Dough Pizza may consider various biblical teachings, especially those that discourage unfair pricing of items. According to Esqueda (2014), Christian worldviews are founded on ideas and values prescribed in the bible. Specifically, the philosophy behind product pricing is emphasized in the bible where God encourages people, including business owners, to do what is satisfactory to Him, such as setting prices that reflect the actual value of respective products (1 Timothy 2: 3-4, New International Version).
Consequently, the price is set at the most ideal level to ensure that no exploitation of suppliers or customers is allowed (Katz & Green, 2017). Dough Pizza should also consider the golden rule when determining prices of its products. As stated in the book of Mathew 7 verse 12, God encourages this company’s proprietors to set prices that they would be comfortable with if given a chance to purchase similar items elsewhere.
When determining where to source labor or business stock for Dough Pizza, it is important to consider ethical values, which, in turn, match what Christianity upholds. For instance, being stewards of one another is an ethical principle that is emphasized in Genesis chapter 2 and verse 15 where God instructs Adam and Eve to take care of the Garden of Eden. This biblical guideline underlines the need for ensuring environmental integrity in the labor sourcing process. To ensure that Dough Pizza’s production practices are consistent with this Christian worldview, it should use supply chains that do not pollute the environment (Katz & Green, 2017).
In addition to avoiding discriminatory hiring policies, it should offer decent wage compensations. Moreover, honesty and dignity are increasingly becoming vital in business ethics. Therefore, according to Katz and Green (2017), Dough Pizza is expected to view laborers and customers as self-conscious individuals who need to be treated with decorum, regardless of where they were sourced from, including foreign countries. They should not be exploited.
Product Feasibility Analysis
Product feasibility analysis reveals the extent to which a particular commodity is worth introducing to the market. Based on the data given regarding Dough Pizza’s products, a feasibility study depicts these commodities as capable of yielding profits for this company. Firstly, the product and service mix differentiates these fast-food commodities in the market, hence influencing customers’ decisions to purchase them, as opposed to those of its rivals such as Papa John’s Pizza.
Clients who prefer fast foods such as pizza usually go for products that not only guarantee value for their money but also those, which satisfy their nutritional demands. Dough Pizza’s items are exceptional due to their flexible sizes, color, and prices and hence the reason why customers are likely to select this company, as opposed to its competitors. Moreover, Dough Pizza’s value proposition is likely to push sales because it is sensitive to customers’ need for tasty and fresh products.
According to Payne, Frow, and Eggert (2017), business success depends on loyal customers who can spend repeatedly and recommend others to acquire particular products that guarantee consistent value. Secondly, the cost of production is comprehensive and realistic because it includes fixed expenses such as labor, utilities, and varying overheads of materials (Katz & Green, 2017). Thirdly, the pricing strategy is competitive. Dough Pizza’s product prices are in line with those of its competitors. Such a strategy offers customers the opportunity to select this company’s pizzas that are reasonably priced, tasty, and customized in terms of sizes. Particularly, prices set are not only competitive but also consider the cost of production. The revenue forecast is based on realistic factors. Overall, this company’s products can do well in the market.
References
Esqueda, O. J. (2014). Biblical worldview: The Christian higher education foundation for learning. Christian Higher Education, 13(2), 91-100.
Katz, J., & Green, R. P. (2017). Entrepreneurial small business (5th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
Payne, A., Frow, P., & Eggert, A. (2017). The customer value proposition: Evolution, development, and application in marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 45(4), 467-489. Web.
The company under analysis has been facing challenges when attempting at entering the designated market, which calls for a change in the present framework to planning and execution. Particularly, it is desirable to explore the unique characteristics of consumer culture in the market in question. Additionally, the firm will need to seek merger opportunities in order to explore new horizons and appeal to a wider population. Merger opportunities also provide a chance for the firm to improve the quality of its products and expand the range thereof, thus attracting a range of new buyers. To determine the market value of the organization, one will need to define its share price and multiply it by its stock price.
Entering New Markets: Planning and Execution
As a company enters new territory, it is most likely to encounter a vast array of risks associated with the factors that are inherent to the selected environment. To handle these risks, an organization has to perform a detailed analysis of external risks and the assets that it has in the target environment. Thus, a company can seize market opportunities and take a niche that will allow it to grow and expand. In the firm in question, a different approach toward planning, which involves a more balanced strategy regarding the use of the customers’ needs analysis to define changes in demand, at the same time retaining flexibility.
The process of planning and execution always involves a certain degree of luck when it comes to the management of the execution process, mostly due to the unpredictability of alterations in potential buyers’ demands. When taking the idea of market unpredictability to its extreme, one will have to admit that strategic planning as a notion may need to be replaced with the development of flexibility and adaptability to new market environments. The approach that involves denying strategic planning as a concept and utilizing flexibility as the key asset for surviving in the uncertain economy may not be required for another decade, yet Dough Pizza will definitely have to build the strategies that will allow it to withstand possible rapid changes in the selected market.
The modern global economy provides a vast number of examples of what is ostensibly natural luck, yet is actually defined by a firm’s ability to remain flexible and adapt toward rapid alterations in its niche market. One may need to recall the case of Vestel as the evidence in favor of the necessity to combine planning with the ability to take a chance and use the opportunity that was not included in the initial plan and emerged only after it had been compiled (“Strategic increments that maximize margins: Solvoyo case study of Vestel,” 2014). By emphasizing the side effects that planning myopia may have on a company’s success in the target market, the case in question suggests that an organization should take the unpredictability factor into account when executing its plans and entering a new market.
Discovering a Potential Business Partner
In order to expand into a specific niche market, a company often needs to consider the support of a partner. Indeed, it is very uncommon for organizations to make business decisions in isolation, which means that joining forces with another company is likely to have a positive effect on Dough Pizza’s chances of succeeding in the selected market environment.
When choosing a partner for the company, one should keep in mind that Dough Pizza’s key competitive advantage concerns its ability to utilize the minimum of resources to produce diverse products of high quality. Therefore, it is desirable for the firm to explore the options associated with the use of the best food ingredients in its end products, which is why seeking the support of the firms that will allow promoting the product and establishing the brand is critical.
