Harwich International Ports Business Model - Essay Example

?Port Strategies and Development Table of Contents 0 Introduction 3 2.0 Harwich International Port’s Business Model 4 3.0 Motives behind the Strategic Decisions 7 4.0 Discussion 9 5.0 Conclusion 10 References 11 1.0 Introduction The effects of globalisation are quite evident in the world economy. Not only the product manufacturing and marketing sectors are affected by globalisation, but also the service sector has been strongly influenced by globalisation (Hufbauer & Warren, 1999). Experts noted that a major change caused by the influence of globalisation was the integration of services with the national as well as international service industries. The fact can be by further observed in the international transport sector comprising of airways, roadways, railways, and even waterways (UNESCAP, n.d.). It is stated to be the rising competition in the global market structure that acts as a major influencing element in the integration of the international port services. Moreover, the continuous changes occurring in the global industry also influence the port service providers to re-evaluate the adopted competitive strategies periodically (The World Bank, n.d.). Integration in terms of modernisation rewards with various opportunities and significant scopes to the industry players such as enhanced competency, profitability, market share that in turn contributes to the overall growth of the port(s). Few of the common strategies implemented by the ports in order to stimulate the process of modernisation and integration are related to the restructuring of corporate governance, cost structure re-evaluation, and infrastructural development (European Sea Ports Organisation, 2011). With the purpose of empirically scrutinising the fact, the paper will concentrate on the integration strategies implemented by Harwich International Port with due consideration to its strategic effectivity and limitations. 2.0 Harwich International Port’s Business Model Harwich International Port is one of the most significant ports on the eastern coast of England. It was established in the 19th century and since then it has served the industry as a reliable deep-water harbour. Till the year 1883, the port served passengers from England, Belgium, and Netherlands with its strategies solely concentrated on the expansion of the then business model. Presently, the port operates as a linkage with Germany as well as Scandinavia along with the other countries of the European Continent. It had been acquired by the Hutchison Port Holdings Group in 1998 and thus implements the strategic vision of the group to define its business model (Harwich International Port Limited, 2005). The strategies implemented by the port largely depend on its strategic mission and corporate vision. For instance, the mission of the organisation concentrates on the overall development of its logistic services, operations and the efficiency in terms of port services. The determined vision statement of the organisation also supports the fact by providing considerable significance to the aspect of efficiency in the services rendered by the port. In this regard, the adopted strategies by the organisation intended to enhance the performance of the port with the assistance of innovative solutions along with long-term continuation of effective customer relationship (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). To be precise, the company offers a wide range of services to its customers, i.e. shippers and passengers. The services provided by the port include RoRo, Passenger, Cruise, Container, Liquid Bulk and Dry Bulk (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). The organisation is further diversified in providing services through rail operations. The port also emphasises on other various strategies. They are: Lock-free maintenance Multi-disciplinary system High quality training and development to the employees Continuation of working hours for seven whole days Investment in the development of the services rendered by the port Continuous diversification through the integration of additional services along with more efficient facilities for the ultimate customers (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010) In case of the port services, the logistic systems play a major role in stimulating the growth of the organisation. Harwich International Port also considers the fact in its operational strategies. For instance, the organisation provides significant consideration to the aspect of logistics in its strategies by emphasising on maintenance services of the containers along with other shipment and railway transport logistics (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). Furthermore, the organisation in its strategies focuses on the development of the logistics with due consideration to the safety of passengers and cargos (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). With an overall perspective it can be stated that Harwich International Port focuses on the development of its services provided with an intention to attract potential customers as well as retain the existing valuable customers. Thus, the diversification of the services rendered, its customer satisfaction and effective organisational culture can be identified as the core competencies of the organisation. 3.0 Motives behind the Strategic Decisions The strategic decisions considered by the organisation are focussed on the achievement of its ultimate objective, i.e. to gain the recognition of a market leader in the international industry of port and railway services (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). In this regard, the organisation is required to concentre on the external as well as internal efficiency. In other words, the successiveness of the organisation depends largely on its customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction as well. Being one of the ‘high-contact service industries’, it is quite essential for the company to derive employee satisfaction with the purpose of attaining superior level of customer satisfaction and thus attain its ultimate objective (Yee & Et. Al., 2007). Considering the fact, Harwich also emphasises on the attainment of employee satisfaction through a multi-disciplinary organisational culture (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). This not only enhances the working culture of the organisation, but also encourages the employees to perform better. Inclusion of multi-disciplinary systems further assist the training and development operations of the organisation providing a diversified working environment and learning opportunity to the employees. It is thus attributed to stimulate the employee satisfaction which in turn generates effective customer satisfaction in the organisation (Wilson & Pirrie, 2000). It is worth mentioning that the organisational strategies intend to develop employee satisfaction through the implementation of multidisciplinary systems and effective training sessions (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). Simultaneously, the strategic alliances of the organisation emphasised on the improvement of facilities and services rendered to the customers. For instance, the organisation implemented lock-free access through which the maintenance of logistics shall be more time efficient and effective. Moreover, the organisation concentrated on the integration of innovative services that shall also enhance diversification in the work culture of Harwich International Port (Harwich International Port Limited, 2010). This will not only stimulates the employee satisfaction with increased efficiency in the services rendered by the organisation, but also enhances the aspect of customer retention which in turn will increase the overall organisational profitability. Therefore, it can be stated that the motives behind adopting these strategies intend towards the attainment of organisational objective to emerge as a market leader in the global market scenario both in terms of market share and customer services. 4.0 Discussion It is quite apparent that the organisation is emphasising on the attributes directly or indirectly related to customer retention, i.e. employee satisfaction and maintenance of the logistics. Experts state that the industry is facing intense competition. Therefore, organisations in the industry need to concentrate on effective differentiation strategies to gain competitive advantage in the current situation (The World Bank, n.d.). In case of the service industry, employee satisfaction plays a vital role in rewarding the company with competitive advantage. According to the study of Boxall (2003), efficient performance of employees possessing high satisfaction level in the working environment are often beneficial in deriving customer satisfaction in favour of the company. The port authorities signify the diversification and differentiation strategies to be quite beneficial for the organisations in the industry. On the contrary, they also reflect the limitations of these strategic trends among the companies. For instance, integration of innovative services in the business model is likely to give rise to the operational costs of the organisations which in turn shall influence the price structure of the port as well as the industry (Micco & Perez, 2002). Therefore, it can be observed that there are few limitations possessed by the strategies implemented in Harwich International Port in order to enhance efficiency level of its employees and the effectivity of its operational culture along with various advantages. 5.0 Conclusion With reference to the aforementioned facts, it can be stated that the strategies implemented by the Harwich International Port possesses a few advantages along with a few significant disadvantages that in turn determines the accomplishment of ultimate organisational objective. For instance, the implication of multidisciplinary system and lock-free access increases the efficiency in the maintenance services rendered by the organisation. However, conversely, it raises the maintenance charges and also requires a well-structured operational framework to eradicate the limitation of perplexity (Koll-Schretzenmayr, 2003). Moreover, the continuous inclusion of innovative services in the service range offered to the customers shall require flexible organisational structure which again tends to be cost consuming as well as time consuming process. It is worthy to be mentioned that the efficiency and effectivity of these strategies depend on the skills of the organisational leader along with that of the employees. Generating high skilled labour force is also subject to extra costs (UNCTAD, 2004). However, to overcome these challenges the organisation has also emphasised on periodical investments. Conclusively, it can be stated that the strategic planning of the organisation tends to be well-structured and focussed towards the objective that enhance the efficiency of the adopted strategies unveiling its advantages. References Boxall, P., 2003. HR Strategy and Competitive Advantage in the Service Sector. Human Resource Management Journal, Vol: 13, pp. 5-20. European Sea Ports Organisation, 2011. Portwatch News. NewsLink Services. [Online] Available at: http://www.newslinkservices.net/PortWatch.aspx [Accessed June 28, 2011]. Harwich International Port Limited, 2005. History. Port Information. [Online] Available at: http://www.newslinkservices.net/PortWatch.aspx [Accessed June 28, 2011]. Harwich International Port Limited, 2010. Port Services. Safety. [Online] Available at: http://www.harwich.co.uk/port_security.asp [Accessed June 28, 2011]. Hufbauer, G. & Warren, T., 1999. The Globalization of Services What Has Happened? What Are the Implications? The Service Economy: An Engine for Growth and Employment. Koll-Schretzenmayr, M., 2003. Seaports – Airports – Teleports. DISP, Vol: 154. Micco, A. & Perez, N., 2002. Determinants of Maritime Transport Costs. Inter-American Development Bank. The World Bank, No Date. The Evolution of Ports in a Competitive World. The Port Reform Toolkit. UNCTAD, 2004. Assessment of a Seaport Land Interface: An Analytical Framework. UNCTAD Secretariat. UNESCAP, No Date. Role of Transport in Integrating Economies into the Multilateral Trading System. Publication. Wilson, V. & Pirrie, A., 2000. Multidisciplinary Teamworking. Beyond the Barriers? A Review of the Issues. SCRE Research Report No 96. Yee, R. W. Y. & Et. Al., 2007. The Impact of Employee Satisfaction on Quality and Profitability in High-contact Service Industries. PolyU Institutional Repository. Read More