Organizational and Developmental Characteristics of Small Businesses - Essay Example

Examine the nature of the distinctive managerial, organizational and developmental characteristics of small businesses vis-à-vis well resourced largecompanies. What are the implications of such distinctiveness for small businesses attempting to achieve sustained growth? The fact that the business world of present times is changing at a cut throat pace gives us all the more reason to believe that the future would indeed be very different to what it is in the present times. The marketing environment comprises of the factors and elements which are outside the boundaries of the firm and over which it has little or no control when it comes to handling the same. This marketing environment can work to the advantage of the firm as well as become a real nuisance, more so when the economy is not that encouraging boosting trade ties between stakeholders, different organizations and so on and so forth. The corporate strategy plays a significant role at building a bridge between the company’s inner policies and the undertakings it has with the various stakeholders, who could be from the external marketing settings. (Korzeniowski, 2001) One should believe a small business is mostly at the mercy of the person who is responsible for running it. This small business is usually short of any expectations that the business fraternity might have of the same. The owner is the sole person who is responsible for funding the business regime and thus has a major stake within the running stakes. A small business is dependent on all the actions taken by the person in-charge and without his sound input this business would not see success touching its feet. The small business requires strict vigilance on a proactive basis. This vigilance must come from the owner himself since he is the one who will eventually face the brunt of the actions that he undertakes. (Bridge, O’Neill & Cromie, 2003) Also he must remain open to ideas from the people with whom he is conducting business as well as avoid litigation measures in order to exponentially increase on his returns and cutting down on his losses. Being vigilant would actually help him to shape up his troops in the times to come and he would have a better idea of running the business within the due course of time. Funds are essential for the sound running of any small business. If the owner does not have sound funding mechanisms in place, he will face a tough time when there is economic recession or when he has to pay the salaries to his employed staff. A small business cannot afford lapse in funding and thus has to remain open to bank loans, borrowing from stakeholders and partners, etc. These funds must either be saved by the owner in his personal account so as to meet the problems occurring in a rainy day or be obtained from a special account opened in the name of the small business. A small business should be conservative in its approach. This is because a small business cannot be flagrant with new and novel ideas. (Applbaum, 2004) The business is small and hence the dependents are quite a few so it is best advisable from my side to keep it simple in the beginning, as long as the business does not establish into a huge one. Small business would be done quite a lot of favor if the owner does not become liberal in his approach. However the element of risk taking is one that can have affects from both the sides – positive as well as negative in the end. In the world of today, pertinent marketing environment has gained a lot of essence due to the fact that it brings into picture the real role of the channel members, middle line managers and wholesalers as well as other personnel who do their bit towards completing different activities and tasks, coming directly under the auspices of the organization’s hold. What is therefore necessary in such a situation is to be open to all forms of criticisms which could be raised by the various stakeholders and parties hailing from the external marketing environment and the related regimes. This will present the said organization with a host of options when it devises a plan to counter the problems which it is facing at the hands of the marketing environment and the different players present within the very same environmental settings. Problems stumbled upon by the business at one region or at a local franchise would mean that the company should be ready to bear losses of an unimaginable cost. More than that, the company will lose its self-won respect and dignity around which shareholders and owners, etc are revolving around. Long range planning can help a particular company gain so much in accordance with its goals and objectives that had been planned and drafted but in the current times more and more attention and emphasis is making the rounds of the discussion as to whether these plans can actually deliver what was expected of them in the first place. Now we shift to the methodology and rationale behind building competitive advantage. This is something that is build over time and requires synchronization between the tactics, activities and the overall strategy of the company which is producing the product(s). Competitive advantage is developed when there is a differential undertaking on the part of the customer. (Foss, 2005) This could be in the form of lower prices than the competitors, better quality, efficient sales services and support and a number of other features. Thus customer satisfaction is something which cannot be measured by a standard set of parameters. It has to be experienced always with different set of offerings that are made available. These offerings could be in the form of better quality products, higher and more efficient services or a bundle of both high class product and state of the art service, in which case it would not be categorized under either of them rather as a mixture of both. It is pretty true that the market dynamics suggest that the competitive advantage can only be achieved when the customer is given what he wants. The large companies that are internationally marketed cannot compete with everyone. They have to set their own competitors in the particular field and then go about competing with each other. Negative diplomacy and marketing should in no way create upheaval and turbulence for the people to raise fingers upon. Rather the company should find out and select certain businesses, which will help it in its smooth running (of business). (Wells, 1998) There can be a number of factors, which can bring about globalization within a company’s business and also some others, which can push it towards a state of total deadlock and in some cases isolation as well. The external factors, which affect the success of the particular business, have to be kept in mind under all conditions whereby opposing the proposals given by one can easily mean the avoidance of the same shareholder or proposed party to stay away from the business which can be a huge setback. Change has to be a constant dynamic in the international arena of marketing but it has to be brought about in a cordial manner, both for the shareholders, investors, owners and the like as well as the ones for whom the business is serving, i.e., its customers and clients. A company has to keep shoulder to shoulder with regards to these comparisons, which it has to do with its competitors every now and then. In fact it’s an on going continuous process, which has no certain time frames to look at. Competition in the world of today is increasing and a company cannot afford to fall way back when compared with its competitors. Moving on with the discussion on the marketing environment for the small business, the outsourcing controversy comes into the whole equation when the firms decide to go the international way. Firms have to predict what will actually happen with them in the future and this is not an easy process, in fact it is easier