Project Proposal Outline
ForHome is an appliance company that manufactures appliances and also services and repairs its equipment. The company’s target audience is adults aged 25 to 50, both male and female, who have completed higher education and have average or above-average salaries. They look positively into the future and persistently strive for success.
The company aims to transform housekeeping from a routine, tedious chore into a collection of smart devices that align with users’ lifestyles, not only performing tasks but also anticipating needs and allowing people more time for enjoyable pursuits. We offer an innovative product – a robot vacuum cleaner with the function of feeding pets. The feeding function will be possible thanks to an additional compartment for storing food.
After receiving a feeding command from the owner via a mobile app, the robot vacuum cleaner will drive to the feeding place with its accompanying bowls and pour out the food. The owner, in turn, may be at work, out for a walk, or generally on the other side of the world at that time. This feature helps working people with pets who cannot be home all the time. Also, the product will be equipped with additional features that set it apart as high-quality.
The paper provides a description of the robot vacuum cleaner market and a complete description of ForHome. Based on the information gathered about the organization, a strategic plan has been developed to drive innovation and improve the company’s operations. Various recommendations were given as risk management measures. A business case for the innovation was also given, which helped determine the feasibility of introducing the product into production. Thus, the robotic vacuum cleaner with pet food function is a worthwhile investment to improve ForHome’s competitiveness and brand recognition.
Company Description
Customers
ForHome is a manufacturer of home appliances, including vacuum cleaners, refrigerators, irons, and stoves. The firm also provides maintenance and repair services for its equipment. The company offers a wide selection of small and large home appliances. Consumers of the firm are those who value a well-organized life, high-quality, long-lasting appliance servicing, excellent environmental practices, cleanliness, and comfort in their own lives and homes. They are men and women aged 25 to 50 with higher education and earning an average or above-average salary. They have a positive outlook on the future and strive hard to attain success.
Customers care not just about the product’s excellent quality but also its subtleties and nuances. They are also folks who can afford and desire specialized therapy. For them, household management is not a daily, disagreeable task, but rather the use of gadgets that match their lifestyle, not only doing their job but also thinking for the user, freeing them up for other, more enjoyable activities.
Products
ForHome emphasizes maximizing the collection of quality characteristics that consumers need at a price that is neither low nor unaffordable. The range of main household appliances is designed so the client can choose a refrigerator or washing machine model based on a set of vital features and criteria across various price groups, rather than just price alone. At the same time, the models must be competitive and get the best outcomes.
Market
The market for large household appliances is highly competitive, with major players. Bosch, Siemens, Ariston, Liebherr, and Samsung are the top rivals in the big household appliance market. ForHome has developed a new approach for brand positioning.
The corporation not only announces the technical specifications of home appliances but also tests its products thoroughly to ensure compliance with consumer expectations, focusing on the most significant attributes for customers. However, companies are becoming more technologically savvy and developing novel features, such as linking their products to the Internet of Things (IoT), to make customers’ lives easier and more pleasant. The IoT is the linking of physical items and devices equipped with sensors and software that allow them to exchange and gather data(Laitala et al., 2021).
Furthermore, manufacturers are primarily working on producing self-managed smart gadgets that incorporate intelligent electronic control, sensors, and machine learning methods. Several businesses, such as LG and Samsung, are at the forefront of the smart technology revolution with products such as intelligent washing machines and refrigerators (Laitala et al., 2021). This is why the ForHomeGroup values innovation and constant improvement. This measure boosts the company’s competitiveness and allows it to gain more market share.
Human Resource
ForHome places a high value on attracting, developing, and retaining employees as a key component of its operations. Personnel planning is done strategically, with the ultimate objective of ensuring the organization’s sustainability. Personnel planning begins with the corporate HR manager and ends with the retail line managers.
Organizational Structure
ForHome operates with a hybrid divisional-matrix structure. The divisional structure is defined by the fact that this company has multiple business units, with the same staff structure: a director, line managers, an HR department, an office, an accounting department, and sales consultants are present in all stores. In addition, each business unit has the same ratio of these structural people pieces.
The structure at the head unit is nearly identical, except that global management is handled at the organizational level. A Board of Directors, comprising top management and key shareholders, is responsible for developing the organization’s overall strategy. Among them are the company’s President, human resources manager, finance manager, strategic development manager, merchandising manager (goods procurement, assortment replenishment), sales manager, logistics manager, commercial manager (price setting), and information technology manager.
