Vodafone's Organizational Capabilities Analysis
Vodafone: Rethinking international strategy
Consulting Mandate
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
Vodafone PLC is a publicly traded British telecommunication multinational. The era of Vodafone started in 1984 and has since then undergone dramatic internal and external development stages. Stages of Vodafone’s development can be divided into multiple laps, each lap under a different cabinet of its various CEOs.
After having been brought public in 1988, Vodafone kicked off its international expansion by acquiring minority stakes in other wireless telecom companies, following with multiple joint ventures within countries that were about to launch their cellular networks.
Under the cabinet of Chris Gent as Vodafone’s CEO, the company drastically expanded the portfolio of its overseas acquisitions. Arun Sarin, who initiated the One Vodafone project, maximizing economies of scale, then succeeded him. The One Vodafone was to unify and simplify the company’s structure. This mainly included reshaping organizational charts and integrating Vodafone as a global brand.
When Vodafone’s current CEO, Vittorio Colao, took over in 2008 he established a set of clear goals for the company to pursue. These mainly focused on “improvement of operational performance, [...] pursuit of growth opportunities, [and] increase in shareholder returns”. (Colao, 2008, cited in Grant & Jordan, 2011, p.1 - 2)
First results of Coleo’s newly adopted strategies came up positive yet the concerns arose around Vodafone’s long-term strategies in terms of its international presence.
So as to help Vodafone pursue the aforementioned goals, we were assigned a consulting mandate to evaluate the following queries:
1- Are Vodafone’s organizational capabilities correctly aligned with their current strategy? If not, how could they improve them in order to grow within the competitive market they are facing?
2- Does Vodafone’s organizational structure enable them to
Consulting Mandate
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
Vodafone PLC is a publicly traded British telecommunication multinational. The era of Vodafone started in 1984 and has since then undergone dramatic internal and external development stages. Stages of Vodafone’s development can be divided into multiple laps, each lap under a different cabinet of its various CEOs.
After having been brought public in 1988, Vodafone kicked off its international expansion by acquiring minority stakes in other wireless telecom companies, following with multiple joint ventures within countries that were about to launch their cellular networks.
Under the cabinet of Chris Gent as Vodafone’s CEO, the company drastically expanded the portfolio of its overseas acquisitions. Arun Sarin, who initiated the One Vodafone project, maximizing economies of scale, then succeeded him. The One Vodafone was to unify and simplify the company’s structure. This mainly included reshaping organizational charts and integrating Vodafone as a global brand.
When Vodafone’s current CEO, Vittorio Colao, took over in 2008 he established a set of clear goals for the company to pursue. These mainly focused on “improvement of operational performance, [...] pursuit of growth opportunities, [and] increase in shareholder returns”. (Colao, 2008, cited in Grant & Jordan, 2011, p.1 - 2)
First results of Coleo’s newly adopted strategies came up positive yet the concerns arose around Vodafone’s long-term strategies in terms of its international presence.
So as to help Vodafone pursue the aforementioned goals, we were assigned a consulting mandate to evaluate the following queries:
1- Are Vodafone’s organizational capabilities correctly aligned with their current strategy? If not, how could they improve them in order to grow within the competitive market they are facing?
2- Does Vodafone’s organizational structure enable them to
Bibliography: Crossan, M.M. Rouse, M.J. Fry, J.N. Killing, J.P.(2013). Strategic Analysis and Action (8th ed). Toronto: Pearson. Grant, M., J., Jordan, J. (2011). Vodafone: Rethinking international strategy. Foundations of Strategy.