Management and Business Context The 7-Eleven Organization

Question: Discuss about the Management and Business Context The 7-Eleven Organization. Answer: Introduction The 7-Eleven is a private organization which is one of the most convenient stores based in Australia. The stores are owned by Barlow and Withers family. They started operating in Australia in 1977. They had earlier been operational in the United States of America. As at today, the organization operates a total of 630 stores across Australia. The organization transacts about 190 million transactions every year. In every second, they serve an average of 6 customers. They generate about $ 3.6 billion. 7-Eleven is the largest franchise operating in the world. It has about 40,000 stores across the world. It has surpassed the record that was formerly held by McDonald Corporation by the year 2007 (7-Eleven, 2017). Contextual factors that impact on the organization and its decision-making There is a wide range of contextual factors ranging from internal, external, domestic and international organizational structures. 7-Eleven franchise organization has a very well defined structure which has enabled it to be successful in its operations. The organization is headed by a president who is the Chief Executive Officer of the organization (Debra, 2015). He or she is mandated to oversee all the business operations of the organization across the world. The Chief executive officer is assisted by other four members of the seniormanagement committee. The assistants include the internal audit officer, cooperate planning officer, marketing, and operations officer and the finance and administration officer. All the officers who work under the watch of the chief executive officer have various responsibilities. The internal audit officer is responsible for auditing all the books of accounts of the organization. Cooperate planning officer is responsible for steering all planning activ ities of the organization (Tai Nejo, 2002). The finance and administration officer and the marketing and operation officer are two executive officers who act as the vice president of the organization. The two officers have a number of other senior officers who report to them in various capacities. Under the finance administration, there is the controller of finance division, human resource and administration managers who are responsible for recruitment and employment of staff of the franchise stores. There is also the legal and co-operation division and finally the procurement division (Papadakis Barwise, 2012). Cooperate and planning officer who is the other vice-president is assisted by the operations division officer, strategic merchandise officer, the general merchandise officer and finally the marketing officer. There are also some two officers who report directly to the president of the organization. The officers head the business development division and the organization's information technology division. The business store, therefore, has very good structures which have enabled it to be successful over the years that it has been operational (Stepleton, 2009). Environmental forces There are some internal and external environmental forces which have the impact on the success and operations of the organization. The internal factors include; Organisational direction The organization has a very good organizational structure. It has a clear mission and vision. Its mission is to ensure that they improve the lives of their customers and any other person who visits their stores. Their vision is to be the best retailer outlet in the world. The structure of the organization has promoted the friendly relationship between the customers and the staff of the organization. There is effective communication within the organization and also by the organizations staff and customers. The organization values their customers a lot. All these efforts have enabled the organization to set its objectives and have moved in the right direction (Paul, 2007). Strength of the employees The business organization has employed talented, motivated and hardworking employees. There is a good relationship between the employees and between the departments in the organization. The employees have been able to work together towards a common goal. They collaborate and consult one another on resolutions as well as ideas (Champoux, 2010). There are also external environmental forces that include; Competition The business organization operates in a congested industry where there are very many competitors. However, the company has over the years carried out competitive analysis. They have done a comparison in terms of price and offerings in the market. 7-Eleven stores have embraced high quality and strong customer relationship as a tool of fighting competition from other players in the business market (Kokemuller , 2016). The organization has therefore continuously grown over the years. It is for the reason that the business store has about 40,000 stores across the world. Socio-Economic factors The organization has identified the concerns of its customers. It has therefore upheld the values of their customers in the process of providing goods and services to them. In addition, it has varying prices for its products so that customers are able to afford them based on their economic ability. Government policies The 7-eleven organization has expanded into many countries around the world. Every multinational organization or company is likely to be affected by the laws and regulations that vary from one country to another. In an effort to achieve its objectives, the 7-eleven stores have abide by the laws and regulations in all the countries in which they operate. There are some countries that have restricted the importation of particular commodities. 