...1. Introduction According to Ronald, H. Coase (1937)1 suggested that firms seem to exist around the world because they could obtain the benefit from reducing the transaction costs during transaction progress. In other words, ‘best value for money’ is the purpose that firms seeking for long-term sustainable development. Thus it can be seen that more and more entities experienced the importance of manage suppliers. Moreover, the savings from transaction progress could contribute to a significant amount and also lead company products more competitive as well as provide funds for innovation. Therefore, it seems like procurers play an important role within firms. But how the firms could achieve best value for money in procurement management? It seems likely that firms should seek to ‘get their own house in order’ before attempting to deal with suppliers. This essay aims to discuss this issue and illustrated the discussion with some successful examples. In the following sections, it shows a standard purchasing & supply management process. Additionally, the factors of outsourcing decision will be pointed out, organization buying behaviour will also be included in the essay. 2. Purchasing & Supply Management Process 3.1 Standard Process In Figure1, this is a commonly standard purchasing and management process which used by different sizes of firms worldwide. However, some smaller entities probably skip some stages of purchasing process, but basically...
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...Creativity and Innovation in Business Prof. Danny Araneta Cabulay Dean – Institute of Accounts, Business and Finance Far Eastern University, Manila, Philippines dcabulay@feu.edu.ph Albert Einstein once said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” For most people, creativity is more easily associated with art than business. But the highest art form is business because one can be very creative, dynamic and revolutionary. Creativity is also related to innovation and change. I am fully aware that many of the things we see around us are products of minds of geniuses, creative thinkers. It is hard to imagine a business without a creative mind. A creative mind is essential in any type of business. When we get tired of the old product or technology, as it also becomes obsolete, we long to have, a better product or technology. This is the essence of innovation. It has to be more convenient to customers. The etymology of the word “create” indicates to make something; while “creation” is something that shows skill, imagination or ability; and to be “creative” means the ability to invent, design or develop original ideas. Even in the simplest businesses, creativity can happen. In Manila, for example, a typical bakery would operate from 5:30 a.m. to 9:00 pm. A bunch of students made a feasibility study to inject the idea of a 24-hour bakery. Hence, Pugon de Manila was born. This is an example of an incremental innovation to the traditional bakery...
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...specifically e-commerce, purchasing becomes a strategy. Purchasing became “strategic sourcing.” Strategic sourcing has become a huge responsibility for the supply manager. There are a few activities that strategic sourcing accomplishes for the manager. It allows the manager to strategize the spending habits of the company, it forces the manager to strategically look in to the supply market for any changes, trends, and what other firms are offering, and it provides a method to develop a sourcing strategy that fits the company’s strategy to lower costs and risk, while bringing in a profit. Profit is produced through mastering or at least competently managing the five M’s; machines, manpower, materials, money, and management. Part of that strategy is where and how to source these 5 M’s that will meet the cost strategy of the company. This brings up the most strategic question a firm can ask of a supply manager; to make or buy? To meet the company’s needs that will consequently meet the current demand, should the company in-source or outsource? What should the company outsource? What are the functional areas of supply management that can be outsourced and what are the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing? Strategic Sourcing in Supply Management We are in the information and technology age of business. This requires a business to consider the area of sourcing as a competitive strategy to keep cost down. Some research suggests a ratio of two out of three managers considers...
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...profitability and growth potential for the company. The owner, Nelson Jones, is diligent in paying his suppliers within ten days in order to capitalize on a two percent early pay discount, but in doing so, has over-extended cash flows. Though the company has been profitable and growing over the past three years, its current lender, Metropolitan Bank, will not increase a line of credit (LOC) beyond $250,000, a LOC upon which Jones has recently fully drawn. In order to ease the tensions of depleting cash reserves, Jones is seeking a higher LOC from another lender, Southern Bank & Trust (SB&T). A higher LOC will not only cover overhead expenses and take advantage of early pay discounts, but could also be invested in the continued growth of sales, as well as, potentially opening new locations. After weighing his options, Jones is convinced that he has to take on more debt in order to keep the business moving forward. Thus far, Jones is only contemplating one financing option, a higher LOC from SB&T. The terms of LOC are not favorable when weighed against Jones’s objective to grow the business. SB&T will limit the drawable amount, control investments in fixed assets, and control Jones’s withdrawal of funds from the business. As such, Jones needs to reconsider SB&T’s offer and consider other financing options or reduce the need to borrow by changing operating procedures. Jones is seeking a $350,000 LOC from SB&T, which is $100,000 more than the current LOC. Therefore, we assume...
