POSITIONING REVISITED

In 1972, Trout and Ries heralded the coming of a new era of marketing strategy, the “Era of Positioning”.  They maintained that:

Positioning has its roots in the packaged goods field where the concept was called product positioning.  It literally meant the product’s form, package size and price as compared to competition… today we are entering an era that recognizes both the importance of the product and the importance of the company image, but more than anything else, stresses the need to create a position in the prospect’s mind.¹

Marketers will quickly recognize the early concept of product positioning as nothing more than the established practice of product differentiation.  Referenced in the above statement, however, are two additional positioning concepts, both external in nature: “company (image) positioning” and “positioning within the prospect’s mind.”  Trout and Ries proceed to introduce a third concept, “master plan positioning,” which is internal in nature.  This particular positioning concept involves the firm’s strategy of positioning a given product within the framework of its overall product line.  It is a plan to manufacture a separate product to serve each of several particular consumer needs, such as one toothpaste for cavity prevention and another for sex appeal.  Again, however, most marketers may view such “ master plan positioning” as nothing more than differentiating each of several brands for a different market segment.

Why Is Employee Motivation Important?

Why is employee motivation important? Employee motivation can be the difference between success and failure for your business. Encouraging employees to behave as if they are owners of the company has proven to be a successful strategy for business growth. At the other end of the spectrum, canned employee motivation programs often lead to a lack of motivation because they lack the personal touch that shows an individual employee that you care.

It doesn't matter what product or service your company provides. If your employees are not motivated to meet your needs, they won't.

More than a Paycheck

Many are of the mindset that the almighty paycheck should be all the motivation employees need. Others believe it will bankrupt the company to invest in employee motivation strategies, failing to see that they can't afford not to. Some cynical managers even believe it isn't possible to motivate employees to grow a business at all. Others recall past employee motivation strategies that failed. Many companies have performance pay structures that reward the employee who shines with the same pay as the employee who merely warms a seat.

Failure to maintain a culture of employee motivation will not lead a company toward achieving its goals, but will instead foster mediocrity and apathy among the team. Companies that are most successful at keeping their employees motivated to exceed expectations have gone beyond implementing performance standards and rewards. They have created a culture of employee motivation that feeds into every level of the organization and is a foundation for every process.

Case Studies

The power of employee motivation was demonstrated by Springfield Remanufacturing Corp. (SRC), according to Jack Stack's book, The Great Game of Business.

During a recession in 1991, net profits actually increased at SRC. Stack, SRC's CEO at the time, saw firsthand the results of a team of motivated employees when the company achieved a production goal beyond any previously imagined. Very solid profits were earned for the company and the employees were not forced to do anything different. They solved several business issues themselves and achieved the goal because they wanted to do it. He coined the phrase, "You gotta wanna." He motivated his team, which had historically produced 2 or 3 tractors each day, to push 800 tractors out the door in only 20 work days.

When International Harvester, now Navistar International Corp., was faced with the looming likelihood that the company would be forced to shut down, the executive team presented the facts to the frontline workers. The company opened its books and taught the employees what issues were causing and creating the financial dilemmas. Employees who had no formal training in accounting or business management were empowered to change the fate of the company. To save their jobs, the employees had to change the way the company did business. They succeeded and became international cheerleaders for open-book management.

These examples demonstrate that when employees clearly understand the specific goals and expectations of the company and realize what their rewards will be, they are motivated to succeed.

What Works

Numerous human resource professionals have researched employee motivation over the years. The results consistently demonstrate that employee motivation, and ultimately job satisfaction, is not usually driven by pay. Employees are motivated or satisfied by other factors, such as work environment, advancement opportunities, feeling as though they are part of a greater good, recognition for a job well done and having managers who value their contributions to the company. Companies that consciously enact strategies to create a culture of employee motivation are the companies that attract and retain the best talent and surpass their corporate goals. 

Steps in Personal Planning (SPP)

What is Personal Planning?