The matrix structure of ForHome is decided by the project’s ability to achieve many strategic goals. There is a plan to establish a staff reserve with its own managers who have broad autonomy within specific restrictions. Such project managers work directly with functional managers in lower divisions (if the project is implemented throughout the company) or with division experts (if the project is specific to one division).
Employee Policy
ForHome’s personnel policy is intended, first and foremost, to develop individuals who can evolve into qualitatively new experts, including managers. The emphasis here is on employing young individuals who may still need to complete their school and higher degree courses. When feasible, management guides employees to the required professional development opportunities and encourages their growth in this area. Convenient staff scheduling and high management responsiveness boost employee self-development and stimulate the discovery of new information and the adoption of high-quality decision-making practices.
In addition to motivating personnel through increased compensation, it propels them to greater heights, contributing to the overall success of the business. The company’s excellent growth potential over the next five years justifies the individual planning approach. This firm has a substantial competitive edge because it includes young people in its individual planning.
Description of Innovation
Product Description
My suggested ForHome innovation is a wise robot vacuum cleaner that can feed pets. This will be possible with an additional food storage compartment. Once the owner activates the feeding command through a mobile app, the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the feeding station, where the included bowls are located, and dispenses the food. During this process, the owner may be at work, taking a walk, or even in another part of the world. This function is handy for pet owners who cannot always be at home due to their work schedules. This feature helps working people with pets who are unable to be home all the time.
A robot vacuum cleaner is a little gadget used to clean the house. It includes wheels and an additional roller for movement. An electric motor powers the gadget, which begins moving around the room, gathering dust, dirt, and other impurities. A built-in battery serves as a power source. Such a vacuum cleaner can navigate in space using specialized navigation sensors, ensuring it does not damage the room’s furnishings or walls.
In terms of efficiency, such a device can clean 0.7-0.8 square meters per minute. Therefore, which robot vacuum cleaner to pick is the same in this regard, as the owner will always have a decent way of cleaning the floor. The rubbish falls into a particular container with the assistance of a circular brush, and the product’s round form allows a person to collect impurities from even the most remote corners of the room.
Justification
In today’s world, time is one of the most critical resources. The rapid pace of life leaves less time for everyday domestic tasks, such as cleaning the house. Moreover, wasting valuable time on such matters is simply deplorable (Manasa et al., 2021). As a result, autonomous household gadgets that make life simpler are becoming increasingly common in homes, including “smart” vacuum cleaners.
At the start of the twenty-first century, the first such items debuted on the vacuum cleaner market. They were founded in the United States by the business iRobot and in Europe by Electrolux (Manasa et al., 2021). Since then, the market for robot vacuum cleaners has expanded in both quantity and quality.
Some genuine manufacturers produce miraculous equipment, virtual ones that integrate goods from other manufacturers under their own name, and those that are only engaged in creating new robot vacuum cleaner models. Companies are investing substantially in introducing novel technologies into household appliances (Laitala et al., 2021). British Dyson, for example, invests around 7 million pounds each week on research and development and the manufacture of new goods, including “smart” vacuum cleaners, and intends to enhance this figure in the future.
Consumer Profile
Savvy vacuum cleaner consumers are now primarily young males aged 25-34 with above-average salaries. Men are more likely than women to buy automated cleaning machines. According to the findings of the robotic vacuum cleaner market research, it has tremendous growth potential.
The United States is expected to lead medium-term growth, with “smart” devices accounting for 20% of the vacuum cleaner market (Laitala et al., 2021). Further development of the “smart home” idea will lead to vacuum cleaners with a broader range of capabilities. They will catch up to their traditional counterparts in dust suction power, and their autonomous operating time will be extended. With the increasing demand for such equipment, more manufacturers will emerge, leading to both advances in robot vacuum cleaners and lower prices.
Standout Features
To help ForHome’s vacuum cleaner gain popularity and bring the company considerable success, a pet-feeding function has been added. A wet cleaning feature will also be included in this type of robot vacuum cleaner. When vacuum cleaners come into contact with carpets, they identify the surface and stop working; a set of brushes and sponges is provided for each surface. Detergents are added to the water during operation, increasing the device’s efficiency. Precision filters improve cleaning quality by automatically shutting off the water supply.
