The external environment can be grouped into different environmental segments, the Political/legal segment, economic, socio-cultural and technological segments, otherwise known as PEST. (hanson et al)
Technological
Technological advances have also impacted the industry such as the use of self-checkout machines. The introduction of self service has changed the daily interactions for customers making transactions much faster and easier as well as more accurate (nz herald ref). According to NCR, which is the maker of 99% of all checkout machines in NZ, work is being done on ATM technology which will allow transactions to be made through smartphones. (nz herald ref). This will hopefully give The Warehouse Group opportunities for an increase in sales, as a carrier of smartphones this innovation makes way for apps to be created and used for store information and discounts that can be transferred directly from customers mobile phones.
Socio-cultural
The socio-cultural environment consists of people’s attitudes and values (hanson et al ref), this externality therefore can effect all other segments of the environment. The Warehouse Group was recently influenced by the union-led New Zealand Living Wage campaign, which was focused on the need for a higher minimum wage in the country in order to lower the income gap between the rich and poor. (nbr article ref). With information about this issue the company researched the amount of income required to maintain a household and then measured it against their employees pay rates; after consideration they have changed the amount they will be paying to certain employees and will soon have a minimum wage of $18.50 to $20 for experienced staff members. (nbr ref). This will hopefully create more stability for The Warehouse Group’s employees.
Political-legal
The political-legal environment is the area of laws and regulations that organisations compete in for attention and resources, (Hansen