Management Essay Example on Three Circle Memos for Fitbit Company

As a fitness company facing competition from other well-established firms doing the same business, Fitbit must strive to deliver products that meet the needs of its clients. The firm faces the risk of losing its clients to their main competitors, Apple and Xiaomi if they do not manufacture products that meet the standards and expectations of their clients. Most clients of Fitbit fitness tracking devices are Americans who would like to keep a record of their daily physical exercise. The use of a 3-circle analysis of Fitbit indicates that the firm has a robust strategy to overcome corporate challenges.

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At the first circle are the customers' needs and values. To have a good vision of both internal and external representation of the company's strategy, a well-drawn with a properly established relationship 3-circle is important for Fitbit's leadership. Principally it is important to point out why these clients need the specific features and the motivating factor behind their move. In other words, this first circle represents Fitbit leadership agreed view that meets everything that a particular customer segment wants or need. According to the ring, therefore, the customer segment is the most important section; other parts can be analyzed later. From the reading, skin allergic reaction complaints from clients after the firm introduced Fitbit Flex and Fitbit Force was a major concern as up to 9,000 clients were affected. The firm moved swiftly to counter this market challenge through repairing and replacing the items with allergen-free devices. Also important to highlight is the need to look into the objection about upload personal information of their clients to their web which could compromise the privacy of their clients. Such complaints have a direct impact on sales and customer retention (Sasaki et al., 2015). This circle, therefore, offers the top leadership opportunity to rectify the mentioned mistakes in time.

In the second segment are clear specifications on how a team in any organization views what they offer to their clients. A look at how the circles overlap in this second part indicates how well a good or services provided by any company fulfill the needs of its clients. It is not possible, even in the top firms in the world with all resources to collect all their customers' problems. Sometimes the clients also fail to clearly articulate their needs/wants or the difficulties they face. Fitbit did not wait for the clients to complain or write formal communication about the flaws in the design of its Fitbit Ultra to repair or replace the stain at the looped end. The second circle made it possible to assess their clients' perspective of the item and the management easily came up with a solution to this problem. A strategy in place for Fitbit is to offer commodities that satisfy clients' needs; an example is a quick move by the management to rectify the antennae problem that would have influenced items sales.

The third circle offers the most important analysis for any company. It assesses how the clients perceive an alternative product by the competitors. The growth in popularity of Apple watches and Xiaomi among clients who like to keep track of their physical activities led Fitbit to a new strategy aimed at preventing their clients. Since 2015, Apple, Garmin, Xiaomi, Samsung and other devices' presence in the market has been recognizable. Most clients are attracted to Apple watches in light of the controversies like privacy and allergic reaction facing Fitbit in the past. As its latest strategy, the firm plans to diversify and move from only manufacturing wearable physical activities devices into making clinical devices to maintain market presences and to keep its customers (Brunson & Reed, 2016).

All the areas formed within the thee-circles are important for determining a company's strategic competitive advantage. However, to establish and build a competitive advantage for Fitbit the focus should be on A, B and C by asking questions about each circle. For instance, it is important for Fitbit to ask, about Apple, Xiaomi and other key market players, how big their competitive advantage is. Is the significant market share the company enjoys based on given distinct capabilities not present in other competing firms. A positive answer to these two concern will lead to circle B which mainly concerns itself with the delivery of merchandised needed by the clients. In the case of B, the clients must be satisfied and the company should be in a position of collecting customers' feedback to ensure that they supply what the market needs. As competition grows, some clients would opt for products from Apple despite the high price if Fitbit does not satisfy their needs/wants (Urbany & Davis 2007). Finally, in C, the main concern for the company should be how it can counter the competitors' growing advantage. As once a market leader on physical fitness recording device, Fitbit should be worried of the increase market share of Apple and other such devices manufacturers. In C, the strategy is to counter the advantages these companies enjoy as highlighted in the reading.

References

Brunson, R. R., & Reed, M. M. (2016). Fitbit, Inc.: Has the Company Outgrown Its Strategy? Journal of Physical Activity and Health 12 (2015), pp. 149-154.

Sasaki, J. E., Hickey, A., Mavilia, M., Tedesco, J., John, D., Keadle, S. K., & Freedson, P. S. (2015). Validation of the Fitbit wireless activity tracker for prediction of energy expenditure. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 12(2), 149-154.

Urbany, J. E., & Davis, J. H. (2007). Strategic Insight in Three Circles. Harvard Business Review, 85(11), 28-30.