Introduction
Vigorous is an American NAB company producing soda. The organization aims at providing its customers with unique experiences and offer not only traditional but also exotic types of beverage at a reasonable price. It is expected that the organization will be able to stay within the annual cost limit of $2,364,000 for the next two years (see Appendix A).
Company Description
Vigorous is a corporation operating in the environment of the food industry. The mission of the organization is to search for innovative ways of offering its target customers unique experiences, as well as meeting the needs of all stakeholders involved, including the company’s staff, partners, etc. Vigorous views people aged 21-60 as its primary audience, although the firm strives to address the needs of audiences of all ages. Although the firm’s segmentation strategy was designed to cater to the needs of American, African American, Latin American, and Native American descents primarily, the entrepreneurship is ready to expand its services to embrace a wider range of cultures and ethnicities.
The firm will also focus on providing customers with beverages that are not only delicious but also healthy. Although soda and a healthy diet might not seem to go well together, Vigorous will strive to prove that its product is both healthy and tasty, natural ingredients, and a unique recipe being the keys to Vigorous’ product formula. The emphasis on the health benefits and opportunities that Vigorous products have to offer to the target customers is the essential selling point of the organization and its greatest competitive advantage.
Industry Analysis and Trends
SWOT Analysis
The U.S. non-alcoholic beverage (NAB) industry can be defined as quite stable. It has been experiencing consistent growth over the past few decades due to the technological progress and the opportunities that it opened for companies in terms of the production processes enhancement and quality improvement, from smarter packaging to the enhancement of the supply chain.
The profitability of the industry can be viewed as an essential strength. Indeed, according to the latest reports, the NAB department’s revenues peaked at $87,918,000,000 and is expected to reach $202,386,000,000 in 2017 (Statista, 2016). The identified trend has been consistent on all continents, though with minor differences in the growth rates (see Appendix B). Similarly, its openness to technological innovations mentioned above provides significant support for the companies operating in the environment of the global economy.
The sluggish growth rates of the industry, however, should be considered as its primary weakness. Exploring the opportunities that the company will face in the target environment, one must admit that the recent increase in concern for healthy drinks, such as the increase in customers’ interest in green tea, opens a valley of opportunities for Vigorous. Particularly, the firm might consider experimenting with the flavors, e.g., including the ones of exotic fruit.
Unfortunately, the designated realm also exposes the entrepreneurship to an array of threats, the debt issue being the key one. According to the latest trends in the target environment, the total debt-to-equity ranking of the NAB industry (0.03) placed the latter at the 28th spot among the rest of the global industries. The working capital per revenue rates indicates an even more disturbing trend, plummeting from 0.06 in 2015 to 0.33 in 2016, and dragging the industry from the 29th to the 58th spot (CSIMarket, 2016).
Non-alcoholic Beverage Industry Trends and Justification
Industry Trends
There have been very few changes to the NAB environment so far. The emphasis on the significance of healthy and environmentally safe products still guides the choices made by the companies operating in the target industry. Furthermore, the NAB market seems to have been affected by the introduction of nonalcoholic beer to the range of products offered to the target audience (CSIMarket, 2016). Apart from the specified change in the overall course of the industry development, the NAB environment can be considered comparatively stable in terms of the introduction of new products and substitutions to the market.
Beverage Justification
Although nonalcoholic beer is getting increasingly popular, the fact that soda can be consumed by people of all ages, as well as the opportunities for creating new flavors that it has to offer, is the primary reason for selecting soda as the target NAB.
Strategic Position & Risk Assessment
Company Strategic Position
Vigorous strives to incorporate age- and culture-based strategic positioning into its framework. In order to attract the target audience successfully, the company will have to appeal to people of all ages, which is only possible by designing an elaborate customer segmentation device based on the images that appeal to children, adolescents, young adults, adults, and older audiences. Similarly, Vigorous will have to include culture-appropriate messages into each of the images designed to attract the target audiences.
