Overview
Raising money to invest in innovation is hard. Companies both large and small work to strike a balance between executing an existing business model and thinking ahead to advance their business. As individuals think critically about how their business should move forward, they should first get a 360-degree view of their environment. This journey starts with research on the current state of the business and critical thinking questions that can help leaders drill down deeper.
Prompt
In this blog post, you will take on the role of the recently-promoted chief innovation officer (CIO) of an established U.S.-based company of your choosing. It is within your responsibilities to discover new ways to improve an existing product or service in North America, or to introduce a new product or service to the market that will give the company a market edge over competition and fit within the company’s core competencies. For the purposes of this blog post, and for this entire course, you will do the latter.
The new product or service must be something that cannot be easily duplicated and takes into account consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP). If a consumer doesn’t have a problem or need for the product or service offered, they will not be willing to exchange money for the solution.
The first step of such an undertaking requires research and an examination of the selected company’s financials and current resources. Moreover, this new product or service offering must leverage the strengths of the company.
Using MarketLine, Yahoo Finance, and the investor relations page on the company’s website, select and research an established company of your choice. Specifically, look at the company’s 10K Report with a focus on the company’s business in North America. You will continue to research and work with this company throughout this course in the milestones and project.
In your blog post, identify the company you researched and describe its potential new and unique product or service. Include an image of the company’s current SWOT from the Shapiro Library and address the following questions:
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Value proposition: What is the company’s main business?
- What value does the company deliver to the customer?
- Profitability: Is the company currently profitable?
- SWOT analysis strengths: What are the company’s main strengths to be leveraged to create a new product or service?
- Product or service singularity: What is unique about the new product or service?
- New product or service projections: How can the new product or service improve profitability? Note: this is an estimation based on research of the company’s current market position.
Guidelines for Submission
Your blog post must be between 400 and 800 words in length and be submitted as a Word document. Your blog post should be written in a professional voice and should be appropriately formatted for a blog. Any sources cited should use APA formatting.
Below are some additional resources for improving your blog:
How to Write a Blog Post for Beginners: This article is an introduction to writing blog posts.
12 Easy Ways to Improve Your Blog: This article examines important elements in developing your own blog.
Blogging Best Practices PDF: This bulleted list gives you a quick summary of the best practices top bloggers use.
