Green Cabs Case Study Essay Example

After sufficiently testing the waters in these areas and solidifying their position within the national market, Green Cabs can explore new locations. The company was established based on Callum Brown's vision of promoting enviro-friendly transportation options while raising awareness about climate change. This unique perspective has positioned Green Cabs as one of New Zealand's leading taxi providers with high growth potential.

With a founder who passionately supports Green Cabs and a successful track record, there is no reason why the company won't succeed in other main centers. However, diversifying into other service areas is a different story, and I believe Green Cabs should be cautious. The company's strong values revolve around providing consumers with the most economic and environmentally-friendly taxi transport service, which is why they exclusively use Toyota Prius' in their fleet.

The case study highlights that a growing number of taxi companies are opting for low emission vehicles. This shift towards environmentally friendly alternatives is not limited to taxi companies alone. Other transport services, such as the Link Bus in Auckland (www.linkbus.co.nz), are also following suit. It is worth noting that transport accounts for a significant portion of the average household budget, around 14% or $136 per week.

"With the current economic climate, consumers are seeking the lowest price option available," states sustainability.govt.nz. Therefore, Green Cabs should concentrate on taxi transport for the immediate future. They should aim to expand nationwide and increase their capital before exploring horizontal integration into other transportation services."

What are the potential challenges that may arise as Green Cabs expands, such as personal beliefs, business management and structure, and environmental effects? As the single proprietor of the company, Callum Brown would face

challenges in securing the necessary funding for investments. Given the significant initial expenses involved, he must contemplate altering Green Cabs' business structure. Going public by listing the company on the stock market would provide a great means of obtaining capital through share sales. Investors would be drawn to Green Cabs' past achievements and would be eager to invest in the business by purchasing shares.

Expanding would be easier and accessing difficult areas would become feasible. Callum Brown, as a sole proprietor, holds full responsibility for the direction of the company. The case study does not mention any external influences that may assist his decision-making. With Green Cabs' growth, Callum's workload will increase and he may face difficulty making optimal decisions for the business. Selling shares to raise capital could fuel positive growth within the company by enabling Callum Brown to employ a management team for more efficient and calculated decision-making. However, this strategy may also have adverse effects on the business.

Green Cabs has a positive image due to the values set by Callum. However, new management may bring different values and ideas. Callum is transparent about not wanting millions of dollars from the company. However, investors seeking high returns may require the company to prioritize profit over environmental initiatives such as carbon offsetting. This could hinder Green Cabs' efforts to be environmentally friendly as they may have to minimize costly exercises in their capitalistic approach.

The absence of business plans for Green Cabs is not mentioned in the case study. However, having a business plan is essential for the company to reach milestones and objectives within a realistic timeframe. As mentioned in Chap4Pg308 of the Course Book

by Frederick & Kuratko (2010), without a business plan, companies tend to lose focus and become easily distracted from the correct strategic course. This effect is not tolerable for Green Cabs, and having a prospective strategy is crucial for their success.

It is important for Green Cabs to adhere to its core values in order to maintain its unique selling point and stand out against competitors. The implementation of adequate systems is necessary for the successful completion of new ventures, as it cannot solely rely on the guidance of Callum Brown. According to Chapter 9, page 308 of the Course Book, "Many SMEs do not have operating systems in place and are overly dependent on the owners’ personal abilities. A lack of systems can cause differential standards and an inability to provide consistency within the business." (Frederick & Kuratko, 2010) Therefore, strong internal controls are required to ensure effective performance evaluation.

Green Cabs can implement strategies to strike a balance between environmental and economic goals. According to Porter, strategy involves creating a unique position that a company can maintain (1996). Two prevalent strategies applicable to Green Cabs are the prospector and analyzer approaches. The prospector strategy focuses on innovation and introducing fresh concepts into markets. Green Cabs have already demonstrated this approach by adding an eco-friendly choice to their taxi transportation, which is an innovative idea.

In order to implement the prospector strategy, a company needs to establish a unique selling point for their product or service and promote it to customers. This approach puts the focus on customer service while highlighting their competitive advantage. Though Green Cabs introduced an innovative idea to the taxi transportation industry,

it may struggle to sustain a prospector strategy due to the difficulty of consistently maintaining high levels of innovation. On the other hand, Google is a company that truly embraces the prospector strategy by continuously developing new products across various industries. It has become a necessary competitive requirement for companies to adopt prospector behavior, as most markets face intense competition and few places offer protection against it (The Economist, 1998; Doyle and Wong, 1998).

It is apparent that Green Cabs' competitors are adopting hybrid vehicles to improve efficiency, indicating the need for adaptation. Although similar to a prospector approach, the analyser strategy aims to balance innovation with a stable market position. In my opinion, this approach would be beneficial for Green Cabs. Despite being pioneers in eco-friendly transportation, their competitors have caught up with the adoption of hybrid vehicles. Therefore, Green Cabs must consolidate their market standing through alternative approaches like creating a new marketing campaign to showcase their innovation in the taxi industry. As Porter said, "A sustainable strategic position requires trade-offs."

E. 1996 suggested that rather than focusing solely on innovation within the taxi industry, Green Cabs could explore new ways to promote environmentally-friendly practices and market these efforts to consumers. A potential approach would be to target airport advertising and align their marketing efforts with New Zealand's emphasis on being "clean and green", encouraging international visitors to choose Green Cabs during their stay. By balancing innovation with maintaining a strong market position, Green Cabs can increase their chances of success both economically and environmentally. An analytical strategy involves analyzing the market and introducing new ideas when opportunities arise, while also remaining consumer-friendly.

Doyle and Wong

conducted a study on the relationship between marketing and competitive performance, as published in the European Journal of Marketing in 1998 (pp. 514-535). Additionally, Frederick also contributed to the cited bibliography.

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,..."The second Asia-Pacific edition of "Entrepreneurship: Theory, Process, Practice" has been published.The Economist (1998) and Harvard Business Review's Porter (1996) both referenced in Sydney's Cengage Learning publication regarding the concept of strategy. The Harvard Business Review article can be found on pages 61-78.

When it comes to importance, size is a crucial factor, as stated in The Economist, pages 57-58.