In order to create a memorable brand image, Dough Pizza will need the support of a business partner that will offer the company enough publicity. Specifically, a local restaurant that is frequented by a large number of citizens and, thus, will be capable of offering an impressive promotion, should be considered. Partnering with a local agribusiness company that produces food of the finest quality may also be deemed as an important step in improving the quality of the pizza, yet the decision to focus on partnership solely as the tool for driving quality forward is unlikely to yield impressive marketing results for the organization. Ideally, Dough Pizza should consider selecting both options as partnership opportunities to maintain its product quality and build brand recognition.
The support of the organization such as Cargill as a business partner ad the supplier of the ingredients of the needed quality should be regarded as crucial for Dough Pizza currently. The company of Cargill’s caliber will help to promote Dough Pizza and elevate its reputation, thus cementing the firm’s public image as the provider of high-quality food (“Pizza dough”, n.d.). While it will still be necessary for Dough Pizza to uphold the set standards of quality and introduce innovative methods for improving it, the organization will receive the boost that will lead to its immediate success in the market.
Additional Methods of Determining Market Value
Defining the market value of an organization allows one to gauge the opportunity for succeeding in a niche of one’s choice when entering a new economic setting. Therefore, for a new company such as Dough Pizza, it will be essential to explore extra opportunities for measuring the value that it may gain in the global economic setting. Using a comparative analysis as the means of evaluating Dough Pizza’s current market value seems quite a legitimate approach since the company needs to have the competitive advantage that measures up to the ones of its competitors.
The introduction of comparative analysis as the strategy for defining the competitive potential of a firm is rather helpful since it allows setting the bar at the required level and determines what tools can be used to increase a firm’s market value. Specifically, the introduction of the selected strategy will help one to advance the organization in its target market and update its present-day approach toward managing its corporate resources.
The resulting change in the management of the company’s financial resources will lead to the creation of opportunities for investing in the areas that currently need immediate financial support, such as the quality management department (Fernández-Gámez, Gil-Corral, & Galán-Valdivieso, 2016). The following positive change in the company’s product, in turn, will entail a rise in the levels of customer satisfaction, thus helping Dough Pizza to gain the attention of new audiences and establish its presence in its target market as the firm with the food of high quality and reasonable prices.
It is expected that the approach for determining marketing value that involves a comparison of the firm to other companies will allow Dough Pizza to increase its efficacy, simultaneously retaining its unique qualities. By exploring the strategies that other organizations utilize to build influence in the target market, Dough Pizza will be able to create an amalgam of its own philosophy and the approaches used by other successful organizations. Thus, Dough Pizza will gain the audience and acclaim needed to take its niche and become a success.
References
Fernández-Gámez, M. A., Gil-Corral, A. M., & Galán-Valdivieso, F. (2016). Corporate reputation and market value: Evidence with generalized regression neural networks. Expert Systems with Applications, 46, 69-76. Web.
As Dough Pizza has gone through multiple stages in development, the company may begin considering the range of new and niche markets to increase opportunities and explore customer segments that have not had any interest in the company previously. It has been identified that the company will benefit from introducing both new products and services.
Niche Markets
As a unique market that Dough Pizza can explore, it is proposed to look at the meal kit delivery service, which is a growing industry that has become especially popular with the help of social media advertising. Dough Pizza can be successful in entering the market of meal kit deliveries because it already has a solid customer base, which will be interested in trying out various Italian food recipes. The production of beverages such as lemonades, ciders, and craft beer is also possible for the company to consider because of the direct links with the restaurant business. To support the entries, Dough Pizza needs to develop a cohesive marketing strategy and employ specialists that have knowledge of the processes involved in beverage making or meal kit delivery.
Promising Markets and Industries
The ten most rapidly growing industries and markets include construction, professional services, tech and gaming, renewable energy, breweries, e-commerce, mobile food services, meal-kit delivery services, wineries, and distilleries. The construction industry has seen tremendous growth over the past decade due to the building construction boom and the need to provide housing for the growing population. Professional services range from photography to accounting and imply the availability of an expert with specific knowledge in the field. The tech and gaming industry is expected to grow by 55% between 2012 and 2023 and expanding the popularity of virtual reality will provide entertainment on a global scale.
The high demand for renewable energy is linked to greater affordability and sustainability, which is why new companies emerge to capitalize on the opportunity (MacDonald, 2018). Breweries are becoming popular with the growing demand for niche craft beers. Between 2008 and 2017, the number of brewery employees increased by 158.3%, which is “more than 29 times the national employment growth for all occupations of 5.4%) (Comen & Stebbins, 2019, para. 14). E-commerce also continues to grow as customers find it more convenient to order desired products online instead of going out to stores. Mobile food services include a range of nonstationary food vendors, such as trucks, and have become very popular especially among customers on the go.
Meal-kit deliveries are also growing fast as a service because they are appealing to customers that have families or are very busy, thus do not have time to prepare meals from scratch. According to Comen and Stebbins (2019), the demand for wineries has been fueled by the interest from the millennial generation as the youngest members reached their legal drinking age, and as mentioned in “the research from industry association the Wine Market Council, a large share favor wine” (para. 14). Similar to the demand for wine, distilleries are also increasing in popularity as the disposable income in the United States rose to $45,000 by 2017 (Comen & Stebbins, 2019).
Products and Services
Companies such as Blue Apron, Home Chef, and HelloFresh deliver pre-measured ingredients along with simple step-by-step recipe instructions to aid customers in preparing a meal by themselves, a model that Dough Pizza can replicate (Vachon, 2019). For example, a meal kit can include all ingredients to make homemade pizza so that customers try to do it and compare the final product with the one they tried at the restaurant. Importantly, the meal kit menu should be different from the one served at Dough Pizza to ensure that customers also visit the restaurant or get take out.
