sun tzu advantages

1. 3.3 Advantages of company’s business practices
A solitary of the advantages that McDonald’s had taken on the strategy of Sun Tzu
Line 5.1 “to manage a large force is similar to managing a small force” is that they have a
specific set of competitive advantages that they try to achieve. The term means the
positioning a firm takes in relation to other firms in its industry. We can see that McDonald’s
has put up a strategic game plan to blossom their business. It is clearly seen that by
franchising, the company has grown into a very competitive industry. Over several years
McDonald’s has been recognized as one of the Top 10 Franchises among 500 franchises. By
using this scheme of rapid expansion through franchising, company owned restaurants, and
joint ventures has lead them to the increase of sales and profit of 27.44 billion dollars.
Second advantage of the aforesaid Sun Tzu’s business strategy is clearly depicted
when McDonald’s restaurant provides opportunity to those who are interested in starting a
business. McDonald’s are seeking individuals with significant business experience who have
successfully owned or managed multiple business units or have led multiple departments and
who have significant financial resources. This line of attack of franchising is a way
McDonald has been so victorious in overseeing restaurants over 100 countries. Consequently,
McDonald's continues to be recognized as a premier franchising company with more than
80% of the restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by McDonald’s Franchisees.
A definite advantage that McDonald’s had administer on the strategy of Sun Tzu Line
5.7 “applying principle of using strengths to strike weaknesses” is consistency of the brand in
the marketplace. When a company looks to establish itself in the marketplace, it often turns to
branding. The more often a customer sees your brand in the marketplace, the more often he
will consider it for purchase. If the brand and identity are truly kept consistent, the customer
is more likely to feel that the quality is consistent and to become a loyal follower of the brand.
However, this means that the product must maintain a consistency that reflects the image as
well.
Besides, another advantage of the prior mentioned strategy is evident when
McDonalds derive with the initiative of differentiation of food products amongst other fast
food franchise. The term differentiation means a firm offers a superior product at a similar
cost to other firms’ inferior products. This “superiority” is often just perceived by the
consumer. This is also where positioning comes into play. With their initiative of introducing
localised new products to the customers, this may make their product different than other

2. firms, and this difference may make consumers believe their product is superior to other
similar products in the market.
One of the advantages of that McDonald’s had ratified on the business strategy of Sun
Tzu Line “5.4 it is a matter of formations, communication and signals” is a good
organizational structure. When franchising, have an organised structure is vital. We can see
that McDonald’s has a good communication and management structure because a good
organisational structure facilitates attainment of objectives through proper coordination of all
activities. In addition, it results in increased cooperation, communication and a sense of pride
among members of the organisation. Thus, by implementing this system of conduct,
McDonald’s had successfully grown into a great empire.
Second advantage of the aforementioned strategy is that a satisfied customer returning
from McDonald’s. Before permanently hiring employees, McDonald’s first sends them to a
training centre. By training them, they acquire skills and knowledge on how to handle their
part of the responsibility in the business. For example, a cashier would know how to greet,
take orders and handle the cash at the register. This method is no doubt good for business.
Training can improve the business performance, profit and staff morale. At the end of the
day, customers’ feedback is plays an important role in the business world. Thus providing
them with adequate service is the main focus.
3.3 Disadvantages of company’s business practices
One of the disadvantages of adopting the strategy of Sun Tzu Line 5.1 “to manage a
large force is similar to managing a small force” can be seen through the stoppage of the
supplier. Supply management is complex because it requires dealing with a number of
manufactures and distributors while still focusing on your end users. Many can go wrong:
your shipments can get delayed; a focus on cost cutting can create broken links in your chain;
and sudden industry changes can throw off your demand forecasting accuracy. Hence,
choosing reliable partners and proper preparation will help ensure smooth supply sailing and
greatly reduce risk in a volatile marketplace.
Secondly, the franchisee is not completely independent. Franchisees are required to
operate their businesses according to the procedures and restrictions set forth by the
franchisor in the agreement. These boundaries include the products or services which can be
offered, pricing and geographic territory. In addition to that, franchisees must be vigilant to

3. balance restrictions and support provided by the franchisor with their own capacity to
supervise their business. A damaged, system-wide image can result if other franchisees are
performing inadequately or the franchisor runs into an unforeseen predicament.
A peculiar disadvantage of adopting the strategy of Sun Tzu Line 5.7 “applying the
principle of using strengths to strike weakness” is that no proper installation of the franchise i
can occur. When we get to ambitious about something, we tend to overlook many other
important aspects. For example, when McDonald’s first opened in India, this particular
franchise was not successful over the few months. This is because majority of the citizens in
India are vegetarians. So buy selling meat burgers, McDonalds had fall short to cater towards
the locals’ needs. The person in charge did not have a thorough investigation of the
demographics and trends of the people in that particular area.
Secondly, many privileges that are taken for granted that comes about when opening a
fast food outlet. For example unlimited usage of free Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi environment will hinder
the actual purpose of their business that is their product value. We can see that nowadays,
people tend to spend tremendous amount of their leisure time by using Wi-Fi. So, their sole
purpose of coming to McDonald’s could be to utilize their privilege. Instead of purchasing
meals, they would only purchase an ice-cream or drink and sit there for hours hence taking up
unnecessary sitting availability, hindering others who really want to enjoy the food.
Particular disadvantages when applying the strategy of Sun Tzu’s Line “5.4 it is a
matter of formations, communication and signals” is poor communication in the workplace
or organisation can transpire. This can lead to miscommunication because people might not
be sure who needs or where to send information. Miscommunication is inevitable.
Miscommunication can be blamed for a significant amount of conflict and the tension that it
stirs. It would be unrealistic to think all miscommunication could be prevented, but if we
understood its causes, the percentage could likely be decreased.
Another disadvantage would be that the management can overlook the importance of
the company’s employees’ welfare. When the company is unknowingly too focused on
ensuring the credibility of the company’s management, organisational procedure and
productivity, they might forget about their employees. In a research done, many people have
mentioned their dissatisfactory of their welfare when working. Some cited demands on
working overtime but no commission.