Strategic Planning for Subway Eat Fresh: A Research Article Review

Running head: STRATEGIC PLANNING
Management
-Strategic Planning
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Selected Research Article related to Strategic Planning:
Name of Author:
Malcolm McDonald
Name of Article:
Strategic Marketing Planning: Theory and Practice
Publication year:
2016
Link:
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/31c7/659c71f4ada1f98b9770c505afcb2686cd8d.pdf
Summary of the research article:
In this article, the authors researched the efficacy of formalized marketing planning
and how it can enhance the commercial success of an organization or business through
effective marketing strategy. According to the authors, strategic planning of marketing
activities can help to support a systematic identification of emergent opportunities and threats
in the market, facilitate preparedness to meet the process of change, help to gain a sustainable
competitive advantage for the company, facilitate better communication between the
executives, help to mitigate conflicts within the organization, help to involve management at
all levels in the planning process, support better allocation of limited resources, ensure
consistency in organizational functions and operations and also help to foster a market
focused orientation in the organization.
The research article also elaborates effective strategies that can be used for
positioning marketing which can improve the brand position in the market, marketing the
planning process which can facilitate the involvement of the key stakeholders in the process,

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identifying how formal the planning process should be to meet organizational targets, and the
steps that can be taken to strategically plan marketing activities (McDonald 2016).
How this article can aid/enhance the strategic planning process in the selected
organization
Following the research article, an effective strategic plan can be developed for
Subway Eat Fresh stores in a way that can improve its brand positioning, engage the key
stakeholders in a more meaningful and effective way so as to enhance the success of the
marketing activities. Using the knowledge from the article, the marketing plan can be
developed more strategically which includes the following steps:
 Step 1: Developing a mission statement
 Step 2: Setting up objectives for the marketing program
 Step 3: Setting up parameters for marketing audit
 Step 4: Developing a market overview
 Step 5: Performing a SWOT analysis
 Step 6: Developing important assumptions
 Step 7: Identifying the marketing objectives and the strategies that can be used to
achieve those objectives
 Step 8: Estimating the expected outcomes and identifying an alternative plan and
marketing mix.
 Step 9: Calculating and outlining the budget of the program
 Step 10: Developing a detailed im0lementation program for the first year
The article also provides 12 guidelines that can be used for an effective marketing
program, such as: understanding the source of competitive advantages; understanding
differentiation of products; understanding the business environment; understanding

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competitors; understanding strengths and weaknesses of self; understanding market
segmentation; understanding dynamics of product and market evolution; understanding the
product and market portfolio; setting clear strategic priorities; understanding the orientation
and preference of the customers; professional attitude and good leadership skills. Using these
guidelines, the effectiveness and efficacy of the strategic planning approach can be greatly
enhanced and therefore can be used in the selected organization (Subway) for its strategic
marketing program (McDonald 2016).
Any limitations or concerns inherent in the article:
One of the biggest limitations of the article is that it does not focus on the specific
industry to which Subway belongs, and instead provides a generic understanding of the
process of strategic planning and how it can be implemented in any organization. Due to this,
the overview of the advantages or the strategy might not be completely pertinent to the
selected organization. Another limitation of the study was the limited time and funding
available to the authors due to which the research scope have also become limited in context.
However, the article provides a holistic understanding of the strategic planning
process which can be used for any organization and are supported with studies from different
management theories and organizational studies which is a significant advantage of the study
(McDonald 2016).

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Name of Organization: Subway Eat Fresh
Worksheet 19:
External Stakeholder Analysis
Reviewer 1:
The table below identifies the external stakeholder giving the review:
Stakeholder Name
Type of stakeholder
Client or
Customer Partner Other
Eric Smith Customer
The table below lists the criteria used by the stakeholder to assess our performance
Criteria used by stakeholders to assess our
performance
Our sense of their judgment
about our performance
Poor
Averag
e Good
Quality of food Yes
Freshness of food Yes
Ability to deliver products as promised Yes
Value for money Yes
Customer service Yes
Price of shares Yes
Usage of innovative ideas to attract new customers Yes
Focus on the health of the customers Yes
Added value of the products Yes
Product discounts Yes
Reviewer 2:
The table below identifies the external stakeholder giving the review:

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Stakeholder Name
Type of stakeholder
Client or
Customer Partner Other
Lyndall Davis Customer
The table below lists the criteria used by the stakeholder to assess our performance
Criteria used by stakeholders to assess our
performance
Our sense of their judgment
about our performance
Poor
Averag
e Good
Quality of food Yes
Freshness of food Yes
Ability to deliver products as promised Yes
Value for money Yes
Customer service Yes
Price of shares Yes
Usage of innovative ideas to attract new customers Yes
Focus on the health of the customers Yes
Added value of the products Yes
Product discounts Yes
Reviewer 3:
The table below identifies the external stakeholder giving the review:
Stakeholder Name
Type of stakeholder
Client or
Customer Partner Other
Robert Johnson Customer