Introduction

The outbreak of Covid-19 has become a worldwide threat that has affected various multinational corporations. The pandemic has affected the companies and investor communities that provide goods and services to consumers worldwide. Regarding this context, the discussion will be based on Vodafone Group plc (public limited company) on the responsiveness of the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak. The Vodafone Group plc is a multinational corporation in the United Kingdom that involves telecommunications services across Europe, Africa, Oceania, and Asia. Safaricom company in Kenya is one of the companies under the Vodafone Group plc, in which the Vodafone Group performs all the management and stake responsibilities. Arguably, strategic management in Vodafone Group plc is the backbone for the emergency responsiveness and complexity management in the Covid-19 setting.

Question 1

Managing Complexity in Covid-19 Environment

In the global Covid-19 pandemic context, a complex business problem and a simple business problem is simple to differentiate. A complex problem in any business setting is an issue that is difficult to express because different individuals have different perspectives and opinions regarding the cause, degree, and nature of the problem (Buheji, 2020). Complex issues in any business are hard to solve, monitor, and control; hence, imposing a business risk. Therefore, complex problems become hard to escalate or address because they require significant social change and human behavior. On the contrary, simple business problems are those problems in any business environment that can be quickly addressed, managed, and solved because they are not beyond the company’s scope.

Covid-19 can be categorized as a complex business problem that has caused a life-threatening to people worldwide. The coronavirus disease is challenging and hard to manage; hence, it cannot be grouped as a simple business problem (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The disease has impacted most of the multinational corporations in terms of financial status and the global economy. The coronavirus complexity originates from its capability to interact and progress unexpectedly. The covid-19 pandemic requires innovative solutions to learn it and develop strategic management practices to combat it and achieve resilient solutions.

According to the Vodafone group public limited company’s annual report, the outbreak of Covid-19 has greatly affected the company’s domestic and international markets. The pandemic has deteriorated the Vodafone company’s market sustainability and competitive advantage (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). Basing on the MNCs’ annual report of the Vodafone company, the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic has created a severe reduction in economic activities across all Vodafone’s market. The coronavirus has altered the financial markets by reducing the company’s volatility and the availability of financing costs.

Furthermore, the Covid-19 has caused a global economic disruption in the Vodafone company, especially in the financial sector. The disruption of the economy has resulted in a decline in the demand for its services (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). Therefore, the reduced company’s services have lowered the spending power for consumers; thus, affecting Vodafone’s cash flow and profitability. Finally, the pandemic has also impacted the currency exchange, borrowing costs, debt financing availability, and interest rates because consumers’ financial ability and status have also been affected by the disease.

In response to the Covid-19, the Vodafone company has managed the disease’s complexity by developing the annual report to ensure that the localization demand and globalization demand is well managed. Since the coronavirus outbreak, companies’ customers, staff, and suppliers have been disrupted(Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). Thus, the company has developed strategic management techniques and models to manage the disease’s complexity in response to globalization and localization demand. Therefore, developed approaches in phases to combat disease complexity and adapt to the changing environment.

First, Vodafone developed an approach model for managing the immediate crisis. The approach’s initiation was to structure the response plan to the existing covid-19 pandemic (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The method was to give priority to the safety, wellbeing, and health of all employees. Also, the strategic model was to provide immediate needs for the government and the customers. Therefore, the approach ensured the re-organization of the critical infrastructure, activities, and resources to facilitates continuity of the company’s operations for global and local demand.

Secondly, the company developed strategy management on recovery. The approach was to accelerate the digitization of the immediate response to the crisis to ensure that the company and its branches recover from the economic crisis (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). Also, the recovery model was to help the government sectors to be extra resilient. Through the recovery approach, the company invested in the 5G network to create more job opportunities; hence, providing another chance for other business to recover from an economic crisis.

