...generally define leadership as a person's capacity to guide or direct others. Leaders like Starbucks chief executive officer Howard Schultz are known for a variety of attributes including their charisma and the ability to inspire others to follow his or her suggested course of action even during times of crisis. The method a leader chooses has a significant effect on the followers' perceptions and willingness to support the proposed approach. Two types of leadership approaches will be discussed. These two types of leadership approaches help inspire followers through words, ideas, and behaviors. The mere presence of a leader encourages people, especially when providing the support and the foundation leaders provide. According to the article Conscience in a Cup of Coffee, Howard Schultz's leadership style makes employees feel like partners, not hourly workers. He genuinely cares about employees, and seeks to build connections between...
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...Numerous economic studies have affirmed that different industries can sustain different level of profitability; part of this difference is explained by industry structure. Michael Porter provided a framework that models an industry as being influenced by five forces. A strategic business manager seeking to develop an edge over rival firms can use this model to better understand the industry context in which the firm operates. In this paper I will use the five force model, as a Coca-Cola Company Business Manager to understand the Cola industry and try and develop an edge over rival firms. We will discuss each of the models individually and develop an understanding of where Coca Cola stands. Threat of New Entrants: Penetrating the soft drink industry is hard because of the established name of Coca-Cola and the other following reasons: Brand Image: Coca Cola invests enormous amount of money in marketing and advertising which has led to customer loyalty all over the world. People might not recognize Bill Gates or Warren Buffett if they are on a television show, but even a child who cannot read will recognize Coca Cola on television. We ran into a similar situation in the class room when the professor recognized a can of Coca Cola without even looking at the name printed on it. This makes it next to impossible for a new entrant to get in the market and compete with Coca Cola. Advertising: As mentioned above Coca Cola spend enormous amount of money on marketing and advertising,...
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...Running Head: ETHICAL ISSUES IN BUSINESS 1 Ethical Issues in Business Dxxxxxx Student ID: 000XXXXX WGU 04/22/13 ETHICAL ISSUES IN BUSINESS 2 Abstract This paper examines social responsibility issues within Company Q and offers ideas for areas of improvement. ETHICAL ISSUES IN BUSINESS 3 Corporate social responsibility is a double edged sward. On one edge is the corporation’s social responsibility to its shareholders, employees and suppliers to avoid business activities that reduce the financial success of the company. On the other edge is the public good. (Duff) Companies are often torn between the need to be competitive and successful and the expectation to be socially responsible. A company that is socially responsible conducts business ethically and is philanthropic while remaining profitable. Economic responsibilities include producing desired, quality goods and services at a reasonable price, while providing profits for shareholders. Companies also have legal responsibilities to comply with all laws and regulations. Lastly, successful companies support philanthropic activities and organizations that promote human welfare and goodwill in the communities they serve. Company Q is making business decisions based solely on profit. Their current attitude toward social responsibility is affecting their profitability and damaging the community’s perception of their business. Company Q is attempting...
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...its overall shopping experience, according to ConsumerReports.org. This is not an easy feat, considering they opened their doors in 1983, only selling to small businesses. There are numerous reasons why Costco has become a huge phenomenon amongst shoppers; these eight warehouse trends have been the reason for their success. While Costco has seen more profit through these trends, the warehouse industry is growing. Firstly, warehouses are striving to become more environmentally friendly and customers have gained notice of this. Since this is a national trend, it boasts their appearance as a customer friendly store. Secondly, Warehouses have expanded their stores to be more competitive in the marketplace. This is due to the growing number of these types of stores, and their desire to have a competitive edge on the market through location. Thirdly, this industry is striving to reduce inventory shrinkage due to the large sum of goods being sold. Fourthly, they strive to carry more perishable goods in the warehouse; concentration on food and groceries as health trends and eating at home continue in the U.S. Fifthly, these warehouses are putting an immense amount of research into improving their...
