Overcoming the Conflict by Emphasizing Sustainable Development

The assignment discusses the social and ethical responsibilities of Marks & Spencer (M&S) in its international ventures, with a focus on sustainable development. The content highlights M&S' commitment to ethics and social responsibility as a key factor in its success. Additionally, it references various studies and articles that explore topics such as corporate social responsibility, globalization, and environmental sustainability.

Business Strategy
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Activity 1.........................................................................................................................................3
(a) Review of the techniques to analyse the environment and an assessment of their suitability
(b) An analysis of the micro and macro environments of the business.......................................4
(c) How the international business environment impacts Mark & Spencer ...............................5
d) Benefits, opportunities and challenges of globalization..........................................................6
(a) Extent of globalization on organizations................................................................................7
(b) Structures of different organizations operating in international markets...............................8
Activity 3.........................................................................................................................................8
Critical evaluation of international operations of Mark & Spencer ............................................8
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................9
References......................................................................................................................................10
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INTRODUCTION
In modern era, global business strategy is an important factor which determine the
success or failure of business at internal level. Global business strategies can be defined as a
action plan which help organization to achieve their mission, vision, values and objectives. Every
business whether profit making or a non profit making needs to develop some global strategies
so that they can operate in effective manner and achieve their goals. This report is based on Mark
and Spencer which is a UK based multinational retailer. Further the company is specialized in
sale of clothing, home products and luxury food products and services. The impact of micro and
macro environment on performance of the company has been highlighted in this report. In
addition to this, benefits, opportunities and challenges of globalisation has been explained in this
report.
ACTIVITY 1
(a) Review of the techniques to analyse the environment and an assessment of their suitability
Every business whether profit making or non profit making requires to analyse its macro
and micro environment in order to identify factors which can affects its operations. In order to
understand the micro environment SWOT analysis is termed as the best tool. It explains the
strength weakness opportunities and threat of a businesses (Ulrich, 2013). Further by doing this
analysis organisation becomes effective in determining their future plans and strategies.
Identification of opportunities helps them to understand their future chances of growth and
development. On the other hand, by analyses of threat company can determine what are the
factor which can cause barrier to growth and success of organization. After these factors are
identified companies can easily frame action plan in order to overcome the same.
On the other hand, macro environment of company can be analysed with the help of
PESTEL analysis. When businesses operates at international level they have to take care of some
macro environmental factors which can affects the operations of business (Dunning, 2014).
Further every company has there own kind of factors. The PESTEL analysis model highlights
the political, economical, social technological, environment and legal factors and conditions
prevailing in the country (Regmi and Gehlhar, 2005). Further all these have directly or indirectly
affects the operation's of company. It consists of various sub factors such as government rules
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and regulations, tax policy, economic condition of country, rate of technological advancements,
per capital income, standard of living, purchasing power of people in country etc.
Thus, it can be stated as both the techniques are very useful in order to analysed the
impact of macro and micro environmental factors on operations of an organization (Barrett,
Cooper and Jamal, 2005).
(b) An analysis of the micro and macro environments of the business
Mark & Spencer is a British retail company which operates with more than 800 stores
scattered in more than 30 countries of the world. Further it is largest clothing retailer in UK
which has also established itself as a food retailer (Marks & Spencer, 2015). It has been observed
that most of the store of the brand sell products and services related to both food as well as
clothing. Since 2000 the brand has started to diversify in some other areas such as technology,
furniture and home wares. The micro and macro environment of Mark & Spencer has been
provided below as:
Micro environment
Strengths
 Excellent and high quality products and
services
 Team of motivated and satisfied
employees
 High brand value and image at
international level
Weakness
 Rely heavily on British supplier which
increase its cost of production
 the company lacks customer focus
 Unable to attract market of youth which
is at present the biggest and most
potential market segment
Opportunities
 Opportunities for entering into online
business in order to deliver services via
online
 Diversification in some growing
industry such as beauty care and home
Threats
 Competitors have introduced their
online retail store
 Changing need and demand of
customer
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furnishing  low performance and profitability in
foreign markets
Macro environment
Political
 Government forms various rules and
regulations which every company
needs to follow strictly
 Mark & Spencer needs to provide high
quality products and services
 It is also required by the company to
respond quickly to various customer
complains and inquiries
Economical
 The preset economic condition are very
uncertain and it will have direct impact
on sale and profitability of the brand
 People are not left with spare cash
which they can invest on Luxurious
food and clothing (French and
Geldermann, 2005)
 Number of Mark & Spenser showroom
have been closed recently
Social
 The need and demand of customer is
changing with a great speed
 Till now the brand has always been
able to meet the need of customer
 The standard of living is also increasing
which clearly reflects the fact that
demand of Luxurious products and
services will increase.
