Impact of Macro Environment on Business Strategies of IKEA
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This report discusses the impact of macro environment on IKEA and its business strategies. It includes a PESTLE analysis, stakeholder analysis, SWOT analysis, and evaluation of Porter's Five Force Model.
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BUSINESS- STRATEGY
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Table of Contents INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1 TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1 Impact and influence of macro environment on organisation and its business strategies......1 TASK 2............................................................................................................................................6 Assessment of internal environment and capabilities............................................................6 TASK 3............................................................................................................................................8 Evaluation of a given market by applying Porter's Five Force Model..................................8 TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................12 Applying of theories, concepts, models to understand and interpret strategic directions available to a company.........................................................................................................12 CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................15 REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................16
INTRODUCTION Business strategy can be denoted as a set of competitive norms which are used by business to attract customers, strengthen their performance, get a competitive advantage and finally helps in achievement of organizational objectives. It basically outlines what should be done by the company and way in which various task haveto be planned and initiated are discussed in planning of business strategy. This report is based on IKEA which is a multinational giant deals in retailing of furniture, home accessories & Kitchen related appliances. It was started in 1934 and founded by Ingvar Kamprad. It is having presence in 48 countries across world. Its first store was opened in Smaland in year 1958 and then they expanded in Europe and other different countries. IKEA believes in satisfying household furniture need of their segment of customers which they re targetting in different countries where they arehaving their stores located. This report consists of influence of macro environment on company and in forming its strategies, assessing internal environment of business, application of porters five force model, and lastly various concepts , theories and models are applied so that company can get directions in which they have to plan their actions(Morton, Wilson and Cooke, 2015).. TASK 1 Impact and influence of macro environment on organisation and its business strategies ď‚·Mission:-IKEA has a mission that they want to offer wide range of home furnishing items with good design, better quality, durability and function. At same time they want to offer such products at low prices. ď‚·Vision:- Vision of this company is to create a better everyday life for their customers. ď‚·Objectives:-The company has laid objectives that they want to reach different parts of world, they are focussing on giving price based competition to their existing competitors who belong to this industry. PESTLE analysis:this analysis will provide detailed information of IKEA about the external analysis of this company. External analysis is very importantto be done for companies to understand implications of such plans on decision making of company. This tool helps in understanding overall impact of macro environmenton company. Below mentioned is the external analysis of IKEA: 1
ď‚·Political:-political factors prevailing in a country also affect a company, supply chain disruption prevailing in UK isa issue which is faced by IKEA. They are planning to enter Asian market but they have to deal with lot of complexities, huge part of this company is present in the European market and political instability present there is going to effect supply chain activities of IKEA(Rasula, Vuksic and St,2016).Due to political instability, this will impact negatively on the performance of IKEA. ď‚·Economic:-countries which are having emerging economies help in growth of company as a whole. It was because of the recession situation worldwide that IKEA faced decline in their overall sales. In 2007 recession situation had a serious impact on company's sales and their profits dropped but after that comply tries to overcome from such situation by adopting new strategies Prices of products were not managed properly and there were losses of jobs by the people who were working in this company. With the economic situations getting stable this brand is having better profits and higher sales.So due to this, 2
