Order winners and order qualifiers mcdonalds

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learning outcomes

After studying this chapter you should be able to:

4-1 Explain how organizations seek to gain competitive advantage.

4-2 Explain approaches for understanding customer wants and needs.

4-3 Describe how customers evaluate goods and services.

4-4 Explain the five key competitive priorities.

4-5 Explain the role of OM, sustainability, and operations in strategic planning.

4-6 Describe Hill’s framework for operations strategy.

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Operations Management Part 1 Chapter 4

OM 4

OPERATIONS STRATEGY

any durable products, such as cell phones, televisions, and refrigerators, contain hazardous

materials and cannot be easily reused or recycled. As a result, organizations need to rethink

strategically the environmental challenges that result from obsolete durable goods. Cell

phones, for example, become obsolete quickly as a result of manufacturers making rapid

improvements in design and service providers offering new incentives. The value chain is

complex, and includes original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), retailers, service providers, remanufacturers, recyclers, and

waste-management companies. Some new strategies that have been suggested include:

modular designs that make it easier to reuse parts rather than have to recycle them, or recover valuable materials more easily.

each year, with significant waste and environmental implications.

upgrade to data plans if the prices of the phones can be reduced.

Walmart, and others, but still it only captures 5 percent of retired phones, suggesting that the cell phone value chain has not matured.1

m

70

What do you think? Which of the following strategies do you think is best

for major cell phone providers?

Refurbish all phones and sell in developing countries.

Disassemble and recycle domestically 100 percent

of all metals and plastics.

Let other firms and third-party organizations, but

not major cell phone providers, recycle phones.

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4-1 Gaining Competitive Advantage

denotes a firm’s ability to achieve market and financial superiority over its com- petitors. In the long run, a sus- tainable competitive advantage provides above-average perfor-

mance and is essential to survival of the business. Cre- ating a competitive advantage requires a fundamental understanding of two things. First, management must understand customer needs and expectations—and how the value chain can best meet these through the design and delivery of attractive customer benefit packages. Second, management must build and lever- age operational capabilities to support desired com- petitive priorities.

Every organization has a myriad of choices in deciding where to focus its efforts—for example, on low cost, high quality, quick response, or flexibility and customization—and in designing its operations to sup- port its chosen strategy. The opening scenario suggests that cell phone manufacturers and service providers have many strategic choices in designing and operating their domestic and global value chains. These choices should be driven by the most important customer needs and expectations. In particular, what happens in operations— on the front lines and on the factory floor—must sup- port the strategic direction the firm has chosen.

Any change in a firm’s customer benefit package, targeted markets, or strategic direction typically has significant con- sequences for the entire value chain and for operations.

c 4C H A P T E R

MICHAEL REYNOLDS/EPA/Newscom

. As many as 130 million cell phones are retired each year, having significant waste and environmental implications.

O M

denotes a firm’s ability to achieve market and finan- cial superiority over its competitors.

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Although it may be difficult to change the structure of the value chain, operations managers have considerable freedom in determining what components of the value chain to emphasize, in selecting technology and pro- cesses, in making human resource policy choices, and in making other relevant decisions to support the firm’s strategic emphasis.

4-2 Understanding Customer Wants and Needs

ecause the fundamental purpose of an organization is to provide goods and services of value to customers, it is important to first understand customer desires, and also to understand how custom- ers evaluate goods and services. However, a company usually can-

not satisfy all customers with the same goods and ser- vices. Often, customers must be segmented into several

natural groups, each with unique wants and needs. These segments might be based on buying behavior, geography, demographics, sales volume, profitabil- ity, or expected levels of service. By understanding differences among such segments, a company can design the most ap- propriate customer ben- efit packages, competitive strategies, and processes

b

to create the goods and services to meet the unique needs of each segment.

To correctly identify what customers expect re- quires being “close to the customer.” There are many ways to do this, such as having employees visit and talk to customers, having managers talk to customers, and doing formal marketing research. Marriott Cor- poration, for example, requires top managers to annu- ally work a full day or more in the hotels as bellhops, waiters, bartenders, front-desk service providers, and so on, to gain a true understanding of customer wants and needs, and the types of issues that their hotel ser- vice providers must face in serving the customer. Good marketing research includes such techniques as focus groups, salesperson and employee feedback, com- plaint analysis, on-the-spot interviews with custom- ers, videotaped service encounters, mystery shoppers, telephone hotlines, Internet monitoring, and customer surveys.

Basic customer expectations are generally considered the minimum performance level required to stay in busi- ness and are often called For example, a radio and driver-side air bag are generally expected by all customers for an automobile; for a hotel, cus- tomers expect that the room will be safe and clean. The unexpected features that surprise, entertain, and delight customers by going beyond the expected often make the difference in closing a sale. are goods and service features and performance charac- teristics that differentiate one customer benefit package from another, and win the customer’s business. Colli- sion avoidance systems or a voice-activated music system in an automobile, for example, or free Inter- net and gaming devices in a hotel, can be order win- ners. Over time, however, order winners eventually become order qualifiers as customers begin to expect them. Thus, to stay competitive, companies must con- tinually innovate and improve their customer benefit packages.

Every organization has a myriad of choices in deciding where to focus its efforts—for example, on low cost, high quality, quick response, or flexibility and customization—and in designing its operations to support its chosen strategy.

Basic customer expectations are generally considered the minimum performance level required to stay in business and are often called

are goods and service features and per- formance characteristics that differentiate one customer benefit package from an- other, and win the customer’s business.

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O M 4 C h a p t e r 4 : O p e r a t i o n s S t r a t e g y

PAPA JOHN’S: FOCUS ON THE ORDER WINNER

J ohn Schnatter, founder of Papa John’s Pizza, described how he got started in the pizza business and identified

Papa John’s key competitive priority as now reflected in the slogan “Better ingredients, better pizza, Papa John’s.”

In 1983, John’s father hired him to run a bar he co-owned that was nearly bankrupt. Thinking back to his college

days when he had a dream of starting a pizza business (where he came up with the name, menu, and recipes), he

believed if they could sell $5 pizzas and 50-cent beer, they’d make a fortune. So he installed a pizza oven and began sell-

ing Papa John’s pizza. He realized early on that Domino’s had the speed, Little Caesars had the price, and Pizza Hut had

variety, and yet they made up only 35 percent or 40 percent of the market. He didn’t understand why pizzas with better

ingredients didn’t win every time. He thought if you had a national chain that acted like an independent as far as qual-

ity, then you’d have the best of all worlds.

