Managing Explosive Growth Essay Sample

Over the past twosome of old ages. Research in Motion ( RIM ) experienced explosive growing in both its ain entity and from rivals in the Smartphone industry. The cardinal countries of RIM’s focal point are its research and development ( R & A ; D ) sector and its ability to maintain bring forthing province of the art nomadic devices. As RIM plans for enlargement to maintain its important market portion on informations devices. direction needs to be concerned about the attack taken to protect its cryptanalytic and package beginning codification. as this is a cardinal ground that RIM enjoys a competitory advantage. There are four options to see in pull offing RIM’s explosive growing:

1. Make what we do now. merely more of it
2. Turn and spread out bing geographic locations
3. Increase acquisitions
4. Travel planetary

In taking the best option. certain standards had to be met which included:
* Increase enlisting of endowment
* Increase research and development capablenesss
* Maintain current alone organisation civilization
* Protection of rational belongings Internet Explorer: beginning codifications
* Financially feasible
* Maintain competitory advantage
Traveling planetary is recommended to outdo reference the labor deficit experienced as a consequence of RIM’s explosive growing. This alternate allows RIM to spread out R & A ; D and keep a competitory advantage by making chances to increase its enlisting of endowment and protect rational belongings ( IP ) . Past public presentation has provided the fiscal purchase for this enlargement.

In the event the recommended scheme is non turn outing to be successful. RIM should concentrate on increasing acquisitions. This option is still financially feasible. although more expensive than planetary enlargement. but it will supply RIM entree to endowment pools to turn to its staffing issues and R & A ; D concerns.

Designation

RIM is faced with a figure of critical issues that must be addressed instantly. Research & A ; Development
In comparing with the industry criterion in 2007. RIM’s R & A ; D expenditures as a per centum of gross are less than its cardinal rivals:

* Nokia ( 12. 41 % of the Revenue )
* Microsoft ( 20. 49 % )
* RIM ( 10. 59 % )

This is of concern. as the Smartphone market requires changeless invention by manner of R & A ; D to stay competitory.

Apple’s invention in its nomadic phone user interface has prompted a batch of design activity among rivals. As such. RIM requires a considerable R & A ; D budget to vie. Retaining clients

The Smartphone industry is really competitory. RIM has traditionally targeted concern users looking for a secure nomadic device. With new entrants to the market. RIM’s focused entreaty may be deficient to keep a competitory advantage. Staffing Issues

RIM faces recruitment troubles. which they attribute to a deficit of endowment available in Waterloo. Attracting talent exterior of Waterloo is hard given the competitory package development industry. Turning demand from R & A ; D is the greatest issue confronting RIM. Without sufficient endowment to maintain invention at a competitory degree. RIM will lose its competitory advantage. Analysis and rating

External Analysis
Competitive environment

Worldwide. the nomadic phone industry is traveling from a traditional telephone communicating tool to a to the full incorporate electronic mail. net browser. and organizer application in a Smartphone. With the launch of Apple’s iPhone in June 2007. the Smartphone section of the nomadic phone industry experienced increased competition. Worldwide demand for Smartphones was robust as a consequence of the handiness of high-velocity radio webs. nomadic entree to corporate intranets. and the wide credence of electronic mail and text messaging for both concern and personal communications. The Smartphone industry was projected to turn from 10 per centum of the planetary Mobile market to 30 per centum over five old ages. The growing is clear when sing in 2007 that the US enjoyed a 100 % addition in user Numberss with a 53 % addition worldwide. Gross saless of units are predicted to be 500 million for 2008 and 2009 globally. The figure of wireless subscriber connexions worldwide reached 3 billion at the terminal of 2007.

China led with the most endorsers followed by US. The emerging nomadic market in Asia Pacific is really attractive with a lower incursion and higher growing rate compared to maturate markets such as North America. Western Europe’s Mobile market was extremely chauvinistic with most users preferring home-grown nomadic companies. Invention and R & A ; D disbursement are signals of rivals’ competitory place. The cardinal rivals in the Smartphone industry as of 2007 were RIM. Palm. Sony Ericsson. Nokia. Motorola. and Apple. Each company holds a patent on its ain operating system ( OS ) or a system based on Microsoft’s Window Mobile OS. Safe and unafraid voice and informations transmittal is critical to constructing a good repute among consumers. The visual aspect. design and convenience were besides considered of import factors. PESTE analysis

