Leading and Managing Projects: Four Seas Mercantile Project Report

This report focuses on Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited, a Hong Kong-based food sector organization, addressing its challenges, including lack of global presence and intense competition. The report employs PESTLE and SWOT analyses to identify problems and recommends the Ansoff Matr...Read More

Leading and
Managing Projects

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Present report is based upon Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited which is one of the
famous food sector organisations of Hong Kong. Currently the organisation is facing different
challenges such as lack of global presence and high level of competition. In order to determine
the problems PESTLE and SWOT analysis are being used by the organisation. In order to find
appropriate solutions for these problems Ansoff Matrix could be used. It has been recommended
to the organisation to adopt market and product development strategies should be selected so that
all the problems could be dealt properly.

Table of Contents
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.............................................................................................................2
Table of Contents.............................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................1
Identification of the problems......................................................................................................1
Discussion of the major problems along with their solutions......................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
RECOMMENDATIONS.................................................................................................................9
IMPLEMENTATION......................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
Leading and managing projects can be defied as the process which is followed by entities for
the purpose of handling all the future projects that are going to be undertaken by them. Main
objective of this procedure is to make sure that all the activities that are related to management
and controlling of them are performed systematically. All the leaders and managers who are
responsible for the effective execution of all the operations are required to make sure that they
are guiding all the subordinates properly so that they can work productively for the attainment of
all the predetermined goals and objectives (Baldwin and Bordoli, 2014). The organisation which
is selected for this report is Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited. It is an entity which is
mainly based in Hong Kong and engaged in food businesses. It was founded in year 1971 and
some of its subsidiaries are Murray Catering Company Limited etc. This project covers various
topics such as major problems faced by the organisation, SWOT, PESTLE and Ansoff matrix
analysis for the entity, evaluation of the solutions and recommendation regarding adoption of
best suitable solution. Apart from this, implementation of the solution along with estimation of
capital, sales, cost, investment, benefits etc, is also covered in this project.
MAIN BODY
Identification of the problems
Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited is one of the successful entities of Hong Kong
which are delivering best products and services to the customers. In order to carry out all the
operations successfully it is very important for the entity it is very important to make sure that
effective strategies are formulated for managing and leading the projects undertaken. The entity
is mainly involved in food businesses. Different areas that are covered by it are catering,
retailing, raw material for food, frozen food etc. It is one of the famous organisations that are
operating business in food sector of Hong Kong (Du, Leten and Vanhaverbeke, 2014). The entity
is also involved in the manufacturing and selling activities of ham and ham related products. In
order to carry out operations successfully it is very important for the enterprise to attain
competitive advantage for itself. For this purpose, the top-level executives of the organisation are
required to determine the problems that are currently faced or could be faced in future. It will
help to find effective solution for the resolution of them and reduce negative implications of
them upon the business. For the analysis of the issues different strategic management tools could
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be used. Some of them are SWOT and PESTLE analysis. Both of them are conducted for the
entity so that managers can get aware of all the problems that are faced by the organisation.
These are conducted below for Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited:
PESTLE analysis: It is a tool or framework used to evaluate and observe macro-
environmental factors which may have a significant effect on the performance of an
organization. This method is especially beneficial when beginning a new company or expanding
into a foreign market. In order to find out the issues related to Four Seas Mercantile Holdings
Limited, managers will use this method in context of Malaysia to measure external factors and
all are discussed below:
Political: In this factor, there are several components which affect the business and able to
resolve their issues through making effective decisions in respect of organizational operations.
Political factors involves the government regulated area such as trade tariff, taxation, conflict
among countries related to trade restriction, fiscal policies, inflation or interest rate, political
stability etc. Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited will protect the trade barriers that the host
country has. However, tariff barriers that governments with potential trading partners will
damage businesses by preventing future exports. Higher tax level could discourage companies
such as Four Seas to increasing their income (Zidane and Andersen, 2018). The risk of hostile
countries taking military invasion can cause companies to divest. Low unemployment rate would
mean greater income for Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited, and therefore better chances of
survival. Basically trade restriction affects the company because in order to expand their business
in foreign market, they need to evaluate this factor or formulate further strategies accordingly.
Economic: This factors impact directly on long-term competitiveness of a business in a
sector. The economic climate can affect how well a business prices its goods or affects the model
of supply and demand. Eco-factors might include inflation rate, disposable income,
unemployment rate, exchange rate, interest rate etc. The nation's rate of GDP growth would
impact the manner in which Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited is expected to expand in the
near future. Interest rates will impact how much people are able to borrow and spend. Higher
prices would lead to higher investments that would mean greater growth for the company.