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...Wednesday April 18th, 2012 BUS 800, Section 131 Professor: Jim Diodati Individual Case Assignment Turnitin ID# 243102298 Joseph Nicosia 500198044 TABLE OF CONTENTS Strategic Recommendations 3 Appendix A: Industrial Analysis 6 B: PEST Analysis 6 C: Key Driving Forces 7 D: Porter’s Five Forces Analysis 7 E: Strategic Group Map 7 F: Key Strategic Factors 8 G: Competitor Analysis 8 H: Attractiveness of Industry 8 I: Mission and Vision Statement 8 J: Value Chain 9 K: Financial Analysis 9 L: SWOT Analysis 10 M: Issues 10 N: Rationale for Issues 10 O: Execution Strategies 10 Strategic Recommendations Issues: As one thoroughly analyzes the Loblaw’s Companies Ltd. it is identified that Loblaw’s success is determined by their willingness to serve their customers with high quality products at a level of customer satisfaction at every location. Loblaw’s has transformed the persona of a general grocery store to a superstore with all the necessities for their customers. With such drastic changes and new implementations Loblaw’s success in Canada is correlated to their innovated ways to attract their customers. But there is always room for improvement, especially in a market where new entrants are low but large companies can overwhelm. There are three major issues that Loblaw’s can address to further succeed in this industry. Firstly, Loblaw’s is lacking global presence, by narrowing their market strictly in Canada. Secondly, the Loblaw’s competition...
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...Purpose This memo is intended to respond to the Video Case 3 which correlates with Chapter 20, Marketing Ethics and Social Responsibility. Does Land Rover ‘walks to talk’ and practices what it preaches in the video, and whether that translates into a competitive advantage. Is the basis for Land Rover’s competitive advantage truly accurate or are they using a clever marketing scheme to target socially responsible consumers? Summary In Land Rover’s Sustainability Report 2009/2010 it states “We commit to continuously improving the environmental performance of our business and products by reducing emissions, conserving natural resources, and optimizing the use of sustainable energy and materials. This is underpinned by our investment in research into cutting-edge environmental innovation” (Land Rover, 2011). Land Rover is using the hot new green marketing concept to highlight their social responsibility and target the consumer who is eco conscience. According to the American Marketing Association, green marketing is the marketing of products that are presumed to be environmentally safe. While it may seem that to advertise one’s company as “green” it must include a broad range of activities, including product modification, changes to the production process, packaging changes, as well as modifying advertising. Background Founded in 1948, Land Rover was designed with the tough working, never ending job of farming in extreme places in mind. Since its early days and with...
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...The Importance of Business Ethics Business ethics has been described as a social science; it is a vast field and can often be problematic as it tends to mean different things to different people. It generally addresses the entire scope of responsibilities and obligations that a company has to each of its stakeholders. The term ethics can have many different definitions in a broad context and it can be difficult to find common understanding of the term which will be later discussed. Business ethics poses many different advantages and opportunities for businesses once correctly done. Business ethics refers to “managing corporate citizenship and sustainability in the age of globalization” (Crane, A., Dirk, M. 2004). Ethics is broadly concerned with the values underpinning action or behaviour’s for the individuals, organisations or societies. Being ethical is an aim of corporate governance and should be supported by the framework of controls within an organisation, however it is often a very complex problem which requires an in-depth understanding of the many factors which contribute to employees’ decisions to behave ethically or unethically (Stead and Worrell, 1990). Ethics within a business are often the moral standards which are relied upon in order to reach a conclusion and make decisions; they are implemented in order to ensure that a certain required level of trust exists between consumers and various forms of market participants within a business. Public interest has...
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...operator always has to wonder if the other side is playing by the same rule, if a customer constantly wonder if the vendor is overcharging for the invoice, then business slow down, becomes inefficient. However, many cheaters are not caught or punished. "Business Ethics" is the third episode of the fifth season of the television series The Office. One of the female purchasing officer has been sleeping with a vendor in order to get discount for the entire purchasing department, and Outback Steakhouse coupons. When this is discovered, the head of the company turned a blind eye because it is good for the balance sheet (Wikipedia, 2011). Having good ethic provides a clear conscience, and if there was an ethical problem, shared the advantage gained by cheating with the entire team will once again clear the conscience. Ethic in finance is important because it will provide a clear picture of the company. The leader of the company cannot see where the company can go if they do not know where the company is. However, accountant in a non-public company works for the leader and this agents’ fiduciary duty lies only with his or her principal. In this case, if the leaders asked the accountant to keep two set of books in order to make the company look more appealing before a public offering, then the accountant can justify this action as ethical. I included a quote below, where the environment of business promotes questionable behaviors in some firms. Unethical behaviour in business...
