Changing Environment Of Business

Man has been carrying out business since time immortal. Man has evolved over time and so has business. The change in business trends has been observed by economists, financial analysts, theorists, businessmen themselves and the general public alike just as the evolution of man has been observed by anthropologists and historians.

As time progressed, so has the level at which business has been carried out. Today we see huge corporations operating at various locations all over the world making profits tuning to millions and billions. Business however has been a cause of envy and jealousy unlike the evolution of man. Business means profits to one person while a certain degree loss to another. Business generates money and profits which is the root cause for envy. The attitudes of the general public towards business have hence been negative.

The present day business is customer driven as opposed to the supplier driven business of yester years. Technology is changing very rapidly and life cycles of products are very short. The average life cycle of present day computer technology is said to be three months. With such a short time-period, corporations continuously need to look in to ways offering something better to customers to capture greater market share. Today corporations compete globally against other global firms and also against local firms of the host nation. Cut-throat competition among the market players is what we can witness today. The key driver of growth has been the knowledge level of people and not capital alone. Employees are no longer seen as an expense but an investment for future profits and also as a growth opportunity. The skill level of present day employees is very high when compared to those of yester years. Money is no longer the constraint, but human resource is the constraint. Present day employees switch companies very frequently in search for growth opportunities and better paying jobs. Corporations are finding it hard to maintain a stable work-force. Internet has been one of the biggest drivers of this rapid change. It provides information to both corporate executives and also the general public. Business can be carried out by a mere click of the mouse. Internet is making the “world a much smaller place”.
(The above information taken from: http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/crosscuttings/new_economy_transition.html )

The present day scenario also provides various medium for the public to draw and also share information. The media, be it electronic or the print – has been the biggest source of information. The media are always at the forefront covering every aspect of a corporation, both good and bad. Many corporations today are making a conscious effort to give back to the society. Corporations today associate themselves with many charity and environmental organizations. However due to the negative perceptions of the public about business, the wrong actions of a corporation seem to live longer in the minds of the public than the actions taken by the corporation for the social good. Corporations therefore need to be aware of the impact of their actions on the society.

Corporations must be able to quickly respond to the changes in the society and tastes of the public. They must do so however without changing their principles and also in an ethical manner. The priority must be towards the ethical standards and not towards making profits. They must understand the fact that giving back to public is profitable to their business itself and must not be seen as a loss. Communicating the standards set by the corporation and the strategy adopted by the corporation to the public helps build the brand image of the corporation. Communication keeps the public informed about the firm’s goals and also the vision of the firm. Firms must therefore identify communication to be an integral function like other functions such as finance and marketing. Experienced staff must therefore be hired to interact with both the internal stakeholders of the firm such as employees and the external stakeholders such as customers and suppliers.

Nestle have successfully adapted to the changes in the environment. Changes in government regulations and customer demands have increased pressures on Nestle. Nestle have responded to these changes by implementing new strategies and providing new technologies. Nestle has also achieved success through the use of new and modern business information system and by installing computer network infrastructure and also by integrating business and operational processes. The change in the environment has also brought change in Nestle which competing successfully world over.
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My Experience

Working alongside my father in his business firm for a year and also having witnessed his business operations over the years, I’ve also witnessed the change in the business trend. Customers have gained greater power of late than yester years. Customers enjoy greater bargaining power than they used to before. Communication with customers has been the key to success. Customers need a rational explanation for the raise in prices, non-availability of goods and even a slight delay in delivery. My father’s linguistic approach to the business has been the key to gain customer loyalty. His mastery of over five languages has immensely helped in attracting new customers and also bringing back old customers.