Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Konstantinou Phoebos
Moschofidou Sotiria
Sfykti Dimitra
Floros Evangelos
their business income and profitability. This network had remained unchanged for half a century, since there
were high barriers for new players to enter. PMI initiated in June 2013 an exclusive zonified distribution system,
where in each sub-territory there is a unique wholesaler distributing the companys products. Some months later,
the rest tobacco companies followed this example, under a different scheme this time, as they have created a
unified distribution system for the rest five companies.
For the purpose of this project, our Key Success Factors, Balanced Scorecard and Strategy map will be focusing on
the Marketing department for Philip Morris Greece.
people centric direction. Friendly environment is supported through various initiatives, such as open door policy
and team bonding activities within and among departments.
PMIs employees share the common values that guide decision-making and activity at all levels in the
organization. Specifically:
Safety the physical safety of staff and the public
Security the protection of information and other assets
Integrity the reputation of the organization for honesty, high ethical standards, reliable outputs, and
impeccable methodologies, integrity in the way of doing business
Continuous improvement with mistakes seen as learning opportunities
Continuous learning the creation of rich opportunities for employees to gain new knowledge and skills
Employees think highly of their relationships with management, one-another, partner organizations, and clients.
Relationships are collegial and mutually supportive.
In its day-to-day business, the company follows effective routine processes; decisions are made based on dialogue
and cooperation with huge responsibilities being funneled each layer of the organizational culture.
Moreover, an indication of the culture is the existence of an appraisal system in order to set goals, develop
criteria for successful performance, and create metrics for evaluating performance. In that way an environment of
trust and fairness is established and all the employees feel that they are all evaluated on the same basis.
The Industry
The tobacco industry is one of the most controversial industries, and one that has recognized many changes over
the recent years. As a mature industry, facing many regulatory pressures, growth prospects are limited.
Therefore, this market has only a few key players, which actually turned the industry into an oligopoly. Pricing
power helps to offset declining volume. Sales and earnings are fairly stable throughout the economic cycle.
Industry Rivalry: The overall rivalry in the tobacco industry in Greece is characterized as high and is considered an
oligopoly. The major players and their main brands, who dominate the market, are the following:
Philip Morris International (Papastratos) (Marlboro, Assos, Philip Morris, L&M, Muratti, Zante)
Japan Tobacco International (Camel, Winston, Old Holborn)
British American Tobacco (Pall Mall, Lucky Strike, Prince)
Imperial Tobacco (Davidoff, Gauloise, Golden Virginia)
Sekap (GR & BF)
Suppliers: The suppliers of the tobacco industry are usually relatively small in size and in power when compared to
the tobacco companies they supply. Therefore, they have very low bargaining power. This is also due to
government involvement in the most cases (tobacco farmers, laws, prices etc.)
Substitutes: In todays tobacco industry in Greece, the main substitutes that exist are electronic cigarettes, bulk
tobacco and nicotine alternatives. Despite the fact that most of these substitutes have received increased
popularity among consumers, the addictive nature of the product, makes the overall threat of substitutes low.
Buyers: Buyers in the tobacco industry have strong bargaining power as there is an addiction and strong bonding
with the product involved. Buyers are extremely price sensitive and are affected by the economy and their level
of disposable income. When their disposable income declines, switching costs are very low, and buyers are likely
to buy a cheaper brand of cigarettes.
Threat of entry: The barriers to entry in the tobacco industry are very high. The economies of scales the big
players recognize in manufacturing, distribution and marketing costs render it very difficult for new players to
enter and compete. Furthermore, the capital requirements for cigarette manufacturing facilities are extremely
high.
Finally, brand identity poses a significant threat for new entry. With the heavy restrictions on advertising and
promotional activities imposed by the government, it is extremely difficult for new players to gain the brand
awareness that they need in the market. For example, PMIs Marlboro is a brand with great awareness and
loyalty. It is very difficult to a new brand to compete with the established and successful Marlboro.
