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Exercise – Arthur D Little (ADL) Strategic Condition Matrix

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This exercise asks you to apply the Arthur D Little (ADL) Strategic Condition Matrix to Colorado Ricardo Mountain Bikes.

The Scenario: Colorado Ricardo Mountain Bikes

The ADL matrix: industry maturity against competitive position across twenty cells

Colorado Ricardo Mountain Bikes was founded by Ricardo Francisco, a keen off-road cyclist who grew frustrated with bikes breaking down under the strain of the Colorado mountains. After years of trial and error, he built a bike tough enough to survive the terrain and named it the “Colorado Ricardo”. Word spread quickly among local riders, and Ricardo gave up his day job to build and sell bikes full-time from a small workshop outside Denver.

Colorado Ricardo’s existing off-road bike has a strong local reputation but limited reach outside Colorado, and the market for a single-product, single-region off-road bike has been shrinking for three years.

Your task: Using the ADL matrix’s two dimensions – competitive position (dominant, strong, favourable, tenable, or weak) and industry maturity (embryonic, growth, mature, or ageing) – classify Colorado Ricardo’s existing off-road bike business, and suggest what type of strategy that classification implies.

Once you have drafted your own answer, compare it with Marketing Teacher’s suggested answer.

One of four portfolio analysis models
Boston Matrix  ·  GE Business Screen  ·  Shell Directional Policy Matrix  ·  ADL Matrix
See how they compare, and when the extra detail is worth it, on portfolio analysis.
Written by Marketing Teacher.
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