Quantitative Methods for Business Essay Example for Free

Quantitative Methods for Business Essay In January 2008, Northern Airlines merged with Southeast Airlines to create the fourth largest U.S. carrier. The new North-South Airline inherited both an aging fleet of Boeing 727-300 aircraft and Stephen Ruth. Stephen was a tough former secretary of the navy who stepped in as new president and chairman of the board. Stephen’s first concern in creating a financially solid company was maintenance costs. It was commonly surmised in the airline industry that maintenance costs rise with the age of the aircraft. He quickly noticed that historically there had been a significant difference in the reported B727-300 maintenance costs (from ATA Form 41’s) both in the airframe and engine areas between Northern Airlines and Southeast Airlines, with Southeast having the newer fleet. On February 12, 2008, Peg Jones, vice president for operation and maintenance, was called into Stephen’s office and asked to study the issue. Specifically, Stephen wanted to know whether the average fleet age was correlated to direct airframe maintenance costs, and whether there was a relationship between average fleet age and direct engine maintenance costs. Peg was to report back by February 26 with the answer, along with quantitative and graphical descriptions of the relationship. Peg’s first step was to have her staff construct the average age of Northern and Southeast B727-300 fleets, by quarter, since the introduction of that aircraft to service by each airline in late 1993 and early 1994. The average age of each fleet was calculated by first multiplying the total number of calendar days each aircraft had been in service at the pertinent point in time by the average daily utilization of the respective fleet to total fleet hours flown. The total fleet hours flown was then divided by the number of aircraft in service at that time, giving the age of the â€Å"average† aircraft in the fleet. The average utilization was found by taking the actual total fleet hours flown on September 30, 2007 form Northern and Southeast data, and dividing by the total days in service for all aircraft at that time. The average utilization for Southeast was 8.3 hours per day, and the average utilization for Northern was 8.7 hours per day. Because the available cost data were calculated for each yearly period ending at the end of the first quarter, average fleet age was calculated at the same points in time. The fleet data are shown in the following table. Airframe cost data and engine cost data are both shown paired with fleet average age in that table.

Strategic Corporate Development History Of Cadbury Marketing Essay

Strategic Corporate Development History Of Cadbury Marketing Essay Strategic management is the dynamic process of formulation, implementation, evaluation and control of strategies to realize the organizations strategic intent. Strategic management is a dynamic process. In this particular course work of strategic planning module the company which I have selected is Cadbury India, a company with a great marketing structure, strategic planning and with a strong value among the customers all over the globe. Company History Cadbury India The Company was incorporated on 19th July 1948, as a private limited company under the name of Cadbury-Fry (India) Private Limited and commences business soon thereafter. Gradually the Company undertook at its own cost and responsibility the development of cocoa growing in the country. A specialist cocoa advisory service was created. A cocoa research centre was also created together with seeding nurseries and distribution centers. Through its subsidiary, Induri Farm Ltd., the Company had set up facilities near Pune to breed cattle that would give improved yield of milk at economic feeding costs. Strategic Corporate Development History of Cadbury Inc . 1919 undertook a merger with J. S. Fry Sons, another chocolate manufacturer which saw the integration of well-known brands such as Frys Chocolate Cream and Frys Turkish Delight Cadbury merged with drinks company Schweppes to form Cadbury Schweppes in 1969 Cadbury Schweppes went on to acquire Sunkist, Canada Dry, Typhoo Tea and more. In the US, Schweppes Beverages was created and the manufactures of Cadbury confectionery brands were licensed to Hersheys. Triarc sold Snapple, Mistic and Stewarts (formerly Cable Car Beverage) to Cadbury Schweppes in 2000 for $1.45  billion. In October of that same year, Cadbury Schweppes purchased Royal Crown from Triarc. In March 2007, it was revealed that Cadbury Schweppes was planning to split its business into two separate entities: one focusing on its main chocolate and confectionery market; the other on its US drinks business. The demerger took effect on 2 May 2008, with the drinks business becoming Dr. Pepper Snapple Group Inc. In December 2008 it was announced that Cadbury was to sell its Australian beverage unit to Asahi Breweries. In 2008 Monkhill Confectionery, the Own Label trading division of Cadbury Trebor Bassett was sold to Tangerine Confectionery for  £58million cash. This sale included factories at Pontefract, Cleckheaton and York and a distribution centre near Chesterfield, and the transfer of around 800 employees. On 19 January 2010, it was announced that Cadbury and Kraft Foods had reached a deal and that Kraft would purchase Cadbury for  £8.40 per share, valuing Cadbury at  £11.5bn (US$18.9bn). Kraft, which issued a statement stating that the deal will create a global confectionery leader, had to borrow  £7  billion (US$11.5bn) in order to finance the takeover. These are the main strategic developments, which took place within Cadbury Inc. till now. Cadbury Inc has taken major strategic decision throughout their operations but at the end it is being taken over by Krafts. Above-mentioned are the strategic developments of Cadbury Inc. Cadbury India has applied both Corporate-Level Strategies as well as Business-Level Strategies. Corporate-Level Strategies and business-Level Strategies of Cadbury India Introduction of new product-line named Star and Gems chocolates in 1967 and 1968 respectively. After the conversion of Cadbury India from private limited company to public limited company on 11th June in 1977, an agreement was entered into with Cadbury Overseas Ltd., (COL) U.K., on 3rd May1977, for technical services concerning new products and processes. Cadbury India entered into an agreement with CSOL for the grant of a license for continued use of the word `Cadbury as part of the Companys corporate name. Industrial license for the apple juice project was received and the project was commissioned on 16th September, 1980. On 17th December 1982, the name of the Company was changed from Cadbury India Ltd. to Hindustan Cocoa Products Ltd., consequent to 60% of its shares being held by the Indian public. In 1985, Cadbury India explored the possibilities of entering into the business of software export. In 1987, in chocolate group, the Company launched new products such as `Crackle, `Orange, `Strawberry Krisp, `Mello, and `Wildlife bar. In the foods drinks, the Cadbury India launched `Choc O Cheer. In 1988, the Chocolate division introduced some more new products to upper and lower ends of the market. In the food drinks area, a higher protein drink under the brand name `Enriche was successfully introduced. The Company diversified into ice-cream market and a product under the Brand name `Dollops. With effect from 18th July 1993, the Companys Ice Cream business