COURSEWORK 2

Name; Laurreine Makeda

Surname; Makgosa

Student number; BM21-019

Module code; BM- 4MS-607

Module; Data analysis for decision makers

Table of Contents
EVALUATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF THE TOILETRIES DEPARTMENT OVER THE SEVEN-YEAR
PERIOD AND COMPARING IT WITH THE LAST THREE YEARS...............................................................2
FACTORS THAT A LIKEY TO IMPACT FUTURE PERFORMANCE OF THE DEPARTMENT IN SHEFFIELD
CITY.......................................................................................................................................................5
THE IMPACT OF BREXIT ON THE COST OF DOING BUSINESS IN UK FOR THE DEPARTMENT...............7
THE LIKELY IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE DEPARTMENT AND THE ENTIRE STORE............................9
REFERENCE LIST...................................................................................................................................10

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EVALUATION OF THE PERFORMANCE OF THE
TOILETRIES DEPARTMENT OVER THE SEVEN-YEAR
PERIOD AND COMPARING IT WITH THE LAST THREE
YEARS

Sheffields toiletries performance over the 7year period from 2012-2013

to 2019
£4,400.00

£4,200.00

£4,000.00

£3,800.00
Revenue

£3,600.00

£3,400.00

£3,200.00

£3,000.00
2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19
Years

Above is a line graph that I used to give a description of the toiletries department in the 7
years period. As we can see in the graph the performance was low in 2012-2013 as it stood at
a revenue of 3611.34 pounds before it reached its peak at 4237.55 pounds in 2018-2019. The
improvement that we see in the graph may be because we managed to minimize interruptions
and distraction for employees, almost any book or article by performance or productivity
professionals reveals that the capability to focus as one of the primary areas of improvement
for workers (Anderson, 2020). We managed to minimize distraction by purchasing and
subsidizing productivity apps for workers and we created “power hours” allowing each
person in the department to do heads-down work for a long period of time etc.

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The line chart above is going to help compare the performance of my department over the last
four years with the last three years when new management took over the department.

As we can see above in the last four years the department was not performing well this
maybe because of

1. As a department we could not find and retain qualified workers at affordable salaries,
because we must compete with larger businesses that can provide more job security
and good remuneration packages. Basu (n.d.) states that due to lack of qualified
workers, productivity can decrease, resulting to increased operating costs, slower
production process and other performance problems.
2. Supply chain issues placed restraints on the department. According to Basu (n.d.)
supply chain is the system of distributors, logistic providers and suppliers that enable
the department to deliver the goods and services to customers. In 2014 it happened
that our manufactured stopped production, the department suffered a lot of financial
losses as it is evident by the low revenue of 3544.26 pounds.

When new management took over in the last three years, there was an improvement in
performance as we can see on the graph from 2017 to 2019 the was an increase in the line
graph. This is because they

1. Came up with solutions to problems that were encountered in the last 4 years. They
managed the shortage of skilled labour by becoming a learning department that
involves investing in skills training for employees and offering stock opportunities
and more incentives to retain and attract employees. When workers enthusiastically
seek advanced skill set to step up in the department, the department benefits from

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 higher productivity and the opportunity to save on human resources costs by
promoting from within (Root III, n.d.).
2. Improved product assortment by monitoring inventory trends as it will deliver
merchandise forecasts to recognize patterns in demand. Having a healthy assortment,
increases department sales and establish a positive shopping experience for our
consumers, which encourages them to constantly return to shop once again and bring
prospects with them hence the improvement in performance (Hasita, 2019).
3. They set, communicated clear goals, and encouraging feedback. The increase in
performance by the department was influenced by the vision of the new management.
They shared the vision amongst all employees ensured that everyone was on the same
page concerning their work goals. According to Biotnott (2015) by clearly stating
business goals helped employees know why they have been given specific work
duties and it also made employee feedback more valuable and can be used to
constantly improve business processes.