PESTEL analysis
The Greek tobacco industry has always been a major
contributor to the country both in terms of tax deriving
from sales (government revenues) but also in terms of
field employment. In recent years, with the economic
recession affecting peoples disposable income, tobacco
legal consumption has seen a vast decline and
competition amongst tobacco companies has become
fierce. Cigarette pack prices have risen to levels that
Greeks are not able or willing to pay, the government
continues to seek for income through continuous tax
increases and illicit trade is becoming more and more
popular.
From a political point of view, the government sees the
tobacco industry as a mean to increase its revenues in a
quick and guaranteed fashion, since tax is already
imposed during production via on-pack stickers.
Tobacco contributes to the Greek government a great 4% of the annual GDP, which highlights the economic
importance of the industry. On the other hand, the ministry of health has put into action a smoking ban to all
public spaces such as nightclubs, restaurants and government facilities, aligned with the Eurozone standards.
Greek tobacco culture has always been very strong since the early 20th century and people associate smoking
with their night out entertainment. These issues, coupled with the economic difficulties, have created a strong
trend for youngsters towards home entertainment via gatherings. In addition, it further affects the governments
income as people spend less money in entertainment, increasing unemployment rates and generally shrinks the
market.
The tobacco industry has also seen strict regulatory restrictions over the past decade through various forms of
bans such as the aforementioned smoking ban but also advertising bans on TV, cinemas and outdoors.
Furthermore, promotional activities have been restricted within the point of sale (e.g. promoters have to be
inside kiosks), which makes the various products even less identifiable to the audience of adult smokers, making it
tough for a company to promote their legal products. Finally, distribution of tobacco products has continually
been controlled since the 1950s through a specified network of wholesalers, making it almost impossible for new
entrants to access the value chain of tobacco. Finally, a recent voting that took place in the EU has launched a
new tobacco product directive which adds more restrictions that have to do with types of cigarettes such as slims
and flavored cigarette propositions, cigarette packaging and generally the directive introduces an even stricter
environment where the companies will compete.
Technology has also invaded the tobacco industry as consumers are becoming more and more prone to global
markets and insights, looking for differentiation. From this point of view, tobacco companies had to serve this
need through innovative propositions and developments such as bio-filter tips, flavor capsules and new packaging
that subsequently increase R&D costs. In addition, tobacco companies are lately finalizing a new product
proposition which will minimize the harm effect of tobacco consumption, introducing new products such as
electronic cigarettes using heat rather than burning of tobacco products.
Finally, what is important to highlight as mentioned before, is the very high smoking incidence in the Greek
population. Around 30% of Greeks are believed to be habitual smokers, with a consumption of minimum 3
cigarette sticks per day. This strong smoking culture has led the Greek market to be of great importance for local
and international players, while at the same time there is a great decline of smoking incidence evident in the rest
of the European countries. As in any other European country, selling tobacco products to persons under the age
of 18 years old is prohibited in an attempt to forbid children getting addicted to smoking. In this context, tobacco
companies also seek for ways to reduce the harm done by tobacco consumption, introducing electronic cigarettes
and other innovations which reduce health risks. Concluding, the emerging markets of the eastern world such as
India and China are increasing their demand for tobacco consumption, in their attempt to copy the western
civilization trend. This trend will increase demand of raw tobacco products and eventually will generate issues for
tobacco farmers. Tobacco companies such as Philip Morris and British American Tobacco have already raised their
concerns towards environmental protection and have initiated processes for certified alliances that will ensure
the smooth farming of tobacco, while helping authenticated farmers as well.
Based on the P.E.S.T.E.L. analysis above, it is evident that the tobacco industry is highly influenced by many
factors which have changed the industry over the years and will continue to dramatically change it in the future.
Therefore, based on the above, in the coming years, we expect that the survival and profitability in the tobacco
industry will become increasing more challenging for the companies operating in it.
Key trends that we foresee include:
-
EU Tobacco Products Directive: The directive which will be implemented in Greece in 2016, will limit the
types of products the companies can sell (ex. Flavors etc.)
