The business environment is dynamic. Arden Design and Print organization have to consider a number of factors to ensure success in their operations. The paper seeks to identify the key stakeholders in the organization and the power they possess. The behavior of the organization in the market and the effects of international business operations in the decision making of the local organizations. The paper also analyzes various types of economic tools and their effects on the business decisions.
Organizational Types
There are a number of organizational types in the business environment. The business environment keeps changing depending on the people that interact with the business owner. The business environment can be the physical location of the business, rules governing the buying and the selling of given products and a collection of groups such as employees, investors, customers and the suppliers. An organization can either be public or private. Private organizations are owned by individuals and include sole trader, companies and co-operatives (Rudder,2016). Arden Design and Print is an example of a sole trader hence a public organization as I am the sole owner. Public organizations, on the other hand, are owned and controlled either directly or indirectly by the government for the good of all individuals in the given state. Examples include public corporations (Rainey,2009).
Organizations can be classified according to the size, whether they are international or national, whether they are primary, secondary or tertiary organizations. They can, therefore, be categorized as private, public, voluntary or charitable.
Private organizations
The legal requirements for a private organization depend on the laws of the given country. There are however similarities for most states. Sole traders are owned by a manager who is fully responsible for the liabilities of the organization (Eskerod,2016). My organization Arden Design and Print belong to this category. Individuals opt to own such kind of organization as it is easy to run and requires low capital to set-up. Partnerships kind of organization is where liability is shared equally among the partners and is mostly found in such professions as architects. Private Limited companies are where the liability is only limited to the to the private owners of the business. The public limited company is characterized by the public quoting of shares on the stock exchange market. It is owned by the public and is usually a large organization. Cooperatives vary in structure depending on whether it is a consumer cooperative, producer cooperative or a franchise.
Changing my business from a sole trader to a limited company would be advantageous as I would start sharing the risks involved in the business with other shareholders. Furthermore, in a limited company, it is easy to raise capital for investments since risk is spread to shareholders and is limited to the amount of contribution for each shareholder. In case the company makes profits, shareholders can then make a return on their investment.
Key Stakeholders
In Arden Design and Print organization, stakeholders will include the local authority of Aiden as the organization has to adhere to the set laws and regulations by the local authority. The local business situated near my organization. The surrounding business will affect the competition in the market and the prices of my goods and services (Basu,2017). The local residents are also part of the stakeholders as they were the main determinant when setting up the business. I had to ensure that my goods are desirable to the local residents. Arden Design and Print does not have employees so they are not part of the stakeholders but they will be part of the stakeholders when I change my organization to the limited liability. My customers also form part of shareholders as they are the key determinant of the profits I make in my organization. Changing my business to a limited company will also the stakeholders (Cairns,2016). Employees and the shareholders will be included in the list of stakeholders. The diagram below the stakeholders of the Arden Design and Print organization.
It is important to manage the stakeholders of a given organization. Different stakeholders have different expectations which are likely to conflict with each other (Hawrysz, 2017). It is, therefore, my job as the owner of the organization to balance and reconcile the conflicts to ensure it is in line with the corporate strategy of Arden Design and Print organization. Stakeholders have power and influence to the organization. Personal power comes from the suppliers of the materials used to produce the business cards. Legitimate power comes from the recognized structures within the Arden Design and Print organization. As the sole owner of my business, I will create strong links with the stakeholders and ensure that I consider and serve their individual interests as much as possible. I will consider the interest of the local community as it will play a great role in helping my organization carry out its business of creating cards with the consent of the community. Powerful stakeholders such as my customers will be offered the best services.
Arden Design and Print will greatly benefit from undertaking the stakeholder analysis. Stakeholder analysis is the consideration of the impact that each stakeholder has on the business. The customer stakeholder group are taken into consideration by conducting of the market research. This is beneficial as I will get to understand the needs and the motives of the target customers. Conducting a stakeholder analysis also helps in forming partnerships (Mushove,2005). I will get to collaborate with other business in the industry and hence deliver the best to my customers. Partners will make me operate my business with high levels of integrity and openness for the benefit of all. Partnerships will make me consider technology hence strengthening the inventory systems (Mushove,2005).
