BUS705: Strategic Marketing Innovation Report - Organization X

This report presents a comprehensive analysis of a marketing innovation challenge faced by Organization X, a food processing company. The core issue revolves around the inefficient pen-and-paper record-keeping system, hindering quick decision-making and information flow. The report proposes a strategic innovation solution: digital record-keeping, highlighting its advantages over manual methods, such as improved data accuracy, time savings, enhanced security, and easier information retrieval. The report outlines an implementation plan based on the strategic innovation model, detailing the current approach, required changes, target market, and the enhancement of customer-perceived value. It emphasizes the importance of appropriate leadership and culture to support the change and innovation implementation. The report also touches upon the people issues that are affecting the smooth implementation of the change inside the mentioned organization and emphasizes the importance of HRM in managing the transition. The report concludes by discussing the benefits of digital recordkeeping and its potential for cost savings and simplified accounting, making a compelling case for its adoption in the modern business landscape, all of which is provided by a student to be published on the website Desklib.

Running head: MARKETING
Marketing
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Introduction:
The impact of the intense competition of the market is pretty prominent with the
urgency amongst the management of the modern business organizations in the incorporating
different strategies for the increment of the profit and for strengthening their financial
stability in the market. Considering the changing dynamics of the modern business market, it
is pretty evident that the entry of the new organizations in the business industry is able to
achieve a sharp rise and that is considered to be one of the main reason of the increasing
intensity of the competition in the market (Verma 2013). With a precise focus on the
introduction of the increasing number new organizations in the industry, it is petty visible that
the existing companies are facing the hit of the competition. Under such situation, the
importance of the effective management inside the organizations is seen to be one of the top
most priority for the organizations operating in the industry. However, the management of the
competition requires the application of the sound decision making capability of the managers,
but, many of the companies, even in the 21st century is seen to be concentrated on the
traditional methods of record keeping and that has the potential of decreasing the speed in the
flow of communication (García-Peñalvo and Conde 2014). The efficient flow in the
communication has the scope of contributing in to the success of the organizations in taking
decisive calls for the business operations of the companies and or the business activities of
the employees with a precise focus on the urgency.
However, the incorporation of the change in the modern business is seen to be
subjected to a series of challenges starting from the developmental needs of the relevant
stakeholders responsible for the management of the change, apathy of the stakeholders in
acknowledging the necessity of the change to the achievement of the modifications in the
business activities. The paper is focused in the elaboration of one such company named as
Organization X. The paper discusses regarding one of the industry challenges and is able to

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put strong emphasis on the people issues that are affecting the smooth implementation of the
change inside the mentioned organization. Along with that, the paper portrays the process of
the generation of a leading edge strategic innovation solution for an identified problem that is
the lack of speed in the decision making system of the organization and in the exchange of
the information across the relevant stakeholders of the mentioned company. With a precise
focus on the strategic innovation model, the paper also provides a significant actions plan in
accordance to the change requirements and process in which the company enhances the value
of the business activities amongst the stakeholders of the company. Along with that, the paper
also presents a significant discussion regarding the appropriate style of the leadership that
suits the implementation of the change and the incorporation of the innovation in the business
process of the company.
Industry Problem and brief description of the context of the innovation:
With a precise focus on the modern business market, it is visible that the companies
are trying their level best to manage the impact of the frequently changing business
environment. Considering the increasing intensity of the competition, it is visible that the
companies are focused in the achievement of the preferences and demands of the customers
for designing their products and under such situation, they are open to implement any sort of
changes in the organization. As the companies are in need to manage the variation of the
macro and micro environmental factors of the industry, majority of the companies are seen to
incorporate the modern technology and the innovative solutions for the design of the products
in accordance to the preferences of the customers (Viswanathan et al. 2014). In doing so, the
companies face the need of urgent decision making from the part of the management and the
success of the incorporation of the innovation and the implementation of the change are
dependent on the smooth flow of communication across the senior managers of the
companies and the relevant stakeholders of the companies (Viswanathan et al. 2014).

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Hence, it is visible that the companies of the modern business world are facing the
need urgent decision making along with the need of adequate level of infrastructure for the
appropriate and urgent decision making. However, the selected company is seen to lack the
much required infrastructure and the urge amongst the managers of the company for the
achievement of the urgent decision making capabilities. The company operates in the food
processing industry and the main issue with the company’s existing business operations is
seen to be subjected with the record keeping department of the company. The company
currently employs 85 individuals for the record keeping of the various business activities of
the company. The company follows the conventional method of record keeping which is the
pen and paper method.
Considering the frequent changes in the food processing industry, the company is
seen to face the need of fast flow of information across the relevant stakeholders of the
company associated with the business activities and in addition to this, the managers of the
organization are facing the need of taking decisions on urgent basis. Hence the board of the
company gathered for the change of the record keeping where they decided to introduce
digitalization in the process of record keeping. The senior managers of the company decided
to change the conventional pen and paper method of record keeping to the digitalized portals
where the employees of the record keeping department will use the computerized process of
managing their records of the business activities of the company. The incorporation of the
digitalization was a much required action for the company in maintaining the relevancy of
their business operations in the 21st century and the main idea of the managers of the
company was to make sure that the flow of the information from the part of the record
keeping department of the company to the line managers, manufacturing department of the
company and supply chain managers of the company, suppliers of the company, sales team of
the company and the distribution channel managers of the company, is smooth and efficient.