The undermentioned PESTE ( Political and legal. Economic. Social and cultural. Technological and Environmental ) analysis aids in understanding the Smartphone market. its place and possible way for strategic direction determinations. Political and legal environment

Outsourcing R & A ; D maps to developing states raised legal issues. as beginning codification loss. package buccaneering. and merchandise imitations were noted concerns. This cognition escape poses a possible menace to companies trusting on high engineering invention for growing. Most authoritiess including Canada. the US. Russia and China regulated the import and export of encoding merchandises due to national security issues. Economic environment

2008’s fiscal crisis in the United States lent uncertainness to the growing of the Smartphone industry. With the market downswing. investing capital for start-up houses was hard to obtain. Less disposable income in the consumer market may ensue in gross eroding. Social and cultural environment

The commercial handiness of high-velocity radio webs allows the users of nomadic devices entree to corporate intranet. personal electronic mail. and cyberspace at any clip anyplace. This has caused a alteration in the manner people communicate with household. work. and friends. More and more people can non populate without a Smartphone as it satisfies the demands for changeless societal connexion. Technological environment

In visible radiation of the dynamic market state of affairs. no technological platform had become the industry criterion. In order to guarantee a competitory place in R & A ; D. the rivals had to maintain up with the gait of industry alteration. Environmental concern

A refering environmental issues is the cluttering of landfills with disused devices. The invention of new designs and stuffs for Smartphone production could make an chance for the industry. Industry Key Success Factors

The Key Success Factors ( KSF ) of the Smartphone industry are most notably:
1. Strong merchandise invention capablenesss
2. First to market
3. Expertness in the altering engineerings of the industry 4. Entree and entreaty to skilled labor pools
5. The ability to keep the security of transcript written/patented engineering and beginning codification As of 2008. RIM had developed cryptanalytic and package codification which became the anchor of the demand for its merchandises in the market place. Such invention was built on R & A ; D and technology maps being the bosom of the company’s operations. Of the 2. 100 persons employed in the R & A ; D field at RIM. a huge array of fortes were represented ; from wireless frequence technology to hardware and package design. As the Smartphone industry was quickly turning and ferociously competitory. being the first merchandise to make the market frequently meant deriving singular market portion from late reachings. RIM had successfully differentiated its merchandise by appealing to users seeking the security of the device’s system and had therefore been first to market with a Smartphone designed for concern users.

RIM is strong in KSF # 1. 2 and 3 ; nevertheless. closely tied to these steps is the ability to entree and entreaty to skilled labor pools. Located in the Canadian town of Waterloo. RIM had developed co-operative plans with the local university to supply a beginning of skilled labor to run into its technology demands. This has. unluckily. produced strain on RIM’s ability to spread out its R & A ; D map to run into the exponential growing happening from world-wide gross revenues. Although voted one of Canada’s 10 most admired corporate civilizations. it did non hold enrolling systems suited for exterior of Canada. Additionally. RIM’s central offices were deficient to incorporate its turning work force and RIM’s ability to staff its senior places and present its corporate civilization out of Waterloo was going increasing hard. With RIM’s exponential growing. it is no longer strong in KSF # 4. As a agency to protect its beginning codification. it employs a geographic security scheme whereby all R & A ; D activities take topographic point in Canada. therefore supplying rather a strong success rate on KSF # 5. but with this scheme. RIM is farther stymied in respects to KSF # 4. Five Forces Analysis

The Smartphone industry was comparatively new in 2008 and rather distinguishable from the bing cellular phone industry. As such. it bears a alone profile when sing the five force theoretical account of competition. The profile of the forces on the industry is similar to the profile of the forces on RIM See Appendix A for an analysis of evaluations and the overall industry evaluation. Menace of Substitute Merchandises

Smartphones themselves became a replacement merchandise for bing cellular phone users and go on to derive popularity in that section. As of 2008. there were no bing replacement merchandises in other industries that would efficaciously vie with users’ demands of a Smartphone. The industry menace for this force is reasonably low and that holds true for RIM every bit good. Within the industry. the menace of a rival bring forthing a replacement for RIM’s blackberry is rather high. as evidenced by the immediate demand for the Apple iPhone launched in June 2007 and the lower costs of exchanging Smartphone suppliers. This besides translates into increased competition as discussed below. Rivalry among Competing Sellers

