case study of procter and gamble

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How P&G Tripled Its Innovation Success Rate

• Bruce Brown
• Scott D. Anthony

Inside the company’s new-growth factory

Reprint: R1106C

In the early 2000s, faced with an alarming gap between its growth goals and what its innovation pipeline was delivering, Procter & Gamble created a “new-growth factory”—a network of novel structures and capabilities to rapidly shepherd new products and even business models from inception to market. The resulting innovations range from a 33-cent razor for customers in emerging economies to Tide Dry Cleaners—establishments with drive-through windows and 24-hour drop-off and pickup.

Brown, who is P&G’s chief technology officer, and Anthony describe the factory’s components and practices: new-business-creation groups, entrepreneurial “guides” to help them, an innovation manual, a disruptive-innovation “college,” and more. They also offer six lessons for leaders seeking to set up new-growth factories of their own.

Although the factory is still ramping up, its early successes suggest that collective creativity can be managed—and can generate sustainable sources of revenue growth no matter how big a company becomes.

Back in 2000 the prospects for Procter & Gamble’s Tide, the biggest brand in the company’s fabric and household care division, seemed limited. The laundry detergent had been around for more than 50 years and still dominated its core markets, but it was no longer growing fast enough to support P&G’s needs. A decade later Tide’s revenues have nearly doubled, helping push annual division revenues from $12 billion to almost $24 billion. The brand is surging in emerging markets, and its iconic bull’s-eye logo is turning up on an array of new products and even new businesses, from instant clothes fresheners to neighborhood dry cleaners.

• BB Bruce Brown is the chief technology officer of Procter & Gamble.
• Scott D. Anthony is a clinical professor at Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business, a senior partner at Innosight , and the lead author of Eat, Sleep, Innovate (2020) and Dual Transformation (2017). ScottDAnthony

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Award winner: Big Data Strategy of Procter & Gamble

This case won the Knowledge, Information and Communication Systems Management  category at The Case Centre Awards and Competitions 2020 .  #CaseAwards2020

Author perspective

Who – the protagonist.

Linda W. Clement-Holmes , Procter & Gamble (P&G) Chief Information Officer (CIO).

P&G is a leading consumer packaged goods company, regarded as a pioneer in extensively adopting big data and digitization to understand consumer behaviour.

Former Chairman and CEO, Bob McDonald , and CIO, Filippio Passerini , were responsible for the push on big data, which had resulted in P&G becoming more nimble and efficient.

However, some experts were sceptical about P&G’s obsession with digitization, and how it could slow the speed of decision making.

It was in June 2015 when Linda replaced Filippio.

P&G is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, but its brands are sold worldwide.

“ Change movement is one of the biggest challenges of big data implementation. Analytics need to be integrated with processes. We had to educate and train our field force over and over again in order to make analytics a part of their daily routine.” A head of analytics at a leading logistics company

Linda had the big responsibility of continuing and leveraging the big data initiatives started by Filippio.

In order to achieve this, a culture of data-driven decision making within the organisation needed to be implemented by the leadership team.

Linda’s job was to convince them of her vision.

AUTHOR PERSPECTIVE 

Vinod said: “I am extremely honoured to receive such a prestigious award from The Case Centre, popularly dubbed the Case Method Oscars!

“I am earnestly grateful for the recognition I have received for my effort which would not have been possible without the guidance and support of my Dean, Debapratim Purkayastha, who gave me an opportunity to associate with him in writing this case.”

Predicting the future

Debapratim commented: “Big data analytics has always been a key strategy for businesses to have a competitive edge and achieve their goals. Now, predictive analysis through big data can help predict what may occur in the future.

“The topic is very contemporary to current business trends and the case helps the students to be updated with the organisational readiness to welcome latest changes in technology for better performance. The case discusses in detail how Procter & Gamble adapted the big data through different tools like Decision Cockpit and Business Sphere.”

Vinod commented: “The case helps understands many strategic, as well as technical aspects of big data and business analytics, and how they are implemented in a fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) like Procter & Gamble.

“Not only does it help understand the opportunities and challenges in implementing a big data strategy, but also the significance of accessibility to information in an organisation and how its functioning can be transformed through the availability of real-time data.

“The case enables a discussion on ways in which big data could be productively employed in an organisation in some of the key business functions.” 

Debapratim added: "Educators may like using our other case,  Consumer Research at Procter & Gamble: From Field Research to Agile Research , as a follow-up, as it shows how the pioneers of marketing research is now leveraging big data for agile research.

Identifying the right information

Debapratim explained: “Understanding of the concepts that are going to be taught through the case study is a prerequisite of writing a case. Finding the relevant information, and presenting the case in an understandable manner to students is also equally important.

"Most importantly, people new to case writing should work with more experienced case writers to hone their skills in case writing.”

The authors

Celebrating the win

Unfortunately, due to the Coronavirus pandemic, we were unable to present the authors in person with their trophies for winning the Knowledge, Information and Communication Systems Management category in 2020.

We are delighted to celebrate Debapratim and Vinod's win by sharing these pictures of them with their awards - congratulations!

The protagonist

Educators can login to view a free educator preview copy of this case and its teaching note.

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Home » Business Analysis » Case Study of Procter and Gamble (P&G): Structure and Culture

Case Study of Procter and Gamble (P&G): Structure and Culture

Three billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world. This happens because P&G provides branded products of superior quality and value to improve the lives of the world’s consumers. This results in leadership sales, profit and value creation , allowing employees, shareholders and the communities in which we operate to prosper. The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is a brand behemoth. The world’s first maker of household products courts market share and billion-dollar brands. Its business is divided into three global units: beauty, health and well being, and household care. It also makes pet food and water filters and produces soap operas. Some 25 of P&G’s brands are billion-dollar sellers, including Gillette Fusion, Always/Whisper, Braun, Bounty, Charmin, Crest, Downy/Lenor, Folgers (which it reportedly plans to spin off), Gillette, Iams, Olay, Pampers, Pantene, Pringles, Tide, and Wella, among others.

The P&G consists of over 138,000 employees working in over 80 countries. It began as a small, family-operated soap and candle company now provides products and services of superior quality and value to consumers in more than 180 countries. In P&G, they are focusing their efforts on where they can make the most meaningful difference in both environmental and social sustainability. Their commitment begins with P&G’s Purpose, values and principles, in which sustainability is embedded, and manifests itself in a systemic and long-term way. They try to make their company better.

Business Structure

The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is divided into three main worldwide units, which are household care, beauty and grooming and health and well-being. Every units’ report is sent to president of global business units. P&G has restructured its hierarchy of top executives in order to meet the changing needs of their larger, more flexible and faster-paced global business. Lafley, who is the chairman of P&G , announced that ‘P&G has nearly doubled its business since 2000 with the acquisitions of the Clairol, Wella hair care businesses and Gillette. The change in structure is designed to meet the needs of a larger business that is also developing new initiatives faster than in the past’.

