2. • Introduction to Virgin
• Type of ownership- extent of owners liability of debt
• The purpose, aims and objectives of virgin
• Stakeholders
• Contrast
• Introduction to the British Red Cross-
• Type of ownership- extent of owners liability of debt
• The purpose, aims and objectives of virgin
• Stakeholders
2
Task 1- P1
3. Virgin
3
Virgin is a British multinational company which was founded in 1970 by the
entrepreneur, Richard Branson. They have various different services such as, travel,
entertainment and health care. They have an airline, TV broadband,
telecommunications as well as the selling of products.
Virgin have more than 400 companies world wide containing over 50,000 employees
which are in over 50 countries. In 1970 the first ever business was launched and over
a couple of years they opened up more businesses, such as Records stores, residential
recording studio, films, books and Megastores. By 1984 they introduced the public to
their airline for the first time and in 1985 virgin holidays arrived. In the 2000’s cars
were bought out as well as the mobile phone company which was very triumphant.
https://www.virgin.com/about-us
http://www.virgin.com/time-machine/2000s
4. 4
Ownership
Virgin is private limited company which is when the company is privately owned and in this
case the owner is Richard Branson. This business is easy and inexpensive to set up, which is
why private companies are normally the most common and successful. the ownership contains
a number of shareholders as well as the main owner. A shareholder owns part of the company
through stock ownership and invests their money into the business. By having shareholders it
then makes it easier to open up new business ideas as there will always be people wanting to
invest into the business.
Private limited companies are responsible for their own legal identity and the owners are not
responsible for the debts. Due to the shareholders having limited liability it results in an
advantage for the business. These businesses are there to make a profit either by selling
products or providing a service and in this case Virgin provides both. The limited liability
company will run more easily and be successful because they can only take the amount of
money given into the business. This means more people will be interested in owning part of
the business because if they do go into debt they will only lose the amount of money they
gave in, no more than that.
5. 5
Aims and objectives-
An aim is a number of targets for where the business wants to be within a long
period of time, 3-5 years. Most businesses aims include making a profit, survival,
break even and growth.
An objective is more detailed and specific then aims and are set only for a short
time whereas the aims are not. To achieve the aims you have to have objectives to
go with it. The objectives have to be Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic and
have a suitable Time.
6. 6
Aims and objectives for Virgin
The aims and objectives for this business are:
.Become the best media provider in the world.
.Improve the services they offer.
.Obtain more channels from other providers, e.g. Sky.
.Go global.
.Raise market share (beat competitors).
These aims and objectives are good for their type of business because they are a company in
need of making a profit and succeeding in that particular area. By providing a high standard they
will then be superior to the other businesses and customers would want to shop at their
company rather than somewhere else. This will then help them to expand and improve the
business. The people who are responsible for making these aims are all the managers of each
function. They will be able to please their stakeholders by appealing to their wants and needs
and this will be easy because each department wants the same goals.
7. Stakeholder
7
Virgin have internal and external stakeholders within the business. The internal
stakeholders are the groups who work within a business, such as, owners and
workers. External stakeholders do not work for the business and are not
involved in the average day-to-day operation, for example, the community.
Virgins internal stakeholders includes banks, managers, employees and owners.
Virgins external stakeholders include the customers, government and local
community. If the business did not have stakeholders within the business it will
be able to succeed and run easily.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/business/environme
nt/stakeholders1.shtml
8. Contrast
The two businesses are very different from one and other, even though they are both making
money, it is for a different purpose. Virgin media provides a service to the public and is
there to receive a profit, whereas The British Red Cross provides the service for free and
gives the money to help the people in need. As virgin is a private business they have to
employee people themselves and take them through a special process. The British Red
Cross does not have to do this because they receive volunteers instead. Virgin and The
British Red Cross are both within the private sector and are both tertiary sector which
means they are selling the product or giving the public a service. In this case both the
companies are providing a service as well as selling goods. Both business have the same
stakeholders such as employees and customers, these both do the same job within the
stakeholder sector which is to give their own opinion on how to improve the business and
make more successful. They also are similar as their business both have shareholders.
8
9. 9
The British red
cross
The British Red cross was founded in 1863 and are a global voluntary network which
helps others in need. The company was founded by Robert Loyd-Lindsay and has
expanded through out time. They help with conflicts, natural disasters and other
emergencies no matter where in the world they are located. If help was needed abroad
they will help prepare for and recover them from the emergencies in their own
communities. They have to fund raise for the charity so that they can then help the
people who need it.
http://www.redcross.org.uk/en/About-us/Who-we-are/History-and-origin
10. 10
Ownership
The British red cross is a charity which is also known as a ‘not for profit’ company.
