Improving Business Performance and Growth Strategies

The assignment discusses the importance of implementing successful change at work for business units to improve their performance and establish a good position in the market. Various strategies and techniques are suggested by report to be used by organizations for achieving this goal. The document aims to assist students in understanding the key aspects of improving business performance and growth, particularly focusing on small enterprises.

UNIT 33 SMALL
BUSINESS
ENTERPRISE

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK-1 ...........................................................................................................................................1
1.1 The strength and weaknesses of Unicorn company..............................................................1
1.2 The comparative measure of performance ...........................................................................3
TASK-2............................................................................................................................................4
2.1 The solution to overcome weaknesses of the company........................................................4
2.2 The ways to maintain existing performance ........................................................................4
2.3 The new areas in the business...............................................................................................5
TASK-3............................................................................................................................................6
3.1 Assessment of existing business objective and plans...........................................................6
3.2 Business plan to incorporate changes...................................................................................7
3.3 Action plan to implement changes........................................................................................8
TASK 4............................................................................................................................................9
4 Effect of planned changes on organization and on its employees...........................................9
4.2 Planning the way for managing change................................................................................9
4.3 Observing improvement in business performance..............................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
A small business enterprise is considered as a business that makes employment of a
smaller amount of workers and does not even dream of making higher profits. Their focus is only
on achieving the basic amount of money so that they can live happily and comfortably as well.
Usually, these are privately owned enterprises. Some very common and well known examples of
it can be considered as grocery stores, salon's, restaurants, beauty parlours etc. In the small
business enterprise the number of workers that are working are less. The volume of sales is also
not so high in small business enterprise. These type of enterprises are owned by pole privately.
The definition of small enterprise can be different for different industry or country. The
employees that are working in small enterprise is less 240.
In the UK, Unicorn is a cooperative grocery store. By this company the items such as
fresh, dried and processed foods and drinks and other items of grocery are been sold for
household use. In this report the strength and weakness of unicorn company will be presented.
Further more in this report a performance analysis will be done by using comparative measure.
In order to overcome the weakness that is been faced by this company the solution will also be
given in this report. This report will also provide the ways in which the existing performance can
be maintained. The planning will also be done in this report to manage the changes in the
business.
TASK-1
1.1 The strength and weaknesses of Unicorn company
Organization name - Unicorn grocery
Vision- “ In the community in which they server they want to provide high-
quality services and items for the customers and earn their lifetime
loyalty”
Mission -  The mission of the company is to grow its business on a
broader platform
 To create more creative and innovative idea in order to gain
more customer- satisfaction
 From the customers they deal with to earn their trust
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Key people - The business is mainly controlled by the member and owner Roger
Saw tell .The number of people that are working in the company are
around 70 employees.
Owner structure - In UK it is a privately owned company. The headquarters of this
company are situated in Manchester,England.
History - The shop opened on 21st September 1996, from an original working
group of two people plus the volunteers. From sources such as the
industrial common ownership finance LTD(ICOF) the financial
support and advice was given. Some other financial sources for the
company are coop finance team, a Triodos bank. Per year the
turnover began and by 2007 it reached up to $ 4 million.
Key activities - This company sells the unpacked organic fruits and vegetables,
organic bread , dried ingredients, prepared food and environmental
friendly body and household products are been soled by them. With
the shop's principle all the products are been sourced and on local,
organic and fair-trade re focus is been there. A kids play area is also
been provided by this shop .About the product the information is
been given and also there is s green roof.
Location - England, Manchester
Strength -  Due to location in which it is been located it possesses a
strong customer -base.
 The experiences staffs and workers are been hired by the
company and also from them the proper treatment is given to
customers who visit the store.
 For its members the company aims to give secure
employment
 The fair and sustainable trade is been aimed by the company.
Weaknesses-  Among the staff there is a lot of confusion as the structure of
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the organization is not proper.
 Due to sudden arrivals of customers the process of work is
hampered .The planning and management is not so proper in
this company.
 Due to shortage of funds the new services is been not
introduced in this organization.
