The Virgin Group of Companies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

The Virgin Group of Companies - Essay Example The Virgin Group of Companies has managed to grow over the years from being a simple student magazine to mail order music retailer to one of the easily recognizable global brand names today. Despite its size, it has remained an entrepreneurial company that values innovation and risk-taking whenever an opportunity exists and wherever a market beckons. Contrary to what most business experts would opine, it has benefited from the diversity of its business lines by using synergies between related industries. Becoming a conglomerate did not make the Virgin Group lose its small business mindset which is to take calculated risks after conducting a rigorous market study on its prospective investments. Further, this small firm mentality translates into not only a constant search for innovative ideas but also to some powerful business drivers like employee empowerment and customer feedback. All of this is due to the fact Sir Richard Branson maintains a hands-on approach to management, reflecte d in its thin management layer, a tiny corporate board and an even tinier corporate offices. Besides having a somewhat unique business name, this group thrived on the concept of working harder to exploit certain market distortions, customer dissatisfaction and decidedly calculated risk taking. Its diverse businesses is a source of its strength, contrary to what some experts say. Having a maverick chief executive with a penchant for publicity stunts is a big help but that is not the only success factor. The diversity of its business areas allowed for synergies to be derived from related companies and nowhere is this shown concretely than in the case of Virgin Holidays in relation to Virgin Atlantic Airways. It basically catered to the same market segment – people who took flights from London to either New York or Miami. The global travel industry can be characterized as an oligopoly where a few market players control a big size of the industry. This is known in economic theory as C4 where the top four firms control 60% or more of an industrys total sales.