Running head: VALUES AND STRATEGY Values and Strategy Paper Introduction 1 VALUES AND STRATEGY 2 A strategic management process is a philosophical approach to business management that requires the application of thought and collaboration where every team member is expected to understand the strategy for an effective implementation. The process consists of four components namely; situational analysis, strategy formulation, strategy implementation and strategy control (Wheelen & Hunger, 2011). This paper looks into values and strategy of Amtrak, a corporate that operates more than 300 trains each day in the United States. Major Components of the Strategic Management Process a) Situation Analysis Creation of organizations mission statement is determined by situation analysis. This process includes evaluating the organization internal and external environment a process that can be undertaken using observation or communication methods. According to Wheelen and Hunger (2011), internal factors entail the interaction between the company’s stakeholder and how their relationships affect the growth of an organization. The external environment is evaluated by the external factors and stakeholders such as suppliers, customers and competitors and how their participation and interaction would affect the overall performance of the business. b) Strategy Formulation This component involves design and development of company’s strategies by determining the strengths and abilities of an organization. This component is decomposed into operational, competitive and corporate levels. Operational aspects focus on short term goals that deal with organization daily tasks execution and performance. Competitive strategies are associated with coming up with a formula that enables the business to understand who are its VALUES AND STRATEGY 3 competitors and what strategy to adopt to gain a competitive edge (Wheelen & Hunger, 2011). Finally, corporate strategies are long-term strategic plans that focus on the general direction of the business and involve setting up of long-term goals. c) Strategy Implementation Formulation of a strategy is followed by plans and procedures on how the proposed strategic plan will be put into place. It involves setting out priorities in order to address issues that could be critical to keep the business running (Wheelen & Hunger, 2011). This component puts in place key factors to be considered, steps to be followed and the resources that will be required during training. d) Strategy Evaluation and Controls Amtrak has devised mechanisms and controls that evaluate how the implementation is carried out and whether it has borne any fruits or not. This component involves cost-benefit analysis. Additionally, it seeks to establish whether the strategic plan is in line with the set-out timelines and determine whether major milestones have been met. Since this process is a collective duty for all stakeholders, it requires the participation of both the management and the employees (Wheelen & Hunger, 2011). How These Components Work Together To Create Value for the Organization Since strategic management process is a continuous process there is a need for all these components to complete and complement each other. From the goal setting to evaluation and control, the chain of activities requires a clear path and how each component works to meet the overall organization strategy (Rabinowitz, 2016). Lack of robust strategic management plan and VALUES AND STRATEGY 4 procedures lead to frustration that eventually prevents the organization from meeting its goals. Since this process is an integral part of the management, implementation becomes easy when the strategy takes into account all factors from inception. Amtrak has put measures to ensure that the right people are assigned the right tasks when developing a SWOT analysis. These stages can be adjusted depending on the prevailing conditions on the ground based on short term goals. According to Wheelen and Hunger, 2011, whilst the major task lies with the management, most of what is achieved is as a result of teamwork. However, a lot of accountability and leadership is required from the management to ensure sustainability of all the functions in order to achieve their targets; engagement at each level is, therefore, a major determinant in this process. Amtrak Vision, Mission Statements The Vision statement of Amtrak is “Moving America where it wants to go”. This vision communicates the corporate plan to the stakeholders. Amtrak clearly outlines its purpose that shows its dedication to the Americans, ensuring that people are connected and timely response to changing business environment. This vision statement gives the company a lot of benefits in communicating to its stakeholders its commitment to listening to customer needs and delivering on its promises (Rabinowitz, 2016). The company’s mission statement is “Delivering intercity transportation with superior safety, customer service, and financial excellence” ("Management Challenges", 2017). Amtrak puts more emphasis on how it intends to meet its goals and objectives as outlined in its corporate strategic plan. For Amtrak to retain its market, achieve financial gains and customer satisfaction, the management ensures that the company keeps its word. It is very clear that Amtrak mission VALUES AND STRATEGY 5 and vision statements reflect what the corporate does for all its stakeholders. The measure of whether the company’s strategic plan is aligned in the right direction may be determined by the mission statement. A vision statement, on the other hand, motivates employees towards meeting company’s goal. In people and motivation strategy, Amtrak has committed to hiring and nurturing talents and individuals who show commitment to safety and security of everyone (McDonald, 2015). Integrity is also highly valued by