The Intellectual Capital in Globalization Practices

ServiceSim Contribution April Essays

ServiceSim Contribution April Essays ServiceSim Contribution April Essay ServiceSim Contribution April Essay 1. Hire a Tech 1 employee at 11.60/hour. Maybe the last guy quit because Fastlane pays 11.50/hour while the market rate is 11.58/hr. 2. So that you don’t lose anymore staff, increase the following rates Tech 2 employee rate to 13.70/hr (Fastlane pays 13.10, market rate=13.63) Tech 3 employee rate to 19.20/hr (Fastlane pays 19.05, market rate=19.17) Service Advisor employee salary to 3080 (Fastlane pays 3060, market rate=3079) 3. Hire the following temporary staff Hire temporary Tech 1 employee to cover for Tech 1 employee going on vacation next month Hire temporary Driver/Shipper (2 weeks) to cover for Driver/Shipper on 2-week jury duty Hire temporary employee to cover for all planned vacations Pricing Margin Decisions These are okay as they are. Based on Performance Summary, we need to cut down on expenses. They are at 90.6%. We can reduce Advertising/Promo a bit. We need to keep some parts in stock because customers are complaining that they wait several days for parts.

A Brief History of Globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

A Brief History of Globalization - Essay Example This research will begin with the definition of globalization as a process (or set of processes) which embodies a transformation in the spatial organization of social relations and transactions, expressed in transcontinental or interregional flows and networks of activity, interaction, and power. Globalisation is perhaps the most overused and least understood word, and one can easily see that the meaning and scope of the word has transformed and evolved dramatically over the past few years. The controversy associated with it proves how complicated scholars on both sides have made it. Under this backdrop, here is someone with a rational approach who seeks to clarify the concepts. Alex MacGillivray’s views are wry and balanced, replete with historic anecdotes and high-quality analysis of each aspect and implication of globalization. He litters his writing with speckles of benign humor when referring to the steady growth in the number of countries over the last few decades accord ing to membership of the UN, recognition by FIFA or entries in the CIA’s World Fact Book. His observations are woven logically into the fabric of first-rate primary data analysis. For instance, a new data set showing that much of the reputed growth of an international trade over the past two decades arise from regional (intra trading block), rather than a truly international movement of goods and services. This idea contrasts what organizations like WTO and World Bank acclaim as the benefits of globalization.

CTV Building in Christchurch Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

CTV Building in Christchurch - Essay Example This paper approves that it is clear from the above discussion that the CTV building collapsed due to the inadequate quality of the structure and design. Moreover, several issues such as lack of an effective decision making process, poor supervision processes and unethical business and operation practices are responsible for this collapse. After the 2010 earthquake government of New Zealand appointed the Christchurch City Council to inspect the safety standards of the CTV building. There was a chance for survival, but the Christchurch City Council appointed an inexperienced engineering supervision team. The owner and shareholders could have arranged for a better review process. This report makes a conclusion that the CTV building collapse was the major consequence of the Christchurch earthquake in 2011. From the above discussion, it can be stated that several reasons are responsible for this collapse. Inadequate design and quality of structure are the major reasons behind this incident. Government tried to arrange an investigation process in respect of the CTV building by appointing the City Council. However, inadequate decision making of the Christchurch City Council and the poor review process by the inexperienced engineers forced the council to give a green sticker. The Government of New Zealand along with IPENZ and the Royal Commission are trying to find out the real reason behind the collapse of the CTV building through several private investigation processes. ... It is true that the CTV building got a green sticker after the 2010 earthquake despite the critical situation of the building. Although the building was not eligible for a yellow sticker, signalling authorities and the group of engineers gave a green signal to the building in order to achieve a huge profit margin. In any earthquake prone zone, a building is to be designed according to the guidelines imposed by the government of that state. There were a number of people who were engaged in the designing of the building. There were chiefly three main entities: the designer of the building, the company that the designer represented, and the other management individuals of the company. The design component had two parts. The Structural Engineer was David Harding under the brand of Alan Reay Consultants Ltd and Alun Wilke Associates Architects was the architectural firm who had been employed for the construction of the building. Gerald Shirtcliff, who supervised the construction in the na me of William Fisher, did not have a degree in engineering. Harding used to work under the guidance of Alan Reay, the owner of the firm. During the establishment of the building, the CTV building did not meet the standards. On the other hand, the principle engineer and the owner did not follow the regulations or legal aspects during the review process. Alan Ray was the principle engineer of this building. He did poor supervision and passed the review report to the structural engineer. However, the owners and stakeholders did not even bother to review the building plans or rectify the challenges and issues accordingly. The government of New Zealand took one wrong decision by appointing the City Council for the investigation of the property. It was the key

Strategic Financial Management(business report) Essay

Strategic Financial Management(business report) - Essay Example Barclaycard provides the following products / services in the UK: According to the latest company estimates2, nearly 10.1 million people in the UK carry Barclaycards, of which 565,000 are Barclaycard Business corporate card holders and currently the number of Barclaycard International cards in issue totals 7.6 million. The company has business relationships with close to 93000 retailers and merchants and 24 million outlets that accept Barclaycards globally. The detailed resource analysis involves an analysis of financial, marketing, operations and HRM policies of the company so as to provide an insight into the company’s strategic positioning and overall business performance in the above mentioned key areas. The Barclays group showed significant performance during the financial year 2007 in spite of adverse market conditions. The reduction of 1% in profit before tax was well compensated by the 3% rise in the profit before business disposals. The overall profit growth exceeded that of the previous year with a continuous development in its UK businesses as well as substantial investments in the international branches. The strategic decision of diversifying its business portfolio paid off well in terms of generating good shareholder value, which led to a declaration of an annual dividend amounting to 22.5p per share totaling 34p during the year, amounting to a total 10% increase. A sharp reduction of 11% in the retail impairment charges on loans and advances was observed during the year which fell from  £1,809m in 2006 to  £1,605m in 2007. There was a marked improvement in the Barclaycard impairment charges to an astonishing 21% which fell from  £1,067m in 2006 to  £838m in 2007. This reduction could mainly be attributed to the factors such as reduced flows into delinquency, reduction in the levels of arrears and lower charge – offs in UK

