Zoom Trucking Company (ZTC)

ZTC was founded in 1956 by a British national, Mr. Roy Smith, in a British colony then known as Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe).The company's core business was transporting copper from the mines in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia) to Southern Rhodesia for onward transmission to overseas markets in Europe. This arrangement worked smoothly until 1965. On 11^th November 1965, the white settlers in Southern Rhodesia, who were principally of British origin, unilaterally declared political independence from Britain. Most countries roundly condemned the action by the white settlers because not only were the white settlers a minority but the independence that had been declared was perceived to be for the whites and not the African black majority. To the African majority, the declaration of independence by the white settles was merely a transfer of colonial power from Britain to the local white settlers and was therefore considered by Africans and their sympathisers to be slap in the face of the Black African majority who at the time fighting the British for political independence and majority rule.

Except for South Africa, The United States and Britain, world reaction to the unilateral declaration of independence by the minority whites in Southern Rhodesia was hostile. The response of the black majority in Rhodesia and newly independent African states was predictable. The Africans in Rhodesia, who were already waging a guerrilla war for independence, vowed to continue and intensify their struggle for freedom. The United Nations considered military intervention to wrestle political power from the white settlers but Britain, along with its Western allies, thwarted the move and instead prevailed on the UN to impose economic sanctions. Zambia, having attained political independence in 1964, and a fierce advocate of majority rule, refused to recognize the white minority government and, on its part, banned all forms of trade between Zambia and Rhodesia. ZTC was caught up in this political and economic saga and found itself unable to continue hauling copper from Zambia to Southern Rhodesia.

There was also another complication for ZTC. The company was headquartered in Rhodesia and its shareholders largely comprised whites who were openly sympathetic to the usurpation of power by a white minority regime. ZTC strategically turned to South Africa whose government was in the hands of a white minority regime. However, a Mr. Ismail Singh who was a minority shareholder of ZTC and was based in Zambia decided to cut ties with the company on account of the company's turn to South Africa which was also run by a minority white regime.

In the face of these developments, ZTC was compelled to restructure the company. It sold its business interest in Zambia to Mr Ismail Singh in exchange for the fifteen percent stake Mr Singh had in the company. Mr. Singh decided to part ways with the company because of its renewed ties with South Africa. Mr Singh then transformed the old ZIC operations and assets in Zambia into a new company which he named Singh Transport Company (STC).

Singh had all along been domiciled in Zambia and was known to be a sympathizer of the struggle for political independence by the African majority. His parents had emigrated to Zambia from India when he was ten years old. The stories he had heard of British colonialism and his personal experience of British colonial rule at the hands of teachers of English origin had not endeared him to colonialism. It was this background that formed the basis of his unwavering support for the African struggle for political independence. During the time when he was a shareholder of ZTC, Singh had refused to physically move to and reside in Rhodesia, insisting that Zambia was his home and that he was at peace living in Zambia.

Two years after parting company with ZTC, Singh decided to form an alliance between Singh Transport Company and Zambia Haulage Company. Zambia Haulage Companywas founded by two indigenous Zambians who were former civil servants. The two gentlemen were childhood friends and had gone to school together. At university, one of them had studied engineering and the other had studied public administration. Upon graduation, they had both joined the Ministry of Roads and Construction. After working for twenty years, they had decided to retire from the civil service and form their own company, Zambia Haulage Company, which specialized in transporting goods between Zambia and Tanzania. Although the haulage business between Zambia and Tanzania was profitable, the company consistently made losses because of poor management and lack of working capital. For instance, it was an open secret that Zambia Haulage Company had an old fleet whose trucks were constantly breaking down. Further, the two proprietors of the company seemed to be either incapable or indifferent to what was going on at the company.

Required:

1. Explain how the external environment affected the strategic direction of Zoom Trucking Company.

[15 marks]

1. Guth and Tagiuri (1965), in their paper,Personal Values and Corporate Strategy,argued that corporate strategy may also be influenced by the personal values of those who are charged with the formulation of strategy.

Discuss how Mr. Ismail Singh's personal values and orientation influenced the development of Zoom Trucking Company andSingh Transport Company.

[15 marks]

1. What was the strategic significance of the alliance betweenSingh Transport Company and Zambia Haulage Company?