Company selection and analysis
The high rate of globalization and introduction of many innovations through information technology have made managers and business entrepreneurs set clear and unique organization vision and mission. The ability to communicate globally and increasing market demands have made organizations more competitive in the twenty-first century business environment. The growing demand for fast foods in the market had lead to an introduction of numerous fast-food stores in the world today. Burger King Corporation is one of these fast-food chains and forms the second largest business from McDonalds. The company manages more than ten thousand restaurants located in 50 states across the United States and in over 56 countries worldwide. How does Burger King manage all these stores and still win the competitive advantage in the current business environment? The answer is simple; the company management applies management principles that work more effectively in the modern work environment. On the other hand, the corporation’s mission and vision support global competitiveness goals.
Burger King’s mission and vision
Burger King’s current strategic plans
Burger King has established a strategic plan aimed at competing with other fast food brands such as Starbucks and McDonald’s. The company has been experiencing stiff competition from the two brands over the last few years. In order to compete in the prevailing business environment, the organization should come up with an effective strategic vision. A strategic vision gives the organization direction and purpose to achieve a higher competitiveness and thrive in the prevailing work environment. Additionally, the strategic plan plays a role in developing a framework for effective goal setting (Olk, Rainsford, and Chung 2). Since the year 2009, Burger King has recorded impressive sales and tremendous growth in the fast-food sector and higher market shares in the capital market. The opportunities enjoyed by the organization are motivated by a number of strategic plans. These include the establishment of new management, franchising virtually all corporation-owned restaurants, expanding highly internationally, controlling costs, US makeover, and acquisition of Tim Hortons (Lutz). The company took the above initiatives in order to overcome issues related to globalization, competitiveness, and performance.
Burger King Corporation has a strong organization culture that recognizes the impact of every person in the organization. The effective organization culture practiced by Burger King affects the business management and performance. Additionally, the corporation’s culture is applicable in all departments making it for the organization to effectively achieve its strategic plans. In the beginning, Burger King’s culture was characterized by hierarchy and command. On the other hand, the corporation operates under a new organizational structure. The strong organizational structure allows for an efficient flow of command and gives each party chance to make decisions for the organization. The organizational structure adopted by Burger King aims at enhancing the corporation’s strategic plan. The four main strategic assets identified by the organization are exceptional brands; product differentiation; substantial investment in kitchen equipment, design, training, and culture; and implementation of the franchise distribution system (PR Newswire).
Summary of the article
The article “Key Trends Impacting Burger King’s Business” focuses on the high competition experienced in the fast food chain restaurants. The article’s contributor Trefis Team published it online on July 01, 2014 through the Forbes network. In the article, the author argues that Burger King has recorded high improvements in the business compared to any other company in the fast food industry. Burger King manages to record high improvements through effective management practices and re-franchising. Financial statistics shows that the company has been experiencing a revenue growth of 602 percent each year due to globalization and growth of the restaurant. Additionally, Burger King has managed to maintain a high brand appeal among customers making it possible to compete with big brands such as Wendy and McDonald. The presence of a fully franchised business model was sighted as the major contributor to Burger King’s competitiveness (Trefis Team).
Significance of the article to Burger King’s competitiveness
The article assists in determining the main efforts made by Burger King win the global competition in the fast food market, and identify major areas that the company needs improvement. In the today’s business environment, organizations are going far and beyond to ensure they implement unique and efficient strategies to help win the global market and competition. Most companies have turned into implementing technology innovations and advancements to make strategic plans. Competitive strategy and competitive advantage are two main issues determining the success of the business in the today’s working environment. Organizations deal with dynamic and uncertain environments that need a strategic awareness (Papulova and Papulova 1-2). Burger King has implemented the issue of competitive environment and the competitive advantage to come up with modern trends capable of winning the global market. Through effective franchising, the company is able to make huge sales and achieve higher credits. The world has recorded the uncontrolled competition in the fast food industry as more people demand better kitchen brands and varieties. Burger King took the advantage of the situation and opened stores in strategic places along U.S. streets and in major towns all over the world. The company has a total of 28000 franchised stores in both developed and developing nations.
Impact of the article on firm’s performance
The article argued that Burger King franchised about 99 percent of her stores and currently is left with about 52 stores that are company managed. The following move creates significant positive and negative impact on the firm’s competitiveness, culture, and structure. On the issue of competitiveness, the company is capable of achieving higher profits because it incurs less operational costs. The strategy also introduces a negative impact on the firm’s culture and structure. Using the franchised system, the company’s ownership and management are left with managers of the franchised stores. The company leadership has limited influence on productivity and business operations creating a loophole in the organizational structure. Additionally, the process affects decision-making process by the organization because the franchise stores compete amongst themselves. Moreover, the strategy could have a long-term impact on the company. The process discourages teamwork, which is likely to interfere with the organization’s culture.
Importance of the article in understanding principles of management
Trefis Team’s article plays an important role in helping learners understand the trends in the today’s work environment and how organizations manage to win the competitive advantage under harsh business conditions. The article was selected because it offers an insight of the real improvements and pitfalls in Burger King Corporation. Additionally, the article offers effective teaching on the rising competition in the fast food industry. Using the article, a learner can easily identify areas that Burger King achieved success and failure depending on the percentage growth of the company’s revenue.
Works Cited
Burger King Corporation. “Burger King Announces New Management Structure.” PR Newswire.
2015. [Web: June 22, 2015] http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/burger-king-announces-new-management-structure-82447622.html
Lutz, Ashley. How Burger King completely turned business around. December 12, 2014. [Web:
June 22, 2015] http://www.businessinsider.com/burger-kings-new-strategy-2014-12
Olk, Paul., Rainsford, Peter., and Chung Tsungting. Creating a Strategic Direction: vision and
values in The Cornell School of Hotel Administration Handbook of Applied Hospitality
Strategy. Los Angeles: SAGE, 2010. Print.
Papulova, E., and Papulova, Z. “Competitive strategy and competitive advantage of small and
midsized manufacturing enterprises in Slovakia.” E-Leader, Slovakia. 2006. Web http://www.g-casa.com/download/Papulova-CompetitiveStrategy.pdf
Trefis Team. Key Trends Impacting Burger King's Business. July 1, 2014. [Web: June 22, 2015]
http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2014/07/01/key-trends-impacting-burger-kings-business/
