Career Research Report: Retail Sector Analysis and Future Trends

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the retail industry, examining the changes occurring within the sector, including the impact of e-commerce, multiple trading channels, social media marketing, personalized customer interactions, and cashless trading. It explores future trends such as customer-centricity, data security, and the potential for the retail sector to become a leading industry. The report also identifies the skills, knowledge, and experience required for managerial roles within the retail sector, emphasizing work management, time management, communication, decision-making, and problem-solving skills. The report concludes by summarizing the key skills and qualities needed for effective management in the retail industry, as well as the knowledge and experience necessary to succeed in managerial positions. The report is based on a career research assignment, and it also includes references to relevant academic journals and books.

Career Research Report

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Changes occurring in retail sector ..............................................................................................3
Future trend of retail sector ........................................................................................................5
Skills, Knowledge and Experience required ..............................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES.................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Career is defined with the period of progression while working for an organisation or
sector (Chou, Chuang and Shao, 2016). Career is more like a job profession an individual posses
in order to achieve growth in professional and personal life. Aim of the report is to evaluate
about the impact of changing trends over industry. This report is based on the case study of retail
sector. Henceforth, this report will analyse about the changes occurring in retail sector. Future
trends of retail industry will also project in this report. Furthermore, in this report impact of
globalization and technology over retail sector will also project.
MAIN BODY
Changes occurring in retail sector
Retail industry is among the major growing sector across the globe. All countries
specifically the developing nations like India are going through major transformation in retail
sector. Emerging growth of retail sector can be denoted with the fact that many retail
organisations like Marks and Spencer, Sainsbury has become such a huge brand that also
contributing effectively in the growth of GDP and countries economic situation. Retail industry
is witnessing several changes in order to transform the entire sector. All changes that are
occurring can be specific in the following ways.
E- Commerce: Retail industry has utilised technology for upgrading its services. Almost
majority of retail sector organisations is utilising technology in order to sale company's products
and also to interact with target customers of company. Companies using E- Commerce like web
sites, social applications to sale companies products and services. E- Commerce has evolved the
entire sector by increasing sales. As per the recent data the retail sector has expanded from
almost 11.4% after the involvement of E-Commerce sites and websites in business operations
((Dholakia, Dholakia and Chattopadhyay, 2018)). The inclusion of such sites has enabled the
target customer's of retail sector to order from any locations across the globe. Customer's also get
access to get the free home delivery within few days of pacing the order.
Multiple channels to trade: Retail sector is witnessing many changes due to technological
development and advancement. Retail company possess multiple channels to sale its products
like social media, websites, applications and other associated channels. Emergence of
information technology has contributed in transforming the trading mediums for both

organisations and customers. It also embraces sales of retail company's as customer get access to
place order from any location across the globe.
Use of social channels for marketing: Information technology has transformed the retail sector
and industry in multiple ways. It also provided and transformed the marketing campaigns of
retail companies (Fernie and Sparks, 2018). All retail organisations frame effective marketing
strategies for all the social media users. Social sites and applicants like Facebook, Instagram,
twitter has improved the use of internet across the globe. Almost majority of target customer's
use social media sites and check google on a routine basis. Companies take advantages of social
presence of potential customers over social sites for conducting its marketing activities.
Personalised customer interactions: Inclusion of information technology has also improved the
customer interactions. All retail companies are using the information technology software and
applications to interact with target customers. Companies utilising social channels and
technology to interact with customers in respect to identifying the needs of target customers and
also to solve grievances of customer's. The process is also more time saving as company
management can give instant response to its customers against the grievances reported by
customer's. It also improves brand image of company.
Cash less trading: Retail sector is witnessing many changes due to advancement of technology.
Cash less trading is also among the major changes retail industry is witnessing (Guoan and Xue,
2019). Cash less trading involve using credit card, debit cards, master cards and ATM to trade in
retail stores. It also focuses over using applications like Google Pay in order to complete the
retail transactions. This change has evolved the shopping experie3nces of customers as
consumers don't need to carry cash or any liquidity in order to shop from any retail outlets.
Improve competition: Retail industry is among the fastest growing industry across the globe
due to increased requirements of retail products. The increased sales of retail companies has also
attracted to several new organisations, entrepreneurs to entertain the business development and
growth opportunities. Increased competition in retail sector has also drives to the sector to be
more consumer friendly. IT also caused to discounts and offers like free shipping that also
improved the benefits for customers out of retail transactions.
Future trend of retail sector
As per the analysis and evaluation of retail industry following trends are accepeted to be
occurred in future.

