Okta Company’s Information and Analysis Research Paper

Exclusively available on Available only on

Table of Contents

Okta Company
The Sixth Force
Industry Life Cycle Analysis
Conclusions
References

Okta Company

Section I Part 1

Okta Inc. is a private company working in the sphere of information technology. As well as having headquarters in San Francisco, it also has offices in London and Amsterdam, and from these bases provides a worldwide service. The company works to establish secure connections between enterprises and technology. Being a pioneer of identity in the cloud, Okta offers unique products that apply identity information for the granting of access to various applications. Identity information may be applied on potentially any device and are strongly protected. As such, the Okta platform provides the means of providing secure connections between companies and their partners or customers. It was founded on January 1, 2009, and as of January 31, 2017, it employs 898 people (Okta, Inc. (Okta) IPO, n.d.).

Leadership

Todd McKinnon is one of the co-founders of Okta and is currently the Chief Executive Officer. His major responsibility is the company’s strategy. With McKinnon as CEO, Okta has gained thousands of customers and risen to become one of the leading firms in the field. McKinnon has two degrees: a B.S. in Management and Information Systems, and an M.S. in Computer Science. Aside from managing the company, he also contributes articles to various industry publications (Okta: Leadership, n.d.).

Frederic Kerrest is another co-founder and the Chief Operating Officer. His duty is dealing with everyday operations and managing partners, customers, and employees. His education includes a B.S. in Computer Science and an M.B.A. in Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Kerrest is also an advisor to software startup companies (Okta: Leadership, n.d.).

Okta is among the leaders in the market, with revenue of $160,326,000. It focuses strongly on identity as a core element of trust between technologies and their users. Having been founded in 2009, it was at the forefront of the development of identity in the cloud era, when the concept of identity started to become crucial in conditions of the rapid increase of various devices and applications. The Okta Identity Cloud enables customers to control the cloud and mobile technologies. The idea is to provide secure connections for users for all necessary applications.

The daily number of people using Okta Cloud currently amounts to two million (Okta, Inc. (Okta) IPO, n.d.). The Okta Identity Cloud is designed to supply organizations with a comfortable method of protecting and controlling their identities. The suggested platform enables linking any users with any devices to multiple applications. After nine years since its foundation, Okta has had more than three thousand customers in more than 185 countries. The customers of Okta are diverse, including global companies and non-profit organizations, small and medium businesses, educational and governmental institutions, including 20th Century Fox, Adobe, Engie, Flex, Github, LinkedIn, MassMutual, MGM Resorts, Pitney Bowes and Twilio (Okta, Inc. (Okta) IPO, n.d.). Okta also has business links with other leading cloud dealers such as Amazon Web Services, Box, Google Cloud, Microsoft, NetSuite, SAP, ServiceNow and Workday (Okta, Inc. (Okta) IPO, n.d.).

Company’s Mission

The mission of Okta is to provide their customers with secure connections in the cloud. The company’s vision is stated as: “to enable any company to use any technology” (Okta: Vision, n.d., par.1). The vision is realized through the development of products that “enable people to access applications and other tools more smoothly and securely than ever before” (Okta: Vision, n.d., par.2). The company predicts new tendencies in technology development and includes them in their work. Moreover, its major goal is to protect the customers; the value of the company is the people. Okta appreciates active, creative, and unconventional employees. They are aware that connecting people and technology is a big achievement.

Section II Part 2

Products and Services

Okta offers the identity cloud to consumers in various fields. Thus, there are products for information technologies and developers with specific product designs. Products for IT make the connection to enterprise technology more simple, efficient, and secure. The company provides a cloud-based user-store which enables the safe access from any device. Products for developers include complete authentication, user management, and adaptable administration. In addition, they supply developer tools alongside expert support and guidelines, and application program interfaces with centralized, comprehensive administration. Product architecture presupposes that every product of the company differs from its competitors due to their high safety and reliability.

Okta products are accompanied with services. The company provides all-day support to customers, in case they have any questions about a product, as well as offering training programs though online classes. A unique feature of Okta is their adoption services. A Customer Success Manager can work with customers to improve the application of Okta products. Moreover, Okta services offer to find a channel partner or a self-service option which empowers communication between customers about the use of the company’s products.