Illicit trade: If not controlled, illicit trade could continue to grow and hurt the tobacco companies bottom
lines but also affect the government as their income from taxes from tobacco products will reduce as
well. However, the aforementioned EU directive will introduce EU-wide tracking and tracing to combat
illicit trade of tobacco products which if successful, will help solve this industry-wide issue.
Taxation: Increasing taxation with not only continue to increase the price of cigarettes but if it continues
to increase, consumers will be unable to afford the products and it is possible that the threat of
substitutes will increase and become a more substantial threat for the industry.
Increased Restrictions: The EU directive requires requires that health warnings appear on packages of
tobacco and related products. Combined (picture and text) health warnings must cover 65% of the front
and back of cigarette and roll-your-own tobacco packages and sets minimum dimensions for warnings
and eliminates small packages for certain tobacco products. All of this means additional costs for the
tobacco companies which is some case are already struggling to survive.
IMPORTANCE/
RESOURCES & DESCRIPTION
RELATIVE
STRENGTH
9/10
Brands with strong equity, balanced portfolio includes both brands with international presence
and brands connected with local pride
Top quality products & smoking experience, consumer loyalty
R2. Experienced, committed, and motivated People with strong customer focus
10/8
Recruitment structures
Interim & annual appraisal system that;
- encourages the structural and constructive discussion of subordinates with managers, fairness
cultivation since the 2nd level manager should approve the qualitative & quantitative evaluation
of the employer
- ensures common language and understanding of the core competencies required based on
the level (manage self, manage others, manage managers) across organization
Talent Pool Cross functional structural discussion on talents, development plan & career path,
reporting to HQ
Open feedback & cooperation cultural set
Continuous opportunities for learning and development, cross functional moves, Short-term
assignments to PMI HQ or other market affiliates
Employee Satisfaction, loyalty and low turnover rate
R3. Local Factory
7/6
8/7
Technology and systems facilitate the realization of better information flow, significant and
complex business projects implementation, efficient physical resources allocation and
flexibility, sharing among departments and affiliates, systems introduction to Operations to
optimize the critical KPIs
R5. Company reputation
7/5
Long history with strong credentials of Papastratos founders (employee sponsorships and
7/4*
PMI HQ internal funding to Papastratos to allow the recovery and smooth business continuation
*Low rating of relative strength since the same situation applies (if needed) with the key players
apart from Karelias whose main profitability is based on exports.
The constructive and efficient gluing of the key resources create strong capabilities for the company that
contribute to the differentiation from the competition.
IMPORTANCE/
CAPABILITIES & DESCRIPTIONS
RELATIVE
STRENGTH
9/9
R&D investment through technologies in order to meet the customer needs/challenges ahead,
cross functional efficient communication based on market current & forthcoming dynamics,
secure relevant & fast introduction of high quality and innovative product offerings
C2.Commercial approach - Marketing & Sales
9/9
Marketing & Sales efficient collaboration, integrate work between brands and territories, field
force empowerment, consumer & customer centricity through brands activation toolbox
Strong company asset and global reputation within PMI affiliates due to flexibility, critical
thinking, quick respond to external environment fluctuations and open to radical internal
changes
C3.Succession of Talented managers
9/8
Systems, processes and communication that allow the talents identification, retention and
development in order to be prepared for tomorrow
C4. Corporate Social responsibility
5/6
A company that responds to societal concerns and acts in ethical manner | funding and network
because of PMI international presence & revenues
C5.Exclusive Distribution Network
7/9
Recent change of distribution network due to leadership company position and strong brands
portfolio | wholesales contribute to the company & brands image building and increasing sales
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volume
8/9
Priority focus and investment of the company to an expanded network of promotional teams
comparing to competition that communicate the brands with the aim to increase consumer
reach and brand image improvement
C7.Cross-functional quick and efficient communication and coordination, alignment
8/7
Efficient processes and structures that encourage efficient communication among departments
and understanding of interdepartmental requirements, eg. Marketing timely alignment with
Operations, Procurement, Product development, and Sales Forecast team for efficient
production project management and sales volumes