comprising manufacturing arrangements with two well known brands Dollops Lopstop was transferred to Brooke Bond India Ltd. for a consideration of Rs 1062.65 lakhs and an assurance from the company to Brooke Bond that they would not make or sell Ice creams for a period of 8 years. In 1994, The Company undertook a modernization and rationalization programme at its Malanpur factory at a cost of Rs 40 crores. In 1995, Perk was launched from its Malanpur plant. Towards the end of1996, the Company has launched a new range of sugar confectionery, `Googly, a trangy, fizzy fruit flavored candy in Chennai under the brand name `Trebor. In 1997, Cadbury India Ltd has launched Truffle flavored soft centre moulded chocolate bar. The product was launched in Calcutta, Mumbai and New Delhi during October with subsequent launches planned in Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and other mini-metros in a phased-manner in November. In 1997, Cadbury India launched its well-known beverage Bournvita in sachets. In 1999, Cadbury India Ltd has launched a new product, `Nice Cream, under its sugar confectioner business. The sugar candy has been launched only in Mumbai. In 2000, Cadburys has introduced Perk Slims, a slimmer version of the wafe. The Company has re-launched Perk, its chocolate-coated wafer; it has four new layers covered in Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate. Cadbury India Ltd. has launched a range of gift packs for Diwali. The Company had entered into a Memorandum of understanding on July 5th, to sell its immovable property at Colaba, Mumbai. Cadbury Schweppes Plc acquires 39.34% stake in its Indian subsidiary Cadbury India Ltd. Cadbury Schweppes Pcl developed a new phenomenon allowing its consumers to define its brand profile. Cadbury India tapping unconventional marketing channels like non-retail chains to drive their market expansion. In 2002, Cadburys buy out of Pfizers confectionary brand is expected to set a strong base in the oral gratification category. In 2003, Cadbury has roped in advertising firm called Lemon to handle creative for its products temptation and milt treat. Cadbury India has dropped Carat India and roped in Madison Media for the media planning and buying. Cadbury India tied up with BPL Mobile for SMS vending services. Thus, we can see from above almost all the corporate -level as well as Business-Level Strategies are adopted by Cadbury India to expand as well as to avoid mishaps. Cadbury India Cadbury India has used different strategies at different situation. They have under gone mergers and acquisition, buyouts, demergers, tie-ups, etc. Current Strategic Situation Cadbury India is a fully owned subsidy of Kraft Foods Inc. The combination of Kraft Foods and Cadbury creates a global powerhouse in snacks, confectionery and quick meals. Cadbury India is currently the worlds No.1 confectionery and biscuit company. Cadbury India is the worlds second-largest food company with sales in approximately 160 countries. Currently, Cadbury India operates in four categories viz. Chocolate Confectionery, Milk Food Drinks, Candy and Gum category. In the Chocolate Confectionery business, Cadbury has maintained its undisputed leadership over the years. Some of the key brands in India are Cadbury Dairy Milk, 5 Star, Perk, Éclairs and Celebrations. In the Milk Food drinks segment Cadburys main product is Bournvitta the leading Malted Food Drink (MFD) in the country. Similarly, in the medicated candy category Halls is the undisputed leader. Recently, Cadbury entered the gums category with the launch of our worldwide dominant bubble gumbrandBubbaloo. Since 1965 Cadbury has also pioneered the development of cocoa cultivation in India. For over two decades, Cadbury have worked with the Kerala Agriculture University to undertake cocoa research and released clones, hybrids that improve the cocoa yield. Cadbury conduct farmers meetings seminars to educate them on Cocoa cultivation aspects. These efforts have increased cocoa productivity and touched the lives of thousands of farmers. The strategies, which Cadbury follows, include: Build a high performing organization Reframe our categories Exploit our sales capabilities Drive down costs à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ without compromising quality Environmental activity of Cadbury: Cadbury India takes care of the environment and enriches the quality of lives of the communities through a variety of result-oriented programs. Cadbury aim to look after the health and safety of our people and minimize the environmental impact of our business around the world. Cadbury India is committed to growing community value around the world. For our employees, this is about making a difference in the community. Other successful strategies adapted by Cadbury to their brands include: The interactive campaign for Pappu Pass Ho Gaya bagged a Bronze Lion at the prestigious Cannes Advertising Festival 2006 for Best use of internet and new media. The idea involved a tie-up with Reliance India Mobile service, allowed students to check their exam results using their mobile service, and encouraged those who passed their examinations to celebrate with Cadbury Dairy Milk. Cadbury Bytes is targeted at teens, as they are the largest consuming segment of packaged snack category. They are also the gateway to the family, especially for a new sweet snack. Cadbury Bytes is positioned as the only sweet snack in the world of salty snacks. Cadbury introduced Cadbury Bournvitta Quiz Contest, which started airing on April 12th 1972, is Indias longest running national school quiz contest. It was really a good strategy to boost-up the sales. The task was to get the youth audience to adopt Cadbury Dairy Milk in the sweet eating or muh meetha karna moments The campaign of Jab Pappu Pass Ho jaye, Kuch Meetha Ho jaye captured the thought of celebrating a moment of delight with Dairy Milk A campaign was built around the idea of how pappu celebrated passing his exams with Dairy Milk A multi-media campaign was launched on TV, Internet, Radio and Outdoor The key was how do own the moment of pappu passing his exams in the media space An innovative tie -up with Reliance web world was executed, wherein students across 66 examination boards across the company could access their results on Reword through their Reliance mobiles. If they passed a message congratulating them on their moment of delight from Dairy Milk was displayed We can see that how Cadbury India has managed and implemented their strategies over a period of time. The company has undergone various strategies like digitalization, various innovation were made to improve their products. Apart from that, they have introduced various products with good features and promoted them with the latest mode of promotion activities. It has been seen that one of the most important strategy at corporate-level was to launch products with innovation and their market strategies like campaigning. It was the trend with Cadbury, which has seen in the past decade. Moreover, in the present situation the company has underwent a turnaround strategy. It has been acquired by another company in Feb 2010 by Kraft Food. At present, it is fully owned subsidiary of Kraft Food. The company has made efficient use of internal and external sources their internal and sources are: Internal Sources: Employees: Employee of Cadbury India were well dedicated to their work and based upon their work only the company has reached to maximum height. In the same way the company has also