Current Company Situation
Discuss about the Sheng Siong Retailer And Supermarket In Singapore.
Sheng Siong is one of the largest retailer and supermarket in Singapore which controls a chain of grocery stores. The supermarket offers both wet and dry shopping options to their customers. The Sheng Siong Supermarket Pte Ltd. was earlier known as Cheng Siong Farm Company Pte. Ltd. The company was found in the year 1985 and is based in the island of Singapore. Sheng Siong Pte. Ltd. is a subsidiary of Sheng Siong Group Ltd. The supermarket provides a large variety of live, chilled and fresh products like meat, seafood, and vegetables (Alex). They also provide packaged, preserved and processed food products, toiletries and necessary household products as well. Sheng Siong supports their retail operations with the food processing and warehousing facilities established by them. The mission of Sheng Siong is to provide quality products at rational prices so as to create good value for their customers. The vision of Sheng Siong is to be one of the most preferred retailers in Singapore and in the foreign market as well.
As seen in Appendix 3C, Sheng Siong had a 6.6% year-on-year growth in the net profit to an amount of S$18.3 million for the first three months which ended on 31st March, 2018. This growth has mainly occurred due to the increase in the gross profit of the company which has occurred due the increase in the revenues, the improvements in the gross margin which had been partially offset due to the high amount of operating costs. The Appendix 3A and 3B contain the consolidated statement of the current financial position of the company.
The Pestle Analysis for Sheng Siong Supermarket is as follows (Appendix 2):
- Political– The Sheng Siong Supermarket is located in Singapore. The home country has various great and friendly policies which are very important and valuable for the company. These policies consisted of many low rates for interests for the company on loans that have been taken by them for the formation of the supermarket. The policies also enabled well-arranged agreements for taxes especially the international taxes (Zalengera et al., 2014). Since Sheng Siong is a company which deals with the selling and marketing of almost all types of goods, hence the company is capable of facing changes in the tax laws, especially VAT. There are also many conflicts that have arisen politically like with Malaysia which can create issues in the process of customs and can also create problems in imports and exports. However, the political situation in Singapore is comparatively stable as compared to other countries and this could lead to a good expansion plan for the company in the future.
- Economic –The economic condition of Singapore is in a good position. The per capita income of the citizens of Singapore is quite high in the current times. The approximate per capita income of the Singaporeans was measured at US $77k. Hence, it can be derived from the amount of per capita income that the disposable income of the citizens is quite high (Aithal, Shailashree & Kumar, 2016). When the disposable income of an individual is high, then they are able to purchase any item that they desire. This is an advantage for the company as people will purchase from them due to the amount of disposable income. However, the presence of their competitors and the new entries in the local and foreign chains of supermarket means more competition for them. They need to ward away their competitors with better service, ambience and convenience of purchasing items, to attract new customers and also to retain the old ones.
- Social –The social factor is important as this is the factor which determines the company’s strategies to give good quality services to the customers both locally and globally. The company have been present in the market and have been operating for the last 30 years. This means they have good knowledge about the habits and the tastes of the local people. The company could capitalize on this and use this knowledge for good marketing of the company (Aithal, 2016). The company could also use its advantage of being a home-grown brand as the people would have trust on the supermarket and depend on the quality of their services along with the availability of a vast section of products. The people of Singapore are considered to be hard-working, loyal and thrifty. The company could bank on these qualities of the people to increase their sales and foothold in the Singapore market.
- Technological –Social media is a technological tool which can make or break any topic. Sheng Siong supermarket can take the help of social media to build their brand name and expand their brand image. However, social media is a very sensitive tool, which if used incorrectly can be disastrous for the company. Internet can be a very important and useful tool if it is used correctly. The company can get various insights about the market and its competitors from the internet (Ho, 2014). The current position and status of the retail and supermarket sector can be known with the help of different technologies. There are also various advanced technologies which can help the company to know about the needs and preferences of the customers and act according to it. They could take the help of various metrics which are information based and this could help the company to increase its revenue, and help to optimize the production and targeting of customers.
- Environmental –Taking environmental measures are very important for a company in today’s time. This is due to the various government policies and laws that have been set to sustain the environment and to make it environment-friendly for the public. Hence, the company should avoid using plastic bags and shift to more environment-friendly bags which are to be provided to the customers (Kolios & Read, 2013). The packaging of the purchased items that are given to the customer should also support the concept of go green. The company should also take proper measures for waste management so that the proper disposal of waste is done and there is no waste that is left to pollute the surroundings. If there are any harmful waste which is to be disposed of by the company on any occasion, then it should be properly done so that the environment is not harmed in any way. The company should always adopt sustainable green practices.
