The Business Environment Essay Example for Free

The Business Environment Essay In this assignment, I am going to be exploring the purpose of Tesco and The British Heart Foundation. I will be looking into the influence of stakeholders and how the businesses organise themselves through strategic planning and organisational structures to achieve their purpose and aims. Tesco is an international Public Limited Company. Tesco has over 500,00 employees in 12 countries. Under the Tesco Group there are a number of sister companies such as Tesco Ireland, Tesco Poland and Tesco Lotus. In addition, Tesco offers other services such as Tesco Bank which is also a part of the organisation. [1] From my research, it states that Tesco is a part of the tertiary sector as it is retailing by selling a range of products from groceries to electronics. Tesco also offers services such as loans with Tesco Bank .In my opinion it’s also is a part of the secondary sector . For example, Tesco bakes fresh bread on site and then sells in its sorts so therefore it is a part of both of these sectors. Additionally Tesco has its own Mobile Network which offers Pay as you go and Pay Monthly options. You can also buy mobile devices such as the iPhone 5C. [2] The British Heart Foundation is a national Charity (Not-for-profit organisation) in the tertiary sector. TBHF has approximately 20,00 volunteers in its 765 stores in the UK. [3] Apart of these stores are volunteers but they also have paid managers and assistant managers. The stores rely on donations from the public to sell products in its shops. They have some specialised Furniture stores that solely sell furniture. They also sell a wide range of items in its standard stores for the home such as ornaments, kitchen goods and various other items. Tesco is a Public Limited Company. This means that the stakeholders will have limited liability to the company. Therefore this separates the stakeholder’s personal assets from Tesco. For example, if Tesco became into debt and was to close, the Chief Financial Officer Alan Stewards House and car wouldn’t be taken away to clear the debt as the company has limited liability. The success of Tesco depends on how much profit is made. This then reflects the dividends that the stakeholder receives. This would then affect the operations of the business. The British Heart Foundation is a Charity. This type of organisation has unlimited liability. As a trustee, director or officer, they are in a very vulnerable  position. These individuals are liable for the outcome of all decisions and actions of The British Heart Foundation. To protect these individuals there is an indemnity which insures them if they are deemed liable.[8] Even though it’s a not for profit organisation, if limited profit was made, it would affect their operations by the charity not being able to put money back into helping and researching for The British Heart Foundation. Tesco’s Aims and objectives; †¢Offering customers the best value for money and being competitive on prices †¢Meeting the needs of customers by constantly looking for, and acting on, their opinions regarding innovation, product quality, choice, store facilities and service †¢Providing shareholders with progressive returns on their investment improving profitability through investment in resourceful stores and distribution depots, in productivity improvements and in new technology †¢Developing the talents of its employees through sound management and training practices, while rewarding them fairly with equal opportunities for all †¢Working side by side with suppliers to build long term business relationships based on strict quality and price criteria †¢Participating in the national food industry policies on issues such as health, nutrition, hygiene, safety and animal welfare †¢Supporting the community and protecting the environment [4] The British Heart Foundations Aim Objectives; †¢To develop research into the causes of heart disease and improved methods of prevention, diagnosis and treatment. †¢To provide vital information to help people reduce their heart health risk. †¢To urge for government policies that minimise the risk of heart and circulatory disease. †¢To help achieve the highest possible standards of care and support for heart patients. †¢To reduce the inequalities in levels of heart disease across the UK. [5] Tesco has a number of stakeholders in the company. A stakeholder is someone that has an interest in the business. A stakeholder would be interested in how the business is run and the decisions the business makes. StakeholdersBritish Heart Foundation A customer would buy from The British Heart Foundation to buy goods at cheaper prices. Customers would also shop there to support The British Heart Foundation cause. Without customers going into the store to by the products, The British Heart Foundation would not be able to meet their main objectives of researching into the causes of heart disease and providing this vital information for people to reduce the risk of their heart health as they wouldn’t have the funds to meet these objectives. Tesco Customers An individual that buys goods or services from a business.A customer would shop at Tesco to seek products of a high standard for low , competitive prices. In addition, they would shop solely for the convenience of having all there buying needs in one place. Without customers , Tesco would not be able to sell their products or services so they would fail there objectives to offer a high quality service at competitive prices and offering their shareholders competitive returns. This would mean that without profit, they would fail to meet their objectives. Employees An individual that is employed by a business for a wage or salary to provide work in exchange.At The British Heart Foundation there are employees such as management that are paid for their work but also The British Heart Foundation have Volunteers that offer to work for free to help the cause. Normally volunteers are young people that are trying to gain work experience nevertheless there are people of various ages that work as volunteers to help the cause they are passionate about. These employees and volunteers are vital in the running The British Heart Foundation as without these people, they wouldn’t be able to run stores to retail in and therefore not be able to raise money to help the cause . So this would influence the completion of their aims and objectives of developing and researching.Tesco employees are vital to the company . They  help with Tesco’s high volume of customers and providing these customers with a quality service . Tesco values its employees and offers all kinds of benefits for working for the company such as a staff discount card, health care discounts and pension plans. [6]. Tesco would not be able to run without its employees as they wouldn’t to be able to sell or provide the services Tesco offers. In addition, without its employees , Tesco would fail to meets all of its aims and objectives as they wouldn’t be able to provide the service they do , they wouldn’t be able to offer value for money, Also they wouldn’t have any shareholders as without profit; nobody would invest and they wouldn’t be able to offer training to keep up these standards they wish to upkeep. Trade Union [7] A Trade Union is an organisation formed of workers in a trade or profession to help protect the rights of employees.A Trade Union can offer support to its members for employees and volunteers. It enables these individuals to be heard and