Cross Culture Management

Introduction Culture refers to the system of â€Å"shared attitudes, values, goals and practices that characterizes an institution, organization or a group†. Culture varies from region to region, since people tend to hold different beliefs, values and attitudes across the globe. Thus, cross cultural management refers to the process through which people learn about â€Å"variations of culture, practices, and preferences of an organization’s stakeholders†.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Cross Culture Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The increase in globalization and advancement in technology in the last two decades have created growth opportunities for multinational corporations. As competition increase in domestic markets, multinational firms normally join overseas markets in order to increase their sales and market shares. Firms that operate in foreign markets (countries), us ually serve customers with diverse cultural backgrounds. Additionally, multinational firms usually employ individuals with diverse cultural backgrounds. Managing employees from diverse cultures is a challenge since people tend to think, feel and act differently in different cultures. Besides, effective communication is normally difficult to achieve in an organization with a multicultural workforce. Thus, cross-cultural management attempts to facilitate the creation of an organizational culture that every employee can identify with. The concept of cross cultural management will be discussed in this paper by analyzing the Home Furniture case study. Cross Cultural Management Policy Home furniture is a multinational corporation operating in Europe, Asia, India and America. The company has adopted a polycentric approach to recruit its employees. A polycentric approach involves recruiting nationals of a foreign country to manage most of the operations of a subsidiary of a multinational co rporation. Under this approach, the subsidiary tends to be autonomous and develops its own policies. At Home Furniture, nationals of foreign countries normally hold midlevel management positions. An expatriate usually heads a subsidiary of the firm in the early years. The polycentric approach is beneficial to Home Furniture since it facilitates implementation of the firm’s sales and marketing policies. Since Home Furniture’s subsidiaries develop their own marketing policies, the company finds it important to recruit locals who have adequate market knowledge. However, the use of a polycentric approach has also created problems for the company. In particular, there are cultural conflicts between the subsidiaries and the headquarters. For instance, the headquarters and the US subsidiary have different views on teamwork. Solving such cultural conflicts call for the formulation of policies that promote harmony between the subsidiaries and the headquarters.Advertising L ooking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Additionally, cultural conflicts can not be solved through a single policy. Thus, a multi-dimensional approach should be adopted to enhance harmony in a multinational corporation. The new CEO of Home Furniture can consider the following policies as she operates and recruit staff in different countries. Given the autonomous nature of Home furniture’s subsidiaries, the new CEO should consistently follow the polycentric approach in hiring staff. Staff selection is fundamental when forming a multicultural workforce. The human resources department must focus on selecting the right individuals to hold key positions with the company. Thus, it will be important to identify the desired characteristics of the workforce. For example, the firm can focus on hiring managers who can tolerate cultural differences. The identified characteristics should be used to s creen all potential employees during the selection process. Performance evaluation should, generally, be guided by the company’s overall human resource strategy. However, the actual performance evaluation process should be based on local procedures. The managers and the local staff should agree on acceptable targets and the procedure for evaluating performance. Empirical studies reveal that comparability and costs are the main determinants of remuneration and benefits in multinational corporations. The salaries paid to the employees should be comparable, both within the firm and in the industry. Additionally, the salaries should not strain the company’s revenues. A remuneration and benefits policy that reflects the expectations of the local employees is likely to be accepted. In contrary, a remuneration policy that is based on the expectations of the headquarters is likely to be rejected since it might contravene the local labor laws, and the expectations of labor unio ns. In order to promote harmony between the headquarters and the subsidiaries, the new CEO should adopt an open culture policy. An open culture policy encourages employees to accept and appreciate their cultural differences. Formulating an open culture policy requires learning about the cultures of employees in various subsidiaries. This will help the CEO and the management to identify the cultural practices that are valued by local employees. Consequently, it will be possible to adapt the organization’s strategy to the local culture. For instance, staff and unions in the US subsidiary believed in negotiating organizational matters instead of a top-down approach to decision making. In such situations, the CEO should recognize the importance of negotiations to US employees in order to avoid conflicts.Advertising We will write a custom case study sample on Cross Culture Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More An effectiv e communication system within the organization is fundamental for the implementation of an open