...Exploring efficiency and effectiveness in the supply chain A conceptual analysis Benedikte Borgström Jönköping International Business School P.O. Box 1026, SE- 551 11 Jönköping Sweden bobe@jibs.hj.se Abstract Firms struggle for efficiency and effectiveness. Strategies involving collaboration between actors and integration of activity chains are reliant of factors that firms do not have direct ownership and control over. This has implications for strategizing, setting the goals and measuring performance. Efficiency and effectiveness are often used to describe performance. From a resource dependence perspective efficiency is defined as an internal standard of performance and effectiveness as an external standard of fit to various demands (Pfeffer and Salancik 1978). In supply chains efficiency improvements are e.g. Just-in Time production while effectiveness is achieved through customer orientation and innovation. The conceptualization of efficiency and effectiveness has its roots in system theory. Definition of the system is difficult for a quasi-organization as a supply chain that has blurred structural boundaries. Defining the system as processes of activities implies that the meaning of and the relation between efficiency and effectiveness might change as well. This is a conceptual paper with a purpose to describe and analyze efficiency and effectiveness as constructs based upon activity systems. The analysis of efficiency and effectiveness involves the meaning, the use and...
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...explain on the concepts of environmental management and how are these concepts to be considered and classified as eco-efficiency or eco-effectiveness to the environment. There are various types of concepts of environmental management in relating to the solution of environmental issues in business. One of these concepts will be further discussed in the entire essay is industrial ecology concept. Also, this report will outline the elements of this concept which will be classified into eco-efficiency or eco-effectiveness and their impacts to the environment. Industrial ecology concepts and its elements will be explaining in details with some examples and personal recommendations in this report. Industrial Ecology Industrial ecology refers as an emerging industrial concept to popularize environmentally. The main purpose is to identify and implement strategies which are used to minimize the environmental impacts. Industrial ecology makes an interaction with natural ecosystem. They are natural resource from earth such as sustainable use of energy, materials and capacity of environment. (Hond 2000, 60-69)Also, they act as inputs to extract and transform them into products or services. Industrial ecology is not only aiming to reduce the environmental stress caused by industries but also encourage and support in creativity, resource efficiency and effectiveness and sustainability growth. (Cote, Raymond 2000, 34-37)Industrial ecology recognizes that industries...
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...by laying out the core economic model, the PPF, and using it to illustrate the concepts of scarcity, tradeoff and opportunity cost. It explains, with a model, the concepts of marginal cost and marginal benefit, introduces efficiency, and explains how we can expand production by accumulating capital and improving technology. The economic problem of allocating resources (making choices) in a situation of scarcity can be illustrated by explaining the concept of the production possibilities frontier (PPF). Production Possibilities Frontier (PPF) refers to the maximum combinations of goods and services an economy can produce efficiently using its available resources and technology within a given period of time. It is the boundary between the goods and services that can be produced from those that cannot. The PPF model is a graphical illustration with the following assumptions 1. The society has a fixed amount of available common resources. i.e., the same limited resources can be used to produce either of the goods. 2. The society has a fixed amount of technology 3. Full employment of resources 4. The choice is between producing two goods: Machines and Food. All other goods and services are assumed being the same (ceteris paribus). This assumption is to allow the use of simple graphical analysis. Note that these assumptions are realistic for the short run but not for the long run. 1 Dr. Mohammed Alwosabi Econ 140 – Ch.2 EXAMPLE: The following table summarizes hypothetical...
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...Agrosearch (2008 & 2009) 10 No. 1&2: 75 - 88 COMPARING PROFITABILITY AND EFFICIENCY OF RESOURCE USE IN VEGETABLE PRODUCTION UNDER PRIVATE AND GOVERNMENT CONTROLLED IRRIGATION SCHEMES IN NIGERIA ZAKARIYA’U, L. and OGUNGBILE, A.O. 1 1 2 Monitoring and Evaluation Unit, Commercial Agriculture Development Project, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Abuja, Nigeria. 2 Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria. ABSTRACT This study compared resource allocation, yield, net farm income and resource use efficiency under private and government controlled vegetable irrigation schemes. Production data covering three vegetable enterprises were collected from 280 respondents. This consisted of 141 from private and 139 from government irrigation schemes, in the Kwanar-Are irrigation areas of Katsina State, Nigeria. Descriptive and econometric analyses were used to analyze the sample data. Our results indicated that though more purchased inputs are allocated in government scheme, the private scheme was more efficient in terms of resource use. Average net farm incomes per hectare were N373,040, N427,070 and N285,975 for pepper, tomato and onion enterprises respectively under the private irrigation schemes. They were N210,045, N325,891 and N244,748 for pepper, tomato and onion enterprises respectively in the government irrigation schemes. Similarly, average returns on naira investment were higher under the private irrigation...