Wineries and breweries represent another opportunity for Dough Pizza because alcoholic beverages come hand-in-hand with the restaurant industry. The company can cooperate with local specialists in the field to produce specialized beverages that will only be available at Dough Pizza restaurants under the company’s label. Mobile food services can also be pursued by the company because of the potential to offer customers new ways of enjoying the dishes that have previously been available only at restaurants. Thus, offering meal kits, specialized wine, and beer, as well as food trucks will help the company to withstand the competition because most of the restaurants of Dough Pizza’s format do not provide specialized products. Bringing targeted products and services will enable customers to try new offerings and develop closer connections with the brand through its extended range.
In regards to the differentiation between definitions, a market defines a group of customers, which implies a degree of flexibility. A single product can have several target markets depending on its use. Industries are seen as big and inflexible and are defined by the general criteria of government regulations and other institutional frameworks. Despite the fact that many use the three terms interchangeably, there is some distinction between them. An industry cannot be replaced by a market because there is a set of rules and regulations that cannot be eliminated.
Innovation Radar
If to apply the Innovation Radar tool to Dough Pizza, the most significant points will be attributed to offerings, brand, networking, presence, and customer experiences. The radar offers a 360-degree look at the innovation of a company, its strategic focus, and positioning. The company’s radar orientation is explained by the fact that the introduction of new products and the entrance to new markets will call for Dough Pizza’s efforts to attract customers through a solid brand image and the communication of unique products and services. The introduction of branded wine and beer at the restaurant implies the enhancement of the customer experiences, especially among the target market of millennials who have shown an increased interest in trying out craft beverages. The middle-ground focus of the company based on the Innovation Radar will be linked to the supply chain and the organization of the smooth processes of delivering the products to customers. This implies collaboration with local wine and beer producers and finding the most appropriate kinds of beverages that will be received well by the Dough Pizza consumers.
Concluding Remarks
At the current stage of Dough Pizza’s development, there is a range of opportunities that the company can pursue to capture new markets and customer segments. Meal kit deliveries and mobile food services are solutions for those customers who do not have enough time to prepare meals from scratch or are always busy. Branded wine and craft beer are products that will enhance the quality of customer experiences at Dough Pizza. Clients will also be welcomed to purchase the beverages to take out as presents for friends or to consume at home. Overall, there are multiple ways in which the company can expand and reach a competitive advantage.
Dough Pizza is a company with the core value of satisfying the needs and desires of customers to consume affordable and high-quality foods. The business has grown through continuously catering to the demands of clients and expanding marketing efforts to ensure a steady flow of new Dough Pizza visitors. Thus, the development of the growth and maturity tactical plan is essential for addressing the needs of the company in terms of staffing, operations, and marketing. This plan is expected to help Dough Pizza grow and strengthen its competitive advantage.
Staffing Plan
For Dough Pizza as a growing company, continuing to hire the staff that will bring positive outcomes for the business is crucial. The restaurant will need a reliable manager with at least three years of experience, whose salary can range between $30,000 to $35,000 per year. An executive chef that will develop new menus will earn between $35,000 to $45,000. To establish an effective environment, the chef will be encouraged to hire cooks that will fit his or her requirements and contribute to the effective operation of Dough Pizza. An estimated pay for cooks (5-6 workers) is between $600 and $650 per week.
Maintenance staff (7-9 workers) such as dishwashers, cleaners, and other personnel will be hired with the help of cooks, the chef, and the manager based on their previous experience working with such personnel; the expected pay for maintenance staff will be $10 an hour. Lastly, the serving staff will be hired through a series of interviews, test runs, and training to ensure that they provide top-quality services to customers. It is expected to pay them around $13 per hour due to their earning tips additionally.
The initial hiring of the restaurant manager and the chef will be conducted by the restaurant’s owner while the subsequent hiring processes will be assigned as the responsibilities of the hired professionals. Any additional training, including management, cooking, and language courses will be given to all workers regardless of their levels of experience. For the manager and the chef, festivals and symposiums represent great opportunities to meet professionals and establish potential business connections.
Apart from the annual or hourly compensations, employees will also be given health benefits, bonuses, and incentives, as well as retirement savings plans. Based on the developed performance management system, workers will receive annual raises depending on their ratings. For instance, if the new menu developed by the chef increases the number of visitors, he or she will be eligible for a 15% to 25% salary increase. Healthcare benefits will be paid separately to cover basic employee needs, including dental and vision care as well as disability insurance.
Operations Plan
The day-to-day operations of Dough Pizza will revolve around working on the menu, maintaining an operational license, and investing in the technological development of the business. In addition to this, the restaurant’s management should ensure that all legal requirements within the Lynchburg, VA jurisdiction are met as well as that all the necessary licenses are obtained. The chef will be responsible for ensuring the passing of all health and safety inspections that occur at restaurants regularly (Santacruz, 2016). All of these processes have the ultimate goal of ensuring the provision of value to potential customers. As mentioned in 2 Timothy 3:17, a man of God “may be competent, equipped for every good work” (New International Version).
When it comes to the cost of capital, it is necessary to estimate to ensure that the expenditures are worth the costs. It is expected that when Dough Pizza will have higher costs of capital compared to companies that work for decades because investors will have stricter demands in terms of ensuring that the money they pay double or even triple in the future. The equipment necessary for the provision of value to customers includes kitchen appliances, maintenance tools, hardware, and software for the digital support of all systems, as well as all components inherent to the interior and exterior of the restaurant. The costs of the equipment will later be compared with the revenue that the restaurant receives as a result of the investment.
In terms of the management structure of Dough Pizza, the organization will be run by the company’s owner, who is the CEO, staying at the top of the hierarchy. The restaurant manager will be directly below the CEO of Dough Pizza and assign responsibilities to the assistant manager and shift running manager. The shift running manager will subsequently give assignments to crew members, including serving personnel and maintenance staff (see Figure 1).
The restaurant’s owner will be in direct relationship to Dough Pizza’s chef whose responsibility is linked to the management of the kitchen staff. This points to the differentiation of responsibilities: while the restaurant manager will be concerned with the management of the staff that serves customers and maintains the restaurant, the chef will manage his or her cooks as well as any procedures necessary for ensuring the success of the menu.
