...Business Strategy and Operating Environment Business Strategy and Operating Environment Veronica A. Todd Strayer University Dr. Sheila Monjeau Letica BUS530- Human Resource Management October 27, 2009 There are many definitions for corporate strategy, but the one that would apply to our discussion regarding Wal-mart’s operating environment is: Approach to the future that involves (1) examination of the current and anticipated factors associated with customers and competitors (external environment) and the firm itself (internal environment), (2) envisioning a new or effective role for the firm in a creative manner, and (3) aligning practices, and resources to realize that vision. (BusinessDictionary, 2009, para.1) The Human Resource Department plays a vital role in any company’s operation, not just in the every day hiring and firing of employees, but in the planning and implementation of new ventures/expansion for the company. Discussion Wal-Mart has built their success in utilizing the Cost Leadership Strategy. This operating strategy has been proven to be successful for Wal-Mart because the Wal-Mart customer feels that they are getting their money’s worth for the product they purchased. Wal-Mart has built their business around three simple beliefs and values “(1) Respect for the individual (2) Service to our Customers (3) striving for excellence”. (Wal-mart Stores, Inc.2009, para.1) To accomplish this, the Human Resource department is vital to Wal-Mart’s success...
Words: 299 - Pages: 2
...1999) Putnam and Fairhurst [2001: 79] use the term 'discourse analysis' to refer to 'the study of words and signifiers, including the form or structure of these words, the use of language in context, and the meanings or interpretation of discursive practices'. Discourses are more than ways of thinking and producing meaning (this meaning could be in form of language, speech, text etc.). They constitute the ‘nature’ of the body, unconscious and conscious and conscious mind and emotional life of the subjects they seek to govern (Weedon, 1987) 1.2 Extract Overview The extract to be assessed is from figure 8.1-8.4.1.The case study written by Finlay, (2000) talks about a company’s operating environment. In the case study Finlay wants his readers to analyse a company’s operating environment by looking at either the value chain or Poter’s competitive forces. In writing about the value chain, Finlay educates the readers about the importance of the value chain. Finlay further discusses the...
Words: 1691 - Pages: 7
...Assignment The mission statement addresses the following: What are our economic goals? What is our operating philosophy in terms of quality, company image, and self-concept? What are our core competencies and competitive advantages? What customers do and can we serve? How do we view our responsibilities to stockholders, employees, communities, environment, social issues and competitors? The Role of Top Management and the Importance of Company Policy Introduction to Business Policy Chief Executive – serves as the head and has the knowledge about the nature of the company. Responsibilities of the Chief Executive 1. Elaborate the major policies of the firm. 2. Define the objectives of the firm. 3. Develop strategies and the long-range plan for achieving these objectives. 4. Must develop an organization which most efficiently carries out the company’s strategic plan. 5. Must develop the operating policies which ease the burden of decision-making to carry out the plan. 6. Be involved in controlling the operations of the firm and in problem solving. Definitions 1. Major Policies Major policies (or “company” policies) deal with the firm’s fundamental nature, its identity, and the direction in which it is expected to move. They provide a framework within which the objectives can be established. 2. Objectives The firm’s objectives or goals (these are two terms used interchangeably) specify, usually in quantitative terms (e.g., dollars,...
Words: 2502 - Pages: 11
... |Edexcel BTEC National Level 3 Extended Diploma in Business | |Unit number and title |Unit 39: International Business | |Learner Name | | |Assessor Name | | |Date issued |31/10/13 | Assessment criteria to be assessed in this assignment |Criteria Reference|To achieve the criteria the evidence must show that the learner is able to: |Task No. |Page No. | |P1 |Explain the international business environment in which a selected organisation operates |1.1 | | |P2 |Describe the mechanisms that regulate international trade |1.2 | | |P3 |Describe how the environment and culture of another country affects |1.5 | | | |a business operating internationally ...
