Strategic Management in a Global Environment - of Whole Food - Case Study Example

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT Introduction Many groceries stores or chains have different of carrying out their businesses. Managing the various strategies is important since it determines how the company will perform in future. The establishments in place usually need to apply various plans to come up with a satisfactory plan (Ireland et al., 2012). The company, as a result, is put in the position of raising up employees to the point of meeting the objectives of the company through the strategies put in place. It is thus important to ensure that the communication channels and how the plans reach every employee, and related persons of the business are clear. Therefore, for any business to succeed it should have set goals and strategies. The main competitors for Whole Food are supermarkets and Kroger which is a company producing related products. The company is at an advantage since it is the largest chain store in the country. The company uses appeals to customers like the sale of coffee that has been bought at a higher price hence considering the well-being of the farmers. The company aims at using the processing of its products like chicken to win over customers. For example, the chicken is bred naturally, no growth hormones are used, and such information is given to the customers through flyers (Cohen & Babey, 2012). However, the price is higher than normal a customer would tend to buy natural products than the artificial products. The grocery giant uses the aspect of originality to enhance and increase its market. The customers are educated on the various organics products that have no artificial preservatives in them. The customers, as a result, may tell other prospective customers about WFM increasing its market. The people who frequently come to the stores can, therefore, act as brand ambassadors for the grocery chain. The growing outlets are another added advantage since having customers for various states becomes beneficial. In the end, the reach out to other customers and thus increase the market. WFM in the sale of its products appeals to the human senses, which are taste, sight, smell, feel, and hearing. The customers move emotionally towards carrying out various actions that involve the choice of different foods. The smell of the various foods captures the attention of most of the customers who get to interact with the various properties and characteristics of the different foods offered by the different stores in various regions. Another strategy the company uses is teamwork among the employees. Collaboration promotes cohesiveness, and the workers can work towards achieving a particular goal. Therefore, in all the outlets of WFM, collaboration is encouraged, and all teams work with the sole intention of meeting the company’s goals. The company gives stores more autonomy, and this makes operations in the company to run smoothly since the outlets will not have to wait for decisions from the headquarters. Such a measure ensures that decisions are fast and that the business operations continue to run smoothly immediately. Future trends The incidences of other businesses offering similar and alternative products are predominant. Most of the market likes the organic nature of the foods at WFM. The foods are natural and rich in nutrients in contrast with the various shops that offered artificially manufactured foods. Some have opted to buy from other stores if they sell the same products. Unionizing of the employees is another issue that the CEO does not like at all. Workers are want to join or form such groups and to suppress them is not the answer. Workers who thought of forming unions faced sacking. The management made sure that no workers thought of forming a union to fight for their needs. The company should therefore considered how it handles the matters of unionizing employees, or it will end up answering questions in a court of law on how it is managing its employees. The constant suppressing of the workers and prevention of unionization is thus an issue that should undergo scrutiny. Employees are an important part of an organization’s success. The treatment the employees get determines whom they will carry out their duties. It is crucial for the company especially the management respects the employees and encourages them to carry out their duties without fear of reprehension from the employer. Employees need motivation to perform better and, as a result, the company should ensure that it creates an environment that will help bring out the potential in the employee. Technology has brought changes to the business sector. Customers can now order goods online that can be delivered to their homes, and thus, at their convenience. Therefore, the grocery stores should not always envision customers coming to the retail stores as always. They should come up with various methods of selling their products online. Most of the people accessing the net usually access social websites where many companies advertize their products (Witcher & Chau, 2010). Marketing and selling on the internet are very popular, and this trend will continue for a long time as technology advances. Several businesses have embraced technology by making their applications that are compatible with smartphones. People can access the services through their smartphones and communicate to the groceries on what they want. The demand for organic products is wont to increase as more people move from natural to healthy food products. The health consciousness of today’s generation due to the various diseases brought about by consuming a diet rich in sugars and fats has catastrophically affected the health many people in the united states. Natural foods, as a result, will help in increasing health in the respective people and ensuring that they are out of harm’s way. Supermarkets pose a significant challenge to the large grocers since they provide everything under one roof. The supermarkets are large and have most of the items sold in grocery shops. They, therefore, tend to replace the function of the chain though not totally. 