The equipment thoroughly cleans the floors using specific detergents and post-washing methods. The nanofiltration technology also humidifies the room air, which benefits the health of those in the room. Dust and grime are also totally settled in the water flask thanks to the filtering process.
This gadget will also include features such as returning to the base from anywhere in the room and an ultraviolet lamp to detect and eliminate harmful germs. The robotic vacuum cleaner will also be able to distinguish surfaces, allowing it to avoid contact with undesirable surfaces or to clean desired ones thoroughly. The gadget will also measure pollution levels and determine the appropriate power output.
The robot vacuum cleaner will be able to observe the room, locate furniture and other objects, create a map, and avoid obstacles thanks to the camera (SLAM optical navigation sensor) and the laser (LDS laser navigation sensor). As a result, the user will not need to prepare the room for cleaning, rearrange objects, or remove them from the vacuum cleaner’s path. It is worth noting that the device will be triangular in design, allowing the vacuum cleaner to reach into tight spaces, clean thoroughly in corners, and get near baseboards and walls. The vacuum cleaner will also include a washable, high-quality filter. It can remove up to 99% of tiny dust particles and allergies.
The gadget can be controlled both from the unit’s body and via a smartphone app. Using the phone, you can select the device’s movement mode and the specific rooms that need cleaning, send the vacuum cleaner to recharge, set the work schedule, assign the positions of virtual walls, and adjust the suction power. Home’s robot vacuum cleaner can clean surfaces, including low-pile carpet, carpeting, laminate, linoleum, parquet, and tiles, with ease and effectiveness. The device will also feature technologies such as stair safety, multi-floor memory, room mapping, return-to-base from any room, resuming cleaning after recharging, and smart navigation.
Strategic Plan
Environmental Analysis
The proper selection of strategic guidelines that enable the optimal utilization of human capital and other resources determines the long-term efficient functioning of any organization, as well as its economic growth and development. In the face of severe competition and a rapidly changing environment, businesses should not only focus on internal operations but also build a long-term behavioral plan to keep pace with these changes. Accelerating environmental change, the rise of new needs and changing customer attitudes, increased competition for resources, company globalization, and a variety of other factors have all contributed to a dramatic growth in the importance of strategic management.
A detailed assessment of the internal environment is required before making managerial choices. Economic data accurately reflects the company’s operations. It is not easy to properly manage and develop the firm’s manufacturing and sales activities without such information and analysis. The internal environment of the firm is controlled by controllable elements determined by management professionals’ activities, including the four Ps: product, price, place (marketing channels and promotion), and technology.
Pricing
For an invention to be successful for the firm, the product must be optimized to the greatest extent possible. Furthermore, the organization must consider its pricing approach. For example, the ForHome company may use pricing strategies such as the high-price strategy (selling a new product at a high price initially and then progressively lowering it) and the differentiated-pricing strategy (creating specific discount tiers).
Consumers may be drawn to the brand and become repeat customers through seasonal reductions. To build marketing channels for promotion, the organization must allocate time to advertising. Quality advertising may help potential consumers and investors pay attention to the brand, benefiting the organization’s sales and growth.
Social Media Marketing
ForHome is encouraged to pay attention to social media and its evolution, as it has become increasingly significant in the twenty-first century. To run a successful online business, it is not enough to create a website that sells the company’s specialized items. It is critical to have a high-quality, optimized online resource that can attract a large number of potential consumers and motivate them to take the appropriate target action, thereby enhancing the site’s performance, including conversion rates. The brand is advised by content promotion and viral marketing techniques.
It will also be helpful to employ shadow marketing as a promotional tactic. In contrast to viral marketing, the audience’s opinion is slowly formed through targeted, indirect product mentions on social networks (Afifah et al., 2022). This method takes longer, but the result is favorable. Collaboration with opinion leaders is also highly crucial.
Opinion leaders may be both the community and its members, and they can influence the formation of opinions about the brand/product. At present, the most beneficial dynamics are observed in blogger advertising. One should remember the importance of direct advertising and targeting. With competent use of these tools, the company can achieve good results.
Research and Development
ForHome actively monitors scientific and technical advancements to ensure that new items reach shop shelves on time. The firm is aggressively developing information technology and enhancing warehouse logistics. The system handles duties such as product movement management and transportation planning, claims activity, and direct purchasing of items from suppliers for chain stores.