Words: 2044 - Pages: 9
...EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL ENVIRONEMNT External and Internal Environment Analysis Bharti Gupta University of Phoenix External and Internal Environment Analysis: Mayo Clinic The purpose of this paper is to analyze the External and Internal environmental factors of Mayo Clinic (MC). Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life (Mayo Clinic, 2011). Various types of external and internal factors affect the smooth flow of business at Mayo Clinic. External environment analysis is important in determining the strategy that should be adopted by a business and internal environment analysis is critical to identify the core competences of the business. External Environment External environment (EE) can be broadly classified into three types: Remote, Industry and Operating. Remote environment (sometimes called as macro environment) consists of the forces at work in the general business environment which will shape the industries and markets in which an organization competes (Stonehouse, Campbell, Prudie & Hamill, 2008). Industry environment (sometimes called as micro environment) is the competitive environment facing a business. It consists of the industries and markets in which the organization conducts its business competes (Stonehouse, Campbell, Prudie & Hamill, 2008). Operating environment also called the competitive or task environment comprises factors in the competitive situation that affect a...
Words: 1436 - Pages: 6
...* 1. RECRUITMENT & SELECTION Group Assignment (CASE ONE: TANGLEWOOD STORES AND STAFFING STRATEGY) * 2. Contents Introduction Staffing levels Staffing Quality Recommendation CASE 1: TANGLEWOOD STORES AND STAFFING STRATEGY * 3. Introduction CASE 1: TANGLEWOOD STORES AND STAFFING STRATEGY Tanglewood was originally founded in 1975 by two entrepreneurs and they are Tanner Emerson & Thurston Woods . Initially They were called originally as Tannerwood with only one store that sold outdoor clothing and equipment that they themselves designed * 4. Introduction CASE 1: TANGLEWOOD STORES AND STAFFING STRATEGY It was because of the unique merchandise (quality) and good customer service that won the heart of people, the business grew bigger In 1984 the two friends renamed the company to Tanglewood in 1984. Their business grew in the 90’s t0 243 stores in various parts of US, with Emerson being the CEO and Wood as the President. Regional Managers directly oversee day to day operations. * 5. Tanglewood’s Operating Environment CASE 1: TANGLEWOOD STORES AND STAFFING STRATEGY Competition and Industry This is a competitive and thriving industry in America, which provides jobs to 23 million people (approx.) and accounts to $3 million in annual sales . * 6. Tanglewood’s Operating Environment CASE 1: TANGLEWOOD STORES AND STAFFING STRATEGY Table 1: The ROR, ROA and ROI of Tanglewood which indicate corporate profitability (ROA) - efficiently managed its assets to revenue...
Words: 2284 - Pages: 10
...Exercise: 1 – 7th Class of OSD Macquarie Bank Case Study Macquarie Bank is an excellent example of a highly successful organization, which has been able to maintain its success using an incremental adjustment process while operating in a rapidly changing environment. During the 1980s and 1990s, changes occurred in the environment of Australian financial institutions. These included rapid deregulation of the financial services sector by the Australian Labour Government. The critical moves involved were the floating of the Australian dollar, progressive removal of restrictions on competition between banks, building societies, merchant banks, and other institutions which offer financial services, and grant of new banking licenses including licenses to 16 foreign-owned banks to operate in Australia. From its inception as ‘Hill Samuel Australia’ in the early 1970s, the bank’s strategic focus was merchant banking (investment banking). In 1980, the bank commenced a process of diversification. But, with deregulation in the 1980s it diversified further, building up strength in specialist markets, particularly in high value-added niches (market segments) like corporate services, bullion and commodities. The pace of diversification quickened by the mid 1980s with the bank entering into a range of new areas including retail domestic banking, equity investments, property and leasing. Growth took place by way of both development and acquisition. Macquarie remains one of Australia’s...
Words: 1178 - Pages: 5
...Global Business Strategy Research the external environment of Raytheon Student name: Yuan Jun Submit date: 14th Dec 2010 University of Central Lancashire Summary In the competition orientated era of today, most corporations have an intention to expand its business in the global economy. It is necessary for those corporations to consider its external business environment so that it can help corporations develop its business more successfully. Considering the external business environment of corporations, usually the PESTLE principle is used for analyzing the environment faced by the corporations. Raytheon is one of the largest corporations in the world. For the current developing of Raytheon, it is possible there are some existing urgent issues for Raytheon overcoming. This report is going to analyze the external business environment of Raytheon facing through using PESTLE principle. In addition to this, the SWOT analysis, Porter’s five forces and three Generic Strategies will be utilized aiming to evaluate the effectiveness of the current strategy which is used by Raytheon. Content Section Pages 1. Introduction....................................................................................................... 4 2. PESTEL analysis external environment.......................................................... 4 ...