Therefore, it will be necessary to study the unique properties of each target culture, creating either the image that will appeal to all audiences or designing a set of ones that will convey unique messages to each of the population groups yet will be bound by a single idea. Currently, entrepreneurship sees its strategic position as a health-based, consumer-oriented one that will imply delivering unique taste experiences.
Risk Assessment
Identified Risks
One must admit, though, that Vigorous is bound to face the risks associated with the industry sooner or later. Among the key ones, the issue of costs needs to be brought up. Operating in the highly competitive area that the NAB environment is, Vigorous will need to take high costs so that it would not remain in the shadow of more powerful brands. Consequently, there is a high risk of failing to meet the company’s liabilities in due time.
Furthermore, the threat of failing to attract the customers’ attention due to poor use of the available channels must be mentioned. There is no need to stress the fact that the proper use of information determines the success of entrepreneurship nowadays. Therefore, the possibility of information mismanagement should be regarded as one of the crucial threats that a company may encounter in the environment of the NAB industry.
Finally, the risk of failing to design the brand image that will appeal to all members of the target population should be listed among the key potential problems. Although Vigorous has a strong corporate philosophy, it may face problems when establishing itself in the designated market. Specifically, the threat of a cultural misunderstanding or a failure to appeal to some of the target audiences may be viewed as the primary danger.
Risk Mitigation Plan
To manage the risks listed above, Vigorous will have to consider the concept of sustainability as the guiding principle of managing its resources. The specified approach will be necessary to apply to not only Vigorous’ financial operations but also the manufacturing process. Simultaneously, the philosophy of Lean Manufacturing will need to be incorporated into the production framework. As a result, an impressive drop in waste rates can be expected. Thus, the entrepreneurship will be able to reduce the expenses and adopt a cost-efficient strategy (Pyzdek & Keller, 2014).
The resources that Vigorous will save with the help of the sustainable approach mentioned above will have to be used to design an appropriate promotion campaign. Significant investments will need to be made to boost the development of the brand product and the brand image that will appeal to all members of the target population. Seeing that the organization will have to cater to the needs of a rather colorful population, including a range of different ethnic, age, and gender groups, it will be necessary to come up with a series of brands that will help promote the company’s products successfully. Thus, the risks of failing to attract the target audiences will be reduced greatly.
Finally, the use of the available resources to improve the information management strategy will have to be considered. The firm should view the use of social networks as the means of advertising its goods successfully. Furthermore, the tools for enhancing data security will need to be considered.
Target Market
The global market is the current area of Vigorous’ focus. According to the recent report on the changes in the global NAB domain, the 2013 validation of the global NAB market reached a stunning rate of USD $1,435.25 bn in 2013. More importantly, the changes that the industry will experience over the course of the next few years are bound to be quite positive, the 2020 forecasts landing at USD $1,937.73 bn (Non-alcoholic drinks market to reach US$1937.73 billion by 2020 – Global Industry Research Review 2015/2016 & Outlook 2020, 2016). Therefore, the NAB market has a definite propensity to evolving, which can be mostly attributed to the innovations that the non-alcoholic beer and the innovations in the soft drinks’ flavors range.
Competition
Major Competitors
The global market is a competitive environment, and its NAB department is not an exception. The industry is dominated by long-established companies such as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Dr Pepper Snapple (National Policy and Legal Analysis Network, 2012).
Competitive Strategy
As stressed above, the company will aim primarily at the pointing of the innovative idea of a soda drink that is actually healthy. It would be wrong to expect that, making the concept of healthy soda, Vigorous will propel itself to the top of the global market. However, the application of the framework will, nevertheless, allow the leaders of entrepreneurship to make sure that the firm will take a very specific niche in the target market.
Product Differentiation
The product differentiation strategy will point to the fact that, apart from focusing on its customers’ health, Vigorous will provide them with the experience that they have never had before. Specifically, the company’s products will include the flavors that have never been introduced into the target market so far.
Marketing Plan and Sales Strategy
Marketing Message
Seeing that the company aims at providing the target audience with a unique and tasty product, the marketing message of the firm can be worded in the following manner: “Have an unforgettably tasty and invigorating experience – try Vigorous’ soda.”