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... 3 Defining Environmental Stewardship Organizations putting systems in place that will enable them to: Use resources efficiently Reduce waste and minimize on the negative impacts on the environment Translate reduced consumption and waste into financial savings Provide a healthy, more efficient and effective working environment 4 Defining Environmental Stewardship Embodies the concept of a Green Office, a Green School or Green Home which is conceptualized as smarter and better as it is: Ecological - using non-toxic, recycled, environmentally friendly products and supplies Efficient – using as little energy and other resources as possible and putting out the smallest amount of waste as possible Healthy – will generate as little visual, noise and physical pollution as possible 5 Environmental Stewardship Concepts and Definitions 3Rs 6Rs Conservation Eco-efficiency Environmentally Preferred Products and Services Environmental Steward 6 Environmental Stewardship Concepts and Definitions Green Building Green Office Green Procurement Green Purchasing Life Cycle Costing Recycling Resources 7 Principles of Environmental Stewardship Core Principle 1: Resource Conservation – making the most efficient use of resources (materials, energy and water) through: Energy Efficiency and Conservation Water Efficiency and Conservation Solid Waste Management and Conceptualizing...
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...many companies began to implement a new management method that is environmental management system (EMS). The EMS is a tool beneficial to the company, according to implement this system can measure and manage the impact of business activities on the environment. The successful EMS is able to reduce the operating cost, improve the efficiency, decrease resource use and waste, it is conducive to the development of the company. Therefore, the EMS is really important to a company (J. Morrison, K. Kao Cushing, 2000). 2. The advantages of environmental management system (EMS) for a company. An effective environmental management system (EMS) will let the company have a good corporate culture; so that staff knows most responsibility for protecting the environment, at the same time using the more systematic and professional methods to assess the environmental impact of the company, and looking for opportunities to reduce in energy and water usage, minimize waste and pollution. In addition, it can set clear targets to reduce environmental pollution and improve operational efficiencies and cost savings. Through following the EMS can ensure good resource management and to promote the sustainable development of the company. 3.1. Saves money The EMS can help companies save money and the...
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...pure free market has both strengths and weaknesses. It determines the value of productive resources and allocates them in use which they will earn highest return. The rewards offers to owners of productive resources are determined by the value of the products made from those resources are to changes in the conditions affecting demand and supply to reallocate resources and seek higher returns for their use. In theory the free market is highly efficient because it rewards low cost production (technical or productive efficiency) allocates resources to their best use(lowest opportunity cost allocate efficiency and brings about changers which improve recourses use dynamic efficiency However the market system has a number of weaknesses and limitations.• Some people in our society are unable to contribute resources to production for reasons such as age or infirmly. A pure market would not allocate any of the proceeds of production to people who could not prove it with resources. • Also in our society we cannot granite that such people will be fully supported by their families. Thus since the finical means of charity group are limited only the government can assist those who suffer in a market economy. For example America relies a lot on non profit organisations such as charities. • Another limitation is the handling of externalities or spill over effects. Externalities are side effects on people that are not directly involved in production process. For example estapostous is a negative...
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...is “Ways of improving efficiency of enterprise”. It is considered to be topical nowadays because of some reasons. Firstly, today’s period of economic development is characterized by high competition in the market which makes all businesses seek foe different ways of increasing their efficiency. Enterprises are forced to look for the steps which help them work effectively without wasting time, money or energy. The pace of business activity is getting faster and faster. Employees often have to work under pressure dealing with performing lots of task at the same time and under different circumstances. It result in the fact that employers have to provide their employees with the possibility to work in the hotel rooms, airport, lounges, remote branches etc. Secondly, at the present moment mankind is facing with the problem of exhaustion of mineral and natural resources which makes numerous plants, factories and enterprises be more economical in the use of the resources. They need to organize their production in the way which lets them produce a specific outcome effectively produce a specific outcome effectively with a minimum amount of waste, expense and unnecessary effort. A lot of scientists and businessman have raised the problem of efficiency in their articles and books. In particular, outstanding Italian sociologist, economist and philosopher F. Parreto made a great contribution into the study of the problem of efficiency. According to Paretto efficiency is a state of economic...
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...Welfare Economics Economists can give very useful guidance to society on matters of efficiency, but their value judgements on matters of distribution are no better than anyone else's. When economists say that a particular government policy or an institutional change (that is, change in the rules according to which people do business with each other) leads to a gain in efficiency they mean something very specific. They mean that under the new arrangement it would be possible to make everyone better off. That is, the gainers could compensate the losers and still have something left over. Once such efficiency gains have been fully exploited and a situation has been reached where no further efficiency gains are possible, where one person's situation can only be improved by making someone else worse off; we say that the allocation of resources in the economy is Pareto Optimal or Pareto Efficient. The concept is named after Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923). The production and consumption of the various goods in the economy is Pareto Optimal when the combined rents to producers and consumers are the largest that can be obtained. Since these optimal quantities produced and consumed depend on the positions of the demand curves for the various goods, and since the demand curve for any good depends on the distribution of income between those who like the good a lot and those who do not, changes in the distribution of income will affect the demand curves for the various commodities and the...
