Sustainable Solution Paper: Strategic Analysis of Baskin Robins
Order Instructions:
The report consists of two parts:
Part 1: Identification and justification of research study.
Part 2: Main report body. Discussion, recommendations and conclusion.
Part 1 (Discuss with lecturer or tutor by Week 5)
This part includes the identification and justification of the study about to be undertaken. It will give students the opportunity to identify a real world product/service or a problem they are comfortable with in an organisation of their choice on which the research report will be based. Students should discuss their choice with their lecturer or tutor for suitability so they can proceed with confidence. Students should have the company and topic chosen and discussed with their lecturer or tutor by the end of Week 5.
Part 2 (Discussion, recommendations and conclusion)
This part of the Research Report will require students to identify Operations Management issues, clarify problems or potential problems, and propose solutions if appropriate. Quality of analysis will be an important part of the report along with the solutions proposed.
The Report (overall)
The Research Report should present a comprehensive overview of the chosen organisation. Outline what the organization does and how it does it. Mention should be made of the context (e.g. product market and the business environment) that the organization operates in. Students may wish to focus on a particular part of the operation that produces a discrete product or service. Topics and issues that should be included in the Research Report include:
1. Introduction to the business environment of your organisation.
2. Background and purpose of your organisation.
3. Organizational structure
4. Organizational strategies
5. Products and Services
6. Production system and job design
7. Process measurement and analysis
8. Aggregate planning, inventory management systems and procedures
9. Locational decisions for facilities and operations
10. Sustainability and pollution control programs
It is important that students not only cover the relevant issues, but also integrate them in an overarching and coherent fashion (reflecting the systemic nature of production processes). The analysis should be critical in nature, and the use of unsupported rhetorical statements should be avoided, (e.g. ‘This organization is devoted to quality’). Students should explain and support their recommendations. Look for evidence of support for all such recommendations. The report should identify the important issues and challenges facing operations managers in the organization.
Don’t forget to include references and a bibliography.
The report should be submitted by 5pm on the Friday of Week 10 through the online link found on the Learning@Griffith course website. Choose the Assessment option and then select the Research Report folder.
Format
A Business Proposal Report with a consistent referencing style. (APA, Harvard etc.)
SAMPLE ANSWER
Sustainable Solution Paper: Strategic Analysis of Baskin Robins
Identification and Justification of Research Study
Historically, there have been difficulties in developing sustainable business models in areas and organization that have been faced with stiff competition. As a result, several companies have collapsed due to the poor strategic plans that can gear them through global competition. The problem of poor strategic plan has been in existence even after the big conferences have been set to educate managers on the perfect strategic plans that can ensure profitability of the organizations. Ensuring good strategic plans does not only increase the profits of the company, but also offers the company a strong base to survive in the competition market. Gehani, (2013) state that proper strategic plans have assisted companies such as ford that were collapsing in early 1980s.Thus, good strategic plans is an important gadget that gears a company towards sustainability. The purpose of the paper is to highlight the competitive organization in a competitive industry for sustainable solutions The sustainable solutions cover the company’s strategic plan that implements and creates sustainable values for maximizing shareholder value and increasing profitability.
Discussion
Baskin Robbins is the largest shop that deals with ice cream specialty in the world. The company was founded by Irv Robbins and Burt Baskin in 1945 in Glendale California. The headquarter of the company is based in Canton, Massachusetts (Baskin-Robbins, 2013). The company has been famous for using its “31 flavors” slogan, which suggests that customers can have different flavors every day of each month. Since the opening of the first store in 1945, the company has opened 6000 stores in 35 countries (Weiss, 2011). As said by the slogan, the purpose of the company is to provide different flavors and taste of ice cream on a global scale.
However much the company has been striving for sustainable growth, it has been faced with several ups and downs as far as the business environment is concerned. The business has been affected by both internal and external factors. Baskin Robins commands a lot of customers in the ice cream industry, both households and commercial enterprises. For example, around 6000 store have been created in 35 countries with more than 700 stores in Korea alone (Baskin-Robbins, 2013). As the world leading company of ice cream products, Baskin Robins does not face stiff competition, which creates a favorable environment for their products. Martin (2014) says that it is their brand and culture that makes it incomparable to others. The business environment of the company has also been favorable due to the availability of the intermediate markers who are also known as agents that reach every individual that might be in need of the products.
