...merely a “cost center”? I used to work for John Deere in Coahuila, Mexico. What is very interesting is that approximately 10 years ago the IT administration barely existed, as they didn’t even have a CIO. In that time, maintaining operational data centers running was more than enough. Today, the expectations from the CIO are much more. John Deere expects that the CIO be a business leader, not only an administrator of TI; JD expects that he leads a complex critical mission as any other operation in the company and work shoulder to shoulder with the business units to help improve the performance and efficiency of the company. The IT administration is led by the CIO and the CIO reports directly to the CEO. The CIO is involved in the steering committees because he is the one who has the ability to deliver technology solutions to the business requirements. If the CIO weren’t involved in the strategic planning process it would be very difficult for him to contribute to the transformation of the organization using Information Technology. Therefore, besides his own experience in the area, the CIO also has a financial background to be able to demonstrate the tangible benefits of investing in Information Technology. This big decision that John Deere took back then, makes me think that the IT management receives good funding and management support. 2. Think about a recent IT investment your firm has made. Was it sold as being “strategic”? Has it proven to be so? As I mentioned...
Words: 697 - Pages: 3
...of $17.374 billion easily trumping its 2011 second quarter revenues of $14.230 billion. High revenues translated to record profits of $1.699 billion, an eye opening increase over the last year’s quarterly profits of $1.015 billion, a 67% increase (Caterpillar, Inc., 2012). Caterpillar trades on the New York Stock Exchange and closed today at $86.62, about the middle of its 52 week trading range (Market, 2012). Caterpillar’s profit outlook for the remainder of 2012 is very optimistic. Its projects its sales and revenues to be between $68 and $70 billion earning a profit of $9.60/share vice Caterpillar’s earlier forecast of approximately the same revenue range but earning $9.50/share (Caterpillar, Inc., 2012). Caterpillar’s financial performance and impressive billion dollar revenue numbers clearly signify Caterpillar as a domestic and world leader in its industry. Financially it is crushing its competition. Caterpillar’s biggest competitor is the universally known John Deere Company that reported third quarterly earnings of...
Words: 3556 - Pages: 15
...Work Contracted for the H2O Corporation Table of Contents Background & Introduction Outline and Review of HRIS Systems Explanation of Manpower and Technology Needed to Operate HRIS Assessment of the importance of the HRIS function within an organization Metrics HRIS system can produce for the organization Best practices of 5-10 US organizations Key action items for H20 implementation of effective HRIS system Overview of Staffing Methods Cost per Hire Staffing and Training Requirements Consideration of Recruitment/Time to Fill Vacancies Unique/Best practices for Staffing Review of Training and Development-Strategic Alignment Cost Analysis of Training Program – In house vs. Consultant Best Practices for Training and Development Recommended Training and Development Programs Overview HR Functions- Outsourced Benefits/ Cost Savings of Outsourcing Best Practices- Outsourcing Key Actions and Recommendations- Outsourcing Overview of Performance Management Philosophies Analysis of Best Practices – Theory Analysis of Best Practices- Applied Table of Contents (Con’t.) Recommendation PM Program HR Budgets- Components/ Elements Cost Reduction Strategies Budget Cut Recommendations Summary of HR Department Budgeting Challenges Recent Practices from 3-5 US organizations Review of Typical US Rewards Programs. Analysis of Best Practices for Compensation, Benefits, and Perks Consideration of US Taxation...
Words: 30723 - Pages: 123
...can impact your students, parents, icaciicrs, staff, administrators and communities. In addition to healthier students and stair, significant long-icrm cosí savings are among the most exciting benefits thai ihc recipients of an environmentally friendly educational facility enjoy. Improved test scores, lower absentepism, better morale, greater community support, stronger teacher retention and certainly a more positive impact on the environment are all additional beneiits that school administrators can expect from a sustainable school. With so many benefits easily recognized, there's really no reason that school officials shouldn't take a close look al all of the sustainable options available ti) them as they consider upcoming building projects. It is imporlani that new facilities lay the foundation for a great academic story while also being aesthetically pleasing, healthy and cost-sensili\'e. Additionally, you offer a valuable learning opporiunity to educate students about ilic importance of creating buildings that demonstrate care ibr our environment. The Myth of Higher Costs tor Going Green Educational latilutes often provide tlie greatest and most visible venues for applying sustainable design and construction principles. Unfortunately, many owners of educational iiicilities are leery of incorporating sustainable...