Thirdly, the new normal phase was implemented. The phase enables the company to emerge as trusted partners for the government and the customers. This approach also provided a resilient and robust communication infrastructure that will maintain a sustainable market structure and frameworks on fair regulations (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The approach’s primary purpose was to minimize the pandemic’s reoccurrence beyond 2020 or in the future by imposing a total lockdown. The restriction measures were to rescue the future global economy that may be affected by the disease’s spread.

Question 2

Management Controls Versus Organizational Chaos

Organizational context refers to the setting, background, or environment where the organizational development takes place or operates. In other words, organizational context provides an overview of the corporate culture (Parumasur, 2012; Roffey Park Institute, n.d.). The culture enables the organization to make decisions in a decentralized manner to facilitate change in an organization. Therefore, organizational development in an organizational context or environment ensures that the organization is successful in terms of structure, culture, and strategic operations of an evolving company.

Organizational leadership plays a significant role and advantages in the running and achievement of organizational goals. Good leadership ensures that employees are motivated by meeting their needs and their purposes (Jasper, 2017). Therefore, an excellent organizational leadership perspective ensures that employees attain individual fulfillment and self-actualization; hence, enhancing dynamic organizational progress in terms of resources and workers’ performance. Lastly, the organizational dynamic has an advantage over the organization by promoting its operations, practices, and strategic management.

On the contrary, organizational leadership is accompanied by demerits that depreciate the progress of the organization. Bad leadership may result in conflict among the manager and the employees due to disagreement on various perspectives; thus, causing time wastage and decline in productivity (Jasper, 2017). Lastly, organizational leadership may involve leaders who do not associate workers in any corporate activities, hence, denying employees’ trust and engagement.

The MNC annual report of the Vodafone Group plc explores and exploits the demand for top management control and the organizational chaos demand to maximize its business profitability through low-cost leadership or product differentiation. Vodafone company’s top management control comprises the board comprising the non-executive chairman, executive director, and non-executive directors who control the organizational framework (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The annual report describes the core responsibilities of the top management control, such as planning, organizing, leading, and controlling functions.

The top management control and the organizational chaos increase the company profit by selling products and services to customers at a low-cost by using a low-cost leadership strategy. In other words, the Vodafone company lowers the prices of the products than its competitors; hence, creating demand for their products (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The company also maximizes profit through product differentiation, whereby the products and services are made of slight variations from other competitors; thus, attracting more customers to buy. Therefore, through low-cost leadership strategies and product differentiation, top management control has increased its viability and performance through corporate profitability.

Question 3

Managing the Paradox of Profitability and Social Responsibility

The Vodafone Group company has a Chief Executive Officer and Senior Management team who manages the company board of governance to ensure sustainable growth and corporate profitability. The CEO and senior management team ensure that all the stakeholders and employees are engaged to ensure that the company achieves its purpose, values, culture, and strategy (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The CEO and senior management team are accountable for enhancing the Vodafone company’s long-term sustainable success; hence, generating significant value for all the stakeholders.

According to the Vodafone annual report, the company adopts corporate social responsibility to attain corporate profitability, environment, and market sustainability. The company’s corporate social responsibility ensures that business humanization is achieved (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The CEO and the senior management team facilitate ethics and economic responsibilities through corporate social responsibility to protect all the stakeholders, society, customers, employees, and the context on which the company operates and serves. Through social responsibilities, the CEO and senior management team can maintain the corporation’s survival, the growth of domestic and international markets.

According to the annual report, stakeholder theory is depicted in the Vodafone company as an ethical approach to present corporate social responsibility. The stakeholder theory ensures that the company’s board make decisions that represent the interest of all stakeholders (corporation’ owners) and whoever have a stake in the company because the Vodafone company exist for the benefit of the stakeholders, employees, customers, and society (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). Through stakeholder engagement, the company operates in a balanced and responsible way in the long-term and short-term. Lastly, the international and domestic market’s growth is achieved through the CEO and senior management team’s commitment to maintaining good communication and building relationships with all the stakeholders; thus, strengthening a sustainable company.

