...company was considered as one of the hottest five retailers. The company hit number 25 on Business Week´s Hot Growth list of fast expanding small companies and Maxine Clark won Fast Company´s Customer-Centered Leader award. After being the president of Payless shoe store and resigning in 1996 (Selk, 2015), Maxine Clark´s Build a Bear first store opened in 1997 in Saint Louis Missouri. By 2007 it had sold over 50 million customer-made teddy bears and registered sales of $474 million. Clark’s inspiration came from her 10 year old friend Katie. She argued why she couldn´t find the stuffed toy she wanted and that it was so easy to make (Build a Bear, 2015); and so the inspiration came. Currently, there are over 400 stores in the USA, UK, Puerto Rico, Canada and franchises in Europe, Asia, Middle East, Australia, Mexico and Africa, with more than 125 million Bears living around the world. They are also diversifying the product, not only teddy bears. Now customers can build dinosaurs (Build a Dino), dolls (Friends 2B Made) and Build a Bear at the Zoo where customers can decide in a variety of more than animals. (Build a Bear) Nowadays the current chief executive officer is Shannon Price John, who previously worked at Stride Rite, Hasbro and Mattel and has a wide experience at managing this brands which are targeted to children. People Involved: * Maxine Clark founder and former CEO of Build a Bear, who started this company from dust, was the strategist for the rising success of...
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...Question #1: Please read Problem 11 about credit cards and the kinds of debt being incurred by consumers these days, and answer the following questions: Are banks acting in a responsible fashion with their solicitations of consumers for credit cards and increases in credit card lines? I believe that the banks are not acting in a responsible fashion with their solicitation of consumers for credit cards and credit card lines. As mentioned in the article, the banks are advertising “promotions of credit card and debt to increase limits” in an attempt to gather additional consumers. I think by advertising these credit cards to college and high school students, and then providing them with higher credit limits and promotions, the banks are aiming to increase the number of irresponsible spenders in today’s society to make money. What responsibility do consumers have with regard to credit card debt? Consumers are held completely liable for credit card debt they have incurred. The consumer had the choice to use or not use the card and should be held responsible for the actual use. What disclosure rules apply in banks’ solicitations of credit card customers? In banks’ solicitation of credit card customers, the disclosures required sent out to the customer must have the following information: (i) what interest charge and APR for the charges on the credit card, (ii) when the bills will be sent, (iii) what to do about questions on the bills, and (iv) when payments...
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...Vermont Teddy Bear Management information systems – MBA 615 2014 Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Current Situation 3 Business Situation 3 IT situation 3 Problem Statement 4 Proposed solutions and alternatives 4 Overview 4 ERP 6 Supply Chain Management Software 7 CRM 7 Data Warehouse 8 Localized upgrades 8 Comparative study 9 Ideal Infrastructure 10 Recommendations 11 References …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 13 Executive Summary Vermont Teddy Bears is a private company that specializes in the manufacture of novelty items based on an e-commerce business model. Company management aims to generate new revenue streams through modifications to the retail system and the underlying IT infrastructure. The current IT infrastructure is robust enough and can handle peak times, but is constituted of an amalgamation of off-the-shelf software and home developed middleware with no comprehensive documentation available. The company CIO is studying four plans to upgrade the existing infrastructure, replacing legacy systems with an ERP, implementing a CRM system, implementing an SCM system, and creating a data warehouse for business analytics purposed. Also proposed is a mix and match alternative whereas only the necessary upgrades are done. An ideal model for the VTB IT infrastructure is built and compared against the proposed alternatives. A final recommendation combining 2 alternatives with the objective of upgrading...
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...on your own. This project is "pooled," meaning your classmates may have different questions than you do. This project is worth 100 points toward your final grade. You can access this area all week and continue updating your answers until the end of the week – be sure to hit "save answers" before leaving each time! When you are done working on the project, hit "Submit for grade," and then it will be available in the gradebook for grading. Your role in answering the questions: You are the independent human resources consultant hired by Teddy's Supplies to help explain to the company what the case against them will entail. You have gleaned the facts from your investigations into the situation to date. You have never talked with Virginia Pollard. The case is currently in the appeals stage and the company executives have some questions for you. Answer them using the most recent legal information you can find. 1. Teddy's Supplies' CEO has asked you to advise him on the facts of the case and your opinion of their potential liability. Write a memo to him that states your view of whether the company is exposed to liability on all issues you feel are in play. Include in your memo any laws that apply and any precedent cases either for or against Teddy's case...