culture policy. The norms of communication should be established in advance to guide interaction among employees. According to Hofstede’s culture dimensions, individualism determines the extent to which employees can interact and share information about their cultures. Countries with high individualism scores are associated with little cohesion and interpersonal connection. Countries with a low individualism scores, on the other hand, are associated with strong group cohesion, respect for others and loyalty to the team. In order to promote cohesion among employees in countries with high individualism scores, the New CEO should encourage the management to acknowledge accomplishments of local staff. Additionally, â€Å"debate and expression of personal opinions† should be encouraged in order to promote understanding among the employees. Since perfect harmony can not be achieve d in a multicultural organization such as Home Furniture, the new CEO should adopt a conflict resolution policy to help in solving any conflicts that might arise between the local staff and the headquarters. The conflict resolution policy should address the following issues. First, there should be consensus on how various conflicts should be handled. Second, it must identify the parties to be involved in the resolution process. For instance, in China and Tunisia non-governmental organizations are actively involved in employees’ issues such work conditions and remuneration. In such countries, employees are likely to accept a conflict resolution team that includes members of organizations that fight for their rights. Third, the local employees and the management at the headquarters should agree on the communication channel to be used when resolving a conflict. The selected communication method should reflect the employees’ cultural make-up. Empirical studies revel that c ross-cultural competency can be enhanced through effective employee training and development. Such training programs help in creating organizational cultures that take into account the cultural make-up of the local staff and the perspectives or expectations of the headquarters. A widely accepted organizational culture facilitates consistent implementation of strategy across all subsidiaries. Thus, an effective policy should be put in place to guide cross-cultural training programs at Home Furniture. The cross-cultural training policy should address the following issues. First, the policy should encourage the managers to value the cross-cultural training programs. The top managers at the headquarters should understand that training foreign employees on the parent country’s (Finland) business culture is an important strategy. Thus, accountability and ownership should be promoted in order to effectively implement the training strategy. Second, cross-cultural training should be a team effort that involves all stakeholders.Advertising Looking for case study on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Outside experts, employees’ leaders, managers from subsidiaries and managers from the headquarters should be involved in developing the training model. Team effort will not only improve the quality of the training, but will also improve its acceptance. Third, cross-cultural training should be bilateral. This means that the employees in overseas subsidiaries should be trained on the business culture of the parent country. The employees from the parent country, on the other hand, should be trained on the business culture in foreign countries where the subsidiaries are located. Fourth, cross-cultural training should be incorporated in the process of employee orientation. New recruits at the headquarters should be trained on the business cultures in overseas subsidiaries. New employees in the subsidiaries should also learn about the business culture in Finland where Home Furniture’s headquarters is located. Finally, cross-cultural training programs should be reinforced wit h mentoring initiatives in order to ensure success. Mangers from both Finland (headquarters) and the foreign countries where the subsidiaries are located should be involved in the mentoring program. Mentoring programs promote high performance through commitment to the organization’s expectations and culture. Thus, it will encourage teamwork and tolerance to cultural differences among employees. Communication Strategy Cross cultural communication is concerned with how individuals from different cultures communicate among themselves and in other cultures. From a business perspective, cross culture communication â€Å"refers to interpersonal communication and interaction across different cultures†. Cross culture communication attempts to overcome cultural differences that prevent interaction in a multicultural workforce. Competency in cross cultural communication can be achieved through training, culture immersion and learning new languages. As a multinational corporation , Home Furniture should have an effective communication strategy to enhance interaction among the employees and to facilitate implementation of its business strategies. In developing a communication strategy for Home Furniture, the new CEO can consider the following guidelines. To begin with, developing a communication strategy starts with the formulation of the organization’s communication objectives. In this case, the objectives describe what the organization intends to achieve through its communication strategy. For instance, Home Furniture’s communication objectives could be to achieve cultural tolerance or to improve performance. The communication strategy should be driven by the needs of the organization rather than the employees’ need to communicate with each other. This means that the communication activities at Home Furniture should be a means of achieving strategic goals and objectives. This calls for