...General information German management, as it has evolved over the centuries and has established itself since World War II, has a distinct style and culture. Like so many things German, it goes back to the medieval guild and merchant tradition, but it also has a sense of the future and of the long term. The German manager concentrates intensely on two objectives: product quality and product service. He wants his company to be the best, and he wants it to have the best products. The manager and his entire team are strongly product oriented, confident that a good product will sell itself. But the manager also places a high premium on customer satisfaction, and Germans are ready to style a product to suit a customer's wishes. The watchwords for most German managers and companies are quality, responsiveness, dedication, and follow-up. Most German managers, even at senior levels, know their production lines. They follow production methods closely and know their shop floors intimately. They cannot understand managers in the United States who want only to see financial statements and "the bottom line" rather than inspect a plant's production processes. A German manager believes deeply that a good-quality production line and a good-quality product will do more for the bottom line than anything else. Relations between German managers and workers are often close, because they believe that they are working together to create a good product. German managers usually remain in one firm...
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...in the German Army during World War II. In 1946, the brothers took over their mother’s business and soon opened another retail outlet nearby. By 1950, the Albrecht brothers owned 13 stores in Germany. Today ALDI operates over 8000 stores worldwide and over 1400 in the United States alone (Amann, 2010). In 2010 more than 200 ALDI store managers in 32 states filed a lawsuit against the U.S. division of the German discount grocer, saying they were wrongly classified as exempt from overtime and should have been paid for working more than 40 hours a week. The basis of the complaint made by Howard McNelley, a former ALDI Manager, concerns his classification as a Salaried Manager even though his duties were simply stocking shelves, cleaning, running a register, and many times he was the only employee in the store (Martin, 2010). Aldi stores will many times operate an entire work day with less than 3 employees in a store. During slow periods the employee designated as the manager will sometimes be the only employee present and will simply run a register. The hiring, firing, and promoting of all store employees is handled by the District Manager. The only duty performed exclusively by the Salaried Manager is the preparation of the schedule, all other duties are shared by the hourly workers or performed exclusively by the District Manager. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the federal overtime law setting wage and hour pay, sets certain conditions to be a salaried manager as...
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...Hofstede’s Five Dimension comparison of Germany and China Hofstede’s Five Dimensions Hofstede’s five dimensions are a useful tool to give someone an insight of different cultures. These elements give a country’s behaviour tendencies rather than an exact prescription. There are weaknesses to Hofstede’s Five Dimension theory as it may too easily encourage stereotyping. Even in countries as small as the UK, not all citizens are alike – e.g. it is argued that the culture in the North of England is quite different to the South. Hofstede has also been criticized for being too simplistic; however Hofstede’s theory does give us a general base to work from. 74 countries are listed on Hofstede’s website from which information can be drawn to make comparisons not only between countries but against the world average to give a broader picture. The following graph gives a comparison between Germany and China. It also allows for assessment against the Asian average and World average and our own British culture as benchmarks. Hofstede Comparison: UK, Germany, China Asian Average and World Average [pic] Comparison of Germany and China [pic] Power Distance Index Germany 35 LOW China 80 HIGH Individualism Germany 67 HIGH China 66 LOW Masculinity Germany 66 HIGH China 66 HIGH Uncertainty Avoidance Germany 65 HIGH China 30 LOW Long Term Orientation Germany 31LOW China 118 HIGH Power Distance Index – PDI Power Distance measures equality...
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...2016 GERMAN BENEFITS SUMMARY All employees are eligible for most benefits programs from the first day of employment. Public holidays: This varies between 10 to 14 days (there’s no substitution if a holiday falls in a weekend) Vacation: 6 weeks per year (30 days for a full time employee) are earned during the calendar year (2.5 days per month). Group insurance (retirement, death, disability): Each employee is eligible to join the ON Semiconductor Retirement Plan after he/she has successfully completed his/her probation period. On February 1st and August 1st every year, new hires will be added to the plan. The monthly employee contribution can be up to 4% of the gross salary (increments by 1%). The company contribution is 4% of the gross salary plus half the percentage of the employee’s contribution (max 6%). Life / Disability Insurance: Accidental Death and Disability - ON Semiconductor provides a group accident insurance plan to cover all employees 24x7 hours, all around the world. The coverage is based on the employee’s annual income and 100% paid by the employer. • In case of an accident: o Lump sum of 2x salary payable in the event of accidental death (limit 600,000€) o Lump sum of 4x salary payable in case of accidental permanent disability (100%) (limit 1,200,000€). In case of partial disability, the percentages of the ‘General Accident Insurance Terms and Conditions’ shall apply. • In case the accident occurs during a business trip: o Lump sum of 3x salary payable in the...