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...`The price mechanism can be relied upon to provide efficiency'. Discuss. In order to discuss the above, it is necessary to provide not only a definition of the price mechanism, but also an explanation of its application in real-world microeconomics. John Sloman describes the price mechanism as ‘the system in a market whereby changes in price in response to changes in demand and supply have the same effect of making demand equal to supply’ (Sloman, 2012). We will also look at the theory of the price mechanism. The fundamental economic problem is that, human needs are, for intensive purposes, infinite, whereas resources are scarce, and are capable of alternative uses. Because of this, choices must be made about: what to produce, how much to produce and how to produce it, and for whom. In response to the fundamental economic problem, for producers to be efficient, they must allocate their resources efficiently. The price mechanism, in theory, allows for more efficient production. In practice, under the price mechanism, all goods and services produced have a market price, which is determined by the market forces of supply and demand. The price mechanism means that with shortages in supply of a good the price will rise. As the price increases, producers supply more (as they will be more profitable), and demand falls due to the rise in prices, so consumers buy less. s The diagram above shows the rise in price (from P1 to P2) and...
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...studying the concepts and ideas that establish supply and demand in a particular market and the way that consumers and businesses alike prioritize their spending. Essentially, the role of microeconomics is to determine how, when combined, small economic components are affecting the broader economy. Instead of looking at market indicators that represent a wide field of data, however, this type of study considers how individuals, households, or specific markets are responding to markets. Although this economic approach does not necessarily reveal or determine economic conditions, the process offers insight into the way that consumers and businesses alike decide the value of a particular product or service. This is expressed in the amount of resources that either the consumer or business dedicates to an item. Rather than tallying the way that consumers as a whole are responding to a particular product, for instance, microeconomics begins with the study of the extent of demand stemming from one single consumer. Once this demand has been determined, this study continues and expands to include a greater number of individuals in the assessment. Economists also study businesses to learn how these entities respond to different types of consumer demand and the ultimate effect on pricing. A major role of microeconomics is to recognize the way that prices for goods and services are established in a given market. The process involves identifying the impact that supply and demand have on the...
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...Economy, Efficiency and Effectiveness Name Institutional Affiliation Government agencies are commissions appointed and granted powers and authority to oversee specific functions such as Bureau of economic analysis. Bureau of economic analysis provides economic statistics and its main function is to give a clear understanding of the economic status of the US by giving an accurate and relevant data. Cochran, J. (2013). A state agency may be of either national or state government. Performance measurement is basically managing production rate and its primary purpose is to reduce or get rid of total variation in the production process. The main purpose of measuring performance, is to help get to a better decisions. Performances generally tell us important aspects about products, services, and the processes of how they are produced. They are a helpful tool to understanding, manage, and improve what organizations do. Performance can also be measured in order to recognize the sum total of quality management. Jacob, I. (2011). Persons charged with the management of an organization have to implement change in the organization. Before implementing change in an organization, the manager has to know how and when to introduce the change, he or she has to freeze and unfreeze the change process in order to avoid resistance from the workers. The management team has to have appropriate information and knowledge to measure the performance of the institution. Currently there is no known standard...
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...worsen as a result of climate change, the plan sets a goal of a 20% improvement in water use...
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...ownership of productive resources and the use of markets to allocate goods and services. Pure capitalism stands in stark contrast to socialism, which is characterized by partial or total public ownership of productive resources and centralized decision making to allocate resources. Capitalism in its pure form has probably never existed. In all countries characterized as capitalist, government plays an active role in the promotion of overall economic growth and the allocation of goods and services through its considerable control over resources. The reason we examine capitalism in its pure form is essentially twofold. To begin with, most western, developed, economies fundamentally are capitalist, or market, economies. Moreover, and perhaps more important, understanding capitalism in its pure form will better position the analyst to understand deviations and gradations from this “ideal” state. Economies that are characterized by a blend of public and private ownership is known as mixed economies. Most of the discussion in this text will assume that our prototypical firm operates within a purely capitalist market system. Although the complete set of conditions necessary for pure capitalism is not likely to be found in reality, an understanding of the essential elements of pure capitalism is fundamental to an analysis of subtle and not-so-subtle variations from this extreme case. PRIVATE PROPERTY In pure capitalism, all productive resources are owned by private...
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...By Jazmine Bennett Jarett Diamond Gary Fischer Kerby Smithson A project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science (Natural Resources and Environment) School of Natural Resources and Environment University of Michigan April 2010 Project Advisor: Scott Noesen Disclaimer Unless otherwise explicitly stated, the views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the University of Michigan, the School of Natural Resources and the Environment, the Arbor Brewing Company, or any entity other than the members of the Green Brewery Project student team. This document contains many forward-looking statements, including predictions of project costs, payback periods, performance characteristics, incentive award amounts, etc. Such statements are the results of careful analysis by the team, using the best information available at the time, and based on certain expectations and assumptions which are identified wherever possible. A variety of factors could cause the actual results to differ from predicted outcomes. Advice from qualified professionals should be sought to complement the advice contained herein. The Green Brewery Project | Disclaimer i Acknowledgements The Green Brewery Project could not have been a success without the help of many people and organizations. First we would like to thank Matt and Rene Greff and all of the Corner Brewery Staff for allowing us to do this project and being cooperative...
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