Business Operations and Systems - Essay Example

Business Operations and Systems Introduction The world of sports has grown quite dynamic in the recent past.Many sporting activities have emerged and gained mass recognition all over the world. The Formula One sporting activities have become very popular in the world of sports today. The Formula One race is an event that takes place for three consecutive days, usually on weekends from Friday to Sunday (Challen, 2014). The race has many fans all over the world, and this can be confirmed by the large number of people who attend the live events. In addition, large crowd’s people are seen watching the Formula One events on screens in various towns and cities. In essence, research has shown that Formula One is the most celebrated annual car event of all times in the world Von, 2010). It is imperative to identify that the live events contribute a lot of funds to the host and, therefore dwindling audiences poses a fatal challenge. General overview of Formula One To attend a Formula One live event, one is supposed to have a ticket. The tickets are sold a few days prior to the event. Derek (2009) states that high number of audiences in Formula One event can be attributed to the effective use of the digital technology and adequate preparations made by the organisers of the events. The Formula One events are advertised on the various online platforms to ensure that the information reaches as many people as possible (Jenkins, M., Pasternak & West, 2005). The popularity of social sites in past one decade has given advertisement an upper hand. Millions of people visit the various social media platforms every hour and, therefore, advertisement of Formula One races has taken a new direction. In essence, massive advertisement is one of the factors that have made Formula One races very successful. In addition, the planning of the events is another factor that has contributed to the success of the Formula One races. The circuits where the races take place are designed appropriately, and the audiences can view the entire competition without many struggles. The sitting arrangement in the venues holding the events are designed to cater for people of all heights. In essence, the venues are usually fitted with large screens to ensure that the audience get every aspect of the event at their convenience (McFadyen, 2008). Dwindling audience at Nürburgring circuit Despite the worldwide recognition, some circuits for Formula One have recorded a declining number of audience (Puchta, & Stranks, 2010). For instance, research has shown that popular circuits such as Nürburgring in Germany have been experiencing dwindling audiences over the past few years. Nürburgring circuit is among the most popular sites in the world that records high number of audience for the live viewing of the events. The returns from the sale of tickets hit millions of dollars since the circuit attracts audience from all parts of the world. Research has shown that the Nürburgring circuit is favoured by many Formula One races fans because of its strategic positioning and the general architectural design. The circuit offers a wide view of the event and, therefore, the audience get a rich entertainment experience. However, in spite of a long history of the successful sale of tickets, the Nürburgring Circuit has had many problems in the past few years. The number of tickets sold does not much the demand and the available space for fans. The unsuccessful sale of tickets has resulted in a decline of audience turnout. In this regard, many loopholes have developed thereby affecting the funds generated from holding the event. The trend in audience turnout can be explained to mean that the campaigns to popularise the Formula One events in the circuit have gone sour. In essence, the management staff of the circuit is burdened with the responsibility of restructure the ticket selling process to match the modern changes. The dwindling of the audience at the Nürburgring circuit may have resulted from management scuffles. The management body is very crucial to the success of any organisation. Managing a large business is usually a challenge since many activities are involved. The management body of the circuit has experienced a series of scuffles that strain its performance. Frequent disagreements among the members of the management board delay decision-making and implementation of policies. In this regard, the strategies for increasing the number of people visiting the circuit have taken long to materialise. The ideological differences among the top management officials have negatively affected the efforts to increase the audience at the circuit through the sale of tickets. Apart from management scuffles, corruption has been noted as another contributing factor to the dwindling of the audience at the circuit. Some of the funds raised through the sale of tickets ends up in the pockets of a few officials thereby living insufficient funds for development and expansion of the circuit. Corruptions is a harmful activity in the operations of any organisation. A lot of funds are lost through corruption, and this delays the operation targeted to be completed by a specified date. SSM Approach to the problem There are many things that can be done to solve the problems experienced by the circuit. Essentially, every problem has more than one solution. The most important thing to problem-solving is the ability to pursue the various alternatives efficiently (Rouse & Sage, 2007). The more techniques of solving problems that one has, the more the likelihood of success. In this regard, one should be acquainted with several means of