The bar was like a laboratory where they

would try things out. He tried pasta, fried

zucchini, and salads as well as sit-down

service. But the customers told him early

on, “We like your pizza delivered—you’re

a delivery chain.” So he focused on the

pizza. Papa John’s strategy is to provide a

high-quality product (the order winner)

with effi cient delivery in a competitive

market (the order qualifier).2AP P

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Listen to Your Customers—Creatively! At IDEO, one of the world’s leading design firms (which designed Apple’s first mouse, standup toothpaste tubes, and the Palm V), design doesn’t begin with a far-out concept or a cool drawing. It begins with a deep understanding of the people who might use whatever product or service eventually emerges from its work, drawing from anthropology, psy- chology, biomechanics, and other disciplines. When former Disney executive Paul Pressler assumed the CEO position at

Gap, he met with each of Gap’s top 50 executives, asking them such standard ques- tions as “What about Gap do you want to preserve and why?” “What about Gap do you want to change and why?” and so on. But he also added one of his own: “What is your most important tool for figuring out what the consumer wants?” Some com- panies use unconventional and innovative approaches to understand customers. Texas Instruments created a simulated classroom to understand how mathematics teachers use calculators; and a manager at Levi Strauss used to talk with teens who were lined up to buy rock concert tickets. The president of Chick-fil-A spends at least one day each year behind the counter, as do all of the company’s employees, and has camped out overnight with customers at store openings. At Whirlpool, when customers rate a competitor’s product higher in satisfaction surveys, engineers take it apart to find out why. The company also has hundreds of consumers fiddle with computer-simulated products while engineers record the users’ reactions on videotape.3AP

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4-3 Evaluating Goods and Services

esearch suggests that customers use three types of attributes in evaluat- ing the quality of goods and services: search, experience, and credence.4

are those that a cus- tomer can determine prior to purchas-

ing the goods and/or services. These attributes include things like color, price, freshness, style, fit, feel, hard- ness, and smell. are those that can be discerned only after purchase or during consumption or use. Examples of these attributes are friendliness, taste, wearability, safety, fun, and customer satisfaction.

are any aspects of a good or service that the customer must believe in, but cannot personally evaluate even after purchase and consumption. Examples

include the expertise of a surgeon or mechanic, the knowledge of a tax advi- sor, or the accuracy of tax preparation software.

This classification has several important implica- tions for operations. For example, the most impor- tant search and experi- ence attributes should be evaluated during design, measured during manu- facturing, and drive key

r operational controls to ensure that they are built into the good with high quality. Credence attributes stem from the nature of services, the design of the service system, and the training and expertise of the service providers.

These three evaluation criteria form an evalua- tion continuum from easy to difficult, as shown in Exhibit 4.1. This model suggests that goods are easier to evaluate than services, and that goods are high in search qualities, whereas services are high in experience and credence attributes. Of course, goods and services are usually combined and configured in unique ways, mak- ing for an even more complex customer evaluation pro- cess. Customers evaluate services in ways that are often different from goods. A few ways are summarized be- low along with significant issues that affect operations.

from personal sources than from nonpersonal sources when evaluating services prior to pur- chase. Operations must ensure that accurate in- formation is available, and that experiences with prior services and service providers result in posi- tive experiences and customer satisfaction.

services than when buying goods. Because ser- vices are intangible, customers cannot look at or touch them prior to the purchase decision. They experience the service only when they actually go through the process. This is why many are hesitant to use online banking or bill-paying.

Dissatisfaction with services is often the result of cus- tomers’ inability to properly perform or co-produce their part of the service. A wrong order placed on the

Exhibit 4.1 How Customers Evaluate Goods and Services

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High goods content High services content

Goods− Services Continuum

Easy to evaluate

Difficult to evaluate

High in search attributes

High in experience attributes

High in credence attributes

Source: Adapted from V. A. Zeithamel, “How Consumer Evaluation Processes Differ Between Goods and Services,” in J. H. Donnelly and W. R. George, eds., Marketing in Services, published by the American Marketing Association, Chicago, 1981, pp. 186–199. Reprinted with permission from the American Marketing Association.

are those that a customer can determine prior to purchasing the goods and/or services.

are those that can be dis- cerned only after purchase or during consumption or use.

are any aspects of a good or service that the customer must believe in, but cannot personally evaluate even after purchase and consumption.

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75O M 4 C h a p t e r 4 : O p e r a t i o n s S t r a t e g y

Internet can be the result of customer error despite all efforts on the part of the company to provide clear in- structions. The design of services must be sensitive to the need to educate customers on their role in the ser- vice process.

These insights help to explain why it is more diffi- cult to design services and service processes than goods and manufacturing operations.

4-4 Competitive Priorities

represent the strategic emphasis that a firm places on certain performance measures and operational capabilities within a value chain. Understanding com- petitive priorities and their rela-

tionships with customer benefit packages provides a basis for designing the processes that create and deliver goods and services. Every organization is concerned with building and sustaining a competitive advantage in its markets. A strong competitive advantage is driven by customer needs and aligns the organization’s re- sources with its business opportunities. A strong com- petitive advantage is difficult to copy, often because of a firm’s culture, habits, or sunk costs.

Competitive advantage can be achieved in different ways, such as outperforming competitors on price or quality, responding quickly to changing customer needs in designing goods and services, or providing rapid de- sign or delivery. In general, organizations can compete on five key competitive priorities:

1. Cost

2. Quality

3. Time

4. Flexibility

5. Innovation

All of these competitive priorities are vital to success. For example, no firm today can sacrifice quality simply

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to reduce costs, or emphasize flexibility to the extent that it would make its goods and services unafford- able. However, organizations generally make trade- offs among these competitive priorities and focus their efforts along one or two key dimensions. For exam- ple, Dell Computer manufactures PCs (1) configured to customer specifications, (2) with high goods qual- ity, and (3) tries to deliver them quickly to custom- ers. However, they are not always the least-expensive machines available, and customers must wait longer to get a Dell computer as opposed to picking one off the shelf at a retail store. Hence, high goods quality and flexibility are top competitive priorities at Dell, whereas cost and delivery time are of somewhat lesser importance.