The Smartphone market is marked by strong competition among a figure of big rivals cheating for market portion. With the explosive growing in the market. each company is trying to establish the latest engineering that will appeal to users. As such. ferocious competition is seen in the R & A ; D map. including the competition to pull the best and brightest package applied scientists. Companies rapidly lose market portion if a rival comes out with a better merchandise. This is the strongest of the five forces impacting the industry Threat of New Entrants

Due to the high investing in R & A ; D required to bring forth a marketable device and the ability of bing rivals to establish enterprises to barricade the entryway of new rivals. the entryway barriers to the market are comparatively high. Large companies viing in other industries which have the resource strength to get the better of these entryway barriers do present a menace. particularly sing the attraction of the flourishing market. This can be seen in the recent entryway of Apple and Microsoft into the nomadic phone market. Although there is some trade name penchant in the market. consumer trueness is reasonably weak and finally falls to the best design in the industry. The menace of this force is strong due to the attraction of the market to big outside industry rivals. Supplier Bargaining Power and Supplier Seller Collaboration

The input constituents of Smartphones are plentiful and are available from a broad figure of providers around the universe. many focused in East Asia. As rational belongings larceny was a concern. much of the merchandise development and bit development occurred in house ( RIM’s activities occurred in Waterloo ) . Additionally. given the little figure of really big rivals. the negociating power in the provider relationship lied with the buyers. This force exerts a low menace on the industry as providers do non hold important bargaining power. Buyer Bargaining Power and Seller-Buyer Collaboration

A few big Sellerss sell to a immense figure of little buyers in the Smartphone industry. who purchase the point infrequently and in little measures. Additionally. trade name repute is of import to the purchaser. Thus this force is considered a low menace for the industry Deductions

RIM has expertness and is a universe leader in the nomadic communications market. RIM’s cryptanalytic and package beginning codifications played a cardinal function in the success of the company. presenting safe and unafraid voice and informations transmittal on which the Blackberry repute was built. However. legal beginning codification loss. package buccaneering. and merchandise imitations are more common in developing states. Hazards to RIM’s rational belongings must be mitigated anterior to taking advantage of the chances for growing in those states. To fit turning demand for wireless handheld and Smartphones globally. RIM should maintain up with the altering competitory environment in the market place. Innovation and strategic agreement to get by with new entrants. challengers. providers. and clients should be carefully plotted. The ferocious competitory force per unit area from challengers could be eased by the weak bargaining power of the providers as a consequence of cost efficiency in scale economic systems production.

Internal Analysis
Fiscal Analysis
Since 2004. RIM’s one-year gross has grown from $ 595 million to over $ 6 billion in 2008. See Appendix B Revenue in financial 2008 about doubled to $ 6. 01 billion as compared to $ 3. 04 billion in 2007. However. throughout this period. the company’s net net income border has merely increased from 8. 72 % to 21. 53 % of gross. Despite the addition in net income. RIM’s gross net income border has dropped. See Appendix C The BlackBerry endorsers account base grew well from 500. 000 people to over 14 million. RIM continued to spread out in popularity with strong growing in both North American and international markets.

It had more than 100. 000 endeavor clients and an estimated 42 % market portion in North America. Since R & A ; D and technology were the bosom and psyche of RIM. it focused attempts on R & A ; D activities related to merchandise development. fabrication technology. IT design and staffing. As a consequence. R & A ; D outgos increased by $ 124 million to $ 360 million or 5. 99 % of gross in 2008 comparison to $ 236 million or 7. 77 % of gross in 2007. See Appendix D Although RIM’s R & A ; D disbursement was merely 30 % of Apple’s in financial 2007. Apple’s gross was approximately eight times the gross of RIM. This indicates that Apple cleverly invested and employed its R & A ; D to maintain its concern growth and profitable. This is a good indicant that RIM needs to develop a new scheme to turn its gross quickly to equilibrate the accent on the R & A ; D map. SWOT Analysis

RIM. as a universe leader in the nomadic communications market. needs to do strategic alterations in order to maintain up in this quickly germinating industry. A SWOT analysis of the company has shown the followers: Strengths:

* Company engineers continually presenting award-winning merchandises * 270 bearer partnerships in more than 110 states and there are over 14 million endorsers worldwide * RIM’s merchandises pull both consumers and concern professionals * Gross saless of BlackBerry units doubled in 2007.

