The Coca-Cola Company

Isdell Discusses Leadership And Transformation At CIES Summit

June 30, 2006 edition

The Coca-Cola Company has concluded its transitional phase and is now in the early stages of its long-term transformation, Chairman and CEO Neville Isdell said June 22 during a speech at the 50th CIES World Food Business Summit in Paris.

Reflecting on his first two years at the helm, Mr. Isdell cited the Company’s recent strides to capture sustainable growth through two "transition" phases of our Manifesto for Growth. The first phase involved stabilizing the Company and aligning employees around the world with a common vision of success, and the second entailed building an organization and an executive team capable of re-asserting industry leadership, and increasing our investment in marketing and innovation.

"The title of this panel -- Leadership and Transforming an Organization -- resonates deeply with me," said Mr. Isdell, former chairman of CIES’ Summit Committee. "It’s the reason I decided to return to The Coca-Cola Company, and it’s what I’ve dedicated the last two years of my life to doing."

He added: "I’ve been involved in a number of turnarounds in my four decades with the Coca-Cola system, and I’ve always believed that the people who run the business day-to-day know better than anyone else what needs to be done. I also believe that a plan built from the ground up is much more likely to succeed than anything imposed from the top down -- because the people who contributed to the plan have a personal stake in making it succeed."

This philosophy, Mr. Isdell explained, inspired the creation of our Manifesto for Growth: "Ultimately, the Manifesto was what we had to create first, in order to create the conditions for the transformation of The Coca-Cola Company."

He further explained how the 5Ps -- Profit, Portfolio, People, Partners and Planet -- are driving our Manifesto for Growth, and how the Strategic Growth Paths are creating value for the system.

At the heart of the Company’s work on three of these growth paths -- Grow Global Carbonated Soft Drink Brands, Grow Non-Carbonated Core Brands and Develop Transformational Wellness Platforms -- is a proprietary research initiative called the Consumer Beverage Landscape. A key component of this research, the "Need State Map," is helping the Company deliver the right brands and packages to the right consumers at the right times.

"When people want to know why I’m optimistic about the future of The Coca-Cola Company, the Need State Map is why: because the opportunity is so enormous," said Mr. Isdell. "When they want to know how -- by the year 2015 -- we will pursue our goal of doubling the value of trademark Coke and growing the rest of our portfolio to a commensurate size, this map is one of the ways, because it will help us find our way."

Mr. Isdell commented on today’s fiercely competitive retail environment, which is characterized by shifting consumer preferences, consolidation and a blurring of categories. "We’re no longer competing in just the beverage and food industries," he noted. "In the emerging retail environment, the Coca-Cola system is competing with every consumer product goods company that sells to our customers."

The Company is responding to these evolving dynamics through the Collaborative Customer Relationship model (CCRM) -- an innovative approach to driving results at every point along the retail value chain, Mr. Isdell said.

Points from Mr. Isdell’s speech are illustrated in the CIES Innovation Zone, where a stylish exhibit is showcasing our new brand, package and equipment offerings. The booth leverages the "Make Every Drop Count" campaign theme to position the Company as a total beverage company by reinforcing the 5Ps, Strategic Growth Paths and Need State Map. Visitors can sample new products, view our latest TV ads and learn more about our corporate social responsibility initiatives.

According to Mr. Isdell, the Innovation Zone would not have been possible two years ago. "Without the transition we’ve just completed... there would be no Innovation Zone, no Godiva Belgian Blends, no Aquarius Citrus, no Daizu no Susune -- and certainly no carbonated fusion beverage, and most definitely not one called Coca-Cola Blak.

"We wouldn’t have 'Make Every Drop Count,' The Coca-Cola Company’s first corporate identity campaign. We wouldn’t have our first fully integrated, cross-media marketing campaign for brand Coke, which we’re calling 'The Coke Side of Life.'"

Read the full transcript of Mr. Isdell’s speech, go there »