7-Eleven stores to have avoided the importation of the particular commodities in order to avoid conflict with the government (Kokemuller , 2016). Risks confronting the firm Despite the success and growth that has been recorded by the firm over the years, it is confronted by a number of risks. The risks include; Compliance risk Since the organization has stores in several countries, it faces the challenge of complying with laws and regulations in the countries. The laws and regulations are frequently changed and at times the organizations find it hard to adjust to the change. The changes in laws and regulations have over time affected the organizations business future. It has hence become a strategic risk at the same time (Andrew, 2014). Operational risk These are risks that originate from the failure in the day to day operation of the business stores. They include technical failure, for example, a server outage, power cut, problems with the organizations website host among others. Some of the operational risks have been caused by processes and employees of the organization e.g. writing of wrong figures on cheques (Hiles, 2002). Strategic risks There are times when the organization has become less effective in its mandate and struggled to meet its objectives. This has happened due to changes in technology, the entrance of new competitors in the market, increased prices of raw materials and changes in customer demands (Coles Tombs, 2010). Financial risk The expansion effort of the business stores has resulted in increased operational costs. There have also been cases of delayed payments for goods delivered to some customers, putting the organization at financial risk (Andrew, 2014). Organization and business practices Setting and promotion of vision The vision of 7-Eleven stores is to become the leading retailer outlet in the world. The organization has since recorded a lot of success following the good relationship that they have struck between them and their customers, employees, and partners. Employee empowerment The giant business store has structures that allow its employees to generate business ideas that have been implemented by the organization. The employees are also compensated and rewarded when they meet certain set targets. They, therefore, feel motivated and encouraged to work even harder (Paul, 2007). Solving problems The organization has put in place well-defined systems and mechanisms for solving problems that arise. They identify the root causes early enough and act before the problem may cause a lot of damage to the business of the organization (7-Eleven, 2017). Adoption of high standards Themanagement of 7-Eleven stores has adopted standard control mechanisms. The organization documents all the activities that are carried out in the stores. In addition, there is regular auditing of work in order to ensure that high standards are maintained (Tai Nejo, 2002). Organizational functions of diverse firms The 7-Eleven uses divisional structures in order to provide better services to its customers and also to meet the needs of some geographical regions. They have divided their workforce according to countries and regions. That has been done because customers in particular places have varying needs. Each country and region have their own marketing managers as well as human resource managers (Champoux, 2010). The organization has also put in place varying product structure in order to meet the needs of their customers in different parts of the world. There are different pricing and distribution structures in different countries (Stepleton, 2009). The criterion has been embraced to ensure high quality of the firms products. The 7-Eleven has a functional structure with departments such as marketing, accounting, business development and human resource among others. The functional structure has promoted the efficiency of human resources. The departments have been able to make well-advised decisions given the high number of expertise that is available in every department (Stepleton, 2009). The organization has therefore been able to meet the need of its customers and in the process; it has grown to become a world-leading franchise store. Conclusion 7-Eleven organisation is currently the leading franchise store in the world. The success of the organisation has come as a result of the organisational structural structures that have been put in place. The structure of the franchise store has made it possible for every member of the organisation to participate in decision making process. The move has therefore promoted inclusivity and all the workers and manager have developed the feeling of ownership. The organisation has find it easy in addressing environmental forces because everyone in the organisation because of the ownership that has been embraced by its members. The organisation has equally been faced with risks just like other business organisation in the market. However, 7-Eleven stores have been able to address the challenges. The organisation has put in place structural mechanisms for addressing challenges and problems that may arise in the course of doing business. In addition, the staff andmanagement of the organisation have paid a lot of attention to the concerns of their customers. References 7-Eleven. (2017). About 7-Eleven. 7-Eleven. Retrieved from https://www.7-eleven.com/ Andrew, B. (2014). The Main Types of Business Risk. Retrieved from https://business.tutsplus.com/tutorials/the-main-types-of-business-risk--cms-22693. Tutsplus. Champoux, J. 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