4-4a Cost Many firms, such as Walmart, gain competitive ad- vantage by establishing themselves as the low-cost leader in an industry. These firms handle high volumes of goods and services and achieve their competitive advantage through low prices. Although prices are generally set outside the realm of operations, low prices cannot be achieved without strict attention to cost and the design and management

General Electric discovered that 75 percent of its manufacturing costs is determined by design.

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represent the strategic emphasis that a firm places on certain performance measures and operational capabilities within a value chain.

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of operations. General Electric, for example, discovered that 75 percent of its manufacturing costs is determined by design. Costs accumulate through the value chain, and include the costs of raw materials and purchased parts, direct manufacturing cost, distribution, postsale services, and all supporting processes. Through good design and by chipping away at costs, operations man- agers help to support a firm’s strategy to be a low-price leader. They emphasize achieving economies of scale and finding cost advantages from all sources in the value chain.

Low cost can result from high productivity and high-capacity utilization. More important, improve- ments in quality lead to improvements in productivity, which in turn lead to lower costs. Thus a strategy of continuous improvement is essential to achieve a low- cost competitive advantage.

4-4b Quality The role of quality in achieving competitive advantage was demon- strated by several research studies.6

Researchers have found that

quality goods usually have large market shares and were early entrants into their markets.

- cantly related to a higher return on investment for almost all kinds of market situations.

- ment usually leads to increased market share, but at a cost in terms of reduced short-run profitability.

goods can usually charge premium prices.

Exhibit 4.2 summarizes the impact of quality on profitability. The value of a good or service in the marketplace is influenced by the quality of its de- sign. Improvements in performance, features, and reliability will differen-

tiate the good or service from its competitors, improve a firm’s quality reputation, and improve the perceived value of the customer benefit package. This allows the company to command higher prices and achieve an in- creased market share. This, in turn, leads to increased revenues that offset the added costs of improved de- sign. Improved conformance in production leads to lower manufacturing and service costs through savings in rework, scrap, and warranty expenses. The net ef- fect of improved quality of design and conformance is increased profits.

Operations managers deal with quality issues on a daily basis; these include ensuring that goods are produced defect-free, or that service is delivered flawlessly.

SOUTHWEST AIRLINES: COMPETING WITH LOW COST

T he only major U.S. airline that has been continuously profitable

over the last several decades is Southwest Airlines. Other airlines

have had to collectively reduce costs by $18.6 billion, or

29 percent of their total operating expenses, to operate at the

same level (cost per mile) as Southwest. The high-cost airlines such as

United and American face enormous pressure from low-fare carriers such

as Southwest Airlines. Mr. Roach, a long-time industry consultant, says

“The industry really is at a point where survival is in question.” In recent

years, airlines have reduced capacity, cut routes, and increased fees for

peripheral services like baggage and food. We have also seen mergers,

such as between Delta and Northwest, and between United and

Continental, to reduce system-wide costs.5

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In many industries, strategies often lead to trade- offs between quality and cost; some company strategies are willing to sacrifice quality in order to develop a low- cost advantage. Such was the case with new automobile startups, especially with Hyundai Motor Co. However, goods quality has evolved over the years and now is generally considered to be an order qualifier. Operations managers deal with quality issues on a daily basis; these include ensuring that goods are produced defect- free, or that service is delivered flaw lessly. In the long run, it is the design of goods and service processes that ultimately defines the quality of outputs and outcomes.

4-4c Time In today’s society, time is perhaps the most important source of competi- tive advantage (see the box on Your Cell Phone Becomes your Wallet). Customers demand quick response, short waiting times, and consis- tency in performance. Many firms, such as CNN, FedEx, and Walmart, know how to use time as a competi- tive weapon to create and deliver supe- rior goods and services.

Speeding up work processes im- proves customer response. Deliveries

can be made faster, and more often on time. However, time reductions in processes and value chains can only be accomplished by streamlining and simplifying them to eliminate non-value-added steps such as rework and waiting time. This forces improvements in quality by reducing the opportunity for mistakes and errors. By reducing non-value-added steps, costs are reduced as well. Thus, time reductions often drive simultaneous

improvements in quality, cost, and productivity. Designing processes and using technology ef-

ficiently to improve speed and time reli- ability are some of the most important

activities for operations managers.

4-4d Flexibility Success in globally competitive mar- kets requires both design and de- mand flexibility. In the automobile industry, for example, new models are constantly being developed. Companies that can exploit flex- ibility by building several different

vehicles on the same assembly line at one time, enabling them to switch

output as demand shifts, will be able to sell profitably at lower volumes. The Spanish clothing company Inditex (which owns the well-known brand Zara) uses

Improved quality of design

Higher perceived value

Increased market share

Higher prices

Increased revenues

Higher profi tability

Improved quality of conformance

Lower manufacturing and service costs

Exhibit 4.2 Interlinking Quality and Profitability Performance

include ensuring that goods are produced defect- free, or that service is delivered flawlessly. In the long run, it is the design of goods and service processes that ultimately defines the quality of outputs and outcomes.

- tive weapon to create and deliver supe-

Speeding up work processes im- proves customer response. Deliveries

improvements in quality, cost, and productivity. Designing processes and using technology ef

ficiently to improve speed and time reli ability are some of the most important

activities for operations managers.

Success in globally competitive mar

at one time, enabling them to switch output as demand shifts, will be able

to sell profitably at lower volumes. The Spanish clothing company Inditex (which owns the well-known brand Zara) uses Mike Flippo/Shutterstock.com

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in-house pattern-cutting operations and subcontracts labor-intensive sewing to smaller regional facilities. Most other fashion retailers outsource these operations to Asia to reduce labor costs, resulting in slow supply chains that require the designers to make early style and volume commitments. Intidex’s supply chain allows it to copy ideas from fashion leaders in Paris and Milan and quickly change styles to capitalize on the hottest trends.

Flexibility is manifest in mass-customization strat- egies that are becoming increasingly prevalent today.

is being able to make whatever goods and services the customer wants, at any volume, at any time for anybody, and for a global organization, from any place in the world.8 Some examples include Sign-tic company signs that are uniquely designed for each customer from a standard base sign structure; business consult- ing; Levi’s jeans that are cut to exact measurements; personal Web pages; estate planning; Motorola pagers customized in different colors, sizes, and shapes; per- sonal weight-training programs; and modular furni-

ture that customers can configure to their unique needs and tastes. Cus- tomer involvement might occur at the design (as in the case of custom signs), fabrication (Levi’s jeans), assembly (Motorola pag- ers), or postproduction ( cus tomer-as sembled modular furniture) stages of the value chain. Mass customization requires

companies to align their activities around differentiated customer seg- ments and design goods, services, and operations around flexibility.

