...Walmart’s Global Challenge, November 2014 Executive Summary Walmart Stores, Inc. is the world's largest retailer whose mission is “to help people around the world save money and live better -- anytime and anywhere -- in retail stores, online and through their mobile devices” (Corporate Walmart2, 2014, p.1). Samuel Walton founded Walmart in 1962 as a small chain of stores in rural towns and today Walmart is a multi-national retail corporation with “11,100 stores under 71 banners in 27 countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries” (Corporate Walmart2, 2014, p.3). Walmart Stores topped Fortune Magazine’s “Fortune 500” list for 2014. “For fiscal year 2014, Walmart’s net sales totaled $473.1 billion, up 1.6% from the year-earlier period” (Fortune, 2014, p.1). Walmart is a publically traded company, with the second and third generation Walton family owning 51% of Walmart’s shares via a family holding company called Walton Enterprises LLC (Yahoo Finance, 2014, p.1). Walmart has enjoyed unprecedented growth in the span of 52 years, even in the face of negative publicity and threats from competitors like Family Dollar and Amazon. Walmart’s CEO, Doug McMillon, has laid out strategies to reduce their reliance on physical stores as they move towards expanding the e-commerce aspect of their company and on improving their overseas expansion plans. His four-part growth strategy provides the framework to enable a “company prepared to win on four key customer dimensions – price...
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...This paper will analyze the process, problems and solutions involved with implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system across several countries. I will report on the process of implementing this new software first in the US locations and then taking it abroad to the new global locations as they were acquired. This will look at how the company handled implementation obstacles and what they decided to do to set them straight. By looking at a global process and how this platform will communicate across different countries was a systematic process that is still being tweaked as different countries are brought on board. A good implementation and managed system will not only ease the issues faced when working across different globes but also benefit the bottom line of the company by consolidating roles and responsibilities at different locations. Compressor Products International is an international manufacturing and services company. They provide engineered compressor components, lubrication systems and support services to operators. They have over one hundred years of service selling to the refining, chemical, gas, and many other markets. With office in over fourteen countries CPI is focused on being the leader in customized solutions for application in the reciprocation compression industry. CPI is an EnPro Industries company and as such they are backed by a family of over 4,100 people in over 100 countries. With the support of the Enpro team CPI is looking...
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...ACCOUNTING CHALLENGES: A Global Perspective Amber Welch May 17, 2014 BU481 Introduction Herbie Hancock once said, “Globalization means we have to re-examine some of our ideas, and look at ideas from other countries, from other cultures, and open ourselves to them. And that’s not comfortable for the average person”. Globalization pivots on the strength of the business behind it, the focused efforts by accounting and manageability of an industry of leadership, and standards that when faced with challenge, must meet the rising needs of the world. Born from the necessity of standardization, the hurdles of international business, and the wave pool that is the global economy, today, accounting at all levels faces challenges unlike any ever seen in history. To understand how to continue to move forward and face these challenges, it is important to first examine the standards in accounting, and to explore the differences in U.S. standards versus worldwide standards. To look at the development process and the governing bodies surrounding this change, and then examine what change will bring, and whether it is attainable. For continued growth, understanding the modern realm of international business and the changes being seen in accounting leadership as well as the growth of technology, and the mounting concern for ethics in the world environment is as vital as any other component. It is important to explore the economy of the United States versus the world, the impacts of...
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...Background: IKEA was founded by Ingvar Kamprad who embedded his strongly held values and beliefs in IKEA’s culture. IKEA was created out of Kamprad’s family kitchen selling goods such as fountain pens, cigarette lighters and binders that later turned into a catalog business operations selling furniture. In developing IKEA’s furniture retailing business model, Kamprad was confronted with a cartel of furniture manufacturers that kept prices high by controlling the Swedish industry. This issue later became the vision of the company “creating a better life for the many people”. IKEA also introduced their key feature of self-assembled furniture where customers bought furniture in flat packages and put them together at home. This was known as the “knockdown” concept that allowed IKEA to save on transportation and storage costs. Conflict with the cartel of furniture manufacturers in Sweden forced IKEA to source materials from abroad. To maintain IKEA’s quality and delivery, IKEA taught their processes and provided machinery to their suppliers in Poland. After expanding their suppliers globally, IKEA created a general procurement principle that that stated IKEA should develop close ties by supporting its suppliers with a long-term relationship. By the mid-1990s IKEA worked with 2,300 suppliers in 70 countries. IKEA has 24 trading service offices in 19 countries that monitor production, test new product ideas, negotiate prices, and check quality. Since 1980’s IKEA has been looked upon...