the employees and this is extended to the commuters. Additionally, employees who demonstrate leadership skills and go an extra mile are rewarded. In an effort to continually develop employees, Amtrak gives its people opportunities to improve their skills which are a major motivator. This helps in service delivery and thus achieves goals in a timely manner. Innovation is one key aspect that Amtrak holds dearly. With changing customer demands and globalization, the company is committed to identifying new opportunities and providing feasible and innovative solutions. A deficiency of one or some of the above components is a major drawback in any organization. In most cases, organizations are not able to communicate their vision or mission and what they intend to do for the people. Consequently, there is a lack of a clear roadmap that leads to lack of motivation with employees, poor customer attraction, and reduced growth. Role of Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility in Strategic Planning Any organization that adheres to ethics is able to meet its goals and achieve its objectives and remains focused on its ultimate goal. Ethics create a guiding factor that ensures moral fabric and professionalism in an organization (Galbreath, 2010). Amtrak has committed to ensuring the highest level of ethical standards and continually works towards avoidance of any deviation from VALUES AND STRATEGY 6 its strategic path. The company is able to prepare its strategic plan as per the best practice with interests of all the stakeholders at heart. Ethics ensure that a company is able to put the best foot forward in achieving objectives and meeting its goals. Corporate social responsibility creates a good image and a more visible brand in the society. Amtrak has a well laid down ‘Ethics and Compliance Program’ that guides all its internal stakeholders. These ethical standards stipulate what one should do and what he should not do when on duty and off duty. All the company directors, officers, engineers, and managers are expected to abide by these standards. Amtrak mission and vision statements are aligned with these ethical standards; the company values and treats all its customers with dignity. Conclusion For any company to be able to live up to the customers’ expectations, there is need to develop a clear roadmap. The strategic management process defines crucial business functions and changes with time depending on market dynamics. With time, companies are required to review their management process to be in line with existing market needs. Mission and vision statement are necessary for communicating what the company does to both the internal and external stakeholders. It is also critical that business organizations maintain a code of conduct and ensure that their employees adhere to the set out ethical standards. VALUES AND STRATEGY 7 References Galbreath, J. (2010). Drivers of corporate social responsibility: The role of formal strategic planning and firm culture. British Journal of Management,21(2), 511-525. McDonald, C. (2015). Amtrak derailment spurs focus on safety. Risk Management, 62(6), 8. Rabinowitz, J. (2016, August 09). Taking Past Lessons Learned, Amtrak Designs The Next Acela. Retrieved April 11, 2017, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonrabinowitz/2014/07/08/taking-past-lessons-learnedamtrak-designs-the-next-acela/#23cece1723ce Wheelen, T. L., & Hunger, J. D. (2011). Concepts in strategic management and business policy. Pearson Education India Running head: ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING Strategic Plan1 Environmental Scan The Company 1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING 2 Amtrak is a passenger railroad service that offers both medium and long-term intercity service within the United States. Amtrak has been an operation for a very long-term since the mid-19th century. It is a partly government, but it is operated as for profit organization. The company operates more than 500 destinations within the United States as well as other three Canadian provinces with more than 300 trains in operation. The company has been significantly engaged over the years taking into consideration key developments within the railroad service. The railroad transport is one of the commonly used in the United States and thus the company has significant engagement within the rail service since being a profit generating it means that the company is competing favorably with other service providers to ensure that they offer their clients quality service (Harper, 2016). Determine how to create Value and sustain competitive advantage using the Environmental Scanning Strategy Environmental scanning is the monitoring, evaluation, and dissemination of critical information that has a significant bearing on organizational well-being. Environmental scanning includes both internal and external factors that influence the company operations. Different companies in situations, therefore, put environmental scanning into use where an organization wishes to have clear information about its development project and avoid any significant surprises in the market. Environmental scanning, therefore, puts into perspective key aspects of an organization, which include strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (Gallupe & Jiang, 2015). Environmental scanning strategy, therefore, is significant in this respect since the rail service industry within the United States is vital and involves some companies, which compete for the available customers. Environmental scanning focuses on key developments within an ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING 3 organization and outside and thus plays a very crucial role in ensuring that the company knows what is necessary for its developmental agenda. Creating value within an organization engagement means