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    Elc231 - MT Set 2 QP

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    The passage discusses how businesses have adapted to changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. It outlines how companies have restructured operations and sales channels, shifted to e-commerce, diversified supply chains, and helped employees adapt to remote work. It emphasizes that businesses able to adapt to changing trends and circumstances are best positioned to survive the ongoing challenges.

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    Elc231 - MT Set 2 QP

    Uploaded by

    Yazid RoRo
    204 views6 pages
    The passage discusses how businesses have adapted to changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. It outlines how companies have restructured operations and sales channels, shifted to e-commerce, diversified supply chains, and helped employees adapt to remote work. It emphasizes that businesses able to adapt to changing trends and circumstances are best positioned to survive the ongoing challenges.

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    ELC231_ MT SET 2 QP

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    The passage discusses how businesses have adapted to changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. It outlines how companies have restructured operations and sales channels, shifted to e-commerce, diversified supply chains, and helped employees adapt to remote work. It emphasizes that businesses able to adapt to changing trends and circumstances are best positioned to survive the ongoing challenges.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    204 views6 pages

    Elc231 - MT Set 2 QP

    Uploaded by

    Yazid RoRo
    The passage discusses how businesses have adapted to changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. It outlines how companies have restructured operations and sales channels, shifted to e-commerce, diversified supply chains, and helped employees adapt to remote work. It emphasizes that businesses able to adapt to changing trends and circumstances are best positioned to survive the ongoing challenges.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 6

    MUHAMMAD YAZID BIN ADNAN (2022810316)

    CONFIDENTIAL 2 LG/DEC 2022/ELC231 (SET 2)

    PART A: READING COMPREHENSION (25 MARKS)


    Read the passage below and answer all the questions that follow.

    Adapt to survive, build a resilient tomorrow

    I For the past couple of years, we have witnessed how COVID-19 has impacted
    various industries and businesses across the world today. During the
    pandemic, many companies are forced to review their paradigm of business
    operations, as consumers adapt to their new lifestyles. Work-from-home and
    digital connectivity have become the new norm of businesses due to the 5
    restrictions of travelling. Meanwhile, consumers were seen to respond to the
    pandemic by cutting back on unrestricted expenditures, focusing on what they
    saw as essentials only thus proving the importance of business flexibility. With
    that, it is compulsory for companies to relook at the products they were selling,
    streamline their sales channels and restructure basic business processes. In 10
    today’s challenging times, being able to adapt accordingly as well as aligning
    business strategies and plans to changing realities, is the key to survival and
    continued thriving. Thus, businesses have found themselves having to quickly
    rethink how they operate and adjust their strategies in a bid to survive.

    II The pandemic revealed that some consumers’ trends could advance quickly. 15
    The consumers’ demands revolve around concerns regarding personal safety
    and health naturally skyrocketed with the onset of COVID-19, with demands
    for health and wellness products such as Vitamin C and multivitamins
    increasing in various parts of the world. According to Mintel, a local
    supermarket chain in Singapore called NTUC FairPrice saw a demand for 20
    health supplements rising by three to five times, while Indonesians are
    reportedly stocking up on jamu, a traditional medicine made from natural
    ingredients, following the outbreak of COVID-19. A report by Fortune Business
    Insights also highlighted that the impact of the pandemic is expected to cause
    huge spikes in the annual growth rate of the global hand sanitiser market from 25
    5.06 percent to 45.71 percent in the year of 2021. These occurrences reflect
    the consumers’ leaning demand towards health and hygiene products that they
    now deem essential. Thus, companies which quickly respond to this change

    © Hak Cipta Universiti Teknologi MARA CONFIDENTIAL


    CONFIDENTIAL 3 LG/DEC 2022/ELC231 (SET 2)

    would be at an advantage as they are able to focus on the solutions that oblige
    the changing buyers’ requests and needs. In Indonesia, for example, Wipro 30
    Consumer Care understood how demands for the products will change quite
    early on when COVID-19 first started. Therefore, the company which initially
    relied on fragrances and cosmetics has moved on to production of new anti-
    bacterial and anti-germ products, including hand sanitisers, hand wash and
    disinfectants. 35

    III Next, global restrictions due to COVID-19 have caused inevitable change in
    consumers’ demands leading to distracted supply chains. Across the world, the
    uncontrolled purchases at supermarkets and local shops have led to certain
    product shortages. To solve this, companies reexamine their supply chains by
    looking at source diversification by not depending on just one country to get 40
    some products. This way will ensure the continuity of the needed items in the
    market and avoid huge hikes in prices as seen on hand sanitizers and face
    masks in 2019. Other than the government initiative to control the base price
    for these products, the companies must ensure that the supplies are enough
    to meet the demands. Sticking to what previously worked before COVID-19 45
    can be futile to a lot of businesses, especially after witnessing how these supply
    chains were greatly impacted by the pandemic.

