Business Research and Design Project: P&G and Industry Challenges

This project analyzes Procter & Gamble (P&G), a major player in the FMCG industry, focusing on business research and design. It examines P&G's background, industry benchmarks, and challenges, including the rise of e-commerce and the need for digital innovation. The project highlights business enhancement strategies, emphasizing the importance of customer understanding, innovation, and future planning. It explores research aimed at understanding customers, drawing on the article 'Strategy as a wicked problem' to emphasize customer-focused strategies and stakeholder involvement. It also discusses the role of innovation, referencing Christensen et al.'s work, and the use of big data. The project concludes by reflecting on how the concepts discussed can be applied to enhance P&G's market functions and improve prospects for customers, innovation, and the future.

Running head: BUSINESS RESEARCH AND DESIGN
BUSINESS RESEARCH AND DESIGN
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1BUSINESS RESEARCH AND DESIGN
Table of Contents
Company and the industry...............................................................................................................2
Company background..................................................................................................................2
Industry benchmark.....................................................................................................................2
Challenges for the industries.......................................................................................................2
Business enhancement.....................................................................................................................3
Research aimed at understanding customers...................................................................................4
Research aimed at understanding innovations.................................................................................4
Research aimed at understanding the future....................................................................................5
Reflections.......................................................................................................................................6
References........................................................................................................................................9

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Company and the industry
Company background
The selected organization is Procter and Gamble. The organization is engaged in the
production and manufacture of consumer goods. The company was founded in 1837 by the
entrepreneurs Willam Procter and his partner James Gamble. It produces a large variety of
products that range from health care to food and cereals. The brand is known more as a personal
care brand focused on health and hygiene. The company has a current revenue of 67.9 billion US
dollars (Procter & Gamble Company 2020). Procter and Gamble have total assets worth more
than 115 billion US dollars. The report is focused on understanding the long-term challenges that
the organization faces in its business environment. Three important articles would be considered
to analyse the developmental path that the organization would need to take. The significance of
these articles in developing business enhancing research for P & G is assessed.
Industry benchmark
The company operates in the consumer goods industry. More specifically P&G can be
said to be working within the FMCG retail industry due to the large number of products that it
provides to consumers. Consumer retail goods market covers a large area of the global retail
trade market. FMCG is an industry that has witnessed significant growth over the years. It is
forecasted to grow to become worth more than 15,350 billion US dollars. The CAGR of the
industry is 5.4% when estimated for the period of 2018-2025 (IBISWorld 2020). Food and
beverage is the segment with the highest growth rate globally. It was followed by the personal
care segment which is the main focus of P&G. The highest market growth on in the last few
years have been witnessed in the emerging markets of the Asia Pacific regions. Some of the
significant demand factors are also present from various businesses. The global industry is one of
the largest industries in the world.
Challenges for the industries
One of the major challenges that is faced by the FMCG industry is the growth of e-
commerce. Various e-commerce websites are being used by the consumers to get the products
that they want. On the other hand the FMCG industry has not been able to effectively adapt to
the e-commerce industry. The issue is threatening the older sales and supply models. However,
there are also other major challenges such as gathering customer information, dynamic shifts in
demand due to social media or supply chain optimization (Edirisuriya, Sandamali and
Rupasinghe 2017). The industry has not been able to make the most of the digital innovation.
P&G faces some of the most important challenges that are currently faced by the FMCG
industry as a whole. The organization has not been able to optimize its digital presence or
functions. It has recently faced diminishing demands in some of the markets where the company
had thrived in the past. Many of the new products of the company failed to gain enough market
share in the recent years. One significant area of concern is the sales revenue increasing at a
much slower rate than the company predicted. Rising costs of the commodities have slowed the
revenue growth of the company to some extent. Some of the rival organizations are growing
more in comparison with P&G (Procter & Gamble Company 2020). Hence, the organization is in
need for more effective strategies.