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FACTORS THAT A LIKEY TO IMPACT FUTURE
PERFORMANCE OF THE DEPARTMENT IN SHEFFIELD
CITY

INTERNAL FACTORS

Human resources

According to Abukhames (2015) human resource management relates to the employees and
the success of the department depends on the employees. Mukher jee (n.d.) states that human
resource practices might enhance the department performance by improving employee
abilities and skills and that the human resource practices imposed by the department can
influence employee skills using thorough training to develop present employees. Nadler &
Wiggs (1986) states that development of employees, is important to the department as we
want to increase competitive advantage through a very qualified or skilled and flexible staff
as an important factor in high productivity and better performance.

Organizational and operational

Abukhames (2015) states that these are part of the administrative and operational procedures
by the department may include inaccurate or disorganized record keeping, interruptions to the
departments supply chain and faulty or outdated IT systems. These factors can affect the
performance of the department negatively as our customers view us as unreliable and we can
lose all the data.

EXTERNAL FACTORS

Political factors

Shaw (2018) states that political instability in a country can have a negative impact on the
performance of the department. For example, hostile takeovers can take control of the
government, ultimately such situations can lead to riots, looting, and general disorder in the
environment. These circumstances can disturb departments operations or activities, and these
can influence the performance of the department negatively (Shaw, 2018).

Technology

Mercer (n.d.) states that the use of automation or information technology propose significant
improvements in future performance, and they are important when it comes to higher

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productivity. Increased volume of goods and services, new marketing methods can be
achieved through increased automation or information technology (Mercer, n.d.). Automation
can also improve materials handling, storage, communication systems like social media
platforms to establish a close link to its customers and to spread the word about our products.

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THE IMPACT OF BREXIT ON THE COST OF DOING
BUSINESS IN UK FOR THE DEPARTMENT.
Reuters (2020) states that Brexit refers to the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the
European Union after forty-seven years in the political and economic alliance of European
countries.

 Skills shortage

According to Dutton (2018) the UK is already encountering skills shortage which is

guaranteed to get worse once they leave the EU. Freedom of movement presently ensures that
United Kingdom can secure skilled labour from the European countries. Once the UK leaves
the EU, businesses including the toiletries department will deal with the issue of employing
qualified workers as non-British nationals being obliged to acquire a visa or work permit to
continue working in the UK. If these EU workers leave the UK, there will be a huge gap
between the demand for skilled workers and supply (Vourvoulias, 2019).

 Expanding into international markets

Jarvis (2021) states that Brexit, however, is not all negative, in fact there will be plenty of
interesting opportunities that the department can take advantage off. One of them being,
expanding into international marketplaces. Products and services have become more
affordable for international traders because of fluctuating exchange rates that the Brexit vote
has had on the UK. The department can expand into the international market and take
advantage of Brexit, to help in reaching a new customer bases and getting ready for this
opportunity, the department can grow and use e-commerce platforms and presence to let
international clients to browse in their languages or pay with their local currencies (Jarvis,
2021).

 The trade deals

According to Jones (2020) if trade agreement cannot be negotiated during the transition
period, the UK is likely to change to trading with the World Trade organisation rules. This
might mean the introduction of custom checks and tariffs, both can affect the department in
terms of costs, paperwork, and time. Jarvis (2021) states that leaving Eu means leaving the
custom union. Non-Eu markets, in the absence of trade deal, are subject to EU tariffs and
unexpected custom duty charges in alignment with the WTO’s.

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Companies may have fewer regulations

Dutton (2018) states that Brexit can introduce opportunities for companies in UK to work
exclusive of European Union instructions. When the UK has left the EU, it will no longer
follow to rules enforced by the European Parliament and thus create and eliminate laws as it
regards fit. For example, EU policies prevent the UK from reducing VAT below 15%. Once
Britain leaves the EU, the government would be free to reduce VAT and reduce taxes to
promote growth and investment for businesses including the toiletries department (Dutton,
2018)

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THE LIKELY IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE
DEPARTMENT AND THE ENTIRE STORE

