How Internal and External Forces Affect Organizational Behavior Essay

Analyze how internal and External Forces Affect Organizational Behavior Examples of Internal and External Forces Include the Following: Competition: Some Chief Executive Officers when trying to build a high performance work culture will use a strategy that pits one employee against another employee to form a competition between the two. Methods such as these may entice employees to work harder, but sometimes these tactics will backfire and undermine employee cooperation. In-house internal competition does sound logical to many managers, employ the best people and evaluate them on regular intervals with sound measures. Then rank them from best to worst, unload the worst then praise the best, and shower them with money, and promotions while devoting enough attention to the rest of them so that they will not leave, and keep working hard. â€Å"The rhetoric of competition is appealing in our individualistic sports-oriented society, and we revere executives who talk about tough competition, survival of the fittest and the virtues of winning.† Past-news Organizational-Behavior-The-Enemy-Next-Door http://www.cioinsight.com The economy: Hiring practices have changed dramatically over the years. Quality individuals are being employed, and immediately they are trained for positions within the organization. Companies are investing in low or unskilled workers and training them at company expense. In the past this has been a warning sign to businesses. As the economy rises, organizations are coerced to hire worker who are less experienced. This means that there is a loss of productivity. However, salary increases have remained the same at an increase of1.8%, down from the 3% in 1998. â€Å"Productivity, which should have been much lower, has proceeded at 2% annually. Part of the explanation for this unprecedented trend seems to be the investment of companies into equipment. Technology has become so accessible that unskilled workers, bolstered by new technology, can be many times more productive† Retrieved from Business Week Online June 10th, 2011 â€Å"The Economy’s Rising Tide,† by David Leonhardt, and Laura Cohn http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1139/organizationalbehavior

Music Analysis

A motion picture would not appeal to its viewers without the orchestrated sounds within the background that Intently helps draw out the emotions from the audience from watching the movie. Many great movie soundtracks can be overshadowed by the performance of a great actor or even just the motion picture itself. Hardly anyone misses out on giving credit to a great movie or performer but many people do not realize that a great movie and performer is nothing without the soundtracks behind their performances.The reason why the soundtracks to great movies are so important to the film Is because the music that Is played within the movie has the ability to affect the movie In many ways. For example, the sound of an Instrument can emphasize a certain emotion a character is feeling within a specific scene as it is played in the background. In 1998, John Williams orchestrated a soundtrack for the well-known film; â€Å"Saving Private Ryan† that showcased his masterpiece, â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† within the background of a heartfelt scene of a veteran solider visiting his old friends at a cemetery.The musical style In â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† Is specified to the particular time of the WI era which essentially puts an emphasis on the sad emotions caused by the tragic number of fallen soldiers of that era. In 1997, James Hornier also constructed the masterpiece, â€Å"Rose† showcased in the great love film, â€Å"Titanic. † This specific track also functions in the background and carries a musical style set to a historical era within the early sass's, but as opposed to â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† that relates to war, â€Å"Rose† is showcased within a romantic scene that helps he audience feel the emotion of love.The great sound tracks for both movies are responsible for helping the success of each film as they both help generate emotions in each scene. In Williams â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen,† sounds of the violin and orc hestra possess a depressing and sad tone which matches perfectly with emotions that the old man in the scene is feeling as he is visiting his old friends who died in the war. The violins mixed with the sounds of the orchestra carry a slow tempo and is played in the background while the man cries on his friends tomb In reminiscing on times e shared with his old friends.The violin helps portray how the man Is feeling Inside and helps emphasize the depressing feelings that the man Is feeling. Throughout the movie, the violin is also used within the background of sad scenes which shows that the music is associated with the Idea of death and depressing related subjects. The fact that the sounds of the violin and orchestra associate with the idea of death gives the ability to the audience to predict when there is going to be a death or sad scene.It also gives the film the power to tune a specific scene to a deeper level of sad emotions that the film maker Is trying to draw from the audien ce. The war based movie is a greatly praised movie because of the emotions it generates when people watch it. Much of the emotions that are generated from the movie feed off of the violin and other orchestra sounds. Almost a decade later and â€Å"Titanic† is still known to be one of Hollywood greatest love story movies of all time and much of the credit belongs to the soundtrack orchestrated by James Hornier.Hornet's masterpiece era of the early sass's. The track â€Å"Rose,† is played in the background in the regulative most popular scene in the movie Titanic. The scene is a very romantic scene where the main characters, Jack and Rose pretend they are flying as they hold each other's hands on the ledge of the front part of the ship. The sounds of the piano and flute that are played in the song help the audience see that the two main characters are falling in love.Along with the piano and flute, a clarinet and other strings can also be eared that add a deeper emotion and make the scene more affectionate. The sounds of the piano and flute are so constructed to be in tune with each other that the track â€Å"Rose† not only sounds amazing, but it is often referred to as the theme song of the Titanic. Although the films â€Å"Saving private Ryan,† and â€Å"Titanic,† are different, the two films along with the soundtracks are top of the line quality. The sound tracks to the movies help the movies become interesting and very engaging.Music enhances ivies' content and although it was somewhat difficult to focus on the music in the background of these movies due to the highly entertaining content in the movies, the music also kept me interested. I found this experience of watching a movie and listening to background music very enjoyable to do due to the fact that most topics that I write essays on, do not involve me actually doing something enjoyable. The experience was greatly enjoyable and so was writing this paper on two topics that I love, movies and music. Music Analysis A motion picture would not appeal to its viewers without the orchestrated sounds within the background that Intently helps draw out the emotions from the audience from watching the movie. Many great movie soundtracks can be overshadowed by the performance of a great actor or even just the motion picture itself. Hardly anyone misses out on giving credit to a great movie or performer but many people do not realize that a great movie and performer is nothing without the soundtracks behind their performances.The reason why the soundtracks to great movies are so important to the film Is because the music that Is played within the movie has the ability to affect the movie In many ways. For example, the sound of an Instrument can emphasize a certain emotion a character is feeling within a specific scene as it is played in the background. In 1998, John Williams orchestrated a soundtrack for the well-known film; â€Å"Saving Private Ryan† that showcased his masterpiece, â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† within the background of a heartfelt scene of a veteran solider visiting his old friends at a cemetery.The musical style In â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† Is specified to the particular time of the WI era which essentially puts an emphasis on the sad emotions caused by the tragic number of fallen soldiers of that era. In 1997, James Hornier also constructed the masterpiece, â€Å"Rose† showcased in the great love film, â€Å"Titanic. † This specific track also functions in the background and carries a musical style set to a historical era within the early sass's, but as opposed to â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† that relates to war, â€Å"Rose† is showcased within a romantic scene that helps he audience feel the emotion of love.The great sound tracks for both movies are responsible for helping the success of each film as they both help generate emotions in each scene. In Williams â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen,† sounds of the violin and orc hestra possess a depressing and sad tone which matches perfectly with emotions that the old man in the scene is feeling as he is visiting his old friends who died in the war. The violins mixed with the sounds of the orchestra carry a slow tempo and is played in the background while the man cries on his friends tomb In reminiscing on times e shared with his old friends.The violin helps portray how the man Is feeling Inside and helps emphasize the depressing feelings that the man Is feeling. Throughout the movie, the violin is also used within the background of sad scenes which shows that the music is associated with the Idea of death and depressing related subjects. The fact that the sounds of the violin and orchestra associate with the idea of death gives the ability to the audience to predict when there is going to be a death or sad scene.It also gives the film the power to tune a specific scene to a deeper level of sad emotions that the film maker Is trying to draw from the audien ce. The war based movie is a greatly praised movie because of the emotions it generates when people watch it. Much of the emotions that are generated from the movie feed off of the violin and other orchestra sounds. Almost a decade later and â€Å"Titanic† is still known to be one of Hollywood greatest love story movies of all time and much of the credit belongs to the soundtrack orchestrated by James Hornier.Hornet's masterpiece era of the early sass's. The track â€Å"Rose,† is played in the background in the regulative most popular scene in the movie Titanic. The scene is a very romantic scene where the main characters, Jack and Rose pretend they are flying as they hold each other's hands on the ledge of the front part of the ship. The sounds of the piano and flute that are played in the song help the audience see that the two main characters are falling in love.Along with the piano and flute, a clarinet and other strings can also be eared that add a deeper emotion and make the scene more affectionate. The sounds of the piano and flute are so constructed to be in tune with each other that the track â€Å"Rose† not only sounds amazing, but it is often referred to as the theme song of the Titanic. Although the films â€Å"Saving private Ryan,† and â€Å"Titanic,† are different, the two films along with the soundtracks are top of the line quality. The sound tracks to the movies help the movies become interesting and very engaging.Music enhances ivies' content and although it was somewhat difficult to focus on the music in the background of these movies due to the highly entertaining content in the movies, the music also kept me interested. I found this experience of watching a movie and listening to background music very enjoyable to do due to the fact that most topics that I write essays on, do not involve me actually doing something enjoyable. The experience was greatly enjoyable and so was writing this paper on two topics that I love, movies and music. Music Analysis A motion picture would not appeal to its viewers without the orchestrated sounds within the background that Intently helps draw out the emotions from the audience from watching the movie. Many great movie soundtracks can be overshadowed by the performance of a great actor or even just the motion picture itself. Hardly anyone misses out on giving credit to a great movie or performer but many people do not realize that a great movie and performer is nothing without the soundtracks behind their performances.The reason why the soundtracks to great movies are so important to the film Is because the music that Is played within the movie has the ability to affect the movie In many ways. For example, the sound of an Instrument can emphasize a certain emotion a character is feeling within a specific scene as it is played in the background. In 1998, John Williams orchestrated a soundtrack for the well-known film; â€Å"Saving Private Ryan† that showcased his masterpiece, â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† within the background of a heartfelt scene of a veteran solider visiting his old friends at a cemetery.The musical style In â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† Is specified to the particular time of the WI era which essentially puts an emphasis on the sad emotions caused by the tragic number of fallen soldiers of that era. In 1997, James Hornier also constructed the masterpiece, â€Å"Rose† showcased in the great love film, â€Å"Titanic. † This specific track also functions in the background and carries a musical style set to a historical era within the early sass's, but as opposed to â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen† that relates to war, â€Å"Rose† is showcased within a romantic scene that helps he audience feel the emotion of love.The great sound tracks for both movies are responsible for helping the success of each film as they both help generate emotions in each scene. In Williams â€Å"Hymn to the Fallen,† sounds of the violin and orc hestra possess a depressing and sad tone which matches perfectly with emotions that the old man in the scene is feeling as he is visiting his old friends who died in the war. The violins mixed with the sounds of the orchestra carry a slow tempo and is played in the background while the man cries on his friends tomb In reminiscing on times e shared with his old friends.The violin helps portray how the man Is feeling Inside and helps emphasize the depressing feelings that the man Is feeling. Throughout the movie, the violin is also used within the background of sad scenes which shows that the music is associated with the Idea of death and depressing related subjects. The fact that the sounds of the violin and orchestra associate with the idea of death gives the ability to the audience to predict when there is going to be a death or sad scene.It also gives the film the power to tune a specific scene to a deeper level of sad emotions that the film maker Is trying to draw from the audien ce. The war based movie is a greatly praised movie because of the emotions it generates when people watch it. Much of the emotions that are generated from the movie feed off of the violin and other orchestra sounds. Almost a decade later and â€Å"Titanic† is still known to be one of Hollywood greatest love story movies of all time and much of the credit belongs to the soundtrack orchestrated by James Hornier.Hornet's masterpiece era of the early sass's. The track â€Å"Rose,† is played in the background in the regulative most popular scene in the movie Titanic. The scene is a very romantic scene where the main characters, Jack and Rose pretend they are flying as they hold each other's hands on the ledge of the front part of the ship. The sounds of the piano and flute that are played in the song help the audience see that the two main characters are falling in love.Along with the piano and flute, a clarinet and other strings can also be eared that add a deeper emotion and make the scene more affectionate. The sounds of the piano and flute are so constructed to be in tune with each other that the track â€Å"Rose† not only sounds amazing, but it is often referred to as the theme song of the Titanic. Although the films â€Å"Saving private Ryan,† and â€Å"Titanic,† are different, the two films along with the soundtracks are top of the line quality. The sound tracks to the movies help the movies become interesting and very engaging.Music enhances ivies' content and although it was somewhat difficult to focus on the music in the background of these movies due to the highly entertaining content in the movies, the music also kept me interested. I found this experience of watching a movie and listening to background music very enjoyable to do due to the fact that most topics that I write essays on, do not involve me actually doing something enjoyable. The experience was greatly enjoyable and so was writing this paper on two topics that I love, movies and music.

