Essay on Impact of Strategy on Successful Innovation

Introduction

Changes in the world of business are happening fast. In the future, companies that will not catch up will be wiped out (Wavetec, 2013). Although no one understands what the future holds, businesses can implement strategic moves by analyzing the changes and keeping up with the trends. With technology constantly changing, innovation has become the core aspect of it. It has therefore become imperative that businesses connect strategy and innovation since they are both keys to value addition (Pisano, 2015). Business strategy is essential in innovation as it is through it that a business comes up with innovative ways. Companies, however, need to be on the lookout. The implementation of the innovation as an aspect of innovation may have an impact. This paper will address the impact of strategy on success innovation in General Mills Company by assessing the role business strategy plays towards innovation.

Company description

General Mills Inc. is a US-based company that is one of the largest producers of food globally. With its headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota, General Mills serves over a hundred countries. The company has a wide range of brands, including baking products, cereals, pastries, snacks, soup, pizza, and vegetables. Ever since the company was formed in 1866, the flour milling company has grown to acquire many other companies worldwide. With a purpose to make food that customers will love, the company is on a mission to make people live healthier, easier, and in a richer way (General Mills, 2014). It is the reason behind focusing on the achievement of its goals of improving life and health. The company’s vision statement focuses on customer satisfaction to maintain a connection with the consumers. At General Mills, innovation means connecting people smart people to improve their lives by setting strategies that impact overall life.

Capitalization on the value of business strategy process

General Mills realized that it needed a culture of innovation. It needed to change the way they ran their operations by applying innovation to implement change programs. The company management took the initiative to capitalize on the business strategy process through the following. First, General Mills set clear its vision to satisfy its customers. This step was guided by the specificity of the mission and vision of the company. Setting clear the company’s vision helped in setting both short-and long-term goals that supported the innovative culture the company was developing. It ensured the company maintained high standards that led to the brand being recognized globally. Secondly, the company gathered and analyzed information that supported the company’s drive towards achieving an innovative culture. The company gathered factual information relevant to achieving its main purpose. This helped the senior management become familiar with the company number and understand the details needed to change its culture (Mitchell & Mark, 2014). The data collection and analysis all enable the company to identify all the internal and external factors that affected growth and helped in focusing on innovation as the top-level objective (Clayton, 2019).

General Mills capitalized on strategy formulation by setting identifying the resources that the company needed to achieve an innovative culture as its main goal. From the resources, the strategic management team came up with related targets that fostered innovation. They connected the employees with the relevant stakeholders, including investors, customers, and others, throughout the innovation process. The next process in the business strategy process is strategy implementation. General Mills capitalized on this stage by coming up with a new business structure. Everyone in the company was informed of the changes that were to take place. Different departments were given various duties and responsibilities to ensure the overall goal of innovation was achieved. Necessary resources were secured with adequate funding.

The company capitalized on the final stage of the business strategy process by taking performance measurements. The desired performance after the company shifted to improve forecasts through increased analytic process. The results were satisfying, and the company didn’t have to go through corrective actions. The innovative culture was gradually being implemented the company was becoming more responsive. Every aspect of the business was improving as the company came up with new ways to connect its brands to the constantly changing taste and preference of the customer.

Approaches to enhance strategic innovation

Although General Mills capitalized on the business strategy process, it still has to ensure that it engages in strategic innovation to cater to the volatile, competitive, and uncertain business environment (Haynes, 2020). To enhance its strategic innovation, General Mills has to engage in the following. The company needs to determine its objectives and identify a strategic approach towards innovation. The approach should include something different other than coming up with new products. These can increase the market focus of the brand, increase technology focus within the company and increase customer focus. Secondly, the company needs to know and understand the customers and competitors. Knowing what is happening with the customers and competitors is essential. Thirdly, the company needs to define its value proposition on the type of innovation that captures and complies with its values (Kylliäinen, 2018). Also, General Mills needs to assess and focus on its core capabilities. The company already has internal skills, which are critical for innovation. Lastly, the company needs to establish its innovative methods and systems. New systems come up frequently. The company should strive to ensure they have the latest technology for the results of the innovative strategy (Elkins, 2021).

