Introduction to Business Assignment Essay

AIM: I have been requested by Peter Eskesen to look at two contrasting business organisations and one of who must operate in the secondary/manufacturing industry and the other corporation must be a service provider from the tertiary sector. I must then look at the activities that each of them fulfil and look at the effectiveness of them within each organisation. I have decided to look at the activities of G. E lighting which is an American company and a direct division of the biggest company in the world G. E and the second company of which I have decided to look at is Sainsbury’s who is amongst some of the most dominant market leading companies operating in the U. K in the supermarket sector. Both of the companies that I have decided to look at are both owned by shareholders which means that people have bought shares into them. However having said that, as G. E lighting is an American company it means that it will not be listed on the London Stock Exchange but will alternatively be listed upon the New York stock exchange market. If a person wanted to buy shares in GE lighting then they would have to contact a broker. Furthermore, Sainsbury’s is also a Public Limited Company because it is like before, listed upon the London Stock Exchange. Today General Electric is made up of many departments/divisions. For example G. E Lighting in Enfield is part of a Global Business, which operates in over 100 worldwide countries and also holds work for over 300,000 people worldwide too. Television programming, Plastics and G. E Aircraft Engines for example, is the biggest engine maker and supplier in the world with operations in over 40 different countries. 1 On the next page you will find GE’s product portfolio. Sainsbury’s supermarkets employ over 145,000 people (including Savacentre). Of these 145,000 people, 60% are part – time based workers and 40% are full – time workers. 62% of the labour forces are women which show that since the 19th Century equal opportunities have shifted and women have the same rights as men – to be able to work. Furthermore, Sainsbury’s Supermarkets serves well over 11 million customers a week and as from May 2003, had 535 stores open throughout the UK. Nearly 60% of their stores are located upon town centres and others built on the edge of centre locations – in the greenbelt areas where land is cheaper and have better connections. Like GE, Sainsburys also have sub divisions or Subsidiary companies that they own. For example the other activities that they operate or run besides Groceries, include a chain of Sainsbury’s Banks, Shaw’s, JS Development and Sainsbury’s Property Development. Shaw’s Supermarkets Inc. has been a completely owned Subsidiary of J Sainsbury’s plc since 1987 and partly owned since 1983. Shaw’s serves over four million customers a week, and as at May 2003 had 193 stores open in New England, USA. In June 1999, J Sainsbury’s plc acquired the entire share capital of Star Markets for a total consideration of $497 million dollars which is the equivalent to i 313 million British pounds. Star Markets operates in the Metropolitan Boston area, Washington DC. The acquisition took Shaw’s Supermarkets to the number 2 position in New England and as the dominant market leader in Houston, Massachusetts. Like Sainsbury’s Supermarkets, the US operations place an emphasis on high quality food at value for money prices, and are persistently recuperating and improving their range of fresh foods. The corporation offers approximately 50,000 different lines, up to 35,000 per store at any one time. Some 5,000 popular brand products account for 40 per cent sales and as at June 2003, Shaw’s employs some 28,400 associates.