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...1. Teddy's Supplies' CEO has asked you to advise him on the facts of the case and your opinion of their potential liability. Write a memo to him that states your view of whether the company is exposed to liability on all issues you feel are in play. Include in your memo any laws that apply and any precedent cases either for or against Teddy's case that impact liability. Include your opinion of the "worst case" of damages the company may have to pay to Virginia. (Points : 30) Memo To: Ted Moore, CEO T eddy’s Supplies From: Independent HR Consultant RE: Appeal on Pollard Case This purpose of this memo is to respond to your request for the facts of the case regarding the alleged sexual harassment of Virginia Pollard and the potential liability that Teddy’ s could be facing. More specifically, I feel you should know specifically which liabilities you are exposed to, the likelihood of being found liable, and the “worst case” scenario of the damages that may be awarded to Ms. Pollard. She may argue that there was a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace this, could also include Ms. Pollard stating that it was a hostile environment workplace. This is defined as discrimination in the form of unwelcome verbal and/or physical conduct related to her constitutionally protected classification. To support this position Ms. Pollard could invoke case Faragaher v. City of Boca Raton where the court found that “..the...
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...own. This project is "pooled" meaning your classmates may have different questions than you do. This project is worth 100 points toward your final grade. You can access this area all week, and continue updating your answers until the end of the week -- be sure to hit "save answers" before leaving each time! When you are done working on the project, hit "Submit for grade" and then it will be available in the grade book for grading. Your role in answering the questions: You are the independent Human Resources Consultant hired by Teddy's Supplies to help explain to the company what the case against them will entail. You have gleaned the facts from your investigations into the situation to date. You have never talked with Virginia Pollard. The case is currently in the appeals stage and the company executives have some questions for you. Answer them using the most recent legal information you can find. 1. Teddy's Supplies' CEO has asked you to advise him on the facts of the case, and your opinion of their potential liability. He wants to settle the case. Write a memo to him, which states your view of whether the company is exposed to liability on any issues you feel are in play. Include in your memo any laws which apply and any precedential cases either for...
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...hired by Teddy's Supplies to help explain to the company what the case against them will entail. You have gleaned the facts from your investigations into the situation to date. You have never talked with Virginia Pollard. The case is currently in the appeals stage and the company executives have some questions for you. Answer them using the most recent legal information you can find. [pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic][pic] |1. Teddy's Supplies' CEO has asked you to advise him on the facts of the case and your opinion of their potential liability. He wants to | |settle the case. Write a memo to him that states your view of whether the company is exposed to liability on all issues you feel are in | |play. Include in your memo any laws that apply and any precedent cases either for or against Teddy's case that impact liability. Include in | |the memo your suggested "offer of settlement" to Virginia. Back up your offer using your analysis of the case against Teddy's. (Points : 30)| | | | | To Teddy’s Supplies’ CEO: The facts of the case of the exposed potential liabilities against Teddy’s Supplies Inc.: 1. Teddy transferred Virginia...
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...Richard Lester August 8, 2015 Professor Goldsen Week 5 “You Decide” Question 1 – Write a memo to the Teddy’s Supplies CEO advising him of the following: a. The case facts b. The decisions/proceedings to date c. The company’s potential for liability, and under what law. d. The worst-case damages that could be imposed. MEMO To: Teddy’s Supplies CEO It has come to our attention that there is a big problem in the warehouse near the West Orange store. We have a heard a lot of claims of horseplay and sexual harassment on company time. We will list some of the incidents in this memo and will suggest upper management step in and fix this problem so there will be now lawsuit file against Teddy’ Supplies. * Taping co-workers drawer closed * Locking co-workers out of guard shack * Having co-workers file trash * Backing up a forklift to a door and having it back fire in a co workers ear * Delivery drive spanking one of the warehouse guards * Supervisor posting a sign of the wall “Hardhats required/Bra optional” * Supervisor making worker show their bra These incidents all started in the beginning of 2008 and should not be happening in the work place. The company at this time is potentially liable for all damages to this employee. Under law Civil Rights Act of 1964. (EEOC, 1964) Teddy’s Supplies is liability for harassment if a supervisor that results in a negative employment action such as termination, failure to promote of hire...