 According to Accenture (2020) with the outbreak of the coronavirus Covid-19,

working from home has provided our department with the flexibility we need to
continue our operations while prioritizing staff and customer health and wellbeing as
part of their public health responsibility. This leads to increases productivity due to
fewer interruptions, which would occur in the office environment. By contrast,
working from home allows for a quieter environment that can facilitate more focused
work. You may also find that employees will work longer hours as they can also use
their time saved from commuting to start work earlier, later, or both (Accenture,
2020).
 Disruptions to the supply chain and reduced sales are unavoidable. This is because in
covid-19, individuals will have to stay at their homes and businesses will have to
close. Harapko (2021) states that the COVID-19 has created major challenges to the
supply chains globally. Numerous nationwide lockdowns continue to slow or
temporarily halt the movement of goods and raw materials, interrupting the
manufacturing industry.
 According to Discovery (2020) companies that depend on individuals visiting
premises and gathering in huge crowds, like the brick and mortgage Sheffield store
are shutting down or imposed lockdowns. Sometimes it is not a situation of lowered
turnover, but no turnover at all.

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REFERENCE LIST
Accenture. (2020). Outmanoeuvre uncertainty: Navigating the human and business impact of
Covid-19. Retrieved from https://www.accenture.com/us-en/about/company/coronavirus-
business-economic-impact

Ahsan Ali Shaw. (2018). Political factors affect business environment. Retrieved from
https://www.marketingtutor.net/political-factors-affect-business/

Anthony Jones. (2020). How will Brexit impact your business in 2020? Retrieved from
https://www.anthonyjones.com/brexit-impact-business-2020/

Aris Vourvoulias. (2019). Impact of Brexit on businesses in the UK. Retrieved from
https://www.market-inspector.co.uk/blog/2016/10/impact-of-brexit-on-businesses-in-the-uk

Chirantan Basu. (n.d.). What Constraints Are Placed on Business in the Economy? Retrieved
from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/constraints-placed-business-economy-33982.html

Discovery. (2020). Covid 19 impact on south African businesses and employees. Retrieved
from https://www.discovery.co.za/corporate/covid19-impact-on-south-african-businesses

Edward Mercer. (n.d.) How technology affects business operations. Retrieved from
https://itstillworks.com/technology-affects-business-operations-1659.html

George N. Root III. (n.d.) How the Skills of the Employees Affect Their Performance in
Relation to Work. Retrieved from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/skills-employees-affect-
performance-relation-work-13557.html

Hasitsa. (2019). How to choose the right product assortment to guarantee sales. Retrieved
from https://www.primaseller.com/blog/product-assortment-strategy/

Hatim Abukhames. (2015). Internal factors that may affect the business organization.
Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/internal-factors-may-affect-business-
organization-hatim-abukhames

Joe Jarvis. (2021). What is the impact of Brexit on UK businesses? Retrieved from
https://www.lightspeedhq.co.uk/blog/what-is-the-impact-of-brexit-on-uk-businesses/

John Boitnott. (2015) 6 Effective Ways to Enhance Workplace Productivity. Retrieved from
https://www.inc.com/john-boitnott/6-effective-ways-to-enhance-workplace-productivity.html

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Kelsie Anderson. (2020). 10 Ways to Improve Work Performance in Your Small Business.
Retrieved from https://www.fool.com/the-blueprint/ways-to-improve-work-performance/

Nadler, L., & Wiggs, G. (1986). Managing human resource development: A Practical guide.
San Francisco:Jossey-Bass

Rebecca Dutton. (2018). IS BREXIT GOOD FOR BUSINESS? – THE PROS AND CONS.
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cons/#.YPHcA-gzbIV

Reuters. (2020) Brexit trade deal explained in five basic questions. Retrieved from
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five-basic-questions/separation-with-a-deal/slideshow/79953153.cms

Sean Harapko. (2021) How COVID-19 impacted supply chains and what comes next.
Retrieved from https://www.ey.com/en_gl/supply-chain/how-covid-19-impacted-supply-
chains-and-what-comes-next

Subho Mukher jee. (n.d.) 7 Factors determining the internal environment of a business.
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determining-the-internal-environment-of-a-business/10099

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