Dell's Product Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Dell's Product Policy - Essay Example This translates to their system having low cash conversion cycle hence cash is generated steadily. However, the system has its limitations. The low inventory held means shortage is a possibility in cases where manufacturers delay in supplying the PC chips, like in 1996. The very high dependence on on-time component supply by manufacturers poses a major threat to steady supply. In addition, changes in product means an overhaul in processes which is an expensive venture. This means that working capital can be funded through the management of inventory and cash flow cuts (Ruback & Sesia 2003). Working capital is the measure of efficiency and liquidity in a company. To obtain the computation, one needs to subtract current liabilities from the firm’s current assets. Inventory process For comparison, we assume that the cost of goods sold by the competitors remains constant. We observe that the carrying costs only depend on the DSI (Ruback & Sesia 2003). For 1995, the cost of sales = $2737, equivalent to a daily COS of 2737/365= $7.5% We make a comparison with the highest observed DSI of the competitor, Compaq, 73. Hence the inventory Compaq holds over dell is (73-32)*75=$307.5 m This means that for Compaq to acquire new goods, it has to sell its old inventory. Since new technology is 30% cheaper, Compaq incurs and an opportunity loss, given by 0.3*307.5=$92.25m Cash funding This provides a simple way for the company to grow its assets in the short term without borrowing long term. Assume we want to grow the cash by 52% for 1996 internally. The total assets denoted TA for 1995 is computed as follows: TA (1995) =1594-484=1110. As a fraction of sales, 1110/3475=0.3194 or 31.94%. Assuming that they want to hold this for 1996, the required increase in the total assets without long term investment is given by 0.3194*0.52*3475=579.37m. This should be done without the increasing account payables (as this is an external means). This means that the cumulative liabilities should be computed excluding these payables, i.e. for CL (cumulative liabilities) for 1995=1594-403 and for 1996=2184-466. The change in current assets not factoring in accounts payable is the difference in the two values, yielding a value $491m. Assuming the company adopts the same strategy of maintaining the profit generated, the net profit to sales ratio should remain constant. This value computed as 149/3475=0.0429 or 4.29%. We can determine the cash flow from net profit for 1996 by holding the sales value constant, computed as shown, .0429*1.52*3475=$226.89m, surpassing the debt level as the total cash inflow which is the sum of the net profit and the increase in liabilities against the cash outflow required for 1996 Fund growth for 1997 The increase in total assets, TA for 1996, 2148-591=1557 as ratio of sales, 1557/5296=0.294 or 29.4 %.Assuming a growth of 50% is desired, the increase in 1997 is given by 0.294*0.5*5296=778.51m. For cumulative liabilities, CA as a ratio of th e sales value is given as (2148-466)/5296=0.316 or 31.6%. Hence the cash flow from the change in the current assets in 1997 is given by 2523-(2148-466) =841m. The net profit as a ratio of sales in1996 =272/5296 = 0.0514 or 5.14%. Hence the cash flow from operating profit for 1997 is given as 0.0514*1.5*5296=408.32m.This means that Dell Corporation has the ability to fund itself in 1997 internally without external injection of capital. (Ruback & Sesia 2003) Aventis

Discussing The Process Of Operations Management Information Technology Essay

Discussing The Process Of Operations Management Information Technology Essay Operations management is a process of managing resources required for production and deliverance of the products and services. Its basic objective is to improve the amount of value-added activities in each of the processes. The part of the company that is entrusted with this process is the operations function. As each and every organization produces products they all are bound to have operations function. The people responsible for managing the operation functions resources are known as operations managers. In different type of organizations they may be called by different names like in supermarket they are store manager, etc. This report demonstrates the three operations management techniques which helped the companies improve their business activities and performance. They were Supply Chain Management (SCM) Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Total Quality Management(TQM) In this report the case studies involving the implementation of the above three techniques are explained. The benefits experienced by the companies and any changes they could have made to maximize them are also mentioned. Supply Chain Management (SCM): Supply chain management consists of coordinating the material and information flow, and the finances between the supplier, manufacturer and the consumer. Its main objective is inventory reduction assuming that when products are needed they are available. The supply networks are made up of Supplier-buyer relationship. The flow of Supply chain management flows can be divided into three parts: The product The informational flow The financial flow The behavior of the supply chain is dynamic and is known as bullwhip effect. This means that if there are small changes happening at the end of the supply chain they start causing changes at the start of the supply chain. The reduction of the bullwhip effect can be achieved by: Efficiently distributing the information by connecting all the operations to the demand source. Establishing a similar decision making process along the entire supply chain. Increasing the efficiency of the operations by eliminating sources of waste. Supplier quality management The basic need of any company from their suppliers is the deliverance of good quality products on right time. The best practice of improving the quality of product is by improving the quality of raw materials supplied by suppliers. SQM can be implemented by following the practices mentioned below: Estimating and finding the cost incurred due to poor supplier quality: This is also known as COPQ (Cost of poor quality). The COPQ can be calculated from the following: The costs incurred due to scrapping and reworking. The shutdown of our assembly line due to defective products. The costs of shipping back the defective products to suppliers and the warranty costs. Developing a system for recovering our costs: In this, the suppliers are charged back for supplying poor quality products. Here, we must include not only the material costs but also the non-material costs like packaging defective products, their transportation costs, etc. Auditing and rating of suppliers: This is the most effective way of checking whether our suppliers are conforming to our mentioned processes, quality systems, transporting, etc. It can be done once every year for all of our suppliers. The advantages gained by companies by having effective supply chain are: They have low maintenance and real costs. They can make delivery of better value and