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A leading edge strategic innovation solution
The leading edge strategic innovation solution chosen for this paper is a digital
management of financial records. The paper will show a migration from manual mode of
recordkeeping such as through pen and paper to digitalised record keeping. Now, this will be
interesting to know why contemporary firms irrespective of their sizes should go for a
digitalised recordkeeping. The discussion will also help to understand why digitalised
recordkeeping is being chosen as the innovation solution or why this is considered an
innovation solution. To do this it is primarily important to know the areas where manual
recordkeeping lack. This will be followed by discussing the advantages of using digitalised
recordkeeping. Hence, these requirements are mentioned below:
Weak Zones of Manual Recordkeeping:
Below is the list of weaknesses, which exist with a manual mode of recordkeeping
(Linkedin.com 2019):
Inconsistency in Data Entry: Since manual recordkeeping requires people to enter
or capture information manually there can be human errors. Some of the information can be
wrongly entered. If it happens the consequences will not be very pleasant to the person who
is responsible to manage the records, and to the entire firm as this will affect their
information processing and retrieving capability.
Time-Consuming: Not to mention the manual mode of recordkeeping is time-
consuming. Manual work is dependent on the person’s capability to note down things
correctly and in less span of time. On the other hand, a software platform already has an
inbuilt system that facilitates capturing pieces of information in less span of time and with
high accuracy as compared to the manual recordkeeping.

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Lack of security: This is another issue. Manual entries are done by following a pen
and appear method. Papers are never safe and highly vulnerable to water, fire and other
physical activities. Due to these factors, the write off portion can be erased or the paper itself
can be hampered.
Advantages of Digital Recordkeeping:
Below is the list of advantages of using and managing digital records
(Business.qld.gov.au 2019):
Easier Information Retrieval: One of the benefits of using a digital platform for
recordkeeping is an easier retrieval of information. Information can be easily accessed
anytime from being anywhere in this world. It just requires entering a few keyboards, which
will help to travel the entry journey map needed to reach and access to the required
information. Additionally, digital records can easily be moved from one place to another. It
just requires using smart devices like smartphones, tablets, notebooks, etc.
Cost Savings: Digitalised recordkeeping is much more cost saving than manual
recordkeeping. Digital record management does not require a bigger area in the office
premise to store the number of different files. Instead, it just requires space in the chosen
software platform or cloud storage to store all data related to the set of financial information.
This is both a time saving and cost saving approach.
Simplified Accounting: By using digitalised recordkeeping accounting works can
also be simplified. It just requires managing digital records for sales, business details and
customer information. These records can exist in parallel with the digitalised recordkeeping.
Hence, this will cut down significantly on the time required to access a variety of
information. Moreover, digital recordkeeping also acts as a resource for storing data of
various kinds.

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Easy Backup of Files: Files containing information on financial records in a
digitalised recordkeeping platform can be easily backed up to several internet platforms.
Some of these platforms are Google backup services, cloud storage, etc. In this way,
digitalised recordkeeping also reduces the threat to lose the information. They can always be
backed up no matter whether the device system is crashed or the user has bought up a new
device.
Digital Recordkeeping makes sense: In the near future, the costs incurred in storing
the data in a digitalised recordkeeping environment is likely to decline. This will make this
tool financially feasible to even the SMEs. Moreover, it also provides various file formats in
which the information can be converted into. These formats are like PDF and TIFF. Hence, it
gives more option to store the information in the desired file format.
Applying the strategic innovation model to outline the implementation process
The innovation action plan:
Before implementing the innovation solution it is important to devise an action plan
on how to proceed with the implementation process. The action plan will be comprised of
below-mentioned elements:
The Current Approach:
The Company ‘X’ currently uses a pen and paper method to note down pieces of
information such as financial information. This approach is more or less outdated now.
Contemporary companies are increasingly heading to a digitalised recordkeeping method.
Change Requirements:
The implementation will definitely involve a change or a transformation from a
manual recordkeeping method to a digitalised recordkeeping. This change will require

