Importance of Innovation to AutoZone
Innovation is very important for the division and the entire organization. It is for this reason that innovation will be embedded in the core values as well as the mission and vision of the division. The main objective of making innovation part of the AutoZone statements is to help in reinforcing it. This will change the way innovation is viewed. Instead of being seen as just an aspirational concept, the idea is to make it as part of the everyday experience. It has to be embedded in everyone’s job responsibility. It will be used to further positive employee engagement in the division’s mandate. All employees in the department need to buy the concept of innovation in all their daily work engagements. It is believed that if employees practice it daily, all the time they are working on something, it will reach a point where they unconsciously become engaged in it. Innovation will not be just inserted in the vision, mission, and core values statements. There will be follow-through to make sure people put the words in practice. Leadership will also play a significant role in turning words into practice. It has been found out that management plays a key role in driving organizational innovation (Steiber, 2014). Employees in the division will not only get support but also guidance from the management. Leadership will also contribute towards the realization of the goal of making the division a center of innovation by allocating more resources needed to support innovation in the product. Overall, every employee would be expected to feel empowered to contribute innovative ideas to the division.
New Product for the Division
The division will design, develop, and manufacture a new innovative product. The mission of the division is to design, develop, and manufacture innovative products to meet the expectations of the customers. The division will work hand in hand with customers so that it can come up with products that exceed their expectations. The new product will be unique in the market. A customer looking at the product will be in a position to distinguish it from others due to the features it has. The purpose of differentiation is to influence customer decision-making process. The features of the product will be modified in such a way that they attract customers to buy it. The product offered should be attracted to the customers more than what the competitors are offering. Some of the ways in which the product will be differentiated from what the competitors offer include price, form, features, customization, color, performance, weight, quality, durability, size, reliability, reparability, and style.
Addressing customer needs
The objective of coming up with the new product is to offer it to the customers. Keeping in mind that customer is key, the division will work to ensure that the products manufactured to fulfill customers’ expectations. Customers will be reassured that their needs and concerns will be adequately addressed. The division will not wait until customers complain of issues like functionality or quality. Customers will be involved during the design stage. Surveys will be carried out to determine the major concerns of customers. Other options for obtaining customer feedback that will be utilized include using online blogs and tickets. Feedback is collected and analyzed. It will help understanding what influence customers ‘choices when they go shopping for similar products. The customers’ views will be incorporated into the design of the product. After considering the views of the customers, the next step is to compare the features of the proposed product with what the competitor’s offer in the market. The features of the product can be further improved to produce products that exceed expectations of the customers. To ensure that the division has a competitive advantage, it will manufacture products with unique features to those offered by the competitors. According to Gitman and McDaniel (2008), characteristics of competitive advantage include cost, product/service differentiation, and niche. Therefore, it is not just about producing high quality product with innovative features but also considering the final price.
Vision for the Division
Having a vision is very important for the division since it will act as a basis for the establishment of division’s objectives. The vision for the division is to be the top 5 leading suppliers of the high-quality product in its category by the year 2020. The division will attract, nurture, and retain talent. The division will also invest a lot of resources in its R&D. Further, the division will invest in advanced production lines employing the latest technology. There is a need to collaborate with suppliers. As such, the division will partner with top global suppliers of advanced manufacturing equipment, components, and raw materials need to manufacture the product.
Vision, Statement of Purpose (mission), and Values of the Division
There are the divisional goals, and there is the overall goal of AutoZone. The objective is to ensure that the division’s output contribute to the overall organizational goals of the Autozone. As a result, the core values, vision, and statement of purpose for the division will borrow a lot from those of the AutoZone. If the statements of the division and those of the organization are no aligned, the division might not make a valuable contribution to the AutoZone’s goals. Employees will be communicated to on how the division’s goals will contribute to the overall goal of the organization. For example, employees will be informed that all divisional decision-making processes will be guided by the statement of purpose for the division. It will be expected that once they understand the mission, employees and their supervisors will make decisions and perform tasks which are aligned to the mission of Autozone. The top management will also be involved so that they present their views regarding the mission and vision statements of the division. This is very important because it is the management which is supposed to provide guidance and support for the effective realization of the division’s vision, mission, and core values.
Division’s Strategic Direction
The division’s strategic direction will be guided by the mission as well as the vision statements of the division. There is a target for the division to achieve a certain level of success at a given point in future. The division also needs to utilize resources effectively as it works towards achieving that goal in future. In addition, three are certain attributes that must be upheld by employees working in the division so that the division can utilize the resources well and achieve the target in future. This, therefore, implies that the division’s statements need to be aligned with its future goals. Upon laying the strategies that need to be achieved, the next step is to formulate a vision, mission, and values statement which are in line with the strategic direction. The objective is to come up with a vision, statement of purpose, and value statements which enhance the strategic direction of the division. The division will formulate short-term and long-term goals from the statement of purpose. Some of the key two goals are customer satisfaction and targets for market share. To realize these goals, actionable tactics will be developed and agreed upon by all the employees in the division.
Guiding Principles
Culture, social responsibility, and ethics will be the underpinning factors by which the division’s core values will be derived. For example, on culture, the division will embrace and foster a culture of diversity where all employees are treated equally as partners. There will be no discrimination on the basis of race gender, nationality, religion, or disability. On the social responsibility, the division will engage in sustainable business practices. The products and the manufacturing processes will adhere to the concept of sustainable development. The manufacturing processes will be energy efficient and produce little or no waste while the products manufactured will be also highly efficient and generate no waste or emissions which can pollute the environment. On the ethics, the division will strive to engage in ethical business practices. For example, there will be no accepting of bribes or pay bribes to get favors such as contracts or influence other people. The division will also borrow a lot from the principles of ethical theories such as utilitarianism, virtue ethics, and Kantianism in its ethical approach to business practices. According to Northouse (2013), ethics is central to leadership. The leadership of the division will be expected to lead the division in culture, social responsibility, and ethics.
References
Gitman, L. & McDaniel, C. (2008). The Future of Business: The Essentials. Mason, OH: Thompson South-Western.
Northouse, P.G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice. London: Sage Publications
Steiber, A. (2014). The Google Model: Managing Continuous Innovation in a Rapidly Changing World. New York, NY: Springer.
