Executive Summary
PepsiCo’s strategic approach, mission, and vision statements are effectively presented on the company’s website. The provided mission and vision statements are formulated appropriately and address the criteria set for these elements of the strategy. Additionally, the company’s goals are also provided in connection with the vision statement.
However, it is necessary to pay more attention to formulating the company’s values as they are not stated clearly, and visitors refer to the company’s mission and vision statements, as well as information provided on other pages of the website, to find out potential values. Therefore, the formulation of values needs to be improved, and the mission statement can be edited to become more effective. Furthermore, the alignment between mission and vision statements, values, and goals, and stakeholders’ interests is evident as their needs are mentioned directly.
Introduction
PepsiCo is one of the international leaders in producing beverages, snacks, and other products. The company was established in 1898, and now it operates worldwide. To keep its leading position in the market, the company needs to adjust its strategy to modern trends (PepsiCo, 2020). Therefore, it is important to evaluate PepsiCo’s mission statement, vision statement, values, and goals as the basic elements of its strategy to understand how they address stakeholders’ interests. The purpose of this report is to conduct a strategic analysis of PepsiCo’s mission statement, vision statement, values, and goals through focusing on the material under analysis and criteria and conclude on the effectiveness of aligning these statements with stakeholders’ expectations.
Company’s Mission Statement and Analysis
Mission statements usually present a specific reason for an organization’s existence and development with a focus on its purpose and contribution to society. From this perspective, mission statements should address the following criteria: state a company’s purpose, identify customers and determine activities according to the purpose to address stakeholders’ needs and expectations. The mission statement of PepsiCo is presented in the following sentence: “Create more smiles with every sip and every bite” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 1). On the company’s website, this statement is supported by an explanation of how this action will be completed for each stakeholder group.
For example, it is stated that, for consumers, the mission will be realized “By creating joyful moments through our delicious and nourishing products and unique brand experiences” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 2). Additionally, for customers of the company, the mission will be addressed “By being the best possible partner, driving game-changing innovation, and delivering a level of growth unmatched in our industry” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 3). Similar statements are provided concerning associates, communities, the planet, and shareholders.
Although PepsiCo selected a wordy approach to formulating a mission statement, it can be discussed as of high quality because all the discussed components are addressed. Thus, the company states its purpose to “create more smiles” referring to customers’ experiences of using its products. All possible stakeholders and customers are effectively addressed separately, and an individual approach to covering their expectations is observed (Heathfield, 2009). Even though the actions associated with the company’s purpose are not obvious at once, they are presented in detail with a focus on the individual needs of the stakeholders and community.
Company’s Vision Statement and Analysis
If a mission statement represents the purpose of a company’s activities and products its proposes, vision statements demonstrate a company’s wider purpose to achieve. The vision statement is formulated based on an organization’s values, beliefs, and cultural views. PepsiCo’s vision is the following: “Be the global leader in convenient foods and beverages by winning with purpose” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 7).
This vision statement is expanded by the further explanation: “This reflects our ambition to win sustainably in the marketplace and accelerate our top-line growth, whilst keeping our commitment to do good for the planet and our communities” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 8). It is also mentioned that the company’s vision is based on the aspirations of becoming stronger, faster, and better for its consumers in the industry.
According to the criteria set for vision statements by researchers, effective visions should present broad or even global purposes for an organization’s strategic development. Vision statements should also be based on core values and beliefs. In addition, they need to represent the direction of an organization’s further progress. Finally, vision statements are usually motivating and inspiring for a company to achieve its goals. When assessing the quality of PepsiCo’s vision statement, it is possible to state that clearly defines a broad purpose for the company to become a leader in the industry.
Additionally, core values are also referred to because of the company’s focus on making business sustainably and addressing the planet’s and community’s needs. The direction for further progress is determined concerning accentuating the necessity for “top-line growth” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 8). Lastly, the overall tone in which the vision statement is written can be described as motivating and adding to inspiration for achieving the set goals. Thus, PepsiCo’s vision statement can be discussed as being of high quality.
Company’s Values and Goals and Analysis
A company’s values are specific priorities and beliefs according to which an organization plans and organizes its activities to achieve certain goals and objectives. The value statement usually reflects a company’s cultural and ethical ideology followed at all levels. Goals usually come from the vision statement as actual steps to achieve the major purpose of a company’s existence (“The strategic planning process,” 2007). PepsiCo does not provide a clear values statement, but its priorities are identified concerning mission and vision statements, and this approach is typical for many companies. Thus, PepsiCo values focusing on sustainability, integrity, honesty, responsibility, top-level quality, and diversity.
