Aims and objectives of the study Essay Example

Aims and objectives of the study Essay The primary research objective of this study is to determine and discuss the key success factors (KSFs) that would ensure the success of a Russian-foreign venture agreement. The study will in particular focus on the IJVs immersed in the oil and natural gas industry. To implement this research objective, the research study aims to examine the history and trends on international joint ventures (IJVs) in Russia, the problems they encounter, and the KSFs that will ensure the success of starting IJVs in Russia. The study will make use of a review of related literature and case study analysis. Even though the thesis will focus on IJVs involved in the oil and natural gas industry, it will cite various case studies of other companies in other industries as well, in order to get a more comprehensive understanding of effective strategies for successful IJVs in Russia. In answering the primary research objective of this research, the thesis will further explore the following secondary research objectives: To provide a background on joint ventures (JVs) and international joint ventures (IJVS) as a whole, particularly as to their advantages and disadvantages. To understand the role of IJVs in Russia’s gas and oil industry. To highlight the problems that IJVs encounter in Russia which contribute to the high failure rate of many of these business arrangements. To identify the key success factors (KSF) that determine the success of IJVs in Russia, through case study analysis of IJVs in Russia. We will write a custom essay sample on Aims and objectives of the study specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Aims and objectives of the study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Aims and objectives of the study specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer To examine the importance of the identified key success factors and the contribution of each factor to the success of IJVs. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This research study is relevant because it will seek to improve the success rate of international joint ventures (IJVs) investing in the Russian oil and gas industry by identifying the key success factors (KSF) that will ensure such success. The Russian oil and gas sector generated total revenues of $123. 5 billion in 2005. In 2003, the country’s energy exports accounted for one-fourth of Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP), opening the floodgates to droves of foreign investors excited to cash in on this booming industry (Energy Information Administration, 2005). Russia has also overtaken Saudi Arabia as the world’s leading oil and fuel exporter (Datamonitor, 2006). A huge bulk of investments in the Russian oil and gas industry comes from IJVs arrangements where many organizations set up jointly-owned business entities while at the same time maintaining their independence from each other (Johnson Scholes, 1999). Major American, Japanese, Norwegian, and English petroleum organizations have set up IJVs with local organizations in Russia, but despite the numbers, the failure rate of IJVs have by far outnumbered their success rates (Katsioloudes Isichenko, 2007). The alarming rate of failure of numerous IJVs in Russia poses as a serious threat to the development of the Russian energy industry, and on the country’s economic growth as a whole (Katsioloudes Isichenko, 2007). As such, this thesis is significant in that it will seek to provide recommendations that may help in reversing the increasing failure rates for IJVs in Russia’s energy industry. The findings of this research study can serve as guidelines that will help to ensure the success of an IJV in Russia, which in turn will contribute to the further development of the country’s gas and oil industry, and ultimately, to the improvement of the Russian economy as a whole. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY A joint venture (JV) constitutes a separate legal entity which is jointly-owned and jointly-managed by the two or more parent organizations, or the â€Å"venturers. † As a general rule, a JV must have the following essential characteristics: 1) a separately identifiable joint venture entity; 2) an ownership interest in such entity by each joint venturer; and 3) an active management involvement, or deliberate abdication of the right to such involvement, by each joint venturer (Eco-Legal and Management Advisory Services Limited, 2003). There are two kinds of joint ventures: the equity joint venture and the contractual joint venture. Joint ventures involve a 50/50 participation of both venture partners, wherein each contributes 50 percent of the equity in return for 50 percent participating control. The degrees of ownership and control, as well as the expected returns, are results of negotiations between the two contracting parties. Problems may arise at this point when parties negotiate their expected valuations or returns, particularly if the joint venture happens to be in a country with a controlled economy or when one party is contributing land or goods and that party happens to be from a country where such land or goods may not have readily ascertainable free market values (Eco-Legal and Management Advisory Services Limited, 2003). There are certain advantages to this 50/50 arrangement, the most obvious is that both partners are equally at risk and have equal rights and obligations as to each other. The Eco-Legal and Management Advisory Services Limited (2003) further provides for the following advantages for organizations that enter into JV agreements: A company with insufficient resources may utilize the financial resources of another company with similar needs or interests, especially with regard to embarking on a particular project. In such a case, both companies will bear the share the potential risks involved in the new venture and reduce the burden of investment costs since all expenses are split into two between the two companies involved. The parties may extend their capabilities and business opportunities by pooling together their resources, technology, and expertise. Either one of the parties may expand its market power or even expand into a foreign market with which it has no familiarity. A JV agreement is especially helpful because the venturer who is located in the country or area where the other venturer wishes to expand is more familiar with local business customs and trends. The challenges in forming JVs are not limited to those challenges experienced for Russian JVs and international joint ventures (IJVs) alone. Studies show that a majority of large JVs encounter serious financial or managerial problems within the first two years of operation. Some common difficulties encountered by joint ventures in general are listed below (Hewitt Associates, 2008): The philosophy governing expectations and objectives of the joint venture agreement is unclear. There is an imbalance in the level of investment and expertise brought to the joint venture by the two parent organizations. The senior leadership and management teams for the joint venture receive inadequate identification, support, and compensation. The JV partners possess disparate, and usually conflicting, organizational cultures and operational styles. The JV’s size is modest compared to the two parent organizations. Thus, poor or unclear leadership, different corporate cultures, and a poor integration process contribute greatly to the failure of JVs, by analogy, of IJVs as well. Similar to the challenges outlined by Hewitt Associates (2008), the Eco-Legal and Management Advisory Services Limited (2003) provide for the following similar challenges that may lead to the failure of JV agreements: In sum, entering into a joint venture agreement is definitely not for the faint of heart. JVs offer a host of benefits to the parties involved, but both parties cannot simply enter into an agreement without carefully weighing out the risks involved and coming to terms with goals, expectations, and capabilities of each party. What makes it especially harder for JVs and IJVs in Russia is that in addition to the challenges that JVs in general have to deal with – whether or not they are located in Russia – they also have to deal with other problems that are unique to the Russian business industry and economic milieu.

