Research Article
Managing under Extreme Uncertainty:The Case of Naver
1 Kyungpook National University, 2 Korea University, 3 Yonsei University
Published: January 2015 · Vol. 19, No. 3 · pp. 151-172
Full Text
Abstract
Increasing degrees of uncertainty these days often render firms' existing competitive advantages obsolete. Navigating successfully through extreme uncertainties should require managers to rethink about how to manage their firms. The present study explores this topic by investigating the case of Naver, which has made significant success in highly uncertain environment, the Internet and mobile businesses. Specifically, the study uncovers how Naver has developed and implemented its strategies. First, entrepreneurial initiative triggered innovation to capture business opportunities. Second, it made strategic decisions by constantly responding to the changing environment rather than by careful planning. Also, it organized its operation around “cells” so that the company could stay close to the market and customers. All these offer a series of momentum to build a fairly robust management system--‘M-eso’ model as we put. The paper concludes by offering research opportunities for further studies on managing under extreme uncertainty.