addressing issues that adversely affect the organisation. Some of the probable means of solving the problems facing the Nürburgring circuit are discussed below. Organisational design The design adopted by an organisation is an influential factor as far as the success of a firm is concerned. In this regarding the management of the Nürburgring circuit should consider restructuring the roles of various officials. This can aid in developing a new organisational culture and, therefore, bring a positive change to the planning of events in the organisation. In essence, redesigning the structure of the management body and redistributing roles aids in bringing new life to the organisation. Information systems Information is the strongest weapon that an organisation can ever have. In this regard, the circuit should consider developing an advanced information system to facilitate an efficient flow of information. More emphasis should be put on the computerised communication system and online interactions. Moreover, the management should define the information needs of the circuit in order to implement the necessary policies concerning information transfer. It is clear that the current information system at the circuit is not effective and, therefore, there is a dire need for change. The computerised information system is quite effective for solving the problems experienced at the circuit since it offers a global interaction platform. Problem solving The basic step of problem-solving is understanding the challenge at hand. In this regard, problem clarity is a basic requirement for this stage. It is imperative to note that there cannot be a solution to an unknown problem. Therefore, the management must identify and recognise the problem in order to give way to the process of finding the solution. In essence, some people fail to recognise the fact that they are facing a problem. Apparently, problem-solving should start by understanding the problem then recognising that the problem exists. For this reason, the management should focus on rebuilding the image of the circuit in order to increase the number of audiences. Performance evaluation Some challenges experienced at the circuit is due to lack of regular assessment of the staff performance. Working with a large number of employees is a technical experience and requires proficient managerial skills. In this, the management body of the circuit should establish effective monitoring strategies to enhance the regular evaluation of employees’ performance. The performance of employees in an organisation determines the quality of services offered to clients. In this regard, performance evaluation is a practice that should not be ignored. Education The management of the circuit should provide constant training to the employees and other parties that interact with the audience. Constant training ensures that the workforce remains informed about the trends in the audience behaviour. The language used to approach the fans is quite important as far as audience turnout is concerned. In this regard, training is a necessity for equipping employees with the language required to approach different categories of fans. In essence, fans of different personality types and, therefore, it is necessary to identify the appropriate language to use for different fans. CATOWE analysis CATWOE table Customers These Comprise of Formula One races fans. Dwindling audience threatens the closer of the circuit, which might inconvenience them Actors The party involved in solving the problem is the Circuit’s management board. The employees will be involved in implementing the solution. The factor that will impact employee’s success in the implementation process is commitment. Transformation Computerization of ticket issuance and payment. The issue affects the process of issuing tickets and payment for tickets procedure World view Dwindling audience creates a bad international image of the circuit. Bad image might led to no attendance of fans to events organised at the circuit in future. Owner The owner of circuit is the Fédération Internationale de lAutomobile (FIA) since it’s the body that regulates Formula One activities across the world. Environmental constraints The circuit has limited space for future expansion The drawbacks witnessed in the circuit adversely affects the fans. In essence, the fans are the victims of the failures made by the management of the Nürburgring circuit. The dwindling audience reflects that the revenue from the events declines with time. The success of a formula one event is usually facilitated by the efforts of many people who bring their resources together such as finances. In essence, hosting a formula one event involves investment by many people and companies whose core aim is to gain profits from their investment. In this regard, dwindling audience bear adverse consequences to the investors due to reduced revenue (Khosrowpour & Information Resources Management Association International Conference, 2000). Once the investors withdraw from supporting the events, the fans will be denied the chance to enjoy watching the races from the circuit. The main actors who can restore the lost glory of the circuit are the members of the management board. In every organisation, the management is the main instrument of change since all the decision-making processes must be assessed by the management. In this regard, the management board need start from the drawing board to locate the cause of errors. In addition, the management should initiate positive changes that will attract the audience. For instance, selling the tickets at a discount can be an attractive arrangement for the