Coca Cola: Marketing, Operations and Supply Chain Management

This report discusses Coca Cola's marketing strategy, operations management and supply chain management. It also includes a reflection on own learning and performance. The report covers the background of the company, its marketing strategy and efficiency, operations management, and supply chain management. The report also discusses the company's total quality management, inventory management, and logistics.

IFY Advanced
Business Studies

Table of Contents
ASSESSMENT 1- CASE STUDY..................................................................................................1
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Background of the Company..................................................................................................1
The company’s marketing strategy and its efficiency............................................................2
Operations management.........................................................................................................5
Supply chain management......................................................................................................6
Assessment 2 - Reflection......................................................................................................8
Reflection.........................................................................................................................................8
Section 1.................................................................................................................................8
Section 2.................................................................................................................................8
Section 3.................................................................................................................................9
Section 4.................................................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

ASSESSMENT 1- CASE STUDY
INTRODUCTION
Advanced Diploma in Business Administration that helps in providing various range of
skills and knowledge in relation to management, international business, entrepreneurship,
business law, leadership, finance, sales force management and research methods for the
managers. In this report, the organisation chosen is Coca Cola. The organisation is a
multinational beverage corporation incorporated founded in 1892 and headquartered in Atlanta.
The organisation has its interests in marketing of the non alcoholic, the manufacturing, retailing
and also concentrates on making syrups, alcoholic beverages and beverage concentrates. The
report comprises of the organisation’s marketing strategy and its efficiency, operations
management of the company and the supply chain management of the company. Moreover, the
report comprises of the written reflection that helps in presenting the data in a effective and clear
manner. Moreover, it comprises of the reflection of the own learning and performance.
MAIN BODY
Background of the Company
The organisation is an American Corporation founded in the year 1892 and is majorly
engaged in the selling and manufacturing of the concentrate and syrup. The organisation also
produces and sells other citrus beverages and soft drinks. The organisation with more than 2800
products is available in more than 200 countries. The company is the largest beverage distributor
and manufacturer in the organisation and has one of the largest corporations in the United States
with its headquarters in Altanta, Georgia. The drink of the Coca Cola was developed in the year
1886 through an Atlanta pharmacist named John S. Pemberton. Pemberton sold his syrup to the
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local sods fountains and with the help of advertising, the drink became highly successful. The
trademark of the company” Coca-Cola” was registered in the U.S Patent office in the year 1893.
The company’s marketing strategy and its efficiency
The marketing strategy basically can be defined as the overall plan for the organisation with the
objective to reach prospective customers and focusing on turning them into consumers of the
services or products. In reference to marketing strategy, it basically comprises of the
organisation’s key brand messaging, value proposition, high level elements, data on target
customer demographics and key brand messaging (Tran, 2021).
In context to Coca Cola, the organisation is a leading global firm of the soft drinks and is
involved in selling products in more than 200 countries across the world. The organisation
generates 80% of its profit from the boundaries outside the united states. The company have a
colossal brand image across the globe (Choi, Wallace and Wang, 2018).From the various
survey, it has been determined that 94% of the individuals across the country are well aware of
the red and white logo of the organisation.
In reference to the company’s marketing strategy, the organisation uniquely design its marketing
strategy which supports the organisation in offering brand recognition and boosting up the profit
level. As compared to other countries, the organisation bases its marketing strategy on 4PS
which is place, product, promotion and price. The organisation follow a marketing mix strategy
and it comprises of the various reasons which make the operations of the company successful.
In reference to the marketing strategy of the company, the organisation consider various
elements while developing their marketing strategy and all these strategies are basically related
to each other in way which helps in achievement of the objectives of the company( Agrawal,
Atasu and Van Wassenhove, 2019).
In context to the marketing strategy of the company, it is well recognised and is highly
appreciated across the globe. The marketing managers do proper research and analyse the
various factors before applying these strategies practically. The organisation target every
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consumer across the world on the basis of various factors such as income, age, family size and
various other factors. The perfect segmentation is considered to be the major reason behind the
success of the organisation.
AGE: In context to the marketing strategy, the age factor is considered to be the most important
and is basically divided into two segments. The first segment is the target young people between
the age of 10-35 and that is the main reason the organisation always prefers pop stars in their
advertisement. In addition to that the company arranges various campaigns in the schools,
university and colleges for the purpose to acquire contracts. In addition to that, they target elder
people around the age of 40 who are diabetic and diet conscious and the main reason why they
introduced diet coke.
