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ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT






Assignement II: Business Plan and Technology




Djiemeni Toudjeu Gauthier

209327910














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Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. Strategic Management Process

3. Structured Approach to Business and Technology Strategy


4. Linking Technology into Strategies


5. Real live case study on Huawei technologies

A- Development Strategy

B- Market Strategy

C- Business Development

D- Business Performance

E- Growth Prospects and Business Outlook


References

















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1- Introduction

In todays fast-paced and rapidly changing business environment, companies
has deeply modified their strategies to integrate technology into the business
planning process. Technologies are now everywhere in the firms value chain.
Thus, it is necessary for firms to adapt their strategic process as technology is
important as part of business function. This implies the need to study a
technology strategy that link technology with business objective. In this
assignment, I will do a case study on Huawei Technologies, which is one of the
leading telecommunication company with many challenges. In this assignment,
I will present a structured approach to business and technology strategy.The
process includes study process that serve as a guidance to organizations
enabling them to analyse the technology needs for a business. Therefore,
managers must be aware of the strategic importance of technology in
delivering value and competitive advantage to their companies. Among the
awareness are deciding which technologies support the strategic objectives,
identifying companies strengths and weaknesses, establishing technology
priorities, and finally deciding strategic actions.

Establishing and maintaining the linkages between technological resources
and company objectives is of vital importance and represents a continuing
challenge for Huawei as it has many competitors in the same field. This
requires effective strategic processes of particular importance are the dialogue
and understanding that needs to be established between the commercial and
technological functions in the business.

The process includes designing a framework that serve as a guidance to
organizations enabling them to analyze the technology needs for a business.
Therefore, managers must be aware of the strategic importance of technology
in delivering value and competitive advantage to the companies. Among the
awareness are deciding which technologies support the strategic objectives,
identifying companies strengths and weaknesses, establishing technology
priorities, and finally deciding strategic actions.


According to Floyd (1997), in particular of that, there are approaches for:

1. Deciding which technologies you need to support the strategic
objectives of your business.

2. Determining competitive strengths and weaknesses in the technologies
matter

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3. Setting corporate technology priorities

4. Deciding on strategic actions to strengthen your position



This concept paper will explain the linking business objectives with technology
competences to integrate business and technology strategies. The final
product to be develop is an integrated plan linking business and technology
strategies to guide a business organization to their desired goal.

2. Strategic Management Process

The terms strategic management and strategic planning are often used in
the organization. Even though the terms are formally known, but in fact they
are not the same. According to Poister (2003), strategic planning is the
process of clarifying mission and vision, defining major goals and objectives,
and developing long-term strategies for moving an organization into the future
in a purposeful way and ensuring a high level of performance in the long run
and the strategic management, in contrast, is the larger process that is
responsible for the development of strategic plans, the implementation of
strategic initiatives, and the ongoing evaluation of their effectiveness.

Sometimes the strategic management is used to refer to the three (3)
important stages in strategic management process that are strategy
formulation, strategy implementation and strategy evaluation and the purpose
of strategy planning is referring only in strategy implementation.

According to David (2001), the strategic management process consists of
three important stages. The first stage is the strategy formulation. At this stage
the organization develop a vision, mission, identifying an organizations
strengths,
weaknesses, opportunity and threats (SWOT), establishing the short and long
term objectives, generating alternative strategies and choosing particular
strategies to pursue. At this stage the organization may look at the issues such
as what
new business to enter, how to allocate resources, whether to expend
operations and on how to enter the international market.

The second stage involves the strategy implementation. After strategies are
formulated, they must be implemented. This process is known as action
strategy. This requires the organization to establish objectives, devise policies,
motivate employees, and allocate resources. The action involves developing a
strategy-supportive culture,
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create budgets, developing and utilizing information system, and linking
employee
compensation to organizational performance (David, 2001).

A strategy is only as good as its implementation. However the processes are
not as simple as plan. The challenge is that the organizations have to face the
barriers to stimulate employees throughout an organization to work with pride
and enthusiasm
toward achieving stated objectives.



