Google Inc. The Impact of Mission, Vision,

Google Inc.

The impact of Mission, Vision, and Primary Stakeholders on the Success of Google Inc.

The biggest aim of Google Inc. is to make every type of information accessible for individuals, business corporations, and governmental entities in all the corners of the world in an effective and efficient way. The mission statement expresses the company's interest for the community in which it operates and the primary stakeholders which have a direct stake in its business operations and performance. The mission and vision statements have a leading impact on the company's success and prosperity in its industry. They provide strategic direction to the internal stakeholders (i.e. The organizational members) on how they should perform at the workplace in order to achieve the long-term objectives of the company (Google Inc., 2013).

The primary stakeholders of the company also contribute to its success in a number of ways. For instance, the supply and value chain members like suppliers, distributors, strategic partners, and business associates enable it to produce world-class products and services and deliver them to the potential customers in an effective and efficient way (Ball, 2010). Similarly, the employees at its headquarters, research and development centers, and regional offices perform their job responsibilities with full dedication and commitment so as to help it in maintaining its market leadership in the global internet services industry. The customers -- one of the most important stakeholders of the company are also the biggest source of revenues (Google Inc., 2013).

SWOT Analysis for Google Inc.

A. Internal Analysis

a. Strengths

b. Weaknesses

Google Inc. is the world's largest company in the web-based services and internet advertising industry.

Google offers a wide array of products and services that meet all types of internet solution requirements of the individuals and businesses (Google Inc., 2013).

Google enjoys strong brand loyalty and financial performance due to highly reliable products and huge customer base.

It is the most appreciated brand in the global internet services industry.

It has the largest business network among all other IT giants with respect to supply chain, global reach, and product usage. It also owns the world's largest search engine, named as 'Google'.

Google Inc. is also the market leader in Research and Development and a pioneer in introducing innovative web-based products like Google maps, translator, publishing tools, etc. (Google Inc., 2013).

Some of the products and services offered by Google Inc. are less familiar in the worldwide target markets. For example, Google Adsense, Google Health, Google Gears, Google Groups, Google Places, Google Social Graph API, iGoogle, etc. are not giving satisfactory sales performance in the global market.

The marketing and promotional activities for these low demand products are also unsatisfactory in the eyes of Google's stakeholders.

Google charges a high price for its top products and advertising services which creates an opportunity for its competitors to attract potential customers through low price strategy.

Google Inc. has also been facing some critical cultural diversity issues at its workplace. These issues have raised problems in its industrial relations and public image in the worldwide community.

B. External Analysis

a. Opportunities

b. Threats

Google Inc. needs to cut down its high operational, R&D, and marketing costs in order to compete in the industry in a more cost-effective and competitive fashion.

It can introduce more innovative web-based and internet related services for all types of customers. This strategy will increase its product portfolio and bring more customers to its business (Blythe & Megicks, 2010).

The most potential investment area for Google Inc. is information and communication technologies. It needs to invest in R&D section in order to come up with modern technology which is not yet introduced by its rivals (Ball, 2010).

The biggest threat for Google Inc. is the global market leaders in the computer hardware and software technologies; like Yahoo, Microsoft, Oracle, Symantec, Adobe, etc. These competitors are a direct threat for company's operational and financial performance in its industry.

The changing individual and business needs also require Google to improve its products in terms of compatibility, reliability, user-friendly interface, and pricing. Therefore, Google has to continuously invest a heavy amount on its R&D section -- the most expensive operational area of all the time.

Competitor Analysis for Google Inc. using Michael Porter's Five Forces Model

1. Rivalry among Existing Competitors:

The biggest industry rivals for Google Inc. include Yahoo, Microsoft, SAP, Adobe, IBM, Symantec, Samsung, Oracle, and Sony. These competitors are also present in all the potential markets of the world where Google Inc. currently offers or has planned to offer its products and services in the near future. Google Inc. faces direct threat from these competitors in each and every aspect of its business operations; like sales performance, profitability, pricing, place, and promotion strategies, product or service quality, reliability, and compatibility, etc. (Bearden, Ingram, & LaForge, 2007). In order to maintain its market leadership in the internet advertising and web-related services, Google Inc. has to keep an eye on the strategic and tactical moves of these industry rivals. All these competitors collectively form the most important part of the competitive environment for Google Inc.

2. Threat from the New Entrants:

In contrast to the rivalry among top competitors, Google Inc. does not face a major threat from the new entrants in its industry. The biggest reason for this lower level threat is high barriers to entry for new companies. In order to set up their business in the local market, a new technological firm needs huge investment to make in the Research, development, hardware, and software technologies. Moreover, the top market leaders have developed their strong brand image in the global market which keeps the customers tied with their high quality and reliable brands and persuade them to avoid unknown brands (Wild, Han, & Wild, 2011).

3. Threats from the Substitute Products:

Almost every product or service which Google Inc. offers has an equally reliable and innovative alternative and substitute product. These substitutes increase the level of competition for Google products. Therefore, it has to attract customers by convincing them to buy only genuine, compatible, and innovative products which are manufactured by the world's most favorite IT Corporation, Google Inc.

