Business Paper

Gene One has been a biotechnology leader in crop research for over eight years. The company has come to a crossroads and must decide which strategic direction the company will pursue. The leadership team developed two distinctly different proposals for the future of the company. According to the Department of Labor, “During 2005, the 329 publicly held biotechnology companies in the United States earned $47.8 billion in combined revenue, with market capitalizations of $410 billion. Meanwhile, the 1,086 private U.S. biotech firms earned revenues of $2.9 billion” (Department of Labor, 2008). Therefore, the stakes involved in the decision are extremely high and the decision would have a tremendous influence on the future of the company. The proposals are outlined and will be presented to the board for a final decision.

Gene One Proposal One

Gene One's core competence is plant and crop research. Our company has flourished in the agro-industry with earnings of over $400 million annually. If Gene One is to remain profitable we must continue to produce innovative agribusiness research and steer clear of the cancer research market. Our team of professionals pride themselves in developing new crop varieties which has increased food volumes worldwide and significantly reduced growth costs. Our recent successes in delivering high yield and pesticide-free products to market have provided us unprecedented creditability and clout in the agro-industry. Our personnel are passionate about continuing this trend, but fear that Wall Street’s demands will destroy the company purpose. Therefore, Gene One must resist the temptation of going public. We recommend that our company seek a collaborative arrangement with a prominent company.

We propose that Gene One aggressively pursue a joint venture with Cargill, an agribusiness giant. In fiscal year 2010, Cargill had $107.9 billion in sales and net earnings of $2.6 billion (At a Glance, 2011). Cargill is the largest...