 Due to economic downfall in UK a major loss is been faced
by the company (Brustbauer and Johannes, 2016)
1.2 The comparative measure of performance
In order to do comparison of performance of unicorn the other company that is been
selected is Nisa.
Unicorn Nisa
Year Sales Net profit
Net profit
ratio Year Sales Net profit
Net profit
ratio
2011 1900 120 6.31 2011 1480 75 5.06
2012 1875 115 6.13 2012 1400 75 5.35
2013 1500 90 6 2013 1250 70 5.6
2014 1800 100 5.55 2014 1700 90 5.29
2015 1875 110 5.86 2015 1500 80 5.33
In the above table that is been shown a performance analysis have been done of tow
companies that is unicorn and Nisa for the year 2011,2012,2013,2014 and 2015.In the year 2011
the sales and net profit of the company unicorn was 1900 ad 120 which is more in comparison
with Nisa in which the sales was 1480 and the net profit was 75.So, the net profit ratio was Nisa
is less in comparison with unicorn. For the next year that is 2012 the net profit ratio of unicorn
was more in comparison with Nisa that net profit ratio of unicorn was 6.13 while the net profit
ratio of Nisa was 5.35.Now in the next year that is in 2013 also the net profit ratio of Unicorm
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was more in comparison with Nisa the net profit ratio of unicorn was about 6 while on other side
the net profit ratio of Nisa was 5.6.Now in the year 2014 the net profit ratio of Unicorn was 5.55
and the net profit ratio of Nisa was 5.29 which is less in comparison with Unicorn. In the year
2015 the net profit ration of Unicorn was more in comparison with Nisa that is it was 5.86
however the net profit ratio of Nisa was 5.33.So, from the above table it can be concluded that
for all the years that is from 2011 to 2015 the net profit ratio of Unicorn is more in comparison
with net profit of Nisa (Burrows, Roger, ed.,2017)
TASK-2
2.1 The solution to overcome weaknesses of the company.
The company unicorn can take the following measures in order to deal with the issues
and the weaknesses that is been faced by them. They are as follows-:
Help from the government – In order to give its support and assistance to small business firms
the government is ever ready to provide its support to them. The help can be offered by the
government in the form of loan and advisory services. In the enterprise guarantee scheme there is
a low interest rates. In order to invest in the new services it can be considered by the owner of
the business. As unicorn is a small business enterprise so they can also make use regional
funding scheme. By proper investment the scope of services can also be enhanced and the
business growth will be influences by it. The government is also ready to help this company after
the economic downfall that is been faced by the UK (Blackburn and et.al, 2013)
Proper planning- The owner of the business need to develop a plan in which all the day yo day
work will be planned in the proactive manner. With all the staff that planned need to be shred
before the execution of their performance. By making plan in the organization the
misunderstanding that is been taking place within the workers will be minimized. And also
additional cost will also be needed in creating proper planning. The issues and misunderstanding
related to responsibly of job will be solved by using this approach.
Control over activities – All the activities of the workers need to be properly measures in order to
find out deficiency in the delivering of services. The feedbacks need to be measures properly for
the enhancements and improvements (Curran, James and David, Storey, eds,2016)
2.2 The ways to maintain existing performance
In order to find out the expectation of customers the insight knowledge can be gained by
the owner of the business. They can conduct research about likes and dislikes of customers
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regrading grocery items. The feedback need to be taken by the customers who visit this grocery
shops and the changes will be implemented as per the feedback that is been given by them. This
would be useful in the growth of businesses. All the employees that are working in this company
need to be encouraged to give their view and suggestion regarding the thinks that is been going
in the company. In order to make decisions they need to be involved in that process so that they
will feel valuable and employees productivity will also increase due to this. In small organization
the decision are mainly made by the owner of the business and the employees follows the
decision that are been made by the owners. The leadership style is needed in order to motivate
the employees at this company. The proactive performance is ensured by it. The high-quality
standards also need to be set to make the staff aware about the target benchmark. In order to
achieve the target if there is any deficiency that is been discovered then in this case it need to be
immediately diagnose. By forming the definite structure in the organization the employees will
understand their roles and responsibility in the unicorn. And for the staff the responsibility of job
need to be prepared. All the employees that are working in the organization can be motivated and
encouraged through performance management tools such as performance appraisal. Their level
of performance can also be evaluated from this. In the company the employees that are working
good and whose performance is good in each month could be given rewards. Both intrinsic and
extrinsic reward can be given by the company to the employees that are working. With they will
feel encouraged and motivated and the employees' productivity will also be increased through
this (Eid, Riyad, and Hatem El-Gohary, 2015)
2.3 The new areas in the business
The ansoff matrix can be used by the unicorn company in order to explore the areas in
which they can expand their business. In context with expansion of growth the four strategies can
be used. They are as follows-:
Market penetration – This strategy can be applied by the company in order to increase its current
sales of the company. The online booking system of grocery items can be started by the company
.More number of customers will be attracted towards it. Some type of discount can also be
introduced by the company .For an instance the company can give 10 % discounts on household
items or other grocery item to its customers for a specific time period or festival season. The
sudden reduction in the price can also be undertaken by the company in order to grab more
number of customers.
