MICROSOFT CORPORATION 1

Microsoft Corporation
Company Information
Microsoft Corporation is a leading organization in the sales, design, and production of IT
solutions and servers. The Corporation has over 155,000 employees globally and operates in the
US and other confinement regions. The significant shareholders of the Corporation include the
Vanguard Group, Capital Research& Management, SSgA Funds Management Inc., Fidelity
Management & Research Company, T. Rowe Price Associates, Geode Capital Management,
Putnam LLC, and Bill Gates. The stock is valued at 165.14 USD, and the sock exchange
identifier of Microsoft Corporation is NASDAQ: MSFT. Microsoft deals with apparatus,
services, and options, which are directed at enabling individuals and businesses to reach their
potential. Microsoft is considered to have achieved optimum exercise, standing across several
operational and tactical industry practices. Throughout its technical innovations and advertising
experience, Microsoft has escalated and mastered the software market. The organization is
aligned with a professional plan and an effective business strategy. Due to market dynamics, the
Corporation witnessed strategic, organizational, and structural changes in applications,
apparatus, and services in an attempt to attain success in the competitive market.
Microsoft's Organizational Structure
The Microsoft ownership structure has been transparent and strategic. Microsoft is built
on a hierarchical structure that allows managers to concentrate on oversight and team
functionality, which translates into recurring earnings. The Board of Directors evaluates the
customers’ requirements and adapts their actions to provide the required services. The
organizational arrangement of the Corporation focuses on business output (Conte, 2018).
Consequently, the method facilitates the business, particularly after the structural shift of this
company in 2015. The management of the organization is responsive to the dynamics of the
hardware and software market, the long-term achievement of the provider.
PESTEL Analysis: Political and Economic Factors
The Corporation offers unique products and services through the preparation, execution,
maintenance, and optimization phases of business engineering, supply information, computing,
productivity, hybrid and, cloud IT infrastructure. Microsoft provides practical solutions in
planning, implementation service, care support, education, and maintenance. Many political
variables exist within Microsoft’s PESTEL analysis in administration, regional, and global
levels. The variables include political stability in the current market, the influence of lobby
groups, and government policy. Microsoft has drawn the interest of authorities and political
parties because of antitrust-related challenges. Several financial variables affect Microsoft
earnings and profit maximization. These include economic expansion or downturn in the current
market, fluctuations in exchange mechanism, fluctuations in earnings policies and rates, inflation
rates, fluctuations of labor expenses, and prices of assets, and fiscal policies. Labor cost is a
factor with possible influences on the bottom line and operational expenditures of the
Corporation. Microsoft employs approximately 154,000 workers on the permanent status and
over 80,000 individuals in North America. Thus, increases in the expense of labor affect profit
maximization.
Though environmental elements pose a hazard, awareness of the trends provides insight
into the future and lessens the problem with respect to the future management of this business.
Moreover, depending on the ecological feature of the STEEP investigation, various
environmental regulations account for the operations of Microsoft. Although environmental
factors affect the organization, it has a diminished effect on the sustainability and exchange of
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Microsoft goods. The business must create environmentally friendly goods while ensuring a rise
in the usage of innovative charge devices and equipment. Microsoft has missed chances of
introducing new technologies because of political instability in a few niches. However, with
political equilibrium, Microsoft can launch new products and services, thus raising its market
share and earnings. For example, Microsoft is also launching innovative cloud programs to help
data management methods and information center efficiencies within the competitive market.
Human Resource Management
The Corporation’s HR department is involved in choosing, recruiting, hiring, and keeping
workers. The department copes with wages and salaries and the welfare of their workers. Jobs
are broken up into operational units to boost the productivity of the business. Essentially,
breaking the tasks to particular operational units and teams allows the firm to analyze each
operational component based on efficiency. For example, in Microsoft, the advertising team
performs a specific task that differs from other units. The advertising team is involved in running
marketing analysis, the creation of new goods, and growth strategies in the promotion mix of this
firm (Love et al., 2017). The accounting team is involved with gathering, recording, assessing,
and presenting financial data- great fiscal communication has contributed hugely to the success
of their business (Love et al., 2017). The fiscal function is involved in generating funds
necessary for managing the company and decides the way the money is going to be invested. The
unit organizes the sources of earnings, cash flow, and credit management. The management and
operations units conduct the growth of new goods, research and development, product
preparation, quality management, distribution, buying, and inventory control. The operational
unit serves as a core component in operations.
Porter’s Five Forces Analysis
Competitors in customer markets are getting more ground against Microsoft as Apple
surpassed the standing of Microsoft as the most valued innovation, which introduced a
psychosomatic impact to the Corporation (Hyrynsalmi et al., 2016). Though the business retains
the hold of the marketplace, Microsoft’s rivals are facing fierce substitutes with new technology
in networking, cloud solutions, smartphones, gaming architecture, and tablet computers. In the
evaluation of Microsoft, the porter’s forces in the sector, include threats of new investments, the
threat of replacements, providers' bargaining power, customer’s bargaining capacity, and
aggressive competition.
Threats of New Investments (moderate force)
Particular external variables using their intensities feature to the threat of new entry
against the Corporation. The threats of new entrants include brand growth, the cost of expansion,
the cost of producing new brand portfolios, and digitized economy.
Threats of Rival Products and Services (weak force)
The weak force of replacements on Microsoft features and products relates to external
variables. Based on this assumption, the organization has seen reduced access to substitutes and
the performance of substitutes. The firm’s products and services have been integrated with high-
end innovation to surpass the efficiency of close substitutes. Consequently, the higher
endorsement of improved technology reduces access to replacements, thereby weakening the
risks of substitution on Microsoft's services, software, and other devices.