Project Management 101

Project Management 101 Free Online Research Papers 1. INTRODUCTION Neumann Engineering Limited was founded in 1912 half a mile south of the Coventry city centre. They initially made components for motorcycle industry then they became specialists in sub-contract press work and welded assemblies. In the year 1995, Neumann Engineering Limited decided that the Coventry city centre site was not large enough to meet their increasing demand. Unfortunately the land prices were too high near city centre so plan of extending their current site (City centre site) was dropped. The company bought a large plot six miles away from city centre near the junction of M6 motorway. The company was not in a position to build the complete unit. Do to insufficient funds the company was able to build only the assembly plant. The owner’s son was put in charge of the newly formed site and his father managed the city centre site. Many new press machines weighing huge tons were bought by the Neumann Company for their press work, to improve productivity. Large coils of steel strips are delivered from West Bromwich by 30 tonne articulated lorry. The city centre site is small and the lorry cannot enter the site, so they had unloading problems. Since the other unit of the company is in the satellite site the transportation was a great head-ache for the management. Now every other company moved out from city centre and it was replaced by shops and hotels. Neumann is the only company still remains in the city centre and now facing several problems. Now the Company has decided to move the whole unit to the satellite site. As a Coventry University student and an employee of Neumann Engineering Limited, I like to give some suggestion to the managing director of the company regarding the relocation of Central site to satellite site. 2. BUSINESS CASE INVOLVED 2.1 IS RELOCATING THE COMPANY NECESSARY? Yes, of course it should be relocated because the city centre site is very old and many complaints are being made to the local authority regarding the unsightly appearance of the company. Now the Coventry city centre is fully occupied by plenty of shops and hotels and it is the only company still in the city centre site. The company produces lot of noise during pressing work which irritates the public and the houses near by. So it should be moved to the out skirts of the city. 2.2 ALTERNATIVES FOR THIS PROJECT In my opinion the only other choice for the management is try their best to buy few lands near the company in city centre and extend the company unit, which was planned and dropped then twelve years ago. There are certain drawbacks on in implementing it because the company have to invest huge sum of money (capital Investment) to buy land near city centre and it is hard to get permission from the authorities to extend the company in the busiest place. 2.3. PROBLEMS EXISTING IN THE COMPANY Analyzing this project, the following are considered to be some of the problem that may exists in the city centre site right now. 1. Transportation problem 2. Small working space 3. poor construction and poor maintenance 4. Public nuisance (Noise pollution) 2.3.1. TRANSPORTATION PROBLEM As the city centre site is small the huge Lorries carrying raw materials such as huge steel strips for pressing, unable to enter inside the site. This makes the unloading of steel strips harder and uncomfortable. Need specialised equipments to carry the huge steel strips from the Lorry to the Pressing machines. During transportation the overloaded steel cropping skip and fell on the road and this causes many motorists to shred their tyres. Recently the company paid compensation to the motorists and they got police warning too for this activity. 2.3.2. SMALL WORKING SPACE The city centre sites possess small working space, so this prevents the further establishment of the company. There is literally no space to place new press machines to increase the productivity. 2.3.3. POOR CONSTRUCTION AND POOR MAINTENANCE The press machines were of huge weight and need specially constructed building to withstand the pressure of the press. In the beginning of the company in 1912 they had not constructed the building to withstand stand huge pressure of a 250 ton press machine because as the company was started to make components for the motorcycle industry. Now the site is poorly maintained and is in a critical situation. 2.3.4. PUBLIC NUISANCE The press machines causes noise pollution. Presently the Neumann Engineering is the only company present in the city centre and it is surrounded by huge shops, hotels and university so the noise produced by the press causes irritation to the shops near by and to the public. 3. IS THE DECISION TO MOVE THE SITE IS WISE? In my view, the problems that have mentioned above are some of the major problems. So to solve the above problems the alternative method that I have suggested before will not work out because on extending the site in the city centre will not bring an end to the traffic problem and public nuisance. The other two problems discussed earlier can be solved but need a huge capital investment to resolve it. So I suggest the company has taken wise decision to move the whole unit from city centre site to the satellite site near the M6 highway on the outskirts of the city centre and of course, I support it. 4. IS RELOCATING THE SITE POSSIBLE? Why not? Nothing is impossible, where there is a will, there is a way. If the company is ready to take burden on their shoulders and face few risks it is possible. The employees in the company should support the company’s decision and dedicate themselves to work extra time for few months until they shift the components from the city centre site to satellite site. 4.1. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT The project of moving the site can be done by proper planning. There are many advantages and disadvantages on shifting the site. 4.1.1. ADVANTAGES ON MOVING THE COMPANY SITE Transportation problems can be solved. Investing huge amount of money (capital) on buying a land in city centre can be saved and rather (capital) it can be used to develop the site in the M6 highway. Since the satellite site is in the out skirts of the city the public nuisance is reduced. Since they are going to set up the entire factory working unit in a single place, it reduces the labour cost. It is easy to manage the work too if the entire site is set up in a single site. It increases the productivity of the press. It decreases the product cost. 4.1.2. DISADVANTAGES ON MOVING THE COMPANY SITE Causes major labour problem Shifting the press machines from city centre site to the M6 motorway site involves risk of cease in productivity for some days. Dismantling and reassembling it takes a long time for the company. 