have repeat of business with the customers. They can easily remove waste from the process. They get more turnover profits and can make long term plans for the future. Summary of Case study for Supplying fast fashion: This case study best demonstrates how the garment retailing business is carried out in this dane age.It shows how the different fashion ideas which would not have been even considered by a retail store can become must-have in a short period. The working of top retail brands like HM, Zara and Benetton is been explained. It explains the quicker-picker-upper fashion concept which has made Zara, HM todays leading retailers. Reasons: To achieve this science of fast fashion product development cycles need to compress, which can be done through effective supply chain management. The retail brands believed that the only way they can keep stocks to a minimum while meeting the customers demand quickly and flexibly was through the integration of processes along the supply chain All the top 3 brands have their supply chain divided in four stages Designing of garments Manufacturing Distribution to retail outlets Retail operations Designing: Designing is of extreme importance in retailing market. The stores are supposed to deliver high and fast fashion at an inexpensive cost not cheap cost. H M designing -It is carried out by team of 100 designers in Stockholm who operate with group of 50 pattern designers, about 100 buyers and many budget controllers. Zara designing: Here, the design idea is derived from three different sources-the designers, market analysts and the buyers who order consignments to suppliers. The design stage for Zara is divided in three sections: Women, men and children chlothes.The prototype designs are created and tried out by placing all the three sources (designers, market analysts and buyers) in small workshops. The market analysts capture the new happenings in the fashion market as they are always in contact with the retail stores. This way Zaras retail stores are at the start of the supply chain and not at the end. Distribution: The investment costs incurred by Zara and Benetton in automating their warehouses is very high as they want them to be near production centres which could store, pack and develop independent orders for the network of retail stores around the globe. Currently, Zara only uses half of its warehousing capacity while Benetton is still exploring the possibility of using RFID tags for tracking garments. The distribution process at HM is still routine. The stock management is carried out internally and physical distribution is sub-contracted. In HM, goods are routed to retail site from production site through a transit terminal in Hamburg owned by the HM itself. These goods are then inspected and stored in a centralized stock room known as call-off warehouse where stores are replenished on each item level depending on what is sold. Manufacturing: Manufacturing costs can be significantly reduced if there are reduced labor costs. Therefore, most of the Benettons manufacturing operations are carried out in Asia, North Africa and Eastern Europe. The expensive technological operations are carried out in privately owned Benettons sites whereas all the labor intensive operations would be carried out by smaller contractors. The central Benetton facility decides upon how much and what is to be produced by non-Italian networks. Similar is the case with HM, whose 50% production is carried out in Asia. They have 21 offices all over the world which co-ordinate the supplier activities. The healthy relation maintained between suppliers and production offices allows them to buy fabric early. The actual cutting and dyeing of the garments carried out at later stage. This helps in delaying placement of an order, thereby reducing risk of purchasing wrong items. Zara owns much of its manufacturing capabilities which it can manipulate to meet the customer demands at short response. Almost 50% of Zaras productions, most of which are expensive operations (cutting, dyeing) are carried out in plants owned by Zara in Spain and similar to Benetton the labor intensive operations are sub-letted to contractors. Volume flexibility is maintained by Zara and their sub-contractors using a single shift system. Retail: This working is almost similar between all stores.HM stores have average size of 1300 sq.m and are owned and managed by themselves. Zara stores are smaller compared to HM with 800 sq.m size. The Benetton shops on the other hand are 1300-1500 sq.m.Previously the stores used to be run by third parties as small shops. Though there is difference in size they all have similar aim of providing the customer with comfortable atmosphere to make them feel at home and allow them to buy what they want. Benefits: The retail brands were able to achieve a high level of integration using supply chain management. This allows them to quickly react to customers demand and be flexible with minimum stocks posssible.They were able to find the correct balance between fashion, price and quality(Each brand has their own sense of fashion, price and quality).The average supply lead time achieved was about3 weeks 6 months. Of these 3 brands, Zara has achieved shortest lead times called as catwalk to rack time which is as small as 15 days. This means that not a single garment in Zara store is older than two weeks. The designs are also not repeated and are produced in small batches. This ultimately forces customers to avoid delaying their purchase and visit the store frequently lead to increased profits. Effective Supply Chain Management has helped each of the company to become a global brand image in their own way while keeping their production costs low. Suggestions: In the manufacturing stage where the raw materials are supplied by different suppliers a star rating system can be used. In this procedure a 3 star is given to that supplier which has previous record of success on supply factors set by company itself. On contrary, no stars are given to them with whom company has had certain problems before. We can do this as shown in supplier calculation table below: Value can be added to the retail industry by personalizing the needs of customer and improving customer service by using RFID technology. To automate the supply chain RFID can be used. This will help in labor reduction which accounts for about 50-80% of distribution costs. The benefits gained by implementation of RFID through supply chain can be clearly explained by figure given below: (Tajima M 2007) RFID can prove extremely useful in retail industry to control inventory efficiency and also as a theft protection service. (Michael K, McCathie L) ERP The most common and important problem involved in operations management is managing the vast amounts of data while performing it. It is extremely important that the information of each and every function done spread among the entire organization. This is what will enable them to make crucial decisions like when the activity to be done, by whom is and what is the capacity required. ERP-Enterprise Resource Planning is used to perform all the above said activities and overcome the