Career Viewpoint: Future Trends in the Food Retail Industry

This report discusses the future trends in the food retail industry and the skills and knowledge required for a career as a Business Development Manager. It explores the impact of Brexit, technology, and globalization on the industry. The report also highlights job opportunities at Tesco.

Career Viewpoint

Contents
INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................................3
Analysis and Application..........................................................................................................................3
General trends that will impact the Food Retail industry.........................................................................3
Skills/Knowledge and Experience Required............................................................................................5
Evaluation..................................................................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION..........................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES..........................................................................................................................................7
Appendix....................................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Career plays a major role in the life of a person and significantly contributes to their
success by providing direction as well as making it clear where do they see themselves in the
future (Baym, 2019). It also makes a person aware of their strengths as well as weaknesses along
with the skills that are required in order to attain personal goals. I have chosen the food retail
industry and business development manager as the profession. Food retail is one of the fastest
growing industries that offers a wide range of jobs to the potential employees. The main aim of
this report is to explain the future trends that can have an impact on the profession as well as
industry chosen by me. It will also explain the skills and knowledge, along with the experience
that will be required by me to get the desired job. Lastly, an evaluation is also included in the
report that identifies an appropriate job vacancy. The organization chosen for this report is
Tesco.
Analysis and Application
Food retail industry is a fast-growing industry that generates a lot of employment
opportunities for potential employees each year. There are different job roles that are offered by
the industry, among which Business Development Manager is one of the same. A business
development manager within an organization is responsible for formulating and developing
growth strategies that can help it achieving desired goals and objectives. Apart from this, they
are also responsible for managing as well as retaining the relationships with existing clients. A
business development manager makes sure that the organization has access to a large client base
and that the employees working under him/her have a complete understanding of the products as
well as services that are offered by the organization. There are various trends that can influence
the food retail industry. This is because there are many changes that are taking place within the
industry and can impact the jobs that I might apply for. I wish to gain a job as Business
Development Manager in this industry because it will help me in improving my communication
skills as well as provide me with various opportunities to network with other people.
General trends that will impact the Food Retail industry
There are a number of factors that are shaping the future trends of the food retail industry
in the United Kingdom (De Vos and Cambré, 2017). They are significantly contributing towards

changing the customers’ experience. Some of these trends along with their impact are explained
below –
Brexit – Brexit has had a material impact on the food retail industry of United Kingdom
and it is expected the prices of raw material for the food producers will increase (Brexit and the
UK food sector, 2020). Not only this, the prices of supermarket products are also expected to go
up. It has also impacted the availability of labor from EU within the nation. Therefore, Brexit has
created uncertainties for the organizations that operate in the food retail industry.
Tesco Booker Merger – Tesco taking over Booker can increase competition within the
food retail industry. This can lead to a reduction in the prices for the customers. There will be an
increase in the competition because apart from Tesco, only Sainsburys and Morrisons offer the
option of same-day delivery services.
Globalization and Technology– Globalization can impact the food retail industry in a
significant manner. Due to globalization, the concept of fast-food has outgrown in the market
because it is affordable and conveniently available in the market. Apart from globalization,
technology is another major trend that has influenced the food retail industry. This is because it
has improved the overall processing as well as packaging (How Technology Is Transforming The
Food Industry, 2020). This might have an impact on the jobs that I apply for because I will be
required to have an understanding as well as knowledge about the latest technological systems.
Amazon Fresh – Amazon said that it will not charge any amount from its prime
members in order to deliver the food items to the customers. Also, the company sells fresh food
items that can create a competition among organizations within the food retail industry.
Personalized Customer Experience – Companies operating in the food retail industry
are adopting various strategies and measures in order to provide a personalized experience to the
customers. Using analytics can help organizations in predicting the needs and requirement of
customers (Gordon and Schultz, 2020). Sensors within the retail stores can track what products
are the customers buying and inform the staff members so that they can be restocked.
Hybrid Shop and Eat Concepts – This is a trend that is going to completely change the
way in which people shop. A lot of supermarket chains are considering new concepts that bring
together shopping as well as eating. In the near future, the customers will be able to book a table

