Chapter 9. Strategy and Strategic Management
Chapter 9 Study Questions
What is strategic management?
What are the essentials of strategic analysis?
What are corporate-level strategies, and how are they formulated?
What are business-level strategies, and how are they formulated?
What are the foundations for strategy implementation?
Learning From Others, Get and Stay Ahead With Strategy
When Disney's CEO Robert A. Iger announced that the firm was paying $4 billion to buy Marvel Entertainment, everyone from moviegoers to superhero lovers to financial analysts debated the move. Not everyone thought it was a good idea. But, Disney's chief financial officer at the time, Tom Staggs, said: "Marvel is worth more inside Disney than outside Disney."[486]
Under Iger's leadership, Disney has grown as an entertainment conglomerate. Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks, Steve Jobs's animation brainchild Pixar Studios, and now Marvel Entertainment are all in the Disney stable. It's "pure genius," claims Rick Sands, former chief operating officer of MGM. But it's also a lot to manage if the growth strategy is to succeed.
Each aspect of Disney has its own brand identity and customers, and each has unique management challenges. Iger tries to balance strategic control with strategic autonomy. He lets top executives of the major brands and divisions make their own decisions while taking advantage of corporate resources in areas such as marketing, which is a major and an increasingly expensive area.
As to the Marvel ...
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