Initially, P&G managed its international operations through an international division of foreign expansion, in the same manner many other multinational enterprises. A variety of products were identified to match national differences and preferences. Consequently, a portfolio, consisting of subsidiaries, run by country general managers was established. However, this management structure may result in two basic problems. Firstly, the cost of operating these subsidiaries is high, and secondly the ferocious autonomy of national subsidiaries prevented the global roll out of new products and technology improvements. Therefore, P&G needed innovation in the subsidiaries management structure. It concluded that the matrix structure , in which subordinates report to more than one superior, is a better alternative for P&G, as it allows authority to be kept at lower levels. However, most firms would have some difficulty implementing this Matrix structure into their organization because it is difficult to organize multinational activities through this complex structure. For example, dual reporting can lead to disagreements and confusion and a possible overlap of responsibilities. This may result in a loss of accountability and wastes time. Through time P&G has been trying to optimize its structure. The current structure resulted in a culture within P&G, which was viewed as slow, conformist and risk-averse. This led to a decrease in productivity and an increase in inefficiency in the organization. Moreover, these factors would slow down the decision making process and reduce the competitiveness of the company. Although, the management structure of P&G seems imperfect at the moment. However, the Procter & Gamble Company is still a giant in the area of consumer goods and the leading maker of household products in the United States. P&G operates its business in over 80 countries around the world and has approximately 300 brands in more than 160 countries. The matrix structure helps P&G develop its global business structure into more specific areas. As a result, the company has become more flexible to change within market competitions and the different expectation of P&G.

The final stage of completing the innovation process of management structure is to transform the formal structure and responsibilities of the company. For example, the global business units of P&G were established in order to manage product development, manufacturing and marketing of their respective categories all around world. Furthermore, global business service units were established to organize with the transactional activities such as Accounting, HR, IT, etc. Eliminating bureaucracy and increasing accountability is another main objective of structure change.

The Procter & Gamble Company’s corporate structure has been mainly dependent on worldwide subsidiaries and merging. During this time of restructuring, P&G has continued its active acquisitions pace. For instance, P&G entered the European tissue and towel market through the purchase of Vereinigte Papierwerke Schickedanz AG’s European tissue unit and added the luxury fragrance business of Giorgio Beverly Hills, Inc. In the same year, P&G returned to the South African market following the lifting of U.S. sanctions. The company has altered its geographic management structure gradually. As a result, P&G has divided its operations into United States and International, which is would now managed around four regions, North America, Latin America, Asia and Europe/Middle East/Africa.

Procter & Gamble announced a new restructuring initiative in September 1998. A key factor of this restructuring was a shift from an organization centered around the four geographic regions to one centered on seven global business parts based on product lines: Baby Care, Beauty Care, Fabric & Home Care, Feminine Protection, Food & Beverage, Health Care & Corporate New Ventures and Tissues & Towels. P&G has continued to restructure and adapt to different markets and different financial situation worldwide. According to a firm press release announcing the new structure, ‘This change will drive greater innovation and speed by centering strategy and profit responsibility globally on brands, rather than on geographies”.

Business Culture

Culture plays an important role in any organization to run their organization well in this fast growing business world. Culture is defined as a pattern of shared basic assumption that the group learned as it solved its problem of external adaptation and integration that has work well enough to be considered valid and therefore to be taught to new members as a correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problem. Organizational culture is the acquired outcome of group experience, as it is to a large extent unconscious. The organizational culture comprises of three layers first one is the artefacts, espoused values and underlying assumption.

• Artefacts:   Innovation culture is the mission statement of Procter and gamble organization in which they state that “the consumer is boss”, consumer should be the heart of all P&G do from ideation stage through the purchase of the product. For example if 15 seconds with a deodorant or two minutes with a disposal diaper have made a small part of your life a little bit better then P&G made a difference. P&G policies made the company a unique one that respect of governments and law, respects in workplace and respect in the market place. P&G is a multinational company and it is widely spread geographically. They maintain open work system in lots of work places around the world. Executive offices do not have doors. Leaders do not have a secretary cordoning them off. All the offices on the executive floors at Procter and gamble are open the conference room is an open round space. They made it round as a small symbol of the new approach.
• Espoused values:   P&G is having hierarchy of company ethics principles. PVP(Purpose, Values and principles) , corporate policies, worldwide business conduct standards, operating policies/procedure/practices. For over 170 years P&G purpose values and principles has been guiding the way they do business. There purpose is to provide branded products and services of superior quality and values that improves the lives of the world’s consumer. P&G lives with its people and values, they recruit the finest people in the world who built organization by promoting and rewarding people without regard to any difference related to performance. For example Procter and Gamble pioneered a technician based system in its manufacturing plants during the 1960’s and 70’s. In this system they avoided the approach in which one person assigned to do only one job. The technician system still operates today. To get the highest evaluation rating in P&G factory, you learn how to do all the jobs on line and once you have that rating, company expect you to be capable of problem identification, problem solving, and innovation. This background has made it easier for us to plug manufacturing and engineering in to the innovation culture. P&G CEO Lafely said in one conference that once people in our organization have succeeded at innovation you can see the energy in the company changing. People routinely says that we can do this is feasible and the change of attitude of the people in P&G is incredible to watch. Integrity, leadership, ownership, passion for winning and trust are the main asset values of P&G. By considering purpose and values they made their principles like the show respects for individual, interest of the company and individual are inseparable and innovation is the cornerstone of P&G success. These are the officials objectives which had been espoused by the company head and it is common for P&G organization all over the world.
• Underlying Assumptions: It consists of unconscious, taken for granted beliefs, perception, thoughts and feelings. P&G are having problem relating to external adaption and internal integration. P&G keep refining their products, launch model from ideas, to prototype, to development, to qualification and to commercialization. Applying this sequential practice on large scale and replicate them does not mean to eliminate judgment, that’s why P&G needs active leaders and a strong innovation culture. Therefore P&G introduces the inclusive culture for leaders and they expected to build inclusive work environment that welcomes and embraces diversity an environment where people feel comfortable. Forced diversity training/learning process are utilized to equip leaders to values and nurture difference in management experience, style of leadership and problem solving approaches.

By analyzing the P&G’s culture it is seen that P&G is having a strong and dominant culture and that culture follows in every part of the world. Innovation is the main theme of P&G’s success and to bind organization culture together.

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How Procter & Gamble Went From Soap And Candles To Multinational Giant

Table of contents.

The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G), a small American family-owned business that began in 1837, is now a multi-billion-dollar company that’s regarded as the world’s largest consumer packaged goods company.

Very few brands in the world are as renowned and admired as Procter & Gamble, which operates in five main segments, including beauty, grooming, healthcare, fabric, and home care, and baby, feminine, and family care.

From living rooms, nurseries, and kitchens to bathrooms, laundry rooms, and utility rooms, P&G has made its way in millions of homes worldwide and is improving lives in small yet meaningful ways, one product at a time. No wonder it has endured and continued to grow exponentially.