Family size and income: In context to developing market segmentation, another important
factor is the Income which is highly related to the family size too. The organisation introduced
various sizes and packaging at various price levels which could be easily afforded by everyone.
It basically involves the low class, students, middle class which is highly enjoyed by everyone
that taste the cokes.
Geographical Segmentation: In context to organisation, the company sells its products globally
in more than 200 countries and also focuses on applying the marketing strategies as per the
climate, income, culture and customs. In context to countries like China and America, the
demand of the company’s product reached at a high level and was highly appreciated by the aged
individuals. In reference to Asian Regions, the individuals basically choose tea in place of
beverages and there is a variation in the marketing strategies, drink taste and look, campaigns of
advertising and due to diverse taste of individuals. In reference to Taste, it basically varies from
the other countries (Kostelijk and Alsem, 2020).
Gender Segmentation
In context to organisation, the organisation targets people according to gender, female and male
in a different manner. Moreover, there is a difference in the preference and taste. In context to
the company, the organisation uses various targeting strategies such as designing the coke zero
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packaging. In addition to that, the company uses black and red looks which basically shows more
masculine looks as in comparison to the coke light. In addition to that, there is difference in the
advertising campaigns and commercials of the company. Moreover, these strategies of marketing
are typically applied for the purpose to boost the sales and attract more and more consumers that
helps in providing high amount of profits to the organisation( Jallow, D., 2021).
Marketing strategies of the Organisation
Product Strategy: In context to organisation, the company has wide range of products and offers
them globally. The organisation has variety of products such as Sprite, Fanta, Coca-Cola, Light,
Minute Maid and much more. All these products offered by the company are sold in variety of
sizes and packing. The company generates large amount of profits and has a significant share in
the market.
Pricing Strategy: In context to organisation, the price of the products of the company has
remained the same for around 73 years. In reference to competition, Pepsi is one of the biggest
competitor of the company (Maamoun, 2020).
Place Strategy: In context to organisation, the company is a global industry and have a vast
network of distribution. The organisation sells its products in more than two hundred countries
and have six operating regions such as North America, Latin America, Europe and Pacific. In
addition to that, the organisation depends upon the packaging and distribution and bottling
partners. The products of the company are available in almost all the retail outlets such as
grocery stores, supermarkets and much more.
Promotion Strategy: In context to organisation, because of the tough competition in the
marketplace, the company had to focus on various marketing and promotion strategy. They
usually focus on aggressive marketing. As per the statistics, the company has spent 4$ million in
the year 2016 for the purpose to promote their company. The organisation utilizes both the
international and traditional mediums to advertise their brand (Turker, 2018).
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Operations management
In context to organisation, the operations management is basically the administration of the
various business practices for the purpose to create the high level of the efficiency possible
within the company. The management of operations is related with the conversion of the labour
and materials into the final services or goods as per the maximize organisation’s profit. In
context to Coca Cola, the process of operations management plays a very important role in the
operations of the company and helps in offering the quality of the services and goods which are
basically offered to the customers (Appie, Ndletyana and Wilson-Prangley, 2020).
In reference to organisation, the operations management is basically the management of
the company’s productive resource and its production system which basically helps in dealing
with the management and designing of the supply chains, products, process and service. It
basically comprises of the utilization of the resources, acquisition and development of the
resources which helps in delivering the service and products as per the needs of the clients. In
addition to that, it comprises of the various tactical issues that comprises of the structure and
plant layout, equipment selection and project management methods and replacement. Moreover
the operational issues comprises of the control and production scheduling, inspection, quality
control, handling of materials and maintenance of equipment policies. In context to organisation,
the operations management of the company carefully focuses on the distribution of the services
or products and various production process.
Total Quality Management: In context to organisation, the total quality management is
basically the approach which focuses on the long term success through offering satisfaction to
the customers. The approach is totally based on the member’s participation for the objective to
improve the culture, services or products. In reference to quality, it is basically a product that
individuals can usually depend upon. In reference to the organisation, the company focuses on
ensuring that product in the market totally meets the demand of the consumers and requirements
of the company. In context to company, it uses Coca Cola Management system for the purpose to
manage the quality of the product. The company focuses on holding their operations in the same
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standards as per the distribution and production. The company guarantees high quality standards
and also ensures health and safety of the consumers.
