Thursday, October 27
Objective
- To work on developing action plans for IIP 3 of the Allianz project that are seamless and concrete
Discussion Question
How should Allianz implement your recommendation, and how did you arrive at these implementation choices? IIP 3 asks you to form a well-reasoned answer to this question that spans the four elements of the marketing mix.
Rather than have separate paragraphs or sections for each of the four Ps, the action plan you advance in your IIP 3 Client Standalone Deck Report should be seamless. As is true for inter-disciplinary curriculum in business schools, the best action plans are integrated. What does this mean practically? You should think of the marketing mix as a framework you can use to create a comprehensive action plan. However, it would be a mistake to let the framework silo your thinking or the structure of your output. Again, you should not separate your action plan into four paragraphs or sections, one for each element of the marketing mix. Instead, describe how Allianz should bring your initiative to market by weaving specifications for elements of the marketing mix into a holistic action plan seamlessly.
You might find it helpful to think of yourself and your group members as composers of orchestral music and the four Ps as wind, string, percussion, and brass instruments. Similar to how orchestral writers produce scores that unify these instruments, your task is to produce an action plan that unifies the four Ps. Orchestral writers produce music that a sequence of solos would fall far short of. As a result, symphonies are greater than the sum of their parts. Analogously, you should strive to combine elements of the marketing mix synergistically. As a result, your action plan will be greater than the sum of the four Ps.
The best action plans are also concrete. What does this mean practically? You should not leave statements like “we think the line of Allianz products that we are proposing should enter the market at a high price” undefined. What is a high price? In this case, you need to assign dollar values to the individual products that you think should be launched, using cogent reasoning, in order for your action plan to carry weight. No matter the marketing-mix variable, try to bring your recommendations to life by pushing your analysis beyond the abstract. The action plan you develop should unambiguously describe what your initiative would look like in the market and get as close to reality as possible.
Come to class having individually written at least a page of new ideas for your group’s action plan. Strive to describe how Allianz should implement your recommendation, and how you arrived at these implementation choices, both seamlessly and concretely. In class, your group will be given time to share your ideas with one another, offer constructive feedback, and make progress on your IIP 3 Client Standalone Deck Report.
Assignments Due
- A response to today’s discussion question
- After signing into Blackboard, submit your response to this folder