CoreLife Eatery's Global Expansion: Leadership & Management Project

This assignment provides a comprehensive analysis of CoreLife Eatery's international expansion plans, focusing on its entry into Melbourne, Australia. It examines the organization's background, reasons for internationalization, and the selection of Melbourne as the expansion country due to its multicultural environment. The project delves into the operative environment, critical operational factors, and CoreLife's core values. It also presents a cultural profile of Melbourne, addressing communication challenges and proposing strategies to overcome them. An organizational structure tailored for the Melbourne operation is outlined, along with a franchising entry strategy. The assignment further discusses control issues, staffing policies, leadership, motivational systems, and concerns of the local community, offering strategies for resolution. The analysis considers the cultural nuances of the Australian market, emphasizing the importance of adapting management styles and communication approaches. The project concludes with recommendations for building strong relationships with the local community and ensuring the successful integration of CoreLife Eatery into the Melbourne market.

FINAL PROJECT
MILES STONE (1-4)
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Table of Contents
1. Abstract........................................................................................................................................3
2. Overview of the organization and reasons for going International.............................................3
3. Expansion country.......................................................................................................................4
4. Operative environment and the Critical Operational factors.......................................................4
5. Cultural Profile............................................................................................................................6
6. Communication Problem and Strategies to overcome them........................................................6
7. Organization Structure of CoreLife.............................................................................................7
8. Planned entry strategy for CoreLife............................................................................................8
9. Control issues in overseas operation and strategies to overcome them.......................................8
10. Staffing policy for top-level managers......................................................................................9
11. Leadership and motivational system:........................................................................................9
12, Concerns of the local community and host country and resolving issues:..............................10
References:....................................................................................................................................12
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1. Abstract
The present assignment deals with the assessment of Corelife Eatery which is a USA
based organization that specializes in offering fresh and healthy food to the customers. The brand
has focused on expanding its business to Melbourne, Australia. The assignment has developed
rationale for evaluating the significance for selecting the country. The multiculturalism in
Melbourne is the main reason for selecting this place for expansion. The assignment further
explored the operative environment in which the business would operate and the factors that
would create an influence on the business. Corelife Eatery has selected certain core values based
on which the organization would establish its relation with the community in the new business
environment. Furthermore, the study offered a culture profile of the local area in which the
business would operate. Corelife Eatery would recruit employees from both USA as well as
Australia to ensure that cultural diversity is maintained and the customers are served well. The
language differences are considered to be the main issue in this case. In this report, the strategies
are discussed that would help to overcome the communication differences within the
organization. A new organizational chart has been developed based on which the organization
would be set up in Melbourne, Australia. The entry strategy that has been selected in this case is
the franchising as it would help the organization to have complete control over the market. The
assignment also sheds light on the leadership and the motivational system that would encourage
the growth of Corelife Eatery in future. The staffing policies and the control issues are discussed.
Finally, concerns of the host community are explored and strategies for cooperative relationship
are developed.
2. Overview of the organization and reasons for going International
My organization is Corelife. Corelife Eatery first opened in May of 2015 in Syracuse,
New York. It was started up by a group of passionate individuals who have been in the food and
restaurant business for many years. Corelife is all about seeking out the best foods available and
preparing it on the spot for customers, not prepackaged, or frozen but fresh and healthy food in a
bowl when you ask for it. Presently, there are 52 locations throughout the US (11 States). The
hours of operation for all locations are from 11am-9pm, it is open 7 days a week early enough to
get your day started right and late enough to end it with something healthy (CoreLife Eatery is
Focused on Healthy, Active Lifestyles, 2019). All locations offer catering, free WiFi, on-site
parking, outdoor patio seating, on-line ordering and mobile app ordering. According to bizfluent
“companies go international because they want to grow or expand operations. More specific
motives include generating more revenue, competing for new sales, investment opportunities,
diversifying, reducing costs and recruiting new talent. Going international is a strategy that is
influenced by a variety of factors and is typically implemented over time. Sometimes,
governments will incentivize expansions into global markets.” (Kokemuller, 2018)
My reasons for going international are as follows:
 Healthy fast-food chains are a rapidly growing market
 Increase sales and Profitability
 Build the Corelife brand
 Offer employment to the locals where we build
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 Grow Corelifes’ customer base
 Affords travel opportunities to promote new locations
3. Expansion country
I choose Melbourne, Australia to be the international destination in which I believe
Corelife will thrive. I chose Melbourne for a few key reasons one of which is its rich multi-
cultural communities. According to Live in Melbourne Victoria Australia (2017) “Melbourne has
been repeatedly declared one the most livable cities in the world by The Economist’s livability
rankings, which surveys over 140 cities around the world”. I believe that a well populated and
diverse destination for a new Corelife will work best in Melbourne. We all know to live a healthy
life we must consume healthy foods and live an active life. In Australia, a male child born in
2014–2016 can expect to live to the age of 80.4 years and a female child would be expected to
live to 84.6 years (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2018). People are living long in
Australia and I am sure it is not because they are eating unhealthy foods. Bringing Corelife to
Melbourne would be beneficial in many ways, making eating healthy for them a much easier
task, they can order to go, order to eat in, or get catering all with the click of a button.