provided ways and means to satisfy their employees. Employee retrenchment was very low in Cadbury India. Information System: Cadbury has a very good information system adopted. Later, they introduced digitalisation. Finance: the products produced by the company were in great demand that it generated large sales to the company, which helped in increased revenue for the firm. Marketing: The Company adopted various marketing techniques for the promotion of its products like campaigning, conducting contests in schools etc. Operations: In 1994, the company introduced rationalization and modernisation programmes. External Sources: Economic : The economic environment of Cadbury India includes the economic conditions like growth of company in India. Cadbury has very efficiently utilized the economic advantages. Market: The products of Cadbury India have been very efficiently targeted based upon the feature of the product. Cadbury India focused almost all the age group International: Cadbury has their branches in almost most all the countries. They adopted various international strategies like business alliance, mergers etc. To have international access. Technology: More and more efforts were being made to have technological advancement in their products. More or less, they have succeeded in delivering quality products like Cadbury milk chocolate, Bournvitta Energy Drink etc. Social: Cadbury India has undertaken various Corporate Social Responsibility Programmes, which has helped the society. As a part of their social activity, the company has constructed check water dam to store water. Cadbury India is committed to growing community value around the world. Conclusion Thus, we can say that Cadbury India has undergone various Corporate and Business-Level strategies to boost up their activities in almost all the spheres, both internal and external. They have strived a lot to attain the best position in the world. They have attained this with the strategies, which they followed in timely basis. They adopted various measures to face the competition. At last, they could not stop the hostile acquisition from Kraft Food Corporation. It was then with mutual understanding and agreement were converted into a mutual takeover by Kraft Food Corporation. At present Cadbury India is a fully owned subsidiary of Kraft Food. Again, the company should think of various other strategies, learning from the past pitfalls made. They should adopt various other strategies both in Corporate -level as well as in Business-Level. They should try to develop their RD and should come up with new products with greater level of innovation. Consumers need value to the product. Thus, Cadbury India should strive to attain maximum value to their products with reasonable cost targeting almost the entire community as a whole. The company should develop more and more community welfare programmes to improvise community growth as well. They should undertake programmes to develop the nation of the world. Cadbury India should try to concentrate on their strengths to face the threats and should work on their weaknesses to capture the opportunities that are there in the external environment. For that the first steps is to have a SWOT analysis and move on as per the requirement. Strategic Direction for the future In 2006, Cadbury chocolate was linked to a salmonella outbreak, later paying a hefty fine over a leaking factory pipe that contaminated its products. The company suffered a loss of  £30 million. There product have been recalled. Cadbury was looking to re-jig its image and make some smart decisions to save money on resources. Green promises may not put to rest consumers fears of contaminated products. To face this situation, the company set certain targets that include: 50% reduction of net absolute carbon emissions by 2020 with a minimum of 30% from in-company actions. 10% reduction in packaging used per tonne of product and 25% in the more highly packaged seasonal and gifting items. Use more environmentally sustainable forms of packaging aim for 60% biodegradable, with 100% of secondary packaging being recyclable? All water scarce sites to have water reduction programmes in place. The Company worked on these targets efficiently, and to a certain extent, still Cadbury is the market leader in Chocolates and energy drinks like Bournvitta. The company has to go long way to handle this situation. Recently Kraft Food has acquired them. Even though they are the subsidiary of Kraft Food, they should try taking necessary steps to have necessary long-term strategies to improve their standard in the market and continue their leadership in the market. They should try to learn from their past, the mistake or the mishaps, which occurred to them and destroyed their reputation in the market. The first think, which the company should do, is to have a SWOT analysis. Strengths of Cadbury India Global Coverage: the company has maintained a global level in its operations and have a good market share. Quality Products: The company offers quality products to the consumers which is a strength to the company Personnels: The Company is having well Hard-Woking staffs with them who are indulged in their work with full enthusiasm. Information technology: The Company has adopted digitalisation, which will help in networking processes. This can be utilised as strength by the company to improvise their market entry in a new market. Innovations: The Company has made innovations in their products as well as their process to face competition. They have adopted rationalisation and modernisation in their operations. Value to customers: The Company is providing value to customers by various ways and means. Cadbury is providing various well-accepted brands. Cadbury Chocolate: Cadbury is blessed with the brand Cadbury Chocolate. Still it is the best choice among the customers. Cadbury Bournvitta: In beverage section, Cadbury is blessed with Cadbury Bournvitta, a energy during mostly liked by kids and moms. Weaknesses of Cadbury India Past out break of contamination: Cadbury has gone through an out break of contamination in their products. It caused a bad reputation among the consumers. Incurred loss: The Company has incurred loss and lost its stability for the past three years from 2007. Opportunities to Cadbury India Cadbury India can enter new markets with the help of proper market research With the available technology, Cadbury can bring up with new version of the existing products and can grab the opportunities in the market. Cadbury can adopt various innovations in the products like adding extra flavour etc. The company can come up with new product-line Threats to Cadbury India Competition is the mostly affected threat to Cadbury. Competitors like Nestle are also the largest manufacturers of confectionery items. So, Cadbury has to take appropriate steps to face the competitive situation Consumers dislike with regard to the past out break issues may become a threat in future. These are the major developmental strategies, which have been adopted by Cadbury India to meet the target for 2011. 