Operations, Technology, and Management, and Social Responsibility Plan (with Financials)

First Name Last Name

Strayer University

BUS 599: Strategic Management

Professor Dr. Andrea Banto

January 10, 2021

Delete the instructions in red before submitting the assignment!

Due: Week 8, worth 100 points

Length: The assignment should be 4 to 8 pages, excluding title page and reference page

This assignment consists of two documents- Word document and Excel document (all worksheets completed). You will attach the 2 documents to the submission window and only then click submit.

Important:

· Review the description of this assignment in the course guide or Blackboard and use the tips provided along with this template to help you in your writing.

· Be sure to review the guidelines provided: company of choice or snack-food company, as applicable

· Use the textbook and review the recommended pages. Note that your textbook has sample plans at the end of each paper. They are great examples of content.

· Review the grading rubric before writing. Know what you are graded for. Always look at the “exemplary” section.

Notes:

· Leave the text in black as it is. You are required to have a heading for each of the sections in your paper.

· Use SWS format. Your will respond to each question using indented paragraphs. The preferred font is Times New Roman, size 12.

· The references must be on a separate page at the end of the paper.

· Check your paper for grammar, spelling, and plagiarism in Grammarly before submitting to Blackboard. You should have 100% original content. See video below on how to use Grammarly. How to use Grammarly

Operations, Technology, Management, and Social Responsibility Plan (with Financials)

Operations Plan

· Remember to assign a dollar amount to each operational cost you find, as you will need these figures for financials document.

· Follow the guidelines provided, as applicable (company of choice or snack-food)

· Check out Chapter 11- Operations

· You have addressed operations in week 5 discussion. Be sure to check the feedback provided by the instructor as a reply to your week 5 discussion post in week 5 discussion thread and make changes as needed. Check the suggestions made by other students as well.

Facilities

· Discuss if you will rent or buy the facility in which you will operate.

· Include the cost of your utilities (You will need to input these costs under the income statement on the Business Plan Financials Excel document where you will need to input these costs)

Production Process/ Description of Operations (if service company)

· Describe how your business will function to make the product or deliver the service

· Outline what equipment is needed to run your business (machine, refrigerators, etc.) including the cost of such equipment. Clarify if you rent or purchase this equipment. You will reflect these costs in the Business Plan Financials Excel document.

· Discuss how you will ensure quality control.

· Discuss the capacity you intend to reach (note that you must reach sales over 1 million by the end of the second year).

· Discuss your approach to inventory, where the supplies are coming from, the turnaround time to produce a product or deliver a service once the customer placed the order.

Research and Development

· Discuss how you will stay abreast of any new development in the industry

· Discuss any new products or services you have in development

· Discuss who will be in charge of the R&D activity at your company.

Personnel Needs in Operations

· Clarify how many employees you have in operations and the key roles. Specify the average pay.

Technology Plan

· Remember to assign a dollar amount for each cost, as applicable.

· Follow the guidelines provided, as applicable (company of choice or snack-food)

· Check out Chapter 12- Technology Plan

· Consider the type of technology your selected company will use to conduct activities such as managing personnel; taking, fulfilling, and tracking orders, managing inventory, communicating with customers and providing customer service, producing your product or providing your service.

Software needs

· List and briefly describe the software you think you will need and and approximate cost. Examples: graphic software, customer relationship management, accounting, inventory, office, etc.

Hardware Needs

· List and briefly describe the hardware you think you will need and the approximate cost. Examples: computers, monitors, servers, routers, tablets, etc.

Telecommunication Needs

· List and briefly describe the telecommunication equipment, etc. you think you will need and the approximate cost. Examples: phone, internet, fax, etc.

Personnel Needs

· Discuss who will handle the technology needs at your company in terms of personnel. Are you going to have an in-house person, team, or these activities will be outsourced?

Management and Organization Plan

· Remember to include the salary costs associated with the management personnel you plan to hire.

· Follow the guidelines provided, as applicable (company of choice or snack-food)

· Check out Chapter 13- Management and Organization

· You will create a management and organizational plan for your selected company, expanding on the topics below.

Key Management Employees

· List key management employees and include a brief description of the relevant responsibilities, experience and skills for each person. Include the salary.