Technological
 Technology is one of the important
factor which determine the success of
retail organization
 The use of internet to deliver products
and services has helped many retail
business to achieve competitive
advantage (Cabrera, 2006)
 Use of advancement and upgraded
technology will help the brand to
increase its sale and profitability
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(c) How the international business environment impacts Mark & Spencer
When businesses operates at international level it is required by them to take care of the
global business environment. International business means doing business in more than one
country of the world. In such cases organizations are required not only to frame different
strategies but are also required to take care of micro and macro environmental factor of the
country (Burt and Sparks, 2005). Mark & Spencer is big retail brand which operates in more than
30 countries of the world. Further it is not easy to manage activities at such a big level and
compile with political, economic, social and technological condition of a country. It is required
by the brand to understand these conditions as if they are unable to cope with the same (Regmi
and Gehlhar, 2005). Changes in economic condition of global business environment will have
direct impact on sales and profitability of the company. Other than this, if there is any kind of
technological advancement then the brand will be able to manufacture and deliver products in
more cost effective manner. Further it will increase the revenue of the brand. If the political
condition in some countries changes then also sales will be affected (Browne and et. al., 2005).
Thus, it can be stated that any change in global business environment will directly affect the
sales of Mark & Spencer.
d) Benefits, opportunities and challenges of globalization
Globalization can be defined as a process in which businesses eliminates the geographical
barrier and starts operating at international level. The benefits of globalization are mentioned
below as: Increase brand awareness- Globalization will help Mark & Spencer to increase its
brand awareness by expanding their operation in other countries. More and more
customer will become aware about the brand which will directly increase its sales (Hare,
2005).
 Increase in mart share- When companies operates in domestic market there market
share is limited as there are limited number of customer available. Globalization will
help Mark & Spencer to increase its market share by exploring some new markets and
customers (Jones, Comfort and Hillier, 2005).
Opportunities of globalization
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 Increase in growth and profitability- When organizations operates in domestic level their
opportunities for growth and development is limited (Whitehouse, 2006). Thus,
globalization will help Mark & Spencer to create more customer and explore new
markets which directly increases the growth and development opportunities for
businesses. Competitive advantage- Globalization helps organizations to gain competitive advantage
as operating in global market creates their brand image. Further it also encourage
customer to prefer products and services of Mark and Spencer over its competitor.
Challenges of globalization Availability of financial resources- The key challenge which is faced by organizations
while expanding their operation to international market is making arrangement regarding
financial resources (Burt and Sparks, 2005). Huge capital will be required by Mark &
Spencer in order to operate in more than one country. Understanding the cultural environment- One of the biggest challenge for Mark &
Spencer is to understand the cultural environment of country in which it is planning to
operate. Most of the companies are not able to understand the culture and it directly
results in failure of international venture.
Additional sections
(a) Extent of globalization on organizations
In modern era, companies which operates at domestic level are finding it very difficult to
increase their opportunities for growth and profitability (Van Yperen, 2006). Thus, in such
situation the best remedy to overcome this problem is globalization. It helps businesses to
increase their market share, sales and profitability. Many big brands to the world have
understood the importance of globalization and have established their operations at international
level. Mark & Spencer is a well-known brand in apparel industry and it has also diversified its
range of products and services in food industry (Jones, Comfort and Hillier, 2005). At present it
is operating in more than 30 countries of the world. International expansion has helped the brand
to explore some new markets and customers. Therefore, it can be stated that globalization is
beneficial for companies.
