Strategic Plan Term Paper

Total Length: 10476 words ( 35 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 1+

Page 1 of 35

Reviving a Company: How to Bring New Life to a Mature Business

An Independent Learning Project

Poly-Metal Finishing, Inc. is a company that has had a successful history of more than thirty years in the metal-working industry, providing complete anodic service to the aerospace, military and commercial sectors. I have worked for this company for eight years and am now part of the management team.

With a change in management has come the need for a revision in management philosophy. We have seen an erosion in employee dedication over the years, partly as a result of somewhat authoritarian and outdated leadership philosophies. We have undertaken to research and analyze the factors that experts have determined are essential to the creative health of a company and how this climate can be brought about. Our goal is to preserve the positive elements of PMF, while correcting the negatives, with the aim of re-energizing and revitalizing the company. This paper explores useful paradigms from which we can begin our task, and identifies the steps we will need to consider to bring about dynamic change.

Title Page Number

Chapter One: Introduction

Chapter Two: Literature Review

Chapter Three: Methodology

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven: Conclusions

Statement of Learning

Reference List

Appendices

Chapter One: Introduction

Poly-Metal Finishing, Inc. (PMF) has been my employer for the past eight years, and has my respect as a fine company. It has been in operation for over thirty years and has a combined experience in the anodized aluminum field of over one hundred fifty years. It has always been a world-class company in its dedication to preserving the environment and dealing in an honest and ethical manner. A number of its policies with regard to its clients are above and beyond the standards of the industry.

However, in spite of all these evident strengths, the original manager and founder was succeeded by a management team that adopted a totalitarian style of leadership. Gradually the confidence and cooperation of the employees begin to erode, and were replaced with cynicism and negative attitudes. The company slowly became neither the best nor the most enjoyable place to work.

Within the last year, a new management team, of which I am a part, has replaced this unsuccessful structure. Now as one of the top managers, I have set myself a goal to see things turn around, and the company to become the world-class business it once was. The new management team and I share a vision of moving the company forward to a new and higher level. We are aware of the work and dedication that this process will involve, and know that pitfalls await us. However, we are encouraged by our commitment to a common goal, and by our knowledge of the company's innate potential.

I am taking the opportunity to use my Independent Learning Project to explore ways in which the new management team can attempt to decide on strategy for PMF. Now is the time to determine what steps we will need to take to change the course of the company. With the impending retirement of the current president of PMF within the next few years, the task of running the company for the next few decades will fall on the shoulders of three of us. It is our goal to make PMF a strong, viable, long-lasting company, one that we will be proud to say we manage.

It is my personal goal to make PMF a company of choice. What do I mean by that? We all must work for a living. Since we must work, it seems obvious that those years would be better spent in a pleasant, stimulating, rewarding work environment, one which enhances our overall sense of purpose and pleasure in life. It is my goal to make PMF a company that will attract the best and brightest of employees, and give all of us a sense of accomplishment in what we do.

The current president and we three vice presidents have common ideals and visions, and it has been a satisfying process to be able to work together and create a shared dream for PMF. One of our objectives is the empowerment of the employees, in order to create a dynamic, powered-from-within organization. However, because of the prevailing negative attitude of the workers, we have realized that this change in atmosphere will be a challenge for us. We believe it is essential to somehow overcome this cynical attitude, and we hope to be able to effect a positive change, so that the workforce as it is can move on to a more meaningful and productive relationship.
We have accepted, though, that not everyone will choose to make the transition and that some of the employees will inevitably choose to leave PMF. If that is the case, we will have to have created a paradigm for finding and training new employees who will fit with the empowered and re-energized company.

With all these goals in mind, I have attempted to find a point from which the management team can begin the change. I have assembled our current system of beliefs as they are spelled out in our company literature. Then I have researched current thinking about how successful organizations can and should be run, and what management's responsibilities are to facilitate this productive climate. This findings, and a series of suggestions for how to implement the most relevant of them at PMF, are summarized in this paper.

These ideas will obviously be of great benefit to the new management team of PMF. In a sense we are fortunate to have the successful history of the company on which to build. The setback that the company has experienced is not drastic, by comparison with some. However, it is serious enough to send a wake-up call to us, and to motivate us to try every means possible to recoup the strengths of the past, and hopefully even to surpass them. On the other hand, we are to some extent bound by the company's very success, to preserve as much as we can of its heritage. Because of this, we are constrained to work with some existing systems, whereas a new company just starting up, although it would lack PMF's evident strengths, would also have the advantage of starting with a clean slate.

