Chapter 3 1. How could Unilever use the framework for strategic choice (Table 3.

Question

Chapter 3 1. How could Unilever use the framework for strategic choice (Table 3.4) in implementing its Supply Chain 2010 Initiative? Because of the desire of businesses that requested 24 to 48 hour deliveries, and others that required deliveries everyday, it would be best for Unilever to use the framework to strategically choose who, and what, businesses they should cater too. The best move would be to take care of the “A” customer first because they are the most profitable customers the business has, and then focus on taking care of the remaining customers. 2. What, in your opinion, would be the major logistics challenges faced by Unilever in this initiative? The major changes that i can see would be changing their current logistics so that they are able to store things closer to the stores in questions to ensure that products are able to be delivered daily. They would also need to reevaluate their relationships with the customers to make sure they are aware and up-to-date with the products they are needed and the quantity they will need to ship.

Explanation / Answer

1.Strategic Alignment-Enable firm operational efficiencies and revenue growth.

Good strategic alignment has an amazing effect on organizational performance. People perform better when they fully understand and accept the purpose and goals of their organization, and they develop a better sense of ownership when they understand what difference they make in achieving those goals. On the other hand, lack of strategic alignment is one of the major causes for organizations to fail. Many organizations over time lose track of their key business purpose; they find it hard to answer the question: "Why are we in business?". This seems like a simple question with a simple answer; in reality however all too many businesses have lost sight of their key business purpose. Often this is caused by growth and diversification, often by shareholder centered rather than customer centered behavior, often because the self centered rather than customer centered objectives of top management blur the focus. As a result of this the strategic goals, business processes and organizational culture become misaligned, employees lose their focus, and customers lose their faith. Strategic alignment is an intense hands-on business redesign process, in which we align your strategic goals, your business model and processes, and your company culture with your key business purpose and core values. Whatever key business purpose and business strategy your company emphasizes; customer intimacy, technology optimization, cost optimization or disruptive innovation; workplace practices must reflect and actively drive behaviors to deliver on that purpose and strategy and your corresponding market positioning.

2.Value Attainment-Deliver solution and services that return firm value.

Companies invest in IT to achieve a business result. Although many organizations implicitly include this activity as part of project implementation.it

call it out separately here because it is a different activity. In fact many IT organization do not even attempt to ascertain whether or not a system initiative

achieves the expected results is either relegated to the business or it is not done at all.

Falling to monitor value attainment also sets the stage for companies to improperly set the investment level for IT. If the perception is that IT investment

have not yielded results.

A successful process for value attainment is a subject worthy of its own book. However in its most basic form it requires three thing.

1.An intimate understanding of the business

2.Proper oversight of project.

3.A commitment by both IT and the business to manage to result not just requirements.

3.Support Delivery-Provide the right level of support, cost effectively.

Support makes up all the break-fix activity of the IT operation. It is the most fundamental and in many respects the most important activity the IT organization

engages in. Support includes the help desk and monitoring organization but also aspects of technical operation such as system administration, database administration, development and business process analysis. All aspect of the IT organization provides some level of support back to the business.

The key support delivery management challenges is to provide the right level of support cost effectively. This balance is subtle but important. Although a corporation might enjoy IT support level so high that any time a PC failed and IT representative was there in person instantaneously, the cost of providing such support far outweighs the benefit. Therefore the CIO must find ways to p

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