Business process outsourcing

The objective is to develop a software for BPO management system. Business process outsourcing (BPO) is a subset of outsourcing that involves the contracting of the operations and responsibilities of specific business functions (or processes) to a third-party service provider. BPO management system is used to effectively manage the business activities of a BPO organisation. This system adopts a comprehensive approach to minimize the manual work and schedule resources, time in a cogent manner. It is designed for hiring any company, that is , it is generalised system for business process management. The core of the system is to maintain employee details and customer details and company details. Employee details include id, name, address, shift timings, category (based on the field of expertise), number of calls attended and salary details. Salary increment and perks (employee benefits) for each employee will be done in the end of the month depending upon the number of calls attended for that given month. Employees recruited for various companies will be trained according to their expertise and will be given knowledge about the other departments also so that they can handle the calls of other department when they are idle. Customer details include name, phone number, address, area of complaint or area of doubt. For a complaint registered for more than a given span of the time (say 15 days, depending on the hiring company) the complaint will be logged into a separate file for immediate processing. Company details include the name of the company, number of employees working for the company and the contract details.

Leadership styles and its applicability in India

   In a large organisation there motivations are likely to be as varied as human needs can be – not only for security, higher income and better working conditions but for affection, recognition, deference, esteem, and for both autonomy towards and dependence on the executive leader, for both conformity and individuality – traits that can exist in the same person. Other things being equal, the stronger the motivational base the leader taps, the greater control over that person the leader can exercise. † Thus, leaders are persons who use different methods to ensure that the right work gets done. Hence, not only do leaders need to know how to deal with persons but also must know what the right things are. Leadership is defined in a dictionary as: the position or function of a leader; the ability to lead; or an act or instance of leading. In a business environment real leadership is the act of pulling your employees forward to a desired level of performance. A distinction can be made between a leader who gets people to achieve specific goals and a leader who gets people to achieve specific goals and develops a self actualisation belief system or culture. Both are exercising leadership. However, one is dealing with â€Å"transactions† and the other is â€Å"transforming† the character of the organisation. Thus, transactional leadership is when leaders determine what subordinates need to do to achieve objectives, classify the requirements to achieve the objectives and help subordinates become confident they can reach their objectives. On the other hand transformational leadership works on the vision for the organisational as a whole and prepares the employees of the organisation to meet the challenges of the future and deal with all of them. Further, the key to understanding real leadership lies in understanding that your employees have different personalities and attitudes; each one has different job responsibilities; each one has a different view of what is important in the operations of the organisation. Therefore, a leader has to cater to all types of employees and use different styles of leadership to bind them together and achieve the objectives of the organisation. Further, there are many ways in which a leader can lead. However, certain common elements such as a vision of purpose, gaining organisational commitment to this vision of purpose and providing the wherewithall to carry it out, are some of the common elements a leader has to have, irrespective of his style of leadership. Thus, even though leadership styles are not given much importance, especially where there are successful leaders, the style adopted by a leader is an integral part to being a successful leader in the long run. As mentioned earlier persons can perform the vital functions of leadership in many different ways. The style of leadership a leader adopts depends on the situation and on his or her personality traits. The interplay between these two factors is complex. Some situations may favour one style; other situations may favour another style. Some leaders may vary their styles, whereas other leaders may not be able to vary their styles. As mentioned above, leadership styles are complex and varied as they depend on many behavioural traits. One may look at leadership styles depending on how a person influences others. Leaders may rely on charisma; leaders may use their positional authority; leaders may lead by example, etc. However, this delineation of leadership approaches or styles, is only a matter of emphasis. In practice leaders normally resort to a multiple of leadership styles. Thus, there are many classification of leadership styles and a lot of research has been undertaken on them. This article looks at the broad transitions through which leadership styles have passed. Today, leaders have moved from authoritative to benevolent to consultative and democratic. These styles also reflect the changes in attitudes of employees, earlier they were completely under the control of the employer, today they are more enlightened and demand dignity and equality. Thus, if a leader does not recognise this he/she will not be successful. Before one discuses the leadership styles in India, one needs to look at the business environment in India. India has today seen a lot of transformation from an unexciting mix of government owned companies and private family owned companies, many of which survived on government licenses to the inflow of multinational companies and lot of Indian companies being run as professional companies. Further, today there is talk of privatizing public sector companies, however, there are some public sector companies earning profits. All these changes in the business environment has led to a change in the leadership styles, in certain cases leadership styles have changed business. In the public sector the leadership style has been formal authority, wherein the employees do not have the freedom to express themselves. Under such situation the employee will not work to his/her utmost ability, but will only carry out those tasks, which are required of them. There is no scope of being innovative, as mistakes are not accepted. Further, even the leaders of public sector undertakings do have the power to be creative. In order to change the above-mentioned situation, there is a need for the leaders of the public sector companies to change their style of leadership. They should adopt more democratic and participate styles of leadership and such leadership styles should not be adopted just to show to the employees that they being included in the decision making, but should be introduced in its true spirit. The public sector leaders need to adopt â€Å"transformation† leadership, where the employees of an organisation are moved towards achieving objectives, not for the sake of keeping their jobs but because they believe in the objectives of the organisation. As mentioned earlier, in the private sector in India there is a lot of change taking place. With the coming in of foreign investment, Indian enterprises have to be competitive and change with the times. In the past, India's private sectors comprised of family owned business and the employers did not care much for their employees, as they had the power of money. The leadership style of adopted by them was authoritative. Employees were treated like servants and could be called upon do to tasks that were not part of their job description. Even though the above style of leadership still exists in many private sector companies, there has been a change in the style of leadership in many of the professional run Indian companies. It has become more democratic. However, in order to change the way India companies function, there is a lot of work still to be done. Change of leadership style is an important area in which Indian companies should invest time and energy. In a labour abundant country, people's satisfaction is an easy thing to forget, however, it is important that their needs are fulfilled, if the organisation is to be successful. People are the greatest asset an organisation has and if leaders of organisation adopt leadership styles that are democratic and transforming, then the organisation would well be on its way to achieving its objectives. As the CEO of GE, Jack Welch has said, â€Å"we cannot afford management styles that suppress and intimidate. † Leadership behaviour is moving in many directions. Transformational and charismatic leadership are gaining in importance. There is even talk of whether self-managed groups are better than having leaders. In the world over, authoritative forms of leadership have collapsed. In India we are at a stage where maybe a totally democratic style of leadership may not succeed. This is because employees at large are not use to being taken into confidence and therefore, if a leader tries to use the democratic style of leadership he may not succeed, however, an enlightened leader must realise that, if the democratic style of leadership is not eventually followed, he may only be successful for a short period. Thus, a leader will need to resort to maybe all the styles of leadership in the course of his interaction with other, however, at the end he/she should make sure that the democratic style of leadership is used most.

A Review Of The Battle Of Lz Albany History Essay

A Review Of The Battle Of Lz Albany History Essay The battle in review is LZ Albany. This battle took place during the Vietnam War under Operation Pleiku. LZ Albany was an ambush on American troops en route to landing zone Albany by NVA regulars. The battle took place on the afternoon of November 17, 1965. The fight involved the US Army 2nd battalion of the 7th Cavalry (2/7) and the NVA 8th battalion of the 66th Regiment. Although the end result of the battle is considered an American victory, the losses suffered were horrendous. It is safe to say this was a pyrrhic victory for the US, only due to the fact that they held the ground at Albany at the end of the battle. This did alter the amount of troops the NVA could attack LZ Columbus with as a side effect. The battle itself would teach many lessons to the US army in regards to the importance of security and the role support by fire played in this theatre of combat. The Vietnam War was a civil war in which the United States was actively involved in. The Northern faction of Vietnam adopted Communism, and thus gained Russia and China as allies. Vietnam until this point was a French territory which was in the process of being liberated by the North Vietnamese. They had defeated France and driven them from parts of the country. France and South Vietnam sought aid from the United States. In reply the United States rendered aid and advisors to South Vietnam. This was due to US foreign policy at the time and staunch opposition to Communism by the US government. If Vietnam fell to Communism it also posed a great economic threat to US interests in South Asia as well. By 1965 the US Armed Forces no longer played the role of advisors for the South Vietnamese in the Vietnam conflict. We were at the point of actively engaging the North Vietnamese in combat. (Stewart 386-320) Under Operation Pleiku, US Army divisions were first employed against the North Vietnamese. This is exactly what the North Vietnamese commander Gen. Nguyen Chi Tranh had desired. His main strategy enc ompassed liberating a vast majority of South Vietnam from southern control and inflicting mass casualties on US forces. The idea was that the American public would not support a war in which multitudes of American soldiers lost their lives. His intent was to shatter the American public’s support and thus drive another foreign imposer out of the country. This plan was titled the Dong Xuan Campaign. (Coleman.51) American forces had already been occupying the provincial capital of Pleiku. Frequent attacks and skirmishes by the NVA gave the impression that they were probing for the best possible place to attack to retake the city. This indicated to US commanders that there was a sizable force of enemy soldiers in the Northern plateaus that needed to be dealt with. A series of landing zones were reconnoitered for probable attack positions. The Army’s objective was simple: to destroy the enemy threat in the area and their will to fight. After securing LZ X-ray, it was the jo b of the 2/7 Cavalry to sweep the gap between LZ X-ray and LZ Columbus, which held US artillery. Their mission was also very simple: to sweep the area between LZ Columbus and LZ Albany, and engage whatever enemy they found.

