...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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...I got an opportunity to join a consulting firm as partner. My mandate was simply “to look after” our thirty or more consultants. Our consultants had a combination of skill sets ranging from business analysts, project managers and software developers. Their level of experience was also varying with a combination of junior, intermediate and senior resources. The majority of our consultants were contracted to a client, an organisation in the utilities industry. I immediately setup one on one meeting’s with each of the consultants. The purpose of these meetings was to get to know my team better but more importantly to understand what the burning issues in the environment were. The feedback I received from the initial meetings with my team highlighted two important issues for me. There was no formal performance measurement process in place; the consultants felt that their salary increases were at the discretion of the management of the consulting firm. They felt that their line managers at the client did not contribute towards giving feedback on their performance which would be a fair measure of their overall performance. The second issue that was raised was that junior resources felt they did not get enough support from the organisation before being deployed at the client sites, “the environment was tough and they were simply thrown into the deep-end”, they said. The management team had given me budget to hire additional support staff if the need arose. Without wasting any time...
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...From the early days of clay tokens to the invention of the abacus, accounting is as old as civilization. It wasn’t until the commercial revolution at the end of the dark ages that double-entry bookkeeping came into existence. (It began in the Venice/Florence area in Italy.) A hundred years later, Luca Pacioli, a Franciscan monk, wrote a math book that suggested merchants needed three things: sufficient cash or credit, an accounting system, and a good bookkeeper. Today accounting is commonly offered as a major of study. What do you, as a prospective accounting major, need to know about the field and the technological advances in accounting? What is commonly known today as “cost accounting” (defined as “The discipline of estimating, tracking and controlling product and service costs”) didn’t start until the late 18th century, and was spawned by an unlikely source—a world famous potter. Josiah Wedgwood was a highly successful potter when a depression hit, and he discovered that not only were his clerks ignoring much needed paperwork, they were also stealing money hand over fist. He took the time to examine the books in detail, noting inaccuracies and becoming aware of the importance of calculating overhead into the costs of his pottery. He hired a new clerk and began weekly accounting reviews, and according to historians, the concepts of “economies of scale” and “sunk costs” were discovered. He changed the prices of his pottery to reflect the influence of demand, creating both...
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...Internal Control – Letter to Jerry Mays ACC557: Financial Accounting Date: May 7, 2011 Jerry Mays Owner Manhattan Company 25 W 39th Street New York, NY 10018 Dear Mr. Mays: Thank you for being such a great host last week while I was auditing your internal controls related to mail cash receipts. It was a pleasure meeting your entire staff and I am extremely grateful that you freed up your employees during my visit so that I could sit down with them and get a better understanding of your current process. After spending last week reviewing your processes, I would like to identify some weaknesses I found in your internal control processes, as well as recommend some changes that I feel could help strengthen and secure these processes. However, I first want to commend you on having a process in place to promptly endorse all incoming cash receipts with “For Deposit Only” stamp. This internal control helps to ensure that the funds must be deposited into the company’s bank account. The first weakness I found was that the person opening the mail does not prepare a list of the incoming checks. It is very important to have documentation procedures in place so that you can track the checks at any time. My recommendation would be to utilize a simple cash receipts schedule like the one below, so that you can record each payment as it is opened and stamped for deposit. Croix, Marais, and Kale - CPA's | | | | | Cash Receipts | | | | | | 5/7/11 | | | |...
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...1. What are the key elements of Loctite’s value proposition? Name three of these elements and briefly explain why you consider them most important. (10 marks) An element that should be extremely important to Loctite is their brand imaging. The company has identified through a survey that they should not confuse “who do you go to first” with “who do you buy from”. They also identified that customers are likely to go to them first although they might not be the supplier of the customer’s final choice. There is great value in being the first supplier that a customer goes to. This means that they are recognized as the leaders in the industry and, if they managed their sales during those first interactions, could be the first and only choice of many consumers. When customers are in the industry of Loctite products they think Loctite first. Loyal users of the products were willing to pay a little extra for the Loctite brand because they knew that Loctite would ensure that the product would work. Another element of importance to Loctite’s value proposition is the quality of product being offered. This aligns with their brand imaging as well. They are known for quality product because they put out a high quality product. When placed against their competition, Loctite products would always be considered the best among its competition. The product worked, was dependable and got the job done for consumers. They put products that...