4-4e Innovation is the discovery and practi-

cal application or commercialization of a device, method, or idea that differs from existing norms. Over the years, innovations in goods (such as tele- phones, automobiles, computers, op- tical fiber, satellites, and cell phones)

and services (self-service, all-suite hotels, health main- tenance organizations, and Internet banking) have improved the overall quality of life. Within business or- ganizations, innovations in manufacturing equipment (computer-aided design, robots and automation, and smart tags) and management practices (customer sat- isfaction surveys, quantitative decision models, and the Malcolm Baldrige criteria) have allowed organizations to be more efficient and better meet customers’ needs.

Many firms, such as Apple, focus on research and development for innovation as a core component of their strategy. Such firms are on the leading edge of product technology, and their ability to innovate and introduce new products is a critical success factor.

YOUR CELL PHONE BECOMES YOUR WALLET

C redit and debit cards and other magnetic-strip-based cards are

on their way out. Mobile payment devices, including your cell

phone, are becoming more prevalent, dramatically speeding up

the time to process payments. Square, for example, provides a

small reader that plugs into a mobile phone or tablet to process cab fares

quickly. Google Wallet uses wireless technology for quick payments and

has tied this capability to Google Off ers, which searches for immediate

coupon discounts. Many other competitors are entering the market, as

total U.S. mobile payments are expected to double each year. 7

is being able to make whatever goods and services the cus- tomer wants, at any volume, at any time for anybody, and for a global organization, from any place in the world.

is the discovery and practical application or commercialization of a device, method, or idea that differs from existing norms.

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Product performance, not price, is the major selling feature. When competition enters the market and profit margins fall, these companies often drop out of the market while continuing to introduce innovative new products. These companies focus on outstanding prod- uct research, design, and development; high product quality; and the ability to modify production facilities to produce new products frequently.

4-5 OM and Strategic Planning

he direction an organization takes and the competitive priorities it chooses are driven by its strategy. The concept of strategy has differ- ent meanings to different people.

is a pattern or plan that inte- grates an organization’s major goals, policies, and action sequences into a

cohesive whole.9 Basically, a strategy is the approach

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by which an organization seeks to develop the capa- bilities required for achieving its competitive advan- tage. Effective strategies develop around a few key competitive priorities, such as low cost or fast service time, which provide a focus for the entire organiza- tion and exploit an organization’s which are the strengths that are unique to that organiza- tion. Such strengths might be a particularly skilled or creative workforce, customer relationship manage- ment, clever bundling of goods and services, strong supply chain networks, extraordinary service, green goods and services, marketing expertise, or the ability to rapidly develop new products or change production- output rates.

Strategic plan- ning is the process of determining long- term goals, policies, and plans for an or- ganization. The ob- jective of strategic planning is to build

Solved Problem

Define the customer benefit package (CBP) for a health club, recreation center, or gymnasium you frequent. (Check out the Web site of your favorite club, center, or gym for more information.) Use this information to help describe the organization’s strategic mission, strat- egy, competitive priorities, and how it wins customers.

One example is depicted below.

Healthy Mind and

Body

Massage Services

Diet and Nutrition

Exercise Classes

FoodChild Care

Personal Trainer

Swim Lessons

Mission: The mission of our health club is to offer many pathways to a healthy living style and body.

Strategy: We strive to provide our customers with superior:

being of the body and mind.

food service, and the like.

- tion, schedules, etc.).

Competitive Priorities: #1 Priority: Many pathways to healthy living and a healthy body (design flexibility); #2 Priority: Friendly, professional staff and service encounters (service quality); #3 Priority: Everything is super-clean (goods, facility, and environmental qual- ity); #4 Priority: Customer convenience in all respects (time); and #5 Priority: Price (cost).

How to win customers? Providing a full-service health club with superior service, staff, and facilities. (Although you would not see this in company litera- ture, this health club provides premium service at pre- mium prices.)

Remember that each primary or peripheral good or ser- vice in the customer benefit package requires a process to create and deliver it to customers, and therefore OM skills are needed.

is a pattern or plan that integrates an organization’s major goals, policies, and action sequences into a cohesive whole.

are the strengths that are unique to an organization.

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a position that is so strong in selected ways that the or- ganization can achieve its goals despite unforeseeable external forces that may arise. Strategy is the result of a series of hierarchical decisions about goals, directions, and resources; thus, most large organizations have three levels of strategy: corporate, business, and functional. At the top level, corporate strategy is necessary to define the businesses in which the corporation will participate and develop plans for the acquisition and allocation of resources among those businesses. The businesses in which the firm will participate are often called strategic business units (SBUs), and are usually defined as fami- lies of goods or services having similar characteristics or methods of creation. For small organizations, the cor- porate and business strategies frequently are the same.

The second level of strategy is generally called busi- ness strategy, and defines the focus for SBUs. The major decisions involve which markets to pursue and how best to compete in those markets—that is, what com- petitive priorities the firm should pursue.

Finally, the third level of strategy is functional strat- egies, the means by which business strategies are ac- complished. A functional strategy is the set of decisions that each functional area (marketing, finance, opera- tions, research and development, engineering, and so on) develops to support its particular business strategy.

Our particular focus will be on operations strategy—how an organization’s processes are designed and organized to produce the type of goods and ser- vices to support the corporate and business strategies.

4-5a Operations Strategy An defines how an organization will execute its chosen business strategies. Developing an op- erations strategy involves translating competitive pri- orities into operational capabilities by making a variety of choices and trade-offs for design and operating deci- sions. That is, operating decisions must be aligned with achieving the desired competitive priorities. For exam- ple, Progressive automobile insurance has developed a competitive advantage around superior customer ser- vice. To accomplish this, its operating decisions have included on-the-spot claims processing at accident sites; “Total Loss Concierge” service to help customers

with unrepairable vehicles get a replacement vehicle; and the industry’s first Web 2.0 site with easier navigation, customization, and video content.

