Analyse three external factors or trends currently impacting your organisation 5co01 ac 1.3

Analyse three external factors or trends currently impacting your organisation (or one with which you are familiar). The impact of these factors or trends could be positive, neutral or negative, some are short-lived whilst others are long-lasting. Identify organisational priorities arising from the factors or trends analysed. (5co01 ac 1.3)

Externаl fаctors analysis is of much importance in setting the strategic plan of the organisation and organisational adaptiveness. Herein are three important external factors affecting a retail association: economic conditions, social trends, and legal regulations. Each factor poses different challenges and opportunities that require special priorities for the organisation.

Economic Conditions

Economic conditions such as inflation rates, unemployment levels, and consumer spending power, are influential in retail operations. Currently, most economies are skewed towards inflation, decreasing the disposable income and therefore influencing consumer buying behavior. This might adversely affect the companies, as consumers are price-conscious today and tend to shop for essential things rather than luxury goods. Corporations react to such situations by cost cuts and fair pricing to maintain competition. This can take place by optimizing supply chains to reduce costs or creating value-based product lines to draw budget-oriented consumers. Long-term wise, companies may have to invest in market research to grasp the evolving preferences and realign the purchases.

Societal trends

Social trends mainly focused on sustainability and ethical consumption increasingly drive consumer behavior. On the rise are the demands for eco-friendly products and a transparent sourcing of raw materials. This trend is being triggered by the existing awareness of climate change and social responsibility in the minds of consumers, especially young ones. This explains why, in the end, this trend passes over a positive effect in the sense that organisations that align their products and practices can bond their brand with greater customer numbers, yet failure to do so can result in loss of reputation and market share. Sustainability initiatives, including reduction of wastes and responsible sourcing, should form the crux of the activities of the organisations, and conversely. Organisations should clearly communicate to the consumers. This is an advantage not only against competition but also as a filler of the consumer’s expectations.

Legal Regulations

Another key external factor that may directly influence retailing organisations is the legal environment, containing such elements as consumer protection laws and labor regulations. A change in legislation regarding the safety of the product or changes in the minimum wage laws, for example, would require the organisation to undertake expensive administrative procedures and investments. The impact can be positive, negative, or neutral, depending on the preparedness of the organisation to adapt to it. These would be the two most desired objectives that organisations should achieve for effective handling of the same. These may be in terms of training and new guidelines among others for the staff or even process finetuning internally to match with the set standards. Furthermore, proactive engagement with policymakers would enable a discussion aligned with the fact that organisations can have some say towards influencing future regulations to be favorable and in line with their operational capabilities.

Аll these seem to affect many companies at once. Externаl fаctors, such as predominаnt economic conditions, chаnging sociаl trends, аnd legаl regulations, cаn leаve а notаble imprint on the ret аil org а ni z аtion. Therefore, having determined those forces, an organisation can make priorities that can finally make it more sustainable for handling challenging situations better and more adaptable to changeable conditions. To sum up, an organisation feels its way through economic conditions by means of cost management, while aligning itself with social trends means, substantially, pursuing sustainability and making a measure of the legal regulations.

Explain Edgar Schein’s model of organisational culture and explain one theory or model which examines human behaviour. (AC 2.1)

1. Edgar Schein’s Model of Organisational Culture:

One of the leading organisational psychologists, Edgar Schein, has developed one of the most exhaustive models to help us fathom the different layers of organisational culture. His model contains three interlinked levels:
Artifacts and Behaviors:

These are visible aspects of culture in an organisation. They include things like dress codes, office layouts, symbols, rituals, and styles of communicating. Artifacts reflect the values and norms of an organisation. For instance, an innovative company may have open space offices and have different brainstorming sessions while a traditional organisation might have formal dress codes and closed offices.
Espoused Values:

These are an organisation’s officially stated beliefs, philosophies, and goals. The ways in which they are communicated vary widely, but include mission statements, vision statements, and corporate policy statements. Sometimes, these espoused values may be incongruent with actual behaviors within the organisation.
Basic Underlying Assumptions:

These are deeply held beliefs that are not articulated, attitudes, and unconscious thoughts that comprise an organisation’s culture. They direct the way decisions will be made, problems solved, or employees interacting with one another.
Advantages of Schein’s Model:
Comprehensive Framework: Schein’s model provides a means for leaders to think about, frame, and thereby assess and hopefully shape organisational culture effectively.
Observable Outcomes: The model helps in consistent analysis and change in behavior by focusing on observable behaviors.
Structured Approach: It provides a systematic way to understand culture by breaking it down into levels.
Limitations of Schein’s Model:
Simplism: Critics indicate that the model oversimplifies the complexity of organisational culture.
Neglect of Individual Differences: It doesn’t fully account for individual variations in behavior.
Cognitive Processes Ignored: The model does not take into consideration any internal cognitive processes that may have an effect on behavior.
2. Behaviorism Theory:

Behaviorism is a concept initiated by John B. Watson and B.F. Skinner that deals with observable behaviors caused as a result of exterior stimuli. The main points emerging from this are:
Acquisition of Behaviors: Behaviorism posits that all behaviors are acquired through interactions with the environment, specifically through reinforcement and punishment mechanisms.
Operant Conditioning: B.F. Skinner developed another approach known as operant conditioning, by which the behaviors can be modified using some amount of reinforcements or punishments. That which increases the frequency of behavioral recurrence is called reinforcement, while punishment decreases it.
Advantages:
Applications in Real Life: Behaviorism has given way to practical interventions, skill building and behavioral changes.
Observable Learning Outcomes: It lays more focus on measurable outcomes.
Consistency: Changes in behavior can be predicted.
Limitations:
Simplification: Behaviorism simplifies human behavior.
Neglect of Cognitive Processes: It doesn’t address the internal mental process.
Limited Creativity: Too much emphasis on the procedures of external reinforcement will tend to restrict creativity and critical thinking.
Schein’s model offers an excellent lens to view organisational culture, while behaviorism does the same for observable behavior. Both models have strengths as well as limitations; integrating cognitive development strategies enables us to look at human behavior from yet another angle.