* Significant addition in research and development ( R & A ; D ) * One of Canada’s largest companies with market capitalisation of $ 69. 4 billion and enjoys healthy net incomes per portion * Cryptographic and package beginning codification deliver safe and unafraid informations transmittal * Organizations that rely on sensitive information are early and loyal adoptive parents of BlackBerry * First to market with “push” e-mail architecture which enhances security * Connect licensing plans enable other makers to fit their French telephones with BlackBerry functionality * Strong corporate civilization with low employee turnover

Failings:
* Talent and infinite are going progressively scarce and pulling outside endowment to Waterloo is going hard * Reliance on organic growing doing a strain on applied scientists at the company * RIM needs to catch up with Apple’s invention with nomadic phone user interface design * Reliance of rules of “we can make it better ourselves” and usage of perpendicular integrating of engineering restricts possibilities of geographic enlargement and outsourcing of package development. * Core work on bit sets. package and beginning codification and merchandise design happening chiefly in Waterloo. * Inadequate enlisting schemes and direction of appliers could be restricting chances Opportunities:

* Potential growing demand from younger consumers. non merely professionals * Partnerships with package developers
* Consumer demand switching to smartphones with jutting growing to make over 30 % market portion within five old ages * Wireless endorser connexions worldwide reached 3 billion * Growth chances in China. India

* Acquisition of little start-up high tech companies to better endowment and addition nucleus competences * Acquisition of fighting rivals
* Analysts and technophiles thirstily expecting following coevals of BlackBerry merchandises External Menaces
* Apple iPhone puting a new criterion for serviceability and offering utility merchandise * Competition in the labour market doing it hard to happen qualified applied scientists ; competition lift outing up top developers in the engineering sector * Cost of endowment in other locations frequently higher than in Waterloo * Key rivals have long history of planetary enlargement of their R & A ; D activities. * Hazard to rational belongings such as beginning codifications in some states outside of North America due to inadequate legal protection Torahs * Encryption informations limitations from certain planetary markets conflicts with RIM’s secure web construction

RIM’s place as a universe leader is at hazard as a consequence of internal failings and external menaces. The current company strengths have been important subscribers to the company’s current success. However. if the current scheme does non germinate. the company will happen it hard to maintain up with rivals. Competition is ferocious with the frequent debut of new and improved merchandises. R & A ; D enlargement and betterments will be critical to the on-going success for RIM. Their current inability to enroll sufficient endowment bases in the manner of retaining their market portion. Corporate and Functional schemes

RIM’s current vision conveys the message to its stakeholders that they are puting R & A ; D costs as a figure one precedence to go on supplying secure. fast. high quality handheld devices. However. the vision statement should be directional. demoing the class that direction should be taking. The statement is missing in focal point and is non wholly executable. Management knows that R & A ; D is a cardinal issue in the success of RIM but is diffident on how to utilize it efficaciously. Spending Ten sum of dollars will non ever produce the consequences they need in a certain clip period. The overall corporate scheme carries through to the three functional countries of R & A ; D. Human Resources ( HR ) and Finance. R & A ; D is by and large aligned with the corporate scheme ; nevertheless it presently can non maintain up with the demand. This is straight related to HR’s inability to enroll adequate new package applied scientists. The R & A ; D disbursement dramatically increased. gross increased about 98 per centum from the twelvemonth before but the figure of package applied scientists basically stayed the same. This indicates that there is a deficiency of communicating between the finance section. R & A ; D and HR.

The finance section needs to work in closely with all sections in order to come up with congruent schemes to run into current demands. RIM presently has a competitory advantage with the radio platform offered to its users. The BlackBerry line of handhelds could incorporate a assortment of applications in one radio solution that was dubbed “always on. ever connected. ” Even though rivals could easy incorporate these options in their merchandises. RIM was able to keep onto a competitory advantage by doing security a figure one issue where customer’s electronic mail and Instant Messages are transmitted through RIM’s firewalls. encrypted and redirected to the concluding finish. Organizations such as the U. S. authorities and big fiscal establishments were some of the early and loyal clients. Their religion and trust in the BlackBerry has transferred into demand from mundane consumers.