problems arriving from them. ERP is an intelligent IT system which integrates all parts and functions of an organization to plan and control activities required for operations management. This integration also allows for transparency among all parts of organization. ERP is a complex and difficult system to implement as it is basically designed to solve problems involving fragmentation of information. An ERP system almost forces everyone to forces everyone involved in an organization to change the way they used to do their job. ERP automates the processes involved in all business operations right from taking of an order from the customer, delivering it and the billing process. In ERP, when an order is been taken by the company representative, he has full information of the customer like his credit rating and also the companys. As ERP has a single database system the new order can be accessed by all the departments and when one department is finished with the order it is automatically transferred to the next department by ERP.The location of the order can also be easily tracked using a ERP system. The ERP system make the order processing faster and the customer receive them quickly with fewer errors. The key success factors required for successful ERP implementation are: Top level management support and commitment Clear vision and proper planning Having a Project champion A set time frame to deliver the implementation strategy Project and change management Proper IT infrastructure and selecting the right ERP package Maintaining healthy relationship with the Consultant Risk management The investment required for buying and implementing the software is very high. This can be proved by the survey conducted by the META group on the Total cost of ownership of ERP involving all costs like software, hardware and all staff cost. The highest Total Cost of Ownership was of about $300 million and lowest was $400,000.the average price for user of ERP for period of two years was a massive $53,320.which proves ERP is expensive. Some of the risks involved with ERP implementation are: The chances of under estimating the overall cost are high The training and the expertise level required from the consultants will be more than expected. Under estimation of effort and time required. The project scope can be difficult to control and the need for change management may not be recognized on time 3. A case study conducted at Rolls-Royce investigating the implementation of ERP (SAP): In this case study, the Introduction and background of company along with the changes observed by them after the implementation of ERP is discussed. The risks involved with implementation of SAP are also presented. Reasons For implementation: Rolls-Royce returned back to private sector in 1987 and started acquisition of companies which enabled them to consolidate their position in industrial power .The basic reason for implementing ERP was to sort out centralized database from old legacy MRP2 systems. Before ERP, Rolls-Royce had as many as 1500 systems which were developed internally. The operation of these legacy systems was expensive maintenance was equally difficult. They did not assist for accurate and good decision making as they were unable to provide accurate accessible data. The systems implemented were unable to communicate between individual sites. The tracking of the work in progress between sites was inaccurate and causing inventory problems. The legacy systems were unable to communicate direct with suppliers and customers. (Yahaya Y, Gunasekaran A, Abthorpe M S 2004). Rolls-Royce then decided to outsource its IT department to EDS.This allowed Rolls-Royce to concentrate on its main area of expertise which was developing and manufacturing aero-engines. A team of specialists from EDS-the outsourcing firm was assigned the task of implementing ERP project which also had SAP consultants in their team. The team was well equipped with managers and staff that had crucial knowledge of old legacy systems understanding of cross functional business relationships. Yahaya Y, Gunasekaran A, Abthorpe M S 2004). Although the new systems implemented were better than most of the legacy systems they were not fully appreciated as the older ones. The team decided to overcome this problem by conducting seminars for the staff and explaining them the improvements the new systems have made to company. Training was given to about 10000 people through demonstrations, meetings and presentations. Strategy and direction: For the project, Rolls-Royce required over 100 personal computers and the total cost incurred was two million pounds. The scope and the outline plan for the project were made. A team was allocated to look over actual implementation process. After this a prototype was created and installed. This prototype model was based on Rolls-Royce Allison model. In this stage following activities were carried out: Reviewing preliminary design: Here, strategy for designing and implementation was developed along with BPM (Business process model) Development and customization of the vanilla prototype. Reviewing of implementation and the technical operations. Development of the systems and their conversions before they Go-live. The main implementation stage was divided into two waves. The first wave got delayed by 6 months because They wanted to provide more time for line organizations to prepare and clean up data. To allocate time for pilot testing and system development. To overcome difficulties faced with SAP usage. Wave one-The main objective here was to replace all the old systems. In wave one new manufacturing system like SFDMs were introduced. The pilot project of SAP suggested the end of wave one. Wave second: In this wave the engine assembly was implemented. This wave lasted for one year in duration. The second wave was ended when new systems began showing positive results. Enterprise Resource pilot: This pilot system was a small scale system run for 3 months and number 4 shops was chosen as facility where transmissions and structure operations were centre of attention for company. The reason for this facility selection was its low production capacity of only 280 parts. The pilot system was used to demonstrate processes and procedures for businesses .They were also responsible for defining role for each member and demonstrate how to manage data transfers. Go-live The problems encountered on going live were: They had user authorization issues like passwords, etc The route cards were not there due to which work on shop floor was temporarily halted. Transaction problems were observed and they were corrected by comparing old and new systems. The actual main pat of go-live system was difficult as the shear amount of data to be transferred from legacy systems was huge. To achieve this data was required to be kept in a state of stability for up to 10 weeks. The initial data like the list of suppliers was to be transferred and if any error occurred on old system they were recorded and passed on to the new system.MRP system was used to complete the go-love process which took 2 weeks time. After the go-live stage the old system were kept in