MBA501 Dynamic Strategy: Woolworths Stakeholder and Portfolio Analysis

This report presents a comprehensive analysis of Woolworths Group, focusing on stakeholder strategy development and portfolio analysis. Part A examines generic stakeholder strategies, recommending suitable approaches for different stakeholder types and discussing implementation. Part B conducts a portfolio analysis using the BCG matrix, GE-McKinsey matrix, and Synergy matrix to evaluate the performance of Woolworths' various business units, including supermarkets, liquor chains, and finance-based units. The analysis identifies stars, question marks, cash cows, and dogs within the BCG matrix, providing insights into market share and growth rates. The GE-McKinsey matrix assesses the attractiveness of different business units, offering recommendations for investment and operational strategies. The report concludes with portfolio recommendations, emphasizing the improvement of R&D operations and communication among stakeholders to enhance the company's competitive advantage and operational efficiency. The report references several academic sources to support its analysis and recommendations.

Dynamic strategyCase study assessment

PART A- Stakeholder strategies

Introduction to the organization,
Woolworths
 Woolworths has been recognized as the largest supermarket chain in
Australia
 The organization was established in 1924, having 995 stores across
Australia
 The business holds huge employee base with 20100 team members in
stores
 The mission of Woolworths is to create better experiences together for a
better tomorrow
 The company has been serving around 21 million customers every week
at their stores

Six priorities of the organization
1. Customer first brand, followed by team and culture
2. Connected and convenient ways for shopping
3. Differentiating their food customer propositions
4. Evolving their drinks business
5. Unlocking value in portfolio and better for customers
6. Simpler and safer stores for supporting them

Stakeholders

Stakeholders of the organization
Stakeholder groups Role in the organization
Employees The employees play a major role in empowering the
business processes while operating as per the common
objectives of the venture. The decisions that are
initiated by the business are supported by the
collaborative activities of the employees (Harrison and
Wicks 2019).
Shareholders The shareholders provide the organization with capital
investments for empowering the R&D operations of the
venture while addressing the changing market
environment needs

Stakeholders of the organization
Stakeholder groups Role in the organization
Suppliers The suppliers provide the organization with the
resources that might be required by the same while
adhering to the needs of the customers. Therefore,
Suppliers of the organization ensures the continuity of
the business processes
Customers The business operates as per the changing needs of the
customers. The customer centric business model
ensures the growth and expansion of the venture while
operating in the different markets (Zollo, Minoja and Coda
2016)
Government and Regulators The government impose different legislations that
dominates over the existing processes of the venture. In
this connection, the imposition of legislations permits a
venture in ensuring the uninterrupted operations of the

Generic stakeholder strategy of Freeman
 The Generic stakeholder
strategy by Freeman includes
the different strategic steps that
might be considered by the
organizations with the objective
of addressing the interests
 The generic strategies provides
an organization with the
overview of the different steps
that might be considered by the
same for encouraging their
growth

Generic strategies
The generic strategies include:
 Swing: The strategy supports an organization in initiating changes in
the current frameworks of the organization
 Offensive: The strategy encourages an organization in exploiting the
stakeholders for maximizing the scope of short term profit making
 Defensive: The defensive strategy of the organization permits in
defending their position among the stakeholders while negotiating on
different terms of operations
 Hold: The hold strategy encourages an organization in retaining the
current system of operations (Weitzner and Deutsch 2019)

Application of generic strategies in
Woolworths
Stakeholder groups Generic strategies
Employees Swing: The organization must take the initiative of
identifying the concerns that re being faced by the
employees and thereby mitigate the same through
subtle changes in the processes and policies of the
venture. The mitigation of the issues that are being
encountered by the employees empowers the
continuity of the operations for the venture while
minimizing the rate of staff turnovers
Shareholders Hold: The organization might take the initiative of
holding on to the strategies that are being met out to
the shareholders. The change in the strategies towards
the shareholders would result to fear and lack of trust
among the group which might affect the interest of the

Application of generic strategies
in Woolworths
Stakeholder groups Generic strategies
Suppliers Swing: The change in the strategies that are being met out to the
suppliers would enable the organization in enhancing their relation
with the specific group of suppliers. It would allow the venture in
improving the operational aspects in accordance with the common
goals of the venture
Customers Swing: The changes in the strategy towards the customers would
allow the venture in improving the business propositions in
accordance with the modifications in the demand patterns of the same
and thereby gain a competitive benefit over the existing market
players
Government and Regulators Swing: The subtle changes in the legislations might be adhered by the
organization through continuous modifications in the existing policies
and procedures. The change of strategies as per the common
objectives of the venture would facilitate the compliance requirements

Recommended strategy for the stakeholders
Stakeholder groups Specific Generic program
Employees The organization might take the initiative of introducing reward and
recognition programs including incentive schemes on performance
with the purpose of motivating and empowering the activities that are
being initiated by the workforce
Customers The organization might initiate convenient shopping options for the
customers while remodeling the store layout with the purpose of
improving the capability of the venture in increasing customer
experience