Words: 2483 - Pages: 10
...KUBOTA in Brazil Aaron Bair Josh Burns Hailey Duff Erin Franklin Kelsey Youngblut December 2, 2013 Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 1 Executive Summary ..................................................................................................................................... 2 Feasibility Analysis ..................................................................................................................................... 4 Economic Analysis ...................................................................................................................................... 6 Political and Legal Environment Analysis .................................................................................................. 7 Cultural and Ethical Analysis ...................................................................................................................... 8 Resource Analysis ....................................................................................................................................... 9 SWOT Analysis .............................................................................................................................
Words: 7429 - Pages: 30
...Qualification | Unit number and title | Pearson BTEC Level 5 HND Diploma in Business(QCF) | UNIT 16:Managing Communications, Knowledge, and Information | Student name and ID number | Assessors name | Kamiesha Lewis H1409030 | Abraham Pius | Date issued | Completion date | Submitted on | 25thJanuary 2016 | 08th May 2016 by 5.00pm | 03 May 2016 | Internal Verifier | Dr George Panagiotou | Assignment title | Google Inc | Instructions | * An electronic copy of your assessment must be fully uploaded by the deadline date and time. * You must submit one single PDF or MS Office Word document. Any relevant images or screenshots must be included within the same MS Office Word or PDF document. * The last version you upload will be the one that is marked. Your paper will be marked if you have indicated this as your final submission. * Review the mitigating circumstances policy for information relating to extensions. * The file size must not exceed 20MB. * Answer the criteria in order, clearly indicating the pass criteria number. * Ensure that all work has been proof-read and checked prior to submission. * Ensure that the layout of your documents are in a professional format with font style Arial, font size 12 for the text, font 14 for sub heading and font 16 for main heading, line spacing 1.5 and justified. * Use the Harvard referencing system; otherwise it will be considered as plagiarised work. * Ensure that you back-up your...
Words: 8206 - Pages: 33
...C H A P T E R The External Environment 4 The Environmental Domain Task Environment • General Environment • International Context Environmental Uncertainty Simple-Complex Dimension • Stable-Unstable Dimension • Framework Adapting to Environmental Uncertainty Positions and Departments • Buffering and Boundary Spanning • Differentiation and Integration • Organic Versus Mechanistic Management Processes • Planning and Forecasting Resource Dependence Controlling Environmental Resources Establishing Interorganizational Linkages • Controlling the Environmental Domain • Organization-Environment Integrative Framework Chapter Four The External Environment 53 M any companies are surprised by changes in the external environment. Perhaps the greatest tumult for today’s organizations has been created by the rapid expansion of e-commerce. For example, Amazon.com was ringing up on-line book sales for more than a year before managers at Barnes & Noble even began thinking about a Web site. Barnes & Noble was highly successful with its book superstore concept, but its early efforts in e-commerce were marked by costly mistakes and missed opportunities. Even though the company burned through $100 million in an effort to “crush Amazon,” Barnesandnoble.com was still selling only 15 percent of books bought online compared to Amazon’s 75 percent.1 Firms in every industry, from auto manufacturing to telecommlunications, face similar uncertainty. Many factors in the external environment...
Words: 11140 - Pages: 45
...Business Lessons from the Success & Failure Stories of Corporate Parenting | | Executive Summary The need and effectiveness of corporate parenting has been the center of numerous strategic decisions discussions for a multi-business organization for a long time now. The existence of a corporate parent, the management level which is directly not a part of consumer-facing and profit-making business units, carries a cost to the entire business. These costs that include corporate overheads due to mismatch in synergies among the SBUs, delays in decision processes etc., do not get strike out by any direct revenue streams of the business. Therefore, it becomes a necessity for a corporate parent to justify its existence as it looks to find reasoning to whether and how it adds value to the overall business and SBUs alike. Corporate parent gives opportunity to develop lateral synergies across interrelated business units but of late these lateral relationships between businesses are often net negative rather than positive. It is also argued that most of these lateral synergies are present between independent businesses like GE. Values creations, Diversity, Leveraging resources across SBUs – Resource Stretching, are the strategic propositions that corporate parent boasts of bringing in to the overall organization. However, like in the case of Sears, Burns Philp, and most of the multi-business, there lie implicit and pervasive tendencies that contribute to unavoidable drag to the...
