Question

Strategic PlanningImagine that IBM has decided to diversify into the telecommunications business to provide online cloud-computing data services and broadband access for businesses and individuals. What method would you recommend that IBM pursue to enter this industry? Why?

Answer 1

IBM could either diversify by the strategy of market penetration, which consists in increasing the market share in a particular sector (in this case, cloud computing) through more marketing efforts.

Or it could integrate horizontally, acquiring a possible competitor that is more advanced in the cloud-computing business. Or even a start-up with good prospects, because with the amount of capital that IBM has, it could more easily expand the start-up operation as a new internal business division.