NCA Announces International Strategic Planning Process

The National Confectioners Association will conduct a planning initiative to implement an international strategic plan to examine how NCA can best serve its members' needs in identifying and entering international markets. By commissioning the development of an international strategic plan, NCA will evaluate current markets and activities while identifying new targets to generate a long-term increase of U.S. confectionery exports. The plan will connect NCA staff, industry members and NCA's international representatives to generate a unified effort toward enhancing the association's core international focus while addressing constraints that U.S. confectioners face in a current volatile business environment. "Creating an international strategic plan is a crucial step in identifying key goals going forward," said NCA President Larry Graham. "The information we gather will result in a framework for future decisions for international activities and marketing decisions." He added that the plan comes at an important time for the U.S. economy as the White House recently announced President Obama's National Export Initiative, a program aimed at doubling U.S. exports during the next five years. NCA will work with Bryant Christie Inc. and Euromonitor International to effectively assess the current international efforts and compile industry and market research. Based on the assessment and research, tactical and tangible recommendations will be made guiding an overall strategic direction for NCA's international market development. Euromonitor International is a world leader in market and consumer research, with staff analysts operating in more than 80 countries around the world. Bryant Christie Inc. is an international affairs management firm that specializes in helping companies and organizations open, access, and expand international markets. "The development of NCA's International Strategic Plan, will involve NCA members, staff and an ISP Taskforce from various disciplines within our industry. The end product will produce a clearly defined, Unified Export Strategy that will add value to all industry members, both large and small companies, planning to develop an export business," said Frank Amato, the chairman of NCA's International Development Committee. "This plan will positively enhance NCA members' opportunities to participate and thrive in foreign markets."

The ultimate goal of the strategic plan is broaden the scope of business for U.S. confectioners worldwide. In doing so, NCA and its partners will include feedback from the membership qualitative and quantitative surveys to create an action plan that will be implemented over the next one to three years.