This means that their focus is to make money for those in needed instead of making
a profit for themselves. They also do not employee people and instead have
volunteers who work for them. These volunteers help to raise money and work for
the company either by selling products or help to run an event. This type of
ownership is easy because there are always volunteers willing to help out and the
company also does not have to pay for them to work.
This company is a non profit business which means they never go into debt because
the money is for people in need. The company will therefore be more successful as
they will not have to owe any money to anyone and give the money to the charity
instead. A board of director in a business is someone who is appointed to oversee
the activities of a company. There are different type of boards such as, board of
governors, board of managers, board of regents. All the board of directors make the
decisions.
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/ownership.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/business/aims/limitedcompaniesrev1.shtml
11. Aims and objectives
11
The aim and objective for the British red cross are:
.Help people around the world who are in need
. Raise money by relying on donations from the public
. Hold different events and fun activities to entice
These aims and objectives are good for that type of business as it will result in helping
others who are less fortunate and are in need of donations to help them live a better life.
By having an events aim it will help them to raise more money for the charity so they can
receive as much donations as people are willing to give. These aims and objectives gives
the business a clear goal of where they want to be in a few years time and who they want
to have helped. The managers of all functional areas will set the aims and this will please
the stakeholders because it is effecting their departments in a good way.
http://naep.org.uk/about_aims.html
12. 12
Stakeholders for The British Red Cross-
The external stakeholders, which are within The Red Cross, include the people
who fund the charity, this may be the general public, local government, NHS or
local council. Internal stakeholders, for example, finance department, managers
and owners, are the opposite to external as they are working within the business
whereas the external are not.
These stakeholders all have an interest or concern about the business, therefore
provides them ways of improving.
http://www.answers.com/Q/Who_are_red_cross_stakeholders
14. . Introduction into Tesco
. Stakeholders for both Tesco and Virgin
. Organisational structure for Virgin and Tesco
. Which business has the larger span of control
14
P2
15. 15
Introduction into Tesco
Tesco is a well-known business which was founded in 1919 by Jack Cohen from a market
stall in London’s East End and has grown over many years. The business now operates in
12 countries around the world and has employed over 530,000 people. The company
serves around tens of millions of customers every week. They try to provide the best
prices and quality of products which then helps them to stay competitive with similar
businesses such as Asda. Many products from different popular brands are sold in Tesco’s
as well as their own brand, ‘tesco’s own’. These products are much cheaper than the
other brands and this then entices people into the store.
http://www.tescoplc.com/index.asp?pageid=11
16. Stakeholders for Tesco
16
The main stakeholders for Tesco are the customers, colleagues, suppliers, owners, trade
unions, local communities, pressure groups, competitors and Governmental organisation.
All of these stakeholders views and ideas are taken into account to make the company the
best they can be. Customers tell the employees their own views and opinions of the
business and their quality of service. They also will give Tesco ideas such as introducing
discounts off the products to increase competition. The colleagues also give the company
feedback through a number of different processes such as a Tesco colleague survey.
Suppliers have a main value which is "treat people how we like to be treated“ and this is
applied to their supplier service. The investors meet analyst from the financial institutions
and this then represents their stakeholders. The trade unions help the employees with any
problems within the work place. They will encourage strikes and campaigns to stop the
problems from occurring again and this web link below shows a situation which happened
in Tesco’s where the trade union had to step in. Local communities also effects the
products which are supplied in Tesco’s because if it was in a different country their culture
would be different from ours and their foods that they eat. For example, if their shops
were in India they would not supply Yorkshire tea bags.
http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2013/05/tescos-treatment-its-workers-shows-why-
we-must-stop-subsidising-it
17. 17
Stakeholders for Tesco
The pressure groups are trying to make the business be more ethical and take care
of the environment. One of the main organisations pressuring Tesco is Green peace
and this is to help the environment stay clean. The competitors influence the
pricing of the products as they are trying to compete with the lowest prices. They
also use promotional techniques to reduce the prices of the products and when
one company does this there is a domino effect as all the other companies try to
compete. The non- governmental organisation helps with issues within the
business and any concerns that they may have.