fans. A transformation of the current situation is of great importance to the success of the circuit. The management should transform the mode of operations and the methods of interacting with the audience. In essence, the management should promote good relations with the audience in order to win their loyalty. The transformation can be made possible through regular training of the staff members and restructuring of the existing governance system (Information Resources Management Association, (2013). The Nürburgring circuit is recognised by Formula One drivers all over the world. In addition, a great percentage of Formula One fans all over the world known about the existence of the circuit. The strategic location of the circuit makes it a favourite for many drivers and fans. In this regard, the management should utilise this advantage to attract more audience than the ones attending the event presently. The technology has been changing quite fast in the past few decades. In this regard, the various sectors, including those in the entertainment industry, require to be restructured to configure with the advanced technology (Jackson, 2002). . For this reason, the methods used to sell tickets at the Nürburgring circuit require some changes. The online payment arrangements have become very popular in the modern days. In this regard, the management of the circuit should concentrate on developing modern online payment platforms to facilitate fast selling of tickets. In addition, the management of the circuit should work on ticket acquisition procedure. The procedure for acquiring tickets should be simplified to ensure that interested parties have easy access. For instance, booking of tickets should be made via the internet to facilitate the convenience of fans. Actually, when products are brought to potential consumers’ proximity, the customers are lured to buy. It is imperative to identify that when one can access the product or service without many difficulties, their response to buying is quite impressive. The core aim of establishing a business concern is to generate profits. In this regard, the circuit should invest in areas that enhance profit maximisation at the minimum cost possible. The firm’s ability to minimise cost determines it future returns and growth. How managers would turn performance objectives into operations priorities The success of a business is usually dependent on how well the daily activities much with the established objectives. Sometimes achieving the established objectives is a challenging practice and, therefore, adequate planning is required. Apparently, research has shown that many organisations do not succeed in achieving all the established objectivities. For this reason, many organisations have failed to expand even after many years of establishment. The success of an organisation or business concern is usually determined by expansion and structural development. Therefore, when an establishment takes a long time to expand, the message sent is that its management is defective. Essentially, the managers should always be cautious on matters of attaining the established objectives since poor performance is always blamed on them. In this regard, managers should focus on turning performance objectives into operations priorities to avoid poor performance. There are many strategies that the managers can employ to convert performance objectives into operations priorities as discussed below. Employee interactive programmes Hutchins (2008) states that managers should initiate programmes that facilitate interaction of employees from various organisations that deal with the same line of service or product. Interaction of employees of one organisation/company with employees of other companies facilitates sharing of job experiences. In this regard, the employees’ scope of knowledge is expanded thereby enhancing proficiency in the execution of assigned duties. Many scholars have argued that employee to employee interaction is an effective approach to improving the performance of employees. An improvement in the performance of the employees enhances prioritisation of the organisation’s operations since every party becomes committed to goal achievement. Adoption of technology The modern technology has become quite dynamic in the past few decades. Studies have revealed that the application of the modern technology in management has unlimited benefits. The managers should encourage the use of modern technologies in all departments to smoothen the daily operations (Simonović, 2011).. For instance, managers should emphasis on electronic record keeping to facilitate quick access to documents. In essence, electronic record keeping is very effective for securing important documents of the organisation. In addition, electronic record keeping is a convenient method of storing information since one can access the information from any place as long they have a device that can allow access to the information. Basically, electronic record keeping speeds up the decision –making process since time is not wasted searching for documents. The managers should also encourage the use of modern communication media to facilitate timely communication. In this regard, managers should avail adequate modern communication equipment such computers and internet services in the organisation. The internet facilitates communication of people from different parts of the world and, therefore, serves as an effective facility for communication. On the other hand, a computer various avenues for communication and data storage. In addition, computers, in combination with the internet, facilitates access to various social