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...Question 1 : What is the difference between operations management and process management? Operation Management How the company manages its operation, shall be the key answer to it. In fact, Operation Management is one of the topmost important factor for a company’s success. Having said that, OM helps the organization to recognize “what are” the process, people, decisions, responsibilities and “how” the available resources can be utilized and maximized to deliver the goods or satisfactory services to the clients. Process Management A type of management that deals directly with the organization’s ways of aligning the series of activities involved in any of its operational process, with the aim to clearly define how the entire process is performing. One of the example of process management is “Business Process Management (BPM) . The main purpose of process management is to minimize errors due to human and reduces miscommunication and increase productivity. In your opinion why might it be necessary to have the two terms? Having this as a simple illustration, a client company (DEF) requires its supplier company (ABC) to send its ordered goods from KL to Penang in half a day time. As an Operation Manager of ABC company, Mr. Kuak plans what are needed for the delivery of the goods. He needs to get a driver in a pink of health and choose one of its best truck that’s capable to drive long distance. Where as, Mr. Lan the process manager, decides how the driving journey be conducted...
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...1.0 Introduction Buying is the activity of acquiring goods or services to accomplish the goals of an organization (businessdictionary.com). Retail buying involves selecting, planning, buying, renting and or hiring of the necessary equipment, supplies, resources and services in order to sell them in retail outlets or use them within production (http://www.prospects.ac.uk/retail_buyer_job_description.htm). A buying plan is a guide or a road map for the buying department that outlines goals and details of how the department will achieve those goals (BusinessDictionary.com). Following the immediate challenge for the ‘Like Brands’ by Aldi to increase its market share for the from 2.3% to 2.5% and encouraging customer loyalty, the department has come up with a well detailed buying plan that will help Aldi to achieve its goals. The plan constitutes the following: * Situational analysis * Objectives of the plan * Need recognition * Information search * Purchase specifications * Supplier sourcing * Tendering * Supplier selection * Cost minimisation strategies * Awarding of contracts * Contract close out 2.0 Situational analysis It is the process of identifying and evaluating existing internal and external elements that may impact an organization's ability to achieve its objectives. A situational analysis also includes a SWOT analysis which is an assessment of the organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (http://www...
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...March 2014 Commercial Law Midterm Uzair J. Kayani 1 COMMERCIAL LAW Midterm Exam (Take Home), Spring 2014 Instructions: The first question is worth 50 points. Each remaining question is worth 10 points The exam is open-book, open-notes. You should not need to consult anything other than the reader. Exams are Due at 11:59 pm on Friday, 21 March 2014. Email exams to ukayani@gmail.com . CC the TAs. Good luck! 1. Zunaiza, Abeez, and Ramta pool their money to buy four tons of orange seeds from Rasta industries. They plan to plant a jointly owned property on Bedian Road that they purchased several years ago. They hope to eat the oranges grown on this property and sell the surplus at Khalis Food Market. The seeds will cost PKR 200,000. Zunaiza opens a bank account under the name “ZAR” (the first initials of each person’s name) and tells Abeez and Ramta to deposit money into it. Abeez and Ramta agree verbally to give Zunaiza PKR 50,000 each. Zunaiza puts PKR 100,000 of her own money into the ZAR account. The next day, all three visit Rasta industries and tell Kuzamata, a secretary at the company, that they will be placing an order for four tons of seeds within the next month.Two weeks later, Abeez gives Zunaiza a promissory note for PKR 50,000. Zunaiza deposits PKR 50,000 more of her own money into the ZAR account and holds onto the promissory note. She asks Abeez when Ramta will pay. Zunaiza is an intimidating questioner and starts yelling when Abeez...
