...School of Management Blekinge Institute of Technology How macro environmental forces affect business buying behavior after a recession: A case study of the second hand truck business NAME OF AUTHOR Christos Kakazoukis NAME OF SUPERVISOR Urban Ljungquist MASTER’S THESIS IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, MBA PROGRAM Jan 2011 Thesis for the Master’s degree in Business Administration Autumn 2010 Abstract Master thesis in business administration, MBA Program, School of Management, Blekinge Institute of Technology, fall of 2010. Author: Christos Kakazoukis Supervisor: Urban Ljungquist Title: How macro environmental forces affect business buying behavior after a recession: A case study of the second hand truck business. Keywords: Buying behavior, customer behavior, financial crisis, trucks, PESTEL Background and problem: The financial crisis has had a deep impact on businesses all around the world. This has affected our purchases, both as retailers and as customers. In this thesis I will investigate how the buying behavior has changed, before, during and after the financial crisis with focus on the second hand truck business. I will also investigate which macro environmental factors have affected the buying behavior. Purpose: The purpose of this research is to describe changes in buying behaviors from influence of macro environmental forces. Method: I have used a qualitative method, and as a part of that face to face interviews, to understand and establish a better contact...
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...(using module concepts) that evaluates the strategic issues and options facing your organisation of choice. Company: Toyota Corporation Final Word count: 3,000 Toyota is seen as one of the market leader in the auto industry. It headquarters is based in Japan. It manufactures and sells vehicles (Toyota annual report, 2012). Toyota chiefly operates in Japan, Europe, Asia and North America. This essay will examine the company position analysis. Further, it will identify key strategic issues and these issues will be analysed and evaluated. Issues can be internal or external in nature and maybe positive or negative to the organisation (Haberberg & Rieple, 2008).The next section will analyse Toyota’s current position. To understand the organisation strategic position the environment, capabilities, culture and its purpose will be analysed (Johnson et al, 2011). Toyota’s culture is the Toyota way which focuses on continuous improvement. In addition it does lean production which concentrate on ‘just in time’ production and ‘Jidoka’ system which emphasises quality and no waste. According to (Toyota, 2013), they concentrate on CSR issues and environmental issues. The environment analysis will be analyses using Swot and PESTLE analysis. According to the evidence, Toyota’s corporate culture has placed the organisation in a position which focuses at adding value to current and future generations of the world, promote activities leading to social contribution, maintain...
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...UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI INSTITUTE OF DIPLOMACY AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES Implications of Global International Monetary Policy Decision on Economic Systems in East Africa: A Case Study of Kenya NAME: LILLIAN WACHIRA REG NO: R50/63875/2010 Supervisor: Dr. Gerrishon Ikiara A Research Proposal submitted in partial fulfillment of the Degree of Masters of Arts in International Studies (MA IS) DECLARATION I declare that this research proposal is my original work and has not been presented for a degree in any other university. NAME: LILLIAN WACHIRA REG. NO: R50/63875/2010 Sign: ………………………………… Date: ……………………… This research proposal has been submitted for examination with my approval as university supervisor SUPERVISOR: Sign: ……………………………… Date: …………………………. DEDICATION I dedicate my project to my lovely mother Beatrice, my brothers Edwin and Eric whose prayers words of encouragement and push for tenacity ring in my ears. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor Dr. Gerrsihon Ikiara for the continuous support and guidance while carrying out my project, for his patience, motivation and immense knowledge. I would also like to thank the participants in my survey, who have willingly shared their precious time during the process of interviewing. I...
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...Mortgage and Financial Crises: The Role of Credit Risk Management and Corporate Governance William W. Lang Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Ten Independence Mall, Philadelphia, PA 19106 Phone: 215-574-7225 E-mail: William.Lang@phil.frb.org Julapa Jagtiani Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia Ten Independence Mall, Philadelphia, PA 19106 Phone: 215-574-7284 E-mail: Julapa.Jagtiani@phil.frb.org February 9, 2010 Abstract This paper discusses the role of risk management and corporate governance as causal factors in the onset of the financial crisis. The downturn in the housing and mortgage markets precipitated the first phase of the financial crisis in August 2007 when the solvency of a number of large financial firms was threatened by huge losses in complex structured financial securities. Why did these firms have such high concentrations in mortgage-related securities? Given the information available to firms at the time, these high concentrations in mortgage-related securities violated basic principles of modern risk management. We argue that this failure was a result of principal-agent problems internal to the firms and to breakdowns of corporate governance systems designed to overcome these principal-agent problems. Forthcoming in Atlantic Economic Journal (2010) JEL Classification Numbers: G01, G18, G21, G28 Keywords: Financial Crisis, Risk Management, Corporate Governance, Subprime Crisis _________________________ The opinions expressed in this paper are...