What kind of an operations strategy might a com- pany like Pal’s Sudden Service (see Chapter 1) have? Consider the operations management implications of key elements of the company’s vision: To be the pre- ferred quick-service restaurant in our market achieving the largest market share by providing

1. The quickest, friendliest, most accurate service available. To achieve quick and accurate service, Pal’s needs highly standardized processes. The staff at each Pal’s facility is organized into process teams along the order-taking, processing, packag- ing, and order-completion line. The process layout is designed so that raw materials enter through a delivery door and are worked forward through the store with one process serving the next. Employees must have clearly defined roles and responsibili- ties, understanding of all operating and service procedures and quality standards, and job flex- ibility through cross-training to be able to respond to volume cycles and unplanned reassignments to work activities. To ensure friendly service, Pal’s uses specific performance criteria to evaluate and select employees who demonstrate the aptitude, talents, and characteristics to meet performance standards; invests heavily in training; and pays close attention to employee satisfaction.

2. A focused menu that delights customers. Employees must understand their customers’ likes and dislikes of their products and services as well as those of their competitors. Operations must address such questions as: What capabilities will we need to support a new menu offering? Do our suppliers have the capacity to support this new offering? Is the appropriate technology available?

3. Daily excellence in product, service, and systems execution. Successful day-to-day operations require employees to effectively apply Pal’s On-Line Quality Control process, consisting of four simple steps: standardize the method or process, use the method, study the results, and take control. Each employee is thoroughly trained and coached on precise work procedures and process standards, focusing on developing a visual reference to verify product quality.

4. Clean, organized, sanitary facilities. Pal’s focuses on prevention—eliminating all possible causes of accidents—first, then finding and eliminating causes of actual incidents. In-house health and safety inspections are conducted monthly using the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Food Service

An defines how an organization will execute its chosen busi- ness strategies.

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Sanitation Ordinance. Results are compiled and distributed to all stores within 24 hours, with any identified improvements applied in each store.

5. Exceptional value. Through methods of listening and learning from customers and studies of industry standards and best practices, Pal’s has designed the following items into its operations: convenient locations with easy ingress and egress, long hours of operation (6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.), easy-to-read 3-D menus, direct fact-to- face access to order taker and cashier/order deliverer, fresh food (cooked hot dogs are discarded after 10 minutes if not purchased), a 20-second delivery target, and a Web site for contacting corporate office and stores. Pal’s selects suppliers carefully to ensure not only product quality and on-time delivery, but also the best price for the volume level purchased. Overall supply chain costs are minimized by maintaining only a few, long-term core suppliers.

From this discussion of Pal’s Sudden Service, it is clear that how opera- tions are designed and implemented can have a dramatic effect on business performance and achievement of the strategy. Therefore, operations require close coordination with functional strategies in other areas of the firm, such as marketing and finance.

4-5b Sustainability and Operations Strategy Sustainability is defined in previous chapters using three dimensions—environmental, social, and economic sus- tainability. Stakeholders such as the community, green ad- vocacy groups, and the government drive environmental sustainability. Social sustainability is driven by ethics and human ideals of protecting the planet and its people for the well-being of future generations. Economic sustain- ability is driven by shareholders such as pension funds and insurance companies. Therefore, sustainability is an organizational strategy—it is broader than a competitive priority. Sustainability requires major changes in the cul- ture of the organization (see box on General Electric).

Many companies, such as Dell, Kaiser Permanente, and Nike, view sustainability as a corporate strategy. A majority of global consumers believes that it is their re- sponsibility to contribute to a better environment and would pay more for brands that support this aim. Like- wise, retailers and manufacturers are demanding greener

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FREE WHEELCHAIR MISSION— A STRATEGY OF SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

S ocial sustainability, sometimes called ethical sustainability, is driven

by ethics and human ideals of protecting the planet and its people

for the well-being of future generations. It begins with a vision of

the business and a strategy. Donald Schoendorfer, an entrepreneur

and founder of Free Wheelchair Mission (FWM), travelled to many developing

countries and noticed family and friends carrying disabled people because

they could not afford to buy a wheelchair. Some 100 million people world-

wide face this situation. He researched this problem but found no solution.

Mr. Schoendorfer, who held more than 50 patents in the medical

industry, decided to make a simple and inexpensive but rugged wheelchair

using commonly available components such as plastic patio furniture for

the seat, old wheelchair frames, and used mountain bike parts and tires.

The cost of the first wheelchair was $28 and it could be shipped anywhere

in the world for about $41. The chairs are manufactured in China and

shipped to some of the most remote regions in the world in ocean-going

containers. Once they arrive at the port, carefully-selected distribution

partners assume financial, logistical, and distribution control of the chairs

for local qualified beneficiaries. They have shipped hundreds of thousands

of these wheelchairs, achieving the goal “to lift someone up off the ground

and change a life forever.10

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products and supply chains. In 2007, Walmart Stores Inc. announced that it would transition toward selling only concentrated laundry detergents, which use much less water and therefore require less packaging and space for transport and storage. Every major supplier in the deter- gent industry was involved. Government actions are also driving these initiatives. The 2009 U.S. stimulus package earmarked $70 billion for the development of renewable and efficient energy technologies and manufacturing. The European Union has set targets for reducing emis- sions to 20 percent of 1990 levels by 2020.

Companies that have embraced sustainability pur- sue this strategy throughout their operations. For ex- ample, computer maker Dell Inc. has announced that it is committed to becoming “the greenest technology company on the planet.” Such a strategy often requires considerable innovation in value chains, operations de- sign, and day-to-day management. For example, Dell launched a program called Design for the Environment that seeks to minimize adverse impacts on the environment by controlling raw material acquisition, manufacturing processes, and distribution programs while linking green policies with consumer use and disposal. This framework encourages Dell’s product designers to consider the full product life cy- cle, and it provides them with a platform for collaborating with suppliers, supply chain experts, and external recycling experts and other downstream partners to help them fully understand the environmental implica- tions of their design decisions.11

4-6 A Framework for Operations Strategy

useful framework for strategy de- velopment that ties corporate and marketing strategy to operations strategy was proposed by Pro- fessor Terry Hill at Templeton College, Oxford University, and

is shown in Exhibit 4.3.12 It was originally designed for goods-producing organizations; however, it can also be applied to service-providing firms. This framework de- fines the essential elements of an effective operations strategy in the last two columns—operations design choices and building the right infrastructure.

are the decisions man- agement must make as to what type of process structure is best suited to produce goods or create services. It typically

a Sustainability is an organizational strategy—it is broader than a competitive priority.