Company Promotion
The firm will be promoted with the help of both traditional and modern media. E-mails with notifications and news updates, as well as the announcement of events, advertisements in transport and on billboards, etc. will be used to attract customers’ attention. The promotion will imply that the company will offer its target customers samples of the product. Particularly, soda stands with free samples available to anyone will be located in a range of retail areas, including malls, shopping centers, etc. Additionally, Vigorous will advertize its products actively via social media, using networks as the means of spreading the word.
Ethics and Social Responsibility Plan
Corporate Citizenship
The focus on customers’ health and the promotion of a healthy lifestyle, particularly the appropriate diet, will be the basis for Vigorous’ corporate citizenship stance. Therefore, the organization assumes a customer-centered approach that allows it to improve customer satisfaction rates and attract a larger number of people.
Environmental Impact Assessment
Vigorous will carry out regular assessments based on EPA’s guidelines. The identified agency is typically viewed as the service that provides the crucial, regulations, and guidelines concerning the environmental protection and compliance with the required waste management norms. Therefore, focusing on the corresponding statements made by the agency and coordinating the firm’s actions in accordance with the identified principles is a necessity.
Health Issues and Claims
The effects that the overconsumption of soda may have on people’s health, particularly obesity, may become an issue for the company. To avoid it, Vigorous will have to emphasize that the product is not to be consumed with a large amount of food. It will be essential to design the warning in the manner that will not avert the buyers from purchasing the company’s products but, instead, make it clear that Vigorous cares about its customers. Furthermore, the company may offer private consultations with dieticians.
Restricted Target Marketing
The company will also avoid using the imagery that will attract young members of the population. Thus, health issues will be avoided successfully. In addition, consumer discretion notes will be added on the product label, indicating that it is not recommended for nursing mothers, infants, toddlers, etc.
Operations Plan
Key Aspects of Operations
Vigorous will produce soda as the key product that it will brand to the target customers. The beverage will be produced with the help of filtering, mixing, carbonating, and packaging equipment. The company will have 200 employees, 120 of them working in the production department.
In order to enhance the company’s operations and improve the quality thereof, the principles of Six Sigma will be used. By adopting the DMAIC framework, the entrepreneurship managers will be able to focus on the areas that need consistent improvement, therefore, contributing to the rise in both reproducibility and repeatability of the processes. The identified initiative will require that the staff members should recognize the significance of a quality-oriented approach.
Differently put, it will be imperative to promote the corresponding values among the employees. The provision of the required guidelines will have to be carried out by using the transformational leadership model. With a graphic example of a proper behavioral model to follow, the members of the organization will be able to meet the newly stated goals. Furthermore, the improvement in the information management strategy will be required so that the operational processes should occur more smoothly.
The use of corporate databases and the uninhibited access to the information for all members of the company will be a complete necessity. Finally, the principles of information sharing will need to be promoted so that the staff members from different departments could be updated on the latest changes in the company’s strategies.
Competitive Advantages
The emphasis on waste reduction will be the primary competitive advantage of the organization. As stressed above, the entrepreneurship will incorporate the principles of Lean Manufacturing and the sustainable use of resources. The identified concepts will serve as the foundation for avoiding the production of defected items. Furthermore, the repeatability of the staff members and the reproducibility of the equipment used in the course of the production process will be enhanced with the help of the specified approaches. Another step in the right direction, the use of the iSix Sigma principles will have to be considered. By definition, the framework will help the firm set the course for a consistent improvement of the product quality (Pyzdek & Keller, 2014).
Research and Development Activities
The R&D department of the organization will be preoccupied with the design of new flavors. Additionally, the means of making the product even healthier will be sought. The given approach can be viewed as an extension of the concept of unceasing progress and quality improvement mentioned above.