3D forming chocolate increased investment we have made in innovation, marketing and sales Thermostatic food grade packaging Methods for producing microscopic aeration in candy to provide new textures and mouth feel. Healthy additions to hard candy Alternative ingredients to menthol Cadbury India has grabbed opportunies in the market by these ways. Apart from these innovative strategies, Cadbury India has to undergo various other international strategies to increase the market share. Following are the likely ways by which Cadbury can increase there market share: The company should analysis the competitors strategies, their capabilities and future goals. By analysing this, Cadbury will be able to re-think of their strategies, their future goals and the capabilities they posses. This will help them to re-frame their strategies, goals with the capabilities they have, if need. Cadbury India can have niche strategies. They can concentrate on one particular brand and create niche market with proper innovation and product improvement. They can have integrative Cost leadership and differentiation strategies. It is possible through providing the product at low cost with the help of technologies that enable differentiation through focus on niche segment. Cadbury can adopt focus strategy by identifying a narrow target in terms of markets and customers. The company can have restructuring strategies in certain areas where they feel are weak. Cadbury India should identify an area where the company is incurring loss. After identifying that particular area or brand, they can adopt divesting strategy to stop completely the area which is causing loss to the company The company should analyse the internal environment prevailing in the organisation and should find out the loopholes. After identifying the correct problem, proper rehabilitation should be made. If the company finds that every thing is fine in the organisation and the organisation is ready to go forward with the existing products and plan, then the organisation should adopt No-change strategy. The company can have tie-ups with companies who can provide better expertise in all respect. Cadbury as what they have done in the past can have business alliance with other companies to boost up the profits. By have strategic alliances Cadbury can enter new markets, reduce their manufacturing costs, develop new technologies and diffuse them. Cadbury can have Joint ventures to gain access to new business in order to have advantage like, shared risks, combined expertise and effective utilisation of resources available with in the joint venture. They can reduce the hurdles like import quotas, tariffs, nationalistic-political interests and cultural roadblocks. Cadbury can either acquire a company, which is in the same line of production to have the advantage of efficient production of products with the available expertise of both the companies, and innovative ideas and improved processes or the company can merge with another company and start a new business having the same products with innovations. In the first case, the company need to have investment and in the second case, the company need not to invest more. Conclusion A company can expand their business in corporate level as well as in business level by many ways. The company has to choose the best among the available strategies based on the resources they have and what is their actual need. They have clearly identify what is their need and how are they going to achieve those need keeping in mind the internal and external environment.

Effect of Organisational Culture on Customer Satisfaction

Effect of Organisational Culture on Customer Satisfaction Researches by some academics have made it known that a companys culture is closely linked to its effectiveness and efficiency (Kotter Heskett, 1992). In addition, according to (Morgeson, Krishnan, 2006) customer satisfaction is an increasingly significant factor of an effective organization in todays competitive business setting. Prospects arising from increase in globalization by companies, advancement in technology, and outsourcing have meant that companies are increasingly turning their attention to laying greater emphasis on customer service across national borders in order to reduce costs, while at the same time trying to increase customer user-friendliness through day-to-day activities of the firm. ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE (Shein 1996), defined culture as: a pattern of basic assumptions that a group has invented, discovered or developed in learning to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, and that have worked well enough to be considered valid, and therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems. Other shared definitions by learned scholars refer to organisational culture as pattern of shared values and beliefs that help individuals understand organizational functioning and thus provide them with the norms for behavior in the organization(Deshpande and Webster 1989), a set of cognitions shared by members of a social unit (OReilly et al., 1991). According to (Laurie 2008), organisational culture is a combination of traditions, values, policies, beliefs, and attitude that establishes a general framework for everything done in an organisation. It can also refer to the form of beliefs, values, and ways of managing experience that have developed during the course of the organisations history, and becomes noticeable in its material arrangements and the behaviour of its members. (Brown 1998). (Gupta 2009), in his write up, opined that organisational culture is a set of unwritten rules meant to guide the employees towards an standardardised and rewarding behaviour. TYPES AND MODELS OF ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE In order to appreciate the incorporation of organisational culture, it is very important to examine and search for different models to improve the understanding of the concept of organizational culture. I. Scheins Three Layer Organizational Model These three layers as explained by (Shein 1996) below are stages of organisational culture that should be categorized carefully with the purpose of avoiding any theoretical misperception. Artefacts and Creations the Artefact and Creation layer is the observable stage of corporate culture, it includes the social environment. Usually researchers study the artistic productions, technological output, physical space in the artefacts and Creations stage. Values usually values symbolize the significant things for individuals, they are affective wants or needs and conscious. The existence of values is very important for the organization in order to function competently and share ideals among staff. Basic Assumptions a specific group of individuals study how to manage and handle the difficulties of internal integration and external adaptation through developing and discovering the assumptions. II. Denisons Effectiveness and Culture Model The effectiveness and culture model for (Denison 1990) represents the relationship between management, corporate culture, effectiveness and finally the performance of the organization. This model is equipped to stress the important association in management practices with the beliefs and principles when examining the effectiveness and culture of the organization and its performance. Involvement this feature includes constructing the individual ability, responsibility, duty and ownership. Corporate culture is described as highly involved strongly support participation and generate a sense of responsibility. Adaptability the adaptability feature means translating the environmental business demands into action. Consistency is the vital source of power, course, formation and integration. Mission -is the long-term trend for the corporation. According to (Laurie 2008) organisational culture can be grouped into four main classes namely power culture, role culture, task culture, and person