Social media marketing represents the main strategy that Dough Pizza will implement for attracting customers to its restaurants. The choice is explained by the fact that 88% of Internet users are influenced by reviews and online comments regarding the hospitality industry. Thus, for the marketing strategy work for Dough Pizza, the company must establish a social media presence that will be interesting and appealing to potential customers.
This means making sure that social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and others are up-to-date and easily accessible, especially when it comes to including special promotions, codes, and contact information. Facebook pages represent a great opportunity to include such information as opening and closing hours, address, popular visit times, and messaging options. Hiring a social media manager will be beneficial for Dough Pizza for ensuring that customers receive answers to their questions promptly as well as that the content is always relevant and appealing. For instance, taking pictures of the dishes served at the restaurant is an effective marketing strategy for Dough Pizza.
While such a strategy may not work for upmarket and niche restaurants that prefer not displaying food imagery, the pizzeria that focuses on friends and family values can benefit from good photographs of food, the interior, as well as customers who would like to be featured on Dough Pizza social media profiles (Craig, 2018). In restaurant marketing, the high level of competition for the attention of customers represents a great opportunity for highlighting the work of chefs.
Google AdWord advertisement is a suitable way for Dough Pizza to market the restaurants and capture a large online audience (Gabbert, 2018). The company should create advertisements that will be displayed on Google search sites (Chen, 2016). This is suitable for a limited budget (based on the cost-benefit analysis developed for Dough Pizza) and in cases when restaurants need to develop better brand awareness. In terms of the anticipated marketing budget, it is estimated that the company will spend between $50,000 and $65,000 annually. In subsequent years, the budget can increase if the efforts show to be successful. Funds for marketing will be allocated from the percentage of sales acquired during previous operational years. This method is beneficial for the following reasons:
Sales volumes show how much a business can spend on marketing;
Marketing managers are encouraged to consider relationships between profits per unit, selling price, and promotional costs;
Competitive parity in the industry is maintained: all firms in the industry spend approximately the same percentage of sales on their marketing efforts;
A company is continuously oriented on its sales targets.
Overall, the marketing strategy for Dough Pizza will be focused on establishing a positive brand image online and ensuring that customers remain engaged and interested in what the restaurant has to offer. Social media and Google AdWords are the main marketing tools that the company can use. This strategy is supported by the overarching prevalence of online advertising over traditional methods.
Conclusion
In summary, the growth and maturity plan of Dough Pizza will depend on ensuring the provision of high-quality products and services. The marketing strategy will be based on using social media and Internet services for attracting new customers to the restaurant and engaging them in a conversation about the improvement of the restaurant. The specific concerns regarding staffing, operations, and marketing have been addressed, suggesting that the focus of Dough Pizza should remain on customer orientation.
Exploring the case of Dough Pizza as a hypothetical company expanded knowledge on business principles. The four-course cognate offered high value through various assignments and broadened the range of perspectives used to consider business plans as an activity overall. The most crucial takeaways from the course include creative thinking, problem-solving, the application of business principles to practice, as well as the general knowledge of studied topics and subjects.
Dough Pizza
Dough Pizza has developed as a successful restaurant offering high-quality dishes at affordable prices. Sub sandwiches and pizzas are the key foods that customers can buy at the restaurant. The company has placed its focus on fostering positive relationships with local customers in Lynchburg, VA, being one of the go-to places where the community comes to eat and spend some time. The organization has implemented effective marketing campaigns through the years of its development by engaging its workers and loyal customers. To facilitate market expansion, considerations of entering a new market were associated with Dough Pizza creating a chain of mobile food trucks to serve customers around the city. Such a decision was based on the growing value of the food truck industry as well as the possibility to offer a unique market proposition (Statista, 2019).
The four-course cognate provided the immense value of the overall exercise through broadening the range of perspectives used to consider business plans as an activity overall. Dough Pizza is a business developed through creativity and rational decision-making, which allowed to look on market principles and concepts through the lens of knowledge development. The understanding of business operations enhanced with the help of assignments that called for the development of innovative solutions and approaches to broadening the impact of the hypothetical company.
The three critical success factors for which an organization should plan and which it should consider include risk management, productivity, and sustainability (Guillen & Garcia-Canal, 2012). It is important to understand and plan for risk management because of the need to identify possible barriers and address them in a timely manner; this was true for Dough Pizza also. Productivity is a success factor that implies core team development and requires a focus on company achievement (Llopis, 2012). Sustainability is necessary because due diligence and the assurance of the quality of products and services guarantee a positive brand image and increases customer loyalty.
The four most important takeaways from the exercise are creative thinking, problem-solving, the application of business principles to practice, as well as the general knowledge of studied topics and subjects. In developing the strategies for the business, creative thinking was the primary competence necessary in order to present a realistic outlook on the problem. Problem-solving was needed for identifying issues that a company faces and developing appropriate solutions for reaching prosperity. The application of business principles was also imperative because without them it would have been impossible to write cohesive proposals for assignments. The general knowledge expanded during the course as it was needed to consider multiple perspectives and scenarios.
Psalms 1 says that prospering is possible through the path of righteousness and love for God. “He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruits in its season and its leaf does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers” (Psalm 1:3). This quote also applies to business ventures, thus suggesting that hard work – streams of water – can grow anything and lead it to prosperity.
References
Guillen, M., & Garcia-Canal, E. (2012). Emerging markets rule: Growth strategies of the new global giants. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.
When Dough Pizza reaches the stage of maturity, it is expected to be well-established in the restaurant industry, have well-known products and services, as well as a loyal following of customers with average growth. Based on the contingency plan developed for the company, it was found that the restaurant may not achieve profitability in the next five years, which is why selling the company may be a good solution. Nevertheless, prior to making a decision on whether the company should be sold, it is important to assess the viability of the transaction, determine the value of Dough Pizza, and discuss changes that can impact the nature of the company altogether.
Viability of Selling Dough Pizza
The five-year projection of profit has shown that Dough Pizza is unlikely to reach profitability, which points to the possible financial struggles that the company will face. However, it is expected that once it reaches maturity, the profit will reach a steady level since the restaurant will acquire regular clients and will implement consistent marketing campaigns over the years. Therefore, the restaurant is not a strong candidate for sale, as it may not bring the desired level of income to those who decide to purchase it. A small business such as Dough Pizza is run by families or friends, which makes them unique (Wagner, 2014).