4.2. STACKHOLDER ANALYSIS As for as this project is concerned stockholders play an important role as they take important decision involved in this project. These are all the stockholders whose decision can affect the project 1. Managing director 2. Technical director 3. Team leaders 4. Staff workers (unskilled labours) 5. skilled labours 6. Local building inspector 7. Planning officer 8. Customers 9. Suppliers 10. Bank(If money is borrowed) 11. Contractor 12. Local residents 13. Project workers Here the stockholders can be divided into primary, secondary and tertiary according to their power to influence the project. 4.2.1. Mapping of stack holders Stack holders can be mapped depending upon their attitude, some stack holders may have negative attitude towards the project and some stack holders may have positive attitude towards the project. For example let us consider local authority may have negative opinion about the project that this project may fail and some stack holders like team member will have positive attitude that this project will succeed and wins the contract. Here the stack holders can be mapped depending upon their interest and power. Some stack holders will have low interest and low power whose ideas should not be taken seriously. Stack holders should be given importance depending upon their status in this project, a simple example is in this project the project planning team holds the key so this task should be given to the person having high interest and high power in this project hence their view should be considered carefully. 5. TIME AND COST This project is a combination of both time as well as cost; because this project has a schedule time within which a project has to be completed as well the project has a financial appraisal within which it should be completed. Usually time-related process is done in the project planning stage. When the project is implemented the schedules needed to be updated at regular interval throughout the whole project. It should be monitored carefully. If the project has any delays then suitable steps should be taken before it cross the risk stage. This project can be divided based on man-hours, Labour rates, materials, services, set-up charges, over heads and rental charges. 6. STEPS TO BE TAKEN BEFORE STARTING THE PROJECT Each and every stage of the project should be planned properly. The senior staffs and technicians should be consulted and should consider their opinion before planning. Financial appraisal of the management should be made stronger to withstand any risk. Company should give workers more incentives and motivate them to work for extra hours during the shifting process Since the new site is far away from Coventry city centre the company should convince the workers by providing transport to them, pick up and drop daily. Proper outline and building permission should be got from the government and the public authority to start the project. 6.1. PLANNING PROCESS Planning is the key role in this project so the planning committee should be made consisting of at least three chief engineers, two chief mechanics, four skilled labours and a team leader. Leaving anyone of the above in the committee will make a great mess in the later stage of the project while implementing it in future. Tasks to be considered by the planning committee The planning committee should consider the following factors 1. Estimation of time take for getting permission to build the factory 2. Analysis of how much pressure that the new building unit should be capable of in withstanding the pressure made by the 250 ton press. 3. Estimation of money required to carry on the project work. 4. Should apply for loan if they running out of the estimated budget. 5. Estimation of time it will take to build and completion the factory unit 6. Estimated day to start dismantling the huge press machines 7. Source of transport of the huge machines after dismantling 8. Time it will take to dismantle the machines and the time will take to re assemble it in the new site 9. Plan how they carry the work without affecting the productivity, when they dismantle the press machines. 10. They should sign the contract with other companies if they go for any contract. 11. Risks involved should be carefully calculated. 12. Solutions to the risks involved should be analysed and should be ready to face it. 6.2. NON FINANCIAL FACTOR Non financial factor plays a major role in this project as this project requires high amount of team work. The following are considered to be the non financial factor involved in this project 1. Team work 2. Quality circle 3. Improving working style Team work Project will be successful only with the help of team work and particularly for this project team members and staff are the vital stack holders and hence the project can be easily implemented only with help of team work. Quality circle Quality circle is considered to be other important aspect for this project because the staffs here are from different working circle and have their own methodology of working. So it will be beneficial to the project if the staff members meet regularly and share their views which will progress the project further. Working style Working style is the other criteria which cannot be neglected. The working style should be properly planned and must be implemented properly. Since a wrong movement in the project will collapse the whole project work. 7. KEY MILESTONES The key milestones of this project is 1. Implementing the plans in time 2. reduce the cost of relocation 3. Satisfying the workers 4. Satisfying the public and customers. 7.1. CAN THE COMPANY BE SHIFTED WITHOUT AFFECTING THE PRODUCTIVITY? In my view my answer will be definitely yes, why not? During the time of dismantling the press machines the press work cannot be handled out it is definitely true but it can be handled by alternative methods. Some suggestions of mine are described below 1. Can reduce the commitment of orders for particular span of time until they shift the machines to the new site and start production. 2. Company can convince the workers and make them to do the particular work for over time by giving incentives and do the work expecting to be affected during the time of dismantling particular machines and reassemble it before itself and store the products in the stock before the project is implemented. After one process is over then the staffs should be engaged to do other work done by other machines and do product overtime. By the mean time the machines dismantled here should be assembled in the new site and continue the process there. This saves the time and cost and will not let the productivity of the company go down. 3. Company can sign contract with some contractors to do the job for them till the project process expected to be completed. 