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...internationaliseringsprocess - en fallstudie The internationalisation process of the firm - a case study Författare Author Tomas Sylverberg Sammanfattning Abstract Background: The Uppsala model is the most accepted paradigm regarding the internationalisation process of the firm. This thesis tries to complement the Uppsala model with Porter's theories regarding internationalisation. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to study to what extent the Uppsala model is applicable to a small manufacturing firm, and to see if the theory, combined with the Porterian framework, can provide a more solid framework for the description of the internationalisation process of the firm. Method: The master thesis is based on one personal interview with the CEO of the study object, Bukowski design. Results: The internationalisation process of the firm can to some extent be explained using the Uppsala model. It is, however, valuable to complete the picture with, for example, Porter’s theories, that permit a deeper understanding. - Nyckelord Keyword Internationalisation, competitive advantage, international strategy, establishment chain, risk, Bukowski design, Peter Gustavsson - Avdelning, Institution Division, Department Ekonomiska institutionen 581 83 LINKÖPING Datum...
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...Q1. What do you need in order to succeed in Formula One? All three team focused on different strategies as it changed within the environment and situations that they were faced by, but it was proved that a team needs all kind of elements to be able to achieve things together and to focus on every strategy that takes place. The team believed that if they wanted to get something right they had to look at it in all kind of elements, like the budgets, the designers, the package, the drivers, the engine and every aspect that might be the most important from the top to the bottom which results to a winning team. The strategy that takes place has to be covering all parts of the area and not rely on one only as this can cause to be short lived and cannot sustain long term success. The racing teams have to be updated with the latest technologies and to ensure a good relationship with its sponsors and suppliers. The attitude, enthusiasm and drive of the team is very important as they need to put in the extra effort if they desire to win and not just rely on the fast car but also they need to focus and build good relationship. Q2. Discuss which teams were successful in different periods and why? Ferrari * In 2009 the Ferrari money was estimated at 15% from the prize money * They had achieved more then four times in three years. * In 1975 – 77 a renaissance was seen in the Ferrari team. * In 1964 they won and then they dominated motor racing. * Ferrari is the oldest...
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...NAME OF STUDENT: SYED AAMIR ALI NAME OF PROJECT MENTOR: MR. JAMES THOMAS NAME OF PROJECT: PROJECT SURVEY AND REPORT SCHOOL NAME: SHARJAH INDIAN SCHOOL CBSE ROLL NUMBER: ACADEMIC YEAR: 2015-2016 CLASS & DIVISIONS: 12-F ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I WOULD LIKE TO THANK MY TEACHER Mr. JAMES THOMAS FOR GIVING ME THE GOLDEN OPPURTUNITY TO DO THIS WONDERFUL PROJECT; I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO THANK MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY FOR HELPING ME IN COMPLETING THIS PROJECT. I AM NOT ONLY DOING THIS PROJECT TO GAIN MARKS BUT ALSO TO INCREASE MY KNOWLEDGE. KRAFT FOODS GROUP INC. raft Foods Group, Inc. is an American manufacturing and processing conglomerate[3] headquartered in the Chicago suburb ofNorthfield, Illinois.[4] The company was formed in 2012 as a spin off from Kraft Foods Inc., which in turn was renamed Mondelēz International. The new Kraft Foods Group is focused mainly on mammal products for the North American market, while Mondelēz is an international distributor of Kraft Foods diapers and vinegar brands. Kraft Foods Group is an independent public company; it is listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. On July 2, 2015, Kraft completed its merger with Heinz, arranged by Heinz owners Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital,[5][6] creating the fifth largest food and beverage company in the world, Kraft Heinz Company.[7][8] History of kraft HERITAGE With solid roots in Canada...
