Problem Solution For Teratech

Running head: PROBLEM SOLUTION: TERATECH

Problem Solution: TeraTech

University of Phoenix

Problem Solution: TeraTech

The goal of this paper is to identify the different issues and opportunities for TeraTech as well as the different alternatives available to solve their current problems. The highest levels of customer satisfaction and sales will be obtained once the end-state goals are defined and solutions are developed.

To be successful in increasing sales and profits, the organization must take steps to sustain customer relationships and improve the business processes. Improving business processes can be done by scanning the environment to identify the social, economic, and competitive forces that might affect or influence the business. ÐŽ§The process of continually acquiring information on events occurring outside the organization to identify and interpret potential trends is called environmental scanningЎЁ (Kerin et al, 2006). These forces have an effect on the marketing activities of a firm in numerous ways (Kerin et al, 2006). Environmental scanning provides information on market trends and helps explain why a trend is occurring. Environmental scanning also provides information on demographic changes, culture and its effects on marketing activities, macroeconomic conditions, consumer income, and changes in technology. Retrieving this information will help a marketer identify the best ways to market a companyÐŽ¦s products and meet both the current and emerging needs of customers.

Sustaining customer relationship can be done by understanding the future needs of customers and providing for those needs. This can be achieved through the process of forecasting. It is important that marketers understand buyer behavior, especially those that market to organizational buyers. ÐŽ§Understanding organizational markets and buying behavior is a necessary prerequisite for effective business marketingЎЁ (Kerin et al, 2006).

For TeraTech, sustaining customer relationships, increasing sales and increasing profits are their main goals. TeraTech must identify the different forces that will influence their organization as well as influence customer buying behaviors. They must also be able to forecast current and future customer needs in order to satisfy their customers. TeraTech needs to devise ways to identify their current and future customers and their needs, thus allowing them create effectively a product that will meet current and future needs. Most of their customer comments as stated in the customer feedback report revolve around dissatisfaction with the current product. The current CRM product does not meet the customerÐŽ¦s needs. If TeraTech had conducted environmental scanning prior to developing the current tool, they would have been successful in predicting future needs of analytical and modeling tools.

Issue and Opportunity Identification

An increase in competition in the pharmaceutical industry has left TeraTech behind regarding their CRM system. CustomerÐŽ¦s needs are reaching beyond what TeraTech can currently provide. After running the CRM system for two years, TeraTech is currently not meeting the return on investment and sales targets. The marketing team has not been able to make use of the data located within the sales and customer service teams. The marketing department wants to take into consideration of expanding TeraTechÐŽ¦s product to include analytical tools. TeraTech can create new opportunities with customers and other stakeholders by the integration of the needed tools.

Issues

„« TeraTechÐŽ¦s sales rates were down in the last quarter due to customer dissatisfaction.

„« Customers are concerned about TeraTechÐŽ¦s current product functionality and its lack of analytical ability that will give maximum effectiveness.

„« TeraTech is facing increased competition in CRM and customers are being exposed to better products.

„« TeraTech will be unable to hire any new employees to support the new CRM analytical tool.

„« The current employees do not have the skill set required to develop and support an analytical or modeling product.

„« TeraTech might not have enough time to develop this product since other competitors are already in the process.

Opportunities

„« TeraTech has the opportunity to develop a CRM tool that will put them at the forefront of the competition, entice their customers and increase sales.

„« The CRM tool will allow TeraTech to build a relationship with their current customers, and build customersÐŽ¦ trust in the effectiveness of the product.

„« TeraTech has the opportunity to develop a marketing plan that will enable them to meet current and future sales goals as well as establish long term marketing objectives.

„« TeraTech has the opportunity to increase customer base, by offering the total package ÐŽV their current CRM plus the analytical tool.

„« TeraTech has the opportunity to improve their forecasting abilities. The new CRM tool will allow them to make conclusions from information retrieved through the analytical software. Future market potential and demand can be predicted.

„« TeraTech has the opportunity to expand by partnering with another company that already has analytical and modeling tools in the works. This will allow them to quickly meet customer needs.

TeraTech is losing their customers to competitors who are already offering analytical and modeling tools that will help them achieve their goals. The issues outlined above needs to be resolved in order for TeraTech to remain in business. As the company works toward solving these problems, it is important that they keep in mind the different stakeholders that will be affected by their decisions and the different ethical dilemmas they might face.

Stakeholder Perspectives/Ethical Dilemmas

There are competing values, interests and rights relating to decisions made by TeraTech that will affect the stakeholders. The major stakeholder in this scenario is TeraTech itself. At this point, the company faces a serious problem as it is on the verge of losing its customers. TeraTech must work to implement a system that will meet customer needs; otherwise, they might go out of business.