Verified Document

Generation Alternatives 1-2 Pages Important Section Recommendation Essay

¶ … Generation Alternatives 1-2 pages Important Section Recommendation 1-2 paragraphs This a Grad level strategic management class. Harley-Davidson: Preparing for the Next Century

Harley-Davidson is not only a motorcycle manufacturer, but an emblem of the American society. Today nevertheless, the company faces the specific problem of an icon -- that of no longer being up-to-date, trendy and desired by the customers.

Harley-Davidson continues to generate strong financial results, but fact is that the incidence of sales has decreased. It would as such appear that the company is in need of a new strategic approach to help it reshape and reposition itself within the industry in a means which generates customer demand.

At a deeper level, the problem is manifested by the fact that the Harley-Davidson sales are based on history, tradition and sentimentalism. And the sales are attached to the target market of the manufacturer, which has nevertheless aged from 35 to 47. These consumers are as such unable to generate sustainable sales and revenues. The younger consumers, while appreciative of the Harley-Davidson brand, seem to prefer lighter versions, such as those manufactured by Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki or Kawasaki.

2. Problem analysis

As it has been mentioned in the previous section, the underlying problem at Harley-Davidson is that it cannot generate sustainable sales and revenues as its primary target base is aging. The motorcycle manufacturer would traditionally target consumers in the 25 -- 34 age group, but, as statistics have shown, the average age of the modern day Harley-Davidson consumer is of 47. At this age, people make purchases more from a sentimental value, rather than extensive, full capacity use of the motorcycle.

Harley-Davidson has for decades focused on strengthening its brand and making its mark on the American history and society. And it has attained this objective, but it has neglected a fact of life -- the aging of its consumer base. The Harley-Davidson bikes are filled with tradition and strongly placed in the American conscience, but they are not popular and trendy for the young consumers. They consume more and they are larger, heavier and as such more difficult to operate and upkeep by the buyers.

In...

Gradually, Harley-Davidson lost its supremacy within the younger consumer segment to makers such as Yamaha, Suzuki, Honda or Kawasaki. As a parallel, this situation is not uncommon, a similar risk having been materialized in the case of Ford and General Motors, who did not adapt their offers to the new needs of the American consumers, and as such lost supremacy to Toyota.
In the case of Harley-Davidson, the problem was propagated by the increasing popularity of the Japanese bike makers in the United States. These new players targeted a new market formed from older males and younger females, who could not afford or could not operate the heavy Harleys.

"They [Honda, Suzuki, Kawasaki and Yamaha] marketed smaller, quieter, and more fuel-efficient motorcycles that required little or no maintenance and were easier to handle compared to Harley bikes (Harley motorcycles weighed between 450 and 800 pounds). These characteristics attracted younger riders, women, and older riders; riders who could not afford the more expensive Harley motorcycles; bikers who did not want to tinker with the motorcycles; and those who could not muscle them around steep curves" (Noland and Kotha, 2007).

3. Root causes of problem

The main problem faced by Harley-Davidson refers to a steep decrease in their sales volumes, and adjacently, sales revenues. The root causes of the situation can be pin pointed to the following:

The failure of Harley-Davidson to recognize the changing needs of the customer base

The emphasis of Harley-Davidson on tradition and historic resonance in the detriment of niche segments and specific needs

The threat from the external environment linked to the increasing popularity and presence of Japanese makers in the United States

The operational inefficiencies at Harley-Davidson, especially as opposed to the operational processes at Honda. "The [Honda] assembly line was neat and uncluttered -- unlike our operation, where the line was always littered with parts and material. There was minimum paperwork and things flowed very smoothly."8

In the Honda plant, inventory…

Sources used in this document:
References:

Nolan, R.L., Kotha, S., Harvey-Davidson: Preparing for the Next Century, Harvard Business School, 2007

Ansoff's Product / Market Matrix,Tutor2U, http://tutor2u.net/business/strategy/ansoff_matrix.htm last accessed on April 18, 2011
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Airline Industry Has Become Increasingly
Words: 17068 Length: 50 Document Type: Dissertation

By the turn of the century, though, these low-costs carriers had become profitable or at least had significantly reduced their losses due in large part to concomitant increases by major carriers that were increasing their prices in response to decreasing yields and higher energy prices (Doganis 2001). By and large, passenger traffic across the board increased significantly prior to September 11, 2001 and all signs indicated it was continue to

Management and Decision Sciences From
Words: 25680 Length: 90 Document Type: Thesis

76). As automation increasingly assumes the more mundane and routine aspects of work of all types, Drucker was visionary in his assessment of how decisions would be made in the years to come. "In the future," said Drucker, "it was possible that all employment would be managerial in nature, and we would then have progressed from a society of labor to a society of management" (Witzel, p. 76). The

Best Practices in Policing Alcohol
Words: 17761 Length: 40 Document Type: Research Proposal

Of course, it becomes a very difficult matter to overcome sparse levels of availability when they are encountered (e.g. In the more remote regions of Western Australia). Taken together, the issues suggest that the impact of availability policy on the use of alcohol may be as heterogeneous as patterns of availability themselves. The reduction of one outlet in an urban area has significantly different meaning and implications than the reduction

Cuba After Castro Cuba Is
Words: 20759 Length: 80 Document Type: Term Paper

Those officials who did look at the question of Japanese intentions decided that Japan would never attack, because to do so would be irrational. Yet what might seem irrational to one country may seem perfectly logical to another country that has different goals, values, and traditions. (Kessler 98) The failures apparent in the onset of World War II and during the course of the war led indirectly to the creation

Marketing and Economics Agricultural
Words: 18779 Length: 68 Document Type: Term Paper

Origins, History of the IMF The International Monetary Fund was first conceived between July 1-22, 1944, at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire. The conference was attended by representatives of 45 nations, which were called together in order to plan and lay the groundwork for a cooperative economic framework to solve global financial crises before they occur. One key reason for the conference was to

Shrinking Middle-Class America a Variety Reference Materials
Words: 9571 Length: 30 Document Type: Capstone Project

Shrinking Middle-Class America" a variety reference materials (15-20) books, articles, journals, an internet sources long information cited proven-based gathered survey research data relation topic (The Shrinking Middle-Class America). The shrinking middle-class in America The societies across the globe continue to face challenges, which impact global evolution. Within the United States, a notable social concern is represented by the shrinking of the middle class, a phenomenon that has accelerated throughout the past

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now