A stakeholder-based approach is also beneficial in getting my projects into shape as the opinions of the stakeholders will help in defining the projects when still at an early stage. I will strive to gain support from the powerful stakeholders such as customers and this will, in turn, help me in winning more resources (Mushove,2005). Understanding my stakeholders will make me get ahead in business as I will be able to anticipate and predict their reactions to the project when still at the developing stage.
Stakeholder Matrix
The power matrix Is used to express the relationship between the power of the stakeholder and the extent to which the power can be translated into action (Chaisse,2016).
High Level of Interest Low
POWER
A
. Local Government
B.
Suppliers
C.
Local Residents
D
Customers
High
PREDICTABILITY
High Low
POWER
A.
Local Government
B.
Local Business
C.
Customers
D.
Local Residents
In the matrix showing the level of interest, Customers are the key payers among the stakeholders. Local residents have to be kept satisfied with the operations of the organization. Suppliers have to keep informed always about the performance of the goods on the market. Local government needs minimal interest as long as the organization conforms to the set rules and regulations (Slaba,2014).
The matrix on predictability shows how stakeholders are predictable in the organization. Customers are powerful stakeholders can are predictable. Local residents pose the greatest danger and the great opportunity depending on their actions. Local government has a few problems while local business is unpredictable but manageable.
Nature of the National Business
The business environment in the United Kingdom emphasizes the judicious use of resources especially the human resources. The business emphasizes so much on people. As the sole human capital of Arden Design and Print, I have to identify, gather and use information. The business environment also commands that I should protect my skills and expertise in my business through the use of patents and copyrights. Today’s competitive business environment also requires the workforce to be mobile and flexible (Stummer,2015). The human resource has to be shifted and resources re-deployed within the organization. I will also ensure that my organization makes use of information technology as the national environment is very competitive.
The national business environment adopts the free market system. In the free market system, the consumer is sovereign, individuals are free to make their choices, the administrative costs are low and it is responsive to the changes in the market (Guo,2016). This type of market economy highly favors Arden Design and Print organization as the costs are operation are low and the consumers determine what is to be produced in the market. Customers decide on the organization to work with hence I have to ensure I provide the best services to be chosen by the customers.
The cultural environment also has to be put into consideration. Issues such as racial groups need to be taken into account. The national environment has micro-cultures. There are group differences or clashes in attitudes such as values, tradition and lifestyle. All these aspects are important in the functioning of the Arden Design and Print organization (Hult,2003).
The behavior of Arden Design and Print in the Market Environment
Arden Design and Print organization have been experiencing challenges to cope with the business environment. The challenge has mainly been attributed to the failure to adopt technology in its operations. I have also been physically immobile in my operations (Evans,2010). I have therefore decided to explore the use of technology in the making of the business cards to lower the costs and also improve the quality of the business cards. Changing the business to the limited liability will improve the operations of the business as there will be more sharing of knowledge and hence deciding on the best strategy to adopt. Changing the business to a limited company will also ensure the business grows to enjoy privileges that come with large organizations such as economies of scale hence more profits.
Economic Tools
The demand for the business cards depends on a number of factors. These factors will also have an impact on the profits made in my organization. Factors influencing demand are the changes in the income levels of the consumers (Cannels,2016). Increase in the income of my customers will increase the demand for the business hence I have to increase the supply of the business cards. If the tastes of the consumers change in favor of my business cards, then their demand will increase hence the need to increase the supply. On the other hand, the Supply of the business will increase if I adopt the modern technology in the business (Saleh,2015). I will make use of computer-aided Manufacture (CAM) To design the best business cards by using the computer. If the price of raw materials used in the making of business cards decreases, then I will be able to increase the supply of business cards hence more profits. I will create a demand that is inelastic to price changes in the market to maximize profits in all circumstances. I will also differentiate my business cards to give them a competitive edge and ensure I deliver quality to my customers.
