Australian Zoo in Queensland - Business - Case Study Example

THE AUSTRALIAN ZOO Student Name Student Number Subject Name Introduction The Australian Zoo is a 70 acre establishment located in the Australian state of Queensland on the sunshine Coast near the Glass House Mountains. The establishment is a member of the Zoo and Aquarium Association (ZAA). The zoo is owned by Terri Irwin who is the widow of Stephen Irwin, a renowned zoologist who made his name in the production of the wildlife documentary, “The Crocodile Hunter”. This is why the establishment is also known as the Home of the Crocodile Hunter. The zoo is managed by Mr. Wes Manion (Chesbrough, 2013). The history of the zoo stretches back to the year 1970 where it was initially called the Beerwah reptile and Fauna Park. The founders of the zoo are Bob and Lyn Irwin who are the biological parents of Stephen Irwin. Originally, the zoo had mainly crocodiles. In 1982, the name was changed to Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park and the area of the establishment was doubled. The change to Australian Zoo was done by Steve and Terri Irwin following the increased number of species in the park. This was made possible by the increased funds generated by the increased popularity of the television series produced by Steve Irwin. With the increased funding injected into the establishment, more structure came up and exhibits for the different merchandise were also put up resulting in the world-class institution that the Australian Zoo is today. The Australian Zoo has been very instrumental in the shaping of the Australian tourism society. The efforts towards putting the Australian continent on the global tourism map have not gone unnoticed as the Australian Zoo has been the recipient of Australian Tourism Award of 2003-2004. The zoo was also a finalist in the 2010 Queensland Tourism Award. Other awards won by the Zoo include the Queensland Tourism Major Tourist Attraction in 2012 and a silver award winner in the Australian Tourism Award in 2013. Apart from the expanding number of animal species in the zoo, the Australian animal hospital has also been opened next to the zoo so as to cater for not only wildlife but also to care and rehabilitate domestic animals as a way of increasing the brand fame among the Australian community. This paper focuses on the zoo and the way in which business is conducted in the establishment. The organizational features of the Zoo are dealt in depth, the Zoo’s corporate social responsibility projects are also discussed as well as the challenges the CSR projects face. At the end of the report, recommendations are made so that the challenges faced can be done away with. The impacts of the CSR projects on the company as well as those on the industry as a whole are also discussed in this paper. The Zoo’s Organizational Structure The management structure of the Australian Zoo is pretty laid back as compared to the standard corporations of this magnitude. The leadership of Terri Irwin must be very exemplary as has been recognized by the Queensland Management Excellence award in the year 2010. The zoo is managed by the Australian Zoo Pty Ltd but the land on which the Zoo stands is owned by a different group known as the Silverback Properties Pty Ltd (Martinko, 2011). The Zoo has a collection of food courts and exhibitions which are designed for the comfort of the tourists during their visit to the Zoo. These complimentary amenities are operated and managed by the Muscillo Holdings Pty Ltd. The collections of these features that make up the Australian Zoo are under the directorship of Mr. Wes Minion (Chesbrough, 2013). The Australian zoo is under the overall leadership of Terri Irwin, who is the global face of the company. The daily activities of the Zoo are managed by the director of the establishment, Mr. Minoin (Fee C., 2013). The director is in charge of coordinating the activities of the sister institutions of the Zoo which include the food courts and the exhibitions. The institution is largely decentralized since the sister corporations of the Zoo are all independent companies each with their own objectives and profit making projections. The directorship of Mr. Minion is responsible for the smooth running of the entire establishment (Rosenfeld, 2013). This means that the managers of the food courts are answerable to the director, who in turn is answerable to the Zoo President Mrs. Irwin (Sala, 2013). The management structure of the Zoo can therefore be described as pretty decentralized as the workers of the various corporations within the Zoo are only answerable to their respective managers (Veit, 2014). The staff official wear of the institution is also laid back. This is seen by the t-shirt and khaki pants or shorts attire that a majority of the workers in the Zoo are always spotted in (Lambert, 2013). This laid back style by the management of the organization is vital in the management-employee relations in the Zoo. The relaxed environment makes the employees more comfortable and this translates to the customer-employee relations. In the zoo, it is not uncanny to see the director or the Zoo’s president interact directly to the customers or tourists who visit the zoo. This practice by the management and the employees fosters a community-like relationship with the tourists who visit the Zoo hence the homely feeling that is fostered is important for repeat business by the zoo. Theses are some of the practices that have earned Mrs. Irwin the Management Excellence Award (Orlitzky, Marc,Donald S. Siegel And David Waldman, 2011). The decentralization of the facility has made the managing of the facility quite easier than it could be had the management been centralized. This has freed up the top management to interact freely with the tourist who visit the zoo. This can be seen by the active involvement of Mrs. Irwin in the daily activities of the Zoo. Decentralization also leads to the empowerment of the employees and as a result the employees of the Zoo are encouraged to make the Zoo more profitable. Corporate Social Responsibility This is a situation where an organization or companies takes responsibility for their impact on the environment and the community as a whole. These activities are considered as the corporate citizenship or responsible business. These practices include taking part in community cleaning and building the communities in the society in which the company is found and operates (Kemp, 2012). CSR, an abbreviation on the Corporate Social Responsibility, has become an important inclusion in the calendar of activities of any company