There is a possibility of the restaurant being purchased by a franchise of a large pizzeria chain; however, this means that Dough Pizza will stop operating as an independent company. Furthermore, the workers of the restaurant risk their positions if Dough Pizza is purchased, and the work that they have put into the small business should not be overlooked. As mentioned in Exodus 35:35 NIV, “he has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers – all of them skilled workers and designers.”
Value of Dough Pizza
When determining the value of the business, it is recommended that Dough Pizza’s owners evaluate the rates of customer turnover and the numbers of loyal clients that have continued supporting the restaurant over the years. As a client-centered business, Dough Pizza’s value is based on customer satisfaction, which has a direct impact on increased revenues. If the restaurant has a solid client base that is enough for earning a profit, such a base should be valued.
The loyal customer base also represents some opportunities for effective marketing efforts. An example of this can be a campaign using real Dough Pizza clients who share their positive experiences of visiting the restaurant. The connection between customers and the restaurant can serve as a unique value proposition to attract prospective clients and facilitate a new wave of profit for the restaurant as a mature business.
Another important point to mention regarding the assessment of Dough Pizza’s value is associated with the team that runs the restaurant. Over the years, it is expected that the company hires professionals in their field that help the restaurant grow as a business. If they were treated and compensated fairly for their labor, the workers would represent one of the most crucial assets to the enhancement of the company’s value overall (Sheeler, 2016). The skills, knowledge, and experience that Dough Pizza employees have acquired over the course of their work at the organization are irreplaceable and, therefore, should be counted as contributors to the organization’s success. Due to the decision that selling Dough Pizza is not viable, the workers can also be used as a strength in the marketing efforts of the company. Similar to the idea of using real Dough Pizza clients for the marketing campaign, it also possible to use the restaurant’s workers as representatives of quality and the preservation of traditions.
Changing the Nature of the Business
As a pizzeria restaurant, Dough Pizza has limited opportunities when it comes to engaging in a complete change of the business. However, in terms of introducing new products, it is possible to diversify the selection of dishes. On the one hand, it is possible to stay true to Italian cuisine and broaden the menu by including only Italian foods, which presents an opportunity for new marketing. In this scenario, the focus can be placed on the authenticity of Italian cuisine and the preservation of traditions inherent to it.
On the other hand, Dough Pizza can undergo a rebranding in order to expand the range of foods from different parts of the world. For instance, pizza and sushi are a popular combination, because these foods are very popular among customers and the convenience of ordering them in one place can attract new clients (Kincaid, 2017). Another alternative is offering more baked goods, such as bagels and croissants, and focus on the fact that the restaurant serves many dishes that include dough. In this case, it is recommended for Dough Pizza to change its name to ‘Dough’ and implement a marketing campaign to attract customers. Overall, it is advised not to sell the restaurant and use any opportunity to extend its profitability.
The Management-Research Question Hierarchy for Ramada
The management research questions hierarchy for Ramada range from the clarification of the research question to the definition of the study question. The hierarchy includes
Clarification of the study questions
Determining the predicaments facing the management
Trends indicating the decrease in customer satisfaction within the hospitality industry
Defining the management question such as
What kind of measures should RFS take in order to sustain the costumer’s service ratings?
Defining the research questions, for instance,
What caused the increase in customer satisfaction?
What actions should RFS undertake in order to identify the required changes?
Refining the research questions, for instance,
Relate the employees’ skills development and motivation with customer satisfaction
The belief that employees input remains to be a significant factor in developing new skills and motivation. What could be the best atmosphere for RFS to attain direct inputs from the employees?
When should study conducted to attain the highest level of response.
The Research Process Model to the Ramada Research Initiative
The role and process of exploration in Ramada’s research
RFS had increased chances of determining the best hiring firm. Besides, RFS could determine the training modes as well as the manner in which the firms motivate their employees.
The role of secondary data in the exploration phase of the research
The secondary data play a critical role in saving the cost of conducting the study. In other words, time and resources incurred were greatly reduced through the application of the secondary data. The reason is that the accessibility of secondary data is easier and cheaper compared with the primary sources. In addition, most of the data from the secondary sources could not be easily provided by an individual.
The steps and phases in the process model that can be matched with the Ramada research
The steps and phases in the Ramada’s study can be matched with steps number 1, 3, 5 and 6 accordingly.
The research process decisions that were made including the study by outside suppliers
One of the research decisions that were made includes the data collection in nine hundred sites through the application of twenty-four assistants within a period of six months. In addition, the utilization the outsourced suppliers in the research of firms that are performing was also an important decision. For instance, Ramada used D. K Shifflet as one of the outsourced suppliers to examine the level of customer satisfaction within the industry.
The sampling methodology that were used and its appropriateness
The judgmental sampling methodology was primarily used in the study. The judgmental sampling method is considered to be the most efficient, expedient and cost effective
The research design applied its strengths and weaknesses
The mainly applied the quasi-experimental design. The advantage of this design is that it can easily be implemented in researches involving organizations unlike randomized research design that best suits studies of institutions and individuals
The role property owners/managers play in the research design
The property mangers/owners participated in answering the research questionnaires during the surveys
Why Ramada choose to conduct the research in a non-traditional, party-like atmosphere, the advantages and disadvantages of such an approach
Ramada chose the non-traditional atmosphere in order to make the study be competitive and appropriate for both internal and external environment of the firm
The Manner in which the Research Findings are reflected in the Ultimate Management Decisions
The study by Ramada has been applied in various management decisions. One of the areas that has benefitted from the study is the hiring process. Employees are currently screened using the predictive index attributes. Generally, the hiring process of the firm has been greatly improved.
Donatos Case
Evaluate the Test Market Donatos Used
The assessments of the test markets are directly associated with sampling and sampling procedures, the experimentations as well as areas that touch on the product development study. The examination of the Donatos test markets are also important in the understanding of the procedures used in the data collection and issues of ethics when dealing with the participants. Essentially, the test markets focuses on the firm’s product a particular geographical market. The test market used by Donatos raises critical reliability issues.
