Review the terms and concepts discussed this week along with the Resources below the assignment instructions to prepare for this assignment:

· strategic management

· competitive advantage

· strategic plan

· mission statement

· vision statement

· core values statement

· AFI

Create a Word document and title the assignment Strategic Management Research Paper Part 1.

Write a 500- to 700-word response to the following:

1. Justify the guiding principles required for preparing effective statements that describe the mission, vision, and the core values of an organization as covered in the assigned reading.

2. Compare whether Caterpillar Inc.’s mission, vision, and core values conform to the guiding principles in the Rothaermel (2019) source and support organizational strategic planning principles as justified in requirement #1. Refer to the Caterpillar Inc. website listed in the Resources section below.

3. Assess what Caterpillar Inc.’s current competitive advantages and disadvantages are by considering their business partners, allies, and general operations. Research the assignment resources listed below. Based on your research, evaluate Caterpillar’s current competitive advantages and disadvantages.

4. Use at least two scholarly sources. Be sure to use Rothaermel, F. T. (2019). Strategic management: Concepts (4th ed). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill as one of the two scholarly sources. Use the APA formatting for the title page, headings, in-text citations, and reference list.

Note: You will use information from this assignment in your Strategic Management Research Project Presentation due in Week 5.

Check your assignment with SafeAssign

Submit your assignment.

Resources

Strategic Management Project Background
Caterpillar Inc. website
Research Caterpillar’s Annual Report
Research CATERPILLAR public information, such as news releases, financial reports, and marketing analyses.
Center for Writing Excellence
Reference and Citation Generator
Grammar and Writing Guides

ANSWER

Strategic Management Research Paper Part 1

Strategic management involves the formulation, execution, or implementation of primary corporate goals, objectives, and initiatives conducted by the top management by allocating resources. A primary foundation of strategic management is the strategic intent that clarifies what a company stands for, its business operations, the vision, mission, objectives, and core values (Edwards, 2016). According to Rothaermel (2019), when preparing compelling mission and vision statements, an organization must answer four main ‘WH’ questions, namely Who (who are we?), How (how do we achieve?), What (what are our values/commitments?), and Where (where are we going?). Therefore, an effective vision expresses an organization’s aspirations, recognizes or identifies major accomplishments, provides employee motivation for maximized target accomplishment, and creates a space for contributions (Rotharmel, 2019). An effective mission statement describes what the organization does, thus answering the ‘who’ question, focusing on products and services provided, the market it competes in, and providing measures (how question) to attain the vision.

Finally, core values provide an organization’s workforce with a moral compass and communicate principles necessary to guide its behavior, where all employees can integrate and utilize. Core value statements provide a guiding background for vision and mission fulfillment. They are applied in the internal conduct and external interaction throughout the corporate’s operating milieus and include codes of ethics (Rotharmel, 2019). Having vision, mission, and core value statements with these elements enable employees to feel part of the bigger picture, hence recognize the meaning of their work. This results in a profound sense of purpose, engagement, productivity, and enhanced competitive advantage.

Below is a comparison of Caterpillar’s statements using Rothaermel (2019) guiding principles.

Caterpillar’s competitive advantage sources include a thriving global presence seen through its extensive and international distribution network and locations. Secondly, the company’s product amplitude provides a unique competitive advantage. Despite the minimal product diversification and product development rates, the company modifies existing products, providing new features, hence improving customer value. Thirdly, the company possesses financial strength seen through large-scale assets used to support its business development and growth. However, Caterpillar Inc. is disadvantaged by low innovation and product development rates (Thompson, 2018). It makes it susceptible to aggressive competition from competitors with aggressive integration of technological innovation and creation. Secondly, despite having a prominent global presence and brand image, Caterpillar has limited connections in these new and emerging markets. For instance, while operating in China, the company has an absence of an extensive distribution network in the Chinese market. This minimizes their competitive edge and advantages in the market.

References

Caterpillar Inc. (2020). VISION, MISSION, STRATEGY, & PRINCIPLES. Retrieved from Caterpillar Inc.: https://www.caterpillar.com/en/company/sustainability/vision-mission-strategy.html

Edwards, J. (2016). Leading Strategically: Vision, Mission, and Goals. OpenTax. https://opentextbc.ca/strategicmanagement/chapter/vision-mission-and-goals/.

Rotharmel, F. T. (2019). Strategic Management, 4th EDition. New York: McGraw-Hill Education.

Thompson, A. (2018, August 15). Caterpillar Inc. Vision, Mission, Intensive Strategy, Five Forces, SWOT. Retrieved from Panmore: http://panmore.com/caterpillar-inc-strategic-analysis-vision-mission-swot