RIM’s competitory advantage allowed them to place themselves strongly in the concern sector. As a consequence. in North America. RIM had an estimated 42 per centum market portion of converged devices and significantly higher market portion of data-only devices. At present. the troubles in spread outing its competitory place to new clients and market globally could present a great chance for RIM for farther growing. A strategic program for functional-area should be in line with what clients are looking for. Once it collects sufficient information in the new market. RIM can develop a new corporate scheme and make up one’s mind whether there is a necessity to diversify its merchandise class. Discussion of options and cardinal determination standards

In 2008. RIM had explosive growing and was one of Canada’s largest companies with a market capitalisation of $ 69. 4 billion. However. RIM needs a comparable addition in R & A ; D expenditures to keep its lead in the wireless communicating industry. In order to vie with its largest rivals such as Nokia. Apple and Microsoft. RIM needs to engage 1400 package applied scientists to pull off their enlargement. To accomplish this end. RIM has several options that aid in the recommendation of an option. The cardinal determination standards that the chosen alternate must run into to be considered as feasible for RIM are: * Increase enlisting of endowment

* Increase R & A ; D capablenesss
* Maintain current alone organisation civilization
* Protection of IP Internet Explorer: beginning codifications
* Financial viability
* Maintain competitory advantage

Alternatives| Pros| Cons| Evaluation|
Make what we do now. merely more of it| * RIM is able to keep their alone civilization. * RIM can spread out co-op plans to other universities every bit good as addition the frequence and strength of its new graduate enlisting attempts. * RIM can organize a planetary exploratory survey group dedicated to happening the best endowment in the universe * RIM can put in a formal hiring and onboarding process for computing machine scientists by engaging in “Waves” * Stronger dollar makes Canada more attractive | * RIM has already employed the most of gifted people in Waterloo. * It’s hard for RIM to pull outside endowment to Waterloo. * RIM has excellent relationship with the University of Waterloo. but it hasn’t implemented a recruiting scheme for this intent. * It won’t allow RIM to research a broader planetary enlargement. | This option would be fiscal feasible for the company. Global exploratory survey and hiring in moving ridges would necessitate a smaller scale fiscal investing with minimum hazard. It besides allows RIM to keep the current organisational civilization and protect rational belongings. However. it could merely be the short term solution because of the undermentioned grounds: * It would probably ensue in limited additions in enlisting.

* This less aggressive option may restrict RIM’s ability to retain its competitory advantage. Rivals are deriving advantage with their more aggressive schemes with regard to enlisting and technological invention. | Grow and spread out bing geographic locations| * RIM has standards for choosing new locations which have a pool of endowment and universities with strong proficient plans which will let RIM to spread out on its successful co-op plans and graduate enlisting enterprise. * There is the handiness of gifted package applied scientists in Ottawa country because of Nortel’s monolithic layoffs. | * The costs of endowment in assorted locations need to be considered. * There will be some internal opposition to spread out R & A ; D to locations outside of Waterloo. * Satellite development sites need to be set up. * There is an issue how to reassign RIM’s civilization to these locations. | This option would perchance supply more chances to pull new endowments and let RIM to increase its R & A ; D capablenesss and retain the developers they need.

However. it will be disputing for RIM to retain its competitory advantage if it’s invariably viing with other companies in the country for local employees. Besides. the corporate civilization could be affected as control over merchandise developments may no longer be centralized in Waterloo. Costss of enlargement can be important as rewards tend to be higher exterior of Waterloo and costs of new installations would necessitate a important capital spending. The more locations. the higher the hazard of IP exposure. | Increase acquisitions| * RIM can convey gifted people on board through acquisition and increase rational belongings. * It allows RIM to derive faster entree to the turning smart phone market ( R & A ; D growing ) . * RIM has possible chances to get some engineering and package technology endowments. * The economic lag has provided an chance to get fighting or start-up companies for price reduction monetary values. | * The cost of acquisition will be an issue. * It needs a immense attempt to derive market portions.

