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com

a.key competitive information to drive marketing planning. b.real/time customer

satisfaction metrics.c.the value created by an organizations intangible
assets.d.either internal or e@ternal innovation.e.real/time financial performance
metrics.A!"-#I$"#ifficulty" oderateA&"'(!)*+," Analytic!&A"#I!-" arketing )
lan&+)"A/0ead" aintaining -ustomer $ocus and 'alance in !trategic )lanning
%2"'loom3s" Analysis4.&he 'alanced )erformance !corecard cautions business
leaders to look at strategy and performance through four interrelated perspectives.
Which of the following

IS NOT

one of these perspectives?a.financial perspectived.learning and growth perspective

b.customer perspectivee.internal process perspectivec.vision and strategy
perspectiveA!"-#I$"#ifficulty" %asyA&"'(!)*+," Analytic!&A"#I!-" arketing )
lan&+)"A/0ead" aintaining -ustomer $ocus and 'alance in !trategic )lanning
%2"'loom3s" -omprehension

ESSAY

1.Identify and discuss the five 8uestions that should be answered by a good mission
statement. Why do you think some firms have mission statements that do not
answer these basic 8uestions?A!"A well/devised mission statement should answer
the same five basic 8uestions"1. Who are we?4. Who are our customers?7. What is
our operating philosophy Cbasic beliefs5 values5 ethics5 etc.D?9. What are our core
competencies or competitive advantages?:. What are our responsibilities with
respect to being a good steward of our human5 financial5 and environmental
resources?A mission statement that delivers a clear answer to each of these
8uestions installs the cornerstone for the development of the marketing plan. If the
cornerstone is weak5 or not in line with the foundation laid in the preliminary steps5
the entire plan will have no real chance of long/term success. In recent years5 firms
have realized the role that mission statements can play in their marketing efforts.
-onse8uently5 mission statements have become much more customer oriented. )
eoples lives and businesses should be enriched because they have dealt with the
organization. A focus on profit in the mission statement means that something
positive happens for the owners and managers of the organization5 not necessarily
for the customers or other stakeholders.It is likely that most firms have weak
mission statements simply out of neglect. )erhaps these firms do not understand
the importance of having a solid mission statement. $irms can still be successful if
their mission statements do not answer these five basic 8uestions. 0owever5 the
potential always e@ists for the firm to step beyond its mission and core
competencies.#I$"#ifficulty" oderateA&"'(!)*+," Analytic

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!&A"#I!-" arketing )lan&+)"A/0ead" &he !trategic )lanning )rocess %2"'loom3s"

Analysis4.#efend or contradict this statement" E&he most important aspect of
strategic market planning is marketing implementation. Without good
implementation5 nothing gets accomplished and customers do not receive desired
benefits.FA!"It is difficult to contradict this statement. 0owever5 students must
realize that implementation occurs on two fronts" e@ternally with markets and
customers and internally with employees. It is obvious that e@ternal
implementation is vital to the success of the strategyGeven if the strategy is flawed.
In -hapter 15 the te@t describes how there are very few rules in marketing. 0ence5
a bad strategy could prove to be correct by the time it is implemented. 0owever5
poor implementation is always a key reason for marketing failure.Internally5 good
implementation is essential for getting things done. All marketing plans5 when
e@ecuted5 have repercussions both inside and outside the firm. %ven seemingly
disconnected events in finance or human resources can have an effect on the firms
ultimate customersGthe individuals and businesses that buy the firms products.
&he short answer is that the firm must rely on its people to implement the strategy.
0ence5 good implementation will always consider the effects of the strategy
onemployees.#I$"#ifficulty" -hallengingA&"'(!)*+," Analytic!&A"#I!-" arketing )
lan&+)"A/0ead" &he !trategic )lanning )rocess%2"'loom3s" %valuation7.%@plain
how and why the process of developing a marketing plan might be more important
than the marketing plan document itself. What are the benefits of the planning
process irrespective of the actualoutcomes of the process?A !"&he key to the
benefits of the planning process is communication5 which is vital for synchronizing
actions within the firm. As stated in the 8uote in -hapter 4"Ethe process of preparing
the plan is more important than the document itself. . . . A marketing plan does
compel attention5 though. It makes the marketing team concentrate onthe market5
on the companys ob6ectives5 and on the strategies and tactics appropriate to
those ob6ectives. Its a mechanism for synchronizing action.F*esearch indicates
that organizations that develop formal5 written strategic marketing plans tend to be
more tightly integrated across functional areas5 more specialized5 and more
decentralized in decision making. &he end result of these marketing plan efforts is
improved financial and marketing performance.&his 8uestion also coincides with
%@hibit 4.9 regarding the key obstacles to developing and implementing marketing
plans. !tudents should note that lack of communication is the ma6or stumbling
block to effective marketing planning.#I$"#ifficulty" -hallenging A&"'(!)*+,"
Analytic!&A"#I!-" arketing )lan&+)"A/0ead" &he arketing )lan %2"'loom3s"
%valuation

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9.Identify and discuss the ma6or problems associated with creating marketing
plans. What are some potential ways that firms and managers can overcome these
problems?A!"&his 8uestion is based on %@hibit 4.9. ost students will focus on
the fact that poor communication is the key obstacle in developing and
implementing marketing plans. 0owever5 astute students will note that most of the
factors in the e@hibit are internal characteristics of an organizationGmost of them
being based in the organizations culture or management style. -onse8uently5 most
of these obstacles can be overcome by developing a culture that fully supports
strategic planning. &his might involve opening channels of communication5
breaking down barriers among departments5 employee training5 top management
commitment5 and dedicating ade8uate time to the planning process.#I$"#ifficulty"
oderateA&"'(!)*+," Analytic!&A"#I!-" arketing )lan&+)"A/0ead" &he arketing )
lan%2"'loom3s" !ynthesis:.#iscuss the concept of balanced strategic planning and
the approach outlined by the 'alanced )erformance !corecard. What are the five
common principles associated with implementing the balanced approach to
strategic planning?A!"&he shift to balanced strategic planning was born out of
necessity. As the twenty/first century approached5 firms realized that traditional
planning and measurement approaches could not capture value created by the
organizations intangible assets. &hese assetsGincluding such vital issues as
customer relationships5 processes5 human resources5 innovation5 and
informationGwere becoming increasingly important to business success5 but they
were not being reported through traditional financial measures.&he basic tenet of
the balanced performance scorecard is that firms can achieve better performance if
they align their strategic efforts by approaching strategy from four complementary
perspectives" financial5 customer5 internal process5 and learning and growth. &he
financial perspective is the traditional view of strategy and performance. &his
perspective is vital but should be balanced by the other components of the
scorecard. &he customer perspective looks at customer satisfaction metrics as a
key indicator of firm performance5 particularly as the firm moves ahead. $inancial
measures are not suited to this task because they report past performance rather
than current performance. &he internal process perspective focuses on the way
that the business is running by looking at both mission/critical and routine
processes that drive day/to/day activity. $inally5 the learning and growth
perspective focuses on people and includes such vital issues as corporate culture5
employee training5 communication5 and knowledge management.&he five
common principles associated with implementing the balanced approach to
strategic planningare"1. &ranslate the !trategy into +perational &ermsG!uccessful
firms can illustrate the cause/and/effect relationships that show how intangible
assets are transformed into value for customers and other stakeholders. &his
provides a common frame of reference for all employees.4. Align the +rganization
to !trategyG!uccessful firms link different functional areas through common
themes5 priorities5 and ob6ectives. &his creates synergy within the organization
that ensures that all efforts are coordinated.

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