view only mode which allowed comparisons to be done between new and old systems. Project risks: This project was involved with all the departments and ha its associated risks. These risks were tried to be overcomed by the ERP implementation team by maintaining a risk register. Some of the risks mentioned on the internet page of Rolls-Royce are: If due to some reason there was no delivery or unavailability of the IT hardware. Possibility of failure while loading the data or setting priorities on ERP. The project would have significant impact on the accounts of the company at the year end. Benefits: The effectiveness of such a large scale IT project is often difficult to understand .The benefits achieved from such a huge project requires at least a year to become visisble.The most immediate and important benefits that was achieved was to make a promise to customer and deliver it on time. This led to improved customer satisfaction and boosts their confidence which would result in increased orders for the future. The ERP system improved the relationship within the supply chain where Electronic communications were used to make transactions easier. The ERP system made communications between all the parts of the business absolutely clear. The Rolls-Royce management gained a better sense of control over number of operations which resulted in continuous improvements. It made possible to have accurate and timely information about their customers, business partners and suppliers. Suggestions: The company for the future can create a large data warehouse. In this the data can be stored centrally and extracted from all different places like historical and external databases. The data can be stored in user friendly format which can be accessible by non-external users. This data warehouse will help in collecting all the new data and merge it with the old data.. The management of EIS (Enterprise Information system) to check its sustainability can be done to maximize the benefits gained from an ERP system. TQM: Quality is the only one of the five operations performance criteria to have its own dedicated chapter in this book. There are two reasons for this. First, in some organizations a separate function is devoted exclusively to the management of quality. Second, quality is a key concern of almost all organizations. High-quality goods and services can give an organization a considerable competitive edge. Good quality reduces the costs of rework, waste, complaints and returns and, most importantly, generates satisfied customers. Some operations managers believe that, in the long run, quality is the most important single factor affecting an organizations performance relative to its competitors. Case Study TQM Summary: Rendall owned Preston graphics plant is located in Vancouver. Before, in March 2000 the plant was bought from Georgetown co-operation. This is a small-scale production plant of precision coated paper required in ink-jet printers. The precise coating was applied by coating machines after which they were cut into coated rods in conversion departments. They were then packed and shipped in small containers. Scenario before Implementation: The main customer of the plant was HP(Hewlett-Packard) and they were the one who pointed out the problems they were facing from the paper supplied to them. They were unable to curl the coated paper at low humidity conditions. This problem was noticed by HP personnel as there was no formal complaint made by Hps customers. The plant then hired a team which resolved the problem in the next 7-8 months. The process started producing in acceptable limits but this was due to the fact that they were only concerned about shipping the product within the specification limits. They had a culture which did not care about how close they were to the specification limits and eventually not be able to meet them. This resulted in the plant making loss of $2 million in a year even though they had buoyant sales. This was mainly due to lower productivity and high scrap and rework. To overcome them the management team hastily made a number of changes like increasing the speed of operation line to improve productivity. But still the process charts given by HP showed that the plant was not capable enough to satisfy their need for the next 3 generations. The plant was then bought by Rendall which was not happy with the plants continuing losses and the important customers dissatisfaction (HP).The plant continued to have productivity and quality problems. The full extent of the problem was made visible to the Preston quality manager by the HP engineer in a meeting at Chicago. They clearly explained him the process control charts they had which were given to them by Preston themselves. They convinced the Preston manager that people at Preston were not giving importance to the data showed by process control charts otherwise they would have realized their quality problems. The quality manager then decided to bring the plant under control. He along with his team then reviewed the decisions they made right from the start when the curl problem appeared and they adjusted the process. The team used a set of shut-down rules which enabled the operations to halt a line if they thought the product they were making was of inferior quality. This resulted in throwing away almost 64 large size rolls and about $10000 worth of scrapped product. The guidelines for shut down procedure were that they had to get rid of the defect and when that is done they are allowed to operate. This might cause the managers to tell the workers to improve their productivity but they would harshly criticize the workers if they were violating the quality process procedures. The two more change they implemented were: Daily reviewing of the control chart data The control chart data was then debated by the staff that was kept away from production while doing this. There was uncertainty among quite a few due to no production but it was vital as it got all the 3 shift operators talking about quality issues and control chart data. This caused a positive atmosphere among the workers and boosted the morale of the shop floor team. It led to remarkable improvements on quality front and improved efficiency of plant. The further progressive action taken in quality management by the plant was the implementation of Statistical process control. Then they did zero-based assessment to bring the costs down by reducing labor costs. They began downsizing process. The less number in workforce means that they should produce good quality paper in the first place to avoid inspection process. The plant workforce then decided to develop a portfolio for the ideas of new product which would boost their confidence. The most significant idea was of protowrap in which the new print wrap was able to be repulped. Benefits: Preston Company made profits after Christmas of 2000 after a period of 2 years. Moreover, they had made such a progress that they were beginning to get noticed at corporate level. This caused HP (Hewlett-Packard) to ask them to bid for their new product. It had continuous three months of profits and they also received the new