P&G's market share and statistics:

• P&G market share of 8.74%
• Net sales of $80.2 billion in 2022
• Market cap of $331.45 BillionFeb 2023
• Products sold in more than 180 countries
• Over 65 individual brands trusted by 5 billion people
• Number of P&G's employees in 2022: 106,000

A global leader in the fast-moving consumer goods industry, P&G has always challenged norms and shaped the future.

Let’s now take a look at the exciting growth journey of P&G from an idea born in Cincinnati, Ohio, to a multi-national company that’s second to none in the world right now.

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Procter & Gamble Join Forces

William Procter, an emigrant from England, and James Gamble, an emigrant from Ireland, both were settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. While the former was a candlemaker, the latter was a soap maker. They married sisters, Olivia and Elizabeth Norris, becoming a family. But they were no ordinary family. They took their personal relationship and turned it into a professional one as well, thanks to the suggestion of their father-in-law, Alexander Norris, who highlighted that both their trades included the use of lye that was made from wood ashes as well as animal fat, which way readily available in the hog-butchering center of Cincinnati and maybe they should consider becoming partners. And just like that, Proctor and Gamble was established in 1837.

The Initial Years

Procter took charge of the store they set up on Main and Sixth Street, while Gamble oversaw the manufacturing operations just behind their outlet. Candles were the primary product of the company, which saw stiff competition from over a dozen other companies. 

The enterprising partners with a knack for business expanded their business throughout Hamilton and Butler counties. Making the most of the various transportation channels, including waterways and rail, Proctor and Gamble continued to grow by supplying its products to different regions by 1851.

This is when the famous moon-and-stars symbol was created as a trademark to help distinguish P&G's products from others. While the symbols were initially created to help identify the products at their shipping destinations, they became a symbol of quality to P&G's customers, who would only purchase if and only if the container had the moon-and-stars symbol.

Throughout the 1850s, Proctor & Gamble continued to grow. In the early half of the decade, operations were moved to a larger factory and a different location that provided the company better access to shipping routes, as well as warehouses. Plus, an office building was leased in downtown Cincinnati to give the company proper office space and corporate image. Proctor took control of sales and bookkeeping while Gamble continued to run the manufacturing arm of the business. Such was the growth that the company reached sales of $1 million by 1858-1859, with around 80 employees working full-time.

Thriving Even During The Civil War

A key raw material in Proctor & Gamble's products was rosin, which was procured from the south. In 1960, just before the American Civil War, the sons of Procter and Gamble traveled to New Orleans and purchased as much rosin as possible. This proved to be crucial as when wartime shortages disrupted competitors' supply chains, Procter and Gamble continued to prosper. The company even provided candles and soaps to the Union army. Not only did this prove to be lucrative for the company but it also widened the customer base and made the moon and stars a symbol that was revered.

While Procter and Gamble had managed to avoid being a victim of wartime scarcities skilfully, but with the course of time, its stock of raw material shrank. Taking matters into its own hands, the company began experimenting and exploring new ways of manufacturing. From producing stearic acid using tallow instead of lard stearic, which was expensive and short in supply, to substituting rosin with silicate of soda, the company found better ways of doing things. Such was the success of these innovative techniques and ingredients the company came up with that they were later even used in modern detergents and soaps.

Ivory Soap Catapulting Procter and Gamble To The Top

As soon as the war ended, Procter and Gamble invested in expanding to new markets as well as updating its facilities. At the same time, the company hired a chemist to work alongside James Gamble and develop new products, including a new soap. The idea was to develop a premium-quality soap inexpensively, and they did just that in 1878. The White soap, later renamed Ivory soap, soon made a name for itself and helped Procter and Gamble cement its position in the industry.

At this crucial moment, Harley Proctor, William Procter's son, put forth the idea of advertising the product in newspapers and convinced the board of directors to leverage marketing. Back in the day, advertising was not at all common and even risky as it was believed that only disreputed manufacturers advertised. After extensive debate, a budget of $11,000 was allocated to advertising in 1882, and the slogan of "99% pure" bode well with the public given all the other ads has outlandish claims. While the company embraced advertising, it left no stone unturned in ensuring the excellence of the products and carefully analyzed as well as improved the products before launching them. This is said to be the beginning of Procter and Gamble's superior product development practices, which continue to this day.

Ivory was a huge success – there's no doubt about it. It, in combination with the company's newfound ability to spread its message using advertising, helped it grow in the 1880s. More people were hired, additional plants were set up, and new products were launched, including the yellow soap, which helped drive sales to $3 million by 1889. 

Key Takeaway 1: Grab Opportunities & Make Iterative Improvements

When their father-in-law highlighted that both Procter and Gamble should merge, rather than laughing out at the idea, both considered it seriously, and well, the rest is history.

While Procter handled sales, Gamble took over the manufacturing side of the business, and they began expanding to new regions, selling soaps and candles. From carving out a unique identity for themselves through moon and stars symbols to experimenting with the ingredients and coming up with innovative new products as well as embracing advertising, the company did it all in its quest to grow. Its product development process, advertising, and commitment to quality helped it achieve a competitive advantage and set it up for success.

Taking The Company To Unprecedented Heights

Yes, the company was growing rapidly, market sentiments were positive, and customers couldn’t get enough of the products. But it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. In the 1880s, labor unrest began adversely impacting companies all around the United States, and Procter & Gamble, too, suffered at the hands of it.

Doing Right By The Employees

The company understood the importance of averting labor problems and stopping them from escalating into a crisis. Procter’s grandson, William Cooper Procter, who has just joined the company in 1883, was put in charge of drafting P&G’s labor policies. In 1885, the proposal to give employees Saturday afternoon off was approved. A couple of years later, a profit-sharing plan was implemented to align the interests of the employees with the company's interests. Then in the subsequent year, employee bonuses were tied to their performances. All of these helped improve employee performance incrementally.

After The Procter & Gamble Company was incorporated in 1890 and William Alexander Procter was made the president, an employee stock-purchase program was implemented and linked to the profit-sharing plan, giving employees an even greater incentive to perform well and elevate the company as well as themselves. Down the line, a highly acknowledged sick-ness disability program and eight-hour workday were also announced to further ensure the well-being of employees.

All these steps made P&G a pioneer in employee benefit programs while ensuring higher productivity and performance of the company.

Onwards & Upwards

Expansion and diversification of the products portfolio was a continuous process that P&G stuck to through thick and thin. New products such as the P&G White Naphtha was launched in 1902, and it too proved to be a success and helped P&G solidify its position as the market leader in the cleaning industry. Moreover, P&G invested in building factories in different regions of the United States, including Kansas City, Missouri, and Port Ivory, New York, given that the demand was high, and it had to expand capacity to cater to it.

After years of experimentation with hydrogenation and extensive research, P&G launched Crisco, a first-of-its-kind shortening made solely from vegetable oil, in 1911. With that, P&G took a bold risk of delving into a different market altogether – that of food products. Courtesy of strong advertising, Crisco soon took off and became the go-to choice of shortening for consumers.

