Analysis of a managerial theory through a case study: L'Oreal Belgilux SA

L'Oreal Belgilux is the Consumer Products division of L'Oreal Paris. The Belgilux subsidiary depends on the main branch of L'Oreal which is headquartered in Paris. This multinational group has many locations worldwide, each with its own management.

L'Oreal Belgilux is divided into four entities: Perfumery, Pharmacy, Retail and Hairdressing. These divisions have almost no link between them, and only some services like Human Resources, Hardware and Finance Departments are common. This division of L'Oreal will be the topic of this study.

It consists of various departments like logistics, marketing, sales and management, which interact among themselves and with one another. The analysis aims to show how the theory proposed by Nitin Nohria, Boris Groysberg and Linda-Eling Lee can be applied in practice. It is about a case study in which it will analyze the means used by the company to obtain high levels of motivation among employees.

It will also look at the effectiveness of these means, and see if they correspond to the advice theoretically prescribed in the article. It will look at the four basic emotional needs of employees, and will also look at the various tools that the company will use to satisfy these emotional needs.

The main goal pursued by the organization and is mentioned on their website is "Give everyone a right to beauty." It seems that this is really the purpose of the organization: Products sold are only cosmetic. L'Oreal is a very poorly diversified company unlike its competitors such as Beiersdorf, Procter & Gamble and Univel. But behind this very humanist slogan , however,hides a capitalist society that understands the market forces and especially the segmentation of it.

In addition, the multinational has many shareholders who are interested in the benefits that can emerge from the organization.
Thus, each division and each department have objectives, set by the parent company in Paris. The logistics department is subject to the objectives of inventory, customer service, sales department has objectives in terms of turnover and profitability, the marketing department has no real goals except to develop the image of the brand in Belgilux and control market share.

Indeed, it is not easy to determine the economic impact of an advertising campaign. The division has DPGP targets for sales, profits and market share (which need to be continually increasing). The Management Department is responsible to monitor the proper implementation of these objectives and change course when things go wrong. Achieving these goals is rewarded by a bonus system to be described later.

Employees, together, pursue the same goals as those of the company, their division. They want the good of their business and improve its brand image, to which they attach great importance. The reasons for such motivation can be seen later in the article.

L'Oreal is still today a family group. This feature allows high stability of the shareholding and central management of the multinational, bringing the possibility of promoting a strategy of long-term development, vital for the proper development of the company. This feature is one of the strengths of the company in the fierce competitive cosmetics market .

Tags: L'Oreal, analysis of a managerial theory through a case study, L'Oreal Belgilux