contract from HP. The plants new quality procedures and principles allowed them to produce products more economically. The most significant benefit Preston received by implementing TQM was that they were able to reverse the decision made by Rendall-their owners to shut them down. The plant not only survived but flourished due to implementation of Quality based principles. Suggestions: Implementing QMS(Quality Management System) having corrective actions: This will be required when we encounter problems relating non-conformance of our supplier products. After faced with the problem, we must be able to locate the problem and find its root cause with immediate effect. This is done by (CAPA) corrective action items. The system implemented should be such that it should itself assess the cost of quality and try to initiate the recovery cost process with the supplier. Involving suppliers in quality systems: Suppliers should be encouraged to implement quality systems within their company so that they can easily reach the quality of products required and also save paying the recovering costs. (Metric Stream, 2010)

The Tormented Genius of Edgar Allan Poe Essay -- Literary Analysis

It has been said that one cannot be truly great till they have experienced hardship. This, perhaps, is the reason that Edgar Allan Poe is thought to be one of the greatest story tellers in all of history. His life was not sprinkled with tragedy, but completely drowned in it. From the beginning of Poe’s life till the very end, he was, according to The Haunted Man by Phillip Lindsay, â€Å"born to live in nightmares† and that Poe’s life â€Å"might [as] well have been one of [Poe’s] own creations (Lindsay 2).† Death, hardship, and betrayal followed him wherever he travelled, causing him to become a depressed alcoholic along the way. It is widely believed by literary critics that â€Å"had he not been this tortured creature seeking a coffin for a bridal-couch he would not have written the extraordinary and sometimes great tales that he did write (Lindsay 2).† Poe’s traumatic experiences with death, disease, and the people around him helpe d to shape two of his most famous stories: â€Å"The Masque of the Red Death† and â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† In Poe’s story â€Å"The Masque of the Red Death†, the characters cannot escape death, no matter how hard they try, in the same way that Poe and the people he loved could not escape. In the story, the prince Prospero’s kingdom is overwhelmed with â€Å"the red death†, much like Poe’s life was ravaged by tuberculosis. The prince attempts to lock out the disease by hiding away in his castle, avoiding it for several months, only to still be claimed by it at the end, brought in by an unwelcomed guest. Likewise, When Poe’s wife Virginia was in the worst of her sickness, they moved, hiding away in warmer weather with the vain hope that she would somehow survive. The red death is a disease much like tuberculosis in its sy... ....'" Literature Resource Center. Studies in Short Fiction 30.2, 1993. Web. Hutchisson, James M. Poe. Jackson: University of Mississippi, 2005. Print. Kalasky, Ed. Drew. The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe. Vol. 22. Literature Criticism Online. Web. Lawrence, D.H. "The Fall of the House of Usher." Short Story Criticism. Vol. 22. 289-93. Literature Criticism Online. Web. Lindsay, Philip. The Haunted Man; a Portrait of Edgar Allan Poe. New York: Philosophical Library, 1954. Print. May, Charles E. Edgar Allan Po: A Study of the Short Fiction. Vol. 28. New York: Twayne, 1991. Print. Twayne's Studies in Short Fiction Ser. Patterson, R. "Once upon a Midnight Dreary: The Life and Addictions of Edgar Allan Poe." CMAJ.JAMC. 15 Oct. 1992. Web. Poe, Edgar Allan, and Philip Van Doren Stern. The Portable Edgar Allan Poe. New York: Penguin, 1973. Print.

Research paper in Mcdonald’s Philippines Essay

I. Executive Summary Company McDonald’s Philippines is a subsidiary of the Filipino-owned Golden Arches Development Corporation. The first Filipino McDonald’s to open for business was in the Morayta university districts in Manila during 1981. These days McDonald’s is operating over 150 restaurants throughout the islands of the  Philippines. Being a 100% Filipino-owned franchise allows McDonald’s Philippines to be more agile and take quicker actions, making them an even more competitive force in the Filipino fast-food market. McDonald’s in the Philippines is owned by Filipino entrepreneur George Yang brought the brand to the country in 1981 after several attempts. In the first few attempts, Yang was turned down by the heads of McDonald’s in the US saying that the Philippines was in the radar (for expansion) but was not yet a priority. Challenge Accurate and timely demographic data is difficult to obtain in western economies; the ability to collect this precise data is even further strained when the survey is of a developing country. With a land area of 300,000 km2 spread over 7000 islands and a domestic population of nearly 100 million people, timely and accurate demographic data requires in-depth, thorough, but quick market surveying. McDonald’s Philippines has been operating in an incredibly competitive market for over 25 years. Domestic competition from the leading local fast-food provider Jollibee and common international rival KFC have created an environment in which McDonald’s must move swiftly and efficiently in order to gain market share and increase profitability. In order to expand effectively, McDonald’s needs to better understand where there are market gaps that can be filled. Additionally, McDonald’s needs to have the most up to date data to determine if current stores are cannibaliz ing each other’s trade area. To achieve this McDonald’s management will need detailed, segmented demographic data of the Philippines overlaid with both theirs and competitors’ restaurant locations. II. Situation Analysis 1. Product Offering They serve the typical consumer wants like burgers, spaghetti, fries, floats, ice cream, rice and chicken meals. 2. Market Analysis a. Vision, Mission, and Values. Vision: â€Å"Una sa Pamilyang Pinoy†. First to respond to the fast changing needs of the Filipino family. First choice when it comes to food and dining experience. First mention as the ideal employer and socially responsible company. First to respond to the changing lifestyle of the Filipino family. Mission: To serve the Filipino community by providing great-tasting food and the most relevant customer delight experience. Values: Customer-Driven: Conscious and deliberate action to exceed the needs and requirements both internal and external customers; Malasakit: Concern for the customer, employees, co-workers, business partners, community and company. Integrity: Being upright in character and action, upholding the standards of one’s profession and position through honesty, responsibility, and trust Teamwork: Working as ONE towards achieving a common goal Excellence: Day to day drive to deliver THE BEST results b. Target Market SEGMENTING BY AGE 1. School-Age Children †¢ From toddler to early grade school. 2. Tweens (8-12) †¢ Biggest influencer over family purchases. 