Opportunities or threats identification and response, alignment with corporate mission, vision
and strategy, leverage on multi-tasking employees, initiative encouragement
Honest and direct communication | Timely & constructive flow of information
C8.Speed-to-market
8/9
Local factory contributes to better alignment and understanding of the needs offering speed to
market & flexibility
C9.Learning Management
7/6
Learning opportunities through similarities & patterns identification across regions (eg. EU
region), best practices sharing through networking
Adaptive culture and learnings actionability; e.g. the difficult economic situation demonstrated
that consumers within such an environment are not open to experimentation and complex
product offerings. A price banding option with multiple new functional attributes failed while
MARLBORO Pocket Pack was a highly successful launch due to clear product proposition (The
MARLBORO taste you know in a Pocket dimension and better price)
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Competitive advantage
In this very difficult and demanding environment, establishing strong competitive advantages are the only way in
which tobacco companies can not only survive but lead the market and capture major shares of the market. To
this effect, Philip Morris demonstrates three areas in which they are stronger than the competition.
Customer Value
As we have highlighted, Philip Morris has a strong brand portfolio which allows it to meet customer demands in
different consumer target segments. Different customers have different demands, and the breadth of Philip
Morris guarantees that there will be a product to meet each consumers individual needs and desires. They
capitalize on this strength by offering products within brand families that respond to the both and emotional
needs that they have identified for their customers. This demonstrates companys flexibility; they are able to
adapt themselves and learn quickly, even in difficult and demanding situations and are able to respond with
meaningful and substantial innovation which is delivered to the market in a speedy manner. Finally, all of this
would not be possible if Philip Morris had not cultivated strong and mutual beneficial relationships with their
trade partners.
Resources
At the core of the companys competitive advantage are its brands and its people. Philip Morris has the worlds
top selling cigarette brand, Marlboro, with a total of seven brands in the top fifteen selling brands globally. Apart
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from their strong brand equity, they also offer high quality products. The success of the brands however is not
limited to the product they offer, as the success would not be possible without talented, committed and
passionate Philip Morris employees to promote and support them.
Value Chain activities
Philip Morris was able to capitalize on the strong relationships that they had developed in the market. To this
extent, they were the first company in Greece to radically change the distribution network environment for
tobacco companies. The distribution network of the past was well established and present for almost 50 years.
Philip Morris initiative allowed for fewer distributors that would have a stronger focus on their products and
would also realize greater margin by selling Philip Morris products as opposed to competitive brands. Therefore
distributors were given additional incentives to become brand ambassadors. Through this network, Philip Morris
was able to build on trade engagement. The distributors would be educated and engaged by the company and
would be properly positioned to effectively speak about the company, promoting it to customers. Once again,
Philip Morris demonstrates their ability to identify opportunities, act in a flexible and quick manner. They
successfully applied their capabilities of interdepartmental communication and operations and factory close to
the customer and end consumers in order to sustain and strengthen their competitive advantage.
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Strategy Map
Analyzing the strategy map from the bottom up, we can see that the main objective of the marketing department
is to have the right people onboard in the right position in order to build strong brands for a long term
sustainability. Therefore the company focuses on retaining and attracting high performance and high potential
employees. They invest heavily in their human capital with a variety of personal and professional development
initiatives and training courses. Philip Morris is confident that in this way they will enable the shaping of their
organizational culture.
Philip Morris talent will allow the company to effectively carry out internal activities such as defining appropriate
pricing, selecting effective promotion channels, focusing on targeted marketing activities and building a strong
portfolio. In order for these activities to be effective, it is critical that the utmost attention is focused on ensuring
cross-functional alignment is maximized and guidelines are followed strictly.