aligning the communication objectives with those of the organization. Such alignments form the basis for justifying the need for a communication strategy and facilitate the success of the business. Once the communication objectives are set, the audience must be identified. In this context, the audience refers to the employees that the new CEO and other managers need to communicate with in order to achieve the objectives of Home Furniture. Identifying the correct audience helps in answering the question, ‘who should be consulted with what decisions’? Integration and cooperation in a multicultural workforce requires effective reporting relationships. Such relationships facilitate contribution of every employee towards achievement of the organization’s goals. In order to establish reporting relationships, decision rights should be identified and explained to every employee. Decision rights specify the authorities entrusted with the task of making decisions. The decision rights and reporting relationships should refl ect the cultures of the local employees. According to Hofstede’s power/distance culture dimension, some cultures tolerate inequality while others do not. A country with a high power/ distance score is likely to have citizens who tolerate uneven distribution of power. However, citizens in countries with low power/distance scores prefer equal distribution of power. Thus, in countries with high power/distance scores, decisions can be unilaterally made by the management since consultations are not valued. In this case, the management will be the audience. In countries with low power/distance scores, the management must consult as many employees as possible before making a decision. In this case, the audience may include the management and junior employees. The communication strategy should help the CEO to identify the messages to send to various managers and other employees. Strategic targeting, as well as, consistency should be emphasized when creating and conveying messages wit hin the organization. The message should be comprehensive, informative and sent to the right individuals within the organization. Hofstede developed the uncertainty avoidance index (UAI) to measure the level of anxiety under uncertain situations in different cultures. In the context of a multicultural organization like Home Furniture, uncertainty can arise if messages are not clear to the recipients. According to Hofstede, a high UAI score means that members of the society will try as much as possible to avoid ambiguous situations. Law, order and a collective truth tend to prevail in countries with high UAI scores. A low UAI score implies that citizens appreciate differences, and are less concerned with ambiguity. Thus, in countries with high UAI scores, messages should be planned, prepared and communicated regularly. Additionally, the messages should be communicated to the employees in time in order to avoid anxiety. The messages should be concise and clearly specify the expectatio ns of the management. Societies with high UAI scores tend to prefer formal business conduct and policies. Thus, all messages should be based on existing policies. Additionally, a formal structure will be necessary to convey messages in a country with high UAI scores. Societies with low UAI scores tend to prefer informal business attitudes. Risks and change are also accepted in such societies. Thus, creating and sending messages within the organization should not be based on strict rules and structures. Given the differences in uncertainty avoidance levels, the process of creating and sharing messages should be aligned to the business cultures of the subsidiaries. Appropriate tools and activities for communicating the organization’s messages should be identified. Home Furniture’s new CEO should identify the communication channels and activities that are suitable to convey important messages to the targeted audiences. The selection of appropriate communication channels i s determined by the message to be conveyed and the targeted audience. For instance, audiences from societies with a high UAI score tend to prefer formal communication channels. Audiences from societies with low UAI score, on the other hand, tend to be comfortable with informal communication channels. Understanding and embracing cross cultural differences require elimination of cultural barriers that hinder effective communication. Thus, there should be flexibility when choosing a communication channel or the communication activities to be used to convey important messages. The importance of flexibility is based on the premise that long term commitments to traditions vary across cultures. According to Hofstede, a high long term orientation (LTO) score means that people have long term commitments to their traditions. In such situations, focusing on the traditional communication channel will be beneficial to Home Furniture. However, societies with low LTO scores do not value traditions . In such situations, Home Furniture can easily change the communication channels in order to meet its strategic objectives. The CEO and the managers of Home Furniture should be open-minded and able to adapt their communication channels to prevailing cultures. Adequate resources must be allocated for the implementation of the communication strategy. Additionally, the communication strategy should be implemented within the set timelines. The idea is to avoid overspending in implementing the communication strategy. Finally, the communication strategy should be evaluated and amended accordingly over time. Communication audits should be performed in order to measure the effectiveness of the strategy. Communication audits can be performed through surveys or interviews that involve internal, as well as, external audiences of the firm. An independent or external party can be