you to develop an implementation plan that defines major action plans, sets schedules, and assigns responsibilities. We know from experience that successful implementation also requires:
– Setting clear strategic objectives for your business
– Reviewing progress every quarter with employees involved in the implementation tasks
– Establishing clear communications with well defined and quantified metrics
– Providing employees with the resources needed to execute their strategy tasks
ore relaxed, confident and effective leaders, an increasingly ordered, responsive and ethical management style, and better relations between managers, employees and customers.