Marketing Strategy of TVs Motors

Marketing Strategy of TVs Motors TVS Motor Company is Indias third largest manufacturer and company had made success in their last ten years. TVS achieved many awards for their quality of products, customer satisfaction and for their technology. This paper analyzing the organizations various strategies models as well as describes the financial statement analysis for last five year. Analyzed how the company reached the current position and described the recommendations for TVS Motor Company. Introduction: An organizational study is conducted to have a clear and proper understanding of the organizations basic structure, coordination and functioning at all levels. Every organization involves in identifying and coordinating the work that being performed and delegates authority and responsibilities. Organizations are always looked as a social entity directing towards designated goals that are designed as coordinated activity and structured deliberately linking to external environment. In a country like India which has seen an industrial revolution in last couple of decades, bringing large multinational corporate and industries to the country any organization would require strong organizational functioning to compete with other industries in the market paving way to success and preferences to the organization. My organization study involves research on various departments to understand their functions within and their purposes. I have also tried to bring out the achievements of the organiz ation so far and how it competes with its competitors. It was also important for me to study how they progress towards their mission and vision of the organization. Before doing a study on any organization it was important to have compassion on the concepts, principles and requisites of the organizations. Concepts of an organization: Every organization involves in a process of identifying and grouping the work that has to be done. It defines and delegates the authority and responsibility to every individual or sector. It establishes strong relationship with its employees to accomplish its objectives and performing work efficiently. Principles: Principles are tailored on theoretical basis on which the strategies of the organization is built or framed. There are several fundamental principles there are to be followed in developing an organization strong and efficiently. Some of them are Unity of objective Unity of command Specification Span of control Co-ordination Exception Flexibility Communication Simplicity Efficiency REQUSITIES: The objectives of the organization are to be candid and clear and the organizations understanding their capacity in achieving them. All activities within the organization are implemented efficiently and easily. Proper coordination on all activities that being executed. Communication system inside the organization should be direct and effective. Should be complete with all essential activities being put into action. There should be reasonable span of control at all levels Wherever required, provision is to be available for expansion Defined procedures are to be followed on all functions of the organization Organization should always aim at promoting morality of its employees Proper diversion on authority and responsibility is required Business strategy: TVS motors which originates from Trichur Vengaram Sundaram Iyengar motors is one among the leading motorcycle company in India .it is the third largest two-wheeler manufacturer company in India and among the top ten in the world. It holds annual revenue of more than $ 1 billion .Its a flagship company with TVS group USA with 4$ billion. It strives and thrives in manufacturing innovative and pioneer products. TVS emphasizes on launching new products with its new product introduction (NPI) team of approximately 300 engineers who stand at forefront in executing strategic visions for the organization for its new products. Though these products are developed domestically it collaborates with globally technical renowned partners. It aims to introduce six to ten products every year to address broad-based requirements of the market. Bike for Anyone: TVS Motors aims at introducing wide range products thats suits the needs of all two wheeler riders. It holds products from mopeds to racing motorcycles. The prices of these motorcycles are also affordable and reasonable to suit financial status of middle and upper middle class people in India. It was also the first motorcycle company in India to launch mopeds that were easily affordable to labor and wager groups of India. Penchant for Quality: TVS Motor has established four manufacturing plants located at Mysore, Hosur, Himachal Pradesh and one in Indonesia. The company is more consistent on its quality of its products so far. The vehicles were long lasting and reliable. Innovation at the Helm: Strength of the organization lies in its design and development of its new products, the company launched seven products on the same day in 1997, making it all the first automotive company to do so. They aim at developing superior customer satisfaction. TVS presents quality vehicles to meet ever changing need of its customer and market, the company already holds 15 million customers on road. History: The company was founded by Trichur Vengaram Sundarm Iyangar. He initially started on transport business holding large fleet of buses, trucks under the name of southern roadways limited. Later the company spread its wings on automobile sector, including insurance, finance, two wheelers manufacturing components, and tires. It is combined with 33 companies of its own to bring a turnover of nearly 3 billion USD. On 1978 the company started plant at Hosur to manufacture mopeds as a new division. Later the company collaborated with Suzuki on 1982 on a joint venture to obtain brand impression on its customers. Major Milestone Year by Year: 1978: TVS Motors was started as a new division of TVS. 1982: Incorporated as Indians motors. It collaborated with Suzuki motors. 1984: 59,400,000 shares were issued on which 7, 00,000 shares Sundaram Clayton ltd, Chennai. 70,000 Anusha investments 20, 00,000-Suzuki motors 2, 20,000 -Employees and business associates 29, 70,000- public 1985: incorporated Lakshmi Auto Company6 for Manufacturing transmissions and critical engine parts. 1986: company name was changed from Indo Suzuki motors to TVS Suzuki motors 1990: launched 34cc Miniped 1997: set up auto ancillary estate at Mysore and Hosur 1998: RS: 1,000 crore mark in 1997-1988 introduced first four stroke vehicle in the country 2003: Recorded share of 35% of share in motorcycle division, Recorded 31% growth on its sales. Company introduced racing bikes that were tested in Asian circuits. 2006: Appointed new president 2007: launched 7 motorcycles on the same day making a mark in history 2010: Launched Indias first auto clutch motorcycle in Chandigarh. TVS Michael porters competitive force model The strategy is developed by Michael porter which describes the external factors affecting the organization. The TVS analysis is as follows: Supplier Power: Although TVS has been a prominent supplier for economic class customers in two wheelers market, here we take the power of the suppliers for TVS to analyze. The Supplier market for TVS is highly fragmented and the possibility for backward integration is also high which has restrained the power of the suppliers. TVS engages with several local suppliers for their spares and parts for their automobiles manufacturing. The entry of many new small scale manufacturers has also contributed to the benefit of large automobile manufacturers like TVS to source their Spares and parts at a very optimal price. This clearly indicates the low supplier power. Buyer Power: Buyers power in two wheelers industry is more as the product diversity and brands available in the market are exceptionally high. Buyers today are demanding and specific on their needs for the money they pay. They are looking for the brand that offers better pricing and technology which has shadowed the customer loyalty for any brand today which is the most faced threat by TVS. Threat of Substitutes: Threat from substitutes is quite low when compared to other forces since market seems only to grow and mature every day. But when looked down the line we could anticipate a threat from the dramatically escalating petrol cost which might cause customers to switch to economic diesel cars. As well growing environmental concerns has also brought in bicycles and battery two wheelers that might pose a threat in future to TVS. Intensity of Rivalry: Two wheelers industry is most known for the competitive market and rivalry. Two wheeler brands like Bajaj, Honda and Yamaha have come up with various product line and technology targeting the customer segment of age group 20 to 30 years who are more fascinated to sporty two wheelers. But TVS has very less sporty models available for customers to choose that has restrained power of the brand over the most targeted customer segment by its competitors. Although TVS has a better power