The identified department will have to be funded substantially so that the processes related to R&D could remain consistent and unceasing. The provision of the required financial resources will become a possibility once the principles of Lean Manufacturing, waste reduction, and sustainability mentioned above are incorporated into the company’s design. As soon as the concepts mentioned above become a part and parcel of the organization’s philosophy, a significant drop in costs can be expected.
Therefore, the revenues that the firm will receive will have to be used to boost the R&D process. Furthermore, the change in the information management design will contribute to a better analysis of the market and a more fruitful search for the available solutions. The use of quantitative analysis devices is highly recommendable so that forecasts could be created for the choice of the further strategy.
Technology Plan
Key Aspects of Technology
To make sure that the company will be capable of operating in the environment of the global market, one will have to consider the use of software that will enhance the process of information acquisition and transfer. Particularly, the promotion processes and the related SEO tools will have to be considered. Furthermore, the software that will serve as the means of securing Vigorous’ data from hackers will have to be purchased. As far as the production processes are concerned, the firm will need to buy the equipment that will help increase the staff’s productivity rates.
Personnel Needs Related to Technology
To make sure that the staff members understand how to operate the equipment that they will be provided with, as well as ensure the company’s and their own security by using the corresponding software in an appropriate manner, the company will have to consider training courses. The employees will be encouraged to join by the offers of incentives and benefits that will follow the successful completion of the training.
Management and Organization Plan
Key Management and Employees
The management of the essential processes in the company will be based on the principles of transformational leadership. As a result, the employees will remain motivated and, therefore, will strive to deliver the performance of the finest quality. Furthermore, the application of the transformational approach will help give the managers enough room for independent decision-making, at the same time making sure that they will comply with the corporate guidelines.
Management Structure
As the chart above shows, the company’s structure is rather basic, with only four levels represented in it. Therefore, it will be necessary to make sure that the tasks set by the managers should be interpreted correctly and performed in a manner as efficient and expeditious as possible. The
Management Structure and Style Justification
As shown above, the system of management adopted at the company is going to incorporate a range of elements. One might argue that the increase in the number of links in the chain will lead to an inevitable problem with the accuracy of data transfer. However, Vigorous is going to adopt the information management style that will help avoid the emergent problems. Specifically, the principles of data sharing will be included into the company’s framework. The data security, in its turn, will be facilitated by creating a set of rigid principles, instructing the staff, and creating an elaborate set of corporate values related to the significance of personal data non-disclosure.
Ethics & Social Responsibility Plan
In order to improve the company’s status among the target customers and make sure that the entrepreneurship will be recognized at the global arena, one will have to consider building a set of rigid ethical principles that the company will be known and widely recognized by. Apart from incorporating the traditional values, the form will also represent a unique outlook on the issues related to operating in the global business environment and, therefore, create a unique ethical stance and a profound corporate philosophy.
For instance, the organization will focus on creating jobs and, therefore, address the issue of unemployment, which is currently affecting the nation on a very basic level. Making the population vulnerable, unemployment affects the society deeply negatively; therefore, it is the job of Vigorous to create an array of strategies that will help manage the unemployment rates. First and most obvious, the firm will create a plethora of job opportunities for the people with the necessary level of competency yet without the necessary experience. Indeed, the requirement of experience, which most companies require nowadays, affects graduates that have an array of skills and an impressive knowledge base yet have not had any significant practice yet.
Furthermore, opportunities for the professional and personal growth of the staff members will be provided. The entrepreneurship will focus on devising the training courses that will contribute to a faster and efficient acquisition of the relevant knowledge and skills by the employees. Apart from enabling the members of the company to train the skills related directly to their competencies, the organization will also give its staff a powerful impetus for engaging in the lifelong learning process.
The identified element of the training program is essential as it changes he very landscape of the contemporary concept of professionalism. Particularly, it stretches the concept of expertise in a particular domain by making it clear that a professional must update their skills and abilities on a regular basis, learning about the latest trends and innovations in the designated area. Thus, Vigorous will shape people’s idea of professionalism and, therefore, help build a new concept of quality, workplace responsibility, and expertise.