3. Generation Y or Millenials (13-19) †¢ Commonly referred to as teens or young adult. 3. Generation X †¢ Born between 1966 and 1981. †¢ Family-oriented, well educated, and optimistic. Has a stable career, ready to settle down 4. Baby Boomers †¢ Born between 1946 and 1965. †¢ Lucrative segment. Diverse segment that generally tends to value health and quality of life. 5. Seniors †¢ Also called the gray or silver market. Elder people, retirees, etc. c. Market Trends Green Dining is a trend that we would like to encourage, the mechanics are the customers get the option on bringing their own container for drinks, utensils, and bags for take out, this will deduct a corresponding amount to their bill. With this trend we hope to reduce the waste produced by the food chains and as well as the expenses. The uniqueness of our happy meal box to attract many kids to buy collectible toys. d. Market Growth Rate McDonald’s Philippines has a current market share of 14% but with some aggressive marketing scheme and a little bit of adjustments we estimate that the market shares of McDonald’s Philippines will boost from 14% to 25% within the following years. Competition SWOT Analysis Strengths Weaknesses Affordable products Good location Excellent customer service Service crew punctuality Quality of food Customer assessment Opportunities Threats Unique product offerings Media exposure Effective promotion schemes Customer Safety Health conscious consumers Environmentalists h. PEST Analysis Political Factors Economic Factors The change of tax rates in the country The raise of minimum wage rates Improper allocation of tax funds Inflation rate Unemployment rate Employment rate Socio-cultural Factors Technological Factors Consumer behavior Internet Social Media i. Market Profitability There are certain factors that affect market profitability, first are Buyer Power. We can safely say that the products of McDonald’s are normal goods, so when the buyer’s income increases, their purchases of McDonald’s food products will also increase. Next we have the Supplier Power if we were to purchase raw materials in bulk then we could obtain a trade discount, helping us decrease our expenses and lower the prices of our products,  making it more affordable to the consumers. Third we have Barriers to Entry; we can decrease the number of competitors by being more efficient in our production, like what I have stated earlier regarding the trade discount. This is one way to be efficient and if the company were to develop innovative products or improve the quality of their product and services, then it would be hard for another firm to enter the market. j. Industry Cost Structure Firm Infrastructure: Market Strategy, Business Strategy Human Resource Management: Product Development, Staff recruitment and training Procurement: Equipment, Raw materials Inbound Logistics: -Pricing -Transportation -Fuel Operations: -Storage maintenance -Production of food and beverages -Sanitation of facilities Outbound Logistics: -Delivery -Drive through Sales and Marketing: -Promos -Discounts -Events Service: -Online delivery -Feedbacks form consumers through social media k. Distribution Channels Our other means of selling the product is through direct selling in events like concerts, carnivals, festivals, etc. Exclusive Distribution and we also see the possibility of putting up McDonald’s food trucks at areas where McDonald’s is unavailable to see the possibility of putting up a restaurant in those areas depending on the sales and revenues generated. l. Key Success Factors Our other means of selling the product is through direct selling in events like concerts, carnivals, festivals, etc. We also see the possibility of putting up McDonald’s food trucks at areas where McDonald’s is unavailable to see the possibility of putting up a restaurant in those areas depending on the sales and revenues generated. m. Marketing Mix Strategy (4p’s) After analyzing the market, finding the key factor, target segment and understanding the market demand, every company needs to come up with an offers or such type of plan, that speed up the growth of the company. For which McDonalds uses 5p’s of marketing mix which are as follows: 1. Product 2. Place 3. Price 4. Promotion 1. Product: Products include that, how the company should design, manufacture the product so that it enhance the customer experience? Product is the physical product or services offered by the company to its customers. McDonalds includes certain aspects of its product such as packaging, desirability, looks, etc. This consists of both tangible and non-tangible aspects of the product and services. And it has purposely kept its product depth and product width limited. McDonalds continuously innovates its products according to the changing preferences and tastes of its customers. The recent example is the introduction of the Mc Spicy Chicken burger and latest introduction of chicken style burger. McDonald’s serves the world some of its favorite food like the Big Mac, Big n’ Tasty, Quarter Pounder with Cheese, Cheeseburger, French Fries, Egg McMuffin, Apple Pie and Sundae. This is what we are famous for, globally and locally. In the Philippines, we are also happy to serve local favorites like  Chicken McDo, Burger McDo and McSpaghetti. These favorites were specially made to cater to the unique Filipino p alate. 2. Place: The place consists of distribution channels and outlets of the company. They used to franchise McDonalds near Jollibee food chain so that there is a competition between two food chains. Usually they put it up near universities and inside the mal and near vacation hotspots. Now McDonalds have also started offering internet facilities at their outlets, along with music system through computers, not the music but the music which preferred by young generation in order to attract them. 3. Price: They released new strategy of buying products for the consumers. They called it the â€Å"BFF BURGER BUNDLES† and â€Å"BFFCHICKENBUNDLES† . 4. Promotion: Setting The Promotion Mix An advertisement is targeted to attract the masses it reaches to large number of people at a time. Advertising is one of the most important tools for promotion which had various ways of advertisement in that advertisement through billboards and media are often used by any of the business enterprise. Consumers mostly perceive goods which are advertised goods, as they assume it is more rightful. Due to distinct features of advertisement McDonalds also hold the hand of advertising. There are three main objectives of advertising for McDonalds are to make people aware of an item, feel positive about it and remember it. The right message has to be communicated to the right people through the right media. McDonalds does its promotion through television commercials, billboards and now they used online advertisement. They use print ads and the television programmes are also an important marketing medium for promotion. III. Marketing Strategies 1. Business Strategy a. Franchise Module As per franchise model of McDonalds Only 15% of the total number of restaurants are owned by the company. The remaining 85% is operated by franchisees. The company follows all the framework of training and monitoring of its franchises to ensure that they achieve good QUALITY SERVICE, CLEANLINESS AND VALUE FOR THE MONEY offered by the company to its customers. b. Product Consistency By developing a sophisticated supplier networked operation and distribution system, the company has been able to achieve consistent product taste and quality across the nations of the world. c. Act like a retailer think like a brand McDonald’s focuses not only on a delivering sales for the immediate present, but also protecting its long term brand reputation. 