Comprehensive Business Strategy Analysis Report: Marks & Spencer

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Marks & Spencer's business strategy. It begins with an introduction to business strategy and its importance, followed by an examination of the macro-environment using SWOT and PESTLE analyses. The report then delves into the internal environment and capabilities of Marks & Spencer, utilizing the McKinsey 7S model and the VRIO framework to assess resources and competitive advantages. Porter's five forces model is employed to evaluate competitive forces within the industry. Finally, the report interprets and devises strategic planning using various theories, concepts, and models, culminating in a conclusion that summarizes key findings and recommendations. The report emphasizes the importance of adapting to market changes, leveraging technology, and maintaining a strong brand image to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. The analysis covers various aspects like political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental factors impacting the business. The report also discusses Marks & Spencer's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

BUSINESS
STRATEGY

TABLE OF CONTENT
INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................3
LO 1............................................................................................................................................................3
P 1 Appropriate framework analyse of macro environment.....................................................................3
LO 2............................................................................................................................................................6
P 2 Internal environment and capabilities................................................................................................6
LO 3............................................................................................................................................................9
P 3 Porter’s five forces model and evaluate the competitive forces.........................................................9
LO 4..........................................................................................................................................................12
P 4 Range of theories, concepts and models, interpret and devise strategic planning............................12
CONCLUSION.........................................................................................................................................14
REFERENCES..........................................................................................................................................15

INTRODUCTION
Business strategy is a set of goals and objective for which there is a action plan designed
so that the business can smoothly achieve their objectives and goals. This can make the
organizations have clarity of work and the company will be able to get a competitive advantage
very quickly if there are better decisions and a course of plan for the business. Marks & Spencer
is a multinational organization which is a public organization in the market. There are more than
80,000 employees working in the company and the headquarters of the organization is in
London, United Kingdom.
The report would consist of the internal and external factors which can influence the
working of the company. To increase the competitive advantage which the company has in the
market, there are models and concepts which the organization uses so that they can have a better
market for themselves. Competition in the market is increasing which has to be considered while
making decisions for the company so that they can function effectively and efficiently.
LO 1
P 1 Appropriate framework analyse of macro environment
There are different techniques and methods which can be used by organizations to
understand the internal and external factors impacting on the organization which can be gotten
better by the organization (Sanaei and Sobhani, 2018).
SWOT
 Strengths
Marks & Spencer has a strong innovation team which is over 150 years in the market they
have changed the products according to the trends of the customers from time to time which is
why the company is having a strong base of customers. There is a strong and clear brand image
of the company in the market (Nan and Tanriverdi, 2017). The company has expanded
themselves in other departments as well which is a great strength for the company.
 Weaknesses

The company is not being able to have a success for themselves in the foreign market which
is a great disadvantage for the company. The designs of Marks & Spencer do not become a
success in countries like Asia and Middle East. The brand loyalty is low because the customers
are not satisfied with the products of the company completely and the customers switch very
quickly to other brands.
 Opportunities
The company has a great opportunity to expand themselves in other segmentation in the
countries by changing the designs according to the ethics and tradition of people. Understanding
the customers will make the company have a great market for themselves for a long run in
market (Kitsios and Kamariotou, 2019). Adapting to the technological changes in the company
is another opportunity which the company has which can make the company satisfy the
customers more and the productivity of the company can be maintained which is a great factor
for a long run in the market.
 Threats
The greatest threat for the company is the competition which is increasing in the market like
Zara, United Colors of Benetton, etc are few of the other companies which are coming up in the
market and targeting for the market share which Marks & Spencer has. Retailer stores in the area
can also be a great threat for the company because they have a lot of discounts on the products
which can attract a lot of customers to those stores.
PESTLE
 Political Factors
There are many countries which are having free trade policies which can be a great
advantage for the company after Brexit. Though the company has lost its shares in the European
countries but expanding in other countries is possible for the company which can be a great
advantage for the company (Pramanik, Maiti and Maiti, 2018).
 Economic Factors

