Strategic Management paper

Diageo is a renowned global leader and powerhouse, famous for its range and collection of alcoholic beverages. In addition to the top-notch beer brands, the company looks to come up with a non-alcoholic beverage drink to tap into the ever-growing market in this sector to meet new customer needs. The new product line is backed with the vision of being the best producers of high quality, healthy non-alcoholic products that are natural, to enable and retain worldwide market leadership in the product line, and a mission of producing high quality and natural products ensuring consistency in high quality production, Diageo has promised to ensure customer satisfaction whilst maintaining a high quality product.

Propose a new product or service for the new company division. The division should be customer-focused with an innovative mission statement. Ensure that you are differentiating your product or service.

Diageo, best known for its top-notch beers and liquors, it has been dealing widely with alcoholic drinks of various types. Being a global market leader, Diageo has a huge market to tap into, and with the dynamics of consumer tastes there is always an opportunity to improve on services that are offered. Due to increased need and use of non-alcoholic beverages by customers, there is a need for establishment of a division to deal with production of such beverages, so as to meet customer expectations. Since there are numerous non-alcoholic beverages in the market, the division’s endeavor to come up with a unique beverage that will guarantee a fulfillment like no other to consumers. These drinks will include exotic flavors; Atemoya flavor will give our customers a sweet and tart taste which in essence is a combination of pineapple, coconut and vanilla. Jackfruit flavor will give our customers a tarter taste with the sweetness of a banana. The new and exotic flavors, backed with attractive packaging, a great competitive edge is ensured, given the fact that it’s completely new product. The production of our products will be customer-centric, with numerous tasting sessions to ensure we get the right mix for our product.

The product will retail in the right market after thorough research and market segmentation while ensuring that the new beverage meets the required standards set, for both health and environmental aspects. This means all our packaging will be environmentally friendly. The beverage will retail affordably in economical packages with a price range that cuts across income levels to ensure that no customer is left out. Besides, it will be consumable in a wide range of events such as weddings and other social gatherings as well as accompanying any meal.

The mission of the new product division shall be: To always produce high quality, healthy and natural beverages for all people.

Describe how the division addresses customer needs and achieves competitive advantage.

At the new product division, customers are central and are the main driving force of business. In order to meet customer needs the division shall ensure the following:

Availability: The product shall be in shelves like the other brands to ensure that it is easily within reach of customers. As mentioned above, it will retail in servings of 3 liters, 2 liters, 1.5 liters, 1 liter, 500ml and 250ml so that customers can choose the right package as well as location and right time.

Affordability: The product offers exotic tastes of premium quality beverage on a wide variety of occasions, at the right price, having been informed by market research.

Acceptability: Being a global producer and supplier of premium brands, the new division will emulate the company’s principle by supplying only that which meets top quality standards set by each country so that acceptability of the product by consumers is enhanced. Through effective quality control of the production process, efficient customer service, top-notch distribution network and an active sales and marketing team, consumers in the various markets worldwide shall be easily reached so that their demands and expectations are met.

Activation: By riding on the good reputation of Diageo, the division will easily build brand strength through attractive packaging and participation in promotions organized for consumers in local markets.

Attitude: A special team has been constituted to specifically handle customer complaints with regards to the product. This includes obtaining feedback from the various customers in different markets and acting on it promptly in order to keep customers happy.

The non-alcoholic beverage industry is a tough and dynamic one. However, the division will achieve a competitive advantage first through the strong brand image created by Diageo. Most brands are household names such as Jack Daniels, Captain Morgan, Guinness, Johnny Walker and Smirnoff, among others. The division will take advantage of the company’s image to boost sales volume. Another advantage arises from the uniqueness of the product and the varieties offered, whereby each consumer is taken care of given the packaging strategy adopted for the beverage. In addition to that, being a dynamic industry, the division has a dedicated Research and Development (R&D) team that is focused on studying the market and identifying loopholes that warrant innovative solutions, which the division would offer, thereby staying ahead of competition.

Create a vision and a business model for this new division that clearly demonstrates your decision on what you want your business to become in the future.