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...The global sourcing challenges of IKEA Who does not know IKEA? Famous for its design and very affordable house furniture, IKEA is the leader on its market. Founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad this business grew tremendous fast that it has become the reference in term of low-cost self assemble furniture in the world. The sourcing strategy of IKEA follows a manufacturing Code of Conduct towards its suppliers named “The IKEA Way in Purchasing Home Furnishing Products” (IWAY) . Besides this code, the strategy is rather well established especially regarding the relationships between the company and its suppliers from the economically developing countries. But the question is; are Ikea’s international procurements processes efficient? Can they be improved? This essay will focus on Ikea’s global sourcing’s tradeoffs and will highlight the way they can be enhanced. The first part of this essay will describe the regular sourcing process of IKEA including the strategy, the second part will emphasize how the sourcing should be done to be successful and the last part will provide recommendations about the processes according to the analysis. For a company, global sourcing is basically choosing different suppliers all around the world in order to use worldwide efficiencies and reduce costs. Global sourcing offers various advantages such as low cost materials and skilled labour, diminution of lead times, and also economical advantages like low taxes or low trade tariffs. These benefits...
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...IKEA’s Global Sourcing Challenge IKEA, one of the world’s largest specialized furniture retailers, has been presented with a large issue within their operations. In 1995, a German TV station released an investigative report which exposed one of the suppliers for IKEA rugs for exploiting child labor in their factory. A recent addendum was signed by all IKEA suppliers which forbid the use of child labor (Bartlett & Sjoman, p. 1, 2006), so this incident has called the company to make an action based on the accusations at hand. The amount of turnover that is accounted from Indian rugs for IKEA is small on the full scale, and made the company question whether or not the product line was worth the profit potential. The following will be an analysis of the history of IKEA’s manufacturing, external forces related to the presented issue, rising issues, and recommendations for the company’s future moves. History of IKEA’s Manufacturing Though IKEA is one of the largest brands in the furniture industry, the company has been involved with some environmental issues related to their manufacturing. In the 1980s, IKEA’s products were subject to investigation as they were observed to emit more than allowed levels of formaldehyde (Bartlett & Sjoman, p. 5, 2006). The issue occurred from suppliers buying materials from sub suppliers, which resulted in the product not passing the regulations placed by legislation. The company began to change the way they worked with their suppliers...
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...Challenges in the Global Business Environment Bus 457 11/25/2014 Chevron Chevron, one of the oldest energy companies in United States, was first founded as Pacific Coast Oil Company in 1879 and was named as Chevron Corporation in 1984. Several companies were established after Standard Oil’s split during 1980s’ and Chevron Corporation was among those big energy corporations who merged with those companies. The company is publicly traded on NYSE, Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500. Chevron is involved in petroleum and natural gas industry. It does almost anything related to the industry from exploring to generating power. With over 60,000 employees Chevron operates business in 84 countries; Angola, Australia, Gulf of Mexico, Kazakhstan, Nigeria and United States are regions where the cooperation mainly operates primary exploration and production. Other than oil and natural gas, Chevron is engaged to biofuel, geothermal, hydrogen, solar and wind energy production. According to the official website for businesses Chevron offers following goods and services: * Additives * Aviation Oils * Base Oils * Chemicals * Fuels * Lubricants * Marine * MSDS * Specialty Products * Technology And for consumers it offers goods and services listed below: * Fuels and Stations * Gift and Credit Cards * Pay Bill * Motor Oils and Fuel Additives Code of Ethical Conduct Chevron relies...
