Hero Dog Treats Case Study

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary        2

Issues        3

Environmental Analysis        3

Strengths        3

Weaknesses        4

Threats        4

Alternatives and Options        5

Appeal to an Intermediary Company        5

Goods surveyors        5

Import Merchants        5

Commission Houses        6

Agents        6

Import Brokers        7

Trading Companies        7

Freight Forwarders        8

NVOCCs        9

Lead the Global Acquisition Process        10

Mitigate Risks        10

Letters of credit        10

TradeCard        11

Procurement Cards        11

Hedging        12

Recommendations        12

Implementation        13

Monitor and Control        13

Conclusion        13

Exhibit 1 – Five Why Diagram        15

Exhibit 2 – SWOT Analysis        16

Exhibit 3 – Implementation Schedule        17

Exhibit 4 – Balanced Score Card        18

Executive Summary

Based on the following analysis, I recommend Hero Dog Treats appeal to intermediary companies. They simply do not have the knowledge and experience to tackle such a venture on their own. Specifically, I recommend they use goods surveyors, trading companies, and freight forwarders. The supply chain efficiencies gained by using these intermediaries will far outweigh the costs to acquire these services.

Furthermore, I recommend looking into the use of purchase cards and trade cards, however, with regards to risk mitigating and international payment options, it is likely that intermediaries, especially freight forwarders, may be able to offer other safe payment options, advice, and expertise on the subject. With regards to exchange rate risks, I recommend hedging.

The main issues contributing to the requirement to develop global initiatives are related to a lack of a company-wide global strategy, and a lack of risk mitigation knowledge with regards to global sourcing.