English Property Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

English Property Law - Essay Example Intellectual property is also integral to property law. One of the reasons for the promulgation of the law is the need to create distinction between real property and personal property (Worthington 2000 92). Of course, one of the most important goals of those that promulgated the law is to ensure that the conflicts that arise on the ownership of property will be reduced as much as possible. One of the instances that can be used to truly certify that the English property system is more pragmatic than theoretical is the manner in which judges give judgement in cases, precisely those that pertain to property law. Instead of strictly following what the statutes say, most judges would rather rely on logic. Locke’s theory of property also seems to reiterate this point. This is because Locke begins his arguments my stating that, at inception, property was personal—meaning that there were no individual owners. However, the persistence of this state of thing will mean that no on e would be able to use land, for example, for individual or communal benefit. Locke recognizes that there is the need to create a system in which individuals can lay claim of ownership to what was hitherto communally owned (Tully 1980 34). This aspiration would be impossible if one desires to get the assent of every member of the community. It can only happen when individuals begin to exchange something in return for what they desire. At the very inception, it was their bodily sweat; later, it was valuable property; and finally it became money. The introduction of money meant that the yardstick for separating the wealthy from the poor had been established. By interpretation, one could assume either of these two opinions. First, one could conclude that the flexibility, rather than the rigidity, of the English property law has really helped to limit the level in which every Tom, Dick and Harry who is a capitalist would be able to turn personal property into real property. Secondly, on e may conclude, on the other hand, that flexibility of the English property law (which is best established in the practical sense) has helped to materialize the desire of the capitalist to convert most of what was formerly owned communally into real property. On the whole, one would discover that Locke’s property theory favours capitalism as against communalism. What Locke defends is that money can be the solution to all problems (Tully 1980 52). Even in England, this seems to be true because if anybody is rich enough to employ the services of a proficient lawyer, the case is close to being won already even before any judgment is pronounced. The lawyer would be able to also turn the odds to favour their client. The English property is very fluid in nature. Most lawyers, hence, take advantage of this. They have been able to make the English property law, which to an average person would appear as one of the most rigid laws ever, into one that has become very flexible (Worthing ton 2000 97). For instance, there is really no clear distinction between real and personal property again. This is because lawyers have been able to interchange them, through interpretation, to suit the demands of their case. What lawyers have been able to accomplish may not really be as a result of their ingenuity but as a result of the fact that the law itself has created the lapses. For example, normally, the English statute would recognise an estate owned by a family as

Investment recommendatin Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

SABMiller Plc and Kingfisher Plc - Coursework Example Although regarded as a non-cyclical industry, beer brewing has been affected by reduced overall demand for goods worldwide, including consumer goods, and SABMiller saw its turnover drop, albeit not very significant, in 2009. According to the CBI Economic Forecast published in December 2009, there will be a modest recovery of world economic activity in 2010, but the longer-term trend will not resume until 2011. For the UK, this marginal growth will be driven by continuing strong Government spending, a modest increase in exports, and some recovery of consumer spending. The UK Gross Domestic Product is forecast to grow by 2.2 percent this year, and 2.5 percent the year after that. Consumer spending growth will be hampered by high energy costs, unwillingness to borrow, and the need to save for future needs. The company belongs to the non-cyclical consumer goods and services sector, and the beverages/brewers industry. (Reuters). According to Hoovers, industry demand is driven by consumer preferences for alcohol consumption as well as demographic trends. As is true for most consumer products, success often goes to large companies because of their effective sales operations, broad distribution networks, and economies of scale. The industry is capital intensive. The top competitors of SABMiller plc are, Diageo plc, Heineken NV., and Anheuser-Busch InBev. The latter replaced SABMiller as the worlds biggest brewer after InBev acquired Anheuser-Busch for $52 billion in 2008. The company recorded a revenue level of US$18.7 billion in 2009 and a net income of US$2.16 billion compared to US$2.29 the year before. Sales in 2009 dropped 12.6 percent due to the global recession, but overall revenue has grown by an annual average of 10.5 percent over 5 years and 6.9 percent over three years. Earnings per share average 18.6 percent over five years and 6.13 for the last three years.

Business and Institutional Marketing Coursework - 1

Business and Institutional Marketing - Coursework Example The last few decades witnessed dramatic growth in information technology and currently it has become one of the most robust industries in the world. Since the IT sector has a high rate of productivity, particularly in the industrially developed world, it plays a great role in driving the overall global economic growth. Economies of scale influence both consumers and enterprises to increase the demand for IT products and services; and this situation in turn contributes to the rampant growth of IT sector. Nowadays, information technology as well as hardware and software associated with IT sector have become an integral part of almost all global industries (Economy Watch 2010). Since information technology is potential enough to reduce the cost of production to a clear extent, every major company tends to acquire IT products and services despite the implementation costs. Dell, Inc. and IT industry Dell, Inc. is a Texas based American multinational IT corporation which deals with the development and sales of IT products and services. Currently, Dell is one of the world’s largest technological corporations with a potential of more than 103,300 employees (Dell, 2011). The company has been ranked at 41st in the Fortune 500 list. Development of customer base and mergers and acquisitions are the major expansion strategies of Dell and its major mergers and acquisitions include Alienware (2006) and Perot Systems (2009). As of 2009, the company’s product lines include personal computers, data storage devices, computer peripherals, and software. The Dell is well known in the IT industry for its innovativeness in supply chain management and e-commerce sector.

