Running head: HUGE AND DIGITAL STRATEGY 1

HUGE and Digital Strategy Case Analysis

Careea Nordè, Karen Nostrant, Heather Smith, Mary Stephens & William Tiemann

Siena Heights University

LDR 660-OA

April 14, 2013

HUGE and Digital Strategy Case Analysis

The digital marketing industry has become very fluid and increasingly unpredictable with

the constant evolution in technology. HUGE, known for being a full-service digital agency was

founded in Brooklyn, New York by David Skokna and Sasha Kirovsky in 1999. In 2011, HUGE

was described as “the fastest growing digital agency in the United States” (Casadesus-Masanell

& Karvounis, 2012, p.1). CEO Aaron Shapiro believes that to continue its growth into the future

it is necessary to shift the company’s strategy. He would like to find the best way to introduce

new growth without compromising the company’s reputation for excellence (Casadesus-

Masanell & Karvounis, 2012).

HUGE takes pride in its ability to maintain high standards and ethics. This is seen within

their consulting model which states they are “predicated on high-quality labor-intensive creative

and technological excellence” (Casadesus-Masanell & Karvounis, 2012, p.1). The organization

focuses their work around the user’s experience. HUGE founder, David Skokna described the

user experience very simply stating, “ it’s easy to make things pretty; it’s really about how it

makes you feel once you’re using it” (Casadesus-Masanell & Karvounis, 2012, p.6). HUGE

refuses to give any client less than the best and expects to exceed their client’s expectations by

producing great work. A large poster that hangs in the Brooklyn headquarters speaks to its

employees loudly; it says, “Make something you love” (Casadesus-Masanell & Karvounis, 2012,

p.10).

Shapiro attributes the success of HUGE to its culture, desirable work environment, and

the hiring of the right employees. He believes that an employee must be excited about a project

to do a great job and allows employees to opt-out of projects that make them uncomfortable.
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Continued success in Shapiro’s eyes hinges not only on shifting strategies to introduce new areas

for growth, but also on maintaining the company’s founders vision of happiness at work. By

examining the HUGE’s primary opportunities and issues, considering how the organization

should respond to these opportunities, and exploring how they can implement and evaluate their

chosen strategy, we will analyze HUGE’s strategy for successfully attaining growth in the future.

Primary Issues and Opportunities

The digital media industry is constantly changing because of the increase in social media

use with mobile devices and smart phones, while more businesses reach out to potential

customers via the World Wide Web. With the increase in technology comes both opportunities

and issues for organizations like HUGE. It is these issues and opportunities that concern Aaron

Shapiro, causing HUGE to have to make a shift in strategy which can affect the organization.

With the growth in size of the organization (number of employees) and revenues, Aaron Shapiro

does not want to ruin the reputation of excellence that has been built between HUGE and its

clients, while making changes to the organization (Casadesus-Masanell & Karvounis, 2012).

Organizational Response to Issues and Opportunities

The opportunities for the growth in HUGE would be in the following four areas: retainer

relationships, geographic experience, expanding traditional services, and health care. The

company’s main concern is to remain the best in their industry while maintaining top quality

services to their clients and giving each client the necessary attention they deserve.

The three main stages toward growth for HUGE include; analysis, development, and

optimization. The analysis stage would require assembling a team to explore the discovery

period by conducting market research, interviewing stakeholders, and conducting a brand and

content audit assessment of the project along with a business analyzes. In the development
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stage, they would plan this venture by establishing goal prioritization and generating an

implementation plan, which would include constructing a creative, user-friendly customer

platform. This would be followed by building and deploying the project. The final optimization

stage would entail measuring the process by tracking feedback with user research and monitoring

future improvements (Casadesus-Masanell, & Karvounis, 2012).

To accomplish this endeavor HUGE would have to apply Porter’s (2008) five competitive

forces that shape strategy by asking themselves the following questions: What are threats of new

entrants into the digital industry? What is the bargaining power of buyers in new areas? What

substitute products or services are offered by other industries? What is the bargaining power of

suppliers? What kind of rivalry exists from competitors offering the same services? (Porter,

2008). HUGE will have to consider these industry-shaping forces before moving forward on any

growth strategies.

HUGE should commence this process by forming a team within the organization to identify

external threats and opportunities (“SWOT Analysis I,” 2006). Next, this team should

conceptualize the workplace-style and lifestyle trends that might affect the digital industry by

assessing what kind of consumers would need their services. This team would also look into

changes in the competitive arena because “putting the shoe on the other foot, we know that

technology can provide powerful opportunities for companies that commercialize it in ways that

provide clear benefits and value to customers” (“SWOT Analysis I,” 2006, p. 12). Employing

Porter’s Five Forces (2008) in conjunction with SWOT Analysis I (2006) will help HUGE make

the correct decisions regarding expanding the company.