Supply Chain management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Supply Chain management - Essay Example Switching costs are moderately high for manufacturers and hence lot sizes drive costs. Visibility is lacking in supply chain regarding down stream activities with consequent vague projections on deliveries. Capacity is determined by external factors such as time limited quotas with no information available about delivery by competitors for the same quota. This arduous process takes 6 to 12 months, which is excruciatingly long compared with the value added cycle time of only 6-12 weeks. The brand owners therefore begin their work on the product more than a year before the selling season. The players in the industry have responded to the troubled times with the initiatives such as Quick Response Time, Collaborative efforts among the participants and concurrent engineering necessitating the deployment of contemporary web enabled information technology in the supply chain management. The global apparel industry is typically with a number of complexities. Fluctuating and uncertain demand, short product lifecycle, wide variety not always amenable to the economies of scale and supply chain transcending geographic boundaries, time zones, cultures and languages. To win in this industry, efficient supply chain management is a major base for sustainable competitive advantage. The search for comparative advantage has led many apparel industry players to globalise their operations in the recent times. This is borne out by the penetration of imports. For instance, in UK, the degree of import penetration in this industry is 92% (Jones 2006). The vertically integrated local model gave way to multi-tier globally distributed model. This model hinged on availability of skills, specialised process technology, international trade relations and regulatory milieu present in host countries for outsourcing. The made to order nature of the product and the needed skill intensity in

PERSONAL STATEMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

PERSONAL STATEMENT - Essay Example As a citizen of United Kingdom, I wanted to deliver all of my faculty to the safety of the country. This is the sole reason why I educated myself in criminology . I have seen in many neighbor hoods of UK, people are killed and plundered and they are less helpful about this. I always have pondered why crime occurs and what the real reason behind it is. For understanding that, I have questioned my dad and he told me it is mainly illiteracy and ignorance triggers crime. But in my mind ,I was assuring that some people are born with criminal instincts. But these people are a small percentage and the real criminal gangs are conditioned by the society. This inquisitive nature of mine led to the research of crime and the working of criminal minds .In my youth I used to go to the library and pick up books which elaborated about crime .Then I found that I had an unquenchable thirst within myself to know everything about crime and criminal acts. Graduall, I understood that drug abuse is also a primary reason for the increase of crime in the country. It is not only the men who are indulged in crime but even the women are indulging in it. By research and reading , I acknowledged that ,illiteracy and ignorance of family can detoriate the infrastructure of a well bred society. The crime based statistics showed that, the crime occurs more in the black and Hispanic neighborhood. And it is a known fact that people of these regions are illiterate from generations. One day for my experience I visited the black and Hispanic neighbor hoods to acknowledge the information I had was true. . After my undergraduate studies, I discussed with my mother and father about my urge to join Bachelors in criminology. My father was amazed knowing my excitement towards learning criminology. For this very same reason, I underwent an evaluation and assessment of the aftermath of criminology study. I really had to plan my future based on this studies. I was always keen on providing social service to m y society and I believed that graduation in criminology would definitely confer to my mission. It is when I studied criminology I realized that world needs more from me. It is around the second year of criminology graduation, I thought about joining master in International relation. I understand that international relation will take me to the position which I always wanted to hold. I always wanted to hold a position where I can use my skills and knowledge to eradicator drug abuse, illiteracy and poverty from my country and the world. During my study of International relations, I can acquire knowledge about the role of government in the progression of a nation and world as a whole. In my criminology study I learned that the role of government in upgrading the status of the society is crucial. My ambition is to get employed in an International body like WHO or UNICEF where I can analyze the intricate elements which provoke crime and violence in a society. I believe that my graduation in criminology will allow me to acknowledge that crime is a man made affair and it is the duty of every man to wipe out this hellish attitude from the face of earth. With masters in international relation, I can study the foreign policy agenda of the country and also regulate non –

The Time Back Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Time Back - Essay Example For the rest of the things the inhabitants of Rishyap still have to visit Kalimpong, the nearest town. It was an excursion at that time with friends, exploring the tribes of Himalayas. A group of 45 people who kept the place busy for 7 days. They were young blood that always rushed for adventure at that time, especially when intoxicated by the local beer that contains more alcohol than any other beer of the world. Rishyap was green at that time just like it is now; and the alluring Kanchanjangha, the third highest peak of the world always playing a hide and seek amidst that green and occasional fog. And amidst that hide and seek one day Chimli appeared - Chimli a woman with Mongolian features and a smile that would even bring lightening in a cloudy evening. 20 years is a long time specially to forget someone like Chimli, but the attraction of Kanchanjangha and the serene beauty of Rishyap once again compelled Robin to come here, however this time with his family. Robin has been marri ed to Martha, a doctorate in psychology and has one son, Dave. Robin has availed a package tour that would take him to entire Sikkim and at the end Lava, Lolegaon and Rishyap, his final destintion. From Rishyap they would go to Kolkata and by flight to Mumbai to leave for USA, their country of origin. The evening at Rishyap is enchanting. As one to two and two to three stars appeared in the sky soon to multiply and go uncounted, a fire was set near the hotel to celebrate a campfire in this early January. A local girl was singing a nice tune. Though the words were beyond understanding, yet the tune was heart melting. Robin took a large whisky and a piece of chicken to make the most of this fiery surrounding. Soon a peg became two and two became three. Alcohol often helps to recollect past events especially if they are covered deep under the dust of subsequent events that has followed over the years. It was a similar evening 20 years back. All his friends were having a good time with their booze and getting themselves warm around the fire that was burning beneath the open sky. Chimli was singing a local song and some one was playing a drum like instrument. The environment was cosy and enjoyable. One after another, all his friends moved to their respective rooms when they felt the whisky was becoming too much to bear with. Only Robin sat and Chimli kept on singing. The fire was almost dying and Robin failed to gauge the intensity of the alcohol he was consuming at that time. Soon he realised it was not possible for him to take himself to his room as he was floating in alcohol rather than walking on land. Chimli came to rescue. she held him around his waist and took him to his room. Robin felt the soft touches that were irresistible for someone of his age and especially under booze. The room was dark and while Chimli was trying to put Robin to bed, owing to the weight of Robin and his state they both rolled over the bed. The rest Robin remembers little; just that there was not much resistance from Chimli against whatever had happened and she disappeared in the darkness once it was over. Robin never saw Chimli again, the next day he looked for her but she was nowhere to be seen. Then they left Rishyap and soon Chimli became an event out of intoxication. Robin’s eyelids were now heavy, his hands merely reaching the glass and his feet seemed to be buried into the

Individual Report on Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Individual Report on Management - Essay Example It includes development of abilities and skills, building up of education and management, improving of self awareness and standard of life, and realization of aspirations. The concept of personal development is not limited to individual level but it also refers to the organizational level in terms of improvement in system, equipment, technology, method, practices and appraisal considerations in organization to support the personal development plan at individual level. A middle level manager needs to recognize his / her current and future role in Tesco Inc. Primarily the purpose of personal development plan is to assist the individuals to achieve their targets more effectively. A personal development plan offers several options to manager to improve his career and management style. Tesco is an international firm and mid-level managers effectively contribute at functional level. Therefore, PDP enables the Tesco’s mid level managers to list a variety of goals and steps for their development with respect to the analysis of their strengths and weaknesses and identifies the areas they need to emphasize with additional knowledge and better understanding. Tesco management can get short and long term aspirations to catch their strategic goals and have evidence regarding the progression towards the set target. Through PDP, Tesco management not only can improve their existing operations but it also facilitates them to review their existing and future plans. 1.2 Management Style In fact a management style is an overall application of leadership which the managers have to perform in terms of their role and tasks in Tesco. The handling of routine work and particular contingencies depends on the managerial styles. Lewin et al (1939) suggested a continuum theory of leadership that identified three basic styles which are used as management styles by managers at their level. Management styles vary from manager to manager in all organizations. Same is the case in Tesco. Th ere are some autocrat managers in Tesco who have little trust in group members and believe that money is the only reward that will motivate workers. At the other end of the continuum is the laissez-faire managers who have little or no self-confidence in their managerial role, they set no goals for the employees, and minimize the communication and interaction. Autocrat Democrat Laissez-faire Benevolent Autocrat (Fig. 1) The democratic management style can be the most effective and productive style for Tesco. The style encourages the subordinates by providing an opportunity to share their views in decision making process. Democratic style explains the reasons to the group for decisions when necessary and objectively communicates criticism and praise to subordinates. This in turn motivates the employees and feel them importance in organizational structure.

Comparison between Hitler and Martin Luther King's Ideologies Essay

Comparison between Hitler and Martin Luther King's Ideologies - Essay Example One common similarity between them is their rise from humble backgrounds to lead high profile nationalistic campaigns in their different backyards. Hitler rising to lead the Germans while King rising to lead a campaign against racial inequality in the United States of America. They espoused different ideologies; Marin Luther King espoused nonviolent activism while Adolf Hitler strongly believed in the Nazi ideology. These were two contradicting ideologies, Adolf Hitler’s believed in the superiority of the Aryan race while the Martin Luther King believed in Black Nationalism. The two ideologies on other hand seemed to have similarities, not taking into account the fact that Martin Luther King was from the United States and Adolf Hitler was from Germany. Martin Luther’s king and Hitler’s ideological background There are varying definitions of the term ideology; however, it usually refers to the manner of thinking and belief common to an individual, class or the who le society. Ideologies are sets of ideas, which are based on the messages that do not emanate from the ideas on their own, but from the unconscious mind of an individual or the collective masses. Martin Luther King Junior was famously known for his significant role in the African-American Civil Rights Movement, and he lead a non-violent activism movement in the United States campaigning for equal footing for the black Americans with the white Americans. This ideology seemed similar to the one espoused by Mohandas Gandhi when he led a nonviolent activism against the British colonialist, occupying India, he claims to have been heavily inspired by this Leader and in addition, Leo Tolstoy Before King. The philosophy espoused in this ideology entailed Christian doctrine and that of liberating African Americans from the yoke of slavery. He had great speech delivery; he captured the society with very famous phrases and quotes that have held together societies for generations and generation s. The election of the current United States of America President Barrack Obama, who is an African American, is indirectly linked to the great work and campaign of Martin Luther King Junior. This feat was unlikely and unthinkable in the eras that Martin Luther king Junior lived; this was a legacy that he left on the annals of the United States of America. Adolf Hitler was great a German Reich, who left a great print on the society because the Second World War was directly attributable to him. This was after he felt that Germany was exposed and shortchanged at the treaty of Versailles, he thought that Germany’s pride had diminished at the treaty. This war was blamed for the millions of lives lost across the world from America, Europe, Africa and even Asia. Besides the world war, his ideological beliefs lead to widespread torture, violence, and terror of millions of Semites, blacks and the gypsies. His ideology captured millions of people especially in white dominated areas in Europe, Americas and the Australasia regions, and even to this date, there are people who still profess this ideology, despite the fact that it is predominantly unpopular all over the world. His ideology entailed the claim that the Aryan race in Germany and Austria were the most superior races off all beings this lead to orchestrate one of the dark events known in the history of humankind, the holocaust. He held the view