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Business enhancement
Business enhancement is referred to the process of business transformation that is aimed
at the optimal development of a business organization. It means increasing the values of the
product, service, processes and people that are connected with the organization. Business
enhancement helps to achieve the goals that are the most important for an organization on a real
time basis. It also helps to set the right benchmarks for business improvement. Business research
is a related aspect which refers to the collection and analysis of detailed information concerning
all the major areas of business. It always complements business enhancement functions. Business
research helps to maximize the profit from business sales (Saleem 2017). It helps to optimize all
the areas of a business that are essential for its functional growth. In this case, P&G can
understand which products can bring better revenues for the organization. However, its functions
are not limited to gathering business data alone (Luftman, Lyytinen and Zvi 2017). Business
research helps to trace the behaviours of the target customers more effectively. It helps to
understand the dynamics of demand and supply on a real time basis.
Business enhancement processes depend on the right data gathering mechanisms. The
most effective approaches consider the important aspects of certification, intelligence and
activation. Certification refers to adhering to the benchmarks that are present in the market.
Intelligence refers to the collection and analysis of the right market data (Kopp and Orlovskyi
2018). Activation refers to developing the right business activities in consideration of
certification and intelligence. However, there are other approaches to business enhancement that
can effectively improve the business functioning of the various organizations. Business research
is one important aspect as discussed previously. Other major approaches include, networking,
optimizing advertising and marketing campaigns, focusing on employee development and
developing better leadership. In case of P&G business research would be very important in
addressing three important factors that are related to the development of the organization. These
are customers, innovation and the future development. In this age of rapid changes in demand
and values innovation has become an important factor. Business research can help to identify the
exact areas where innovation is required. The customers are always central to the business
operations of any company. Proper business research can also help to understand the needs and
wants of the customers (Barlan-Espino 2017). There is an essential need to know the strategies
that can help the organization move towards a more predictable and stable future. Better business
research would be able to identify the future growth paths that can be the most promising.
In view of the present situation of P&G, there is a need to develop better business
enhancement techniques. These techniques can help to develop better market functions for the
organization. This can help P&G improve the prospects for their customers, innovation and
future. It is important that an effective business enhancement is formed in order to improve the
operational effectiveness of the organization (IBISWorld 2020). There is a need to gather more
knowledge about the various functional areas of the market. Additionally, the market dynamics
need to be found to understand the most important trends that can determine market development
in the future. More long term strategic vision need to be incorporated within the business
research process that need to be undertaken.

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Research aimed at understanding customers
The article, Strategy as a wicked problem by John C. Camillus has been one of the most
important lessons learnt during the course. According to Camillus (2008) the creation of
customer focused strategies are very important in view of the overall growth that is needed to be
achieved by various organizations. The article has pointed towards the importance of a more
stakeholder oriented strategic outlook that needs to focus more on the end customers. It is
important to understand the definition of a wicked problem. According to the article, a wicked
problem has around 10 important characteristics. These characteristics can be used to evaluate
problem and assess whether they can be considered as wicked.
The 10 characteristics have been provided and essentially evaluated by the author. Firstly,
a problem is wicked if it involves multiple stakeholders. Secondly, the roots of the issue are
much complicated and tangled. Thirdly, the problem changes its form to keep affecting the
organization despite attempts to resolve it. Fourthly, the challenges can be said to be wicked if
they are completely new without any prior knowledge. Fifthly, the solutions to the problem
cannot be categorized into true or false. Sixthly, wicked problem cannot be described in the true
sense. Seventhly, the problems tend to be more unique. Eighthly, any wicked problem can easily
be said to be the symptom of another. Ninthly, a discrepancy that represents a wicked problem
can have many explanations. Tenthly, the problem solvers do not have even the slightest margin
for error.
In accordance with the article, the focus of an organization should be to always avoid
wicked problems. The strategic elements that are associated with the growth and development of
organizations need to be optimized in accordance with the customer demands. Considering the
slower growth being witnessed by P&G in the last few years, it is important that involvement of
stakeholders, effective documentation and communication is established with them. As pointed
quite importantly through the article, this function is very important in view of the strategies that
can be taken by the organization. The article effectively points out that if strategies are not
formed effectively by considering the various factors that influence the customers as well as all
other major stakeholders, it can backfire to cause grave problems for the organization. The
strategies of P&G have not been able to provide them with effective growth in the past. Hence,
there is a need to develop more customer oriented strategies.
According to the study, the most important aspects that are connected with the formation
of effective strategies are operational excellence, enhancement of differentiation and generation
of cash support for the businesses. The focus should be on the alignment of the customer needs
with the operational factors that are needed to address these needs. The customer should always
be in focus while forming strategies. However, the relationship between the customers as well as
all the other internal and external stakeholders should be determined. It is important to note that
this is a strategic outlook that has become much important for P&G in view of the present market
situations that it is facing.
Research aimed at understanding innovations
According to Christensen et al. (2016) innovation is one of the most important aspect that
can determine the long term operational success of organizations. This particular article by

