Strategic Marketing

 
Case Synopsis

The case takes us back to June 2013, a few weeks after the BNP Paribas Group, a leading bank in the Euro zone, had introduced an innovative mobile retail bank – “Hello Bank!” – in Belgium and Germany, with France and Italy set to launch later that year.

It follows the reasoning behind the development of Hello bank! and offers an insight into why the Group’s senior management gave the utmost strategic priority to this project. It then focuses on the launch of Hello bank! In Belgium and observes how three key executives – the Director of Marketing, the Head of Hello bank! Belgium, and the Program Manager – appraised the launch and assessed the challenges ahead. Although they were satisfied that the launch was a success, they had to keep the momentum going and make important strategic decisions regarding how to:

1. Get more youngsters on board (their target group as the new generation of mobile customers),
2. Stay ahead of the competition, who were certainly going to jump on the bandwagon,
3. Create synergies between the mobile Hello bank! model and the multi- channel BNP Paribas Fortis retail banking model (in order to accommodate customers with more complex needs), and stay abreast of new technological developments.

The case provides a basis for discussions on the introduction of a mobile bank by an established player – and, more specifically, on evaluating its approach to strategy, marketing, and information and communication technology (ICT).

Learning objectives:

The main learning objectives of this case are:

• To discuss strategy formulation in the retail banking industry, with a focus on the launch of a separate, disruptive business model.
• To discuss the strategic, marketing, and ICT challenges of introducing a native mobile retail bank.
• To discuss the implementation issues associated with innovation through mobile technology in the retail banking industry.

Reading

Amit, R., and C. Zott. “Creating Value Through Business Model Innovation.” MIT Sloan Management Review 53, no. 3 (Spring 2012): 41-49.
Beck, K. et al. “Manifesto for Agile Project Management.” http://agilemanifesto.org/ (2001).
Bower, J. L., and C. M. Christensen. “Disruptive Technologies: Catching the Wave.” Harvard Business Review 73, no. 1 (January–February 1995): 43–53. Christensen, C. M. The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail. Harvard Business School Press (1997), Boston, MA.
Croll, A., and B. Yoskovitz. Lean Analytics. Use Data to Build a Better Startup Faster. O’Reilly. The Lean Series (2013), Sebastopol, CA.
Gilbert, C., M. Eyring, and R.N. Foster. “Two Routes to Resilience.” Harvard Business Review (December 2012): 3-9.
Markides, C.C., and D. Oyon. “What to Do Against Disruptive Business Models (When and How to Play Two Games at Once).” MIT Sloan Management Review 51, no. 4 (Summer 2010): 25-32.
McGrahan, A.M. “How Industries Change.” Harvard Business Review (October 2004): 87-94.

Requirements for this assessment

1) Read the Hello Bank! Case, a copy of which is available for download on Vision
2) Submit an INDIVIDUAL essay of 2,500 words (+/- 10%) in length, which:

a) Critically evaluates BNP Paribas Group’s rationale for the launch of Hello Bank! and its current strategic direction.
b) Recommends suitable marketing strategies which Hello Bank! could employ over the next 3-5 years in order survive and thrive

Use the following questions to help with your case analysis. However, you are reminded to write your response in essay format. You may support your points by referring to a set of appendices.
1) What is the BNP Paribas Group’s strategic rationale for launching Hello bank! ?
2) Why did the BNP Paribas Group choose to pursue different approaches per country?
3) Compared to the other countries, what makes Hello bank! Belgium special?
4) How should the management evaluate the success of Hello bank!
5) What are the key factors management needs to take into account in order to lead the market three years down the road?
Further guidelines:
• You should adopt a logical structure, and include relevant marketing models and frameworks.
• The essay needs to demonstrate clarity and consistency. There should be a logical progression from your analysis of the Bank’s strategic position and your decisions/recommendations.
• Any decisions or recommendations must be fully justified with reference to the case material.
• This assignment is designed to assess your strategic marketing decision-making skills in the context of a case study. As such it is an opportunity to demonstrate the application of theory.

Assessment criteria

This assessment is designed to encourage you to:

• Develop your analytical and decision-making skills in a strategic marketing context.
• Apply your knowledge of the strategic marketing process introduced throughout the module.
• Justify decisions with reference to appropriate evidence from the case.
• Recognise the implementation issues resulting from marketing decisions
• Develop a critical appreciation of marketing theory by recognising its underlying assumptions and limitations.
• Develop your skills in the areas of: problem-solving and written communications.

Your work will be assessed according to the extent to which it adheres to the guidelines set out above and demonstrates:

• An ability to critically analyse, rather than describe, case material.
• Correct application of relevant concepts, tools and techniques.
• A critical appreciation of relevant academic theory by recognising its underlying assumptions and limitations.
• Evidence of appropriate decisions, supported by case evidence.
• An understanding of the strategic implications of chosen courses of action.
• Evidence of evaluation of alternative strategic options.
• Appropriate use of academic literature to support and develop arguments, including the correct use of the Harvard system of referencing.
• Sound academic practice in terms of English, structure and appropriate use of literature.

Further details of the assessment criteria are provided at the end of this document. The table provided will be used for grading feedback purposes.

Submission instructions

1. Assignment should be no more than 2,750 and no less than 2,250 words in length, excluding appendices, tables, etc.
2. The submission should be essay format, however, you may make use of diagrams, tables and models as appropriate.
3. Appendices can be included, but should be used judiciously and not as a “dumping ground” for all the information you wanted to include but could not fit in.
4. Harvard referencing should be used throughout and all references acknowledged. See course guidelines and referencing guide for further details:
http://www.hw.ac.uk/is/docs/Harvardguide.pdf
5. You must place a ‘top sheet’ on top of your submission, which identifies your student registration number only (for anonymous marking purposes), title and date.
6. Students are reminded of the university’s rules on plagiarism and the need to ensure accurate referencing of all sources used. To assist you, you are required to upload your total submission to Turnitin, a link for which is available on Vision. You will have two attempts. The first gives you an indication of your Similarity Index, which allows you to correct your second attempt/submission. The final attempt is the submission that will be marked. You are to make a note of the Similarity Index % and attach this to your hard copy and submit to the Academic Administration Office (Dubai) and Postgraduate office (Edinburgh)