ASDA Beckton Superstore: A Technological and Competitive Analysis

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Desklib provides past papers and solved assignments. This report analyzes ASDA Beckton Superstore's competitive advantages.
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FY028 INQUIRY PROJECT
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Table of Contents
Technology trends...........................................................................................................................3
Technological improvements:.........................................................................................................4
Competition in retail industry:.........................................................................................................6
Recommendations............................................................................................................................7
References........................................................................................................................................9
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Technology trends
ASDA Beckton Superstore has emerged as the leading retail store in the UK. The number of
customers handled by this concerned store has increased in the recent years. It was established in
the year of 1960. It has gained success in some years due to its organizational structure and
following the McKinsey 7-s model. There are 7 s in this model following which ASDA Beckton
Superstore has gained competitive advantage over its rival firms. From the very beginning, it is
offering the value services to its customers. It is offering a range of services by keeping all the
services in a simpler way. ASDA Beckton Superstore started in 1958 and from then onwards it is
performing to gain competitive advantage thereby facilitating good provision of services.
There are both hard and soft elements of the concerned McKinsey 7-s model. Accordingly, out
of these seven elements, three elements are hard while remaining four elements are soft
elements.
This down to the multiple engagement points this system offers. Some users might prefer buying
pants online, while others may want to try them out at a store. Having a multichannel system
means some theorists bag them both (the customers, not the pants!).
With the advent of big data, the whole world of retail has changed forever, and for better. The
multichannel lets retailers know what customers want. See, customers are comfortable with
entering information into a computer that they would hesitate sharing with a store clerk. Lastly,
the supply chain workforce. With (say) a tablet in hand, sales staff can approach customers
directly. They can let them know about what’s in stock in a second, when new products are set to
launch, and even the availability of stocks at other outlets.
ASDA Beckton Superstore is gaining further improvement and success in the area and region of
UK. This success has been gained because of the fact that it is continuously adopting and
following the seven elements of McKinsey model. All the seven elements have been equal
weightage and proportion. Despite huge success and increasing customer base, the core objective
of the store has not changed. It is still customer-oriented and focusing towards the satisfaction of
the customers.
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Technological improvements:
With the passage of time, ASDA Beckton Superstore is continuously improving its technology.
As such, technology upgradations or improvements and changes are taking place at a constant
growth rate due to which it has been able to retain its existing customers. Also, it has enabled the
ASDA Beckton Superstore to attract new customers. Such continuous adoption has forced the
aforementioned store to become a flexible and dynamic one. All these attributes are essential for
an organization planning to give a cut throat competition to the rival firms.
Therefore the first priority for them when they fly in is to understand what the “success” is for
the client. It might not always be coming up with an innovative business solution to a
sophisticated business problem, but just to support what the paying stakeholder wants.
Apart from that, like other consulting companies, they have certain sets of methodologies that
have been devised in their research departments to bring the project to the desired "success".
This in combination with internal expertise in virtually all industries and company circles makes
an analyst pick solutions like a book from a bookshelf and apply skilfully to the specific
situation.
There are many companies operating in the same space (airlines for eg.) but very few actually
make money or are sustainable over time (southwest airlines). So there is a difference between a
business (that makes money for some time) and a model (that which makes money and how for a
short period of time) and a sustainable business model (that which makes money over a long
period of time).
A Business Model put simply is 'how a company makes money and sustains it over time'. All
elements of strategy, organization, business plans, culture, staff and values flow from that. For
the nuts and bolts of a Business model, some theorists can easily use the Business Model Canvas
to analyse a company.
For sources of revenue and heads some theorists can look at the various filings of the company
with statutory authorities. Some theorists can work backwards on the various elements of the
canvas starting from revenue till u have mapped out the entire company/
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But to build a sustainable business model, there are many elements that go into play (McKinsey
7-S Framework) including managing investments and research to be ahead of the competition.
Study some successful companies in detail like FedEx, SouthWest, Wells Fargo, JPMC, Geico,
American Express (many Berkshire Companies) to get a better understanding of what works and
how.
The easiest I've found is a company that aligns all its activities to 'maximize shareholder value
over time'. So think from a promoter perspective on what works in a particular industry and how
Some theorists would make money over time and then work backwards or study all aspects of
the most successful company in that space!.
The 7 S model - which by the way was taken from Japan and is not Japan's 5 S model reworked
(that for lean manufacturing) - looks at a management problem within a systems framework (no
not the 5th discipline of Singh); all of this is out on pages one can find with a search – McKinsey
(Mura, 2012).
Such technology upgradations have helped and assist the ASDA Beckton Superstore to be more
oriented towards its customers. All these points have been possible by attending customers in a
better way, attending customer grievances, listening to customers, formulating and framing
attractive customers. Reward system normally plays a dominant role in the improvement of the
ASDA Beckton Superstore or similar store. The research firm Martec International and RELEX
Solutions have conducted a research on the state of the UK retail. Some theorists suggest reading
the report State of the retail Supply Chain 2015 for more insights. The report is focused on the
challenges that the retail supply chain is facing at the moment from a more technical point of
view but some theorists thought it might help Some theorists anyway. Some results below related
to your question:
"Implementing a single stock pool" was the 5th highest issue regarding supply chain planning
and execution, with one supply chain manager saying "getting the right stuff in the right places
without ordering too much".
