Coca Colas International Service Program - Research Paper Example

 Coca Cola’s International Service Program Abstract This research was carried out to establish the perceptions of the Coca cola Company. The research employed qualitative data collection and analysis. The participants were randomly picked from the public and asked for their permission before they were provided with the questionnaires. The reports from the questionnaires and observations were then compared and results drawn after a simple analysis. Conclusion on the perceptions was then made based on the results. Introduction Public perception of a company usually plays a major role in various aspects of its business activities. A positive perception, for instance, will build a stable public relation that in turn attracts consumer loyalty. A negative perception will certainly cause a decrease in the product sales. It is, therefore, upon the management of a given company to establish amicable reputation that shall create an affirmative perception in the minds of its existing customers and the potential consumers. This paper, through a qualitative research, shall deliver the findings on the perceptions of Coca cola Company by the general public. Company Background The Coca Cola Company is a multinational company (MNC) that was founded in the year 1886 and the main headquarter is situated in Atlanta, Georgia (Helen, 2013). The Company was an initiative of one Pharmacist called Dr. Pemberton who used to work in Atlanta. At one time he prepared flavored syrup which then became very popular in most soda fountains of Atlanta. Dr. Pemberton then partnered with other entrepreneurs like Frank Robinson who, assisted in giving the brand name and trademark. The name “Coca-cola” was, in fact, the idea of Robinson. Dr. Pemberton later decided to sell part of the business to other well established businessmen in Atlanta. The expansion of the business continued beyond Atlanta (Anfuso, 1994). Today, Coca cola Company is renowned globally. It has gradually increased its area of specialization; a move that makes it the leading beverage manufacturer in the world. It produces and distributes over 500 different categories in more 200 nations across the globe. The categories of beverages include but not limited to regular soft drinks, low-calories drinks, fruit juices, bottled water, energy drinks and, ready-to-drink tea and coffee. Aim of the Research The aim of this research is to establish the Coca cola Company perceptions Objectives To find out the brand perception of the company To find out the employer perception by the job seekers Limitations of the Research This research used questionnaires as a method of data collection. It, therefore, could not retrieve information from the illiterate respondents however resourceful they may have been. Problems Encountered A few respondents failed to return their questionnaires while others were hostile and unapproachable. Literature Review In establishing in-depth information, qualitative data collection and analysis is the most preferred method (Silverman, 2000). Qualitative research is always purposive and yields the specified objectives. That is to say, qualitative research serves the purposes it was intended to. This kind of research comprises of data collection methods such as observation, questionnaire, interview and focus groups. In observation, a researcher has to go to the field and witnessed the actual situation on the ground. The data collected through observation, however, must be of a phenomenon that can either be physically seen, heard or felt. Observation is, thus, instinctive; a researcher has to rely on his or her instincts to judge a situation. However, the instinctive aspect of observation method gives it a weakness because different researchers may have different instincts hence, may deliver conflicting judgments on a common variable. Nonetheless, observation is the easiest method of conducting a research since it does not present any correspondent barrier (Silverman, 2000). Another of primary data collection in qualitative research is Questionnaire. Questionnaires bear predesigned questions that should be voluntarily answered by the respondents. This method is very precise and time saving. One only answers the questions on the paper. Questionnaires are also very confidential thus; give the respondent liberty to disclose vital information. In fact, this is the best method when a researcher needs sensitive data. One disadvantage with questionnaire is that it cannot be used where the respondents are illiterate. The semi-literate persons may also need some guidance through the questions thereby consuming more time, especially when the researcher has to guide a large population. This situation may cause a researcher to resort to interview. Interview involves verbal administering of questions to a respondent, referred to as interviewee. Interview may be used where a researcher wants to acquire more information by verbally interacting with the interviewee. Interview has further been subdivided into three main categories. These include Structured, Semi-structured and Unstructured interview. Structured interview is simply a list of predesigned questions that are verbally administered. It is more like verbal questionnaire since it does not bear any follow-up questions or elaborations. It is very ideal where questionnaires have failed to work. However, like questionnaires, structured interviews only allow for limited responses; the research may not obtain deeper information. Semi-structured interview bears key questions that act as a guide during the session. The advantage of semi-structured interview over structured interview is that it allows for divergence of both the interviewer and the interviewee in case they to elaborate on a point. The flexibility of semi-structured interview helps a research get more explanations of a situation. The last category of interviews is the Unstructured. Here, the questions follow no particular preconceived theory or organization. There are no guiding questions. The first question may form basis of the subsequent ones. Both the interviewer and the interviewee are free to ask and answer any relevant question on the topic of discussion. Like semi-structured, it is very flexible thus, enhance the realization of more hidden information. However, this type of interview is not precise hence consumes more time (Britten, 1999). Methodology Qualitative research was chosen as the most appropriate approach for the study. This type of facilitated the achievement of the desired outcomes. The methods of qualitative research used were mainly questionnaires and observation. These two methods upheld confidentiality and time consciousness of the whole process. Due to limited resources and time limit, methods such as interview that required recording and transcription were not convenient. In this research, two categories of questionnaires were designed. One was for the brand perception and another for the perception of the company as a potential employer. Each piece of the questionnaires separately carried a few vital questions which were to be answered by the consumers of Coca cola products and job seekers. Respondents were picked randomly and asked for their willingness to take part in the study. Those who had agreed to be part of the research were provided with the questionnaires and asked if they needed any clarification before proceeding. The questions were very direct and in most cases, only needed a “Yes” or “No” answers. The questionnaire feedbacks were either collected onsite or later, as per the request of the respondent. The category of the job seekers was picked according to perceived age. The youth were perceived as the main job seekers. Observation was used as a confirmation test. In some cases, some factors stated by the respondents had to be verified through observation. In total, 30 questionnaires were given out. Data Analysis The answers in the questionnaires were compiled and compared. They were then sorted according to the similarity in responses. Different categories were then compared to establish the group with the highest number. Through Triangulation, other relevant quantitative methods were applied to calculate the figures. Results Out of the 30 questionnaires, only 22 were filled and timely returned. Of the 22 respondents, 16 of them stated that the Coca cola soft drinks were of good quality and favorable price. Four respondents, however, stated that the soft drinks needed to be improved and that the company was being exploitative. 12 youths stated that Coca cola was an equal-opportunity employer while 10 said that the company shows some favoritism in recruitment. Discussion The respondents who had stated that the company’s products were of good quality and affordable had a positive brand perception. The category that thought the company was exploitative had a negative perception. Same applied to job seekers. Conclusion Different consumers depicted different perception of the Coca cola Company. Some had negative perceptions while others were very optimistic. However, a larger population has a positive perception of the company. Reference Anfuso, D. (1994). The Phylosophy Behind Coca Cola’s International Service Program. Britten, N. (1999). Qualitative interviews in research. : BMJ Books. New York Helen, D. (2013). International Management. Pearson Education Limited. Boston Silverman, D. (2000) Doing qualitative research. Sage Publications. London Read More