Tech Times Action Plan - Case Study Example

Tech Time’s Action Plan Student ID: Course: Institution: Date: Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 1.0 Company Structure 3 2.0 Communication 3 3.0 Management 4 4.0 Marketing Strategies 6 5.0 Economics 8 6.0 Global Business 9 References 11 1.0 Company Structure The Tech Times Company is structured and departmentalized into functions such as sales, marketing, web services, software development, operations, human resource development and finance. On one hand, the web services department is tasked with providing and offering web services to the consumers. On the other hand, the software development on charged with developing new software to increase the overall market base. Moreover, the finance department is charged with financing the other organizational functions. Further, while as the ales function is involved in directly offering the developed products, the marketing function develops the executed strategies. An evaluation of the respective departments function it is apparent that their functioning and successful mandates execution is interrelated. For instance, the success of the sales department relies on successful marketing approaches and strategies developed by the marketing function, under the allocation of finances by the finance function. In addition, the software development function is a great spender in the organization and requires liaising with the finance department to ensure on enough and sufficient funding. Moreover, it should collaborate with the marketing function for efficient marketing and launch. This includes the functions of the appropriate marketing strategies as well as the subsequent schedules. 2.0 Communication An audit of the current organizational communication systems for Tech Times Company establishes a huge number of challenges. This is clearly evident in the lack of communication between the respective departments. For instance, the software development department has poor communication with the website services department. As such, this has derailed collaboration between the respective departments subsequently slowing its completion process. A similar illustration of poor communication is between the software development department and the marketing function. In this case, the marketing function is unaware of the appropriate schedules, timelines, financial requirements as well as approaches for launching and availing the product onto the market. Based on these communication challenges, this analysis recommends: The use of chat boards communication The establishment of weekly interdepartmental meetings attended by all departmental heads. The establishment of a communications department. On one hand, the use charts boards will enhance increased general communication across the organization. Moreover, the use of departmental meetings will provide an avenue for the managers meeting, an approach that will facilitate regular updates as well as information sharing enhancement. Finally, the establishment of an internal communication department will facilitate increased communication across department as well as the coordination and dissemination of required information across the departments. If the organization resolves to apply and execute the recommended approaches it will resolve its communication on two bases. On one hand, it will resolve the challenge in the short run and facilitate successful software launch and marketing as well as long-term communication challenge resolution. 3.0 Management As already argued above, it is apparent that all the respective Tech Times departmental managers have a role to play in improving their respective department’s communication systems. On one hand, the finance manager should focus on acquiring departmental budgets on a regular basis such as thrice a year. These budgets would enhance increase resources allocation as per the departmental needs. Further, the manager can stimulate raining with the respective managers as a proactive approach to increase financial knowledge and subsequently successful and accurate communication of the same. On the other hand, the marketing function manager can increase the functions communication through increased consultations. The manager can allocate the respective staffs to the various departments through whom respective organizational departmental functions and practices especially the software development and web services departments are monitored. Moreover, the manager can increase communication through the use of surveys to advice the other functions on changing market topographies and characteristics. In addition, the sales manager can increase communication through increasing liaison with the marketing function as well as recruiting qualified sales force with professional relations and communication qualifications. Further, the software development manager has a responsibility and mandate to increase communication efficiency through the development of a project plan and schedule through which it lists its milestones as well as target achievements against timelines. Through this documentation, the other organizational functions such as marketing, finance and sales would be prepared for the product lunch. In addition, the manager should develop need documentation. Through this documentation, the web services manager would develop a profile of the areas, functions and activities in which the departmental staff would aid and support their colleagues in the software development department. Further, the web service department should establish a list of its activities to enable the marketing department develop appropriate strategies for marketing the products as well as establishing the appropriate market segments. Further, the documentation would increase the overall planning by the finance department. In addition, the manager can establish a working schedule in order to allow for increased corporation with the software development function through structured workflow management. Finally, the operations function can increase its communication management through the development of operation schedules as well as increased support of the other organizational functions through coordinating their respective activities to enhance overall organizational performance and success. Through increased application of the respectively communication improvement recommendations by the various managers, synergy and integration of the organizational operations would be enhanced. As such, strategic management would be facilitated a virtue imperative for the organizational increased performance, reduction of operational costs as well as overall market success. 