culture. Power Culture- entirely dependent on central power source and control is excercised by key individuals. Role Culture this type of culture is characretised by bureacracy and is based on rationalisation of all aspects of the organisation with role and job description more important than the individual. Emphasis is laid on position as the main source of power. Task Culture job or project oriented. Person Culture here, the individual is the central focus and every resource available is there to serve the individuals within it. (Laurie 2008). The type of culture inherent in an organisation may be decisive for organisations ability to serve its customers effectively. For example, organisations with a culture with respect for the interest of people value their members by displaying concern for their well-being, growth, and development and lay emphasis on the need for cooperation. Such a culture is more effective than one that emphasizes power, control. (Gupta 2009) went further by suggest the existence of two levels in organisational culture; The visible aspect of the organization which he said is reflected in artifacts, symbols and visible behavior of employees, and the hidden aspect which is related to fundamental values and assumptions that employees make regarding the acceptable and unacceptable behaviors in the organisation. Organisational culture in its entirety consists of traditions, values, norms and physical signs (artefacts) of organisation members and their activities. Practically speaking, the members of an organisation will eventually come to understand the particular culture of their organisation. Then, although the culture is one of those factors that are difficult to express definitely, nevertheless everyone knows it when they sense it. Hidden rules and assumptions become an organisational culture as these rules are implemented over time. A strong culture shapes the behaviour pattern members of the organisation in the absence of policies, procedures or advice from supervisors and managers. CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Satisfaction is a general customer attitude by a consumer towards a service provider and an emotional reaction to the difference between what customers anticipate and what they receive in terms of service and or product. When customers are satisfied, they are more likely to return, while dissatisfied customers are more likely to go elsewhere (Levesque and McDougall, 1996, Zineldin, 2000). Customer satisfaction is an important constituent of a successful and thriving organization and can be directly associated to increased profit margins and greater employee satisfaction, customer retention, and repeat purchases to organisations that consider customer satisfaction a key factor in its marketing strategy. An organizations social setting-whether it is called culture or climate-is an important driver of customer satisfaction. As stated by, (Ferris et al., 1998) organizational climate can facilitate a positive relationship between human resource practices and customer satisfaction, support ing a social context model for predicting customer satisfaction. Against this background, this paper aims to explore the way organisational culture affects customer satisfaction in the automobile industry setting, based on the general perceptions of front-line employees. However, according to Darby et al.s (1997) the customer service positioning show a positive relationship with different procedures of measuring customer satisfaction, and consequently it is assumed in this paper that the degree to which front-line employees are oriented towards customer satisfaction is an revealing measure of customer satisfaction. (Schneider et al., 1998) reiterated that there are different dimensions to employees understanding of the appropriate form of organisational culture, based on whether they are managers or not. Such differences in perception are linked to their different positions within the organisation. In addition, since the front-line employees (managers) deal with more pressure, managerial demands, and are responsible for their subordinates, they will be more likely able to understand the possible effects of organisational culture on customers. RESEARCH AIMS AND OBJECTIVES After a critical analysis of the research, the following aims and objectives established for this research are: To analyse the effect of organisational culture on the effectiveness of the organisation. To study the organisational culture of Ford Motors. To understand the relationship between Ford Motors organisational culture and customer satisfaction. RESEARCH QUESTIONS Does organisational culture have any effect on customer satisfaction? What sort of corporate culture does Ford Motors possess? What is the effect of Ford Motors organisational culture on customer satisfaction? LITERATURE REVIEW: A number of academic researchers have studied various elements of organizational culture and customers satisfaction. However, only a few experimental studies have studied the link between the characteristics of an organizations work environment (organisational culture) and this important aspect of organizational effectiveness (customer satisfaction) e.g., Conrad, Brown, Harmon, 1997. Most of the studies that have observed this impact have focused on the relationship between service-oriented climates and customer satisfaction. These studies, while making a very important contribution, have lean towards emphasising on the impact of a climate for service or service climate on customer satisfaction. In doing so, they may run the risk of neglecting some general organizational characteristics that can affect a wider range of organizational outcomes. Starkey and Woodcock (2002) opined that organizations that are less customer oriented are more likely to perform poorly in terms of sales output as against those that are customer oriented. To survive in the highly competitive automobile markets, organisations need to provide products and services that will produce highly satisfied and loyal customers (Westbrook and Oliver, 1991). According to (Asif and Sargeant, 2000), several benefits accrue to the organisation via customer loyalty such as generation of profit, costs related to promotions, advertising, start-up costs are limited. More so, chances of increase in customers will be high, as satisfied customers will recommend the organisations products and services to others. As a result, customer satisfaction can be the key factor to the growth of the business, in term of market share and profit. A popular supposition about the role of organizational culture as it relates to customer satisfaction is that if an organization possesses a strong culture by demonstrating that it has a well-integrated and effective set of defined values, beliefs, and behaviors, then it will achieve a higher level of efficiency. Curry and Kkolou (2004) identify customer focus, participation, and teamwork as important cultural issues influencing customer relations outcomes. They suggested that empowering employees to excel at customer service and ensuring their job security also contribute to customer relation success. According to (Deshpandà © 1999), investigation into market orientation suggests that the existence of an innovative and entrepreneurial culture is strongly associated with exceptional business performance. Collectively, these reports suggest that an organizational culture that puts more importance on customer-oriented behaviours, cross-functional teams, performance-based rewards, adjustment and reactive attitudes to change, and a higher degree of risk taking and improvement, is likely to contribute to have successful customer relations management system implementations. Every organisation has to face the task of ascertaining the critical factors in their organisational culture that will ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty (McDougall and Levesque, 1992). For all these reasons, customers perception of the service experience is frequently the only way accurately to estimate quality level of services and product provided. Within many organizations, identifying these issues may be easy or complex depending on the type of culture involved. In either case, the development of a fitting solution is difficult and the application and maintenance on a long run complex, time-consuming and costly. However, an effective organizational culture is one of the key components influencing an organizations capacity to elicit customer satisfaction and to thrive in the long term. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY: Research methodology is basically the procedures and processes of collecting and analysing data. There are two types of research methodology positivist and interpretive. In this study, we would use positivist approach in order to collect and analyse data. According to Comte (1971), researchers that demonstrate the use of real life, data is known as positivist approach. Conversely, when researchers have a set of assumption about the outcome of the research, it is known to use interpretive approach (Malhotra 2003). As mentioned in the objectives, we aim to find the effect of organisational culture on the effectiveness of the organization and to do so, we would have to use factual data from Ford motors, and therefore, positivist approach will be used in this study. Research Strategy According to Brymen and Bell (2007:135), a researcher can follow five research strategies in conducting his research. They are: 1) longitudinal 2) experimental 3) cross sectional 4) case study and 5) comparative. For this study, case study approach will be used in order to accomplish the research objective. This is because the effect of organisational culture would be analysed in this research in order to figure out its effect on the customer relations of the company. Research Approach A set of methods researchers use in order to achieve the concluding remark on the research objective of the subject matter is known as research approach. According to Saunders (2003), there are two types of research approaches available to conduct a research and they are Inductive and deductive approach Deductive approach is mostly used when researchers needs to find a causal relationship between the variables while inductive approach is a widely used method for qualitative researches. Since the primary aim of this research is to find out the effect of organisational culture on customer satisfaction, the researcher will employ inductive approach for the research. RESEARCH METHOD: Different types of primary and secondary sources would be used in order to collect data regarding organizational culture and customer satisfaction. Primary Data is the vital data gathered by researchers via interviews, surveys or questionnaires (Anderson 2005). In this report, interviews and questionnaire will be used to provide the study a better understanding of corporate culture and the financial performance from all level of employees. The source that will be used in primary data is a survey and separate interview sessions with managers, executives and even temporary employees in Ford Motors. Secondary Data: Secondary data will be collected through researchers who are conducting the research. This data will be sourced from many departments and the web site in Zain Company, along with published and academic journals, articles, books, online resources and many other data from previous authors. Interviews: Interview is one of the most effective ways of conducting qualitative research. In this study, interviewing method will acquire a clear knowledge about the organisational culture of Ford Motors. There are many types of interviews such as structured, semi structured, focused group, in depth and so on. In this study, semi structured interview will be used since it is well known method to clear the doubts and misunderstandings that might arise from the interviews. It should be mentioned here that the primary feature of semi structured interview is flexibility from both interviewees and interviewers side. ANTICIPATED METHOD OF ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS: Data Analyses This study will involve both qualitative and quantitative data analysis techniques in order to establish its objectives. A qualitative approach will be used while in order to demonstrate the relationship between organisational culture and overall performance of the company. Conversely, quantitative approach will be adopted to create a relationship between organisational culture and customer satisfaction. CONCLUSION: This research will focus on the organisational culture factors inherent in Ford Motors and the individual effects these factors have on customer satisfaction.

The Piano :: essays research papers fc

A Mail Order Bride â€Å"The strange thing is I don’t think myself silent, that is, because of my piano† (Campion 9). This beloved instrument is central to the plot and plays a major role in the movie The Piano. It is a symbolic instrument that Campion uses to tell a complex tale.. The film is a story of shyness, repression, and loneliness, of a woman who will not speak and a man who cannot listen, and of a willful little girl who causes mischief. Ada’s verbal silence is a complicated issue in the film and contributes to the overall confusion surrounding her gender identity. Since the age of six, Ada voluntarily chose to be mute and expresses herself through her play of her piano. Her piano symbolized not only her body but also more importantly her soul. In the mid-1800’s, Ada arrives on the stormy shores of New Zealand to meet her prearranged husband, Stewart. Ada was referred to as the mail-order bride on the summation of the Blockbuster videocassette. In addition to her luggage filled with dishes and clothes, she brings her eight-year old daughter, and her piano. Despite Ada’s wordless pleadings, Stewart refuses to bring her piano home and it is left on the beach. As Ada, Stewart, and the rest of the crew leave the beach, Ada contemplates the piano sitting on the sand near the water. This scene shows the underlying feelings of Ada; she is unhappy that her prize possession is being left behind. Stewart believes in his ownership of Ada and he demonstrates this by negating her own claim to property. Baines, a local man with Maori ways, makes a deal with Stewart in which he will trade land for music lessons from Ada. Baines offers Ada a deal to get the instrument back, and she is unprepared for the price she must ultimately pay. He recognizes the value that the piano has with Ada, which Stewart fails to do. The first act of compassion from Baines towards Ada is when he has the piano tuned. This event symbolizes that he truly cares what Ada feels and respects her as a women and person. Stewart does not comprehend that affection must be earned through trust, respect, and love. Baines realizes this and he gives the piano back to her saying, â€Å"I want you to care for me† (The Piano). One can feel the sense of frustration with Baines during the play scene.

