Business Environment of Zurich Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Business Environment of Zurich - Essay Example Likewise, their products and services are diverse and categorized according to the clientele they serve. These products and services range from motor vehicle and home insurance, life insurance, savings and investment, as well as pension and retirement planning (for individual clients); property, casualty, workers’ compensation, corporate life and pensions, financial lines, and accident and health (for small and mid-sized organizations); and finally construction, global energy, marine, motor fleet, international programs, and risk engineering (for large and multinational corporations). As Zurich operates in a vast global environment, the purpose of this case study is to provide an assessment of the business environment of Zurich. Specifically, the following questions would be addressed: (1) what is meant by the term â€Å"customer centric†? How has Zurich’s primary research helped it be even more customer focused? (2) Explain the difference between primary and sec ondary market research. How could secondary data support primary research? (3) Analyse how Zurich positioned itself in a customer focused way. (4) Evaluate to what extent help point has enable Zurich to differentiate itself in the insurance market and provide an example of similar service provided either within the same or different environment. Environment The article on Business Environment published online by the Excel College of Higher Education defines the business environment as â€Å"the influences and pressures exerted by external factors on the business† (Excel College of Higher Education, n.d.). As such there are eight constituents of the business environment composed of: demographic, economic, geographical and ecological, legal, technological, social, educational and cultural, as well as the political environment. For Zurich, as a global organization, its scope of operations include Europe (Germany, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, United Kingdom), North America (USA, Ca nada), Asia-Pacific (Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia), and other markets such as Mexico, Argentina, Chile, and Brazil (Zurich Insurance Company Ltd., 2012). Their business environment is therefore vast as it encompasses strategic locations worldwide. Further, due to the wide span of demographical and geographic scale, both opportunities and risk abound. Thus the prevailing economic, political, socio-cultural and legal factors that applies in the respective countries wherein Zurich operates influence their business activities. Their financial success really depends on the strengths and competitive advantages manifested by Zurich and the reaction, as well as response of entrenched competitors within their area of operations. Business Aspect (1) What is meant by the term â€Å"customer centric†? How has Zurich’s primary research helped it be even more customer focused? The term customer-centric means that â€Å"the customer (is placed) at the center of policy-related proc esses† (Gujral, 2007, p. 48). The meaning is more expounded by Booz Allen Hamilton (2004) who averred that customer centric organizations, like Zurich, â€Å"moved beyond lip service and re-oriented their entire operating model around the customer, increasing customer satisfaction, and their own profitability in the process† (Hamilton, 2004, p. 1). As indicated in the Zurich case study on â€Å"Providing a customer-centric service†