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the impact of the performance of IKEA will be negative as due to low level of employees, the profits and performance of organisation will be negatively impacted due to non completion of the tasks of organisation. ď‚·Social:-Social factors have a impact on business and their profits. Every country has its own culture and people living their actually affect company's sales. Such activities are very important for companies in analysing these social factors as this will help them in increase in their sales, as people will be able to get products according to their requirementanddemand.IKEAhasalsobeenabletosuccessfullyanalysethe requirements in terms of home furnishing in the country where they are having presence. So with the help of considering the tastes and preferences of customers in the market, it will be possible for the company to make positive impact over their performances and make good brand image in the minds of their customers. ď‚·Technological:-IKEA is focussing on providing a different and unique experience to their customers. Customer expectation from this brand has risen a lot and they have to meet those expectations otherwise this will effect company brand image. Cognitive intelligence and artificial intelligence are two factors which IKEA is planning to adopt in their operations to provide better experience to their customers.The implementation of new technologies in the working of their organisations will provide the company with opportunities to capture more market share for the growth and development of their organisations. ď‚·Legal:-Legal regulations always posses a threat for companies. For IKEA also this company is affected by laws such as labour laws. There are some cases in which IKEA has been involved such as people facing serious issues because of their furniture which has caused death of people, such issues havea negative effect on company's overall reputation in market.So in order to have positive impact, it is important for the company to consider the rules and regulations made by the government so that reduction could be made in the government intervention and the negative impacts on the working of their organisations could be reduced. ď‚·Environmental factor:-sustaining in the market for long term is very important for all companies. This is tool which will help them in reducing their cost which will help IKEA in maintaining their overall profit margin and at same time offering of products at 3
ď‚·reasonable prices.However, the working of this organisation is not impacting much on the environment but the contribution made by it towards the welfare of environment such as environmental prevention programmes will provide the company with positive aspects which will improve the organisation's brand image and awareness in the society and customers as well. IKEA is a furniture brand they deal in providing affordable priced furniture at high quality. PESTLE analysis of IKEA will help them in dealing with complex situations present in the macro environment and affects business in its internal management and strategic decision making(Pasquinelli, 2014). Stakeholder Analysis Stakeholders are those people who directly or indirectly affect actions of an organization. It is very essential for every company that they are able to recognize the needs of various stakeholder and take care of their need. StakeholderInfluence on IKEA CustomersMost of customers of IKEA re very loyal, which means that with time company has been successfullyabletobuildupbrand loyalty because of the quality and variety which they offer in furniture is different and unique from other competitors in market. SuppliersIKEA believes in building up of long term relationships with its various suppliers because they know that it is the suppliers who are responsibleforsmoothfunctioningand manufacturing activities of company. They can help company in having a cost advantage over its competitors. GovernmentsGovernment of every country is one of most important stakeholders which have to be taken care of by them. For IKEAalso they have to 4
adhere to all rules and laws which are formed by government of the country where they are having their presence. From government point also they try to support such companies as if they will be able to earn high profits then it is also beneficial for themas higher profits lead tohighpaymentoftaxwhichincreases revenue for government. This also helps in growth of economy of country. shareholdersShareholders are most important stakeholders ofeverycompany.IncaseofIKEAalso, shareholdersareactuallyresponsiblefor providing investment to company. This finance isneededsothatallfunctionstakeplace withoutanyinterruptionsandcompanyare able to attain their laid objectives. EmployeesThey are one among the internal stakeholders of company. IKEA believes in sharing growth with their employees this is reason why they always share their profits in forms of bonus, apartfromthattheyalsogivetimely promotions,incentives,variousmonetary benefitssothatemployeesarealways motivated and give their best in growth of company. Above discussed all stakeholders are very important for companies as they all help in smooth functioning of company and its operations. For achievement of overall objectives also such stakeholders play a very important part. IKEA as a big brand has always laid emphasis on keeping their stakeholders happy and satisfied they also share company'sgrowth with all their stakeholders.There are certain reasons due to which possibilities of changes increases in the 5
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organisation as such because of the conflicts in between the individual goals and conflict with strategies for organisational changes due to which it becomes important for the organisation to make changes in the working strategic objectives of the company. When personal conflicts arises in relation to the interest of their employees, this disturbs the working of an organisation so in order to make improvement in the performances of their employees and the working of organisation, it is important for the company to make changes in their strategic objectives. In this way, stakeholders impacts upon the working and strategic objectives of the company. TASK 2 Assessment of internal environment and capabilities SWOT analysis: StrengthWeakness ď‚·Ikeaishavingareputationinthe market that they are dealing in furniture whichisofgoodqualityandis available at reasonable process ď‚·They posses a vast network of stores which are ultra modern ď‚·They use integrated approach in their manufacturing