over the mid aged economic class customer segment, competitors now are increasing their focus on taking over it too. Barriers to New Entrants: New entrants face a moderate barrier in penetrating the market since it is consolidated by few and strong suppliers. As the market size of the two wheelers industry is big and requires a strong footprint with high capital investment, new entrants find it difficult to fit themselves among the market front-runners. Thus TVS is not susceptible to threats from the new entrants to the industry. TVS Motors market share The market share of all Two-wheeler is affected by various inflation, rise in petrol price and interest rate. Automobile industry had unexpected growth around 15% is due supported by various external factor like urban development, developed public transportation, financial purchases and Two-wheeler penetration into various region. Hero Honda dominated in the market by 55% (2011-2012) in last five quarters. Market Share with competitors April Feb. 2011 Source: TVS Motor Company Financial performance Details/Year 2011-12 2010-11 2009010 2008-09 2007-08 Sales other income* 7148 6324 4485 3741 3310 Profit before interest, depreciation, amortization and tax* 520 491 304 247 219 Profit before tax 316 248 76 31 35 Profit after tax 249 195 88 31 32 Net fixed assets 1078 995 983 1036 1043 Share capital 48 48 24 24 24 Reserves and surplus 1122 952 842 786 798 Net worth 1170 999 835 735 769 Total borrowings* 831 768 1003 906 666 Earnings per share #(Rs.) 5.24 4.10 1.86 0.66 0.67 Dividend per share (Rs.) 1.30 1.10 1.20 0.70 0.70 Book value per share# (Rs.) 24.38 20.81 17.40 15.32 16.02 EBITDA/turnover (%) 7.3 7.4 6.8 6.6 6.6 Profit before tax/turnover (%) 4.4 3.9 1.7 0.8 1.1 Return on capital employed (%) 19 16.4 8.0 5.6 2.8 Return on net worth (%) 23.0 21.3 11.2 4.1 4.1 Source: TVS Motor Company The company achieved the annual sales of two million as growth of 32% by selling 1.52 million units last year. The company made their growth in all three segment as Executive as 26%, Economy as 12% and Premium as 38% for the year of 2011. When compared with 2010, there is increased in sale of fixed asset in 2011. On 2011 fiscal year TVS Motors acquires assets increasing the liquidatory assets to 1.70 crores. Due to increase in RD expenses decrease in sales and investment in manufacturing sector increased the companys liabilities to 950.49 crores. Companys capital expenditure was 91.63 crores in year 2011. In the year 2011 current ratio stands at 0.17 while the debt ratio is at 0.98%. The cash ratio is 1.4 times than previous as the number proves that the companys stable but if the ratios are not improved over years the companys long time sustainability will be at jeopardy. Operational analysis SWOT Analysis Strengths: TVS is an International player with brand equity and plays important role in Indian two wheeler markets. RD department team gives them a leading edge in markets technology development covering various segments like moped, motor cycle and scooter. These differences make the products attractive for people of all ages. TVS has a wide spread of distribution network and numerous service centers covering all regions of its service areas which provide a unique service to its customers. TVS groups have 40,000 knowledgeable, experienced and skilled employees providing service to more than 15 million customers in India. Advertising with brand ambassadors and attracting people with more promotional activities. Products with low price, high fuel economy, eco friendly less emission and unique design with its competitors. Weaknesses: Despite exporting products to various countries worldwide, its not a globally recognizable brand yet. Lack of competitive premium bikes to attract the riders in the market. Most of the RD resources used in economy and executive products shading the premium segment. Opportunities: One of the fastest growing automobile providers in India. Export is limited and the international market is untouched which gives a versatile opportunity to explore and establish international market. More movement in higher-end model and more young generation are motivated towards motorcycle. Threats: Heavy competition from other competitors and from other international brand i.e. importing of cheap motorcycle from china. Gradual increase in fuel price, Decrease in car prices, policies and increase in taxes will affect margin for dealer as well as customer. Improving public transport will have an effect on the automobile sales. Spare parts are expensive which increases the maintenance cost. TOWS Matrix Analysis SWOT and TOWS are acronyms to each other, where as strength and weaknesses comes under internal environment. Opportunities and threats are comes under the external environment. But for practical study, TOWS describes internal environment and SWOT describes external environment. Strength: TVS is International player with brand equity and plays important role in Indian two wheeler markets. Excellent RD work of products and different products in various segments like moped, motor cycle and scooter. These differences make attraction to people from different age. TVS had wide spread distribution network and numerous service centers which make easy for people. TVS groups have more than 15 million customers and knowledgeable, experienced, skilled 40,000 employees. Advertising with brand ambassadors and attracting people with more promotional activities. Products with low price, fuel economy, less emission and excellent design when compared to other company. Weaknesses: Even though exporting to various countries, it is not globally recognizable brand. Fail to cover premium segment bikes and their segments are only for middle class customers. Opportunities: One of the fastest growing segments in India is automobile segment. Export is limited and untouched international market. More movement in higher-end model and more young generation are motivated towards motorcycle. SO TVS had unbeatable sales in moped and scooter. (S1O1) They had 3500 dealer for making sales and giving excellent service to customers. TVS maintains its brand image by designing products for all customers from low income to high income people. (S4O3) Employed more engineers in RD to bring their designing performance and development in all categories. TVS has ratio in debt equity is 0.1. WO Even though it is not globally recognized, TVS made an excellent land mark in India. (W1O2) TVS need more concentration in premium vehicles because sales of premium vehicles are growing in recent years. (W2O3) Market share is reducing when compared to last few years. Threats: Heavy competition from other competitors and from other international brand i.e. importing of cheap motorcycle from china. Gradual increase in fuel price, policies and increase in taxes will affect margin for dealer as well as customer. Improving public transport will have an effect on the automobile sales. Spare parts are costlier. ST Automobile is one of the growing sectors in the world, so it is golden opportunity to come forward in global market. (S1T1) TVS need more concentration in RD to improve the use of personal transportation. (S2T3) WT TVS has other competitors in two wheeler segment, which is the main drawback for them. Cost of spare parts and their products are high when compared to other company. (W2T4) TVS BCG Growth Share Matrix: The BCG Growth-Share Matrix is a planning model in which business is divided into four major based on market growth and market share. The growth share in this table positions the two major things of profitability. Star (Scooter) Question mark (New motorcycle and new scooter) Cash cow (Moped) Dog (Motorcycles) Star: Star denotes high market growth and high market share in the industry. This position defends when the organization invest large amount in this segment. There is decrease in the growth when compared to last year, so this is the reason scooter comes under star category. It will turn into cash cow when there is gradual increase in coming years. Cash cow: Cash cow denotes low market growth and high market share in the industry. In moped sector it is the major contribution to the market share because moped have more advantages like low cost when compared to other moped manufacturing company. Handling is very simple and this is more preferred by small traders. Teenagers are using this vehicle as an entry point for them. This dominates in the position of cash cow because increase in the growth of sales in every year. Question mark: Question mark denotes high market growth and low market share. In this category, there are two things to be considered as invest greatly in the products or to clear up this products. The company launches new TVS Flame which gets more drawbacks in the market and the company planned to launch the product with redesign. Company had greater growth in the scooter segment, so they launched electric scooter due to increase in the fuel price. But the product is failed due to some motor problems. So company need to invest in them for increase in market growth, this is the