Cemex corporate strategy

The building and construction industry is quite a tough one to exist in and by virtue of the idea that CEMEX has managed to stay afloat indicates that the firm has had a good strategic plan in all fronts to enable it to stay in business even in the presence of competitors like Votorantim Cimentos Company. It is important understanding that just like many other multinational firms, CEMEX has strategies that take it through all the daily business activities, and it also experiences challenges that make things tough for the staff working there. This report is aimed at looking into the different aspects of strategic planning like the competitive environment, the development of the organization, issues that led to a successful strategy formation, and the complex issues that affect its operations, in assessing the overall corporate strategy of the firm.

It is vital noting that CEMEX has about fifty thousand employees and this indicates just how big this organization is and, therefore, the management issues requires proper planning and strategizing in order to ensure the firm runs smoothly. The operations of this company are staged in an average of about fifty countries and this proves the argument that sometimes there may arise complexities that are tough to deal with and it calls for a good strategy to ensure such problems are solved and avoided in future. This is most likely going to convince to do business with the company once again in future. CEMEX invests in the employees in order to increase their effectiveness and efficiency. Issues like health and safety are very vital to this company because the managers believe that with a healthy and safe workforce, the level of productivity will to a large extent increase and this is what the company wants.

This strategically makes the form competitively advantageous because consider a firm that does not take care of its employees well. A group of such workers may not be very effective in their work because of their fears that the firm is not very concerned about them as people. This is important for the firm because customers are one of the main stakeholders of the company and as such, they ought to be treated with a deserving amount of respect. This company has achieved this by ensuring that what they produce is of high quality such that when the customers buy building materials, they find value in what they purchase from the firm. This has gone a long way in ensuring the firm builds a long-lasting relationship with the customers and this promotes business between the company and buyers of products and services.

The major construction segments provide splendid customer service such that the consumers are confident of coming back to do business with the firm or even refer other potential buyers to CEMEX, because of their previous experiences with the company. In the building industry, there are often challenges on the part of the consumers and they will in most cases require the help of the company they sort the materials from. This ranges from the decision-making of the managerial team to the ability to attract consumers over a long period of time. To give customers a reason to shop in a firm means that creativity and innovation have to be top notch (Miles, R. E. et al. , 431) because no customer can be willing to go transact with an organization that does not attach enough value to a commodity or service in question.

Hence, consulting from one specific group of stakeholders may not be completely helpful. The setting of priorities by CEMEX has been on the reliance on social, environmental, and economic perspectives. These three aspects are vital in the development of a firm because they are all needed to ensure the company moves a step forward. CEMEX made both the internal and external environments it operates in favorable for business as well as conducive for future growth. The competitive environment, for example, was set in such a way as to allow for creativity and innovation so that in as much as they produce the same commodities as their competitors, they will have something extra to their own that makes them relevant in the market at current times and even in the future.

The future equally looks bright for CEMEX because the same strategy is still being used and this is promising because it guarantees a firm, of future business, which essentially translates to development. The physical environment of the operation of CEMEX is very vital to its ability to develop. This is because the public, being one of the stakeholders of this firm, can always have problems with a company that causes harm to the environment and even under difficult circumstances where such destruction cannot be avoided, the company goes on to forsake the mess it causes. CEMEX has dealt with this issue y adopting the sustainability model that helps it waste management processes. By taking care of the wastes, the public wins the trust of the firm and, therefore, the consumer base can still do business with the company.

This is vital because a company cannot solve a problem it has not identified who it is solving for. The ability of CEMEX to incorporate technology into its processes has been a big boost towards its definition of customers. This is because it has helped the firm produce commodities that are more customized (Kamal and Phillips, 1672) to suit the needs of the consumers. It is important understanding that these activities have been taking place amidst a change in management. This change did not cause any major problems that derailed the main aim of CEMEX of defining their customers, as a means toward formulating company strategies. as well as the vision, is paramount to the firm’s formulation of strategies. Defining the vision communicates the message that the company is looking into the future.

The objectives of CEMEX are part of the reason this multinational firm has done well over the years. Defining the objectives is vital because this helps a company focus more on what it is aiming at achieving. Objectives take different forms depending on the specific area of the business they affect. It is vital noting that the definition of objectives is not only done for the sake of the customers, but also all other stakeholders so that every group can understand the role they need to play to ensure the business prospers. Therefore, it is paramount noting that the soft issues like motivation and change of management have not been a problem to CEMEX multinational company because of the definition of most of the components that influence the process of formulating strategies.

This firm has over the years shown that the strategies it implements often yield fruits because of the prosperity it has enjoyed in the building and construction industry. This discussion has clearly stipulated how formulating strategies relies on a variety of factors (Seidl, 204), which need to be critically examined before a firm decides that it is going to employ a particular type of strategy for the purposes of development. Dealing with Complex Situations Just like many other business firms, CEMEX has had its share of difficulties and it has had to deal with a number of issues. However, this firm was able to deal with this problem by digging deeper into the greater global scale and looking for markets. The company also narrowed down its focus where the main aim became selling cement and concrete.

This move ensured that the business survives the tide of globalization and economy expansion of Mexico. CEMEX also has faced problems of staying in the international scene during the collapse of the global construction industry (Peng and Pleggenkuhle-Miles, 66). This was a major blow to the firm and a lot of losses in terms of billions were incurred because CEMEX had acquired a materials company based in Australia, prior to the implode of the industry. This has been challenging for this company because it is in an industry where it just has to have some level of environmental pollution because of the nature of machinery used in the production of cement. Balancing the number of emissions, for example, with the required amount of production of the goods expected to go to the market can be very challenging.

However, because of the sustainability model of CEMEX, the company was able to adhere to the rules and regulations set by various environmental conservation bodies. To make it even better, the company has been releasing annual reports on the environment and sustainability. There are also managerial challenges that occur in multinationals like CEMEX. Other challenges are those involving risk management and these are common even in small businesses only that magnitude of the risks differ. It is worth noting that the road to growth, development, and prosperity for CEMEX has been a tough one, factoring in the setbacks that it has had to go through over time. The experiences of this firm entail what a multinational company should be expected to go through when operating in as many countries as over forty.

Conclusion In conclusion, it is important understanding that the competitive environment of a firm influences to a large extent how it performs. CEMEX has put in place measures and strategies that have enabled it to competitively remain relevant in the market. This will help stakeholders know their role in contributing to the growth of the firm. Works Cited Agryres, N & McGahan, A. M. Academy of Management Executive, 16 (2), (2002):43-52. Barney, J. Organizing Practices in Services: Capturing Practice Based Knowledge for Innovation, Strategic Organization, 2(1), (2004):35-64. Farzad, R. et al. A Dark Side of Institutional Entrepreneurship: Soccer Balls, Child Labour and Postcolonial Improvishment, Organization Studies, 28, (2007):1065-77. Helfat, C. Miles, R. E. et al. The Ideology of Innovation, Strategic Organization, 5(4), (2007): 423 – 35. Mintzberg, H. What is Strategy? Harvard Business Review, 74 (6), (1980).