Advisors

· List any people you plan to use as advisors for the business, with a brief description of their areas of expertise and how you expect them to contribute to the business.

Management Hierarchy

· Using the flow charts on p. 248 as a guide, outline your company’s management hierarchy.

· You must include a chart or diagram in this section!! In Word, click on Insert option top of the document/ then Smart art/ then Organizational hierarchy to create your figure.

Social Responsibility Plan

· Check out Chapter 14- Social Responsibility and Sustainability

· You have addressed this topic in week 6 discussion. Be sure to check the feedback provided by the instructor as a reply to your week 6 discussion post in week 6 discussion thread. Check the suggestions made by other students as well.

· Create a social responsibility plan for your selected company, expanding on each of the topics below:

Impact on Stakeholders

· Describe the ways in which your company will impact each of the stakeholders:

employees, customers, suppliers, and the community.

· Consider the benefits you plan to offer to your employees( healthcare, flexible hours, opportunities for development), support to your community (sponsored events, classes, charities, etc.), suppliers and customers (how do you plan to interact with them, consider your core values; offer quality products, etc.)

Environmental Impact

· Discuss how your company’s activities will affect the environment. Think of all aspects of your operations.

· Identify and discuss the steps you will take to mitigate any negative impacts of your business operations on the environment. Consider energy usage, waste disposal, recycling, use of recycled materials, etc.

Important!!!:

· Remember to include the completed Business Plan Financials (Excel document) along with the Word document when you submit the assignment.

· You will attach the Word document, then the entire Excel document, and then you click submit.

· You will have two separate documents with your submission in the same submission.

Sources

· Be sure to cite all your sources.

· Use SWS to format all the references.

· Wikipedia and other similar websites (blogs, opinions) do not quality as academic resources.

· You can use websites as long as the source is reliable (company websites, forbes.com, fda.com, census.com, etc.)

· For each reference you must have a corresponding in-text citation.

Below are examples of references (please delete and replace with yours).

1. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2016. Causes of Climate Change. https://19january2017snapshot.epa.gov/climate-change-science/causes-climate- change_.html

2. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. 2008. Graphic: The Relentless Rise of Carbon Dioxide. https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/24/graphic-the- relentless-rise-of-carbon-dioxide/

3. Ellie Zolfagharifard. 2014. Tree Roots Act as 'Earth's Thermostat': Mountain Forest

Growth Has Stabilized the Earth's Climate for Millions of Years. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2552933/Tree-roots-act-Earths-

thermostat-Mountain-forest-growth-stabilised-Earths-climate-millions-years.html

4. Ronnie Cummins. 2013. How Factory Farming Contributes to Global Warming. https://www.ecowatch.com/how-factory-farming-contributes-to-global-warming-

1881690535.html

COLLAPSE

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When it comes to profit, while necessary, I will use an approach like FedEx. The People-Service-Profit philosophy (P-S-P) is based on the belief that by creating a positive working environment for employees, they will provide better service quality to customers, leading to customers using FedEx products and services (FedEx, 1). I believe that if employees (people) enjoy coming to work, they will produce a quality product. The customer (service) will enjoy the product made because it is on time and of good quality. Both of those lead to profits because customers keep coming back.

            One of the essential things about profits is investing in the community and investing back into the business to ensure that the community knows we are willing to support it through volunteering and adopting minor league teams helps with brand reputation. Public sharing of our environmental footprint on our website and our packaging shows our commitment to the environment, reducing compliance risk and demonstrating our commitment to the earth. A good example is sharing how we recycle, reduce water use, and use scarps as composite.

Reference

1.Fedex attributes success to people-first philosophy. FedEx Newsroom. (n.d.). Retrieved May 13, 2022, from https://newsroom.fedex.com/newsroom/fedex-attributes-success-people-first-philosophy/ 

