The $5 billion Crop Harvesting division of a Fortune 100 global manufacturer was struggling to meet its revenue and profitability targets amid an overload of competing priorities. Development resources were spread too thin across geographies and programs, making it difficult for leadership to focus major investments or clearly explain strategic choices. The division engaged us to develop a unified global business strategy that would align regions, product development, and manufacturing decisions around a single, coherent vision.
We needed to specify – in detail — where the business should compete and how it will win in those chosen markets. We mapped the market by product and application and crafted a global market segmentation covering 3 crop types, 3 farm types, and six types of equipment in the product line. Each segment was then assessed in depth for attractiveness, competitive dynamics, and fit with the company’s capabilities, enabling clear prioritization and the definition of appropriate business models. This segment prioritization helped the client decide which development programs to accelerate or curtail; and a new, smaller product aimed at smaller farms and emerging markets was subsequently developed and brought to market.
To ensure strategic choices were economically sound, we built integrated financial models that quantified expected revenue growth, cost structures, and profitability by segment. These insights informed decisions about the optimal global manufacturing footprint and clarified which development programs should be prioritized in specific geographies to support the highest-value opportunities. The work culminated in a clearly articulated vision, strategy, and set of strategic pillars that translated analytical insight into actionable direction.
By focusing on each region (but in global context), we identified opportunities to bring to market particular products well-suited to fast-growing emerging markets (such as Brazil, Argentina). This strategic emphasis on emerging markets was instrumental in bolstering global market share while maintaining leading share in N. America. Diversification into emerging markets also provided a buffer against subsequent market downturns in developed regions, and delivered leading market share worldwide by 2018.