Du Pont – the company with a long history in business – has suffered from weak performance compared to its main competitors for approximately the last twenty-five years. Currently, the company suffers from the world financial crisis and seeks methods to address its adverse effects. However, Yang and Huang (2021) argue that every big crisis opens significant opportunities for change and improvement. In this regard, Du Pont may use the current conditions to decide its future plans and goals.
As CEO of the company, I think the fact that it is necessary for the company to redefine its purpose. From my point of view, Du Pont should remain the organization that offers a variety of products, but the spheres of involvement should be restricted to 3-5 main directions. Additionally, the company should consider broadening the scope of one’s expertise as it is clear that the major opportunities now exist at the intersection of various sciences. For instance, biotechnology is believed to be one such promising sphere (Gartland & Gartland, 2018). Moreover, the company should be responsive to modern problems of humanity such as global warming. For this reason, it is suggested that Du Pont positions itself as the business that promotes scientific solutions and innovations to build a better future.
Next, in order to effectively restructure the company so that it is able to fulfill its mission, clear goals should be defined. As such, they should include overriding as well as individual goals for various departments. As for the former, Du Pont should aim to be among the top three companies in terms of stock return in three years from now. In order to achieve that, the company should invest in the research of at least five promising spheres and present several innovative solutions each year. As for the latter, the managers should devise concrete plans for all the departments – be it finances, product development, or HR – with an equal focus. Such a strategy would ensure that every part of the company does its best to achieve the overriding goals. Therefore, in short, it is crucial to guarantee that each element of the company, starting from the top management team and finishing with an individual employee, is clearly aware of its responsibilities.
References
Gartland, K. M., & Gartland, J. S. (2018). Opportunities in biotechnology. Journal of Biotechnology, 282, 38-45. Web.
Yang, B., & Huang, C. (2021). Turn crisis into opportunity in response to COVID-19: experience from a Chinese University and future prospects. Studies in Higher Education, 46(1), 121-132. Web.