Words: 4213 - Pages: 17
...Criteria of a Good Mission Statement Changing the mission or creating an organization’s first mission statement is a process of gathering ideas and suggestions for the mission and honing them into a short, sharply focused phrase that meets specific criteria. An effective mission statement clearly defines who the customer is and what services and products the business intends to provide. It also serves as a guide for day-to-day operations and as the foundation for future decision-making. The following are criteria for a good mission statement: The Mission Statement is Focuses on Satisfying Customer Needs A mission statement should focused on satisfying customer needs rather than being focused on the product. Products and technologies eventually become outdated, but basic market needs may last forever. A market-oriented mission statement defines the business in terms of satisfying basic customer needs. For examples refer to the following “Market-Oriented Business Definitions” table. (Kotler p.49) The Mission Statement Tells “Who” Our Customers are. (Thompson Strickland, p.30) Who is being satisfied? A company should define the type of customers it wishes to serve. Which customer groups it is targeting. Customer groups are relevant because they indicate the market to be served, the geographic domain to be covered, and the types of buyers the firm is going after. The Mission Statement Explains “What” Customer Needs Our Company is Trying to Satisfy. What customer needs is the...
Words: 5396 - Pages: 22
...Objective and Introduction | 7 | 4. | A Brief about the two Companies | 8 | 5. | Standard Costing System | 12 | 6. | Findings | 15 | 7. | Conclusion | 17 | ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We owe much gratitude to all the people who have helped and supported us during the conduct of this project. Our sincere thanks to our Professor Prof. L.N. CHOPDE for giving us the opportunity of practically studying standard costing systems of organizations with the help of this project. He has been a perfect guide through all the lectures and has helped a lot throughout the preparation of the project. Our deep sense of gratefulness to Mr. Anil Rasal for his support and guidance. Thank and appreciation to the staff of both the banks for their support too. We would also like to thank the institution – M.E.T. College and the faculty members without whom this project would have been a distant reality. PREFACE Comparative Study of Accounting System of Gunnebo India Pvt. Ltd and Ashok Leyland Ltd.: As part of the project we have studied the standard costing systems and the general accounting related to it followed by Gunnebo India Pvt. Ltd and Ashok Leyland Ltd. As per the guidelines given for the project we have taken the two companies. Both are manufacturing companies – while Gunnebo is involved in manufacturing of security systems, Ashok Leyland is manufacturer of heavy vehicles. Objective: After studying this unit, you should be able to explain the differences between the...
Words: 4448 - Pages: 18
...variables that can aid or impede successful ABC implementation. Anderson's (1995) factor-stage model provides a template to organize the discussion of ABC success factors. In this case, you will be cast in the role of a business consultant. You are asked to synthesize the case study's key "change management" insights into a report that could be shared with co-workers in an intranet-based knowledge management system. In addition, you may be expected to prepare a formal presentation of the report for your peers. Implementing change in an organization is about ninety percent cultural and ten percent technical. This is because the organization dynamics, politics, and search for a champion that go on are the real issues that make or break the project. One of the reasons we were able to implement ABC successfully was because the right people became champions. Chris Richards, Director of MIS, Global Electronics, Inc. BACKGROUND Global Electronics, Inc. (GEI), headquartered in Sarasota, Florida, designs, manufactures, and markets discrete power semiconductors and analog, digital, mixed-signal, and radiation-hardened integrated circuits for signal-processing and power-control applications. Its products are used in such applications as antilock braking systems, air-bag systems, computer keyboards, modems, disk drives, and cellular telephones. The company employs about 2,300 people at its three U.S....
Words: 10116 - Pages: 41
...Harvard Business School Publishing Case Map for Horngren, Foster & Datar: Cost Accounting: A Managerial Emphasis, 10th Edition (Prentice Hall) This map was prepared by an experienced editor at HBS Publishing, not by a teaching professor. Faculty at Harvard Business School were not involved in analyzing the textbook or selecting the cases and articles. Every case map provides only a partial list of relevant items from HBS Publishing. To explore alternatives, or for more information on the cases listed below, visit: www.hbsp.harvard.edu/educators Case Title Institution, HBSP Product Number, Length, Teaching Note Geographical and Industry Setting, Company Size, Time Frame Abstract, Key Subjects PART ONE: COST ACCOUNTING FUNDAMENTALS Chapter 1: The Accountant’s Role in the Organization Chapter 2: An Introduction to Cost Terms and Purposes Carver HBSP United States, Consulting Co. #199006 consulting, 10,000 7p employees, 1994 Daniel Dobbins Distillery, Inc. HBSP #189065 7p TN #189172 Tennessee, liquor distillery, 1988 The managing partner of a relatively new consulting firm is concerned because training costs at the firm's new training center are higher than expected. Analysis of actual costs compared to those expected is required. In addition, he is considering capitalizing some training costs for later amortization. A management control system for the center is also a priority. A distiller increases whiskey production and income declines because of accounting...
