120 likes | 149 Views
Explore how new technology and evolving social attitudes impact businesses, from creating opportunities and threats to changing working practices and communication dynamics. Delve into market research, risk assessment, and adapting to changing income structures for sustained growth and success.
E N D
External Influences Technology and Changing Social Attitudes
External Influences • New Technology: • New business opportunities • Creation of substitutes • Opening up of new markets • Technical progress in foreign countries • Productivity • Ways of working • Communication • Cost of investment versus return
External Influences • New business opportunities: • Within the same industry? (Core business) • Totally new markets/opportunities • Amount of investment needed • Market research – do consumers need the product?
External Influences • e.g. Canon – core business, optical technologies: • cameras, photocopiers, scanners, projectors, calculators, binoculars, digital cameras, printers, projectors • New markets – Discmans? DVD players? Flat Screen TVs? Plasma TVs? • Risk versus gain
External Influences • Threats: • Cheaper alternatives from abroad – CFC technology, bio-technology, computer and micro-processor technology (especially China?) • Rivals producing substitutes – PS2, X-Box and Game Cube • How to react?
External Influences • Working practices: • Technology and productivity – impact on workers, morale, motivation? • Implications for ‘old’ plants (e.g. Longbridge versus Sunderland? • Flexible working – working from home, hot desking, mobile computing (wireless networks) video-conferencing
External Influences • Communication: • Faster? • More efficient? – if so why have some firms banned the use of e-mail at work for any purpose? • Impact on motivation, morale and worker attitudes • To what extent does the message get through?
External Influences • Changing Social Attitudes: • Social ‘class’ – changing socio–economic groupings • Links with behaviour and demand (e.g. growing number of pensioners; those who smoke or drink certain types of alcohol) • Changing tastes – concern for ‘green’ production, attitudes to fur, wine versus beer, vegetarians (long term or short term?) • Changing lifestyles – convenience andfast foods, use of freezers, use of cars, amount of leisure time and how it is used, etc.
External Influences • Changing income structures • Distribution of income • Regional distribution of income • Impact of government taxation on disposable incomes • Relative income elasticity of demand for different goods and services