Whither an MBA at Strutledge Strutledge is a small private l

Whither an MBA at Strutledge?

Strutledge is a small private liberal arts school located within 50 miles of a major urban area in the southeast United States. As with most institutions of higher education, Strutledge’s costs are rising, and its enrollments are decreasing. In an effort to expand its student base, build valuable ties with area businesses, and simply survive, the Board of Regents is considering establishing an MBA program.

Currently no undergraduate degree is given in business, although business courses are taught. The dean of the school visualizes the MBA as an interdisciplinary program emphasizing problem solving, communication, and global awareness. Faculty expertise would be supplemented by instructors from local industry. The use of local faculty would better connect the university with the business community and provide opportunities for employment of the program’s graduates.

In terms of competition, a major state-funded university that offers an MBA is located in the adjacent urban area. Strutledge hopes that state budget cutbacks and perceptions of overcrowded classrooms and overworked professors at public institutions will open the door for a new entrant into the market. The Board of Regents also feels that the school’s small size will allow Strutledge to tailor the MBA program more closely to area business needs.

Several members of the Board are concerned about recent reports of the dwindling value of an MBA and are wondering if a better niche could be found with another graduate degree, perhaps a master of science in business analytics or something in the education or healthcare field.

Please Answer these Question:

What action would you recommend to the Board of Regents?

How should Strutledge go about making a strategic decision such as this?

Solution

Board of Regents can consider the following options in order to overcome and sustain the competition in the industry:

These actions will help the university to attract a large number of students and will increase the university popularity.

While making a strategic decision Strudledge should follow the steps mentioned below:

Define order winning or qualifier elements: A firm must also define or access those qualities of a product that will help the firm’s product to be recognized by customers or will win their purchase. Therefore, a firm must identify such characteristic and should work on them effectively to further gain market for their products.

Define positioning strategies: The positioning strategies refer to the way a firm will present itself to the market or will compete in the marketplace. They can either compete on price, on quality, on cost, speed of delivery or on their flexibility to their decision making. This helps a firm to attract their customers.