Current Issues in Management: A Case Study of HK Ocean Park

This paper discusses the current issues in management with a case study of HK Ocean Park. It covers topics such as environmental partnership, carbon management policy, circular economy, and non-market environment. The paper also highlights the importance of understanding trending management strategies for business sustainability.

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Current issues in management
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Current issues in management
Introduction
Management is a general knowledge of controlling things or people. Usually,
organizational management is defined as the process of planning, organizing, controlling and
directing the functions of an enterprise. Managing an organization have been a hectic process as
perceived by the management personnel. Change in environmental business concepts and lack of
management concepts have contributed to different failures for the organization. Management
process has been under attack because of technical theoretical concepts of management concepts
(Golembiewski, 2018).
However, current trends in the management have been viewed to contribute to the
organization dissolution because of its technicalities. Organization and individual ethics are the
primary inclinations that have contributed failure to attain the strategic goals and objectives of an
organization. The system and governance in an enterprise imply the changes in the relationship
between the top level, corporate management, and the strategic issues. The stakeholder’s
behavior tendencies reflect on the management changes in the marketing approaches inaugurated
by the organizational management.
Ocean Park Hong Kong is well known as the “Ocean Park”. It is an amusement park,
marine mammal park, animal theme park and oceanarium park situated in Wong Chuk Hang and
Nam Long Chan in Hong Kong. It commonly is known to be the second largest park after the
Hong Kong Disneyland. It was officially opened in 1977 by Sir Murray MacLehose who was the
Governor of Hong Kong. The park was considered to be popular since its inception in 1977, but
in 2005 the enterprise became down-size and unprofitable because of stiff competition from
Hong Kong Disneyland (Cheung, 2015).

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Consequently, the park responded with HK$5.5 billion development strategies making it
be seen growing despite its early failure. The park received over 7 million visitors in 2014
making it be 13th world known park in the whole world, during this year, the park has left the
Hong Kong Disneyland at the pay because of its spontaneous growth and development in terms
of annual visitation from people coming from whole over the globe. Visitors who visit the park
normally comes from the China and the larger region of Asia and USA ( Adongo, et al., 2016).
With the average of 6 million visitors annually has reflected sustainability of business
development at Hong Kong Ocean Park. The park has various attraction sites comprising four
rollers coaster, animal exhibits, rainforest, polar displays and aquarium that features the world
largest aquarium dome. According to the study, between 1979 and 1997, Ocean Park was most
famous for its autograph of killer whale and Miss Hoi Wai.
Apparently, the HK Ocean Park has played a major role in ensuring that the Corporate
social responsibility contributed to its trust in the world by ensuring that environmental advocacy
is part of their major concern as the company. As a result of its growth and development HK
Ocean Park as experience some of the management challenges, where such challenges as limit
the company from attaining its strategic goals and objectives that are set by the stakeholders.
Environmental business factors and other marketing concepts and theories are amongst the
current issues affecting the operations at HK Ocean Park (Barley, 2017).
Theoretical review
Business enterprises are looking forward to ensuring that they have the better image to
the public, this is a driving force that has to compel business enterprises to major focus on the
concepts that will contribute to their sustainability (Bendell, 2017). However, the business waves
on sustainability have also allowed business companies to but their attention on the

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environmental business issues, as well as their social as well as the mixtures of economic
aspects.
Environmental Sustainability has been the primary concern of many business firms in the
market, HK Ocean Park has been part of the forward moving companies in Asia who want to
have the better public figure in their respective industry. In order to develop and increase its
business sustainability in the market, the HK Ocean Park has focused on understanding the social
issues, economic aspects as well as theoretical strategies installed by the management that suit
their internal and external business activities (Ocean Park, 2014). Attaining sustainability in
business environment might not be attained only by business organizations that only focus on
profit marking, but those who are the concern with their pay-back to the societies, economic
contribution to the country. It is important for business companies to focus such comprehension
of management concepts, although they are considered to be simple they tend to have the great
impact on the business when ignored.
Environmental partnership
According to Bendell, J. (2014), the environmental partnership is defined as voluntary
defined joined activities and decision-making practice among the corporate, non-profit
organization with the primary objective of improving their environmental quality with regard to
resource utilization. HK Ocean Park is a business enterprise that has to ensure that its mission
and vision are attained and achieved by incorporating partnership activities in their business
process (Bendell, 2017).
The prime purpose of encouraging environmental partnership in the business
environment has contributed to environmental sustainability since it allows the business
organization to increase their strength, and thus improving their process of attaining the strategic

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goals and objectives, and also becoming more competitive as compared to organizations that do
their business activities solely (Chiang, 2015).
According to this study, in 2014, the HK Ocean Park became world known park since it
initiated talks and Memorandum of Understanding with other leading companies around the
world. Tom Mehrmann, Chief Executive of Ocean Park, (2014), agreed to sign MOU’s with
world class companies. HK Ocean Park has associated its business activities with the Marriott
Hotel, this has contributed to the company success by increasing its revenues more than the other
market players (Ocean Park, 2014). In order to commute its visitors to different sections of the
park, HK Ocean Park has allowed the MTR’s to contract trail transport, this will allow the
company to increase its operation as well as enhance its competitive advantage. MTR’s has
contracted South Island line that connects the southern part of the HK Ocean Park, this is
according to the report given to the stakeholder in 2016.
According to Tom Mehrmann, (2016), Lai Sun and Ocean Park have sung an agreement
that will enhance business sustainability, this will regard mutual benefits to both business
organization. Asia-Pacific Marriott International hotel opened in Hong Kong is intended to
provide quality and world-class hospitality management to the guest visiting the park. Based on
the above evidence, the business organization tends to be more strong and competitive when
partnering with other business organizations (Haynes, 2017). The partnership allows the business
organization to gain more trust from the customers, the cooperating companies creates a
confident business environment that enhances the better conduct of business activities (Chiang,
2015).
Environment and Carbon Management Policy

