Strategic Plan Balanced Scorecard

Strategic plan: SWOTT

After determining a mission and vision statements and setting what the company values will be, conducting a SWOTT analysis is the next step in forming a strategic plan. SWOTT is an acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats, and Trends that face an organization. Managers and owners will use the SWOTT to help create a quick overview of the company’s strategic situation. The SWOTT also helps the organization to identify and prioritize the decision-making process (Pearce & Robinson, 2009).

There are benefits and disadvantages of performing a SWOTT. A SWOTT could become time-consuming because of difference of opinions on how to go forward. A SWOTT could also allow the company to understand its external factors including competition. Performing an in-depth SWOTT does not guarantee success for the company, but it does provide valuable information about strengths of the company and what areas they company needs to improve.

External Forces and trends for Whiz-Whip

Legal and Regulatory

· Strength: The ability to comply will the state and county laws and regulations regarding a transportation company.

· Weakness: Interrupting the regulations and laws the correct way.

· Opportunity: To become familiar with state and county laws and the local government representatives.

· Threats: new laws and fines

· Trends: Many bars and restaurants opening up locally. People start to be more likely to go out.

Economic:

· Strength: Minimum employees needed, payroll should not be an issue.

· Weakness: Would have to secure loans to start the business.

· Opportunity: There is an opportunity for people to help with the start of the business and receive a return on their investment

· Threats: economy still has not recovered. People are not eating out or going out as much.

· Trends: It is harder to secure loans from banks.

Competitive analysis

· Strengths: Quality service. Whiz-whip has a different approach than other local transportation companies.

· Weakness: More established taxi and bus services in the area. Whiz-whip has limited funds for marketing.

· Opportunity: There is the opportunity to gain a majority of the market for those who desire is to get their vehicle home with them.

· Threats: Many companies with unlimited resources, potential customers could think of them before Whiz-whip. Convenience with only one location to start it will be hard to services customers outside of the local community.

· Trends: Whiz-whip will break away from the trends of just taking a taxi home. Internal forces and trends for Whiz-whip

Strategy:

· Strength: Strategic planning

· Weakness: Opening only one location.

· Opportunity: There is a potential to grow and add more locations in the area.

· Threats: Co-owners and employees disagreeing on the plan in place.

· Trends: To grow as a company.

Structures:

· Strength: Whiz-whip has a small but strong management structure and an open door policy.

· Weakness: lack of formalization

· Opportunity: To start small with a simple organizational structure and grow as a company.

· Threats: The growth of competitors and their ability to pay potential employees more.

· Trends: To keep growing and making the management structure better.

Resources

· Strength: Whiz-whip can acquire gas and any needs of service in a timely manner.

· Weakness: Getting enough capital to start the business.

· Opportunity: To start with basic needs to open the business and add more as the business grows.

· Threats: Finding good working equipment such as mopeds at a price that fits the organizations budget.

· Trends: Places going out of business because of consumers with bad credit Whiz-whip could find quality vehicles cheap.

Goals:

· Strength: Precisely planned and laid out goals.

· Weakness: The thought of opening more locations at this time does not seem viable.

· Opportunity: To make goals more relevant and realistic.

· Threats: competition and lack of interest in Whiz-whip in the community.

· Trends: Team work classes and training are conducted to timely achieve goals.

Leadership:

· Strength: With one location, leadership will always be present. The plans and goals of the company will be explained in detail to each employee so that everyone is working toward the same goal.

· Weakness: limited views on how the company should be run.

· Opportunity: There are many opportunities for employees to grow with the company and land in leadership roles.

· Threats: Lack of positions may lead to strong employees to go elsewhere to work.

· Trends: Management classes and strategic planning.