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...Financial Resources & Capabilities During the period from 2007 to 2009 total sales went up 8.13% which is a strong performance. Most contribution is driving from domestic sales (i.e. German operations). 2007 Turnover (€m) Total turnover growth (%) Grocery Sales Density (euro/sqm/wk) Number of Stores Sales Area (‘000 sqm) 41,818 +3.9 2008 45,183 +8.0 2009 45,221 +0.1 121 121 116 8,515 6,645 9,065 7,153 9,430 7,499 ALDI financial resources seem to be strong since that the group is operating without loans from banks and long-term liabilities over years. Increased sales in 2010 lead to the conclusion that ALDI’s financial position will continue to be strong. The ALDI-brothers are the richest Germans in 2008 (each owning a fortune of @ 17 billion € {Welt Online, 2008}). 1.2 Human Resources & Capabilities ALDI operates a highly developed system of decentralization allowing flat hierarchies and fast promotion prospects. A high level of authority for managers is encouraging to e more entrepreneurs increases motivation. A minimum number of staff is working at high speed in stores. Store managers have to be hands. The few number of staff (about 4 persons per store), allows above-average salaries (regional managers: monthly salary of 6000 € and company car) {Meffert. C. 2002}. Managers are only appointed out of own ranks, making sure the expertise they’ve won over years stays in-house and company’s pbjectives are fully assimilated {Brandes, D. 2003}. The company is...
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...The concept of job satisfaction is an important issue and of great interest to managers because they recognize the importance of a job in the total life experience of an individual. Although there are quite a few factors involved, Europeans – especially Western Europeans – owe their high standard of living to their distinct focus on gainful employment. This research is based on three countries namely, Germany, New Zealand and Turkey. Germany Intrinsic Job Characteristics The Germans may be weak in some other factors, Stefanie Wahl (goethe.de 2007), mentioned that job satisfaction in Germany is high. However, when it comes to comparing job satisfaction to other factors, such as their standard of living, environmental situation or pensions they are considered high as they fall above the EU average. The Germans have a mindset that if they can use their knowledge and skills, as part of decision making processes that affect their work and getting a good salary, that would give them the overall satisfaction they need. Stefanie Wahl also mentions that the table below is supported with the fact that the Germans are less likely to consider their work as being unhealthy or boring. Attitude of the population of the European Union to work (EU-27) 2006 EU 27 Germany Western Germany Eastern Germany in per cent general job satisfaction 3.60 3.83 - - *) pleasant atmosphere at work 79 84 84 80 ability to use their knowledge and skills 77 83 83 83 ability to learn new things 70 75...
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...in some capacity and, in smaller companies, usually one or more family members are the senior officers and managers. Many businesses that are now public companies were family businesses.Family participation as managers and owners of a business can strengthen the company because family members are often loyal and dedicated to the family enterprise. However, family participation as managers and owners of a business can present unique problems because the dynamics of the family system and the dynamics of the business systems are often not in balance.The interests of a family member may not be aligned with the interest of the business. For example, if a family member wants to be president but is not as competent as a non-family member, the personal interest of the family member and the well being of the business may be in conflict.Or, the interests of the entire family may not be balanced with the interests of their business. For example, if a family needs its business to distribute funds for living expenses and retirement but the business requires those to stay competitive, the interests of the entire family and the business are not aligned. the interest of one family member may not be aligned with another family member. For example, a family member who is an owner may want to sell the business to maximize their return, but a family member who is an owner and also a manager may want to keep the company because it represents their career and they want their children to have the opportunity...