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...analysis based on Zara that including three generic strategies and five forces. Third, some of IT applications are really help the Zara to make their business more efficient, the applications will be applied in the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Supply Chain Management (SCM) will emphasize a speed supply chain for Zara, and Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Finally is about the relationship between Zara and Peter Drucker’s theory, Zara and Andrew McAfee’s theory, Zara and Hey’s theory. The last part will conclude where is Zara today and make brief recommendations. Table of Contents Introduction 4 Zara and Michael Porter’s Model 5 Generic Competitive Strategies Analysis for Zara 5 Five Forces Analysis for Zara 6 Suppliers Bargaining Power 6 Buyer Bargaining Power 7 Threat of New Entrants 7 Threat of Substitute 8 Industrial Competitors 9 The Value Chain of Zara 10 Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) 11 Supply Chain Management (SCM) 11 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) 13 Zara and Peter Drucker’s theory 13 Zara and Andrew McAfee’s theory 14 Zara and Tony Hey’s Theory 15 Conclusion 16 Recommendations 16 Appendix 18 References 19 Introduction Inditex is a largest fashion ground in Spain and owns 9 brands around the world, such as Zara, Massimo Dutti, Bershka and so on. Zara is the most successful brand for the Inditex group. The data from Harvard Business...
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...Table of contentS Introduction 3 GREENING THE SUPPLY CHAIN 4 EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT AND BENEFITS 5 CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT 5 SOURCING DECISIONS 6 SUPPLIER RELATIONSHIPS 7 FORECASTING 8 PURCHASING SYSTEM: CENTRALIZED/DECENTRALIZED 9 CONTINUES IMPROVEMENT ACTIVITY AND CULTURE (KAIZEN) 10 FACILITY LOCATION 12 ERP systems 14 RFID tagging 15 Juran’s way 16 Appendices 19 References 21 Introduction Lipman Produce is a leading producer and distributor of fresh vegetables and fruits, specializing in tomatoes. It is the largest field tomato grower in North America, and operates through a vertically integrated network of research & development, farming, processing, repacking and procurement. The company packs an average of 15 million boxes of tomatoes each year, including Cherry, Florida Silk, Vintage Ripe, Garden Jewel and Roma varieties. In addition to tomatoes, Lipman also packs and ships cucumbers, melons, eggplants, peppers, potatoes, and squash. Its customers include wholesale, retail, and foodservice customers. The company is owned and operated by the Lipman family; and is based in Immokalee, Florida. It was founded over eight decades ago by Max Lipman, and was originally called Six L’s Packing Company Inc. Even though it has been re-branded, its core values have always remained the same: “Building lasting relationships with our customers, being responsible with our natural resources and the health and wellbeing of our people and families” (Lipman Corporation...
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...International Businesses Strategy of IKEA –Activities of the multinational furniture retailer Seminar paper in “Strategy of International Business” University of Economics Bratislava 2008/2009 Katarzyna Gawor Sona Halasova Friedemann Polzin Table of Contents IKEA – global strategy............................................................................................................2 History................................................................................................................................2 IKEA corporate structure...................................................................................................3 The IKEA Group............................................................................................................3 Inter IKEA Systems B.V. ..............................................................................................5 IKEA Stores...................................................................................................................5 Business strategy...............................................................................................................5 Mission...........................................................................................................................5 Target group..................................................................................................................6 Organizational structure........................................................
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...Responses to Review Questions Answer One What are the factors that influence a company's decision to go abroad? Please explain how these are related to each other. In the discussion on the internationalisation process of a firm, the product life cycle model plays a major role. Please explain and discuss the usefulness this model. (A) Generally, the first decision to go abroad is a specific one. It is a decision to look at the possibility of a specific investment in a specific country, not a general decision to look around the globe for investment opportunities. At this stage the organisation has no experience with the complexities of foreign investment, although it often has had some export experience. There are no standard operating guidelines, which can be given to deal with these complexities. What is needed mostly is a strong push and/or commitment to go abroad. A company benefits from these earlier experiences in the subsequent investment decisions. The organisational factors include: • role of the management • motives of the organisation • success at home Other than these internal forces, a number of factors in the environment, outside the organisation, may also force a company to go abroad. These drivers of internationalisation may include: • unsolicited proposal that cannot be ignored. These may include proposals from a foreign government, distributor or customer • competitive drive or bandwagon effect following other competitors or a general belief...