not be treated unfairly within the work place. If there wasn’t access to trade unions then some people may be treated incorrectly in the work place so it would cause people to leave or may not even work or volunteer for The British Heart Foundation at all. Even though volunteers do not get paid, trade unions can make sure that volunteers are treated as any other member of staff so there is equality in the business working environment. By giving people that the safety net of a trade union, it encourages people to apart of the organisation because if there weren’t any employees then The British Heart Foundation would fail its aims and objectives. A Trade Union can offer support for Tesco’s employees .It enables these individuals to be heard and not be treated unfairly within the work place. If there wasn’t access to trade unions then some people may be treated incorrectly in the work place so it would cause people to leave or may not even work for Tesco. Tesco employees want a secure job with an opportunity for promotion. . By giving people that the safety net of a trade union, it encourages people to apart of the organisation because if there weren’t any employees then Tesco would fail its aims and objectives as they wouldn’t to be able to provide the services they do to make a profit. Suppliers A supplier is a party that supplies goods or servicesThe Items that are sold in The British Heart Foundation shops are supplied by the public through donations. People donate to the cause so The British Heart Foundation can re-sell those items to raise money for the cause. If people didn’t donate then The British Heart Foundation wouldn’t be able to raise money to fund to develop research on finding cures for heart related health issues and to inform people on these issues and prevent those individuals. Without the funding, they would fail their aims and objectives.Tesco has various supplies for its wide range of products and services. Generally Tesco has so many stores, it can buy products in bulk at very low prices per unit so they can sell to customers to make a profit. Without the suppliers of these products, they wouldn’t have a business platform or selling point. The suppliers have a somewhat control over Tesco as if they would to put their prices up then Tesco would have to reflect that in their final retail price but one of Tesco’s aims is to provide quality products at low prices. So Tesco has to closely negotiate and monitor its products to fulfil there aims and objectives. Owners An owners is an individual that owns a business. In a company it would be the shareholders. These are the people that have a financial interest in the company. Owners want to make as much profit as they can to increase the value of their business. Employer Associations An employer association is someone what a trade union to the employers. This association has the employer’s best interests at heart. Local And National Communities The Local and national communities have a big impact on organisations. The Local people will be the people who make or break a business as some of which will be their target market. Government The government wants businesses to be successful so they will be applicable to pay tax. They also want to create jobs so people don’t go into the benefit system. Evaluation I am going to evaluate the influence that stakeholders exert on Tesco. Customers Customers have a major influence on Tesco. Customers are the source of profit from buying products and services. Even though a customer may seem loyal to Tesco, they are seeking the best bargain in the market. For these customers to remain loyal, Tesco must monitor their prices constantly and be fully aware of their competition. For Tesco to survive in the market, they focus on loyalty and somewhat depend on loyal customers. Tesco offers customers various promotions like buy one get one free and other promotions. They also offer the club card which is a loyalty card which they can receive discounts and collect points to spend in store. Tesco is a great example of relationship marketing at its finest and have flourished unlike other companies which have failed. Due to people being tight on money, there is a huge demand for cheaper products so Tesco will try to be the cheapest in all of its stores and if it is cheaper than another competitor such as Sainsbury’s, then it will encourage customers to shop with them. [9] Employees [10} Employees are very important in the overall running of Tesco. They play a very important part of the company with having over half a million worldwide employees. The main thing employee’s seek are wages and job satisfaction. When recruiting, Tesco must be careful on who they employ as it could have a big impact on the company. They will be representing the company and if they are not enjoying the job and fulfilling their position, then things could start to go wrong. They also have a huge influence as if employees  were not happy with their wages or working conditions then that would reflect on their work due to lack of motivation. Tesco uses motivation as a method to improve employees working performance. For example, if people were to be treated bad by long hours and no pay, then they would leave the work place and find another job. This would also be bad publicity for the company and could build up a bad reputation. For example, in 2009 employees in Ireland threatened to strike because workers supposedly were working for twenty five to thirty hours and this was below the minimum hours in their contracts. This strike could have put a bad reputation on the company Suppliers Suppliers are also a vital stakeholder and have a big influence on any organisation. Suppliers are mainly interested in; †¢Constant Growth of purchasing †¢Long Term Contacts †¢Prompt Payment Suppliers can influence prices of the product, the quality of the product, and the product itself. This would mean that if the supplier suddenly put their prices up then Tesco would have to raise their prices in store to cover their costs. The suppliers can affect the availability of the product by the production time and delivery time. If suppliers could provide the numbers and time slots as stated on their contract, a company like Tesco couldn’t use them as have a high demand and they always must be fully in stock. As shown on Tesco’s corporate website it is clear that Tesco serve thousands of customers every minute. Each shopping trip is based on a foundation of trust placed by Tesco’s customers, who expect them to trade responsibly. Tesco know over the last year that this trust has been tested. Tesco also know that what they offer their customers depends on how they work with their suppliers. They are aware also that the industry is changing and, as Tesco continues to grow the business, they need a strong supply chain more than ever. They need partnerships with trusted suppliers who they can work with to innovate and to deliver high quality, safe products that are responsibly produced. Tesco believes better relationships deliver both a better shopping trip for customers and sustainable businesses throughout the supply chain. Tesco regularly ask their customers and stakeholders around  the world what they think about them and where they can improve. Customers tell them that food and product safety, pricing and protecting their data are their current priority concerns. Tesco’s customers want them to give them products that are safe and honestly labelled. They also want the pricing to be fair, accurate and honest. [11]