- Legal –The company should conform to all the legal requirements of the country. This would ensure that the company stays away from any legal issues and can operate smoothly without any harassment for themselves and also for the public. There can be various tax issues that they might face due to the volume of their products and sales (Moro Visconti, 2016). However, they should always keep their taxes and their compliance issues in line so that they do not have to face any trouble in the long run. Legal issues are the most common reason for the destruction of the reputation and the stability of a company; hence, this is an important issue that should be the first priority for every company.
As mentioned above, Sheng Siong contains a chain of supermarkets in the retail industry in Singapore.
The five forces analysis for Sheng Siong supermarket is as follows:
- Rivalry among competitors –Singapore is a small island whose population is just about 7 million. However, the supermarket sector in Singapore is very crowded as compared to the population. There are many rivals of Sheng Siong both local and international who wants to gain a strong foothold in the island. The strategy of the company to beat their rivals is to set up their stores and expand themselves in various locations (Dobbs, 2014). These locations are the ones where the Singaporean government have planned to build public estates. This could turn out to be beneficial for the company as they will be able to provide their services to the customers in the locations that they will be present and hence the customers will not have to travel very far. This becomes a competitive advantage for Sheng Siong supermarket and helps them to maintain their status in the Singaporean supermarket industry in the long run.
- Bargaining power of suppliers –Sheng Siong is a supermarket which has many branches and hence it has a long and vast reach on the island of Singapore. This has enabled the supermarket to have a strong hold over its suppliers. The target audience of the supermarket are the low to the middle-income families. Therefore, it has to always keep in mind that the products which they sell in their store have to be of affordable prices so as to match the income group of the market it has positioned itself in (Dälken, 2014). The supermarket has good bargaining power over its suppliers as there are many suppliers not a single one from whom they get their products. Furthermore, due to the magnitude of the suppliers, the supermarket can benefit from the switching costs of the many firms present in the market, the existence of the substitutes of the products they sell and the cost of supply purchase of those substitutes.
- Bargaining power of customers –The supermarket provides its services to a target audience of low to middle income and also to the wealthy market group. These people may change their loyalty to the supermarket if they do not get the products that they need or if they find that the same products are being sold somewhere at a much lesser price. Therefore, the supermarket has to make sure that their stocks are always full and that they are able to sell all the latest products that arrive into the market, as the customers mostly desire for those products along with their necessary items (Porter & Heppelmann, 2014). On the other hand, since the supermarket has expanded its branches into almost all locations of Singapore, the people might remain loyal to the supermarket because of the convenience that they get in terms of the supermarket being near to their homes. Therefore, the bargaining power of the customers fluctuates according to their convenience.
- Threat of substitute products or services –In recent times, online shopping have taken over the market and tried to overthrow the supermarkets and other retail stores. People can buy everything they need and desire from the comfort of their homes and have them delivered to their homes as well. Moreover, customers might get various discounts and offers from the online shopping sites. Just like every other country, the concept and practice of online shopping have seeped into Singapore as well because of the variety of products that are available online from gadgets to personal belongings (Jarzabkowski & Kaplan, 2015). However, online shopping has not been able to dissolve the manual buying of goods from supermarkets and retail stores in Singapore. People on the island still prefer to do most of their shopping themselves by checking out the items with their own hands and hence checking the quality of the product. This has made the threat of substitute products and services moderate for the Sheng Siong supermarket.
- Threat of new entrants – The threat of new entrants in the supermarket industry is very low in Singapore. This is because the supermarket sector mainly depends on the capital of the entrant and the new company have to invest a lot of money in the beginning to initially establish themselves in the market. Then the cost of managing itself might even go higher and hence they might not be able to succeed in the long run and face extensive loss (Rothaermel, 2015). Moreover, it can be very hard and expensive for new entrants to find a space for themselves on such a small island. The company would have to have high financial backing and lots of experience to establish just one branch on the island and still might not be able to do so. The brands which have been on the island from a long time like Sheng Siong, still struggle to maintain their status same in the market and have to find innovative ways to do so. This prevents the new entrants from finding its place in Singapore. Many foreign brands have tried to enter the market but have failed.