contracted to perform the audit in order to avoid biases in the evaluation process. The evaluation results should be discussed by the relevant stakeholders and used to improve the communication strategy. Conclusion Cross culture management attempts to enhance understanding and appreciation of cultural differences in organizations. Managing a multicultural workforce is usually a challenge to multinational corporations such as Home Furniture. The disagreements between the management of Home Furniture and its employees in subsidiaries across the globe are attributed to cultural conflicts. Consequently, the New CEO at Home Furniture must develop policies that will help in reducing cultural conflicts. Appropriate employment policies will help the New CEO to select employees who tolerate cultural differences. An effective cross cultural training policy will help in creating awareness about cultures of various stakeholders at Home Furniture. Additional, the training programs will encourage culture tolerance. The new CEO should also adopt an open culture policy in order to promote integration and coopera tion among employees. Promoting harmony and achievement of the organization’s objectives requires implementation of an effective communication strategy. In order to achieve success, the objectives of the communication strategy should be aligned to those of the organization. References Holden, N., 2002. Cross-Cultural Management. New York: McGraw-Hill. Johann, R., 2008. Cross-Cultural Management. New York: John Wiley and Sons. Majur, K., 2010. Positive Organizational Culture as a New trend in Cross-Cultural Management. Journal of Positive Management 1(2), pp.65-74. McCalman, J., 2009. Lateral Hierarchy: The Case of Cross-Cultural Management Teams. European Management Journal 14(5), pp.509-517. Shimoni, B., 2011. The Representation of Culture in Interactions and Cross Culture Management. Journal of International Management 17(1), pp.30-41. Thomas, D., 2008. Cross-Cultural Management. New York: Cengage Learning. Tjosvold, D., 2003. Cross-Cultural Management. New York: Ashgate Pu blishing. Usanier, J., 2011. Lenguage as a Resource to Access Cross-Cultural Equivalence in Quantitative Management Research. Journal of World Business 46(3), pp.314-319. This case study on Cross Culture Management was written and submitted by user Giovani I. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here. Cross Culture Management

what is modern music1 essays

what is modern music1 essays The most important thing that was expressed about the definition of modern music is that the degree of modernism depends on the experience and taste of those whom are listening. This means that each person can have vastly different views on which musicians and what styles are considered modern, because the critique of all arts is merely opinion. The definition for modern in a dictionary is anything within the present. When discussing music the essay emphasized that modern music has other qualities than newness alone. To be considered modern music, it needs to alter in a varying degree from the traditions in material and in the style; it departs from previous conventions. In much of the essay, it is shown that modern music often experiences opposition. In the past, and even still the present, society and the music world initially reject modern music. In the essay music is described as a living language. When modern music is born it can also be considered as new way of expressing a new language. Music evolves just as language does. In the context of music, the grammar used in modern music is its harmony, melody, and rhythm that break all rules. Modern music uses foreign words and expressions that portray the ever-changing environment. There are many styles of music today that can fit the description of modern music. New Age, which often uses sounds of nature to create a melody, clearly has an original style. Hip-hop music is a fairly new form of expression, and when it first began it was rejected and misunderstood by the public. More recent, as it has become more accepted in society and the pace of rhythmic change is quickly altering, for the demand of the listeners. The style of jazz music has also changed a great deal compared to when first born. I feel that modern Jazz as opposed to old jazz is a good example of a new expression of a society in which we live. Lastly, techno, which is a fairly n...

International Business Promotion Research Paper

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Nursing Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

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Opportunities & Threats in Gold & Oil Investments Research Paper

Opportunities & Threats in Gold & Oil Investments - Research Paper Example According to the research findings with the ever increasing uncertainties regarding the overall global economic and fiscal outlook, the investment strategies have also experienced some major changes. It is actually belief and confidence of the people that changes as the time and situation changes. As a result, the real value of the investment changes with the perception of the people. The real worth or substance remains the same, however, the other party to the transaction perceives it to be either on a higher side, lower side or at a stable level. In short, the substance of the investment remains the same but what actually changes is the worth of that investment in the eyes of other person as per his/her perception, belief and confidence. The change in the perception of the people leads to the change in the worth of the investment as a result the investors actually face a risk that their investments can experience significant fluctuations associated with the unpredictable behavior o f the people. Over the years, there have been different patterns and trends that