One of the issues is the application of test markets in one city. In fact, one location cannot be used in the test markets. The reason is that there are distinct eating habits by geography. Studies indicate that the eating preferences vary according to the geographical location. The variations in the eating preferences are due to the intra-cultural differences in the eating habits. As such, the conclusions made on the preferences in the test markets conducted in one geographical location may not be valid and applicable in other places.
In other words, the test market should be conducted in various geographical locations in order to draw a general conclusion on the clients’ preferences on the type of the food products. The reliability issue remains a critical concern on the test markets conducted by the Donatos.
The other important issue is the lack of promotion when the new product was introduced for test markets. In fact the tests were conducted for several days without constructive promotion in order to attract the clients into the restaurant. The main purpose of the promotion is to influence the clients towards purchasing the “no dough pizza”. Lack of promotion indicates that the clients that were sampled did not fit within the precincts of the business potential customers.
In this case, the potential clients are those people who follow the low-cab diet. Furthermore, the continuous test markets need the determination of the preferences of the sampled units and the target clients. The determination of the differences in the preferences could be achieved through the application of screening questions during the study.
The other critical issue is the test market procedures. In experimental tests, products are tested under controlled conditions. However, the actual circumstances of the test market procedures do not allow experimentation process. The use of controlled conditions cannot be applied in test markets. An ethical issue also came up in the preparation stage of the new pizza to be tested. The firm utilizes underage employees in the process. The use of the underage group of employees raised ethical issues. Donatos is known for the use of underage employees that does not raise issues of compensation despite the work volume. The products that were brought for the test market could have some faulty ingredients given the type of employees used in their preparation.
Advantages and Disadvantages of the Test Market
In this case, the critical analysis of research method applied by Donatos remains significant. Besides, several advantages and disadvantages associated with test markets applied by Donatos remains critical for the study. The suggested pros and cons of the test markets used by the firm are categorized according to the instruments applied during the tests.
The in-restaurant tests
The advantages of using the in-restaurant tests include the reduced cost of conducting the tests as the firm utilizes its own customers as the samples for the test. In addition, there is increased capability of collecting data at the shortest time possible. Because the tests are conducted at the restaurant, there are reduced costs in terms of supervision and labor (Punch, 2006). Moreover, conducting tests on site reduces the cost of product testing facilities. In this case, the low-cab pizza is the product being tested and was not considered as low-cab option during the testing time.
The call-back phone survey
One of the advantages of the call-back phone survey is that a wide range of customers are contacted for the possible feedback. The customers present the target market for the tested products. Besides, given that the clients normally initiate the calls, they might provide useful responses related to the product being tested (Zikmund & Babin, 2006). Moreover, the use of call-back phone survey enables the survey team to reach customers who otherwise would be inaccessible (Offredy &Vickers, 2013). Further, the clients are free to express their views on the product. In other words, the clients are free to express their negative attitude towards the new product.
On the other hand, the participation of the clients on the survey is not definite. In such a situation, large non-response error could be generated. Besides, in the absence of the incentives, as in this case, the clients may not be willing to participate in the survey. Incentives are normally important in such surveys since clients are normally motivated by such incentives (Malhotra, Hall & Shaw, 2007).
As such failure to provide incentives discourage the clients who would have participated. Moreover, the self-initiated survey may generate samples that are not representative of the desired market for the product. Such undesired sample units may be costly to the firm in the after some time. Donatos is likely to sustain extra expenses through the use of this survey method because of using the interviewers in the call-back process.
Measurement Scales That Could Have Been Used on the Survey as Part of the In-Restaurant Product Tests
Various measurement scales can be applied to rate and rank the preferences of the clients on the product being tested. Some of the ranking scales are the Likert and the nominal scales. Each of these scales has both the advantages and disadvantages. Likert scales are normally used to measure the degree of the client’s preferences. The major advantage of the Likert scale is that it can measure various dimensions within a specific study.
The numerical scales are characterized by the suppleness in the application of both ordinal and interval data (Lamb, Hair & McDaniel, 2008). However, using both scales, Likert and numerical, the researcher can easily rank the clients preferences and attitudes towards the product being tested. In fact, Donatos could have used the ranking or paired-comparison scale. The reason is that the paired-comparison scales have been proved to be efficient particularly while comparing different tastes of various types of ingredients.
In the circumstances that Donatos offer diverse ingredients of the tested pizzas, the clients could be asked to make judgment and choose their most preferred ingredient. In fact, Donatos provides diverse pizza types which could be ranked according to their ingredients or toppings that is most preferred to the low-cab eaters. The clients’ suggestions could also be ranked depending on their preferences on the provided ingredients. Ranking or rating the suggestions and comparisons enables Donatos to come up with the most preferred ingredients among the pizzas provided.
In the case of in-restaurant tests, Likert or the numerical scale would be the most appropriate dimension range (Iacobucci & Churchill, 2009). Donatos could have used both the measurement scales on the favorite attitude towards the components of the products being offered. Specifically, the Likert scale is widely applied in comparing the preferences of the clients with others. In this case, the Likert scale would enable the firm to make comparisons on the preferences of its customers (Iacobucci & Churchill, 2009).
On the other hand, the numerical scale is important during the analysis due to its characteristic of being flexible in the use of ordinal and interval data. Likert scales measure various dimensions. In this case, the firm can apply the Likert scale to measure the likelihood of the clients to make repeat purchases. Both the Likert and numerical scales are simple and could easily be managed by the researchers.
Headquartered in Toledo, Marco’s Pizza is a popular pizza restaurant chain that offers high-quality, authentic Italian pizza, salads, chicken wings, baked subs, and other products. Being one of the fastest-growing franchises in the United States, Marco’s Pizza planned to continue its growth to Iowa, in particular, the Des Moines area. Following its program for strategic expansion, the company aimed to introduce 15 new locations in Iowa in 2017, with 1 or 2 of them in Des Moines (“Marco’s Pizza,” 2017, para. 1). Within the next several years, the number of locations is expected to grow in accordance with the company’s aggressive scalable business model.