Data to leverage within a business strategy

Information is key in the decision-making process involving innovation. General Mills can leverage the following data within the business strategy for successful innovation. The company can use data that is available on the company’s current situation. This will help in determined what worked and areas that need improvement. This includes information within the company and the industry. Customer profiles also make up vital information the company can leverage in the business strategy. Innovation is directed towards making the customer experience better and live healthier. The information may include customer past and present purchasing behavior, their challenges, complaints, and testimonials. Information on competitor performance is also essential (The Alternative Board, 2019). It helps in making changes and plans for the future. Related to this is industry information, including the trends, turnover ratios, and current developments to keep up with. Lastly, the company should leverage data on forecasting trends for past trends and patterns. It will help in strategic planning and areas to focus on innovation in the future.

Utilization of business strategy to further innovation

Valuing business strategy and innovation builds an alignment between them. General Mills can do the following to utilize a business strategy for the success of innovation. The management can develop a new product. This will foster innovation as it may be seen as an opportunity to change the existing products in the market. Another method is to protecting and expanding the market share as business strategies. These will create a dynamic market worldwide that will require continuous innovation to maintain the market share. After creating an innovative culture, the employees will be familiar with their requirements (Wood, 2019). Retaining them as a strategy will foster further innovation as they are already committed to innovation. That way, the company will have retained skills that will withstand challenges and be creative when the need arises. Also, improving operational efficiency will further innovation. Operational efficiency will cut on the cost of production and streamline operations that will offer room for innovation. Lastly, the company can increase market recognition. This can be through promotions, advertisement, social media presence, and corporate social responsibility. The more the customers know about the brand, the increased need for innovation.

Conclusion

There is a significant relationship between business strategy and innovation. It is through business strategy that an organization comes with innovative ways. As a consumer goods company, General Mills Inc. is among the largest food producers in the world. The mission of the company focus on improving the health and life of customers (General Mills, 2014). Its vision is to satisfy its customers. Implementing innovation is among the best ways to achieve that. It is a company that has so far capitalized on the value of its business strategies. With specific approaches, it would enhance its strategic innovation. The company also needs to leverage data on customer profiles, competitors, the food industry, and trends to leverage within the business strategy. There is a link between business strategies. To open the company for further innovation, the company can utilize different business strategies.

References

Mitchell, J. R., & Mark, K. (2014). General Mills Canada: Building a Culture of Innovation (B) [Case No 9B14M015]. London, Ontario, Ivey Publishing School of Business Foundation.

The Alternative Board. (2019). What data to leverage for a winning business strategy. Business Advisory Services & Coaching Programs | The Alternative Board. https://www.thealternativeboard.com/blog/data-to-leverage-for-a-winning-business-strategy

Clayton, J. (2019). The five stages of the strategic management process. Small Business – Chron.com. https://smallbusiness.chron.com/five-stages-strategic-management-process-18785.html

Elkins, A. (2021). What is innovation strategy? Planview Blog. https://blog.planview.com/what-is-innovation-strategy/

General Mills. (2014). General mills: Innovation. General Mills: A U.S.-based food company. We serve the world by making food people love, providing quality brands in more than 100 countries on six continents. https://www.generalmills.com/Company/Innovation.aspx

Haynes, M. (2020). 5 ways to identify innovation opportunities & drive business growth. Listen Innovate Grow. https://listeninnovategrow.com/5-ways-to-drive-business-growth/

Kylliäinen, J. (2018). Innovation strategy – What is it and how to develop one? Viima – Make More Innovation Happen. https://www.viima.com/blog/innovation-strategy

Pisano, G. (2015). 5 ways to identify innovation opportunities & drive business growth. Listen Innovate Grow. https://listeninnovategrow.com/5-ways-to-drive-business-growth/

Wavetec, J. (2013). Studying the relationship between innovation and strategy. The Wavetec Blog – Wavetec. https://blog.wavetec.com/en/studying-the-relationship-between-innovation-and-strategy

Wood, M. (2019). Developing an innovation strategy. Business Queensland. https://www.business.qld.gov.au/running-business/growing-business/becoming-innovative/strategy/developing