Words: 4534 - Pages: 19
...of the railway industry and British Rail ran it. In 1994 the railway industry was privatised and its services franchised to train operating companies such as Virgin and First Group. Responsibility for the infrastructure passed to a new plc called Railtrack. In 2002, the government transferred the assets and business of Railtrack to a new not-for-dividend company – Network Rail. When Network Rail was created it needed to invest in the tracks and services. Since 2002, it has made many improvements. For example, in 2005 it replaced or repaired over 700 miles of rail. Network Rail is a company limited by guarantee with a board of directors but no shares or shareholders. Instead, it has unpaid stakeholder 'members' who check standards of corporate governance and monitor performance. Strategy and the external environment The external environment is the context in which a business operates. This takes in various factors including those outside its control, for example, laws or standards. Each factor can have an effect on the business – positive or negative –and so companies make plans and strategies to try to anticipate these effects. If a company does not plan for external environment changes or ignores them, then it may miss opportunities to grow or suffer setbacks, for example, losing business to a competitor. Every business strategy is designed to meet objectives and achieve targets. Ordinary firms must add value and reward...
Words: 2438 - Pages: 10
...BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT Submitted By: Submitted To: Table of Contents Introduction 3 2. LO1 Understand the organisational purposes of businesses 4 2.1 purposes of different types of organisation (P1.1) 4 2.2 Extent to which Tesco Plc meets the objectives of different stakeholders (P 1.2) 5 2.3 Various responsibilities of Tesco Plc as an organisation and the strategies it employs to meet the objectives of the stakeholders (P1.3) 6 3. Nature of the national environment in which business operates (LO2) 9 3.1 How different economic systems attempt to allocate resources effectively (P 2.1) 9 3.2 Impact of Fiscal and monetary policy on the activities of Tesco PLC (P 2.2). 10 3.3 Impact of competition policy and other regulatory mechanisms on the activities of Tesco Plc (P 2.3). 11 3.3.1 Impact of competition policy ON THE ACTIVITIES OF TESCO PLC 11 3.3.2 Impact of regulatory mechanisms on the activities of Tesco Plc 12 4. Understand the behaviour of the organizations in their market environment (LO3). 13 4.1 explain how market structures determine the pricing and output decisions of TEsco plc (P 3.1). 13 4.2 How market forces shape Tesco PLC UK responses using a range of examples (P 3.2). 14 4.3 Explain how the business and cultural environments shape the behaviour of Tesco PLC UK (P 3.3). 15 5. Significance of the global factors that shape national business activities (LO4) 16 5.1 SIGNIFICANCE of international trade to Tescos PLC UK ( P 4...
Words: 4854 - Pages: 20
...and respected brands. Conceived in 1970 by Sir Richard Branson, the Virgin Group has gone on to grow successful businesses in sectors ranging from mobile telephony, travel, financial services, leisure, music, holidays and health & wellness. Virgin employs more than 50,000 people around the world, operating in over 50 countries. Global branded revenues of £15bn ($24bn) in 2013.(Virgin.com) Sainsbury PLC Sainsbury was founded 1869 by john James Sainsbury and his wife Mary Ann Sainsbury in London and since has become one of the largest retailers in united kingdom. Sainsbury’s is a public limited company and listed in London stock exchange where its shares are traded publicly. Today Sainsbury’s operates over 1,203 supermarkets and conveniences stores and employs around 161,000 staffs. It has a market share of 16.8% of retail sector. Last year it made pre-tax profit of £798m.(sainsburys.com) McDonalds McDonalds corporation is public limited company. Since its founding in 1948, McDonald's has grown from a family burger stand to a global fast-food behemoth, with more than 30,000 locations in 118 countries. McDonalds is popular for big mac burgers all over the wold.it offers business franchise to increase its presence all over the globe. National Health Services (NHS) Since its launched in 1948, the NHS has grown to become the world’s largest publicly funded health services.it remains one of the most efficient and comprehensive health services. The NHS was born out of a long-held...