represent the psyche of the people regarding the riskiness of different types of investments. From bonds to stocks, commodities to metals, currencies to real estates, each different class has different sorts of risks associated with it. The risk appetite of individual investors also varies which in turn contributes significantly in the variation of the values of the investments. (Fabozzi, Gupta & Markowitz, 2002). The above mentioned asset classes can be broadly split into two categories namely as paper money investment and real substance based investment. For instance, currencies, bonds, stocks are considered as paper money as the investor ultimately do not acquire a physical substance or matter when he or she purchases investment. For example, by buying some shares of a company cannot actually allow a common stockholder towards entitling a specific asset of the company. Similarly the bonds or other pa per money instruments do not allow entitlement to the investors on a particular asset of the issuer of that instrument. On the other hand, the non-paper money instruments provide a possession of the investment in the form of goods, property or any other physical substance. The term â€Å"physical delivery† for these kinds of investments is vastly associated as they entitle the investor for the taking the actual physical delivery of the form of their goods (Shefrin & Statman, 2000). For instance, in case of metals, gold, silver or platinum, the physical delivery is possible and the investor can keep the possession of the metals with himself. Similarly, in case of real estate property, the investor can actually take the possession of a particular property after transferring the property documents. The above two categories of investments have some specific risks associated with them due to which the non-paper money based investments are considered as safe heavens for the investo rs as the investor enjoys the possession of those investments and later on can make the use of those goods for his/her personal needs unlike paper money investments which are intended to be returned to other investors or the issuers of those investments because they cannot be used for personal needs. On the basis of usage or consumption as well as holding the possession of those investments, this particular assignment deals with the opportunities and threats that rest with the investments that are movable in nature (FinanceSpain, 2012). Particularly the investment in gold and oil are highlighted in the discussion. Gold is a precious metal which is the most highly recognized and consumed metal especially used in the jewelry and ornaments. Oil is the commodity which is used as an energy resource for varieties of different purposes. Both of these investment classes have distinct opportunities and threats which are discussed separately in further sections. The first section emphasizes o n the opportunities

Colgate-Palmolive PEST and Porters 5 Analysis

Colgate-Palmolive PEST and Porters 5 Analysis Jump to: PEST Analysis of Colgate |Â  Porters 5 Forces Analysis of Colgate Introduction Companies seeking to gain a competitive advantage in todays environment, where competition is very tough where technological improvement have pushed major companies forward are in need of a strategy development process. By using several capabilities like creativity and originality, companies can come up with a number of options and possibilities that can be used while building a strong strategic plan. Today, Companies should develop the sense of controlling and monitoring of processes, nothing should be left at random, because important losses can incurred. Many thinkers have argued that a strong strategy should consider three important factors (3C): Customers, Competencies and Competition. To begin with customers, companies should be able to distinguish between existing customers and potential customers; in addition, they have to understand customers needs for a better profitability. Competencies are perhaps the most important tool in this chain, it can raise the companys stock index or lead it to bankruptcy, and its by recognizing multi-skilled peopleÂÂ  trained and capable in a large variety of skills or activities that companies can carry on the adventure. Finally, competition is no longer a concept to be defined or explained, its becoming a double-edged sword for companies in a world where the number of firms is growing exponentially. Analysis of the areas cited above is interconnected. Who you select as your target group will have consequences on capabilities you require, which will have an impact on what the competition policy which will pressure who you choose as your target group.ÂÂ   Furthermore, a well structured strategic analysis will induce to brighter more significant goals, and a more safe future as companies are better aware of possible threats that may happen. They may be also known as (External Environmental analysis), its may be seen as the connection between going in the right track and making the appropriate decisions, a kind of trade-off established by the company. Its through strategic analysis that organizations are capable of encouraging funders for future perspectives. Funders are more likely to go for donations or loans, in case of strategic analysis environment, to enlarge the gap between the organization and its competitors. In the other hand, not considering at least a little amount of strategic analysis means losing opportunities called also (opportunity cost). A left behind status can be reached in case of ignoring strategic analysis. BNET Business Dictionary defines the strategic analysis as the way of conducting researches on the external environment or business environment where the organization performs and on the organization in the purpose of drawing a strategy. In the other hand, Professor