7.2. WHO TAKES RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PROJECT The planning committee leader, project leader and the managing director should take responsibility in completing the project successfully. The planning committee holds the key and the managing director should support him financially and mentally to do this project. Project leader should take care of the planned project given by the planning committee. It is the project leader’s job to look after whether the planned work is done on time, and if any delay, he should handle it carefully.. 7.3. MAIN AREAS OF WORK The main areas of the work should be taken care. In this project the main areas were 1. Planning committee (planning the time taken to do particular job) 2. interaction with workers 3. calculation of risks (money factors, available labours) 4. project manager (responsible for doing job according to the plan) 8. NEW PROBLEMS FACED BY THE COMPANY DUE TO THE RELOCATION PROCESS On relocating the site from city centre to the satellite also contains many problems. 1. Since the satellite site is far away from the city centre the workers have to travel a long distance and they need to spend lot of money in travel. 2. Traffic conjunction will sometimes cause problems for the labours turn up to work on time. 3. There were very less houses near the satellite site so skilled and unskilled labours nearby the new site will be very less. 8.1. SOLUTION TO THE ABOVE STATED PROBLEMS 1. The company can take the responsibility of picking and dropping the staffs daily. 2. They can train the unskilled labours available nearby by teaching them how to work with the machines. 9. MAIN ACTIVITIES IN THIS PROJECT 1. Planning team selection 2. Group interaction meetings 3. Getting permission from local authorities to build new factory unit 4. Building contract 5. Analysis of pressure made by the press machines 6. Making specialized floors for the factory unit to withstand the machine pressure 7. proper communication between the remote site and satellite site 8. Convincing the labours to do more job during the time of relocation 9. Project manager should make sure that the plan is properly followed 10. making contracts with other companies (to do some parts for them during the period of dismantling and assembling the machines) 11. Apply for the loans if needed. 12. Transport contract 13. dismantling the machines 14. assembling the machines 15. Frequent discussions with all the staffs during the project is going on 16. Giving power supply to the machines in new site 17. Checking the machines after assembling. 9.1. GANTT CHART 9.2. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT First the company should start building the company unit in the satellite site. The company professionals should consult the mechanics and take a note of how many days will take to dismantle each machine and assembling it again and calculate the days accordingly during planning process. The company should sign contract to carry the huge dismantled machines from city centre site to satellite site since in my view giving contract for transporting reduces the cost of transport. After the above process were over then the machines can be dismantled and transported to the satellite site in the M6 motorway. Then once the dismantled parts reaches the satellite site, company should appoint some engineers in satellite site to assemble it, so that the work wont be affected further. It is recommended to dismantle the machines one by one instead of dismantling all the machines at same time since if only one machine is dismantled at a time then only one process will be affected which can be compensated by keeping stock in the inventory before dismantling it. In the mean time the next step processing machine should be used to do products and should be ready for dismantling and at the time the next machine is dismantled, the machine which was dismantled earlier should be ready to use in the new site. This should be take care by the project manager. 9.3. APPROXIMATE DAYS TAKEN FOR EACH TASK IN THE PROJECT TASK JOB DAYS/MONTHS 1 Planning process 1 month 2 Getting permission to build the new factory unit 20 days 3 Building contract selection 20 days 4 Building the whole new factory unit (includes flooring etc) 4 months 5 Dismantling the machines (12 machines) 3 days for each machine approx(36 days to 40 days) 6 Assembling the machines (12 machines) 4 days for each machines (48 days to 60 days) 7 Giving power supply to machines/ electrical work 5 days 8 Checking the assembled machines 2 days Tendering and contracting This is the first step in this project. The company has to first prepare a tender. Tenders involving details such as inviting share holders to the company and applying loan in the bank etc then contract are made with the people having part of liable rights in the companies’ new project. Clearing out the factory area Then in the next step the area in which new factory unit setup is to be started is selected and a plan is made and then area is cleared by all means and then the area should be made readily available for construction work. Civil engineering and architecture work In the following step construction work is carried out, this work takes sufficient time in completing the project. Civil engineering work takes about 4 month in completing the project. It can be started only when tendering and clearing out of factory area is completed. Electrical work Here all the electrical work takes place. It takes a time period of 1 month to complete it as it involves lots of wirings. This work can be done only after completing construction work. Installing equipments Purchasing new equipment in this project takes longer period since it has to be dismantled from the city centre site and then it has to be fitted again. At first the dismantled equipment has to be transferred to new factory site and then equipment has to be floored and fitted it takes sufficient long period of 1 month. Training program for staff and team building Then team building activity and training program for staff take place. This is important task because they have to train the unskilled labours living nearby the factory. 9.4. PROJECT RELATES TO MURPHY’S LAW Murphy’s Law is â€Å"if failure to consider uncertainty and risk will lead to continual’ fire-fighting’†. So risk should be carefully analysed and learnt before starting the project. 