Sweden’s Position on Personal Privacy in Cyberspace Essay -- Swedish S

Sweden’s Position on Personal Privacy in Cyberspace The Internet and computer age has enabled people to work faster and more efficiently, with practically unlimited access to information. As much as the technology boom has made our lives easier, as with most good inventions, there is some negativity that must be dealt with. The dissemination of information on the global network has put personal privacy at risk. Obviously, we are not going to give up new technologies that enrich human life for the sake of maintaining our privacy; however, measures must be taken to keep the public, or government, from abusing the Internet and computer databases for malevolent reasons. Every country in the world has its own policies on human rights to personal privacy and will deal with the threat the Internet has presented. In this paper, we will explore Swedish laws and regulations and its viewpoint on safekeeping privacy in this Internet age. A recent survey called â€Å"Digital Life Index†, which is conducted year by the Jupiter Research group, concluded that Swedes were the most digital-savvy people amongst 17 Western European countries. This title essentially means that Swedes are more prone to trying out new technologies when they first come out on the market. Swedish households are more likely than their Western European counterparts to own digital handheld gadgets, satellite dishes, mobile phones, and high-speed Internet connections.[1] We can assume that this translates into more time spent using the Internet and transferring information across databases, which requires Sweden to be considerably more conscious of preserving its people privacy. Sweden, historically, has held personal privacy in very high regard compared to other cou... ...Data Directive", <http://dsv.su.se/jpalme/society/eu-data-directive-revision.html> [15] Palme, J.; â€Å"Swedish Attempts to Regulate the Internet†, <http:/dsv.su.se/jpalme/society/swedish-attempts.html> [16] Privacy Exchange, â€Å"Summary of the New Personal Data Protection Act for Sweden†, <http:/www.privacyexchange.org/legal/nat/omni/swedensum.html> [17] Palme, J.; â€Å"Critical Review of the Swedish Data Act†, <http:/dsv.su.se/jpalme/society/data-act-analysis.html> [18] Palme, J.;â€Å"Swedish Law on Responsibilities for Internet Information Providers†, <http:/dsv.su.se/jpalme/society/swedish-bbs-act.html> [19] Swedish Data Inspection Board, <http:/www.datainspektionen.se/pdf/arsredovisningar/eng_1999.pdf> [20] Arrision, S., 23 Oct 2003,"Perspective: Privacy Lessons from Europe", CNet News, < http://news.com.com/2010-1069-962993.html?tag=lh>

American Isolationism Before the End of World War I

Before the end of World War I, the United States at first was very un-isolationistic. Before the war, America was a very expansionist nation. It had taken up military occupation in Cuba in 1906, taken the Philippines, taken hold of the country of Panama, and begun relations with Japan and China. But when World War I suddenly occurred, it was an unprecedented war. Never before had America seen such a large war that involved so many countries. The devastation that resulted from the war dispirited many Americans, and the problem of foreign nations not properly paying back U. S. ar debts created some resentment among the American people as they felt they might have been cheated. Isolationism, it seemed at the time, was the best way to avoid foreign entanglements that might lead to another war that might have more disastrous effects. The first step to carrying out this new isolationistic policy was for America to put a stop to the overwhelming foreign influence on the nation. The first la w that reflected this attitude was the Emergency Quota Act of 1921. It limited the immigration of European foreigners to America to 3 percent of the people of their nationality who had been living in the United States in 1910.Then three years later came the Immigration Act of 1924, which cut the quota for foreigners from 3 percent to 2 percent and shifted the national-origins base from the census of 1910 to that of 1890. This virtually stopped immigration to the United States in order to cut down on foreign influence. With immigration almost nonexistent, the United States sought to separate itself from foreign nations and their entanglements. To accomplish this, America did not join the League of Nations and refused to fully accept the Treaty of Versailles.Tariffs were yet another tool in isolating America from foreign countries. The trend of higher tariffs continued, making in incredibly difficult for any European products to enter the American market. America was determined to sta y peaceful no matter what. Partly due to the blame of World War Ion arms manufacturers and bankers, the United States passed a series of Neutrality Acts in the 1935, 1936, and 1937 forbidding the sale or transportation of munitions to belligerent nations, the sailing on a belligerent nation’s ship, or the making of loans to a belligerent ation. These acts were meant to act as further protection to keep America out of a conflict like World War I. Isolationism in the United States during the 1920s and 1930s was adopted primarily because fear of another war like that of World War I ran rampant. In the American people’s eyes, putting an end to foreign influence would put an end to foreign entanglements in war. Little did America know at that time, however, that this isolationism only allowed aggressors to commence the beginning of World War II.