while shopping and sample menus of the dishes prepared by products available at the store by
chefs will be available.
Skills/Knowledge and Experience Required
In a recent job advertisement for the job role of a Business Development Manager tat I
came across in the newspaper, I found that there are various personal and technical skills as well
as knowledge that are required to get this job. I did a research and found the skills and
experience mentioned below are expected from an applicant.
Motivation – An applicant at this stage is required to have a high level of motivation.
They should be motivated to complete tasks that are assigned to them in the most efficient
manner as well as well within the timeframe (Jiang, 2017). This is because a motivated person
will encourage around him/her to perform effectively and achieve the desired goals.
Adaptability – An applicant is also expected to be able to adapt themself to whichever
work environment that they are placed into. Also, a person who is adaptable, is able to learn from
the experiences and deal with different problems relating to their life as well as jobs.
Honesty and Integrity – Applicants who apply for a job at an organization are expected
to be honest and have integrity. This is because people who work with integrity are truthful and
can be relied upon. Also, such employees treat their colleagues and customers with respect. They
do the right thing even when no one is watching.
Knowledge of Latest Technology – An applicant is also expected to possess knowledge
about the latest technology and how a basic equipment works (Le, Jiang and Nielsen, 2018)
(Pitel, 2017). This can include having knowledge about different programming languages etc.
This is an important technical skill because it helps the applicant in understanding the different
processes within the workplace effectively, if selected.
Data Analysis – Data analysis is another important technical language because a
business development manager is expected to analyze the detailed data relating to sales of the
company. It will also be beneficial for the organization in determining their position in the
market.

Evaluation
I came across a job advertisement for the vacancy of a Business Development Manager at
Tesco, which is one of the leading retail organizations in the United Kingdom. I find the role of a
business development manager to be interesting because it involves meeting a lot of new people,
interacting and networking with them. Also, an experienced and successful business
development manager is considered to be a great asset for a company. They are offered bonuses
and several other benefits if they perform well and help the company in attaining desired goals
and objectives (Spanjaard, Hall and Stegemann, 2018). They help a business to grow and avail
different opportunities of expansion as well as develop long-term relations with potential clients.
This is the right job for me because I am an extrovert and find it interesting to interact with new
people. Also, I find that the retail industry is one of the fastest growing industries that offers a
wide range of jobs to people. I am a confident and self-motivated person, which is one of the
required skills for being a business development manager.
I prefer this job opportunity because it will jeep me updated about all the recent trends of
the food retail industry and allow me to not only bond with the clients, but also with my
colleagues. It will also teach me to communicate gracefully with others, thereby developing
long-term relations with them. Apart from this, I will be able to develop customers service skills,
which are considered to be a priority among applicants today. These skills are beneficial not only
for the food retail industry and can be easily transferred (Vondracek, Lerner and Schulenberg,
2019). It is an advantage to have money handling skills as it helps in learning how to operate
cash registers that are computerized as well as is useful in other industries as well.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that career plays an important role in the life
of a person and in order to be successful, it is important for an individual to have certain skills
and knowledge about the latest trends in the market to be able to get desired job. Also, there are
various trends that can affect a particular industry or profession.

REFERENCES
Books & Journals
Baym, N., 2019. The shape of Hawthorne's career. Cornell University Press.
De Vos, A. and Cambré, B., 2017. Career management in high‐performing organizations: A set‐
theoretic approach. Human resource management. 56(3). pp.501-518.
Gordon, H. R. and Schultz, D., 2020. The history and growth of career and technical education
in America. Waveland press.
Jiang, Z., 2017. Proactive personality and career adaptability: The role of thriving at work.
Journal of Vocational Behavior. 98. pp.85-97.
Le, H., Jiang, Z. and Nielsen, I., 2018. Cognitive cultural intelligence and life satisfaction of
migrant workers: The roles of career engagement and social injustice. Social Indicators
Research. 139(1). pp.237-257.
Pitel, I. J., 2017. Making the engineer-to-entrepreneur transition [Entrepreneur Viewpoint]. IEEE
Power Electronics Magazine. 4(2). pp.17-19.
Spanjaard, D., Hall, T. and Stegemann, N., 2018. Experiential learning: Helping students to
become ‘career-ready’. Australasian Marketing Journal (AMJ). 26(2). pp.163-171.
Vondracek, F. W., Lerner, R. M. and Schulenberg, J. E., 2019. Career development: A life-span
developmental approach. Routledge.
Online
Brexit and the UK food sector. 2020. [Online]. Available through:<
https://www.pwc.co.uk/industries/retail-consumer/insights/the-consumer-global-m-and-a-
trends-in-the-consumer-sector/brexit-and-the-uk-food-sector.html>.
How Technology Is Transforming The Food Industry. 2020. [Online]. Available through:<
https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicolemartin1/2019/04/29/how-technology-is-transforming-
the-food-industry/#3e0a078820a3>.

Appendix
Tesco
The company is seeking to appoint a Business Development Manager based in London, United
Kingdom. An ideal candidate should have a minimum experience of years of working in the
same position and a relevant degree in Marketing from a reputed college or university.
Excellent communication as well as people skills are necessary. Proficiency in market research
and using latest technology are added advantages. Interested candidates are required to send
their CVs on [e-mail].