9.5. RISKS INVOLVED IN THIS PROJECT Common risk involved in this project The common risks involved in this project is if any one of the planned work is delayed due to environmental or labour problems or other problems then the project will fail completely and lose many customers. Other risk is if the dismantled parts are damaged during transport then it will make confusion after assembling and again need repair. Technical risk The technical risk involved in this project is proper dismantling and assembling of the same in the new site. Dismantling and assembling should be carried on by group of experts in press machines since if the machine break down it will take other 10 days to dismantle it again and assemble it. Management risk The management has many risk involved in this project. The management should convince their customers during the time of relocation. The management should not take more orders from the customers at the same time they should not ignore them, since ignoring a customer will affect the company badly in many ways. It is management’s responsibility to convince the customers and try to satisfy their needs even during the project work is carried out. Business risk If the company fails to do the work according to plan and if they make a delay in the product and not satisfying the customers by giving the products in time during the time of the project then they definitely going to lose valuable customers. 9.6. Involving stakeholders in the risk analysis As this project is concerned, the main stakeholders were project managers, team leaders and skilled labours. To identify the major risk involved in this project, it should be analyzed carefully with all the members in the team because as they are involved in the team they would give some valuable tips. In our project case risk involved can also be identified by the following Brainstorming By brainstorming a big list of potential risk involved in the project can be identified and then from the list created by brainstorming we can evaluate the risk and classify it under categories as high risk, medium risk and low risk. According to the category of the risks the risks can be omitted or considered seriously. Interviewing Each and every individual member of team can be interviewed about what are the risks involved in this project according to his prospective and the risks told by each person in the team is analysed deeply and it can be considered if it has more probability to affect the project. Risk profile The company should take similar situations during the past into consideration or should analyse how the other similar companies done this job into consideration and compare with their plan they made and if they found anything can improve the project and reduces the risk then they should implement other ideas that other companies used to do the project secure and safe. 9.7. PROJECT IMPROVEMENT Project can be improved further after they successfully done their relocation of site. The project can be improved by 1. Placing the machines one near other. This reduces the labour cost because moving the finished the parts of one machine to the next stage machines will be easier. 2. Store room of raw materials can be placed near by the machines; this too reduces the labour cost and time. 10. BUSINESS CASE The business case is the measurement of business benefits going to be obtained by this project. If little or no business benefit can be identified the project should not be started. If the company has no benefit after finishing the project will lead in closure of the company. The company should calculate expected benefit on doing the project. Tangible and intangible benefits should be measured and well analysed. The company should analyse when they get the capital cost returned. They should have a clear budget on the working capital and the pay back period. The company should consider the rate of return also. ARR= (average profit before tax / initial capital outlay) 10.1. PROJECT SHOULD ADOPT MCGREGOR’S THEORY Y â€Å"McGregor’s Theory Y assumes that Work is a natural play People will exert self- direction and self-control in achieving objectives to which they are committed Commitment to objectives is a function of the rewards associated with their achievement Under proper conditions persons accept and even seek responsibility. The capacity of imagination, ingenuity and creativity in the solution of organisational problems is widely distributed in the population. I recommend McGregor’s Theory Y in implementing this project to make the project successful. Every person in the team should take responsibility of the work given to them by the team and they should have capacity to solve the problems.† (Ref: class notes) 11. RECOMMENDATION TO THIS PROJECT This project will be really successful if it is handled by main stake holders because they are really worried about the future because if the project fails then they have high risk of losing their jobs. The company should employ only educated people, so that they can further improve the standard of the company. Job security should be given to the workers in order to motivate them. The company can invite few share holders to join the company in order to support them .In brief, this project has many positive ideas in order to achieve success. 12. CONCLUSION Even though this project has involved in lot of risk factors in it, this project will be a successful project. It is a bold and clever decision taken by the management to transfer the whole company unit to a single site. In my view the company had worked for it for twelve years to start this project, since they already got land in the year 1995 itself. It is the high time for the company to implement this project because the delay in time increases the risk factors of the company. So going for this project with right planning and right involvement by the team members will surely make the project cent percent successful. 13. REFERENCES Research Papers on Project Management 101Gene One the Transition from Private to PublicWhat are Stock OptionsAmerican Central Banking and OilA Marketing Analysis of the Fast-Food RestaurantProbation OfficersQuebec and CanadaGenetic EngineeringThe Story of Beatrix PotterBooker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois, Ida B. Wells-BarnettHenderson the Rain King

