3 SMART objectives
- It is necessary to attract more new customers on their business and inform them about computing, software and books and it must be predict by December 2010
- To publish a thick book and then advertise it, but people who don’t know about Microsoft and persuade people to buy them what Microsoft technology is.
- To qualify computer science courses for students who are interesting in leanings and reach them by online cheaper to teach.
- Strategic planning process
Quantitative analysis of current situation: Quantitative analysis is based on numbers. It is to assist in the making an appropriate plan. For example, if Oxfam costs are lower than those of rivals that they can undercut their prices, or make more profits from the same volume of sales. If they are selling more than their rivals are, they could set themselves the aim of retaining market leadership. If their customers are pleased then they can focus on customer pleasing to beat competitors. For example, if interest rates are high they know that costs are likely to rise if they have borrowed money.
Qualitative analysis of current situations: Qualitative analysis is more about feelings or opinions and instincts. Qualitative analysis is more emotional. In Microsoft, qualitative analysis can be earned from asking questions and discussing issues with different groups. For example, they might interview small groups of customers to find out about what they think of the company or goods and services. How do customers view them compared with the competition? They can talk or discuss with employees and pressure groups to discover what they think of them.
Setting aims and objectives: The aims of the businesses depend on the kind of business they are. For example, the aims of Oxfam will be quite different from those of Microsoft. A firm needs to have a clear sense of direction that should be clearly communicated to all stakeholders. The aim of the firms which are then split into objectives. The objectives set out more specifically how the aim can be achieved. For example, the aim of the Microsoft is to be the world’s leading software supplier. The objective is to undercut the price of rivals; to take over other similar makers; to increase sales by giving discount price to the customers.
Planning strategies: The quantitative notification about benefits or profits might suggest that the company must be wary about expanding at any time. The qualitative notification about growing customer preference for organic goods may suggest that they expand their organic lines. The firms need to make plans to take them forward into the future may be for five years or more. The plan must set out where the business wants to go, the aims and objectives, and details of how they will achieve these aims; it is referred to as the strategy. A well strategy must be:
- Public and voluntary sector strategies
Public sector service provision: The trust receives funds from the government and then is expected to control these funds efficiently to meet government targets. The targets relate to such things as managing waiting lists so that patients do not have to wait too long for treatment. Primary health care trusts are therefore designed to seek to give the maximum service given the resources available.
Voluntary sector services: In the voluntary sector much of the emphasis in the aims and strategies of businesses is on providing service. E.g. Oxfam Ambulance service and their voluntary organisation designed to provide medical support to the public at times of need. It can play particularly important role in training volunteers to give first aid. Oxfam raises money through a range of fundraising events and that money can then be used to provide training, and pay for the maintenance of ambulances and other services.
Service level agreements: To create a service level agreement it is necessary to establish certain standards that must be met. We have already seen this in the case of Oxfam or primary health care, relating to the length of patients waiting lists and the time taken for a patient to be treated.
Provision at or below cost: There are so many pressures on public sector and voluntary businesses to obtain products and services at a maximum cost. It is because of government, rather than a private owner, is the key stakeholder in the business. Because the government represent the community it is more concerned with making sure that there is a return to society. For example, health and social services provide home nursing to elderly and sick at below cost price, Oxfam operates health services during disaster periods by providing nurses or doctors and to help people with any types of illness. So the government will provide many services and goods at below cost to certain groups.
- Private sector Strategies
Profit maximisation: The principle of adjusting price and/or output volume in such a way as to earn the largest possible profits in Microsoft. This is said to be accomplished by continuing to increase production up to the point where the cost of the last unit of output just equals the additional revenue received by the firm from selling that additional unit of output (Marginal Revenue). This is the profit maximizing output since profits would be reduced by producing still another unit (the extra cost would exceed the extra revenue.
Sales: There is another strategy that private sector firms can implement, which is to maximise sales. There are two various ways of calculating sales:
- Sales volume: the number of items sold.
- Sales value: the money received from making sales. It is also called sales revenue.
Products/services at cost/profit: The business aims to drive sales of Microsoft products by working with large enterprise customers to help them adopt and deploy Microsoft products, and with technology solution providers to make sure they can offer a wide range of Microsoft-products related services at cost.
In Microsoft, only two percent of the company's revenue comes from consulting and support services. Although it was generating a profit, it was also trading a very fine line with its channel partners, who were already offering many of the same services that corporate customers were asking Microsoft to provide.
Increasing revenue and cutting costs: To increase profit it is necessary to increase sales revenue and/or lower costs. There are the main strategies that firms will peruse in order to raise profit margins. There are another ways of rising sales revenue include:
- Improving Microsoft products.
- To spend more on advertising on their product.
There are many costs that may be cut. For example:
- In Microsoft two people works together that could be done by one person.
- Unnecessary costs – e.g. lighting and heating left on when it is not required for electronic software makers.
- Wasteful use of other resources.
Breakeven: The breakeven is therefore necessary business objective, and one that is essential to ensure survival at least in the short-term. The breakeven for Microsoft is the point where it exactly covers all of its costs with its revenues.
Survival: The business that has been there a long time survived. Survivor like Microsoft may have seen better days. At one time it would have been unthinkable that Microsoft would have to struggle to survive. Up until the 1994 Microsoft went from strength to strength and represented the very best of American/global quality. It was said that people could walk to any room where other people are gathered and know with certainty that the majority of students or business people would be using their software’s on Mobile, PDAs, handheld laptops etc. However, by the 2001 many consumers enjoys and desire to become more powerful business in the world to survive and it is to be still in business next year.
Marketing: Marketing helps Microsoft to identify and qualify new prospects and communicate the right message to their customers—at the right time and through their preferred channel. Quickly plan and execute personalized campaigns across all communication channels, including direct sales, call centres, e-mail, fax, and the Internet. A single campaign window consolidates all the information and functionality they need. Microsoft helps to optimize their sales and marketing activities to control cost and increase effectiveness.
Competitors: Microsoft operates in competitive local, national, international and global markets. The business need to be alert to what their competitors are doing. They must make sure that they are seen as market leaders rather than market followers. First to market is necessary in business they talk about ‘first mover advantage’. The organisation that comes up and delivers new ideas before rivals steals a march on them.
- Growth
Profit: Net income is equal to the that a firm has after subtracting costs and from the total . Microsoft net income is $14.06 billion (2007).
Sales: In business, revenue or revenues is that a receives from its normal business activities, usually from the sale of to customers. Microsoft revenue is 51.12 (2007).
Market share: The business of Microsoft's search engines saw their first market share increase in nearly a year. Microsoft's search market share jumped 0.4 percentage points from February to March, giving it 10.9 percent of the total market.
