Discussion response 1

Amazon has been a company thats been at the forefront of online sales for years. They continually surprise people with their ability to keep pushing for advancement. The last 18 months have been no different. With a global pandemic taking over the world, individuals were confined to their homes, thus generating more mail order and delivery spending. Amazon saw this early on, and ramped up to meet the needs of consumers. They took an innovative approach to meet the needs of consumers. Wheelen, et al. (2018) describe an innovative approach as new methods, products, services, or approaches a business uses to develop additional returns. Amazon hired 175000 employees in the course of just a few months to meet the needs, and drive profits. This innovative approach generated an additional 26% revenue in the first quarter when compared to 2019 (Dumaine, 2020). To hire this many employees in a year would be a considerable undertaking, but to do it in the course of a few months is astounding. The decision to ramp up and overcome the pandemics concerns was necessary for survival of the business. If other businesses online sales ramped up, and Amazon did not, they could have lost market share, or had issues with delivery that many consumers may see as a disadvantage and look else where for their online shopping needs. Amazon also integrated a sustainable approach to the ramp up through the efforts to keep employees safe and healthy. They invested 4 billion on covid precautions to ensure they were meeting their corporate social responsibility to employees.

Based on Wheelen, et al. (2018) Figure 1-3, Amazons decision affected several stakeholders in different environments. The internal environment was affected because there was an extreme increase in human resources. This can be difficult to manage so fast which can affect the culture of the organization if not managed correctly. In the task environment, suppliers need to keep up with sales and the amazon labor force. The employees needed to feel safe during the pandemic, which caused some turmoil within the organization until the safety protocols were put in place. Customers were also affected because without the increased labor force, they would not have gotten their packages in the normal assumed time frame that Amazon has become famous for. In Societal environment, the sociocultural and economic forces are what drove the entire strategy. To meet the needs of the stakeholders, Amazon had to find a way to increase production. In the long term, this decision was beneficial for Amazon. This decision was made because it increased their competitive advantage in the marketplace, while increasing profits. Even with the extra spending necessary to hire the additional employees, and maintain their safety during a pandemic, they were still able to increase net profits by 84% based on $386 billion in sales (Kohan, 2021). With these increases, Amazon can continue to flourish and meet consumer demands.

Dumaine, B. (2020). Amazon was built for the pandemic-and will likely emerge from it stronger than ever. Fortune. https://fortune.com/2020/05/18/amazon-business-jeff-bezos-amzn-sales-revenue-coronavirus-pandemic/

Kohan, S. (2021). Amazons net profit soars 84% with sales hitting $386 Billion. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/shelleykohan/2021/02/02/amazons-net-profit-soars-84-with-sales-hitting-386-billion/?sh=6f0ee1f31334

Wheelen, T., Hunger, D., Hoffman, A., & Bamford, C. (2018). Strategic Management and Business Policy. Pearson. https://platform.virdocs.com/r/s/0/doc/243595/sp/15514147/mi/50902138?menu=table-of-contents