Combination Strategy

A combination strategy is one that simultaneously combines the elements of master strategies, enabling the achievement of the primary objective. It is a network of diverse strategies that are interconnected and interdependent on one another. Depending on the data, it may be linked to either poor or better performance.

Combining strategies are advantageous, particularly when the business is large and operates in a complicated environment. The corporation comprises various enterprises, each of which belongs to a different industry and necessitates a different response. It further facilitates the sequential application of several diverse strategies at various future points in time.

A Combination strategy entails simultaneously employing other master strategies, such as stability, expansion, or retrenchment. It is any major strategy a company uses in collaboration with another in the same business or a separate business at certain points to increase efficiency. Competitive strategies are the choices made by the company to position itself for success in a particular market or sector.

This includes choosing how the business will compete in each industry or strategic business unit (SBU). Understanding the factors that influence the intensity of the competition and how to compete effectively is necessary for developing a competitive strategy in strategic management.

Organizational levels such as corporate, company, and functional levels all have a role in formulating strategies. Based on the levels of strategy, the approach differs. The highest level of strategic decision-making is at the corporate level, which includes actions about the firm's goal, the acquisition and distribution of resources, and the coordination of multiple SBUs' plans for the best performance. There are different corporate combination strategy options.

The expansion strategy includes intensifying, diversifying, buying, and merging businesses, forming strategic alliances, and other expansion methods. Other strategies include stability, retrenchment, combination, and turnaround strategies. The strategies mentioned above don't have to be used in succession. Combining the approaches mentioned above is feasible to meet specific scenarios. For example, an organization might look for stability in some areas of operation, expansion in others, and retrenchment in others. Combination strategies are hence a preferred option.

The following are the main types of corporate combination strategies:

#1 - Simultaneous combination strategies

Simultaneous Combinations can be used in the following way:

• During the divestment of a product line or strategic business unit (SBU) while simultaneously incorporating it into another SBU or product line.
• When a company or business uses a turnaround strategy for some commodities and pursues a growth strategy for others.
• The corporation may be harvesting for some products, and for others, it is pursuing growth. 

#2 - Sequential combination strategies

The business may utilize sequential strategies in the following ways:

• Starting with a growth strategy and moving on to a stability approach later.
• Deploying the growth plan after implementing the turnaround strategy as soon as the situation on the ground improves.

#3 - Combination of simultaneous and sequential strategies

As the name suggests, it combines both simultaneous and sequential strategies.

Check out the following examples to get a better idea:

Example #1

Cotton Club is a clothing company specializing in manufacturing comfort clothes for small babies (0–1 years). At first, it produced only normal clothes, but slowly it started manufacturing socks and hats for babies (stability). Later, it expanded to produce clothing for children and adults (shifting focus to capturing market segments of other age groups—expansion). Finally, to concentrate more on business development, it decided to discontinue manufacturing baby shoes as it was not profitable (retrenchment).

Here, multiple stability, expansion, and retrenchment strategies were employed to grow the business, thus adopting a combination strategy.

Example #2

Incorporated in June 1980 by airline investor Frank Lorenzo, Texas Air Corporation, usually known as Texas Air, is headquartered in Houston, Texas. The corporation's subsidiary, "Eastern Air Lines," reported a loss of $885.6 million in 1989. On the other hand, another company carrier, Continental Airlines, showed improvement. Following the loss of Eastern, Texas Air changed its name to "Continental Airlines Holdings" in June 1990 to reflect that the company's core business is Continental. In 1991, Eastern Air Lines filed for bankruptcy and was liquidated.

Here, the company made two major decisions or strategies quickly. The first was to keep what was profitable, renaming it Continental Airlines Holdings, and the second was to cut off what was not profitable by liquidating Eastern Air Lines.