	Career planning consists of activities and actions that you take to achieve your individual career goals. Career planning is the ongoing process where you: ·         Explore your interests and abilities; ·         Strategically plan your career goals; and ·         Create your future work success by designing learning and action plans to help you achieve your goals.

Career development and the career planning process include a number of specific steps that help to identify personal skills and attributes. Finding out how those skills can be utilized in the job market is accomplished by researching a number of career fields that are of interest to you and then by gaining experience in those fields and/or speaking to people currently working in the field. Participating in some form of experiential education will help you to identify if the field is the right choice for you.

Step #1: Self-Assessment

Evaluating who you are as a person. This involves taking a personal inventory of who you are and identifying your individual values, interests, skills, and personal qualities. What makes you tick as a person. You will look at those personal attributes under a microscope and come up with key qualities you can identify and use in your search for the perfect career. Career assessments may be required to promote a better understanding of personal attributes and skills. Contact your Career Services Office at your college to discuss if a career assessment may be right for you.

Step #2: Research (Career Exploration)

Obtain an insider’s perspective about the career field you are considering. Conduct Informational Interviews in person, phone, or by email. Professionals enjoy sharing their expertise with people interested in the field. Perform informational interviews with alumni from your college to gain their perspective of the field and to listen to what they have to say. This strategy provides first hand knowledge from someone currently working in the field and gives you an opportunity to ask about their experiences as well as potential jobs and what one might expect if just entering the field.

Gain experience through internships or by job shadowing for one to several days to see what a typical work day entails and to gain perspective of what the environment is like and the typical job responsibilities of someone working in the field. Research what types of jobs are availabe in your area of interest by checking out Majors to Career Converter, The Occupational Outlook Handbookand The Career Guide to Industries. The Occupational Outlook Handbook offers a wealth of information for those currently just entering the job market and for those anticipating making a career change.

Step #3: Decision-Making

Once you’ve made a thorough self-assessment and have done some research of career options, it’s time to make a decision. This can be difficult since there may still be many unknowns and a fear of making the wrong choice. One thing for sure is that although we can do all the necessary steps to making an informed decision, there is no absolute certainty that we are unquestioningly making the right decision. This uncertainty is easier for some people than others but a key point to remember is that you can always learn from any job you have and take those skills and apply them at your next job.

Step#4: Search (Taking Action)

It’s now time to look for prospective jobs and/or employers, send out cover letters and resumes, and begin networking with people in the field. Keep in mind that cover letters and resumes are designed to make a favorable impression on employers (if done properly) and the interview process is what will ultimately land you the job. In other words, make sure your cover letter and resume highlight your skills and strengths based on the employer’s needs and that you are fully prepared to knock their socks off at the interview. Take time to research the employer’s website prior to the interview, and be prepared to ask thoughtful questions based on your research.

Step #5: Acceptance

Wow! You’ve completed all of the steps above and you’ve been accepted into a new and exciting or different job. Congratulations! According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 64.1% of people change jobs between 5 and 14 times in their lifetime. Consequently, learning the skills above will increase your chances of gaining meaningful and satisfactory work as well as help you to avoid many of the stresses that occur with changing jobs. By recognizing that change is good (even advantageous), changing jobs can be viewed as a positive experience and need not be as anxiety provoking as it may initially seem. You will continue the process of self-assessment, research, decision-making, and job searching in order to make effective and fulfilling career changes throughout your lifetime.

What is performance management process?

• To achieve this design, performance management process must address the overall organization performance in conjunction with the components.
• The performance management process requires several ongoing activities. This include identifying and prioritizing goals, defining what constitutes progress towards goals, setting standards for measuring results, and tracking progress toward goals.
• These systems can analyze data from reviews, become the system of record where performance reviews are kept, and serve as tools in the progression of an employee's career within an organization.
•  Performance management processes are increasingly important in the technology age.

