Every business established does not promise a bounty.
Some may succeed and reign grandeur while some may falter and halt in an instant. The fate of any business rests not only on the financial capacity of the manager but also on the investor’s level of decisiveness (Li, 1982). GAP, Inc however, experienced both scenarios—it reigned over the clothing industry and after a few years experienced a catastrophic downfall. Critics say the blame is to be thrown on the CEO of the company that Mr.
Pressler failed to anticipate the future of the company and its line. Hence, there remain several speculations that the company may have been ten feet below the ground even before Pressler took over the company over former CEO Dexler’s fountain of debts (Day, 2002). Nevertheless, the company to date is competing with other sprouting brands and may considerably be swimming in deep waters and still has a steep mountain to reach. From worse to worst GAP Inc.
couldn’t be happier when Paul Pressler knocked on their doors to save the sinking company.Upon taking the CEO position, GAP felt that they finally had the man who will raise their sales since he was an experienced veteran of Disney. He had been known for his cost cutting measures and creative ideas that made Disney boost in their finances (Lee, 2007). However, not so long after he reigned over the company, he had a hiring spree from his former employees in Disney which he perceived to be the key players of his plan to change the culture and style of the clothing line.His friendly and semi-dictatorial regime made the employees of GAP adore him and follow him at the same time. His means of running the company was far more impressive by means of formality and determination as compared to the previous management.
Conversely, his wonderland strategy wasn’t as efficient as expected. Analysis Pressler’s managerial strategies were off the hook. Since he is a man of numbers, he was always concerned on how to cut the costs of their production while generating the sales exponentially.GAP’s downfall—which is consequently a result of his poor management—appeared to be due to his lack of experience in the field of apparel.
He also made decisions that backfired, his indecisiveness made merchants and designers resign from their positions. His move on singling the manufacturer of fabrics made their products monotonous. Aside from that, he moved sample-making to Asia which made the process of creating and producing new designs waste a lot of time. Not to mention that the employees often complained about Pressler’s then appointed co-Disney CFO’s unnecessary meetings.The ineffective meetings made the human resource come in a falter as some of them left the company. Further, his human resource staffing ended up as a mess, even though he hired another Disney veteran.
Critics say that the downfall mainly came from his poor choice of color and his mandate to change the culture in GAP (Lee, 2007). Evidently, Pressler’s Disney skills were not a good match to GAP’s trend. Conclusions and further remarks GAP serves as a proof that the world of business requires the right people at the right time with the right strategies.No matter how experienced the leader of the company is, it is vital that the leader must know the whirlwinds of the environment that he or she is going to wrestle with. Strategies connote the future of a company.
Risk management measures and forecasting stratagems also play a significant part since business should not settle on what is available today but what will be needed by consumers in the near future (Trevino & Nelson, 2006). Pressler should serve as an example to neophytes in business arena. Timing is but an imperative.