Five Forces’ Model Analysis

The model of Five Forces by Porter is used to analyze the competitive environment of a company. It aims to discover the position of an industry in the market, evaluate its performance, and its prospects.

The risk of entry by potential competitors

With the rapid development of cloud technology, the number of its vendors amounts to hundreds of large and thousands of smaller ones (Michaux, 2015). Okta cooperates with some of its most prominent competitors, such as Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, Microsoft, and SAP. Compared to some other rivals, Okta aims to provide an exclusive quality product including: professional services with advisory packages, everyday support for quick solutions, training programs on the functionality of the products, adoption services to accelerate the arrangement, and self-service applications that enable customers to communicate with other clients and partners.

The intensity of rivalry among established firms

The rivalry in the market of cloud technology is fierce. However, the sphere is also relatively new, with more and more customers appearing every day. The rivalry is a moving force and encourages providers to constantly improve their products and enhance their functionality. Okta is not new to the market and has proven its reliability. The creative approach and the skill of management to predict changes in the field make Okta’s products highly competitive among other, similar, products.

Bargaining power of suppliers

The field of information technologies is so widely developed that it is not easy for suppliers to drive up the process. Since the market for cloud technologies functions on-line, it is not difficult for a customer to find a new provider if they are not satisfied with the price or quality of their existing one. Thus, the only opportunity for Okta to make their products more expensive is by their unique characteristics and the exceptional quality of their products.

Bargaining power of buyers

Customers may also potentially influence the position of a company. A productive negotiation can make a company provide discounts or additional services. However, Okta does not appear to be under threat of substantial buyers’ influence. The company has hundreds of customers who are satisfied with the level of services provided, and the unique products appear to be successful in encouraging new customers to continue to sign up for services without any bargaining.

The threat of substitutes

There does not seem to be evidence of a threat of substitutes for Okta. Despite the numerous competitors with alternative products, the identity cloud provided by the company remains competitive within the market. The only danger for Okta may be a new company that provides services of an even higher quality, at a lower price. However, loyal customers will most likely not change providers if they are still satisfied with the quality of a product, even more so if that have been using it for years.

The Sixth Force

In addition to the five forces suggested by Porter, there is the additional force of complementors to be considered (Wilkinson, 2013). As such, Okta company can be seen as a complementor itself. It does not only provide identity cloud technology but also offers a wide range of support to its customers. Okta’s management is customer-oriented; the major goal is not profit but the security of the clients. The products of the company have various spheres of implementation and this is reflected in the company having customers in many fields, such as healthcare, government, education, energy, financial services, and technology.

Industry Life Cycle Analysis

Every industry experiences certain market life cycles. It begins its functioning, develops, increases sales, and finally, when the service or goods provided are not necessary anymore, starts to decline. These four major stages in the life cycle of the industry can be identified as: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline (Industry life circle, n.d.). Okta is at the stage of maturity. It was founded in 2009 and during its functioning gained a reputation and found customers. Its development is now steady, without changes in management. The company’s policy seems to be correct and is leading the company to success. Okta is still developing, but not in its structure. The component that undergoes constant changes is the products. Okta remains competitive in the market of cloud technologies. Despite numerous rivals, it manages to deliver a unique product with high level, wide ranging support. Another proof of the stage of maturity is the presence of investors and shareholders. The price of shares is also growing, providing further evidence for the prosperity of the company. It can be supposed that the policy of the company and its commitment to constant development will keep Okta at the maturity stage for the foreseeable future, before it turns to decline.

Conclusions

Okta Inc. is an example of a company that has managed to gain and retain its place on the market through a combination of ‘right timing’ and ‘right product’. The cloud platform they offer is independent and neutral. It enables customers to operate any application or service on any device. It grants access to the newest technologies and enables the use of a large network of applications. The key feature of the product is its compatibility. Thus, the Okta Identity Cloud can connect with other public, private and hybrid clouds. Being pioneers in cloud identity, the company has now developed an international presence, with customers located all over the world. The values of the company and the prevalence of customers’ security and high-level services make Okta one of the leading companies in the field today.