Contemporary Management Issues

 

 

 

Contemporary Business Report

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notes on businesses – 10 businesses

Boost Juice

• Mango Magic (Boost)
• 4:45 am – 11 am (Morning)
• Type of customers going into the Boost store is multicultural
• Customers come by car as the business is connected to a petrol station
• F2F pay
• Main competitor in the area would be the seven eleven across the road which serves many forms of drinks
• No issues raised by the employee
• Busy/moderate
• More food places in the area to draw in new customers would be helpful
• More amenities 
• More space would be good as the business feels cramped in a small location
• Totally safe, never felt unsafe while at work or even after hours

 

IP Visions

• Carpark at the back is enough for the customer base
• ⅔ company
• Good location along a major road which is convenient for their customers to get in and out
• Lots of customers, business is going well
• Online presence through Amazon and Ebay
• Hardware shop, however, have separate cryptocurrency as another form of income
• Safe location, never had an issue in their time at the location
• 2 and a half years in that location, previously operated at a different location
• Owners live in the local area so they know their customers well and feel connected
• Customer base mainly consists of builders, electricians and other tradesmen
• Multicultural customer base, customers come from all over the local area and even from further areas of Sydney

Gotcha

• Diverse set of customers, lot of Asian and middle eastern customers
• Customers mainly come as they are walking by from the train station or coming from Woolworths in the shopping centre
• Menulog and Uber Eats deliveries for all products on menu
• 1 year in operation an they are a franchise
• Not enough parking for the customers in a convenient location, makes it difficult for people stopping by just for them
• Offer more parking and fix traffic issues in surrounding roads
• Facebook and Instagram advertising
• Not very safe at night and even during the daytime hours. Staff feel unsafe walking alone to the car, especially at night.

 

B Convenience

• Drinks and snack foods
• Walk in customers
• Mostly Indian customers but with a good mix of other cultural backgrounds
• Menulog deliveries of all products sold within the store
• No competition that feels threatening to their business
• Construction site taking away customers, said it would be finished months ago yet is still going and blocking access for customers.
• Would like more access to the business
• Area feels safe

 

TSG Tobacconist

• Main items sold are snacks and cigarettes
• Asian and Arabs are the main demographics for customers of this business
• Customers are pretty much all just walking past due to bigger stores nearby
• No delivery
• 15 months in operation and is a franchise
• no close competitors in the area, doesn’t feel threatened
• Too quiet, not enough customers
• Help fill units nearby, too much empty space
• Mostly safe, there are occasional shoplifters in the centre that get away

 

Amart Tyres

• Tyre shop
• All local people, mixed races but a lot Pakistani people
• Drive in customers
• They service both cars and trucks which means both direct consumer sales and business to business sales
• Competition in the area is pretty big, many different tyre shops nearby in more convenient locations
• Not enough space to expand due to surrounding businesses and developments
• Too much traffic due to being on busy Parramatta Road, makes it difficult for customers to get in and out of the business
• Heavy online presence, advertising on almost all social media platforms
• Area is safe, no issues

 

St Michael’s Pharmacy

• Sell medicine and household products
• Mostly pensioners and almost all are local customers
• Mixed background of customers currently. Used to be majority Lebanese but past few years has changed to become highly Nepalese
• New competition opened not far away, much bigger store in the form of chain Chemist Warehouse
• Street has been neglected for a long time, no support from council
• More doctors and medical centres in the area to suit the needs of the area, this information has come directly from the customers of this store
• Upgrade the street to be more lively and welcoming. Keep local parking and do not allow current plans to remove parking in favour of a park. Said that if this parking area is removed almost all customers will disappear as they will not have anywhere to park
• No online presence
• very safe in this area, no issues for them in the many years they have been in operation

 