Words: 3681 - Pages: 15
...There are two main perspectives on strategy formation. One is formalism and planning which is known as deliberate strategy, and there other is emergence and incrementalism. The argument of this paradox is should managers formulate a deliberate strategy via a structured planning system and ‘think before they do’, or should managers opt for an incremental approach to strategy and experiment, explore and experience. Strategy deals with the future although the future is unknown, and managers may wish to prepare for the future, but they must be flexible in order to be prepared for unpredictable events. This essay will look at to what extent can a strategy be planned (deliberate), and to what extent can a strategy be emergent and flexible. Deliberate This process is very formal and action/planning oriented and the organisation is in control of the strategy process from step 1 until the end. This view can be seen as a very rational and militaristic procedure. A deliberate strategy Is where the collective vision, goals or intentions of a firm is articulated as broadly and in a much detail as possible, and communicated to the employees within the firm in order to realise an outcome. Employees are the ones who will be responsible for implementing these goals which is why they are included. Deliberate underpins logic – strategy creation is based on ‘think before action’ Uses tools – many analytical tools have been developed such as * Porters value chain * Five forces ...
Words: 1439 - Pages: 6
...Explain in detail the strategy making process including why an implementation plan is essential (1), why the sixth step is important (Monitoring performance that the text authors leave out) (2), what a mission statement is and why it is necessarily the first step (3), how to evaluate a mission statement using Abel’s framework (4), and why values should be part of the mission statement. The strategy making process include five steps: (1) Select the corporate mission and major corporate goals. Mission statement provides the framework within which strategies are formulated. It is important because the company mission statement describe what the company does. A goal is a precise and measureable desired future state that a company attempts to realize. (2) Analyze the organization’s external competitive environment to identify opportunities and threats. The essential purpose of this is to identify strategic opportunities and threats in the organization operating environment that will affect how it follows its mission. …In addition, step (3) Analyze the organization’s internal operating environment to identify the organization’s strengths and weaknesses. It focuses on reviewing the resources, capabilities, and competences of a company. (4) Select strategies that build on the organization’s strengths and correct its weaknesses in order to take advantage of external opportunities and counter external threats. Its purpose is to create a company-specific business model that will best match...
Words: 1363 - Pages: 6
... Mohakhali Question 1: what do you describe as Panera’s purpose, mission and strategy? Use the firm’s website for the further information and assistance. Panera bread started their journey from 1997. Ron Shaich, the owner of this company is operating this company very well to move the business forward. * Panera’s purpose: Panera bread wants to operate its business with the purpose of satisfying customers with fresh baked breads, gourmet soups and efficient service. * Panera’s Mission: “A loaf of bread in every arm.” * Panera’s Strategy: For a new franchise like Panera is not easy to be successful within a very short time. But their strategy was to understand the long term trends at play and getting the organization ready to respond to it. They were very careful in terms of responding according to the need of the customers. That’s why before customers starts complaining about trans fat, Panera bread voluntarily eliminate it from the menu. So their strategy is hitting the bulls’ eye. Question 2: How well has Ron Shaich utilized the open system model of organizations in moving Panera Bread Company forward in its competitive environment? We know, an open system is a system which constantly interacts with its environment. In business, the open system model focuses on the impact of external factors in an organization. This system regularly exchanges feedback with its external environment. In an open system, inputs, processes, outputs, goals, assessment...
Words: 732 - Pages: 3
...understanding of how HR activities support an organisation’s strategy and assist the achievement of business objectives and how these are shaped by internal and external factors. This unit is suitable for persons who: are aspiring to, or embarking on, a career in HR/L&D are working in the field of HR/L&D in a support role and wish to develop their knowledge and skills have responsibility for HR/L&D activities and decisions within an organisation without a specialist function are employees or independent consultants within the field of HR/L&D wish to understand the role of HR/L&D in the wider, organisational and environmental context. Learning outcomes On completion of this unit, learners will: 1 Understand the purpose of an organisation and its operating environment. 2 Understand the structure, culture and functions of an organisation. 3 Understand how HR activities support an organisation. 1 Equivalents in Ireland = 5; Scotland = 6 CIPD unit 3HRC - Version 2 - 17.03.10 1 Unit content Indicative content is provided for each of the learning outcomes of the unit. The content is neither prescriptive nor exhaustive but should enable achievement of the learning outcomes. 1 Understand the purpose of an organisation and its operating environment. Organisation context, purpose, aims and objectives: mission and strategy; organisational values, goals, products and services, customers; business and financial objectives. Impact of...
Words: 1846 - Pages: 8
