Leveraging on Jack’s Five Step Strategy to Improve Business

Executive Summary

AT & T is one of the world’s leading telecommunication companies. The firm has managed various installations in mobile telephone services as well as the development of infrastructure for other companies. Being a well-known company, the organization has drawn its influence from the past activities of the Bell Industries Cooperation, founded by Alexander Graham Bell; considered the father of the telephone. AT & T is an abbreviation for the American Telephone and Telegraph Company that was developed much later, to perform large scale manufacture and installation of telephones in 1885. The rich culture of the organization has seen it become one of America’s heritage organizations and currently, with the annual revenue of over $ 100 Billion, it is one of the most successful telecommunications companies in the world. Among the operations the company is involved with include; manufacture of smart phones, provision of cellular network services and the installation of networking infrastructure. Indeed, AT & T remains a global brand in the information age (Li, & Xu, 2014).     

The Jack’s 5-Step Strategy Framework

The Playing Field

AT&T faces competition from a host of telecommunication services providers. The largest telecommunication services provider is within the American region; Telmex. In Texas, the company also lags behind ExxonMobil with regard to the provision of cable subscription services for television. Indeed, the playing field comprises significantly influential competitors with ample assets to introduce competitive products to the market. With regard to manufacture, AT & T also faces competition from leading handset manufacturers such as Samsung and Nokia, which are also greatly invested in other electronics the company supplies such as landline phones and networking equipment. Some of these companies may not have been in existence for a long period of time as AT & T has. However, the company has greatly tried to level the playing ground by approaching a niche that has been consistently enlisting their services for decades. The playing field is not fair or levelized given the number of continents and commercial laws involved (Hausman, Tardiff, & Belinfante, 2016).

The Competition’s strategies

For the competition, the idea is often to brand and specialize. For instance; the smartphone manufacturers involved in the market often do not involved themselves in other businesses such as network and television services. The competition is very specific about the major services they offer. This keeps their investments low and greatly minimizes their operating expenses. These companies have also managed a niche that consistently anticipates their products and services. For instance, networking services from Cisco PLC would likely beat AT & T since Cisco is a market standard for networking hardware and facilities. Similarly, smartphones produced by Apple Inc lead the global sales platform. This brand has existed since the onset of smartphones and indeed, the organization is credited for this very innovation. Uniqueness seems to be a major factor that influences consumer lock-in in the Information Technology sector. The companies in this sector thus benefit from being uniquely differentiated and thus lock in customers (Li & Xu, 2014).  

AT&T’s strategies

AT & T is a leading brand on many fronts. By being involved in various sectors within information technology and media, the organization is rated highly among contractors. This makes it easy for the company to get contract awards for different services within Information Technology and media. While this calls for a lot of investment in human resource, it also guarantees that the company has a strong network of clients that consistently offer business opportunities and essentially assist the organization to grow. This makes it possible for the organization to become a leading contractor on many fronts, essentially gaining worldwide recognition. The organization’s brand benefits immensely from the promotion it gets and the spread of the organization’s client base within different continents around the world. This helps AT & T bridge gaps and approach new markets that the competition is at times unable to (Lam & Shiu, 2010).

Unforeseen dangers

The high operating cost at AT & T is a major concern. For AT & T, while the revenue is about $ 163 Billion, the income is only $ 24 Billion. This implies that the company greatly invests in many activities and services that are not necessarily beneficial. Of concern is cutting these costs. It is important for the organization to foresee the growing wage bill and other recurrent expenses. This is important since the cost of operations increases gradually as well. With factors such as inflation and improved cost of living, the organization will be forced to improve the pay packages of the employees, which will immensely dent the operational budget. Technology is a fast-moving concept. Many companies are unable to cope with the high demand for new innovations and products. AT&T should be aware of this danger as it is imminent and has led to the fall of major technology giants around the world (Gilles & Friedman, 2012).

The Winning Move

AT & T needs to consider the available untapped market potential. Most companies in Africa and Asian regions take advantage of the population (mostly middle to low income) to employ economies of scale strategies. It is important that AT & T rolls out products to target low-end markets. This is because; most of these markets are emerging. As the market capitalization reaches fever pitch, the organization continues to benefit from the investment in the opportunity. This is the future of information technology and media. Recently, many television and media companies are investing in live streaming services. AT & T needs to ensure that the organization is not precarious to this trend. The company needs to invest in technologies that promise future hopes for the organization. Trends in Information technology are quite abrupt and intense. AT&T should be at the center of these trends. This can only be done effectively through investment in market research and an understanding of consumer dynamics (Lam & Shiu, 2010). 

Conclusion

For AT&T to succeed in a competitive market, they need to show the consumer that they offer value at a lower cost, at an acceptable rate. This implies that the company needs to be a trendsetter in various concepts in the information technology sector (Hausman, Tardiff, & Belinfante, 2016). Instead of waiting for the competition to launch leading solutions in the market, the company needs to engage the consumer early enough in order to understand their needs. It is necessary that the company explores the different consumer needs and properly meets these needs in order to gain a greater niche than it currently does. With the very many products on offer, consumers now prefer products and services that give them value for money. AT&T should make sure that the consumer sees value and benefit in all their products and services.

References

Gilles, M., & Friedman, G. (2012). After Class: Aggregate Litigation in the Wake of” AT&T Mobility v Concepcion”. The University of Chicago Law Review, 623-675.

Hausman, J., Tardiff, T., & Belinfante, A. (2016). The effects of the breakup of AT&T on telephone penetration in the United States. The American Economic Review, 83(2), 178-184.

Lam, P. L., & Shiu, A. (2010). Economic growth, telecommunications development and productivity growth of the telecommunications sector: Evidence around the world. Telecommunications Policy, 34(4), 185-199.

Li, W., & Xu, L. C. (2014). The impact of privatization and competition in the telecommunications sector around the world. The Journal of Law and Economics, 47(2), 395-430.