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Business Problem-Solving and Strategy. Manga for Success. Edition No. 1

  • Book

  • 288 Pages
  • April 2023
  • John Wiley and Sons Ltd
  • ID: 5839714

A FUN AND APPROACHABLE WAY TO LEARN IMPORTANT BUSINESS PRINCIPLES

Do you want to improve your business performance? Or are you looking for a basic understanding of business strategy? Whatever your reason for picking up this book, Business Problem-Solving and Strategy: Manga For Success makes business strategy concepts easy to understand using practical examples and situations. You’ll read about:

  • Important business analysis tools like SWOT analysis and issue analysis
  • Strategic option assessment
  • Developing and executing a strategy for any business situation

The story follows Kazumi who takes over operations at her father’s confectionery company. With the help of her mentor, Business Planning Manager Takeda, she formulates a viable plan for turning the business around, building trust among key stakeholders, and successfully convincing the CEO to implement the plan companywide. With this approachable book, you’ll quickly grasp business analysis topics and have fun learning how to apply them in the real world. Find out why the Manga For Success series - now available in English for the first time - is so popular in Japan, Korea, and beyond.

Table of Contents

Preface 10

Prologue

…I Can’t

I Can’t Just Abandon Everyone When MAT- SUI-YA is in Trouble!

What Is a Business Strategy?

Story 1 Help Me, Senpai! 14

1 What Is a “Strategy”? 26

Strategies Are Everywhere 26

Strategy Is a Road Map to Success 26

Resource Allocation: Decide Where to Focus Your Organizational Resources 27

Strategy Is Nothing without Execution 31

The Correct Way to Create a Strategy 31

Business Strategy Is a Blueprint for Your Business Success 33

2 The Many Pitfalls of a Business Strategy 34

Building Strategy the Right Way Is Tough 34

Framework and Concepts: Make or Break the Strategy 34

Can Looking at the Task at Hand from the Opposite Angle Constitute a “Strategy”? 35

A Strategy Cannot Ignore the Front Line 36

A Fake Strategy in Purple Prose 37

Failing to Grasp the Current Situation May Lead to Mistakes 37

The Risk of Homogenized Strategies 38

3 Preparations to Build the Correct Strategy 39

Take the Right Steps to Analyze 39

Use Frameworks and Concepts Wisely 40

Have a Unique Point of View, Think Outside of the Box 40

Support the Front Line 41

Emphasis on Essence and Mechanism 43

Bring in a Key Person 44

4 Create a Dynamic Strategy! 45

Four Steps in Building a Strategy 45

Step 1 - Analyze the Situation 45

Step 2 - Formulate Strategic Options 47

Step 3 - Review and Select Options 47

Step 4 - Translate Strategic Options into Plans of Action 48

Step 1 Analyze the Situation

Story 2 Knowing Your Enemy Is Knowing Yourself 50

1 The Essentials of Situation Analysis 74

Analyzing the Situation Is The First Step in Building a Strategy 74

Only a Handful of Corporations Truly Understand the Current Situation 74

Methodology and Frameworks: A False Sense of Completing the Situation Analysis 76

Three Keys in Understanding the True Situation 76

The Basics of Situation Analysis: SWOT Analysis 78

A Business Strategy That Cannot Be Executed Is Nothing But a Pie in The Sky

2 OT Analysis 83

OT Analysis: Three Core Elements 83

The Five Forces Analysis 85

Analyzing the Five Points 87

Positioning Analysis and Competition Analysis 89

Client Analysis 93

Key Sucess Factor (KSF) Analysis 95

3 SW Analysis 99

Deciding Pros and Cons Based on Relativity 99

Achievements and Performance Analysis 100

Positioning Analysis 104

Business Model Analysis 106

Marketing, Value Chain, and Organizational Analysis 108

Tangible and Intangible Asset Analysis 109

Understanding the Structures of the Issue at Hand 110

4 Organizing SWOT 113

Keeping the Impact on Your Business in Mind 113

I’ve Gotten A Lot of Positive Feedback On Our Red-bean Paste

Business Partners and Clients Alike, They All Com- Pliment Ann

It’s a Very Valu- Able Asset

First, We Ana- Lyze the Situa- Tion And Remember to Always Share The Result of The Situation Analysis

