management STRATEGY & COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

Microsoft

by, William Knowles, Indra Senihardja, Andrew Suen, Luke Aiston

Here ill put the diagrams from the presentation (as instructed) once it is completed -Tripp

Microsoft Corporation has been a powerhouse in the technology industry since it’s founding in the spring of 1975. At the dawn of a new technological age, Microsoft arose as one of the first and most dominant champions, and as such, was the first corporation to bring the power of computing into the common household. There was once a time where the word “computer” was accompanied solely by the word “Microsoft.” That time seems like a distant memory now. Today, computing has evolved from what it once was in 1975, when it was merely a home computer with many limitations. In order for Microsoft to make its way to dominance again, they must be able to understand how both Microsoft and computing have evolved over time, and where they will be going. They must focus on that which made them who they are today, software, and once again become proactive rather than reactive within their market. Comment by William Knowles: Intro

In order for a corporation to be successful, it must have its own identity. Without an understanding of who you once were and who you currently are, you will never be able to end up where you want to be. Since its founding in 1975 up until the year 2000, Microsoft was the sole major player in computer software and computer operating systems. It was the face of technology, leading society into a new age of computers and technology that had never been seen before. It was the pioneer and face of the computing world. But what exactly is meant by the term “computing”? During the aforementioned time period, “computing” was strictly limited to computers, at a very basic level. Whether for work or personal use, computers were growing more and more popular, but strictly within the desktop domain. Throughout the 2000’s and into modern day, the domain of computing has expanded dramatically. With the addition of laptops, mobile devices, cloud computing, and other computer services, computing has become much more than it was back in 1975. It is a much broader term than it once was. During a time of rapid growth in computing, Microsoft should have been leading the charge of innovation within computer software, but they did just the opposite of that. Microsoft wanted to remain the face of computing, and thus it stayed involved with everything. It began creating hardware and accompanying software that included tablets, mobile phones, and video game consoles. Microsoft wanted to continue to dominate the entire computing world, and that just is not possible. Computing has grown enormously to the point where one specific company cannot dominate and innovate in everything. A firm that specializes within a specific area of computing will have the best chance at innovating and competing in a specific area. Microsoft was first and foremost a company that created operating systems and software, and that is where they need to focus and innovate in. Comment by William Knowles: here i discussed the identity of Microsoft. Who they were, are, and want to be

Current CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, has made his focus very clear, which is domination in market share. In 2000, Microsoft’s market share was at 97%. Today it is at 20% ( http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2012/12/13/microsofts-market-share-drops-from-97-to-20-in-just-over-a-decade/ ). This dramatic drop is market share over the last fourteen years is not nearly as bad it seems. Back in 2000, mobile phones were not included in this metric. Mobile phones have become a huge part of technology, adding an entirely new dimension to computing. Since the contents that make up Microsoft's market share have changed, it is an inaccurate way of analyzing the company’s status. A better way would be to look to examine each individual component of computing that Microsoft competes in. Looking at a market share metric that only includes desktop operating systems, Microsoft dominates that market share at 92%. If you were to include mobile phones into that metric, that number drops to 38% ( http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-the-competition-for-windows-10-2014-10 ). This specific example shows that Microsoft is still extremely successful in desktop operating systems, but not so much in mobile phones. A look at Mircrosoft’s most recent revenue report will illustrate that 70% of the firms profits come from operating systems, software, and software services ( http://www.zdnet.com/apple-google-microsoft-where-does-the-money-come-from-7000026043/ ). Satya Nadella was partially correct when he stated that market share was the focus of Microsoft. He just needs to be more specific, and focus in on a specific niche within computing. By focusing on market share as a whole, Nadella has stretched the company’s resources too thinly, making both innovation and market share success within Microsoft scarce. If the focus were shifted in on operating systems and software, Microsoft will have the resources and opportunity to innovate again. This will allow them to be proactive and not reactive, and allow them to dominate in specific areas of the computing market share. Comment by William Knowles: Here I discussed the Dilemma Microsoft faces, which is Market Share vs innovation

(Triangular thinking and organizational pattern)

Microsoft Organization Strategy

In the past, Microsoft corporation was the pioneer when computer was introduced to the market, they were dominated the operating system market for over decade ago. Microsoft organization strategy was more on control rather than autonomy or cooperation. Microsoft was fairly consistent in developing their products for over a decade ago.

Today, Microsoft’s strategy is focused on productivity and our desire to help people “do more.” As the Microsoft Devices Group, our role is to light up this strategy for people. We are the team creating the hardware that showcases the finest of Microsoft’s digital work and digital life experiences, and we will be the confluence of the best of Microsoft’s applications, operating systems and cloud services.

In future, we believe that Microsoft organization strategic should be in the level between control and cooperation.

Microsoft Organizational Pattern

How we should compete: Economy and Interaction

How we should grow: Making

How we should we organize: Centralization

some sources

1) http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-the-competition-for-windows-10-2014-10 Today, Mircrosoft dominated desktop operating systems with 92% of market. If you include mobile devices as well, that number drops to 38%. This means that microsoft soft is getting killed in the mobile phone market, something they only recently added.

2) http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2012/12/13/microsofts-market-share-drops-from-97-to-20-in-just-over-a-decade/ Market share drop from 97% in 2000 to 20% today. The problem with using market share on track microsoft's success is that it is the the contents of what make up the term have changed. Back in 2000, mobile devices were not included in this metric. The addition of them did not do any favors to Microsoft