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HK Ocean Park recognizes it sustainability to be parcel of its success in the business
environment. the company intends to provide it service by committing itself with the
comprehensive understanding of the management concepts and the related changes. According to
Çetinkaya, B. (2017), the primary purpose of environmental carbon management policies is to
enhance that business organizations are providing excellent professional services to its
stakeholders in relations to all matters relating to the environment, risk management and
occupational health and safety (Çetinkaya, 2017). The HK Ocean Park has coordinated and
increased its awareness about the existing sustainability initiatives that enhance environmental
sustainability in business, HK Ocean Pack has reflected on the importance of carbon
management policie (Wassmer, 2017)s.
The HK Ocean Park recognizes it corporate sustainability toward protecting the
environment and community it is situated. The company is committed to the dual ethos of the
responsible global citizenship as well as the sustainability concepts reflected to reduce the carbon
emissions, this shows that the company is trying to address issues relating to the climate changes
and their impact to the humanity. The management of Ocean Park is committed to providing
good environmental practices as well as carbon care programs, these theories tend to enhance
business environmental sustainability. The company has ensured that its supplies of resource and
contractors are abiding by policies provided by the World Carbon management agencies.
HK Ocean Park is the concern with their respective business activities which have the
direct environmental impact. The company is much committed to the initiatives that continually
minimize the environmental impact of their business activities, reduction of carbon emission is
also the concern of the company (Lee, 2018). The study reveals that the company management
has experience greater impact of issues relating to the management to carbon policies, but by

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incorporating major business sustainability theories and frameworks, the company has improved
its management system in respective areas by upgrading the relevant system, educating of staff
as well as investing on new sustainable projects and products (Golembiewski, 2018).
According to the company report, the HK Ocean park developed the carbon reduction
plan as from 2011-2012. Currently, the HK Ocean Park is known to aspire to be a carbon neutral
company by completing all major elements that contribute carbon emission to the environment.
The circular of economy
The economic circular of a company represents looking beyond the current state of the
operation in an organization. This implies that companies who want to develop economic growth
have to consider the conceptual understanding of their economic standard at a given period of
time (Stahel, 2016). Circular of the economy of an organization visualize on increasing and
improving the company activities resulting to better profit making, by implementing on factors
that will encourage resource utilization, waste emission, and the energy linkages are reduced to
decrease the cost of operations of the company (Ten Brink, 2017).
HK Ocean Park has been on the move to improve its economic share in the industry by
looking beyond their current state of affairs. The company has reflected on major areas that will
ensure that the company standards of performance are enhanced as a way of promoting business
environmental sustainability (SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST, 2018). With the better
reputation in the market of tourism in Hong Kong, the Ocean Park has partnered with the current
government, the government has injected over HK$ 300 million that will allow the company to
provide free tickets to 10, 000 students annually. This approach of cash injection has boosted the
company profitability making process. The Hong Kong Government recognizes tourism sector as
the major contributor to the economic growth with the contribution of HK$ 116 billion which is

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same as 5% of the GDP and employing 267, 000 people from within the local employment
market in Hong Kong (Ocean Park, 2014). Therefore, the government tends to motivate the
sector by providing increased incentives to the performing companies in different sectors.
Despite of injection of cash from the government in support of the tourism sector, the company
has announced HK$ 234 million resulting from fee increase due to competitive market. This has
affected the company process of attaining its strategic missions and visions.
Non-market environment
According to Shoval, & McKercher, (2017), non-market environment is defined as the
internal and external organization as well as correcting factors that facilitate progressive market
activities, these aspects comprises economic, political, social and cultural factors. The
coordination of these factors tends to encourage the organization to confidently function
effectively as they enhance business environmental sustainability (Shoval & McKercher, 2017).
The definition of the theoretical concept of the current management issues reflect the
coordination of the organization outside operation but in conjunction with the marketing
strategies. Non-market environment strategy allows the company to fully meet the stakeholder
interest in proving conducive business environment and sustainability as the primary in the
market (Brown, 2014).
HK Ocean park has coordinated the non-market environment strategies by allowing the
government to interne and contribute in decision making process. According to the HK Ocean
Park, (2018), the government cheap-in to the loses that was announced by the company
management, that the company has lost almost HK$243 million last 2018 despite of the
incentives injected to the company. HK Ocean Park has reflected the comprehension and
understanding of the four “I” of Non-market strategies (Kopnina & Blewitt, 2018). The company

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has focus to understand information that will contribute to their success, their interest of the
company in particular business activities should also be well known by all stakeholders.
Argument made by institution such as government, Non-governmental organization are also
announced to be of prodigious importance (Smale & Moore,, 2018).
Conclusion
Management process has been under siege created by different organization concepts that
affect business environmental sustainability. But with appropriate understanding knowledge on
trending management strategies enhances business sustainability. The paper has explained major
concepts that facilitate the sustainability in business organization. Circular of economy is defined
as the process of looking beyond the present state of economic affairs of an institution,
environmental partnership is embraced as working together with other business organization
with the purpose of proving professional products and services to the consumers. However, non-
market strategies reflect the incorporation of company activities in-conjunction with the
marketing approached as ascertained by obtaining issues, interest, information from institutions.

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