The inflation rate will impact the need of products of Four Seas Mercantile Holdings
Limited. Higher inflation may allow company to steadily increase inflation-line prices that could
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result in lower brand loyalty rates and consistent cost control efforts. Cost Based Pricing under
these circumstances may be a poor strategy (Nguyen, Chileshe and Rameezdeen, 2018). If the
employment rates are high than it will affect the strategies of Four Seas Mercantile in two ways
where it will provide sufficient customers for the company's goods and secondly, it will make
recruiting qualified and professional workers costly.
Social: Social factors influencing Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited which is
directly reflection of the society to Malaysia and follows the culture, beliefs, attitudes and values
that the majority of people that carry as a group. A detailed understanding of the consumer, their
lifestyle, level of education and interest in a community, or section of society, would help to
develop both the goods and marketing messages which would contribute to a successful venture
(Zheng and Li, 2019). Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited requires being well aware about
what degree of safety standards, attitudes to allegations of abuse and the value of environmental
conservation occur in the sector as a whole. It required by every company because they are seen
as the norm.
Technological: This can have a direct or an indirect effect on a business. Although some
sectors may be more impacted by technology than others, technological advances will influence
business and customer preferences, as well as purchasing power. As mentioned above, the recent
technological advances and advances in technology made by the competitors. If Four Seas
Mercantile Holdings Limited From Malaysia discovers a modern technology which is rising in
popularity in the industry. It is important to manage the popularity level and how quickly it
develops and disrupts the revenues of its competitors. That would convert into the degree of
pressure needed to respond adequately to the innovation, either by adapting the technology or by
seeking a creative alternative. Before making any strategy, company need to evaluate technical
factors and build strategies accordingly.
Environmental: Environmental considerations include all those relevant to the built
environment and basic criteria for protecting the environment. Although for some industries,
such as hospitality, agriculture, or food processing, the climate is more important, these factors
can affect a lot of different firms and are worthy of being notified of. It includes various factors
such as climate, weather, geographical location etc. The recent weather trends may have a huge
effect on Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited's ability to handle both the resource
transportation and the final product. Climate change will make certain goods useless too. In the
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context of fabrics, in areas where weather is becoming very mild due to climate Warming, warm
winter clothing has far less of a demand.
Legal: Legal considerations can influence a firm's internal as well as external climate. The
tax and regulatory climate can influence an industry's policies and procedures and can regulate
jobs, health and regulations (Koster and Lambooij, 2018). It includes legal factors such as
Industry specific regulations, Regulatory bodies, Employment laws, Consumer protection,
Environmental regulations etc. Discrimination laws are put into place by the state to protect the
workers and insure that anyone in Malaysia treated equally and provided the same resources
irrespective of gender, age, disability, race, sexual orientation. Health and safety regulations
were established after observing the inhuman conditions under which workers were required to
work during the industrial age and immediately afterwards. Implementing the correct regulations
can be expensive, but Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited would have to participate in it, not
just because of the statute, but also because of a strong sense of ethical and social obligation for
other citizens.
Reasons to enter in Malaysian country for business expansion:
There are several reasons which encourage Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited to
expand their business operations in Malaysia. These are mentioned below:
Good market size with accessibility: More than 22 million people live in Peninsular
Malaysia itself, where more than one third of the population live in cities.
It's not just huge population alone. What is important is that there is exposure to internet,
telecommunications and financial services for a very diverse population of Malaysians living in
urban areas, making it the perfect opportunity to target technology-based businesses.
Government support: Government of Malaysia is now more involved in supporting
foreign trades and help other organizations to expand their business in this market. With the
launch of the MaGIC accelerator program and organizations such as the Cradle Fund (funding
grants) and the MDEC (funding support and accessibility resources for start-ups), this can be an
excellent opportunity for those organizations who wanted to join the Malaysian brand.
Cheap Labour: Capable of reducing these 2 key business expenses will significantly
increase the firm's survival rate, particularly during the early stages of development. Not to
mention a lower average production rate would significantly improve a company's likelihood of
long-term survival, which also contributes to more shareholders willing to take a risk in them.
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SWOT analysis: It is a micro environment analysis tool which is mainly used by
companies to determine all the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. With the help of
it, effective decisions for future could be formulated as it guides to figure out the main factors
that are affecting the business in favourable or adverse manner (Elzamly and Burairah, 2014). In
order to determine the problems that are faced by Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited it is
used by managers. It guides them to determine the actual weaknesses and threats that are faced
by it and the strengths and opportunities that could be focused to deal with them. SWOT analysis
for the company is as follows:
Strengths Weaknesses
 The product range of the company is
highly wide that attracts large number
of customers towards itself.