Looking at a specific area in Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia there are 17 gyms according
to Google maps (2019), I would choose to bring Corelife to this area and offer the Australian
people good fresh, quality healthy foods. I also looked at other health food stores in Melbourne
VIC 3000, Australia and many had poor customer reviews (Live in Melbourne, 2017), Corelife
provides the best of fresh, healthy food and the best customer service possible, resulting in
excellent customer reviews. Melbourne would be an ideal place to expand.
4. Operative environment and the Critical Operational factors
Many factors impact the decision to expandCorelife franchise, especially in the dynamic
environments that make up the Melbourne health food industry. Corelife will use a targeted
strategy when addressing the critical operational factors in this international start up (Fig. 1).
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Fig. 1- (Strategic Planning: Environmental factors in strategic planning, 2019)
This initiative will operate under Corelifes’ values to always serve healthy food products and
options with no GMO, trans fats, artificial colors, sweeteners, and other artificial additives,
Building strong partnerships with local farmers and growers will be of critical importance for
Corelife to score initial Melbourne and other international scale successes. A few of Corelifes’
values are noted below:
 Free of GMO’s
 Free of trans fat
 Free of artificial colors
 Free of sweeteners
 Free of artificial additives
Core life will use these values to build relationships with the community, the farmers, and the
government.
I will touch on a couple of key factors in the diagram, first is organizational structure, and
technology as these are two of many key factors that can hinder the success if Corelife in
Melbourne. Corelife as a whole needs to understand the Australian way of what we here in the
US call the chain of command system, as Australians do not follow that hierarchy mindset, in
Australia managers are just there for convenience as in the US managers are key individuals to
direct reports. Corelife as a whole also needs to understand the culture of Australians as we are
entering their world, and their way of doing things. I believe that doing some cross training
between the newly hired employees from Australia and some US citizens will allow both groups
to learn a lot from each other and allow both cultures to learn from each other. As for
technology, organizations today consider it an important tool, as it improves daily functions and
operations. Profit and cash flow can be monitored more efficiently with technology. All of the
factors mentioned in diagram they will have to be assessed and figured out, while keeping
Corelifes’ values in focus and working with the way business is conducted in Melbourne.
5. Cultural Profile
Melbourne is made up of people from all over the world,around 140 cultures are
represented, from Victoria's original Indigenous inhabitants to more recent migrants from
countries in Europe, Asia and Africa
City of Melbourne (gov)
The staff will be both residents of Melbourne and US citizens currently employed
byCorelifewho relocate from the US to Melbourne to get this initiative off the ground. The staff
will need the following qualifications: retail experience, ideally maintain local fitness
memberships, and a Registered Nutritionist (RNutr) will be onsite twice a week for
consultations, and appoint a Food Safety Supervisor. NSW (New South Wales) food authority
also requires that “All cafés, restaurants and retail food outlets need to appoint a Food Safety
Supervisor (FSS) in their business if food they prepare and serve is:
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•Ready-to-eat
•Potentially hazardous i.e. needs temperature control
• Not sold and served in the supplier's original package”. (NSW, 2018)
A recent survey from Nielsen revealed that 67% of Australians have indicated they’re
willing to pay up to twice as much for a premium product that is organic or contains all-natural
ingredients. They’re also willing to pay more for products that contain environmentally friendly
or sustainable materials (Sorrientino, 2018).
I anticipate having a warm welcome from the local governments, suppliers, distributors,
and community residents. Corelifes’ international initiative team will have the opportunities to
meet with the local council to ensure that all licensing and notification applications are satisfied.
In addition Corelife will expect a full inspection of the location prior to opening date by the local
council, which is customary. Corelife will also be required to display the scorecard on the front
door of the location, “Scores on Doors is the NSW hygiene and food safety scoring program for
restaurants, takeaway shops, bakeries, pub bistros and cafés” (Australian Institute of Health and
Welfare, 2018)
6. Communication Problem and Strategies to overcome them
Cultural differences provide challenges and opportunities for Corelife to adapt our
business while supporting our brand. Take for example: differences in body language can lead to
embarrassing situations when used in contexts where those “codes” are not understood
(Sorrentino, 2018). When meeting with Australians one needs to be sure to not use body
language that can be misinterpreted for example let “tall poppy syndrome- in the USA, standing
out and making oneself heard is important. In Australia, attention-seeking behavior is quickly
shot down” (Bryant, 2018). One can also come across management style differences, in Australia
managers have different views and perceptions of how to manage then managers in the US, and
that alone can create huge problems.
