Business Development Plan - Smart Travel Corp

To develop the business effectively, Smart Travel Corporation needs to assess the opportunity, as well as the trends and sustainability. This will prevent a company from commencing work on a business idea that is bound to fail. The SWOT and PEST analysis that was conducted for this company indicate some of the most important factors which can either support or destroy the business opportunity. This paper will identify the entrepreneurial opportunities, conduct an assessment of an opportunity, and lastly determine its sustainability.

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Entrepreneurial Opportunities

Some entrepreneurial opportunities can be identified from the market domain evaluation as well as the PEST analysis that was conducted on the business previously. The first entrepreneurial opportunity is to take advantage of the capacity problem being experienced by other modes as was noted in the market domain evaluation (Chinedu, Titus & Thaddeus, 2010). Therefore, Smart Travel Corp. can introduce trains that have been designed to carry more capacity of both goods and people (Goodwin, 1992). If implemented, this opportunity will improve the congestion on the highways as it will reduce the number of people using the road (Gujba, Mulugetta & Azapagic, 2013). It will also improve competitive advantage over other modes of transport since it will help with better time management as identified in the PEST analysis (Gujba, Mulugetta & Azapagic, 2013). People no longer have to waste their time stuck in congestions since there is another way to get to the desired destination.

The second entrepreneurial opportunity is the need for high-speed trains with electric engines and new railway tracks. According to the market domain evaluation, this represents a chance since other parts of the world are also featuring improvements in development trends (Chinedu, Titus & Thaddeus, 2010). Hence, people will most likely make the switch since it is a new way of doing things that have been adopted by other individuals from different regions of the world. The development of new trains will also mean better-looking trains. They will be clean compared to the old coaches, which made people lose interests in trains. Lastly, it represents an opportunity because people are presently regaining interest in modes of transport that are cheap and will not cause damage to their goods (Goodwin, 1992).

Entrepreneurial Assessment

An opportunity that should be chosen is the introduction of high-speed trains with electric engines, and new railway tracks. This opportunity is viable for many reasons. First, since many people are still scared of the rail industry, this company will face no great competition from other companies. Therefore, the chances of it failing due to loss of customers to competitors are very minimal (Babatunde & Adebisi, 2012).

Second, by tapping into this opportunity, the need for beautiful coaches with proper sanitation will also be met. Thus, the company will be able to regain the loyalty of certain customers (Kent Jr. & Flint, 1997). Third, this opportunity is bound to be successful because people love to move with the trend. The design of the new trains and mode of function are both changing in line with trends. Therefore, since other parts of the world are starting to embrace the use of trains for transport, it is most likely that the target population will also make the change (Babatunde & Adebisi, 2012).

Fourth, the use of new and improved trains and railroads mean the process will be safer, and some accidents will be reduced. Lastly, the presence of room for research means better services from Smart Travel Corporation. Customers will, therefore, be fully satisfied as all their needs will have been met cheaply.

Trends

There are key trends which affect the global business environment of the railway industry. In Europe, approximately 10,200 locomotives and 1,860 railcars are most likely to be replaced before 2022 (Global Railroads Industry Profile., 2015). This trend shows that the population is slowly turning towards the use of railways. The next key trend is rail automation, which will encourage real-time information exchange and sharing between specific businesses to enhance travel and planning. The railway industry in Nigeria can, therefore, apply the use of technology to improve their trains (Global Railroads Industry Profile., 2015). Third, another trend is that operators are starting to make use of internet protocol architecture to facilitate onboard internet access (Global Railroads Industry Profile., 2015). This is yet another trend which relates to technology as described in the PEST analysis. Lastly, investments in the African rail infrastructure are expected to double by 2022 (Global Railroads Industry Profile., 2015). This is yet another trend which may lead to investors rethinking their strategies soon.

Impact on Opportunities

These trends indicate that the railway industry is expected to have grown rapidly by 2022. For such growth to be accomplished, other industry players will have made their entry thus increasing competition for Smart Travel Corp (Silva, 2014). The factors which this company was hoping to use to gain a better advantage such as high-speed trains and clean coaches are no longer a secret. The trends show that these factors are what industry players are considering. As a result, the opportunities may not be as viable as expected.

Impact on Sustainability

These trends will impact the sustainability of Smart Travel Corp. in different ways. One, the trends may make the company unsustainable as the costs of obtaining all the required raw materials are high (Silva, 2014). Electric engines and sophisticated rails can be relatively expensive to purchase. Two, the trends may support sustainability by ensuring that the company will have increased competition (Babatunde & Adebisi, 2012). Hence, Smart Travel Corp. will need to be careful while offering services, so as to ensure customer satisfaction is fully achieved.

References

Babatunde, B. O., & Adebisi, A. O. (2012). Strategic environmental scanning and organization performance in a competitive business environment. Economic Insights-Trends & Challenges, 64(1), 24-34.

Gujba, H., Mulugetta, Y., & Azapagic, A. (2013). Passenger transport in Nigeria: Environmental and economic analysis with policy recommendations.Energy Policy, 55, 353-361.

Kent Jr, J. L., & Flint, D. J. (1997). Perspectives on the evolution of logistics thought. Journal of Business Logistics, 18(2), 15.

Goodwin, P. B. (1992). A review of new demand elasticities with special reference to short and long run effects of price changes. Journal of transport economics and policy, 155-169.

Chinedu, E. A., Titus, O. C., & Thaddeus, E. O. (2010). Achieving Vision 2020 in Nigeria: a review of the economic and market-oriented business reforms. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa, 12(4), 58-71.

Global Railroads Industry Profile. (2015). Railroads Industry Profile: Global, 1-34.

Silva, A. (2014). Organizational Innovation in Nineteenth-Century Railway Investment: Peripheral Countries in a Global Economy. Business History Review, 88(4), 709-736. doi:10.1017/S0007680514000737