Les Worrall thinks that strategic analysis is a fair understanding of organization surrounding, it takes into consideration the interrelation between the firm and its environment to improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness, by increasing the organizations capacity to deploy and redeploy its resources intelligently. Many studies have been conducted in this field, they may have suggested different definitions of strategic analysis but three important characteristics are commonly linked with it: Identification and evaluation of important data to strategy elaboration. Recognition of both external and internal environment to be considered. Multiple analytical methods that can be used in the analysis. Examples of analytical methods used in strategic analysis include: Value chain analysis Four corners analysis Early warning scans War gaming PEST analysis and Porters five forces analysis Analytical tools are meant to ensure the sustainability and reliability of the analysis proposed. Analytical methods are worldwide used and understood, they have reached a mature state where every organization can use them to better work However, while dealing with the analytical methods, companies should keep in mind some considerations: The tool or method should be able to answer question that may be raised by the organization. The benefit coming from using any tool or method should be clearly defined and stated. To ensure a successful analysis, organization need to go forward a great understanding of the tool used. The tools proposed are empowered if there is collaboration as input with other people surrounding the company, in addition, time should be allocated to people concerned so they accommodate the analysis. Every member of the organization must be aware that the use of any analysis tool is time and effort consuming, decision-making board and stockholders ,in the implementation phase, should be flexible and provide the necessary to complete the project. The objective of using an analytical tool is to go deeply in the analysis and to ensure a better approach more balanced and methodical. In addition, all analytical tools are using historical data, they rely on past data to better understand futures wants. Moreover, results coming from the analysis should be interpreted with caution or the analysis may lead to an influenced result, due to pressures, which look for a particular strategy. One of the important competencies of an analyst is to understand which tool or technique is most appropriate in the context. Colgate Palmolive Nature of Business Colgate-Palmolive is generating benefits from manufacturing and selling shampoo and toothpaste , 80% and 15% respectively. The remaining is shared between home care products (softeners).Colgate-Palmolive is the leader in the domestic market on the shampoo and the second on the toothpaste.ÂÂ  The battle for market share with competitors is at:ÂÂ   Shampoo with brands such as: Head shoulders / Pantene Toothpaste with brands such as: Signal CPM Company is present in several markets of consumer goods. Indeed its wide product range covers both Personal Care as the Home Care. Colgate-Palmolive operates in the market of Oral Care through Tonigencyl and Colgate toothpaste and Colgate toothbrushes. In addition the Company has a strong presence in the market with shampoo brands:ÂÂ  Cadum, Alert and Palmolive. Colgate History In 1806, Mr. Colgate William, a soap and candle maker, opened a shop where he sold candle and soap and multiple cosmetics in New York under the name William Colgate Company. In the 1840s, the company started to sell energetic bars for uniform weights. In 1857, His son took over,, when his father Samuel Colgate passed away , the company was renamed as Colgate Company under the management of Samuel Colgate, his son. In Milwaukee, B.J. Johnson Company was producing a special and famous soap by mixing only palm and olive, the formula used was developed by B.J. Johnson in 1898. The soap was very popular, thanks to the recipe originality, and took the name of Palm-Olive (Palmolive) Between 1928 and 1953 many changes occurred, they are summarized below: The merging of Peet Brothers with Palmolive to become Palmolive-Peet. Palmolive-Peet bought Colgate company form Samuel Colgate to create the Colgate-Palmolive-Peet Company.(1928) In 1953, the company changed its to the current name Colgate-Palmolive Company. Colgate-Palmolive has been competing with the worlds largest soap and detergent producer for decades. After the World War II, PG had decided to a launch a diversified range of products under the name of TIDE, many consumers turned to this new products when they used to buy Colgate-Palmolive Products. Moreover, the company faced another challenge when PG decided to add Fluoride in the toothpaste an achievement never done before, due to this fact, Colgate-Palmolive lost his first place in the toothpaste market. To compete with Procter and Gamble, CP(Colgate-Palmolive) have used television(new invention at that time)and decided to sponsor some shows so they can regain their market share against PG. In 2006, Colgate-Palmolive has intended to acquire the major part of Toms of Maine, a pioneer in the natural toothpaste maker, for US $100M. Today, Colgate-Palmolive has a number of plants and subsidiaries around the world, more than 200 countries are using Colgate-Palmolive Products. Colgate Palmolive Values Our three fundamental values-Caring, Global Teamwork and Continuous Improvement-are part of everything we do Valuing Colgate People Becoming the Best Place to Work Colgate strategic analysis PEST Analysis: Nowadays, to ensure a sustainable, competitive and successful company, managers and board of executives has to cope and operate within a rigorous macro-environment that is shaped by influences of different factors. These