in the world today. The CSR projects are not only important for all companies but are required by law that all companies give a potion back to the community in which they operate. The advantages of these activities are many and the impacts are not limited to the community as the same company benefits from the projects (Screck, 2013). The Australian Zoo is no stranger to projects of corporate social responsibility. The establishment of the Australian animal hospital is one of the initiatives that the zoo has done to give back to the society (Kamakshi, 2014). The hospital not only caters for the health of the animals within the zoo but also serves to rehabilitate animals for the community around the zoo (Dhaliwal Dan, 2011). The establishment of the exhibition food courts and the various amenities in the grounds owned by the Zoo is an important CSR project which the Zoo undertook. The amenities not only provide the community around the park with a place to relax and have a nice time but they also offer numerous employment opportunities for the people living next to the Zoo (Sweeney, 2013). Other CSR projects undertaken by the Australian Zoo are notable in the line of wildlife conservation. The most vibrant endeavor by the Zoo is the saving of the Tasmanian devil from extinction. This project is undertaken in partnership with Alston, an Australian company. The Tasmanian devil is an animal indigenous to the Australian continent and is on the brink of extinction due to an infectious cancer that swept through the species in 2008. Other wildlife conservation projects being done by the zoo include the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve and funding of various national and international conservation projects including Tigers, crocodiles and cheetahs (Sala, 2013). The main challenge facing the CSR program in any organization is the availability of resources for the program. Resources can be either monitor or human. In order to build the conservation areas and the research labs required to treat the animals, capital is required to acquire the real estate, to build and also to pay the highly trained staff that is to work in the projects. The human resources are the trained staff, to work in the research labs e.g. the cancer research labs in response to the infections that wiped out the majority of the Tasmanian Devils. Human labor is also required to design, build and work in the facilities in order to achieve the goals set by the organization (Greening, 2012). The CSR projects go a long way in fostering togetherness in the community as they are a source of pride among the employees. The working together of the employees in a project such as the protection of the Tasmanian devil from extinction is a great source of national and self pride among the employees. This motivates and brings the employees together and thus makes the feeling of a community among the Zoo (Ursal, Perdue and Sirgy, 2012). The development projects that the Zoo embarks on also empower the community surrounding the Zoo either educationally or financially. The research programs provide scholarship opportunities for local and employees to further their knowledge in a specific area and when they finish they are able to put the skills they have learned to good use in the Zoo and are paid. The other amenities around and in the establishment provide job opportunities for the locals. The locals are then empowered financially and there are able to sustain their families (Lin-Hi, 2013). The benefits of CSR are not only limited to the employees as the activities increase the traffic into the Zoo and hence sales are increased and profit margins are also increased. In the conservation of endangered species such as the Tasmanian devil, the Zoo becomes one of the few places were the species is found and hence tourists have to come to the facility to see these creatures. The increased traffic translates to increased sales (australian zoo, 2011). The same applies to the animal hospital and rehabilitation centre where the locals bring their pets and the increased traffic profit the Zoo (Orlitzky, Marc,Donald S. Siegel And David Waldman, 2011). Not only does the tourism industry benefit from the conservation projects done by the Zoo, the entire economy also benefits. The increased number of local and international tourist brings revenue to the park which in turn contributes to the economic growth of the country. The conservation of the animals in the country promote tourism both local and international hence the CSR practices of the Australian Zoo directly lead to the growth of the Australian tourism sector. Recommendations The CSR projects that the Zoo takes on are not only relevant to the community but they also benefit the Zoo itself and the Australian tourism industry and by extension the economy of the national government. The main problem that the CSR programs face is the availability of resources which can either by monetary or personnel. When it comes to personnel, the acquisition of trained professionals is a tricky and expensive an affair which can drain the accounts of the Organization. For the Zoo to have a constant supply of experts with the passion to work on the projects it has, it is necessary that they put up a scholarship program where locals are trained in the specific required areas of expert ice with special emphasis on the species in the Zoo such that when they finish the program and come back to the Zoo, they are trained and comfortable in the Zoo (Dhaliwal Dan, 2011). Coming up with the capital to run the programs can be achieved in one of two ways or better yet, implementation of both methods. Funding can be sourced from like minded individuals and well wishers who see the course taken by the Zoo being noble and worth the sacrifice. Another way is to channel the money obtained from sales of the tickets, products and other services in the Zoo back into the CSR projects (Arias, 2012). The problem with this method s that it can be slow and the capital it yields may be very little hence it is better to rely on funding (Chesbrough, 2013). Conclusions The Australian Zoo is a well managed tourist attraction and research centre which is home to many species of animals and plants. The Zoo conserves endangered species and as a result I a great attraction therefore hugely contribute to the tourism industry and economy as a whole. The Zoo has a number of corporate social responsibility projects which, despite of challenges in getting the required resources, benefit the community, the institution and the government of then Australian Continent. References Read More