and supply chain ď‚·Ikea is having growing structure and profit is rising each passing year. ď‚·Stores of Ikea are mostly located far fromtheitwhichissometimes inconvenient for people to visit there very frequently. ď‚·Theytakeveryhighleadtimein planning for their new stores. ď‚·Ikea is having a standard portfolio of products throughout all its stores ď‚·company has faced many issues and controversies related to durability and safety of furniture they are dealing in. OpportunitiesThreats ď‚·Therecanbeexpansiondonefor manufacturing of furniture at low cost so that products can be offered at more reasonable prices ď‚·withgrowingpopularityofe- commerce, such technology should be ď‚·There are entry barriers in new markets which company is willing to enter. ď‚·Being in the furniture industry there are so many law and regulation which they have to adhere. ď‚·They face price based competition and 6
used by the company in promotion and marketing of their products. also there are short of diversification strategies on part of company. VRIO analysis:VRIO framework is used by companies to evaluate their weakness and strength. This is a laid framework which is used by companies to do evaluation on four basic aspects which includes value, rarity, inimitable and organization. Four resources of IKEA which are human resource, global presence, technology and goodwill of the company is covered under its main resources. ď‚·Valuable:Above discussed four resources are valuable for company in a way that human resource IKEA will not able to execute its single function.The following are the main resources of the company which are valuable to them as such technology of the company, global presence, goodwill and personnel of the company which will help it is achieving sustainable competitive advantage over their competitors. These resources are valuable as thye help in some or other way in order to make an increment in the overall production, growth and development of the organisation. ď‚·Rare:The following term considers those resources of the organisation which are rare or scare to have. So among the resources of the company, the resources which are rare are technology, goodwill and global presences as these are achieved after years of good and effective working along with good brand image of company in the society and minds of customers (Morton, Wilson and Cooke, 2015). ď‚·Imitable:The resources of IKEA which are considered as Imitable are goodwill and technology as these are the main resources which are not possible for the company to imitate easily at any cost. As such patents are done to secure technology, and goodwill is nor made in any single period of time. It requires years of working so the following tow resource of the company are considered as imitable. ď‚·Organization:The resources which could provide the company with value are goodwill, technology with the help of which it will be possible for the company to achieve competitiveedgeovertheircompetitorsforthebettermentandgrowthofthe organisation. However, the working of this organisation is good but in order to make improvement in the overall position of the company it is important for the company to focus on improving their 7
capabilities with the help of which it could become possible to achieve sustainable competitive advantage over their competitors. ResourceValuableRareinimitableorganized Human resourceyesyes Global presenceyes Cost strategyyesyesyes Differentiation Strategy yesyesyesyes TASK 3 Evaluation of a given market by applying Porter's Five Force Model This is a model which is used by companies to analyse five forces externally present in the environment which have an effect on company and its operations. This model is very helpful for 8
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companies and assists them in making analysis What are various threats which are present in macro environment and can affect the company, its functioning, profitability, growth, overall sales growth in negative way(Milovanovic, 2015). Bargaining power of buyer:Customersof UK are the most important customer base for IKEA the reason behind this is that they entered this market initial stages of company. Customers of IKEA are those generally who are liketravelling abroad, willing to take risk by trying something new, are having a belief that they can early adopt trendy technologies of consumer etc. Company's management believes that customers can be satisfies if they will provide best quality in their products. They have focused on a marketing approach which can identify needs of their customers and then sell their furniture. Targeted group is the people who are looking for household furniture at reasonable prices and of good quality. Customers posses high bargaining power as there are many competitors of IKEA which provide variety of furniture at good prices. Bargaining power of supplier:IKEA is having a chain of 1074 suppliers which are present in 55 countries. They follow a low pricing strategy which means that they have to maintain good relationship with their suppliers. Good and long term relationships help company in reducing the bargaining power of their suppliers. If there will be high bargaining power then it can posses threat for company in terms of its reduced profit and interruptions in their overall network of supply chain. They attempt to maintain healthy relationship with their suppliers which ensures that they both are mutually benefited. This helps company in having long term relationship with their suppliers(Linn, Sanden and Piekkari, 2018). Threats of new entrant:-IKEA has a very unique concept and they have a established brand name. IKEA is having presence in countries, such as united kingdom. Such countries offer a market for many new brands who are willing to establish. This is reason why there is great possibility of new companies to enter such markets. Price penetrations as a strategy can be used by new companies to give competition to IKEA. T5hsi may lead to attracting of new segment of customers. Threat of substitute:-IKEA is a brand which has to be always very careful that their productscannot be easily substituted. This is reason why this brand always makes attempts to use latest trends and technology in their products. Also, they believe in some new innovations which can help this company in attracting new customers. Some of competitor of IKEA includes 9
