Question

provide 3 reasons why firms have moved away from unrelated conglomerate type diversification.

Answer 1

Large size or large market share can lead to economies of scale. Marketing or production synergies may result from more efficient use of sales calls, reduced travel time, reduced changeover time, and longer production runs.

Learning and experience curve effects may produce lower costs as the firm gains experience in producing and distributing its product or service. Experience and large size may also lead to improved layout, gains in labor efficiency, redesign of products or production processes, or larger and more qualified staff departments (e.g., marketing research or research and development).

Lower average unit costs may result from a firm's ability to spread administrative expenses and other overhead costs over a larger unit volume. The more capital intensive a business is, the more important its ability to spread costs across a large volume becomes.

Improved linkages with other stages of production can also result from large size. Better links with suppliers may be attained through large orders, which may produce lower costs (quantity discounts), improved delivery, or custom-made products that would be unaffordable for smaller operations. Links with distribution channels may lower costs by better location of warehouses, more efficient advertising, and shipping efficiencies. The size of the organization relative to its customers or suppliers influences its bargaining power and its ability to influence price and services provided.

Sharing of information between units of a large firm allows knowledge gained in one business unit to be applied to problems being experienced in another unit. Especially for companies relying heavily on technology, the reduction of R&D costs and the time needed to develop new technology may give larger firms an advantage over smaller, more specialized firms. The more similar the activities are among units, the easier the transfer of information becomes.

Taking advantage of geographic differences is possible for large firms. Especially for multinational firms, differences in wage rates, taxes, energy costs, shipping and freight charges, and trade restrictions influence the costs of business. A large firm can sometimes lower its cost of business by placing multiple plants in locations providing the lowest cost. Smaller firms with only one location must operate within the strengths and weaknesses of its single location.

Answer 2

Conglomeration refers to business acquiring other business that are not in a related industry or geographical region. Unrelated conglomeration has the following challenges that have caused firms to move away from it:

1. As the organization grows in size,so does the costs of running the different businesses under one group.

2. Managing business in different industries is quite a challenge and the buyers of the new company will need lots of time to understand the new industry and manage the business effectively.

3. Cultural differences in the different companies, industries and management  and employees of the companies will also bring about more challenges.