{"title":"Leica Camera: A \"Boutique\" Firm Faces a World of Change","authors":"S. Venkataraman, Gerry Yemen, Bill Chapman","doi":"10.2139/ssrn.2975229","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"This case is used in the course elective \"Strategic Post-Merger Integration,\" and in Darden's Global EMBA strategy course. Well suited for MBA, Executive MBA, GEMBA, and executive education programs, this case describes the circumstances at Leica Camera, the famed German manufacturer of high-end cameras, and allows for an analysis of the firm's competitive position. Although the company decides to stop production of its R-system camera and lenses, a backlash from users surfaces. That leaves the case open to exploring the uncertainty over achievable sales volume for the R-series lenses as well as where the company fits in the market as new and less-expensive competitor products gain popularity. The case provides an overview of the competitive style of major camera and lens manufacturers and allows a discussion of core capabilities of these competitors. What products would secure Leica's future? Was there development potential for a new universal system? The case describes an issue that many organizations face today—how to decide whether components are strategically critical. Excerpt UVA-S-0225 Rev. May 16, 2014 LEICA CAMERA: A “BOUTIQUE” FIRM FACES A WORLD OF CHANGE Leica must be kept from becoming a boutique firm for the nostalgically minded. —Dr. Josef Spichtig, Leica chairman, 2005 annual report Leica Camera AG CEO and principal owner Andreas Kaufmann was melancholy while strolling the floor of photokina—the world's largest photography industry trade fair. The biannual event took place in Cologne, Germany, less than 100 miles from Leica's headquarters in the small town of Solms. Being so close to home made Kaufmann feel more like a host than an attendee, and after having had another tough year in 2008, he did not relish the spotlight. Kaufmann had fired the previous CEO, Steven K. Lee (an American), a few months earlier after Lee's efforts to turn around the struggling company had rubbed longtime German employees the wrong way. . . .","PeriodicalId":230377,"journal":{"name":"ERN: Integration (Topic)","volume":"31 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0000,"publicationDate":"1900-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"ERN: Integration (Topic)","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2975229","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"","JCRName":"","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
This case is used in the course elective "Strategic Post-Merger Integration," and in Darden's Global EMBA strategy course. Well suited for MBA, Executive MBA, GEMBA, and executive education programs, this case describes the circumstances at Leica Camera, the famed German manufacturer of high-end cameras, and allows for an analysis of the firm's competitive position. Although the company decides to stop production of its R-system camera and lenses, a backlash from users surfaces. That leaves the case open to exploring the uncertainty over achievable sales volume for the R-series lenses as well as where the company fits in the market as new and less-expensive competitor products gain popularity. The case provides an overview of the competitive style of major camera and lens manufacturers and allows a discussion of core capabilities of these competitors. What products would secure Leica's future? Was there development potential for a new universal system? The case describes an issue that many organizations face today—how to decide whether components are strategically critical. Excerpt UVA-S-0225 Rev. May 16, 2014 LEICA CAMERA: A “BOUTIQUE” FIRM FACES A WORLD OF CHANGE Leica must be kept from becoming a boutique firm for the nostalgically minded. —Dr. Josef Spichtig, Leica chairman, 2005 annual report Leica Camera AG CEO and principal owner Andreas Kaufmann was melancholy while strolling the floor of photokina—the world's largest photography industry trade fair. The biannual event took place in Cologne, Germany, less than 100 miles from Leica's headquarters in the small town of Solms. Being so close to home made Kaufmann feel more like a host than an attendee, and after having had another tough year in 2008, he did not relish the spotlight. Kaufmann had fired the previous CEO, Steven K. Lee (an American), a few months earlier after Lee's efforts to turn around the struggling company had rubbed longtime German employees the wrong way. . . .