media sites where employees can gather important information or the betterment of performance. The effective use of employee interactive programmes can aid in operationalising the pursuit of the established objectives. The employees should be made to feel free while executing the various tasks assigned to them. The aspect of freedom enhances quality service provision and talent development for workers in an organisation. The use of modern technology is a major milestone as far aa turning objectives into operations priorities is concerned. In this regard, the managers should enhance the full installation of facilitates and systems required for the smooth application of the modern technology. Actually, managers should ensure effective infrastructural development to accommodate future changes. The business world is not static and, therefore, keeps on changing from time to time depending on the environment and the available technology. Once the above policies have been implemented, the performance of the business after implementation can be measured in various ways. It is usually important to measure to the contribution of introduced changes to the business performance. Measurement helps in monitoring whether the expected outcome has been achieved. There are basically the measurement approaches that can be employed, which are; efficacy, efficiency and effectiveness. Efficacy aids in assessing whether the implemented changes offer the anticipated outcome. This type of measurement is important since it aids in mitigating losses due to the introduced changes in the business. The managers should ensure that this type of measurement is regularly conducted to avoid adverse financial results. It is essential to note that some changes are very expensive and might take many years for the business to recover the cost. Efficiency helps in ascertaining how well the available resources are being utilised. In essence, efficiency measurement evaluates whether resources are used economically during the transformation process. The aim of efficiency measurement is to ensure that least possible resources are used to introduce the transformation. Managers should take this type of measurement seriously since it affects the economic benefit of introducing change in the business. Essentially, the measurement aims at minimising operational cost to maximise returns. Effectiveness aids in assessing the longevity of benefits generated by introducing changes in the business. Basically, the major aim of transforming business activities is to enjoy long term benefits and financial security. When these goals are not achieved the need for transformation or change ceases to exist. Therefore, managers should conduct effectiveness measure regularly to ensure that the introduced changes are aimed at providing long term benefits. There is no need to spend costly resource to introduce changes whose future contribution is limited. The managers should be certain that the transformation being undertaken will generate long-term returns for the business. Conclusion The entertainment field has become quite diversified in the recent past. Sporting activities such Formula One Races have become popular entertainment events. Some Formula One circuits have experienced several challenges that have led to dwindling of audiences. Formula One races are of great economic benefits since they have fans all over the world. In this regard, dwindling of the audience in some circuits is a fatal challenge that should be addressed with immediate effect. Managers experience the challenge of turning objectives into operations priorities many times. In this regard, managers should employ several mechanisms to enhance effective conversion of objectives into operations priorities. Use of the modern technology should be enhanced in the business to facilitate profit increment and improved quality of services. Once a transformation has been introduced in the business; managers should employ appropriate mechanisms to measure its progress. In summary, managers should use all the available means to ensure that the business emerges successful. Reference list: Challen, P. (2014). Formula 1 Racing. Rosen Publishing Group. Derek, L. (2009). Formula 5000 Motor Racing: Back Then... and Back Now. Veloce. Hutchins, D. C. (2008). Hoshin Kanri: The strategic approach to continuous improvement. Aldershot, England: Gower. Information Resources Management Association. (2013). Data mining: Concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference. Jackson, M. C. (2002). Systems Approaches to Management. Boston, MA: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Jenkins, M., Pasternak, K., & West, R. (2005). Performance at the limit: Business lessons from `Formula 1 motor racing. Cambridge [u.a.: Cambridge University Press. Khosrowpour, M., & Information Resources Management Association International Conference. (2000). Challenges of information technology management in the 21st century: 2000 Information Resources Management Association International Conference, Anchorage, Alaska, USA, May 21-24, 2000. Hershey, Pa. [u.a.: Idea Group Publishing. McFadyen, P. (2008). Motor racing at Oulton Park in the 1970s. Dorchester: Veloce. Puchta, H., & Stranks, J. (2010). English in mind: 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Rouse, W. B., & Sage, A. P. (2007). Work, workflow and information systems. Amsterdam, the Netherlands: IOS Press. Simonović, S. P. (2011). Systems approach to management of disasters: Methods and applications. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Von, F. D. (2010). Formula 1 cars. 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