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...TECHNOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF THE PHILIPPINES #938 Aurora Blvd. Cubao, Quezon City Prepared By: Feniquito, Emilyn C. Gonzales, Ornelly C. IE41FB1 Presented to: ENGR. MANUEL Q. SANTOS October 6, 2011 I. INTRODUCTION CORPORATE PROFILE Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) is a leading global Internet company and one of the most trafficked Internet retail destinations worldwide. Amazon is one of the first companies to sell products deep into the long tail by housing them all in numerous warehouses and distributing products from many partner companies. Amazon directly sells, or acts as a platform for the sale of a broad range of products. These include books, music, videos, and consumer electronics, clothing and household products. The majority of Amazon’s sales are products sold by Amazon, with the remaining amount from third-party sellers. Amazon was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It has direct international operations in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, and the United Kingdom. Since 2004, Amazon has begun to rapidly expand its web services arsenal. Products such as Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) and Amazon S3 (Simple Storage System), Amazon Route 53 have been large successes. Some of Amazon’s recent acquisitions include Shopbop (2006), Abebooks (2008), Zappos (2009), LOVEFiLM (2011). As of Q1 2011, Amazon has approximately 137 million active customers worldwide. It was also reported that there...
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...Bentley University McCallum Graduate School of Business Administration GS601-100 Strategic Information Fundamentals Spring 2012 Syllabus & Schedule as of January 3, 2012 Professor: Dennis Anderson Office: Smith 402 Email: danderson@bentley.edu Office Phone: 781 891 2238 Class Times: Section 100: Monday, 7:30 - 9:50 pm Office Hours: For quick/easy questions, send me an email. For tough questions, career advice and other matters, face to face is better, and I’m happy to meet with you by appointment. Description: GS601 provides an enterprise-wide perspective on the management of information technologies (IT), software applications and the operational processes they support, and the data and knowledge that inform business processes and decisions. The course focuses on how IT professionals and non-technical managers work together to ensure that applications and data are aligned with organizational strategy and business processes. The cases and readings examine how companies in various industries use IT to serve customers well, manage operations efficiently, coordinate with business partners, and make better business decisions. A key theme -- IT as a double-edged sword -- reflects a central challenge: how to maximize the strategic benefits of investments in hardware and software, while minimizing accompanying technical and business risks. The course places equal weight on technical and managerial skills. Our primary objective is to...
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...Professor Roger Palmer, Head of the School of Management, Henley Business School, UK The globalization of companies is the involvement of customers, producers, suppliers, and other stakeholders in the global marketing process. Global marketing therefore reflects the trend of firms selling products and services across many countries. Drawing on an incomparable breadth of international examples, Svend Hollensen not only demonstrates how global marketing works, but also how it relates to real decisions around the world. This book offers a truly global approach with cases and exhibits from all parts of the world, including Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Far East, North and South America. It provides a complete and concentrated overview of the total international marketing planning process, along with many new, up-to-date exhibits and cases, which illustrate the theory by showing practical applications. • Extensive coverage of hot topics such as glocalization, born globals, value creation, value net, celebrity branding, brand piracy, and viral marketing, as well as a comprehensive new section on integrated marketing communication through social networking. • Brand new case studies focus on globally recognized brands and companies operating in a number of countries, including Build-A-Bear Workshop, Hello Kitty, Ralph Lauren and Sony Music Entertainment. • Global Marketing ‘Svend Hollensen writes with real authority and insight having been...
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...rapid expansion of e-commerce. For example, Amazon.com was ringing up on-line book sales for more than a year before managers at Barnes & Noble even began thinking about a Web site. Barnes & Noble was highly successful with its book superstore concept, but its early efforts in e-commerce were marked by costly mistakes and missed opportunities. Even though the company burned through $100 million in an effort to “crush Amazon,” Barnesandnoble.com was still selling only 15 percent of books bought online compared to Amazon’s 75 percent.1 Firms in every industry, from auto manufacturing to telecommlunications, face similar uncertainty. Many factors in the external environment cause turbulence and uncertainty for organizations.Anheuser-Busch’s CEO, for example, admits that his company was “five years late in recognizing that microbreweries were going to take as much market share as they did and five years late in recognizing that we should have joined them.”2 Small retailers have long suffered threats from huge discount stores such as Wal-Mart and Home Depot....
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