Assignment
1. Criticize effective and ineffective corporate strategies. Dr. Pepper sells a large majority of its product to distributors who are owned (or affiliated) with its competitors? Is this a wise decision? Why or why not?
2. (a) Analyze the relationship among invention, innovation, and imitation; b) Define strategic entrepreneurship. What are entrepreneurial opportunities that existed in this case? How did strategic entrepreneur?s take advantage of these opportunities in this case?
3. Define business, corporate, and international ? level strategy. What percentage of Dr. Pepper?s revenues are generated domestically? Should Dr. Pepper focus more effort on international expansion?
4. Define business, corporate, and international ? level strategy. Did Dr. Pepper increase or decrease its marketing efforts in the face of a weak economy? Criticize that decision.
5. Explain the strategic management process. How should the changing landscape of the financial sector in coming years affect the joint venture? Is there less incentive to keep the joint venture going? Formulate a strategy about what the next phase of the joint venture should be.
6. Using the generic types of business level-strategies, what business Strategy is Dr. Pepper using?
7. Criticize effective and ineffective corporate strategies. How should joint ventures be assessed? Apply those criteria to this joint venture.
8. Criticize effective and ineffective corporate strategies. What are the elements of Dr. Pepper?s current strategy? What is your assessment of this strategy given your analysis of Dr. Pepper?s current position above?
9. (a) Explain the strategic management process; b) Explain how firms analyze their value chain for the purpose of determining where they are able to create value when using their resources, capabilities and core competencies. Compare and contrast Dr. Pepper?s financial with its rivals? What does that say about their performance?
10. Explain the value proposition of a cooperative strategy. What was the value proposition of the proposed CIBC and BNY Mellon joint venture in 1996? What were the potential risks? What benefits were realized? And what expected benefits never materialized?
11. Define and describe the general environment and the industry environment and how competitive forces influence the firm. What is the external environment affecting Dr. Pepper?
12. What corporate governance mechanism does the joint venture use?
13. Analyze the relationship among corporate structure, corporate governance and corporate strategy. What steps should have been taken to protect shareholders? investment in the joint venture in September of 2008?
14. What risks in forming a joint venture are present here? How were these risks mitigated?
15. What are Dr. Pepper?s Core Competencies?
16. What cooperative strategies could Dr. Pepper use to boost returns?
17. Explain the value proposition of a cooperative strategy. Joint venture?s often fail. Thomas MacMillian addresses his reasons that this is the case. Do you agree or disagree with his assessment? Why or why not?
18. a) Discuss the value of strategic leaders in managing the firm?s resources; and b) Analyze what makes strategic leaders effective): Financial joint ventures are fairly rare. Analyze the role that Thomas MacMillian played in stewarding this joint venture? What made his efforts effective?
19. Analyze the relationship among corporate structure, corporate governance and corporate strategy. How was the joint venture structured? How did this structure address the concerns the various stakeholders had?
20. Explain merger and acquisition strategies and how they relate to strategic competitiveness. What mergers and acquisitions has Dr. Pepper made recently? How have these enhanced strategic effectiveness?