    IV Another aspect that companies need to concentrate on is in terms of strategies


    for product channelling, as there is a surge of e-commerce all over the world.
    The trend surfaced when countries implemented restricted movement orders 50
    that inhibited outings beyond a certain distance to buy basic necessities.
    Hence, the consumers saw this platform as the only way of getting goods
    without stepping out of their homes. Initially, many consumers were not familiar
    with the interface of the e-commerce platform, causing barriers for them to fully
    utilise it. However, with time, more households are found to be able to use this 55
    platform to purchase goods as they are now more convinced that it is
    commercially safe and convenient to do so. Hence, understanding the
    changing channel preferences of the consumers and adapting in-market
    business strategies accordingly can help to ensure that the business will not
    eventually lose out in an increasingly competitive landscape. 60
    © Hak Cipta Universiti Teknologi MARA CONFIDENTIAL
    CONFIDENTIAL 4 LG/DEC 2022/ELC231 (SET 2)

    V Other than adapting to changes in consumers' demands, the speed at which


    employees can adapt to the changes and take on new necessary roles can be
    influential on the success of a business. With work-from-home becoming the
    norm, employees must be able to work in different environments as well as
    learning to collaborate and communicate effectively with colleagues using 65
    various platforms. This massive shift in working models indicates that
    businesses need to look into ways they can help their employees be better at
    adapting to changes. In doing so, companies can look at investing in new tools
    and technology to train employees on how to control and effectively use them.
    Businesses can also upskill employees based on their capabilities in areas 70
    outside of their current job scope as this will help them to be well-versed in
    different parts of the businesses. That way, it will be easier for the businesses
    to conduct any necessary restructuring of the workforce should another
    circumstance like COVID-19 hit again.

    VI Therefore, in order for businesses to survive, they must be able to adapt to the 75
    current trends amid the pandemic. Today, we see businesses starting to
    emerge from the initial effects of the pandemic, and those that have managed
    to come through are those that have adapted well to changing tides. A lesson
    learnt is that while it is essential to monitor the situation and find ways to cut
    losses, it is equally important to stay agile and be adaptable to capture new 80
    opportunities that might not have presented themselves before the pandemic.

    Adapted from:
    https://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnists/2020/11/643600/adapt-survive-
    build-resilient-tomorrow

    © Hak Cipta Universiti Teknologi MARA CONFIDENTIAL


    CONFIDENTIAL 5 LG/DEC 2022/ELC231 (SET 2)

    QUESTION 1

    State whether the following statements are TRUE (T) or FALSE (F).

    a) a) Many businesses could operate as usual despite the pandemic. F


    b) One of the main issues related to the pandemic is that buying trends
    of personal safety and supplements among consumers have T
    accelerated.
    c) As businesses have to tolerate the outpouring of online purchases,
    companies are also advised to re-evaluate their supply chains. T
    d) In order to maintain their operations, companies should be able to get
    used to the current trends and situations. T
    (4 marks)

    QUESTION 2

    What do the following words mean as used in the passage?

    a) restrictions (line 6) : regulation


    ____________________________________

    b) Revealed (line 15) : disclose


    ____________________________________

    c) Aspect (line 48) : particular


    ____________________________________

    d) Massive (line 66) : immense


    ____________________________________

    (4 marks)

    QUESTION 3

    All the followings are TRUE about the effects of COVID-19 on businesses, except:
    (Circle two (2) answers)

    i. Consumers began to focus on the essentials and reduce unrestricted purchases.

    ii. COVID-19 caused a major increase in demands for health and wellness products.

    iii. Consumers can rely on e-commerce platforms as one of few options available to
    acquire their basic necessities.

    iv. Due to shifting of working models, employees are to find their own ways in adapting
    to the changes in businesses.
    (2 marks)

    © Hak Cipta Universiti Teknologi MARA CONFIDENTIAL


    CONFIDENTIAL 6 LG/DEC 2022/ELC231 (SET 2)

    QUESTION 4

    List two (2) effects of the pandemic towards the operations of companies.
    paradigm shift in business operations
    i) ____________________________________________________________________
    ii) changes in consumer demands and supply chain disruptions
    ____________________________________________________________________
    (2 marks)

    QUESTION 5

    How did COVID-19 affect the advancement of consumers’ trends?


    COVID-19 accelerated consumers trends towards health and hygiene products leading to
    _______________________________________________________________________
    increased demand
    _______________________________________________________________________
    _______________________________________________________________________
    (2 marks)

    QUESTION 6

    Explain what the author means by the following statement.


    “Across the world, the uncontrolled purchases at supermarkets and local shops have led to
    certain product shortages” (lines 37-39).
    there are shortages of some products all over the world because people buy too much at
    ________________________________________________________________________
    grocery stores and small shops.
    ________________________________________________________________________
    ________________________________________________________________________
    (2 marks)

    QUESTION 7

    Based on the passage, provide ways to ensure that your business will survive in an
    increasingly competitive landscape.
    Based on the passage, ways to ensure that your business will survive are adapt to charging
    ________________________________________________________________________
    consumer demands and enable employees to adapt and upskill
    ________________________________________________________________________
    ________________________________________________________________________
    (2 marks)

    © Hak Cipta Universiti Teknologi MARA CONFIDENTIAL


    CONFIDENTIAL 7 LG/DEC 2022/ELC231 (SET 2)

    QUESTION 8

    Why do businesses need to upskill their employees?


    Businesses need to upskill their employees to make their employees adapt to remote work
    ________________________________________________________________________
    and to restart the workforce
    ________________________________________________________________________
    (2 marks)

    QUESTION 9

    What can you infer from the following statement?


    “Today, we see businesses starting to emerge from the initial effects of the pandemic and
    those that have managed to come through are those that have adapted well to changing
    tides.” (lines 76-78).
    the conclusion is that businesses that are managed according to changing currents can run
    ________________________________________________________________________
    well, this is because following current changes is important.
    ________________________________________________________________________
    ________________________________________________________________________
    (2 marks)

    QUESTION 10

    Based on your understanding of the passage, do you agree that e-commerce will have a

    bright future in the purchasing trends? Provide two (2) reasons to justify your answer.

    Yes, it is because nowadays most buyers are young people who are familiar with the era of globalization
    ________________________________________________________________________
    that requires them to buy online. Moreover, using e-commerce is easier than buying normaly
    ________________________________________________________________________

    ________________________________________________________________________

    (3 marks)

    END OF QUESTION PAPER

    © Hak Cipta Universiti Teknologi MARA CONFIDENTIAL

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