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...| | Company Background Founded in 1899, Yoshinoya is a famous Japanese beef bowl (Gyudon) specialist with a well-established history of over a century. Its first store opened in Nihohbashi Fish Market in Japan. The market moved to Tsukiji due to an earthquake and Yoshinoya followed. After over a hundred years' continuous development, Yoshinoya now has over 1600 branches around the globe, spanning from Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore to California, US, Thailand and Malaysia etc., and continues to provide Japanese style quality food and services to customers around the world. Timeline • 1899: Yoshinoya opens in the fish market in Nihonbashi, Chuoku, Tokyo • 1926: The store is relocated to Tsukiji after the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 • 1958: Mizuho Matsuda succeeds his father as president • 1977: The number of restaurants in Japan reaches 100 • 1977: Yoshinoya West, Inc. is established in the U.S. • 1979: The first Yoshinoya restaurant opened in Los Angeles • 1991: The first Yoshinoya restaurant opens in Hong Kong • 1992: The first Yoshinoya restaurant opens in China • 1996: The number of Yoshinoya restaurants in Japan reaches 500 • 1997: The first Yoshinoya restaurant opens in Singapore • 2001: The first Yoshinoya restaurant opens in the Philippines and the total number of locations worldwide reaches 1,000 • 2001: Yoshinoya New York Inc., is established • 2002: Yoshinoya restaurants open in New...
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...Clean Edge Razor In August 2010, Paramount Health and Beauty Company (Paramount) was faced with a difficult dilemma. Paramount was a global consumer products company which focused their products around health, cleaning, beauty, and grooming. Paramount had spent considerable time and investment into a cutting edge non-disposable razor that was touted to provide the “closest, cleanest, and smoothest shave people had encountered.” Their dilemma was into which part of the non-disposable market they should introduce their “superior” razor into. As we evaluate the environment in which Clean Edge will compete, we identified five key issues to analyze. The issues include new entrants into the market, Radiance’s new razor, the economy, distribution channels, and increased marketing costs. After analyzing these issues, the introduction of the new razor and the increased marketing costs would pose the greatest risk to Clean Edge. Both of the issues have a high impact and high immediacy for Paramount. The new razor that is entering the market has similar technologies that will cause a higher impact for Paramount than any of the other issues. The emerging new entrants into the market, the economy, and the changing distribution channels all have a low impact but high immediacy for Paramount. The changing distribution channels are occurring because of changes in the industry and the increased availability of all the products in this submarket. The products are now being offered at more...
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...Bob and Pete’s 100% Yum is a family owned, authentic bakery wholesaler. Operating for 25 years, Simon Johnson is a wholesaler of luxury and high end foods, valuing the experience and quality of foods. Both in the food industry, the businesses respond to these influences through the variety of similar and different strategies. The operations process is influenced by technology, quality expectations and globalisation. Similarly, B&P and SJ respond to these influences by the strategies of using leading edge and established technology, inventory management quality management outsourcing and the design and development of new products. 2. Technology Technology is the design, construction and application of innovative devices, methods and machinery upon the operations process. If technology is responded to efficiently, businesses applying efficient strategies to improve efficiency and quality, as machines make manufacturing more accurate. SJ strategically use leading edge technology, which is the most advanced or innovative technology at any point in time. For example, SJ use new technologies of temperature controlled transportation in ships and trucks. Specifically important for their imported perishable goods such as ham and cheese to sustain quality but ensuring products are consistently at a temperature of -4 degrees Celsius; overall improving the operations process as quality, speed, dependability and flexibility are all efficient. SJ responding to the influence of technology...
