The client

An important region of a large, global QSR (quick service restaurant) chain wanted to employ a best-practice approach for its strategic plan. 

 

Challenges

• While there were various tactical plans in existence, the region did not have a unifying strategic plan to align external factors, customer experience (CX), other stakeholders, internal strengths, and functional areas with the mission, vision, and values.

• Team members were geographically dispersed across 10 different locations and 3 time zones.

• Three languages needed to be considered.

• There were varying degrees of experience with strategic planning.

• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we could not meet in person.

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Solution

All sessions were conducted virtually (video-conferencing). We used:

• Professional meeting design principles;

• Various facilitation techniques and digital engagement tools;

• Customized strategy frameworks and models; and,

• Strategic consulting expertise.
   

Our work included the following recommendations:

• Mission, vision, values, and corporate purpose (the latter to be linked to the "employer brand" and individual purpose for each employee);

• Big Bold Plays to leverage competitive advantage and foster leap-frogging;

• COVID-19 situational analysis (with frequent updates), including strategies to weather the pandemic and build for the future;

• A proposed acquisition strategy (horizontal integration) to capture and solidify industry segment leadership;

• A quantitative research-based multi-variate market segmentation;

• Customer journeys: purchase funnel and order-to-eat experience;

• Stakeholder segmentations with comprehensive HR (human resources) strategies by cohort;

• Organizational effectiveness strategies using the Baldrige Excellence Framework;

• Corporate Social Responsibility, with links to the corporate purpose, and highlighting the pivotal role of Supply Chain;

• Strategic marketing methods: segmentation, targeting, three types of demand, value propositions, differentiation, positioning statement and in-market positioning, brand essence, and customer omni-channel experience;

• Tactical marketing methods: The 7Ps of the marketing mix to link the strategic marketing elements to the Customers' Experience (CX). The 7Ps of marketing are:

  • Product: core and complementary products/services, product portfolio, and brand (brand identity and brand architecture)​

  • Price: regular, everyday price

  • Promotion (A): the communication mix (PESO: Paid, Earned, Social or Shared, and Owned media)

  • Promotion (B): incentives to encourage a particular consumer behaviour – usually trial, purchase, or loyalty, e.g. coupons, price discounts, freemiums, samples, loyalty programs, etc.

  • Place: the locations where customers can purchase or experience the product 

  • People: the behaviour and expertise of those (usually employees) who deliver the service aspect of the product

  • Processes: the process (procedures, routines, and policies) of receiving a product or service – the customer experience

  • Physical Environment: the environment in which service occurs – the space where customers and service personnel interact

• Capacity-building strategies for individuals, teams, functional areas, and the region as a whole.
   

Deliverables

The strategic plan consisted of two documents:

• The main plan: 100 pages of insights, strategies, and tactics.

• The appendices: 85 pages to foster capacity-building; key strategic concepts and approaches from the main plan were explained.

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Results

• True success was realized when the team declared, "We did it!"

• The final product surpassed the team's initial expectations.

• The methods and approaches in the plan were reviewed by the global Executive Leadership Team for adaptation and adoption in other regions.

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