Implementation of Sustainability and Ethical Index at Etsy
This assignment spans Units 8 and 9. Please do not procrastinate. Be sure to start this assignment in Unit 8. This assignment is due by the end of Unit 9. Procrastination can be detrimental to your success in this class. This assignment will require intensive interpretation skills. Be sure to use the grading rubric as a checklist.
The following Course Outcome is assessed in this assignment:
MT460-5: Design a plan to implement a business strategy throughout an organization.
To start this assignment, choose an organization from the list provided by your instructor.
Visit the MERGENT library database to conduct research on your chosen organization. Become very familiar with this library database. You will need it.
Analyze the details, latest annual report, latest news, review competitor information, etc. about your chosen organization.
You may also want to visit the websites for your chosen organization and its competitors for more information and observation.
Scenario:
You submitted a strategic plan for an innovative new product idea to the C-level executives of your organization. Congratulations! It was approved, and you have been promoted to the chief strategy officer position in your chosen organization. The C-level executive committee was very impressed with your strategic plan. Now it is time to implement your strategy. Develop a strategy implementation plan to share with your management team that will be responsible for executing the strategy for your innovative new product idea in your chosen market. Use the following criteria to develop the strategy implementation plan for your innovative new product idea.
Assignment Requirements: In this assignment, you will address the Course Outcomes by developing a strategic implementation for your chosen organization. Address each of the following inquiries in your deliverable:
Implementation Strategy
Explain what must be done to successfully implement the strategy for your innovative new product idea in order to improve the competitive advantages of your chosen organization.
Discuss how to manage the value chain of your organization in the implementation of your strategy.
Explain the ideal organizational design of your organization to ensure the successful implementation of your strategy.
Strategy Team Structure
Organize a strategy-supportive management team structure to implement a strategy for a new idea that increases the competitive advantage of your organization.
Choose the optimal organizational structure type for the team implementing your strategy.
Determine and explain the structure (hierarchical or flat) and why it would produce the best results to implement your strategy.
Strategic Initiative Projects
Identify and prioritize projects into a balanced scorecard to implement a strategy for a new idea that increases the competitive advantage of an organization.
Complete a balanced scorecard chart. Use it to identify and prioritize projects per category.
Create a list of strategic initiatives and prioritize them as projects for your management team to implement.
Develop a timeline depiction indicating project completion milestones.
Identify one strategic initiative that is critical to the overall success of your strategy. End explain why it is the most important project to focus attention, efforts, and resources on.
Complete the project scope form for your chosen strategic initiative to demonstrate project planning to your management team.
Resource Allocation
Develop a plan to allocate resources based on the priority of projects for a new idea that increases the competitive advantage of your organization.
Explain the importance of resource allocation and resource management to the success of your strategy.
Explain the process of carrying out a resource audit to your management team and include why it is important.
Develop a resource management checklist for your chosen strategic initiative to demonstrate resource allocation to your management team.
Explain the role of information systems and technological resources in the execution of your strategic initiative project.
Based on the results of your resource planning, develop a budget proposal for your strategic initiative.
Concisely explain your budget proposal.
Key Performance Indicators
Explain the purpose and importance of managing performance and provide details on how it is accomplished to ensure competitive advantage is achieved.
Explain the purpose of key performance indicators and how they work.
Complete the Deciding What to Measure form to identify key performance indicators (outputs, actions, and measurements).
Design five key performance indicators to manage the implementation of your strategy.
Concisely explain the key performance indicators and how they will collectively ensure competitive advantage is achieved.
Continuous Improvement Process
Develop a continuous improvement philosophy to ensure the implementation of your strategy increases the competitive advantages of your organization.
Create and thoroughly explain the continuous improvement philosophy of your organization.
Consider adopting an existing continuous improvement philosophy such as Kaizen, Six Sigma, EFQM, etc. Explain it thoroughly, specifically addressing who, what, why, when, where, and how the continuous improvement philosophy will be employed to ensure competitive advantages are achieved.
Explain how problems and challenges will be analyzed and solved.
Explain how to create the right environment for continuous improvement within your organization to ensure competitive advantages are achieved.
Culture & Performance
Explain how the culture of your organization will impact the implementation of the strategy for your innovative new product idea that increases its competitive advantage.
Define the purpose of your organizational culture and how it contributes to the successful implementation of your strategy.
Explain how each category of the cultural web in your organization will impact the successful implementation of your strategy.
Explain how “cultural fit” and “cultural add” will be managed by your team.
Explain how conflicts to the organizational culture will be handled.
Design an incentive and reward plan to promote effective and efficient strategy implementation.
Conclusion Remarks
Develop closing remarks to your management team that encourage collaboration and inspire innovation and entrepreneurship in the effort of implementing your strategy for your innovative new product idea that increases the competitive advantage of your organization.
