The Success of a Business Entity that Depends on an Interplay of Inter Essay

The Success of a Business Entity that Depends on an Interplay of Internal and External Factors - Essay Example One of these companies is DHL. DHL is an express shipping multinational company operating in 220 countries and territories around the globe. It employed more than 22,000 people and delivers more than 1.2 million packages daily (Scott 2007). It is the objective of this essay to discuss the underlying strategies that make DHL a global leader in their field of endeavor using SWOT analysis. The SWOT analysis proffers DHL Company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in both their internal and external environments. The first question that comes to mind when one hears the name of DHL is: where did this company name come from? According to the history of DHL, the name came from the first letters of the last names of the owners or founders of the company: Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom and Robert Lynn (DHL 2008). These founders started the company in September 1969 at San Francisco, USA. It was a milestone when â€Å"the founders began to personally ship papers by airplane from San Francisco to Honolulu, beginning customs clearance of the ship's cargo before the actual arrival of the ship and dramatically reducing waiting time in the harbor† (ibid). Using this concept, delivery of documents was rapidly done through international air express. In a span of fewer than twenty years, DHL expanded its operations to countries such as Hawaii, the Far East, Middle East, Africa and Europe. A major change in ownership occurred in 2002 when DHL was consolidated with Deutsche Post World Net. At present, DHL is already 100% owned by Deutsche Post World Net, but still retained the brand name, DHL. Considering brand association and retention, customers all over the world acknowledge DHL as â€Å"the global market leader in international express, overland transport and air freight. It is also the worlds number 1 in ocean freight and contract logistics. DHL offers a full range of customized solutions - from express document shipping to supply chain management.† (DHL 2008)