In Australia Managers are not expected to behave in any way superior to their colleagues
- people just have different jobs. Therefore, an authoritarian style of management will be
received very badly by most Australians and could provoke outright hostility (WBC, 2017).
American managers are more likely to disregard the opinions of subordinates than managers in
other, more consensus or compromise- oriented cultures. This can obviously lead to frustrations,
which can sometimes seem to boil over in meeting situations (WBC, 2017). Take for example
the case study “The Australian Manager in an American Company (Deresky Text- page 110-
113), Collins tried to implement what worked for him in Australia in the US and it clearly did
not work.
Leadership is defined in GLOBE as: “The ability of an individual to influence, motivate,
and enable others to contribute toward the effectiveness and success of the organizations of
which they are members”. I read this article “Leading in Australia: results from the GLOBE
Study Ashkanasy & Roberts, 2002), which states that “to appreciate what effective leadership
means to the Australian people, there is first a need to understand Australia’s history and how
our origins, activities and achievements contribute to our current culture and perception of
leaders”.
7. Organization Structure of CoreLife
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Figure 1
Above is CoreLifes’ eatery Hierarchical Organizational Structure, this structure was chosen for
the following reasons:
 Clear reporting structure and authority
 Clear chain of command pathway
 Efficient decision making
When working in an organization and there is no clear reporting path it can be frustrating and
deterring, having an hierarchical structure in my opinion relives that stress. This organizational
structure would help the overseas operation to accurately report and communicate with the head
office in USA and ensure that all the rules are followed.
8. Planned entry strategy for CoreLife
The market entry strategy can be helpful for Corelife is franchising. Gunnarsson (2011)
commented that franchising is the easiest method to create a footprint in the new market.
Franchising is a process of developing business relationship in which the owner empowers
another party to utilize the brand name, business system and products in exchange of appropriate
consideration. Franchisee is easier as it makes use of the existing business model in the target
market and develops the franchise to attract the customers (Deresky, 2017). The basic reason for
selecting franchising for Corelife in Australia because of the following reasons:
1. Corelife would be able to develop successful brand in the market
2. The business owners in Australia would be able to open their own branches but under the
brand name of Corelife
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3. This mode of entry would help to resolve cultural issues as the owners of the business
would be Australians and this wound generate the trust of the common people.
4. The new franchises in Australia would be provided with the continuous support in
technology and business and this would encourage the business to grow and develop.
9. Control issues in overseas operation and strategies to overcome them
There are some control issues for these overseas operations:
1. Culture and Communication: The culture of Australia and USA are bit different and
hence their approach to business. This can give rise to cultural diversity issues and
communication barriers which the management of Corelife needs to consider for
expanding its business. CoreLife plans on dealing with this by taking time to get to know
the locals on a personal level, differences in business customs and ethics is also a concern
(Clouse and Watkins, 2009).
2. Competition: Another significant control issue is the competition in the market.
Melbourne has different restaurants and hence creating a market presence of a new brand
can be really tough. Thus, the management of Corelife needs to plan effective business
strategies to overcome the issues.
3. Limited Control: In a franchise, there would be limited control of the original owner and
the franchiser can tamper with the quality of food and service provided and this can
damage the name of Corelife. Thus, Corelife needs to develop strict rules and policies for
all its franchise and there should be regular checking of the standards to be followed and
used by the franchises. Any violation of standards and rules should led to strict
cancellation of license.
10. Staffing policy for top-level managers
Zhang (2009) commented that staffing policy deals with the selection of the employees for the
specific job.
Corelife Eatery’s staffing policy for its international presence would focus on the skills that are
currently required for its employees. The management of Corelife Eatery can use the staffing
policy as the tool for the development and the promotion of the corporate culture. The staffing
policy for the top-level management for Corelife Eatery is listed below:
1. The staffs would be trained for supporting the needs, preferences and staffing level for all
the staffs.
2. The management would be responsible for developing Provider’s Program Supervisor for
assessing the efficiency and appropriateness.
3. The top level managers should report at the service location within the given time and
accomplish the service documentation as the standards of the Provider’s document.
4. The managers should work for the benefit of the organization and ensure that Corelife
Eatery is able to fulfill the objectives of profit and business.
5. The top-level management should ensure that Food Standards and hygiene are
maintained as this would encourage the good will of the company in the new
international market (Guo & Zhang, 2013).
6. The top-level management would be responsible for reviewing the employee roster and
offer support to the wants and the need of the participants and all the employees. The top
management should ensure the smooth working of the common people.
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7. The top management would be responsible for maintaining attendance for each and every
staffs along with the typical schedule and the working and the performance of all the
staffs who are working in the organization.