Fallacy

Racial Domination, Racial Progress Kareen Nalbandian Pasadena City College To look at racism through the Individualistic Fallacy is to look at racism as an individual’s own actions rather than a systematic problem. Throughout the day, choices that many make are dependent upon the beliefs they hold. For example, going to the store and asking the white employee for help rather than the black, to â€Å"feel more comfortable. This act is racist, however as per the Individualistic Fallacy, many who make these simple acts do not think of them as racist because their act was in the subconscious and â€Å"unintentional†, and they believe they held no malice in the act. However, one’s actions do not need to be intentional to be racist; racism is often â€Å"habitual, unintentional, commonplace, polite, implicit and well-meaning† (27).The Individualistic Fallacy focuses on the individual level of racism, where racism only exists in certain people and actions, rathe r than a systematic level, where racism exists in our â€Å"schools, political institutions, labor markets, and neighborhoods† (27). The problem with the Individualistic Fallacy is that although asking a white employee for help is one individual’s actions, that action is influenced by which school they attended, the neighborhood they live in, and by the stereotypes given to different races.The school one attends reflects the neighborhood they live in, and because of the segregation in many neighborhoods, some people do not interact with people of other races often, thus feeling more â€Å"comfortable† with the white dominant race. The stereotypes given to certain races are a result of the systematic level of inequality and oppression that that race has had to endure. Thus, the choices that many make throughout the day, though dependent upon the beliefs are hold, those beliefs are ultimately influenced by the systems of racism. Feagin, who has his Ph. D. n sociol ogy, said â€Å"racism is not in society, racism is of society†. In reference to the Individualistic Fallacy, it is difficult to look at racism as the â€Å"psychology† of persons, their beliefs, habits and prejudices, rather than the foundation (system) of society (Juge, 2013). If racism is in society, it should be easy to pick out racist individuals and stop racism, but when racism is of society, it means it is embedded into the systems of America. The Legalistic Fallacy is the belief that racism doesn’t exist because there are laws in place that make racism illegal.However, just as how laws against theft do not stop people from stealing, laws against racism does not mean that racism does not occur every day (28). There are laws set to ensure a fair and â€Å"colorblind† process of hiring employees in a business; however, statistics show nonwhites are much less preferred than whites, and more specifically, black men with no criminal record fared no bett er than whites with a criminal record when looking for jobs (Juge, 2012). Another problem with the legalistic fallacy is that laws are often political in nature.Many laws passed today, although do not explicitly state â€Å"racist†, give way for racism to exist i. e. The War on Drugs, New York’s â€Å"broken window† policy, Arizona’s immigration laws. The War on Drugs and â€Å"broken windows† policy both were passed to reduce deviance in the forms of drugs and criminal acts, however, there have been unequal enforcements of the law by the police department, which is reflected in the incarceration rates of blacks and Hispanics compared to whites.Arizona’s senate bill created to reduce the number of illegal immigrants has led to many unfair detainments and harassment of Hispanic citizens who live in Arizona. These government policies and laws not only refute the Legalistic Fallacy that racism does not exist because there are laws against it, b ut contradicts it a sense that there are now laws that fuel inequality and allow racism to exist. Schools are also segregated and unequal despite laws set against segregation (28). The area in which you live determines the type of education you will receive.Schools are used to ensure who will be doctors and lawyers compared to janitors and gardeners, thus, those who can afford to live in nicer neighborhoods where there are funds for better public education have better chances of future economic success. Consequently, those who live in poorer neighborhoods such as East L. A. where high school dropout rates reach 70-80% have less chances of reaching economic success. However, for those who graduate high school there are more obstacles in finding money to attend a university.This alludes to the fact that the cost of education is not to only get the best people in schools, but to keep some individuals out (Juge, 2012), which is racism in a certain form. School and education in oneâ€⠄¢s early life can determine a lot about the chances and obstacles an individual would have as he got older. For me, going to a private Armenian school in my younger years gave me the capital I needed to be successful throughout my high school and college years, which I otherwise would not have received going to the public school in my neighborhood.The Armenian culture stresses respect of elders, being close-knit to your family, and putting school and education of utmost priority. These ideas provided me with the knowledge I needed to be successful in the â€Å"real world†. Being respectful of your elders, an idea that would seem to be quite obvious, is not practiced by many teenagers in this generation, but because respect was so important for me to have when I was younger, I have the â€Å"know-how† to know how I should approach professors, law enforcement officers, and job employers, giving me an advantage when dealing with certain situations.High school and college are the years where you have fun and go crazy, which can result in less focus in school, and the domino effect of too much fun, terrible grades, using too much drugs, and then dropping out. Being raised in an Armenian family where your family is extremely close to you, although can’t prevent you from having fun, can prevent you from going too far down the hole to where you can’t get back out. When I transferred from the Armenian school to Pasadena High School in 10th grade, I spent the first year finding out of my surroundings, and in 11th grade, I was ready to experience things I hadn’t growing up in a private school.Through the end of my 11th grade year and halfway through my senior year, the levels of deviance I had reached had begun to get serious, and had it not for how I was raised and the support of my mom, I would have not graduated. Religion, specifically Christianity, is also a big part of Armenian culture. No matter which religion you follow in your current life, the religion you grew up with has certain effects on you. For me, the hope and the understanding of myself I learned through Christianity as I was growing up stuck with me even when I stopped following the religion.The same values I was taught from my culture as a child, along with the religious anecdotes, helped my transition from high school to college to be balanced. I know how to interact with different people, I understand myself in ways most people have not been able to find yet, and I have my family to push me back in the right path when they see I have strayed too far. In terms of Eurocentrism, the fact that there are many private Armenian schools in southern California, and because of what I know about the pride of Armenian people, I can see that what I was taught growing p reiterates the belief many Armenians hold that the Armenian culture is â€Å"better† than others. Many times when discussing things such as moving out from the family home, recent cr ime in our neighborhood, or the troubles many youths find themselves in, my mom would point out how other races do no support their family how Armenians do, certain crimes Armenians wouldn’t do that other races would, and how I should be thankful for being part of the Armenian culture for those reasons.My mom’s statements show her favor of Armenians before whites and nonwhites alike. References Desmond, M. , & Emirbayer, M. (2010). â€Å"Race in the 21st Century. † Racial domination, racial progress: The sociology of race in America (1st ed, pp. 27-28). New York: McGraw-Hill Juge, T. (2012-2013) Class Lecture Notes.