The critical study of food retailers versus wholesalers. Opportunities of digitization in the international market

Master's Thesis from the year 2019 in the subject Business economics - E-Commerce, grade: 1.3, Fresenius University of Applied Sciences Köln, course: The critical study of food retailers vs. wholesalers, language: English, abstract: Various companies are working to manage digitization and its effects, and it is essential that they find the right way of thinking about this. However, many do not understand even the most basic steps of the process, which leads to development problems. To drive development, it is necessary to change one's way of approaching this issue. The aim of this research was to identify the weaknesses, strengths, dangers, and trends in the market and those measures, potentials, and steps to changing one's way of thinking to advance digitization in Germany. With this in mind, the following research question was posed: to what extent do the weaknesses, strengths, dangers, fears, potentials and trends in backward digitization in Germany depend on one another? To answer the research question, personal interviews were conducted, alongside original research and interviews with renowned companies. The interviewees were divided into three groups: manufacturers, wholesalers, and food retailers. The interview partners were sought from throughout Germany. Each group had an adapted questionnaire. The questions were divided into three categories: weaknesses; potential dangers, fears; and potentials, strengths and trends. Problems were clearly identified in all three categories that can be traced back to the greatest weakness in Germany at the moment: mindset. All three groups are evidently influenced by this weakness, with progress in digitization increasingly falling behind. On this basis, the findings of this study indicate that it is advisable to hire younger employees, purchase entire teams, support start-up promotions in the company, and renew the own views of the entire topic. Further research could consider renewal of the own views of the individual components.

I am Oleg Korob, an independent consultant with a goal-oriented mindset. I have extensive experience in the B2B sector, such as a business consultant, project manager, change manager, etc. I am interested in everything in digital, from development to transformation, automation and optimization. Since my 2 semesters in bachelor studies, I am self-employed and gained a wealth of experience in digitalization, international project management, change management, IT areas and other fields. Also interested in e-commerce, risk management, supply chain management (SCM) and coaching. I am highly experienced in digital consulting, automation, optimization, transformation, project management and business development. I also have extensive expertise in developing analog and digital business models, as well as optimizing processes and cost structures. Experience with clients, from many different industries, also exists, such as manufacturing, automotive, retail, logistics, public sector, etc. I am very familiar with the latest trends and technologies in the digital world, as well as with their many different applications, their potential and upcoming further development. On the side, I am a lecturer at the Fresenius University of Applied Sciences and give lectures on various topics related to digitalization, e-commerce and online communication. My focus is to provide international master students with a high-quality teaching service, as well as practice-oriented educational material. My practical experience is designed to help them achieve their own goals and solutions faster, more smoothly and efficiently. I offer an independent and transparent way of working, which focuses on achieving the best results for my clients. In my spare time, I like to keep myself informed about new technologies/developments in the digitalization scene and Industry 4.0, potential new opportunities, possible new business models, new IoT achievements, etc. If you are looking for a reliable and competent partner to support you in your digital projects, such as optimization, transformation, automation, analytics, etc., do not hesitate to contact me. It would be my pleasure to discuss your specific needs and offer you my consulting services. At any time, I am available for a conversation and happy to answer your questions.