The prospective for the US to base solar business organization to Term Paper

The prospective for the US to base solar business organization to significantly enter the Indian market - Term Paper Example Identifying this particular need, various companies around the world are focusing on developing products of new technology from alternative sources of energy. This has automatically led to the generation of evolution of hybrid automobiles, increased usage of wind and solar power in terms of developing products and machineries, etc. Talking in terms of new technology, it can be said that for the purpose of fulfillment of electricity needs of various products of commercial and domestic categories, the solar energy is often preferred because of unlimited supply and constant availability and very little harmful impact on the environment. Because of the high costs of availing new alternative forms of technology, the market for solar product is tremendously large. Because of the large amount of the entire Indian population who are staying in the remotely located towns and villages of India, there is a huge demand for solar technology based products in the developing and emerging market eco nomies like India for the purpose of providing sustainable energy and lighting solutions in multiple domestic rural households (Bhave & Chatterjee, â€Å"Solar power on every rooftop†). SunGlo Corporation can focus on the process of fulfilling the energy and lighting requirements of this emerging market by its widely diversified product portfolio which comprises of both domestic and commercial focused product offerings. For this purpose, the paper evaluates the market of India from the points of political, economical, physical, social factors as well as the various risks and potential barriers and threats that can possibly arise in the Indian market. Mission Statement The vision and mission statements of a company highlights the company’s long term and short terms goals over the span of next two, five and even 10 years. It has to be mentioned that the vision of the company talks about the company’s targets for the longer period while the mission talks about smal l milestones and targets that the company needs to achieve in terms of attaining its long term vision. The vision statement of the company is to focus on producing solar technology products which has high standards of quality and thereby meeting the global demand for products of solar technology. The mission statement of the company is to cater to the solar technology products demands of the upcoming and emerging market of the new economies, thereby focusing on the process of the need fulfillment of the new markets. The mission of the company includes the point of investing in the setting up of a production plant in an emerging economy like India, China etc and thereby developing high quality solar products of global standards which will help the company to cater to the needs of the developed and other developing economies of the Asian region and other parts of the world. Introduction Overview The world of the 21st century, much like that of the past is moving at a rapid pace with a smooth and sustainable rate of overall developments happening in various parts of the worl

Quimica Del Atlantico Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Quimica Del Atlantico - Essay Example It opened a plant in Baracaldo in 1955. External environment and internal strategic capabilities The strengths of this company can be analysed through a study of its steady growth. Quimica del Atlantico grew steadily over years and opened two more factories one which was located at Santurce and the other at Portugalete. The company was over the years consistent in allocation of significant resources and efforts to research and development and was thus able to produce a number of products and processes. These include- baked enamel used for refrigerators, pollster fishes used for wood product, use of electro deposition for paint application systems, water soluble baths through immersion used especially in automobiles factories, the powdered paint and lastly the Kolormatik system. The company adopted a number of strategies to maintain its position. Its basic tool was technology and the desire to be on the lead in technology caused the company to sign agreement for transfer of technology with other companies in various states. With the advanced technology the sales of the company increased immensely. In 1985 the company estimated the products that were sold to approximately 12,000 retail outlets in Spain which was a whopping 75 percent increase. In addition to the huge sales turnover the company had varied and numerous buyers for their products. These included home decorating paints and automobile body repair paints both of which represented 50 percent of the company’s sales. The other 50 percent was accounted by sale of paints which were manufactured for industrial customers. The most important industrial customer was automobile OEMs meaning original equipment. These accounted for 30 percent of QA’s total sales. The remaining 20 percent went to other industrial sector which includes automobile components and spare parts, domestic appliance manufacturers, metallographic industry, toys, furniture, railroad stocking etc. The company also grew to be a le ading employer in the industry. Its total work force in the year 1986 amounted to about 575 employees. This huge number of employee’s meant that the company was indeed doing very well. Quimica Del Atlantico was leading in Spain in the refinishing segment since the Spanish civil war ended in three products. These are one white paint and two black paints. This means that in addition to making huge volume of sales the company was also leading in quality product thus widening its markets even more. Towards the end of 1950s QA was able to position itself well when SEAT at that time started manufacturing cars in Spain. The automobile industry was so far the most important customer of QA. Subsequently other paint manufacturers and automobile OEMs established industries in Spain. This was the onset of competition but also the onset of a wider market for its product as more automobile industries came to birth as well as competing paint manufacturers. However until 1985 the customers w ere limited to within the country. There were no exports until 1986. Spain became a member of European communities in 12th June 1986, a political and economical factor which created a new opportunity for the company. This meant a new dawn to the company as Spain had become a part of the regional trade agreement. The company contemplated venturing into the new markets within the European community and also hunting for raw material at a lower cost within the Europe

P&G Advertising Strategy Essay Example for Free

PG Advertising Strategy Essay For marketing students at IIM Ahmedabad, 9th of January, 2011, is anything but a typical Sunday. They have resisted the temptation to join their batchmates in a lazy basketball game and appear oblivious to the cheerful riotous frenzy of the kite festival on the banks of the Sabarmati. Instead they have been pitted against each other all morning in a brand exercise organised and masterminded by PG. The prize? A dinner date for the teams with a man responsible for running the marketing function of one of the most powerful FMCG companies on the planet, Marc Pritchard , global marketing and brand building officer, PG. However, even students who do not make the cut get a chance to experience Pritchard firsthand when he addresses a respectably packed hall that evening. Soon after he’s done, the questions fly thick and fast. These include some potentially embarrassing posers. How does PG feel, one student wants to know, about its campaigns being ambushed by its archrival HUL? Few people have forgotten the teaser campaign about a mystery shampoo last year (that was revealed to be PG’s Pantene) being hijacked by Dove from the HUL stable. Pritchard opts to take the high road on this one: â€Å"We can’t prevent any competitor from ambush (surprise attack). But if you focus on the consumer, what your brand is doing to serve the consumer and if you have a big idea, you will win most of the time. † And that’s a running theme through pretty much everything that Pritchard has to say. Whether he’s addressing students at IIM-A, the media or an audience at the Cannes Lions Festival, he’s a tireless champion of brands serving consumers or â€Å"purpose driven branding. † PG spent most of the 1990s establishing a global footprint. Now, according to Pritchard, it finally has the chance to live up to its purpose. The first step was getting senior management to define a purpose for each of the brands in the PG stable: a blueprint on how the company could touch and improve lives. Pritchard explains, â€Å"We still have a core benefit but are thinking more broadly on how we can deliver it. We are very focussed on sharpening what the brands stand for, identifying human insights that can translate into big ideas. † Bold Gamble However those prepared for a lofty chronicle of CSR and corporate do-gooding are likely to step back, a little disappointed. Pritchard’s showreel of purpose driven work from PG includes pretty much every big campaign the FMCG has come up with recently. This includes the highly awarded work on Old Spice with its cocky ‘The man your man could smell like’ tagline. Pritchard says, â€Å"Purpose is much more than a cause or a corporate responsibility. We deliberately focused on making people define purpose as how brands improve everyday lives. A cause is just a piece of it as opposed to the whole thing. † This helps take purpose out of an ivory tower. It’s no longer something that resonates only with consumers in developed markets, fed up with hard sell, looking for corporates to do something more. Instead it could even be used as an effective go to market strategy. Which is pretty much the case with Pampers. Pritchard defines the brand’s purpose as â€Å"to improve a baby’s healthy, happy development. Its benefit is dryness and comfort that allows babies to sleep, play and explore more. When they do that, they develop better. By the way, it’s also making their mom’s lives a lot better if they sleep through the night. † To bring this purpose to life, PG sends pediatricians to villages with tips on how to help the baby sleep and advice on immunization, besides using this interface as a sampling opportunity. The one pack = one vaccine program run in association with the UNICEF is tied into this larger purpose too. â€Å"It helps bring the community of moms together since they like to help other moms,† says Pritchard. Even ‘Women Against Lazy Stubble’ for Gillette, a homegrown campaign, has something larger driving it. Purpose takes on a more meaningful role in developing markets,† he explains. The vans that propagate the program give young men tips on shaving, how to dress, handle an interview and talk to women. Purpose coincides well with PG making a concerted push into non-city markets not just in India but in other countries like Brazil and China that have a yawning urban-rural divide. PG is focusing on stores because it’s the first moment of truth for the rural consumer. Pritchard says, â€Å"We market back from there to create awareness to get them to that point. † There are approximately 7 million high frequency shops in India and PG has covered 4 million of these so far. A fair amount of product and package development is being done to cater to this segment. Using the store as the starting point also helps make the entire process less sporadic. Pritchard states, â€Å"It means you are always on. We have consolidated the number of distributors into a core highly capable, powerful group. We give them the material, knowledge and know how on display. † India is in some ways at the vanguard of PG’s rural drive. One of the things pioneered in India was generating more household trial. Pritchard admits, â€Å"It was Sumeet Vohra (chief marketing officer – Asia, PG) who created this machine to identify what it was going to take to get these products in the households, as well as the tools to measure performance. Much of what we learnt in India has been exported to other markets like Africa for example. † The recent acquisition of Paras by Reckitt Benckiser proves that multinational giants look to India for a lot more than its large consumer base. Pritchard gives a diplomatic answer when asked if there are any local heroes that he’s got an eye on. But PG invariably unearths little jewels with every acquisition, he says. Like Koleston which was not very big globally but strong in Latin America, particularly in Brazil, around the time Wella was acquired. PG took the brand to Mexico, Europe and are now launching in India. Pritchard goes further back for his next example: Richardson Vicks in 1985 had a very tiny brand called Pantene that accounted for $70 million in sales. He says, â€Å"We put the new technology in, and launched it in Taiwan and came up with Pantene Pro V. Now it is over a $3 billion brand. † To be chosen for the big push, the brand needs equity and it helps to have some sort of a story. Like Max Factor’s SK2 which was made with Pitera, a yeast extract used by monks in Japan which kept their skin in a better condition. â€Å"We built from that story, tested it in different markets and now it’s more than half a billion dollars and growing like crazy,† says Pritchard. In a classical FMCG battle, market observers may be tempted to brand PG as a pacifist, with hardly any aggressive countermoves towards competition. But, combining brand awareness with social programmes, driving its brands further into the hinterland and acquiring a knack of creating billion dollar brands, Pritchard knows that the company is pushing the right levers.