Organizational Implementation and Evaluation of Chosen Strategy

By utilizing the SWOT Analysis I (2006), HUGE has to scrutinize all aspects and

consider all factors to illuminate and give understanding to the field and area of interest in which

the company functions and is run (“SWOT Analysis I,” 2006). One method to accomplish this

would be to conduct a survey of employees, shareholders, and customers (both loyal and

potential). The insight from employees and shareholders would shed light on all aspects of the

organization and expose company weaknesses and strengths. Feedback from customers will

identify opportunities and threats that the organization faces.

A survey will allow the organization’s employees to communicate to leadership areas in

which the skill set of the employees do not match the demands of the market. This in turn allows

leadership to make decisions either to offer training in areas where employees are deficient or to

invest in hiring new employees. A survey would also identify areas in which the organization is

dominant. If HUGE is known for being able to provide consumers with an unforgettable digital

interaction experience, then that principle should remain unchanged and in fact it should be

broadened.

One are HUGE could expand its influence, is in the healthcare field. One reason why, is

that patients like the idea of being hands-on in regards to their treatment and in taking control of

their schedule, HUGE would really thrive in this market. Since healthcare is increasingly

shifting its focus to the patient/customer experience, HUGE could supply the technological

aspect to address the needs in this area.

HUGE can follow up the survey by formulating and testing the feedback with concepts of

Porter’s (2008) five competitive forces. By assessing, infiltrating, capitalizing, and dominating

their industry HUGE must understand the forces that power the competition. “Understanding the

competitive forces, and their underlying causes, reveals the roots of an industry’s current
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profitability while providing a framework for anticipating and influencing competition (and

profitability) over time” (Porter, 2008, p. 3).

Finally, the organization can learn to forget (Hamel & Prahalad, 2008). HUGE should

not continue to look at past successes and imagine it as the only way to continue to succeed. The

company should be innovative in formulating new ideas and concepts, scrutinizing these for

every possible fault, and rebuilding them to make them stronger, better and more innovative.

Hamel & Prahalad (2008) claim,

The best way to ensure that one is not at risk from more imaginative competitors

is to be the first to conceive of alternate value-delivery mechanisms, the first to

cannibalize one’s own products and services, and the first to get to the future,

even when that future undermines past successes (p.19).As AndyGroves at Intel

puts it, , “You have to be your own toughest competitor” (p. 19).

Conclusion

Aaron Shapiro, CEO is faced with the need to shift strategy at HUGE to increase revenue

growth and to continue to compete in the constantly changing digital media industry. HUGE has

discovered opportunities for growth in the following four areas: retainer relationship, geographic

experience, expanding traditional services and health care. Shapiro’s concern with moving into

these areas is not being able to give their clients the necessary attention they deserve, ruining

relationships that have been built, and ruining the company’s reputation.

The decision to move into new ventures is not easy for any organization. HUGE will

have to decide whether the risk is worth the reward by identifying the opportunities and threats in

the external environment. HUGE will use Porter’s (2008) five competitive forces model to
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research and analyze the following: power held by suppliers, power held by buyers, competitive

rivalry, threats of new entrants, and threats of substitute products.

HUGE must also reflect on its own strengths and weaknesses when making this decision

to confirm that their organization is ready to embrace these new ventures (“SWOT Analysis I,”

2006). Evaluation of new concepts and testing of those concepts will allow the organization to

understand the forces that power them as well as their competition by looking into all aspects,

considering all factors, and learning to forget the organization can broaden its horizons through

these new ventures while maintaining their core business and reputation (Hamel & Prahalad,

2008).
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References

Casadesus-Masanell, R., & Karvounis, N. G. (2012). HUGE and digital strategy. Retrieved from

Harvard University, Harvard Business School Publishing for Educators website: http://cb.

hbsp.harvard.edu /cbmp/asset/19098885

Hamel, G. & Prahalad, C. K. (2008). Learning to forget: Competing for the future. Retrieved

from Harvard University, Harvard Business Publishing for Educators website: http://cb.h

sp.harvard.edu/cb mp/asset/19098875

Porter, M. E. (2008). The five competitive forces that shape strategy. Retrieved from Harvard

University, Harvard Business School Publishing for Educators website: https://cb.hbsp.

harvard.edu.ed u/cbmp/asset/19098871

SWOT analysis I: Looking outside for threats and opportunities. (2006). Retrieved from Harvard

University, Harvard Business School Publishing for Educators website: http://cb.hsp.harv

ard.edu/cbm p/asset/19098 877