Paper Example on Bloomberg' Success

Introduction

Bloomberg L.P is a company that deals with data, media, and financial software. I am I based in Midtown Manhattan in New York in the United States. The founder of the company as the name suggests is Michael Bloomberg. He started the company in 1981 using 30% of investment from Merrill Lynch and three other people namely Zegar, MacMillan, and Secunda. At the time the company was beginning, it was known for its financial software tools, for example, the equity trading platform and analytics (Successstory.com, 2018). The company also offers other services such as data services and news for organizations and financial companies through Bloomberg Professional Service. The main revenue comes from Bloomberg L.P. which has services such as radio station (WBBR), a world television network called Bloomberg Television, digital services such as the wire Bloomberg News and digital website as well as newsletters for subscription only. Besides, the company runs three magazines namely; Bloomberg Pursuit, Bloomberg Businessweek, and the Bloomberg Markets. Recently, the company a media that is involved in politics only known as Bloomberg Politics which recruited two well-known journalists; John Heilemann

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I got interested to understand what the success factors of Bloomberg L.P. were. It was surprising to learn that the company was started by a simple person (Michael Bloomberg) after resigning from his job. Bloomberg started a financial information company that no one understands what it was all about. Within a few years, the company started making millions and giving other veteran companies stiff competition. Today, the company has made Bloomberg the Mayor of New York City. If he was to run for Presidency, this company would surely support him (Fabrikant, 2018). This got me eager how a company started from very little can be such a huge global company. In this regard, the goals of this paper are to identify and explain the success factors of Bloomberg L.P, explain whether the company can use the same strategies to improve the business and how I would contribute to the success and mission of the company if given a chance.

The Success Factors of Bloomberg L.P

Unique Services and Products

One of the most critical strategy that Bloomberg L.P has used and is still being applied is being unique. As mentioned earlier, when the company was being started, it started as a firm providing financial information in form of data and news to Wall Street traders. Most authors have named this idea as a wild idea like that one of Google. No one could understand when it was about not until it was implemented. After Michael Bloomberg was given $10 million as a partnership settlement, he used the cash to start Innovative Market Systems (IMS). He built a computerized system in his own house which was aimed at providing real-time market data, conduct financial calculations and financial analytics to the Wall Street customers. Within a few years, the brilliant idea saw Michael build more than 5,000 terminals in his office. He was also making good revenue that attracted Merrill Lynch to invest in the company. The idea of creating unique products and services is still applied in the company even today. Two years ago (in 2016) the company launched a web-based component known as the Bloomberg Entity Exchange. The site allows companies to buy-side firms, know their customers through Know Your Customer (KYC) which is for insurance firms' banks and other corporation and buy-side firms.

I believe that this was the best strategy for Bloomberg. Creativity indeed pays as it can be seen by the success factors of Bloomberg. Today the Bloomberg news is published in most newspaper globally, the television programs are broadcasted in 102 countries and its data go to at least 111,000 trading desks as shown in figure one (Borri, 2017). The revenue and current assets of Bloomberg L.P are a clear indication that the company is doing well.

Figure 1: Bloomberg by numbers

Corporate Social Responsibility

Companies are required to conduct social responsibility activities in the community they operate. This helps them to connect with the community they operate in as well as ensuring environment conservation and sustainability. The owner of Bloomberg L.P, Michael, does not only perform corporate responsibility but also does more than required. In fact, most people regard him as a philanthropist. In 2015, Bloomberg gave $510 million in more than 1,000 corporations in six areas in New York. It is said that accumulatively, the man has given more than $4.3 billion in his lifetime (Sherman, 2018). Furthermore, the company has a branch known as the Bloomberg Philanthropy and Engagement. This branch oversees the company charitable and cultural programs of partnership and non-profit collaborations. The branch is focused on promoting key areas in the community such as education, public health, environment and government innovation. Jemma, who is the leader of Bloomberg Philanthropy and Engagement says that the branch runs hundreds of project in more than 86 cities in 4 continents (Bloomberg L.P. Philanthropy, 2018).

What the company does is more than CSR activities. The company has taken the image of the founder who is said to be a leading philanthropist in the world. In fact, Michael has spent over %53 million in supporting the declining business of fish in Chile Brazil and Philippines. He also added $100 to the Gates Foundation which is aimed at eradicating polio (Bloomberg L.P. Philanthropy, 2018). All these money is said to come from his personal savings. Indeed, philanthropy is a unique strategy for Bloomberg.