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...Question# 2: Why have the unfavorable foreign exchange movements made the Swiss franc a “currency from hell,” according to a lot of Swiss firms, managers and employees? Since 2008, the Swiss franc has significantly begun in the appreciation of its currency against the Euro and some other major currencies. Though Swiss franc is being one of a safe haven currency, but this appreciation of unfavorable currency exchange movement can challengingly affect to the firms, managers and employees as a whole. The currency of Swiss franc was considered to be massively appreciated since a debt crisis and subsequent global recession broke out in peripheral euro countries which result in the weakness in the euro. It threatens the development of the country and financial stability in the whole of Europe. According to the Swiss Federal Department of Finance (FDF) report, the Swiss franc significantly appreciated by approximately 48% against the euro between the start of August 2009 and the start of August 2011, and also against other major currencies such as the US dollar. Another main reason for this Swiss franc appreciation is the fact that investors increasingly seek secure investments during times of crisis. As the Swiss franc is seen as extremely safe haven, many investors take refuge in this currency, therefore increasing in demand and thus creating upward pressure (Federal Department of Finance, 2011). This rapid Swiss franc appreciation directly impacts on a large scale of...
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...with NetManager was that it had mushroomed in size and strategic importance. This was the result of keeping up with the rapidly changing technological demands, and NetManager becoming a highly visible product for Siemens’ largest customers. Analyzing the various problems, we see that despite the competence of the Bangalore RDC, there is a serious number of integration problems between Munich headquarters and Bangalore. First, there was a gap in product knowledge and competence, which resulted in unrealistic expectations such as project deadlines. Indians held proficiency in desktop and personal computing programming languages, while the Germans held extensive product knowledge concerning their EWSD technology and its functions. As the project grew in size and scope, it required interdependence amongst EWSD systems, knowledge held by German management and not sufficiently provided to Bangalore. Then, problems resulted concerning reliability and quality assurance. As the case outlines, these were due to erroneous assumptions on the part of Indian developers such as underestimated system usage. However, let us look at those factors which would have mitigated these issues. First, the Bangalore office did have a testbed with which it could run assurance tests. However, the testbed sent to...
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...a majority shareholding) or associated companies (where the HRM has a minority shareholding). The Credit Lyonnais Group has grown very rapidly over the past few years and will continue to grow with planned expansions on all Continents and in all areas of business. Realizing at an early stage of its expansion that its service and market strategies required an equally strong human resource strategy Credit Lyonnais set out to implementing HRM policies to achieve its business goals. 2) An International Corporation The Credit Lyonnais Group has grown very rapidly over the past decade principally by the acquisition of foreign banks throughout Europe and in other markets around the world. To benefit from its acquisitions many Credit Lyonnais managers believe they must now integrate their banking network...
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...Mesut Özil (German pronunciation: [ˈmeːzut ˈøːzil], Turkish: [me̞ˈsut ˈø̞zil]; born 15 October 1988) is a German footballer who plays for English club Arsenal and the German national team. Özil has been a youth national team member since 2006, and a member of the German national team since 2009. He gained international attention during the 2010 FIFA World Cup and was nominated for the Golden Ball Award, which is awarded to the tournament's best player. Özil started his senior career at hometown club Schalke in the Bundesliga in 2006, transferred to Werder Bremen in 2008 and was signed by Real Madrid in August 2010 following his break-out performance at the FIFA World Cup with Germany. On transfer deadline day of summer 2013, he moved to Arsenal for a club-record fee of £42.5 million.[3][4][5][6] The transfer makes him the most expensive German football player of all time. Özil is acclaimed for his finesse and improvisation as an attacking midfielder. His style and ability for providing assists for his team-mates has been compared by former manager José Mourinho to that of Real Madrid legend Zinedine Zidane.[7] In 2011, Özil ranked first in assists in major European and domestic competitions with 25. In 2012, he ranked first in assists in La Liga with 17.[8][9] He was also one of the top assist providers in the 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2012 with three in both tournaments. Contents [hide] 1 Club career 1.1 Gelsenkirchen and Rot-Weiss Essen 1.2 Schalke 04 1.3...