that the company must be in a position to understand their weaknesses and the threats that exist within the industry. Amtrak is a bigger company, and thus there is significant to put in place a better strategy that can be able to help in outlining these critical issues within the organization (Harper, 2016). The rail service within the United States is the most preferred by the middle class, and thus; as a result, there is the need for the company to provide better service to improve client engagement. Thus, environment scanning is critical in this case since it will help the company to consider what is best for the development project (Gallupe & Jiang, 2015). Every organization focuses on maintaining a competitive advantage within a given industry since it can influence some of the key decisions that are made within the industry. Amtrak is one among many rail service providers within the United States and thus being in a position to predict the future development and put in place better strategies is the most critical thing to do. The information that is made available by environmental scanning is very crucial in developing an understanding of what the business needs to consider and what to implement first. Environmental scanning, therefore, ensures that the organization has access to the most critical information that influences its overall development agenda. Being very much aware of the developments with the business environment is important since it ensures that an organization develops the much-needed elements in ensuring that issues within its operation are fully taken care of very early to avoid comprising its large customer base (Ebrahimi & Sawyerr, 2016). Evaluate in Detail and with data the Company's External Environment. ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING 4 The most significant factor that has a significant presence in Amtrak’s external environment is the competition levels from other rail service companies in the United States and Canada. Competition has had a significant impact on the company where the focus has been to put in place significant developments to create values added consideration to the overall development of the company agenda. The delivery of services by Amtrak is customer based, and thus it ensures that the company clients are satisfied. Through better consideration and understanding of key issues within the company has led to a higher performance margin in comparison to its nearest competitors. The operating ratio has improved from 117% to 113%. The company debt has significantly decreased by $ 1.4 billion while the credit ratings of the company have significantly improved. These are some of the factors that have had a significant influence on Amtrak’s performance and thus placing it in a better position to compete within the industry (Edwards, 2016). There are significant regulations that Amtrak must consider to remain operational. These regulations involve both states and federal since the rail service requires massive cooperation and understanding from different sectors to ensure that the service delivery is effective. Safety and security of customers are a responsibility of the company, and thus to provide quality services significant considerations need to be made. The company has significantly focused Amtrak on compliance to have a positive brand name since the industry is very sensitive and risky where any negative information could lead to massive losses (McDonald, 2015). Assess in detail the Company's general Environment. What are the Opportunities and Threats? ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING 5 Despite significant competition from rival companies, the general environment is very much encouraging with a significant window of opportunities. Amtrak Company needs to significantly focus on handling the threats and weaknesses to have a competitive advantage in the rail service industry. The industry is diverse, and there are significant positive considerations that can be significantly implemented to create a better performing company. Thus, the key opportunity that can be developed by the company is that the industry is very broad and diverse since being a service industry there is always significant chance of innovation and creativity. The ability of Amtrak Company to develop more creative and innovative customer care strategies will ensure that the company remains highly competitive. Competition from rival rail service companies such as BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad, which have been having huge significantly engaged in the rail industry and thus pose threats to the development process of Amtrak Company (Gallupe & Jiang, 2015). Evaluate the Organization's Industry Operating Environment Amtrak Company has been in operation for quite a long time since the 19th century, and this means that the company is well aware of the environment aspects of the rail industry, which means Amtrak is well conversant of significant developments within the rail industry and thus it has a good grasp of industry issues. Amtrak is well acquainted with the industry operating environment, which is important in the sense that it allows the company to know various changes and other perceived changes within the rail service industry to remain on path for unprecedented success (Gordon, 2015). ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING 6 References Ebrahimi, B. P., & Sawyerr, O. O. (2016, January). Executive Environmental Scanning and Strategic Uncertainty: The Impact of Institutional Context. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2016, No. 1, p. 16981). Academy of Management. ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING 7 Edwards, C. (2016). Privatizing Amtrak. Gallupe, B., & Jiang, J. (2015). Environmental Scanning and Business Insight Capability: _x000D_ The Role of Business Analytics and Knowledge Integration. Gordon, T. S. (2015). ‘Take Amtrak to Black History’: marketing heritage tourism to African Americans in the 1970s. Journal of Tourism History, 7(1-2), 54-74. Harper, D. (2016). Good company: A tramp life. Routledge. McDonald, C. (2015). Amtrak derailment spurs focus on safety. Risk Management, 62(6), 8. STRATEGIC PLAN, PART 2: INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS Strategic Plan, Part 2: Internal Environmental Analysis Amtrak’s Internal Environmental Analysis Amtrak is an organization that has been under heavy skepticism lately because of the high losses it has been experiencing. The losses are also increasing. The company must be having issues that emerge from within and without the organization that drive higher expenses AMTRAK’S INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 2 than revenues. It is essential to look at the internal factors driving the losses (Amtrak, 2016). This paper looks at Amtrak’s internal forces and briefly compares them to the external forces as well as the company’s structure and its influence on the company’s competitive advantage. The financial assessment A note in the financial records preview of the company describes a fact that the company has a history of making losses. The overview also describes the fact that the company is currently relying on the federal government to keep up with its operations and infrastructural improvements and developments. It is also clear that there is a concern about the company in the federal government, and it is expecting to receive higher funds in the year 2017, given the requirements of the continual appropriation Act of 2017. In addition, this segment acknowledges the fact that without the government funds the company can end up in bankruptcy, or may not be able to continue with its operations and significant restructuring (Amtrak, 2017). Considering the years 2015 and 2016, the company’s total assets reduced in value. The value was $ 14.084 billion in the year 2015, but it dipped to $ 13.29 billion after 2016. Total property and equipment and total current assets dipped in value within the aforementioned period with a total of over 1 billion dollars. It has also been mentioned that the company has been operating at a loss. The net loss in the year 2015 was 1.08 billion dollars, while inn 2016 it was 1.23 billion dollars. This means that the company is not only operating at a loss, but also that the loss is increasing in value with time (Amtrak, 2017). The greatest expenses for the company are salaries wages and benefits. In the year 2015, the salaries wages and benefits bill for the year ended September 30th was 2.088 billion dollars. In the year 2016, these expenses shot up to 3.211 billion dollars. The total revenues also reduced AMTRAK’S INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 3 between September 2014 and September 2016. In 2015 September, the total revenues for the company were 3.241 billion dollars, and declined to 3.211 billion dollars in 30th September 2016. The highest source of revenue is the passenger related revenues, and they were at 2.495 billion dollars in the year 2015 (September 30th) and 2.479 billion dollars in the year 2016 (Amtrak, 2017). 16 14 12 10 by sep 30th 2015 8 by sep 30th 2016 6 4 2 0 Total assets Total revenues Total Losses total expenses FIGURE 1: Important Financial consideration from Amtrak’s financial statements in billion dollars Amtrak’s Financial SWOT The core financial strength in the capital structure is the large capital reserve and the government funding that has kept the company running, even though it is operation in losses. The second strength is availability of huge reserves of assets gained over time. Considering the time changes, this is also a weakness. Clearly, the company has more financial weaknesses than AMTRAK’S INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 4 strengths. First, the revenues, very clear from the bar graph above, are lower than the total expenses. This implies what has been stated outright, that the company is makes losses (Amtrak, 2017).A loss is the difference between the total expenses and the total revenues, with total expenses having a higher value than losses. In addition, the company has only one source of revenue and that is the federal government. The company’s financial management is well conversant with the fact that if the federal government withdraws its financial support to Amtrak, the company will collapse indefinitely (Amtrak, 2017). Shared values, systems and staff competencies The company has been named by Forbes among one of the best employers in America. The employees work around the clock and their services are more than simple train transport services. The company has hired over 20,000 employees who serve customers across the 500 destinations. Forbes carried an independent survey in companies operation in 25 different industries. They noted that Amtrak employees loved their jobs enough to tell other (Amtrak. (2016). The company’s values are clear. First, the company is very friendly and supportive to its employees, therefore, has been recognized by Forbes. The second value s customer convenience. The company used to give full refunds on tickets paid for 24 hours to departure for their bus services. Currently the 24 hours have been extended to 48 hours, to give their customers more convenience. The company also provides their clients with meals along the way. The company is clearly people focused. The other value is the environmental and sustainability initiative. The company is engaging in recycling, energy reduction and fuel conservation strategies, AMTRAK’S INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 5 environmental communication, climate initiative, reducing paper use, among other strategies. It is, therefore, a socially responsible