However, a determination should be made regarding the viability of these items in all stores. If sales are low in certain areas, this could lead to loss of profit due to overages. Company Q has also declined a request by local food bank to donate day old products because they fear theft by employees. Company Q could take a few simple steps which would support their need to improve profit, engage their employees in a shared corporate vision, and build a supportive relationship with the community. Recommendation 1 Company Q should establish an ethics program.
For example, in both surveys there is an approximately a 60/40 split on customer satisfaction for customer service representatives being courteous (Apollo Group, Inc., 2011). Instead of looking to improve on their products and services, perhaps the company should be looking to their customer service. The marketing objective could improve the amount of people agreeing with the level of customer service. Customer service is as important, if not more so, than the products themselves. If a customer is not happy with service they received in a store, they are more likely not to return regardless of the quality of the product.
DQ 2 : "Panera Bread" Please respond to the following: Evaluate Panera Bread’s strategy and its effectiveness with executing the strategy within the competitive fast-casual restaurant marketplace. Discuss the pitfalls to this strategy and the potential impact to the performance of Panera Bread. Select one of Panera Bread’s competitors and discuss a disadvantage that Panera has with the competitor and how this disadvantage may be overcome. Week
A potential opportunity that they could explore is to utilize self-checkout terminals in their locations. Self-checkout point of sale terminals could do many things to improve Kudler Fine Foods as a retail competitor. First, it would improve their customer service as many customers prefer to check themselves out rather than having a cashier. In today’s technology environment, “…systems can be tailored to better fit any retail environment and are more focused on improving customer service rather than cutting labor costs” (Murphey, 2009, p. 1) . Even though the prime focus of these systems is not necessarily to cut labor costs, often times they can improve efficiency.
Running Head: Organizational Architecture of the Primerica Offices of Rod Swartz Organizational Architecture of the Primerica Offices of Rod Swartz A Truly Complicated Organizational Model With Terrific Upside Rod D. Swartz Professional Development, MBA 540, Summer-2 2012 Professor James Larriviere St. Leo University, MBA540 August 19, 2012 Company Description and Structure The Primerica Offices of Rod Swartz is the name of the business I established and have run since May of 1994. Our office functions as an independent contractor offering the products and services of Primerica, Inc. and falls under the organizational structure and constraints of Primerica Financial Services (Primerica). Through Primerica’s promotion guidelines, I earned the promotion to a Regional Vice President (RVP) which provides me the opportunity to autonomously run my office within the legal and ethical requirements of the industry and company (discussed later) and essentially to earn the right to ownership over the business unit I have built. Earning ownership enables one the right to pass on their business interests to their family or receive a buy-out from Primerica, Inc. This somewhat autonomous structure corresponds most closely to a divisional structure, also known as the “multidivisional form of organization” (Brickley, Smith & Zimmerman, 2009), as each office functions as a business within a business.
Some examples are as follow: • Industry patents • Recognizable brand • Good customer service • Cost advantages over competition • Use of natural resources or organic food options • Robust distribution network Weaknesses are defined as what limitations your business has compared to others in the industry. The absence of certain strengths may be viewed as a weakness. Some examples are as follow: • Lack of industry patents • Un-recognizable brand • Poor customer service • Higher costs than competition • Limited use of natural resources or organic food options • Limited distribution network and market share Opportunities are defined as what might be available to your business as a way of promoting your product or providing an advantage over your competition. Some examples are as follow: • Customer needs • Use of new technology • Lifting of restrictions • Ability to trade internationally • Only business in that location offering your product or service • New location that needs your product or service Threats are defined as anything that may take away some of your customers or market share. Some examples are as follow: • New products entering the market • Change in customer preferences • Substitutable products • Federal or state regulations • Inability to trade internationally • Inability to meet
(Strategy Development Group, Inc, 2002) K Mart’s product line includes Joe Boxer, Route 66, Wrangler, & Martha Stewart products. (CBS Interactive, 2011) These product lines give K Mart a competitive advantage unlike Wal-Mart and Target. Additionally, K Mart would be wise to include more product lines geared more towards their market segmentation. Other competitive advantages include K Mart’s loyal customer base. Frequent shoppers often have a resistance to new discount stores.
Company Name: Krispy Kreme Fiscal Year: 2006 Problem Statement “In this case, the organization is found to be struggling to reverse their income from losing. Krispy Kreme businesses are often affected by changes in consumer tastes. Krispy Kreme sales have been and may continue to be affected by consumer tastes, such as health or dietary preferences, including the reduction of the consumption food products containing high levels of carbohydrates that cause the consumers to avoid doughnuts in favor of substitute foods that are perceived as healthier. Moreover, due to the fact that Krispy Kreme is dependent in a single product, if consumer demands for doughnuts should decrease due to the stated factor (changes in consumer taste); the company will suffer further loss as compared to the present situation if not subjected into an immediate repositioning of its strategies. “ Alternative Solutions Consider developing healthier snack-food alternatives – “healthier choices” or “low calorie” doughnut selection, and find new ways to eliminate trans-fat in their products.
Question Comment on the “tightness” of the control system used by Fit Food, and the effects of this in terms of the (internal) cost and benefits to the organization regardless of whether the accounts are acceptable for publication. Result Controls Fit Food measures the performance of each division based on their achievement of annual operating plans such as divisional growth rate to 7% and bonus on achieved profit targets and stock option offered to corporate managers and divisional presidents. * The 7% divisional growth rate was the desired result – organizations’ true objective. * Bonus and stock options offered by Fit Food was a motivational factor in achieving the set targets. * Behavioural displacement is present in result control i.e.
Even with healthier choices, one cannot be aware of exactly what is in the food cooked in restaurants, while families can opt out of the drive-through and go in to sit and eat together at fast-food establishments it isn't as intimate and the time is rushed, low-cost options on fast food menus cost more than cooking a family meal at home. Pollan writes, “The fact is that not cooking may well be deleterious to our health, and there is reason to believe that the outsourcing of food preparation to corporations and 16-year-olds has already taken a toll on our physical and psychological wellbeing” (106). This essay will prove that eating fast-food threatens physical health, weakens the family, and is costly. Physical health is influenced directly by our meal choices. Choosing to order a healthier meal option at a restaurant is not equal to a home cooked meal made with fresh foods.