Discussion Week 6 part 2 - Assignment Example

DISCUSSION WEEK 6 PART 2 DISCUSSION WEEK 6 PART 2 The decision making process for Metabical will be categorized into 8 major steps, which are presented in the diagram below. Source: Tutorials Point (2014). From the diagram, there would first have to be a clear identification of the purpose for decision, which is to get a competitive positioning for Metabical. This will be followed by the gathering of information, which must form the core part of research and development (R&D). Thereafter, alternatives with principles for judging them will be found then brainstorming on the available choice, which leads to evaluation of alternatives.

Then the main step of selecting best alternative or decision making will take place. After selection is made, execution will lead to implementation and then evaluation of results after there has been implementation for a while. Because decision making is a process rather than an event, it is important that there will be as many stakeholders as can successfully implement the whole process. It is suggested that Printup should spearhead a team that should include people from backgrounds including finance, marketing, advertisement, public relationship, research and development, organizations, and quality assurance.

With a collective effort, segmentation should be thought of from a perspective where people with highest risk of becoming overweight are targeted. There are a number of studies that identifies people who have the highest risk factors in becoming overweight. This group should be the optimal target consumers of Metabical as the drug focuses on weight loss. The group includes Black American community, females, people whose work allows for fewer movements from place to place, people who are bedridden, people who consume much food, and people who take in much alcohol (Choi, Poon and Davis, 2008).

When employing the differential advantage, Bessant and Buckingham (2003) recommends the need to focus more on communication and promotion rather than raw advertisement. This is because communication as a strategy would keep the public informed about the differential advantages that Metabalic possesses so that based on the information that the public has about the differential advantages of the drug, they will take personalized decision to patronize. The use of promotion would also give the company a competitive advantage by creating enabling ventures for customers to access Metabalics more easily.

The communication strategy to be used in the communication and promotion positioning options selected should be a one-on-one strategy. It would be debated that this will not be a very efficient strategy when compared to mass communication but it is also important to appreciate the fact that one-on-one communication has higher rate of effectiveness as it makes it possible to learn more about the customer through the act of communicating (Choi, Poon and Davis, 2008). By knowing about the customer also, more production based strategies can be put in place to satisfy their needs (Bessant and Buckingham, 2003).

based on the one-on-one strategy adopted, there will be the need to review the budget upwards. But should the organization rely on new media where the internet is used as an alternative communication tool where customers can contact a support line and receive information, or have a portal or social media where interactive communication takes place, then the budget can be maintained because that will be more cost effective approach to one-on-one communication. For the one-on-one communication plan to be executed, the following timeline must be followed i.

Identifying the market segment ii. Learning about the needs of the segment iii. Setting up a communication team iv. Mapping up allocation plan for the team v. Sending the team out to execute communication. References Bessant J, and Buckingham J. (2003). Innovation and organizational learning: the case of computeraided production management. British Journal of Management; 4(4):219–37. Choi B, Poon S.K. and Davis J.G. (2008). Effects of knowledge management strategy on organizational performance: a complementarity theory-based approach.

Omega; 36(2):235–51. Tutorials Point (2014). Decision Making Process. Accessed February 13 2014 from http://www.tutorialspoint.com/management_concepts/decision_making_process.htm