Sustainability Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Sustainability - Dissertation Example As the Comhar Sustainable Development Council (2011) in Ireland wrote about the history of the transitional cities movement: â€Å"The movement originates from a student project overseen by permaculture teacher Rob Hopkins at the Kinsale Further Education College in Ireland. The project involved writing an Energy Descent Action Plan, which looked at creative adaptations in the realms of energy production, health, education, economy and agriculture as a road map to a sustainable future for the town. The term Transition Town was coined by Louise Rooney and Catherine Dunne, two of Rob Hopkins students, who set about developing the Transition Towns concept presented it to Kinsale Town Council, resulting in the historic decision by Councillors to adopt the plan and work towards energy independence. Following its start in Kinsale, it then spread to Totnes, England where Rob Hopkins and Naresh Giangrande developed the concept. The movement currently has thousands of member communities worl dwide.† (Comhar SDC, 2011) The expansion of transitional towns programs around the world can have a major impact on the economy and particularly industry, real estate, and technology. The transitional towns movement creates new jobs in ‘green’ industries such as solar, hydrogen power, fuel cell technologies, hydropower, wind, geothermal, and tidal technologies for energy generation alternatives over oil based products. The focus on sustainability for communities in environmental harmony and balanced development in Permaculture and the transitional towns movement places a focus on the transformation of the home environment to incorporate new technologies that reduce the dependency of the local economy on fossil fuels and petroleum products. The additional focuses are in transportation, industry, and agriculture, implementing the best of environmental science and alternative energy research into already established businesses and organizations. From this process, th e movement takes its name of transitional towns which connotes the technological and ideological changes behind the organization. â€Å"As of October 2010 there are 321 ‘transition initiatives’ in Europe, mainly in England, as well as 8 in North America and 3 in Australia.† (Baez, 2010) While the small nature of the movement may make it seem isolated and lacking broader support or acknowledgement in the society at large, the rapidly expanding emergence of the transitional towns networks and interrelationship with other environmental organizations points to the impact that this movement can have on the local and international economy. The transitional towns movement can support the development of ‘green’ technologies such as hydropower, wind, solar, fuel cells, hydrogen, geothermal, and tidal energy sources in order to move communities away from economic and cultural development patterns that are environmentally destructive. For real estate developers and home owners, this means the integration of new sustainable energy technologies into the home environment, and from this comes many opportunity for new business and products. For example,

Oil and gas correlation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Oil and gas correlation - Essay Example However, the US domestic production of gas had just picked up and was at the boom phase rendering gas prices low. This means that the global prices of gas were significantly affected downwards as the oil demand plummeted hence the increased price disparity between the two commodities. It is also evident that from 1991, the import of oil by US had reduced but this still represented approximately 40% of the consumption by US against a paltry 5% of gas consumption by the US (YeÃŒ pez-Garcia, Rigoberto , and Julie 86). This is an evident case to support the observed negative correlation. It is also worth to note that the global oil prices are volatile in regard to world market trends, Middle East socio-economic issues and OPEC whims. The increasing technological advancement and campaign for more efficient machines is slowly increasing the use of gas. This means that gas fuel consumption trend will begin to gain influence in the value of dollar hence closing the demand gap it has with the oil. It is also possible that increased exhaustion of gas wells by the US will significantly push the gas prices up as there will be a plan to import more and reserve the domestic stock. YeÃŒ pez-Garcia, Rigoberto A, and Julie Dana. Mitigating Vulnerability to High and Volatile Oil Prices: Power Sector Experience in Latin America and the Caribbean. Washington, D.C: World Bank, 2012.

The Role Of Gender In Team Collaboration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Role Of Gender In Team Collaboration - Essay Example I learned how gendered communication and decision-making can affect the kinds of jobs and wage levels of women and men (Parcheta et al., 2013, p.244). The second proof the case study is awareness of skills needed to handle current workplace challenges. I learned that women should enhance their communication and negotiation skills that are related to their performance (Bear & Woolley, 2011, p.148). They should not be afraid of being aggressive in fighting for equal pay or promotion. The cons of doing the case study are related to examining exceptions to gender stereotypes and social generalizations. The first con of the case study is it does not consider men and women who do not fit in gender stereotypes. Some women are not timid in negotiation processes, while some men are not that aggressive in fighting for higher pay. The case study assumes that men and women, in general, have these gender-stereotyped characteristics, thereby neglecting individual differences. The second con of the case study is it has the tendency to overlook companies that may have benchmarks already when it comes to challenging gender stereotypes and in promoting gender equality in top management positions, high-paying positions, and gender wage. Some companies are making headways in undercutting gender bias and promoting equality across all workplace avenues. One of the actions that can help stop sexual harassment in the workplace is to promote refresher training on sexual harassment using office hours time. Using office/employment time is already a strong signal that the company takes sexual harassment seriously because learning about it is part of paid labor. In addition, refresher courses update employees about sexual harassment reports and their resolutions at work or in the industry, thereby showing that the company does not take harassment reports lightly.

First Generation Ethnic Minority Students with Multiple Higher Research Paper

First Generation Ethnic Minority Students with Multiple Higher Education Degrees - Research Paper Example The study also identified that having a familial support network, pride in becoming a sort of educational role model for others, the desire to gain a better household income through degree attainment, and substantially positive psychological coping and attitude contributed to constructive navigation of the education process. Through in-depth discussion with a first generation ethnic minority student, a variety of theoretical opportunities for family members of this group and institutional leaders to better engage and support first generation ethnic minority students was determined. Understanding the challenges and opportunities for first generation students has been a subject of interest to many researchers historically. The terminology of â€Å"first generation† is referring to any student that actively pursues a college/university education as the first individual within a family dynamic whose parents have not graduated from colleges or university institutions. As of 2012, approximately half of Alaska Natives, American Indians, African Americans, Hispanics and Latino doctorate holders belonged within family units where neither parent had been awarded a college degree (NSF, 2012). However, it is common that First Generation Ethnic Minority Students lack the knowledge that is required to make wise choices while completing their Masters and PhD Programs, which can pose serious consequences on their academic achievements. Ethnic minorities obtaining graduate degrees has been inadequately covered in research, and their challenges have lacked the necessary attention that is crucial in ensuring that they make wise choices during their academic profession. Research has pointed out that First Generation Ethnic Minority Students are inclined to face more challenges unless there is an intervention to streamline their decision making process. As the population of First Generation Ethnic Minority Students continues to increase, it is

Your Hardships, and Memories in One Sentence Research Paper

Your Hardships, and Memories in One Sentence - Research Paper Example The discontent that forms after reading a story that does not read like the old once upon a time, conflict-filled, and plotted story crops up as a result of an utter dissimilarity from the way old stories are formatted. Certainly, this is not a just a mere gimmick that tends to sell modern books because there is a staggering reality in this observation: there is a difference on how old and modern stories are written. According to Bader (87), old stories are heavily based on plot. There are two observations in the manner in which old stories are written: (1) the plot dominates the entire content of the story; the progression or turns of events are strongly based on the plot and they incline to circulate around a singular model – conflict, action, resolution – from cover to cover; or (2) the plot is dominated by other elements such as conflict, theme or character. These three may dominate plot altogether; nevertheless, it is common that a single element dominates the plot in the totality of the story. Conflict in this regard has two kinds: internal or external. It is important to note the difference between the two because this is where a careless reader is often convinced that the story is plot-less, static or amorphous, which should not be the case considering that the point is supposed to be conceived lies upon how aware the reader is the technicalities involved in writing and arranging a story. An internal conflict is something that exists within the character himself – this may be defined as a personal dilemma or ambivalence over something that needs to be decided, recounted, or confronted. On the other hand, external conflict is a more common sort: it is something that physically – either directly or indirectly; subtly or apparently affect the characters of the story. For instance, stories that are based on childhood abuse: the conflict could be the physical violence that the main character or other characters in the story suffer from his or her oppressors. External conflicts can be very sensitive and straightforward. Modern stories do not employ plot significantly; at least, according to the knowledge of the modern story avid. Modern stories are strongly founded on realism – everything is based on what really happens in real life. Modern story writers contend that a plot is unreal, artificial (87). One possible reason for this argument is that plot makes for a contrived, made-up progression that is hard to believe because it does not simply reflect the realities of life. Modern story writers also argue that old stories’ lavish use of plots tend to sentimentalize the reality (88). In other words, the backbone of the story is drawn from a detached understanding of what really exist in real life to a point that it becomes so inconsistent of which is believable and truly convincing. Modern stories use new techniques that create a more realistic and more interesting, thought-provoking way of deliv ering narratives: (1) modern stories employ a stricter limitation of the subject; and (2) method of indirection. Bader (88) believes that â€Å"the modern writer’s desire for realism causes him to focus on the limited moment of time or a limited area of action in order that it may be fully explored and understood.† While modern writers believe that plots are artificial, it does not mean that they do not use them. Modern writers still use plot in creating their stories; nevertheless, they employ them with less complication in order to give way to modern subtlety. Jamaica Kincaid’s Girl is one intriguing poetic art. At first read, it is quite difficult to decipher if it uses plot or not but eventually any reader would find that it all revolves in a less-complicated plot: to-do-list and how-to-do list. One