- Opportunities –The opportunities of Sheng Siong are as follows (Appendix 1):
- Overseas expansion –Even though there are many foreign players in the supermarket industry, Sheng Siong might have a chance to expand their reach into the foreign market especially to their neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia. There could be many benefits to expanding their reach overseas such as an increase in the brand value, attracting new customers, reliance in a single market and also be able to enjoy the vigorous economic development of the South East Asian region. Sheng Siong might find it easier to enter the Malaysian market as they already have an established relationship with them through the various suppliers from Malaysia.
- Singapore’s untapped areas – There are many areas in Singapore with a vast population where Sheng Siong supermarket is not yet present. This ensures that Sheng Siong still has a lot of scopes to expand their network and market. Sheng Siong has also started an e-commerce project in the pilot form in December of 2013, which enabled the customers in the area of Thompson to purchase their groceries online from the convenience of their homes through the website allforyou.sg. If the project becomes a success then the dependence on human labour could reduce and hence decrease labour and warehouse costs and further increase the shopping experience of the customers.
- Threats – The threats of Sheng Siong are as following:
- Losing market share – The environment and market of Sheng Siong is a very competitive one. There is intense competition between Sheng Siong and the other existing supermarket chains along with the retailers and petrol kiosks. The existing Sheng Siong stores may face competition from the new ones, or they may face tremendous pressure and competition from the new outlets which are present in the areas where Sheng Siong is absent. Sheng Siong has had no expansion in the year 2013 which have made them vulnerable to losing market share due to expansions of its competitors.
- Disruption in supply –Sheng Siong could face many disruptions in their supply due to harsh climatic conditions, natural disasters or even due to any unforeseen and unavoidable incidents.
The primary activities of the value chain analysis are as follows:
- Inbound Logistics –The inbound logistics of Sheng Siong have been moderately complex. They have to supply a vast category of their products to the numerous stores in Singapore (Gereffi & Fernandez-Stark, 2016). The supermarket has to keep on investing regularly to ensure that the capacity of their logistics keeps on increasing over time to successfully utilize the economies of scale.
- Operations – Sheng Siong operates mainly in two segments which are retail and manufacturing. The company have been expanding its retail stores over the years and have reached almost every portion of the island of Singapore (Samsatli, Samsatli & Shah, 2015). Sheng Siong is a home-grown brand and they continue to make use of their extensive brand equity in Singapore to expand their network in the retail sector in Singapore.
- Outbound Logistics –Cost-effectiveness of the delivered products and flexibility are the main sector which provides value to the outbound logistics of Sheng Siong supermarket. The company also provides online purchasing options through their online site which is still in the pilot testing stage named allforyou.sg. This online site was established in the Thompson area to anticipate the success among the customers of that area (Bolwig et al., 2013). The option of online purchasing will enable the customers to order from the convenience of their house and this would help in increasing the customer base of the company.
- Marketing and Sales –The marketing and sales strategy of Sheng Siong has been to deliver good quality products, fresh produce at reasonable prices and to offer a huge selection of good to the customers for a long time since their inception. Sheng Siong has been awarded many awards for their excellent performance in the retail field and have also been awarded for adopting new technologies to increase their productivity and sales (Eberlein et al., 2014). Customers are more inclined towards the company as they provide better quality products at less prices and they are sustainable for the customers. Hence, Sheng Siong have a valuable position in the eyes of the customers.
- Service –Sheng Siong provides good quality service to their customers and hence the customers are loyal to the supermarket. The company aims to satisfy the needs of the customers and to maintain their stock level so that they align with the preferences of the customers and so that they do not leave the supermarket for their competitors. The supermarket maintains a stable position in the market to keep their foothold and to give the customers a good experience and satisfaction level (Friedrichsen, 2013).
Sales and marketing- Campaigning through media advertisement, for example, The Sheng Siong Show from the year 2007 etc. |
Value v Low cost v Quality of the products and services v Affordable price HR management |
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R&D Technology- Use of modern technologies in daily operations- Online check-outs and point of sales |
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Procurement |
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Inbound logistics v A wide network of suppliers with consistent deals. v The HACCP certification ensure the quality of the products sold. |
Operations |
Outbound logistics v The automated distribution centre that is resulting in better streamlining and controlling of the processes of work. |
Services |
The SWOT analysis for Sheng Siong supermarket is as follows (Appendix 1):
- Strengths –The strengths of Sheng Siong supermarket are:
- Strong brand recognition –Sheng Siong supermarket have been functioning in Singapore for a long time and has placed itself among the top 3 chains of supermarket in Singapore. Therefore, it has a very strong brand recognition among the people of Singapore. The supermarket have been awarded the status of Superbrand by Superbands Singapore which is a global organization that awards the most recognized and valued brands every year. Sheng Siong have also launched a television show with the title The Sheng Siong show since the year 2007 and have tried to raise their profile along with their other marketing techniques.
