CASE STUDY ON

RUSSELL
REYNOLDS
ASSOCIATES
Strategic Management
Faculty – Dr Meghna Sharma
Case Study by – Harvard Business School
INTRODUCTION
• Russell Reynolds Associates (RRA) is a management consulting firm. Established in 1969, the firm assists
international and domestic companies develop leaders, assess business processes, and recruit new executives. It
provides leadership advisory and executive recruiting services.
• Leadership advisory services include CEO/board advisory, culture assessment, digital transformation, diversity and
inclusion, executive search, family business advisory, global supply chain, and leadership assessment services.
• The firm also provides C-Suite recruitment services for positions like board directors and chief executive officers,
corporate affairs officers, digital leadership, financial officers, general counsel and legal officers, human resources
officers, marketing officers, risk and compliance officers, supply chain officers, and technology officers.
• Current CEO- Clarke Murphy
• Headquarter- New York, USA
• Number of Locations- 46 offices in 26 countries.
 KEY COMPETITORS
• Korn/Ferry: Market leader, first to launch internet-based search service known as Future step.
• Heidrick and struggles:2nd largest leading global executive firms. Biggest strength is their star
recruiter Gerry Roche.
• Spencer Stuart: one of Heidrick & struggles early recruits to its ranks of consultants was Spencer R
Stuart. Founded in 1956
• Egon Zehnder: it is privately owned company and 4th largest executives' firms. It is only company
based outside US. Founded in 1964 and headquarter I Zurich, Switzerland.
EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT ANALYSIS
Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 Case Study to make sure that it actively, and proactively responds to the macro-environment.
The macro environment or the external environment for the Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 Case includes those factors
which are not in control of the business or the company directly. As a result:
• The Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 influenced these factors in its favor, and in contrast, these factors directly affect the
operations and workings of the company.
• As a result, Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 must make sure to continually assess and review the external environment to
make sure that it responds to external factors, and take them into account, during strategic decisions, and strategy devising .
• Businesses like Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 make use of strategic model tools continually to make sure that they are
aware of the external environment.
• These include tools like the pestle analysis and Porter’s five force model, as well as strategic group analysis and pentagonal
analysis, to name a few.
• The external analysis for the Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 Case Study will assess and will apply the strategic models and
tools to review the business environment for the company.
INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT ANALYSIS
• Leading organizations such as Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 have obtained sustainable
competitive advantage and have had the option to achieve the strategic position.
• There can be different sources of sustainable competitive advantage for Russell Reynolds Associates--
1999. A firm can depend on innovation to decrease its overall production costs and would then be
able to pass this advantage on to its clients.
• Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 can also concentrate on making a differentiated item or
administration to increase its overall share of the pie.
• Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 can generate considerable sustainable competitive advantage
utilizing these systems. This is done through means of traditional as well as modern procedures
embraced by Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 to competitive advantage hand and increase its share
of the pie.
 VALUE FRAMEWORK ANALYSIS
• The core competencies and strengths of Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 are organizational sources and capacities
that enable the business to flourish regardless of substantial challenge and strategic difficulties in local and
international markets.
• As the per the analysis highlighted, the important core abilities depend on intellectual properties and related propriety
data or related technological structures.
• Different resources and abilities appeared in the analysis and review that are non-core, and non-central skills but that
help the business and its value chain.
• Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 ’s core abilities are strong yet restricted.
• In the resource based view, this constraint presents key difficulties, as the organization wards off competing players
from local and international markets.
• The core capabilities in the analysis assume critical jobs in Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 ’s value chain.
Considering the resource based view and Michael E. Doorman's value chain conceptualization, Russell Reynolds
Associates--1999 ’s value chain gives reasonable and tasteful products to target buyers.
 ANALYSIS OF RESOURCES AND COMPETENCES
• This inner analysis and assessment of Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 decide the center skills
based on the resource based view (RBV) of the premium company.
• Utilizing its core capabilities and capacities, Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 can maintain a
competitive distinction, and leadership over other local as well as international players in the industry.
• In the VRIN analysis and assessment, Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 makes use of its core
capacities to strengthen its worth and the to continue to deliver the promise of consistent quality and
taste to consumers – as well as guarantee futuristic and long term gains in the industry.
PORTER’S FIVE FORCES
Bargaining Power of Suppliers –
• If we talk about the first factor of the Porter’s five forces model, then it is evident that there are 4 key competitors,
which are operating in this power and each of these four executive search firms have their own expertise in the
market. Apart from these key competitors in the market, there were also other smaller firms, which also provided
the impetus for the executive services supply in the market.
• The success of all of these firms was dependent upon the ability to retain and attract the executive consultants
and this was quite difficult to maintain because the market for these search consultants was fluid and the
consultants usually switched from one competitor to the other competitor.
• This weakened the bargaining power of these executive search companies because most of the clients of these
companies followed these consultants.
• As a result of this, the clients also switched easily from one competitor to another competitor. Therefore, it could
be concluded that the bargaining power of the executive search firms is weak in this industry.
Bargaining Power of Buyers –
• If we talk about the bargaining power of the buyers who are basically the clients of these executive
search firms, it could be seen that the clients value the knowledge and the searching expertise of the
search consultants in this industry and hence, they switch search firms easily without any
difficulties. In the previous years, the off-limit criteria helped the search companies to establish long
term relationships with their clients however, recently these off-limit criteria have narrowed as a
result of the increased demand for the most talented executives (Coyne, 1996). Therefore, the
overall bargaining power of the clients in this industry is moderate to high.
Threat of new entrants –
Market and industry share
• New entrants to an industry bring new potential and a choice to increase the market share and overall share of the pie that puts pressure on
price, costs, and the investment price essential to compete.
• For Russell Reynolds Associates--1999, particularly while new entrants are diversifying from different markets into the chief industry, they
will be able to leverage existing talents and cash flows to shake up the opposition.
Limitation on earning expectation and capability of firms in an industry
• The threat of entry in the industry, consequently, puts a cap at the earning capacity and profit capability for Russell Reynolds Associates