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...Ford Motor Company Case Study Executive Summary The Ford motor company has been a progressive leader throughout the history of the company. In order maintain this leadership, it has had to adapt to the ever changing business environment and market conditions. With the emergence of new information technologies and ideas from new high-tech industries, it must evaluate how these tools can be utilized to further the business. Recently, virtual integration has been proven very successful to companies like Dell and Cisco. However, this approach is best suited for companies that have very few layers of suppliers as well as more centralized production. The Ford motor company cannot simply change their entire supply chain to fit this model. That being said, some of these theories and practices can still be incorporated into Ford’s current supply chain. These must be calculated changes, involving various departments within Ford’s organization, collaborating with their most valued and dynamic suppliers. With Ford already moving somewhat toward this direction with suppliers who provide complete subsystems for their automobiles, further changes in these areas should prove feasible with limited risk. Issues • Determining whether or not to incorporate the virtual integration model used by other recently successful firms such as Cisco and Dell • Uncertainty on how to utilize emerging information technologies to interact with suppliers • Many...
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...Ethics and Social Responsibility Essay Nampung Panpaisal Northeastern University College of Professional Study The general purpose of project management is to advance the projects toward success, which includes ensuring they are completed on time, within budgetary constraints, of high quality, and they accommodate the assigned responsibility. To accomplish projects, laborers may capitalize on various theories and principles as guidelines. Examples of this include following project management process in an orderly fashion, starting with initiation, moving to planning, advancing to execution, following with monitoring and control, and wrapping up with closure. This also is best done by adhering to project management knowledge areas, which include management of scope, risk, time, budget and additional components that are integral to the process. The successful execution of these practices helps with the efficient advancement during each step of the project. Furthermore, completing tasks with ethical and social responsibility is another vital step of the process as project team members will be more coordinated when directing tasks. Merging efforts also aids the cooperation of team members. Different projects require the involvement of laborers with assorted skills and these workers hail from varied backgrounds and cultures, possess unique knowledge bases, and have endured an array of experiences. While these combinations can prove to be successful to projects, they also...
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...Porter’s five forces Michael Porter developed a framework consisting of five competitive forces, which analyze how industry factors impact a company’s strategy. These factors are: threat of new entrants, power of buyers, power of suppliers, availability of substitutes and competitive rivalry. Threat of new entrants There are many different barriers in the FMCG industry that a new entrant would have to overcome to enter. P&G has a huge competitive advantage over new entrants due to following : Established economies of scale: P&G has huge production capabilities and which has resulted in advantage over new entrants as it will be difficult for the new entrant to compete on cost, quantity produced and price. P&G also has the first mover advantage. Distribution network: Access to existing distribution channels is a substantial barrier that new entrants have to face. Supermarkets and other retail stores have a limited amount of shelf space available for consumer goods. It is difficult for new entrants to fight for these shelf spaces as the brand recognition, consumer relationship of P&G makes it difficult for new entrants to get shelf spaces. Legal barriers: Legal barriers can also make it hard for new entrants to enter the personal products industry. A new entrant has to overcome many regulations, laws, patents, and copyrights that they have to abide by when they are entering into an industry. It is a research oriented industry and hence has lot of copyright and...
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...: Running head: Great Lakes: Great Decisions Great Lakes: Great Decisions Danelle A. Dancy April 15, 2012 Business Administration Capstone-BUS499 Prof. Christopher McGrath Great Lakes: Great Decisions 1. Perform an analysis of the social/demographic, technological, economic, environmental/geographic, and political/legal/governmental segments to understand the general environment facing Great Lakes. Describe how Great Lakes will be affected by each of these external factors. Corporate social responsibility is defined as a business’s concern for society’s welfare (Lambi, Hair & McDaniel, 2011). Corporations want to become more sustainable and remain sustainable by allowing management to focus on both long-range best interests of the company and the relationship to the society it operates in (Lambi, Hair & McDaniel, 2011). In the case of Great Lakes, the division manager Ellie Shannon was faced with making the recommendation to the company’s board of directors on which of three policy options she felt the company should pursue (Hitt, Hoskisson & Ireland, 2011). The pyramid of corporate social responsibility is an excellent standard to measure the outcome. Great Lakes, according to text is in an excellent position economically to “wash its hands of the leaded gasoline business and its repercussions” (Hitt, Hoskisson & Ireland, 2011). It would be too harsh to just completely...
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