entity. Transport industry internal factors The transport industry has embraced dynamicity, and one of the most influential internal factors is creativity. The public transport industry is losing to the private transport industry because they are more resistant to changes in technology. The trains being used get old and lack incentives such as Wi-Fi in the public transport industry. The second most important factor is capital because there are high costs that are concerned in the service of the vessels and employee compensation. The third factor is the sills and competencies. A company should have skills and competencies in the administrative function, the management, as well as the junior and subordinate employees. These individual drive the business. The most important external factor is competition. The public transport industry is under threat of elimination by the private investors in the same. Consider the case of an individual at Los Angeles, they are more likely to use an Uber transport service due to the convenience and luxury to a bus if the prices are not varying and their purchase power is high. The second external factor is technology, since the public industry has to quit their preservative business models and approaches and embrace technology such as the IoT and ERP systems. Competitive Analysis The company is under threat of losing business to car hire services, taxi services, air transport, cheap vehicles, and vehicles using alternative energy. This is mainly because such services provide luxury. Air transport is faster, and it is an alternative competitor. Taxi and car hire services are more convenient ad private for an individual or a small family. These services AMTRAK’S INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 6 competing with Amtrak products are a more expensive, but the current state of economy has increased the purchase power, even making luxury basic. The given alternatives and substitutes to Amtrak services are also safer, considering that buses have been common points of terrorist attacks and trains as well. In addition, trains go through wild places and any breakdown can cause a great inconvenience to the user. Company’s competitive position The company is not any competitive. The only thing that keeps the company in the market is the lower prices. Amtrak has also tried to embrace customer focused initiatives that may residue the number of clients. Initially, the company used to refund the customers for tickets if they requested for refunds 24 hours to departure, currently, they have pushed that to 48 hours, making the customer more insecure with their refund system. Some companies do not refund customers, but they do not sell tickets as early as train and bus tickets are sold. The company lacks the luxury of a plane, a taxi, or even a hired vehicle. They lack the speed provided by the mentioned means with their buses and trains, thus they are the least competitive. Amtrak’s Business structure The company announced a new business structure early in January 2017. Before, the president and the CEO received 12 direct reports, which have been cut down to six. They include, finance, marketing, operations, law, administration, and planning. The train operations are being managed by regionally by three regional managers, supported by the mechanical, engineering, police, security, and network support. The technology and public affairs groups have taken the responsibility of IT, station, and facility functions, as well as the communication division and the corporate affairs department (Leeds, 2017). According to Christina Leeds AMTRAK’S INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS 7 (2017), “the changes will allow Amtrak more organizational flexibility to fully comply with the new account structure created in the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), and will provide greater transparency to Amtrak’s customers and stakeholders” (Leeds, 2017). The company expects to reap from transparency to increase their competitive advantage. Conclusion Financially, Amtrak has more weaknesses than strengths. One weakness is a single source of funding. The company also has been experiencing higher expenses than revenues, leading to great losses. The company has loyal staff, and it has a responsible human resource. The company also has strategies that take care of the customer, and has embraced a streamlined business structure that entails more delegation, from the CEO and President positions, to the regional managers and the departments. The company’s only competitive advantage is the lower cost of their tickets. The internal environment and organization’s business models need to take a turn around to avert the tons of losses experienced each year. References Amtrak (2017). Consolidated Financial Statements: National Railroads Passenger Corporation and Subsidiary (Amtrak); Years ended September 30th 2016 and 2016 with reports of AMTRAK’S INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS independent auditors. Retrieved from: https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/736/320/AuditedConsolidated-Financial-Statements-FY2016.pdf Amtrak. (2016). Forbes Name Amtrak one of the best Employers in America. Amtrak news. Retrieved from: http://blog.amtrak.com/2016/03/forbes-names-amtrak-one-of-the-bestemployers-in-the-america/ Leeds, C. (2017). Amtrak Announces Streamlined Corporate Structure. Amtrak Media Center. Retrieved from: http://media.amtrak.com/2017/01/amtrak-announces-streamlinedcorporate-structure/ 8 STRATEGIC PLAN, PART III: STRATEGIC EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION Strategic Plan, Part 3: Strategic Evaluation and Recommendation Introduction Amtrak is the railroad transporter that operates in the federal level, serving all American states. It has the fastest trains in the country. The federal