Ericsson’s strategic mistakes: How the Swedish telco can fight back from crisis

Abstract

It is no secret that when the fortunes of the telecoms sector collapsed in 2000, network supplier Ericsson was hit hard. In October 2003, the Sweden‐based firm had spent 11 quarters in the red and chief executive Carl‐Henric Svanberg admitted “I think it’s very low odds on guessing that we will soon be in the black.” In a similarly worrying position, the Sony Ericsson partnership constantly lost money following its launch in 2001 until in 2003 it had halved its initial size. Admittedly, companies across the sector have experienced difficulties since the boom of the 1990s, yet when compared to rival Nokia Ericsson appears slow in fighting back. This has led to increasing suggestions that the firm’s hardships stem not just from external economic factors, but from poorly considered strategic decisions.

Citation

(2004), "Ericsson’s strategic mistakes: How the Swedish telco can fight back from crisis", Strategic Direction, Vol. 20 No. 10, pp. 8-10. https://doi.org/10.1108/02580540410562099