 It is highly focused with its logistics so
that it can deliver all its goods on time
to the clients.
 The entity’s global presence is very low
therefore it is resulting in lower market
share.
 Liquidity of the company is not high
which is affecting its procedure of
executing operations properly.
Opportunities Threats
 The entity can expand its business in
global market so that it can enhance its
market share.
 It can introduce itself in a new segment
in its existing market so that customer
base could be strengthening (Fairley
and Willshire, 2017).
 There are various competitors such as
Hung Fook Tong, Amoy Food, The
Garden Company etc. of Four Seas
Mercantile Holdings Limited which
may affect its operations in future.
Ansoff Matrix: It is an analysis which is mainly used to determine the growth
opportunities that could be acquired by an organisation for the purpose of developing the
business. With the help of it, best suitable strategy for betterment of the entity could be selected
(Heldman, 2018). It also conducted for Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited so that the
managers can get aware of the strategies that could be selected by them to develop business.
There are four different elements of it which are described below:
Market development: Under this type of strategy an organisation offer its existing
products or services to the new customers in a new market so that market share could be
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enhanced. By adopting this strategy Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited will be able to
expand its business in a new market such as Malaysia by introducing its current products to the
new clients.
Market penetration: According to this strategy, companies can attract prospect
customers from the existing market by offering its current products to the customers. In order to
strengthen its customer base this strategy could be adopted by Four Seas Mercantile Holdings
Limited. It will help the organisation to attract more clients from Hong Kong who are prospects
for the entity (Kendrick, 2015).
Product development: This strategy is highly focused with introduction of a new
product in the existing market so that all the existing clients could be retained for a long term in
future. It is considered as one of the best strategies as it will not result in higher cost because the
company is already having information about taste and preferences of customers. While planning
to improve brand loyal customers this strategy could be adopted by Four Seas Mercantile
Holdings Limited.
Diversification: It is last strategy of the matrix in which an entity offers a brand-new
product to customers in a new market. It is the highly riskiest method because the funding and
threat of failure will be very high in this operation. In order to launch a new product in a new
marketplace such as Malaysia this strategy could be adopted by Four Seas Mercantile Holdings
Limited (Kerzner, 2017).
Problem faced by Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited: From the PESTLE and
SWOT analysis it has been analysed that there are various problems that are faced by Four Seas
Mercantile Holdings Limited. It is very important for the organisation to deal with them properly
so that business could be operated properly. Discussion of major problems from this is as
follows:
Lack of global presence because of tight trade policies in different countries: It is one
of the main problems that are faced by Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited. In order to
operate all the planned activities systematically it is very important for the company to make sure
that this problem is dealt properly. Because of highly level of trade restriction and tight political
policies the organisation is not able to expand its business in different countries. It is creating
barriers for it to enter in global market and enhance the market share. It is very important for the
entity to find appropriate solution for dealing with this problem. If the organisation is not able to
6

deal with it then it will be very difficult for it to grow and develop the business. Apart from this,
the lack of global presence will also affect its sustainability which may leave negative impacts
upon the business (Marle and Vidal, 2016).
High level of competition in the local market because of end number of competitors:
It is another problem which is faced by Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited because the level
of competition in its local market is very high. This problem is affecting the market share of the
entity in home country. This issue is required to be dealt properly as it will help to enhance its
competitive advantage. There are various competitors of it in Hong Kong. These are The Garden
Company, Hung Fook Tong, Aji Ichiban, Amoy Food, Kowloon Dairy etc. It is essential for the
enterprise to make sure that it acquires competitive advantage so that the issue of high level of
competition in Hong Kong could be dealt properly.
Discussion of the major problems along with their solutions
All the organisations face different types of problems while operating business. For them it
is essential to deal with them with appropriate solutions so that their negative impact upon
business could be reduced. As Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited is dealing with two major
issues. These are lack of global presence because of tight trade policies and high level of
competition. Brief discussion of them with alternative solutions that could be adopted by the
entity to deal with them are described below:
Problem 1 – Lack of global presence due to tight trade restrictions: Four Seas
Mercantile Holdings Limited is facing a problem of lower global presence because it is not able
to expand its business in different countries. Main reason of it is tight trade policies and laws of
different countries. It is very important for the entity to deal with this problem so that it can
expand its business successfully (Martinsuo, Korhonen and Laine, 2014). There are two
proposed solutions which could be adopted by the organisation to deal with this problem are as
follows:
Market development: By adopting this strategy Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited
will be able to introduce its existing products in emerging markets such as Argentina, Russia,
Thailand, Turkey, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil etc. With the help of it, global presence of the
company could be enhanced. All the trade policies will be required to be followed by the
organisation but the negative impact of them could be reduced by awaking the countries about
benefits of business for them. In order to expand the business organisation can select the option
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of direct exporting so that it can cover a large market share without any mediator. Some of the
advantages and disadvantages of adopting this strategy are as follows:
 Advantages: There will be no mediator which will reduce the cost of expansion for the
company. Apart from this, the entity will also not have to spend monetary resources on
development of a new market.
