Identifying CSR Impact on Business: Harrods Ltd. Competitiveness Study

This report presents a case study on Harrods Ltd., focusing on the significance of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) implementation to enhance competitiveness and sustainability. The introduction highlights the role of CSR in organizational effectiveness, followed by an outline of the project's aims and objectives, which include identifying the usefulness of CSR implementation, understanding its advantages, recognizing the link between CSR and customer satisfaction, and recommending CSR approaches for Harrods Ltd. The project plan details cost, timescale, teamwork, communication, and risk management aspects. Work breakdown structures, Gantt charts, and network diagrams are used to present the project timeline, and a comprehensive project management plan is included. The report concludes with a critical evaluation of the project management process and applied research methodologies, discussing the challenges and benefits of CSR implementation within the context of a small-scale enterprise. The report emphasizes the importance of CSR for long-term market position and stakeholder relations.

MANAGING SUCCESSFUL
BUSINESS

TITLE
“To identify significance of CSR implementation to increase competitiveness and
sustainability of small scale enterprise”: A case study on Harrods Ltd.
INTRODUCTION
Corporate social responsibility plays vital role in organisation's effectiveness and its
competitive advantages. However, it is useful for increasing marketing and competitive
strategies of the entity at higher level. This report is to understand significance of CSR
implementation for competitive advantages for Harrods Ltd. It is small unit enterprise belonged
to retail sector provides groceries and food items to customers across UK. In this regard,
different tools for project are to described including data collection methods, timescale to
implement project's activities. Including this, various approaches used in conducting survey and
data collection will be introduced through this assignment. However, project plan and effective
tools for accomplishing tasks for competitive advantages and sustainability in market can
identify. Thus, learners are able to understand concept of project and different aspects for its
completion.
TASK 1
P1) Project's aims and objectives for Harrods Ltd
This present project is to understand CSR implementation for competitiveness and
sustainability of Harrods Ltd for building up society's trust with groceries and food items
provided by the entity (Kerzner, 2013). However, project's aim and objectives can be understood
as follows:
Aim of the project:
“To understand significance of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) implementation to
sustain market position of Harrods Ltd.
Objectives of the study:
Targets of the project for effectiveness of Harrods Ltd are as follows:
 To identify usefulness of CSR implementation on organisation's effectiveness.
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 To understand advantages of CSR approach regarding competitiveness and sustainability
of Harrods Ltd.
 To recognise link between CSR implementation and customer satisfaction for the small
scale enterprise.
 To recommend suggestions for implementing CSR approach for enhancing competitive
strategies of Harrods Ltd for longer time period.
Thus, project is to be completed for CSR implementation to sustain good position of
enterprise in competitive market for longer time period. However, with the help of this project, it
is recognised that deep understanding towards social responsibility and achieving customers'
satisfaction can be understood (Leach, 2014). With the help of implementation of CSR activities,
organisation has benefits to maintain their relations with stakeholders such as management,
customers, suppliers, etc. With this regard, the company able to generate more effective results
that helps to operate different activities in the business. Including this, relationship of CSR with
effectiveness of Harrods Ltd and its competitiveness is to be identified. Therefore, effective
knowledge can acquire regarding project on CSR importance for entity's sustainability.
The project is on understanding significance of CSR activities for competitive advantages
and business operations of Harrods Ltd. For this purpose, managers' views on actual performance
of entity and for project are to be analysed. Including this, all tools considering for project are to
described as cost incurred, time consumed for its tasks, segmenting work its team members.
Therefore, importance of corporate social responsibility for Harrods Ltd can be understood
efficiently with the help of this project.
With the help of this project usefulness of applying CSR activities can be identified to
increase profitability and competitiveness of Harrods Ltd. In accordance to this, impact of CSR
on business performance as financial performance and management of entire business activities
are analysed. However, various ideas are generated for providing goods and services as of
customers' requirements and fulfilling them.
P2) Management plan including all aspects for project
Project is considered as accomplishing any task for implementing business operations of
any organisation and improving its services. It is an approach for management of entire business
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operations and implementing all activities efficiently with team building and coordination of all
workers. Project plan includes different tools to be considered for implementing its activities to
increase competitiveness and long term sustainability for longer time period. For this purpose;
factors included for planning and decision making includes cost, timescale, team work, required
resources and fund etc (Mir and Pinnington, 2014). Therefore, below mentioned tools are
required to be considered for project and CSR implementation of Harrods Ltd are as follows:
 Cost: In this process, expenses incurred for different project's activities are identified
including data collection, labour and additional overhead costs (Zeng, Tam and Tam,
2015). In addition to this, plan is created for incurring cost on each project activity for
Harrods Ltd. Therefore, expected return on investment can be set affect project and cost
effectiveness for the organisation. The above table shows cost which incurred in the
present research:
Table 1: Cost planning for project
Plan Cost (£)
Selecting research topic 200
Research topic 100
Estimating cost for project (Budget) 250
Literature review 100
Data collection 300
Interpretation 200
Result evaluation 100
Comparing cost incurred as expected 100
Project closure 200
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However, effective cost is set to be incurred on accomplishing tasks of the project. It will
be successful to get success in starting process to end on CSR implementation for business
operations of Harrods Ltd. Therefore, good reputation of entity can be sustained in market as
building up society's trust with enterprise's services.
 Timescale: In this project plan, time for each activity of project is set for
accomplishment and proper management of all tasks. For example; time to be spend on
data collection, preparing and implementing strategies are set for which project can be
completed efficiently. Including this, by considering this factor for planning on CSR
implementation for Harrods Ltd, adequate time is targeted on which prepared strategies
are implemented systematically (Garel, 2013).
Table 2: Time frame for project
Activity Time frame
Determining research topic 1 week
Preparing problem statement 1 week
Formulating strategies and time frame for all
tasks
2 weeks
Literature review 1 week
Selecting research methodologies 2 weeks
Data interpretation 1 week
Evaluating outcomes 5 weeks
Project closure 2 weeks
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 Teamwork: For managing project's tasks, team is build by leader to segment work
among all workers of the group. In this process, leader segmented work among team
workers also analyses their performance for working in group. Including this, for project
on CSR implementation for Harrods Ltd, team is build up of manager, team leader and
co-workers. However, work is also segmented among them according to ability and
working efficiencies (Perry and Towers, 2013). Thus, teamwork aspect is also considered
for project on CSR implementation for Harrods Ltd to increase its competitive strategies
and long term sustainability on large scale.
 Communication: It is two way process for sharing data, information from person to
person as well place to place. However, for completion of project, it is essential to share
goals and strategies among team workers. Therefore, variety of ideas are generated for
success of project on CSR implementation for competitive advantages of Harrods Ltd and
effective team work. Including this, it is recognised that communication is one of the
needed tool for project and its completion. In addition to this, through communication
and sharing ideas among team workers for effective coordination and accomplishing
tasks (Hawrysz, 2013). Thus, communication is the most useful aspect for creating
understanding and project planning as well reaching out to its completion efficiently.
 Risk: Project manager also forecasts and analyses which risks can arise for task
accomplishment. It is recognised that different risks can occur for project on CSR
implementation in Harrods Ltd such as; inefficient fund, lack of adequate resources, lack
of coordination among team members and so on. Therefore, for project planning, these
risks are also evaluated on which pre planning and strategies are formulated for CSR
implementation for Harrods Ltd to sustain its good position in market for longer time
period (Baumann and et.al., 2013). Moreover, planning for adequate resources and fund
are made for success of project and implementing all strategies effectively. Thus,
different risks occurred in project completion are forecast as well strategies are made for
implementing strategies effectively.
Hence, above mentioned all tools are identified for project and its completion regarding
CSR implementation for Harrods Ltd. However, costs, time, risks and different factors are
analysed for accomplishing tasks effectively (Schilke, 2014). Thus, by preparing this planning
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process, it is forecast that project can be succeed effectively with the great coordination to all
team members for sustainability of small scale enterprise in competitive market for longer time
period efficiently.
P3) Work breakdown structures and Gantt chart to present timeline for project
Work Breakdown Structure:
This structural framework is related to present all project's activities step by step
systematically. In this way, process from starting up to completion of tasks are recognised affect
success of CSR implementation for Harrods Ltd (Denrell and Powell, 2016). Thus, work
breakdown structure for the entity regarding project can be understood as:
Gantt chart:
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Illustration 1: Work Breakdown Structure