Inventory Management: In context to organisation, the company has a lot of vending
machines both including the reconditioning and new machines and are usually place at the
different remanufacturing facilities in the US. In addition to that, the organisation decided to use
the Bar Code Software for the purpose to develop the inventory system without making any kind
of changes.
Supply chain management
In context to organisation, the company follows a generic model of product flow due to the
various traditional roles played by their key players. In context to the company’s supply chain, it
involves suppliers, manufacturers, end consumers and distributors. The organisation’s supply
chain works through selling trademarked syrup to the bottlers across the world and the bottlers
basically controls the various markets and territories in their respective jurisdictions. The
company supply chain is usually characterized through integrated solutions and efficiency
practices that allows the commodities to sent from a dispatching point to the warehouses( Xu and
et.al, 2021).
Supply chain management is associated with numerous activities and procedures involved in the
transformation of inputs into value that is delivered to consumers. Coca Cola is a global
company having its operations in numerous countries indicating worldwide presence. The wide
spread presence of the company implies constructive and well-established networks with its
suppliers and associated partners in order to manage flow of products and services. In context to
organisation, the major activities executed in the proper management of supplies is discussed
below:
Planning: It is a crucial component in supply chain management as operation managers of the
company has to evaluate various requirements regarding products. Moreover, the company has to
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formulate effective warehousing decisions in order to perform storage functions in a constructive
manner. Through planning flow of activities, the management of the company is able to develop
contingency plans in case of any uncertain events. Planning is related with sorting and listing the
required products and it also takes into account various decisions such as supplier decisions, how
to clear extra stock as well as location planning.
Sourcing: It refers to the activities performed for procuring commodities and is incorporated
with the elements of taking decisions regarding where to source required goods and services.
Coca-Cola is sustaining in the market from a long time and thus it has built a constructive
network of suppliers and partners from which the enterprise procure required goods. The
company owns numerous warehouses across various locations where it stores its sourced
commodities in order to ensure availability of goods at its stores within the correct time-frame. In
context to organisation, it has developed alliances with highly experienced suppliers who have
great expertise in producing high quality of goods. For instance, it has formed partnership with
huge investors which allow the company to maintain its quality standards and deliver fresh
products to potential buyers (Štofová and Kopčáková, 2020).
Inventory management: It refers to the function of managing procured inventory after sourcing
it from a range of suppliers. This function is associated with the monitoring and supervision of
activities on continuous basis in order to ensure accurate level of inventory to avoid problems of
additional storage and other extra stock related problems. In context to Coca-Cola, it has
adopted highly advanced and specialised software and it ensures effective inventory management
through using inventory control software.
Transportation and logistics: The activities that are involved in logistics mainly includes the
procedures conducted for distribution of goods to warehouses as well as physical stores of the
company across various locations. The logistics department of the enterprise ensures that
commodities of the organisation are readily made available to their customers in time.
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Assessment 2 - Reflection
Reflection
The purpose of this written reflective assessment is to assess my ability to describe my
experience during the case study project. This reflection report explore various skills which was
developed and enhanced during the completion of my project. This reflection document is
associated with discovering my skill gap and identifying the areas where I lack and seek
improvement. This reflection assessment is divided into some sections and it takes form of a
systematic written document with high clarity on my skills and overall experience (Choi, Guo,
and Luo, 2020).
Section 1
The preparation of case study was incorporated with the execution of various activities
involved in the data collection of the company. The case study that I have prepared was in
relation with the company Coca Cola and it required me to conduct research on the practices and
operations of the organisation for constructive completion of the project. I had to collect data
using primary and secondary methods of data collection for the purpose of gaining insights on
the practices used by the company. I conducted personal interviews with employees of Coca
Cola and used the online sources for obtaining information about company through its websites.
In addition to this, I gained knowledge about various management theories and practices to relate
my case study.
The feelings associated with this process includes excitement, nervousness and sense of
accomplishment as well. During the preparation of this case study project, I felt thrilled as it
greatly helped me in improving my skills and provided me with an opportunity where I can test
my knowledge and research skills. It was also quite challenging in gathering relevant and reliable
information and presenting it in an appropriate written report form.
