Hewlett Packard Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Hewlett Packard - Case Study Example The Business Strategy section of the report will discuss the leadership styles that the various CEOs of the company used, the need for change and its initiation, crisis management, etc. HP's competitive advantage, its growth and global business and any spinning off of divisions will also be analysed. In the second module of organisational identity, HP's core identity will be analysed from the time when Fiorina was the company's CEO, and the company's corporate image and culture will also be analysed. This report will also discuss the strategic options available to Mark Hurd, HP's new CEO. Finally, the company's organisational identity and business strategy will be linked to give an overview of the current situation, and some ideas and solutions will be proffered for the new CEO to implement to move the company forward. HP was formed by William (Bill) Hewlett and David (Dave) Packard, both graduates of Stanford University, in 1934. A garage in nearby Palo Alto was the originating point of the company where both founders used to hangout. Their partnership was formalized on January 1, 1939 and a coin toss decided that their electronics manufacturing enterprise be named the "Hewlett-Packard Company". HP incorporated on August 8, 1947, and went public on November 6, 1957. Of the many projects the founders worked on, their first financially successful product was a precision audio oscillator, the Model 200A. Later on their more successful inventions became the HP calculator and the computer. Products HP (www.hp.com) has a range of products that it offers to its customer base. Their three business groups drive industry leadership in core technology areas: The Personal Systems Group: business and consumer PCs, mobile computing devices and workstations The Imaging and Printing Group: inkjet, LaserJet and commercial printing, printing supplies, digital photography and entertainment The Technology Solutions Group: business products including storage and servers, managed services and software BUSINESS STRATEGY Corporate Level Strategy HP's products in its first thirty years consisted mainly of electronic test and measurement instruments for engineers and scientists. This early strategy evolved a bit when they expanded into computers, calculators, medical electronic equipment, instrumentation for chemical analysis, and solid-state components. Even so, HP's strategy was aimed at getting business through was still its test and measurement operations up through 1979. The research and development function was dominant in HP's operations because its main customers were the engineers and cutting edge technology was a prerequisite to beat the competition. Because HP engineers developed products to serve people like themselves, marketing was not valued and was relatively weak, as were logistics and distribution. This strategy reflected the no-nonsense approach of HP's founders. HP concentrated on modestly sized market segments where its technically superior products could achieve a strong position and command high margins. Changes in Business Strategy In a fast-paced computer industry, particularly for consumer-oriented products such as HP's PCs and printers, technical innovation could no longer be the sole source of competitive advantage. Speed to market, price, service,