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4

Marketing Plan Budget

Abby Davis

Strayer University

Professor: Andrea Banto

BUS 599

May 7, 2022

Marketing Plan and Sales Strategy

Company's Target Market

               The selected company for the previous paper was Balance Body Snacks. The company serves fast, healthy fruit snack products under strict healthcare regulations provided by state and federal government agencies. The primary target market for the company is the middle-class audience who operates or works in the center of the most significant cities or towns in the United States. Despite the shrinking size of the market over the past decades, the middle-class audience remains relevant, especially in the fruit snacks industry (Ojo, 3). The company relies on the middle-class audience working in the middle of bigger cities and towns and has no time to prepare breakfast and lunchtime food for break-time. Such a class of individuals tends to have less break time, thereby making fast food services appropriate for such time frame allowed to them. In particular, the company focuses on the bachelors who depend on no one to prepare food and drinks for them. They count on fast food products and services to get food and beverage items delivered to their location. Following a recent report released by Pew Research Center in 2020, most of the United States population is within the middle class, with 52 percent of the whole adult population (Imarc, 1). These are individuals with the potential of earning an average of $30000 to roughly $90000 annually. The class is the foundation of the food and beverage market, and it is the aspect that drives the domestic demand in the nation. The middle class is more homogeneous, making it an easy target for the company to reach with its products and services.

Company's Market Competition 

               The global fruit snack market has continued to grow over the past years, and it is expected to surge as many consumers focus on healthy food and beverages items. The market grew at a CAGR of about 6 percent from 2016 to 2020 (Imarc,1). With the recent covid-19 pandemic increasing the industry's products, the market's size is anticipated to surge due to its attraction to the new entries. In other words, there has been an increasing number of new organizations entering the market, thereby making it highly dense. The market is highly competitive, with major players such as Bare Foods Co. (PepsiCo Inc), Kellogg Co., Welch Foods, and General Mills Inc. taking the lead in the market share (Imarc, 1). The top players have adopted numerous strategies, including new packaging of products, product innovation, mergers, acquisitions, and product promotion, to boost their sales and revenues and improve their profit margin. For instance, in 2015, SunOpt Inc. acquired Sunrise Holdings, which resulted in substantial revenue growth and improvement in its profit margin. The primary food product that Balance Body Snacks competes against the major players in the market includes fruit snack-packed items such as papaya, mango, and watermelon. Balance Body Snacks differentiates its products by inclusively adding other ingredients like yogurt, egg whites, and soy to spice the package. The approach is practical as it develops uniqueness in its company's packaging outlook. 

Value Proposition 

               The value proposition for Balance Body Snack Company is "The Testiest Way to Get Healthier." Typically, fast food products are considered tasty with a variety of flavors that spice them to the consumers. Also, consumers are often attracted to more delectable fast food products such as humbuggers, French fries, and more related. The company's approach is not to lose the concept of fast food items to its consumers. It, therefore, ensures it spices its fruity snacks by adding healthy flavors to attract and entice more consumers with its proposition value. Also, the company's slogan is "Healthy yet delicious snacks." The company's slogan is linked up with its propositional value to sink its products' message to the mind of consumers. 

Marketing Vehicles for Branding Marketing

               One of the most effective marketing vehicles would be social media platforms. The marketing vehicle is among the most cost-efficient digital approaches for marketing. It will increase the visibility of Balance Body Snacks' business across a wide range of potential consumers across and beyond the country. The engagement with a broad consumer audience will boost the recognition of the company's brand across the global market. This is even more significant for the company's brand, given that contemporary consumers are focusing on online services for efficiency. Another effective marketing vehicle for the company's brand would be event sponsorship. Setting aside some capital to sponsor specific events will promote the company's positive brand to the audience participants of the events (Manns, 2). This way, the audience will generate awareness of its brand, thereby leading the company to increase its customer base, which is essential to its sales and revenues. Sponsoring events will also enable the company to reach wider demography of potential consumers, increasing its sales and revenues. Besides, the event participants will generate royalty by recognizing the brand while enjoying the event's experience. The company would also use sampling by spreading its products' message and offering free samples to consumers. 

References

1.Imarc. (2022). Fruit Snacks Market: Global Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2021-2026. Retrieved from;

https://www.imarcgroup.com/fruit-snacks-market

2.Manns L. (2017). The Top Four Benefits Of Corporate Sponsorship. Retrieved from;

https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2017/08/30/the-top-four-benefits-of-corporate-sponsorship/?sh=3ca64bf33504

3.Ojo, S. (2018). The Fruit and Vegetable Snacks Venture. SAGE Publications: SAGE Business Cases Originals.