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adequate resources like the selection of an appropriate software platform and where to buy it
from. Moreover, buying only the original software. However, the change may face some
barriers as according to Hayes (2018) a change attracts barriers in various forms such as
people management. The transformation would mean a loss of jobs to those who are currently
employed to take care of the manual recordkeeping process. To be able to overcome the
identified barrier and to effectively manage people throughout the change process, the role of
the company’s human resource management will be crucial here (Marler and Parry 2016).
The HRM of the company can provide job solutions to those who will be affected form this
change. These people can also be trained on skills needed to manage information in a
digitalised recordkeeping environment. This is like creating an asset from within the internal
and saving money, which could have been invested in fresh recruitment.
Target Market:
The target market with a digitalised recordkeeping environment will be the companies
of all sizes. There are still many SMEs who use manual recordkeeping to store and capture
the information. With a digitalised recordkeeping environment the aim will be to get more
and more clients who want assistance on their financial information management.
Customer-Perceived Value:
A digitalised recordkeeping will enhance the information capturing and processing
capability of the Company ‘X’. Hence, the firm will be able to deliver a quality solution for
their clients' information capturing needs. With a digitalised recordkeeping the sharing of
information between the Company ‘X’ and the client company will also become easier.
Moreover, providing assistance on financial data management will also improve the business
performance of the Company ‘X'.

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The leadership
Culture is one of the essential elements of the “Organisational Strategic Innovation
Model”. The implementation of a digitalised recordkeeping will need favourable
organisational culture. Culture defines the degree to which people can be flexible with a
change (Elsmore 2017). Some people can have no issues going for a change while many
others would realise no urgency for a change. To these people, the traditional way of
managing data such as using a pen and paper method is the most viable. This is where a
leadership approach will be required to move people from their comfort zone and letting them
adapt to the change. In this regard, leaders can motivate these few people by citing the
purpose behind the change, the benefits that the change will deliver and showing how easily
the new system can be operated (Ghasabeh, Soosay and Reaiche 2015).
The innovation implementation
The implementation of the innovation solution can be done by following the strategic
innovation model described below (Cameron and Green 2015):
Culture and Climate:
In order to transform into a digitalised recordkeeping environment, there should be
favourable organisational culture and climate. There should be tolerance for mistakes
committed as part of this change process. Rather, mistakes should be tried to overcome
instead of making this an issue. Failures should be rewarded with encouraging words as this
will keep the motivation level of staffs high. Successes should be celebrated and
congratulatory words should be shared between those who all are a part of the change
process. Risk-taking approach should be encouraged to support generating a bunch of new
ideas. Teamwork and collaboration between stakeholders are also very essential. This will
create a wider capability to deal with challenges and think of the solutions.

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Structure:
The structure should be flat as a flat structure has little or no middle-managerial
levels. Hence, the structure will speed up the exchange of communication between the team
members. Moreover, it provides autonomy to teams, which means they will also have a kind
of decision-making authority.
Processes:
The implementation should be carried in a decentralised system as this will speed up
the communication process between the stakeholders of the change process. This will also
speed up the decision-making process. The process will be carried in various phases such as
generating the ideas, experimenting these ideas and finally, executing the ideas.
Systems:
The implementation should be carried in a robust system meeting a few elements.
While doing the implementation it is recommended to establish customer relationship by
setting a few performance metrics and analysing the outcomes of the innovation solution
against these metrics. Moreover, there should be rooms for any kind of improvement needed.
The entire process of implementation should be made highly engaging for its stakeholders.
This can be done by using appropriate motivating factors.
People:
The implementation will result in a new set of skills. Employees should have the
appropriate resources to be able to learn new skills. People those who act as barriers to the
implementation should be handled strategically. Their questions and doubts should be
answered, and they should be motivated with appropriate motivating factors.

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Conclusion
To conclude, it can be said that the proposed change such as transforming a manual
recordkeeping method to a digitalised recordkeeping should enhance the business
performance for the Company ‘X’. However, they should be able to effectively handle the
guidance towards the change as provided in this study. Moreover, they should be able to
control their people.

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References
Business.qld.gov.au 2019. Electronic and manual record keeping | Business Queensland.
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Cameron, E. and Green, M., 2015. Making sense of change management: A complete guide
to the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. Kogan Page Publishers.
Elsmore, P., 2017. Organisational Culture: Organisational Change?: Organisational
Change?. Routledge.
García-Peñalvo, F.J. and Conde, M.Á., 2014. Using informal learning for business decision
making and knowledge management. Journal of Business Research, 67(5), pp.686-691.
Ghasabeh, M.S., Soosay, C. and Reaiche, C., 2015. The emerging role of transformational
leadership. The Journal of Developing Areas, 49(6), pp.459-467.
Hayes, J., 2018. The theory and practice of change management. Palgrave.
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Verma, P., 2013. Relationship between organisational communication flow and
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