The company is multination so that value of currency can impact the company’s pricing for
the products from country to country. The inflation rate of United Kingdom has increase which is
why the company can price the products at a higher value which the customers can purchase.
This will help the company to get a competitive advantage and is good for a long run of the
company in the market.
 Social Factors
The customer’s lifestyle is changing which is why the company will have to get designs in
the products of Marks & Spencer accordingly and the company is very good and motivated to
adapt to changes in the market (Liu and et.al., 2019). The products quality will make an impact
on the customers which is why the company is focused on the products they are providing to the
customers from time to time so that the customer scan be satisfied.
 Technological Factors
Technology has made a great impact on the company; Marks & Spencer has started online
shopping which has captured a lot of customers in the company. There are self checks and fewer
errors in the company which has reduced human manpower in the company. Marks & Spencer
has adapted to the changes in technology very easily which is a great sign for the organization
and for the company to get a competitive advantage.
 Legal Factors
Marks & Spencer has given a lot of people employment and is treating them equals by giving
them the right wages which they deserve which is a great opportunity for the company. The
company is giving the customers and the employees the rights which are required so that Marks
& Spencer can function effectively (Das and Rangarajan, 2017). Employees get a healthy
environment to work in and the customers get all the details about the products they purchase.
 Environmental Factors
The company is taken effective steps to improve the climate of the countries by having zero
carbon footprints and disposing their waste in the right manner so that the climate does not affect
the company’s deliveries and reaching the customers from time to time (Lozano, 2018). The

resources which are being used in the company are being monitored so that they do not exploit
them and use them wisely which is a very important factor for a long run of the company in the
market.
Benchmarking Indicators
The performance level of the company is a great advantage for them because the
productivity of the company is being maintained and the company is being able to fulfil the
demands and needs of the customers from time to time (Anwar, Shah and Hasnu, 2016).
Designed strategy is good for individuals and team work in the company because there is a sense
of clarity of working and the company will be able to achieve their objectives and aims faster.
LO 2
P 2 Internal environment and capabilities
McKinsey’s 7S Model
This model helps in the evaluation of different factors that affect the positioning of the
organisation in the market and its different components (Johnson, 2016). They are categorized as
hard and soft elements and can be analyzed in following manner:
Hard Elements incorporate those that are easily identifiable and descriptive and involve three
out of seven elements:
 Strategy: This signifies the organizational strategy that is adopted by the organizations i.e.
whether the strategy is well developed and implemented or not, its tenure etc. For M&S, the
organizational strategy is properly aligned with their system and they have a interactive
strategy between them and their employees so that they feel involved and decision making is
also quicker.
 Structure: Structure signifies the division and classifications in the business through which
communication flows and the business activities take place (Rothaermel, 2016). M&S
utilises a flat hierarchical structure to facilitate communication and encourage decision
making and involvement of employees in their company. This helps in increasing the
efficiency of the business towards achievement of their business goals.

 Systems: The process and procedures of the company are included in this aspect where the
entire system right from the first stage to the last stage is taken into account. Since this is the
critical aspect in determining how a business is conducted in the organisation, M&S always
gives particular attention towards it. They have removed any unnecessary stages in between
trying to make their process as short as possible.
Soft Elements are those that are not so distinguishable and are also not influenced by the
working culture of the organisation:
 Shared Values: These signify the values that the employees and employee implement at the
workplace making it a better place. The policies that they adopt and the norms that the
follow are a major contributor in the organizations working. At M&S employee
empowerment and integration has always motivated their employees to work collectively
and achieve organizational goals with each other.
 Skills: The skills incorporate the fact that how talented and skilled their employees and
further their performance based on utilization of such skills is evaluated. The change often
demands the evaluation of all the skills required and therefore this is important for M&S as
well where they hire employees on the basis of skills that the candidates possess and skills
that they actually require rather than qualifications (Welford, 2016).
 Style: every organisation has their own style or signature method through which they operate
and this is critical in distinguish one brand form its competitors. At M&S, the innovative
promotional techniques that they use along with their quirky tagline set a separate style for
the organisation as compared to its competitors.
 Staff: Staff is the different types of employees working in the organisation and these are
necessary for achieving the organizational goals. At M&S, they are regularly trained and
kept motivated so that they do not feel dissatisfied while working in the company.
Therefore, McKinsey 7S model helps in evaluating the different elements of the organisation so
that the strategically changes can be implemented correctly and in a relevant manner.
VRIO
This is a framework which can help the company to analyse all the resources which can
be used by the company for a competitive advantage. To understand the productivity of the