Seven Eleven

• Fuel is the main product but also sell snacks and convenient items when people walk in
• Customers are from all different cultural backgrounds which match the local demographic. Asian customers are most common.
• Pretty much all customers come by car when stopping for fuel, with a few walk-in customers who are looking for snacks or other convenience items.
• Delivers products online through Menulog and Uber Eats
• Would like more food places in the area to draw new customers in
• Another petrol station right next door takes away some customers, they are before them on the street so are the first option most customers see
• Lack of space is a big issue for us and slow traffic makes it hard for people to enter and leave. Often traffic is backed up outside the business

 

Ampol

• Main product is fuel which brings in other customers to buy their other products such as snacks and convenience items
• Morning to afternoon is the busiest time for them
• Very diverse set of customers, there is a lot of through traffic due to their location on Parramatta Road which brings in people from all over Sydney
• They offer delivery services for their snack and convenience items
• Space is a little cramped but not a big issue for them
• They feel safe due to being on main road with lots of people around, never had any issues to do with safety

 

Notes

We experienced various challenges when interviewing local businesses for Cumberland City Council. Granville was assigned to the group. Local businesses commonly cited a lack of parking spots and unsightly terrain. Moreover, the area we were allocated is located inside the Parramatta Local Government Area.

 

Cumberland City Council is a thriving, growing, historically and culturally significant society. There are various ethnic groups and businesses in the area. This advantage boosts community participation, pride, social harmony, and the quality of relationships.

 

For Cumberland to have a stable economy, the Council must understand these results and their meaning. The survey showed that many customers could not access local businesses quickly or reliably because of insufficient parking spots.

 

As a result, you risk losing many potential customers, which is a concern. After changes were made to make it easier for people to walk to these places, business activity and foot traffic from customers increase.

 

 

• Parking policies are recommended to be reviewed in the area as we observed different illogical time frames in front of businesses. Such as having 2 hours free parking in front of a pharmacy and tobacconist but only 15 minutes of free parking in one of the busiest cafes in the area who believes that most of their customers come by car to their business.
• Consistent road work during business hours is recommended to be reviewed as there was a theme among businesses when it comes to traffic issues surrounding them and being difficult to stop by street walkers.
• Adding some trees and pedestrian friendly walkways could reduce the unsatisfactory scenery of construction based look and add a more vibrant vibe for customers to look at.

 

Professionally constructed business report, 4000 words (+/- 10%)

WE NEED TO USE THESE TO ANSWER THE Discussion of findings and their relation to the theoretical context

The objectives of the study are: By identifying the trends, triggers and opportunities that dictate the initiation and establishment of sustainable culturally diverse town centres and high streets within the Cumberland LGA answer the following:

• What evidence is there of existing and developing supply networks, customer bases and influencing environments that contribute to this diverse environment? 

 

• What evidence is there to assist the Council to understand the future of these unique centres, specifically, identify their needs in 5 and 10 years from now?

 

•  Provide your understanding of the opportunities for Cumberland Council’s business development team to assist in the growth of these centres

Executive Summary

Introduction/Background

Methodology and data collection methods

The research and data collection methods used were based on qualitative methodology advocated by Paul Felix Lazarsfield (Fleck, 2015). This study was conducted by obtaining data from businesses, mainly through the means of direct interviews with business personale (see Appendix 1). The interview utilising a line of questioning which helped gain an insight towards the business structure, the employee in question, and their experience operating in a business in the local Cumberland City Council area. Because participation in the interview was voluntary and concealed identities, participants may respond to questions more openly and truthfully A total of 10 different businesses were interviewed, with different levels of staff questioned inorder to help provide a larger pool of data for analysis (See Appendix 1).

Our analysis of this data was supported by a variety of sources, ranging from academic literature, through journal’s and books, to online databases such as Profile.ID (). The selection of academic sources were undertaken by dialing in making sure that fit into one or more of 3 key areas, being relevance to topic, latest information, and being peer reviewed. This was primarily done through using academic sourcing databases, such as the Western Sydney University Library and google scholar, utilizing their filtration system to the 3 factors previously mentioned, to find valuable sourcing we can relate with our data. Using these sources and databases, we were enabled to both compare and contrast data taken from the interviews, linking it with literature to allow us to come up with effective analysis and solutions for problems. The data collected from our interviews is very current, as the interviews were taken in the recent weeks, making sure that the analysis of said data is useful to Cumberland City Council.