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...CHALLENGES IN THE GLOBAL BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT NATOSHA WHITAKER Strayer University Professor Cito Vanegas August 29, 2015 CHALLENGES IN THE GLOBAL BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT There has been no change to Apple Code of Conduct policy since 2014 when Apple started taking previous audit scores into consideration and conduct detailed risk assessments with There has been no change to Apple Code of Conduct policy since 2014 when Apple started taking previous audit scores into consideration and conduct detailed risk assessments with (Apple – 2014 Supplier Code of Conduct). Apple has made significant progress, gaps still exist, and there is more work to do. Apple knows that workers are counting on them and they will not stop until every person in their supply chain is treated with the respect and dignity they deserve There has been no amendment to Apple Code of Conduct policy since 2014 once Apple Started taking previous audit scores into thought and conduct careful risk assessments with Suppliers World Health Organization had not been audited within the past before award the new business. In 2014, we have a tendency to reviewed 459 suppliers, and factored their responsibility performance into our choices. This engagement has allowed Apple to deal with over 700 findings associated with labor standards, employee safety, permits, environmental hazards, and chemical management before production began (Apple – 2014 provider Code...
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...Personal Challenges for Global Managers Building an internationally competent workforce whose members know the business and are flexible and open-minded can take years. Multinational organizations can no longer rely on just a few managers with multicultural experience or a few experts on a particular country to succeed. In short, all employees must have some minimal level of international expertise and be able to recognize cultural differences that may affect daily business communications and working relationships. In general, overseas managers share common traits with their domestic counterparts. Wherever a manager is hired, he or she needs the technical knowledge and skills to do the job, and the intelligence and people skills to be a successful manager. Selecting managers for expatriate assignments means screening them for traits that predict success in adapting to what may be dramatically new environments. Beyond the obvious job-specific qualifications, an organization needs to consider the following qualities and circumstances when selecting expatriates for positions in foreign countries: * A willingness to communicate, form relationships with others, and try new things * Good cross-cultural communication and language skills * Flexibility and open-mindedness about other cultures * The ability to cope with the stress of new situations * The spouse's career situation and personal attributes * The existence of quality educational facilities for the...
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...AT&;T’s Challenges in the Global Environment BUS 475, Strayer University Prof. Frost 9/10/14 AT&T’s Challenges in the Global Environment 1. Specify, in brief, the nature, structure, types of products or service of the business you selected. Examine the information within the company’s code of ethical conduct, and choose three (3) key issues from within the document that you believe are critical for success. Provide a rationale for the response. Answer: AT&T is known as one of the largest communications companies that provides telecommunications to businesses and consumers all over the world. The wireless division of the company offers many wireless voice, text, data, roaming services, long-distance services, and local wireless communication services. This segment sells many accessories for all wireless needs at its agents, third-party retail stores, or owned stores. These accessories include carrying cases, battery chargers, hands-free devices, and many other items that would be wanted by consumers for their wireless needs. As of December, 2013, this division of the company served roughly 110 million customers. There is a Wireline division that provides DSL internet access, among other services. They also have a strategic relationship with IBM to offer “businesses with a source of network security and threat management” (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/pr?s=T+Profile, 2014). According to the AT&T website, they have “voice coverage in more than 225 countries, and data...
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...The similarities mentioned between the leaders all had common characteristics. Those included: • Humility • Energy • Intuition • Vision • Perspective • Passion • Conviction • Learning The leaders who were interviewed were from different industries, and countries around the world. They outlined how they themselves had been tested at times in their professional careers, and also personal times within their careers. They also talked about what leadership quality they had learned from their own experiences and which ones would have the greatest impact on them. The interview of Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, the President and CEO of Nokia, spoke specifically about humility as a major key for him and in my own healthcare career, I could related. For me, it reminded me of why I went into Healthcare to begin with. To serve others quite simply. Like, Kallawvuo, humility is important for all of us. He spoke that in 1990, when he was 36 years old; he was named the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Nokia. This is a young age, even today for such a position. He mentions that he had a legal background rather than that of Accounting. The company at the time had a financial crisis to deal with. Meeting payroll was a concern. Part of his job required him to travel to various financial institutions to secure the necessary funds, which were very well aware of the company’s dire financial conditions, and as such were cautious. He went on to mention that during some of his trips...