4.0 Marketing Strategies In order to develop an appropriate marketing strategy, it is imperative for the organization to critically evaluate and relate its practices with the respective marketing mix elements namely price, product, promotion and place. On one hand, the price variable implies on the cost of the organizational products such as the proposed software development as well as services offered through the web services costs. In this regard, the charged prices on these products should cover on the production costs, as well as provide the organization with substantial profit margins. On the other hand, a product mix implies the range of web services as well as software supplied and availed to the market. Further, a promotion analysis implies to the marketing strategies and approaches developed by the marking function and executed by the sales department. Finally, a place analysis implies on the organizational mode of delivery for its products. In this regard, the organization currently uses the online platform channel to deliver its products and services to the various consumer segments. Based on this analysis, it is evident that the organization requires a strategic marketing strategy for its increased market performance success. Under the pricing mix, the organization should establish a discriminative pricing approach. In this case, rather than charging static prices, it should subject the prices as per the client operational capacities. Through this approach, and the subsequent low prices for small and medium organizational consumers, it would increase its influence and demand and thus facilitate increased profitability margins in the market. On the other hand, with respect to the organizational product base, it should consider on diversifying its product base. Currently, it intends to sell out the software to its consumers upon completion. However, the organization can increase its revenue streams through the offering of the software on renewable subscription bases. In this case, consumers can apply and use the software on a subscription basis, ideally annual, upon whose expiry they have to pay their annual subscriptions to continue enjoying the software application service. Moreover, it can also diversify its current web based services to include both the B2B and B2C markets, an approach imperative in increasing its global presence and success. Further, with respect to promotion, the organization should strive to diversify its operations through the application of informal marketing strategies. For instance, it should focus on using the social media as an alternative marketing channel. The social media has increasingly earned reputation as a viable online marketing platform due to the ever increasing number of social groups and virtual communities across the globe. Finally, under the marketing strategy is the evaluation and establishment of the ideal products delivery approach. In this regard, the organization should focus on developing a strong IT infrastructure to increase its presence and operational efficiency in service delivery through the reduction of IT challenges like often offline challenges common among online dependent organisations. Through the application of the recommended marketing strategy, Tech Times will increase its operational efficiency, competitive edge as well as profitability’s in the long run. 5.0 Economics Despite its decade long market success, Tech Times Company faces a range of operational economic challenges that could lead to its reduced market growth or even failure at worst. Therefore, it is important that the organization develops proactive measures to overcome these challenges. On one hand, there is the risk of increased competition from the client IT functions. Unlike in the past when organisations perceived IT as an external issue, today organisations are developing and training qualified staff to manage their IT, thus posing a demand reduction risk for the consultancy organization. In order to overcome this organizational challenge, the organization should diversify its services base, to allow for increased relevance in the market. Moreover, the organization can overcome this challenge through reducing its prices. As such, this would reduce the overall outsourcing costs and thus influence organisations into seeking the services rather than developing own capacities. This approach is practical as the organization enjoys operational economies of scale through which cost of production per unit is considerable reduced. An additional economic challenge to the organizational operations is increasing regulations in the industry. Unlike in the past where competition and regulations were minimal, the current technology market is faced with increased competition. In order to counter this growing competition exposing it to reduced profit margins risks, the organization should focus on increased innovation. This would enhance the development of new innovative and unique products and software, which allow for increased competitiveness establishment in the market. Moreover, Tech Times Company should increase its organizational departments to include a research and development function. In this regard, the research and design function should be charged with the mandate and responsibilities of developing and innovating new organizational products as an organizational sustainable competitive edge in the industry. 6.0 Global Business Internationalization has a wide range of benefits to any organization and especially for Tech Times that operates and serves in the technology industry. In this regard, the industry is gaining an increased consumer base in the developing world. Unlike in the past, where the market was only concentrated in the developed world, this scenario has changed and today a majority of organisations in the developing world are seeking to apply technology in their operations. Moreover, as Lewis (2006) stated, the industry has a high level of competition in the US market due to the presence of an increased number of consultants in the market. Therefore through increased internationalization and targeting of foreign clients, the organization will considerably increase its overall influence in the market as well as reduce on the high level competition it is facing in the market today. Competition saturation reduction is an imperative aspect for increasing overall organizational profit margins in the long run. However, expanding into the global market has its share of risks. In this case, the market faces the risk of increased and drastically changing exchange rates across the globe (Liebscher, 2008). In this regard, unstable currency inflation rates and the subsequent implications on their appreciation or depreciation pose a major risk for any international investor due to the risk of losing invested capital. Further, of the organization expands onto the global market it faces increased political risk challenges that may implicate on the adopted business model success in the long term. As such, based on the above organizational analysis, recommendations and most importantly globalization merits and risks analysis, this analysis recommends that Tech Times organization should expand onto the foreign markets into the future. Through this approach, it will its market influence as well as expand its revenue base and streams in the long run, a prerequisite for global long term success and performance improvement in the technology industry. References Lewis, J. A. (2006). Building an information technology industry in China, national strategy, global markets: A report of the technology and public policy program center for strategic and international studies. Washington, D.C: Center for Strategic and International Studies. Liebscher, K. (2008). Currency and competitiveness in Europe. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar. Read More