World War 1 did bring shortages of raw material and gave way to supply chain bottlenecks, but thanks to proactive management and stockpiling of resources needed, P&G remained shielded and went on its merry way to grow.

With the wide usage of light bulbs, the demand and, in turn, the sales of candles declined. However, the company never looked back and launched an array of products in the 1920s. Ivory Flakes, Chipso Soap, Camay, and Oxydol were some of the products the company came up with, and with these, the company had an extensive and diversified line of soap, toiletries, and food products.

While the Great Depression proved to be a menace for most companies, P&G remained immune to it. In the first half of the 1930s, synthetic soap products were launched. These were followed by a synthetic detergent, Dreft, and synthetic shampoo, Drene. All along, different forms of advertising were leveraged, including newspapers, radio, and television broadcasts, and a huge chunk of the overall budget was allocated to it in order to boost sales.

Changing The Way Business Is Done

P&G redefined the way business is done. The company invested heavily in research and development, hiring chemists to develop new products and economists to study consumer behavior.

Extensive market research was conducted in which P&G toured kitchens and laundry rooms around the U.S to see how the products are practically used and how improvements can be made. This was complemented by studies on consumer behavior to understand the pain points of customers and address their needs with new products.

In addition to this, P&G introduced brand management to the world in 1931. The company emphasized the concept of standalone brands that would compete not just against products of other companies but also with those of P&G itself. Since then, brand management has not remained a permanent fixture at P&G but also at other leading companies in the world.

Playing An Integral Role In World War 2

During challenging times of the Second World War, P&G stood with the government and did all in its capacity to help. P&G oversaw the construction and operation of ordnance plants, catered to government contracts for mortar shells, and supplied Glycerin, which was used in medicine and explosives. 

Key Takeaway 2: Don’t Be Afraid To Take Bold Risks & Make Big Bets

By giving employees a piece of the pie and taking care of their overall wellbeing, P&G quelled frustration and any plans to strike against the company.

Moreover, P&G continued to diversify its product portfolio, introducing new products such as P&G White Naphtha, Crisco, Ivory Flakes, Chipso Soap, Camay, and Oxydol, Dreft, and Drene while expanding its production capacity and harnessing the power of advertising. All of these, in conjugation with the company’s commitment to research and development and brand management, helped P&G prosper in good as well as bad times.

Innovative and bold steps such as introducing the profit-sharing plan, delving into the food market with Crisco, advertising on radio and television, and debuting brand management worked wonders for P&G.

Post-World War 2 To The End Of 20th Century

New products driving sales to $1 billion & beyond .

Just as World War 2 ended, P&G stepped on the gas to achieve growth. With the availability of raw materials and change in consumer sentiment for the better, P&G wasted no time in upping the ante.

In 1946, P&G introduced Tide, a miraculous synthetic detergent that redefined the way people washed clothes. The quality of the product was backed by a $21 million advertising budget, and the result was quite extraordinary. Tide became the number 1 laundry detergent in just 2 years after launching despite its high price. Over the years, P&G launched several laundry products, including Cheer in 1950, Dash in 1954, Downy in 1960, Bold in 1965, Ariel in 1967, and Era in 1972. Tide, however, remained the best laundry detergent even in the 21st century.

In 1955, P&G launched Crest toothpaste, establishing itself in the toiletries industry. After years of research, the company came up with a breakthrough product that had the potential to significantly reduce cavities, and hence, it was even endorsed by the American Dental Association.

P&G never limited itself and was always on the lookout for opportunities and diversification. In the 1950's1950's, P&G entered into the paper-goods market and introduced White Cloud toilet paper in 1958 and Puffs tissues in 1960. The following year, P&G launched Head and Shoulders and Pampers disposable diapers and used smart pricing strategies as well as advertising to win market share. 

The diapers were a huge success and a testament to P&G'sP&G's ability to churn out innovative products. In 1976, P&G launched a premium diapers brand called Luvs.

Throughout the late 20th century, P&G continued its rapid growth. It consistently improved its previous products and added new ones, including Bounce fabric softener, Coast Soap, and Sure antiperspirant. Rely tampons were introduced and quickly became a hit due to their absorbent properties. Later on, Always pads were launched, and they became the sanitary napkin of choice, winning market share and trust of women.

A-List of Acquisitions & International Expansion Fuel Growth

P&G had gone international in 1930 when it acquired the British firm, Thomas Hedley and Company, the makers of fairy soap.

Beginning in the 1950's1950's, P&G began aggressively acquiring smaller companies in its quest to expand to new markets and regions. W.T. Young Foods, a Kentucky-based nut company, and Nebraska Consolidated Mills Company were purchased in 1955 and 1956.

In 1957, P&G bought Charmin Paper Mills and began producing toilet and tissue paper. In the same year, it also acquired Clorox Chemical Company, the leading American liquid bleach manufacturer.

In the early 1960's, P&G set its eyes on the food industry and strived to expand its footprint. The 1963 acquisition of Folgers coffee brand and launching of Pringles potato chips allowed them to do just that.

However, contending the charges put forward by Federal Trade Commission, P&G had to divest Clorox in 1967 and agree to not make any groceries and coffee acquisitions for a decade. P&G made further inroads into the groceries industry by acquiring Ben Hill Griffin citrus products in the 1980’s. It also purchased Pantene and Oil of Olay skincare products in 1985.

Given the boom in the healthcare industry in the 1980’s, P&G left no stone unturned in trying to capitalize on the opportunities. It entered into the over-the-counter (OTC) drug market by acquiring Norwich-Eaton Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer of Pepto Bismol and Chloraseptic, and Richardson-Vicks Company, the manufacturer of Vicks and Nyquil. It also purchased Dramamine, the motion-sickness treatment, and Metamucil, a laxative, from G.D. Searle & Co, becoming a leader in the OTC market. It also partnered up with a number of companies, including Syntex Corporation, Gist-Brocades Company, UpJohn, and Triton Bioscience, and Cetus Corporation, to formulate various OTC drugs that had huge potential.

P&G was a very versatile company and never narrowed its focus. This was clear when P&G entered into the cosmetics business in 1988 with a billion-dollar acquisition of Noxell Corporation, maker of Noxema products and Cover Girl cosmetics. In the same year, P&G also acquired Blendax, a European health and beauty-care goods producer, as well as Bain de Soleil sun care-product line. In 1990, P&G purchased Shulton's Old Spice, an American brand of male grooming products. The very next year, P&G also bought Max Factor and Betrix lines from Revlon, Inc. In 1992, Pantene Pro was launched, and it soon became the best shampoo in the world.

Some Crucial & Much-Needed Changes In the Late 20th Century

In 1985 P&G witnessed its first decline in earnings after more than 30 years. This didn't go down well with the analysts, who claimed that P&G was slow to respond to changes in consumer preferences and its mass marketing practices were not yielding results anymore. It was clear that some fundamental changes were needed.