5BUSINESS RESEARCH AND DESIGN
Christiansen has been very important in the course. According to this article better innovation
can be achieved only through better knowledge of the customers. It was found that 84% of the
global executives reported that for their developmental strategies, innovation was very important.
However, at the same time it was found that 94% of the people were not satisfied with how their
organizations were utilizing innovation. The authors bring forward much importantly, the usage
of big data in understanding the customers more than ever. A large organization like P&G can
use big data analytics much more effectively to enhance the prospects for their business research.
However, as pointed out in the article using big data is not the solution but rather how big data is
used. According to the article, too much knowledge of the customers are taking companies to the
wrong directions.
The exact areas where businesses tend to go wrong while undertaking business enhancing
researches, have been identified. For organizations such as P&G similar areas need to be
identified to improve their business research. Firstly, it has been identified that the success rate
of innovation are shockingly lower than what was anticipated. It has further been identified that
focusing excessively on the customer profiles and correlations have provided data that is quite
different from the actual needs and wants of the customers. At the same time the article points
out an effective solution. It has been found that innovators that have identified the jobs that have
been performed poorly in the lives of the customers. The products were designed around these
jobs to improve customer reach. Not just products but processes and experiences were also
designed in the same ways. These were the activities that were undertaken to develop sales in
order to cater to the needs of the customers in better ways. Business research is hence, needed on
an intrinsic level to improve the intended output. The focus should be how to understand
customers as well as when to understand customers.
According to Christensen et al. (2016) it is important that the factors that stop buyers
from moving on to newer products are known. There are various factors that actually stop the
buyers from buying certain products. These factors are presently not considered much in the
market researches undertaken by larger organizations. Hence, innovation needs to be
implemented in understanding customers in better ways. The customer segments like the kicker
and the serious buyers have been considered much importantly in the study. In regard to P&G,
simply considering big data as the principle source of information would not be innovative
enough to understand the customers. Innovation needs to be imbibed within the entire functional
scope of an organization. As rightly pointed out through the study, successful innovations can
provide the consumers an opportunity to make their much needed progress. The products and
services need to address certain anxieties and inertias that might be holding back the buying
behaviours of the customers. One of the significant problem areas for P&G has been product
design. In order to enhance the prospects for positive innovation in the organization, the focus
should be on the jobs, the circumstances, solving the problems and improving functions.
Research aimed at understanding the future
The study of Porter and Heppelmann (2015) focuses on the prospects for smart connected
products that are transforming organizations. The study is future oriented that presents a
theoretical understanding of the market dynamics that would be prevalent in the future. The
authors point out that the emergence of products that are intelligent and connected are reshaping
the competitiveness in the market and the performances of the various organizations. According

6BUSINESS RESEARCH AND DESIGN
to the study the future of the corporate world would be governed by the new product capabilities.
Presently it can be seen that most of the smart products have some important smart elements.
These are the physical elements, such as the mechanical or electrical components; smart
components, such as the sensors, processors, software, controls, etc, and the connectivity
components like ports, connectors and other similar features. These are redefining product
usages among the new generation consumers. Hence, the focus, as per the study, should be on
redefining the products that are being released into the market.
The study as brought forward some of the most important factors that are redefining the
product development factors. The factors can help to understand the futuristic demand dynamics
that are being created. These important factors can be presented and discussed accordingly. One
important factor that has been brought forward is the radical shift. The new smart products are
making companies redefine the industries and rethink their processes. Another factor is the
development of newer relationships. The interactions of the firms with their customers are
changing due to the emergence of new technologies. This is an important development that can
determine the future market operations of various organizations. Subsequently, a significant
factor is the development of new product capabilities. These capabilities are reshaping the
utilities of the customers to great extents. The value chains are getting better and defining the
functions of the organizations. Another major factor is the development of the new structures.
The future looks bright for the development of new cross-functional collaboration forms.
Various forms of unified data organization and units that help to bring forward continuous
product improvements are being integrated into the structures of the organizations.
These strategies are very much important in the context of P&G. More connected and
better functional products need to be developed. An example can be provided of Gillette. It is
one of the most famous products that are manufactured by the company. It is a shaver and
shaving product brand owned by P&G. It is important that in line with the better product
development factors, Gillette introduces products like automatic shavers or trimmers that can
easily be charged and be uniquely multifunctional. This can provide better value for the future
customers of the company. Data analytics need to be utilized to understand the demand dynamics
of the market. In order to understand the future markets the data lakes need to be used by P&G,
as pointed through the study. Data lakes contain aggregate raw data that are present in various
forms. These data can be gathered to analyse the actual needs of the customers. This can then be
used to map the future demands. Similar market researches need to be undertaken by P&G to
improve the future scope of their functional effectiveness.
Reflections
The understanding that I developed from learning the course was very different from my
previous understanding of the various course concepts. The newer understandings that I gained
were much deeper concerning business development and functioning. The three articles
discussed above were more important in developing better understanding about the concepts
related to business enhancing research and market research. Before undertaking the course I was
unable to connect the important business oriented concepts with the intrinsic concepts of market
research. However, undertaking the course has helped me to understand the development of
business that can be brought forward through better market research.