Section 2
The task of completing this project helped in improving various skills and enhanced my
knowledge regarding the management theories and about the company on which I wrote case
study. Before starting this project, I had expected improvement in my intellect as well as I
expected to enhance my research skills, analytical and interpretation skills along with my
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academic writing skills. By undertaking the activities required in the completion of this project, I
improved my research skills through understanding the information that I can find using sources
of primary and secondary data. My planning skills also improved as during the course of
assignment I had to schedule many activities of collecting relevant data within defined time-
frame. On the completion of this assignment, I improved my knowledge on the practices of the
company and it helped in developing understanding on the work culture and operations
management. It also helped in improving my time management skills and ability to work under
pressure and complying with my tight schedule. This assignment has helped me in development
of key skill areas which would further helps me in career enhancement. The assignment was also
helpful in increasing my self confidence on completion of tasks with effectiveness and
efficiency.
Section 3
On completion of this project, I have analysed that I did not perform up to the mark and
according to my expectations in area of academic writing (Lee and Tang, 2018). Moreover, I
seek improvement in areas of time management and planning as well. I faced problems in
writing the information in a constructive based upon my analysis and collection of data. My
areas of weaknesses includes lack of logical flow in my discussion as there were times when I
was confused and vague on how the company actually perform their operations in many cases.
Also I seek improvement in my research abilities as well. I lacked somewhere in obtaining
highly reliable and relevant information about the required area of practices within the
organisation.
Section 4
On completion of this project, I have evaluated that for further projects, I will improve
my research skills through working more on data collection techniques and effective
mechanisms. I would try to improve my learning by reading more books and collecting more
data regarding the organisation through following a pragmatic approach (Karam, 2020).
I will work upon my skills of time management and planning as well in order to
complete the assignment in given time frame in more effective manner from next time.
Moreover, I will increase my reading time and would research various reports in order to
improve my writing skills through gaining insights on the relevant topics. I will also read content
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and take online courses on how to improve writing skills by maintaining logical flow of
discussion. Also I would focus upon improving my vocabulary in order to make my content
more authentic and intellectual.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that the marketing strategy of the company, the
operation management process and supply chain management plays a really important role in the
overall success of the company. In addition to that it helps in deep understanding of the various
products and services offered by the company for the purpose to fulfil the needs and demands of
the consumers. In addition to that it helps in better understanding of the various skills which
could be identified and studied with the help of case study of Coca Cola.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Agrawal, V.V., Atasu, A. and Van Wassenhove, L.N., 2019. OM Forum—New opportunities for
operations management research in sustainability. Manufacturing & Service Operations
Management, 21(1), pp.1-12.
Appie, L., Ndletyana, D. and Wilson-Prangley, A., 2020. Empowering the next generation of
leaders: Maserame Mouyeme’s journey at Coca-Cola. Emerald Emerging Markets Case
Studies.\\
Choi, T.M., Guo, S. and Luo, S., 2020. When blockchain meets social-media: Will the result
benefit social media analytics for supply chain operations management?. Transportation
Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, 135, p.101860.
Choi, T.M., Wallace, S.W. and Wang, Y., 2018. Big data analytics in operations
management. Production and Operations Management, 27(10), pp.1868-1883.
Jallow, D., 2021. A Strategic Case Study on PepsiCo. Available at SSRN 3828353.
Karam, A.A., 2020, November. The Brand Impact on Culture: Case of Coca Cola Cultural Issues
in India. In International Conference on Business and Technology (pp. 551-570).
Springer, Cham.
Kostelijk, E. and Alsem, K.J., 2020. Brand positioning: Connecting marketing strategy and
communications. Routledge.
Lee, H.L. and Tang, C.S., 2018. Socially and environmentally responsible value chain
innovations: New operations management research opportunities. Management
Science, 64(3), pp.983-996.
Maamoun, A., 2020. Coca-Cola Brews a Hot Acquisition: Costa Coffee. SAGE Publications:
SAGE Business Cases Originals.
Štofová, L. and Kopčáková, J., 2020. The Competition Strategy between Coca-Cola vs. Pepsi
Company. Calitatea, 21(179), pp.40-46.
Tran, V.T., 2021. Exhibiting Coca-Cola at universal exhibitions. Food, Culture & Society, 24(2),
pp.269-290.
Turker, D., 2018. Socially Responsible Production and Operations Management. In Managing
Social Responsibility (pp. 73-98). Springer, Cham.
Xu, X., Sethi, S., Chung, S.H. and Choi, T.M., 2021. Reforming Global Supply Chain
Operations Management under Pandemics: The GREAT-3Rs Framework and Research
Agenda. Available at SSRN 3837050.
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