factors can emerge from many sources: The overall economy, population, governmental legislations and regulations, societal values, new technologies. All of these represent relevant factors that can have a gigantic impact on all the decisions the company makes concerning its direction, business model, objectives, strategy and thus, the ability to impact on the companys overall situation. Now that we have understood the importance and the impact that an external environment can have on a businesss situation, its compulsory to sort those factors into categories and assess their importance to the business. After assessing their importance, external factors can be categorized into 4 major assemblies by using the PEST or PESTLE Analysis. (P)olitical Factors The first letter in the acronym refers to Political factors and they are issues that affect the way of doing business. They can be trading policies imposed by the government or the political stability of the country in which business is conducted. Political issues can also be related to taxes and labour laws imposed by the government and labour unions. They can also be regulations directed to maintain a fair competition on honourable basis between rivals in any industry and prevent abusive actions. Moreover, the political factors can also be regulations put by the government to protect the environment in which the company is operating. This type of regulations can for example be linked to pollution issues or standard quality of their products or services that will be directed to their clients. (E)conomical Factors The second letter in the acronym refers to Economical factors and they are subjects related to the overall situation and stage of growth of the economy. These factors need to be taken into consideration for the impact they can have on the operations of a business. Managers need to assess the home economy situation and trends. Furthermore, they need also to keep an eye on changes in taxation of products services. They also need to look at the driving forces of the economy such as the purchasing power of their target market and consumer preferences and also to unemployment and wages levels. If the company is involved in foreign trade, managers have to consider the tariffs and exchange rates as well as the import and export ratios applied in that country. (S)ocio-Cultural Factors The third letter of the acronym refers to Socio-Cultural factors that any company has to consider the point of view of the general public. The publics opinion and attitude toward the companys products is also important because it plays a core role in building the image within the different constituencies. Companies also have to be in permanent contact with the media by writing press releases or opening its doors to build brand image that is known by everybody. Socio-Cultural factors can relate also to issues raised in advertising campaigns and publicity or by participating in major events to show their part of social responsibility. Social factors also include diversity of their work force employed. Companies hire disabled and elderly people to get them integrated within the society. Finally, companies need to respect and take into account ethical issues no to offend any minority in the society. (T)echnological Factors The last letter of the acronym refers to Technological factors. These factors have changed the way businesses operate. By introduction of all these technologies, companies are able to conduct their operations much easily with a better performance. Technology participated in the improvement of many aspects since it was introduced at all levels of the business, from selection process to productivity and research and development. (Jana F. Kuzmicki, 2007) Porters five analysis: Gaining Power of Suppliers One of the five forces which Porter formulated for an organization to look into in order to form a competitive advantage is gaining power of suppliers. The global reach and diverse portfolio of assets attract numerous investors. Colgate-Palmolive and other major competitors are both viewed by investors as home and oral care companies which have considerable positive investment strengths. Most often the comparison is always with PG. Although, Colgate-Palmolive is viewed by many as at par with its competitors, yet, what was lacking in their management is the lack of perceived differentiation which somehow impaired the investment decision-making process. Moreover, even though Colgate-Palmolive has no strategy that is unique or differentiating relative to the other companies, the threat of bargaining power of suppliers is low due to partnership, supply chain management, training, and dependency. Bargaining Power of Customers Customers are the lifeblood of the business. The existence and growth of a business company is dependent on customers. CP (Colgate-Palmolive) is serving globally with 25 million customers a day in over 200, 000 plant around the globe. There is a cohesive loyalty among buyers and sellers of energy in Colgate-Palmolive for several reasons like the attractive incentives and value added, partnering and supply chain management. Moreover, investors and stakeholders expressed their satisfaction on the services offered by the company. Again, this can be reflected on the 2001 case study interview which was recorded verbatim, in which two elements emerged fundamental to the satisfaction of customers technology and its diversified presence. One owns Colgate-Palmolive because of its strong diversified presence and good technology while another one noted that it is because it is cheaper, yet with a high quality of products and high returns over the course of the cycle compared to other major com panies. Moreover, significantly noted were two comments. On one hand, the reasons why many were satisfied with the performance because