Business Environment: Treaty of Waitangi and A2 Milk Company Report

This report analyzes the business environment of the A2 Milk Company, focusing on the impact of the Treaty of Waitangi and the challenges of operating in a global context. The report examines the political, economic, and legal systems relevant to the company, particularly in relation to its operations in New Zealand and its interactions with China. It explores cultural and ethical challenges, including differences in individualism versus collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, and power distance between New Zealand and China. The analysis includes the use of the Hofstede cultural model to understand these differences and their implications for sales, marketing, financing, and customer service. The report highlights potential conflicts and offers insights into risk management and the importance of adapting business practices to navigate cultural variations, emphasizing the need for training and development to mitigate cultural clashes and maintain organizational goals.

Running head: MANAGING BUSINESS ENVIRONEMNT
Managing business environmental factors
:

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Section 1:
Introduction
Purpose of report and approaches taken to address
The major purpose of the report is to study the Treaty of Waitangi and also to see the
impacts that it is having over the different organizations of New Zealand. The major purpose of
the report is to analyze the ways in which the indigenous people of New Zealand will be able to
cope up with their issues. Moreover this report mainly discusses the bicultural principle of the
treaty of Waitangi and the immediate relation of the Maori tribe with this Treaty. On the other
hand it must be noticed that Maoris are the indigenous people who wanted to get the needed
rights and the policies that they will need to lead their lives peacefully under the same set of rules
and laws made by the NZ Government. The main purpose of the paper is to analyze the political
system and the cultural analysis in the International or the Global context. The purpose is to
understand the ways in which the two countries can work properly by understanding the cultural
differences and also the ways in which the same can be continued. The purpose of this report has
been solved by using the websites, reports and the other such websites where there were
information given about the treaty and about the project (thea2milkcompany.com.2020).
A2 Milk Company is one of the most well-known company that produces the cow milk
that has the A2 protein type and no A1. This is because the milk of this company can be easily
compared with the milk of conventional cows but at the same time, they will not be produced
based on any technological or based on the chemical based processes.

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Introduction of the Organization
The a2 Milk Company was founded in the year 2000 New Zealand in 2000 by scientist
Dr Corrie McLaughlan and his business partner Howard Paterson. The year of finding this
company is 2000. An ASX 200 public listed company with about 3000 emplyees. This is
because of the fact that the founders were of the opinion that not all milk are same and so they
have to be properly put in place and also it must be made sure that there are no compromises
being made with the taste or the nutritional values of the food items (McCarthy, C. 2016).
Discussion
Section 2:
Political system
Unstable political issues
China more or less has stable political step. They have also been able to solve the poverty rates.
However in attempts of reducing poverty rate the pace at which the economic developments are
taking place has been reduced. This is useful because New Zealand has to focus over many trade
and development activities if they are to trade in a sound manner.

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This might have negative impact on the company as they will find it tough to carry on the
business in a peaceful and sound manner.
Foreign trade policy
Foreign trade policy is still on the verge of getting developed and they are trying to develop their
e commerce activities. This is useful for A2 Milk Company as they will be able to use it for
developing their marketing and sales activity.
Human resource
HR professionals will have to make sure that they are recruiting people as per the need and the
demands of the customers. In order to appeal to the people or customers of China, they will have
to make sure that the marketing professionals are well acquitted with the norms and values of the
people of China.
Impact in terms of political aspect
HR officials will find it difficult to arrange for the right employees at the right point of time. This
is because employees of China will follow a top down approach and they will not show any
kinds of proactiveness or self confidence. The A2 milk company will have to spend extra time
and effort in searching and recruiting the employees.
Impact in terms of Cultural aspect

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China has a low score in Indulgence so they will always show a negative or pessimistic attitude.
On the other hand New Zealnd always has a very active and positive attitude. It is because of this
reason that the cultural conflicts will be a major issue and must be overcome.