Managing Change in Complex Environment Essay Example for Free

Managing Change in Complex Environment Essay History and Background Introduction The United States Postal Service (USPS) is an independent government organization that generates income through mail services. It is currently the second largest civilian employer in the United States. Its primary task is to deliver mail around the country, at a standard price, regardless of geographic location. Over the last two centuries, the USPS has evolved into an efficient organization that financially sustains itself through its delivery operations. With a monopoly on the delivery of non-urgent mail, the USPS provides delivery service of about 40 percent of the worlds mail, or approximately 200 billion pieces of mail annually. Starting in the 1990s, the USPS faced increased competition from rival package delivery and courier services, as well as the Internet. Presently the USPS is facing a financial collapse. The USPS needs to undergo an essential and systematic change in order to maintain its significance in the 21st century. History/Background On July 26, 1775, members of the Second Continental Congress appointed a Postmaster General giving birth to the Postal Department of the United States. The mission of the U.S. Postal Department was much the same as today, process and deliver first class and non-urgent mail to individuals and businesses within the United States. Congress passed various laws that grant the post office a â€Å"statutory monopoly† on non-urgent First Class Mail and the exclusive right to put mail in private mailboxes. Although these laws grant the USPS a market advantaged they also restrict its ability to compete with rival package delivery and courier services, as well as the technological innovations. How it got started The Post Office Department has origins in America dating back to the 17th century, when there was a need for mail between colonial settlements and intercontinental exchange of information with England. In 1775, the Continental Congress named Benjamin Franklin as the first postmaster general and chairman of a committee empowered to make recommendations for the establishment of a postal service. On September 22, 1789 the post office became a new government branch of the United States. At this time there were 75 post offices and approximately 2,000 miles of post roads. The USPS was critical to national welfare and pivotal in facilitating communications for military, congressional representation and newspapers. From the very beginning, the USPS financed operations from revenue it earned and Congress gave it a monopoly to be the only courier service to deliver mail. Key points in evolution The main focus and the efforts of postal officials from the foundation of the Post Office to the present day have been finding the best methods of transporting information and directing mail. For example, in 1791 George Washington stated that that the importance of the postal routes had increased because the country wanted to distribute knowledge of governmental laws. Also, between 1791 and 1861, the U.S increased from 3.9 million to 31.4 million square miles and postal roads grew from 1,875 to 240,595 miles. The Board of Governors of the USPS sets policy, procedure, and postal rates for services rendered. Of the eleven members of the Board, nine are appointed by the President and confirmed by the US Senate. The nine appointed members then select the Postmaster General, who serves as the boards tenth member, and who oversees the day to day activities of the service as Chief Executive Officer. The ten-member board then nominates a Deputy Postmaster General, who acts as Chief Operating Officer, to the eleventh and last remaining open seat. The USPS is often mistaken as a government organization but it is legally defined as an independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States. Environmental context The external environment elements that significantly influence the USPS are the United States political system, workforce unions, changing technology and market forces. United States Political System In 1970 the U.S. Postal Department evolved into the USPS through the implementation of the Postal Reorganization act. This act required the USPS to be a â€Å"self-sufficient organization within the U.S. Government†. It also added an additional regulatory body into its chain of command, the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), but did not make any modification to the Postal Department’s Board of Directors or regulatory congressional statutes. The USPS Board of directors is charged with directing the USPS through the control of expenditures, reviewing practices, long term planning and setting policies and service standards. The PRC has 5 commissioners, appointed through the executive branch and confirmed by the Senate, who have the authority to reject, modify and approve any USPS initiated congressional recommendations. Since congress alone retains the authority to change USPS’ rates, service frequency and employee benefits, any market related changes from the Board of directors is routed through the PRC and congress for consideration. Pressure from Unions There are 4 unions representing around 90% of the USPS workforce: National Association of Letter Carriers, American Postal Workers, National Rural Letters Carriers Association and National Postal Mail Handlers Union. These organizations have successfully contracted collective bargaining agreements for its members for compensation and benefits that have come to exceed the USPS’ ability to maintain with its current revenues. These labor unions are very influential in weighing in on most of the decisions that affect the well-being of the USPS labor force. Presently USPS employees enjoy 79% coverage of their health care costs; the most of any federal agency. Strategic challenge Over the years the USPS has transformed its operating model and is now set up and mandated to operate like a business entity generating its revenue through the sale of postal products and services. The largest issue with the current business model of the postal service is its lack of flexibility essential for a business in a dynamic market. Specifically the USPS has not been able to organizationally adjust to a large decrease in the demand for first class mail service has resulted in decreasing net revenue in recent years. Congressional Influence The USPS congressional charter came with both benefits and operating constraints. Among the constraints the USPS is obligated to provide a uniform price for its services regardless of the geographic location and dispersion of its customer base. The USPS is obligated to deliver six days a week to every mailing address regardless of its mail volume. Additionally the USPS is required to provide free mailing service to the blind and facilitate voting for overseas military personnel. A significant amount of the USPS’ operating costs comes from its requirement to pre-fund retiree health benefits (RHB) for future retirees. Key Issues The USPS is suffering from the combined effects of declining mail volume from new technology and increasing labor costs resulting in a loss of net revenue. These declines are projected to extend into the future. The addition of a significant number of new addresses in the United States each year increases the USPS’ operating costs although volume is decreasing. Business Model While the USPS has enjoyed the benefits of the monopoly on first class letter mail services that congress has bestowed, it has a stagnant business model that prevents the USPS from being able to adapt in the face of technological innovation and other market forces that affect its bottom line annually. The major source of revenue for the post office is the postage it charges for first class and non-standard mail. The advance of modern information systems such as email, smartphones, online banking, and other digital communications decreased the demand for traditional mail services. Compounding this issue is the basic economic principle of supply and demand. New technologies offer cheaper substitutes for the services that the post office provides. Stakeholders Postal Workers – The USPS employs more than 500,000 employees making it second only to Wal-Mart as the nation’s largest civilian employer. While every employee is represented by a labor union, employees are legally restricted from striking. Labor Unions The USPS unions are old, influential and politically connected. Collectively, these unions continually fight for increased employee pay, living allowances and health care benefits. Postal Regulation Commission (PRC) The PRC serves as the middleman between the USPS board of governors and congress. The PRC can reject or modify requests before they reach congress for final approval. Congress Members of Congress exercise control over many aspects of the USPS operations including approving the markets for which it competes as well as representing the interests of its constituents whenever the USPS requests changes to its business model. Public Consumer One of the mandates of the post office is to provide mail service of all addresses. The number of addresses has increased by nearly 18 million nationwide in the past decade and continues to climb as the country recovers from the past recession. A vast majority of the consumers are congressional constituents to whom member of congress are responsible. Competitors The USPS monopolizes, via congressional mandates, the delivery of first class mail, non-urgent mail and small packages. As such it faces very little direct competition from other businesses. However, the USPS has seen significant decreases in its mail volume over the years. The decreased volume of mail is directly related to the global acceptance of technology and use of digital communications which displaced traditional USPS services. Market Forces The USPS full time workers cost the USPS 80% of its revenue. Although they still enjoy a monopoly on first class mail, they are in direct competition with smaller, more efficient, companies who deliver large packages and urgent letters. Strategies Used What it Does Now The USPS has improved its efficiency and effectiveness through both technology and reorganization. The USPS made significant investments in the late 1990’s in fuel efficient vehicles and new facilities as well as a $15 million advertising campaign to improve its image as a progressive and modern organization. A decade ago it took 70 employees one hour to sort 35,000 letters. Today in an hour, only two employees process an identical volume of mail. Though the number of addresses in the nation has increased by nearly 18 million in the past decade, the number of employees who handle the increased delivery load has decreased by more than 200,000 (Potter 2010a). It launched delivery confirmation service and priority mail in order to compete with competitors. The USPS now operates more than 31,000 post offices and the largest vehicle fleet in