Higher education Essay Example for Free

Higher education Essay 1. Introduction IT HAS BEEN A LONG FELT NECESSITY TO ALIGN HIGHER EDUCATION WITH THE EMERGING NEEDS OF THE ECONOMY SO AS TO ENSURE THAT THE GRADUATES OF HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM HAVE ADEQUATE KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS FOR EMPLOYMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP. THE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM HAS TO INCORPORATE THE REQUIREMENTS OF VARIOUS INDUSTRIES IN ITS CURRICULUM, IN AN INNOVATIVE AND FLEXIBLE MANNER WHILE DEVELOPING A HOLISTIC AND WELL GROOMED GRADUATE. MINISTRY OF HRD, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA HAD ISSUED AN EXECUTIVE ORDER IN SEPTEMBER 2011 FOR NATIONAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION QUALIFICATION FRAMEWORK (NVEQF). SUBSEQUENTLY, MINISTRY OF FINANCE, IN PURSUANCE OF  THE DECISION OF CABINET COMMITTEE ON SKILL DEVELOPMENT IN ITS MEETING held on 19th December, 2013, has issued a notification for National Skills QUALIFICATIONS FRAMEWORK (NSQF) WHICH SUPERSEDES NVEQF. UNDER THE NATIONAL SKILLS DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, MANY SECTOR SKILL COUNCILS REPRESENTING RESPECTIVE INDUSTRIES HAVE/ARE BEING ESTABLISHED. ONE OF THE MANDATES OF SECTOR SKILL COUNCILS IS TO DEVELOP NATIONAL OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS (NOSS) FOR VARIOUS JOB ROLES IN THEIR RESPECTIVE INDUSTRIES. IT IS IMPORTANT TO EMBED THE COMPETENCIES REQUIRED FOR SPECIFIC JOB ROLES IN THE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM FOR CREATING EMPLOYABLE  GRADUATES. THE UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION (UGC) HAS LAUNCHED A SCHEME ON SKILLS DEVELOPMENT BASED HIGHER EDUCATION AS PART OF COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY EDUCATION, LEADING TO BACHELOR OF VOCATION (B. VOC. ) DEGREE WITH MULTIPLE EXITS SUCH AS DIPLOMA/ADVANCED DIPLOMA UNDER THE NSQF. THE B. VOC. PROGRAMME IS FOCUSED ON UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES PROVIDING UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES WHICH WOULD ALSO INCORPORATE SPECIFIC JOB ROLES AND THEIR NOSS ALONGWITH BROAD BASED GENERAL EDUCATION. THIS WOULD ENABLE THE GRADUATES COMPLETING B. VOC. TO MAKE A MEANINGFUL PARTICIPATION IN ACCELERATING INDIA’S ECONOMY BY GAINING APPROPRIATE  EMPLOYMENT, BECOMING ENTREPRENEURS AND CREATING APPROPRIATE KNOWLEDGE. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 2 2. Objectives 2. 1 To provide judicious mix of skills relating to a profession and appropriate CONTENT OF GENERAL EDUCATION. 2. 2 To ensure that the students have adequate knowledge and skills, so that THEY ARE WORK READY AT EACH EXIT POINT OF THE PROGRAMME. 2. 3 To provide flexibility to the students by means of pre-defined entry and MULTIPLE EXIT POINTS. 2. 4 To integrate NSQF within the undergraduate level of higher education in ORDER TO ENHANCE EMPLOYABILITY OF THE GRADUATES AND MEET INDUSTRY REQUIREMENTS. SUCH GRADUATES APART FROM MEETING THE NEEDS OF LOCAL AND NATIONAL INDUSTRY ARE ALSO EXPECTED TO BE EQUIPPED TO BECOME PART OF THE GLOBAL WORKFORCE. 2. 5 To provide vertical mobility to students coming out of 10+2 with VOCATIONAL SUBJECTS. 3. Levels of Awards THE CERTIFICATION LEVELS WILL LEAD TO DIPLOMA/ADVANCED DIPLOMA/B. VOC. DEGREE IN ONE OR MORE VOCATIONAL AREAS AND WILL BE OFFERED UNDER THE AEGIS OF THE UNIVERSITY. THIS IS OUT-LINED IN TABLE I. TABLE 1: AWARDS AWARD DURATION CORRESPONDING NSQF LEVEL DIPLOMA 1 YEAR 5 ADVANCED DIPLOMA 2 YEARS 6 B. VOC. DEGREE 3 YEARS 7 EACH OF THE AWARDS SHALL SPECIFY WITHIN PARENTHESIS, THE SKILL(S) SPECIALIZATION FOR EXAMPLE: ? B. Voc. (Renewably Energy Management) ? B. Voc. (Retail Management) ? B. Voc. (Retail Management and IT) ? Advanced Diploma (Food Processing) ? Advanced Diploma (Health Care) ? Advanced Diploma (Hospitality and Tourism) ? Diploma (Green House Technology) ? Diploma (BPO) ? Diploma (Jewellery Designing) UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 3 A suggestive list of vocational sectors and related specializations is given below: Universities and colleges may like to identify additional sectors/specializations in view of the potential for employment in the local industries and meet the standards laid  down by National Occupational Standards. No. Sector Specialization 1. Automobiles 1. Engine Testing 2. Vehicle Testing 3. Vehicle Quality 4. Auto Electricals and Electronics. 5. Farm Equipment and Machinery 2. Entertainment 1. Theatre and Stage Craft 2. Contemporary Western Dance 3. Theatre studies 4. Acting 3. Information Technology 1. Software Development 4 Telecommunications 1. Mobile Communication 5. Marketing 1. Retail 6. Agriculture 1. Farm Machinery and Power Engineering 2. Green House Technology 3. Renewable Energy 4. Processing and Food Engineering 5. Soil and Water Conservation 7. Construction 1. Building Technology 8. Applied Arts 1. Fashion Technology 2. Interior Design 3. Jewellery Design 9. Tourism 1. Tourism and Service Industry 10. Printing and Publishing 1. Printing Technology UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 4 4. ELIGIBILITY /TARGET ALL UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES INCLUDED UNDER SECTIONS 2(F) AND 12(B) OF THE UGC ACT, 1956 AND RECEIVING PLAN GRANT FROM THE UGC ARE ELIGIBLE FOR UGC FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE UNDER THE SCHEME. 5. ELIGIBILITY FOR ADMISSION IN B. VOC. THE ELIGIBILITY CONDITION FOR ADMISSION TO B. VOC. PROGRAMME SHALL BE 10+2 OR EQUIVALENT, IN ANY STREAM. 6. CURRICULUM 6. 1 THE CURRICULUM IN EACH OF THE YEARS OF THE PROGRAMME WOULD BE A. SUITABLE MIX OF GENERAL EDUCATION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS. CURRICULUM DETAILS SHOULD BE WORKED BEFORE INTRODUCTION OF THE COURSES. 6. 2 SKILL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS: (I) THE FOCUS OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS SHALL BE TO EQUIP STUDENTS WITH APPROPRIATE KNOWLEDGE, PRACTICE AND ATTITUDE, SO AS TO BECOME WORK READY. THE SKILL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS SHOULD BE RELEVANT TO THE INDUSTRIES AS PER THEIR REQUIREMENTS. (II) THE CURRICULUM SHOULD NECESSARILY EMBED WITHIN ITSELF, NATIONAL OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS (NOSS) OF SPECIFIC JOB ROLES WITHIN THE INDUSTRY SECTOR(S). THIS WOULD ENABLE THE STUDENTS TO MEET THE  LEARNING OUTCOMES SPECIFIED IN THE NOSS. (III) THE OVERALL DESIGN OF THE SKILL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENT ALONG WITH THE JOB ROLES SELECTED SHOULD BE SUCH THAT IT LEADS TO A COMPREHENSIVE SPECIALIZATION IN ONE OR TWO DOMAINS. (IV) IN CASE NOS IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR A SPECIFIC AREA / JOB ROLE, THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD GET THE CURRICULUM FOR THIS DEVELOPED IN CONSULTATION WITH INDUSTRY EXPERTS. (V) THE CURRICULUM SHOULD ALSO FOCUS ON WORK-READINESS SKILLS IN EACH OF THE THREE YEARS. (VI) ADEQUATE ATTENTION NEEDS TO BE GIVEN IN CURRICULUM DESIGN TO PRACTICAL WORK, ON THE JOB TRAINING, DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENT  PORTFOLIOS AND PROJECT WORK. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 5 6. 3 GENERAL EDUCATION COMPONENT: (i) The general education component should adhere to the normal UNIVERSITY STANDARDS. IT SHOULD EMPHASISE AND OFFER COURSES WHICH PROVIDE HOLISTIC DEVELOPMENT. HOWEVER, IT SHOULD NOT EXCEED 40% OF THE TOTAL CURRICULUM. (ii) Adequate emphasis should be given to language and COMMUNICATION SKILLS. 6. 4 THE CURRICULUM SHOULD BE DESIGNED IN A MANNER THAT AT THE END OF YEAR- 1, YEAR-2 AND YEAR-3, STUDENTS ARE ABLE TO MEET BELOW MENTIONED LEVEL DESCRIPTORS FOR LEVEL 5, 6 AND 7 OF NSQF, RESPECTIVELY: Level Process required  Professional knowledge Professional skill Core skill Responsibili ty Level 5 Job that requires well developed skill, with clear choice of procedures in familiar context Knowledge of facts, principles, processes and general concepts, in a field of work or study A range of cognitive and practical skills required to accomplish tasks and solve problems by selecting and applying basic methods, tools materials and information Desired mathematical skill, understandin g of social, political and some skill of collecting and organizing information, communicati on. Responsibilit y for own work and learning and some responsibility  for other’s works and learning Level 6 Demands wide range of specialized technical skill, clarity of knowledge and practice in broad range of activity involving standard / non-standard practices Factual and theoretical knowledge in broad contexts within a field of work or study A range of cognitive and practical skills required to generate solutions to specific problems in a field of work or study Reasonably good in mathematical calculation, understandin g of social, political and, reasonably good in data collecting organizing information, and logical communicati on Responsibilit y for own work and learning and full  responsibility for other’s works and learning UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 6 Level 7 Requires a command of wide ranging specialized theoretical and practical skill, involving variable routine and non-routine context Wide ranging, factual and theoretical knowledge in broad contexts within a field of work or study Wide range of cognitive and practical skills required to generate solutions to specific problems in a field of work or study Good logical and mathematical skill understandin g of social political and natural environment good in collecting and organizing information, communicati on and presentation skill  Full responsibility for output of group and development a. Professional knowledge is what a learner should know and understand WITH REFERENCE TO THE SUBJECT. b. Professional skills are what a learner should be able to do. c. Core skills refer to basic skills involving dexterity and use of methods, MATERIALS, TOOLS AND INSTRUMENTS USED TO PERFORM THE JOB INCLUDING IT SKILLS NEEDED FOR THAT JOB. d. Responsibility aspect determines the (i) nature of working relationship, (ii) LEVEL OF RESPONSIBILITY FOR SELF AND OTHERS, (III) MANAGING CHANGE AND (IV) ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ACTIONS. 