Saatchi and Saatchi Plc

Focuses on the strategic and organisational challenges of managing a multibusiness and multinational service company. An incredible success story in the early '80s, Saatchi and Saatchi grew, within 15 years, from a small local advertising agency in the UK to one of the largest global service conglomerates, active in a range of businesses such as advertising, public relations and management consulting. The case describes the growth, and highlights the process by which it was achieved.By 1988, however, the company is in serious difficulty. Its stock price has plummeted, along with profits and its survival is in question. While its growth was built on the three pillars of globalisation, diversification and decentralisation, the soundness of each of these strategic principles is now in question. The case is intended for use in courses such as strategic management, business policy or managing international business.

To allow an analysis of the meaning of "globalisation", how to assess for "synergy" and, more generally, how to develop an appropriate strategy and an organisation for exploiting geographic and business diversity simultaneously.