 Disadvantages: The main disadvantage of this option is higher cost of market research
and analysis of taste and preferences of the customers in new market. A small mistake
may result in failure of project.
Diversification: It is another proposed solution for the problem of lower global
expansion. By adopting this option, Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited can introduce a new
product in a new market so that higher level of success could be acquired by it in international or
global market. The key countries which could be focused by the enterprise to expand business
are Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, Poland, Egypt etc. For the purpose of expansion, the entity can
sign a joint venture with the local distributors of the country which will be selected by it for
developing business (Patanakul, 2015). Some of the advantages and disadvantages of this option
are as follows:
 Advantages: It will help to capture a large market share by offering new products to the
customers in the new country.
 Disadvantages: The level of risk and cost for this option is very high. If the entity is not
able to offer such items to the clients that they are willing to buy then it may result in big
failure.
Problem 2 – High level of competition: It is another problem which is faced by Four
Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited because the number of competitors in its home country is very
high. It is very important for the company to attain competitive advantage so that this problem
could be dealt successfully. The proposed solutions that could be focused by the organisation to
deal with it are as follows:
Product development: This option will be beneficial for the organisation to hive
competitive advantages because with the help of it Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited can
introduce a new and unique product in the market. With the help of it, the entity will be able to
become more competitive in home country. Some advantages and disadvantages of this strategy
are as follows:
8

 Advantages: It can help the entity to acquire competitive advantage by offering new
products to the clients in the existing marketplace.
 Disadvantages: When the new product will not be able to gain attention of the clients
then it may affect the market image of organisation.
Market penetration: It is another strategy that could be adopted by Four Seas
Mercantile Holdings Limited for the purpose of responding the problem of high level of
competition. It will guide the organisation to enhance sales of its existing items in the current
marketplace by promoting them. Higher promotions will attract new customers and help to gain
competitive advantage. Some of the advantages and disadvantages of it are as follows:
 Advantages: It can help to increase sales by growing customers base which will be
beneficial to acquire competitive advantage (Rowe, 2015).
 Disadvantages: If another entity in the same sector adopts price penetration then it will
leave negative impact upon the sales of business.
CONCLUSION
From the above discussion it has been concluded that for all the organisations it is very
important to lead and manage all the projects properly so that long term business goals could be
accomplished successfully. In order to determine all the problems that are faced by an
organisation different models could be used. Some of them are PESTLE and SWOT analysis.
While planning to find solution for the problems Ansoff’s Growth Matrix could be used. All its
strategies will help to find appropriate solution for the issues. There are various advantages and
disadvantages of all the strategies of it that should be focused by the companies so that best one
from them could be selected.
RECOMMENDATIONS
From the above discussion it has been determined that Four Seas Mercantile Holdings
Limited is facing two different problems which are lack of global presence and high level of
competition. The entity is required to select best suitable solutions for these issues.
Recommendations regarding them are as follows:
 It has been recommended to the entity to adopt the market development strategy by
selecting the option of direct exporting to deal with the problem of lack of global
presence. It is suggested to the organisation because it will help to determine responses of
9

customers for the existing products so that appropriate changes in them could be carried
out in future to grow the business.
 The second problem of the company is high level of competition and to deal with it,
product development should be selected. It is recommended because it will help to
enhance the chances of grabbing attention of new customers in the existing market. It will
be beneficial for the organisation to attain competitive advantage (vom Brocke and
Lippe, 2015).