the world, with an estimated 218,684 vehicles. What They Want to Do Concerned with increasing costs and decreasing revenues, the USPS petitioned for the following changes: * Stop Retiree Health Benefits prefunding – in 2011 the prefunding amount exceeded net operating losses. * Retirement System Overpayment – In 2010 Government Accountability Office disputed overpayment freezing approximately $6.9 billion. * Delivery Frequency – Shifting from six to five days weekly delivery would save approximately $3 billion annually. This measure is supported by 75% of USPS consumer base. * Change prices – Mandates currently cap the USPS ability to adjust to market conditions dynamically. * Restructure labor costs – Current collective bargaining decision do not consider the USPS financial health yet mandate compensation and benefits to be paid at levels comparable with private sector organizations with the burden falling on the taxpayers. * Consolidate infrastructure – A proposal in 2009 to close 3,000 postal outlets to reduce excess capacity yielded only a closure of 157 following consumer complaints and congressional intervention. Part II Diagnosis Lewis (2011) states that the USPS’ problems are a result of a restrictive business model and its inflexibility to operate in a dynamic market place. As stated earlier, the USPS response to this problem is a direct plan to cut expenses and increase revenues to overcome their mounting deficit. Although this plan does address the USPS’ immediate insolvency concerns, it fails to address their underlying issues. Through the use of Senge’s system approach and the McCaskey’s Organizational Design model, this paper will expose USPS’ root problems. Strategic Issues/Strategies/Goals-Objectives The USPS’ strategic issues are a loss of revenue due to declining mail volume, extensive costs due to a bloated and expensive unionized-workforce and the use of an outdated-legislatively constrained business plan. Their proposed strategy to mitigate these issues centers on cutting their expenses, consolidating infrastructure, renegotiating labor cost/employee benefits and increasing rates. In addition, the USPS intends to evolve their business plan to incorporate technological innovations. This strategy aligns with their long term goal of providing a â€Å"trustworthy, dependable, reliable and secure means to communicate on a national level† (Lewis, 2011), by implementing a long term sustainable business model that promotes flexibility and economic growth in a dynamic market. Environment In FY11 the USPS’ total revenues were $65 Billion dollars while their total expenses were $75 Billion dollars. Under congressional law the USPS is required to be a â€Å"self-sufficient government agency†. Under this direction the USPS is obligated to cover its costs without government assistance. The USPS does this by generating revenues from a monopoly market while operating more like a private business then a government agency. Its government backed monopoly advantage comes with extensive congressional restrictions on rates, delivery procedures and labor benefits. The USPS’ monopoly restricts the direct competition in the delivery of first class mail, use of specific delivery routes and personal mailboxes. It does not protect the delivery of urgent mail and large packages. FedEx and UPS are direct competitors in this market and have a competitive advantage due to their efficiencies, technological innovations and ability adapt to market needs. Key Success Factors The USPS’ key to success is their ability to meet their customer’s needs, generate enough revenue to cover their costs , maintain the flexibility to adjust in a dynamic market and optimize a scalable infrastructure that facilitates the efficient and economic delivery of their services. Task Requirements There are multiple ways that mail is accepted into the delivery process. For the purpose of observing the USPS organizational structure, the simple method of customers placing the mail in their residential, or post office, curbside mailbox will be examined. In either case this process begins and ends with the customer sending or receiving mail at a mailbox. The mail item is received by the postal carrier, and then consolidated at the local post office, where it is inspected manually or automatically checked for correct postage. It is then routed to a hub for delivery to a particular region in the country. The mail is then sent to a final processing plant where it is sorted for the specific route for delivery. Finally the mail is sent to the distant end post office for delivery to the end customer. The mail is moved in a linear manner between each node in the process chain. Along the interdependency continuum of the USPS’ functional units we observed a sequential relationship. Throughout the process each entity produces an output that is a necessary input for the next link in the chain. The USPS’ key to success in this linear process is the secure delivery of mail for a nominal fee. For their part, the workers must be honest and ensure mail is properly safeguarded as it makes its way through each step in the chain. The workers only have to be ‘good enough’ for their specific task in the process. This means that there is very little incentive for them to innovate or make improvements to the process from within. Any efficiencies gained, in any one link in the process, are not readily propagated throughout because of the sequential nature of the process. Because of the nature of change within the organization, and the employee compensation structure, their only incentive is to maintain the status quo. This analysis is represented in the interdependency/coordination mechanism model below. The analysis shows a misalignment between the levels of interdependence between the functional units and the coordination mechanism used. The USPS coordinates through rules and regulations. Using the systems approach of focusing on successes rather than the failures of the organization, we compared the USPS current coordination level to its closest successful competitor, FEDEX. As depicted FEDEX has a coordination level that aligns with it level of interdependency. The preferred and optimal approach is to align the organization’s level of interdependency horizontally with the coordination mechanism. The USPS needs a higher coordination mechanism to match the current level of interdependence in order to facilitate efficiencies in the system. Process/ Systems Snowfall and showers may not be able to stop postal carriers from their appointed delivery routes, but their financial problems may halt at least 50% of all postal offices. The U.S. Postal Service, weakened by a public turning to digital communications, is down 22 percent in volume from just five years ago, a decline which is expected to continue, driven in part by rigid competition from carriers such as FedEx and UPS. The Postmaster General has responded with a list of cost-cutting proposals, such as eliminating Saturday delivery and closing up to 3,700 local post offices which would be replaced with automated centers operating out of local businesses. The Postmaster General has also proposed laying off as many as 120,000 workers, and pulling workers out of more costly federal pension plans. Pre-funding retiree benefits has cost the Postal Service $21 billion in the last three years. The underlying issue is that all those moves cannot be made without congressional approval. In order to make these immediate and dramatic changes, the Postal Service would require access to its own funds as well as the authority to act as its own corporation. The transition from a government ran entity to a privatized organization requires Congress to give the USPS flexibility to take action and make changes without all the bureaucracy. The below modified Senge Model (Limit to Growth) demonstrates how the USPS is constrained from making changes. In short, the USPS is limited by congress to making quick and reactive changes that focus on the problem rather than the underlying issue. Creating change and making it work are all resisted by a condition called the â€Å"Status Quo† and the USPS is no exception. USPS employees feel protected under the current unionized culture. They feel threatened by the prospect of losing benefits and are unwilling to pay the high personal price necessary for change. We have demonstrated that this change is necessary for the long term health of the organization. The real question is, â€Å"does the current status quo fit the new change requirements?† An organization in dire need to make radical adjustments to become current cannot be fixed with antiquated congressional imposed constraints. PART III Change Management Plan The USPS acknowledges its need to cut costs and increase revenue. It believes this will fix the problems. USPS starts to address this by taking reactionary measures, but fails to take the necessary steps to address the root issue. We argue that there is a more fundamental problem within the USPS organization which requires a systems approach to identify and solve. Senge says â€Å"it is impossible to change the system from inside the system.† By â€Å"complicating up† the USPS management structure we identify the core problem and faults in its system. Due to the short time needed to enact this change we propose a top down approach that pushes change while mitigating assumed employee resistance such an approach will generate. Our plan uses the Lewin and Kotter models to shape the USPS organizational transition. Through the Lewin model we identify a three phase approach to address changes that simultaneously focuses on employee and organizational issues. Throughout each p hase an information plan is propagated to employees to facilitate transition to the next phase. Conclusion The bottom line is that the USPS current costs of doing business outweigh its current methods of productivity. Without changing the strategic management model, the USPS will continue to lose revenue and be unable to react effectively to market demands. Its proposed cost cutting solutions only scratches the surface of the underlying problem of restrictions on organizational management and coordination. Our uses validated organizational change models. We justify our plan which uses the Lewin model and shows a close association to Kotter’s organizational change model. Our plan leads the USPS to long term success, maintains its relevance in today’s market and allows it to make appropriate changes through periodic reevaluations. References Lewis, T., Montgomery C., Shuler, J. , (2011), The US Postal Service , Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA. Senge, P., (1990), The Fifth Discipline, Doubleday Publishing, New York 15May 2012: http://about.usps.com/news/national-releases/2011/pr11_124.htm 15 May 2012: http://www.cato.org/pubs/journal/cj31n1/cj31n1-9.pdf 19 May 2012: http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/industries/Transportation-Communications-Utilities/United-States-Postal-Service.html