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...Abstract This study focuses on demand of P2P market among SMEs and consumer market. The researcher has developed a framework based on how peer to peer lending platforms are important for SME’s and what are the governmental regulations to promote online lending platforms, how SMEs play an important role in the development of economy, how important is the peer to peer platform to them and the future position of peer to peer market in Singapore. The focal point lies on the demand of peer to peer lending platforms among small and medium enterprises and consumer market. The study illustrates a high demand of peer to peer lending among small and medium enterprises regardless of less security of investment. This study also includes risk and regulations associated with peer to peer lending and the impact of social behaviours and social connections on the decision of investors related to investment in online platforms. Acknowledgement I owe a debt of gratitude for working adults and SMEs for providing me accurate data and their feedback regarding their loan preferences. I would like to thank all for their precious time and respond. As this work would not be possible without their time and effort. Tables of Contents 1.0. Introduction 4 1.1. Peer to peer lending platform 5 1.2. Background of the research 7 1.3. Objectives 8 1.4. Research Rationale 9 2.0. Literature Review 9 3.0. Research Methodology 19 4.0. Data analysis 21 5.0. Results and Finding...
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...Acquisition Account Manager: Todd Osborne en C Printed in the United States of America ga ge Le Compilation © 2013 Cengage Learning ISBN-13: 978-1-285-88034-1 ISBN-10: 1-285-88034-X Cengage Learning 5191 Natorp Boulevard Mason, Ohio 45040 USA ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this work covered by the copyright herein LL RIGHT th repro reprodu ted, s may be reproduced, transmitted, stored or used in any form or by any means electro graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including but not limited to photocopying, scann di recording, scanning, digitizing, taping, Web distribution, information networks, a or information storage and retrieval systems, except as permitted under o t Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior writ written permission of the publisher. pro For product information and technology assistance, contact us at Cen Cengage Learning Customer & Sales Support, 1-800-354-9706 For permission to use material from this text or product, submit all requests online at cengage.com/permissions Further permissions questions can be emailed to permissionrequest@cengage.com This book contains select works from existing Cengage Learning resources and was produced by Cengage Learning Custom Solutions for collegiate use. As such, those adopting and/or contributing to this work are responsible for editorial content accuracy, continuity and...
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...Legal, Technological Chapter 2 Managing Interdependence: Social Responsibility and Ethics Assessing the Environment Political, Economic, Legal, Technological Outline Opening Profile: Economic Crisis Spreads Through Financial Globalization The Global Business Environment Globalization Globality and Emerging Markets Effects of Institutions on Global Trade Effects of Globalization on Corporations Regional Trading Blocs The European Union (EU) Asia Comparative Management in Focus: China's Economy Keeps on Chugging. The Americas Other Regions in the World The Russian Federation The Middle East Developing Economies The African Union The Globalization of Human Capital The Global Manager's Role The Political and Economic Environment Political Risk Political Risk Assessment Managing Political Risk Managing Terrorism Risk Economic Risk The Legal Environment Contract Law Other Regulatory Issues The Technological Environment Global E-Business Conclusion Summary of Key Points Discussion Questions Application Exercises Experiential Exercise Internet Resources Case Study: Indian BPOs Waking Up to the Philippines Opportunity? Management Focus: Intel Brings Changes to Vietnam's Economy and Culture Information Technology OBJECTIVES: 1. To understand the global business environment and how it affects the strategic and operational decisions which managers must...
