...FINANCE IN VALUE CHAIN ANALYSIS—A SYNTHESIS PAPER microREPORT #132 OCTOBER 2008 This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared by DAI. FINANCE IN VALUE CHAIN ANALYSIS—A SYNTHESIS PAPER microREPORT #132 The authors’ views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ................................................................................. 1 OBJECTIVE ................................................................................ 1 DEFINITION ................................................................................ 1 IMPORTANCE ............................................................................. 1 REPORT STRUCTURE ................................................................. 1 THE VALUE CHAIN ANALYSIS (VCA) FRAMEWORK ..................... 3 ANALYTICAL VCF FRAMEWORK WITH CASE-STUDY ILLUSTRATIONS ................................................................................ 7 UNDERSTANDING THE CURRENT CASH FLOW AND CREDIT STRUCTURE (ANALYTICAL PHASE) ............................................ 7 Intra-firm Finance ......................................................... 8 Finance Services Provision .......................................... 9 Inter-firm Finance (Governance) ................................ 10 UNDERSTANDING...
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...The Role of the Engineer in the Value Chain Executive Summary In the recent past, value chain management has undergone radical transformation through various stages of automation, optimization and integration. This is based on a variety of reasons such as shortened technology and product development lifecycles, globalization, and pressures of competitive forces. This has forced organizations to review their value chain systems in order to survive and grow in such dynamic economic environments. In the field of engineering, value chains have become vital aspects of operations management when it comes to the application of engineering systems to the industrial and commercial processes. The main purpose of this paper is to disentangle the role of the engineer in the value chain. In this context, it will go further in analyzing the key elements of value chain and any accrued benefits that come with use of engineers in the value chain management. Value Chain Analysis The inception of Value Chain is associated with Michael Porter. He gives his understanding to this concept using a model he referred to as; “Porter’s value chain model” (Sekhar, 2009: 115). This model evaluates the strategically vital activities in a firm that boost its competitive advantage. Such competitive advantage is usually achieved through the core competencies of the firm. According to Porter, a firm is defined by a set of processes and functions which he classified into five main activities; the inbound...
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...1. “Value chain analysis (VCA) is a process where a firm identifies its primary and support activities that add value to its final product and then analyze these activities to reduce costs or increase differentiation.” 2. “Value chain represents the internal activities a firm engages in when transforming inputs into outputs.” Understanding the tool VCA is a strategy tool used to analyze internal firm activities. Its goal is to recognize, which activities are the most valuable (i.e. are the source of cost or differentiation advantage) to the firm and which ones could be improved to provide competitive advantage. In other words, by looking into internal activities, the analysis reveals where a firm’s competitive advantages or disadvantages are. The firm that competes through differentiation advantage will try to perform its activities better than competitors would do. If it competes through cost advantage, it will try to perform internal activities at lower costs than competitors would do. When a company is capable of producing goods at lower costs than the market price or to provide superior products, it earns profits. M. Porter introduced the generic value chain model in 1985. Value chain represents all the internal activities a firm engages in to produce goods and services. VC is formed of primary activities that add value to the final product directly and support activities that add value indirectly. Below you can see the Porter’s VC model. Primary Activities | ...
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...Jon Haase Nov 1, 2009 China Logistics & Supply Chain Management CIMBA Professor Ning Shi Alibaba.com Case Write: A Consideration of a the Virtual Service Value Chain Abstract: The purely virtual and service providing nature of Alibaba.com’s business model requires they modify the traditional value chain model to reflect the customer base and service provided, and that there is no physical product moving through their logistics. Because of this, marketing & sales and customer service must be moved in the model to reflect their presence from before the service can begin through to the end of the transaction. Also, the concepts of inputs, operations, and outputs, need to reflect the service and its virtual nature. As Alibaba.com continues to grow with the Chinese economy, especially the increased internet usage of SMEs, and they monetize their customer base, Alaibab.com will continue its quest to becoming a world leading e-commerce business. What has made the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.com the world leader in creating and serving business-to-business relationships has been their unique ability to link suppliers and buyers around the world. Coinciding with their value proposition and business ideas has been their timing in the history of the economic growth of China that has served to fuel their incredible growth. Economic Considerations The timing for the emergence of Alibaba has perfectly coincided with the rapid growth in several important economic factors. • China’s...