7BUSINESS RESEARCH AND DESIGN
I would evaluate the concepts that I have been able to learn by developing an effective
analysis of the concepts that are present in the three studies that have been consulted. I believe
that I would be able to convince any employment selection panel that I have advanced
understandings of the issues that are relevant to me within the scope of my employing
organization. It is important to note that all three of the studies that I evaluated above are
important in developing effective understanding of business enhancing research. Specifically, the
most important topics that were covered through the studies were innovation, customers and the
future. The first article helped to analyse business strategies in the context of the relationships
that exist between the stakeholders, processes and customers. I understood that in order to
develop more effective strategies, the holistic concepts that are connected with the delivery of
the final products or services need to be considered essentially. The second article helped to
understand the intrinsic and extrinsic aspects that were related to innovation. I understood much
importantly that simply using big data is not helping the organizations to improve their sales and
revenue. In fact it was found that reliance on too much data is causing the companies to engage
in ineffective market researches. The third article was important in view of the future market
situations that can be created as a result of some new market factors that are emerging. The new
smart products are making companies redefine the industries and rethink their processes. The
interactions of the firms with their customers are changing due to the emergence of new
technologies. Thus, I found that this is an important development that can determine the future
market operations of various organizations. These capabilities are reshaping the utilities of the
customers to great extents. Various forms of unified data organization and units that help to bring
forward continuous product improvements are being integrated into the structures of the
organizations.
Applying the three articles to the business issues that were being faced by P&G helped
me to develop the applicability of my knowledge. I learnt more about the operating environment
of the large FMCG firms. Moreover, I learnt more about the challenges that they face while
operating in their respective market environments. I understood that in all organizations,
including my own, people, innovation, customers and strategies were crucial in determining
business success. Personally, I would like to utilize my learning to enhance my performance in
the role of a business research analyst. Considering these concepts, I would be able to better
understand the most effective growth paths for my present organizations. As mentioned
previously in the report, customers, innovation and the future are all important for the sustainable
development of any organization. The learning I gained from the above analysis has helped me
to gain better skills as a research analyst in the field of business enhancing research. I can use
this ability to predict the market outcomes and the subsequent strategies that would be much
important for my present organization.
Without enrolling for this course I could not have understood the concept of the 10
important strategic elements that can determine a wicked problems for an organization.
Additionally, I could not have known that big data analytics can lead to ineffective outcomes if
implemented without proper knowledge of the customers. Moreover, I came to know more
effectively about the future trends in the market that can determine the business performances for
all organizations. In essence, the articles helped to understand business environments more. The
organization I work for faces similar business situations. I learnt that innovation, customers and
the future business prospects are more difficult to assess for organizations than one would
otherwise tend to think. I understood that learning about the customers are important and

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aligning the customer oriented goals in innovative manners is more important. The ultimate
outlook for organizations would be to develop better future scope for the success of their
businesses. In doing so the factors such as innovation and customer understanding become very
important.

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References
Barlan-Espino, A.G., 2017. Operational efficiency and customer satisfaction of restaurants: Basis
for business operation enhancement. Asia Pacific Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 5(1),
pp.122-132.
Camillus, J.C., 2008. Strategy as a wicked problem. Harvard business review, 86(5), p.98.
Christensen, C.M., Hall, T., Dillon, K. and Duncan, D.S., 2016. Know your customers’ jobs to
be done. Harvard Business Review, 94(9), pp.54-62.
Edirisuriya, W., Sandamali, G.A.S. and Rupasinghe, T.D., 2017. A Meta-Analysis of Green
Procurement Practices in the FMCG Industry. Front cover page, p.296.
IBISWorld, I. (2020) IBISWorld - Industry Market Research, Reports, and
Statistics, Ibisworld.com. Available at: https://www.ibisworld.com/ (Accessed: 12 April 2020).
Kopp, A.M. and Orlovskyi, D.L., 2018. Business processes analysis and enhancement using
reference models (Doctoral dissertation, Харківський національний економічний університет
ім. Семена Кузнеця).
Luftman, J., Lyytinen, K. and Zvi, T.B., 2017. Enhancing the measurement of information
technology (IT) business alignment and its influence on company performance. Journal of
Information Technology, 32(1), pp.26-46.
Porter, M.E. and Heppelmann, J.E., 2015. How smart, connected products are transforming
companies. Harvard business review, 93(10), pp.96-114.
Procter & Gamble Company. (2020). Retrieved 12 April 2020, from https://us.pg.com/
Saleem, M.A., 2017. The impact of socio-economic factors on small business
success. Geografia-Malaysian Journal of society and space, 8(1).