Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Executive Summary
Table of Contents
Executive Summary. 1
Table of Contents. 3
Section 1
Company History... 4
Company Mission.. 5
Company Vision and Values..... 5
Section 2
P.E.S.T.E.L. 7
S.W.O.T. 10
Five Competitive Forces.13
Section 3
Value Chain.. 15
Corporate Strategies . 16
Competitive Strategies ..............................................16
Offensive and Defensive... 17
Section 4
Microsoft's Competitors ... 17
Financial Becnchmarking.. 18
History
In 1975 Bill Gates and Paul Allen created a partnership called Microsoft with a huge vision that
would have a desktop computer in every home. In 1980 IBM partners with Microsoft to create an
operating system and MS-DOS was developed as the software that manages the current
hardware. By the early 1990s it had sold more than 100 million copies but it was still difficult to
operate. Around the same time, the next upgrade was released called Windows 3.0 with a new
graphical interface and word processing. Microsoft became public mid 1990s and it had become
the most powerful and profitably companies in American history. Even during the Great
Recession of 2008-09 its net income had grown to more than $14 billion by the end of the fiscal
year. (Microsoft, 2013) However, this rapid growth was not taken well by competitors and they
began complaining about unfair competition. The U.S. Justice Department concluded with a
settlement for Microsoft to change some of its sales practices. Microsoft moved into internet
software and created a program called Internet Explorer to surf the World Wide Web. This
product was introduced for free and Microsoft was aggressively pursuing any computer maker
and internet providers for distribution. Microsoft continued to prevail regardless of the fierce
competition. Competitors again became overwhelmed with the companys continued success and
accused them of violation the previous decree from 1995. Microsoft was found in violation of the
Sherman Antitrust act for attempting to maintain a monopoly. In 2001 Microsoft entered the
abilities. Microsoft is one of the industry leaders in accessibility innovation and in building
products that are safer and easier to use.
Vision Statement
(Forbes)
PESTEL Analysis
Political Factors
Microsoft is a politically active company. It sponsors the Microsoft Political Action
Committee (MSPAC), a bipartisan organization that contributes to campaigns of federal, state,
and local candidates. MSPAC supports those candidates who share Microsofts view on public
policy. MSPAC allows Microsoft employees and shareholders to participate more effectively in
the U.S. political process by keeping its members informed about important issues and
government decisions that can affect Microsofts business. MSPAC members also have
opportunities to support public policy positions that are important to Microsoft (Corporate
Citizenship).
MSPAC also supports candidates who serve as congressional or legislative leaders or
represent districts where Microsoft has a major business presence. Microsoft claims its
participation in the political process is transparent. For reasons that are clear and justifiable to its
shareholders and the public, Microsoft regularly files and publishes reports that detail its
advocacy activities. The disclosures include consultant fees, lobbying expenses, and trade
association dues spent on advocacy (Corporate Citizenship).
Economic conditions
2014 CRs 100 Best Corporate Citizens, Corporate Responsibility Magazine (Microsoft named
among top 5)
2014 Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) Corporate Equality Index 100% rating for 9th
consecutive year
2013 Worlds Best Multinational Workplaces by the Great Place to Work Institute
2013 Worlds Most Ethical Companies, The Ethisphere Institute, New York
2013 NYSE Euronext Vigeo US 50 Index (50 most advanced U.S. companies on Environmental,
10
Environmental forces
In May 2012, Microsoft made several commitments to reduce its carbon footprint
(Corporate Citizenship). Microsoft follows strict policies to ensure that the company remains
in full compliance with international environmental regulations and the specific environmental
requirements of each country/region where it does business. When it is feasible, Microsoft
conserves natural resources by using recycled materials and supplies, efficiently using energy,
and participating in recycling programs for Microsoft products after they have served their useful
life. Microsoft encourages and supports the sustainable use of renewable natural resources. By
recycling at company facilities, all waste is safely and responsibly handled and disposed of
(Corporate Citizenship). Microsofts environmental policies protect, conserve, and sustain the
world's natural resources.
Legal and Regulatory Factors
Microsoft adheres to applicable national and local laws and regulations. Its internal
policies and practices ensure adherence to a wide range of applicable requirements to keep it
accountable and transparent. Microsofts Regulatory and Public Policy Committee assists its
Board of Directors in overseeing the Company's policies and programs that relate to certain
legal, regulatory and compliance matters, business risks related to privacy and cybersecurity, and
public policy and corporate citizenship. The Regulatory and Public Policy Committee are
responsible for reviewing and providing guidance to the company with respect to legal,
regulatory, and compliance matters concerning antitrust, privacy, security, and employment and
immigration laws. The Committee also reviews the companys policies and programs related to
11
SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths
Weaknesses
Brand loyalty
Lawsuits
User-friendly software
Limitations on browsers
capabilities
Threats
Competition
Desktop market
Lawsuits
Strengths
Consumers are brand savvy. Fortunately, for Microsoft, with brand loyalty comes pricing
power. Microsofts brand loyalty has allowed it to gain a competitive advantage which has paid
off as it controls 92% of the desktop operating system market share (2014 Annual Report).
Microsoft has a strong research and development department which includes key research areas
12
13
14
15
Analysis Section
Microsofts is known for providing operating system and office applications. Software
application is the core of their business with their Windows operating system but Microsoft must
to adapt to stay competitive in this rapidly changing technology industry. Microsoft needs to
16
Conten t
&
Service
s
Skype
Bing
M SN
Content
Aggregati
on
Product
s&
D evices
XboxLive
(m usic,
gam es,
video,
N FL,
apps,
etc.)
W indow s
8.1
W indow s
Phone
(C ortona)
W indow s
Server
M icrosoft
O ffi ce
Surface
Surface
Pro
H TC O ne
Lum ia
635
Lum ia
830
Xbox
O ne
Xbox
w ith
Kinect
D istribu t
ion &
R etail
M icrosoft
Store
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
14. LuckStephen, Frederick W., P. Kaufman, and A. Steven Walleck. "Strategic Management
for Competitive Advantage." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 01 July 1980. Web. 15 Feb.
2015.
15. Microsoft. (2014). Microsoft 2014 Annual Report. Retrieved from
http://www.microsoft.com/investor/reports/ar14/index.html
16. Microsoft Official Home Page." Microsoft Official Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 15
Feb. 2015.
17. Moorhead, P. (2015, January 28). Microsoft HoloLens Gets Face Wearables Right. In
Forbes. Retrieved from
http://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickmoorhead/2015/01/28/microsoft-hololens-gets-faceswearables-right/
18. "News Center." News Center. Microsoft News Center, 12 Jan. 2015. Web. 15 Feb. 2015.
19. Strickland, J. and Crawford, S. (n.d.). Will Google destroy Microsoft? Retrieved
February 2, 215, from
20. http://computer.howstuffworks.com/google-microsoft2.htm
21. "The Move to Vertical Product Integration: Can Microsoft Succeed Here, Too? Knowledge@Wharton." KnowledgeWharton The Move to Vertical Product Integration
Can Microsoft Succeed Here Too Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2015.
22. Tu, J. (2014, March 3). Microsoft shake-up may hold clues about new CEOs strategy. In
The Seattle Times. Retrieved from
http://seattletimes.com/html/businesstechnology/2023041037_microsoftexecsxml.html
29
24. Yahoo Finance. (2015). Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) NasdaqGS. Retrieved from
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?
s=MSFT&a=01&b=1&c=2010&d=01&e=14&f=2015&g=d&z=66&y=924