reason that these products comes under the question mark. Dog: Dog denotes low market growth as well as low market share in the industry. In this segment, the motorcycle is divided into three categories as economy segment which had increase in 2% when compared to last year. In executive segment, decrease in 1% when compared to last year. But in premium segment, there is no increment or decrement when compared to last year. Market share came down when compared to last year, so this is the main reason that motorcycle comes under the category of dog. Marketing, Financial and RD Strategies Marketing strategy: The company volume growth increased largely from the year of 2010-2011, but the company does not have similar growth in last year of 2011-2012. The company had huge demand in moped, scooter and only in premium motor cycle; so these are volume key drivers in TVS motor company. The company is planning to build key model brand, so company had planned to have sustain success in their products like Star, Victor and Apache. These products had made brand image to maintain its success and these success made the company to introduce the new products in the market. These are key volume drivers and their focus to sustain their growth of the company. TVS motors have decided to launch seven new vehicles at a time in the year of 2007, so this will make the company as a young multinational company. This makes work for continues three years to rollout all these seven products at a time. Within these seven vehicles, four of them are two-wheelers and three are passenger three-wheeler vehicles. These products are various technologies, design and new engine. TVS introduced CCVTi engine which reduce carbon-dioxide and reduce the monoxide by 70% which make green revolution and also introducing Fuel injection technology which consumes less fuel. TVS motors first introduce the electric scooter due to increase in fuel price in India. These are marketing strategies to cover imagination of people. TVS continuous improvement in quality of products resulted in winning various quality awards which brings more value for the customers. TVS offers 5-year warranty for Star vehicles, which gives customers more preference. These customer satisfaction and quality are the one of major role for marketing strategy. TVS dealers are using their own individual promotion plans to the final buyers. The company advertises to the customers to provide offers to buy products where dealers provide with sale promotion to the product now. The company offering more promotional plan such as exchange offer, finance conveniences to the customers, free services, follow-up customer for their services and complaints and other festival offers. These are various marketing strategy promotions to customers for buying the products and giving excellent service to their products to have sustained growth in market place. Financial strategy: TVS records the sale of 154,647 unit in August 2012 and 194,898 units in August 2011, whereas for Two-wheeler sales records 150,740 units in August 2012 and 190,184 units of sales in August 2011. In domestic sector, TVS records about 135,513 units in August 2012 against 163,705 units in August 2011. In motorcycle sector, TVS records 53,673 units in August 2012 against 77,726 units in August 2011. In scooter segment, records 38,193 units in August 2012 against 52,253 units in August 2011. From this analysis, there is gradual decrease in the sales of all sectors including moped, motorcycle and scooters. Company exports 17,934 units in August 2012 against 29,984 units in August 2011. In Three-wheelers, company sold 4,714 units in August 2011 but it decreased to 3,907 units in August 2012. From the total, the company fails to compete with the previous year of same month. Research and development (RD): The company has a strong research and development (RD) department, supported with state of the art aiding technologies. Their in-house world class testing facility gives them a unique environment for testing the engines noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) and life time warranty testing. To they are supported with modern computers for developing good design as well as for developing new innovation in the products. The team has been concentrating on eco-friendly products for a decade helping the fact of global climatic changes and increases of carbon dioxide release into the environment. They succeeded by out coming with a high fuel economy, reusable parts and low emissions hybrid products. Their automatic transmission technology for scooters is widely credited across the world due their very low emission and fuel economy. TVS RD department published 81 papers placing and they developed various products with this research and they are successfully running in the road. For national and international conferences, RD published around 81 technical papers. Joint venture and Value chain TVS has joint venture with Japaneses company Suzuki with whom it shares their technology, design and manufacture for two-wheeler under the banner TVS-Suzuki. TVS-Suzuki manufactured various products including Samurai, Shogun and Fiero. Due to the rising disputes and low profit margins TVS decided to break their collaboration with Suzuki. In 2011, companies came to an agreement, as per the company was renamed as TVS Motors and Suzuki promised not to enter Indian market for minimum period of 30 months. This decision by TVS motors allowed them to operate independently and proves to be effective as their profit increased noticeably. TVS Motors invested heavily in RD to launch new products with new technology and succeeded making TVS a highly recognized brand. After three years Suzuki entered Indian market and became one of the top five Two-wheeler Company in India. The value chain for the Two-wheeler company has many value chain partners including manufacturing, dealers (outlets include sales and service), financial agents, support services, advertising, contracts, transportation and more. The value chain for TVS Motors will act like one team and they aim for success. The company has appraisal agencies, call centre, collection agencies and dealer management system to get daily updates from dealers and maintain a global communication across their value chain partners. TVS has plans to implement Information Technology across the value chains, to reduce the delays and lags in communication between the value chain dealers. This IT adoption to the company will significantly increase the customer satisfaction, timely service and a well structured management. Business performance: The overall Two-wheeler sales is decreased to 5% due to absences of executive segment motorcycle, whereas scooter and moped segment increased by 10% in their sales growth. The company achieved all time high sales in export of 2.70 lakh in 2011-2012. Three-wheeler sales also increased slightly from 0.39 lakh to 0.40 lakh in 2011-2012. Spare parts also increased to 29% sales. TVS Wego had a huge growth of 60% in the scooter segment. These vehicles are distributed around 3500 dealer in India; they are authorized for both sales and services. TVS is continuously seeking for opening new dealerships to increase the growth of sales. The export sales are grown 51% where as domestic sales decline by 35% in the Three-wheeler market. There is large number of competitors in exporting, so company takes advantages of providing quality products as well as providing new market line for domestic market. For reducing the material cost and input material cost, company is using value engineering and global sourcing projects. TVS is using total quality management (TQM) as a cornerstone from 1987. So that company created manually called TVS Way and won award for national and state level competition. Recommendations and Implementations References TVS Motor Company. From : http://www.tvsmotor.in/tvsbrief.asp TVS Motor Company. From : http://www.tvsmotor.in/tvs-rd.asp TVS Motor Company. From : http://www.tvsmotor.in/global.asp TVS Motor Company. From : http://www.tvsmotor.in/investor.asp TVS Motor Company. Annual Report. From : http://www.tvsmotor.in/pdf/19th-Annual-Report-2010-2011.pdf TVS Motor Company. From : http://www.tvsmotor.in/investor-news-home.asp Indian Infoline. TVS Motor Company Ltd. From: http://www.indiainfoline.com/Markets/Company/Background/Company-Profile/TVS-Motor-Company-Ltd/532343 Business Line. TVS Motor seeks early end to licence pact with Suzuki. From : http://www.thehindubusinessline.in/2001/12/29/stories/022907za.htm The Financial Express. TVS reaps Business Benefits through SAP. From: http://www.financialexpress.com/news/tvs-reaps-business-benefits-through-sap/60168/2 Live Mint. TVS Motor changes financing strategy. From : http://www.livemint.com/Money/uW1yXkCG0HsTBLIjI5rHKL/TVS-Motor-changes-financing-strategy.html Money Control. TVS Motor Company. From : http://www.moneycontrol.com/company-facts/tvsmotorcompany/history/TVS#TVS Indian Two-Wheeler Industry. From : http://www.icra.in/Files/ticker/Indian%202W%20Industry,%20Update,%20Feb%202012.pdf (Retrieved on Feb 2012)