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Market development – To increase its business turnover the organization can open a new site. It
is not feasible for small organization such as unicorn as the huge investment and funds is an
issue for the small organization. The huge investment is been required for the new site .The
company right now is not having such a huge investment for the new site.
Product development – Under this strategy the portfolio of product can be developed. The level
of interests will be increased from this and business opportunities will also be increased from
this. To the customers in the company the facilities such as change in interior, new products and
free Wi-Fi services etc can be provided. There will be increased in the price and there will be
growth of business opportunities and bushiness will also flourish due to this.
Diversification – This strategy is been made in order to set off the profile or downfall in distinct
division of the organization. Keeping in mind the current situation of the business the diverse
business can be opened as it will need a hug investment and the company is not having that huge
investment to open that kind of business.
The following things can also be considered by the company in order to maintain its position in
the market-:
Need to pay attention on brand awareness- In order to conduct its promotion of its websites and
services this company need to spend considerable amount of budget .In order to be competitive
in the market they need to do proper marketing of their products and services.
Examining the needs of staff – In the company there are about employees that are working. It is
essential for the management to have an appropriate plan for staffing based on its positive
growth (Ellis, 2016)
TASK-3
3.1 Assessment of existing business objective and plans
Goals of business – By giving all sort of items of grocery the main goal of unicorn grocery
company is to attract more number of customers and also while the customer are purchasing the
items they want to provide them with a hygienic and clean atmosphere. Their main objective of
business to increase the profit margin and to establish a reputed grocery shop in the UK. For the
employee and staff that are working in the unicorn company the objective that is been made will
set a benchmark in order to reach to a target customers. The negative point that is been there in
the current objective in order to reach out to target market is that there is lack of guidance and
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assistance. The ways to reach out to the objective is not included in the current business
objective. In this objective of the company to ways to achieve the objective is missing.
Process – The ultimate approach that can be utilized in order to achieve the goals of the
organization is the process. In achieving the goals of the company this will help unicorn. The
clear definition of the process of unicorn is not there. The doubts and misunderstanding among
the staff that is working is been there due to this. At this grocery shop if the crowd is more than
in this case the process is disrupted. In their company there is a lack of flexibility in the process
which is a negative side. In this company the positive side is that the reporting authority is very
clear. By the supervisor the supervision of the front line office is been done and the supervision
is been controlled and monitored by the two managers of this company. Among the staff a sound
coordination is been maintained and due to this there is a strong communication.
Indicators of performance – The performance of employees is been controlled by the company
through the process of observation. The positive side of the observation is that there is a direct
face to face approach. By using this a clear and accurate image of the level of the performance
will be depicted. One of the negative side of this is that there can be no appropriate judgement.
All the individuals will not be managed effectively when the manager is not having enough time.
