Contemporary Issues in Management

Contemporary Issues in Management

Section 1 – Introduction

Horizon scanning refers to the timely and systemic detection of changes and developments that can affect an entity. In this regard, horizon scanning can encompass doing a single or periodic scan relying on the insights of top leaders in an entity. Horizon scanning can also be continuous, more common in the public sector, and generally involves a participatory approach. Depending on the type of horizon scanning, an entity could enlist a small team of full-time scanners or rely on part-time scanners. Horizon scanning could focus on particular priorities or involve scanning the entire external environment. Overall, the horizon scanning system should be guided by the organization’s context and the needs of the decision-makers (Bengston, 2013, 4). For the assignment, horizon scanning will aid in acquainting the student with the retail sector developments. In this case, the sector’s relevance to the different facets of society, the challenges marring the sector, and their implications to managers in the retail sector. Also, the horizon scan will assist in understanding the importance of the state of the retail sector on career development and prospects of professionals.

The retail sector involves the sale of goods and services to consumers. In addition, retail establishments are in vast forms, including bookstores, groceries, and restaurants. Retail products are sold either online or in physical stores. Globally, the in-store retail approach is the most popular, but online retail, popularly known as e-commerce, is gaining momentum, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, most retailers are adopting an Omnichannel distribution market. For 2021, global retail sales amounted to $ 26 trillion, projected to increase to $ 30 trillion and $31.7 trillion in 2024 and 2025, respectively (Sabanoglu, 2022). The positive projects suggest the likely growth of the sector over the coming decade. Globally, the leading retailers are Amazon and Walmart.

Regarding revenue, the top three retailers globally were from the United States: Walmart, Amazon, and Costco Wholesale Corporation, whose revenues were $ 572.75, 239.15 and 195.93 billion for 2021, respectively (Sabanoglu, 2023). The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic undermined the employment levels in the retail sector across the globe. The industry is, however, recuperating gradually. In this regard, by February last year retail sector in the United States had 15.7 million employees working an average of 30.4 hours weekly (Simionato, 2022).