Careful and meticulous execution of the above activities will properly position the company to improve their
brand image and strengthen brand equity, identify consumer needs, drive product innovation and ultimately
retain attract more consumers.
Finally, success will be realized by maximizing the departments return on investment through increased market
share and revenue generation.
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Balanced Scorecard
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Tomorrow
In the immediate future, Philip Morris will need to emerge as a leader in Product & Processes Innovation. This
means investing in infrastructure and capabilities to be properly positioned to respond to future challenges and
achieve long term targets for customers and internal processes.
Ahead
Philip Morris has all the potential to competitively lead the business into the new regulatory framework which is
in the immediate future. It is also critical for the company to identify and seize competitive opportunities that will
arise from new regulation. Furthermore, secure supply chain readiness, proper management of LOGDs (loss of
goods diminished), CAPEX and smooth implementation of initiatives will inarguably place Philip Morris is a highly
competitive position in the market.
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Appendices:
The most important resources of the company are briefly described below;
Brands
Papastratos owns brands with strong equity addressing to different adult smokers target segments. Marlboro is
the leading tobacco brand in the world and by far the number one smoking brand in Greece. The brand history
goes decades back while the logo recognition scores among the top 20 in the brands history.
L&M is a brand with high popularity across the world and the last years is being built in Greece in the below
premium price segment as a brand offering high value for money.
Among the main brands, Papastratos supports is ASSOS local brand and Philip Morris; the first one is the number
one local tobacco brand in the Greek market while the second one currently positions itself in the medium price
segment, carrying however strong brand equity and respect among niche loyal customer base.
PMI Headquarters sets the brand framework in terms of brand values, character and brand promise in universal
language across the markets. As such, Papastratos leverages on ready-made communication campaigns and
product innovation which are offered by PMI parent company. Each country affiliate based on the market
business and dynamics decides on the target audience, competition, positioning and communication channel
investment per brand.
People
Papastratos strongly communicates the idea that results and business success is derived from its people. The
company culture and actions cultivate the continuous development of people through trainings, cross-functional
moves, opportunities for mobility to other markets in order to expose to different dynamics and encourage a
broader and deeper business perspective.
The majority of people in the company feel that Papastratos is a fair working environment that offers equal
opportunities due to the appraisal system based on a common language dictionary of the core competencies
required depending on the level of management as well as the remedies and training sources for their
development. There are also structured and periodical reviews for the pool of people have been identified as
talents within company for alignment among the top managers and reassurance that the managers provide to
them all required opportunities for quick career opportunities based on their skills and aspirations.
Local Factory
Another critical resource that should be recognized for Papastratos is the factory in house which is the key
determinant for the speed to market factor. Although the last year losses in the Operating Company Income, top
management prioritizes the smooth continuation of Papastratos factory as key priority in order to further allow
flexibility and better understanding of the needs in order to provide top quality products and smoking experience
to the adult smokers.
The above resources lead to key capabilities that Papastratos leverages on in order to continuously be
competitive and response to the business challenges lying ahead.
The culture of Papastratos and the values shared among its employees on the one hand and the competencies
required along with the importance for continuous development create a philosophy of open, direct and efficient
communication among the employees.
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PAPASTRATOS Profitability
100
87,68
80
60
40
20
-6,3
-7,87
-17,86
-20
-40
2009
2010
2011
2012
PAPASTRATOS Turnover
Million
350
316,89
300
244,9
250
222,28
186,82
200
150
100
50
0
2009
2010
2011
2012
17
58,7
47,7
20
22,5
10
0
2,9
-6,3
-10
PMI
JTI
BAT
Imperial
Karelias
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References:
http://www.pmi.com/grc/pages/homepage.aspx
2013 Philip Morris International Inc. Annual Report http://investors.pmi.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=146476&p=irolreportsannual
http://technorati.com/business/article/future-of-tobacco-industry-depends-on/
http://ec.europa.eu/health/tobacco/products/revision/index_en.htm
http://ec.europa.eu/health/tobacco/eurobarometers/index_en.htm
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