Strategic Management of Tesco Plc - Research Proposal Example

The paper “Strategic Management of Tesco Plc" is an outstanding example of a research proposal on management. According to Butler, Tesco plc is the fourth largest global retailer after Wal- mart, Carrefour, and Metro with branches in 13 countries across Europe and Asia.  The Tesco is projected to experience unprecedented global growth of 7.5 % annually between 2011 and 2015. As a leading retailer in the UK, Tesco plc enjoys key strengths that include large market share, steady global growth rate, comprehensive supply chain, and online stores.

  The over-diversification of Tesco’s merchandise portfolio acts as its weaknesses, which has led to bad debt from credit cards and increased insurance claims (Palmer, 2005). The saturation of the UK market is also a key weakness of Tesco operations in the country. Table 1: Revenue excluding IFRIC 13 (financial statistics in £M) 2010 \ 2011 \ 2012 \ 2013 \ 2014:The UK – 39104 \ 40766 \ 42803 \ 43582 \ 435770Europe – 8724 \ 9192 \ 9866 \ 9319 \ 9267Asia – 8465 \ 9802 \  9802 \ 10828 \ 10828 \ 10309The US – 349 \ 495 \ - \ - \ -Tesco Bank -  860 \ 919 \ 1044 \ 1021 \ 1003Group Revenue Excluding IFRIC 13 – 57502 \ 61174 \ 64541 \ 63967 \ 64149Source: Tesco PLC Annual Report and Financial Statements (2013) Table 2: Trading Profit (financial statistics in £M) 2010 \ 2011 \ 2012 \ 2013 \ 2014 The UK – 2413 \ 2504 \ 2478 \ 2272 \ 2272Europe – 474 \ 527 \ 529 \ 329 \ 238Asia – 440 \ 605 \ 737 \ 733 \ 692The US – 165 \ 186 \ - \- \ -Tesco Bank – 250 \ 264 \ 225 \ 191 \194Group Trading Profit 3412 \ 3714 \ 3969 \ 3525 \ 3315Operating Profit – 3457 \ 3917 \ 4182 \ 2382 \ 2631Operating Profit Margin - 6.0% \ 6.4% \ 6.5% \ 3.7% \ 4.

1%Source: Tesco PLC Annual Report and Financial Statements (2013) 2. Reason for Interest in Tesco Plc Blythman (2012) noted that Tesco plc has successfully expanded its market into Asia and the rest of Europe. Vis a vis, the core strategy of Tesco has been global growth through the diversification of its product portfolio (Humby et al.,2007). The project proposal aims to examine the marketing mix of Tesco in light of its declining market share in the UK and the advent of information technology.

However, it is further paramount that the identified strengths of the expansion strategy exceed associated risks and weakness of international based market strategy. Critical analysis of Tesco’s declining market share of the UK indicated its product development and diversification strategy to be fuelling bad debts. Tesco management has been undergoing extensive management changes since 2013 when over 50 top managers were axed (Butler, 2013). Therefore, the restructuring of the management roles in the stores will evidently impact on the strategic management and current operations of the UK’s leading retail store.

Key competitors of Tesco supermarket in the UK include Sainsbury’s, Carrefour, Asda, Morrisons and Cooperative, Waitrose and Aldi supermarkets. Figure 1: Tesco Supermarket Competitors and their Respective Market Share (Farmers Weekly 2014) 3. The Research Plan The research project will be principally aimed at examining the strategic management of Tesco Plc that underlines its continued growth and success in Europe and Asia. The research will employ analytical methods in the strategic analysis of the operations and management of Tesco plc.

Some of the methods that will be utilized include SWOT analysis, PESTLE analysis, Porter’s five forces analysis, value chain analysis, and early warning scans. Pertinent information and statistics will be derived from the official website and annual reports of the company, scholarly journals and recognized online business websites and magazines. The main sections of the final project will include background of Tesco plc, PESTEL analysis, Porter’s 5 forces, critical success factors, SWOT analysis, value chain analysis, Tesco’s strategic options, core competences and company’s culture.