When Wendell Adams became the general manager at the Westwind Resort, he knew that it would be a challenge. His predecessor, Manfred Gunlock, was highly regarded and had been in the position for over 20 years. During that time, the resort enjoyed success by building a new lodge, adding more than 1,000 time-share units, and adding more snow-making equipment that extended the ski season. During Mr. Gunlock’s tenure, Westwind Resort became a four-season resort. The golf course was very good, with golfers playing more than 25,000 rounds annually. These rounds were divided evenly between resort guests and year-round permanent residents.

The resort catered to families, as it featured a modest pricing structure and a focus on providing maximum value for them. About 60 percent of the resort business came from families. Many of them had children between the ages of 5 and 17..

Wendell also knew that the resort faced challenges. Westwind Resort had begun to slip. Sales were down 4 percent, and the quality of the productservice mix was perceived to have declined slightly as well. While still profitable, the resort was not producing the level of cash flow that it had in previous years. When Wendell accepted the job, he worried that maybe Manfred Gunlock had retired because he saw trouble ahead for Westwind Resort.

Wendell had taken some very positive first steps. He assembled the management team for a half-day off-site planning session. Westwind had been run in a very entrepreneurial fashion, with Mr. Gunlock making all the important decisions without much input from other managers or even the board of directors. While this approach had been successful in the past, Wendell believed it was time to implement a more systematic approach. He wanted to develop a mission statement and a complete marketing plan for the resort.

“Without a road map, how will we know where we are going?” he told his staff during the planning meeting.

Wendell had hoped to develop a mission statement during the planning meeting, but the members of his management team felt it would be better to complete an assessment of the resort’s current position prior to developing a mission statement.

They also felt that the mission statement should come from the board of directors, not from the managers. In the end, Wendell agreed with them, and they developed a SWOT analysis. The results of their work are shown below.

Having completed the SWOT analysis, the managers were feeling very good.
This was the first time that many of them had ever been involved in such an activity. They enjoyed having the opportunity to talk about the future of the resort and how their individual contributions could positively impact the future.

Case Study Questions and Issues

1.. What should the mission statement for Westwind Resort be?
2.. How should the mission statement be developed? Who should review it and have input?
3.. How could Wendell use the SWOTs that the management team had developed to form the basis for a marketing plan?
4.. How should he lead the team in the development of a marketing plan?
What should be the next steps?
5.. What additional components of the marketing plan need to be developed? What additional data and input would be necessary to complete the plan?

Transcribed Image Text:

Summary of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (swots) for westWIND Resort STRENGTHS More than 1,500 year-round residents reside in private homes at the resort. The resort has a good reputation for food and beverage service. Westwind offers four-season sports, including skiing and golf. The airport on the property is suitable for up to six-passenger turboprop aircraft. There is low turnover among staff. Westwind Resort is located approximately 90 minutes from a major metropolitan area. The resort carries only a small amount of long-term debt. The mortgage on the lodge (built 15 years ago) is paid off. WEAKNESSES Lodge occupancy has declined slightly, to 65 percent year round. Peak weekends during the ski season are overbooked. The average daily room rate for lodge guests has not kept pace with inflation for the past three years. There has been some management turnover since the retirement of Manfred Gunlock. Due to the location of the resort in the mid-Atlantic region, the ski season is limited to approximately 60-75 days. The lodge, while only 15 years old, lacks a freshness in the dcor. It appears to be older than 15 years. Cash flow, while positive, is lower than in past years, due to a decline in profits.