Guidelines for effective strategy in African markets: Lessons and extensions from SMS publications

• Author: Benedikt Wahler,Adetunji Adegbesan,Will Mitchell
• Published date: 01 December 2016
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/smj.2538
• Date: 01 December 2016

Applications:StrategyinAfricanCountriesVSIIntro

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SMSApplications:StrategyinAfricanCountries

AVirtualSpecialIssue

GuidelinesforeffectivestrategyinAfricanmarkets:LessonsandextensionsfromSMS

publications

AdetunjiAdegbesan(LagosBusinessSchool,Pan‐AtlanticUniversity)

WillMitchell(UniversityofToronto,RotmanSchoolofManagement)

BenediktWahler(Ampion.org/RolandBergerStrategyConsultants)

December22,2014

This“ApplicationsVirtualSpecialIssue”ofarticlespublishedintheSMSjournalshighlights

insightsaboutsuccessfulstrategyinemergingmarkets,focusingparticularlyonpapersthat

havestudiedstrategyinAfrica.Thearticlesofferfocusedimplicationsforeffective

management,whilealsocontributingtoamoreintegratedsetofsummarylessonsfor

successfulstrategyinAfricanmarkets.

A.ImplicationsaboutstrategyinAfricanmarketsfromindividualSMSarticles

TheindividualarticlesintheSMSjournalshighlightlessonsonboththedemandsideof

understandingmarketpreferencesandthesupplysideofdesigningbusinessmodelsinAfrican

markets.

1.Demandside

ConsumersinAfricanmarketsoftenhaveunexpectedpreferences,differingfromexperience

thatcompanieshaveinothermarkets,creatinganeedtodelvecarefullyintoassessing

consumerneedsandwantsratherthantakingseeminglyobviousvaluepreferencesforgranted.

a.Dealingwithuncertainty:Anearlystudydemonstratedthatfirmsneedtoundertakewider

andmorefrequentenvironmentalscanninginhighuncertaintyenvironments(Sawyerr,1993).

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