The Business Model of Panera Company - Essay Example

Case Studies Panera Since Panera expects to see double digit growth figures for restaurants working with their business model, it is difficult to see the top of the pyramid (customers) dwindling to be of any danger to them. However, the middle managers and non-permanent employees who work without benefits or tips could be expected to not be as enthusiastic about their jobs as top management therefore this could be cause for concern to the company. 2. Diversity could be problem for the company in the future since the present level of diversity is not enough. The top management and the board of directors is 100% male, since Panera is offering a healthier option for food, they could be helped by having female and minority members of the board as well as in the management team to provide a better corporate image. 3. Opening restaurants in other countries with an aggressive growth strategy would require a flood of marketing both in terms of awareness of healthy food (where such awareness is not already present) and establishing their brand identity. 4. The restaurant I went to seemed too dark and gloomy. Even though there were colorful signs at plenty of places, the lack of light made an overall depressing setting. I would suggest that they make use of natural light in the interior and bring the interiors with their unique selling point of healthy food and healthy lifestyles. Crossing Borders 1. From the case, it seems obvious that the key competency required would be excellent communications skills which can get the point across the table as well as across the border. Secondly, cultural competency and an ability to work with peoples of different cultures are also important. Finally, since a culture may not be as socially advanced, it could be towards the benefit of the company to use a male representative instead of a female if both of them are equally suited for the job at hand. 2. The only cost of not understanding diversity is profit, which is something no company can afford to lose. If the plant had been developed and run with an understanding of diversity, the communication problems and the cultural clashes could certainly be minimized and the lost production time could have been turned into profitable output. 3. The first problem she faced was stereotyping, just because she was Mexican American; it was assumed that she could work with Mexicans better than anyone else. The second problem was the cultural gap with the Mexicans and communication issues with the Americans. She also faced problems with Mexican men accepting her as the managerial figure because of her gender and finally she was unable to bring her American expectations of work and training to the Mexican operations. 4. Communications and cultural understanding is essential for any business to be a local success. While global operations and new markets have become the buzzwords for many companies in the market today, without understanding the working patterns of a certain locality, the company would not find success easy to come by. Even within the U.S. there are cultural differences between various regions and it is up to individual mangers to understand and utilize them to the advantage of the company. Never on Sunday 1. As is evident from the title of the case and as repeatedly suggested in the study, the family values are reflected quite clearly in the operations of the company. It appears that the running of the store has more to do with the running of a family than a corporation since many of the family members are Evangelical Christians. Their commitment towards the community and their running of the company as a drug-free company are just two of the signs mentioned in the study. 2. As much as I personally admire the company and the McCoy family, I do not think that such ideals will keep them competitive with companies like Home Depot and Lowe’s who are looking to increase their share of the pie. While I believe that businesses certainly should be run on ethical guidelines and should consider their responsibility to the community, they should try and separate their operations from their beliefs. 3. It can be both a help and a hindrance. People tend to be supportive of companies who have a positive community outlook and like to know that businesses in the area are doing something to help the people of the area. At the same time, remaining closed on Sundays is simply sending their customers to other stores and that will hurt their business. McCoy must find a balance between their beliefs and their business. 4. The fundamental difference between a family owned company and a company being run by outside professionals has to do with the operations of the company. A family run business has the luxury to choose to be totally closed on Sunday as in the case of McCoy. I doubt if they could continue doing so once the professional running the company from outside realize that Sunday is the day most people set aside for shopping the items they are selling. Perfect Pizzeria 1. While several motivational and reward theories can be applied to this setup created by the manger, the goal setting and achievement-reward based models are most appropriate. This is because the goal of work time for each employee who wishes to receive free food has been increased from 6 hours of work to 12 hours and now the additional work will have the rewards of free food and drink from the company. 2. Working with the employees is a very participatory management style which shows how the manger can lead with example. While this would be useful in cases where the employees see the manager as being different than them, in Perfect Pizzeria, the situation is quite the opposite. Since mangers seem to be paid as much as the other employees, there is little differentiation between them. Without this differentiation, motivation would be difficult to come across in this situation. 3. This is perhaps the least positive and the most negative approach the manager has picked since it does not motivate the employees to work towards a goal nor does it scare them into mending their ways. Additionally, subjecting employees to lie detector tests is just asking for a lawsuit since it may be within their constitutional and legal rights to deny taking the test without a warrant from the government. Finally, the employees know that the lie detector test would mean nothing since they all would be fired and that would leave the manager to handle the store as best he could. 4. Quit frankly, the best motivator is often a fist full of dollars. Instead of giving the manager a bonus if no wastage occurs in the store, the company could do a lot better if they increased the total size of the bonus and divided it amongst the employees. This would give everyone a very good reason to prevent wastage and ensure that the business remains profitable. Of course the manager can be given a bigger slice of the bonus but unless the employees also see some money coming their way, it would be difficult to convince them of the benefits of saving materials for the company. Read More