It is my thesis that there are many American companies in the position of PMF. They are mature and successful, yet in some way the honeymoon luster had worn off. There is some disillusionment and disgruntlement in the ranks. While there is not open revolt or strife, the team spirit is just not there. No one presently employed at the company is directly to blame, yet all share a certain ennui, a TGIF attitude. The changes in world economy, and particularly in the wake of the events of September 11, will test the mettle of all companies. Those who are divided in their purpose and not wholeheartedly involved in their business's success may be the difference between survival and failure for the enterprise in the years to come.

Therefore, I hope that I have managed to keep the findings of my paper general enough to be useful for any company in PMF's position. I have researched the beliefs of many entrepreneurial gurus, and attempted to summarize those which are most concerned with bringing about attitudinal change. I have tried to discover how successful leadership teams revive a spirit of enthusiasm and candor in their employees. I have also tried to determine how these shifts in philosophy affect the company's relationships with their clients, suppliers and communities.

A firmly believe that this project, if carried out with vision and vigor, can transform not only a company and the individual in it, but corporate America, and I hope my small part will prove valuable to PMF and to other companies like it.

Chapter Two: Literature Review

In this chapter, I will summarize my research into the writings of various entrepreneurship or management gurus who have developed theories for effective leadership, over the past two decades. Many of these authors have been chosen because of their field research. They have conducted their studies on actual companies, some of which rose to the challenge and some of which failed to do so.

I have attempted to choose the most relevant studies to PMF's particular situation. In thinking about the strategic direction that PMF must decide upon, it seemed to me that the current situation involved three inter-related yet distinct factors: our relationship with our customers, the morale of our workforce, and the challenge of initiating cultural change in an existing business.

Therefore, I have divided my research into the three areas just mentioned, and have attempted to trace a logical development of theory in each of these fields.

Customer Service

Michael Mercer advises anyone wishing to please a customer to forget the Golden Rule! "The Golden Rule states, "Treat other people as you want to be treated." This….....

Show More ⇣


     Open the full completed essay and source list


OR

     Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic


Related Essays

Strategic Plan

of the factors responsible for the failure of most strategic plans (Thompson & Martin, 2010). As internal stakeholders, employees require to be engaged throughout the entire strategic implementation process -- from initiation to product design, and launch. The need to involve employees in strategic implementation is particularly informed by the fact that employees are directly involved in executing the strategic plan. When employees are involved, they are more likely to be more committed to the goals and objectives of the plan. An important stakeholder in the strategic implementation process is the top management. Strategic plans are often initiatives of… Continue Reading...

Strategic Management and Its Influence on Stakeholders

as available financial resources and personnel, crime rates, and socio-cultural setup. During strategic planning, the department must, for example, consider whether it has the resources and personnel needed to respond to crime, prevent crime, and to enhance public safety. An important aspect of strategic management relates to stakeholder involvement. As an organization, the police department is surrounded by a multiplicity of internal and external stakeholders. Internal stakeholders mainly include police officers and police leaders. The department works with or is affected by several external stakeholders, including the state government, elected officials, correctional personnel, court personnel, the media, communities, businesses, and advocacy groups.… Continue Reading...

Strategic Resource Management Hewlett Packard Enterprise

strategic and HR planning. Through this process, HR activities and plans are incorporated into the corporate strategic plan such that HRM gets linked clearly to, or aligns itself with, corporate goal achievement (Meyer, 2014; Torrington et al., 2002). HP's human resource department must support superior performance levels. Rather than assisting and serving its workforce, the company's HR personnel must create, promote, encourage, and facilitate personnel-building capacity. They should assist the company in making the most of its HR potential and guiding it along the right path -- towards realizing corporate goals (Wheelen and Hunger, 2010). Such an attitude or standpoint forms the starting block to a… Continue Reading...

Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning Cycle Strategic planning is delineated as an organization's practice of outlining its strategy or direction to be undertaken and making decisions on apportioning its resources to carry out the strategy. Strategic planning is largely beneficial to the organization in that it outlines the short-term benefits sought after and where the company seeks to get to. The strategic planning cycle exemplified in a sequence of formal planning procedures, makes certain that managers evaluate key strategic issues being faced by the organization. This is imperative to get through the common… Continue Reading...

Al Sadeem Landscape Strategic Analysis

structure of Al Sadeem is headed by the chairman at the top. The position of the chairman is tasked with the responsibility of laying out the strategic plan of the company and controlling it with a view to maximizing shareholder wealth. Aiding the chairman is the senior management, whose fundamental role is to oversee and coordinate the implementation of the company's strategic plan. The management team, which comprises of seven members, is headed by the CEO. The other members of the team include the senior landscape engineer and architect, site manager, design manager, designer, project coordinator, and the chief accountant. Table 1 below provides the names of the senior managers and the respective position held. Position… Continue Reading...