resources Marks & Spencer uses this framework which helps the company to increase their
market share and profit margins to grow rapidly in the market (HunTer, 2016).
Resources Valuable Rare Inimitable Organization
Capital √
Technology √ √ √
Human
Resource
√ √ √
Intellectual
Property
√ √ √
 Valuable
Valuable resources are those resources which help the company to add value in the activities
of the company and increases profit margins to grow. These resources can help the company to
generate all the factors and increase the quality of the products so that the customer’s satisfaction
can increase which is going to get the company loyal customers and have a better functioning for
them (Ardley and McIntosh, 2019). This can also help the company to get in effective
technology in the company. Key resources of the company are technology, Human resource and
intellectual property which increase the value of customers in the company.
 Rare
This factor is not so strong in the field which Marks & Spencer is in which is why they have
to invest a lot in the research and development department so that they can get a better outcome
ad the company will be able to get a competitive advantage. There are a lot of technologies
which are coming up in the company so that the demands of the customers can be met from time
to time which is more important for the company so that they can get a better market share for
them.
 Inimitable
These are those resources which are present in the company and no other organization can
copy them due to a lot of reasons. This factor can attract a lot of customers in the company and

get the company a competitive advantage. There is a lot of innovation in the products which
Marks & Spencer has got for the customers and have taken patent acts to protect the innovation
so that they can have long term competitiveness in market.
 Organization
Organization is the most important strategy which the business can have which is a great
resource for the company to achieve their objectives (Lai, Melloni and Stacchezzini, 2016). The
company is not so strong on the rare resources in the market which is why the company will have
to innovate new ideas and that can impact on the competitive advantage. Training and
development is being provided to the employees from time to time so that the company can
achieve their objectives on time and increase their profit margins effectively.
LO 3
P 3 Porter’s five forces model and evaluate the competitive forces
Balanced scorecard is a performance metric which is used in strategic management and to
identify and improve the internal factors of the organization so that the result on the external
factors could be better. The management and the human resource of M&S keeps a check on the
employees of the company on a personal and professional level so that the internal factors and
issues internally of the company can be solved from time to time so that the company can
function effectively and smoothly. To understand the external factors of the company like the
competitiveness in the market can be done by using porter five forces.
Porters Five Forces
 Competition in the industry (High)
Marks & Spencer is having a large market base for them but the competition is so huge that
they are not being able to get the right customer base which they expect which is a great loss for
the company. The company is investing a lot in the research and development so that they can

get a competitive advantage which is going to be good for a long run of the company
(Matzembacher and Meira, 2019).
 Potential of new entrants into the industry (Low)
There is a requirement of a great investment for any company to come in the competition
with Marks & Spencer which is why the company is having a low threat for anyone to come in
the market. There is already a lot of competition in the market like Zara, United Colors of
Benetton, etc. There are no other companies which want to enter this market so that they can get
a better competitive advantage.
 Power of suppliers (Low)
There are a lot of suppliers in the company so that they can produce their products from time
to time so that they can satisfy the needs of the customers which are a very important factor for
the company. There are a lot of suppliers which marks and Spencer has kept for themselves so
that they can shift from one to another which will help the company to get a competitive
advantage.
 Power of customers (Medium)
The company is changing according to the needs of the customers so that they can have a
strong base for themselves in the market (Pucheta‐Martínez and Bel‐Oms, 2019). It is very
important for the company to change according to the customers of the company so that they can
have a better market share for them. Customers get the revenue for the company which can be a
great factor for the company which is why the company has to do their best in meeting the
demands and trends of the customers so that company can get the right customers and increase
their profit margins.
 Threat of substitute products (High)
There is a lot of competition and the products which Marks & Spencer are using is easily
imitable which is a great loss for the company therefore the company will have to get patents on
the products which they are dealing in so that they can have a better market share for them.

There has to be a unique factor in the company so that they can attract the customers and if that
is missing then that can be a great loss for the company.
Stakeholder Analysis
The stakeholders of Marks & Spencer are customers, managers, suppliers, investors,
executives, employees, etc who are related to the company some way or the other is the
stakeholders of the company. It is very important for the company to analyse the stakeholders of
the company so that the decisions which are being made in the company are going to be
acceptable by everyone of the company which is going to be very profitable for the company. All
the stakeholders have a say in the decision making of the company directly or indirectly and the
influence of their decisions have to be considered in the company accordingly.
Ansoff Matrix
 Market Penetration
The company has penetrated deep in the local market which is why the company is having a
high revenue generation for themselves and the customer base of the company is also high. The
company has to get more profit margins for themselves and that is only possible when they
expand themselves in different markets with different products.
 Product Development
The field in which Marks & Spencer has established itself is a very competitive field which is
why the company has to invest a lot in their research and development department so that they
can get a competitive advantage (Kitsios and Kamariotou, 2016). Tasting the new products in a
market which is having loyal customers of the company there the company can get honest
feedbacks from the customers who are going to be very helpful by the organization and the
company will be able to capture a larger market for themselves.
 Market Development