Employee Relationship

Employees are part of the company and are sometimes regarded as stakeholders. The way employers treat and related their employees determines how employees operate. According to the New York Times, employees at Bloomberg L.P. are well paid. They are motivated to work since Michael Bloomberg is obsessed with work himself (Successstory.com, 2018). Hence, it is true to say that Bloomberg is a transformational leader who leads by example. Although the leader is tough on pushing long-term employees to work harder, he is always slow in dismissing people. The company has now grown significantly with at least 5,000 employees working with Bloomberg (Fabrikant, 2018). The company also receives thousands of applications every day from potential employees dreaming to work at Bloomberg L.P. This is indeed a clear indication that there is a good relationship between employees and employers which is a good strategy that is making the company competitive and profitable.

How the Company Can Utilize the Same Strategy to Improve Business Results

Today, the private company is faced with the problem of coping with maturing company. The company has grown globally dealing with millions of customers worldwide. Every gain in the foreign market will be hard to win. Furthermore, the idea of the data flow of financial information is being phased out in Bloomberg as people are nor using computer-based systems. Besides, it has a challenge of dealing with so many employees across the globe.

I believe that the company can still use the success strategies to better their performance and reduce or eliminate the challenges that they face. For instance, they can use innovation and creativity to face the problem of their products being phased out by technology. Just like the company introduced digital platforms such as radio and television, they can innovate digital and current models of sharing data and financial information. This will help the company deal with issues of outdated systems. On the other hand, corporate social responsibility strategy can still be used to attract more customers. As they take their donations, assistance, and other products to various parts of the world, those who did not know about Bloomberg will get to know the company. They will create new customers as well as have new and large areas of operation. Consequently, the company will increase the revenue by reaching out to new customers. Lastly, the strategy of employee relationship can be used to deal with issues of a large number of employees. As mentioned earlier, Michael Bloomberg is a transformational leader and leads by example. Other leaders in the various branches should emulate Bloomberg and use the same leadership skills. This way, employees will be motivated and focus on doing what they are employed to do. Furthermore, the company should continue paying the employees well which will keep them motivated.

How I Could Contribute to Mission Statement if I Was to Work at Bloomberg L.P.

The mission of Bloomberg is to be the most influential news service in the world. They pass news through radio, television, business and financial magazines as well as through newsletter on the internet. My interest has been doing business research. If I was to work at Bloomberg, I would use my skills of research in the company. I would use the internet, other business magazines as well as conducting primary research on various companies or sectors related to the business. I would then compile the information in order to make it available to different people, especially the Wall Street customers. Through this, I believe I will have helped Bloomberg L.P. to get to its mission.

Conclusion

To sum up, Bloomberg Company is a private company that deals with data, media, and financial software. It was started in the 1980s by Michael Bloomberg with the help of three other individuals. The company has now grown to be very competitive and employed more than 5,000 employees. The company has also launched other entities such as radio, business magazines, television and other online newsletters. My interests in the company were motivated by the success factors of the company. It was started as a small business which has become a multi-national company. I have learned that the success is based on three strategic factors. One of the strategies in innovation where the company deals with unique products and services. Through corporate social responsibility (the second strategy), the company uses Bloomberg Philanthropy and Engagement to help needy communities. The third strategy is the employee-employer relationship. The owner is a transformational leader and leads with examples. Employees are also well paid. The company can still use these strategies to face the challenges of the big number of employees and coping with maturity. If I was to work at the company, I would be involved in research to help Bloomberg get to its mission.

References

Borri, N. (2017). A Bloomberg Terminal Primer. SSRN Electronic Journal. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2916895

Fabrikant, F. (2018). Coming of Age At Bloomberg L.P.. Nytimes.com. Retrieved 29 April 2018, from https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/21/business/coming-of-age-at-Bloomberg-lp.html

Meet Jemma, Head of Philanthropy & Engagement in EMEA and APAC - Bloomberg L.P. Philanthropy. (2018). Bloomberg L.P. Philanthropy. Retrieved 29 April 2018, from https://www.bloomberg.com/philanthropy/blog/meet-jemma-head-philanthropy-engagement-emea-apac/

Michael Bloomberg Bio, Facts, Networth, Family, Auto, Home | Famous Businessmen | SuccessStory. (2018). Successstory.com. Retrieved 29 April 2018, from https://successstory.com/people/michael-bloomberg

Sherman, G. (2018). The Mayor of All Media. NYMag.com. Retrieved 29 April 2018, from http://nymag.com/news/features/bloomberg-lp-2012-6/