PRODUCT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM : A BRIDGE BETWEEN THE CUSTOMER ANDCOMPANY’S BUSINESS MODEL AND STRATEGY FORNICHE COMPANIES IN OLIGOPOLY MARKETS

Abstract: For smaller niche companies in an oligopoly market to survive and grow, they need to focus on either having unique products and/or unique, more efficient internal processes compared to their larger competitors. One possible success factor for these smaller companies is to exploit the business potential found in an increasingly digitalized world. To fully utilize this potential, it is necessary for companies to ensure that their business models and strategies include performing a digital transformation as one of their key focus areas. This study focuses on the benefits that a company can derive from creating a digitalized back-end product management system that is integrated with a front-end, online user interface. The two research questions answered in this study are related to the interrelationship between business model and strategy and the creation of a digitalized product management system. In order to answer these questions, two case studies of three smaller, niche companies operating on the Swedish oligopoly markets of telecommunication and power distribution were performed. Interviews were held with representatives from these companies and the results of the interviews were coded by utilizing a Research Framework created for this study. The Research Framework was created based on the performed literature review including the dynamic capabilities concept that encompasses a company’s ability to sense, seize and transform itself to create a successful business model. The results of the case studies showed the benefits of digitalization in designing and utilizing a product management system that is integrated with a front-end user interface. Such an integrated platform should support in achieving increased customer satisfaction, as customers increasingly expect their suppliers to have a platform that enables them to online make their product choices, administrate their own accounts and retrieve historical data. This is part of a societal trend that smaller niche companies can utilize in their business model and strategy to in an agile manner meet the competition from their larger competitors. Besides increasing customer satisfaction, a well designed, digitalized product management system integrated with an online user interface makes it possible to decrease the need for manual administrative processes. This results in an increase in efficiency and reduced costs within a company or gives the employees the opportunity to focus on more value added activities. In this manner, the product management system has shown to be an important bridge between customers, product offerings, internal business management processes and a company’s business model and strategy.