18. 18
Stakeholders for Virgin
The main stakeholders for virgin are the same as Tesco, owners, colleagues, customers,
trade unions, suppliers, local communities, pressure groups, competitors and
Governmental organisation. The owners run the business overall and are in charge of the
other stakeholders. They are given the feedback, from employees or customers, then
they take it into consideration and change what is needed. The employees give feedback
on how the company is ran and what improvements virgin can make such as the products
or the services they provide. The customers also tells the company how to improve their
service or products, for example, the services on Virgin Atlantic flights and other issues
such as pricing. By listening to the stakeholders Virgin will become more successful and
then they will receive more profit. Trade unions steps in when their are problems with
the treatment of the employees. If there are problems it can effect Virgin as they will be
given a bad reputation. The suppliers can also influence Virgin as they may decide to rise
the price of products or service. Local communities can effect the services which are
given and products they sell. For example, in America they only provide the Virgin
Atlantic service. The pressure groups would petition against the company if things are
being ran ethnically and this could help to change the way virgin is ran. Competitors
influence the prices of the products and services as they want to have the best prices so
they can have the most customers. To compete with other companies prices have to be
decreased as well as the standard of the product/services. The Government organisation
provides them with grants and loans if needed.
19. 19
Tesco’s organisational structure
Tesco has an hierarchical structure due to the number of layers and the process of reporting
to more than one person before the information is taken to the manager. Hierarchical
structures are normally for large companies and this structure contains layers which are each
controlled by one particular person. By having this structure it means information and
instructions are carried from one person to another until it reaches the person needed
(bottom of the structure). If problems occur and it is needed to be taken to that particular
person the problem would then have to move up through the structure until it reaches the
correct destination. Having an hierarchical structure means that they have a good close
control of the workers. This means that the workers in Tesco will know what they have to do
and when they have to do it so they will not have to wait around to receive the information.
Some of the function have a main
director and a specific manger
underneath it.
http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Tesco%E2%80%99s+organisational+structure&safe=active
&hl=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=ha0_VIuFEYbtaI6LgugK&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=
1280&bih=908&surl=1
20. 20
Virgin’s organisational structure
Virgin is part of a family rather than a hierarchy as they are able to run their own
associations. The company helps one and other by providing solutions to the particular
problems which eventually gets resolved. Virgin is a business which shares ideas, interests
and goals that they want to achieve and this makes it easier for the business to run as they
all want the same aim. Richard Branson provides all employees with the opportunity to
make decisions that they believe will help the business and this is done unsupervised
without following a chain of command which is what a lot of other large businesses would
normally do. By having this structure it provides the employees with confidence as they
are being allowed to make their own decisions within the management sector. Branson
interacts directly with the employees to discuss ideas and feedback from either customers
or the employees themselves. Virgins has a flat hierarchical structure which allows
communication to be made if needed. However, it has to go through a number of people
before reaching the main one.
http://www.ukessays.com/essays/business/the
-virgin-group-an-insight-into-organizational-structure-
and-culture-business-essay.php
21. 21
Span of control
“Span of control” is to do with the management ratio with in a business. This means how
many subordinates are controlled by the superior which is the top part of the structure.
Virgin has a larger span of control compared to Tesco. This is because Virgin has a flat
structure which allows the wider span of control, and decentralization. The structure
allows Virgin’s employees to have more power and input within the business and the
decisions made.
I believe that Tesco has a better span of control because the smaller structure means
communication will be much easier. Everyone’s ideas and worries would be sent to that
particular person much quicker, meaning it would then be sorted quicker.
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition
/span-of-control.html
23. • Virgins functional areas
• Tesco’s functional areas
• Strategic plan for Virgin
• Strategic plan for Tesco
• Organisation structure for Virgin
• Organisation structure for Tesco
23
P2
24. 24
Virgin
Virgin has a number of functional areas which includes human resources, finance,
marketing and sales, administration, customer service and information technology. Human
resources are in charge of hiring the right people for the right areas in Virgin, due to the
amount of different functions. They are in charge of the training that the employees need
for that particular areas. Further more, they decide whether or not the employees need a
raise in payment and they also decide who will be fired for a strong reason. The finance
department is in charge of the money that the business makes and the money that needs
to be paid for certain areas such as manufacturing of the product. They are also in charge
of filing taxes as well as the amount of cash flow the company is receiving. The marketing
and sales department is responsible for the products appearance and making it stand out
to the customers as well as advertising it to the public. Administration in Virgin processes
all paper work for both external suppliers as well as internal people, such as bills from
Virgins suppliers. They have to make sure all the employees are up-to-date with any
changes within the organisation. For example, Virgin can decide to create a new product
and therefore will need to inform all the staff such as the marketing department which will
advertise the product. More over, administration arrange extra needs for the company
such as company cars, travel and hotels where they will stay if they need to go on a
business trip.