GENERAL ELECTRIC: GREEN STARTS AT THE TOP

J eff rey Immelt, the CEO of General Electric, proposed a green

business strategy and plan to his 35 top executives in 2004,

and they voted against it. Immelt refused to take no for an

answer and overruled his executives. The result of his efforts

is now defined in GE’s highly successful Ecomagination initiative.

Ecomagination (http://ge.ecomagination.com) is a business strat-

egy designed to drive innovation and the growth of profitable en-

vironmental solutions while engaging stakeholders. GE invests in

innovation through its R&D eff orts and outside venture capital in-

vestments. The resulting goods and services enable GE and its cus-

tomers to reduce emissions while generating revenue from their

sale. Combining profits and en-

ergy savings, GE continues to in-

vest in environmental solutions,

perpetuating the cycle. Specific

green and measurable targets

have been established by year.

For example, GE’s greenhouse

gas (GHG) target set in 2008 has

been exceeded by 30 percent.Ro m

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are the decisions management must make as to what type of process structure is best suited to produce goods or create services.

focuses on the nonprocess features and capabilities of the organization and includes the workforce, operating plans and control systems, quality control, organizational structure, compensation systems, learning and innovation systems, and support services.

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addresses six key areas—types of processes, value chain integration and outsourcing, technology, capacity and facilities, inventory and service capacity, and trade-offs among these decisions.

focuses on the nonprocess features and capabilities of the organization and includes the workforce, operating plans and control systems, quality control, orga- nizational structure, compensation systems, learning and innovation systems, and support services. The infrastruc- ture must support process choice and provide managers with accurate and timely information to make good de- cisions. These decisions lie at the core of organizational effectiveness, and suggest that the integrative nature of operations management is one of the most important aspects of success. Operations design and infrastructure criteria and decisions in Prof. Hill’s strategy framework define the value chain that supports environmental, so- cial, and economic sustainability.

A key feature of this framework is the link between operations and corporate and marketing strategies. Clearly, it is counterproductive to design a customer benefit package and an operations system to produce and deliver it, and then discover that these plans will

not achieve corporate and marketing objectives. This linkage is described by the four major decision loops illustrated in Exhibit 4.4. Decision loop #1 (shown in red) ties together corporate strategy—which establishes the organization’s direction and boundaries—and mar- keting strategy—which evaluates customer wants and needs and targets market segments.

The output of red loop #1 is the input for green loop #2. Decision loop #2 (green) describes how operations evaluates the implications of competitive priorities in terms of process choice and infrastructure. The key deci- sions are “Do we have the process capability to achieve the corporate and marketing objectives per target market segment? Are our processes capable of consistently achiev- ing order-winner performance in each market segment?”

Decision loop #3 (blue) lies within the operations function of the organization and involves determining if process choice decisions and capabilities are consis- tent with infrastructure decisions and capabilities. The fourth decision loop (yellow loop #4) represents opera- tions’ input into the corporate and marketing strategy. Corporate decision makers ultimately decide how to al- locate resources to achieve corporate objectives.

Exhibit 4.3 Hill’s Strategy Development Framework

Corporate Objectives Marketing Strategy

How Do Goods and Services Qualify and Win Orders in the Marketplace?

Operations Strategy

Operations Design Choices Infrastructure

Growth Economic

(survival ) Profit

investment

measures

sustainability

sustainability

segments Range Mix Volumes

customization innovation

alternatives

Safety (cost)

Range Flexibility Demand

design Quality Service Goods Environment

(community) image

Delivery Speed Variability

support postservice

support

alternative designs

chain

outsourcing Technology

facilities location)

Inventory analysis

Workforce

system(s) control

Organizational structure

system

systems services

+Note: We have added sustainability criteria to Professor Hill’s original framework.

Sources: T. Hill, Manufacturing Strategy: Text and Cases, 3rd ed., Burr Ridge, IL: McGraw-Hill, 2000, p. 32; T. Hill, Operations Management: Strategic Context and Managerial Analysis, 2nd ed., Prigrame MacMillan, 2005, p. 50. Reprinted with permission from the McGraw-Hill Companies.

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4-6a Operations Strategy at McDonald’s McDonald’s Corporation is the world’s leading food- service retailer, with sales of almost $23 billion in more than 32,000 restaurants in 117 countries, employing 1.6 million people.13 The company’s vision provides the basis for its strategy:

McDonald’s vision is to be the world’s best quick- service restaurant experience. Being the best means providing outstanding quality, service, cleanliness, and value, so that we make every customer in every restau- rant smile. To achieve our vision, we focus on three worldwide strategies:

1. Be the Best Employer Be the best employer for our people in each

community around the world.

2. Deliver Operational Excellence Deliver operational excellence to our customers in

each of our restaurants.

3. Achieve Enduring Pro�table Growth Achieve enduring profitable growth by expand-

ing the brand and leveraging the strengths of the McDonald’s system through innovation and technology.

McDonald’s also defines its “Values in Action” pol- icies, program, and practices, which is basically “doing the right thing.” In its Corporate Responsibility Report, it defines the following four sustainability initiatives:

Build a sustainable McDonald’s that involves all facets of our business. For example, McDonald’s is developing an environmental scorecard that drives greater awareness of resource use (energy, water, air emission, and waste), with the ultimate goal of reducing the environmental impact of its supply chains.

Commit to a three-pronged approach—reduce, reuse, and recycle. For example, 82 percent of McDonald’s packaging is made from renewable materials. In some global markets, McDonald’s delivery trucks use their own reprocessed cooking oil for fuel.

Strive to provide eco-friendly workplaces and restaurants. Better recycling efforts have diverted over 58 percent of waste normally targeted for a landfill to other recycling uses. Green facili- ties have been built in countries such as Brazil, Germany, and France.

Work with suppliers and outside experts to continuously improve purchasing decisions and evaluation of supplier performance regarding ani- mal welfare. Animal welfare scorecards and supplier audits in addition to better designs of animal-handling facilities are two examples of this initiative.

McDonald’s also actively participates in social media platforms to share information about its sustainability policies and initiatives.