6. 5 Guidelines for credit calculations. 6. 5. 1 THIS SECTION CONTAINS CREDIT FRAMEWORK GUIDELINES. THE UNIVERSITY/ COLLEGE SHOULD USE THESE GUIDELINES OR ADAPT THEM. 6. 5. 2 THE FOLLOWING FORMULA SHOULD BE USED FOR CONVERSION OF TIME INTO CREDIT HOURS. a) One Credit would mean equivalent of 15 periods of 60 minutes EACH, FOR THEORY, WORKSHOPS/LABS AND TUTORIALS; b) For internship/field work, the credit weightage for equivalent hours SHALL BE 50% OF THAT FOR LECTURES/WORKSHOPS; c) For self-learning, based on e-content or otherwise, the credit WEIGHTAGE FOR EQUIVALENT HOURS OF STUDY SHOULD BE 50% OR LESS OF THAT FOR LECTURES/WORKSHOPS. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 7 6. 5. 3 THE SUGGESTED CREDITS FOR EACH OF THE YEARS ARE AS FOLLOWS: TABLE 3 NSQF Level Skill Component Credits General Education Credits Normal calendar duration Exit Points / Awards Year 3 36 24 Six Semesters B. Voc. Year 2 36 24 Four semesters Advanced Diploma Year 1 36 24 Two semesters Diploma TOTAL 108 72 6. 6 THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD DEVELOP THE CURRICULUM IN CONSULTATION WITH INDUSTRY. THE INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVES SHOULD BE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE ACADEMIC BODIES OF THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE. WHILE DOING SO, THEY SHOULD WORK TOWARDS ALIGNING THE SKILLS COMPONENTS OF THE CURRICULUM  WITH THE NOSS DEVELOPED BY THE RESPECTIVE SECTOR SKILL COUNCILS. 6. 7 THE PRACTICAL/HANDS-ON PORTION OF THE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS OF THE CURRICULUM SHOULD BE TRANSACTED NORMALLY IN FACE TO FACE MODE, EITHER WITHIN THE INSTITUTION OR AT A SPECIFIED INDUSTRY PARTNER LOCATION. HOWEVER, IF DUE TO THE NATURE OF THE SKILL TO BE LEARNT, THE INDUSTRY PRESCRIBES ITS ACQUISITION THROUGH BLENDED OR DISTANCE MODE, THE SAME MAY BE FOLLOWED. IN NUTSHELL, THE EMPHASIS SHOULD BE ON LEARNING OUTCOME AND NOT THE INPUT AND PROCESSES. THE GENERAL EDUCATION COMPONENT OF THE CURRICULUM MAY BE TRANSACTED IN ANY MODE WITHOUT COMPROMISING ON QUALITY. 6. 8 THE SPECIALIZATION CHOSEN BY THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD BE BASED ON THE EXISTING/FORECASTED SKILL GAPS IN THE INDUSTRY. 6. 9 RELEVANCE OF PROGRAMMES OFFERED, ALONG WITH THAT OF THE CURRICULUM IS IMPORTANT. THEREFORE, MONITORING, EVALUATION AND UPDATING OF THE CURRICULUM NEEDS TO BE DONE PERIODICALLY IN CONSULTATION WITH INDUSTRY, KEEPING IN VIEW THEIR REQUIREMENTS AND CHANGES IN NOSS. THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD INCORPORATE THIS AS A CONTINUOUS AND DYNAMIC PROCESS IN-BUILT IN THEIR SYSTEM. 6. 10 THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD APPROPRIATELY USE TECHNOLOGY TO IMPROVE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE DELIVERY OF COURSES. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 8 7. EXAMINATION AND ASSESSMENT 7. 1 THE ASSESSMENT FOR THE GENERAL EDUCATION COMPONENT SHOULD BE DONE BY THE UNIVERSITY AS PER THEIR PREVAILING STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES. 7. 2 THE ASSESSMENT FOR THE SKILL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS SHOULD NECESSARILY FOCUS ON PRACTICAL DEMONSTRATIONS OF THE SKILLS ACQUIRED. THE UNIVERSITY MAY LIKE TO CONSULT THE RESPECTIVE SECTOR SKILL COUNCIL FOR DESIGNING THE EXAMINATION AND ASSESSMENT PATTERN FOR THE SKILL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS. THE UNIVERSITY MAY ALSO CONSIDER USING THE DESIGNATED ASSESSORS OF SECTOR SKILL COUNCILS/INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS FOR THE CONDUCT OF PRACTICAL ASSESSMENT. 7. 3 THE UNIVERSITY HAS TO NECESSARILY ESTABLISH A CREDIT BASED ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION SYSTEM FOR THE B. VOC. PROGRAMME. 8. INFRASTRUCTURE AND FACULTY FOR B. VOC. PROGRAMME 8. 1 UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE NEEDS TO HAVE ADEQUATE LABORATORY /WORKSHOP FACILITIES FOR FACE TO FACE DELIVERY OF SKILLS AND HANDS-ON PRACTICE EITHER OWNED OR ARRANGED THROUGH TIE-UP WITH THE PARTNER INDUSTRY OR ANY INSTITUTION RECOGNIZED BY THE CERTIFICATION AGENCY. 8. 2 THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD USE ITS REGULAR FACULTY FOR THE CONDUCT OF GENERAL EDUCATION COMPONENT AND ALSO FOR THE SKILLS COMPONENTS, IF  EXISTING. ADDITIONALLY, THEY MAY HIRE FACULTY ON CONTRACTUAL BASIS AND GUEST FACULTY IN THE CORE TRADES ONLY AS PER UGC NORMS. 8. 3 THERE IS A PROVISION OF ONE ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR AND TWO ASSISTANT PROFESSORS (PURELY ON CONTRACTUAL BASIS DURING XII PLAN PERIOD), UNDER THIS SCHEME. 9. STUDENT FEE STUDENT FEE SHOULD BE DECIDED AS PER THE PREVALENT MECHANISM FOR FEE FIXATION FOR AIDED COURSES IN THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE. 10. OTHER CONDITIONS 10. 1 THE UNIVERSITY HAS TO NECESSARILY ADOPT A CREDIT BASED ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION SYSTEM IN SEMESTER MODE FOR THE B. VOC. PROGRAMME. 10. 2 THE B. VOC. PROGRAMME SHOULD BE EVALUATED AND MONITORED BY THE UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE THROUGH ITS EXISTING MECHANISM OR BY SETTING UP AN ALTERNATE MECHANISM, WITH INVOLVEMENT OF INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVES. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 9 10. 3 UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD DEVELOP BYE-LAWS FOR RUNNING THE B. VOC. DEGREE PROGRAMME. 10. 4 BYE-LAWS FOR THE COURSE SHOULD INCLUDE PROVISION OF REJOINING OR RE- ADMISSION TO THE COURSE DURING THE PERIOD AND COUNSELING/ MECHANISM FOR PROPER SELECTION OF SPECIALIZATION BY THE STUDENTS AT THE TIME OF ADMISSION. 10. 5 A COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY SHOULD OFFER A MINIMUM OF 2 SKILL SPECIALIZATIONS. UNDER THE B. VOC. PROGRAMME. 11. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE THE FINANCIAL ALLOCATION WILL BE MADE BY UGC WITHIN OVERALL CEILING OF RS. 1. 85 CRORES FOR A PERIOD OF THREE YEARS UNDER DIFFERENT HEADS AS GIVEN BELOW: 11. 1 START-UP ASSISTANCE: A ONE-TIME START-UP ASSISTANCE OF RS. 50. 00 LAKH FOR SETTING UP OF LABORATORIES/WORKSHOPS FACILITIES, PROCUREMENT OF TEACHING AND LEARNING MATERIALS, MACHINERIES/EQUIPMENT AND RENOVATION. THIS SHALL NOT COVER ANY NEW CONSTRUCTION. 11. 2 FACULTY: ONE ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR AND TWO ASSISTANT PROFESSORS – RS. 75. 00 LAKH FOR THREE YEARS (PURELY ON CONTRACTUAL BASIS DURING XII PLAN  PERIOD). RS. 25. 00 LAKHS PER ANNUM X 3 YEARS = RS. 75. 00 LAKH TO BE REIMBURSED ON ACTUAL BASIS WITHIN THE TOTAL ALLOCATION. 11. 3 INSTITUTIONS SHOULD RECRUIT FACULTY ONLY IN THE CORE TRADES BEING OFFERED UNDER THE SCHEME. 11. 4 VISITING/GUEST FACULTY: RS. 5. 00 LAKH FOR FIRST YEAR AND RS. 10. 00 LAKH FOR SECOND AND RS. 15. 00 LAKH FOR THIRD YEAR. 11. 5 THE OPERATIVE YEARLY COST: THE OPERATIVE YEARLY COST SHALL BE OF RS. 10. 00 LAKHS PER ANNUM. EXISTING FACULTY RS. 500/- PER LECTURE VISITING/GUEST FACULTY RS. 2,000/- PER LECTURE UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 10 12. PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING UNDER THE SCHEME  12. 1 UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE SHOULD SUBMIT PROPOSAL FOR INTRODUCTION OF B. VOC. PROGRAMME DIRECTLY TO UGC IN THE PRESCRIBED PROFORMA ATTACHED AS ANNEXURE-I. HOWEVER, COLLEGE SHOULD ALSO SUBMIT A COPY OF â€Å"NO OBJECTION CERTIFICATE† FROM THE AFFILIATING UNIVERSITY. 13. ANNEXURES (A) PROFORMA FOR SUBMISSION OF PROPOSAL FOR INTRODUCTION OF B. VOC. PROGRAMME AS GIVEN IN ANNEXURE-I. (B) PROFORMA FOR SUBMISSION OF MANDATE FORM AS GIVEN IN ANNEXURE-II. (C) PROFORMA FOR UTILIZATION CERTIFICATE IS GIVEN IN ANNEXURE-III. (D) PROFORMA FOR SUBMISSION OF STATEMENT OF EXPENDITURE INCURRED FOR INTRODUCTION OF B. VOC. COURSE IS GIVEN IN ANNEXURE-IV. (E) PROFORMA FOR SUBMISSION OF ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT IS GIVEN IN ANNEXURE-V. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 11 ANNEXURE-I Proposal Form for B. Voc. Programme 1. Details of the University / College: Please ensure that the details entered below match exactly with the details registered with UGC. 1. Name of the University / College: 2. Full Postal Address: 3. Name of the Affiliating University 4. Whether covered under Section 2(f) and 12(B) of the UGC Act, 1956 (If yes, please enclose a copy of the letter) Yes / No Whether Autonomous Yes / No 5. Whether the college is aided or  self financing? 6. Name, designation and contact details (Tel/fax/mobile/email) of Head of the Institution. 7. Website URL of the College / University 8. Any other relevant information (Maximum 100 words) College / University may like to share UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 12 2. Details of the Proposed Skills Specialisations in the B. Voc. Program ( * ) This would be mentioned within Parenthesis in the name of the Award, e. g. B. Voc. (Specialisation) Programme Name of the Specialisation (*) Job Roles proposed to be covered in each year (Along with NSQF level) Proposed intake of students (Annually) Yr-1 Yr-2. Yr-3 UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 13 3. Proposed subjects / papers in the General Education component in each of the three years. Year-1 Credits 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Year-2 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Year-3 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 14 4. Basis for choosing the specialisation(s): The choice of specialisation should be based on: a) Skills Gap requirements, to ensure that the program fulfils the skills requirement of industry; b) University / College has expertise in the specialisation; and c) University / College have one or more committed industry partner(s) for design, delivery, internship and placement. Provide detailed basis for the choice of each of the specialisation(s). This would be an important factor during the approval process of this proposal. 