Implementation of Sustainability and Ethical Index at Etsy
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Implementation of Sustainability and Ethical Index at Etsy
The sustainability and ethical index has been accepted as an innovative idea that will increase Etsy’s competitive advantage. As the company moves forward with this strategy, collaboration and an embrace of an entrepreneurial spirit are required to drive innovation and creativity. A holistic approach to project planning and execution will ensure that resources are properly allocated, the implementation team is motivated and engaged, and customers are delighted with the result. In this proposal, the key components of the strategy, including project prioritization, resource allocation, performance management, and continuous improvement will be outlined.
Implementation Strategy
To introduce a sustainability and ethical index that shall be used on products offered on Etsy, the first step will be the development of the index. The index shall comprise key indicators that assess the environmental and social impact of the products and shall be developed with input from environmental sustainability consultants. With assistance from industry experts, the company shall develop a relevant and credible index informed by sustainability standards. Once the index has been developed, the company will communicate the importance of the index to its sellers and encourage them to provide accurate and transparent information about their products' sustainability and ethical practices. To facilitate collaboration, Etsy will provide educational materials, training, and incentives to help sellers comply with the index. In addition, Etsy's staff will be trained about the index and its importance in the company's sustainability strategy. The goal of the train will be to make sure that the staff can answer customers' questions about the index and guide them in their purchasing decisions. Finally, the index will be integrated into the platform, so customers can easily access it when browsing products. The index will be displayed prominently and clearly, with explanations of what each indicator means.
When implementing the strategy, Etsy’s value chain shall be managed in three main ways. Etsy will work closely with suppliers to ensure compliance with the sustainability and ethical index. The company will select suppliers that share its values and beliefs and collaborate with them to improve its sustainability practices. The company will also optimize its logistics to reduce its environmental impact by using renewable energy sources, reducing packaging, and using sustainable transport modes. Further, the company will make sure that customer service is aligned with the sustainability and ethical index. To this end, staff shall receive training on how to help customers use the index.
To facilitate the implementation of the strategy, the company shall form a sustainability committee to oversee the implementation of the strategy. The committee will be responsible for monitoring the company's sustainability practices, identifying areas for improvement, and reporting progress to the board of directors. Given that the index will require collaboration between different departments within Etsy, cross-functional teams will be formed. In addition, Etsy's performance management system will be aligned with the sustainability and ethical index whereby some aspects of employees' performance will be measured based on their contribution to the company's sustainability goals.
Strategy Team Structure
The strategy-supportive management team structure will facilitate the implementation of the strategy. The team will have a strategy director to lead the team and oversee the project, a sustainability manager in charge of the index and overseeing compliance with the index, a product manager to oversee the integration of the index into the platform, a marketing manager to promote the index to customers, and analytics manager to monitor the effectiveness of the index.
The optimal organizational structure for the implementation team shall be flat. A flat structure has minimal hierarchies and decentralizes the decision-making process. A flat structure would produce the best results because it allows for more flexibility and agility in implementing the strategy. Team members can communicate and collaborate more easily, and decisions can be made more quickly. This is essential when implementing a new idea like the sustainability and ethical index, which requires a high degree of collaboration and communication across different departments.
Strategic Initiative Project
A balanced scorecard will facilitate the implementation of the index by highlighting the strategic goal from various perspectives. From the financial perspective, the implementation will seek to increase sales revenue by 20 percent by the end of the year through increased customer trust in the sustainability and ethical index and increase seller revenue by 10 percent by providing incentives for sustainable practices. From the customer perspective, the goal will be to increase customer satisfaction by 15% through improved transparency and communication about the sustainability and ethical index and increase customer loyalty by 10% through personalized recommendations of sustainable products. From the internal process perspective, the team will develop a more sustainable shipping process to reduce the carbon footprint of shipping by 15 percent and introduce a sustainability rating for sellers to encourage and incentivize sustainable practices. From the learning and growth perspective, the team will develop and implement training programs for sellers on sustainable practices, as well as hire a sustainability expert to provide guidance and expertise on sustainable practices.
The critical strategic initiative for the overall success of this strategy is to develop a more sustainable shipping process to reduce the carbon footprint of shipping by 15%. This initiative is critical because shipping is a major contributor to carbon emissions in e-commerce. By reducing the carbon footprint of shipping, Etsy can demonstrate its commitment to sustainability and appeal to customers who prioritize sustainability in their purchasing decisions.
Project Scope
Project Title: Develop a More Sustainable Shipping Process
Project Scope: The scope of this project is to identify areas where the carbon footprint of shipping can be reduced, develop, and test new shipping processes, and implement the new processes. This project will include research and analysis of current shipping processes, the development of new processes, and testing and implementation of the new processes. The project team will consist of the sustainability manager, product manager, and analytics manager, who will work toget...