Human Resource Managment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Human Resource Managment - Essay Example 9).4 It will stimulate the HR officer at GS Plumbing to don a professional perspective and will accord a formal recognition and motivation to the HR officer that is Alan Arrowsmith (Bragerstock, 2000, p. 524).5 HR audit will also lead to the identification of the problems marring GS Plumbing, resulting in an appropriate strategy aimed at resolving these problems (Hartsfield, 1990, p. 31).6 This endeavour will also lead to a systematic job analysis of all the employees at GS Plumbing and will help the company in designing appropriate performance management and appraisal systems (Hartsfield, 1990, p. 37).7 HR audit is also about basically recognizing the need for change and initiating and managing change (Stemple, 2006, p. 14).8 So far the top management at GS Plumbing is noncommittal about the issues hampering the smooth working of the organization, as is evident by the approach of Greg Smith, the owner of the company. So, an HR function audit by GS Plumbing will facilitate a smooth a doption and initiation of the change mindset on the part of the management and the employees. To assure the effectiveness of the proposed HR audit, it will be really helpful if the team drafted for conducting this audit involves a cross section of the staff working at varied levels at GS Plumbing (Moore, 2007, p. 53).9 This should include the owner, Greg Smith, the HR manager Alan Arrowsmith, the middle managers, particularly Gail White and at least one representative each of full-time and part-time plumbers. If possible and financially viable, the company can also hire an HR consultant to help and assist in this audit. Another big problem diluting the efficiency at GS Plumbing is the unplanned absence of employees. It is a fact that some of the employees may be resorting to... This paper approves that a formal and effective employee retention policy is pivotal for the long term success and sustenance of GS Plumbing. The success in retaining employees will add to customer satisfaction, will mitigate dissent amidst the staff, will allow for the achievement of a pool of experienced and skilled employees who could act as mentors or could be eventually absorbed in the management, and assure that the knowledge and experience that the employees have gained over time remains embedded within the company’s resource base. The management could come out with a lucrative bonus policy to prevent employees from working freelance after hours. The talent and contribution of the junior employees should be promptly recognized by extending promotions and salary raises. The top managers should spend more time interacting and mixing with the plumbers. Overall, care should be taken to make all the plumbers feel that they are respected and recognized. GS Plumbing being a sm all concern, it will get ample word of mouth publicity by initiating such policies. This essay makes a conclusion that at present, the managerial policies towards HR function at GS Plumbing are noncommittal and non formal. A great deal of this has to do with the lack of interest and initiative on the part of the top management. The dearth of employee retention, recruitment, compensation and review policies are taking a heavy toll on the long term sustenance of the company. Communication gap between the employees and the management is one other sore factor.

The relationship between Cooperative Learning and Social Emotional Case Study

The relationship between Cooperative Learning and Social Emotional Learning in a Elementary mixed ability learning environment - Case Study Example materials and ask them to learn the topic on their own at an individual level, without discussing, and then administer a test at the end of the learning. Secondly, the teacher can apply the teaching methodology of teaching the whole topic to the students, while the students take notes, after which a test is administered at the end of the topic to establish their understanding. Thirdly, the teacher can teach the students the topic differently, by teaching the whole topic to each student alone, and then turning on the other student until he is through with all of them. Fourth, the students can ask the students to pick each sub-topic of their interests to learn on their own, and then come teach the sub-topic to the rest of students in a classroom forum moderated by the teacher. Which option is suitable for teaching the living cell topic to the students? In a science class, the teacher has a group of six students of mixed learning abilities. Some of the students have low learning abilities, understanding the content of the teaching very slowly and at times lagging behind in performing the required tasks for the lessons. On the other hand, there is another group that has a high learning ability, being able to learn the content of the science lesson easily, and thus managing to undertake the learning activities and practical tasks very easily. The teacher is highly concerned about the inability of the students with low learning ability to move with the pace he has set, and is therefore worried that such students may inconvenience the students with the high learning abilities, by making the learning process slow, and thus affect the time that the scheduled science lessons should be completed. Thus, the teacher is contemplating various measures to address this problem. First, the teacher is contemplating teaching at the pace that the high ability students are able to adapt, while ignoring the needs of the group with low-learning abilities. Secondly, the teacher is

What are the global implications of the internationalization of news Essay - 1

What are the global implications of the internationalization of news - Essay Example Rather than having various crews for every medium, one converged operation of the media can use the same reporters and staff to come up with stories for television, internet mediums, and telecommunication. By combining each resource of the medium, this converged operation can enhance the quality of the news presented. This increases the satisfaction of the customers thus attracting a wider audience base (Kolodzy 2006, p. 66). The increased advancement in technology has enabled easy accessibility of news. For instance, an individual in a location can read about the events of another location of the globe by accessing various social media platforms. As a result, individuals do not have to sit in front of a television at all times if they need to learn about the current events of a location. The internet have come in handy to ensure that even the busiest individuals in the globe can learn about the happenings of a location of their choice in the event of their busy schedule. However, easy accessibility does not guarantee delivering of quality news. Some media stations may use this easy accessibility to exaggerate on the ongoing events of a location. This especially happens when an international news station reports about a situation in another location where the station is not located. For instance, the current Ebola situation in Africa has been so much exaggerated that most international tourists fear visiting any part of Africa. The situation is so bad that even the Africans in various states of the westernized nations are shunned. Moreover, convergence leads to information overload. Technology results into changes that leave individuals confused and suffering from information overload but under load of the substance that is passed through (Johnston 1998, p. 3). The convergence of news has resulted into the audience getting too much information which fails to help them at the end. The reason is that the content