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... Boston Columbus Indianapolis New York San Francisco Upper Saddle River Amsterdam Cape Town Dubai London Madrid Milan Munich Paris Montreal Toronto Delhi Mexico City Sao Paulo Sydney Hong Kong Seoul Singapore Taipei Tokyo To Rebecca, Natasha, and Hannah, for the love and for being there —J. B. To Kaui, Pono, Koa, and Kai, for all the love and laughter —P. D. Editor in Chief: Donna Battista Acquisitions Editor: Katie Rowland Executive Development Editor: Rebecca Ferris-Caruso Editorial Project Manager: Emily Biberger Managing Editor: Jeff Holcomb Senior Production Project Manager: Nancy Freihofer Senior Manufacturing Buyer: Carol Melville Cover Designer: Jonathan Boylan Cover Photo: Nikreates/Alamy Media Director: Susan Schoenberg Content Lead, MyFinanceLab: Miguel Leonarte Executive Media Producer: Melissa Honig Project Management and Text Design: Gillian Hall, The Aardvark Group Composition and Artwork: Laserwords Printer/Binder: R.R. Donnelley/Jefferson City Cover Printer: Lehigh Phoenix Text Font: Adobe Garamond Credits and acknowledgments borrowed from other sources and reproduced, with permission, in this textbook appear on the appropriate page within text and on this copyright page. Credits: Cover: Sculpture in photo: Detail of Flamingo (1973), Alexander Calder. Installed in Federal Plaza, Chicago. Sheet metal and paint, 1615.4 x 1828.8 x 731.5 cm. Copyright © 2013 Calder Foundation, New York/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo by Nikreates/Alamy;...
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...Crisis Communication in theory and practice: Analysis of cultural influence, strategy applicability, and stakeholder relevance in Australia and New Zealand Natascha Pancic A thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of International Communication Unitec New Zealand, 2010 ABSTRACT This research project explores crisis communication in theory and practice in Australia and New Zealand with specific focus on cultural influence, strategy applicability, and stakeholder relevance. A mixed-method approach was used to evaluate crisis communication in its theoretical and practical constituents. The research project comprises of the two data collection methods of content analysis and in-depth interviews. The content analysis, the selected method to evaluate the theory, was conducted from published research studies in leading Australian and New Zealand Public Relations and Communication journals, the websites of the PRism journal, the Australian and New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA), the Public Relations Institutes of Australia (PRIA) and New Zealand (PRINZ), and via the database search platform Ebsco. The content analysis provided information about the number of published articles, leading theoretical models, research methods, and research orientation. The in-depth interviews, the chosen method to investigate the crisis communication practices, were conducted with three Australian and three New Zealand practitioners...
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... Boston Columbus Indianapolis New York San Francisco Upper Saddle River Amsterdam Cape Town Dubai London Madrid Milan Munich Paris Montreal Toronto Delhi Mexico City Sao Paulo Sydney Hong Kong Seoul Singapore Taipei Tokyo To Rebecca, Natasha, and Hannah, for the love and for being there —J. B. To Kaui, Pono, Koa, and Kai, for all the love and laughter —P. D. Editor in Chief: Donna Battista Acquisitions Editor: Katie Rowland Executive Development Editor: Rebecca Ferris-Caruso Editorial Project Manager: Emily Biberger Managing Editor: Jeff Holcomb Senior Production Project Manager: Nancy Freihofer Senior Manufacturing Buyer: Carol Melville Cover Designer: Jonathan Boylan Cover Photo: Nikreates/Alamy Media Director: Susan Schoenberg Content Lead, MyFinanceLab: Miguel Leonarte Executive Media Producer: Melissa Honig Project Management and Text Design: Gillian Hall, The Aardvark Group Composition and Artwork: Laserwords Printer/Binder: R.R. Donnelley/Jefferson City Cover Printer: Lehigh Phoenix Text Font: Adobe Garamond Credits and acknowledgments borrowed from other sources and reproduced, with permission, in this textbook appear on the appropriate page within text and on this copyright page. Credits: Cover: Sculpture in photo: Detail of Flamingo (1973), Alexander Calder. Installed in Federal Plaza, Chicago. Sheet metal and paint, 1615.4 x 1828.8 x 731.5 cm. Copyright © 2013 Calder Foundation, New York/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo by Nikreates/Alamy;...
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...Crossroads, Retail Banks Must Identify and Prioritize Core Strengths The Ground Beneath Banks Is Shifting Traditional Tactics Are Less Effective in the Current Environment The Way Forward: Extreme Measures for Extreme Times 26 28 32 40 41 Methodology About Us Preface Capgemini and Efma are pleased to present the 2012 World Retail Banking Report. Retail banks around the world are struggling to maintain their competitiveness in the face of severe external challenges. Massive debt loads are threatening the global economy, while stringent regulations put in place as a result of the financial crisis of 2008 are staunching traditional revenue streams. Customers, still distrustful of the industry, have become increasingly accepting of nonbank alternatives, and social media is giving them an opportunity to publicly explore them. More than ever, retail banks must strive to create stronger bonds with their customers. The 2012 World Retail Banking Report addresses this imperative by establishing a new framework for identifying and measuring success in retail banking. Specifically, our Customer Experience Index (CEI) offers a mechanism for accurately taking stock of the critical measure of customer loyalty. The CEI improves upon traditional measures of customer attitudes by incorporating customers’ standards and expectations, alongside their channel preferences, to shed light on whether customers are having positive experiences in the areas most important to them. Our findings show...