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...An entrepreneurial culture within an organization means having a culture that cultivates behaviors & values and a system that fosters creativity and innovation. “Innovation is the development of new values through solutions that meet new needs, inarticulate needs, or old customer and market needs in value adding new ways.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizational_culture. This culture will sponsor an individual’s need for creativity and higher aspirations. Informing and educating all new employees as they are brought into the fold will foster an environment to create new or improved systems, enhanced products and a more competitive place in the market. Entrepreneurial organizations seek opportunities for innovation: 1. New Products: When a company supports and encourages an innovative environment it tends to lead to new ideas, products and services. These can be tangible or intangible but both will lead to the generation or development of something new. A company can have a research and development department or do a SWOT analysis or consumer marketing to generate new ideas. 2. Improves efficiency: A company when efficient reduces costs or improves their services. A company’s primary goal is to make money. When efficient a company can perform the same objective or end product for less money, time or labor by producing less waste, expense and unnecessary effort. Finding new innovative ways to be efficient can increase profitability and productivity. 3. Product...
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...been quite a problematic task for managers but deciding the best time to make these changes is often the most difficult. One of the first signs that a change is necessary is when the company’s industry is rapidly growing. It is essential for companies to adapt to these changes in order to stay in the market competitive. Having unhappy customers is also a sign that a change is needed. Customers often create new demand for newly launched types of products and services and it is the company’s responsibility to provide opportunities to meet these needs. Moreover, a strong economy generates an increase in demand for products and services which means that the company must consider expanding and this change might involve increasing staff and adding new facilities. On the contrary, a weak economy can create financial struggles and sometimes a company finds itself needing to cut expenses, increase low-cost marketing or steering the business in a different direction. Oftentimes, a company chooses to change their processes internally in order to maximize their resources even when business is going well. The Global Business Services (GBS) at Procter and Gamble (P&G) were achieving its goals and keeping costs lower to the company. Still, P& G found itself wondering if investing in this sector of the company was a smart use of its resources. A change of focus and strategies were both motivating factors for the organization. 2) How would you...
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...Case Study I: Chery Automobile Company Situation Analysis Chery Automobile Company, an inexpensive car manufacturer attempt to expand its capacity and enter into a developed country with an expectation to be strong enough to compete internationally and become a global car maker. SWOT Analysis |Strengths |Weaknesses | | | | |Inexpensive car |Un qualified workforce in middle management | |Achieve low cost strategy |Sales satisfaction and customer service are below the industry | |Partner with a global automobile company like Chrysler |standard | |Strong relationship with suppliers |Imitation rather than Innovation | |Strong position in domestic market | | |Opportunities |Threats | | | ...
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...success in their life. Some people pursue a career; some bury themselves in academics, while others involve themselves into family life. Life here on Earth is of a limited duration, and we have one opportunity to make of it what we will. This paper offers some simple, but constructive ways of achieving success in your endeavors, whatever they may be. Success can be defined objectively. Hard work is noted as one of the important keys to achieving success, in addition to passion, persistence, practicing for excellence, focus, self-drive to others, adding value to society, and having good ideas. The path to success is included in the details of ultimate achievement that will fulfill a worthwhile goal and the actions that are taken to pursue it. Success is uniquely personal. It is about achieving goals and feeling good about who you are. Your personal definition of success begins with knowing what matters to you. When you know what you value, you can begin to define what success would mean in your own life. Writing down the things that are important to you-the things that make life worthwhile for you-is an excellent way to make the concept of success more concrete. The first step to success is to understand what success means to you, and take steps to achieve your goal. Achieving success is simply a matter of having a few good habits and sticking to some basic principles. Honesty, fairness, integrity, and responsibility are just a few. There are times when it seems hard to live by...
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...1 Analysis of Vision and Mission Strategy Management Contents 1.ICICI BANK ............................................................................................................................................4 Analysis of Vision: ...............................................................................................................................4 2.BANK OF INDIA.....................................................................................................................................4 Analysis of Mission..............................................................................................................................4 3.CANARA BANK......................................................................................................................................4 Analysis of Vision ................................................................................................................................4 Analysis of Mission..............................................................................................................................4 4.GAIL......................................................................................................................................................5 Analysis of Vision ................................................................................................................................5 5.Infosys................................
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...Fojtasek, Jeff Fronterhouse, and Patrick McGee in 1999. It is a Leverage Buyout Firm that targets companies with enterprise values between $50 and $250 million, solid management, a well-defined niche and is often close to the Brazos’ Dallas home. Location is an essential part of Brazos cooperate strategic management; according to Patrick McGee Texas is the 11th largest stand alone economy in the world and has the third largest universe of public and privately held mid-market companies in the US. In addition, it is very underserved with only a dozen LBO groups, most of which were energy specific. In 2002, Brazos was contacted by an investment banker about a deal with Cheddar’s Inc., which had years earlier failed to reach a deal with a buyout firm in New York. Initially hesitant because of the firm’s lack of knowledge in the restaurant industry, Fojtasek was intrigued during a meeting with CEO and cofounder of Cheddar’s Aubrey Good. Cheddar’s had experienced success since it opened in 1978 and was looking for a partner to help with succession plans and capital for expansion and to buyout original investors. By the time they signed the deal in April 2003, the company had grown to 42 restaurants in thirteen states. Of those, eighteen were company owned and balanced franchised. In the casual dining industry Cheddar’s had carved a unique niche. The quality and value of its food created remarkable customer loyalty, with over 94 percent repeat patronage. Within ten months of its acquisition...
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...Personal Values According to the article written by Dennis Jaffe, & Cynthia Scott, CEO Robert Haas noted his philosophy in an interview in Harvard Business Review: "We've learned...that the soft stuff and the hard stuff are becoming increasingly intertwined. A company's values-what it stands for, what its people believe in-are crucial to its competitive success. Indeed, values drive the business"(1). “Managers' attitudes and behaviors are built upon their personal value systems (PVS), Knowledge about the structure of management's PVS assists in understanding the attributes of corporate decision making”(2). In the past managers use to tell employees what to do and stand over them to make sure they did what they were told. Today managers are in a position in which they have to guide, train, and support, motivate, and couch employees (3). Because of this role managers have, their values play an important part in leading the team to accomplish the values expected from the company and their customers. In this paper the author will identify her values as determined by the Williams Institute Ethics Awareness Inventory self-assessment, how these values align with the values of Kudler Fine Foods, and how this would affect her performance as the manager of this organization. My Values According to Williams Institute Ethics Awareness Inventory self-assessment, this authors Ethical Profile is most closely aligned with obligation and least closely aligned with results. This...
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...external danger, while a weakness is an internal vulnerability. A threat is another organization’s ability to negatively impact your company’s ability to achieve its goals. For example, another company may have just announced the launch of a new product that performs better and costs less than your product does, thus making it difficult for your company to achieve its desired sales targets. We see this frequently in the automobile industry, less expensive car brands are now adding features to make their cars comparable to luxury brands. An example of a weakness within a company might be that little research and development funds are available, making upgrades to products more difficult to match your competitor’s new product. By knowing the difference in strengths and opportunities, we can distinguish between an organizational strength and an organizational opportunity to an organization. Strengths are a company’s capabilities and resources that allow it to engage in activities to generate economic value and at times gain a competitive advantage. Strengths of a company can be its ability to create unique products, to provide high-level customer service, or to have a presence in multiple retail markets. Opportunities provide the organization with a chance to improve its performance and its competitive advantage. The best example of opportunities for companies would be the Internet. The Internet has provided numerous opportunities for companies to expand their product sales. ...
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...effort 3. We want exactly what we need to solve our problem, not substitutive products or made-up solutions 4. We want the problems solved where we need 5. We want the problems solved when we need However the main principle is that firms must reduce the number of problems we have to solve, it means that the number of decisions the customer have to make should be reduced. The biggest mistake is that companies usually overlook the consumer’s total experience of finding, obtaining, installing, maintaining upgrading and disposing of the products they need to solve their problem. Marrying lean provision and lean consumption Executives use to meet in conference rooms or offices, but they need to understand that the real value is only created in what Japanese call “gemba”, which is the place in the factory where the real work is done. Even the consumers have their own “gemba”, it’s the path of decisions, but even of real actions they have to follow to reach the solution to their problem. What executives...
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...Organizational culture is about the values, principles, behavior and attitudes that the leaders act and advice is trying to affect the employees at the same way. As long as the policies permeate into the workplace and the employees get used to it, it means that what everyone is doing is the same, sharing the same belief and having the same aim as well in order to build up the organization’s essential being and assumption. Organizational culture can be formed by three parts which is behavior, values and beliefs and assumptions. Yet, heroes, stories and slogans have also played the important roles in this three parts. To begin with, behavior is about what kind of actions that people are taking. Before using policies to limit employees’ action, the must be two important parts which is heroes and stories to influence workers’ behavior first. For example, the founder of Facebook- Mark Zuckerberg, the first aim of creating the Facebook was just wanted to provide a friends-making-platform for the students. So, we can see that Facebook becomes the most popular friends-making website is an accident. As the founder and mainly users of Facebook are teenagers, the employees must be creative and open minded in order to keep updating, changing and giving surprises so as what the founder did. On the other hand, policies can affect the employees’ action directly. For instance, every chain companies have their own dress code for the employees to follow, there are rules that workers must...
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