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Sale and marketing
Sales and marketing methods must also be developed with the touch of the local norms and the
customs.
Impact in terms of political aspect
China is feminine soviet and New Zealand is a masculine society. The political set up of New
Zealand always looks for bringing about something innovative to all their products. However
China will always try to work on the goals of shared values and will not appreciate in standing
out of the box. It will give rise to the political unrest if not dealt at the right time.
Impact in terms of Cultural aspect
The employees in China are at a score of 8 at power distance and they are of the opinion that the
inequalities are justified and acceptable. Therefore they can carry on differential pricing and sell
the same product at a higher price to some customers while selling the same product at a lower
price to the other customers. This will create a negative impact on the customers and they will
not be able to maintain their goals of keeping people at first. New Zealand does no entertain any
inequalities and try to treat all the customers equally. It is because of this reason that they have
to work over this issue.
Risk management and how this impact to business
Impact in terms of political aspect

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Employees in New Zealand do not have any place for uncertainty. On the other hand the
employees of China do not avoid the uncertainty as they feel that uncertainties can come up in
their ways. Therefore if the minimum wage of China is high the company will have a major issue
because they will have to bear a huge expense.
Impact in terms of Cultural aspect
China follows a collectivist culture and New Zealand on the other hand has a individualistic
culture. It is because of this reason that they will be suffering from the thought process conflicts
when they are unable to understand about this issues. Employees from China will take a long
time in solving the issues and will try to take the opinion of their seniors. On the other hand the
employees of New Zealand will be able to make sure that they are proceeding with the business
by following a horizontal approach and not the top down approach. This has t be properly
solved.
Section 3:
Cultural challenges
Cultural and ethical challenges pose a major threat when the companies are trying to
carry on with their business in the other parts. However these challenges may arise due to the
changes or the variations in the local and the socio cultural beliefs both on the local and also on
the Global or the International basis. The cultural challenge is identified between China and New
Zealand. This is mainly because of the fact that China with a score of 20 is mainly collectivist in
nature and they depend on the top management for getting all the works done. The do not really

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rely on their own self confidence. On the other hand New Zealand has an individualistic culture
and they mainly rely on their own confidence level and their own decision making skills. The
impact will be that
There can be a cultural conflict in this aspect and this in turn will be making the
production of the company hampered. The company will have to bear extra amount in arranging
or the training sessions and this might incur an extra expense on the company. It is because of
this reason that there will be some impacts on the monetary aspects.
· Cultural, social and ethical challenges
For an instance the Hosted model or the Hofsted analysis must be used so that the
company is able to understand about the differences that lie between them and the ways in which
they can overcome it. However there are several differences in terms of the power distance,
individualism and also in terms of many other such aspects. For an example it can be seen from
the graphical representation of the Hofstede cultural model between China and New Zealand
shows that they are showing several differences on many different grounds and that these can
actually turn out to be of some huge issues like internal team communication or the varied
cultural opinions and others. The challenge that has been identified is the cultural conflict. This
is because of the fact that the employees of China and that of New Zealand are having two
different kinds of mindset. The employees of China will depend largely on the opinion of their
seniors or their top manager. However if these employees are asked to work in a very
independent manner then they might get offended and there will be several cultural conflicts.

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The conflicts naturally will harm the overall production of the company and this can be
stopped by arranging for the training and developmental facilities. The training and development
facilities will incur an excess amount of money. There are chances that it might also increase the
total employee turnover rate. The organizational goal of putting people first might be affected.
This is mainly because of the fact that if the employees are suffering from internal conflicts then
they will not be able to work in an efficient manner and there will be several issues being created
by them. This will be hampering the overall growth and development and thus the product
quality will be hampered. This in turn will be leading to several customer complaints.
As the A2 Milk Company is located in New Zealand the employees and managers
naturally follow the customs and the culture of New Zealand However at the same time, it must
be ensured that while working with multi cultural or Global employees they must always try to
understand the local culture of other employees. The cultural differences may be different among
people. This is because the employees will be able to
The main business activities being carried on are-
Sales and marketing
For an instance China has a low score 30, on Uncertainty avoidance. They like ambiguity
and they are of the opinion that there can be many uncertainties in life but they do not really have
the tendency of avoiding them.
On the other hand New Zealand has 49, which shows that they do not like to entertain
any uncertainty. They do not show any strong preference towards uncertainty avoidance.
Therefore the purpose of meeting the sales target can be managed but there will surely be some
or the other issues.