* Growth by acquisition is really competitory * Foreign exchange rates could impact viability of acquisition| RIM is in a good fiscal place to take advantage of these chances. Geting little companies could assist RIM addition market portion in abroad markets and retain competitory advantage. Besides. this is a good option for geting endowment and increasing rational belongings. R & A ; D capablenesss will spread out with new competences now a portion of the company. However. the bing company civilization might be sacrificed and it poses higher hazard of IP exposure. | Go global| * The demand for wireless handhelds is a planetary tendency. * RIM can concentrate on R & A ; D in states with rapid growing such as China or India. * The labor costs are lower than Canada. * Opportunities to spouse with major research institutes around the universe to beginning top endowment * Potential endorsers in China and India could turn well * North American growing market is levelling off where growing around the universe is quickly spread outing

* Protection from foreign exchange fluctuations| * RIM wants to maintain R & A ; D closer to place. * RIM’s rivals have a long history of enlargement of their R & A ; D activities in foreign states * There is a concern about the security of RIM’s BlackBerry beginning codification. * Encrypted informations in China should supply the Chinese authorities with the ability to entree the keys. * There could be internal opposition from current staff at RIM. * RIM non presently set up to pull off a multi-country research consortium| RIM is in a good place to do the fiscal investing in new planetary installations that will let them to maintain up with the rapid promotions being made by their cardinal rivals. Broader planetary enlargement will give RIM entree to important chances for growing in R & A ; D. It will supply entree to talented package applied scientists in countries such as China and India which are deriving acknowledgment as Centres for invention. Although organisational civilization might switch with this enterprise And protection of IP could be disputing. it can be resolved by outlining and put to deathing a successful scheme. | Recommendations

Our recommended class of action for RIM is Option 4-to globalize its concern by manner of set uping R & A ; D centres outside of Canada. This alternate most efficaciously opens new markets for gifted labor and will turn to the issue of endowment deficits experienced in RIM’s exponential growing. Besides. this alternate allows RIM to set up its alone civilization in the subdivision offices it founded. instead than put on the lining a civilization mutual exclusiveness in an acquisition or amalgamation. Additionally. the constitution of site offices allows RIM to spread out with less capital up front than by geting an bing company. Of concern with this option is the enlargement of the company into districts where IP security may be at hazard. such as China and India. Although both China and India have great potency for future growing and have a immense pool of trained professionals. we suggest that RIM begins its enlargement in secure states. such as the US or EU. where right of first publication and patent statute law is purely enforced and authoritiess less inclined to interfere in operations. until it can efficaciously invent a scheme for keeping the security of its IP in East Asia.

Further. to protect IP security. cardinal technology maps should stay in Waterloo. where there is an bing geographic segregation. Other immaterial R & A ; D maps can be farmed out internationally to the freshly established site offices. In this manner. should one office’s work become compromised. the segregation of Canadian and international work will protect RIM from a complete loss of all IP and therefore map as a signifier of hazard direction. When finding the location of subdivision offices. we recommend that attention be taken to choose a location near a desirable city with entree to post-secondary establishments. therefore going an attractive location for employees and leting RIM to vie with other employers in international enlisting. Ultimately. with rivals better positioned to tap into the planetary labor market and pull top endowment. RIM can no longer afford to concentrate its operations entirely in Canada with small presence internationally. Action Plan

To implement Option four. we recommend the undermentioned actions and timeline be undertaken: What| Time Frame|
Lookout locations in the US/EU which would be acceptable subdivision locations ( tech Centres such as Si vale are recommended ) | Immediately. to reason in 3 months| Establish site office # 1 – transportation non-key R & A ; D maps to this location| 4 months| Begin enlisting for site office # 1| 3 months|

Begin strategic planning for long-run enlargement into East Asia – focal point on security | Immediately| After the constitution of site office # 1 in attractive metropolitan country. get down enlargement of HR enlisting patterns to aim local and international talent| 6 months| Evaluate the effectivity of site office # 1 and find if a 2nd location is required| 1 year| Establish strategic program for East Asia enlargement and get down reconnoitering for locations| 18 months| Establish foremost East Asian site office to take advantage of big. low-priced endowment pool| 2 years| Contingency Plan

In the event that the scheme of “going global” is non turn outing to be successful. we recommend RIM expressions to increasing acquisitions of other companies. This will turn to the endowment deficit and let the company to potentially set up a presence in other states. Acquisitions of either engineering or package technology endowment will let RIM to turn to the issues they are holding in these important countries of operation and derive competitory capablenesss to short-circuit a time-consuming and expensive R & A ; D attempt. Growth by acquisition could be more financially feasible as many little houses and engineering start-ups are fighting financially and could be acquired at a price reduction. Appendixs