The Bargaining Power of Suppliers (moderate force)
The supplier bargaining power is an external factor with moderate force on the
Corporta5tion. The force includes the supplier's size and demand volume. The bargaining force
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influences the organization when product supply falls below the demand threshold. Thus, the
size and population of providers influence Microsoft's business atmosphere.
Customer’s Buying Power (moderate force)
Factors like diversity and spontaneous switching cost influence consumer bargaining
power. Under the low rival accessibility, customers find it challenging to compare the products
and services of other brands. The inability of these companies to provide adequate products and
services makes it difficult to make comparisons. However, the ease of product switching makes
it compelling to improve and manage customers. Average shifting costs impose an important
impact on Microsoft's business environment because customers can quickly change in the usage
of particular goods to other goods of a different provider. Thus, the ease of switching products
and services creates market pressure for Microsoft Corporation.
Business Rivalry (strong force)
The forces of rivalry include business diversity and the competitive status of investments.
These variables have an underlying influence on Microsoft's strategic operations. The intrusive
nature of Microsoft rivals such as Apple, Sony, Oracle, IBM, and Salesforce creates a strong
force on the organization. Consequently, the diversity of investment portfolio creates aggressive
competition among organizations that provides similar products and services.
Marketing Mix Analysis
The marketing mix of the organization reveals how the mixture of invention and effective
strategies are utilized to maintain the market share value. Microsoft uses online engineering and
technological processes for the security of electronic products. It enjoys a large earning because
the firm has a significant competitor in the marketplace for hardware, cloud services, and
applications. The 4Ps include price, product, place, and promotions. Microsoft provides different
merchandise. Its product mix includes applications, an apparatus, games, programs, and
amusement. Thus, there is a high profile diversification of Microsoft's goods. In its place and
supply mix, Microsoft utilizes official websites, online shops, authorized vendors, and retail
outlets for transacting with clients. Although Microsoft outlets are restricted in amount, they ease
direct advertising, which empowers the enterprise to increase customer experience and improve
the brand image (Išoraitė, 2016). Under the proportion mix, the firm targets customers by
implementing effective strategies and communication approaches (Mosheshe, 2017). Under the
pricing mix, the Corporation utilizes cost plans such as a market-oriented framework to create
product and service differentiation. Each approach has its advantages and can be employed based
on market dynamics.
Microsoft’s SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis describes a firm's strengths and weaknesses in the overall management.
The analysis describes the firm's internal and external strategic factors based on its products and
services. Microsoft’s SWOT evaluation shows the impact of innovation, business diversification,
and service solutions. The management conducts a SWOT analysis to organize a long-term
response to customer's requirements and market dynamics.
Strength
Effective distribution supply chain
Strong financial performance
User-friendly applications and software
Brand loyalty
A vast market reach
Market capitalization
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New Product lines

Continuous growth
Diversified portfolio
Effective leadership
Weakness
Poor browser integration (Microsoft edge)
Windows technical challenges
Trust and security issues with products
Reliance on program manufacturers
Vulnerability to attacks and cybercrime
Product imitation
Poor investment acquisition
Security flaws
Slow innovative strategy
Opportunities
Cloud solutions
Smart devices and advertising
Aggressive brand diversification through acquisitions
Innovative market with artificial intelligence
Improving security firewalls against attacks
Threats
Currency exchange rate
Litigations and lawsuit
Product and service rivalry
The political, economic, and environmental crisis
Internal frauds and scandals
Software open source technology
Volatile market and consumer needs
Supply Chain Management and Accounting Practices
Supply chain management is the effective utilization of the value distribution strategy to
control and organize a firm's products and services. It is the proactive management of logistics to
enhance quality, value, and competitive advantage (Sawhney et al., 2017). Microsoft’s logistics
and delivery strategy cover many segments, which include cost analysis, vendor information
management, business record management, sales processing evaluation, and product monitoring.
Microsoft management operations in accordance with global best practices in financial
accounting. The Corporation complies with the GAAP accounting principles in reporting
consolidations, estimates, assumptions, revenues, foreign currencies, and expenditures. These
strategies have a positive influence on the firm's share value. Consequently, factors like
management efficiency, political climate, dividend rate, investors, interest rates, and stock
demand influences the price of Microsoft’s share.
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References
Conte, F. (2018). Understanding the influence of CEO tenure and CEO reputation on corporate
reputation: An exploratory study in Italy. International Journal of Business and
Management, 13(3), 54-59. https://doi.org/10.5539/ijbm.v13n3p54
Hyrynsalmi, S., Suominen, A., & Mäntymäki, M. (2016). The influence of developer multi-
homing on competition between software ecosystems. Journal of Systems and Software,
111(1), 119-127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2015.08.053
Išoraitė, M. (2016). Marketing mix theoretical aspects. International Journal of Research, 4(6),
25-37. https://doi: 10.5281/zenodo.56533
Love, E., Lim, J., & Bednar, M. (2017). The face of the firm: The influence of CEOs on
corporate reputation. Academy of Management Journal, 60(4), 1462-1481.
https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2014.0862
Mosheshe, J. (2017). Utilizing object-oriented software-testing tools in Microsoft Corporation.
Computer Engineering & Information Technology, 6(4), 1-4. https://doi: 10.4172/2324-
9307.1000177
Sawhney, M., Buenneke, B., Jackson, L., Kulick, L., Kulick, N., Norton, E., Post, E., & Rotem,
R. (2017). Microsoft Corp.: Branding and positioning .NET. Kellogg School of
Management Cases, 1(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1108/case.kellogg.2016.000210