Gantt chart is defined as bar chart to present project schedule from start to finish the
tasks. This chart is to present sequences and stages of project activities for CSR implementation
for Harrods Ltd. However, analysis on project activity that is on priority and can be postposned
is done (CSR activities in competitive advantages, 2017). Therefore, for project report, timescale
for project activities can be expressed as below:
Illustration 2: Gantt chart
Here, project schedule is from 1st July 2017 to 10th September 2017. In which, all
activities and time consumed on each one is identified. At first, for finding research topic and
problem statement, plan is set for 6 days and further for time frame and strategic plan, it is
schedule of 3 weeks as from 7th July to 27th of the month in which consideration on all tools is
done for project including cost, time, work segmentation etc. However, plan is to implement for
9 weeks overall in each activities included as literature review for 1 week, selecting research
methodologies for 2 weeks and data collection as well interpretation is for 6 weeks. In the end,
conclusion and performance of workers are evaluated and it is plan of 2 weeks. Therefore,
project is to complete through this strategy and implementing time frame for all tasks.
Network diagram:
It refers as presenting network of all activities of the project to show activities from start
to end up. It is structural presentation to identify connection and all steps for project on
implementation for Harrods Ltd. However, network of all action plans to be implemented for
project can be understood as:
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Illustration 3: Network diagram for project plan
Time Schedule:
Table 3: Time schedule for project's activities
Task Name Duration Start Finish Predecessors
Finding research topic and problem
statement 1 wk Sat 7/1/17 Thu 7/6/17
Setting time frame for all tasks 3 wks Fri 7/7/17 Thu 7/27/17 1
Literature review 1 wk Fri 7/28/17 Thu 8/3/17 2
Selecting research methodologies 2 wks Fri 7/28/17 Thu 8/10/17 1,2
Data collection and analysis 6 wks Fri 8/4/17 Thu 9/14/17 3
Evaluating conclusion 2 wks Fri 8/11/17 Thu 8/24/17 2,3
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