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...accumulation of foreign exchange reserves in recent months, there has been a growing interest in Bangladesh on the alternative uses of its reserves. However, different reserves adequacy measures based on global best practices confirm that its reserves holding is not markedly higher than what is required. The country’s reserves stand higher than the adequate level only when one considers the current account aspects of reserves benchmark which is perhaps appropriate for the country as its financial system is still autarkic. The dynamics in its balance of payments account also supports the fact. The paper highlights the fact that Bangladesh’s reserves build-up is the result of an ‘investment drought’ in the country. This is partly due to its underdeveloped financial systems, and partly due to other structural problems in the economy – entailing difficulties in properly channelling national savings to investments. As the Bangladesh central bank’s sterilised intervention increases, so will its cost of reserves accumulation. The reason is the interest rate arbitrage between Bangladesh and the United States. The United States government securities market, that absorbs the lion’s share of developing economies reserves, has been offering lower yields following the collapse in interest rate in the country in recent times. Nevertheless, the apparent spread between the United States Treasury and Bangladesh Treasury rates might be not that high in real terms if one weighs in Bangladesh’s certain benefits...
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...Contemporary Developments in Business and Management Kenneth Fee The University of Sunderland © 2013 The University of Sunderland First published September 2013 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without permission of the copyright owner. While every effort has been made to ensure that references to websites are correct at time of going to press, the world wide web is a constantly changing environment and the University of Sunderland cannot accept any responsibility for any changes to addresses. The University of Sunderland acknowledges product, service and company names referred to in this publication, many of which are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks. All materials internally quality assessed by the University of Sunderland and reviewed by academics external to the University. Instructional design and publishing project management by Wordhouse Ltd, Reading, UK. Contents Introduction vii Unit 1 The contemporary world of business and management Introduction 1.1 1.2 The global business environment The importance of developments in the global environment Case Study 1.3 Organisational decision making and performance vii 1 3 10 14 17 19 19 20 Self-assessment questions Feedback on self-assessment questions Summary Unit 2 Globalisation Introduction 2...
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...Murtagh The University of Sunderland © 2014 The University of Sunderland First published January 2014, revised February 2014 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without permission of the copyright owner. While every effort has been made to ensure that references to websites are correct at time of going to press, the world wide web is a constantly changing environment and the University of Sunderland cannot accept any responsibility for any changes to addresses. The University of Sunderland acknowledges product, service and company names referred to in this publication, many of which are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks. All materials internally quality assessed by the University of Sunderland and reviewed by academics external to the University. Instructional design and publishing project management by Wordhouse Ltd, Reading, UK Copyright © 2014 University of Sunderland ii Contents vi Introduction Unit 1 1 2 5 7 Concepts, models and theories 20 Introduction 2.1 A comparison of concepts, models and theories relating to competitive advantage 2.2 An evaluation of concepts, models and theories relating to strategic choice Case Study: Ciba Vision 2.3 Concepts, models and theories relating to strategic evaluation Case Study: The University of Exeter Self-assessment questions Feedback...
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...we must handle it. In Chaotics, Kotler and Caslione don’t just remind us to pay attention to early signs; they give business leaders an outstanding map for how to successfully navigate a company through crises.” —Friedrich von Metzler, Member, Partners’ Committee, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG “Turbulence and unpredictability are the inevitable realities of the next few years. We are in truly uncharted waters, with no good maps. Chaotics will help your organization to navigate without one. This incredibly useful and helpful book provides clear and practical guidance to the many difficult decisions that managers and leaders need to make in turbulent times. It is like having the authors and their wisdom at your side while having to ride the white waters of the rapids ahead.” —Peter Schwartz, Monitor Global Business Network “[A]n operations manual to help management teams guide their companies through this global disaster. Chaotics is a must read for those seeking a lifeline to save their business.” —Ed Kaplan, Chairman Emeritus, Zebra Technologies “A very timely and practical book on how to manage and market the enterprise through prolonged turbulence. The Chaotics Management System provides an excellent blueprint for making each major business function more resilient.” —Jagdish N. Sheth, Ph.D., Charles H. Kellstadt Professor of Marketing, Goizueta Business School, Emory University, Atlanta, GA; author of The Self-Destructive Habits of Good Companies: . . . And How to Break...
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