As of 2017, there were only 8 locations in Iowa, all of which partnered with Marco’s franchise Family Video (“Marco’s Pizza,” 2017, para. 3). The initiative to locate Marco’s Pizza in Des Moines was originally taken by Dan and Sherri Holmes, the residents of Des Moines who wanted to introduce quality products and customer-friendly service to the community. Under Holmes’ ownership, the first Marco’s location opened in Des Moines (“Marco’s Pizza,” 2017). Apart from Des Moines, targeted markets for growth include its suburbs, such as Norwalk, Norwoodville, and Avon Lake.
Laws of Supply and Demand
The strategic expansion of Marco’s Pizza to the Des Moines area will be subject to the law of supply and demand. In particular, when opening new locations, franchisees will have to decide on the price of the product and the quantity of that product. Rational estimation of these values will contribute to the cost-effective allocation of resources. In order to make these choices, a thorough analysis of the market has to be conducted.
It is important to understand the demand for the product to estimate how many products (raw materials) need to be bought to generate the required supply. Marco’s Pizza has become a beloved brand of many Americans because it makes pizza with fresh ingredients only (“Marco’s Pizza,” 2017). This means that dough never gets frozen and is baked every day, and the cheese blend is also never frozen. If the franchise owner sets too high prices for its products, customers may not be willing to buy them. If the prices are lowered, the demand for those products will increase. One could state that to increase the demand; prices may be lowered even more, though, in such a case, the revenue generated may not cover costs of operation (Cowell, 2018). Therefore, the prices should be set at the point when supply and demand reach equilibrium.
In the real world, the supply is also affected by production capacity, operation costs, and other competitors in the market. The demand is affected by the quality and cost of the product. If the price of Marco’s pizzas drops, the client base will increase. If the price of Marco’s pizzas increases, its customers may choose to buy pizza at Marco’s competitors. However, the law of supply and demand may be applied not only to prices but also to other activities. In particular, the wages of Marco’s employees will depend on the level of unemployment or, in other words, the supply of workers and the demand for work.
It has to be said that the demand for Marco’s products varies across states, and so does the price. If the price for Marco’s pizza and other products were the same for all the states, there would be no need to estimate the price for every position in the menu. However, it is a fact that prices differ slightly, and this depends on a number of factors, the primary of which is the cost of operations. One could assume that different Marco’s Pizza stores have different costs of operation, including labor, taxes, and local fees. Marco’s franchisees set their own prices with no one dictating the price-setting strategy. However, this does not mean that franchises may set too high prices to keep customers coming. At the same time, following anti-monopoly and anti-collusion laws, the prices of local franchises should be different.
Surplus and Shortage of Supply
The amount which producers may want to sell does not necessarily match the amount which the consumers want to buy. This may be especially the case for stores that have opened recently and cannot determine the effective amount of supply (Cowell, 2018). If Marco’s Pizza bakes more pizzas than demand, this situation is called excess supply or surplus. It should be mentioned that surplus is always fixed to a specific price of the product since when the price is lowered, it may be expected that most of the excess pizzas will be sold. The price will drop until there is no more surplus.
Conversely, if the quantity supplied is less than the quantity demanded, excess demand or shortage may be observed. If in some businesses it is feasible to increase prices, that will not work for the pizza industry that has a great number of competitors and thus high elasticity of demand. If Marco’s franchisees decide to increase the price, consumers may be unwilling to pay more and will choose Marco’s competitors. Taking into account that Marco’s Pizza is new to residents of Des Moines, the price increase strategy may not bring much profit. Therefore, when deciding on supply, the company should be guided by the rule of profit maximization and set marginal revenue equal to the marginal cost.
Elasticity of Demand
The elasticity of demand defines the extent to which the demand is impacted by a change in the price of a product. The demand may be elastic and inelastic, depending on its responsiveness (Kreps, 2019). Since Marco’s Pizza has competitors in the Des Moines area (Fong’s Pizza, Blaze Pizza, Gusto Pizza, and others), the demand for pizza is elastic. In other words, if the price of the product changes, the demand will change significantly. This, in turn, will lead to a change in revenue. The greater the number of Marco’s competitors, the more elastic the demand for its products will be. This is because competitors act as substitutes to which consumers will possibly turn if the price of Marco’s pizza increases.
Rational Self-Interest
In a free market, it is assumed that both consumers and producers are guided by rational self-interest in their decision-making. The idea of rational self-interest may be applied to the concept of the invisible hand that is used to describe the egoistic intentions of an individual that are beneficial to society. It is not only franchisees who benefit from opening new pizza stores in Des Moines but also consumers who are given an opportunity to buy high-quality pizza. The market is thus built on voluntary exchanges between producers and consumers. Owners of Marco’s Pizza franchise were willing to sign the agreement to buy the franchise and produce pizzas to sell them and generate profit. Consumers who are pizza lovers want to pay money for Marco’s pizza. Both parties are governed solely by their rational self-interest, and that is how equilibrium is set.
Consumer Benefit
Consumer benefit is the value that a consumer gets when interacting with a company. Considering that the value may be real or perceived, Marco’s Pizza has to pay significant attention to identify in what way it can create value for consumers. The more reasons the customer has to come to a pizza store, the more profit the franchise will generate. Types of consumer benefits include but are not limited to consumer needs, preferences, experience, perceptions, quality, and pricing (Kreps, 2019). Consumers of Marco’s Pizza may be attracted by reasonable and straightforward pricing, the perceived quality of the pizza, customer-friendly service, and a wide range of pizza toppings.
Marginal Utility
Marginal utility is considered to be the additional benefit that a customer obtains from buying an additional unit of goods. This concept helps determine how many items consumers are eager to buy. It is generally assumed that, all else being equal, as the number of items purchased grows, the marginal utility declines (Seaman & Young, 2018). When a customer comes to Marco’s restaurant, she feels hungry and decides to buy six slices of pizza. Marginal utility is the highest for the first slice, which is eaten with the greatest satisfaction. Upon consuming the second, the third, and the fourth slices of pizza, the marginal utility of the product is gradually decreasing as the customer becomes full. If the customer does not want the fifth and the sixth slices of pizza, their marginal utility is negative.