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On the other hand, it has been observed that along with increase in growth opportunities
it also becomes difficult for companies to manage their operation in different countries. The
social, political economical and culture background differs from country to country (Pretious and
Love, 2006). Thus, they are required to analyze the same in order to understand the specific need
and demand of customer of different market. If these factors are not managed properly then it
may also result in heavy loss of human and financial resources. Therefore, it can be said that
globalization is necessary for companies but to only certain extent so that operations can be
effectively managed and brand image can be maintained easily in global market (Benefits and
Risks of Financial Globalization, 2004).
(b) Structures of different organizations operating in international markets
Different organization operating in international market uses different structure according
to their size and nature of products and services. Some of the structure are mentioned below as: Functional structure- In such kind of structure multinational companies uses corporate
function as a base of their structure. Further the main functional units of which
companies lays emphasis are customer service, manufacturing, designing and human
resources (Bakewell, Mitchell and Rothwell, 2006). The structure is in centralized form
and all major operations are based in home country. Other than this, other international
market are responsibilities of employees and all the operations are managed by the
foreign employees of the company. Geographical– It is most commonly used organizational structure in multinational
companies (French and Geldermann, 2005). In such kind of structure the head office is
located in home country and semi independent offices and operations are established in
other countries where organization operates.
 International division- in such type of structure the company expands its operations to
international market without disturbing its functioning in home market. The main focuses
of company lays on home market and its international division is left completely free to
adapt the foreign market trends.
However, it can be stated that businesses choose organization structure as per their need
and requirements. Further business enterprise also faces issues related to supply chain,
outsourcing and communication (Burt and Sparks, 2005). The pressure on producers to high
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quality products is increasing day by day. This means that they are required to procure best
quality of raw material and other related things. Main issue in this aspect is that it is not easy to
find those suppliers which can provide best quality products. The increasing competitiveness in
industries all across the world has forced businesses to rely more on their supply chain in order
to manage and maintain their value chain. At the time of operating at global level businesses also
faces issues regarding communications (Pretiou and Love, 2006). One of the major problem in
this is related to intercultural communication where languages and culture act as main barriers.
Managers operating at global level sometimes are not able to understand the messages and they
are required to take help from intermediaries in order to understand the same. Along with the
changes in time and working hours of countries also makes it difficult for businesses operating in
international markets to communicate with each other in effective manner.
ACTIVITY 3
Critical evaluation of international operations of Mark & Spencer
Mark & Spencer is a UK based clothing and food retail company which was established
in the year 1884. At present the brand is operating in more than 30 counties of the world and it
has over 85000 employees working in its different international ventures. In addition to this, it
has tied up with more than 2000 supplier scattered all over the globe. Main regions in which the
brand operates consist of Russia, Europe, Asian and Middle East. Total 49% of its revenue is
generated from its international ventures that deals in clothing and home ware products. The
remaining 51% comes from its food products (Regmi and Gehlhar, 2005). In UK Mark &
Spencer has more than 600 stores which makes it very convenient for customer to easily find and
purchase its products and services. Its expansion in potential markets such as India and China has
helped in manufacturing products and services in cost effective manner. Further due to high
population in these market the brand has found many opportunities for growth and
developments. Due to the recession occurred in 2009 the sales of the brand was affected as it
deals with luxurious clothing products and people were discouraged to satisfy their luxurious
needs (Marks & Spencer, 2015). With the passage of time the company has overcome the stage
of recession and now it has been growing really well. Further, it has already established a good
brand name and image in global market. Mark & Spencer is also giving tough competition to
other market players by diversifying its range of products and services offered. However argued
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that there are many issues and challenges which are faced by Mark & Spencer at the time of
carrying out its international operations. One of the main problem is that the culture and business
environment differs from one nation to another (French and Geldermann, 2005). Further while
operating in any country, the brand is required to take care of its culture, employment laws and
labor related practices. If these things are not addressed than company's operations directly gets
affected. Penalties and fines are also imposed on the brand if they are not taken into
consideration (Browne and et. al., 2005). Another disadvantage of Mark & Spencer international
operation is that the taste and preferences of customers also varies from country to country. It
become very complicated for the brand to understand the changing market trend in every nation
where it operates.
