Question

Quebecor Printing is a commercial printing company that is expanding, acquiring ailing printing companies, and moving into international markets. They have completed more than 100 mergers and buyouts since 1972 and have focused on customized service by using "selective binding" to print. Apply strategies from Porter's model to make Quebecor Printing’s business more profitable.

Answer 1

Explanation:

In 1979, Michael Porter developed a model of competitive analysis that became popularly known as "Porter's 5 forces". That are:

1. Rivalry between competitors;  
2. Bargaining power of suppliers;
3. Bargaining power of customers;
4. Threat of new competitors;
5. Threat of new products or services.

These five forces help the organization to position itself in the market, discovering essential information about the macro environment, such as information about competitors, which contributes to the effectiveness of quality management, based on efficient techniques on market analysis.

Porter also defined 3 general strategies that can be applied in any company, regardless of size and area of ​​operation, so that it is possible to achieve a competitive and differentiated position in the current market.

1. Cost leadership,
2. Differentiation and
3. Focus.

In the case of Quebecor Printing, analyzing its strategy of offering a personalized service using "selective binding" to print, it can be said that the company uses Porter's focused differentiation strategy, whose main characteristics are to provide a differentiated service from competitors for satisfy the needs of the consumer, so it is important that the company also invests in process improvement, such as improving the technical training of employees and developing market segmentation research so that the entry into markets in other locations occurs according to the needs and particularities of the target audience of a given location.