of its huge asset base, financial and political clout that was why they successfully covered operations in places like China, Russia, and the Middle East. On the other hand, CPs management restructuring that reduced costs focus on profitability, financial discipline and its way for shares repurchase. Threat of New Entrants In the home and oral care industry primarily on the soap and natural products and reserves, the companies management strategy reduced the friction of threat among its new competitors in the business by increasing minimum efficient scales of operations, its cohesive and good status with suppliers/distributors, retaliation tactics, protection of property and establishing a competitive and trustful image to its customers. Moreover, the role of advanced technology set them at par with other entrants in the business. In 2001, technology had differentiated CP from its competitors. Leadership in promising toothpaste from solid to gel technology that delivers new brushing sensations. There reputation was leveraged in order to establish a solid foundation against threats of the new entrants. The leverage of their reputation is build solidly on their total strengths both tangible and intangible like technology, products, adherence to business ethics, code of conduct, and corporate social responsibility that encourages consumers to brand loyalty. Threat of Substitutes The threats of substitutes in which customers switch product references are primarily caused by several external and internal factors. One of the factors in which customers tend to switch their preferences is the price cost of a product. If a product raises its cost value, customers may have a second thought of sticking into as his/her preference; therefore, the tendency is that the shift and switch of preference occurred. Most often, in this kind of business like marketing an energy reserves, the threat of substitution of customers come in the instability of a price. The price cost of a product if it increases due to social and political factors, it stand to be a threat for the company. However, the Colgate-Palmolive good strategy like increasing switching costs, alliances, customer surveys to learn about their preferences, accentuated differences and the entrance of substitute market, these reduced the threat of substitutes. Competitive Rivalry between existing players In any business price competition is significant because it attracts customers, the less you price a product, the more customers you gain, yet, in competitive rivalry, in order to reduce it, avoidance to price competition is necessary in which the Colgate-Palmolive observed. Their competition is not on price but on how to manage strategy that would best leverage a product. CP uses different strategies to market their product and be competitive. Their differentiation and different segmentation of their products set an edge for them, moreover, their healthy communication with competitors contribute positively to the competition. The competition should not be taken personally but a matter of business and professional work. Colgate-Palmolive has a competitive advantage not only due to the facts mentioned above but on the ability of managing the whole process of the business. Good financial management and diversified course of business bring them enormous customers and stakeholders.

Benvolio vs. Mercutio in Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet :: William Shakespeare

It was a hot summer day in the town square of Verona when the two households came face to face, both feeling and showing their emnity. In the play of Romeo and Juliet, written by Shakespeare, Tybalt wishes to fight Romeo and since Romeo is refusing to battle him, Mercutio steps up and takes Romeo's place. Benvolio is, like always, begging and pleading for them to keep the peace. All through the tale, Romeo's best friends, Benvolio and Mercutio, try to help Romeo with their own particular methods. Surprisingly, there are no characters that differ from each other more than Benvolio and Mercutio. Although Benvolio and Mercutio are alike because they are both very loyal to Romeo, they are different because Benvolio is calm, level-headed, and honest and Mercutio tends to be a sarcastic, wild person who follows his emotions more than his common sense. Mercutio and Benvolio express loyalty and companionship toward Romeo. Mercutio battles Tybalt in order to defend Romeo's honor, when Romeo has already made it clear that he doesn't want anyone to fight. Mercutio bravely faces the furious Tybalt and says "O calm, dishonorable, vile submission! Tybalt you rat-catcher will you walk?" (Scene Five). Benvolio also shows he is faithful to Romeo when he devises the brilliant plan of crashing the Capulet's ball, in an attempt to cure his friend Romeo's depression. When he says "... Supper is done, and we shall come too late." (Scene Two), he's convincing Romeo to go to the ball to have some fun or else it'll be too late and he'll stay heart broken. Mercutio and Benvolio are different because Mercutio is a wild person that likes to pick fights even though they aren't "his" battles. When Tybalt is looking for Romeo, Mercutio steps up and declares "... Here is my fiddlestick, here's that shall make you dance." (Scene Five), thus making Tybalt even angrier and causing a fight. You can see Benvolio is a peace-keeping person especially when he states "I do but keep the peace: put up thy sword..." (Scene One). He says this mainly because he doesn't want anyone to get hurt or get in trouble with the law. Although Mercutio and Benvolio are really close to being antithesis of one another, they are also similar because they are both incredibly loyal and faithful to Romeo. Though they are an oddly matched pair, they somehow combine to add their own unique flavors to Romeo and Juliet.