4. Bargaining Power of Customers:

The bargaining power of customers is higher as compared to the manufacturers. Reason being, customers have a lot of choice to buy their desired product or service from any manufacturer in the industry. On the other hand, the manufacturers have to compete with their rivals that also offer similar products at very competitive prices. Therefore, they need to attract their potential customers using expensive marketing and promotional campaigns. The customers have become more knowledgeable about technological products and services which make their decision criteria highly strict. This high bargaining power of the customers is a big threat for Google and its top competitors (Bearden, Ingram, & LaForge, 2007).

5. Bargaining Power of Suppliers:

In contrast to the bargaining power of customers, the suppliers in the global IT industry have weaker bargaining power against manufacturers. Large scale IT companies like Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Oracle, etc. find the most reliable suppliers in the industry which can provide them the highest quality of raw material for manufacturing and development processes. Therefore, they only agree to pay high prices if the raw material meets their quality requirements. Keeping in view these requirements, suppliers have to make every effort to ensure continuous and efficient supply to these large scale manufacturers. Moreover, they have to follow the instructions given by these manufacturers about raw material quality, specifications, origin, etc. In order to build strong relationships with them (Bearden, Ingram, & LaForge, 2007).

Strategies in the light of SWOT Analysis

First of all, Google Inc. needs to overcome all the weaknesses and drawbacks which are present in its strategies and operational setup in order to become operationally stronger and more competitive. The weaknesses can be mitigated if Google makes the best use of its strengths and distinctive competencies against environmental forces and industry rivals. In order to grow in the industry with a rapid pace, Google will have to redesign its product development strategies: it will not only have to add more features to its existing products and services, but also have to make sure that these new features are introduced before its competitors do the same (Blythe & Megicks, 2010).

In a view to control its high marketing, operational, and research and development costs, Google needs to retrench unnecessary units which are giving low sales, but are taking significant part of its development and marketing budget. The potential threats like substitute products and changing customer needs can be mitigated by creating value in its products and services through technological advancements and customer service efficiency. Moreover, it needs to invest in Total Quality Management which will help it in making its products and services stronger and more reliable as compared to their competitor products and services (Wild, Han, & Wild, 2011).

Strategies to Maximize Competitiveness and Profitability

The biggest strengths of Google Inc. are its worldwide presence and strong brand image. These strengths are complimented by its sound financial strength and strong customer base (Google Inc., 2013). All these strengths and competencies can be used to become more competitive and profitable. Firstly, Google Inc. should strive to become self-sufficient by becoming its own supplier and distributor. It can be done if Google Inc. adopts backward and forward integration strategies respectively. Secondly, Google can increase its competitiveness by introducing innovative and improved versions of its existing products and services. These innovative versions will boost up its sales performance in a very short span of time. The most potential areas of investment which can give Google attractive returns on its investment include information and communication technologies, virtualization, smart phone applications, and networking solutions.

Competitiveness can also be increased by weakening the operational strength of competitors in slow-cycle markets. For example, if Google introduces innovative products in those markets where competitors have not targeted a larger consumer segment, its brands will be established in those markets in a very short span of time. Similarly, it can expend heavily on marketing and promotional campaigns in order to create awareness of its brands among potential customers and throw out the unknown competitors out of the market. All these strategies will help it in becoming more profitable and competitive in the industry (Brassington & Pettitt, 2006).

Communication Plan for Google Inc.

An effective communication plan is needed to create awareness about the organization wide strategies and policies among the primary stakeholders. Google Inc. will need to institute different communication strategies for this purpose. Firstly, the customers can be educated or informed about new product offers, promotions, business policies, and strategies using different types of marketing and promotional mediums; like electronic media, print media, internet and social media, bill boards, mobile advertising, trade shows, seminars, product reviews, etc. Similarly, the internal stakeholders (i.e. employees) can be informed about new corporate, business, and functional level strategies using inter-office circulars, seminars, and meetings. The most important stakeholder of the company is the investors who have invested their money in its different stocks. These investors can be communicated through industry publications, annual reports, Corporate Social Responsibility reports, etc. (Brassington & Pettitt, 2006).

Corporate Governance Mechanisms at Google Inc.

Google Inc. uses different corporate governance mechanisms which help it ensure that each and every function at its headquarters, Research and development centers, and regional offices is being performed in an efficient, fair, and transparent manner.

a. Ethical Marketing:

Google Inc. believes in sound business and ethical practices all over the Globe. Therefore, ethical marketing is one of the most important corporate governance mechanisms instituted at its workplace. Ethical marketing practices are helpful in evaluating the management's strategic and tactical decisions regarding the marketing and promotional efforts of its products in the light of internationally accepted ethical principles (Abela & Murphy, 2008). This mechanism ensures that Google's Management does not use any unethical wording, promises, or texts which may harm the cultural, religious, or social values of any group of the society.