The company also presents a concept of aspirations based on these values that support the vision and determine the goals. These aspirations are to become stronger, faster, and better. From this perspective, goals that come from the company’s vision statement are to “broaden our portfolios to win locally in convenient foods and beverages,” “fortify our North American businesses,” and “accelerate international expansion, with a disciplined focus on ‘right-to-win’ markets” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 9).
It is possible to note that these goals directly address PepsiCo’s vision statement, and they can be discussed as effective steps toward winning the leading position in the world regarding following the company’s core values. However, the provided values are not obvious, and they are mentioned on different pages of the corporate website. Furthermore, goals and objectives also have weaknesses as they are not formulated as quantifiable and measurable goals with specific deadlines.
Alignment of Company’s Mission, Vision, Values, and Goals with Stakeholders’ Interests
Stakeholders of a company include shareholders, customers and consumers, employees, communities, and other groups and agents who experience the impact of a company’s activities (McNamara, 2009b). The stakeholders of PepsiCo are numerous, and their needs and interests are mentioned in the company’s mission and vision statements. The mission statement is most detailed in this case as it responds to the needs of consumers, customers, associates, communities, the planet, and shareholders.
For example, PepsiCo is focused on creating smiles “By creating joyful moments through our delicious and nourishing products and unique brand experiences” for consumers (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 2). This experience is achieved for customers through “being the best possible partner” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 3).
In addition, the needs of associates and communities can be addressed through “creating meaningful opportunities to work, gain new skills and build successful careers, and a diverse and inclusive workplace” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 4). For the planet, PepsiCo can contribute to “conserving nature’s precious resources and fostering a more sustainable planet” (CITE). Moreover, for shareholders, the emphasis is put on “delivering sustainable top-tier TSR and embracing best-in-class corporate governance” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 8). As a result, PepsiCo’s mission statement is an example of a detailed explanation of how the company’s activities and products can address stakeholders’ interests.
The vision statement is also aligned with stakeholders’ needs, interests, and expectations. It is stated in the explanation of the vision that PepsiCo’s commitment is “to do good for the planet and our communities” (PepsiCo, 2020, para. 7). Thus, both mission and vision statements directly address stakeholders in their formulations. Still, in the description of values and goals, the connection with stakeholders’ interests is not so clear, and the main focus is on principles to follow and objectives to achieve (Hammonds, 2007). However, it is assumed that the realization of the goals should be completed in the context of focusing on communities and stakeholders’ interests.
Recommended Changes
Although the mission and vision statements of PepsiCo, as well as the description of values and goals, are rather effective, it is still possible to improve these statements to reflect better the company’s strategic path. First, it is necessary to reword a mission statement to make it more concise but still reflecting the purpose and stakeholders. In this case, the message will become clearer and efficient. The company’s vision statement is effective, and it does not require any changes. Values need to be stated on the company’s website more effectively, and it is possible to use a form of a list (McNamara, 2009a). In addition, goals and objectives can also be reformulated to make sure they are quantifiable and measurable to state clearly what needs to be reached in the context of PepsiCo’s strategy.
Conclusion
The report has provided the analysis of such components of PepsiCo’s strategy as the mission statement, vision statement, values, and goals. It has been found that the mission statement is effective, but it can be edited to become more purposeful and concise, and the vision statement does not require editing and changes. Values are not specified on the corporate website, and this element needs to be improved. Goals should also be adjusted to become more measurable and achievable. However, the strength of the company is its accentuation of the link between the activities and outcomes for stakeholders. Thus, the respect for stakeholders and their interests is reflected in the discussed statements, especially, in the mission statement.
References
Hammonds, K. (2007). Michael Porter’s big ideas. Fast Company, 44. Web.
Heathfield, S. M. (2009). Build a strategic framework: Mission statement, vision, values. Web.
McNamara, C. (2009a). Basics of developing mission, vision and values statements. Web.
McNamara, C. (2009b). Developing your strategic plan. Web.
PepsiCo. (2020). Mission and vision. Web.
The strategic planning process. (2007). Web.