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...driving the top management of Infosys to seek migration of the company up the value chain? Infosys is a highly respected, India-based information technology (IT) software service provider, established in July 1981. The ramp-up of the company has been particularly spectacular during the last several years, starting from 1995. The initial business model related to labor arbitrage and was based upon differential wage rates for IT professionals in India and the developed countries. The boom of the late 1990s, catalyzed by the Y2K-related problems, resulted in opportunities that the company capitalized upon. Today the company serves clients drawn from global 2000 companies. Based upon its strong ethical and principled approach, execution excellence, relentless quest for quality and customer satisfaction, the company had astounding financial success and became a darling of the stock markets both in India and the United States. Notwithstanding its successful track record, Infosys has over the last several years, proactively been applying itself to a fundamental question of identifying the drivers of success for the next 10 years. Infosys has been deeply concerned about leveraging its current strong position, to evolve into a much stronger company, so as to ensure continued growth and success in the long-term. Main drivers that have contributed to drive the top management of Infosys to move up the value chain are below: * International Competitiveness * Overseas Expansion ...
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...Value Chains Versus Supply Chains by Andrew Feller, Dr. Dan Shunk, and Dr. Tom Callarman Abstract The concept of a Value Chain has existed for twenty years but we find it still is an unclear concept. It has been suggested that the third generation supply chain is based on customer intimacy and is fully synchronized. In this paper, the authors discuss the need to relate the concepts of the value chain and the supply chain in a more comprehensive and integrative manner. We begin with a discussion of value and the development of the concept of value chain. We then discuss similarities and differences of the value chain and the supply chain, and conclude with suggestions regarding the need for synchronizing value and supply chains to optimize business performance. What is Value? The Value Chain concept was developed and popularized in 1985 by Michael Porter, in “Competitive Advantage,” (1) a seminal work on the implementation of competitive strategy to achieve superior business performance. Porter defined value as the amount buyers are willing to pay for what a firm provides, and he conceived the “value chain” as the combination of nine generic value added activities operating within a firm – activities that work together to provide value to customers. Porter linked up the value chains between firms to form what he called a Value System; however, in the present era of greater outsourcing and collaboration the linkage between multiple firms’ value creating processes has more commonly...
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...DB Forum 1 Adding Value through Supply Chain Management Dale Crowe Economic Theory of Adding Value through Supply Chain Management Young (2012) writes that supply chain management (SCM) is a function of collaborating firms working to improve operating efficiency and to leverage strategic positioning. In addition, Young references this function as not only the physical attributes of product distribution, but also to include related information, such as production or delivery status, and the capability to access such information. Such capabilities allow SCM to be an important link in fulfilling customer needs and providing value. Young adds that in the current customer-driven market, the perceived value of the entire relationship with a company has become most important to the customer; as the measurement of a company’s product and service qualities has progressed from internal quality assurance to external customer satisfaction to customer value. The complete SCM process and emphasis on added value is a reason customers choose one company’s product or service over another; as the entire range of product, services, and intangibles combined make up the perceived value of a company’s brand and image (Young, 2012). Customer value is important as it drives changes, improvements, and innovation. In a customer-driven market, companies need to differentiate themselves, as many cannot compete on price alone. Value-added offerings are a way that companies can separate themselves...
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...The article focuses on the main aspects of Value chain analysis. The activities entailed in the framework are discussed in detail, with respect to competitive strategies and value to the customer. The article includes tips for students and analysts on how to write a good Value chain analysis for a firm. Moreover, sources of findings information for value chain analysis have been discussed. The limitations of Value Chain analysis as a model have also been discussed. Introduction The value chain approach was developed by Michael Porter in the 1980s in his book “Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance” (Porter, 1985). The concept of value added, in the form of the value chain, can be utilised to develop an organisation’s sustainable competitive advantage in the business arena of the 21st C. All organisations consist of activities that link together to develop the value of the business, and together these activities form the organisation’s value chain. Such activities may include purchasing activities, manufacturing the products, distribution and marketing of the company’s products and activities (Lynch, 2003). The value chain framework has been used as a powerful analysis tool for the strategic planning of an organisation for nearly two decades. The aim of the value chain framework is to maximise value creation while minimising costs (www.wikipedia.org). Main aspects of Value Chain AnalysisValue chain analysis is a powerful tool for managers to identify...