• While the threat of new entreaty is high, Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 should maintain their prices or increase funding and investment
to discourage new competition.
The risk to new entrants because of high entry barriers
• The risk of entry in an industry depends upon on the peak of entry barriers and limitations that are a blessing for players such as Russell
Reynolds Associates--1999 and on the response that new entrants can count on from existing players.
• If entry barriers are low and novices count on little retaliation from the entrenched competition, the chance of entry is high, and profitability
for Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 will be moderated.

• It is the danger of entry, not whether the entry of new players takes place that holds down profitability.
Threat of substitute products or services –
Switching cost to substitutes for consumers
• Switching costs for direct substitutes is not very high for consumers.
• The per-unit-volume prices may be higher or lower.

• This makes the threat of substitute high.

Substitute and product benefit
• Alternatives to the product or substitutes may not be able to provide the same benefits
• May often lead to additional costs incurred.
• Switching costs towards alternatives becomes higher, and consumers may not switch to substitutes.
• This, in turn, will make the threat of substitutes low.
Substitutes and consumer behavior
• From the point of view of the consumer, there are some differences between the ways different products of the same or similar category are
used, but many consumption decisions are a matter of personal taste - this makes products vulnerable to the threat of other substitutes.

• Overall, the threat of substitutes is assessed to be moderately high.

STRATEGIC PLANNING OF RUSSELL REYNOLDS
Strategic industry dynamics
• Help in reviewing the strategic dynamics and shifts in the industry.
• Identify the closest competition and competing players for the business; help in assessing the strategic direction of these competing players; and lastly, aid
in developing strategies to stay ahead of the competition.

Assessment of market position

• The strategic group analysis is also important for Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 because it will assist in analyzing the current market position of
players, as well as help in assessing future strategic moves and directions of the competition in the market.
• Assists in evaluating and identifying different underlying factors that will influence the company’s profitability.

• Makes use of standard comparison aspects between different players in an industry to group them as per strategic directions a s well as strategic
dimensions.
Identification of barriers to entry in an industry
• Different strategic dimensions along the matrix of strategic groupings are often characterized by barriers to entry and exit along the strategic groups’
dimensions, as well as by mobility barriers.
• These barriers make it difficult for companies to move along, and in between different strategic dimensions – often forcing it to stay in place with the same
competition.
Scenario planning –
Utilization of Scenario planning
• For Russell Reynolds Associates--1999, scenario planning comprises of making suppositions of what's to come, of
what will be and how the business condition will adapt, fluctuate, change, and respond to the future conditions, and
changes in the futuristic strategic planning.
Identify the driving forces of the business
• Changes in the macro environment
• Changes in technology
• Changes in the economic trade system
• Changes in production methods
• Changes in consumer demands and tastes
• changes in technology and economy
Identify basic vulnerabilities -
• After Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 has identified the possible uncertainties of the macro environment, Russell
Reynolds Associates--1999 should decide on any two only. These can be:
• Changes in technological advancements and developments. These changes can be in the form that the industry has
progressed to install more modern and contemporary technological developments.
• Changes in consumer demands and needs.
• These two uncertainties of the future are those that will have the largest impact and influence on the business.
Develop a scope of conceivable situations -
• Russell Reynolds Associates--1999 will now be able to place these two uncertainties along a matrix.
• Depending on the intensity and direction of the uncertainties and vulnerabilities, the business will be able to chalk out
four possible scenarios as probable plans of action for the future. For Russell Reynolds Associates--1999, these can be:
• Change vertical and backward integrated systems to ensure in-house or out-house production of technology to stay
ahead of the competition.
• Realignment of business goals and direction, as well as a mission during each scenario, should also be done to ensure
future resilience.
Source – www.russellreynolds.com
 Presented by –

Divyanshu Raj
Ankit Kumar Singh
Saiket Sengupta

BBA+MBA – IB (Dual), Semester 9