IMPLEMENTATION
Implementation plan:
What should be done By whom By when
Finding the emerging
markets
Managers Starting of the project
Determining new and unique
changes that could be
brought in existing products
Marketing team While planning for product
development
Formulating plans for future Board of directors When deciding for
expansion
Hiring experiences staff Human resource manager While expansion
Determining cost of
expansion and development
Finance department While allocating funds
Finding local distributors in
the new country
Research and development
department
When expanding business in
new country
Forming strategies for
market research
Marketers When deciding for launching
new products
Budget table:
Developing new subsidiary company
project for year 2020 to 2022
Budgeting plan
(HKD) Total budget (HKD)
Year Particulars
2020 Salaried labor 1,00,000
Rent 6,00,000
10

Advertising 3,00,000
Utilities 1,00,000
Equipment 11,00,000
M&A costs and other
expenses 53,50,000 75,50,000
2021 Salaried labor 1,50,000
Rent 6,00,000
Advertising 3,00,000
Utilities 1,00,000
Other expenses 50,000 12,00,000
2022 Salaried labor 2,00,000
Rent 6,00,000
Advertising 3,00,000
Utilities 1,00,000
Other expenses 50,000 12,50,000
2020 to
2022
1,00,00,00
0
Estimation of total capital required and investment: From the above budget it has
been determined that in the first year the organisation may require funding of around 7600000
therefore the managers will require capital of 7600000. If the entity will not be able to arrange
the funds then it may leave negative impact upon the plan of growing business. It is the total
investment which should be acquired by the organisation to execute all the planned activities
successfully (Wilson, 2014).
Estimation of sales and cost:
Years Sales Cost
2020 500000 7550000
Profit / sales 2550000 (Loss)
2021 3750000 1200000
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Profit / sales No profit no loss (-2550000 + 3750000 - 1200000)
2022 3500000 1250000
Profit / sales 2250000 (Profit)
Benefits to the stakeholders: The business expansion and product development of Four
Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited will be beneficial for all the stakeholders. Major benefits for
them are listed below:
 The development of business will help the investors to increase possibility of getting
higher returns on their monetary resources.
 With the help of expansion and development of Four Seas Mercantile Holdings Limited
the customers will be able to get good quality products which will satisfy their needs.
 It will be beneficial for suppliers also because their supply will be increased when the
organisation will expand its business.
 Creditors will also get benefited with the development strategies of the enterprise because
with the higher growth of the company they will be able to get their money back in less
time with lower possibility of bad debts.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals:
Baldwin, A. and Bordoli, D., 2014. Handbook for construction planning and scheduling. John
Wiley & Sons.
Du, J., Leten, B. and Vanhaverbeke, W., 2014. Managing open innovation projects with science-
based and market-based partners. Research Policy. 43(5). pp.828-840.
Elzamly, A. and Burairah, H., 2014. Managing software project risks (Planning Phase) with
proposed fuzzy regression analysis techniques with fuzzy concepts. International
Journal of Information and Computer Science (IJICS). 3(2). pp.31-40.
Fairley, R. E. and Willshire, M. J., 2017. Better now than later: managing technical debt in
systems development. Computer. 50(5). pp.80-87.
Heldman, K., 2018. PMP: project management professional exam study guide. John Wiley &
Sons.
Kendrick, T., 2015. Identifying and managing project risk: essential tools for failure-proofing
your project. Amacom.
Kerzner, H., 2017. Project management: a systems approach to planning, scheduling, and
controlling. John Wiley & Sons.
Koster, F. and Lambooij, M., 2018. Managing innovations: a study of the implementation of
Electronic Medical Records in Dutch hospitals. International Journal of Innovation and
Technology Management. 15(01). p.1850006.
Marle, F. and Vidal, L. A., 2016. Managing Complex, High-Risk Projects. London: Springer.
Martinsuo, M., Korhonen, T. and Laine, T., 2014. Identifying, framing and managing
uncertainties in project portfolios. International Journal of Project Management. 32(5).
pp.732-746.
Nguyen, T. H. D., Chileshe, N. and Rameezdeen, R., 2018. External stakeholder strategic actions
in construction projects: a Vietnamese study. Construction Management and
Economics. 36(8). pp.443-458.
Patanakul, P., 2015. Key attributes of effectiveness in managing project portfolio. International
Journal of Project Management. 33(5). pp.1084-1097.
Rowe, S. R., 2015. Project management for small projects. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
vom Brocke, J. and Lippe, S., 2015. Managing collaborative research projects: A synthesis of
project management literature and directives for future research. International Journal
of Project Management. 33(5). pp.1022-1039.
Wilson, R., 2014. A comprehensive guide to project management schedule and cost control:
methods and models for managing the project lifecycle. Pearson Education.
Zheng, J., Wu, G., Xie, H. and Li, H., 2019. Leadership, organizational culture, and innovative
behavior in construction projects. International Journal of Managing Projects in
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Zidane, Y. and Andersen, B., 2018. Causes of delay and their cures in major Norwegian projects.
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