The final stage in strategic management process is the strategy evaluation.
Organization must determine what actual performance is by obtaining
information about it. Strategy evaluation includes three basic activities. The
first activity is examining the underlying bases of organization strategy. Next,
comparing expected results with actual results and finally taking corrective
action. According to David (2001) the strategy evaluation becoming
increasingly difficult today because of the following trends:

1. A dramatic increase in the environments complexity

2. The increasing difficulty of predicting the future with accuracy

3. The increasing number of variables

4. The rapid rate of obsolescence of even the best plans

5. The increase in the number of both domestic and world events
affecting the organization

6. The decreasing time span for which planning can be done with any
degree of certainty

3. Structured Approach to Business and Technology Strategy

Floyd (1997) has developed a framework linking business objectives with
technology.

Based on the figure, the structured approaches to business and technology
strategy begin with the development of objective. Objectives should be
quantitative, reasurable, realistic, understandable, challenging, hierarchical,
obtainable, and congruent among organizational units. Each objective also
should be associated with a time line. Objectives are commonly stated in terms
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such as growth in assets, growth in sales, profitability, market share, degree
and nature of diversification, and so on.
Long-term objectives are needed at the corporate, divisional, and functional
levels in an organization. They are an important measure of managerial
performance.

Besides that, the organization also needs to identify the strategy that fit with
the current business environment. These includes identify the technology,
competitors, products and services. Its includes the internal and external
environment. Then organization can link the business and the technology
strategy in the organization.


According to Burgelman et. all (2001), Technology is a resource that are very
important in organizations. Apart from that, managing technology is a basic
business function. Vernet & Mohammed Reza Aasti (1999) defined technology
strategy as organization priority in technology development that includes
technology sourcing, research and development, capital venture in technology
development, technology alliance and staff training and development. Vernet &
Mohammed Reza Aasti (1999) develop a model to shows the relationship
between technology strategy and business strategy in a firm overall strategic
objectives.


Source: Vernet & Mohammed Reza Aasti (1999)

The overall strategic are based on technology competencies to create
competitive advantage in the organization. It is very important for the firm to
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establish the objective that at the end will support overall strategy especially in
the technology.
Most of the company seeks for new competitive environment by taking
different approach to strategy development. They implement technology driven
business strategy and creates new business model based on their company
need.

A core competency can take various forms, including technical/subject matter
know how, a reliable process, and/or close relationships with customers and
suppliers. Technology competencies are engaged at the outset, planning and
prototyping

can occur earlier. Companies can engage in strategy prototyping, testing a
variety of potential strategies before a particular course is set. With this
iterative, learning-based approach, prototyping takes on a higher purpose,
exploring a spectrum of strategic possibilities, not just validating a selected
strategy's feasibility. Strategic planning is not anchored to a calendar, but is
evaluated and revised to take advantage of insights gleaned from new learning
and changes in the technology context.

Meanwhile according to Meyer (2008) in developing a technology strategy
organization need a clear direction. This is very important so that the
organization can tailor the overall of organization strategy.

The figure below explain the framework for organization to determent and
implement technology strategy
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Source: Meyer (2008)



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From the framework above, we can see that the determination and
implementation of technology strategy is embedded in an organization
where there is clear leadership that sets an overall strategic context. Such an
organization may create the conditions where creativity can blossom and
where market and user information may meet the
technological capabilities developed within the organization, leading to the
generation of lots of ideas.
Normally, such an organization will have an overload of ideas and one of the
essential tasks in the determination of the technology strategy is to evaluate
project on their own merits as well as their contribution within the portfolio.
Projects thus selected are prime candidates for investment. But in order to
succeed, those investment opportunities need to be checked with the available
capacity of the technology organization.

The technology strategy needs to be tailored to the overall strategy of the
organization. Clear vision is required defined by the leadership of the
organization to create an environment. The leadership needs to set the goals,
what kind of business does the firm want to be in and how do you want to
position the firm via the competition. By doing so it also defines what should
and should not be pursued as innovation projects. A clear vision is the best
way to help to define the portfolio of projects and the criteria that you need to
use to evaluate new opportunities. A good vision that can enable the
development of a technology strategy should live up to two conditions: it has to
combine a long-term view with concrete short-term goals and it should not be
too constraining. Technology strategy needs to stretch the organization
beyond its comfort zone.