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Financing
The company may be reluctant in allowing good amount of finance for the business activities as
they do not give full ownership to employees in China. However in New Zealand the scenario is
different. The superiors feel that employees are self dependent and will provide them the revenue
that they need without any question.
Customer service
New Zealand employees usually follow a very open and horizontal communication system as
they do not like to bring any uncertainty. On the other hand, China might keep some space for
uncertainty while dealing with customers.
Cultural challenge
As far as the cultural set up of China is concerned they score 20, a low score on
Individualism. This is evident of the fact that they are collectivist culture. They believe that
hierarchy and a control exhibited by the superiors is acceptable. However at the same time, they
will have to be New Zealand is having a high score of about 79 in this aspect. They are self
dependent and individualist culture. They do not really believe in imposing the decision or the
opinions on others. All the employees are free to take part in the business decision making
process. Therefore while working in China or with Chinese employees, the A2 New Zealand
employees might face the cultural difference, they will have to bear with the large scale
dependency or the collectivist nature of the employees (Rangihau, 2017).

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Section 4:
Strategies&Management Techniques
Strategy to overcome cultural challenge
The political issue that is established is that there can be some joint venture related issues. This is
because if the company is entering in some joint ventures and then if they are not able to sell the
products that are made by the common people, then the local economy will not be boosted up.
This is because of the fact that the common people will naturally look for some kinds of
representation in the local market and also be sure that they will get a good source of income.
The local distributor is to be contacted so that the Chinese customers are able to purchase the
products from the Chinese sellers only who they must. This can be done because they will be
able to appeal to the taste and the preference of Chinese consumers better by adding the elements
of the Chinese culture.
Guanxi Networking system must be followed so that the customers are able to develop a good
relation with the Government, distributor and also the ways in which they will be able to
understand the importance of the products and also carry on with them properly. Proper funds
must be availed from the Government so that customer relationship developing works and the
campaign sessions are developed.
 Employees in China must be given sufficient sources to fill their knowledge gap as they
must always be asked to take part in the business decision
 There must be a proper horizontal and vertical communication developed so that
employees are able to easily interact with each other. On the other hand there must be a

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proper feedback system so that regular updates can be taken about the progress that is
taking place
 Employees in China might not be able to complete the task on time as they are largely
dependent on the support of their superiors. However this might delay the work very
much and will cause a huge loss.
Section 5:
Bicultural Partnership in New Zealand
The three important principles are the three P’s that is partnership, protection and
participation. It is in order to make sure that Maoris are also able to get the equal representation
and the same kinds of laws and policies (Harmsworth, Awatere & Robb, 2016). partnership,
protection and participation are the three principles of the treaty.
 Participation is one of the major aspects that the company tries to focus upon. They have
tried to develop some good relations with the partners. This is because they have entered
into many such business relations with the other countries like that of the China and
others. However theer are nor
 They have a strong local management tema that is tryng tom solve the relations sbtewee
the ANZ, China and U.S
 A multi-product, multi-channel route to market strategy for the sale of infant formula into
China;
 •close partnership with child or infant formula manufacturer because this is a good way
of the market penetration

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 Synlait Milk, which holds:-SAMR product registration1 for the importation of the
company’s China label infant formula through to September 2022; and -GACC2
registration for its Dunsandel manufacturing facility, allowing canned infant formula to
be exported to China