Hence, P&G diversified its advertising. Rather than solely relying on network television, it changed its marketing strategy by adopting micro-marketing techniques across a broad spectrum of marketing channels. Plus, market research was computerized. P&G also changed its brand management structure and opted for a matrix system in which category managers were put in charge of leading several brands, increasing the efficiency by cutting down layers of management. Moreover, P&G, for the first time, began focusing on profits rather than settling for market share.

P&G was threatened by the weak economy and increased interest of consumers in value. Hence, the company came up with "Every Day Low Pricing" (EDLP) for the majority of its products. This bode well with the consumers but brought criticisms from wholesalers. Additionally, P&G embraced the going green bandwagon and began taking sustainability quite seriously. This was followed by divesting a few of its holdings, including one-half of its Cellulose & Specialties pulp business, the forestry business, and an Italian coffee business.

While sales stood at a whopping $30 billion in 1993, the company decided to undertake a major restructuring of the business to streamline it. The primary goal was to boost the company's private-label brands by making them more price-competitive, bringing products to market faster, and improving profitability. It was a difficult yet much-needed step. 13000 jobs were cut, and 30 plants were closed worldwide. Resultantly, P&G improved its bottom line by $600 million.

Even during the restructuring period, P&G continued to expand internationally and acquire new companies at a brisk pace. P&G acquired Vereinigte Papierwerke Schickedanz AG's European tissue unit in 1994, marking its entry into Europe's tissue and towel market. In the same year, it also acquired the fragrance line of Giorgio Beverly Hills, Inc. Moreover, the company reorganized its management structure around four regions, North America, Latin America, Europe/Middle East/Africa, and Asia. A couple of years later, P&G bought Eagle Snacks brand line, Baby Fresh, and Lavan San household cleaner, and Magia Blanca bleach. The very next year, P&G acquired Tambrands, Inc. and the Tampax line of tampons, becoming the leading provider of feminine products.

1998 brought with it a major restructuring initiative named Organization 2005 to boost innovation, launch new products faster, and increase revenue as well as profit. The significant change that the restructuring brought to the fore was increasing focus on brands rather than geographies, and this helped P&G significantly in the years to follow.

Just before the close of the century, P&G made two significant acquisitions: one of Iams Company, the leading pet food maker in the US, and Recovery Engineering, Inc., which had the PUR brand of water-filter products. Safe to say, both these acquisitions worked out quite well.

In 1999, P&G went on to launch Swiffer, a dusting mop for quick cleaning, and Febreze as well Dryel, fabric care, and household cleaning products.

Key Takeaway 3: Adapt With Changing Times

P&G has never limited itself. From launching an array of quality products and entering in toiletries, paper goods, food, OTC drugs, and cosmetics industry to expanding internationally with an endless list of acquisitions, P&G continued to grow.

In the process, it faced numerous challenges, such as charges by FTC and a decline in earnings in 1985, but the company bounced back stronger than ever. It even took the difficult yet much-needed step to restructure the business in order to enhance efficiency. Being flexible and proactive enabled P&G to stay a step ahead and remain resilient in the face of adversities.

P&G In The 21st Century

Further restructuring, launching of new products, and acquisitions continued into the 21st century.

The restructuring that began in the 1990s was completed in the early 2000s. While operational problems were fixed, more than twenty-thousand jobs were shed. It was a difficult yet much-needed step to re-direct P&G on the growth path.

Some notable acquisitions included purchasing the Clairol haircare business from Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, which augmented P&G's positions in the fast-growing and profitable beauty and haircare industry. In addition to this, the acquisition of Dr. John's SpinBrush, a battery-powered toothbrush, and the launch of Crest Whitestrips, a tooth whitening product, gave a boost to the Crest brand, propelling sales.

In 2003, P&G made another successful acquisition of Wella AG, a leading producer of haircare products, entering into the growing salon market. Two years later, P&G became the largest consumer good company by acquiring Gillette.

Here Comes The Growth Factory

It's a well-documented fact that by the early 2000s, P&G was losing steam. There was a stark difference between the company's growth goals and what it was able to achieve due to its innovation pipeline. Something had to be done. The company launched Connect + Develop program to bring in innovation from outside and build on the. While it remains a success even today, it was soon realized that more had to be done.

This was when P&G came up with the unique idea of setting up a "new growth factory." It consisted of a network of structures and enhanced capabilities to quickly introduce new products from ideation to market. From business groups, entrepreneurial guides, a novel innovation manual, and a disruptive college, among other things, the growth factory had it all to strengthen the core business and capitalize on innovation opportunities faster than ever before.

It was a remarkable strategy that took a leaf from the book of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford, combining inspirational ideas with mass production in an age of cut-throat competition and shrinking product lifecycles.

Transformational-sustaining innovations to deliver breakthroughs in existing innovations strengthened organization support for forming and running disruptive businesses, and effective revamping of strategy development and review process enabled P&G to increase its innovation success rate significantly.

More Restructuring & Acquisitions

By 2012, P&G exited the food industry, having sold Jif Peanut Butter, Crisco, Folgers Coffee, and finally Pringles. By 2014, it also left the pet food business.

The company decided to restructure once again in order to streamline the company and enhance its focus on the main brands that were driving growth and contributing to the majority of the profits. From Vicks and the numerous beauty brands to Duracell, various brands were divested. At the same time, acquisitions such as that of the consumer health division of Merck Group, among others, laid bare the fact that P&G has not cast aside its main strategy to grow by acquisitions.

Key Takeaway 4: Never Stop Innovating

P&G came into the 21st century whilst still in a restructuring mode. It was clear that the company's growth was slowing. From new acquisitions and product launches, the company was continuing to do what had served it well.

But there was one main change: focus on innovation. It became crystal clear that P&G could only continue to grow in a vastly competitive world and changing consumer preferences as well as market dynamics by innovating. Hence, the company doubled down on its flagship program Connect + Develop and then came up with this revolutionary concept of "Growth Factory." It not only helped the company make the most of new opportunities but also re-invent the culture of the company, which in turn continued to deliver desirable results.

Core P&G Strategies Fueling Growth

How can a company as large and as diverse as P&G operates successfully and continues to grow? Through well-defined and clear-cut strategies that reinforce as well as build on each other and lead to substantial value creation.

P&G’s winning integrated strategy includes five key aspects, and they are as follows:

A Strong & Focused Portfolio

Superiority across the entire value chain, productivity an integral part of dna, constructive disruption, empowered & agile organization.

Let’s now take a look at each of the core strategies in detail to better understand how P&G does what it does so successfully time and again.

P&G product’s portfolio consists of ten categories of daily-use products, including personal healthcare, oral care, fabric care, home care, skin, and personal care, haircare, grooming, baby care, feminine care, and family care. In each of these categories, P&G has a market-leading share, and the company strives to leverage its position to scale up.

P&G pursues excellence in its products, packaging, communication, retail execution, and value offerings. The company is well aware that superiority matters and is an unparalleled opportunity that can give it a competitive advantage. Hence, it has set the superiority bar quite high and continuously tracks the underlying metrics, including category growth, market share, household penetration, sales, and profits.