4. 1. Skill Gaps identified: Specialisation Skill Gaps Identified(Quantitative, Qualitative, Source,†¦) 1. 2. 3. 4. 2. Existing expertise of the University / College: Specialisation Existing expertise (Which can be leveraged by the institution) 1. 2. 3. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 15 4. 3. Industry Partner(s) S. No. Specialis ation Details of the Industry Partnership(s) Name of Organisation and Address Nature of Partnership / Support (*) Name, Designation  and Contact details of official 1. 2. 3. 4. (*) Curriculum design, content creation, admission, conduct of courses, provision of infrastructure (in University / College, at employer location), internship, placement, etc. 4. 3. 1. Attach MOU(s), if any, signed with the industry Partner(s): UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 16 5. Curriculum Design and Approval 5. 1. What is the proposed process and plan for curriculum design? How is the University / College ensuring that the curriculum meets the objectives of the B. Voc. Program? 5. 2. Status / Plan for curriculumapproval by the appropriate body of the University / Colleges? 6. Student placement plan: 6. 1. How would the University / College set up an effective mechanism for placement of students? UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 17 7. Faculty: 7. 1. Availability of Faculty(For year-1) Specialisation / Area Faculty Needed Available with Institution To be Recruited Guest Faculty Guest faculty to be provided by Industry Partner 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 7. 2. Training needs of Faculty(For Year-1) S. No. Specialisation / Area Details of Training Needed and duration Training Provider 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 18 8. Availability of Infrastructure 8. 1. 1. Details of physical infrastructure. Name of the Specialisation Availability of physical infrastructure Infrastructure Available in the College/ University To be provided by Industry Partner 1. Classroom Laboratory Workshop Library ICT Facility Others 2. Classroom Laboratory Workshop Library ICT Facility Others 3. Classroom Laboratory Workshop Library ICT Facility Others UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 19 9. Details of Expenditure: (It is assumed that the existing infrastructure / faculty will be used as far as possible. The expenditure to be listed here is only for any incremental requirements the University / College may need. ) S. No. Components Expenditure (amounts in Rs. ) Remarks (Provide justification for expenditure) Y-1 Y-2 Y-3 Total 1. Faculty / Staff a. Contractual b. Guest c. Lab Assistant d. 2. Equipment for Labs / Workshops / Classrooms a. b. c. 3. Raw Materials etc. for Labs / Workshops a. b. c. 4. Faculty Training a. b. 5. Admission Process, Pre-admission Student Counselling etc. 6. Office Expenses / Contingencies (including expenditure on publicity, guidance and counselling, transport, field visits, postage, stationery, electricity, water etc. ) 7. Travel 8. Others a. Assessments b. Contingencies c. Workshops / conferences / seminars e. Any other expense TOTAL UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 20 10. Student / Learner Fee details: (All figures in Rupees) S. No. Programme(s) Annual Fee per student Proposed student intake per year Total Fees proposed to be collected Y1 Y2 Y3 Total Y1 Y2 Y3 Total 1. 2. Total 11. Key Milestones / Plans for Year-1 Key Plans / Milestones Person Responsible Expected Completion Date 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 12. Any other Information which the host college / university may like to provide. _________________________________________________ Signature with Seal of the Head of the Host Institution Name : Date: UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 21 ANNEXURE – II MANDATE FORM Electronic Clearing Service (Credit Clearing)/ Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) facility for receiving payments. A. Details of Accounts Holders:- 1. Name of Account Holder 2. Complete Contact Address 3. Telephone Number/Fax/E-mail B. Bank Account Details:- 1. Bank Name 2. Branch Name with Complete Address, Telephone No. and E-mail 3. Whether the Branch is computerized? 4. Whether the Branch is RTGS enabled? If yes then what is the Branch’s IFSC Code 5. Is the Branch also NEFT enabled? 6. Type of Bank Account (SB/Current /Cash Credit) 7. Complete Bank Account No. (Latest). 8. MICR Code of Bank I hereby declare that the particulars given above are correct and complete. If the transaction is delayed or not effected at all for reasons of incomplete or incorrect information I would not hold the use Institution responsible. I have read the option invitation letter and agree to discharge responsibility expected of me as a participant under the Scheme. Date: SignatureofCustomer Certified that the particulars furnished above are correct as per our records. (Bank’s Stamp) Date: SignatureofCustomer 1. Please attach a photocopy of cheque along with the verification obtained from the bank. 2. In case your Bank Branch is presently not â€Å"RTGS enabled†, then upon its up gradation to â€Å"RTGS Enabled† branch, please submit the information again in the above proforma to the Department at earliest. NOTE:- Refund of Security Deposit/ Hire Charges Due to operation of E-payment w. e. f. 01/04/2012 the Mandate form may please be submitted, duly verified by the bank, to this office for claiming Refund of Security Deposit/Hire Charges along with a photocopy of blank Cheque. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 22 ANNEXURE – III UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION, NEW DELHI UTILIZATION CERTIFICATE IT IS CERTIFIED THAT THE TOTAL GRANT OF RS. ___________ (RUPEES .. ) SANCTIONED BY THE UGC VIDE LETTER NO. F. _______________________ DATED___________ HAS BEEN UTILIZED BY THE COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY AS PER DETAILS GIVEN IN THE ATTACHED STATEMENT (AS PER ANNEXURE D) IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS LAID DOWN BY THE UGC VIDE ITS LETTER NO__________ DATED______________. AND THAT ALL THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN FULFILLED BY THE COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY AND THE GRANT HAS BEEN UTILIZED FOR THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH IT WAS SANCTIONED. IT IS FURTHER CERTIFIED THAT THE INVENTORIES OF PERMANENT AND SEMI-PERMANENT ASSETS. CREATED/ACQUIRED WHOLLY OR MAINLY OUT OF THE GRANTS GIVEN BY THE UGC AS INDICATED IN THE ENCLOSED STATEMENT ARE BEING MAINTAINED IN THE PRESCRIBED FORM AND ARE BEING KEPT UP-TO-DATE AND THESE ASSETS HAVE NOT BEEN DISPOSED OFF, ENCUMBERED OR UTILIZED FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE. IF AS A RESULT OF CHECK OR AUDIT OBJECTION, SOME IRREGULARITY IS NOTICED AT A LATER STAGE, THE COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY WILL REFUND THE OBJECTED AMOUNT. ___________________________________ ______________________________ SIGNATURE OF PRINCIPAL / REGISTRAR WITH SEAL SIGNATURE OF AUDITOR WITH SEAL NOTE: THE UTILIZATION CERTIFICATE SHOULD BE ACCOMPANIED BY AUDITED STATEMENT OF ACCOUNT INDICATING EXPENDITURE ON VARIOUS ITEMS. UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 23 ANNEXURE-IV UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION PROFORMA FOR SUBMISSION OF STATEMENT OF EXPENDITURE INCURRED FOR THE OF B. VOC. PROGRAMMES (DIPLOMA/ ADVANCED DIPLOMA/DEGREE) 1. Name of the University/ College: 2. Name of the Vocational degree/Advance Diploma/Diploma Course: 3. No. Date of UGC’s approval No. F. _______________________________ Dated ___________________ 4. Period to which the accounts related : w. e. f. _____________________________ to ____________________________________________. 5. Details of actual expenditure incurred : Grants approved Grants released Unspent balance (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) NOTE 1. The statement of expenditure should be filled up separately for each vocational degree course. 2. List of equipment purchased should be submitted. 3. Details of periods taken, amount paid to leach teacher by name under guest faculty and internal faculty should be submitted. Signature Head of Institution / Principal/Registrar Govt. Auditor/CA UGC? GUIDELINES? FOR? B. Voc.? 24 ANNEXURE – V UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION, NEW DELHI ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT (to be submitted annually to the UGC by each University /College) 1. Name and Address of the institution: 2. Name of the Head of the institution: 3. Period of the Progress Report: 4. Activities Taken up During the Year: 5. Utilization of Grants during the Year: 6. Specific Outcomes: 7. Difficulties encountered in implementation, if any: CERTIFICATE This is to certify that the data/ information presented in this Annual Progress Report are true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief and the required documents will be provided to the UGC, as and when the same are called for. ____________________________________________ Signature with Seal of Head of the University /College Place: Date:

The Garden Company Limiteds performance in the hong kong market

The Garden Company Limiteds performance in the hong kong market Introduction According to the assignment guidelines, students are allowed to choose either a service company or a manufacturing company for this report. I have chosen a manufacturing company in Hong Kong with global supply chains the Garden Company Limited (hereinafter called Garden). Their major upstream suppliers are from the US, Canada, and Australia whereas their two biggest downstream suppliers in Hong Kong are supermarkets Wellcome and ParknShop. Although Garden products are also being sold outside Hong Kong and China, including the Northern American, Canadian, Australian markets, I would focus this report only on its market in Hong Kong. Background information of the organization The Garden Company Limited is a Hong Kong-based bakery and confectionery manufacturer. The company was one of the first Chinese owned business as created to sell Western-style food products in Hong Kong, but also has a global supply chain network. Founded in 1926, Garden has experienced rapid societal changes and technological advancement in the past 80 years. Today, they are still persisting with their paramount values in quality, innovation and advancement. Garden supplies thousands of food products to todays retail and catering markets, with many of their products internationally awarded. As one of the largest bakery production corporations in Hong Kong, they are well equipped with state-of-the-art large-scale equipment. Their technology, quality, output and market development have long reached International Standards. Gardens wide assortments of products, high sales volume and extensive market penetration have long been broadly recognized. To further cope with rising market demand, they continue to inject large sums of investment into product research and development as well as upgrading their technology and production hardware. The various production procedures are completed with the most sophisticated equipment in their factory. Computer automation is integrated in all the processes from production to packaging, fully manifesting the remarkable results brought about by scientific management. Furthermore, their principal factory in Sham Tseng with a total area of 70,000 square meters carries out the production lines for bread, cakes, biscuits, candies etc. Unlike most firms in Hong Kong, Garden was a pro-China company and had been supplying bread to Chinese army during World War II. The firm closed its operations during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong from 1941 to 1945. The company expanded with the growth of Hong Kong before and after World War II and benefited from the influx of immigrants from Mainland China. In the 1980s and 1990s, Garden products were shipped overseas to Chinese communities around the world. Besides their major business in Hong Kong, Garden has also been actively taping into the Mainland China market since the 1980s. Factories had been set up in Dong Guan and Yang Zhou to introduce the advanced technology into the food manufacturing industry of the Mainland. Achieving the ISO9001 certification in 1997 was a milestone in their history. It demonstrates that Garden, with its world-class corporate management and modern operation system, is a globally acclaimed food manufacturer. Today, the company remains a privately owned family (Cheung family) business with several joint ventures with mainland Chinese firms. It is one of the few Hong Kong firms with manufacturing operations still in Hong Kong. All Garden products are made of the finest ingredients selected from all around the world, for example their barley is from Australia, flour from the United States, milk and butter from New Zealand, just to name a few. Their long-standing experience, fully-automated technology and packing equipment together with careful quality control guarantee that every product of theirs can meet strict quality testing and safety standards in many countries. With the past 80 years of excellence, Garden has successfully established itself as a distinguished brand supported and favored by many consumers around the world. Their products currently reach many major Chinese communities in as far as Europe and America. Today they are actively developing overseas markets in order to offer their quality foods to consumers in different corners of the world. With more than eight decades of experience in food production, the Garden Companys determination in offering quality products and services and its innovative spirit are as strong as ever. Looking ahead, they will continue with their commitment to producing nutritious and quality food with the pursuit of perfection. QIE, which stands for Quality, innovation, Efficiency, serves as Gardens corporate mission with the objectives to lead their staff to pursuit of superb quality, continuous innovation and achieve efficiency enhancement. It is through the implementation of QIE that the recognition and reputation of their brand have been greatly elevated. To realize their goal of QIE, the Company puts LTC Learn, Think, and Communicate into practice with all their working together to continuously improve the manufacturing of quality products, developing new technologies and new product values so as to satisfy the ever-heightening needs of consumers. SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis Strengths: Garden has a global brand, it is a strong brand, strengths including brand recognition, brand quality, economies of scale, strong distribution network, strong distribution chain, supply chain, strong international operations, online growth, good reputation, reputation management, market share leadership, effective marketing strategy, experienced personnel, strong management team, effective communication, extensive customer base, loyal customers, cost advantage, asset leverage, competitive pricing, original and unique products, high research and development, advanced equipments, innovation, etc. Apart from all these company strengths, they are famous in Hong Kong. I believe that all households in Hong Kong consume their products, one or the other on a regular basis. They are considered second to none in the bakery industry. Weaknesses: Due to Gardens huge range of products, coupled with a substantial global retail network, bad communication is unavoidable, it happens from time to time. Furthermore, they experience diseconomies to scale, at times over leveraged financial position, and weak corporate governing practice. Since Gardens range of products is for the public in general, many of their competitors go to the upper end market, for example to high class customers such as hotels and delis, and leave Garden in the lower end market for many years. Opportunities: Garden basically has a healthy financial position. They did some acquisitions, merger and takeovers on a small scale basis. They also tie up with international events to capitalize on synergy opportunities for growth of the operation. They continuously look for new markets; expand in Asia, expand into online shopping; decrease its taxation through donations to charity organizations. In the era of emergence of international middle class, and change in consumer lifestyles, they are constantly changing their products to expand their customer base, and their service lines like new products such as drinks and snacks, and new service such as mail order. Threats: Although Garden has a lion share in the bakery industry, they have many competitors in the high end sector. With Hong Kong returning its sovereignty to Mainland China, Garden is facing many financially strong competitors from the Mainland. There are new competitors from the Mainland entering into this relatively small market. As far as their foreign business is concerned, foreign exchange rate changes affect its imports/exports strategies. The volatility in fuel costs, rising costs of business, pricing pressures, potentially slowing global economy, changes in demographics, change in consumer lifestyles, changing to cheaper technology, substitute products, changing consumer patterns, growing power of customers to set the price etc. are possible threats Garden has been facing during the past few years. Porters Five Forces analysis Competitive Rivalry within an industry: Since multi-market competition exists, rivalry between competitors in the industry is extremely intense. Companies in the industry have started new businesses to increase the level of competition with one another and compete heavily for geographic markets. There is no clear dominant market share player in the industry. Though the industry currently has relatively high growth, much of the business is cyclical, which leads to intensified competition in economic downturns. High fixed costs also contribute to intense competition. More recently, the continued growth of online shopping, mail orders, combined with increasing awareness of door to door logistics arrangements have been giving Garden headaches and they have been streamlining their services in this competitive environment. A few remarks are listed below to introduce some of Gardens international and local rivalries. Sara Lee Corporation Sara Lee Corporation is a global consumer products company with food, beverage, and household and body care lines of business. With powerful brands, such as Ambi Pur, Ball Park, Douwe Egberts, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Kiwi, Sanex, Senseo and its namesake, Sara Lee, the company has leading positions in numerous categories in the more than 180 markets in which it competes. In Hong Kong, Garden has two main competitors in its frozen and fresh breads. For frozen breads, it major rivalries are Maxims, Sara Lee. For fresh breads, Garden is facing numerous small size competitors, in particular in the western style restaurants which bake on an everyday basis for its afternoon tea customers. Competitive Rivalry is a strong force in the bakery industry because the competitors use price cuts to compete, there is a low cost product range and there is ease in switching brands, and the companies in this industry can diversify and acquire other companies for strategic growth and for synergy purposes. Threat of New Entrants: The threat of new entrants into this industry is relatively low because of the scale required to make companies in the industry competitive. Capital demands to fund all of the assets required in the industry are extraordinarily large, making competition from entrepreneurs or small companies very difficult at this level of market competitiveness. Economies of scale are necessary for the business to be profitable and because of the intensity of rivalry, customers are difficult to attract. While the basic service of shipping goods would be relatively easy for new entrants to imitate, the competitors in the industry have created value and high switching costs for their customers through proprietary technologies. Threat of New Entrants is a weak force in this industry. Each company currently in the industry has strong brand images, leaving a harder job for new companies. The capital expenditures to start a bakery company are large, and the companies currently are achieving economies of scale by going global. Any smaller company will not be able to achieve these right away, not allowing them to compete on prices. Another factor threatening potential entrants is trade tariffs and international regulations. Most companies currently in the industry have already established relations with foreign countries. New companies will have to prove themselves to foreign companies, suppliers, and customers. Threat of Substitute Products: The threat of substitutes is currently high for the industry, but major technological or governmental foods regulations could change that. As mentioned above, although Garden has a lion share in the bakery industry, they have many competitors in the high end sector, for example Maxims, Saint Honore, Tai Pan Bakery etc. Garden is also facing many financially strong competitors from the Mainland. The latter produce substitute products such as dumplings, dim sums to suit the changing consumers taste. This is one of the many reasons why Garden has been continuously modifying the ingredients and packaging of their products during the past few years. Threat of Substitute Products is a strong force in this industry. There are plenty of substitute products in the market. Bakery retail outlets such as Maxims, Saint Honore, Tai Pan Bakery etc are conveniently located in all the 18 zones. One can literally find either one of them in almost every main street in Hong Kong. These competitors also offer very competitive prices which make potential consumers lose their brand loyalty and easy to switch to another brand. Bargaining Power of Suppliers: Suppliers bargaining power is fairly low in the industry, but different suppliers have slightly different pricing strategies to fight for their survival. Competitors are also on the same footing with suppliers, as they are all subject to the same prices, although they may have hedged differently. Labour is a major factor of production in the industry and differences between companies regarding labour contracts subjects them to varying degrees of supplier power. Suppliers of raw materials, components, labor, and services (such as expertise) to the firm can be a source of power over the firm, when there are few substitutes. Suppliers may refuse to work with the firm, or, e.g., charge excessively high prices for unique resources. This is a strong force if the suppliers serve different industries with their raw materials. If a supplier only has accounts or the majority of their accounts with different companies, they will not be able to control prices and supplies. Bargaining Power of Buyers: Customers in the industry initially have power, but once they commit to a bakery, their bargaining power decreases significantly. New customers can easily shop around for price or level of service in the beginning, but once they have chosen a bakery and buy their product, they are usually loyal to them. Customers are likely to become loyal to a certain provider because of long-standing relationships or personal interaction with the company. This is a moderate force in this industry because competition keeps prices similar among the companies. The only difference is degree in loyalty. Also, the buyers of the services in this industry are reactionary. They do not know the technology before it happens. They become dependent on the technology, service and speed offered by the companies in this industry and will pay for it. SCOR (Supply-Chain Operations Reference) Model Planning activities: Gardens target customers are the public in general, whether they be as young as 2 years old, to as old as 99, they could be Gardens customers. Their pricing strategy is value for money. Their marketing slogan has been nutrition you need every day with the highest quality. These planning activities have proved to be most successful and made Garden the leading supplier in the bakery industry, in particular in the breads, biscuits and cakes sectors. Sourcing activities: According to the reading materials I searched and found, Garden has been purchasing all the baking ingredients directly themselves. However, they do outsource through logistic companies in their delivery activities. Locally, they need to deliver their fresh breads every early morning to hundreds of retail outlets. They also need to deliver fresh buns to all McDonalds franchisees. Furthermore they also deliver a range of fancy breads to airline caterers, hotels and restaurants. Internationally, they outsource transportation