Baskin Robins has used the divisional organizational structure to excel in the industry. Also referred to as product structure, it breaks down the company operations that are self-contained. This structure consists of collections of roles that produce the final product. As said by Martin (2014), the divisional structure is one of the most common structures in America today, which ensures sustainability and the progress of the company. In the difficult times of Baskin Robins, administration assigned the employees who were responsible for certain services of products in order to increase flexibility (McDowell & Dick, 2013). Thus, when everybody is given his or her role, nobody wishes to fail and a positive competition is realized within the company. For example, there was a division of certain flavors of ice cream, which made each team to work hard and sell their flavor.
As defined by Hughes and Ferrier (2014), differentiation strategy is a marketing technique that is used by companies to establish a strong identity in the current market. Using this strategy, manufactures introduce numerous varieties of the same product, thus, cover a wide range of the commodities available. Differentiation strategy creates the brand of the company in a manner that differentiates itself from the competition and creates a unique image that other companies do not have (Lewis, Andriopoulos & Smith, 2014). For example, the production of flavors by Baskin Robin has created a barrier for main competitors such as Ben & Jerry and Kwality Walls.
In order to identify each and every person’s roles in the company, especially the management, the administration has put the use of charts and graphs that are designed to measure performance in each and every month. Other than graphs and charts, there is also verbal description that the company has employed to measure or evaluate the performance of the company. As such, it is very easy to read from the graph line which month had a decrease in performance and which one has excelled (Gehani, 2013). The above measurement has been used by Baskin Robins to identify challenges and correct them immediately. The company has used these measurement objects as the first basis and has led to improvement of job design. Other designs that have been used to facilitate the strategic plans are the SWOT analysis and the Porter’s five forces models. These models examine the market and identify weaknesses and the strengths of the market that has been utilized by Baskin Robin Company.
Since the company is considered the leading in one of the food industries, Baskin Robin has ensured that the pollution is not tolerated at any cost. A campaign termed ‘we are green’ was geared to ensure no pollution existed around the environment. The company does regular cleaning around the town to set an example of a pollution free culture. This is not limited to treated fumes and carbon monoxide collection vessels that ensure a safe atmosphere for every form of living thing.
Recommendations and Conclusion
This paper recommends that other than just using strategic plans to penetrate the competitive market, the company should use other methods to build a strong customer base that pose threats to any incoming company in the industry. Baskin Robin should use the merger and acquisition model to acquire the new and incoming companies that may pose a serious threat to growth and development of the firm. Acquisition of such companies will give room for new ideas, new products and services, and new customers.
In conclusion, the strategic environment is one of the tools that have made Baskin Robins excel in the food industry. First, the company has maintained a favorable business environment through competition and local and international customer base. Secondly, the company has used the divisional organizational structure that allows each department to work independently towards the production of quality services and products. Additionally, Baskin Robin entered into the market using the differential strategy that made it unique by producing products that other companies were lacking. The performance of every department and top leadership is an important factor of the company, hence; their performance is regularly checked using charts, graphs, and verbal description. These factors combined have been used by the company to ensure profitability is maximized, hence, sustainability is achieved.
References
Baskin-Robbins. (2013). Oxford University Press.
Fees and Ice Cream: Baskin-Robbins Got It Right, Why Can’t We?. (2013). Get Wise to Your Advisor: How to Reach Your Investment Goals Without Getting Ripped Off, 219
Gehani, R. (2013). Innovative Strategic Leader Transforming From a Low-Cost Strategy to Product Differentiation Strategy. Journal Of Technology Management & Innovation, 8(2), 144-155
Hughes-Morgan, M., & Ferrier, W. J. (2014). Competitive Action Repertoires and Stock Risk. Journal Of Managerial Issues, 26(1), 55-69
Lewis, M. W., Andriopoulos, C., & Smith, W. K. (2014). Paradoxical Leadership to Enable Strategic Agility. California Management Review, 56(3), 58-77. http://www.doi:10.1525/cmr.2014.56.3.5
Martin, R. L. (2014). The Big Lie of Strategic Planning. Harvard Business Review, 92(1/2), 78-84.
McDowell, W. S., & Dick, S. J. (2013). The marketing of neuromarketing: brand differentiation strategies employed by prominent neuromarketing firms to attract media clients. Journal Of Media Business Studies,10(1), 25-40.
Weiss, L. B. (2011). Ice Cream : A Global History.
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