2. Segmentation, targeting and Positioning McDonald’s uses demographic segmentation strategy with age as the parameter. The main target segments are children into consideration, children are more attracted towards toys and delicious meals including teenagers such their place foe their entertainment and the urban families select McDonald’s on various occasion like birthday party, to treat children. To also for the seniors to enjoy their delicious and yummy burgers. IV. Industrial Analysis a. Threats Of New Entrants Possible competing firms are likely to increase because society nowadays is searching for affordable food. Most of the people today refer to affordable but tasty that can deal with their customer satisfaction, so the rate of new entrants is expected to increase. b. Bargaining Power Of Buyers There is a low bargaining power for the buyers because the company will imply  fix but reasonable pricing. The buyers’ curiosity is surely a great factor in buying rate of the products but, it won’t be a reason for the decreasing chances of the products’ price. The increasing price of the product will vary upon the market demand and as well as the supplies. c. Bargaining Power Of Suppliers Suppliers tend to bargain on the price of the resources needed like, chicken, beef, potatoes, rice etc. This happens when the prices of the commodities goes up, the company tends to increase their products and services, as a result the company’s which they usually supply might switch to a different supplier who offers the product and their services at a lower price. There is a low bargaining power for the suppliers because the resources needed for production are abundantly available in the market. d. Rivalry McDonald’s is one of the most famous fast food chains in the world compared to its local competitors. They are also one of the leading fast food chains that donate a portion of their sales to charity and create creative TVC’s that are family and friend oriented. e. Substitutes There are a lot of substitutes for McDonald’s like Jollibee, Burger king, KFC, and Wendy’s to name a few, but despite the variety of substitutes this is no sign of weakness but a sign of strength. McDonald’s is also adapting to the fast advancement of technology like adapting an online delivery portal and social experiments which most people are fond of. V. Customer Analysis a. Survey b. Profile a. Age: all ages b. Class: A, B and C c. Sex: Both Males and Females d. Education: All levels of education including those who didn’t have an education e. Income: Those with minimum wages and above f. Places: Cities and Provinces VI. Competitor Analysis a. Competitor Profile Tony Tan and his family founded Jollibee with its humble beginnings as an Ice Cream Parlor, which later grew into an emerging global brand. At the heart of its success is a family-oriented approach to personnel management, making Jollibee one of the most admired employers in the region with an Employer of the Year Award from the Personnel Management Association of the Philippines, Best Employer in the Philippines Award from Hewitt Associated and a Top 20 Employer in Asia citation from the Asian Wall Street Journal. Values Customer Focus Excellence Respect for the Individual Teamwork Spirit of Family and Fun Humility to Listen and Learn Honesty and Integrity Frugality Mission â€Å"To serve great tasting food, bringing the joy of eating to everyone†. Source: http://www.jollibee.com.ph/about-us/ b. Competing Product Features Product Feature McDonald’s Jollibee Value Meals Available Everyday Available Monday-Friday Delivery Time Depends on the order Guaranteed 30 minutes Burgers Optional Double Patties Single Patty c. Target Market Section Age: all ages Class: A, B and C Sex: Both Males and Females Education: All levels of education including those who didn’t have an education Income: Those with minimum wages and above Places: Cities and Provinces Filipino Kids ages 3-10 years old; Teens ages 11-21 years old. Can be male/female. Filipino Families – even the senior citizen. Social Classes C, D, and E Looking for budget-friendly or quick meals. Target Audience: The Traditional Family and all communication materials focus on the importance of family values, making Jollibee the number one family fast food chain in the Philippines. d. Positioning strategy Ensuring high traffic needs an emphasis on store location and positioning Jollibee in the minds of the consumer as a place that they would enjoy eating fast food. This entails proper branding and positioning of the service offered. Jollibee also projected itself as world class and not a local brand. The service that is offered should be consistent over all Jollibee stores, however this might be a problem as the division has been slimmed recently and resources might be stretched too far. e. Marketing Mix Strategy Product- they continue to innovate their products which are the rice meals and strengthen its weaknesses to ensure that their clients will be satisfied with their products and continue buying it. They try to make price bundling. Place- they locate their stores near places where it tends to be crowded with people, granting them accessibility to their food chains, they also put up restaurants near public areas like churches, bus stations, hospitals, parks, etc. Just like in SM-Dasmarinas they have 3 branches of Jollibee’s, every mall has Jollibee like hypermarkets, supermarkets and near plaza’s. Price- they try to price their products as low as possible, they also provided a value meal that can go head to head with the value meal offered by McDonald’s. They also started selling their products in ala Carte just like McDonald’s Promotions- Jollibee does its best to hire artists that are currently in demand like Julia baretto, Sarah Geronimo, Carmina Villaruel, etc. They also mix it up with some real life stories to give inspiration to their viewers casting regular people to make it look more legitimate. Consumer Promotion pull promotional activities designated to encourage demand by end like Banded/bundled packs, Continuity Program, introductory Discount Coupons, Internet Advertising like sky scrapers, sponsorship ads. f. Differential Advantage Analysis The advantage of Jollibee over McDonald’s is first; it’s a Filipino Brand. Which means the very core values of Jollibee is whatever the core values of a regular Filipino, like Family. Another would be taste, since it is a local brand; there is no need to localize it, making their products stays as it is. Whatever they are doing, they are doing it right.