The vision of the new division is: To be the globally preferred producers of high quality, healthy non-alcoholic and natural beverages for all occasions and people. The division focuses on manufacturing, packaging and distributing the branded beverage. Being a division amidst a solely alcoholic beverage company, the division will be involved in fostering networks in local markets in effort to ensure that products are consumed in their best quality. Activities would mainly include customer development, order servicing and investing in markets. The division is driven by the belief in sustainable growth through delivering products that promote a healthier future.

Explain how the vision, mission, and value of the new division align with the company's mission and vision.

The vision, mission and values of the new division are very similar to the company’s, which mainly focuses on being a global leader of iconic brands while providing quality and choice at all price points. In order to ensure the all targets are met, Diageo produces, markets, innovates and sells its products, again being well in agreement with the division’s strategy towards quality control. Diageo’s values include passion about consumers, entrepreneurship, and pride, striving to be the best and valuing each other. The division’s values echo and clearly resonate with those of the parent company.

Summarize how the vision, mission, and values guide the division's strategic direction.

The vision, mission and values of the business inform the structural framework, goals and objectives and hence, the activities to be undertaken to meet the goals and objectives. The division is fully dedicated to customer satisfaction as vigilantly informed by the vision and mission. The vision usually forms the ultimate target each organization works to beat while the mission and values provide the guiding activities for the direction to be taken by the company. Through induction, new and existing employees will be well acquainted with the vision, mission and core values, which in turn will guide their principles, conduct, decision-making criteria and work performance towards achieving set goals and objectives. In so doing, the corporate strategy functions smoothly. Even more so, the vision, mission and core values are essential in aligning interrelated activities outlined in the strategic plan. It therefore becomes easier to single out deviations from the strategic plan for swift action towards restoration to the strategic path. That said, customers can easily check the value delivered by the company versus the company’s value proposition in bid to ensure that they obtain value for money.

Define your guiding principles and values for your division in the context of culture, social responsibility, and ethics.

Customer Service: Customers will be prioritized. The business will ensure that customer expectations are met and satisfied with the range of products proposed. Complaints, inquiries and feedback shall be promptly worked on to build loyalty and customer retention.

Equity, Diversity and inclusion: The business recognizes and promotes diversity. Staff shall comprise a mix of cultures, ethnicities and gender while keeping up with global trends.

Corporate Social Responsibility: The business is committed to making the world a better place. In addition to providing health, quality products in environmental friendly packaging, the business will also participate in helping society though financial initiatives to aid the disadvantaged.

Creativity and innovation: The business aims at cultivating a culture of creativity and innovation. Employees are indispensable asset and to ensure optimal organizational performance, an atmosphere and environment for personal growth and development will be enabled. A healthy work-life balance will also be developed.

Integrity: The business will only participate in sincere and honest deals with employees, suppliers and buyers. The business has no plan whatsoever to engage in activities that may result in staining its reputation.

Ethics: The business is guided by ethics upheld through strict and well-established corporate governance.

Conclusion

The production and eventual distribution of this new beverage will be a great game changer for the entire non-alcoholic beverage market. Given the fact that the product comes in a range of unique flavors, it is set to propel the company to new heights. Coupled with our strategic plan, the entry of this product in the market will hit high levels immediately, since it is well tailored and crafted to customer expectations.

References

Crawford, C. M. & Di Benedetto, C. A. (2014). New Products Management (11th Ed.). NewYork NY: McGraw-Hill.

Diageo. (2016). Retrieved from http://www.diageo.com/en-row/Pages/default.aspx

Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., & Hoskisson, R. E. (2013). Strategic Management: Concepts and Cases: Competitiveness and Globalization (10th Ed.). Mason, OH: South-Western, Cengage Learning

Kumar, V., & Reinartz, W. (2012). Customer Relationship Management : Concept, Strategy, and Tools (2nd Ed.). Berlin, Heidelberg : Springer Berlin Heidelberg

Pearce, J. A. II. (2013). Strategic management: Planning for domestic and global competition (13th Ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.