8. The top management should abide by the rules and the regulation that developed for
maintaining the discipline within the organization. In addition to this, the management
should ensure all the staffs should complete service documentation and attain the
retraining as needed in the case.
9. The management of the organization are entitled to privacy and ensure that all the details
are safeguarded and all the staffs within the organization are offered with rights.
Rationale
The rationales for the above staffing policies are that it would help to create a discipline
within the organization. This would also help the top-level management to coordinate with the
staffs. The policies are developed I such a way so that it can increase the interaction between the
management and the employees. It would also help Corelife Eatery to maintain standards and
good reputation in the new market.
11. Leadership and motivational system:
For entering a country and operating businesses with efficiencies, deciding a better
leadership strategy is essential with the help of which workforce in the new country can be
adequately maintained. The cultural contexts of US and Australia are completely different;
therefore, for developing leadership strategy, this difference in culture needs to be adequately
considered. For deciding an effective leadership strategy to build and maintain business in
Australia, it is highly essential for Corelife in examining the cultural contexts of Australia and
the US. It has been observed that Australian culture provides a higher level of emphasis on the
egalitarianism whereas, the US places much emphasis on authoritative and robust leadership
style (Bekiari, 2016). Australia mainly follows the fraternal leadership style whereas; the US
supports the command control leadership style. In the US, leaders are associated with taking
control with the help of more active leadership style whereas, in Australia, a leader needs to win
respect from their peers. Therefore, for maintaining business in Australia, Corelife needs to
develop a leadership where they must have the control over individual employees in the
organization but they need to hear feedback from each of the, and they should provide proper
respect to the employees (Wakabi, 2016). Therefore, it will be useful for CoreLife in
implementing democratic leadership strategy in their organization by following which the leader
needs to hear feedback from each of them, but they should decide on their own.
As Australian work culture demands more respect from organization and colleagues,
therefore, for motivating the employees, it is essential to Corelife in offering an effective
recognition to the employees so that they can find the motivation to work in their organization.
Recognition is that type of non-monetary motivational technique that can help the Australian
employees in understanding their values in their organization which motivates them with
efficiencies (Stanhope et al. 2016). Along with that, it is also necessary for Corelife eatery in
offering some monetary benefits to their employees so that it can fulfill the basic needs of the
employees. For motivating the employees, Corelife needs to offer standard remuneration as per
Australian market, and then they need to provide some incentives to their employees based on
their performance to serve food or generate an active customer service for their customers
(Nerstad et al. 2018). Along with that, offering some insurance-related benefits, flexible working
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hours and developing a safe and secure workplace for the employees are necessary so that it can
motivate the employees by satisfying their needs.
12, Concerns of the local community and host country and resolving issues:
The culture of Australia is completely different than the US so that the preferences of
food are also entirely different in the US an Australian culture. Therefore, the products that are
offered by Corelife in the US may not be accepted in Australia. This situation can create issues
for the organization in developing its business in Australian culture. For expanding business in
Australia, Corelife may face some problems regarding tough competition (Schaltegger and
Wagner, 2017). This is because; there is already having some existing restaurant business in the
Australian market that is offering food to the customers with more success. This is because it
provides food to customers as per the Australian culture.
Therefore, for resolving these sustainability issues, Corelife needs to select a useful set of
target customers. The main segments that need to be considered by Corelife are the citizens of
the US that are currently living in Australia. Moreover, the organization needs to target those
food lover customers who love to accept food from various regions (Crane and Matten, 2016).
Therefore, Corelife needs to develop a better promotional strategy that needs to be generated by
considering the targeted customers so that it can attract them with efficiencies (Lew et al. 2015).
During developing a marketing message and using various marketing media to promote the
business of Corelife, the organization needs to consider the culture of Australia so that the
promotional strategy cannot harm the culture of Australia, otherwise it will be difficult for
Corelife in maintaining business in Australia for a more extended period of time (Carayannis et
al. 2015). For achieving competitive advantage in the new market, Corelife needs to offer quality
products in the lowest possible costs so that they can attract the attention of the customers. For
understanding a better knowledge about Australian culture, it is necessary for Corelife in hiring
local employees.
For starting a business in Australia, Corelife needs to follow a useful entry mode so that
they can maintain their business with efficiencies. However, for this purpose, Corelife needs to
conduct valuable market research, but it is difficult for them in conducting this market research
because it requires the investments of enormous time and money which is initially difficult for
Corelife. For resolving this issue, the organization need to develop a partnership with an existing
Australia based organization so that they can understand the culture of Australia and offers
products accordingly.
The operation of Corelife may create some detrimental impact on the environment of
Australia. For this reason, Corelife needs to develop a smart technique to use energy, and they
need to build a better waste management strategy so that their operation can create a negligible
impact on the environment of Australia.
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