What is the CBP that McDonald’s offers? Exhibit 4.5 shows the CBP, in which goods and service

Exhibit 4.4 Four Key Decision Loops in Terry Hill’s Generic Strategy Framework

Corporate Objectives

Marketing Strategy

Qualifi ers and

Order Winners (Competitive

Priorities)

Operations Strategy

InfrastructureOperations Design Choices

Loop # 4

Loop # 1 Loop # 3

Loop # 2

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worldwide, and this contributes to consistent goods quality, fast service, and a standardized training pro-

gram. Likewise, ordering by the numbers and digital printouts of customer orders in the

drive-through improves order accuracy and speed of service. Of course, the entire human resource function is built around the needs of the Mc- Donald’s value chain and operating

systems. McDonald’s has been identified as one of the best places to work by Fortune and The American Economic Review. Ex-

amples of supportive infrastructure include good hiring criteria, recogni-

tion and reward programs, training, and promotion criteria.

The ultimate objective of operational excellence is satisfied customers. Operational excellence includes the value chain, process, equipment, and job efficiencies, as well as superior people-related performance—all focused to support the service-encounter level.

A second corporate objective is operational excel- lence. The ultimate objective of operational excellence is satisfied customers. Operational excellence includes value chain, process, equipment, and job efficien- cies, as well as superior people-related performance— all focused to support the service-encounter level. McDonald’s strategy is to deliver exceptional customer experiences through a combination of great-tasting food, outstanding service, being a good place to work, profitable growth, and consistent value. McDonald’s service goals also include extended or 24-hour service to make McDonald’s the most convenient food-service choice for customers. To put sparkle in McDonald’s ser- vice, initiatives include training for the unexpected and keeping it simple.

A third corporate objective is leveraging innova- tion and technology capabilities. In the United States,

content (food and fast service) are equally important to the primary mission, and are supported by peripheral goods and services.

Exhibit 4.6 illustrates how Hill’s strategy framework can be applied to McDonald’s. One corporate objective is profitable growth. The marketing strategy to sup- port profitable growth consists of adding both company-owned and franchised McDonald’s and Partner Brand restaurants. McDonald’s is committed to franchising as a key strategy to grow and leverage value chain capa- bilities. Over 75 percent of McDonald’s restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent businesspeople—franchisees.

The core competency to profitable growth is maintaining low-cost and fast service. To support this strategy, McDonald’s has many operational decisions to make, such as: Does it adopt an assembly-line ap- proach to process design? Does it standardize store design to make process flow, training, and perfor- mance evaluation consistent among stores? Does it standardize equipment and job design work activities? The french fryer equipment and procedure are a good example of standardizing equipment design. There is “only one way to make french fries” in 32,000 stores

digital printouts of customer orders in the drive-through improves order accuracy

Exhibit 4.6 illustrates how Hill’s

include good hiring criteria, recogni- Brand X Pictures/Jupiter Images

Exhibit 4.5 McDonald’s Customer Benefit Package

Playgrounds

Games and

Prizes

Happy Meals

and Toys

Birthday Parties

Ronald McDonald

Houses

McDonald’s Characters

Service Food

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McDonald’s has 40 distribution centers to support more than 12,000 restaurants and about 350 suppliers. More than 2,000 safety and quality checks surround McDon- ald’s food as it moves through its supply chains (from farms to restaurants). Information technology is used to coordinate the activities of McDonald’s value chain.

Another corporate objective is developing and maintaining a diverse workforce. Diversity at McDon- ald’s means understanding, recognizing, and valuing the differences that make each person unique. Hamburger

University, located in Oak Brook, Illinois, has trained over 275,000 managers in 22 different languages and also manages 10 international training centers in places such as Australia, England, Japan, and Germany.

McDonald’s supports its social responsibility ob- jective with over 200 Ronald McDonald House Chari- ties. Social responsibility activities also include funding immunization programs for 1 million African children, Olympic youth camps, disaster relief, and sponsored mobile health centers in underserved areas. Other

Exhibit 4.6 Applying the Hill’s Strategy Development Framework to McDonald’s

Corporate Objective Examples

Marketing Strategy Examples

How Do Goods and Services Qualify and Win Orders in the Marketplace?

Operations Strategy

Operating Design Choice Examples

Infrastructure Examples

Profitable Growth Add worldwide 1,000 McDonald’s restaurants using company-owned and franchised stores Competitive priorities tie

the corporate and marketing strategies to the operational

strategy

#1 Low prices

#2 Quick service (delivery speed)

#3 High service quality

#4 High goods quality

#5 Demand flexibility

#6 Brand image

Flow shop process design Standardized store design Equipment design Job design Order-taking process Capacity and facility size, location, and clusters

Hiring process and criteria First job training Recognition and rewards Training for the unexpected Keeping it simple Manager trainee program Coaching and counseling Teamwork e-mail capabilities

Operational Excellence

Ideal store location, best training and employee well-being programs

Global value chain coordination Suppliers Resource scheduling Inventory placement and control Distribution centers Standardized operational and job procedures

Operating plans and control system(s) Shift management Supplier relations and negotiation Equipment maintenance Online network capability Distribution centers

Leverage Strengths through Innovation and Technology

Develop new food items, store and food mix

Tie demand analysis to promotions

Store equipment technology Value chain information systems to tie stores, distribution centers, and suppliers together New food products

Quality control Laboratory testing Organizational structure Compensation systems Online network capability

Diversity Long-standing commitment to a diverse workforce

Training and franchising Process performance Career paths

Learning and innovation systems Hamburger University

Sustainability Values in Action policies and initiatives

Greener supply chains Recycling processes Reduce energy use Animal welfare

Greener buildings Ronald McDonald House Mobile health centers Youth camps

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1. Research and write a short paper (two pages maxi- mum) about your cell phone provider. What are its mission, strategy, and competitive priorities? How is sustainability incorporated into its strategy, value chain, and operations?

2. What might the competitive advantage be for each of the following companies?

a. eBay

b. Southwest Airlines

c. Starbucks

d. Apple

e Facebook

3. Choose an organization with which you are familiar that falls into one of the following categories:

corporate objectives not shown in Exhibit 4.6 include a high return on investment, exploring nontra- ditional locations for stores, and commitment to the environment.

Competitive priorities are derived from McDonald’s vi- sion statement and strategy. The ranking in Exhibit 4.6 reflects their importance. The competi- tive priorities tie the corporate and marketing strategies to the operations strategy. The competi- tive priorities provide direction on key operations-strategy issues listed in the last two columns of Exhibit 4.6.

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Discussion Questions

Problems and Activities

1. Select a business with which you are familiar and identify examples of customers using search, experi- ence, and credence quality to evaluate the good or service. You might also look up the businesses on the Internet or visit the library.

