Summary of Strategic Objectives - Business Plan Example

In brief, Target aspires to increase its market share, increase revenues, decrease expenses, improve profitability and embrace innovation using a customer-centric approach. Similarly, the company plans on reducing customer turnover while increasing retention, increasing customer satisfaction, uplifting and maintaining customer value. Other strategic objectives include adopting advanced performance measurement metrics, improving productivity and successfully implementing change. Lastly, Target intends to enhance employee satisfaction and retention, increase the level of organizational capacity, embrace a frugal culture and innovative technology.

The Balanced Scorecard, its Impacts on Stakeholders and Communication Plan

Target will employ the Balanced Scorecard for its strategic planning and management, which will enable it, have a view of the organization in four critical perspectives. The perspectives will include Finances, Customers and Stakeholders, Internal Processes and Organizational Capacity. Stakeholders will benefit from the incorporation of the balanced scorecard in Target by attaining better strategic planning, improved communication of strategies, improved reporting of the companys performance, and the better management of its data (Tayler, 2010). Lastly, a communication plan will be developed to outline approaches that will be used to communicate to stakeholders the contents of the balanced scorecard. The communication plan will be considerate of the audience and the communication channel.

Trends, Assumptions, and Risks of the Business Model

Trends

There exists a tendency whereby there is an increase of demand for prompt order fulfillment, which will enable customers to save time while shopping. At the moment, customers take a lot of time moving around retail stores in search of products which are sometimes difficult to find. With the new business model, time spent in the store by customers will be reduced.

Assumptions

It is assumed that the change that comes with the business model will be readily accepted and successful. The assumption is based on the fact that previously, Target has been successful in adapting to change by evolving as per the needs and demands of its customers.

Risks

The business model runs the risk of the potential loss of the unmanned aircraft due to their short invention life cycle. Similarly, there is also the possibility that customers who prefer the traditional shopping experience will have a hostile response to the innovation.

Strategic Objectives in a Balanced Scorecard Format

Financial Perspective

To increase Targets market share

To increase the company's revenue through an increase in sales and reduce labor costs.

To increase Targets profitability

To be associated with innovation that is customer-centric and a value creator for consumers.

Customer Perspective

1. To increase the companys customer retention rate while decrease customer turnover

2. To raise customer satisfaction rates

3. To uplift and maintain customer value

Internal Operations Perspective

1. To adopt advanced performance measurement metrics

2. To systematically improve productivity of each store

3. To adopt superior operation metrics

4. To successfully introduce change into the organization

Learning and Growth Perspective

1. To improve employee satisfaction

2. To reduce employee turnover while increase employee retention

3. To increase the level of organization capability

4. To successfully embrace a frugal organizational culture.

5. To strategically embrace innovative technology that has potential to improve yield.

Evaluation of Potential Alternatives

By incorporating drones into its in-store operations, Target benefits from the opportunity to improve its organizational standing and increase revenues. However, the retail giant can integrate the drone alternatively in out-of store operations. The out-of store operations will be in the form of door-to-door delivery of products purchased by customers on an e-commerce website. The alternative will not only improve the companys image in the market but will also generate additional sales.

Creation of Strategic Objectives for the Four Balanced Scorecard Areas

The alternative may, however, suffer from the risk of regulation hurdles by aviation authorities who may be adamant to permit them due to safety concerns. The company may, however, mitigate the concerns through a control pilot program, which will demystify safety concerns. There may be a batch of stakeholders who are customers that may be resistant to the change. Their resistance will be countered by retaining the conventional mode of shopping. The organization must, however, observe ethics while retrenching employees whose roles will be taken by the drones. Target must follow due process of retrenchment.

Development of a Specific Metric and Target for Each Strategic Objective

Financial Perspective

To increase Targets market share

Metric: Percentage

Target: 3.5% by the end of the 2018 financial year.

To increase the company's revenue through an increase in sales and reduce labor costs.

Metric: Percentage

Target: 2% and 3% Respectively

To increase Targets profitability successively

Metric: Percentage

Target: 1.5% for the next four quarters

To be associated with innovation that is customer-centric and a value creator for consumers.

Metric: Percentage

Target: 10%

Customer Perspective

To increase the companys customer retention rate while decrease customer turnover

Metric: Percentage

Target: 4% and 0.5% respectively within the next six successive quarters.

To increase customer satisfaction rates

Metric: Percentage

Target: 3% in each successive quarters to optimum levels.

To uplift and maintain customer value

Metric: Percentage

Target: Above 93%

Internal Operations Perspective

To adopt advanced performance measurement metrics

Metric: Percentage

Target: In four months

To systematically improve productivity of each store

Metric: Percentage

Target: by 5%.To adopt superior operation metrics

Metric: Accuracy of Data

Target: In four months

To successfully introduce change into the organization

Metric: Change in organization processes

Target: By the end of the 2018 financial year

Learning and Growth Perspective

To improve employee satisfaction

Metric: Percentage

Target: by 4%.To reduce employee turnover while increase employee retention

Metric: Percentage

Target: by 3% and 5% respectively

To increase the level of organization capability

Metric: Percentage

Target: by 10%.To successfully embrace a frugal organizational culture.

Metric: Cost reduction

Target: Achieve cost saving

To strategically embrace innovative technology that has potential to increase yield.

Metric: Incorporation of technology

Target: Increase Yield

Outline of a Communication Plan for Communicating the Strategic Objectives

Purpose

The purpose of the communication plan will be to inform stakeholders on the business's vision, mission, and brief employees on what the company expects from them.

Audience

The audience for the communication plan will be stakeholders who participate in the businesss operations. They will include employees, shareholders, customers, the organizations board of directors and the community from which Target draws its resources.

Channels of Communication

Target will utilize two channels of communication, which are its official website and printed notices. Targets official website was chosen since it will provide an easily accessible and retrievable platform for the stakeholders to review it. The printed notices will also be instrumental in placed in high traffic areas where employees tend to converge such as break rooms thus ensuring that a huge number of relevant persons have access to it (Guffey & Loewy, 2010).

References

Guffey, M. E., & Loewy, D. (2010). Business communication: Process and product. Cengage Learning.

Tayler, W. B. (2010). The balanced scorecard as a strategy-evaluation tool: The effects of implementation involvement and a causal-chain focus. The Accounting Review, 85(3), 1095-1117.