said than done. They must be open to a number of challenges and potential problems that can come their way every now and then and for this not to happen, they must make sure that their research according to the market dynamics and cultural representations is up to date and current. The cultural differences that arise due to the various issues including the misunderstandings of the language that is commonly spoken of is something that the organizations must take care of before they decide to venture into a new country or region. Organizations in the present times are doing their utmost in order to know more and more about their valued customers. For this, they have devised certain strategies which are in line with the values that their business has set for itself. These values are thus deeply intrinsic within the mission and vision statements of the company. In order to gain further knowledge about the customers, research is being given proper emphasis which would eventually discern the exact basis for the customers to come and make that vital purchase. Even when the same has been done, the need is to find out how the same customers can be retained and in what manner they will come back for the repeat purchase of the product. Organizations do their best to conduct research which will harness their business outcomes as well as help them achieve positive results in the light of unbroken grounds, at least in the marketing and business circles. They want to reach out to the customers in whatever capacity they can and for that they aim to find out the best and most efficient means possible. The usage of strategic planning in the business world of today is very imperative as it ensures that the same is not only important to the whole well being and the actual basis of the business but also the manner in which it invites the short term gains and incentives that come along all this while. This planning has to be drawn in the light of the objectives that the company has set for itself and this does not mean that the revenues and profits alone are the points that need discussion rather the emphasis is on understanding the mission and vision statements of the company and the manner in which the two align with the goals that it has to meet over a period of time and then only weigh it with the benefits that are reached courtesy the long term incentives and the short term gains. Thus it is a fact that contingency planning is the buzzword which is making the business circles’ rounds in the current times. These provide a stop gap solution to the needs which are drawn up by the companies and then the answer is found out so as to cope up with the very same. (Galbraith, 2000) Different scenarios and short term plans thus provide for a lot of cushion as far as vital tactical planning on the part of the said company is concerned and this indeed forms up as an important ingredient of the different processes that are running within the company. It might also be possible that the different departments present within a company have their own respective agendas that they have to meet and thus the long term planning can take a back seat in this equation. The administrative, decisional, interpersonal and other skills present within the repertoire of the management of the company have to understand that the strategic planning has to make way for the tactical moves that are introduced within the company every now and then and which is for the betterment of all concerned, more than anything else, for the company and its stability in the long run itself. The skills just discussed have to come into play so that all of these unite and thus form up as a single, coherent message, a message that will take over the reigns of the company and talk about the problems that it is facing in the light of the completion and the eventual attainment of the strategic goals. (Legg & Hindle, 2004) The short term activities and tasks thus gain more and more attention from all concerned, not only the employees working within the company but also the stakeholders who have one thing or the other within the proper and sound functioning of the business, the consumers who want to know what exactly is happening with the company’s different products and services and why there is a lag at the retail side of those very products and services. The important thing to understand is that the relevant environment which is present within the small sized company and in relation with the whole industry where competition is banging on this company’s doors in a fierce manner is very vital. The environment thus forms the basis for the tactical moves that the company makes from time to time and this should not mean that the long range planning which had been done is forgotten, however it is a fact in the business concerns that it takes a back seat for sure, but only for a certain period of time. This could be so very true in times of turbulence, tension, government and legal litigations, pressures from different quarters and not to forget the reactions (in a negative tone) on the part of the consumers and the stakeholders as well. (Lipsey, 2002) Environmental analysis is thus a significant management tool, one that builds on the assumption that ‘at the moment’ decisions and plans are much better than drawing them up in the past and sticking on to them no matter how trying and tough the circumstances are, with respect to a company. The short term moves are a far better cry than the long term plans that had been drawn way back and just cannot meet the desires that had so long been expected of them. Also the fact that the world and more so the business world of present times is changing at a rapid pace, raises more questions which need to be answered in the light of the above discussion. In the end, one of the major issues that are faced by firms – big or small, when they decide to plunge into the ranks of the external marketing environment in an out and out manner is to understand the culture and language of the place they have invested their money and resources in. This means that the new alien land becomes a problematic equation for the people who took the decision to move to that city or region initially. (Lowe, 2004) Every country has its own unique set of principles and rules which need to be followed and in this case the firm which has opened up its offshore offices needs to make sure that it complies and agrees with these rules and procedures even before it decides to open these new offices. The legislation of the region or country might be so hard to understand that the organization even before entering into this new territory can simply run away. This suggests that the organizations must be ready always to keep away the problems that might arise at some point in time within the new operational territory of the already existing business. Bibliography APPLBAUM, Kalman. (2004). The Marketing Era: From Professional Practice to Global Provisioning. Routledge BRIDGE, S., O’Neill, K. & Cromie, S. (2003). Understanding Enterprise, Entrepreneurship and Small Business. Palgrave FOSS, Nicolai J. (2005). Strategy, Economic Organization, and the Knowledge Economy: The Coordination of Firms and Resources. Oxford University Press GALBRAITH, Jay R. (2000). Designing the Global Corporation. Jossey-Bass KORZENIOWSKI, Paul. (2001). The Challenges of Going Global. Business Communications Review, Vol. 31 LIPSEY, Robert E. (2002). Multinational Firms and Impacts on Employment, Trade, and Technology: New Perspectives for a New Century. Routledge LEGG, J. & Hindle, K. (2004). Entrepreneurship: Context, Vision and Planning. Palgrave Macmillan LOWE, Suzanne C. (2004). Marketplace Masters: How Professional Service Firms Compete to Win. Praeger WELLS, Louis T. (1998). Multinationals and the Developing Countries. Journal of International Business Studies, Vol. 29 Word Count: 2,578 Read More

 

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