Various Operational Challenges Facing Emerson Electric Company
Introduction
Emerson Electric Company is one of the most inspirational American success stories. Emerson has managed to develop from a humble regional player in electric motor manufacturer and fan production into a highly dynamic multi-global acclaimed company. Notably, Emerson Electric Company has steadily increased technology and engineering techniques as the century progressed ensuring that it remained relevant while still realizing profits all through. Today, Emerson Electric Company has become a household name in delivering technological solutions to companies and homes in all over the world. After the release of financial records in the last fiscal quarter, analysts suggest there is a substantial growth capability for the company. Remarkably, the growth of the company is expected to result from its major revenue driving industries. They include oil and gas, industrial automation, commercial and residential solution, and other insignificant industries related to the company. Despite the significant growth ability that the company has shown over the years, the company still faces some operational challenges in management as well as in industry development. This paper will review these challenges and establish means in which Emerson Electric Company is planning to deal with them.
Gemstone Equity Research (2014)
Innovation
Challenges
- Environmental Stewardship (2014) categorically states that the Emerson Electric Company is facing numerous innovation challenges mostly associated with the future.
- First, the company needs to maximize on providing energy efficiently throughout its regions of operations. Countries that the company has privatized the energy distribution business like India and other parts of Asia are looking upon the company to provide new solutions for energy efficiency.
- In addition, environmental lobby groups are looking toward the company to minimize its carbon footprint in the planet as well as increase activities that improve the quality of air and water.
- This might involve developing and investing in infrastructure and services that provide a bright future for this generation and those to come.
- Conspicuously, the Emerson Electric Company is required to invest in designs and projects that present to raise the living standards of the people all over the world (Environmental Stewardship 2014).
- Naturally, the company has to protect the security and quality of food, medicines, and other services that its products might be directly or indirectly involved with globally.
- As a company that prides itself as ambitious in telecommunication and data networks prowess, the company websites and other data related platforms have to remain online constantly everywhere.
- Conclusively, Environmental Stewardship (2014) states that the company has to continue providing technologies that create a safe working and living environment for people at work and home while still keeping their prices as competitive as ever.
Opportunities
- The company has established itself as one of the best in the area of data monitoring and management.
- The company is also among the leading providers and distributors in AC/DC power.
- The company’s innovation for precise cooling systems for manufacturing industries near freezing lakes has increased its activities in utilizing renewable sources of energy in the market (Environmental Stewardship 2014).
- Overall, the company has been noted to solve problems in data centers using critical infrastructures that provide quick and manageable solutions.
Technology
Challenges
- Analysts have found that data analysts need to address trends for opportunities and challenges in their fields of expertise. As a result, the Emerson Electric Company needs to be on its toes regarding changes or malfunctions in data management and monitoring system (Technology Center Network 2014).
- Unfortunately, this means that the company has to invest in highly qualified data analysts as well as infrastructure that enables them provide immediate and effective solutions to all its clients globally.
- The company involvement in rehabilitation efforts that involve re powering existing power plants that they have recently acquired demands for newer power management control systems (Modernization and re powering keep Emerson busy 2011).
- Its involvement in the Siemens Company back in China revealed the need for the company to create new heat recovery steam systems that promote the efficient use of power as demands grow every day (Modernization and re powering keep Emerson busy 2011).
- In order to be at the top of the industry, the company has invested heavily on funding projects as well as scientists who provide the company with innovative technologies that always keep them at the top of the market.
- The company has to maintain an adequate number of qualified personnel in the technological sector an industry that is constantly faced with strains of availability of professionals (Technology Center Network 2014).
Opportunities
- As the company has expanded its activities in china, Emerson Electric Company has developed a new water pumping system that has played a significant role in reducing the use of coal in the country.
- These technologies have helped reduce the carbon emission in china and increased the use of renewable energies, therefore, preserving the environment (Modernization and re powering keep Emerson busy 2011).
- The company also helped create advanced refrigeration systems for supermarkets that have increased energy efficiency, therefore, dramatically reduced the cost running supply chains and supermarkets.
Launching new products
Challenges
- Hindo (2008) argues that the major challenge that this company faces is that most managers are more involved with making data drives solutions while they should be creating solutions through innovation.
- Resultantly, Hindo (2008) states that the managers make their engineers iterate existing products instead of using these engineers to develop groundbreaking projects.