Sir Gawain in Transition Essays -- Sir Gawain Papers

Sir Gawain in Transition Sir Gawain has played a significant role in Arthurian legends since the Middle Ages. His first major appearance in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight depicts Gawain as a warrior rather than a womanizing knight like others from King Arthur's court. Even in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Gawain focuses on his battle with the green knight rather than the advances of Bercilak's wife. During Gawain's visit to Bercilak's castle, his wife makes three specific advances to entice Gawain into an adulteress relationship. Although Gawain faces certain death with the Green Knight, he declines any sexual involvement with Bercilak's wife. Gawain's character remains faithful to his warrior image by rushing into battle with the green knight rather than prolonging his stay at Bercilak's castle. Although he exhibits this obsession with battle in many stories, Gawain's role changes drastically between his appearance in The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell and his later appearance in Howard Pyle's "The Story of King Arthur and His Knights." Although these stories employ similar plots, Gawain's character undergoes's a dramatic transformation. In The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell Gawain reveals his loyalty to King Arthur by agreeing the marry the "Loathly" lady after she saves the king's life. This not the first appearance of the "loathly" lady in Medieval literature. In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, the "Knight's Tale" reiterates the "familiar folklore motif [that] concerns the transformation of the ugly hag into a beautiful woman after a man has placed himself under her 'sovereynte'" and incorporates "the theme of A Riddle Asked and Answered" (Wilhelm 467). .. ...en he learns to love the women he marries, Gawain argues with his new wife and then mutters "so be it" when confronted with her choice. Gawain refuses to learn from his mistakes in Pyle's story. In both Pyle's story and The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell, Gawain does not battle as he does with the green knight; instead, he marries and enters the marital war zone rather than those fought on the battlefield. Bibliography Lupack, Alan, ed. Modern Arthurian Literature. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1992. Vasta, Edward. "Chaucer, Gower, and the Unknown Minstrel: The Literary Liberation of the Loathly Lady." Exemplaria. 395-419. Wilhelm, James J., ed. The Romance of Arthur. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1994. Web Text version of The Marriage of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell is at http://rodent.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/teams/ragnell.htm

