Altering the course of history by strategic change: the case of Bunge

Abstract

Survival of organizations is a central theme of discussions about business strategy. Survivors are those who can introduce profound strategic changes. With regard to this greater dynamism, developing changes seems to be mandatory; however companies can not always overcome inertia to change key management aspects. Superficial, gradual changes may not prove sufficient to correct organizational direction. A real turnaround process usually includes reconfiguration of the portfolio of competencies and business organization as well as implementation of professional management. This is a description of how Bunge Limited altered its course of history by strategic changes in the decade of 1990. The purpose is to understand how companies can restructure themselves in times of crisis, in this case with specific focus on reconfiguring the business portfolio and resources, to identify strategic elements and change allocation of resources. The theoretical foundation focused on process changes, more specifically for corporate turnaround and resource employment, according to the RBV approach.