Weather impacts business in unimaginable ways. This impact has become more worrisome due to climate change. The weather today plays a vital role in business dealings across Africa. Research shows that weather disrupts the operating and financial performance of 70% of businesses worldwide. Wondering how? This article explains the connection and points out how weather can be harnessed to maximise profit by businesses in Africa. Perhaps the first time you cared about the weather was when you got drenched without warning or maybe had your plans foiled by adverse weather. Sometime after that, you probably checked the weather forecast a couple of times and that was it. Big news; you will surely want to check it a lot more, especially as it can impact your business.
Weather impacts business on the most important aspect of business leadership; DECISION MAKING.
What will you do differently in your business today if you knew it was going to rain in 2 hours, 6 hours, 12 hours or tomorrow? Take a moment to think about it.Do you notice the elaborate plans you are instinctively making ahead for your business and your day? Now, imagine if you didn’t have that information and you just made your plans “weather-blind”, how will your business be impacted by an aspect of nature you can do nothing about? Having information on daily weather patterns is valuable in business planning to prevent wasteful expenditure and ensure the best effectiveness of assets. This plays a key role in our day-to-day decisions that would literally translate into your business making or losing money.
How Weather Impacts Business in Various Industries
Agriculture
In agriculture, having accurate weather forecasts allows farmers to efficiently time their planting, tilling, equipment hiring and more. This allows farmers to also effectively plan precious farming inputs such as pesticide, fertiliser, and irrigation. Charles, a farmer from the Brong-Ahafo Region of Ghana suffered a huge loss when he lost all of his capital owing to some heavy rains that fell right after he had planted his seeds and fertilised. Realising what accurate weather forecast meant for his investments, Charles subscribed for iska, a product from the world’s first and most accurate tropical weather forecasting company Ignitia and says, “since I started using iska my harvest has increased so much because we always know what activity to do for the right weather. It has really helped me.” Weather is a major determinant in the profitability of the agricultural sector.
Manufacturing and Logistics Companies
Knowledge of timing, quantity and intensity of the rain can help manufacturing and logistics companies to plan their supply chain more effectively. Accurate predictions and adequate preparation do a lot to mitigate the impact of adverse weather such as planning the release of trucks on roads that are prone to flooding during heavy rain. In instances where manufacturing input is going to be late owing to weather conditions, manufacturing companies can either stockpile or alert their clients ahead of possible delays. This ensures hitch-free operations for the companies resulting in increased efficiency and thus, more profit.
Equipment and Property
Heavy storms can cause a lot of damage to equipment and property. Knowledge about the advance of intense weather conditions will help plant managers make the right decision to close and secure equipment. Operations can be kept open to prevent operational losses if the information assures the storm will miss the plant. This could hike productivity and also mitigate losses.
Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) Companies
Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies like Nestle for instance, are acutely aware of the productivity losses and costs incurred by unmanaged weather. Accurate weather information is thus, a tool for stabilising the supply chain and maintaining the quantity and quality of produce. With this, FMCGs can maintain quality and quantity standards to scale profitability.
Transportation
Trip delays and cancellations affect both transport companies and their customers in unpleasant ways. However, having accurate weather forecasts can help airlines and other transport companies to schedule their trips better, offering users a better experience with less cancellations and delays. This will increase customer satisfaction and definitely culminate in more profit for the companies.
Everyday People
Weather impacts business for everyday people too. Traders use accurate weather forecasts to decide if and when to open their stores, or go to the market. A laundry man could use it to decide when best to wash, pick up and deliver laundry to his clients. The list of how weather affects the businesses of everyday people is quite a long one. This further speaks to the difference accurate weather forecast could make to their businesses.
You have to know the behavior of you customers during different times of the year. This is not only important for the tourism industry but also local businesses. A good businessperson should know the impacts of weather on customer’s buying habits to optimize sales. A business should invest in extensive research as well as weather predictions to set prices and offers that meet the demands of consumers.
Conclusion
Making informed decisions is a key part of running a successful business. By including highly accurate tropical weather forecast into your decision framework, you can scale productivity and prevent losses, saving more and increasing your profits.Wondering where to get the reliable tropical weather information? Ignitia provides you highly accurate tropical weather information that can be harnessed to scale your business.
Founder Dinis Guarda
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