Customer- Centricity will Go Mainstream: Retail industry is facing various transformation in
respect to conducting operations and retailing functions. The technological evolution of retail
sector has increased the level of competition in the sector. Due to increased competition in the
market the sector has become more customer oriented and customer centric. In future only those
organisations will be able to sustain and grow who can meet the expectation of target customers.
Due to emergence and transformation customers in retail sector carry multiple options in order to
entertain the most profitable deal to buy the retail products. The future of retail sector will be
more customer centric.
Data Security will be strengthen: Today in-spite off emergence of information technology data
security has become a huge issue for companies in retail sector. IT companies like Google are
working towards improving the data protection of customer's (Mena and et.al., 2016). It is
expected that in future data protection will be no longer be an issue for companies as it will
remain on top of the priorities of retail companies. Software will be used in order to keep the
customer's personal information safe.
Expected Leading Industry: Based on the emergence of retail sector and organisations it is
anticipated that the retail sector will be a part of among leading sector across the globe.
Population all around the world has also evolved that will also drive to development and
potential improvement of retail market at a global level.
Based on the anticipation and observation all changes are expected to be happened in
retail sector.
Skills, Knowledge and Experience required
Manager position in the company seek different skills, knowledge and experience
required that can be denoted in the following manner.
Skills
Manager needs to posses the certain skills that can be specified in the following manner
which is essential to conduct the managerial operations.
Work Management Skill: Management must contain the skill of work management in order to
operate its functions effectively. To manage the work is an important task manager needs to
operate. Work management involve addressing all associated operations to implement operations
in time.

Time Management Skill: Time management is also a crucial skill tat is required by the manager
in order to contain its operations efficiently. Manager carries the responsibility to complete all
the tasks with an expected time frame.
Communication Skills: Communication is also an important part of managerial function.
Manager needs to communicate about each and every activity involve in company's operations.
Communication skills play enable the manager to operate all organisation functions effectively.
Communication skill also enable the manager to operate a certain change in the organisation
structure.
Decision making Skills: Decision making skill is also a crucial aspect involve in managerial
function. Manager needs to take various decisions like allocation of work, technology related
decisions and other associated decisions that require an effective decision-making approach.
Problem Solving: Manager also needs to face various problems and issues while conducting
managerial operations. Manager needs to use an effective approach to deal with all the associated
issues and problems while conducting business operations. Being on the prime position in the
company manager also carry the responsibility of answering in against to all such problems and
issues raised.
Knowledge required for Managerial Function
Manager needs to have a professional knowledge of management. MBA usually prefer in
corporate organisations to be on the job role of manager. Complete management knowledge is
needed to be on the manager position in company.
Experience
Manager seek experience in management. Experience related to the work management
and other associated skills required to be on the manger position is also required to be on the
position of manager in company.
CONCLUSION
This report concludes about different skills and qualities required to perform the
managerial functions in the company. Skills like work management skill, time management skill,
problem solving skill, communication skill is required in order to meet all the responsibilities
associated with the managerial function. All skills enable the manager to conduct managerial
activities effectively. This report also specifies about the knowledge and experience required to
be on the position of manager in company.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Chou, Y.C., Chuang, H. H. C. and Shao, B. B., 2016. The impact of e-retail characteristics on
initiating mobile retail services: A modular innovation perspective. Information &
Management, 53(4), pp.481-492.
Dholakia, R. R., Dholakia, N. and Chattopadhyay, A., 2018. Indigenous marketing practices and
theories in emerging economies: Consumer behavior and retail transformations in
India. Journal of Business Research, 86, pp.406-415.
Fernie, J. and Sparks, L. eds., 2018. Logistics and retail management: emerging issues and new
challenges in the retail supply chain. Kogan page publishers.
Guoan, Z. H. U. and Xue, G. A. O., 2019. The digital sales transformation featured by precise
retail marketing strategy. Expert Journal of Marketing, 7(1).
Mena, C. and et.al., 2016. Retail logistics in the transition from multi-channel to omni-
channel. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management.