Case Name: Digital Case Student’s name: Tran Hoang Thanh

Trang
Student ID: 1732300193
Course Code: MGMT 216

CASE STUDY ANSWER SHEET

Question 1: What are the main reasons for the decline of the Japanese electronics

industry?

Answer: 1. The Japanese electronics industry face with financial problems because

the foreign competitors especially from Taiwan and South Korea can improve the

quality of their product faster with a cheaper price. These companies also run

marketing strategies effectively. For example, in 2009, Samsung Electronic gained

profits twice as big as the total profit of nine of largest consumer electronics

companies in Japan. In 2012, Sharp record losses so serious that the chairman has to

doubt about the survival of the company.

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Question 2: Why do so many Japanese companies find it difficult to succeed in the

globalized business world?

Answer: Japan has a strong currency is blamed by manager because it can cause

problems about export goods while strong currency problems happened in Korea or

China at lower level. Japanese companies tend to produce high quality products

instead of newer designs and innovative products so that impact the consumer

interest in overseas markets. Besides, the Japanese management style such as

seniority-based wages which increase the aggressive levels among the company and

become a competitive disadvantage. Nerveless, Japanese companies hired

employees or trained them to have specific skills that also impact the globalize of

companies.

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Question 3: Which business strategy did each of the companies apply?

Answer: Sony ran strategic alliance management. This company cut 6% employees

in 2006 and focused more on digital imaging, games, and mobile technology. With

other sectors, the firm plans to either abandon them or create partnerships with

other companies. In 2011, Sony took control fully Sony Ericsson, a joint venture

producing mobile phones after ten years. This group entered the smartphone market

with smartphone line, Xperia, and promote its movies, music, and games to the

users of the phones. Moreover, in 2011, Sony jointed venture with Samsung in LCD

technology, had partnership with Panasonic to develop display OLED, and bought

11.46% of shares of Olympus, a major player in the digital imaging sector. So, these

things help Sony can pool their strengths and get competitive advantages.

Hitachi changed their main products from HDD hard disk to nuclear energy.

Hitachi bought Horizon Nuclear Power (HNP) to reinforce its strengths. This

business promised to get potential fully in foreign market and Hitachi would build

two or three 1,300-megawatt plants in England by the mid-2020s. Hitachi had a

partnership with Mitsubishi Heavy to combine their thermal power system

businesses. This brought benefits for both companies and increasing revenue.

Hitachi earned 57% of the revenue with foreign activities and 65% of the total

employees.

Canon entered into the new market (medical imaging and intelligent robots)

and spent 1 trillion yen in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) within five years to

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enhance these sectors. Focusing on diagnostic devices, Canon collaborated the

University of Maryland, this would improve and make the production processes

efficiently. However, Canon still hoped about digital camera market would bring

benefits, the PowerShot N as a good example. The company added on this product

many functions such as customers can personalize it or can use and run apps with

Android or IOS.

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Question 4: Are these strategies Japanese or Western?

Answer: These strategies influence by Western more than Japanese. Because the

Japanese stakeholder orientated focuses less on the shareholders while these

strategies concentrate to customers and foreign market, they also tried to innovate

and create new products and enhance the quality. In addition, three companies

above preferred to joint venture and pool strengths whereas the Japanese one has

more conscious on special skills.

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Question 5: Do you think they will be successful?

Answer: I think they will be successful because if apple require Sony deliver

innovative products continuously. Sony will have chance to come back the market.

Hitachi focus more on nuclear energy will bring benefits in the future especially

Western market. Canon innovate the medical technology environmentally which

contains a large chance to succeed.

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Question 6: What management advice can you give to the three companies?

Answer: With Sony, the company should build the brand power and try to take

competitive advantage in specific products. They also acquire some company to

improve their technology abilities besides adding more available languages in the

products. Hitachi should expand the market to other countries such as India or the

Middle East to get more benefits. Finally, Canon should achieve their camera phones

successfully and has partnership with Apple if they don’t want to behind their big

competitor, SamSung.

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