 

 

The Methodology Section answers the Question: What did you do? Some useful questions to guide you:  (references here)

1. What methods did you use? 
2. How many sources were included? – # databases or sources 
3. How did you select them? 
4. What kind of data did you gather? 
5. How did you analyse the data?
6. How reliable or accurate is your data? – how current is it? 

N.B. Methodology section is always written concisely and in the past tense

 

Talk about research methods for data ( Ex websites, books and journal articles)

 

 

Discussion of findings and their relation to the theoretical context References approx. 3 to 5 references, statistics, data and evidence to back it up. Make sure you reference where you got the statistics and data from.

Talk about research methods for data ( Ex websites, books and journal articles). 

Critical analysis of findings and implications for the client

It is crucial for Cumberland City Council to take the necessary steps to create a sustainable business environment. By analysing the findings of this report, we can take appropriate actions to ensure that a sustainable business environment can be created and nurtured. Through the interviews and research conducted we are able to identify areas of concern and areas of strength. A major issue raised was the lack of available parking for the local area which has driven away a significant number of customers due to the difficulty of accessing the area by car. This is a pretty simple issue to understand, because if people do not have somewhere to park their car, they are unable to easily and efficiently access a business. While not all customers access the local area by car, a significant number do with 59.2% of Cumberland City Council residents taking a private car to work as of 2016. While this number doesn’t directly relate to how people access businesses, it gives us good insight into the number of people who do utilise a car as a form of transport. Another major issue raised is the public’s perception of the local streets as being unwelcoming and even somewhat dangerous. The streets do not feel inviting to pedestrians as they are designed primarily for car traffic. The lack of trees, barriers, open spaces and green areas all contribute to this perception. Having this perception negatively impacts these businesses as it means that their only form of customers are those who are coming specifically to see them, rather than people who are shopping around and spending their day amongst the businesses. Many of these businesses do not have the luxury of being in a shopping centre and are located alongside the street which takes away a large portion of through traffic of pedestrians.

 

 

Recommendations (sourced from the Brief)

Parking policies are recommended to be reviewed in the area as we observed different illogical time frames in front of businesses. Such as having 2 hours free parking in front of a pharmacy and tobacconist but only 15 minutes of free parking in one of the busiest cafes in the area who believes that n=most their customers come by car to their business. 

 

Consistent road work during business hours is recommended to be reviewed as there was a theme among businesses when it comes to traffic issues surrounding them and being difficult to stop by street walker. 

 

Adding some flora and trees could reduce the unsatisfactory scenery of construction based look and add more vibrant vibe for customers to look at. 

 

• One area that may be improved is providing information and assistance to businesses. The council should make businesses aware of the available resources and assistance and make it easy for them to obtain this information. Doing this will allow for a better relationship between business and council, allowing for necessary communication to occur without delay.
• Another area for improvement is the supply of infrastructure and business facilities. The council should guarantee businesses have the necessary infrastructure and amenities to operate effectively. Many business interviewed discussed how the lack of parking spaces were impacting on their business in a negative way. Further to this, the traffic along main roads make it difficult for customers to get in and out of key business areas.
• Organising local celebrations and events that attract local and non-local residents to the area and revive the market.

 

Conclusion

References

Cumberland City Council Community profile (2022) Home | Cumberland City Council | Community profile. Available at: https://profile.id.com.au/cumberland (Accessed: October 4, 2022). 

 

Cumberland City Method of travel to work (2016) Method of travel to work | Cumberland City Council | Community profile. Available at: https://profile.id.com.au/cumberland/travel-to-work (Accessed: October 4, 2022).

 

Fleck, C 2015 ‘Lazarsfeld, Paul Felix (1901–76)’,  Jounral of Sociology, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 645-640, viewed 27 September 2022, ResearchGate, DOI10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.61075-9

 

Appendices