Wal-mart, Office depot which are also providing low cost furniture, IKEA should make attempts that their sales are not affected because of such brands(Lee, 2014). Rivalry within market:-IKEA has always made efforts to attain a competitive edge in market. They are functioning in a extremely competitive environment where there are many companies who are offering wide range of variety furniture and at adequate quality. IKEA as a brand has been very successful in entering those markets which are very competitive such as markets of japan and china. Positioning is a strategy which has been adopted by IKEA since its initial stages, as they always laid emphasis on fulfilment of all expectations of their target customers which offered them a distinct position in market. Above mentioned were some of the aspects on which porter's five force model is based on and this has a effect on IKEA. In order to make reduction in the bargaining power of their suppliersand customers, it is important for the company to make use of easliy available reosurces and provide their customers withdifferentiatedproductsandservices.Thesecomponentswillalsoimpactuponthe profitability of the company as in case customers are able to influence the prices of their company than this will make reduction in the prices and also the profits of the company. So the profitability level is impacted. In this way, the different components of the model impacts upon the profitablility level of the company. Ans-off'sgrowth vector matrix:- It is a strategic management tool which company uses to plan their future development and growth strategies. Ansoff matrix basically consists of four different strategies which is used to support in overall functioning of a business(Lee and Smith, 201). IKEA has also used this model to analyse four strategies and then according to that select the most appropriate strategy which can be adopted by the company. Below four strategies from point of IKEA has been discussed: 10
Market Penetration:-This is a strategy which is used by many companies in this they focus on using exiting products and they try to expand themselves in the existing market where company is presently operating. Existing customer base is used in this strategy. Quality or low price these are two key features on which company makes efforts to gain attention of their existing customer base. As popularity of the product increases because of either price or quality standards being offered there is increase in sale of theproducts(Kohtamäki and et. al., 2012)emberger, 2012)(Ritter,and Andersen, 201)(Rowlinson, Hassard and Decker, 2014) (Storey, 201. In case of IKEA also, this company is managed to adopt penetration strategy as they are involve in high quality and at prices which re affordable by its target customers. The design which this brand is offering in its furniture and affordability in terms of price had made it achieve a distinct position in market. Market Development:-This strategy of porter deals with selling existing products but they want to expand into a new market or target new geographical areas. This strategy helps company in doing global expansion. Entering into completely new markets is not always very easy as it involves lot of research and investment by the company. IKEA has faced lot of difficulties whenever they have tried to expand themselves to abroad. They have successfully 11
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able to expand into 36 countries and territories. They have successfully expanded their global customer base by understanding and identifying their needs and able to successfully cater them. Product development:-Another strategy given by porter in this model is product development where companies are willing to introduce new product but in the existing market. Main focus of this strategy is on a complete new product development, but the customer base is existing ion this case. With the passage of time IKEA has been able to successfully expand their operations and functions in different parts of world. There has been a tremendous growth of company this has been possible because of profitable growth being experienced by this company in recent years(Hoque, 2013). Diversification:-This is mostpopular strategy which companies generally use when they are planning to do expansion of their business to other countries. This strategy is used when a new market is targeted by company and at same time they are ready with a new product idea. Diversification is also a very popular strategy which can be used by companies when they are planning to expand, incontext of IKEA company is involved into using this strategy whenever they are willing to explore new customer segment and plus company have new products ideas with them. From above analysis it is clear that IKEWA is a famous brand for the quality which they are offering and at prices which they offer their products. In relation to this price penetration is a strategy which the company can use to increase their profitability and growth(Eason, 2014). TASK 4 Applying of theories, concepts, models to understand and interpret strategic directions available to a company Generic model of porter:IKEA is a furniture brand dealing in high quality furniture. Apart from furniture they providing other services which other similar furniture brands are not offering. This model has basic three major components which provide direction to the company to deal with present situation in market, when IKEA will be willing to launch a new product they will be focussing on three generic strategies given by Porter. A strategic plan will be developed by company so that they are able to get competitive advantage in market. Cost Leadership:This is the strategy where a company aims to achieve a leadership position in them market by creating a competitive advantage for them. IKEA has always 12
