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Porter Five Forces Analysis is a strategic management tool to analyze industry and understand underlying levers of profitability in a given industry. Canadian National Railway Company managers can use Porter Five Forces to understand how the five competitive forces influence profitability and develop a strategy for enhancing Canadian National Railway Company competitive advantage and long term profitability in Railroads industry.
Canadian National Railway Company is one of the leading firms in the Railroads. Over the years Canadian National Railway Company has redefined the ways of doing business in Services. Canadian National Railway Company is listed at New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and have a market cap 62.25B USD.
In his revolutionary article - "Five Forces that Shape Strategy", Michael Porter observed five forces that have significant impact on a firm's profitability in its industry. These five forces analysis today in business world is also known as -Porter Five Forces Analysis. The Porter Five (5) Forces are -
Porter Five Forces is a holistic strategy framework that took strategic decision away from just analyzing the present competition. Porter Five Forces focuses on - how Canadian National Railway Company can build a sustainable competitive advantage in Railroads industry. Managers at Canadian National Railway Company can not only use Porter Five Forces to develop a strategic position with in Railroads industry but also can explore profitable opportunities in whole Services sector.
New entrants in Railroads brings innovation, new ways of doing things and put pressure on Canadian National Railway Company through lower pricing strategy, reducing costs, and providing new value propositions to the customers. Canadian National Railway Company has to manage all these challenges and build effective barriers to safeguard its competitive edge.
All most all the companies in the Railroads industry buy their raw material from numerous suppliers. Suppliers in dominant position can decrease the margins Canadian National Railway Company can earn in the market. Powerful suppliers in Services sector use their negotiating power to extract higher prices from the firms in Railroads field. The overall impact of higher supplier bargaining power is that it lowers the overall profitability of Railroads.
Buyers are often a demanding lot. They want to buy the best offerings available by paying the minimum price as possible. This put pressure on Canadian National Railway Company profitability in the long run. The smaller and more powerful the customer base is of Canadian National Railway Company the higher the bargaining power of the customers and higher their ability to seek increasing discounts and offers.
When a new product or service meets a similar customer needs in different ways, industry profitability suffers. For example services like Dropbox and Google Drive are substitute to storage hardware drives. The threat of a substitute product or service is high if it offers a value proposition that is uniquely different from present offerings of the industry.
If the rivalry among the existing players in an industry is intense then it will drive down prices and decrease the overall profitability of the industry. Canadian National Railway Company operates in a very competitive Railroads industry. This competition does take toll on the overall long term profitability of the organization.
By analyzing all the five competitive forces Canadian National Railway Company strategists can gain a complete picture of what impacts the profitability of the organization in Railroads industry. They can identify game changing trends early on and can swiftly respond to exploit the emerging opportunity. By understanding the Porter Five Forces in great detail Canadian National Railway Company 's managers can shape those forces in their favor.