Housing Problems Essay

1 Population growth and urban problem in Mumbai, India According to G.Tyler(1994), the more poor people move from rural to urban area the more poverty is becoming urbanized. A lot of cities have damage because of the extreme poverty and social and environment in stead of being centers of commerce and industry. In this article I will discuss the problem of slum clearance in Mumbai, India. I am interested in poor people in urban area. First I will refer about population growth which is related to urban problem. Second, I suggest that slum clearance is not good enough for solving the problem. Third, as a conclusion, I suggest that India government should keep providing various kinds of social services to needed people. Population growth is related to urban problem. According to Tyler (1994),at least 1 billion people -18% of the world’s population-live in the crowded slums of inner cities and in the vast, mostly illegal squatter settlements or shantytowns that ring the outskirts of most cities in LDCs(Less Developed Country)(bookÃâ€"@,p.26). I agree with Tyler’s explanation. India government has done slum clearance since early 70s when the Slum clearance Act was passed the Mumbai city (artic.Ãâ€"@,para.2). In the name of beautification India government did renewal the city. India government has a vision to develop her country like Singapore. I think the slum clearance is very strict for the poor people and the policy does not work well. Because slum clearance only makes other squatted area. People have no way with dwelling in bad habitat environment. In my opinion this is also an ethical issue because people have the rights to live. I believe everyone has the rights to live even they live in slum. Unfortunately, poor people are r egarded as a part of bad environment. So the real problems are in the human rights and the government policy. India Government should face with the roots of problem and provide some policy. So they should keep provide various kinds of social services for needed people. Some private organizations provide health care program and family planning. One of the organization has maternal and child healthcare program. To save poor people they should focus on each person who is involved in serious conditions. They have a lot of need. I think such social service and education are very important to fulfill the needs of poor people. They need clean water, foods, housing etc. So I suggest that India government should keep welcoming NGO from foreign countries and support their activity. As a conclusion, Population growth is related to urban problem. Slum clearance is not enough for solution of the problem. India government should keep providing various kinds of social services for needed people. To provide social service to those area is a kind of investigation to children for the future. I believe when people change, nation change. This issue should be developed to the quality of life of poor people in slum area. 2 Air Pollution Construction activities that contribute to air pollution include: land clearing, operation of diesel engines, demolition, burning, and working with toxic materials. All construction sites generate high levels of dust (typically from concrete, cement, wood, stone, silica) and this can carry for large distances over a long period of time. Construction dust is classified as PM10 – particulate matter less than 10 microns in diameter, invisible to the naked eye. Research has shown that PM10 penetrate deeply into the lungs and cause a wide range of health problems including respiratory illness, asthma, bronchitis and even cancer. Another major source of PM10 on construction sites comes from the diesel engine exhausts of vehicles and heavy equipment. This is known as diesel particulate matter (DPM) and consists of soot, sulphates and silicates, all of which readily combine with other toxins in the atmosphere, increasing the health risks of particle inhalation. Diesel is also responsible for emissions of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide. Noxious vapours from oils, glues, thinners, paints, treated woods, plastics, cleaners and other hazardous chemicals that are widely used on construction sites, also contribute to air pollution. Water Pollution Sources of water pollution on building sites include: diesel and oil; paint, solvents, cleaners and other harmful chemicals; and construction debris and dirt. When land is cleared it causes soil erosion that leads to silt-bearing run-off and sediment pollution. Silt and soil that runs into natural waterways turns them turbid, which restricts sunlight filtration and destroys aquatic life. Surface water run-off also carries other pollutants from the site, such as diesel and oil, toxic chemicals, and building materials like cement. When these substances get into waterways they poison water life and any animal that drinks from them. Pollutants on construction sites can also soak into the groundwater, a source of human drinking water. Once contaminated, groundwater is much more difficult to treat than surface water. Noise Pollution Construction sites produce a lot of noise, mainly from vehicles, heavy equipment and machinery, but also from people shouting and radios turned up too loud. Excessive noise is not only annoying and distracting, but can lead to hearing loss, high blood pressure, sleep disturbance and extreme stress. Research has shown that high noise levels disturb the natural cycles of animals and reduces their usable habitat.