What Panasonic Learned in China Assignment

Assignment Task

1. In the light of the case, explain what issues MNCs like Panasonic encounter in emerging economies such as China?

• Political tensions
• Slow market growth with China and doesn’t know what the local people want
• Considers China as a manufacturing hub for reducing the cost
• Existence of high competition with other developed country firms in China
• Existence of high competition with local firms
• Different business culture and doesn’t know the local culture of consumers

2. What actions did Panasonic take to address the issues?

• Developed a new range of products just for Chinese consumers
• Establish Lifestyle centre in Shanghai
• Focus on consumers need in China
• Sourcing the local talents
• Establishing the R&D centres
• Reorganise the whole corporate structure to keep the costs down
• Allocate a team for investigation within China
• Improve their product range and create an ecosystem for Chinese consumers
• Improves the autonomy of the local branches and sub.
• Allocate different R&Ds for different parts of the country
• Develop the management style to fit and balance both Chinese sub and HQ in Japan.
• Connecting with university to use and analyse the data and creating trust.

3. What framework is suitable for analysing the case of Panasonic?

• IR, use the transnational strategy

4. What strategies helped Panasonic to achieve competitive advantage?

• R&D
• Strategic partnerships
• Establishing the lifestyle centres in China
• Branding And relying on the C.A. of the country
• Top managers promote the localisation
• Customer centric approach
• Shift from global strategy to transnational strategy
• Expand to multiple product segment
• New ideas adopted in other parts of the world which are similar to customers and institutional profit
• Improve the autonomy of Chinese branches

5. How do MNC’s like Panasonic manage to retain its global identity?

• Keep the balance, while keeping the quality high (same as other developed country firms)
• Respond to consumers need within local market
• Consistence branding
• Focus on internationalisation rather than externalisation
• Exchanging teams and fostering of knowledge flows between HQ and sub,
• Transferring learning, knowledge flow
• Present the strength of the company outside Japan
  CSR

6. Discuss how Panasonic strategy evolved over time?

• Initially focus on cost efficiently only, while graduating moving toward local adaption and
• cost efficiently
• Started with a broader strategy, and gradually narrowing it down to Chinese consumers to
• save costs
• Create an eco-system of products for China
• Change the management mind set from only Japanese firm to a globe entity

7. What enabled Panasonic to overcome competition in China?

• Establish the R&D and lifestyle in China
• Have a closer connection with consumers in China by e.g.
• Create trust by transferring the Japanese technology to China
• Strategic partnerships

Ecco case analysis

1. Analyse Eco’s GVC in terms of the extent of spread (dispersion), specialisation and integration across Indonesia, Thailand, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia and Chinese subsidiaries, from cow to shoe.

• Indonesia
• Low labour
• Low labour Tanneries and experienced labour force
• Third growing industry in Asia
• Thailand
• Low labour costs
• Tannery process
• Assembling parts
• Location and access to Asian countries
• Netherlands
• Highly educated workforce
• Biggest tanneries
• Centralised hub for production
• Good source of raw materials, including wetblue
• Portugal
• Focus on technology and use the latest technology
• Specialised in shoe manufacturing
• Slovakia
• Access to Eastern Europe
• Chinese
• Close to key market
• Low production costs

2. What activities were kept in Denmark and how did it change?

• Earlier
• All activities of the V.C. were conducted in Denmark
• Later
• Keep the R&D
• More regulation and monitoring
• Keep the HQ in Denmark
• Some of the key activities (that requires specialisation) were kept in Denmark
• Some of the R&D towards production moved to other subDistribution centres in Denmark

3. What are the core competencies of Ecco?

• Lower labour cost
• Use the recent technology
• Automation process
• Specialising in R&D
• Have a continue high quality for the finished products
• Advantages in internal management
• Achieve a recent technology – direct injection, which was not easy to copy from other firms
• Continue the innovation and creativity
• Work force distribution and give them an ability to flex in each country.
• Advantages of family businesses

4. Why did the founder emphasise recruitment from within for management positions

• Emphasis on business culture
• Focus on both internal and external parts of the firm
• Retain the tacit within the firm
• Creates a royalty and connection between staffs and members
• Creates trust within the members and between other business
• Maximise the return of their investment in terms of training and education
• Increase the self-turnover of the firm
• Keep everything in house

5. Why did it emphasise training and education?

• So the labour gain the recent knowledge towards production
• Improve their production and quality of their products
• Adoptability
• High number of years for training new staff
• Transfer and keep the culture of the firm
• Positive and engaging work environment
• Helps the firm for a better recruitment

6. How does Ecco transfer knowledge from HQ and one subsidiary to another?

• Research centre
• ConferencesRegular inspection

7. How is family ownership affecting the strategy of Ecco? What are the pros and cons of family ownership.

Pros

• Established trust
• A connection of feelings towards the firm
• Focus on long term investment rather than short term one
• Increase the stability and increase the connections with other firms.

Cons

• Internal conflict and the conflict between the business culture and the family members
• Bias decision making
• Selection of the new talent is limited (Due to family connections)

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