It is also required by the brand to manufacture and deliver products according to the
needs of different countries. During international operations Mark & Spencer also faces
problems related to recruitment. The brand needs to determine whether it should appoint local
people of host country as managers or should send expatriates. In addition to this, van Yperen,
(2006) has explained that the expatriates are well aware of the culture and operations of a
businesses enterprise whereas local people knows the market and trend of host country in more
effective manner. Therefore, it can be stated that it is not necessary that international expansion
is always beneficial for organizations such as Mark & Spencer. There are some disadvantage
which is associated at the time of operating internationally. Thus, businesses needs to be very
careful at the time of developing their strategies regarding international expansions.
CONCLUSION
Global business strategy assist businesses to achieve their long term goals and objectives
by providing suitable directions. From the above report it can be concluded that due to limited
growth and development opportunities every organization is required to take a step towards
globalisation. It will help to develop new opportunities for growth and expansion by exploring
some new markets. It can be also stated that there are some ethical issues which can be faced by
companies such as conditions regarding employment and human rights in host country. It can be
also concluded that according to the need and size of organization structures are selected when
companies perform in global market. It has been observed that there is always a conflict between
corporate strategy and social responsibilities. Therefore in order to overcome the same the best
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solution is to look forwards for sustainable development. It can be also stated that Mark &
Spencer has always taken care of its ethical and social responsibilities which has contributed a
lot in the success of its international ventures.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
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Barrett, M., Cooper, D. J. and Jamal, K., 2005. Globalization and the coordinating of work in
multinational audits. Accounting, Organizations and Society. 30(1). pp. 1-24.
Browne, M., Rizet, C., Anderson, S., Allen, J., and Keita, B. (2005). Life cycle assessment in the
supply chain: a review and case study. Transport Reviews, 25(6), 761-782.
Burt, S. and Sparks, L., 2005. Retail Internationalisation:: From Formats to Implants. European
Management Journal. 23(2). pp. 195-202.
Cabrera, E., 2006. Hospitality Marketing.
Dunning, J. H., 2014. The Globalization of Business (Routledge Revivals): The Challenge of the
1990s. Routledge.
French, S. and Geldermann, J., 2005. The varied contexts of environmental decision problems
and their implications for decision support. Environmental Science and Policy, 8(4),
378-391.
Hare, J., 2005. Marks and (and) Spencer: EU Claims for Cross-Border Loss Relief. Tax
Executive. 57. pp. 340.
Jones, P., Comfort, D. and Hillier, D., 2005. Corporate social responsibility and the UK's top ten
retailers. International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management. 33(12). pp. 882-
892.
Jones, P., Comfort, D. and Hillier, D., 2005. Corporate social responsibility as a means of
marketing to and communicating with customers within stores: A case study of UK food
retailers. Management Research News. 28(10). pp. 47-56.
Pretious, M. and Love, M., 2006. Sourcing ethics and the global market: the case of the UK retail
clothing sector. International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management. 34(12).
pp. 892-903.
Regmi, A. and Gehlhar, M. J., 2005. New directions in global food markets. US Department of
Agriculture.
Ulrich, D., 2013. Human resource champions: The next agenda for adding value and delivering
results. Harvard Business Press.
van Yperen, M., 2006. Corporate social responsibility in the textile industry. International
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Whitehouse, L., 2006. Corporate social responsibility: Views from the frontline. Journal of
Business Ethics. 63(3). pp. 279-296.
Schor, J., 2005. Cleaning the closet. Environmental sociology: from analysis to action, 439.
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Benefits and Risks of Financial Globalization. 2004. [Online]. Available through:
<http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DEC/Resources/BenefitsandRisksofFinancialGlobal
izationSchmukler.pdf>. [Accessed on 18th August 2015].
Marks & Spencer. 2015. [Online]. Available through: <http://www.marksandspencer.com/>.
[Accessed on 18th August 2015].
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