Boosting efficiency across all business operations is part of the P&G DNA. From reinventing the way it works, figuring out economical ways of doing things, and delivering cost and cash efficiency to harnessing the power of technology to automate, going digital, and deriving insights from data, P&G continues to take numerous steps to do things better.

Leading with constructive disruption to create positive outcomes is something that P&G continues to do. Combining around 180 years of experience and expertise with the leanness and agility of a startup, P&G comes up with creative solutions to create value for all its stakeholders. To stay on top of the changing customer preferences and market dynamics, P&G goes the extra mile to innovate.

From enabling and engaging employees to creating a strong, driven culture, P&G has created an organization that’s accountable and supportive of each other to deliver desired results. This is done through strong leadership, empowering people to accelerate growth, committing to being a force for good, ensuring sustainability, equality, and inclusion while abiding by ethics and corporate responsibility.

Key Takeaway 5: Craft An Effective Business Strategy

P&G continues to grow due to its highly specific business strategy consisting of action plans that drive the company forward. 

A versatile and strong products portfolio followed by the pursuit of excellence, focus on enhancing efficiency, continuous innovation, and empowerment of the employees help P&G post balanced top and bottom-line growth.

What’s even better is that P&G continues to make iterative improvements in its core strategies in the quest to achieve even better results, continuing to raise the bar for all.

P&G Today & Key Strategic Takeaways

Today, P&G remains committed to improving the lives of 5 billion people in around 180 countries and continues to innovate and lead in each and every aspect while supporting good causes and protecting the environment.

Growth By Numbers

Key strategic takeaways, don’t wait for opportunities. create them.

From delving into new industries and geographical regions to launching new products ahead of time, P&G created growth opportunities for itself. Rather than getting bogged down with problems at hand, such as growing competition, supply chain disruptions, and high risks associated with expanding, P&G constantly explored new and better ways of doing things. This has continued to serve the company quite well.

Hire The Right People For The Right Work & Take Care Of Them

Investment in human capital pays high returns, and it’s the only way companies can make it big. P&G knew this. Right from its profit-sharing plans with employees in the 19th century to beneficial human resources policies today, P&G has continued to be the top employer of choice today. It has always empowered employees and encouraged them to contribute more in order to help the company grow. This has proven to be a master-stroke that separated P&G from the rest of the companies.

Craft A Business Strategy For Today & Tomorrow

P&G has evolved its strategy a number of times, restructured its business more often than it would have liked to, and never hesitated to take risks. Why? Because P&G understands that if you worked a certain way in the past and that delivered results, there’s no guarantee that it will continue to work in the future. This is why it is imperative to stay on your toes and think ahead. Being bold and taking risks in what you believe is crucial; otherwise, you’ll find yourself lagging behind.

Encourage Collective Creativity

Individual creativity can be uncontrollable, but collective creativity can be managed and encouraged. P&G did just that. The company firmly believes that breakthrough innovations improve lives and can win the company decades instead of just quarters. This is precisely why the company spends on average $2 billion on R&D to come up with new offerings that are simpler, easier to access, affordable, and deliver better results.

Procter & Gamble fuels innovation with online learning

Procter and Gamble (P&G), a leading consumer goods company, underwent a digital transformation. The company needed to upskill employees in data science, machine learning, and AI. When employees in the Research and Development (R&D) division advocated for Coursera, P&G distributed Coursera access to interested team members, igniting enthusiasm for learning company-wide. More than 1,600 employees have used Coursera to upskill, using what they learned to develop product and process innovations while becoming better leaders and collaborators.

By incorporating Coursera into the workplace, P&G has seen:

• Team members create faster, more effective approaches to product development through their learning in data-oriented courses.
• Employees upskilling with Coursera introduce more effective, data-driven, technical processes.
• Learners use technical and leadership skills from Coursera to advance in the company.

Read the full case study to learn more.

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CASE STUDY: PROCTER & GAMBLE

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Procter & Gamble

• Format: Print
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On July 12, 2012, Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management announced publicly that it had purchased about $2 billion of Procter and Gamble (P&G) stock. Shares in the company closed up 3.75% the day the disclosure was made public. Ackman told the New York Times that Pershing would be a major P&G shareholder. "We think it's an underrated stock," he said. "We think there is a lot of great opportunity there."

During the next several months there was little or no public discussion of the matter although people familiar with the situation reported that Ackman held conversations with P&G directors individually. Then, on April 24, 2013, P&G announced that its 3rd quarter earnings had risen 6%. However its 4th quarter forecast fell short of Wall Street's expectations. Shares fell 5% based on this outlook. P&G results were lagging its peers by 4% in 2012 and 2% in the first quarter of 2013.

Then, abruptly in late May, CEO Robert A. McDonald, who was 59, resigned. The board selected A.J. Lafley, (65) who had been McDonald's predecessor to return to lead the company. There was speculation about how long Lafley would stay and in what direction he would take the company. On June 6th, P&G announced that Lafley had appointed four senior executives to lead the company's major businesses, reporting directly to him.

About The Author

Jay W. Lorsch

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Procter & Gamble

• Procter & Gamble  By: Jay W. Lorsch and Kathleen Durante

Procter & Gamble: The Case Study Essay

The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief overview of the key issues of Procter & Gamble presented in the business case. The issues that will be discussed include cannibalization, customer lifetime value, market share, product development, and customer segmentation. The company owns a number of well-performing brands, such as Tide, Cheer, and Gain, which all grew in sales by 12% (Davenport et al., 2013). As a result, the company’s share in the North American laundry detergent market increased from an already extremely impressive 50% (Davenport et al., 2013). Procter & Gamble has a broad selection of products in the following segments: “Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric Care and Home Care, and Baby Care and Family Care” (Davenport et al., 2013). This range allows the company to engage with an extensive customer demographic.

To obtain a competitive advantage and increase or sustain growth, the company is always researching and experimenting with innovative products. Its new eco-friendly compacted detergent is an excellent example of that. When Procter & Gamble was launching the new line, there were concerns that customers would not trust the small form factor’s efficiency and switch to another brand that sold traditional laundry powder (Davenport et al., 2013). This presented a substantial risk to the company’s customer lifetime value, as people were not likely to reconsider their choice after moving to a different label. Tests showed that buyers recognized the concentrated detergent’s positive environmental impact and higher convenience and preferred it over other offerings. However, to launch the new product globally, Procter & Gamble had to cut production of their other detergents in all factories in North America (Davenport et al., 2013). Cannibalizing the old plants to start manufacturing new products caused a prolonged shutdown and meant that the company could no longer supply non-compacted detergents. Even after the successful test, this irreversible transition carried substantial risks.

Davenport, T. H., Jansiti, M., & Serels, A. (2013). Managing Analytics at Procter & Gamble .

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Procter & Gamble Co. (A) – Case Solution

Procter & Gamble Co. is looking into improving its positioning in the light-duty liquid detergent market. The company's associate advertising manager is studying some choices to make in order to achieve this objective. This case study looks at the options available for the company to take and the recommended actions to make.