25. 25
The role of customer service, in Virgin, looks afters the customers queries. They ensure all
the customers who have had a product or service sold by Virgin is of a good standard and
therefore has had a good experience. When customers have questions or worries about
the company, ‘customer service’s’ have to be professional and well mannered. If this is
not the case then Virgin will be given a bad reputation towards the treatment of the
companies customers. Information technology department is used to keep all data on
record as well as communicating to other members of staff in Virgin.
As Virgin has tall, fat structure it means that their is one/two main people at the top and
below them are other managers which each have a certain department to look after.
These sections will have employees with different levels of authority and therefore each
of the functional areas would have a high amount of staff. This means the information
that is wanting to be given to manager has to go through number of departments.
26. 26
Tesco’s functional areas-
Tesco has the same functional areas as Virgin, these include human resources, finance,
marketing and sales, administration, customer service and information technology.
Human resources is responsible for payroll, benefits, hiring, firing and keeping up to date
with the tax laws. The finance department in Tesco looks at the profits that are being
made and what needs to be done to increase the profits such as advertisement and the
products that they are selling. They also have to look where to find the cheapest products
but still having a good high quality. Marketing and sales are in charge of advertising the
products to the customers through many different ways. For example, TV advertisement,
posters and billboards. The adverts must contain vital information such as the companies
names and limited information about the product itself. The administration department
are in charge of all the work within the Tesco’s office including internal and external
departments. They are also in charge of supplying the company with extra needs such as
business trips and hotels. Tesco are always on business trips to find new products which
are better than the original ones. Customer service plays a big part in the companies
reputation because if a customer is unsatisfied with their products they will then go to
them to complain and if not dealt with correctly a formal complaint will be made. This
could effect the company.
27. 27
Information technology department is in charge of the computer systems within Tesco.
This includes the tills they work on and other EPOS (electric point of sale) equipment.
Due to the small span of control in Tesco's structure it means that each department
has a number of different sections but only has one main manager. This makes it easier
for the functional areas to communicate with other areas.
28. 28
Virgin’s strategic plan
Virgin Atlantic’s strategic plan is to fly a profitable airline which people will love to fly and
where people love to work. Their focus is on improving customer services and leisure
travellers, as well as setting new standards which all the workers have to follow. Their strategy
is to ensure they are offering the best service , grow their business even further, and run an
efficient, effective global airline.
Virgin media has a slightly different strategic plan and Richard Branson himself said: "At Virgin
we go up against some very big companies and from a media spend point of view we’d
struggle to compete with them," he said. "So it’s about the quality of media rather than
quantity.
Their strategic plan is to make sure their media is better than other companies and to achieve
this they have to make sure they have the best quality service/product. This will then attrack
the customers to shop at their company.
http://www.virgin-atlantic.
com/en/gb/allaboutus/pressoffice/faq
/strategy.jsp
29. 29
Tesco strategic plan
Tesco is built around the customers and colleagues, high-quality assets around the world
and multiple opportunities for growth. These qualities are central for their Vision for the
business.
Tesco wants to be the most highly valued business by the customers, the communities,
the committed colleagues and their shareholders.
The vision for the business has five elements-
. Wanted and needed around the world
. A growing business, full of opportunities
. Modern, innovative and full of ideas
. Winners locally whilst applying our skills globally
. Inspiring, earning trust and loyalty from customers, our colleagues and communities
These aims benefit Tesco because their business will then receive more profit as they
would have expanded as well as having more customers buying their products.
http://www.tescoplc.com/index.asp?pageid=12
30. 30
Virgin has a lot more
employees that they
would have to go
through to tell them
their requests, unlike
Tesco’s structure.
The top one is the ‘office of
the secretary’ which has two
other office work below it.
under these are a huge
number of other employees.
Virgin
http://2020projectmanagement.com/2013/10
/the-organisational-breakdown-structure-obs/
31. Here is Tesco’s organisational
chart and it shows the number of
layers within the businesses
chart.
The top part of the chart
shows one main person
(manager) and below is
the store manager, this has
three people which are
just below the store
mangers role.
31
Feeding off of the three managers are a number
of different employees which have to go through a
small number of people to get to the main
manager with their requests.
This structure benefits Tesco because
communication is easily made
between all the different functions.
Therefore, decisions can be easily and
quickly made.