companies as well as freight forwarders for special orders such as wedding and birthday cakes. Internally, they outsource information technologies, finance and accounting, sales and marketing, foods testing etc. just to name a few. Make or production activities: Gardens upstream suppliers are worldwide. These included but not limited to flour, sugar, milk, cocoa, vanilla, wheat, soda powder, etc. again just to name a few. Countries included but not limited to (in alphabetical order) Australia, Canada, China, Europe, Latin America, and the United States. Bread Production Gardens bread production lines operate on a 24-hour basis, of which one is the first fully-automated line for hamburger buns in Asia. Apart from the retail market, they provide a huge volume of wholesale goods, which include bread, pastry and frozen dough products to major fast food chains, restaurants, hotels and airline catering services in Hong Kong. With their far-ranging businesses, they are committed to providing consumers with better choices with continuous innovations. Biscuit production Garden possesses diverse expertise, equipment and automated production lines to produce a wide variety of biscuits including wafers, cookies, sandwich biscuits, saltine, crackers and assorted biscuit gift packs to meet market demands. Cake production Their wide range of cakes has long been famous for its high quality and great taste. To cope with market demand, Garden produces cake products with highly efficient production lines, of which one is fully computerized for producing mini-cakes. With a wholehearted contribution from over 1,200 employees, Garden has established itself as the most reputable manufacturer in the local industry. Order processing information systems All market interactions, from the understanding of aggregate demand to the fulfillment of each order are not done wholly by Garden internally themselves. Some logistics are being outsourced, in particular for the overseas markets in Northern and Latin America, Australia, Europe, and Canada. Garden normally receives their orders through phone, fax and e-mail or e-order. Its IT department uploads orders to the printing invoice system. Automatically, these invoices pass to its distribution department for delivery. After deliveries, these invoices will be, again automatically, sent to its accounting department. The latter department then issues credit notes to the appropriate customers. Currently they are still using the information systems designed by IBM. Quality Control foremen in Garden are made responsible to ensure that expiry date, and appearances are properly done, and presentable. All delivery vans must have the correct temperatures for the different kinds of products. Delivery activities: Different transportation teams are required for different products. Fresh breads, frozen breads, biscuits are being delivered by the China and Hong Kong transport teams. Fresh bread team has about 60 vehicles to deliver 4,000 orders per day. These trucks are recognizable easily on the streets. Frozen breads and biscuits teams have about 20 vehicles to deliver 400 orders per day. Three trailers are being outsourced for the Mainland China and Hong Kong markets. As mentioned above, Garden does outsource through logistic companies in their delivery activities. Locally, they need to deliver their fresh breads every early morning to hundreds of retail outlets. They also need to deliver fresh buns to all McDonalds franchisees; deliver a range of fancy breads to airline caterers, hotels and restaurants. Internationally, they outsource transportation companies as well as freight forwarders for special orders such as wedding and birthday cakes. Not only that Garden wants to manufacture the best products, they also want to provide their best delivery service. Return activities: Garden guarantees its products are fresh and proper. They promise their retailers that they will replace any damaged or rotten items, that is if that happens. Garden has agreed with their retailers that they will pick up any expired items on their shelves. Assess how well the organization implements the supply chain management As mentioned right at the beginning of this report, Gardens major upstream suppliers are from the US, Canada, and Australia whereas their three biggest downstream suppliers in Hong Kong are supermarkets Wellcome, ParknShop and Mcdonalds. As far as this report is concerned, I would focus in the downstream supply chains; and before I go into how well Garden implements the supply chain management, I would like to introduce Gardens major downstream supply chains Wellcome, ParknShop and Mcdonalds. Wellcome Wellcome is Hong Kongs longest-established supermarket chain, they have an overall staff of 5,000 in more than 240 stores and serves more than 14 million customers every month. ParknShop ParknShop is one of the two largest supermarket chains in Hong Kong (the other is Wellcome Supermarket). ParknShop operates more than 260 outlets in Hong Kong, Macau, and Mainland China. ParknShop has more than 200 stores and 9,000 employees in Hong Kong. Mcdonalds McDonalds Corporation is one of the worlds largest chains of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving nearly 47 million customers daily. Most of their breads in Hong Kong are supplied by Garden. Although Garden does supply their products to airlines catering companies, hotels and restaurants, as well as supply chains such as 7 Eleven, Circle K and etc., I am not going to introduce these supply chains on a one on one basis. Basically these supply chains are owned by substantial and listed companies with well-trained management teams. Top management, as well as middle management personnel at Garden have very good business relationships with their supply chains. They have properly done legal contracts specifying all the details in supplies and payments. I have not been able to find any past news regarding any communication breakdowns between Garden and its supply chains. I have neither been able to find any past law suits about Garden suing any of its supply chains for non-payments, nor any company suing Garden for not delivering its responsibilities although there have been rumors that Garden has been finding it more and more difficult to get their payments on time during the past few years. Based on these findings, I believe Garden has been successful in its supply chains management activities. Suggest solutions/ways to improve the organization business; especially by improvements on supply chain management of the organization Supply Chain Management (SCM) is not created to suit for every company. It can succeed only with top management commitment and managers loyalty in executing those management strategies. Gardens management teams need to spend time in evaluating whether new SCM, inclusive of international networks, is suitable to be implemented into their company and how it could be successful. Garden bread has long history in Hong Kong that the fundamental target market should be the mass public served as the stable diet. With the increasing awareness of healthy eating, the variety of healthy consciousness products have been promoted like multi-grained, whole wheat, high calcium low fat breads. It is the general social trend and also serves as one of the marketing strategies that focus on the targeted middle-class, office-ladies and health consciousness customers. The relative advantage of Garden obviously is its long history and well-developed manufacturing factories, well-connected distribution channels, competitive retailing price and, of course, the well-known and long established brand name. On the other hand, these relative advantages might contribute some shortcomings in terms of the flexibility of market positioning and variety of products in response to the ever-changing and ever-increasing market force. Personally I am disappointed with Gardens decade-long use of coconut oil as an ingredient for their biscuits production. According to certain food magazines, too much consumption in coconut oil is bad for our health. Although all the reading material I found have been saying good things about Garden, nevertheless Garden is not a listed company, it is a privately owned company. They do not have to disclose any of their operation details to the public. Particularly, they do not have to disclose their financial position apart from to the Inland Revenue. My perception of Garden is that it is a very old style traditional company. Its top management includes family members of the founder. It is purely family business. Its image is not catching up with the young generation. Their product range is also conservative. It does not give any modern flare to attract those expats from the west. They focus on Asians so far, that means there is a huge expats market for them to develop. Garden reminds me of the Green, Yellow and White Arrow brands chewing gum company. The latter company has been too conservative and has not been innovative to catch up with the new entrants. Hence, Green White Arrow chewing gums have been losing market share. Until today, they have not been able to gain back what has been lost. The image of Garden should shift to focus more clearly on each market segment. For instance, Garden should develop a Gourmet production line which emphasis on the finest ingredients, the innovative design, for example in its packaging, and its advertisements. They could consider making more choice of breads, land cakes similar to those recipes from Italy and France, or from Europe at large. In order to shave off the old stable diet image, instead, the building up of the delicate and professional crafted food and to state that not only the five stars hotels can produce but Garden can also make and even better. The efforts to make sure managers do well in the SCM program and not treat it as another flavor-of-the-month include but not limited to the followings. Firstly, Garden has to ensure that the companys SCM strategies are specifically designed. Secondly, the SCM program need to meet their customers demands and reduces the companys costs. Thirdly, the management team must buy-in the program. Also, all the benefits included from the program such as customer responsiveness, more consistent on-time delivery; shorter order fulfillment lead times; reduced inventory costs; lower cost of purchased items; higher product quality; faster product innovation and etc. must be clearly explained to all the concerned managers so that they know the importance of the program. Garden must ensure that the staff concerned understand the objectives of the program, for example to better utilize the company resources and yet with higher product quality. Finally, if managers do well in implementing and executin g the program, the company should consider giving them incentive such as bonus or additional rewards other than their normal compensation. This will give them more motivation to continue to run the program. Garden has to do detailed surveys and researches to find out what are the products that their customers demand. They should listen to the voice of their customers. Their views and suggestions could in turn help the company to produce specifically the range of products the customers need. The company could also utilize their findings for meetings and discussions with their suppliers, both upstream and downstream and production managers to reduce the order processing time and inventories. The company would also be able to produce higher quality products with lower prices and less order processing time. In this way, the company would be more responsive to both their customers and suppliers. By doing the above, the company would be able to expand its market share from other competitors. Further possible improvements can be capitalized in the advances in technological and informational environment. These improvements have major implications for all industries, particularly logistics. If used effectively such advances may be a key source of competitive advantage. The technology listed below may become a competitive edge advantage for Garden in the future. Radio-frequency identification (RFID) not ready to implement? Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is the use of an object (typically referred to as an RFID tag) applied to or incorporated into a product, animal, or person for the purpose of identification and tracking using radio waves. Some tags can be read from several meters away and beyond the line of sight of the reader. It works like a barcode, but instead of having to be passed in front of a scanner for recognition, tiny transponders (known as tags or chips) send out radio signals. Each tag is small, robust and unique so any one item can be tracked individually throughout the supply chain. Logistics and transportation are major areas of implementation for RFID technology. For example, yard management, shipping and freight and distribution centers are some areas where RFID tracking technology is used. Transportation companies around the world value RFID technology due to its impact on the business value and efficiency. The new technology is currently seen as too expensive to put on individuals products, but large companies already use it to track shipping items. RFID trials have met with mixed customer reactions. As with many such technical advances the effects can be both positive and negative. RFID technology is currently unsophisticated and largely applied to logistical operations. Training of staff and informing all internal stakeholders as to how RFID technology works and can benefit the company, stating the impact on customers so that companies are able to improve their operations. Global Positioning System (GPS) The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a U.S. space-based global navigation satellite system. It provides reliable positioning, navigation, and timing services to worldwide users on a continuous basis in all weather, day and night, anywhere on or near the Earth which has an unobstructed view of four or more GPS satellites. GPS has become a mainstay of transportation systems worldwide, providing navigation for aviation, ground, and maritime operations. Installing GPS systems for delivery vehicles can increase the efficiency and effectiveness in delivering products. Even though transportation companies offer tracking and insurance services to their customers, there are still chances that the customers packages might be lost or stolen. Imagine a GPS chip attached to the delivery packages; it can then be tracked anytime. Adding this technology can boost the customers confidence about Garden. Conclusion Gardens supply chains are owned by substantial and listed companies with well-trained management teams. Garden has very good business relationships with their supply chains. Garden has been successful in its SCM activities. For further improvements, Garden should keep themselves abreast of the current important trends being developed in the business arena, for example electronic commerce has been widely used. Experienced users reveal that e-business reduces costs and time. It creates less conflict between suppliers and consumers. Garden must realize that very few industries are protected geographically; competition is getting more and more fierce. Gardens determination to change as the contents mentioned-above is critical for its advancement. With Gardens top management teams commitment, together with managers efforts, I believe that Gardens staff is more willingly to change and Garden has a good chance of success in improving its current SCM program. During the process of finding reading material for this exercise and thereafter digesting the material, I became more familiar with what