Organisational Strategy and Leadership: Woolworths Case Study Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of Woolworths Group, a major Australian retail enterprise. It examines the company's business activities, including its diverse product portfolio and market share, and investigates its adoption of a cost leadership strategy to gain a competitive advantage. The report delves into the organisational culture prevalent within Woolworths, considering its impact on employee performance and overall productivity. Furthermore, it analyses the formal organisational structure of Woolworths and its influence on the company's operations. The report highlights the importance of these three factors – business strategy, organisational culture, and organisational structure – in contributing to Woolworths' success and growth within the retail industry. By analyzing Woolworths' approach to these aspects, the report offers valuable insights into effective strategic management and leadership practices.

Running head: ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP: A CASE STUDY OF
WOOLWORTHS GROUP
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
Table of Contents
Introduction...................................................................................................................2
Overview of the business activities of Woolworths Group...........................................3
Generic Business Strategy followed by Woolworths Group.........................................4
Organisational Culture predominant in Woolworths Group..........................................8
Formal organizational structure in Woolworths Group...............................................11
Conclusion..................................................................................................................13
References.................................................................................................................15

2ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
Introduction
As opined by David and David (2016), the dynamicity of the modern-day
business world becomes apparent from the increasingly different business
processes or mechanisms that the diverse business enterprises are presently using.
Thompson, Strickland and Gamble (2015) are of the viewpoint that difference of the
modern-day business world from that of the earlier times becomes apparent not only
in the context of the business models which are being used by the business
enterprises but also in terms of the strategies that are being used by them as well.
As a matter of fact, the contemporary business enterprises are taking the help of the
kind of strategies which are in conjunction with the demands of the business markets
of their operational and also intended for the achievement of the business goals or
objectives that had been formulated by them (Hubbard, Rice and Galvin 2014). In
this regard, it needs to be said that the framework or the tool of generic business
strategies is an important one which helps the business enterprises to select the
right kind of strategies as per their business requirements or objectives (Wheelen et
al. 2017).
As discussed by Morschett, Schramm-Klein and Zentes (2015), the role
played by the machinery of organisational or workplace culture can in no way be
relegated to the background. Furthermore, recent researches have clearly revealed
the fact that the organisational or workplace culture which is being followed within
the spectrum of a particular business enterprise wields a substantial influence on the
entity of employee performance and thereby the overall productivity of the entire
enterprise itself (Elsmore 2017). Moreover, mention also needs to be made of the
aspect of the organisational structure or the hierarchy which exists within the
framework of the workplace of a business enterprise since this also greatly

3ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
determines the aspect of employee performance and thereby profitability of the
enterprises. On the score of these aspects, it can be said that it is on the
conglomeration of these three factors that the success or the growth attained by a
particular business enterprise greatly depends. The purpose of this report is to
critically analyse the entities of business strategy, organisational structure and
workplace culture and the role that they play within the spectrum of a business
enterprise through the usage of the case study of the Australian retail enterprise
Woolworths Group.
Overview of the business activities of Woolworths Group
The Australian retail enterprise Woolworths Group or more commonly called
by the name of Woolworths was founded in 1924 by Percy Christmas, Stanley
Chatterton, Cecil Scott Waine, George Creed and Ernest Williams
(Woolworths.com.au. 2019). The concerned enterprise had extensive retail interests
in the nations of Australia and New Zealand and is reputed for the diversity of its
product portfolio that it offers to the customers. As a matter of fact, it is seen that the
enterprise under discussion here offers different kinds of groceries, books, furniture,
petroleum, liquor, financial services, telecom services and others to the customers
which in turn had contributed in a substantial manner towards the success gained by
the concerned enterprise over the years (Woolworths.com.au. 2019).
An article of Abc.net.au (2019), indicates the fact that the enterprise under
discussion here together with Coles Supermarket holds more than 80% of the retail
market share of the nation of Australia. More importantly, the annual financial returns
earned by Woolworths Group for the year 2017 was more than A$55.669 billion
which in turn made it the 2nd largest retail enterprise of Australia in terms of the
annual profitability generated by it (Forbes.com 2019). Furthermore, the concerned

4ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
enterprise in the year 2018 offered employment to more than 205,000 individuals
and although the business activities of the enterprise are primarily based in the
nations of Australia and New Zealand yet it is seen that in the present times it is
trying to expand into the different nations of the world so as to expand the scope of
its business and thereby profitability (Woolworths.com.au. 2019). Moreover, in the
recent times it is seen that the enterprise under discussion here is trying to take the
help of the e-commerce business model so as to attract the customers who like to
use e-retail and e-commerce services. In addition to these, it is seen that the
business strategy, organisational culture and organisational structure of the
concerned enterprise have contributed in a substantial manner towards the success
attained by it.
Generic Business Strategy followed by Woolworths Group
Frynas and Mellahi (2015) have articulated the viewpoint that the major
purposes of the different business strategies which are being used by the business
enterprises are to help the enterprises to attain the business objectives or goals that
they have formulated and also to enhance the profitability earned by them as well.
On the other hand, Trigeorgis and Reuer (2017) have noted that the different
business strategies used by the business enterprises helps them to effectively take
advantage of the opportunities which galore them in the business market of their
operation and also to mitigate the negative effects of the threats that they face in the
same. More importantly, it had been seen that the usage of the right kinds of
business strategies can not only enable the business enterprises to attain
competitive advantage as well as long-term growth or sustainability in the business
markets of their operations. In this regard, mention needs to be made of the
framework of Generic Business Strategy which highlights three major business

5ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
strategies that the business enterprises can use for the attainment of competitive
advantage and also for the enhancement of their profitability (Ethiraj, Gambardella
and Helfat 2016). The three strategies highlighted by this framework are
differentiation, cost leadership and focus which the enterprises can use as per the
goals or the objectives they are trying to achieve (Engert, Rauter and Baumgartner
2016).
David and David (2016) are of the viewpoint that the cost leadership strategy
is the one through the usage of which the business enterprises try to offer the best
possible quality goods or services to their clients or customers and that too at a price
that is comparatively lower than the ones offered by its competitors. On the other
hand, as noted by Wheelen et al. (2017), the adequate usage of the differentiation
strategy requires the business enterprises to attain a unique position within the
business market of their operation by effectively focusing on the attributes that the
customers value the most. As a matter of fact, it is seen that the business
enterprises taking the help of this business strategy inevitably resort to the usage of
the premium pricing policy so as to effectively focus on the attributes which the
customers perceive as the most important ones (Ethiraj, Gambardella and Helfat
2016). Lastly, the usage of the business strategy of focus requires a business
enterprise to select a particular demographic of the entire population or for that
matter focus of a narrow target market and thereby tailor their different strategies or
products or services on the basis of the needs or the demands of this narrow target
market (Morschett, Schramm-Klein and Zentes 2015). It is pertinent to note that the
effective usage of these business strategies not only helps the business enterprises
to attain the business goals that they are trying to achieve but also to attain
competitive advantage as well as long-term growth. On the score of these aspects, it

6ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
can be said that the business prospects or for that matter the growth of enterprises
like Woolworths and others greatly depends on the kind of business strategies that
they are taking the help of. An analysis of the business strategy used by Woolworths
is likely to yield insightful information regarding the business operations or for that
matter of the entire enterprise itself.
Woolworths started as a discounted retail chain in the nation of Australia and
since the year of its foundation the pricing mantra that the enterprise under
discussion here had used is “Everyday Low Price” (Woolworths.com.au. 2019). More
importantly, it had been seen that in order to offer the customers the best quality
retail products and that too within a price range which is way lower than its
competitors in the retail sector of Australia, the concerned enterprise takes the help
of the cost leadership strategy. This is important because within the retail sector of
Australia it is seen that the majority of the retail enterprises like Coles, Aldi, IGA and
others are taking the help of the premium-pricing policy for the goods or the services
that they offer to the customers (Abc.net.au 2019). However, the major problem
arises because of the fact that not all the customers are being able to afford the
expensive goods or services offered by these supermarkets or the retail stores and it
is precisely here that the cost leadership strategy followed by the enterprise
Woolworths gains prominence. As a matter of fact, it is seen that the cost leadership
strategy followed by the enterprise under discussion had enabled to effectively
broaden the customer base or the target market that they are focusing since by
taking the help of this strategy the concerned enterprise ensures the fact that the
people from all age brackets and demographics of the population of Australia would
be able to buy the goods or services which are being offered by it (Bailey 2019).
Furthermore, it is seen that although the percentage of profit that the concerned

7ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
enterprise makes from each of the unit of the goods or services sold by it is way
lower than the ones made by the other retail enterprises of the nation under
discussion here yet because of the large number of goods or services sold by it,
Woolworths is being able to compensate for the same. In this regard, it needs to be
said that the effective usage of the business strategy under discussion here had
enabled it hold monopoly in the retail market of Australia as becomes apparent from
the below given figure-
Figure 1: Comparison of the Australian retail market share of Woolworths with
other retail enterprises of the nation
Source: Bailey 2019
The above figure clearly indicates that the retail enterprise Woolworths holds
a higher market share in the retail industry of Australia than the other enterprises of
the concerned nation and this in turn had enabled the enterprise to earn a higher
amount of revenue than the other retail enterprises of the nation. In this regard, it
needs to be said that the cost leadership strategy followed by the enterprise under

8ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
discussion is one of the major factors which had enabled it to not only have a larger
customer base, higher profitability and a higher market share but at the same time
had enabled it gain competitive advantage in the concerned industry of Australia as
well (Bailey 2017). On the score of these aspects, it can be said that the effective
usage of the cost leadership strategy had greatly contributed towards the success or
the growth attained by Woolworths over the years.
Organisational Culture predominant in Woolworths Group
Gillespie and Reader (2017) have articulated the viewpoint that the entity of
organisational or workplace culture can be defined as the conglomeration of the
different values, beliefs, traditions or other aspects of the different individuals who
are a part of a workplace or a business enterprise. On the other hand, Huhtala and
Feldt (2016) have stated that the machinery of organisational or workplace
encompasses the behaviour and the values which in turn contribute towards the
“unique social and psychological environment” within the spectrum of a workplace
and also greatly guides the behaviour of the individuals within the workplace. More
importantly, as noted by Whelan (2016), the beliefs or the values or the ideas of the
founding fathers of the business enterprise also have a profound impact on the kind
of culture which is predominant within the framework of the concerned enterprise.
Recent researches have clearly revealed that the entity of organisational or
workplace culture have a profound impact not on the individual behaviour of the
different workers but at the same time affect their performance as well (Elsmore
2017). The resultant effect of this is that the different business enterprises of the
world are trying to formulate an effective organisational or workplace culture for the
enhancement of the employee performance or for that matter to influence to them
perform as per the expectations or the requirements of the enterprise. In this regard,

9ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
it needs to be said that there are various factors which affect the organisational or
workplace culture which is being followed within the spectrum of an enterprise like
the leadership or the management style, the employees, the nature or the kind of
work that they perform, the customer base or the target market that they serve and
others (Seidl 2016). Thus, it becomes important for the enterprises to take into
account these factors for the formulation of an effective organisational or workplace
which will support the needs of the employees and thereby maximise their
productivity.
Mohelska and Sokolova (2015) are of the viewpoint that in the present times
four major kinds or types of organisational or workplace have gained prominence
depending on the needs or the requirements of the business enterprises, namely,
clan culture, hierarchy culture, market culture and adhocracy culture. In this regard, it
needs to be said that the clan culture is the one which helps the business enterprises
to create a friendly environment wherein the different workers are being able to
complete the different tasks or jobs that had been delegated to them in a
collaborative manner (Laforet 2017). More importantly, the leaders are required to
play the role of mentors or facilitators and the focus is on the aspects of commitment,
communication and others. On the other hand, as discussed by Crane (2017), the
adhocracy culture is the one wherein a creative or a dynamic working environment
exists and not only the leaders but also the workers are required to risk-taking for the
effective completion of the different tasks allocated to them. Furthermore, the
enterprises taking the help of the market culture are required to be results-based
enterprises and the focus is on the effective as well as timely completion of the
different tasks ((Laforet 2016). Lastly, the hierarchy organisational or workplace
culture is the one wherein a formal or structured work environment is being

10ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
maintained and thereby the leaders are required to perform the role of monitors or
the maintainers of the status quo of the enterprise (Elsmore 2017).
The retail enterprise Woolworths takes the help of the clan culture within its
workplace. As a matter of fact, it had been seen that through the effective usage of
this organisational or workplace culture, the enterprise under discussion here had
been able to create a friendly workplace environment which supports collaborative
work on the part of the different individual employees or for that matter of the various
departments of the concerned enterprise (Grimmer 2019). The fostering of a friendly
workplace is important since it had not only reduced the workload or the work-stress
of the different employees of the enterprise but at the same time had greatly
contributed towards the enhancement of the engagement among the employees
(Bailey 2017). This in turn had helped in the effective collaborative completion of the
different tasks or the job roles of the enterprise since within the spectrum of the
enterprise it is seen that the diverse departments of the enterprise like sales,
marketing, customer support and others are greatly interlinked. Thus, by working in a
collaborative manner the employees have been able to not only enhance their own
performance but at the same time greatly support or contribute in a positive manner
towards the enhancement of the productivity of the other departments of the
enterprise as well. In addition to these, it is seen that different kinds of social events
are being regularly organised for the purpose of enhancing the engagement between
the employees which in turn had helped in the creation of an effective workplace
culture in the concerned enterprise (Bailey 2019).
In the enterprise Woolworths, it is seen that the role of leadership is being
adequately performed by its Chairman and its CEO (Woolworths.com.au. 2019). An
important aspect of the leadership style adopted by these two leaders of the

11ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
enterprise under discussion here is the fact that rather than acting as competitors or
hard drivers or monitors they act as the facilitators or the mentors of the employees
of the concerned enterprise (Abc.net.au 2019). For example, regular workshops or
seminars are being organised by these two leaders of the enterprise for the purpose
of offering mentoring or coaching services to the employees for the effective
enhancement of their performance. In addition to these, it is seen that on the basis of
the individual needs or the requirements of the employees individual mentoring or
coaching services are also being offered to the employees. These leadership
initiatives or roles performed by the two leaders of the enterprise have greatly
contributed towards the creation of a congenial workplace culture in Woolworths and
also the improvement of employee performance as well.
Formal organizational structure in Woolworths Group
Närman, Johnson and Gingnell (2016) have articulated the viewpoint that the
framework of organisational structure can be defined as the “officially codified
hierarchical arrangement of relationships” which exists within an enterprise between
the employees, its different departments and the enterprise itself. On the other hand,
Lamertz and Bhave (2017) are of the viewpoint that the machinery of organisational
structure offers an overview of the hierarchical relationships which exists within the
spectrum of an enterprise and on the basis of which competencies, roles, liabilities
and others are being allocated to the different individuals. More importantly, the
prominence that the construct of organisational structure within the spectrum of the
modern-day business enterprises becomes apparent from the fact a larger number
of different organisational structures are being by the enterprises on the basis of their
needs, the kind of work that they perform and others. Some of the most important

12ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
ones in this regard are hierarchical structure, matrix structure, flat/horizontal
structure, team-based, network and others (Crane 2017).
Mohelska and Sokolova (2015) have noted that the hierarchical organisational
structure is the one in which the structure of the enterprise is formulated on the basis
of the hierarchy of the roles or the designations that the different individuals hold
within the enterprise. As a matter of fact, it is seen that the different employees are
assigned to a particular team which in turn is being led by a team leader, the team
leader in turn reports to his or her immediate supervisor and so on. In this regard, it
needs to be said that this is one of the most popularly used organisational structures.
On the other hand, the matrix structure is the one in which the structure is being
formulated on a basis of a matrix or grid rather than the usage of the traditional
structures (Whelan 2016). For example, it is seen that the employees with same kind
of skills or performing similar kinds of job roles are being grouped into one group and
they in turn report to their managers and so on. Furthermore, in the horizontal or flat
organisational structure it is seen that the middle management is completely
eliminated and the employees directly report to the managers (Närman, Johnson and
Gingnell 2016). The usage of this kind of organisational structure is feasible only in
small business enterprises because of the lack of complexity in the work they
perform and also the lesser number of workers that they have.

13ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
Figure 2: Organisational Structure of Woolworths Group
Source: (Created by the Author)
Woolworths Group takes the help of the hierarchical organisational structure
wherein it is seen that each of the employees are being placed in a particular team
which in turn is being headed by a team leader. The team leaders report to their
immediate seniors and so on. More importantly, it is seen that different departments
related to the diverse business processes of the enterprise like resources,
supermarkets, logistics, sales, finance and others have created depending on the
work that the employees belonging to the concerned performs (Grimmer 2019).
Furthermore, it is seen that the head of these different departments report to the
CEO of the concerned enterprise. Moreover, it is seen that the CEO of the enterprise
in turn is required to report to the five “Non-Executive Directors” of the enterprise and
also its Chairman (Woolworths.com.au. 2019). It is pertinent to note that this
hierarchical structure and also the division of different departments ensures that the

14ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
work of the entire enterprise is being completed in an effective manner without
causing any confusion or conflicts. More importantly, it is seen that the organisational
structure which the enterprise under discussion here follows and also the manner in
which it is being ardently followed have greatly contributed towards the success
attained by the enterprise.
Conclusion
To conclude, the entities of business strategy, organisational or workplace
culture and organisational structure are the three most important factors which affect
the success attained by a business enterprise. More importantly, it is seen that these
three entities in turn are dependent on the requirements or the needs of the business
operations of the enterprises and also the goals or the objectives that the enterprises
are trying to achieve. The resultant effect of this is that it had become imperative for
the different business enterprises to take into account these three entities not only
for the attainment of the business goals or the objectives that they have formulated
but also for the achievement of the desired level of success as well. In this regard, it
needs to be said that there is a link between these three entities and as a matter of
fact they greatly complement each other. For example, the organisational or
workplace culture is dependent on the structure which is being followed within the
enterprise and vice versa. Furthermore, if a business enterprise does not have an
adequate organisational culture or structure then it is likely that it would not be able
to effectively implement the business strategy that it had formulated or for that matter
achieve its business goals or objectives. These aspects become apparent from the
above analysis of the enterprise Woolworths Group on the basis of these three
entities.

15ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP

16ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY AND LEADERSHIP
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