PESTEL analysis of the Chinese and German flooring industries

PESTEL analysis of the Chinese and German flooring industries Since 1979, China adopted an export-manufacturing strategy successfully following with Japan, Korea and Hong Kong. The Golden Bridge Co., Ltd is one of the beneficiaries. It was founded in 2007 with flooring as its main products. The product is of high quality by utilizing advanced technology and equipments imported from Germany and Italy. The glue and lacquer materials for production are also imported. In current stage, Golden Bridge has a total capital of 800 million RMB and exported to 35 foreign markets including the U.S., Canada, Japan and Germany. In order to help it to expand the business, our consultancy company attempt to analyze the China business environment and seek a foreign market to relocate the manufacturing of this company with proper entering and competing strategies. This essay first illustrates the business environment of flooring industry in China and German with PESTEL analysis. Then it evaluates the threats in Germany market by following Porters five-force mode l. Later a recommendation would be given on how to properly enter into the targeted country. PESTEL analysis of china market: The PESTEL analysis is used to assess the macro environment and identify the challenges Golden Bridge faced with in china market in order to make an appropriate suggestion. Political: The Chinese political system characterized as one-party communist dictatorship makes a great contribution to national stability, enabling the economy keep dynamic and sustainable. Nevertheless, when the economic system was deregulated from the command economy to market economy since 1978, the power of economic management was increasingly decentralized, raising the issue of uncoordinated development of regional economy. Currently, though the central government has made effort to alleviate the gap among different areas in terms of developing standards, provinces tend to give a priority to local profits rather than considering the integrated advancement of the whole country. Local protectionism exerts detrimental influences upon market expansion of Golden Bridge Company in nationwide and deters the establishment of a comprehensive distribution channel. Economical: China is valued as one of the most vibrant countries in terms of economic development among the world. The reform opening up in 1978 accelerated Chinas GDP growth from 362.4 billion RMB to 30 trillion RMB within a 30-year period. Moreover, in 2010, China has been the second largest economy instead of Japan whilst the value of export accounted for 10% of world. Based on these statistics, judgment can be made that manufactures in China including flooring industry may keep an optimistic attitude to their future prospects in some extent. Nonetheless, Chinese economy may suffer unpredictable circumstance in the future. Labor resource is one double-edge sword. Once being an advantage of China, abundant labor resource and economical labor price make a great contribution to progress of those labor-intensive manufacturing industries. This is also the primary reason that China flooring industry is quite profitable though China is a net importer of timber. However, as cited by AME info (2005) there is a growth in the minimum wage standard, labor may not be regard as a perpetual advantage of China if this trend continues. In Addition, appreciation of CNY since 2005 against USD may imperil the export of Golden Bridge Company (Goldstein, M. and Lardy, N., 2006). Social: It is claimed by Su and Littlefied (2001) that China is an extremely high-context country where people prefer to receive implied messages. For establishing a business in China, strong private-relationships with different stakeholders is the key to success. However, this is extremely time-consuming while the maintenance is also expensive. Potential conflicts in interest may easily erode it. Besides the relationship, corruption is another issue in China. According to the Corruption Perceptions Index, China was positioned 72nd among all 179 countries in 2008. However, damages caused by corruption may be far more hazardous than anticipated, particularly to the economic development. Corruption has been treated as a vital barrier for operating in Chinese market due to enormous back-stage expenditures as well as resulted injustice. For Golden Bridge to gain more import quotas and pay less tariff, costs may be made up of not only normal ingredients such as transporting, but also implied expense for smoothing the network. Technological: China wood flooring industry is experiencing a relatively laggard technological standard in its initial stage of development. According to Cheng and Song (2006), the level of timber utilization was 61% in 2004 with a considerable disparity with developed countries (nearly 90%). Additionally, imbalanced technological support aggravates the long-term conflicts between wood supply and demand in Chinese domestic market. In 2004, though the total domestic timber supply is 273.6 million cubic meters and exceeded the total consumption of 241.5 million cubic meters, scarcity of raw material still existed in some parts of timber manufacturing industry. Environment Legal: Chinese government proposed the Natural Forest Protection Program (NFPP) nationwide in 1998 to limit exploitation of natural forest resources. The legislation made the supply of domestic natural timber restricted. Between 1997 and 2003, natural timbers supply decreased from 32.05 million cubic meters to 12.145 million cubic meters (Cheng and Song, 2005), which was extremely insufficient to satisfy demands of the highly prosperous timber industry in China. Timer manufacturing companies in China have to depend on importing. Statistics shows that in 1997 the quantity of imported timber only occupied 23.56% of total wood consumption, while the number soared to 53.78% in 2004. The expenditure of imported timber was $33.96 higher per cubic meter compared with the price in 2007, which increased the material coast of Golden Bridge Company. PESTEL analysis of German market: Since this essay has analyzed the macro environment of the china flooring market, further looking at the political, economic, social and technological factors of the German can help advance and strength the logic of the whole assessment. Political factors: Germany is a home of secure, legal and rewarding investment. The World Economic Forum has rewarded its legal system as the most efficient and this fact has also gained international recognition. Flooring coverings are categorized according to German and EU laws and building products should be subject to the EU construction products directive and the German construction products law. The directive and law are mainly focused on environmental, health-related, material and usability sectors and most people agree that by considering the environmental restrictions, the EU can be the strictest market. Moreover, with the transnational economic environment, it is predicted by experts that the approval criteria for flooring is likely to decrease and there seems to be a limited permission of eco-labels for flooring products. Further, comprehensive incentives  are provided to both home and oversea investors by German government, individual federal states and the EU. Economic factors Germany is the largest economy in Europe and in general German is export-oriented. Since 2003, German has been the largest exporter machinery, vehicles, chemicals and household equipment, with an annual export increase of 8%. However, factors that may prevent Golden Bridge from entering into and developing itself in Germany also exist. They can be excessive dependence on euro currency, tight credit markets and an increasing rate of unemployment. Stimulus and stabilization efforts initiated in 2008 and 2009 and tax cuts introduced in Chancellor Angela MERKELs second term will increase Germanys record budget deficit, which is expected to exceed 5% of GDP in 2010. The EU required Germany to get its consolidated budget deficit below 3% of GDP until 2013. A new constitutional amendment likewise limits the federal government to structural deficits of no more than 0.35% of GDP per annum as of 2016. Technology factors: Germany is claimed to be the leading nation in high-tech development and receives high turnover accordingly. In 2007, the high-tech products exported by Germany accounted to a value of RUR 114 billion, ranked first in Europe and third worldwide. More than 27% turnover of German manufacturing factory is generated from high-tech products, compared to a European average of 19%. Social factors: Social factors also need consideration. Hofstedes analysis of Germany shows the emphasis on individualism, masculinity and uncertainty avoidance. Power distance and long-term orientation are both ranked considerably lower than the others. Germany believes in equality and equal opportunity, as well as its ability to change and adapt rapidly. Another arising issue is the social awareness of pollution, which leads Germany to use more environmental-friendly materials. Abstract for the use of five-force model: After analyzing the macro-environment of both countries, it is reasonable and necessary to apply Michel Porters five-force model in order to provide a thoroughly understanding of the German flooring market before the Golden Bridge company entering into it. According to this model, the competitiveness of an industry is influenced by such five forces and their collective strength and thus determines the ultimate profit potential of this targeting industry. These five forces covered in the analysis are competitive rivalry, supplier power, buyer power, the threat of substitution and the threat of potential new entry. However, the five-forces framework is not a set of principals per se, instead is a tool for systematically use these principals to assess the current status and likely evolution of an industry. Competitive Rivalry: The internal competitive rivalry in German flooring market seems high. There are three main reasons. First, the switching cost is low because flooring products are homogenous with little product differentiation. Another reason is that the German flooring market is saturated with a relatively low growth rate. The flooring production in 2008 suffered a 15.1% decline while the total consumption slumped for about 12.19% (FEP, 2008). Also the number of competitive companies in German flooring market and the intensity of rivalry also determine the high threats of rivalry. There are a large number of companies competing in the German flooring market and these companies are divided into three categories, they are Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs), Domestic Leading Manufacturers (DLMs) and Niche Market Brands (NMBs). First of all, SMEs has the largest number in the German flooring market (Roadmap, 2010). These SMEs are often manufacturers provide low-grade flooring with low price. Their marketing strategy is just reverse to Golden Bridges. Thus Golden Bridge is suggested to treat them in an abstemious way. However, there are also a few numbers of large flooring manufacturers who operating on European and/or global base. It is suggested by German Timber (2007) that few DLMs account for the majority of the total market share. These companies usually possess strong competencies, highly recognized reputation and well-established brand image. One main rivalry is the Krono Group, who is one of the world leading producers of high-quality flooring. Founded in 1897, it has accumulated years of experience and extensive knowledge know-how. It delivers products to 80 countries worldwide while has its own production-base in 18 countries. In 2004, its production capability of flooring reached 310 million à £Ã … ½Ã‚ ¡, took up about 1/3 of the world market share with total sales revenue of 24 billion RMB. It also has an annual RD investment of 15billion RMB with over 200 scientists doing research in Krono International Laboratory. In addition, there are Niche Market Brands (NMBs) with several well-known brands like Espirt and Kaindl, holding part of the flooring market (FEP, 2007). These companies merely provide certain kinds of flooring to meet the special needs of a group of customers. Furthermore, in order to gaining competitive strength, the NMBs together with some foreign brands such as Balterio from Belgian and Vito from Austria have formed a conglomerate named Beamy International, a commercial platform allowing them to compete on both domestic and global markets (FEP, 2008). As the competition is fierce in German flooring market, Golden Bridge is suggested to adopt a niche strategy and doing effective promotion after entering the market. To explain, the original German wood flooring manufacturers already gains economy of scales and undeniably enjoy a cost advantage. Advanced distribution channel comparing with those new entrants also allows them first mover advantages. Cost disadvantage and lacking reliable cooperators are main barriers for Golden Bridge to survive in German market. Insufficient in capital determines that an aggressive expansion strategy is also irrational. However, one advantage Golden Bridge occupies is that it has been doing export business within German importers for couple of years and its products did have certain reputation in this highly competitive market. By offering additional value, Golden Bridge can efficiently differentiate itself among the rivals with a brand image of reliability, valuable, and symbol of statuses. This may help obtain sustainable brand loyalty among German customers. Threat of Substitutes: The threat of substitution refers to the extent to which different products used in place of a companys products or offered by other industrials. Flooring is not restricted on only wood but other materials such as textile and stone/ceramics are also widely used. For instance, in German market in 2008, textile took the largest raw material market share (i.e. about 37.4%) for making flooring. This is followed by stone/ceramics of 28.6%. Comparably, the laminate only had a market share of 13.9%, ranked in the third place. In terms of switching cost, the result can be distinct regarding to different objects of study. To individual consumers, there is almost no switching cost exists because choose one kind of material instead of another is just a matter of personal taste. However, this can be criticized in depth for the reasons that wood-made flooring has its own characteristics and functions that other materials may not have. To some extent and to specific customer groups, for instance, those who