- Experienced management – The supermarket have been established in the year 1985 and have functioned only in the retail industry of Singapore. Sheng Siong comprises of a very strong management who has a deep experience in the retailing sector and contains a very deep knowledge about the industry in Singapore. The management comprises of three Lim brothers who have founded the Sheng Siong brand.
- Weaknesses – The weaknesses of Sheng Siong is as follows:
- Capable of labour cost hikes and rent hikes – The rent and labour costs of Sheng Siong takes up most of their operating expenses. This high cost could be an issue for the supermarket as they always try to maintain a low-cost strategy for their supermarket. There have also been restriction made by the Singapore government against the hiring of foreign labour which puts a huge pressure on Sheng Siong as a large portion of their employees consisted of non-Singaporeans. There have been a hike in the rental costs and the operating costs in the year 2013 as shown in the Annual Report of 2012-13. This increase in the costs have also prevented Sheng Siong from opening any new stores in 2013, as they were not able to find any space to rent for their expansion according to their suitability. This could be a weakness for the company in the long run as there are no properly arranged succession plan for the future.
Sheng Siong is dependent on the local or domestic market and it has mainly invested in Singapore (Cheng-Han, Puchniak & Varottil, 2014). The cost of the labour and rental takes up to 85% of the operating expenses of Sheng Siong. Hence, it is much endangered to the hikes on operating cost for sustaining their low cost strategy. The government of Singapore has also increased the restrictions for hiring the foreign labour that pressure this supermarket where about one-third of the total employees are foreigners, in their operating cost (Kadir et al., 2014). As per the Annual report of Sheng Siong of 2012 and 2013, its rental costs or expenses have been increased to 1.696 million from 1.095 million and this depicts more than fifty percent of hike. Hence, towards the goal of it of sustaining low cost strategy, rental hike like such have made the supermarket group of Sheng Siong, opened to new stores in the year 2013. It is also to note that they cannot find out proper and pocket friendly space for renting for the purpose of expansion. There is a lack of formal succession plan. This lack of formal succession plan could result in proving to be a weakness in the long run.
External Environment Analysis: PESTLE Analysis
The SAVED framework focuses on the Staging, Arenas, Vehicles, Economic logic and Differentiators. The Arenas determines the location or the place where the business shall be active (Betancourt et al., 2016). The Staging defines the speed as well as the sequence of moves made by the company. The Vehicles determines the way the company will be winning and succeeding in the market place. The Economic Logic determines how the company will obtain its returns and lastly, the Differentiators determines the method to reach its desired position (Larson, Liang & Johansson, 2015). It is an essential framework that every manager must take into consideration while making any decision. All these elements together makes the “Strategy diamond”.
- Staging
The focus of the company in the coming 5 years shall be on strengthening its online platforms and promoting growth in the new global market. It is shall be reviewing on very own strategies and stall invest on brainstorming session with the major stakeholders and listing out all the ideas and points. Drafting of clear goals and objectives as well as planning long term and short term goals would also be a part of this. It shall be negotiating the joint venture along with the online organisations (QB/Red Mart). New product design in 1 month, launch in 3 months, awarded manufacturing contract in 1 months, appoint partners in USA, Europe & Japan in 2 months would be its target.
It would be reaching a pool and consensus in the Information Technology resources for developing better online system. It shall focus on gaining acquisition of the new heartland locations for increasing the strategic positions. It shall also finalize the plan and use marketing strategies for attracting more customers. It shall increase online presence by using social media broadcast.
- Arena
- Geographic area- The Company would tap on developing the newly built shopping malls in Singapore
- Market segments- The target groups beside all the age, racial and ethnic groups would focus comparatively more on the Tech-Savvy working adults as well as the elderly.
- Core Technologies- E-commerce and online shopping; check-out stations.
- Types of products- Initially the products would be of daily necessities. It would be the dried or fresh fruit products. Later, the secondary products would be the house brand products
- Product Design-few simple parts, Procurement-mass purchase, markets: USA & Europe & Japan.
- Value creating services- The Sheng Siong would make use of online shopping portal as well as strong distribution channels in order to provide more efficient and fast delivery to the customers.
