Don Anglos
TASK 2 (2.5%): ‘DON ANGLOS’ CASE STUDY
Don Anglos had to make some tough decisions before the next week’s board meeting. The question at hand was whether Pinnacle Co., the small, publicly held Indiana-based machine tool company he held as CEO, should attempt to acquire Hoilman Inc. Hoilman was a Company known for the cutting-edge sensor technology and communications software it had developed to monitor robotics equipment. Anglos had just heard a credible rumor that one of Pinnacle’s chief competitors was planning a hostile takeover of the company. Coincidentally, Don Anglos knew Hoilman well because he had recently held exploratory talks about the possibility of a joint venture designed to develop similar technology capable of monitoring a broad range of manufacturing equipment. The joint venture did not work out. But now, by acquiring Hoilman, Pinnacle could develop software that transmitted real-time information on its customers’ equipment enabling it to set it-self apart by providing top-notch service far more sophisticated than its current standard maintenance and service contracts.
Don, firmly believed that bigger the Company was it was better. However, the CEO had to admit, that getting bigger in the machine tool industry, currently a slow-growing sector facing increasing competition from low-priced foreign manufacturers, was going to be a challenge. Still, he had been convinced to sign on as Pinnacle’s CEO four years ago not only because the company had relatively healthy earnings, but also because his sixth sense told him the company had growth potential. He hadn’t been entirely sure where that potential lay, but he was a problem-solver with a proven track record of successfully spotting new market opportunities. In the past, he acted on hunches, which had paid off handsomely.
So far, Anglos had managed to modestly nudge Pinnacle’s revenue growth and increase its market share through aggressive pricing that successfully kept customers from
Don Anglos had to make some tough decisions before the next week’s board meeting. The question at hand was whether Pinnacle Co., the small, publicly held Indiana-based machine tool company he held as CEO, should attempt to acquire Hoilman Inc. Hoilman was a Company known for the cutting-edge sensor technology and communications software it had developed to monitor robotics equipment. Anglos had just heard a credible rumor that one of Pinnacle’s chief competitors was planning a hostile takeover of the company. Coincidentally, Don Anglos knew Hoilman well because he had recently held exploratory talks about the possibility of a joint venture designed to develop similar technology capable of monitoring a broad range of manufacturing equipment. The joint venture did not work out. But now, by acquiring Hoilman, Pinnacle could develop software that transmitted real-time information on its customers’ equipment enabling it to set it-self apart by providing top-notch service far more sophisticated than its current standard maintenance and service contracts.
Don, firmly believed that bigger the Company was it was better. However, the CEO had to admit, that getting bigger in the machine tool industry, currently a slow-growing sector facing increasing competition from low-priced foreign manufacturers, was going to be a challenge. Still, he had been convinced to sign on as Pinnacle’s CEO four years ago not only because the company had relatively healthy earnings, but also because his sixth sense told him the company had growth potential. He hadn’t been entirely sure where that potential lay, but he was a problem-solver with a proven track record of successfully spotting new market opportunities. In the past, he acted on hunches, which had paid off handsomely.
So far, Anglos had managed to modestly nudge Pinnacle’s revenue growth and increase its market share through aggressive pricing that successfully kept customers from