Campbell Soups - Strategic Management and IT Governance - Assignment Example

CAMPBELL SOUPS REPORT by (Name) The Name of the Class (Course) Professor (Tutor) The Name of the School (University) The City and State where it is located The Date Q.1 Weill & Ross, (2004) define IT governance as a form of organizational governance aimed at covering the culture, organization including policies and practices which help to provide oversight and a form of transparency in the organization. Good IT governance helps to provide an organization with methods of risk management, oversight and a clear form of communication which not only reduces the cost and damages that are caused by IT failures but also helps in building up confidence among the staff and teamwork. The importance of IT governance has risen in the recent years due to the fact that there has been increased awareness by management over IT related risks and the focus which organizations have had concerning IT costs. Just as in Campbell, various organizational factors have driven the need for IT governance. Among the various factors includes the lack of accountability, this is a factor that had affected Campbell soup and many other organizations depreciate as a result of accountability issues. Accountability brings about misunderstanding in terms of shared ownership and clarity of responsibilities for the different IT services and projects. In increase in gap between the expectation of the business from the IT department and the views of the IT department about what the business requires is also a driving force to having an IT department. Due to the realization of the fact that IT in terms of its complexity is changing at a fast rate and in a unique way, Campbell soup saw the need to apply sound management systems and control by embracing IT organization (Weill & Ross, 2005). IT organization is aimed at achieving various objectives which are in line with the practices Campbell soup company was doing in an attempt to improve its service delivery and be competitive in the market. IT governance is not only about IT related aspects; it entails an overall governance of a given entity with the main focus being on making management better and ensuring a controlled flow of information in the organization for the sake of the primary stake holders in the company (Reviews, 2013). The measures put by the new CEO of Campbell are focused on attaining the objectives of IT organization which includes: Value delivery is an important factor that IT governance aims to achieve; it focuses on ensuring that the organization attains maximum business value from IT. Ensures that the business is able to deliver the promises it had made in the beginning. Campbell soup company focused on value delivery by putting more priority on the sectors in the company which are critical to the success of the company, this was done by strengthening the departments and investing more on them. Whenever the value proportion of these sectors grew, the functions in those sectors were being increased to increase the output. Functions having decreased value received lesser investment. Resource management is another key objective of IT organization, Campbell Soup Company focused on resource management by restructuring the organization of its staff. The focus was to deploy the right staff in the right sectors of the company depending on the skills they possessed. This move led to improvement of individual departments as they were now being controlled by experts, the deployment varied with the market demands since the main focus was not only to make profits but also satisfying the customers. It is a change that led to proper utilization of the available resources (Lock, 2007). IT organization is aimed at analyzing the progress of the company through performance measures. All this entails ensuring that the organization has the right structures to measure the performance and progress of the company. Campbell soup company in the aim of analyzing the progress brought about by the changes in the new project held managerial meetings which were aimed at analyzing how various sectors of the company were progressing and if they were worth the investment being made. Performance measures are carried out with the help of an IT Balance Scorecard, its analyses the contribution made by IT to achieve the objectives of the business. Campbell Soup Company also welcomed the views of its customers concerning the new changes that were made, through these views, the management was able to understand the impact the changes had made and if they were being appreciated by the general public. Risk management is one of the critical aspects in an organization; IT management should be able to provide a reliable means through which risks can be handled. Campbell had engaged in a new project with major changes involved. It is therefore certain that the move entailed numerous risks that had to be taken due to the uncertainty of the impact of the project. Campbell therefore formed various committees that were to look critically into the different aspects of the project and give advice to the management whether the risk was worth taking or if it could be an unnecessary and costly move. These committees comprised of experts in the various sectors, it helped to assess the risks being taken and avoid unnecessary risks that were not profitable to the company (Ireland, Hoskisson & Hitt, 2011). Q.2 The AS8015 model for IT governance states the various aspects that need to be taken into consideration when implementing IT governance. The aspects of this model are evident in Campbell’s proposed changes that are to be conducted. Campbell Soup Company aimed to bring in a plan that was capable of creating a new innovative culture which was capable of addressing the changes in the market place and deliver the value of the shareholders. Campbell measured the performance of the staff in relation to what each individual member contributes to the company rather than the task they perform. The changes proposed by Campbell are in line with AS8015 model for IT governance since they focus on aspects that include: Focusing on the consumer, Campbell understood well that the consumers are their boss. More focus needed to be bestowed on the consumers so as to create more relevant products. Campbell had the challenge of keeping up with generational changes and hence stuck to its culture in terms of product and service delivery, this had made them loose competition amongst similar companies. The new changes were based on moving from the culture of the company to adapting, evolving and innovating to new demands by the customers. By creating leadership courage as a source of initiating cultural transformation, Campbell had brought a new transformation that was bound to