7.6.1

Social & Technological Environment

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Social and Technological Environment

Changes in society and technology can affect a business’ strategic and functional decision making.

Illustrative background for UrbanisationIllustrative background for Urbanisation ?? "content

Urbanisation

  • Urbanisation describes people moving from rural areas to urban areas.
  • People usually move to urban areas because there are more job opportunities there.
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Migration

  • Migration describes people moving from one country to another, with the intention of residing and accessing employment.
    • For example, increasing migration has increased demand for cultural food shops and this can reduce demand for groceries from established retailers.
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Consumer lifestyle changes

  • Consumer lifestyle changes occur when buying habits or spending patterns change.
    • For example, Morrisons has introduced online grocery shopping to respond to changes in consumer expectations.
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Social changes

  • Social changes can include the growth of e-commerce and the changes in buying habits as people begin to expect the availability of e-commerce platforms to complete online transactions.

Impact of Demographic Changes

Demographic changes, including changes in the population structure, can affect a business in several ways.

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Impact of the ageing population

  • The UK’s population is ageing, and as healthcare improves and people live longer, demand for products and services can change.
    • For example, Saga holidays, which targets over 50s with holiday packages, may need to increase its capacity as demand from over 50s increases for its holiday products.
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Rising birth rates

  • The UK’s population is expanding as birth rates continue to increase.
  • An expanding population will increase demand for products and services and businesses must be able to respond to these increases to maintain market share.
    • For example, as the population increases, food producers must be able to increase production to meet demand.
Illustrative background for MigrationIllustrative background for Migration ?? "content

Migration

  • Migration, the movement of people between countries, can affect demand for products and services.

Jump to other topics

1What is Business?

2Managers, Leadership & Decision Making

3Decision Making to Improve Marketing Performance

4Decision Making to Improve Operational Performance

5Decision Making to Improve Financial Performance

6Improving Human Resource Performance

7Analysing the Strategic Position of a Business

8Choosing Strategic Direction

9How to Pursue Strategies

10Managing Strategic Change

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