Synopsis:

The legal and regulatory forces are important when it comes to a transportation company. If Whiz-whip decided grow, all proper insurances will have to be obtained. Knowing and understanding the state and county laws and requirements for opening and running a transportation company is essential. According to Pearce & Robinson (2009) “Political factors define the legal and regulatory parameters within which firms must operate.” Whiz-whips strength will be its open lines of communication with local leaders of the community that will help with compliance of all legal standards. By establishing a legal and regulatory framework will help the strategic planning of Whiz-whip through the legal and regulatory aspects of the industry.

Economics are a major concern for Whiz-whip with the economy and latest trends. Whiz-whip will have to watch the way it spends in regard to the revenue it generates. Understanding this concern and strategic planning about this area directly can pave the way to a successful plan.

With the transport business growing, understanding the competitive analysis is a concept every business needs. Indentifying who competitors are is important to the making of the strategic plan. Understanding what the competitions strengths and weaknesses are also will make Whiz-whip stronger. Competitive Analysis is not only knowing who the current competition is but also visualizing future potential competitors. Competing only to outperform the competitors and not satisfy the customer is a common mistake. By understanding what the strength and weakness are of the competition both present and future is the structure of Competitive Analysis.

Culture has a direct impact on the workplace; the mission statement, the vision statement, and the values are created to promote a healthy working culture. Whiz-whip will have a working environment in which employees will be filled with fulfillment and satisfaction.

Whiz-whips strategy focuses on strategic planning and making every customer a repeat customer. The strategy is to open the first store and gauge interest and success. If the revenue shows and the planning suggests new locations will be opened. With Whiz-whip as a small family owned business there could be disagreements over strategy but there is also the opportunity to grow.

The simple organizational structure will be used at Whiz-whip. With a small amount of employees the leaders will have a wide range of control and most of the authority will have to come from the owner. Because of the size of the business there will a lower number of employees, but they will be highly flexible able to perform many different tasks. The plan for Whiz-whip is at it grows the structure shift to a more traditional functional organizational structure.

Leadership starts at the top in this case the owner and how effective the owner is will determine the effectiveness of the business. Leadership can come from other places than just the owner; it can come from managers or an employee who takes initiative. No matter where the leadership comes from, understanding the business’ mission statement, vision statement, and company values is vital to long-term success. The person or persons can be seen as icons of the business, and he or she will set the standards. Effective and strong leadership is key for any business to be successful.

Because of Whiz-whips use of simple organizational structure, the business will be prepared to adapt to change. The main reason Whiz-whip will be able to adapt to changes is the size of the business, coordinating event, activities, and changes will be easy. Using the SWOTT will help with the decisions that have to be made. As the company grows changes will become more complex and structure will have to change. Having a plan in place with a training program will make the transition easier.

The manager will set up contract with a local station and automotive garage that will regularly inspect vehicles and make sure all equipment is operational and safe.

Whiz-whip has not opened as of yet and still is in the beginning stages of development, there are still issues that need to addressed and plenty of opportunities that have been presented from the SWOTT. The key opportunity for Whiz-whip was its perceived competitive advantage. The advantage will come from everyone working in the company has lived in the area for a lengthy amount of time and know the streets very well. The main part of this business will be transporting people and having everyone striving for the same quality of service will give this business the advantage. The biggest issue that arouse from the SWOTT is funding. The owner of Whiz-whip has to find away to secure funding to make this dream a reality.

The economic trends could pose an issue for Whiz-whip.. With the always-changing trends in the gas and oil industry, the need to monitor prices is important for the owner. With monitoring prices the owner will be able to have competitive prices and even promotions during slow economic times. The promotions and competitive prices will draw customers in and increase revenue.

Performing a SWOTT analysis is an important task for both new and existing businesses. The SWOTT process requires many hours of work and analysis of environmental factors both internal and external to provide the necessary information for a strategic plan.

Reference

Albany. (n.d.). Organizational Structure & Controls. Retrieved from Albany,

bmgt481 website.

Pearce. J.A.II. &Robinson, R.B. (2009). Strategic management: Formulation,

implementation, and control (11th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill