...A problem and decision analysis of the HBR Clayton Industries, Inc. Case | SALIAN.IN Page 1 of 4 SALIAN.IN Having Solemnly Resolved. • Business ◦ Cases • Governance ◦ Rights & Duties • Hobby ◦ Astronomy • Money ◦ Finance • Self ◦ Personal Productivity A problem and decision analysis of the HBR Clayton Industries, Inc. Case Posted by Pranab Salian on 12/29/11 • Categorized as Cases This case is about the challenges faced by Peter Arnell, who has taken over the Italian subsidiary of Clayton Industries, a sixty-year-old U.S.-based firm in the HVAC industry. The short analysis I present is one of many possible readings of this case, and specifically covers existing problems and potential decision options. The case is available from the Harvard Business Review website. Problem Analysis The key business issue facing Clayton in late 2009 is that its Italian subsidiary, Clayton SpA, has been making heavy operational losses for three years now, to the tune of over $1 million USD a month. While these losses have been exacerbated due to a general global recession which has reduced http://www.salian.in/business/cases/problem-decision-analysis-hbr-clayton-industries-case 8/25/2013 A problem and decision analysis of the HBR Clayton Industries, Inc. Case | SALIAN.IN Page 2 of 4 sales (which are down by 19%), their root cause lies in the fact that since 2001, Simonne Buis had been making organizational changes, and trying to create a more integrated European organization...
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...other student’s work or from any other source except where due acknowledgment is made explicitly in the text, nor has any part been written for me by another person. Student’s Signature : _Nishant_kumar______ Evaluator’s comments: _____________________________________________________________________ Marks obtained : ___________ out of ______________________ REPORT ON CLAYTON INDUSTRIES CASE PETER ARNELL, COUNTRY MANAGER FOR ITALY OBJECTIVE The purpose of this report is to analyze the daunting challenges faced by Clayton SpA,the Italian subsidiary of US based Clayton Industries Inc. Peter Arnell has just taken charge of the Clayton SpA to turn around the current loss making status of the company losing around $1 million a month after decades of solid returns. Contents A brief introduction of Clayton Industries and their business operations............................................................................................................................ 3 Description of Proble.......................................................................................................... 3 Evaluation of alternatives...
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... Attributes of Successful and Unsuccessful Acquisitions of US Firms^ Michael Hitt,* Jeffrey Harrison,^ R. Duane Ireland* arid Aleta Best§ *Lowry Mays College of Business Administration, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-4221, •College of Business Administration, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, 'Hankamer School of Business, Baylor University, Waco, TX 76798-8004, and ^College of Business and Industry, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, North Dartmouth, MA 02747, USA Acquisitive growth strategies continue to be popular, in spite of increasing evidence that they often do not enhance the financial performance of acquiring firms and may adversely affect innovation. However, some acquisitions are associated with both increases in financial performance and a strengthened commitment to R&D while others experience decreases in both. Multiple theories have been offered to explain acquisitions and their outcomes, but few have received strong empirical support. This paper describes a multiple rater, multiple-case study of acquisitions that had highly favourable outcomes and others that experienced highly unfavourable outcomes. All twelve of the high performing acquisitions studied were found to exhibit the dual characteristics offiriendlinessduring acquisition negotiations and resource complementarities between the two firms. Additionally, debt played an important role in the success (low to moderate debt) or lack of success (high or extraordinary...
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...Research Publication Date: 12 November 2010 ID Number: G00208603 Case Study for Supply Chain Leaders: Dell's Transformative Journey Through Supply Chain Segmentation Matthew Davis Faced with ever-changing customer needs, product commoditization, unique global requirements and new, low-cost competitors, Dell embarked on a three-year journey to segment its supply chain response capabilities. The company designed its supply chains based on a mix of cost optimization, delivery speed and product choices that customers value, while aligning internally across all functions to execute against this vision. Key Findings Dell's market and business strategies changed, requiring the company to move from a single supply chain to a customer segmentation supply chain approach. A unified, cross-functional business strategy with collaborative, decision-making processes across sales, marketing, product design, finance and supply chain is essential for segmentation. Segmentation is enabled by a cost-to-serve (CTS) methodology to dynamically allocate costs to business decisions, highlight net profitability and drive the right actions for each supply chain. Supply chain segmentation is a multiyear journey enabled by the development and alignment of organizational skills to the needs of the journey's different phases. Recommendations Start with segmentation of your company's customers and channels to understand the different demand rhythms and cycles. Focus on decreasing...
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...Antitrust September 17, 2009 Tonight’s Agenda Role Call Review of Last Week, Current Events Antitrust Case Study: DeBeers Wrap Up Review of Last Week “People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and division, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices.” -- Adam Smith “Perfectly Competitive Market” Consumers well-served. Receive goods at lowest price possible. Society able to choose among competing good with maximum efficiency. Firms that do not produce what consumers want at a fair price are quickly eliminated. Highly restrictive model applying stringent standards. Antitrust Perfect competition model is essentially static. Real world markets are extremely dynamic. Perfect competition model is unsuitable as a benchmark. Antitrust Laws Promote a competitive economy by prohibiting actions that restrain, or are likely to restrain, competition and by restricting the forms of market structure that are allowable. Limit the activities of firms that have legally obtained monopoly power. Intended to provide a general statutory framework to give the Justice Department, the FTC, and the courts wide discretion in interpreting and applying them. The Development of Antitrust Laws Trust was a device for pyramiding control over several operating companies. The Sherman Antitrust Act (1890)...
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...Unit One – Case Analysis: Apple, inc. Strategic Human Resources Management Unit One – Case Analysis The intended goal of this paper is to explain strategic management and why it is crucial to the success of an organization in meeting its goals and mission. The focus will be on the case study provided by the Harvard Business School on the company Apple, Inc. from the year 2008. I will give a brief overview of the case and identify issues or problems therein. Alternate solutions to solve the problems Apple, Inc. faces will be identified. The best solution to permanently resolve these issues and problems and an implementation plan will be outlined. The computer circuit board, named Apple I, created in a garage on April Fools’ Day 1976 was the beginning of Apple, Inc. Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and A. C. Markkula Jr., the creators, became the industry leaders in 4 years, finally launching their IPO in 1980. Since its inception, Apple has fought to continually and steadily increase its market share and profits worldwide. Technical innovation has been no problem for this company with its numerous devices available. Their competition from Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Acer, and others and trying to compete made the company falter. According to Slind and Yoffie, Hewlett-Packard led the market share with 18.8% and Apple followed with a mere 2.6% in 2007 (2008, pg. 21). But after some hard work and diligence on Jobs’ end, Apple once again began to flourish. One obvious problem for...
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...Research Publication Date: 12 November 2010 ID Number: G00208603 Case Study for Supply Chain Leaders: Dell's Transformative Journey Through Supply Chain Segmentation Matthew Davis Faced with ever-changing customer needs, product commoditization, unique global requirements and new, low-cost competitors, Dell embarked on a three-year journey to segment its supply chain response capabilities. The company designed its supply chains based on a mix of cost optimization, delivery speed and product choices that customers value, while aligning internally across all functions to execute against this vision. Key Findings Dell's market and business strategies changed, requiring the company to move from a single supply chain to a customer segmentation supply chain approach. A unified, cross-functional business strategy with collaborative, decision-making processes across sales, marketing, product design, finance and supply chain is essential for segmentation. Segmentation is enabled by a cost-to-serve (CTS) methodology to dynamically allocate costs to business decisions, highlight net profitability and drive the right actions for each supply chain. Supply chain segmentation is a multiyear journey enabled by the development and alignment of organizational skills to the needs of the journey's different phases. Recommendations Start with segmentation of your company's customers and channels to understand the different demand rhythms and cycles. Focus on decreasing the time required...
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...Allied Office Products yesterday, I went to Monash Clayton for a seminar, Cover Letter Seminar, just for 1 hour, but I think it was useful. after this semester, i need to go for a work...there will be some similar seminars held on Monash Clayton in the next few weeks. i will go to there. after the seminar, i went home, but I totally lost in the Monash Clayton, becasue it is so huge...I study in Monash Caulfield, just few buildings in there. But Monash Clayton...I think 70 buildings in there...it took me 20 minutes to find the bus loop... next, I put on some old assignment, Advanced Managment Accouting. there were a lot of case study when I learned that unit, but now, the teacher was changed, so the assignment was changed... anyway, the requirements: 1. Conduct a SWOT analysis 2. Using the information in the text and in Exhibit 5, calculate ‘ABC’ based service costs for the TFC business. 3. Using your new costing system, calculate distribution services costs for ‘Customer A’ and ‘Customer B’. 4. What inferences do you draw about the profitability of these two customers? (hint: you can compare the ‘old’ method to the ‘abc’ method using customer profitability analysis in a table format; you can show this by: Sales less Product Costs less Service Fees = Gross Profit You can also show Gross Profit as a % 5. Should TFC implement the SBP pricing system? Give reasons. 6. What managerial advice do you have for Allied about the Total For Control (TFC) business? How...
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... The study of government regulation and the competitive environment for business is relevant to all those who study business. All business candidates need to understand how the competitive environment will impact their employers and businesses. Task: Write an essay (suggested length of 2–3 pages) that describes the relationship between regulation and market structures and how regulation affects the market. A. Define industrial (i.e., economic) regulation. Industrial Regulation happens when government commissions regulate the rates or prices of natural monopolies. 1. Explain why industrial regulation exists. In a market structure of perfect competition industrial regulation is not required because there is a lot of competition and this encourages competing industries to make good use of resources, also the price of their goods are determined by the price the market will bear and consumers benefit. Whereas in a monopolistic competition there exists a market structure that could allow competitive monopolies, duopolies, oligopolies, and monopolies to charge higher than competitive prices or the use inefficient use of resources and limited supplies, creating an environment that is not conducive to the benefit of the consumer. . (McConnell, Brue & Flynn, 2012) 2. Explain how industrial regulation affects the market. Industrial regulation affects the market by keeping prices for natural monopolies such as public utility companies economical. In the cases where...
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...Introduction : A Chief Operating Officer (or Chief Operations Officer; COO) or Director of Operations (or Operations Director) can be one of the highest-ranking executives in an organization and comprises part of the "C-Suite". The COO is responsible for the daily operation of the company,[1] and routinely reports to the highest ranking executive, usually the Chief Executive Officer (CEO).[2] The COO may also carry the title of President which makes him or her the clear number-two in command at the firm, especially if the highest ranking executive is the Chairman and CEO. Contents * 1 Responsibilities and similar titles * 1.1 Corporate president * 1.2 Current situation * 2 Roles and functions * 2.1 COO as successor * 3 Relationship with CEO * 4 Relationship with board of directors * 5 Failure in the COO role * 6 Experts and research * 7 List of notable COOs * 7.1 Current * 8 References * 9 Further reading | Responsibilities and similar titles Unlike other C-suite positions, which tend to be defined according to commonly designated responsibilities across most companies, the COO job tends to be defined in relation to the specific CEO with whom he/she works, given the close working relationship of these two individuals.[3] In many ways, the selection of a COO is similar to the selection of a Vice President of the United States: the role (including the power and responsibilities therein) can vary dramatically, depending on the style and...
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...determines the long term performance of a business and as such is the role of the senior executive members to refine but the responsibility of all to roll out. Included in the process is comprehensive environmental scanning, strategy formulation (strategic planning), strategy implementation, and monitoring. Students in this course will review how the strategic decision makers within an organisation first identify, define and analyse commercial problems and then develop practical and ethical solutions. It provides a practical guide for, and an initial experience in, strategy formulation and strategic management. Class time will be largely spent in lecture, discussion, case studies and experiential exercises. Students will learn from the theoretical literature, instructor, case studies, videos, research presentations, and from each other. The course materials explain and describe the different aspects, challenges, and stages of strategic management simply and clearly. Goals of the Course To examine and understand the nature and role of strategy, strategic management and strategic leadership within an organization. Learning Outcomes 1. To develop skills in strategic analysis, development and implementation. 2. To explore competing rationales relating to the nature and purpose of business. 3. To critically review the received wisdom on strategic management practice. 4. To review strategic decision-making practises in business. 5. To further...
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...MARKETING 480 MAJOR CORPORATION PROFILE Volkswagen Group: Marketing Strategy Analysis and Profile Andrew Clayton, Brennen Charles, Brandon Ferrell and Whitney Wilcher MKG 480 Marketing Management Ball State University Muncie, IN 47306 Professor John Vann Dec. 9, 2011 TABLE OF CONTENTS Background ………………………….………………………………………………………………………. 3 Product Market Matrix …………….………………………………………………………………………. 4 Values ………….……………………………….……………………………………………………………. 8 Mission Statement…….….…………………….…………………………………………………..………. 12 Objectives …….….….………………….……………………………………………………………..……. 13 Porter’s Five Forces …..……………….……………………………………………………………..……. 15 Sustainability …..…………...………….……………………………………………………………..……. 20 Boston Consulting Group Growth/Share Matrix ……………...…………………………………..……. 25 Directional Policy Matrix ……………...…………………………...………………………………..……. 31 Positioning ………………………….…...…………………………...………………………………..……. 34 Marketing Mix ……………………..…...…………………………...………………………………..……. 38 References ……………………..…..........…………………………...………………………………..……. 43 2 BACKGROUND Volkswagen group is a automotive conglomerate consisting of several brands of vehicles for a range of customer groups at a range of prices. It is one of the top automotive manufacturer’s in the world and is the top automotive manufacturer in Europe (Volkswagen, 2011a). Beginning in the late 1930s, Volkswagen created tanks and driving equipment for Nazi Germany during World War II. After the war, Great Britain had the choice to either...
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...stakeholder impact, and the company’s internal policies related to preventing environmental damage. The thesis of this research essay is that Duke Energy did not only suffer financial loss due to being made to pay a fine for environmental damage, but also the company’s actions negatively affected its reputation and share price. Therefore, companies should carry out ethical practices and risk assessments to best serve the needs of all stakeholders. BACKGROUND INFORMATION In February, 2014, Duke Energy released a high amount of coal ash into the Dan River, Rockingham County, N.C., which violates the Clean Water Act (CWA) (1972). The CWA is a waste-water and pollution reduction programs, setting guidelines and regulatory standards for different industries (EPA). Specifically, The CWA of 1972, amended in 2002, states that “it is the national policy that the discharge of toxic pollutants in toxic amounts be prohibited” (Clean Water Act, SEC. 101.3). Duke Energy was found guilty on nine misdemeanor violations (Smith) and was ordered to pay compensation. As a result, Duke Energy’s leadership agreed to pay $102.2 million for the damages caused, and the CEO confirmed that the company took responsibility for its actions and is intending to implement safety and risk assessment guidelines in order to avoid future incidents (Smith). While this may seem like a sincere gesture, it is important to note that the coal ash spill at Dan River was not an isolated incident. According to Smith...
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...inferior goods and services and (3) suppressing innovation, as compared with a competitive situation (i.e., the existence of numerous, competing suppliers of the good or service).[1] In theory, the Government or State could collect the excess profits that the company obtained through taxes and then redistribute it among the buyers of the product. However, this redistribution is usually not feasible. It is difficult to ascertain what proportion of the profits of an enterprise is attributable to monopoly power and it is even more difficult to locate all buyers and reimburse them an amount proportional to their purchases. How can society, then, limit the market power and prevent the anti-competitively use of it? In the case of a natural monopoly, i.e. an electricity/power company, the solution is a direct regulation of the price. But more generally, the solution is to prevent companies from acquiring excessive market power and limit the use of that power if they already have it. In the United States, the regulation is made by the antitrust laws: a set of laws and regulations to promote competition in the economy by banning everything that...
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...applied to their systems of conversion. The focus of this paper is not to identify evidence of the negative impacts realized because of fossil fuel use, in order to prove these problems are in fact produced. Confirmation has been granted through several other research projects, in regards to those problems and aspects included within the scope of this research project. As for those problems or related aspects excluded in the scope of this project, debate does exists; along with there being variations present in the range of impacts believed to be associated with fossil fuel use. That is, the limits of my research were configured according to the impacts that are evident regardless of opposing viewpoints and variations in perspective. The study will not include research that supports that viable alternative, renewable energy sources are available either. This would be redundant as well considering the practical applications in use throughout the world, diverting any debate that may exist to the alternative sources in theory. Specifically, the three main impacts that define the environmental issue of my focus include: the economic and social instability that exists in our global economy from the highly centralized energy sector and the nonrenewable quality of these resources; the contributions to the deterioration of the sustainability of our environment; the negatively effects on human health produced from the pollution created. The focal...
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