Words: 6264 - Pages: 26
...9-600-006 REV: JANUARY 22, 2003 ROBERT D. AUSTIN DEBORAH SOLE MARK J. COTTELEER Harley Davidson Motor Company: Enterprise Software Selection We were in McDonald’s having our initial SiL’K planning meeting when a gunfight erupted in the parking lot. Bullets started flying through the restaurant. Someone said, ‘Everyone down, lock the doors’. We all hid under the table. I’m lying on the floor looking at Dave and Pat—I’m thinking, Holy Smokes, this is unreal. It was just incredible—a real bonding experience! —Garry Berryman, Vice President, Materials Management David Cotteleer, Information Systems (IS) Manager of the Supplier Information Link (SiL’K) project, smiled as he recalled the terror and subsequent camaraderie that had grown out of that unusual beginning. It had set the tone for the partnership that developed between Berryman, Pat Davidson, Manager of Purchasing, Planning and Control, and himself, as they worked collaboratively to develop the specifications for an integrated procurement system to support the new Supply Management Strategy (SMS). Now he and the SiL’K project team were gathered in their “war room” on the top floor of the Harley-Davidson Corporate Headquarters to face another critical moment in the project’s history. After three hectic months of meeting potential software suppliers, reviewing documentation, and evaluating software packages, the SiL’K team had to make a decision. Who should they choose as their supplier and partner in implementing an...
Words: 9390 - Pages: 38
...9-600-006 REV: JANUARY 22, 2003 ROBERT D. AUSTIN DEBORAH SOLE MARK J. COTTELEER Harley Davidson Motor Company: Enterprise Software Selection We were in McDonald’s having our initial SiL’K planning meeting when a gunfight erupted in the parking lot. Bullets started flying through the restaurant. Someone said, ‘Everyone down, lock the doors’. We all hid under the table. I’m lying on the floor looking at Dave and Pat—I’m thinking, Holy Smokes, this is unreal. It was just incredible—a real bonding experience! —Garry Berryman, Vice President, Materials Management David Cotteleer, Information Systems (IS) Manager of the Supplier Information Link (SiL’K) project, smiled as he recalled the terror and subsequent camaraderie that had grown out of that unusual beginning. It had set the tone for the partnership that developed between Berryman, Pat Davidson, Manager of Purchasing, Planning and Control, and himself, as they worked collaboratively to develop the specifications for an integrated procurement system to support the new Supply Management Strategy (SMS). Now he and the SiL’K project team were gathered in their “war room” on the top floor of the Harley-Davidson Corporate Headquarters to face another critical moment in the project’s history. After three hectic months of meeting potential software suppliers, reviewing documentation, and evaluating software packages, the SiL’K team had to make a decision. Who should they choose as their supplier and partner...
Words: 9942 - Pages: 40
...CHAPTER 1 Managers and Managing Learning Objectives After studying this chapter, you should be able to: LO1-1 Describe what management is, why management is important, what managers do, and how managers utilize organizational resources efficiently and effectively to achieve organizational goals. LO1-2 Distinguish among planning, organizing, leading, and controlling (the four principal managerial tasks), and explain how managers’ ability to handle each one affects organizational performance. LO1-3 Differentiate among three levels of management, and understand the tasks and responsibilities of managers at different levels in the organizational hierarchy. LO1-4 Distinguish between three kinds of managerial skill, and explain why managers are divided into different departments to perform their tasks more efficiently and effectively. LO1-5 Discuss some major changes in management practices today that have occurred as a result of globalization and the use of advanced information technology (IT). LO1-6 Discuss the principal challenges managers face in today’s increasingly competitive global environment. Management part 1 A MANAGER’S CHALLENGE Steve Jobs has Changed His Approach to Management What is high-performance management? In 1976 Steven P. Jobs sold his Volkswagen van, and his partner Steven Wozniak sold his two programmable calculators, and they used the proceeds of $1,350 to build a circuit board in Jobs’s garage. So popular was the circuit board, which...
Words: 20374 - Pages: 82