The performance appraisive can be started by the company. In this the employees can be rated
from the colleagues and from the seniors a true picture of performance can be revealed (Harris,
Mark and KAREN, PATTEN, 2015)
3.2 Business plan to incorporate changes
The Mckinsey 7 s model can be used by the unicorn company to cope up with the
weaknesses of the current plan. The structure will be defined accurately by these models and for
this small company the objective will also be defined effectively-:
Strategy – The marketing , operation, control of employees and finance activities need to be
considered by the company to increase the level of customer-satisfaction and also to increase the
profit margins for the company. The scope of the business will also be enhanced due to this. To
target more number of customers the company can create marketing straggly .In this strategy the
online promotional tools can be used by the company in order to sell out its products. The
company can also appoint one employee in order to monitor and make note of day to day
activities. The strategies that is been made the employees nee to be motivated and also there
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performance need to be controlled. By giving them appropriate training and orientation the
level of performance can be enhanced .
Structure – The hierarchy of this company need to be define. To all the workers that is working
in the company this hierarchy need to be communicated to them. The process of communication
will be defined form this and in the company there will be flow of information. The centralised
decision-making process need to be followed in the company in order to make a sound flow of
information. To the employees that are working in the company the importance need to be given
to them .Through this they will feel as an essential asset of the company and their involvement in
the company will be more. The level of motivation will also be increased.
System - In daily operations it will give essence of the smooth operations. To their supervisor the
staff need to report before starting up with their day. In the company this type of structure system
need to be followed. In the productivity there will be flow of the orientation session will be taken
by the manager of this company. From this the level of competency of staff and workers will also
be improved from this.
Skills – In order to enhance the skills of workers the training need to be given to them and also it
is required to plan the development. If the perforce of the employees is up to mark then the
difference in the organization can be made. From this the quality of service will also increase.
Style – There is a need to modify the autocratic leadership style in this. In the process of making
decision the company need to involve all the participants. The participative leadership style need
to be followed in the company for this (Mason,2015)
3.3 Action plan to implement changes
By changing the structure in the organization the performance of the organization can be
strengthen and among the staff members this system will also generate misunderstanding and
confusion. Due to this in a business a disturbance can be created. In the organization only a
change management is effective to bring a change. All the stake holders need to be considered in
this change management. There is a dynamic business environment and with the change that is
required there is a need to deal with it. Kurt Lwin's theory of change can be used in order to
bring a change in the company .This theory is mainly used in small companies. To resistance
factors will be restricted can due to this theory.
Unfreeze- In the existing process and plans of business the business owner is the person that can
identify the reason for ineffectiveness and inefficiency in various procedure and policies as well
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as strategies of organisation. It is required by entrepreneur to frame effective strategies and
business plan in order to bring positive as well as drastic improvement in business procedure and
system. This activity will assist business entity in improving their performance and increasing its
competitive strength. It is very essential for business owner to establish smart goals and short
term objectives as this will help firm in experiencing short term winning. Employees are needed
to keep update themselves with business objectives and practices as this will aid them in
improving their performance at working placed and increasing their participation in change
management process (Rao, Manohar, 2015)
Change- In this phase the workers in business unit are required to accept changes and adjust
themselves in new working environment. At this stage human resource manager is the person
who can support employees in adapting to change and improving their performance.
Evaluating the change- This is the conclusion stage where the benefit or disadvantages of
facilitating changes is measured. This is the essential face as this help managed in analysing the
opportunities that are explored and captured during the procedure. It will also aid business
entrepreneur in planning for identifying the need of change and managing change in the future ()
TASK 4
4 Effect of planned changes on organisation and on its employees
The proposed changes have both positive and negative impact on Unicorn. The
positive change in organization has supported human resource manager in organization to ensure
flow of effective communication among various functional unit. It has enabled personal manager
to develop and maintain healthy as well as safe working environment. It has enabled business
entity to increase its competitive strength and differentiate itself from other companies in terms
of culture and structure. Facilitating training and development program me will allow employees
to keep update themselves with business practices, procedures and objectives. It also provides
workers an opportunity to develop various skills and learn various techniques that can be used by
them for improving their performance at workplace. Changes can aid business unit in enhancing
their productivity and increasing production capacity or working efficiency.