government has the responsibility to keep the project running as an affirmative action aimed at serving the lower middle and the lower class Americans. The track is essential in connecting the country. Former president appointed Charles Moorman as the CEO, who had experience with the Southern Railways at STRATEGIC PLAN, PART III: STRATEGIC EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION the CEO and VP positions. The organization has been making losses, but after an internal analysis, one may notice that it is not a totally failed company. This paper analyzes Amtrak’s internal environment. Organization’s Mission statement, Vision statement and Values’ statement Amtrak has a mission to Move America where it wants to go. This is in line with their business because they are operating in the transport industry. It is clear and attractive to Amtrak’s services users. Amtrak’s vision is delivering intercity transport with superior safety, customer service, and financial excellence. It assures users that, even if they meet difficulties now, it is something that will improve I the near future. The company has values in team building, culture, and philosophies. Among the team building values are accountability, desire to improve, respect, entrepreneurial spirit, humility, forgiveness, integrity and the spirit of service. In the cultural strategy, Amtrak has focus on collective success, failure and ownership, teamwork and collaboration, business about people, stewardship, improvement and risk taking. In the philosophy values, the organization focuses on the way they lead, the way they work and the way Amtrak businesses and operations are management (Amtrak, 2014). Organizations current Goals and Objectives The first strategy at Amtrak is having collaborative employees and state of the art, or better, technology in a bid to achieve their vision. Secondly, the business aims at achieving their vision, which includes quality services, high quality customer service and financial leadership; in a bid to beat competition. Customer satisfaction is the other objective and the 2 STRATEGIC PLAN, PART III: STRATEGIC EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION organization has an aim of exceeding the expectations of their esteemed customers. The last objective for the company as per the 2014 records was financial outcome, where the organization was hoping to reap benefits from the great customer consideration and relationship (Amtrak, 2014). Assess the Organization’s Current status The organization draws its leadership from recruitment and development of leaders. The main aspect considered in this strategy is following values and relating to the objectives of improvement and integrity. Every change in board of directors at Amtrak leads to changes of their strategies to suit the new leadership ((Amtrak, 2014). Amtrak has a functional organizational structure where every function is designed and issued with a different responsibility, which at the end of the day is merged in a bid to unite the organizational efforts towards its goal. Amtrak is currently having over 20,000 employees countrywide (Leeds, 2017). Internal SWOT Analysis The organization has strength in employees who are very dedicated. It has the support of the federal government as well. This implies that it will go on for long and has the advantage to retain its employees. The company has weaknesses in funding, since it has the federal government only funding it, and its revenues are always lower than the profitability. This implies that, if the federal government fails to fund the company, it can easily collapse. The opportunities for Amtrak include the access to all states, which assists the organization to assist all willing, but mostly the middle and lower class Americans. The threat include the use of new technologies such as the Black cars and also use of more 3 STRATEGIC PLAN, PART III: STRATEGIC EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION luxurious and faster means of transport such as planes by the financially capable population (Amtrak, 2016). Recent Financial Results Considering the years 2015 and 2016, the company’s total assets reduced in value. The value was $ 14.084 billion in the year 2015, but it dipped to $ 13.29 billion after 2016. The greatest expenses for the company are salaries wages and benefits. In the year 2015, the salaries wages and benefits bill for the year ended September 30th was 2.088 billion dollars. In the year 2016, these expenses shot up to 3.211 billion dollars. The total revenues also reduced between September 2014 and September 2016. In 2015 September, the total revenues for the company were 3.241 billion dollars, and declined to 3.211 billion dollars in 30th September 2016 (Amtrak, 2016). Competitor Analysis Amtrak has embraced competitor benchmarking strategy that involves technology consideration. Amtrak is currently offering high speed trains. Secondly, the company looks into geographical coverage. Amtrak beats Black cars by geographical coverage, since they are able to commute across cities, and state boarder. This is in consideration of within the US boarders. The organization also considers employees loyalty and customer focus. The company was offering a 24-hours-to-takeoff refund, and has reduced this to 48-hours-to-takeoff refund to minimize the number of organizations inconvenience. Even with the extension, it is still considered customer friendly. 