Explain the product- or brand-management organization and list its advantages and disadvantages.
Companies producing a variety of products and brands often establish a product- (or brand-) management organization. The product- or brand-management organization does not replace the functional organization, but serves as another layer of management. A product-management organization makes sense if the company's products are quite different, or if the sheer number of products is beyond the ability of a functional organization to handle. Product and brand management is sometimes characterized as a hub-and-spoke system.
The product-management organization has several advantages. The product manager can concentrate on developing a cost-effective marketing mix for the product and can react more quickly to new products in the marketplace; the company's smaller brands have a product advocate. The disadvantages are that product managers are not given enough authority, they become experts in their product area but rarely achieve functional expertise. The product-management system is costly and brand managers normally manage a brand only for a short time. The fragmentation of markets makes it harder to develop a national strategy. In addition to this, product and brand managers focus on market share and not in building customer relationships.