Case Study †Gourmet Burger Kitchen Essay

C. I would say that Paul Campbell is an example of Labour. I think this because the Case study states that he ‘heads’ the company. This statement could suggest that he has a managerial role in the company, which would therefor mean that he is skilled in that particular domain and that he has experience. This could also suggest that he is a paid employee and that he earns a better living than the people working in the kitchen or the servers working in the restaurant. However, some could suiggest that he is an example of enterprise as the statement ‘heads the company’ could also mean that he is the owner of GBK. He might be a owner of the company or a stakeholder which involve some risk taking and some entrepreneurial skills. This being said, I still think that Paul Campbell is an example of Labour and not Enterprise. 2) I believe that GBK is mainly involved in Secondary production and Tertiary production. I would say they are involved in secondary production as the definition of secondary production is the process of converting a primary product into a finished good and that is exactly what GBK are doing. They convert primary goods such as meat and potatoes into burgers and chips. The finished burgers and chips then act as input for the busines. GBK purshase the ingredients needed to create their burgers and then turn the ingredients into the burgers. I also think that GBK is involved in tertiary production as they are commercialising their product in a personal way. They directly sell their product to the customers and not through another company which could be the case for other products such as Michelin tyres, where the tyres are sold in Michelin stores but also through other tyre shops. GBK are provide a service, but also leads to the production of a meal (the burgers) from the raw material (the ingredients). 3) In my opinion, I think GBK could use feeback in order to improve efficiency by using things such customer comments. By using customer comments, they can indentify common complaints such as slow service or rude staff. This would allow them to focuse on what needs to be done/changed to improve the service, quality of food. Customer feedback can help you uncover flaws in your business, whether there’s a technical problem with your website or whether your prices are too high. 4) Sales Revenue – cost of bought in materials, component and services.  £8 –  £0.30 =  £7.70 The added value on a pizza is  £7.70 5) In terms of Labour, GBK might improve their efficiency by educating the staff in such a way that they can answer any questions asked by a customer, maybe teach them social skills in order to ease their relationships with customers. This would also make the workers happier and make them feel empowered which would lead to them enjoying their work more, it would make them feel important. Another way pf improving their efficiency could be by getting rid of the staff which aren’t satisfying the customers and aren’t showing as much enthousiasm towards their work and customers. This would keep the best employees and make GBK more efficient and more successful. Graff showing the effects of increasing the efficiency of labour on success of the business. In terms of Capital, GBK could increase efficiency by investing. They could invest in some new kitchen equipment in order to facilitate the cooking of the burgers and chips. They could also invest in computarised booking, which would facilitate the whole booking idea for customers. Through this, they could also get known by the public if their name is on a few websites, this could increase the demand for GBK. Another way in which they could make their business more efficient would be by using new credit card machines which is to date with the latest technology so that the customers can pay online or from the telephones. In terms of Entreprise, GBK could increase/decrease their willingness to take risks in order to find the right balance and the efficiency needed. They could try new exclusive dishes for example, wich could lead to an increase in GBK demand or in a complete fall. This would be an example of enterprise as it is a matter of making decisions and taking risks. 6) Higher quality, better service, better staff, more exlusive staff, probably more interested in their jobs, better paid, healthier burgers. More exclusive. Reputation more of a restaurant than fast food. I believe GBK can achieve higher levels of added value than Mc Donalds for many different reasons. Firstly, GBK serves way better quality food than Mc donalds does. This is a huge factor regarding that matter as GBK is seen as an actual restaurant and is more exclusive than Mc Donalds. This may lead to different types of customers going to have a meal in GBK, higher class people who can afford better quality people or just people looking for a ‘healthier’ burger than in Mc Donalds. Secondly, the service in GBK is much more satisfying to customers than in Mc donalds. The staff are better trained, treat the customers kindely, and respect them; which is rarely the case in Mc Donalds. In Mc Donalds, you just feel like you’re one of so many other customers and you are just one of so many others having a burger, they don’t give you the satisfaction of having made the effort to go out for a meal and don’t make you feel special at all as a customer which is more the case in GBK. This is one of the reasons why GBK can achieve a higher added value. The staff seem better trained and seem to be enjoying their job a huge amount more than in Mc Donalds. Thirdly, the appearence of the two ‘restaurants’ don’t have much in common appart from the fact that they both serve burgers. GBK restaurants look like proper restaurants, staff have nice uniforms, look nicer, they come to you to order your food and overall just seem kinder. In Mc Donalds, their shops are not very clean, you have to queue to order your food, once the food is ready, which sometimes takes a long time of standing, it’s given to you on a tray. Overall the service in GBK is on a completely different scale than Mc Donalds. Overall, GBK just generally have a higher reputation of quality of service and food thank Mc Donalds which allows them to have higher added value to their products.

How to Start Writing a Book

How to Start Writing a Book Youve finally decided to write a book, and youre pumped about it. Youre confident your book is going to be one of the greatest written works in literary history. It will be the hot topic of discussion at book clubs everywhere! But when you consider actually starting the process, you feel stuck. Now what?Everyone has his or her own distinct writing style. Some gush out words to create a lengthy and very rough draft, while others agonize over every single word and sentence. Certain writers start at page one, while others create the body first and then fill in the intro later. Some arent even quite sure what genre they want to follow until theyve hashed out several pages.Whatever your creative process, youre likely to run into a few walls as you embark on your writing journey, so here are a few tips to get you started and to simplify the process.Dedicate a special space to your writingFind a spot that is set apart from the other events of daily life, and use that space each time you wri te. Cater the environment to your specific needs. Does music help you relax and inspire creativity? Or, do you prefer silence? Do you need to look out the window? Consider your personal preferences and the elements that will best invite the magic into your writing process.Devote part of each day to writingOnce youve established a good environment conducive to writing, make a plan to establish a solid, regular plan of action. Just like getting six-pack abs requires regular exercise, your literary masterpiece also needs constant, dedicated attention. An obstacle many writers face is the lack of motivation to sit down each and every day and ignore all of the distractions. Set aside a certain amount of time every day (or even a certain exact time; set an alarm on your phone!) to add content to your book.Set a goal for how many words you will write per day. Start small- say, 200 words a day- and increase your volume of daily work from there. Even small contributions can add up with consi stent effort.Solidify your ideaOnce youre ready to start putting words down, begin with one sentence describing what your book is about. This statement offers a big-picture view of your book. You might even use this sentence when youre ready to market your final work! But for now, focus on this short expression as a very simplified summary and a means to focus your intent. Instead of using your characters name, use vivid descriptors. For example: An enterprising teenage boy starts his own business in a rural town unaccepting of new ideas and confronts the woes of poverty within the community.Create memorable charactersIn most book reviews and recommendations from friends, I find a common thread: The characters were complex/relatable/likable. Very seldom will I hear someone rave about a book if he or she wasnt moved by the people in the story. Consider characters like Sherlock Holmes; we all know who he is, but the details about his stories are a bit hazier. People latch on to charac ters.This means your characters need depth and background so your readers can lose themselves in their lives. What is your characters name? What are her goals and desires? How will she achieve them? What conflicts does she face? How will she change?Mapping out the path of your characters development follows what is called a character arc. Each character goes through a transformation from the beginning to the end of your story. Just as Harry Potter starts out as an innocent boy and becomes a steely-eyed young man, your characters go through a transformation. Typically, a character progresses through a series of stages.Stage 1 - Ordinary lifeHere the characters before picture is set up. We learn some details about the foundation of life before anything juicy happens.Stage 2 - Call for adventureSomething happens to our main character to motivate him to follow a certain course. For example, in Hamlet, the kings ghost appears to Prince Hamlet and tells him who his murderer was, stirrin g Hamlet to seek revenge.Stage 3 - Refusal of callAt this stage, the character hesitates to embark on this grand mission. Here we see the characters flaws and fears.Stage 4 - Encouragement from a mentorThe character musters up courage with a little help from a wise friend.Stage 5 - Trials and challengesInevitably, the hero faces his foes, and his outlook and personality are significantly changed.Stage 6 - RebirthThe ordeals the character has faced cause him to rise again as a new person, usually with renewed strength, determination, and focus.Stage 7 - Resolution and restThe characters woes seem to settle down, and life offers a quiet pace once again for our hero.Crafting the details of your characters story can present a daunting task, but once you decide on the path your protagonist will follow, the details will fall into place through the events of your story.Set your settingAre you writing a work of historical fiction? Do your research about the particular time period and a rea of the world. Are you on the beach? In space? Figure out what that means for the flow of your text. In works of nonfiction, hash out what you want your readers to learn. Will you go broad on a subject or focus on exploring one aspect in depth?Outline your storyMap out a summary of your story. In a work of fiction, what happens to your characters and when? If youre writing nonfiction, create an outline of the points you want to cover and in what order. In a nonfiction work, writing out a table of contents can help you focus the direction and points of your book.Heres an example of an outline Id create if I were writing a book about road cycling:IntroductionAbout the BookChapter 1: What is Road Cycling?Road cycling vs. mountain bikingGetting the right equipmentWhat kind of bike is right for me?Benefits of cyclingChapter 2: Finding Your PathRiding with trafficCommuting by bikeLocating out-of-traffic paths in your areaCreating an outline provides you with the scaffolding for your bo ok and gives you a springboard from which to launch into your story. Seeing the bare bones of your intended story will inspire you to fill in the gaps and will give you much-needed direction.Start at the endIf youre not sure where your story will start, focus on the ending of your work and figure out how you want to get there. Does Captain Yellow Beard find the treasure at the end? What state is he in when he gets there? Deciding the conclusion of your work first will give you a better idea of the details and events youll need to incorporate.When you work back to the first chapters, keep in mind that the first few sentences of a book are very important to readers. Some look at those first sentences to get a feeling of whether they want to proceed through the whole work. So hook them in quickly. Dive into the conflict of the story to set the mood instead of describing the scene first. You can provide character development as you go. For nonfiction books, an author can hook readers by relating a surprising or interesting example related to the subject matter. For example, in my road cycling book, I could relate my first experience scaling a mountain road in the snow.Plan for discouragementDuring the process, youre bound to face frustration, confusion, and self-doubt. Plan for these obstacles and prepare a plan to counteract them. Perhaps you can be ready to visit an inspiring mentor who always manages to boost your confidence and motivation. Maybe you can save a really enjoyable section of your book to write when you feel like youre running on empty. Whatever your strategy is, prepare it in advance. Even simply steeling yourself for that doubt to creep in can help you avoid being swallowed up by it.Above all else, doing something is better than doing nothing when youre facing the task of getting started on your book. Following a plan can help you feel more focused on the task and help you overcome those first twinges of self-doubt or the dregs of writers block. Dive in! Before you can publish your masterpiece and bask in its bestselling success, you have to write it. Good luck!