Addressing the needs of employees, one must also bring up the issue of workplace discrimination. Sadly , the phenomenon remains an integral part of the contemporary reality. The managers at Vigorous, however, will do their best to eliminate the slightest signs of discrimination from the workplace by promoting a set of tolerance- and acceptance-based principles to the employees. It would be wrong to clam that changing the frame of mind of an adult person is a possibility for a private company; however, Vigorous will create the environment, in which the possibility of discrimination will be driven to zero.
First and most obvious, the sue of clarity an transparency as the foundation for interpersonal relationships in the company’s setting will be used to avoid the threat of personnel’s rights infringement. In addition, the employees will be introduced to a set of rigid values and principles of interpersonal interaction based on tolerance and fairness. As a result, the very possibility of discrimination as a phenomenon will be eliminated.
Furthermore, the entrepreneurship will strive to reduce the negative impact that it may have on the environment. As stressed above, the guidelines provided by EPA will be followed closely. Furthermore, the latest updates on the changes in the environmental protection frameworks will be reviewed carefully so that Vigorous could incorporate new suggestions into its framework of operations within the shortest amount of time possible. However, apart from complying with the guidelines provided by EPA, Vigorous will also shape its corporate philosophy in the manner that will allow it reduce the negative environmental impact to a minimum.
As stressed above, the importance of waste reduction is emphasized strongly in the firm. Specifically, the need to incorporate the principles of the Lean Manufacturing practice in the company’s design has to be mentioned. By definition, the subject matter implies that the available resources should be used most sparingly. By following the identified principle, Vigorous will attain two positive effects at the same time. First and most obvious, a control over the consumption of the natural resources, especially the exhaustible ones, will be established. As a result, the rates of their consumption will be reduced. Furthermore, the levels of pollution will be regulated easier. Particularly, the rates of waste predicted by the company will drop significantly after the application of the Lean Management principles.
In a similar way, the key concepts of the Six Sigma and the iSix Sigma frameworks will be adopted. Although the subject matter is used primarily to improve the quality of the end product, it can also be incorporated into the company’s design to enhance the rational use of the resources. Particularly, the improvement of the strategies for resources allocation, including the use of raw material, the transportation thereof and, thus, the consumption of fuel, etc., will be addressed with the help of the DMAIC framework. By using the suggested philosophy to solve the company-related problems, one will be able to make Vigorous as environmentally-friendly as manufacturing entrepreneurship can possibly be.
Finally, the company will have to be very honest about its product, and that includes telling the truth about a possible adverse impact that it may have on certain people. For instance, Vigorous will have to emphasize that soda is typically contra-indicated for pregnant women, nursing mothers, and children. Therefore, Vigorous will have to include a cautious statement concerning the threats of consuming soda for the identified members of the target population. To avoid possible misunderstandings, the company will not place its products in the areas where it can be viewed as a desired purchase by children In other words, the placement aspect of the 5Ps of marketing will have to be considered closer. For instance, locating the product in the same area as juice and other child-friendly drinks will be viewed as inappropriate by the company.
Being honest with the people that depend on an organization is the only means of becoming appreciated and recognized among the target customers. Although the warnings regarding the possible threats of the product offered by the firm may alarm and, therefore, avert certain members of the audience from buying Vigorous’ soda, most of them will definitely appreciate the openness and honesty of the company. Consequently, Vigorous will gain recognition rather fast.
Appendix A: Expected Costs
Appendix B: Soft Drink Sales (Statista, 2016)
References
CSIMarket. (2016). Nonalcoholic beverages industry. Web.
National Policy and Legal Analysis Network. (2012). Breaking down the chain: A guide to the soft drink industry. Web.
Non-alcoholic drinks market to reach US$1937.73 billion by 2020 – Global Industry Research Review 2015/2016 & Outlook 2020. (2016). Web.
Pyzdek, T., & Keller, P. (2014). The Six Sigma handbook (4th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
Statista. (2016). Soft drink sales worldwide in 2012 and 2017, by region (in million liters). Web.