Vodafone company faces challenges of resolving the conflicting demands for profitability and social responsibility in an international context. Firstly, the company faces the challenge of attaining a competitive advantage in the global market because of stiff competition from other telecommunication companies such as Deutsche Telecom and others (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The company has managed to resolve the demand for profitability and social responsibility by using a low-cost leadership strategy and product differentiation.

Since similar telecommunication companies produce similar products and services, the Vodafone company has attained a market advantage by reducing products and services costs. For instance, Vodafone company offers unlimited data plans and voice services to job seekers and customers at a low price per month (Vodafone UK News Centre, 2020). The subsidies have attracted customers into the company; hence, achieving a significant milestone in an international market. Lastly, the company has managed to resolve conflicting demands for profitability in a competitive market environment by adopting product differentiation mechanisms by making their product different from competitors.

Question Four

Personal Reflections and Reflections on Learning

The review of the assessment on MNCs’ annual report of Vodafone company provides an annual analysis and evaluation of the company’s plans to attain corporate profitability and sustainable market in an international context. The MNC’s annual report of the company highlights the strategic framework of managing complex risks that could affect the business performance in the local or domestic market and international market (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The annual report gives the principal risks and management of the risks that affect the company’s viability and performance.

One of the critical complexities highlighted in the annual report is the ability to manage the Covid-19 pandemic, which has caused global economic disruption. The company has managed the complexity brought about by the pandemic by controlling regulatory measures to prevent the spread of the virus, which could lead to a long-term global recession (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). The company has also managed the pandemic complexity causing demand reduction on services, which could affect the profitability, financial markets, and cash flow generation.

Also, the MNC’s annual report has highlighted how the company board of governance manages the paradox of control and chaos by engaging all the stakeholders in the company’s operation. The report also illustrates who the company embraces employee engagement initiative and deep customer engagement to promote the company’s trust and ethics; thus, eliminating chaos and providing sustainable business (Investegate, 2020; Vodafone Group Plc, 2020). Finally, the MNCs report adopts a corporate social responsibility model approach that focuses on all stakeholders, customers, employees, and the environment to sustain a long-term competitiveness market in domestic and international markets; thus, attaining high corporate profit margins.

References

Buheji, M., 2020. Coronavirus as a Global Complex Problem Looking for Resilient Solutions. Business Management and Strategy, 11(1), pp.94-109.

Investegate, 2020. Vodafone Group Plc (VOD). [Online] (updated 01 June, 2020) Available at: https://www.investegate.co.uk/vodafone-group-plc/rns/publication-of-the-2020-annual-report/202006011200025453O/. [Accessed January 01, 2021].

Jasper, K., 2017. Pros & cons of organizational leadership. [Online] (updated 26 September, 2017) Available at: https://bizfluent.com/about-5401567-pros-cons-organizational-leadership.html. [Accessed January 01, 2021].

Parumasur, S.B., 2012. The effect of organizational context on organizational development (OD) interventions. SA Journal of industrial psychology, 38(1), pp.1-12.

Roffey Park Institute, n.d. What is organizational development? [Online] (n.d.) Available at: https://www.roffeypark.ac.uk/knowledge-and-learning-resources-hub/what-is-organisational-development/. [Accessed January 01, 2021].

Vodafone Group Plc, 2020. Annual report 2020. [Online] (updated 2020) Available at: https://www.vodafone.com/content/dam/vodcom/files/vdf_files_2020/pdfs/vodafone-annual-report-2020.pdf. [Accessed January 01, 2021].

Vodafone UK News Centre, 2020. Vodafone offers unlimited voice and data plan to job seekers for £10 a month. [Online] (updated 09 November, 2020) Available at: https://newscentre.vodafone.co.uk/press-release/voxi-offers-unlimited-voice-and-data-plan-to-job-seekers-for-10-quid/. [Accessed January 01, 2021].