How Apple Incs Strategy Is Affected After Globalization Economics Essay

How Apple Incs Strategy Is Affected After Globalization Economics Essay In this twenty first century, globalisation has an impact in every economy. World of today is considered to be united as a bunch countries with no boundaries. Raw materials from different countries are being processed in another country to manufacture goods products are being marketed in another country. It is the modern concept of the globalisation. A company goes international for so many reasons like, small domestic market, adverse government policy in home country, high demand of the product in foreign market etc. FDI across the globe had a fixed upswing with a sharp growth in the second quarter of 2008. Even it was not affected so much by financial crisis during recession in 2008. FDI is mainly originated from the advanced economy like USA.[ Peter Dicken] In this essay we have chosen famous electronic gadget manufacturer APPLE as our company, which is mainly based in USA, has expanded its production unit in EUROPE and ASIA. It is manly famous for introduction of a new age in mobile phone industry by brining iPHONE MACBOOK in pc section. Recently they have launched iPAD in the market which turn to be a great success. How their strategy has been affected when they go global by the main three factors (1.Technology.2.geography.3.goverment policies ) has been described below. TECHNOLOGY: For a product to become more acceptable by quality, implied technology of production plays an important role. Foreign direct investment prospects can be propelled to a new level if the quality of production can be retained in a cost effective manner. Hence, investment opportunity of a country is significantly influenced by its internal development, technology and growth. These intrinsic developments are always in the lamplight of MNCs and are effectively made use by them. Apple has met its investment prospects in China as this country maintains the unique work quality in assembling the inputs for final production. As a part of corporate global strategy, company has given outsourcing more importance at the same time imparting mandate high control over product integrity. When apple produce iPods in China, it is not produced in a factory owned by Apple. It is been contracted with third party to produce IPods with the specifications Apple provides. Moreover from outsourcing, Apple is sourcing quality products for assemblage from foreign countries and some even from China itself by fragmenting its supply chain very effectively. The standard of factors of production is set to meet the requirements set by Apple Inc. If the company is not successful in monitoring the strategy which is being implemented in a country, it will eventually destroy companys reputation. The subtle implementation of internationalisation strategy is been spawned in such a way that Apple products are leveraged to its maximum utility. For leveraging the products to its maximum levels, sophisticated research and development is being carried out through international investments and intrinsic ground-breaking technologies. Trade theory gives light by how much proportions the various factors of inputs needed at each stage of a production process, together with various inputs at comparative costs, influencing the investment proposal. As technology is one of the important input of production, while framing up an international strategy it has to be dealt well while investing in a foreign country. The comparative cost of the technology brought forth for production is very significant as it contributes to the international pricing strategy. The quality technology which is been generated in China holds cost advantage when it is compared to the same technology implemented in US. Advanced technology is pioneer to production of any innovative products but this technology has to be accessed in a cost effective manner to produce competitively priced product. Skilled labour is another requisite which should be considered in quality production. High cost of labour in United States of America can be a down beating fa ctor in home country which can be eliminated through foreign direct investment. Hence, advantage is been derived in the host country in terms of technology implementation through skilled labour force at low cost. Apple Incs business establishment in China is a subtle example for their tactical part in internationalisation strategy. GEOGRAPHY: The geographical dispersion means that companys activities are not concentrated to a single country rather it is dispersed between different countries. The production in foreign country can be commenced in two ways namely Merges acquisition and Greenfield investment. Greenfield investment means setting up a new plant and physical assets in the foreign country whereas Merges acquisition means merging with a foreign firm or buying existing assets in a foreign country. The cost of geographical dispersion can be of three types which is firm level, plant level and the economies of integration foregone. Almost 54% companys geographical market place is situated in United States. Final assembly of companys product is mainly done in Ireland by external vendors in California, Texas, China, Korea, etc. Manufacturing supply of many critical components is executed by sole sourced third party vendors from Taiwan, Germany, US, Germany, Korea, Netherlands etc. But main assembly part is done in China by sole sourced third party vendors. That means its production input has been divided into sub category situated in different countries. So it is an example of centralized vertical Foreign Direct investment by apple where its headquartering is situated in US. The benefit of geographical dispersion for the company is that, it is able to reduce the cost of primary input as the price for inputs varies in different locations. It also helps the company to lower operating cost and reduces the companys direct control over the production and distribution. This also helps in lowering the trade cost and enables it to capture the markets. For example, the investment decision to manufacture the products from China helps the company to have a better control over the Asian markets. Also the cost incurred in exporting the products from United States to Asian market is much lower when it is from China. The firm also enjoys economies of scale as the cost of production is less due the dispersion and the company is able to employ skilled and cheap labor. In spite of its benefits, its uncertain what negative effects will this have on the company. The diminished operational control may have an effect on the quality of the products or services or its flexibility to respond to changes. This may adversely affect