bring in the aspect of integrity and accountability. The new leadership model was to move on from the cultural boundaries that had made Campbell Soup Company to stagnate over the years and instead bring in the spirit of innovation and risk taking. This transformation was aimed at engaging people and empowering them to be innovative and respond to the changes in market and customer demands. The component of AS8015 model that focuses on structuring various organizational teams and individuals in order to make them creative and be bold decision makers in evident in the changes Campbell brought in through the new project. Various heads of departments received training through the meetings that were held informed them of their responsibilities and boosted their decision making abilities. Campbell created these teams each with a distinct role to perform in order to ensure accountability and efficiency. The teams were led by experienced individuals who had knowledge of the sectors they were responsible of thus making it easier to take the necessary risks to make the company better (Hitt, Ireland & Hoskisson, 2015). Campbell Soup Company needed a sense of urgency. The changes proposed by Campbell are aimed at enabling it to think bigger and act in a bolder way. Decision making ability has been vested at departmental levels and through consultative engagement with the overall managerial committee helps to streamline the decisions being made at the company. It is stated that some of the challenges faced is that some of the branches of Campbell in the USA offered services in a different way from others which led to confusion among the consumers whether they were independent ventures, by streamlining decision making, the company will be operating in a similar manner . Urgency will also lead to a faster response to consumer needs by shifting product and service delivery in relation to the changes in time and demand. Q.3 A change made in any organization including bringing in new projects is always a risk taking step. Just as in Campbell, the implementation of the proposed changes are bound to be affected by various aspects, these factors may include historical barriers, human resistance or physical and natural circumstances that may be against the changes (Gamble & Thompson, 2013). To curb such factors, Campbell Soup Company before kick starting the implementation of the new project need to put in place appropriate measures to control or rather reduce these risks that may hinder implementation. Campbell faces various risks which could hinder the implementation of the project. One of these risks is lack commitment from the key stake holders of the project, if the key stake holders are not committed enough; the project is bound to fail. Campbell had traditionally operated in silos hence a change in way of operation was bound to receive some natural resistance. Some of the old employees who were used to the culture of the company knew how to obtain information from one system and transfer it to another; such employees were a threat to the institution since they can decide to sabotage the company thus hindering implementation of the project. Loosing customer who were used to the cultural mode of operation of Campbell was another risk that was being taken and needed to be addressed well in order to avoid it, some of the customers may not be sure of the new project and hence retrieve. The new project needed financial support to pick up, most of these funds were being dedicated on a new idea whose outcome was uncertain, if the changes failed to pick up, that would mean that the money is lost hence leading to wastage, this may hinder implementation of the project in the sense that only the aspects of the project that were quite certain would be funded but other investors or shareholders may decline to fund others or demand compensation in case of failure. Risks that could hinder implementation of the project needed to be well handled so that the process of implementation to be made easier. The first step of handling the risk is to balance between risk and benefit. The first approach to these risks is by taking methodological approach, here, a risk is viewed as a combination of factors, and elimination of one factor may lead to avoiding the risk or reduction on the impact of the risk (Cruise & Anton, 2012). By balancing between risk and benefit, Campbell may decide to eliminate some part of the organization either staff of rules if it is beneficial to the general performance of the company. Balancing between risk and cost entails making sure that the method of avoiding the risk is not expensive than the benefit gained. If elimination of some practices in the organization or reduction of staff members will make the organization spend more, then it is not worth it. Stake holders are essential people in the success of the company. Campbell should make sure that the key stake holders are well informed of the new project of the changes being conducted. Each of the stake holders should declare their stand or views concerning the changes. They should state categorically their support of the changes and be ready to stand with Campbell despite the challenges that may be faced. Those who are not in line with the project should be isolated and convinced, if they are still unsure of their stand, it could be advisable that they be dropped to avoid being bad influence to the rest. Financial ability proves to be a key obstacle to implementation of the project, Campbell needs to be certain of their financial ability before commencing the process of implementation. They should only start the implementation activity once they are sure that they have a stable financial back up. It could be more costly if they begin and stop without completion, the whole idea would have lost meaning and become wastage of time and resources. Many people fear change, the culture which Campbell Soup Company had established was a long one and which acted like an identity to the company. Through this culture, the company had gained many faithful members in terms of customers and also the staff, it is not easy to change the mode of operation abruptly and expect it to be embraced by everyone. Campbell needs to find a means of wining the hearts of these individuals in order to avoid resistance. The first step would be convincing the public or rather the customers of the reason why change is necessary, they need to understand and be assured that the new project is better than the old system and that they will benefit more, their views of how the things that should be done and those that should be maintained need to be taken seriously because they might be the reason they stick with the company. The veteran employees also need to be made part of the change to avoid unnecessary