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...infrastructure for the 600 personnel here. What vexed Eberl and Hunke was that Deutsche Telekom, Siemens ICN’s largest customer, was upset because of slow product delivery on a new telecommunications software product, the so-called NetManager. For a variety of reasons the project had rapidly mushroomed in size and scope beyond what had been initially envisioned. To solve the problem, Eberl, co-head of ICN’s largest subdivision, had to travel some 7000 kilometers to this dusty corner of the world: despite the conveniences of email, telephone, and fax, there was little substitute for face-to-face interaction. The Germans and Indians regarded each other with mutual respect and camaraderie. The Indians marveled at the meticulousness of the Germans, which had allowed them over four decades to assemble one of the world’s finest telecommunications systems. The Germans, in turn, appreciated the diligence and...
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...HBR.ORG How I Did It… Bart Becht is the CEO of Reckitt Benckiser, headquartered in Slough, England. Building a Company Without Borders AN ITALIAN IS RUNNING THE UK BUSINESS A DUTCHMAN IS RUNNING THE U.S. BUSINESS AN AMERICAN IS RUNNING THE GERMAN BUSINESS by Bart Becht A FRENCHMAN IS RUNNING THE RUSSIAN BUSINESS AN INDIAN IS RUNNING THE CHINESE BUSINESS A BELGIAN IS RUNNING THE BRAZILIAN BUSINESS T THE IDEA You may never have heard of Reckitt Benckiser, but in the past few years the company has outperformed its rivals P&G, Unilever, and Colgate in growth—even during the downturn. Here’s how. hey say you can’t go home again. If you work for Reckitt Benckiser, you can go home—but you may not want to, and you certainly won’t have to. Many companies, when they describe themselves as global, mean they have operations around the world, they work virtually and in all time zones, and their key people are developed through stints in other markets. Our version is more comprehensive. Most of our top managers haven’t held jobs in their countries of origin for years and view themselves as global citizens rather than as citizens of any given nation. We have operations in more than 60 countries. Our top 400 managers represent 53 different nationalities. We’ve spent the past 10 years building this culture of global April 2010 Harvard Business Review 103 HOW I DID IT mobility because we think it’s one of the best ways to generate new ideas and create global...
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...parts. The first section of the paper reports about the personal experience of different cultural backgrounds from the perspective of turkish and German people. It refers to the different cognition of both parties during the first migration wave. Further it deals with the issues of integration into German society and the failure which caused isolation into turkish community districts like Koeln-Mühlheim. Today, Turks represent about 4-5% of Germany’s total population. What does the word “guest workers” exactly mean? A guest worker is defined as “An individual with special permission to work on a temporary basis in another country when a shortage of labor is an issue” (Business dictionary, 2012). Everything started when the recruiting agreement was signed on the 31th of October in 1961 by Turkey and Germany. By this time, Germany faced the highest demand on labour in history. The ”economic miracle”, the rapid reconstruction and development of the economy of West Germany after World War II, lead to the highest demand on the labour market in german history. To the same time Turkey suffered under mass unemployment and a constant growth in population. The recruiting agreement between Turkey and Germany was the start for a large-scale immigration of guestworkers. The requirements for acceptance were a passed health check proofed by german doctors and being unmarried. Within the first year 7,116 male turks migrated to Germany as guest workers. The original plan was to stay for up...
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...prices for the majority of people. To sustain its low-pricing strategy, IKEA managers decided to outsource its producing tasks to factories in other countries with relatively lower labor cost. However, this decision pushed IKEA into the accusations of using child labor. In the mid-1990s, when child labor issue arouse for the first time, IKEA promised that “if the supplier employed children under legal working age, the contract would be cancelled” (6) and appointed a third party to monitor its suppliers’ factories. However, in the spring of 1995, a German film maker documented how one of IKEA’s major suppliers used child labor and invited IKEA to participate in an living discussion. This essay evaluates the possible strategies for IKEA in respond to the invitation and the child labor issue. Do Not Participate in the Discussion Program I would recommend that Marianne Barner, as a business area manager for carpets, do not participate in the program. This documentary aimed directly at IKEA and one of its suppliers, so it is highly possibly that the question lists prepared by the Germany documentary maker are used to mislead audiences and the evidences provided are weighted against the IKEA. Therefore, it is better for Barner to decline the invitation at first, conduct a investigation simultaneously and publish the results as soon as possible. Furthermore, in public, Barner should thank the German Video production company to notify this issue and express IKEA’s deeply apologies...
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