Overview. Using the market audit you completed for an organization of your choice on October 9, assume the role of consultant to this organization. Your task is to advise the organization on what it should do, in your best judgment, to make it more atune to its users, more visible in the marketplace, more satisfying for its employees, and more valued by its customers.

The Organization. Use the same organization you chose for the first assignment. If you prefer to start anew please contact me.

Consulting Report. In the original assignment you were asked to examine your organization's environment, customers, products and services, place(s) of product/service delivery, price and cost to customers of products, promotional activities, the people who deliver the product/service plus other customers and intermediaries, the servicespace, the process of or product/service delivery, competition (other desires customer might have, generic - other ways to satisfy a particular desire, other forms of service, other organizations offering same service form).

First, please review what you said and consider whether the basic information you reported should be modified or amplified to more accurately portray what is current.

Second, apply the "Gap Theory" to your organization. Consider what you believe are the organization's strengths and weaknesses. How can the strengths be reinforced and the weaknesses overcome? Some questions to consider, for example.

• Could the organization's mission statement be better phrased?
• Should the organization consider a different segmentation of its publics or other customer segments?
• Is the staff sufficiently trained? Do they make a good impression and add value to the organization? Is the balance between volunteers (if any) and paid staff appropriate?
• How satisfied with the organization are the staff? Should the organization undertake any activities to make the staff more loyal or better training?
• Should the organization consider a different mix of products and services?
• Should the organization change the price to the customers or consider the way the cost is perceived differently?
• Are the various channels available to the customer for product and service delivery the most convenient for the customer and the most cost beneficial for the organization?
• Could the organization engage in more or different kinds of promotional activities?
• What kind of image does the organization project? Is it congruent with its mission? Is it as clear and as favorable as the organization would like?
• Do you think the organization is currently positioned vis a vis its collaborators and competitors? What changes might be favorable?

Format of Final Report. Please note that you do not have to answer every question but should organize your report into a factual part (summarizing/correcting your initial audit), a "compliments" section (things the organization is doing right), a problem section (areas that need to be changed), and a recommendation section with reasons why what you suggest will be an improvement on current practices. The entire report should be no more than 5-6 pages. Your report should be addressed to a person or group in the organization who has the power to make the changes that you believe are necessary. Identify the person or group with a sentence or two describing why this is the appropriate person to receive the report.

Page revised 10/16/2002.