Coca Cola\'s Strategic Controls and Their Fit

¶ … Coca Cola's strategic controls and their fit with the company strategy. What the paper reveals is that there is a real disconnect between Coca Cola's corporate image and its internal corporate dealings. The company is far more ruthless and cutthroat than one would imagine from its very friendly corporate image. It has been involved in several substantial scandals and appears willing to do morally questionable things in order to retain its role as market leader. However, the lack of fit between the company's strategic controls and its stated strategy does not appear to have hurt the company. Coca Cola has been and remains one of the world's economic leaders, despite whatever internal leadership problems the company has faced.

Introduction

What is fascinating about Coca Cola is that its mission and organizational components do not seem to fit with its strategy, but the company is still tremendously successful. Coca Cola's stated values and its public image relay the idea of a warmly emotional company with the goal of bringing happiness to the lives of those with whom it interacts. However, the reality is that Coca Cola is a highly-competitive company that prizes results. It has been accused of sexism and relying on an old-fashioned "good old boy" network in its corporate structure, which has left little room for women to advance to meaningful positions in leadership. It has also engaged in some very questionable corporate practices that belie its friendly images. Despite those issues, Coca Cola's brand remains strong, with most consumers associating Coca Cola with the strong image it has carefully cultivated, rather than any specific factual knowledge about the company.

Discussion

According to Coca Cola's own company website, it has a well-developed roadmap that has led to its place as the world leader among beverage producers and distributors. Its mission is "To refresh the world…To inspire moments of optimism and happiness…To create value and make a difference" (Coca Cola, "Mission," 2011). Its vision specifically speaks to its employees, stating that it wishes to "Be a great place to work where people are inspired to be the best they can be" (Coca Cola, "Mission," 2011). It also wishes to "Nurture a winning network of customers and suppliers, together we create mutual, enduring value" (Coca Cola, "Mission," 2011). Finally, its values speak to leadership and "The courage to shape a better future" (Coca Cola, "Mission," 2011).

Robert Girard examines the Coca Cola Company in a very critical report, and what he finds is a company that does not live up to its friendly image. According to Girard, "the corporation is concerned with one thing, profit, and will stop at nothing to achieve this goal through universal expansion. Coke is an aggressive corporation that will jump at any opportunity to flog its products in its continuous push for global domination of the beverage industry" (Girard, 2005, p.1). Girard then goes on to list several historical and current events that make one question the company's ethics, including Coca Cola's relationship with Nazi Germany, its current water rights issues in India, and its intentional marketing to school children (Girard, 2005, p.1). In fact, Coca Cola even appears to take a hostile approach to its own employees at times; it has supported paramilitary action against employee efforts to unionize outside of America (Girard, 2005, p.6-7). This goes directly against its stated goal of being, "a great place to work where people are inspired to be the best they can be" (Coca Cola, "Mission," 2011).

Moreover, Ricky Griffen discusses how Coca Cola's internal management structure has faced significant problems because of its corporate structure. "At Coca Cola, one barrier to effective teamwork is a high-level of centralization, which reduces the ability of teams to work autonomously. Another barrier is Coke's relatively formal and hierarchical culture. Coke's management style has been referred to as 'genteel' and compared to a traditional Southern culture with its class consciousness and conservativism" (Griffen, 2008, p.414). In fact, the general rumors about the company suggest a place with sexist ideals, where it is difficult for women to make it into the ranks of the upper management. Coca Cola's functional board, however, seems to challenge those ideals. Women are highly represented on the board (Coca Cola, "Functional," 2011). It is true that women do not compose a majority of the board, which would be suggested by an actual demographic breakdown of the available white collar workforce, but they form a substantial portion of the board. Moreover, there is significant minority, at least African-American, representation on the board. However, the diversity of the company is not complete; there is no real presence of other races on the board. Despite that caveat, the board is certainly more diverse than one would anticipate from a company that critics describe as operating under an old boy network.