Step 2 Forming Strategic Options

Story 3 How to Save a Company in Trouble? 118

1 What Are Strategic Options? 140

Options Mean Choices 140

Considering a Variety of Options 140

2 Make Objectives and Issues Clear 142

What Is the Objective of Strategy Building? 142

What Are the Issues in Building a Strategy? 144

Decipher Objectives and Issues from the Result of SWOT Analysis 146

Organizing the Structure of an Issue 150

3 Lay Out the Options 1: Growing Potentials for the Preestablished Company 154

Aim to Grow Preestablished Business Models and Positioning 154

Consider Strategic Options for the Long Run 156

Change the Positioning 156

Coming Up with Growth Options by Changing the Positioning 158

Changing the Business Model 160

Pairing the Positioning and the Business Model 162

That’s Easy For You to Say… You Just Give Out Or- Ders

We Are The Ones Who Come Face-to-face With the Clients. It’s Not Always About Ratio- Nality

Coming Up with Growth Options by Changing the Business Options 165

4 Lay Out the Strategic Options 2: Options for the Newly Established Businesses 167

Analyze from the Market Point of View 167

Analyze from the Value Chain Point of View 171

Analyze from the Asset Point of View 172

Analyze from the Business Model Point of View 174

Change the Rules of Competition, Think Outside of the Box 175

5 Lay Out the Strategic Options 3: Improve Profit 177

Options to Lower Cost and Improve Gross Profit Margin 177

Options to Lower Managing Cost 179

Options to Improve Efficiency 179

Improve Ways to Manage and Improve Profit Structures 180

6 Summarizing Strategic Options 181

Organizing All Available Options 181

Coming Up with Growth Options and Scenarios by Organizing Strategic Options 181

…I Will Have a Word with

The CEO Myself Regarding This

Step 3 Review and Select Options

Story 4 All for One, One for All 186

1 Reviewing Options 206

How to Review Options 206

Three Perspectives in Reviewing Options 206

2 Reviewing with Both a Cool Head and Burning Passion 208

Reviewing and Selecting Options 1: Rationality 209

The Main Points in Reviewing Rationally 209

How to Review Each Point 213

3 Reviewing and Selecting Options 2: Feasibility 215

The Main Points in Reviewing the Feasibility 215

How to Review Each Point 223

4 Reviewing and Selecting Options 3: The Intents and Expectations of the Parties Involved 225

Fostering Agreement and Understanding with “Face to-face Discussions” 225

The Groundwork Discussions: Situation Analysis and Strategic Options 226

Which Reviewed Points to Prioritize 227

How to Understand and Decide on the Results 229

How to Expand Options 229

Making Decisions Based on What You Want to Do 230

Always Have a Plan B Ready 230

But… Time Has Changed

If Every- One AGREES, Then I’d Like To Ask for Your Coop- Eration!

Step 4 How to Translate Options into Plans and Actions

Story 5 What Becomes of a Strategy 232

We Are On The Homestretch Now

In Regards to The Future Loan, Inaho Bank Is Demanding You Resign From Your Posi- Tion

Let’s Come Up With Specific Executions And Actions Based on These Principles

1 How to Translate Strategic Options into a Plan 252

The Necessary Process in Executing the Strategy 252

2 How to Apply Strategy to Execution 254

How to Apply Strategy to Execution 254

Setting Priorities 257

3 How to Carry Out Strategic Options 258

Beyond the Possibility: Feeling and Determining 258

The First Step in Strategic Execution 260

4 Create a Plan of Action 263

The Master Plan: The Plan of Action for Strategic Execution 263

Coming Up with a Realistically Applicable Plan 265

5 How to Execute with Certainty 268

Build a Promotion System 268

Implement a Thorough PDCA 269

Postscript 276 

Authors

Takayuki Kito Tokyo University Law School. Keisuke Yamabe Hitotsubashi University Business School.