2. Select a business with which you are familiar and identify examples of order qualifiers and winners. You might also look up the businesses on the Inter- net or visit the library.

3. Explain the interlinking model of quality and profit- ability (Exhibit 4.2). How does it connect to business

and operations strategy? Can you provide any examples of goods and services that support and add credibility to this model?

4. Is it possible for a world-class organization to achieve superiority in all five major competitive priorities—price (cost), quality, time, flexibility, and innovation? Explain your reasoning. Provide examples pro or con.

5. Why is sustainability a strategy and not a competitive priority? Explain your reasoning.

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Define the firm’s strategic mission, strategy, and com- petitive priorities. What are the order qualifiers and winners? What would operations have to be good at to make this a successful business or organization?

4. Research and explain the logic behind the statement, “General Electric discovered that 75 percent of its manufacturing costs is determined by design.”

5. How does a package-delivery service such as UPS or FedEx use the competitive priority of “time” to its competitive advantage? Research, then explain and provide examples in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

6. How does Walmart use the competitive priority of “cost” to its competitive advantage? Research, then explain and provide examples in a short paper (max- imum of two typed pages).

7. How does Procter & Gamble use the competitive pri- ority of “quality” to its competitive advantage? Re- search, then explain and provide examples in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

8. How does your cell phone provider use the competi- tive priority of “flexibility” to its competitive advan- tage? Research, then explain and provide examples in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

9. How does General Electric use the competitive prior- ity of “innovation” to its competitive advantage? Re- search, then explain and provide examples in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

10. Explore the Web sites for several competing compa- nies on the Fortune 500 list. Based on the informa- tion you find, on which competitive priorities do these firms appear to focus? What can you say about their operations strategies (either explicit or im- plied)? Report your findings in a short paper (maxi- mum of two typed pages).

11. Research and write a short paper on a company that has a clear strategy based on social and ethical sustainability.

12. Apply Hill’s strategy framework to one of the com- panies in question 2. This will require research to identify corporate objectives and competitive priori- ties. See the McDonald’s example in the chapter for guidance, and make sure that you emphasize OM concepts, capabilities, and execution. Report your findings in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

13. Identify two competing organizations (for example, AT&T and Sprint, TaylorMade and Callaway golf club manufacturers, or Starbucks and McDonald’s). Explain the differences in their missions, strategies, and competitive priorities, and how their operations strategies might differ. Use the Internet or business magazines to research the information you need. Report your findings in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

14. Research Apple and define its strategic mission, vision, corporate strategy, competitive priorities, and operations strategy. What can you say about Apple’s strategy and practices regarding sustainability? You might use the Internet or visit the library. Report your findings in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

15. Using the information about Pal’s Sudden Service provided in this chapter, apply Hill’s generic strategy framework in a manner similar to the McDonald’s example. How do the strategies of Pal’s and McDon- ald’s appear to differ? What differences exist in their operations strategies and decisions? Report your findings in a short paper (maximum of two typed pages).

“Chris, we make the highest-quality grass seed and fertilizer in the world. Our brands are known every- where!” stated Caroline Ebelhar, the vice president of manufacturing for The Lawn Care Company. “Yeah! But the customer doesn’t have a Ph.D. in organic chem- istry to understand the difference between our grass seed and fertilizer compared to those of our competi- tors! We need to also be in the lawn-care application service business, and not just the manufacturer of super- perfect products,” responded Chris Kilbourne, the vice president of marketing, as he walked out of Caroline’s

office. This ongoing debate among Lawn Care’s senior management team had not been resolved but the chief executive officer, Mr. Steven Marion, had been listen- ing very closely. A major strategic decision would soon have to be made.

The Lawn Care Company, a fertilizer and grass seed manufacturer with sales of almost $1 billion, sold some of its products directly to parks and golf courses. Customer service in this goods-producing company was historically very narrowly defined as providing “the right product to the right customer at the right

Sustainable Lawn Care Case Study

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time.” Once these goods were delivered to the cus- tomer’s premises and the customer signed the shipping documents, Lawn Care’s job was done. For many park and golf course customers, a local subcontractor or the customers themselves ap- plied the fertilizer and seed. These application personnel often did the job incorrectly using inappropriate equip- ment and methods. The relationship among these non-Lawn Care applica- tion service personnel, The Lawn Care Company, and the customer also was not always ideal.

When claims were made against The Lawn Care Company because of damaged lawns or polluted lakes and streams, the ques- tion then became one of who was at fault. Did the qual- ity of the physical product or the way it was applied cause the damage? Either way, the customers’ lawns or waterways were in poor shape, and in some cases, the golf courses lost substantial revenue if a green or hole was severely damaged or not playable. One claim filed by a green advocacy group focused on a fish kill in a stream near a golf course.

One of Lawn Care’s competitors began an ap- plication service for parks and golf courses that routinely applied the fertilizer and grass seed for its primary customers. This competitor bundled the ap- plication service to the primary goods, fertilizer and grass seed, and charged a higher price for this service. The competitor delivered and applied the fertilizer on the same day to avoid the liability of storing toxic fertilizer outside on the golf course or park grounds. The competitor learned the application business in

the parks and golf course target market segment and was beginning to explore expanding into the residen- tial lawn-care application service target market. The

Lawn Care Company sold the “highest-quality physical products” in the industry but it was not currently in either the professional park and golf course or the residential “application service” lawn-care mar- ket segments. The Lawn Care Company consid- ered its value chain to end once it delivered its products to the job site or non-Lawn Care appli- cation service. The com- petitor sold the customer “a beautiful lawn with a promise of no hassles.”

To the competitor, this included an application service bundled to grass seed and fertilizer.

Case Questions for Discussion 1. Define Lawn Care’s current strategic mission, strat-

egy, competitive priorities, value chain, and how it wins customers. What are the order qualifiers and winners? Draw the major stages in its value chain without an application service.

2. What problems, if any, do you see with Lawn Care’s current strategy, vision, customer benefit package and value chain design, and pre- and postservices?

3. Redo questions (1) and (2) and provide a new or revised strategy and associated customer benefit package and value chain that is more appropriate for today’s marketplace. What does operations have to be good at to successfully execute your revised strategy?

4. What are your final recommendations?

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The competitor bundled application service to the primary goods—fertilizer and grass seed.

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