It is essential to consider the positive effects of Internet development: the number of purchases from ForHome’s website grows year after year. The firm sees great potential in this sector. Thus, the technical environment has a favorable impact on the company’s activities but also makes them more stressful. The research on the global macro environment of the sector has demonstrated that there are more opportunities than risks (Laitala et al., 2021). Hence, this organization has an opportunity for the long term.
Human Resource Management
To boost the enterprise’s productivity, it is also vital to manage the personnel effectively as the service staff is the face of the ForHome home and electronic appliance shop. When hiring employees, the following traits must be considered: sociability, compassion, cuteness, the ability to respond swiftly in specific situations, and so on. The quality of service at ForHome requires significant adjustments, including staff training, product development, remuneration and incentives, and a moral and material incentive structure.
Given the high turnover, it is vital to foster a positive team environment, clearly define roles and responsibilities, and maintain a rewards system. It is also critical to contact suppliers to expedite delivery and improve efficiency. The organization must reduce distribution expenses and implement more cost-effective logistics. It should decrease the proportion of leased space, begin developing new stores, expand retail space, and improve qualitative metrics, such as revenue growth in similar stores. To recover customer demand for durable products, new incentive sales tactics must be used, such as offering percentage discounts, incentives, credit, and installments at less active ForHome locations. When competition from foreign companies becomes tougher, it is necessary to set prices not by the manufacturer but through the function of supply and demand.
Business Case
The purpose of the innovative business case is to increase the competitiveness and uniqueness of ForHome’s products. The release of a robot vacuum cleaner with a pet-feeding function will help the organization enter the global market and capture a large share of the target audience. The company will be able to increase sales, attract investors, and expand production. Customers will be able to get a product that makes life easier for them and their pets.
Competitors, on the other hand, do not have a similar product, which can be an advantage for ForHome. The market for smart home devices is growing rapidly, but the advanced functionality of the proposed innovative product makes it unique. Since the company’s goal is to simplify life and household tasks for its customers, the launch of robotic vacuum cleaners with pet-feeding features aligns with this vision. It is expected that after the launch of this product, brand awareness will increase, and the customer base will grow. This will give ForHome’s development a boost, which can be considered a success.
Developers and consumers of innovations face risk at many different stages of their operations. In this regard, there can be many reasons for a particular risk situation, implying a condition that creates uncertainty about its outcome. Different problems may arise at different stages of the innovation process, from generating innovations to marketing or using the innovative product. In this case, innovation risk includes the risk that the new product may not find a buyer and the risk that the new equipment and technology may not meet the requirements to produce the new good or service. However, to manage this risk, ForHome needs to devote considerable attention and resources to product promotion.
To introduce an innovative product into production, technology and marketing specialists will need to be involved. Regarding finances, the best-case scenario is an investment of 2 million dollars and a profit of 5 million dollars for the first batch. The most likely scenario is to spend 2.8 million dollars on the innovation and make a profit of 4.9 million.
The worst-case scenario is a cost of $3.5 million and a profit of less than the cost. These costs are priced considering that, in a worst-case scenario, more money will be spent on ineffective promotion or troubleshooting. However, to avoid the worst-case scenario, the company should devote significant time to developing an innovative product and a strategic plan, applying the recommendations above.
Conclusion
It is recommended to make this innovation a priority now, as the market for smart home devices is growing rapidly. At this stage, there are no analogs to the proposed product, but in the future, companies may use this idea and overtake ForHome in its implementation. Thus, “What” refers to an innovative product in the form of a robotic vacuum cleaner with a pet-feeding function. “When” implies a date approximately six months away, as the company needs time to prepare. “Future” implies increasing ForHome’s competitiveness and brand recognition, as well as expanding production.
References
Afifah, N., Daud, I., & Mulyadina, M. (2022). Viewer behavior on social media: Viral marketing of a movie trailer in Indonesia. Gadjah Mada International Journal of Business, 24(2), 178-197.
Laitala, K., Klepp, I. G., Haugrønning, V., Throne-Holst, H., & Strandbakken, P. (2021). Increasing repair of household appliances, mobile phones and clothing: Experiences from consumers and the repair industry. Journal of Cleaner Production, 282.
Manasa, M., Vidyashree, T. S., Bindushree, V., Rao, S., & Gowra, P. S. (2021). Smart vacuum cleaner. Global Transitions Proceedings, 2(2), 553-558.