​Alice M. Court Harvard Business Review ( 584047-PDF-ENG ) August 08, 2002

Case questions answered:

• Prepare a 5C Analysis of Procter & Gamble Co.
• Do a SWOT Analysis of the company.
• Explore the reasons for the success of P&G in the LDL category.
• What is the logic underlying the positioning of P&G’s existing brands in the LDL category?
• Should P&G introduce the fourth brand in the LDL category? What criteria should guide the decision-making process?

Not the questions you were looking for? Submit your own questions & get answers .

Procter & Gamble Co. (A) Case Answers

About the company – procter & gamble co..

Procter & Gamble Co. was an American Multinational FMCG Company founded by William Proctor & James Gamble in 1837. The company is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, and operates in more than 26 countries. It manages more than twenty-four 1 billion USD brands known worldwide, namely Gillette, Pampers, and many more.

The company is known for its global value addition in consumer products & iconic category-definition of products. The sales volume for P&G has more than doubled every 10 years due to new product introductions.

The Company’s Core Values

Q1. Prepare a 5C Analysis of Procter & Gamble Co.

• The company was founded in 1837 and incorporated in Ohio.
• The company currently operates 65 brands in 7 categories and gained 67.6 billion in revenue in 2019.
• It is an employee-centric company.
• The company’s product range covers everyone from newborn babies to the elderly.
• Procter & Gamble Co.’s customers are diverse and are present on six continents.
• The company is shifting to a precise, smart audience targeting.

Competitors:

• The company has three main strong competitors, namely Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive, and Henkel.

Collaborators:

• Named as one of the top 10 companies for career opportunities, the company is considered a master of the supply chain.
• The company’s products are sold through various channels.
• The company monitors the changing customer preferences, and its awareness level is enhanced, which leads to precise targeting by the company.
• Socially, the company has more informed and responsible customers.
• The company utilizes technology in its advertising and point of interaction, which are always changing.

Q2. Do a SWOT Analysis of the company.

Q3. Explore the reasons for the success of P&G in the LDL category.

Company’s Reputation

• Talented HR
• Honest image in the industry
• Prudent Management
• Innovative Company
• Market Expertise

Divisional Line management

• LDL was part of the PS&D Division of Procter & Gamble Co.
• Helps in smooth, focused Business Operations

Strong brand positioning:

• P&G had 3 Brands, Ivory (1957), Joy(1949), and Dawn (1976), for different consumer needs
• Focussed Brand Strategy

Similar Pricing and Cost Structure across LDL Brands

• Uniform SKUs across Brands, similar pricing and cost structure across brands
• Marketing Expenses included 20% of the Total Cost

Performance Sub Category Growth & Price Sub Cat. Decline

• Delta Market Growth for 1973-81 (8 yrs.) in:

– Performance Cat: +16% – Price Cat: -9%

• 2 of the three Procter & Gamble Co. brands operated in Performance Cat and none in Price Cat.

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Procter & Gamble (P&G)

Ph.d. intern – real time in-context and privacy preserving consumer understanding.

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Job Description

Given IMU data from user activity, can we measure effort/comfort of consumer for certain task like a) Segmenting sub-activities, b) Effort during specific tasks

c) Duration of certain task, e.g. time to clean dishes, wash hair, perform laundry tasks.

How do we design the studies to collect training datasets for new tasks? Can we use existing data from prior studies or efficiently generate new datasets with a small population.

Extending previous intern work, use an annotation tool for IMU data for event classification (Human Activity Recognition). We can run this as trigger event for notifications or activating the data capture/diarization. We can use previous intern dataset or create new dataset with video for model creation, etc. Internship will have three parts i) data collection and preparing labels with think aloud ii) build model and evaluation iii) integrate the model in an iOS app for event detection

Generating embedding with IMU data and disentangling them for confirmation. We can use this embedded data for new data generation which needs to be validated with inverse kinematics. We may use our study data or public IMU dataset for this project.

Job Qualifications

Currently studying for Ph.D. in Computer Science or Computer / Electrical Engineering, or related field. Experience with signal processing, IoT sensor data processing, and advanced computer programming and statistics.

Just So You Know:

Compensation for roles at P&G varies depending on a wide array of non-discriminatory factors including but not limited to the specific office location, role, degree/credentials, relevant skill set, and level of relevant experience. At P&G compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. Total rewards at P&G include salary + bonus (if applicable) + benefits. Your recruiter may be able to share more about our total rewards offerings and the specific salary range for the relevant location(s) during the hiring process.

We are committed to providing equal opportunities in employment. We value diversity and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

Procter & Gamble participates in e-verify as required by law.

Qualified individuals will not be disadvantaged based on being unemployed.

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

Job Schedule

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Experienced Professionals (Job Segmentation)

Starting Pay / Salary Range

$55.00 – $61.00 / hour

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For Disney, Small Shareholders Loom Large in Boardroom Fight

Individuals hold as much as 40 percent of the company’s shares, and they may decide a proxy battle that is one of the most expensive in history.

By Brooks Barnes and Lauren Hirsch

Gavin Doyle used allowance money in 2009, when he was 11, to buy a few shares of Disney stock. They cost $31 apiece.

He now owns a little over 400 shares — barely enough to be a speck of dust in the Disney investor galaxy. But the entertainment company, which has 1.8 billion shares outstanding, has nonetheless barraged him for months with political-style campaign materials (letters, email, social media ads) that urge him to elect certain people to its board .

“I guess every vote matters,” said Mr. Doyle, 26, who runs MickeyVisit , a blog unaffiliated with Disney that focuses on theme park vacation planning.

In most cases, global companies pay little attention to individual shareholders. Powerful institutional investors like mutual funds and index funds typically run the show. But Disney finds itself in an atypical situation as it scrambles to thwart Nelson Peltz , an activist investor who is seeking two board seats, including one for himself.

Up to 40 percent of Disney shares are held by individuals — retail investors, as Wall Street sometimes refers to them, with a hint of derision. On average among public companies, individuals represent closer to 15 percent of the ownership, according to analysts and academic studies.

“In the retail market, a lot of individuals don’t feel comfortable investing in companies they’ve never heard of,” said David Reibstein, a professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. “Disney is known: I can relate to it, I have taken my kids there, I’ve seen their movies.”

In other words, the Disney-Peltz proxy battle, expected to be one of the most expensive in history, may be decided by the little people.

Disney’s fight with Mr. Peltz will come to a head on Wednesday, when the company is scheduled to virtually host its annual shareholder meeting. A smaller activist investor, Blackwells Capital, is also seeking seats on Disney’s board, to the company’s irritation. While Mr. Peltz and Blackwells have sharply different views on how Disney should be managed — one wants “Netflix-like margins” of up to 20 percent in streaming, the other has floated splitting up the company — they have expressed the same basic motivation: Disney’s stock price is not high enough.

Shares are trading at about $122, down from $197 three years ago.