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Competition in retail industry:
There has been a major change in the retail industry of UK in some last years. It has come to the
notice that the customers of UK are switching to the online shopping rather than purchasing from
the retail store. Also, the proportion of expenditures towards various variables has changed a lot
in due to variation in customers taste and preference. There was a time when customers used to
spend a high proportion of disposable income on necessary utilities or items that are of basic
necessities. However with the passage of time, taste and preferences of customers have changed
due to continuous change in taste, preference along with other factors as a result of which now a
days customers are spending towards the luxury items in spite of purchasing the necessity items.
All these factors have been duly considered by the ASDA Beckton Superstore and other rival
firms due to which it has been able to not only survive in the market but also maintain
competitive advantage in the long run. There are several opinions on the implementation of
technology in retail sector pertaining to UK.
Tecnological updations in retail sector pertaining to UK have a couple meanings. It is a method
in parallel multiparty negotiations. If one look at my spend over the last year, other than
convenience foods and some clothing, almost all of my retail spending has been online -
groceries, gadgets, kids clothing, paint and wall paper, bathroom. Even whenSome theorists did
visit a store for these items it was usually just to use a showroom or because of short timescales.
Unless it is artisan/specialist (the local farm butcher, the polish deli), second hand shop or as a
premium brand showroom. Some theorists don't know why anyone would open a shop these
days. Even my aunt who lives on benefit does most of her shopping online with an old laptop
because it is cheaper than going to the high street (unless she is going to the market stalls for
food).

When did Some theorists last buy a house, insurance, banking, music, books, groceries at a shop?
Some theorists may be a bit of an extreme case asSome theorists live in a semi-rural area of the
UK with the nearest shops being 5 miles away and the major shops being 15 miles away in the
citySome theorists work in. These seven models are also considered as shared values (Nassazi,
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2013). All these seven elements have prominent significance in the management of operational
activities.
Recommendations
There are various recommendations following which ASDA Beckton Superstore can increase
profitability in the long run and at the same time can satisfy the customer need at a large.
However, it is crucial to consider all the factors affecting these recommendation or suggestions.
The top management of ASDA Beckton Superstore needs to consider all these aspects and then
decide as to whether it is beneficial to implement the recommended policy or strategy. These
recommendations have been divided into four parts (Seo & Choi, 2013). There can be more than
these recommendations. However, for the sake of simplicity only top four recommendations or
suggestions have been provided. The given recommendations takes into consideration both
internal or external factors and aspects.
Considering the financial situation and analysis of industry in which the ASDA Beckton
Superstore it is advisable for the store to focus on the problems currently being faced by the
customers living in the area of UK. Adopting this feature will help to satisfy the customers at
large since ignoring customer needs and demands in the long run may hamper the revenue and
dilute the customers. However, it does not mean that store should ignore the technology
upgradations. In other words, upgrading with technology as well as handling customer
grievances or issues are primitive and need to be given prominence and weightage.
Apart from that, ASDA Beckton Superstore is required to the formulate points and rewards in
order to boost the customer sales (Marginson, 2012). Such policies will ultimately lead to the
increase in customer base. Also, it creates curiosity in the mind of customer and they become
fascinated towards purchasing goods or availing services from the particular store. All these
factors or aspects consequently lead to increase in sale revenue both in terms of volume (units)
and amount as a result of which profitability increases (Usman & Kamau, 2017).
Another prominent feature of the achieving competitive advantage is that it is planning to the
merge with Sainsbury’s & Nectar Points. Both the stores are performing well and aim to capture
the market share so that the overall UK retail sector can be promoted and developed. Such
business combination will ultimately help to satisfy the customers in a long run.
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References
Hoon Song, J., Kolb, J.A., Hee Lee, U., and Kyoung Kim, H., 2012. Role of transformational
leadership in effective organizational knowledge creation practices: Mediating effects of
employees' work engagement. Human Resource Development Quarterly.
Marginson, P., 2012. The changing nature of collective employment relations. Emerald Insight.
Mura, L., 2012. Performance of human resource management in an internationally operating
company. Serbian Journal of Management.
Nassazi, A., 2013. Effects of training on employee performance. Business Economics and
Tourism.
Rafiei, N., & Davari, F., 2015. The Role of Human Resources Management on Enhancing the
Teaching Skills of Faculty Members. Journal of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Seo, J. Y., & Choi, Y., 2013. The role of human capital in the entrepreneurial process of IT
ventures in Korea. International Journal of Smart Home.
Usman, U. S., & Kamau, J. N., 2017. Factors Influencing Entrepreneurial Intention among
Muslim Undergraduate Students in Kenya. IOSR Journal of Business and Management.
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