4 STRATEGIC PLAN, PART III: STRATEGIC EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION Strategic recommendations that are designed to realize Growth Amtrak has a large capital reserve from the federal funding and some of its revenues. It can be able to divest. Currently, the organizations are making big losses and the sizes of the losses are expanding. Amtrak should research on areas they can invest in, to reduce the operating losses. Some of the areas is air transport, and having at least few air ports in some of the cities where they have sufficient space. In addition, they should have well developed business models that cut out on all loss causing operations such as their CSR strategies which are a bit exhausted and are currently using high sums (Amtrak, 2016). Leadership Profile – CEO Charles Moorman has the experience in railroad, and worked at the Norfolk South Railways as a president and CEO. He is in the same position at Amtrak. He is currently in his 11th year in operations at Amtrak. His style of leadership is mostly people focused and culture oriented. He has recently decided to delegate powers, including his decisional powers, from 12 direct reports to 6 direct reports, and the other six going to station directors. He has been experiencing losses with Amtrak, but with the federal purpose which was designed by the former resident to assist more lower class and lower middleclass individuals and families, it is expected (Amtrak, 2016). Conclusion Amtrak is an organization that has been making losses. The organization depends on the Federal government for funding, which makes it last longer, but threatens its capital reserves. 5 STRATEGIC PLAN, PART III: STRATEGIC EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION The organization is trying to embrace the dynamics of technology in transport, and currently, they are offering the fastest trains in the USA. The organization has values that focus on customers, and this is mainly the lower middle class and the lower class Americans. The organization has competition strategies which are price and customer focuses, but mostly employee retention. The organization is currently being led by Charles Moorman, an experienced and educated CEO who insists on delegating decisional powers and customer focus at the expense of costs. References Amtrak. (2017). Consolidated Financial Statements: National Railroads Passenger Corporation and Subsidiary (Amtrak); Years ended September 30th 2016 and 2016 with reports of independent auditors. Retrieved from: https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/736/320/Audited-ConsolidatedFinancial-Statements-FY2016.pdf 6 STRATEGIC PLAN, PART III: STRATEGIC EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION Amtrak. (2016). Forbes Name Amtrak one of the best Employers in America.Amtrak news. Retrieved from: http://blog.amtrak.com/2016/03/forbes-names-amtrak-one-of-the-best-employers-in-theamerica/ Leeds, C. (2017). Amtrak Announces Streamlined Corporate Structure. Amtrak Media Center. Retrieved from: http://media.amtrak.com/2017/01/amtrak-announces-streamlined-corporate-structure/ Amtrak. (2014). Amtrak’s Strategic Plan (FY2014-FY2018). {Pdf file}. Retrieved from: https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/261/227/StrategicPlan2014-2018_Lo0414.pdf 7 Final Strategic Plan Grading Guide STR/581 Version 10 Strategic Planning and Implementation Copyright Copyright © 2017 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. University of Phoenix® is a registered trademark of Apollo Group, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Microsoft®, Windows®, and Windows NT® are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Use of these marks is not intended to imply endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation. Edited in accordance with University of Phoenix® editorial standards and practices. Final Strategic Plan Grading Guide STR/581 Version 10 Individual Assignment: Final Strategic Plan Purpose of Assignment The Strategic Plan is composed of four parts that the student worked on during this course. This provides students the opportunity to research and create strategies for a company based on real scenarios and bring together all the concepts they learned throughout the course and MBA program. The objective is to create and sell the strategic plan to investors or the Board of Directors. Resources Required Strategic Plan, Parts 1-4 Grading Guide Met Content Partially Met Not Met The final project includes all the elements of the previous parts of the strategic plan assignments. The final project includes the following elements: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Table of Contents Executive Summary (350- to 700-words) Company Background Mission Statement Vision Statement Value Statement Environmental Scan Internal and External Environmental Analysis Strategic Recommendation Implementation Plan Organizational Change Management Strategies Risk Management Plan Conclusion References The presentation includes all elements of Parts 1-4 of the strategic plan. The presentation is 25-35 slides with speakers’ notes and includes appropriate images and graphics. Copyright © 2017 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Comments: 2 Final Strategic Plan Grading Guide STR/581 Version 10 Met Content Writing Guidelines Met Partially Met Not Met Total Available Total Earned 7 #/7 Partially Met Not Met Total Available Total Earned 3 #/3 10 #/10 The paper and presentation—including tables and graphs, headings, title page, citations, and reference page—are consistent with APA formatting guidelines and meets course-level requirements. The paper and presentation include properly cited intellectual property using APA style intext citations and a reference slide or page. The paper and presentation include major points that are stated clearly, organized logically, and supported by specific details, examples, or analysis. The paper and presentation include sentences that are complete, clear, and concise. The paper and presentation follow proper rules of grammar and usage including spelling and punctuation. Assignment Total # Additional comments: Copyright © 2017 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. 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