The company has to explore the new markets which the company has already with the same
products which they have but they also have to understand the customers and change the
products accordingly. It is very important that having so much of experience in the existing
market the company should be able to understand the customers better and make decisions for
them regarding that factor.
 Diversification
Marks & Spencer has entered new markets but they must get new products in the company so
that they can understand the customer trends and traditions and that will help the company to
satisfy the customers better. The company has to understand a large need of the customers so that
they can invent and improve the existing products of the company accordingly and according to
the culture and tradition the company will be able to get higher profit margins for themselves.
LO 4
P 4 Range of theories, concepts and models, interpret and devise strategic planning
Objectives
 To increase the sales by 30% of Marks & Spencer by 2023.
 To improve the productivity of the company by 25% by the end of 2022.
 To make the company have a profit by 40% by the end of 2025.
Market Analysis
 People- The people who are getting attracted to the company are not getting satisfied
with the company enough which has to be managed by the company otherwise they will
not be able to increase the profit margins (Langabeer and Champagne, 2016). The
customers of the company are not loyal because of the competition which is coming up in
the market. The employees are trained and developed of the company so that the
customers can get the best of services from the company which is going to attract more
customers in the company.
 Price- The prices of the products of Mars & Spencer are not priced so high that the

customers can not afford them but are reasonable so that the customers are satisfied with
the company. It is very important that the prices of the product are placed according to
the customers so that the company can attract the right customers in the company which
is a very important factor for the company. Good quality and services have to be
maintained by the company so that the company can satisfy the customers form time to
time.
 Place- Marks & Spencer is a multinational company in the market which is a great factor
for the company and the market base for the company is huge which a good factor is for
the company. The company has to understand the customers and the tradition of the place
so that they can innovate the products accordingly which can be a great factor for the
company. There are attractive images and colours which are being used by the
organization so that they can attract more customers in the company.
 Promotions- Company has gotten online which is a great advantage for the company that
is very good for the company to get more customers in the company. Promotions is very
important for the company so that the company can make the customers get aware of the
products which the company is having so that they can make the customers get loyal to
the organization and the company will be able to have a high profit margin.
Monitoring and performance
It is very important for Marks & Spencer to keep a check on the customers and the
employees of the company so that there is a better functioning of the company and the company
will be able to have a better understanding so that the decisions for the future can be made
accordingly (Mahmood, Chung and Mitchell, 2017). There are a lot of changes which are taking
place in the company so that the customer’s satisfaction with the company can increase and the
customers can get loyal with the company and do not shift from one brand to the other.
Bowman’s strategy clock model has eight competitive directions which Marks & Spencer
is taking care of so that they can have a competitive advantage in the market which is a very
important factor for the company. The company has started putting discounts but they can not
reduce the prices of the products because the company is maintaining the quality of the products
which is a great deal for the company. There is no bargaining which can be done in the company

and the customers get the best of services and products which is a great deal for the company.
The products of the company are easily imitable which is why the company can only invent and
innovate the products so that they can have a better market for themselves and attract more
customers in the company.
Vertical horizontal integration
Marks & Spencer is already expanded themselves in the world which is why the company
will have to focus on the horizontal integration so that they can make the products and
production level increase of the company so that the company can fulfil the needs and demands
of the customers from time to time. It is very important for the company to make the customers
satisfied because there are a set of standards which the company has set for themselves in the
market which have to be followed by the company so that they can maintain their brand image in
the market.
Diversification
The company will have to get more products and new market to explore with the new
product so that the market can have a better functioning for them (Zakaria, Hashim and Ahmad,
2016). It is going to be a competitive advantage for the company if the customer base of the
company can increase and the company will be able to get high profit margins. Understanding
the customers will be better and the portfolio of the company can improve.
CONCLUSION
From the above report it can be concluded that it is very important for the companies in
the market to analysis the internal and external factors of the company so that they can have a
better understanding and the future decisions of the company can be made appropriately. To
make any decisions for the future the companies must understand the strategies the competitors
are using and then make a better strategy for themselves so that they can get a competitive
advantage for a long run. There has to be a plan for the company so that there is a clear direction

in which the company can work and that is going to be very good for the company and to get a
higher profit margin.

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