Why Every CoSchedule Employee Gives A Book Report - CoSchedule

Why Every Employee Gives A Book Report If you work at , you’ve done a book report in front of the entire team. Yes, a book report. Just like the kind that you used to do in the fourth grade in front of the entire class. Why? It’s already a fairly common practice among startups to assign new hires a book or two to read once they join the team. For us, however, there is one book that is just so special that we need to follow up and make sure they’ve read it. At , that book is Linchpin by Seth Godin. Here’s why. How Linchpin Turned Me Into An Entrepreneur Linchpin is an important book for me on a very personal level. I read it at a critical time during my career. I was working at a small advertising agency and felt like nothing more than a cog in a wheel. It certainly didn’t feel like my work was â€Å"art† and I certainly didn’t feel like I had the permission to do something else. I was stuck. For me, Linchpin was a wakeup call. In his book, Seth Godin outlines a few key perspectives: All work is art. The linchpin is indispensable because they ship. The first step is to give yourself permission. The key point for me was the third theme: permission. Up until that point in my career, I hadn’t given myself the permission to not be a cog. I was stuck in world where cogs were appreciated and artists weren’t. I needed a wakeup call to leave my job, start a business, and relentlessly pursue my art. Five years later, after giving myself permission and working my tail off, my art is now 100% activated in , and the lessons learned from Seth continue to pay off. They mean a lot to me, and they are something that  I like to share with our entire team. So, we require all team members to read the book within their first 90 days of work, and give a book report on what they’ve learned. It’s has become a happy tradition. The Business Case For  Requiring Book Reports From Your Team So, why should you require a book report for members of your team? Well, here are five of the major benefits that our team has realized from this quirky practice. 1. It Helps Us Foster A Consistent Culture Startup culture is frequently (and mistakenly) defined by the Xbox or PlayStation in the break room. At , we don’t have any gaming consoles in our break room. Rather, we define ourselves by the core principles of the company: Maintain a Passion for Product Think Big Hold a Bias for Action Never Settle Every Customer Matters Trust in your Team While the book Linchpin doesn’t specifically address all of these values, it goes a long way in doing so.  By doing company book reports, I believe we have found a scalable way to instill some of these values in our team members, and ensures that it stays in place no matter how much we grow. Company book reports create a scalable way to instill your core values across all team members.Core values like â€Å"maintain a passion for product† or â€Å"never settle† build off of the concept of our work as art, whereas â€Å"hold a bias for action† encapsulates Godin’s concept of shipping.  I could easily make an argument for how each of these values relates to a principle in the book, so it’s really ideal preparation for working at . 2. It Enables a Culture  of Shipping One of my favorite themes of Linchpin is the constant encouragement to ship the project that you have been working (or sitting) on. In the book, Seth outlines the force against shipping as the â€Å"lizard brain.† The lizard brain is a negative fear-monger that prevents us from reaching our potential. As a startup, however, â€Å"shipping† is literally our most important job. We have to learn how to outsmart our lizard brain and beat the fear that will keep us from starting and creating something new. New blog content, new features, new ideas in action, and crazy marketing experiments are essential to a startups survival. It is essential to your startup’s survival that you keep shipping. Never fear failure! #startupOne of my favorite questions to challenge our teams with is â€Å"what can you ship today.† Sometimes this involves breaking a larger project down into smaller pieces, and other times it means pressing publish on a product or idea that we are hesitating on, just to see what happens. Either way, equipping our team members with a mentality of shipping keeps us running like a startup. Fast, willing to take risks, and even more important, willing to learn from our mistakes and move forward. 3. It’s A Reminder That Work Is Art The concept that â€Å"all work is art† is usually the hardest to accept by new team members. We’ve been taught that art is something you do with paint or musical instruments, but Seth makes the argument that human output, whatever it might be, is our art. This could be writing, customer service, code, or actually painting, but the medium doesn’t matter. The art is the delivery of your unique gift to the world. Art is the delivery of your unique gift to the world @garrett_moonArt is much more about doing the best work that you were created and enabled to do than it is about any specific method. This makes it a universally valuable concept for anyone who joins our team. 4. It’s A Shared Experience As a leader, I believe that one of my jobs is to create shared experiences for our team. Shared experience build teams, by giving everyone something in common. Knowing that every team member before you has completed the same task is valuable, and gives everyone that works with us common ground and a shared experience to lean on. This is a small but powerful team building tool. The book report process also teaches us something about our newest team members. It builds connections, and that is always a good thing. 5. It’s A Tradition This may seem simple, but reading Linchpin and doing a book report is just a tradition around here. Justin and I have required it since we started our first company in 2010, and the tradition has stuck. Now, it is one of those things that makes , , and that’s a good thing. Do you have any traditions in your startup? If not, maybe it’s time to add a â€Å"company book report† to your on-boarding checklist. Is a book report program right for you? â€Å"Linchpin thinking† obviously has a lot to do with our team here at , but I understand that it may not be right for you. Chances are, however, that some book would be a good fit. What book could your team adopt as a company read? It’s worth noting that many of these same benefits I outlined above could be accomplished at any time during your company's life cycle. Even if you’re no longer a startup, pick a book or a take a vote, and read it together as a company. Conclude this process with a verbal book report by each participant and pass the tradition down to all of your new hires. You’ll be glad you did! Maybe you already have a â€Å"company book† and you just need to add the book report portion. If so, here’s a breakdown of how we do this for our team. You can also download our pre-built worksheet that will work you through the entire book report process top to bottom. How Runs Its Book Report Program Every team member is supplied with a complementary copy of Linchpin on day one. If they prefer a Kindle or audio version of the book, we will also provide that upon request. Team members are give 90 days to complete the book, but they aren’t allowed to consider it completed until performing a formal â€Å"book report† in front of the entire team. We follow up on this requirement during our mandatory 90 day review to keep everyone honest. Once team members are ready to give their book report, they are giving a standard format of three questions that they must answer. I’ve included these questions in the pre-built worksheet that you can download here. Book reports are verbal and usually last between two and five minutes during our weekly all-hands meetings. In some cases we do accept written versions of the book report as well. Once a book report is complete we all clap and provide a bit of encouragement to the person giving the book report. As a prize, they also get a sticker of their choice from our bag of stickers – usually well stocked with unique selections from StickerMule or other places. The Final Case For a Company Book Report: It’s Fun Having every employee complete a book report is unique and memorable. In all honestly, it’s fun. I love hearing our team’s thoughts and comments about the book, even from a few people who didn’t like it all that much. The diversity of opinions and interpretations is always fascinating, and helps me understand the people I work with every day. We   always learn a thing or two about he people we work with, and that’s definitely a good thing.