Marketing Communication Plan for Internal Use

for implementing the decisions of the board. It is involved in executing the organization's strategic plan. The management is, therefore, an important stakeholder, which must be kept informed of the marketing objectives, progress, and updates. Unlike the board, the management meets more regularly. These meetings present perfect opportunities to engage the management. The management relies on members of staff to achieve the objectives of the organization. Employees are directly involved in implementing the activities and initiatives of the organization. Among other everyday activities, they go to the field, conduct research, visit prisons, and perform evaluations. Effective communication to this group is essential. Indeed, without… Continue Reading...

Autodine Restaurants Business Plan

to note that being a private company, the business will not be mandated to adhere to the standards (Epstein et al., 2009). In the most recent strategic plan of the SEC, the body points out that it is prepared to take into consideration the notion of a single set of international accounting standards. This is through the convergence of the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) with the Internationally Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). This convergence will influence Autodine Restaurant as a business in different ways (Sweetman, 2016). The main impact in which this convergence will impact the business is through… Continue Reading...

Haiti Health Marketing Plan

in Haiti access to primary health care. This comprehensive marketing strategic plan should provide a roadmap for the pre-pilot phase with its customer-focused objectives. While many organizations have difficulty communicating and connecting with Haitian consumers both in Haiti and in the United States with Haitian Americans, experience and understanding for this specific target population allows for a thorough representation of what can be done to not only reach this target demographic, but also achieve specific goals. Those specific goals involve regular primary care visits and ease of access to important emergency medical services to help prevent major medical issues, while… Continue Reading...

The Best Approach to Human Resources

a work/life balance and beyond. This report shall manifest with a hypothetical organization and how precisely their strategic plan and shared services framework could and should manifest. Acme Financial Services The hypothetical company that shall be used for this report is Acme Financial Services. To fill in some context as to what this hypothetical company does, a few questions need to answered. To put it concisely, the company has to define who they are, what they do, for whom they do their job and how Acme knows the job is getting done. In terms of "what" the firm does, that would be check cashing and sending of… Continue Reading...

HRM Leader

of the bank. Most of all Sally is worried regarding the building of a strategic plan for the branch. The purpose of this assignment is to give detailed explanations as to how Sally ought to bring change and competency as a HRM leader to the ABC Bank branch. Workforce The key issue that Sally has to grapple with is the decision as to which technology to acquire and whether she ought to lay off the current set of employees and hire new employees. Regardless of the change taking place in banking, it is not recommended for Sally to quickly lay off the older employees.… Continue Reading...

Online Marketing and Success

Strategic Approach to Marketing Communications When undertaking any business activity, it is important to have a strategic plan. A strategic plan will offer a guideline on the way specific activity should be approached. It will enable the staff, management, and the stakeholders to assess the level of achievement in the organization. The results obtained will be compared with the projections estimated in the strategic plan. Marketing communication is an important aspect of any organization (Cheung & Thadani, 2012). It involves the language and presentation used when creating product awareness and encouraging customers to buy products and services offered in the organization. In any business, the customer… Continue Reading...

Signature 410-Non-Profit Healthcare Organization

U.S. This paper will discuss the marketing strategies employed by CHI, its financial situation, partnerships and strategic planning. Marketing Strategies The marketing strategies used by CHI include TV, digital-marketing with content and social media, print ads and even outdoor advertising to help make CHI more popular among the different communities throughout the states in which it operates (CHI, 2018). As Doster (2013) and Jackson (2011) show, social media is one of the most popular forms of communication used among people today. CHI uses a variety of social marketing techniques, from social media publishing to outdoor advertising. Representatives also play a large role in promoting the company’s… Continue Reading...

911 Commission Report Intelligence and Information Sharing

world situations. The effectiveness and value of intelligence can only be realized through an excellent strategic plan and a risk based strategy to security. Intelligence must be mapped onto relevant priorities and goals the come out of strategic approach to security (Goldfarb, 2016). This way, organizations become more strategic and selective in their clamor for intelligence. The iterations and metrics of intelligence are defined by continued re-assessment and recapitulations. Successful intelligence information utilizes continuous reassessments, tune ups and updates depending on the challenges, risks and threats that must be mitigated. The bottom-line is that context is everything when it comes to intelligence (Goldfarb, 2016). It… Continue Reading...