resistance. Division among the employees could kill their morale and temper with the process of implementation. All these stake holders therefore need to be brought on board concerning the activities and changes that are taking place in Campbell Soup Company. Q.4 For the success of any new project or changes in an organization, management is a critical factor that determines whether the project picks up or fails. The proposed transformations in Campbell Soup Company require appropriate management that involves every stake holders in order to realize the objectives of the company. These transformations need to be incorporated in the organization step by step in order to provide time for them to be absorbed and so that Campbell can be sure of each steps they are taking and avoid stagnation before completion. At times in an organization, things that seem small to some people may be a big upset to others, certain people get set in a specific way in that they are not comfortable with change since it forces them to undo their habitual activities. But for the success and progress of any given organization, change is inevitable (Galoppin, 2007). Change management entails the process, tools and techniques used to manage the people-side of change. It is a method used to reduce and manage resistance to change when implementing a given process. Change management proves to be a critical component of Campbell Soup Company’s performance improvement and success (Dinsmore & Cabanis-Brewin, 2011). The first step Campbell would take to manage change is to assess how ready the company is for change. The readiness of the company is viewed in terms of organizational assessment, assessing the culture and history of the company, assessing the employees and assessing the sponsors of the company. All this aspects will help the project team to analyze the challenges they may face during the process of change. The second step in the management of the proposed transformation at Campbell would be to communicate the change to the relevant stake holders. Communication should not just entail a word of mouth passed to the sponsors, the employees and the management team, it should be an insight explanation of the transformations in place to make sure that they absorb every aspect of it and try to win their heart in the support of the transformation. Communication should also entail listening to the views of the relevant stake holders and taking them seriously, try to reason with them in order to come to a final and fair agreement. Successful change can only be achieved if the people participating in the transformation understand what they are doing and that they embrace it. To manage change at Campbell, the company should then provide training to the key people tasked with the implementation of the change. Manager training is necessary as the supervisors are the ones who will play a key role in ensuring that the change is managed successfully. They are however the hardest part of the group to convince this is because most of them are experts and have their own understanding and opinion of how things should be done. Gaining the support of the supervisors is the first step to a successful transformation. Campbell should use individual change management activities in order to help the supervisors through the change process. In an organization such as Campbell that has existed over the years, culture is an aspect that gives the company an identity. Bringing change is obviously not an easy task since the transformation is bound to receive resistance. Managing this resistance is vital in ensuring successful transformation. The resistance may come from the employees, managers or even the consumers who are also the beneficiaries of the company. Coming up with an appropriate strategy of how resistance can be managed is critical in order to prevent a fall out among the managers or the employee which may sabotage the process of transformation. Resistance can be managed through conducting meetings with the relevant stake holders and explaining to them the need for change. It can also be done by taking them for benchmarking to places that have excelled as a result of those transformations in order for them to embrace it. This resistance can also be managed by making them part of the implementation through allocation of duties so that they do not feel left out. Extreme resistors are dangerous to the organization and should be done away with since they may influence others negatively. Change management also entails assessment of the impact brought in by the change. The key purpose of the transformation is to improve the performance of the company and if there is no sign of improvement then it is not worth it. Assessment of the change may be done by looking at the previous performance records of the company in comparison to the current performance. The aspects of the change that contribute more to the profit of the company should be boosted and those changes that have had less impact in the development of the company should be looked at and corrective measures taken. Transformational change may also be viewed in terms of people’s opinions. The consumers are the most important asset of the company and every change brought in should be focused in making sure that the customers are satisfied. Customer views need to be taken in consideration in terms of the things they think have improved and should keep up and the aspects of the change that they may not be comfortable with. All these views should be noted by the company and corrective measures taken to ensure a more positive response is obtained. The above steps entail the key areas that need to be considered in terms of management of change. It is advisable that the steps are taken in a systematic manner in order to ensure that the change process brings everyone involved on board so as to avoid the last minute backlash from the different stakeholders in the organization. If Campbell puts this into consideration, then the company can be sure of a successful transformation process one that will take it to the next level and attain their objectives. References Cruise, J., & Anton, K. (2012). Adobe InDesign CS6. San Jose, California: Adobe Press. Dinsmore, P., & Cabanis-Brewin, J. (2011). The AMA handbook of project management. New York: American Management Association. Galoppin, L. (2007). Managing organizational change during SAP implementations. Bonn: SAP Press. Gamble, J., & Thompson, A. (2013). Essentials of strategic management. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Hitt, M., Ireland, R., & Hoskisson, R. (2015). Strategic management. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning. Ireland, R., Hoskisson, R., & Hitt, M. (2011). 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