As the newly hired brand manager for your favorite brand, you are thrilled to have an opportunity to make your mark. Innovation is high on the company’s list of priorities, so one of your brand’s goals will be to launch a new product this year. You are eager to start the process of developing and marketing a new product, but first you must learn the business.

For this first project submission, you will select your company for the project and conduct research to examine the company’s competitive advantage and the competitive environment in which it operates. Please note that this is a three-part assignment. All three parts will be completed as one paper with headings (e.g., “Company Background”) that clearly identify each part. To complete the assignment, do the following:

Part 1 – Company Background

1. Select a company to focus on for the project.
2. Before conducting research, describe what you believe is your selected company’s competitive advantage.
3. Conduct research on the company and address the following:
   1. Provide an overview of the industry that the company competes in. If the company competes in multiple industries, describe the industry in which you plan to launch the new product.
   2. Describe the factors that a company must have to succeed in your chosen industry.
   3. Evaluate the marketing strategies of your selected company and two competitors in the industry. Describe the competitive advantage of each company. What makes each company or its offering unique and distinctive?
   4. In 2-3 short, declarative sentences distill the findings of your research into a bullet-pointed list that describes your chosen company’s competitive advantage.
   5. Now that you’ve conducted research on your company’s competitive advantage, evaluate your previous ideas about the company’s competitive advantage. How does your initial view compare to what you discovered during the research process?

Part 2 – New Product Idea

1. Describe the new product that you will focus on for the project. Include a rationale for your product decision. Your explanation should be supported by the research you conducted on the company.

Part 3 – Cross-functional Team

1. Identify at least three (3) functional areas needed on the cross-functional team to will launch your new product, then answer the following questions:
   1. What type of expertise will each functional group you’ve identified bring to the project?
   2. What are the benefits of having diverse perspectives in a cross-functional team?
   3. What potential issues may arise when diverse perspectives are not represented in a team?
   4. Why is it important that cross-functional team members value, respect, and appreciate each other’s unique contributions to the team?
2. Cite at least five credible sources in your paper, with at least two from academic databases. Feel free to use the Rasmussen Online Library databases like Business Source Complete via EBSCO and Business via ProQuest for your academic research. Include in-text citations, a title page and a reference page formatted according to APA standards. Your paper should be a minimum of three (3) pages. Write your paper as if you are writing to your senior management team. Keep this audience in mind throughout the project and establish the appropriate tone to engage your audience.