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(a) Influence on business activities
This will be influenced in a very strong way because they will be able to get the expertise
from the local market. One of the most important principles is protection. This is because the
treat wants to provide protection towards the minorities like the Maoris. Vocational trainings
must be developed so that the Maoris to get the proper training and are able to feel encouraged.
This will help them in order to understand that they are now educated enough to take part in the
different decision making process. This will help the A2 Milk Company to give employment to
the Maoris and they will be able to make sure that the business is being enriched with the help of
the local knowhow. The local people will be able to add a tinge of the local flavors and thus this
will help in making the organization much more stronger and attract the attention of all the
customers.
(b) Develop a relationship with the following:
 The relationship can be developed and maintained by increasing the employee
recruitment and the participation. In other words the A2 milk company has to
make sure that they are recruiting the people from Mari tribes.
 This will ensure that they are getting a better employment opportunity and also
will be able to earn their living.
 Some Maori development programs and the welfare sessions must be developed
so that they are able to make sure that there is a good and strong relationship
developed between the Maoris and the other people of the company.

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Maori customs and norm
Concepts of Whanau
Whākapapa-based whānau is one of the diffused units that are the native of New Zealand
and they also form one of the major sources of support for the Maoris. This is because of the fact
that they will be able to educate the Maoris and thus the Maoris can develop themselves further.
The Whākapapa-based Whānau has been identified by Māori as an appropriate vehicle for Māori
development, and, the Whākapapa-based Whānau is recognized in both Government policy and
in law. The company must bring them in order to get a thorough training and development
service for the overall welfare of the organization.
One of the major gals of the organization is that they try to keep carbon emissions low. This can
be greatly influenced by the employees of Marori, Hapu and Iwi. This is mainly because of the
fact that they will try to use their knowledge of the natural resources and then be able to carry on
with the production of their goods and services with the eco friendly techniques.
Hapu
Political unit in pre-European Māori society was the hapū. They have always beenable to
provide a constant source of support and energy so that they are able to make sure that the
members are getting a proper support and are able to encourage themselves.
Iwi

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This was the largest political group in Europe. They have many different clans and they
also help in making sure that there is a proper protection given towards the tribe. They will be
able to make sure that they are helping the Maoris to protect themselves.
Section 6:
Complex situation or challenge
The challenge can be the clashing ideal and the principles of the different people from the
different cultural and religious communities. This will be affecting the principle that is
participation. This is because if there are differences between the indigenous and the non
indigenous people then the Maoris and other people will be prohibited from participating in the
different educational activities or the different other such training and development activities.
The challenge can be sharing of the information with the people of Maori culture and also the
information sharing process This is because of the fact that the language might not be same and
thee will naturally be some or the other linguistic problems. Taking care of the employees from
these tribes is also a challenge because they will not be able to understand the ways in which the
work is done in New Zealand. It is for this reason that there must be proper training and
development facility developed for them.
The organization will be solving these issues by making sure that they are arranging for the
external training and development session so that the cross cultural differences can be identified
and also overcome in the same way.

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Section 7:
Conclusion
Therefore it can be concluded that the Treaty has really been useful for making sure that the
people both of the indigenous and the non indigenous communities are being able to lead a very
healthy and safe lifeunder the common set of rules and laws that has been made by the
Government of New Zealand. They have their operations in the places like United States and
also in China. It is because of the presence of the peaceful and the stable political system that
they organization is able to maintain a very smooth business relations with the other countries.

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References
Benton, R. A. (2017). Mauri or mirage? The status of the Māori language in Aotearoa New
Zealand in the third millennium. In Language policy, culture, and identity in Asian
contexts (pp. 163-182). Routledge.
Harmsworth, G., Awatere, S., & Robb, M. (2016). Indigenous Māori values and perspectives to
inform freshwater management in Aotearoa-New Zealand. Ecology and Society, 21(4).
McCarthy, C. (2016). Museums and Maori: Heritage professionals, indigenous collections,
current practice. Routledge.
Rangihau, J. (2017). Maori culture today. Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work, 20(4), 3-12.
thea2milkcompany.com. (2020). thea2milkcompany.com Available
from-https://thea2milkcompany.com/
Torepe, T., Macfarlane, A. H., Macfarlane, S., Fletcher, J., & Manning, R. (2018). Leading
schooling in Aotearoa New Zealand: Understanding and supporting the weight of culture
for Maori teachers. Journal of Educational Leadership, Policy and Practice, 33(2), 48.

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Appendices