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...1/29/13 You are not a member of this wiki. Join now Dismiss MIBS-A1China-Group2 - 8 - Consolidation 0 nikhilvenki2 | My Wikis | Help | Sign Out MIBS-A1China-Group2 Wiki Home Recent Changes Pages and Files Members Manage Wiki Search Wiki All Pages 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 - clipboard 8 - Consolidation Assignment Questions Draft Report MBA Charts Tutor template Words Count: 3900 Introduction Tombow Pencil Co. Ltd. is a Japanese writing instrument manufacturer founded by Harunosuke Ogawa in 1913. Tombow and its main competitior- Mitsubishi accounted for about 70% pencil market share before 1963. After that, Tombow began to expand its product line beginning from ballpoint pen. Tombow mainly sold products through stationery stores which are the crucial outlet for writing instrument industry. It served these stores the sales agent and 38 its own branch offices. In addition, Tombow actively responded new market requirement. Tombow’s faced the serious contradiction between sales and production. Tombow had two types of new products, one was with little engineering content, the other was scientifically engineered. Its typical product development project is Object EO. The theme of this project is “low price/highdesign”. Tombow hoped through it to improve profit margins by design and to build volume by its attractive appearance. As its main product, Tombow produced 2 types of pencil—wood-cased standard and fashion types. In 1991, its standard pencil accounted about only 23% of its catalog,...
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...AND INNOVATION AS THE KEY ENABLERS ..........9 What do I do now? .......................................................................................11 Panel and Task Force Members .........................................................12 What is Foresight....................................................................inside back cover www.foresight.gov.uk 1 What’s this all about? It is easy for people in business to downplay or ignore the importance of thinking strategically about the future. Day-to-day problems always seem to need immediate attention. Predictions about the future are invariably wrong. And, on the surface, the world we live in today doesn’t look or feel that different to what it was 10 years ago. So why should it change much over the next 10-20 years? But the fact is that the world is changing beneath our feet. And will go on changing at an ever faster rate in ways we can only start to imagine. Change will bring with it new possibilities and new opportunities. If the UK isn’t ready, it will miss out. If your business isn’t ready, you could be history. The Foresight Manufacturing 2020 Panel was set up to identify the key issues that will shape the future...
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...| | |Introduction to | |Public Relations | | | Unit 1 Unit 1 Introduction to Public Relations Introduction The Public Relations Environment Public relations play an important role in contributing towards mutual understanding among groups and institution in return helping our convoluted society to make decisions and function effectively. It successfully harmonizes private and public policies. Public relations has a significant role in diverse institution of society such as businesses, trade unions, government agencies, voluntary associations, foundations, hospitals, schools, colleges and religious institutions. To flourish or to achieve set targets, these institutions must communicate within or with outer world such as remote employees, members, customers, local communities, share holders and other institutions. The targeted institutional goals can only be achieved if the management knows the mindset and values of their people. The external environment has a great influence on setting up of goals. The public relations...
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...shifting from outsourcing parts, componentry, and hardware subsystems toward the even greater unexploited potentials that intellectually-based systems offer:2 Obtaining higher value, more flexible, and more integrated services than internal sources can offer. Improving the company’s capacities to stay current and to innovate by interacting with “best in world” knowledge sources. Achieving cross-divisional coordination and shareholder value gains that the company — for internal structural or political reasons — could not otherwise achieve. Outsourcing Knowledge-Based Services The drivers for these trends are formidable. As the service sector has grown to embrace 80 percent of all U.S. employment, specialized service firms have become very large and sophisticated relative to the scale and expertise that individual staff and service groups have within integrated companies — whether in services or manufacturing (see Table 1). These specialists can develop greater knowledge depth, invest more in software and training systems, be more efficient, and hence offer higher wages and attract more highly trained people than can the individual staff groups of all but a few integrated companies. Given this greater knowledge depth and wider range of customer interactions, they can also become much more innovative than their internal counterparts might. Companies as diverse as British Petroleum, DuPont, MCI, Dell Computer, Beaumont Hospital, Ford, State Street Bank, Ameritek...
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