focussed on being a cost leader in terms of prices of their furniture. This strategy will help in giving strong competitionto other brands which are offering similar products(Cserháti and Szabó, 2014). Differentiation:-This strategy makes companies to use something different in their products so as to attract more customers. Every company wants that what they are providing to their customers is different from other brands offering similar products. In this strategy a firm seeks for something unique in their industry, which can valued by their customers. Product itself is based on that differentiation feature. In case of IKEA this brand always lays emphasis that they are able to provide a distinguished feature to their customers. There are some additional services which IKEA provides in their stores such as playing area for kids, restaurants, cafe and many other such premium services because of which they are able to get a competitive advantage for their customers. Apart from this there are certain other features on which a company focuses to adopt a differentiation strategy in it products, such as there is high customization, usage of dealer network, features of their product. Focus:-There are two types of focus strategy used by IKEA one is differentiation focus and other is cost focus. Differentiation strategy is used by this company such that they always focus on narrow segment of market and doest not aim on cateringthe needs of whole markets. The believe that if a smaller segment of market is focussed then it will lead to catering needs of that market in more better way(Cacciolatti and Lee, 2016). Cost focus is whencompany is focussing on price of its products at which they are offering their products. They try to decrease cost of procurement of raw materials and other related cost associated with cost of their products, they try to minimize it so that they are bale to maintain their profit margin and at same time offer their products at reasonable prices. In this way company will be able to increase their sales. The appropriate strategy for the company is Differentiation Focus as with the help of this it will be possible for the company to provide their customers with differnetiated products and services other than their competitors so that the companies could become possible for company to achieve competitive advantage over their competitors. Strategic Management Plan 13
This plan is basically an overview of satrapies, objectives and tactics of company. Which are used by them in achievement of overall set mission and vision of their company. In IKEA this plan is also developed by their top authorities as discussed below: Mission:Mission of IKEA is to become a cost leader in furniture industry by offering quality products at very affordable prices to their target customers. Vision:“ To Create a better daily life for their customers” Objectives:they want to offer a better living to their customers, affordable and quality products, better life for people who cannot afford expensive furniture, to satisfy the needs of all people who are visiting their stores. IKEA is planning to launch a range of furniture which will be highly customized and made after customers requirement has been noticed(Burgess and Radnor, 2013).Market research:The managers of IKEA will try to effectively conduct market research so that they are able to identify needs and requirementsof their target customers. This research will be of very help in further planning of company's overall strategies related to new business plan.Extensive marketing:A special marketing team will be made by IKEA so that they rae able to form strategies to attract more customers when they rae adding ionnovation in their company. Tactics:To achieve set objectives of company IKEA will be adopting two major tactis one will be providing increased value to their customers and other will be ensuring more technology up gradation. When both of these will be implemented then it will lead to higher satisfaction of their customers. Above mentioned business plan if adopted by the company can help them in achieving set objectives in the specified time. 14
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CONCLUSION Above report it can be concluded that Effective strategies planned by any company plays a very crucial role in achieving success in long term. Growth and development are two most desired phenomena by every company for their survival in market. There are various tools which companies use such as SWOT analysis, PESTLE analysis, Porters five force model, Porters generic model all such tools help company in planning of their strategies.VRIO framework is also a phenomenon which is increasingly used by companies to identify those resources which have to be compulsorily focussed by them. Ansoff matrix is also used so that most suitable strategy can be selected by company and that can help t hem in achievement of their objectives and goals in more effective way. A strategic plan has been developed by company for a new innovation which they are trying to bring in their products (Aubry and et. al., 2012)). 15
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