the reputation of the company. Another problem is that, if the manufacturing or providing logistical services in the other country is disturbed for any causes like natural disaster, war, political issues, public health, failure in information technology system, financial crises may materially affect the companys financial condition and operation. GOVERNMENT POLICIES: The vertical foreign direct investment strategy of Apple is advantageously and manifestly framed up by the influence of political environment or trade policies that operate within the country. The supply chain is fragmented and for assemblage, the Apples input commodities are sourced from special enterprise zones of China where much of import duties and taxes are waived. The government trade policy influences the intricate supply chain management and outsourcing of the company. Apple being an American multinational propels a strategy that insulates itself from foreign exchange risks. The price the company has to pay for a specific input item in a specific country is influenced by the exchange rates of currencies at the time. The company exhibits a pattern of a good net receiver of currencies except the American dollar. As the US dollars gains strength, it will negatively affect the Apples net sales and gross margin articulated in American dollars. Financial innovations are spawned by the international financial flows. The financial innovations are greatly influenced by the monetary and fiscal policy of a government. This level of influence determines the stability of economic performance. As US government tends to maintain very low interest rates to support the demand for housing and promoting the revival of building industry, international capital flows are possible. It may result in more capital outflows and a weaker dollar. An immediate effect can be not iced in the US output as a result of more US exports. Thus for Apple, weaker dollar gives more euro earning and allows it to state an elevated profit rate to it stakeholders. [Linden 2008] Many financial innovations are spawned out from the introduction of capital flows. There is an economic significance of international financial instruments like forwards or options when Apple deals with it. July 2008 Company reports stated that the Apple inc was willing to enter into forward and option dealings of foreign currencies. This also included some strategically committed transactions, the investment company possessed in foreign subsidiaries, forecasted future cash flows etc. Evidently, practice of the company was to hedge a large number of its material foreign exchange exposures for some months. [Apple inc, 2008] The progression of this model imparts light into the strategy framed up by Apple in tackling the effect of rising prices too. A developing country like China has remarkable success in controlling the inflation. Apple has a peculiar stake in China where country exhibits success in managing its economy from extreme pressures and creating higher inflation rates. Chinese central bank put forward a straight policy in framing up the exchange rates. Till July 2005, the policy upheld was to fix the rate it levied to exchange Chinese currencies for American dollars. In this context, Apple could assertively forecast the exchange rates weeks in advance. [Apple inc, 2005] Apple endeavours to do outsourcing in the country where there is minimal legal regulations as they can maximise their profits. As the operations are mainly concentrated in China, Apple Company has got relaxation from heavy tax burdens. Vertical specialisation with internalisation keeps the production cost low at the same time company benefits from low trade cost. The company is getting more and more innovative by research and development. Proper caution is taken as the economy breeds the risk of a global financial downturn that could have disastrous effect in their business. At last , after analysing the all the factors that affects companys internationalisation foreign direct investment we can conclude Apple is truly globalised . That means it has stretched its corporate arms in such a way that we can say that for Apple the difference across countries does not matter. They have fragmented their production parts across countries sell its products all most around the world just to take the benefit of the internationalisation globalised concept. Their main strategy is to take advantage from different counties favourable condition that helps their business to gain more revenue using economics of scale. As we have discussed the main reason of their expansion of business in China are cheap labour costs, higher productivity of Chinese labour output huge demand of Asian market. They also want to take benefit from the exchange rate investment friendly government policy. It is proved from their establishment of unit in China Ireland. Their well organized gl obalised business strategy has helped them to spread their products world wide almost in every country, which is much more appreciated from the point of view of internationalisation of a company. In every of their business strategy the concept of true globalised company can be visualised.[ Peter Dicken]

DuBois and Black Nationalism Essay -- essays research papers

DuBois and Black Nationalism The Epigraph:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"The colored people are coming to face the fact quite calmly that most white Americans do not like them, and are planning neither for their survival, nor their definite future†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  W.E.B. DuBois â€Å"A Negro Nation within the Nation† The Premise:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Black Nationalism is a pragmatic solution for the success and survival of the oppressed African Americans. The Argument: Black Nationalism is defined by Karenga, as the political belief and practice of African Americans as a distinct people with a distinct historical personality who politically should develop structures to define, defend, and develop the interests of Blacks as a people. Black Nationalism can be traced back to the 18th century, back to William Edward Burghardt DuBois, the most prominent black intellectual of all time. Black Nationalism is the response of African Americans to the continual racism and oppression they experience. It came about because of two reasons; the racism that they faced daily, and being exploited economically by white supremacy. Black Nationalism seeks a solution to the problems that African Americans face on a daily basis. After the Civil War, the situation of the black people was not good; it was a semi-free, semi-slave situation. An example of this is tenancy, where the Blacks have control of the work process and work schedule but ultimately had to give up the fruits...