Strategic Plan and SWOT Analysis of Perdue Farms (Essay Sample)

Preparing a Strategic plan
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Preparing a strategic plan
Strategic plan process
It is universally acknowledged that it is hard to accomplish any particular goal without a plan. Therefore irrespective of the size of operations, many organizations currently invest in strategic planning which often facilitates success both at departmental and organizational levels. Strategic planning encompasses outlining an organization’s purpose, goals and the techniques that can be applied to achieve the predetermined goals. A strategic plan is an integral part of an organization’s functionality as such it is vital for the process of developing a plan to be approached diligently.
The current strategic plan focuses on Perdue Farms, a significant chicken processing organization that is based in Salisbury, Maryland, USA. Perdue Farms accomplishments at both national and international levels is a result of the right mix of tradition and innovation which continue to ensure the success of the organization a century later. The strategic plan focuses on Perdue Chicken as an organization rather than concentrating on a particular department within the company. The data utilized in the case study is collected from magazines, websites and reviewed journals.
Company History
Perdue Farms was founded a century ago in 1920 by Arthur Perdue and his wife Pearl Perdue who sold hatching eggs to chicken farmers around Salisbury. Even as a small egg business, the organization was dedicated to quality. By the 1940s, Perdue Farms was highly recognized for its devotion to quality products CITATION Pol99 \l 1033 (Pollock, 1999). In 1933, the company began offering Chicken when Arthur insisted that the future of the organization depended on expanding the product market. In the 1950s, with Frank Perdue as the head of the organization, Perdue Farms adopted an aggressive vertical integration strategy in efforts of countering the cyclic nature of the poultry industry CITATION Sha08 \l 1033 (Shaw & Ring, 2008). Efforts of vertical integration encompassed efforts of working with other businesses to grow chicken on behalf of Perdue Farms. It was around this time that the company officially entered into poultry processing business when it acquired Swift Company, a processing plant in Salisbury.
In the 1980s the organization focused on expansion to other parts of the USA including North Carolina and Georgia. During this period, the organization acquired several producers such as Carroll’s Foods, Purvis Farms and Shenandoah Valley Poultry Company among others in its efforts of expansion and diversification CITATION Pol99 \l 1033 (Pollock, 1999). Under a consulting firm recommendation, in the 1980s Perdue Farms pursued decentralization. However, the strategy proved disastrous since it increased administrative costs and created the aspect of duplication. In efforts to manage the adverse effects associated with devolution, the company concentrated on increasing efficiency, improving communication channels and paying attention to details. Recently, in 2011, when Jim Perdue took leadership of the organization, he focused mostly on operations in addition to emphasizing quality. Under Jim Perdue leadership, the organization has expanded to other parts of the USA including Florida, Michigan and Missouri and invested in an international presence in other parts of the globe including, South America, Europe, Japan and China CITATION Per18 \l 1033 (Perdue Farms, 2018).
Current Strategic Plan
Perdue Farms is performing well in the poultry industry. The company enjoys annual sales that exceed five billion dollars CITATION Per18 \l 1033 (Perdue Farms, 2018). Perdue Farms vision for the future is to be a leading quality food company across the globe. It has several strategies to realize this goal including its dedication to quality products and the most recent efforts of diversification in efforts of offering their customers a portfolio of trusted food and agricultural products. Perdue Farms is a brand name that many recognize and associate with quality. The organization's dedication to excellence has existed since the establishment in 1920 CITATION Sha08 \l 1033 (Shaw & Ring, 2008). Perdue Farm quality policy reflects the employee's commitment to ensuring quality products that will continue to reflect Perdue superiority over other firms in the poultry industry. Indeed, the incentive to venture into the processing side was grounded on Perdue Farm desire for complete control of the quality of its products.
Additionally, over the past five decades, Perdue Farms has strategized in offering their consumers a portfolio of trusted agricultural products. The organization has dedicated extensive resources in acquisitions and the development of new products on an annual basis a factor that appeals to many of the organization's consumers CITATION Per18 \l 1033 (Perdue Farms, 2018). Perdue Farm's commitment to quality in addition to diversification has given it a competitive edge. Moreover, recently, the organization information and distribution systems were upgraded which has given the firm competitive advantage.
The company's major competitors include Tyson Foods, Pilgrim's Pride and ConAgra Foods. Tyson Foods is the largest poultry producer in the USA followed by Pilgrim's Pride Corporation. Tyson's purchase of IBP Fresh Meats made the organization the largest meat processing organization in the globe CITATION Pur16 \l 1033 (Purdy , 2016). Tyson Foods has a market presence in the USA retail, wholesale and food service sectors in addition to operating in more than 100 countries around the world. Pilgrim's operation in the poultry industry is more or less the same as Perdue's particularly when it comes to breeding, hatching, raising, processing, distribution and marketing. Pilgrim sells their products in East Europe and Asia in addition to North America CITATION Sha08 \l 1033 (Shaw & Ring , 2008). Another competitor is ConAgra Company which in addition to poultry, it deals with seafood, dairy products, trade food commodities, food ingredients in addition to cereals such as flour. ConAgra foods are associated with several brands including Banquet, Healthy Choice, Van Camp’s Chef Boyardee among others.
Despite Perdue Farms size and recognition, the current strategy that focuses on quality and diversification is not sufficient. Undeniably, the organization lacks extensive market coverage since it is only popular on the Eastern half of the USA and a few foreign countries. Moreover, the organization lacks market share in the food service segment of the market. Indeed, compared with an organization such as Tyson foods Perdue Farms need to adopt a different strategy to realize their vision of being the largest and the leading quality food company across the globe.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
Ever since its establishment almost a century ago, Perdue Farms has invested heavily in marketing their products. Indeed, by extensively advertising their brand, Perdue Farms can charge a premium price for its established quality. As mentioned, many associated Perdue Farms with quality products a factor that enables the organization to continue to market and expand their market share. Quality has been a number one focus of Perdue Farms for decades CITATION Pol99 \l 1033 (Pollock, 1999). The most effective way to ensure quality is to control the entire process from hatching to raising to processing and distribution. Since the 1950s, Perdue Farms has done an excellent job regarding vertical integration. Currently, the organization has complete control from hatchery to delivery as such maintaining a competitive edge due to superior quality CITATION Sha08 \l 1033 (Shaw & Ring , 2008). Another strength of Perdue Farms is the application of selective breeding. Selective breeding facilitates quality productivity. The process develops chickens with more breast meat than the average chicken as such creating more value for the consumers. Undeniably, because of applying selective breeding, a pound of chicken has more flesh and less bone a factor that appeals to many customers.
Research and development is another area