Costs also affect the business decisions. Cost-cutting helps in grabbing the market share and also eliminating the competitor (Beccker,2017). As the sole owner of Arden Design and Print organization, I would make this decision in the short term to influence the competitive of my organization. I would also ensure my business grows so as to enjoy the economies of scale. An economy of scale helps in cutting the costs hence maximizing the profits (Becker,2017).
Arden Design and Print is the type of a perfect competition market. In such kind of a market, there are a large number of buyers and sellers, free entry and exit and homogeneity of the products (Becker,2015). A perfect market is advantageous as the price will always be at its lowest, there are large choices of suppliers, the consumer is sovereign and the efficient producers make the most profits (Carlton,2015).
Influence of International Factors on Domestic Market
International trade benefits companies operating within the trade area of the customs union. Businesses in the United Kingdom have been provided with more opportunities with the expansion of the European Union (Low,2016). Countries should, therefore, strive to create economic trade blocks to ensure their goods get more consumers. In international businesses, differences in the culture have to be understood (Jones,2018). Managers that work in international businesses have to ensure that they understand the behavioral and cultural differences and the importance of cultural diversity in their business. The global business also needs to customize their marketing policies and business strategies to deal with the differences in the national culture (Feenstra,2015).
References
Basu, R., 2017. Managing project supply chains. Routledge.
Becker, G., 2015. Perfect Competition. Wiley Encyclopedia of Management, pp.1-1.
Becker, G.S., 2017. Economic theory. Routledge.
Cairns, G., Goodwin, P. and Wright, G., 2016. A decision-analysis-based framework for analyzing stakeholder behavior in scenario planning. European Journal of Operational Research, 249(3), pp.1050-1062.
Cannella, S., Dominguez, R. and Framinan, J.M., 2016. Turbulence in market demand on supply chain networks. International Journal of Simulation Modelling, 15(3), pp.450-459.
Carlton, D.W. and Perloff, J.M., 2015. Modern industrial organization. Pearson Higher Ed.
Chaisse, J. and Li, L.Z., 2016. Shareholder protection reloaded: redesigning the matrix of shareholder claims for reflective loss. Stan. J. Int'l L., 52, p.51.
Eskerod, P. and Jepsen, A.L., 2016. Project stakeholder management. Routledge.
Evans, P., 2010. The global challenge: International human resource management. McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Feenstra, R.C., 2015. Advanced international trade: theory and evidence. Princeton university press.
Guo, Z., Deride, J. and Fan, Y., 2016. Infrastructure planning for fast-charging stations in a competitive market. Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, 68, pp.215-227.
Hawrysz, L. and Maj, J., 2017. Identification of stakeholders of public interest organizations. Sustainability, 9(9), p.1609.
Hult, G.T.M., Snow, C.C. and Kandemir, D., 2003. The role of entrepreneurship in building cultural competitiveness in different organizational types. Journal of management, 29(3), pp.401-426.
Jones, R.W. and Kierzkowski, H., 2018. The role of services in production and international trade: A theoretical framework. World Scientific Book Chapters, pp.233-253.
Low, P., 2016. International trade and the environment. UNISIA, (30), pp.95-99.
Mushove, P. and Vogel, C., 2005. Heads or tails? Stakeholder analysis as a tool for conservation area management. Global Environmental Change, 15(3), pp.184-198.
Rainey, H.G., 2009. Understanding and managing public organizations. John Wiley " Sons.
Rudder, Catherine E., A. Lee Fritschler, and Yon Jung Choi. Public Policymaking by Private Organizations: Challenges to Democratic Governance. Brookings Institution Press, 2016.
Stummer, C., Kiesling, E., Günther, M. and Vetschera, R., 2015. Innovation diffusion of repeat purchase products in a competitive market: an agent-based simulation approach. European Journal of Operational Research, 245(1), pp.157-167.
Saleh, Z., 2015. The effects of staff training on the performance of private organization: a case of Umma university Kajiado campus.
Slabá, M., 2014. Stakeholder Power–Interest Matrix and Stakeholder Responsibility Matrix in Corporate Social Responsibility. Proc. The 8th International Days of Statistics and Economics (Prague), pp.1366-74.
