Evaluation of the Changing Business Environment of NOKIA over Last 5 Years

Changing Business Environment of Nokia Company

 

            The only permanent thing in this world is change. Life is a process and

 

every aspect of it will change a way or another. Nothing will ever be the same

 

again because change is inevitable.

 

            Despite thorough studying and critical analysis of an enterprise to the

 

market it will enter, problems and failures are still experienced from time to time.

 

Loopholes and gaps should be look at. But, it is important to acknowledge that

 

the market is never a steady place. Consumer behaviors change and

 

competitions get tighter. Thus, changing business environment should be a main

 

concern of an enterprise.

 

            Business environment is the totality of circumstances created by external

 

forces that influences the behavior of the enterprise and its decisions. These

 

external forces include economic, social, environmental, political, and

 

technological factors that are beyond the control of the business. Thus, change in

 

business environment will also change the earlier plans for the enterprise. Drastic

 

change in business environment may affect adversely the enterprise because it

 

would be unable to adjust quickly and might result in loss of income or

 

bankruptcy.

 

            It is important to acknowledge how big factor business environment is.

 

Analyzing the business environment identifies opportunities and may gain

 

advantage for the first to exploit it. Also, it may identify threats of competitors and

 

would have early warning plans like improving the quality of the product or being

 

more aggressive in advertising. Rapidly coping with the changes in the business

 

environment is the major key in surviving the tight competition of the market.

 

However, there are some stable companies that seem not to run out of fuel in

 

leveling its way on the top.

 

            Nokia is the number one mobile company worldwide. An industry leader

 

on a global level, Nokia has strictly abides in its three main objectives: strong

 

customer recognition, speed of anticipation and fulfilling the evolving market

 

needs and positive relationship with its stakeholders. Nokia was established in

 

1865 as a pulp and paper mill in Finland but expanded into the rubber and cable

 

industries through a series of mergers. In 1975, it expanded even more into

 

many industries such as computers, electronics and cellphones. In 1979, Nokia

 

entered a joint venture with Mobria but Nokia later took over to design and

 

manufacture mobile phones. Since 1998, Nokia has been the mobile phone

 

industry leader exceeding over boundaries of continents and countries. However,

 

despite its being established in the market for long years, it doesn’t mean that the

 

company is invulnerable into threats of changing business environment.

 

            Starting from the 2G software in the late 1990s developing into

 

convergence of telephony and mobile Internet of 3G, Nokia has been the top

 

mobile phone around the globe. It has established itself to be user-friendly and

 

fast-paced in innovation of products. In response to structural changes, Nokia

 

divided the company into four divisions: mobile phones, multimedia phones,

 

enterprise solutions and networks. However, the stability of Nokia has been

 

challenged by circumstances surrounding the company.

 

            Despite that Nokia had been around dominating the market since then, it

 

is still threatened by the emerging top contenders in the mobile phone industry.

 

Sony Ericsson, LG, Motorola and Samsung are just some of the competitors that

 

try to level their way up to the industry. However, Nokia still outdo them in terms

 

of innovation and sales. But, not for long.

 

            The hysteria of smart phones which offers more sophisticated features

 

widened the market and tightened the competition. Also, Apple Inc.’s introduction

 

of iPhone created a new dimension of advanced mobile phones. Touch pad

 

technology, Internet usage and Wi Fi became standards of the new generation of

 

phones. Although Nokia consistently makes it to top ten when it experts rank the

 

best in mobile phones, they cannot be considered as dominant today compared

 

in the recent years.

 

            Moreover, the economic downturn in the late 2008 took a blow in the

 

mobile phone industry. Recession keeps the people in spending their tight

 

stipends on the very basic needs such as food, education and mortgages.

 

Upgrading of mobile phone seems to be a luxury and can be set aside. There is

 

a notable decline in the mobile phone industry.

 

            Indeed, Nokia had successfully adapted itself in the continuous change in

 

the business environment. And despite the challenges of competitors and

 

financial crisis, it held its ground and seems not be shaken. What the company

 

had all this time is resilience. Resilience in all challenges however big or small it

 

is.

 

 

 

References:

 

Adaptability and Change in Business Environment, September 2008

We are Now in a Changing Business Environment; We are Always in a Changing Business Environment, March 2008

Amit, Gupta, Nokia – Restructuring a Giant

Lindholm, Tero, Implementing SPI: Combining business process improvement and system development at Nokia

 

Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com