CONSEQUENCES AGENDA ITEM 6 HALF YEAR 3

MARKET RESEARCH
YOUR OPTIONS WERE:

1. Delay the market research and adopt a ‘wait and see’ strategy. You are not
convinced the market is right and if you invest too soon you may not reap the full
rewards.
While you were observing the market and waiting for the right moment a competitor
has launched a range of new products aimed at the Events, Sports events and
Concert market segments. The competitor had a high-profile launch and has a strong
substantially funded marketing campaign to support the initiative. Industry feedback
indicates the products are being well received and the company is having difficulty
keeping up with demand. There is a feeling amongst your staff that the wait and see
policy was too cautious and the management team lack the confidence to really drive
the company forward. Your staff motivation falls. You also lose some key sales
people who are attracted by your competitor resulting in a drop-in visibility within the
market as you search for replacement staff.
If you decide to enter the market now the investment required is likely to be higher
because you will need your marketing and communications to work harder to create
awareness of your product range for these segments.

2. Commit the full £150,000 amount to the ad-hoc survey research project and
commission a market research agency, who has experience in the office furniture
sector and the Events sector.
The market research agency provides you with a really good quality report, as they
had good experience of the office furniture sector, and convened a workshop to
discuss the research information, which helped to understand how to position the
company to enter this market segment.
They suggested you do some more survey research to identify the potential in each
region – this added to the costs but helped to understand different buying processes
in each Region and confirm priorities. The final bill for the work is £180,000. However,
you are now in a good position to launch some new products aimed specifically at the
Events and Sports segment of the office furniture market in Europe and Asia. The
products will be launched in Half Year 4.

Consequences Agenda 6 Market Research-v1.0 Page 1 of 2

© 2019 Chris Elgood Associates Ltd.
3. Accept the insight from the research that has been done to date as providing
sufficient evidence of market potential and purchase a small quantity of products
to suit the initial demand identified. Ask your sales teams to select a small number
of existing customers and target them with the new product to assess interest and
possible trial.
This was quite a risky option. Although the market research indicated a potential
market there was not really sufficient evidence to quantify the market or identify
potential in this new customer segments. However, your sales people have done an
excellent job and have managed to sell all the products you purchased for the trial, to
existing customers. They have also, through conversation, managed to build a picture
of the type of customers that would be interested in the products, their needs and
budget; all of which can now be used to help create some good marketing and
promotional material.
The test has generated a small profit, £30,000, which is included in the figure for
extraordinary items. The revenue generated is insufficient to allow for further
investment to develop a greater share of the Event and Sports segment of the Office
Furniture market.

Consequences Agenda 6 Market Research-v1.0 Page 2 of 2

© 2019 Chris Elgood Associates Ltd.
CONSEQUENCES AGENDA ITEM 7 HALF YEAR 3
DATA PROTECTION
YOUR OPTIONS WERE:

1. All of the options above

Options d is not necessary, and you have committed the company to more
expenditure than was necessary. The costs incurred are as stated £125,000 but you
spent over £10,000 on work that was not required.

2. Options a, b, c and d only

You have identified option e as unnecessary and have therefore saved the company
some costs. The costs incurred are £120,000.

3. Options b and c only.

The immediate costs incurred are £75,000. However, by not selecting option d you
have exposed the company to a fine from the Information Commissioners Office of
£100,000. There is also a risk associated with not selecting option a. If your web site
mistakenly displays an incorrect price you will have to sell the products at that price,
which could be detrimental to revenue, if the price shown is lower than it should be.

Consequences Agenda 7 Data Protection-v1.0 Page 1 of 1

© 2019 Chris Elgood Associates Ltd.
CONSEQUENCES AGENDA ITEM 8 HALF YEAR 3
SPONSORSHIP

YOUR OPTIONS WERE:

1. Retain your sponsorship of the box. The link between your company, the
football club, Want-Cash-Quick and the rent-to-own firm is not a direct one and
will not reflect on your company.
There is an article in the local paper targeting the football club and citing its
sponsorship deal with an ‘unethical’ company. The article lists all the main club
sponsors, including all the box holders. The football club take legal action against the
local paper which has misreported certain facts in the article. The local paper is
forced to print an apology. There is no doubt your company name is temporarily
associated with an unflattering news story, but the story is very local and the long-
term effect is negligible. Neither Want-Cash-Quick or the rent-to-own firm have done
anything illegal.

2. Cancel your sponsorship of the box at the end of this year. The saving made
can be re-directed towards the staff social fund and hospitality budget.
The staff are very disappointed by this decision. Their view on payday loans and rent-
to-own is much more pragmatic and a large proportion of the lower paid staff either
use the services themselves or have a friend or family member who has used them.
The announcement that you will cancel your box sponsorship creates greater
interests in the issue. If further companies pull out of their sponsorship arrangements
it could affect the youth and community program the football club runs for
disadvantaged children.

3. Contact other sponsors of the football club requesting the sponsorship deal
with Want-Cash-Quick is terminated ahead of the contact period.
Your approach to other sponsors reveals significant support. Ten box holders and
three companies who provide different types of sponsorship ask for a meeting with
the Chairman of the football club to discuss their concerns. The Chairman
acknowledges the sponsorship deal is not ideal but is unable to agree to cancel the
deal, the club needs the sponsorship to break even. However, there is a firm
commitment not to renew the deal. A subsequent article in a national paper reports
on this story and your company is mentioned as key to the decision and facilitating
the change. The perception of your company amongst existing and potential
customers improves making it easier for your sales people to approach and win
business.

Consequences Agenda 8 Sponsorship-v1.0 Page 1 of 1

© 2019 Chris Elgood Associates Ltd.