Managing for future - Essay Example

The management approach of a company differs as per the objectives and intention, but the principal aim is to ensure smooth business transaction and streamlining of the process. In the similar way, the capability of the management of a company holds utmost importance in the process of managing and dealing with the several business challenges. In order, to highlight the importance of managerial capabilities of an organization, this study intends to refer to a real life company. The company chosen in this context is Vodafone.

This study therefore seeks to shed light on the management approach and style of Vodafone pertaining to its business environment and business operation. The areas that will be focused upon in this project are corporate social responsibility of the company, sustainability programs being initiated by the company and also the company’s ability to deal with crisis and catastrophe events. The paper will at first present a brief synopsis of Vodafone and short descriptions pertaining to the concepts associated with the subject of concern.

Furthermore, the study will also enlighten the efforts put in by the management of the company in the timeframe 2007-2013. Lastly, the study will analyse the competence of Vodafone in these three chosen fields of business by comparing with the current level of proficiency and would develop a scenario of the future in which Vodafone will function. The definition of the key concepts associated with the study will be presented after the brief overview of the company. In light of these concepts, critical review of the current achievements of the company and theoretical models will be presented in a detailed manner.

Vodafone: A Brief Overview Vodafone Group plc or commonly known as Vodafone is a UK based telecommunication company involved in telecommunication business. The company was incorporated in the year 1991. Prior to that, Vodafone was known as Racal Telecom, but in the year 1991 only, Vodafone became a new identity and was founded in Newbury, Berkshire, United Kingdom. The company is presently headquartered at London, UK. In terms of the overall revenue and number of subscribers, the company is the 2nd largest mobile telecommunication company of the world.

Globally, the pole position has been held by China Mobile. Vodafone has presence in 30 countries of the world and operates with partner networks in around 40 nations. As of 2012, the company employs around 86,400 people (Vodafone, 2012a). The best selling products of the company are mobile telephony, fixed line, and digital television and internet services. However, in the recent past the company has also made tie-ups with mobile phone manufacturers to sell mobile phones under the brand name of Vodafone.

The company mainly operates with exclusive retail distribution and exclusive company owned stores. Nevertheless, the advent of technology and stringent competition levels has compelled the company to make their presence online. Through their online stores, the company sell their products; allow users to pay their bills etc. Some of the major competitors of the company are 3 mobile, Airtel, France Telecom and Xon Mobile, Telefonica Europe plc, Dutch Telecom among others (Hoovers, 2013). The net revenue of the company in the year 2012 was ?46.417 billion and the profit was ?6.957 billion.

Furthermore, the total asset of the company as of 2012 was