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...Reconfiguring the higher education value chain Virendra Pathak and Kavita Pathak Management in Education 2010 24: 166 DOI: 10.1177/0892020610376791 The online version of this article can be found at: http://mie.sagepub.com/content/24/4/166 Published by: http://www.sagepublications.com On behalf of: British Educational Leadership, Management & Administration Society Additional services and information for Management in Education can be found at: Email Alerts: http://mie.sagepub.com/cgi/alerts Subscriptions: http://mie.sagepub.com/subscriptions Reprints: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.nav Permissions: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav Citations: http://mie.sagepub.com/content/24/4/166.refs.html >> Version of Record - Oct 6, 2010 What is This? Downloaded from mie.sagepub.com at Excelsior College on March 19, 2014 MiE Reconfiguring the higher education value chain Management in Education 24(4) 166–171 ª 2010 British Educational Leadership, Management & Administration Society (BELMAS) Reprints and permission: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0892020610376791 mie.sagepub.com Virendra Pathak Kavita Pathak Abstract Forces of demand and supply are changing the dynamics of the higher education market. Transformation of institutions of higher learning into competitive enterprise is underway. Higher education institutions are seemingly under intense pressure to create value and focus their efforts and...
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...Papers on Value chain analysis; Reports on Different Companies The article focuses on the main aspects of Value chain analysis. The activities entailed in the framework are discussed in detail, with respect to competitive strategies and value to the customer. The article includes tips for students and analysts on how to write a good Value chain analysis for a firm. Moreover, sources of findings information for value chain analysis have been discussed. The limitations of Value Chain analysis as a model have also been discussed. Introduction The value chain approach was developed by Michael Porter in the 1980s in his book “Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance” (Porter, 1985). The concept of value added, in the form of the value chain, can be utilised to develop an organisation’s sustainable competitive advantage in the business arena of the 21st C. All organisations consist of activities that link together to develop the value of the business, and together these activities form the organisation’s value chain. Such activities may include purchasing activities, manufacturing the products, distribution and marketing of the company’s products and activities (Lynch, 2003). The value chain framework has been used as a powerful analysis tool for the strategic planning of an organisation for nearly two decades. The aim of the value chain framework is to maximise value creation while minimising costs (www.wikipedia.org). Main aspects of Value Chain Analysis ...
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...Summary The concept of value chain has attracted considerable attention of managers and researchers. This report briefly presents the value chain in manufacturing industry and then explores the leadership roles of the engineer in the management of the value chain. Furthermore, this report analyzes the benefits of using an engineer in the value chain management and points out that the engineer is best suited to perform the value chain management role. Table of Contents Introduction 2 The Value Chain in manufacturing industry 2 Role of the Engineer in Value Chain 4 Main Management Actions of Value Chain 4 Leadership Role in the Value Chain Management 4 Benefits of Using an Engineer in Value Chain Management 5 Conclusion 6 References 7 Introduction The demands of the new economy caused by globalization have changed the focus of companies from internal efficiency to the creation of value in the extended enterprise, including their suppliers, alliance partners, distributors and customers. The concept of value chain has attracted a great deal of attention from managers and researchers. Porter (1985) described the value chain as a complex series of activities through which a product or service is designed, produced, marketed, delivered and supported and these activities coordinate the nexus between supply and demand. This report explains the leadership roles of the engineer in the value chain management and argues...
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...Value Chain Business 1_ Introduction: The concept and benefits of Value Chain Analysis in preparing business strategies: To survive in today's highly competitive business environment, any organization must achieve, at least temporarily, a competitive advantage. A low cost/price strategy: focuses on providing goods, services at a lower cost than the competition. This strategy requires as well a tight cost-control system, benefiting from economies of scale in production and experience curve effects. Differentiation strategies: The firm ability to offer products and services that are perceived by the customer as being superior and unique relative to those of its competitors like Coca-Cola in the soft drink industry...... A value chain can be described as the key activities engaged in by the organisation or industry.: Value chain analysis may benefit an organisation in a number of ways including: - Value chain framework: complements other recent initiatives like strategic cost management, which refers to the simultaneous focus on reducing costs and strengthening an organisation's strategic position. This commonly involves taking a longer-term view of cost management and decision making - Provides a foundation for strategic alliance decisions. A value chain framework serves as the foundation for considering decisions such as outsourcing of particular parts of the value chain and for considering the formation of strategic alliances with say a distributor. In this way, the...
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...Value chain analysis Value chain From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Popular Visualization The value chain, also known as value chain analysis, is a concept from business management that was first described and popularized by Michael Porter in his 1985 best-seller, Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance.[1] Contents[hide] * 1 Concept * 1.1 Activities * 2 Significance * 3 SCOR * 4 Value Reference Model * 5 References * 6 See also | [edit] Concept A value chain is a chain of activities for a firm operating in a specific industry. The business unit is the appropriate level for construction of a value chain, not the divisional level or corporate level. Products pass through all activities of the chain in order, and at each activity the product gains some value. The chain of activities gives the products more added value than the sum of added values of all activities. It is important not to mix the concept of the value chain with the costs occurring throughout the activities. A diamond cutter can be used as an example of the difference. The cutting activity may have a low cost, but the activity adds much of the value to the end product, since a rough diamond is significantly less valuable than a cut diamond. Typically, the described value chain and the documentation of processes, assessment and auditing of adherence to the process routines are at the core of the quality certification of the business...
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...• Definitions of the supply chain and supply chain management reflecting this broader scope is: The supply chain (SC) encompasses all activities associated with the flow and transformation of goods from the raw materials stage (extraction), through to the end user, as well as the associated information flows. Materials and information flow both up and down the supply chain. Supply chain management (SCM) is the integration of these activities, through improved supply chain relationships, to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. After careful study of the various definitions being offered, Mentzer et al. propose the broad and rather general definition as follows: Supply chain management is defined as the systematic, strategic coordination of the traditional business functions and the tactics across these business functions within a particular company and across businesses within the supply chain, for the purposes of improving the long-term performance of the individual companies and the supply chain as a whole. • Example on a supply chain Business logistics management and supply chain management are difficult to be separate and they have the same mission or goals, which is getting right goods in the right place at the right time with the desired condition. A Model of Supply Chain Management Source: Mentzer et al., “Defining Supply Chain Management,” Journal of Business Logistics, Vol. 22, No. 2 (2001), It is difficult, in a practical way, to...
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...co.uk How Supply Chains Create Shareholder Value by Dr. David Lascelles, Supply Chain Planning UK Limited S upply chain management is no longer a boring Cinderella of the business world. Not since the mid-nineties when enterprises as diverse as Amazon, Cemex, Cisco Systems, Dell Computers and Zara started to create dominant competitive positions, build huge market capitalisations and delight their shareholders through the brilliant management of their supply chains. No, supply chain management has become a hot topic in boardrooms worldwide. The case histories of Internet retailer, Amazon; web systems builder, Cisco; PC giant, Dell; and Spanish fashion retailer, Zara are well documented. But Cemex, a Mexican cement supplier? Well, you don’t need to be in hi-tech or high fashion to reap the benefits of supply chain excellence. The effects can be just as dramatic for a commodity supplier. As a result of its supply chain performance improvement efforts, Cemex enjoys the highest value-to-sales ratio of the world’s six largest cement manufacturers. These enterprises represent just the tip of the iceberg. More than one study indicates that superior performing supply chains increase free cash flows – the key driver of shareholder value – by up to 20% on average. Supply chain excellence is a crucial engine of economic growth. And yet, even though it represents one of the most exciting opportunities to create value and build market share, the supply chain remains one of the most...
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