Implementing Changes During Downsizing

budget by 10%. Sullivan, the President, and CEO of the hospital, has requested all department heads to develop a strategic plan in the next one month detailing how they will implement the proposed changes. According to the CEO, there is a need for the hospital staff to start doing more with less. This would allow the hospital to address their current financial situation. The issues at stake currently have to do with the Department of Psychiatry. It looks like the department is the hardest hit with the loss of funding from the state. The department has undergone numerous changes over the years all that had to do with the… Continue Reading...

Nursing Healthcare Balanced Scorecard

Introduction Performance scorecards provide a straightforward means of integrating metrics into a healthcare organization’s strategic planning. Scorecards are most effective when they have a clear purpose, identifying specific patient populations and outcome measures. According to Baker (2015), “savvy organizations select the best metrics to track that are appropriate to what the organizational staff members wish to measure,” which could include specific issues like patient vital signs or patient satisfaction survey outcomes (p. 224). Moreover, performance scorecards need to be simple, kept on a manageable scale so that the data gleaned can be readily communicated to inform organizational practices, policies, and procedures (Hansel, n.d.). The… Continue Reading...

Do Not Resuscitate Orders

the deontological ethical system applies appropriately well to the issue, and describe a strategic plan for addressing the issue at the national level. Overview Current Policy There is currently no national policy on DNR. Yuen, Reid and Fetters (2011) note that DNR orders have been used by hospitals across the nation for more than 20 years but that “as currently implemented, they fail to adequately fulfill their two intended purposes—to support patient autonomy and to prevent non-beneficial interventions” (p. 791). One of the major problems that nurses have with DNR is that they find it difficult to sensitively broach the subject. Quite simply,… Continue Reading...

Problems Unsolved and a Nation Divided

and local governments must encourage cross-sector collaborations, develop workforce skills, revitalize local education, promote entrepreneurship, improve infrastructure, and craft regional economic strategic plans. At the federal level, there must be reforms in corporate taxation, immigration, international trade, communications and energy infrastructure, health care, and public education. Addressing these areas can significantly improve the business environment and the standards of the average citizen, thereby reversing the deteriorating competitiveness of the U.S. economy. Tax Reform Taxation is one of the major factors, according to Porter et al. (2016), that have negatively affected the competitiveness of… Continue Reading...

Analyzing Critical Criminology

social base with insights about New War directed at actors in the regime institutions and the strategic plans. The two theories would gain from paying higher attention to the dynamics of conflict as opposed to causes that trigger conflict. This means attention should be paid to how issues of contention and political differences and arguments are slated to either contain the wars or escalate them. It is the leaders in political realms that make these choices. Politics Influence Crime Rates among the Lower Class people. It has long been acknowledged that social inequalities case conflict in society. Such great thinkers and writers as Edwin Sutherland postulated… Continue Reading...

The Role of Senior Manager in Eldercare

senior managers in healthcare organizations will encompass a wide range of specific skills and competencies, including those related to coordination, strategic planning, capital budgeting and cost accounting, marketing, advocacy, and interfacing with policymakers, community allies, and stakeholders. The role of the senior manager is multifaceted and varied, and may shift on an almost daily or even hourly basis. At times, the senior manager will function as a visionary leader who devises strategies for planned organizational change. Other times, the senior manager embodies a transformational style of leadership to empower colleagues and subordinates, particularly in an institution with departmental divisions. The senior executive in an eldercare organization may also work with… Continue Reading...

Demand Planning

supply chain operations (specifically distribution, warehousing, capacity management, the end customer, and engineering), as well as the organisation's strategic planning process and bottom line. Demand Planning Issues Today Businesses exist in a constantly changing environment. Customer tastes and preferences, technologies, regulatory requirements, markets, and the industry environment keep evolving, affecting demand planners in different ways (Stadtler, Kilger & Meyr, 2015). The challenge of constant change is that the change sometimes comes at the most unexpected of times, catching demand planners completely unaware. For instance, an unexpected legislation or economic catastrophe causing a revision of previously projected demand levels. In today's business world, therefore, it is more imperative than… Continue Reading...

sample essay writing service

Cite This Resource:

Latest APA Format (6th edition)

Copy Reference
"Strategic Plan" (2002, December 07) Retrieved May 3, 2024, from
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/strategic-plan-141183

Latest MLA Format (8th edition)

Copy Reference
"Strategic Plan" 07 December 2002. Web.3 May. 2024. <
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/strategic-plan-141183>

Latest Chicago Format (16th edition)

Copy Reference
"Strategic Plan", 07 December 2002, Accessed.3 May. 2024,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/strategic-plan-141183