4. Linking Technology into Strategies

The developments of technology strategy should initiate at corporate level. It
consists of strategic element such as the vision, plans and business needs and
then translates it into a realistic, objective, deliverable corporate strategy for
planning process.

Technology is a critical tool to support business strategy. Technology can play
in shipping business strategy. In the increasingly unstable business
environment, the process of finding a solution able to resolve the technological
issue and strategic issue
has been describe as a journey into the unknown. To survive the journey,
innovation is becoming crucial.
Therefore it is important for the organization to identify effective integration of
technology and strategy planning. The development of corporate
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strategy is the important stage in integrating the idea. At this point,
organization will look into resource that available and try to link with the
activities.



To understand the linking activity organization must look into factors that affect
the strategy. Grant (1991) defined strategy as the matching process for an
organization which involves internal and external environment. Technology
strategy is generally formed by the systematic process for creating, acquiring,
disseminating, leveraging and using knowledge for the competitive advantage
and to achieve organizational objectives.

Integration between internal and external resources requires organization to
match internal strengths, and weaknesses and external opportunities and
threats. It is important for the organization to undertake the strategy initiative
by evaluating the
environment in order to understand what technology strategy should be
managed and
performance. Organization that is capable to manage technology strategy
successfully will also able to reflect the internal and external competitive
strategy.

From the internal and external environment, organization needs to develop the
strategy and information of today by using SWOT analysis. The purpose is to
link between the internal and external environment. Part from that, Farrukh,
Phaal & Probert (2003) has been develop knowledge and resource based
concepts in technology management and builds on a process perspective. The
purpose of the
framework is to support the understanding of how technological and
supporting technology in the context of internal and external environment.

The technology processes such as identification (I), selection (S), acquisition
(A), exploitation (E), and protection (P)
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Source: Farrukh, Phaal & Probert (2003)





Real live case study
Huawei Technologies

A- Development Strategy
With a firm dedication to customer-centric innovation, Huawei Enterprise
caters to customers from the government and public sector, finance,
transportation, energy industries, large enterprises, communications and
MSOs, and SMEs worldwide.

Upholding our business strategy, we are focusing on ICT infrastructure, and
we are committed to providing wide-ranging ICT solutions and services to
customers, including enterprise networking, UC&C, cloud computing & data
center, enterprise wireless, and network energy.

We focus on close cooperation and integration with partners and firmly
implement a transparent and stable channel policy. We also strive to share
more benefits with partners and work hard to build a harmonious ecosystem
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for win-win partnerships.

B- Market Strategy

Cooperation with telecom carriers:
Telecom operators are Huawei's long-term partners and customers. It is the
common goal of Huawei and the telecom operators to work together to
develop the enterprise market and achieve a win-win situation.

Distribution and integration partners:
Huawei will expand its distribution and integration partners extensively in the
global enterprise market, as well as help partners grow rapidly, while setting up
a comprehensive and harmonious industry ecosystem.

Industry customers:
Through in-depth understanding of customer needs in various industries,
Huawei will fully develop and provide competitive, integrated solutions for the
respective industries.



Cooperation with global partners:
The cooperation with global strategic partners, who have years of industry
and market experience, will enable the two parties to complement each other
and assume a leadership role in global strategic markets.

3
In the enterprise sector, Huawei successfully integrated Huawei Symantec's
business and merge the storage product field into IT product line and a new
SecoSpace product field into enterprise network product line, which has further
enriched our ICT solution portfolio that covers enterprise network
infrastructure, UC&C, cloud computing & datacenter, and enterprise
information security.
4
In the enterprise information security area, which includes mobile office
security, unified network security and cloud computing security, Huawei is
dedicated to innovation and developed the 10G security gateway USG9000
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series which has T-level transmission capacity. Its UTM series achieve No. 1
market share in the threat management gateway market in China.

To address the rise of cloud computing and the growth of data, Huawei
launched T series of unified storage system, enterprise-level storage system
OceanStor HVS with the worlds highest configuration, UDS storage system
for massive data, MVX big data storage solution, enterprise cloud computing
system FusionCube, as well as dozens of models of Tecal V2 enterprise-level
servers. To date, there are over 130,000 users across 30 countries using
Huaweis desktop cloud, and more than 1,100 companies using Huaweis
storage systems. We have helped customers build 260 data centers worldwide,
35 of which are cloud data centers.