The performance management process is a method of management design to ensure the organization and all of its components are working together to optimize the organizations goals. Organization components include departments, employees, processes, teams, and other aspects of an organization. To achieve this design, performance management process must address the overall organization performance in conjunction with the components.

Marketing as a Social and Economic Process

It is sobering to recall that the study of marketing did not always have a managerial focus. The early roots of marketing as an area of academic study can be found, beginning around 1910, in American  universities, where a strong involvement with the farm sector created a concern for agricultural markets and the processes by which products were brought to market and prices determined. The analysis was centered around commodities and the institutions involved in moving them from farm, forest, sea, mine, and factory to industrial processors, users, and consumers. Within this tradition, three separate schools evolved that focused on the commodities themselves, on the marketing institutions through which products were brought to market, especially brokers, wholesalers, and retailers in their many forms and variations , and finally on the functions performed by these institutions . All of these approaches tended to be descriptive rather than normative, with the functional being the most analytical and leading to the development of a conceptual framework for the marketing discipline.

These early approaches to the study of marketing are interesting because of the relative absence of a managerial orientation. Marketing was seen as a set of social and economic processes rather than as a set of managerial activities and responsibilities. The institutional and functional emphasis began to change in 1948, when the American Marketing Association defined marketing as:

The performance of business activities directed toward, and incident to, the flow of goods and services from producer to consumer or user.

This definition, modified only very slightly in 1960, represented an important shift of emphasis. Though it grew out of the functional view, it defined marketing functions as business activities rather than as social or economic processes. The managerial approach brought relevance and realism to the study of marketing, with an emphasis on problem solving, planning, implementation, and control in a competitive marketplace.

Human Resource Management

HRM is the integration of all processes, programs, and systems in an organization that ensure staff are acquired and used in an effective way.

Human Resource Planning

    HR Planning

n  We have found the gap, how do we fill this void?

n  How much time should we spend on identifying the right person?

n  Lets follow the trail of what it takes to hire a new team member in an oganization.

         Recruitment

n  Process of locating, identifying, and attracting capable candidates

n  Can be for current or future needs

n  Critical activity for some corporations.

n  What sources do we use for recruitment 

        Selection

n  Prediction exercise

n  Thus, Not Perfect

n  Decision-making exercise

n  Purpose is to hire the person(s) best able to meet the needs of the organization

n  Tied Back to Strategy

n  Are there ways that managers can ensure that the decision achieves the desired outcome? (time and time again)

n  Yes, use HR Tools which are Reliable & Valid

Reliability

n  Degree to which selection tool measures the same thing consistently

n  Can be a test or an interview

Validity

n  Relationship between selection tool and appropriate criterion

n  What a selection technique measures and how well it measures

n  Must be proven and relevant to job

             Eg: keyboarding skills for data entry clerk

Human Resource Management

Human Resource Management

The integration of all processes, programs, and systems in an organization that ensure staff are acquired and used in an effective way.

HR Planning

n  We have found the gap, how do we fill this void?

n  How much time should we spend on identifying the right person?

n  Lets follow the trail of what it takes to hire a new team member in an oganization.

Recruitment

n  Process of locating, identifying, and attracting capable candidates

n  Can be for current or future needs

n  Critical activity for some corporations.

n  What sources do we use for recruitment

Selection

n  Prediction exercise

n  Thus, Not Perfect

n  Decision-making exercise

n  Purpose is to hire the person(s) best able to meet the needs of the organization

n  Tied Back to Strategy

n  Are there ways that managers can ensure that the decision achieves the desired outcome? (time and time again)

n  Yes, use HR Tools which are Reliable & Valid

Reliability

n  Degree to which selection tool measures the same thing consistently

n  Can be a test or an interview Same questions need to be asked

Validity

n  Relationship between selection tool and appropriate criterion

n  What a selection technique measures and how well it measures

n  Must be proven and relevant to job Eg: keyboarding skills for data entry clerk