Benefits of Competitive Market Structure
In the given case, the competitiveness of the market structure is represented by the number of other pizza stores that are future competitors of Marco’s restaurants in Des Moines. At the same time, there are many buyers, and there is no single seller or buyer who could influence the market price. The greater the number of competitors, the more competitive the market will be. In a competitive market, it is mostly customers who enjoy benefits. Firstly, the chances that customers will be exploited by producers are low since companies do not have a pricing monopoly (Mandy, 2016). This means that if Marco’s restaurant increases the prices of its products, customers will be able to choose other cheaper alternatives. Thus, in perfect competition, companies would find it disadvantageous to raise prices. Secondly, firms compete to attract a consumer to buy their product. A competitive market structure implies that the market is customer-oriented, and sellers aim to satisfy customers, so they do not shift to another seller.
Marco’s Pizza has a long history, during which it has become one of America’s favorite pizza companies (“Marco’s Pizza,” 2017, para. 1). However, considering that there are several pizza restaurants in Des Moines, Marco’s Pizza will have to have some advantages over its competitors. These advantages may include the brand name, high-quality products made with the best available ingredients, never-frozen cheese blend and dough, and customer-friendly service. Therefore, customers will benefit from opening Marco’s Pizza in Des Moines as they will get one more option to choose from, and the franchise will do its best to attract new buyers in multiple ways.
References
Cowell, F. A. (2018). Microeconomics: Principles and analysis (2nd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.
Kreps, D. M. (2019). Microeconomics for managers (2nd ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Mandy, D. M. (2016). Producers, consumers, and partial equilibrium. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Academic Press.
Marco’s Pizza announces strategic expansion in Des Moines. (2017). Web.
Seaman, B. A., & Young, D. R. (Eds.). (2018). Handbook of research on nonprofit economics and management (2nd ed.). Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Introducing Business Process Pizza Map: Pizza Making Process
Business Process Improvement: Revised Process Map
Report: Business Process Improvement Strategies
A business process involves a series of subsequent tasks and decisions aimed at optimization of work within an organization (Graham, 1996). What is more important is that employers recognize the necessity to introduce constant changes into the business process to improve efficiency, increase demands, and meet the organizational goals (Graham, 2004). Regarding the above-presented assumption, pizza production and orders have been considered as Jaguar Café to define the business production and provide possible business process improvements. Specific emphasis will be placed on increasing the quality of services promoting customers’ satisfaction.
I could track the production process of a hot pizza by ordering one by myself at Jaguar Café. When the order was received, it was submitted to a chef cook who starts preparations. Further, he checked up the ingredients and made the topping for the ready piece of dough. The ingredients were topped gradually: first tomato sauce, cheese, and other ordered ingredients. Then, the pizza goes to the oven. The final order went to the packing department or the waiters. Regarding the business process, pizza ordering is associated with three major aspects: order submission, order processing, and receiving payment. All these aspects are presented on my business process map. Overall, the process seems to be clear and efficient, except for several nuances. In particular, the process fails to include concepts increasing customer demand and satisfaction. At this point, the revised business process map involves the concepts of researched tables for regular customers, or for those who order pizza at home.
It can be concluded that a well-documented flow of tasks can contribute to better planning and organization of work. Specifically, the pizza production process has been presented to analyze each step of production and define the opportunity for potential growth and development. To increase profitability and consumer demand, the café managers should introduce a higher quality of order processing stage. Besides, corporate responsibility imposed on the service should be taken into higher consideration to meet the customer’s demands and sustain a competitive advantage.
Reference List
Graham, B.S. (1996) Process Improvement. The Ben Graham Corporation. Web.
Graham, B.S. (2004) Business Process Improvement: The Devil’s in the Detail. The Ben Graham Corporation. Web.
Business Process Improvement is considered to be a process of companies’ decision optimization to achieve better results. As far as BPI primary tasks are defining the company’s principal aims, determining the company’s customers, and realizing the company’s goals, the original process map for the pizza-making process will be the following:
Thus, Graham (2006, p.1) states, ’The value of a process map is determined by how well it helps the reader understand the process.’
So, the flowcharting method I used reminds us of the method of IBM which appeared in the early sixties. The methodology allows us to understand the constituents of the process. However, one is to take into account that a line flow is considered to be rather simple. The item’s interdependence is expressed by horizontal and vertical lines. According to Graham (2004, p.1), ‘The point of process flowcharting is to provide a visual representation of the process including each item in the process.’ So, you see that the details are not ignored in the scheme.
The first vertical line includes/shows us a manufacturing/production process (customer’s call, order creating, pizza preparing, delivery schedule, the process of delivery, and final aim achieving). The second vertical line shows us process management.
Graham (2006, p.1) thinks that:
Three essentials must be handled well to assure good process mapping. 1) The operating people whose work is being mapped must supply information for the map and must understand and support the reasons for the mapping. 2) The map itself must be organized in a way that enables everyone involved to clearly understand the process. 3) The information that is assembled on the map must be valid.
In my opinion, the above-mentioned tasks were performed well (look at the first scheme).
According to BPI studies, the pizza-making process improvement is possible due to labor costs reduction:
Thus, our scheme num.2 shows us that combining the points order creating and delivery scheduling, BPI allows us to improve the pizza-making process. You can see the process itself, as ‘the Transportation Symbol represents movement from one work area to another’ (Graham 2010, p.1). The profits are considered to be the following:
the decline of order processing;
labor costs reducing (the company needs/requires fewer workers to perform the order);
dilution of skilled jobs (there is no need to control the workers who process the order);
profits increasing due to an opportunity to process more orders using the same labor costs.
So, one may point out that the principal aim of BPI is the company’s performance changing. It is said that changes or improvements appeared to influence productivity. Thus, Graham (1996, p.1) thinks that ‘changes are achieving only a small portion of their potential and some are actually resulting in less effective processes. ‘
The report is considered to be completed, as according to Chris Boyle (2006, p.1), ‘Detailed process maps have been drawn. Analysis has been completed by the best possible resources available – the people who do the work.’