Robert A. Iger, Disney’s chief executive, and the company’s 12-member board have responded to the insurgents like Avengers battling Thanos — that is, with startling force. They say a 13-month-old turnaround plan has taken hold, and point to drastically improved financials, a new strategy for ESPN in the streaming age and a retrenchment at Marvel Studios to improve movie quality, among other initiatives. Yes, Disney’s stock is down from three years ago, but it’s up from $81 six months ago.

Disney executives contend that Mr. Peltz’s campaign is rooted in revenge. He is backed by Ike Perlmutter , the disgruntled former chairman of Marvel Entertainment, and aligned with Jay Rasulo , a former Disney executive who was passed over for the top job in 2015 and resigned. Elon Musk, who has been throwing elbows at Mr. Iger since November, when Disney and other major companies paused spending on X, has cheered on Mr. Peltz.

At first, Disney seemed poised to easily defeat Mr. Peltz. A parade of prominent shareholders (George Lucas, Laurene Powell Jobs), business titans (Jamie Dimon), analysts (Guggenheim, Macquarie), shareholder advisories (Glass Lewis, ValueEdge) and Disney family members ( Abigail E. Disney ) have advised against giving Mr. Peltz seats on the company’s board.

But it has evolved into a much closer contest. Two weeks ago, an influential proxy firm, ISS, partly sided with Mr. Peltz , recommending that shareholders elect him to the board and advising against adding Mr. Rasulo. ISS largely cited Disney’s botched succession planning. On Tuesday, Mr. Peltz won the backing of Egan-Jones , another advisory firm.

Until ISS weighed in, “I was pretty sure that Peltz was kind of cooked,” said Michael Levin, an independent activist investor and adviser who oversees the Activist Investor website. Mr. Levin estimated that ISS’s recommendation could influence 5 to 10 percent of Disney’s vote, with institutional shareholders like Vanguard and BlackRock likely to pay close attention.

Mom-and-pop shareholders are more of a mystery. Retail investors are frequently apathetic, even in the face of a contest, proxy experts say. “You have to find a way to connect with somebody who doesn’t have a requirement to vote, who doesn’t necessarily have it within their routine,” Bruce Goldfarb, the chief executive of Okapi Partners, a proxy solicitation firm working with Mr. Peltz, said at a recent conference .

Disney and Mr. Peltz have each been spending heavily to get out the small-fry vote. Trian Partners, Mr. Peltz’s investment firm, said in a securities filing that it expected to spend about $25 million in total on its campaign; it hired Okapi and another firm, D.F. King, to help identify shareholders and encourage them to vote. Disney, which has teamed with the firm Innisfree M&A, among others, has priced its countercampaign at up to $40 million.

In part to appeal to individual shareholders, Disney has deployed characters like Moana and Iron Man to solicit votes. In February, the company released an animated video starring Donald Duck’s uncle, Professor Ludwig Von Drake. “Voting this year is critical no matter how many or how few shares you may own,” a narrator says. “Do not vote for the Trian Group or Blackwells’ nominees.”

Mr. Peltz responded with a letter to Disney shareholders that included a cartoon showing bored and haggard board members and a messy bowl of noodles. “Spaghetti on the wall will not feed shareholders starved of returns” was the letter’s headline.

Douglas Chia, the president of Soundboard Governance, which advises on corporate governance, got calls from both sides of the battle. Mr. Chia, who says he owns a couple hundred shares of Disney, said he was left unimpressed by the first call on Trian’s behalf. (Mr. Chia conceded that his professional background trained him to ask questions a traditional retail investor might not.)

After he posted about it on LinkedIn, he got a follow-up call from Trian directly, underlining just how much each side is paying attention to every vote.

“These were very senior people at Trian who talked to me for about 45 minutes,” Mr. Chia said. “And it’s like: The meeting is less than a week away — they could be on the phone with BlackRock.” (Mr. Chia said he was not persuaded by Trian’s arguments, but appreciated the follow-up call.)

Retail investors tend to side with management in proxy contests. In the case of Disney, many of these shareholders are fans.

Cori Borgstadt has been a Disney stockholder since 2008, when her grandmother gave her a single share for Christmas. She was 3. Ms. Borgstadt, who has continued to acquire shares, said she had read a few news articles about the proxy contest but had largely disregarded Trian’s case.

“I admire Bob Iger, and I trust him to know what’s right,” Ms. Borgstadt said. “So I voted the white slate.” (Each side has a ballot — white for Disney, blue for Trian.)

Still, experts say there is one big factor in Disney’s fight that may affect the instinct of fans to support Mr. Iger. It involves politics.

Disney has become a political punching bag in recent years, partly because it has added openly gay, lesbian and queer characters to its animated movies. The emphasis on diversity in some of Disney’s live-action films, including “The Little Mermaid” and “The Marvels,” has also led to fan complaints. Although Disney has also received positive reactions, the blowback — and poor ticket sales for some of the films in question — has prompted Disney to retrench.

In what some proxy solicitation experts viewed as an appeal to disenfranchised Disney fans, Mr. Peltz recently waded into the “woke Disney” debate by commenting about “The Marvels,” which focused on female superheroes, and “Black Panther,” which had an all-Black principal cast.

“Why do I have to have a Marvel that’s all women? Not that I have anything against women, but why do I have to do that?” Mr. Peltz told The Financial Times . “Why can’t I have Marvels that are both? Why do I need an all-Black cast?”

The move could “backfire against him — there’s presumably a lot of Disney investors who support diversity in the content,” said Scott Bisang, a partner at Collected Strategies, a communications firm. “But I don’t think he would be doing that unless he thought there was sort of a supportive audience for it.”

Mr. Peltz has been victorious in proxy fights with retail investors before. In 2017, he won what was then the most expensive proxy fight in history at Procter & Gamble with a margin of about 0.0016 percent. (The sides spent about $60 million, or $77 million in today’s money.)

But he lost a hotly contested proxy contest with DuPont in 2015, with studies citing retail investors as one reason.

As Mr. Peltz said in a January securities filing detailing some of Trian’s outreach to Disney shareholders, “Every vote counts!”

Brooks Barnes covers all things Hollywood. He joined The New York Times in 2007 and previously worked at The Wall Street Journal. More about Brooks Barnes

Lauren Hirsch joined The Times from CNBC in 2020, covering deals and the biggest stories on Wall Street. More about Lauren Hirsch

Procter & Gamble Defeats Exploding Dishwasher Pods Class Claims

By Shweta Watwe

Proctor & Gamble Co. convinced a federal judge to strike class claims in a suit alleging Cascade Platinum ActionPac dishwasher pods are defective due to a risk of explosion, but most of the plaintiff’s individual claims can proceed.

The US District Court for the District of South Carolina on March 22 granted P&G’s motion to strike class claims because the plaintiff didn’t show a class action was the superior way to resolve product liability, negligence, and warranty claims. The court denied P&G’s motion to dismiss most of the plaintiff’s individual claims.

Joseph Izzo alleged he suffered an eye injury after ...

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