Adverse effect- There can be influence of internal as well as external factor on the outcome
achieved by implementing change at workplace. It can have negative effect on the employees
and employer relationship (Schaper, and et.al., 2014)
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4.2 Planning the way for managing change
The human resource manager is required to conduct various activities such as analyzing
the need of change, identify the area of change and determining the significant stakeholder. It is
very essential for the personal manager to consider various factors before planning for change ,
such as the benefit of change, objectives, who will be benefited by change, stakeholders interest
and power to influence change process. As these factors may have great effect on the
implementation process and the result produce by change. Consideration related to stakeholder
benefit will help firm in seeking support from them and facilitating successful change at
workplace. Establishing objective is the next phase in planning procedure as it helps in
determination of effective tactics. It can also be used as basis for measuring the effect of the
process and identifying performance gap. Third step include communicating and demonstrating
the complete procedure. Analyzing the barriers that can have great influence on the procedure.
Implementing change (Routledge, 2016.)
4.3 Observing improvement in business performance
It is very essential for manager in business entity to timely monitor the performance and
activities related to change management as this will help firm in achieving desired outcomes.
Observing the improvement in various procedure and system will help manager in planning for
the future change. It can also support organization in identifying further scope of improvement
and determining the need for development process in the future. This activity will enable human
resource manager in eliminating unnecessary procedure and ensuring efficient as well as
effective utilization of resources. It aids business entity in reducing the cost of production and
preventing overlapping of activities. Monitoring also provides personal manager an opportunity
to review the employees' behavior during the procedures and providing them suitable guidance
(Romano, Breno Lisi, and Alan Delgado Da Silva,2015)
CONCLUSION
It has been concluded from the project that small medium enterprise such as Unicorn has
great potential to achieve success and foster growth. There are various opportunities are being
provided by government to small enterprise in order to assist firm in expanding there core
business activities. It has been identified that Unicorn is performing well but the company is
required to make improvement in various areas. As this will help business unit in improving their
business performance and establishing good position in market.
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Various strategies and techniques has been suggested by report, that can be used by
organization for implementing successful change at workplace.
REFERENCES
Books and Journal:
Barber, John, Stan Metcalfe, and Mike Porteous, eds. Barriers to growth in small firms.
Routledge, 2016.
Blackburn, and et.al., "Small business performance: business, strategy and owner-manager
characteristics." Journal of small business and enterprise development.20. no. 1 (2013):
8-27.
Brustbauer, Johannes. "Enterprise risk management in SMEs: Towards a structural
model." International Small Business Journal.34.no. 1. 2016: 70-85.
Burrows, Roger, ed. Deciphering the Enterprise Culture (Routledge Revivals):
Entrepreneurship, Petty Capitalism and the Restructuring of Britain. Routledge, 2015.
Cobham, David, Kevin Jacques, Carl Gowan, Jack Laurel, and Scott Ringham. "From appfest to
entrepreneurs: using a hackathon event to seed a university student-led enterprise."
(2017).
Curran, James, and David J. Storey, eds. Small firms in urban and rural locations. Routledge,
2016.
Eid, Riyad, and Hatem El-Gohary. "The impact of E-marketing use on small business
enterprises' marketing success." The Service Industries Journal.33. no. 1 (2013): 31-50.
Ellis, J. "The continued appointment of corporate directors: an examination of the effect of s. 87
of the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015." The Company Lawyer37
(2016).
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Harris, Mark A., and KAREN P. PATTEN. "Mobile Device Security issues within the US
Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program." Journal of Information Technology
Managemen. 26. no. 1 (2015): 46.
Mason, C. M. "Spatial variations in enterprise: the geography of new firm
formation." Deciphering the Enterprise Culture: Entrepreneurship, Petty Capitalism,
and the Restructuring of Britain.–1991,–Р (2015): 74-107.
Rao, J. Manohar. "Challenges to Innovation in Small Business Enterprise Sector in India."
In INTERNATIONAL INTERDISCIPLINARY BUSINESS-ECONOMICS
ADVANCEMENT CONFERENCE. vol. 87.no. 49.4. pp. 164. 2015.
Romano, Breno Lisi, and Alan Delgado Da Silva. "Project management using the Scrum agile
method: A case study within a small enterprise." In Information Technology-New
Generations (ITNG), 2015 12th International Conference on. pp. 774-776. IEEE, 2015.
Schaper, and et.al., Entrepreneurship and small business. 2014.
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