- Vehicles
The Company shall do advertising through senior and loyalty programs; Ease of shopping process by providing the users with user friendly smartphone applications. It shall be engaging in industrial designer, select lowest cost OEM manufacturers, Direct Export. It shall involve in a joint venture with the QB or Redmart in order to enhance its online presence in the market as well as among the customers.
- Economic Logic
The Core capabilities of the company would be increasing in the quality products and services, lowering the cost price. It shall enter into the E-commerce segment- Creating and launching smartphone applications. I shall also focus on increasing the share through expanding the business through new outlets and generating more revenues through larger customer base. There shall be 20 % lower cost than the average competitor, 10 % cheaper price than the competitors in USA market, 8 % cheaper in Europe market, and 20 % cheaper in Japan, average profit margin of 15 %.
- Differentiator
Industry Analysis – Porter’s Five Forces
Due to merger with the Red Mart and QB, Sheng Siong could keep a low cost for the R&D. It shall be focusing on the e-commerce activities for increasing revenues and profits, providing with unrivalled advantages or benefits to the pioneer generation. Having its own distribution center along with warehousing facilities and food processing will be beneficial for its business to keep lowest price, renewable material-bamboo and one-to-one exchange. It would be offering to the customers both wet and dry shopping options, all under a single roof.
The company should be always prudent in the process of its execution and expansion under very harsh economic climate. It must set a clear succession plan and that must be all short, medium as well as long term. Setting up of such a clear succession plan would further ensure and assess the later operations of the Sheng Siong. The overseas expansion of it would expose the company to both risks and opportunities (Hohenthal, Johanson & Johanson, 2015). Hence, the company must therefore use the connection well that it needs to expand its business to another level both domestically and regionally. It should stay dynamic in its business as well as cope up with its weaknesses in order to keep on exploring the opportunities for growth and development in today’s competitive market. After all, changing is not always a bad idea. With the same, boosting the e-commerce platform of the company through acquiring joint venture with the online shops will also go a long way.
Implementation has always been the key to success of every strategy (Serra & Kunc, 2015). The effective implementation of the retailers desired positioning needs some key aspects. Each and every aspect of the stores must be focused on company’s target market. With the same, the process of merchandising should always be single minded and the displays should appeal to the target market. The advertising of the products and services too must speak about the target market and the personnel should have empathy for them. Lastly, the customer service of Sheng Siong must be designed taking the target customers in consideration.
Instead of the bureaucratic control, the market control has always been the most utilised in this supermarket (Kuo, 2014). The strategies and plan in the field of marketing property renting as well as purchasing, along with divests and invests are set as per as the close studies of the market. This supermarket has been emerged as one of the runner-ups in the category of Retail and Household Goods of the fourteenth SIAS (Securities Investors Associations of Singapore) Investors’ Choice Award- MTCA 2013 (Most Transparent Company Award) (Lan & Varottil, 2015). This clearly suggests that the company is having a strong control over their accounts as well as on the audits along with best information as it is been stated in their financial report (Annual Report 2013). Along with the financial parts, the management audits are also very closely monitored. The process of evaluation of the planning, leading, controlling and organising of the company has always printed in the annual report of theirs (Grant, 2016). It reviews all that are been done as well as the upcoming plans and hence they thereafter give a clear image to the investors and the business partners.
SWOT Analysis – Opportunities and Threats
Sheng Siong supermarket have always strived to make a good impact on the environment by adopting the three R’s which are reduce, reuse and recycle. The usage of their resources are always monitored and no waste material is disposed of wrongfully. They also installed solar panels on the rooftop of their Mandai Link Distribution System in the year 2013 to adopt the strategy of using renewable energy. Their effort have always been to create an environment friendly organization.
Conclusion
Hence, it can be deduced from the above report that there are huge opportunities for Sheng Siong in the retail market if Singapore and overseas as well. The company must try to overcome its weaknesses by adopting methods that would enable them to grow their customer base and maintain their foothold in the market. Even though, there might be numerous threat that might be faced by the company in the near future, they must be adapt in fighting overcoming those threats and issues and regain their status in the retail industry. It is also to note that Sheng Siong is the last supermarket chain who implement the concept of e-commerce. The strategy of it focuses on to gain larger market share as well as to increase the overall revenue of the group through targeting their prevailing customers as well as attracting their new customers. The transition of this super market should not be paused at this point but it must keep on improving and striving in order to attain its vision and mission as well as to remain as one of the market leaders in Singapore.
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