have fixed-decoration style, the switching cost can be relatively high. However, to large wholesalers (e.g. Beamy International) who previously dedicated in wood-made flooring, the switching cost would be extremely high, as they may lose the stable distribution channels with their current wholesalers or retailers, and also the price advantage provided by the long-term cooperative producers. This means the substitution threat is less considerable because their past investment in developing stable distribution channels with retailers and producers offers them an advantage in current market and this may make them unwilling to undertake risks of operating and competing in a new and highly competitive market. Summing up the above, it is the end-user customers that Golden Bridge should pay close attention to. First of all, it is advised that a regular customer survey to be conducted to make a comprehension of customers preferences and what they really appreciate. The company should also emphasize the exclusiveness and unique utilities of their products, making it cost more for the customers to switching to other substitutes. In the meantime, though as mentioned the future trend seems favor wood flooring industry, Golden Bridge should cause enough value that the technology development is always indeterminate. Thus in order to avoid sudden shock of new technologies that brings in comparable substitutes, Golden Bridge should invest continuously in Research and Development to keep pace with the times. Threat of New Entrants: Threat of new entrants is moderate. As put by European Commission (2001), the main barriers to enter German market include certification approval and the quality standards and label, while the incentive to enter German market depends mainly on its impeccable infrastructure system. The extensive unified intensification, which has been mentioned before in PEST Analysis of German, increase the starting investment of new entry, accordingly has negative effect on new entrants to the market. There are totally fourteen member countries of European Federation of the Parquet Industry (FEP). Under the Single European Market policy, twelve of them have reached an agreement on moving goods, service and capital freely internally, giving companies in these markets strong mobility. To put it simpler, a flooring company located in Germany for example, can either choose to develop domestically or entre into either of the other 11 member countries of EFP, in support of the unified system. Once entering into the consolidated FEP, the new members deserve this privilege with little hindrance, however, the legal entry requirement, especially for flooring companies compliance with environmental protection, is said to be quite strict in European Market, which is especially true in Ge rmany. Thus it can be expected that in order to harmonize to European standards, a large quality of funds will be needed to invest in order to fulfilling the standards ranging from environmental protection to individual healthcare. What is more, the sophisticated infrastructures that Germany possesses nationwide make the market considerably attractive to those adventurous entrepreneurs. As known to all, Germany lays in the center of the Western Europe, with large-scale transportation centers such as International airport in Frankfurt and seaport in Hamburg (ELA, 2010). Centering in a fast and efficient logistic network covering almost all the main markets in Europe, flooring companies in Germany can procure raw materials namely timber on a global scale, and reach the external markets with relatively lower transportation costs. Therefore the threats of new entrants would be moderate in German flooring market. For Golden Bridge, the corporate should create a marketing and brand image and keep customers loyalty, tie up to both suppliers and distributors. More important, it should sign a patent to protect the intellectual property of their high-tech products. Buyer Power: Buyer power, which is determined by the individual customers ability in negotiating purchase prices with suppliers, is at an intermediate level in German market basing on four crucial reasons. Firstly, according to the previous analysis, competition in the wood flooring manufacturing is largely intensified by a large amount of incumbents. Hence, purchasers are more unrestricted in choosing their suppliers with considering competitive advantages of products, and price may be a decisive factor for some customers. However, it is important to note that Wholesalers have more bargaining power than individuals. Being the large-volume buyers, they are not only main customers where companies earn profits from, but also controllers of dominant distribution channels. By stark contrast, individual customers with smaller purchase volume may be positioned less vitally in suppliers minds. Secondly, the buyer power is attenuated by the availability of substitutes of wood flooring in German market. E xcept for this category of flooring, more choices are supplied on the market. Despite competition reinforces customers bargaining power, the phenomena of demand surplus in German wood flooring alleviates this circumstance. According to the research of European Federation of the Parquet Industry (FEP), the consumption of German wood flooring is about 17.88 million square meters, while the production of German wood flooring is only about 11.04 million square meters (Slides Stats 2008). In additionally, German culture also plays a significant role in lessening customers bargaining power. The spirit of the nation, such prudence and fixation lead to a fairly strict standardization in both work and life. Germans are used to calculating a precise price based on all dimensions. Hence, they dislike dealing with situations out of their planning, enabling bargaining become very difficult. Ten percentage cut in price is the biggest range they will agree in they dealing with foreign buyers. (LeMont Schmidt, 2001). Supplier Power: Supplier Power refers the power of suppliers to drive up the prices of raw materials, supplies, equipment or inputs. Your company purchases the glue, paint and equipment, and employs labors from Germany and imports the wood from Russia. There are some crucial factors performing low supplier power of your company. Firstly, German is not used to bargaining, which is mentioned in Buyer power. Hence, it is meaningless for German suppliers to drive up the price of material and equipment. Negotiating power is weak in Russia as well. Although the nation is one of the largest wood producers, there are a large number of wood suppliers ¼Ã…’which provide a strongly competitive circumstance in Russia. Admittedly wood is a kind of nature product so that customers are sensitive to the price of wood. Because of high standard of transparency, the switching cost is low in Russia. On the other hand, many substitutes with lower expenditures are becoming increasingly prevalent such as marble, carpet, plastic flooring. High standard of substitutes threat can restrict the suppliers to drive up the price and reduce the power of suppliers. However, high labor cost strengthens the supplier power. The German labor cost is one of the highest in world. According to Common Protocol of Salary, Labor wage need be determined by the negotiation between wood flooring industry and backwards industry (Fact about Germany, 1996). Therefore, the security of labor force is quite completed. Unions are powerful to argue with unfair wage or welfare. For example, Michael Sommer, the head of the trade union federation(DGB) , claimed that is necessary to increase labors wage with the upturn of economy in 2010( Guardian ¼Ã…’2010). Supplier power and buyer power, which exert a moderate threat on Golden Bridges development in German, can be alleviated through several ways. From one aspect, to limit bargaining power of large-volume wholesalers, the company should give priority to building up a distribution network itself by developing new franchisers rather than depending on the primary channels of wholesalers. In terms of individual customers as well as challenges from substitutes, enhancing the products benefits would be the most efficient way to reduce their bargaining desire as most of affluent people value quality more important than price. From the other aspects, labor relationship, the most considerable barrier in lessening German supplier power, should be harmonized through affording sufficient welfare to employees, as well as building a relative democratic organizational culture by the company. Moreover, it is supposed that importing a few skilled workers from China would benefit the company not only by more economical labor cost, but also reducing the significant dependence on the German labor market. Limitation of the 5-forces: Porters five-force model is not perfect but based on the assumption that from the view of any one firm, all the other firms no matter whether they are supplier, competitor or buyer are threats to the profitability. However, according to Brandenberger and Nalebuffs value net theory, interactions among firms can sometimes enhance profits. Thus critics raised and attentions on cooperation are much more paid. The cooperation between the Golden Bridge Company and other foreign flooring companies will be analyzed and evaluated in the later recommendation part. Recommendation By illustrating the German macroeconomic environment and its circumstance of flooring industry, it is thought that the most recommended strategy for Golden Bridge is to build a joint venture with one or several German covering floor manufacturing enterprises, whilst maintaining the manufacturing section and primary market system in China. Joint venture can be explained as a collaborative formation among companies that each party invests parts capabilities to constitute a new enterprise, thereafter determining the distribution of ownership according to corresponding contributions. Nevertheless, two preconditions should be taken into consideration before making an alliance with German incumbents. Firstly, as a dominant barrier in Chinese market, capital insufficiency would also limit the investment ability of Golden Bridge in German to a large extent. Consequently, small-to-medium incumbents are more desirable as cooperators rather than large-scale companies in terms of ensuring a rela tively high proportion of ownership of Golden Bridge in the new joint venture. Moreover, it is imperative to illustrate compatibility of potential partners based on a number of philosophic criteria, including similar experience, common principles and agreed future target as well (Kanter, 1994). Where extremely intensive competition takes place, German market would tend to pose more threats than opportunities on the Golden Bridge if the company attempts to entirely entry the market alone. In comparison, cooperating and aligning with local companies would be a much safer and efficient measure from two aspects. First, by giving joint ventures preferential treatment, the Golden Bridge gains a good opportunity to penetrate the German market in a relatively short period with minimum risks as the company is unnecessary to expose abundant long-term investments to gain market shares in German wood flooring industry. Instead, it can utilize those important strategic assets of local cooperators such as complete distribution channels, customer relationships and brand loyalty. Moreover, Golden Bridge is still deficient at technology and management comparing with the local German companies. Through setting up a joint venture, advanced technology and managerial know-how can be more easily accessible by Golden Bridge, which is beneficial to its development in China market as well. Nevertheless, possible issues relating to joint venture cannot be neglected by the Golden Bridge. First, operational dissimilarities caused by political and economic divergence between China and German may be a vital problem for Golden Bridge. For instance, blind spots in law or financial systems will damage the corporate profits at initial stage. Additionally, cultural and managerial difference may be difficult to consolidate as different authority, reporting and decision-making patterns (Kanter, 1994), therefore leading to possible mistrust and misunderstanding between Golden Bridge and its partners. It has been widely recognized that German managers are prudent and rigid in dealing with regulations and rarely consider the influences of the network relationship, which is fairly distinct from Chinese managers conceptions. Conclusion: In conclusion, according to the PESTEL analysis, there are a number of challenges in China. These challenges can be the unbalanced market condition in china because of local protectionism and insufficient infrastructures, under-developed technology and managerial skill led to the low efficiency of timber industry in China, Natural Forest Protection Program limits the domestic nature timbers supply as well as the increasing labor cost in flooring industry due to Chinas economy prosperous. The complexity of interrelationship of different parties involved in the business environment also cannot be neglected. The PESTEL analysis of German market was further conducted to make the assessment more comprehensive. Later the consultants use five-force model to assess threat of entering the German flooring market. For instance, the competitive rivalry and threat of entry in German flooring market is extremely high. In terms of threat of substitution, it is much more complex. The supplier power and buyer power are both at an intermediate level. However, Porters model is criticized for lacking of corporation with other market players. Thus, a recommendation is made by our consultancy company for Golden Bridge to organize a joint venture and thus with other reliable and competitive companies for instance, the Beamy International. Facts about Germany. (1996). Frankfurt am Main: Società ¤ts Verlag. LeMont Schmidt, P. (2001). Die amerikanische und die deutsche Wirtschaftskultur im Vergleich: Ein Praxisbuch fà ¼r Manager. Gà ¶ttingen: Hainholz Verlag. Guardian (2010) German steel workers demand 6% wage increase http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/14/germany-angela-merkel http://www.roadmap2010.eu/wisd/pdfs/68-81.pdf http://ecotec-energiesparhaus.de/Daten/Holztechnik-Forest-and-wood-industries-in%20Germany%20at-a-glance.pdf http://www.tarkett.com/group/en/company/Tarkett-at-a-glance http://www.homeinstitute.com/types-of-flooring.htm http://news.frbiz.com/parquet_floor_once_again_leading-440481.html http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32004D0275:EN:NOT