- Unfortunately, the new numbers projected in the latest newsletter from Emerson show that the company would increase manufacturing of their products to meet the increasing global demand. This means that the company will have to use more nonrenewable sources of energy, which will be increase its carbon footprint on the planet due to the unavailability of already developed adequate renewable sources (Hindo 2008).
- As a result, the company has to quicken its activities that involve transformation of gas fuel into liquid since it is arguably one of the environmental friendliest fossil fuel globally available today.
- Notably, since the company is expanding globally and is about to function in all continents of the world, it is expected that they release products that speak to the needs of different economies as well as adhere to their culture (Hindo 2008).
Opportunities
- The company has realized the opportunity that it is missing on investing in creating innovative products and has vowed to correct this mistake.
- However, despite the release of related products for the most part of last year, the company has reported profits all through.
- Managers have also been educated on creating a rubric that will ensure a perfect balance between minor improvement products, major improvement products, new lines of products, and products that are completely new in the world (Hindo 2008).
- Creating new products will create markets for the company that never existed before and therefore with fewer competitors.
- Since Emerson Electric Company has one of the most educated and highly qualified panels of engineers, it is now easier for them to produce an array of good that provide a smarter and safer lifestyle for all people in different countries (Technology Center Network 2014).
- Their involvement of employing creative innovative ideas that turn the garbage and other forms of waste into renewable sources of energy ensures that their products are now safer for the environment (Hindo 2008).
Supply chain management
Challenges
- Notably, Gemstone Equity Research (2014) claims that one of the most detrimental issues challenging proper supply chain management in the Emerson Electric Company is the political boundaries across the countries involved in the manufacturing and sale of their products.
- As a result, the company is finding it hard to adhere to diverse market place, social, political, economic, government, and technological diversity issues across new countries that Emerson is establishing some of its activities.
- Unfortunately, the managing directors of different areas of the company find themselves with the challenge to adapt and learn fast of the operational fundamentals needed to establish a sustainable competitive advantage for the organization in different sectors (Gemstone Equity Research 2014).
- In addition, the company identifies the need to evolve from the traditional supply chain methods due to the ever-evolving simple supply chains into more complex networks.
- Emerson Electric Company is also faced with a very huge challenge of training multicultural employees in the supply chain sector who will abide by the ethics and will abide to all the laws and ethical expectations globally.
Opportunities
- The company has significantly invested in employing highly qualified suppliers who are dedicated to a productive Supply Chain Management System and are informed of the local laws and norms.
- Emerson ensured fair and legal activities without compromise in all their operations, therefore, eliminating wrongful acts in any new region (Gemstone Equity Research 2014).
- The company has also employed a very qualified panel of supply chain managers who understand global implications and have winning leadership qualities to lead the company into new heights of supply chain management throughout the world.
Conclusion
Though it will not be easy, the company will have to remain viable and relevant in all the industries it is involved in. To do so, the company will need to embrace innovation and technologies in ways and areas that it has never attempted before. Analysts, however, argue that there is a very high chance that the company might receive losses from the products that that it releases and are completely new in the market. This is because history has taught us that new products are very risky and often has an equal chance of winning or losing in the market places (Technology Center Network 2014). However, since it is a highly diversified company, the company can afford to survive setbacks created by these measures. Due to the new changes expected in the company, the company now more than ever needs leaders with very influential leadership skills in all its areas of business. The CEO of Emerson will also need to employ reliable philosophies while running this company to ensure that it maintains its position as a top global manufacturer that cares for both the domestic and international clientele.
References
Hindo, B. (2008). Far-flung Emerson Electric generates loads of ideas. Now it has a way to sort out the really novel ones. Businessweek, (4088), 46.
Modernization and re powering keep Emerson busy. (2011). Modern Power Systems, 31(5), 55.
Technology Center Network. (2014). Technology center network: Emerson. Retrieved from: http://www.emerson.com/en-US/innovation- leadership/technology-center-network/Pages/default.aspx
Environmental Stewardship. (2014). Meeting significant global challenges through innovation: Emerson. Retrieved from: http://www.emerson.com/en- US/about/corporate-citizenship/csr-sustainability/Pages/sustainability- approach.aspx
Gemstone Equity Research. (2014). Emerson Electric Co. seeking industries favor for upcoming growth: Seeking Alpha. Retrieved from: http://seekingalpha.com/article/2015191-emerson-electric-co-seeking- industries-favor-for-upcoming-growth