Huawei has launched some enterprise wireless solutions: GSM-R, eLTE to
meet customer needs in vertical industries. Huawei's GSM-R has been serving
railway lines worldwide, covering a total length of over 13,000 km. Based on
LTE technology, Huawei's eLTE solution supports multimedia clustering, video
surveillance, remote data collection, and broadband-based data access
services.

In the network energy field, Huawei adheres to a 4S (Simple, Scalable, Smart,
and Saving) concept, and has successfully applied its global leading ICT
technologies to energy systems, successfully enhancing the efficiency of
energy transformation and utilization. Huawei is now capable of delivering
superior site energy and data center energy solutions for global customers.


Upholding the strategy of close cooperation and integration with partners,
Huawei is committed to creating a constructive and harmonious ecosystem in
the enterprise IT market. Currently, Huawei has more than 200 tier-1 channel
partners (distributors and value-added partners) and over 2,000 tier-2 channel
partners (platinum, gold, silver, and recognized partners) worldwide.

C- Business Development
In the first half of 2012, Huaweis three business groups (BGs) achieved
considerable progress in technological innovation and market expansion,
further consolidating the company's position as a leading global ICT solutions
provider.
Huawei also launched the CloudEngine 12800 a world-leading core switch
for data centers, and CloudFabric data center network solution, as well as 34
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models of routers, switches and WLAN products, forming a complete portfolio
of enterprise network products.
Huawei also launched an industry-leading full-view telepresence that can
deliver a more true-to-life face-to-face experience.
D- Business Performance

In 2011, Huawei's enterprise business experienced rapid growth, with its sales
revenue reaching US$1.46 billion, a year-on-year increase of 57.1%

E- Growth Prospects and Business Outlook

Globally, the Huawei Enterprise business is growing steadily, allowing us to
solidify Huawei's position as the leading ICT solutions provider in the industry.
The enterprise business will also remain a key strategic direction for Huaweis
overall growth plans. Currently, the key markets of Huawei Enterprise include
33 countries around the world

Milestones
1.1 2012 year
October
Huawei officially joined the OpenStack Foundation to facilitate the
establishment of a more open cloud computing ecosystem.

September
Huawei established a global strategic partnership with Intel for IT products and
solutions.
August
Huawei and the State Information Center of China co-established the
Innovation Center for e-Government Initiatives. This is the first research
institute in China jointly set up by a government affiliate and a company that is
dedicated to the research, application, and promotion of new e-Government
technologies. Huawei announced its global channel service strategy.
July
Huawei became the only China-based company to join the Board of Directors
of the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards
(OASIS).
May
Huawei became the first China-based company to join the Transaction
Processing Performance Council (TPC). The TPC is an international standards
body that defines transaction processing and database benchmarks and
delivers trusted results to the industry.
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Huawei signed an important partnership agreement with SYNNEX Group,
which helped Huawei successfully enter into the channel network of the US
enterprise ICT market.

Huawei launched the Huawei Certified Internetwork Expert (HCIE)-Enterprise
technical certification. This is the highest ICT technical certification of the
routing and switching field in Huawei's certification program.
March
Tencent and Huawei hosted the opening ceremony of the Tencent-Huawei
Joint Innovation Center.

Huawei announced its global channel partner strategy.
1.2 2011 year
November
Huawei officially launched its ICT technical certification program. This program
is the only certification system in the industry that covers all technical fields.

Huawei acquired Symantec's 49% stake in their joint venture,
Huawei-Symantec, for US$530 million. The transaction was closed in March
2012 and Huawei now retains full ownership of Huawei-Symantec.
April
Huawei became the first China-based company to serve as a board member of
Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF), a mainstream standards
organization on cloud computing.
March
Huawei and Digital China signed a cooperation agreement and Digital China
officially became a distributor of Huawei's enterprise networking products.
Early
Huawei set up the Enterprise Business Group, announcing its official entry
into the enterprise market.

Conclusion

Technology and business strategy have a very strong connection. If the
companies be short of of technology, business strategy cannot be
accomplished. However, even many of the firms that have successfully linked
business and technology strategy fail to recognize the link between effective
intellectual capital strategy and both business and technology strategy.





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