Confusion and Loss of Direction in the 1960s Essay

Confusion and Loss of Direction in the 1960s - Essay Example Released in 1970, the album Let It Be includes popular songs such aslike Let It Be, The Long and Winding Road, Two of Us and Dig a Pony, among others (Beatles 1970). Despite the different topics and situations that the songs present, they commonly project common themes, particularly, confusion and loss of direction of the personas. Confusion and loss of direction are fairly common topics in the music of the 1960s andup to the 70s. Ritzen (2005) and Fendrich (1993) confirm this general atmosphere, which may be attributed to the wars of the time. In the songs of the Beatles, confusion occurs as a main theme, especially in the song Let It Be (Beatles 1970). The song begins with the lines, â€Å"When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me. Speaking words of wisdom, let it be† ((Let It Be; lines 1-3). The persona expresses being in trouble and seeking divine intervention. The statement, â€Å"let it be† further shows the persona's inability to decide by him and get over with his troubles. Confusion and loss of direction in the songs of the Beatles is mostly associated with travelling, being on transit, or going around in circles. This theme is strongly reflected by the song, Two of Us (Beatles 1970). The song begins with the following lines: Two of us riding nowhere spending someone's Hhard earned pay (Two of Us; lines 1–3) In the lines above, the persona does not know where to go and implies having no goal in life. In the song, Dig a Pony, the persona also demonstrates having no place to go and not thinking of what islies ahead (Beatles 1970). These feelings are expressed in the lines, â€Å"Well you can penetrate any place you go/Yes you can penetrate any place you go† (Dig a Pony; lines 6-7).

Why dog food quality matters Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Why dog food quality matters - Research Paper Example Many famous personalities are seen to have publicly endorse the keeping of dogs and other animals. An important part of the care of the dogs is providing them with adequate nutrition and the quality of the food given to them should be maintained. When it comes to the nutritional needs and shelter necessities of the animal, then the crucial task of getting what is best for the dog lies ahead. Different dogs have different needs and not to mention even the same breed of dogs can differ in their demands. Pet owners face difficulty in choosing things that are best for their dog and suit them accordingly. Dog food is another major issue that the owners have to be careful about. In the market there are various sorts of brands and products available that claim to be the best for household dogs but can actually cause more harm than good to the canine kept. The basic key of it all is understanding the needs of the dog and then catering to it accordingly. It is seen that dogs might be different in needs, so it is necessary that the dog in question is not a test subject rather the keepers should know what it wants and why does it want that. Every dog owner faces nutritional need questions and has a hard time figuring out what exactly d oes the pet want to survive and perform at its best. While any dog food can cater to the canine hunger, there are some specific things to be kept in mind that help in establishing a good health. Dogs need proteins, carbohydrates, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals to survive. (National Research Council 2). All of these are needed in the canine system so that it actively performs and does not get ill or is susceptible to illness. The second most important thing is keeping a check of when to feed the dog kept in the household. Most dogs are trained into asking for food when they get hungry and owners usually establish timings for feeding but keep in mind that do not over feed or under feed the canine as it can impact the health and over all