Strategy and Finance
In today's rapidly changing world, businesses face new challenges every day - be they related to competitors, to government intervention or to new opportunities. Indecon's Strategy and Financial practice helps businesses respond to these challenges. Our team of highly-qualified professionals provides strategic and financial advice to companies and public sector bodies in a range of different sectors.
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Using innovative economic, strategic and quantitative tools, our team offers clear, robust and practical advice and support.
- Market evaluation and business strategies - we regularly advise clients on a variety of strategic issues, from entry strategies to pricing and advertising effectiveness. Our extensive experience in the empirical analysis of markets provides a sound basis for our strategic advice.
- Customer analysis: pricing and advertising strategies. Using sophisticated econometric models and techniques, we can help clients to optimise the way they price and market their products and services. Our analytical framework allows our clients to pose "what if" questions and simulate a range of potential strategies to assist in choosing the optimal one.
- Strategic audits and competitor analysis. We can help clients gain a better understanding as to which of their competences are sustainable and not easily replicated by rivals. It is these distinctive capabilities that generate economic rents (above-average levels of profitability). We can help companies identify such capabilities, understand where and why rents accrue to them, and how their value chain may be affected by future change.
- Market entry, diversification and M&A advice. We have developed techniques for assessing and prioritising opportunities to enter new markets, be it a new product or a new territory. We have also aided many clients with M&A advice, including identification of any competition policy issues and likely strategic reactions of other market participants.
- Modelling - we use state of the art modelling techniques (such as, for example, advanced econometric analysis and simulation models) to analyse the commercial and financial implications of business decisions.
Sectors
Financial services
Indecon provides a wide range of services for the financial services sector. These include:
- Market evaluation and business strategies - we regularly advise clients on a variety of strategic issues, from entry strategies to pricing and advertising effectiveness.
- Customer analysis: pricing and advertising strategies. Using sophisticated econometric models and techniques, we can help clients to optimise the way they price and market their products and services.
- Strategic audits and competitor analysis. We can help clients gain a better understanding as to which of their competences are sustainable and not easily replicated by rivals.
- Modelling - we use state of the art modelling techniques (such as, for example, advanced econometric analysis and simulation models) to analyse the commercial and financial implications of business decisions.
Retailing
Indecon has expertise in strategy, policy, competition and antitrust issues relevant to the retailing sector, including planning policy and store development, rent and rates reviews, market entry advice, nature of competition in retailing and store loyalty card design and analysis.
Pharmaceuticals
Rapid changes in technology and regulation have made economic analysis increasingly vital in the pharmaceutical industry. Indecon can help companies think through the strategic and regulatory issues raised by such changes, including advice on the location of sustainable competitive advantage in the value chain now and in the future, the implications of various regulatory systems for pharmaceuticals, the measurement of the cost of capital for regulatory purposes, and the use of real options analysis for investment decision making.
Education
Indecon has wide-ranging expertise in the education sector and has undertaken a number of studies on education policy. This has included policy evaluation work for the Department of Education and Science, and the Higher Education Authority. We have assessed the efficiency, effectiveness and impact of education and third-level research programmes and have also assessed the costs and benefits of proposed investments. Key competencies in this area include ex-ante evaluation and cost-benefit analyses. Our staff have undertaken extensive modelling work including, for example, assistance to the UK's National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education Funding ("Dearing Committee") in relation to third-level funding mechanisms. We have also undertaken strategic work in the sector including for Irish universities on the development of their strategic plans.
Recent clients in the sector include governments in Ireland and overseas, the Higher Education Authority in Ireland and the university sector.
Construction
Indecon has detailed experience of the construction sector in Ireland and internationally. We have undertaken various studies assessing supply, demand and constraints in the Irish construction sector. This included detailed medium term market assessments based on different scenarios. We also completed an analysis of the factors influencing housing demand, (including Social Housing), an assessment of demand prospects, and a detailed evaluation of the planning/demand relationship. We have also completed studies of the operation of the mortgage market. We examined the Irish mortgage market for the European Mortgage Federation as part of an EC wide study of the sector. Finally, we have evaluated the role of tax incentives such as Section 35 for the Department of Finance. This involved a major study of market developments and the impact of tax reliefs on the market.
Recent clients include the Department of Environment and Local Government, the Department of Finance, the European Mortgage Federation, the UK Housing Research Foundation and the Scottish Development Department.