abhishreshthaa
Abhijeet S
Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH) is a Fortune 500 company which operates in more than 100 countries throughout the world. Presently based in Covington, Kentucky, in the United States, the company traces its roots back to Ashland, Kentucky (for which it is named).
Ashland was founded in 1924 as Ashland Refining Company of Ashland, Kentucky, by Paul G. Blazer.[1] In 1930, the nearby Tri-State Refining Company was purchased, adding 5,500 barrels per day of capacity to the company. The company continued to merge or acquire other oil companies, combining with Swiss Oil in 1936, Allied Oil in 1948, Aetna Oil in 1949, and purchasing Frontier Oil Refining and National Refining in 1950. By that time, the company began to diversify, adding petrochemicals to its portfolio with the acquisition of R. J. Brown Company in 1956 and United Carbon in 1963.
Diversification continued with the purchase of Warren Brothers in 1966, which later was to become Ashland Paving and Construction. A significant acquisition was made in 1967 when the company purchased ADM Chemical Group; whose chemical distribution business would go on to be one of the primary businesses of the company in the later part of the 20th century. In 1969, the company reorganized to form Ashland Petroleum, as well as entering into a joint venture in Coal Mining under the name Arch Mineral.
In the 1980s and early part of the 1990s, Ashland continued to expand, buying The Permian Corporation and merging it with Scurlock Oil Company in 1991 to form a subsidiary known as Scurlock Permian Corporation. In 1992, most of Unocal's chemical distribution business was acquired, making Ashland the top chemical distributor in North America. At this time, the Industrial Chemicals & Solvents (IC&S) division was established. The company's name was changed from "Ashland Oil" to the present "Ashland Inc." in 1995, which noted the reduced importance of oil in the overall business.
The late 1990s saw considerable change in the structure of the company. In 1998, the petroleum division merged with Marathon Oil to form Marathon Ashland Petroleum, LLC (MAP). Following that in 1999, Ashland agreed to sell its Scurlock Permian subsidiary to Plains All American Pipeline and the headquarters were moved from Russell, Kentucky to Covington, Kentucky, although the company maintains an office in Russell. A monumental change came in 2005, when Ashland sold its shares of the Marathon Ashland Petroleum joint venture to Marathon Oil, effectively dissolving the remnants of their petroleum division. After the sale, the company was no longer involved in the refining or marketing of fuels. The original oil refinery in Catlettsburg, Kentucky is still in operation today and is owned and operated by Marathon. In 2006, Ashland sold APAC (the paving and construction division) to Oldcastle Materials of Dublin, Ireland.
Looking at the discussions above, there appears several strategic options that Marks and Spencer could focus on to refurbish their operations. For instance, the company should look into a partnership with the more current and competitive players in the retail industry. This is to broaden the overall outlook of Marks and Spencer regarding their standing in the market. This also reduces the possibility of the company being acquired by the larger competitors.
Another possible course of action for the company is to further improve its brand by using repositioning initiatives. It is undisputed that Marks and Spencer has a strong name recall and significantly strong brand name. However, the company have to consider the constant repositioning of their brand so as to keep the public’s respect on their products. This has been the one of the innumerable mistakes held by the previous management of the organisation.
The company should look also in the possibility of improving the management of their resources. As stated in the SWOT analysis above, the company has a lot of resources yet they have yet to find a proper fit on how to manage these resources to their advantage. The maximisation may take on changes in restructuring the processes and the infusion of technology as well as other knowledge based processes.
And lastly, the change may well start with the internal structure of the organisation, specifically the human resource element of the company. Finding potential leaders and managers could spell a shift from stagnation to a culture of innovation and constant development.
Ashland was founded in 1924 as Ashland Refining Company of Ashland, Kentucky, by Paul G. Blazer.[1] In 1930, the nearby Tri-State Refining Company was purchased, adding 5,500 barrels per day of capacity to the company. The company continued to merge or acquire other oil companies, combining with Swiss Oil in 1936, Allied Oil in 1948, Aetna Oil in 1949, and purchasing Frontier Oil Refining and National Refining in 1950. By that time, the company began to diversify, adding petrochemicals to its portfolio with the acquisition of R. J. Brown Company in 1956 and United Carbon in 1963.
Diversification continued with the purchase of Warren Brothers in 1966, which later was to become Ashland Paving and Construction. A significant acquisition was made in 1967 when the company purchased ADM Chemical Group; whose chemical distribution business would go on to be one of the primary businesses of the company in the later part of the 20th century. In 1969, the company reorganized to form Ashland Petroleum, as well as entering into a joint venture in Coal Mining under the name Arch Mineral.
In the 1980s and early part of the 1990s, Ashland continued to expand, buying The Permian Corporation and merging it with Scurlock Oil Company in 1991 to form a subsidiary known as Scurlock Permian Corporation. In 1992, most of Unocal's chemical distribution business was acquired, making Ashland the top chemical distributor in North America. At this time, the Industrial Chemicals & Solvents (IC&S) division was established. The company's name was changed from "Ashland Oil" to the present "Ashland Inc." in 1995, which noted the reduced importance of oil in the overall business.
The late 1990s saw considerable change in the structure of the company. In 1998, the petroleum division merged with Marathon Oil to form Marathon Ashland Petroleum, LLC (MAP). Following that in 1999, Ashland agreed to sell its Scurlock Permian subsidiary to Plains All American Pipeline and the headquarters were moved from Russell, Kentucky to Covington, Kentucky, although the company maintains an office in Russell. A monumental change came in 2005, when Ashland sold its shares of the Marathon Ashland Petroleum joint venture to Marathon Oil, effectively dissolving the remnants of their petroleum division. After the sale, the company was no longer involved in the refining or marketing of fuels. The original oil refinery in Catlettsburg, Kentucky is still in operation today and is owned and operated by Marathon. In 2006, Ashland sold APAC (the paving and construction division) to Oldcastle Materials of Dublin, Ireland.
Looking at the discussions above, there appears several strategic options that Marks and Spencer could focus on to refurbish their operations. For instance, the company should look into a partnership with the more current and competitive players in the retail industry. This is to broaden the overall outlook of Marks and Spencer regarding their standing in the market. This also reduces the possibility of the company being acquired by the larger competitors.
Another possible course of action for the company is to further improve its brand by using repositioning initiatives. It is undisputed that Marks and Spencer has a strong name recall and significantly strong brand name. However, the company have to consider the constant repositioning of their brand so as to keep the public’s respect on their products. This has been the one of the innumerable mistakes held by the previous management of the organisation.
The company should look also in the possibility of improving the management of their resources. As stated in the SWOT analysis above, the company has a lot of resources yet they have yet to find a proper fit on how to manage these resources to their advantage. The maximisation may take on changes in restructuring the processes and the infusion of technology as well as other knowledge based processes.
And lastly, the change may well start with the internal structure of the organisation, specifically the human resource element of the company. Finding potential leaders and managers could spell a shift from stagnation to a culture of innovation and constant development.