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...Freedom Writers When she realizes that her students are living in their own personal wars, she takes the Diary of Anne Frank, Romeo and Juliet (another gangster story) to read in class. She notices that her school is segregated by race and color. So, she divides her class with a colored tape taped to the middle of the floor, and she says, “ were going to play a game, o.k.?” This activity helps them realize that they are all fighting the same battles, and are living their lives very much in common. “You’re going to have fun I promise.” Look you can work on those workbooks til the bell rings or you can play a game.” This is called the line game, I’m going to ask you a question, if that question applies to you, you step on to the line then step back away for the next question. Easy right? First q How many of you have the new Snoop Dog album? Everyone steps up to the line. How many of you have seen Boys in the Hood? Again everyone steps up to the line. How many of you live in the projects? Most of them go up to the line. How many of you know someone, a friend or relative, who was or is in juvenile hall or jail? Everyone steps up to the line. How many of you have been in juvenile hall or jail for any length of time? How many of you know where to get drugs right now? How many of you know someone in a gang? All of them step up to the line. How many of you are gang members? Noone goes up to the line, but their lying. Stand on the line if you’ve lost a friend to gang...
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...The best way to grow as an organization is to expand. Making connections and utilizing other business methods can help even the smallest of businesses thrive. This could mean that a local restaurant buys it’s bread from the baker down the street instead of baking their own. It could also mean Nike owning several factories located in various countries around the world manufacturing their products. The idea is to spend the least amount of money to produce, move and sell in order to earn a larger profit. This is where foreign subsidiary come into play. A foreign subsidiary company is simply defined by thelawdictionary.org as “A company that is part of a larger company.” It is a local operation completely owned and operated by a foreign firm. These organizations can be acquired by another but can also be built from the ground up. Of course, though, with every business decision comes risk; advantages and disadvantages of subsidiaries are deeply weighed when this becomes an option for expansion. There are many advantages to having subsidiaries in other countries. One major advantage is the amount of control the parent company gains over the subsidiary. The parent company becomes the boss. They now gain control of operational means and strategic moves. This means that the parent company can now have the subsidiary function by means that the parent company sees fit. Another advantage to having foreign subsidiaries is the expansion of brand recognition. By taking the parent companies...
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... Global Challenges Associated with E-Commerce Pamela Moss IT500-02 Critical Concepts and Competencies for the IT Professional Instructor: Sheila Fournier-Bonilla Kaplan University 03.20.2013 Global Challenges Associated with E-Commerce For many businesses today, implementing e-commerce capabilities into a traditional business can seem like an easy task on the surface, but there are many challenges associated with successfully implementing an e-commerce web site into a business that will appeal to global consumers and increase the success and profitability of the business. One model commonly used in e-commerce is the multi-stage model; this model breaks down each stage of the customer’s shopping experience to ensure quality and service that will induce positive feedback from the customer and return visits. Like all traditional businesses, there are challenges at start-up, and e-commerce also has its own challenges. This document will discuss six major challenges businesses face when trying to implement a successful e-commerce web site, the effects these challenges have on an e-commerce business, and what steps may be taken to overcome these challenges. Cultural challenges in e-commerce are one of the most difficult challenges to overcome because the language challenge must be considered simultaneously. A clear assessment of culture is a combination of language and routine executed in a specific location or geographical region. Therefore, cultural challenges for...
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...Management (HRM) challenges to businesses especially those operating across national boundaries as multinational or global enterprises. Global business is characterized by the free flow of human and financial resources especially in the developed economies of European Union (EU), the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), other regional groupings such as the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Southern African Development Community, etc. (Schuler, R.S & Tarique, I. & Jackson, S.E, 2002). J.P. Morgan is a leader in wholesale financial services, offering intelligent solutions across one of the most comprehensive global product platforms available. JPM keep client objectives foremost important, fostering long-term relationships. This combination of product strength, intellectual capital and character sets the firm apart as an industry leader. I was working at JPM Israel last year and have a lot of knowledge from the inside. I was part of the Investment Banking at the Israeli JPM which is a representative branch that has been committed to serving clients and has key relationships with governments and top financial and corporate institutions. We offer the full spectrum of investment banking services to our clients, including M&A advisory, capital raising and risk management, as well as sales, trading and research. In this paper, I will evaluate aspects of the challenges of HRM as an international...
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