3. What strategy should WFM pursue to strengthen its competitive position in the industry? For the successful operations of the WFM in the market, the company should ensure that the supplies are enough. What major trends are likely to affect the grocery industry and WFM in the future eh organic products are sourced from many place that are mostly farms. The farms have workers that deal with the preparation and final harvesting of the products. Most of the working conditions on the farms are not appealing. Some of the workers work for ten to twelve hours a day with little pay. Most of the workers or pickers are motivated to work since their pay is poor, and they work for long hours. The company on its outlook and output, as a result, by taking care of the workers needs and being more sensitive to their needs (Hill & Jones, 2012). Therefore, their workers in the supply chain must be considered to prevent any tarnishing of the name of the company that may affect it negatively. The internet is currently one of the best ways to reach customers. The company can start advertising its products on popular websites especially social media sites. The company does not advertize its product outside but does it in the premises of the company. The drawback of such a strategy is that it covers a smaller part of the market while the larger part continues to shop in other places (Lei & Slocum, 2014). Most of the customers get to know more about the products when they read the various flyers and posters to get the gist of what the company is. The company can position itself in the market and eventually target the customers in the market to increase its customer base. The motivation of employees is an important strategy that boosts performance most of the time. The respect of employees is important as it creates in them as a sense of self-worth, and therefore they carry out their activities with confidence. The employees thus need bonuses that and other incentives that will help them take care of priorities and thus prevent any distraction that may affect their output. The company should approach the matter of unionization gently. The company should not make the employees as their enemies when they try to form an outfit that will protect their interests. The company should, therefore, act swiftly to prevent any mishaps involving the workers from happening. Employees who are kept well and looked after perform better than disgruntled employees (Hitt et al., 2014). The company should look at not only increasing profits but also taking care of their employees interests. Implementation of strategy To implement its strategy of increasing its presence in the market WFM should ensure that it focusses on improving its employees working conditions and delve further into the new area of advertising its products. The employees will have to follow the laid down procedures and strategy to ensure that the company meets its objectives. The impending shortage of organic food into the market is not a good indicator of the success of WFM as a grocery chain (Brown & Lamming, 2013). It is crucial to deal with the supply of the various products and try as much as possible to ensure that the supply does not stop unexpectedly which may hurt the company mostly. The increase in organic produce will come about if there is an increase in investments and politics engaged to change the various regulatory structures that prevent or prohibit increased organic farming to some extent. The relevant bodies can carry out research to know the best way the company can chip in to increase the quantity of the produce and discover new ways of preparing the plant to have a successful harvest. The company can target people that are more educated since they know the value of food and can appreciate if the food is organic and natural in nature. The company can target the health market through eh various advertisements carried out especially on the natural fruits that can help keep one healthy in the end. Performance management will follow up the strategies put to ensure that there are followed to meet set goals. Therefore, the goals and objectives will be measured against the desired goals at different periods to determine whether the company is meeting its goals for a particular time or not. Strategies are, therefore, an important part of an organizations aspect that may bolster the company forward or keep at a stagnated position if not implemented correctly. Bottom of Form References Cohen, D. A., & Babey, S. H. (September 01, 2012). Contextual influences on eating behaviours: heuristic processing and dietary choices. Obesity Reviews, 13, 9, 766-779. Brown, S., Bessant, J., & Lamming, R. (2013). Strategic Operations Management. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. Ireland, R. D., Hoskisson, R. E., & Hitt, M. A. (2012). Understanding business strategy: Concepts plus. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning. Witcher, B., & Chau, V. S. (2010). Strategic management: Principles and practice. Andover: Cengage. Hill, C. W. L., & Jones, G. R. (2012). Essentials of strategic management. Mason, Ohio: South-Western/Cengage Learning. Lei, D., & Slocum, J. W. (2014). Demystifying your business strategy. Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., & Hoskisson, R. E. (2006). Strategic management: Competitiveness and globalization : [cases]. Princeton, N.J: Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic. Read More