customer cargo from HCM to Singapore

customer cargo from HCM to Singapore In our company, the operations manager and his decisions are of special importance. Our activities are involved in logistics with special services on transportation and warehouse distribution. Therefore, the operation decisions must be accurate, timely, and workable. Four major decision responsibilities of the operations management are process, capacity, quality, and inventory. The operations management is not only affect to production, but impact to quality and revenue also. When we received a booking to ship the customer cargo from HCM to Singapore, the operations manager would have to calculate the maximum container that could be loaded on the vessel. The volume of cargo must conform to ship capacity and safety regulations. The operations decision will give marketing the quote to canvas the cargo and guide to the port for loading schedule. Therefore, the operations manager will have the responsibility for the volume and quantity of cargo directly. Any cargo cutting, due to a mista ke of the operations manager will reduce the freight and company revenue. In our business, it is very important to ensure the time departure, vessel speed, and estimated time of arrival (ETA). These elements will affect the quality service and the operations managers have responsibility to maintain all things as fixed schedule. In logistics sectors, the operations manager must be familiar with all other sections and can watch the company picture in general. Otherwise, he must communicate with the marketing manager and the chief of financial well. The right operations decision is first condition for our company to get the revenue. Nghe Ä Ãƒ ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ c ngà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ ¯ à ¢m Tà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ « Ä‘ià ¡Ã‚ »Ã†â€™n Xem tà ¡Ã‚ »Ã‚ « Ä‘ià ¡Ã‚ »Ã†â€™n chi tià ¡Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ¿t Question II: Explain the information conveyed by various elements in the house of quality. Personalize your answer to your own work experience. Quality Function Deployment (QFD) has been developed in Japan in the late 1960s and was been applied at the Kobe/Japan shipyard of Mitsubishi Heavy Industry in 1972. Then, Toyota had developed this application as a table with a roof. The shape of this table is similar as a house and is named the house of quality. The house of quality is developed a method of quality control ensure that customer requirements on products are satisfied before creating it. For example, we want to produce a kind of labor uniform clothing for workers in northern Vietnam. First of all, we must have information about what customers need in the product characteristics. In the north, the weather is cold, rainy in winter, so the characteristics of the product must be waterproof, warm enough etc. The requirements of customers for a product like bricks to build up the wall of the house. If we have enough bricks, full of information about customer attributes, we can develop a high house. The customer attributes are the first and most important of the matrix in the house of quality. This information is collected through communication with customers, interviews and research results. Customers are encouraged to describe what they need and any possible issues with their products. A list of requirements gathered will be put into the house of quality. The body of the house and the quality can be very time consuming to complete. Its purpose is to transfer customer requirements into technical specifications of the product. A described by Schroder, Goldenstein Rungtusanatham (2010), the next step of building house is translate the customer attribute in to Engineering Characteristic (Ecs) (p.49). With customer requirements, the Ecs must consider the existing textile equipment, machinery, and technology to produce it and estimate the unit price. When the customers requirements meet the manufacturers cable, we will complete the roof of the house. Otherwise, this house must be b uilt on a foundation of information on existing products on the market of the competitor. Without evaluation on the strengths and weaknesses of the product, and lack of information about the competitors product, the manufacturer may have not good product, like building houses without foundations. In our company, the building quality homes, quality control is target to improving matters in the production process, then towards the final product with the highest customer satisfaction. Question III: Can one apply the concepts such as Plant-within-a-plant (PWP), Mass Customization, etc. to Service Operations? Provide a discussion of the response as it relates to your own work experience or company. The services cover a wide range, but all types of services can be grouped into 3 types: Explicit service (tangible service), implicit service (intangible service) and facilitating goods. In general, service operations may include one, two or three types of the above services. Because, a service sector has owned product, concepts such as Plant-within-a-plant (PWP), Mass Customization can apply to service operations. Plant-Within a-Plan (PWP) is a term to demonstrate the focus operation. The company with PWP will focus on one or several specific product manufacture. Although these goods are processed in same factory, each product or product lines will be fabricated separately from others. PWP and focus operations can use the service sector also. The operations manager can assign and allocate different types of services to different divisions, and different facilities. For a transportation service in our company, we can divide into domestic service and international service. Because the requirement for overseas transport is higher and need more document than domestic, the service level is quite different and should be separate. Schrode (2010) interpreted that mass customization is a strategy to provide products in lot sizes of one in high volume (p.75). Mass customization in service can provide a large service product at customer specific requirement. The weekly transport service between HCMC and Singapore is a mass service, but we can customize for small requirement, even less than one container. Applying the concepts of Plant-within-a-plant (PWP), mass customization to service operations are complicated duties, but they will enhance the service quality. Question IV: Hayes and Wheelwright argued that it is profitable for firms to operate along the diagonal of the product-process matrix. Justify the reasons surrounding their argument. Can you think of situations wherein firms could move away from the diagonal and yet remain profitable? The product-process matrix is a table showing the relationship between product (type, volume etc) and scale of production (process, equipment etc). This matrix was developed by Mr. Hayes and Mr. Wheelwright in 1979. In this matrix, we can see how each typical product will correspond to a ranging of processes from the project to the continuous process. The companies with low volume for each goods, not specialization, wide range of products, usually organized in job shops. Otherwise, the company has high volume; high standardization must organize as an assembly line or continuous process. In general, a company must have position in diagonal of this matrix will have proper organization structure, working processes, production management conform to scale of production and types of products. In the case, if a company is out of this diagonal line, their business procedure may be broken, and conflicts will arise between products and production management. For example, when a company has large order for a product, but the company did not have modern assembly lines, no proper equipment and still use job shop, they will use more labor. This will inevitably lead to price the product high, will not deliver on time, and will be difficult to manage throughput, profits will not be maintained. Usually, in the development period, sometime the company is not on this diagonal. The product and process did not change simultaneously. Sometimes, a company has not enough machinery or an assembly line to produce a large volume. Otherwise, sometimes, the company invested modern assembly line but can not fabricate so much because of market redundancy. However, in the long-term, the company will maintain the balance and stay on this diagonal. A long side of the diagonal of product process matrix, a high volume, larger scale product, it means that revenue will increase. If the company manages the process well, workers will increase productivity, reduce unit cost, and the company in the diagonal of product process matrix will obtain more profit. Question V: Question V: What are the five essential elements of lean thinking? In your own words, provide a road map for implementing lean thinking in a manufacturing or service operations of your choice. In order to get practice on operation management, we visited a shoe manufacture last week. We found that the lean thinking has applied in many assembly lines of the manufactures. We can recognize all of the five essential elements of lean thinking as follows: Specify exactly what creates value: The steps of the quality house were done to ensure that all customer requirements on each samples shoe had been detailed and all give certain value for users. The first element has been carried by the designers and the RD division Improve the value stream: this element of lean thinking has applied on shoe assembly lines. From beginning step to cutting material to end, where the shoes had completed, we can not see any unnecessary movements. Design the flow to avoid waste: it is easy to recognize that there is no inventory and waiting time in the shoe assembly lines. Right after the cover sheet of shoe is completed, they will be move to other step without delay and inventory. Produce only what the customer pulls: the push mentality typically was replaced by pulls. After the customer confirms their order, shoess material will be ex-store and the shoe assembly line will start. The third element will reduce the cost, and inventory for company. Strive for perfection: every six months, the manufactures evaluates all processes and make adjustments accordingly. We had an interview with an operation manager and understand that they implement the lean systems with 6 specific steps. All of steps will are carried out by two groups. A team work of lean implements will be set up. This team includes experts from some relative divisions. They will review all documents, and procedure to find out what the customer actually needs; builds up a procedure for production; construct a value stream map and use it to eliminate waste; and follow pull demand from the customer. After group one completes their duties, the necessary changes will be applied in one assembly and will repeat the cycle on another process. This duty will be conducted by not lean team, but all operation team leader and workers. Question VI: Question VI: Describe what Business Process Re-engineering is and what is involved in such an undertaking. Also, discuss when it should be used, how it might benefit to a business, and indicate any cautions with regards to its use. Give an example related to your work experience or readings. After 10 year of sustained development, our company is facing some big problems. There is an overlapping of functions, excess personnel, in-accurate reports, and it is difficult to control costs, although the director had adjusted the plan and gave a warning to some relative divisions. However, there was not much result. The sales volume continued down and expenses were still increased. In that situation, our chairman conducted a revolution with big change. He declared that the company will be rethinking and radical redesign of business [or organizational] processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical, contemporary measures of performance, such as cost, quality, service and speed. I understand that he will perform a Business process reengineering (BPR). In the past, leaders of enterprises have re-structured their company at their way without applying modern theory and useful research. In the early 1990s Michael Hammer and James Champy has issued their best-selling book, Reengineering the Corporation. In that book, the BPR was detailed in some specific areas. In general, the workflow and business process must be analyzed and redesigned within that company. Companies may centralize or decentralize the function division as marketing, operations, and finance according to their new organization chart. Companies can follow four principal which Schrode (2010) summaries as that organize around outcomes, not tasks, have the people who do the work, process their own information, put the decision point where work is performed and build control into the process and eliminate unnecessary steps in the process (p 123, 124). After 2 year implements of BPR, although our company was downsized, the sale volume increase and earn more revenue. The profit and return on investment has improved dramatically. Question VII: The definition of quality management has evolved from quality by inspection towards delivering competitive advantage to the firm. Briefly discuss these and other definitions of quality management. About 20 years ago, Vietnamese enterprises had not applied ISO 9000 standards in production and business activities yet. In that period, quality management simply meant that a checking or an inspection to find the defect product. The Vietnamese concept of KCS ( Kiem tra chat luong San pham check product quality) is quite common. Most plants have KCS division. This term is quite close to the traditions meaning of the quality management in 1900, when quality management means that inspection. Inspection is just a check product in the last stage of the process. It does not detect and prevent the mistake and defect in the production process. During improvement on company management, the quality method had an upgrade also. By the 1960s, the quality management had developed a new step to cover multiple departments between enterprises. These activities involved the designing, manufacturing and testing of the final product. The term of quality management refered to all activities and division function and included quality planning, quality control, quality improvement and quality assurance. Nowadays, the quality management has been upgraded to a new step. The new concept is Total Quality Management (TQM). TQM is a management method based on long-term success by focusing on customer satisfaction. All member of a Nghe TQM organization has reasonability to improving processes, products, services, and the culture in their work. So, quality management is towards delivering competitive advantage to the firm Question VIII: Name the seven tools of quality that are typically used in a manufacturing process. Can all these tools be applied to service operations? Suggest some possible service operations scenarios wherein we could apply all/some of these tools. Some decades ago, Japanese companies had used some tools for quality control. Day by day, they had been developing the seven tools of quality control. The seven tools are listed by Schroder (2010) as flow charts, check sheet, histogram, pareto diagrams, cause and -effect diagrams, control charts (p.195). In service operations, all services have been ensured of their quality also. Therefore, the managers need useful tools to control the quality. Depending on the kind of service, such as tangible service, intangible service or facilitating goods, some these tools can be used accordingly. All seven tools can be applied on facilitating goods such as restaurants, repair workshops etc. Some intangible services can select other tools. However, I suppose that the Pareto diagram can be used for all service operations. The Pareto theory will help us to concentrate to most important problem. The Pareto diagram can be build to demonstrate any factors with ratio, which impact the outcome. To resolve that problem, the cause and effect diagram (fishbone diagram) can be applied for all companies regardless production or service. In my experience in warehouse service, the team leaders of a facility often use the check sheet. They have to collect daily data and consolidate them in a tabular form in order to follow the working process, im-ex warehouse, and other movement between those facilities. Otherwise, the histograms tool is useful to valuate and audit after long time operation.