Publix Supermarkets Essay Example for Free

Publix Supermarkets Essay The factors that are currently involved in successfully competing in the supermarket industry are the same factors that have led to the success of Publix supermarkets. These factors include delivering superior customer value, caring for people, and delivering quality products and service. Publix has gone a step further and developed four success drivers for the company; knowing the business, knowing the product, knowing the customer, and continuously training people. Due to the fact that customers are more knowledgeable and demanding than ever before, change is constant throughout the supermarket industry. As a result, to remain competitive for the next 10 years and beyond, knowing what customers need and being able to meet those needs is be critical. For example, as the population becomes more diverse, there will be a greater demand for various ethnic food products. Similarly, as health and nutrition become more of a national focus, there will be a greater demand for high quality foods that are rich in nutrition, as well as organic products, etc. In addition, technology such as self checkout stations in supermarkets and online shopping capability will continue to change the landscape of the supermarket industry. What are the values of Publix’s organizational culture; employees; customers; shareholders; suppliers; and competitors? Which ones do you consider to be value adders and which do you see as value destroyers as Publix attempts to become the premier quality food retailer in America? Publix has a corporate culture founded on the philosophy of deeply caring for people. Publix employees understand that they are not only in the grocery business, but also in the people business. As a result, taking care of associates, customers, suppliers, and others in the community is a priority. The result of Publix employees continue to please their customers, more customers look to Publix for their shopping needs. At the same time, employees and associates are made to feel valuable through recognition programs, extensive training programs, etc. Publix believes that their employees will not have the ability to make customers happy if they are not happy themselves. By investing in their employees, Publix has created a culture of loyalty, pride, and job satisfaction. By making a commitment to people and creating lasting relationships with employees, customers, suppliers, and the community, Publix has positioned itself as an industry leader. This philosophy and corporate culture play a large role in the success of the company and can only be considered as value adders, not value destroyers. What factors are currently influencing a customer’s decision to shop at Publix? Why have competitors been unable to duplicate such success factors successfully? Publix’s mission statement very clearly states that Publix is passionately focused on customer value. Essentially, the company is just committed to satisfying the needs of its customers better than its competitors. While the competition is able to offer good prices and quality products, Publix stands out in the minds of its customers for providing delightful customer service in every shopping experience. There is no doubt that Publix needs to maintain competitive prices and quality products in order to be successful. However, these are easily duplicated. On the other hand, providing a delightful customer experience comes from the culture of an organization committed to creating superior value. This is what sets Publix apart from its competitors. Analyze how PublixDirect’s processes were used to add value. In hindsight, what should the company have done differently to keep PublixDirect a viable business model? PublixDirect’s business model sought to add value by utilizing a centralized direct fill fulfillment approach. In addition, PublixDirect was limited to a 35-mile radius in South Florida. The company utilized a 140,000 square foot distribution center divided into separate departments, and operated its own bakery dedicated to the online venture. The company utilized the latest technology for order taking and fulfillment, outbound logistics, and payment. PublixDirect was founded on the same philosophy as Publix supermarkets with the goal of delivering superior customer value. The goal was to offer customers a convenient alternative to traditional grocery shopping with prices similar to that of local supermarkets while offering superior product quality and customer service. Unfortunately, PublixDirect was unable to sustain operations. Initially, the business model appeared as though it would be successful, but that proved not to be the case. In hindsight, the company should have done more extensive research about its potential customers, and done more to attract the type of consumers originally targeted which were dual income households with incomes exceeding $75,000. What were the factors that led to the demise of PublixDirect? What does it take to create a successful online operation in the United States? High delivery costs, distribution center costs, and low customer demand were all factors that contributed to the demise of the PublixDirect operation. To date, none of the various online gorecery operations I ntroduced in the United states have been able to turn a profit, and therefore none have been able to sustain operation long term. However, the primary problem seems to be the inability to turn profits due to the high costs associated with distribution centers. In order to create a successful online grocery operation here I n the United States, it would be best to follow the same model that U. K. based Tesco has successfully implemented. Rather than utilize distribution centers for order fulfillment, Tesco uses a â€Å"store-pick† model in which orders placed online are simply picked from store shelves. Delivery costs are added to the cost of the groceries. This model has proven to be successful in the United Kingdom and could very well be successfully implemented here in the United States as well. The warehouse/distribution center model has the potential to be cheaper long-term, but the large up-front costs have proven to be enough to put several online grocers out of business before they were able to turn profits.

The Significance Of Nationalism And Liberalism History Essay

The Significance Of Nationalism And Liberalism History Essay It can be debated as to when the sense of nationalism and liberalism arise in Germany. Historians like Andrina Stiles have turned the focus onto the War of Liberation against Napoleon I, where collective German states participated in driving Napoleon from Central Europe. After the Battle of Leipzig, a large number of young middle and upper class Germans hoped for a united Germany. However, the resistance never became a national uprising, and German seemed divided afterwards. The North tended to look to Prussian for political leadership whilst the South look towards Austria. With these two powerful states, the future and unification of Germany depended greatly upon their interests. The revolutions of 1848 were also another focal point in the rise of nationalism and liberalism. The constitutional changes from the revolt indicated the ability of the groups, where they were able to overthrow their monarchs and establish a liberal parliament. The introduction of the Frankfurt Parliament w as also a success as a liberal parliament was introduced and all of the states contributed, sparking an achievement for nationalists to unite German states. These victories did not last long, as Prussian and Austrian counter-revolutions forced parliaments to dissolve and re-establish the old system. Yet, the ideology and force of these two groups are significant in the unification of Germany as they brought the sense of unity and freedom to the people at times of crisis or unrest. Nationalism arose in Germany due to the resentment of French rule, which quickly declined after their occupation. From the view of Stiles point, the strength of nationalism remained positive as middle classes displayed their sense from cultural similarities. There were a remarkable number of festivals and associations portraying a sense of German identity. However, these groups are a small sector of the German Confederation. Nationalism had little support at the time, and unification of Germany seemed impossible. In 1830s, a number of republican groups planned for German unification. Metternich was certainly thrown into panic and soon the Diet passed the Six articles. This help establish the young Germany movement dedicating to establishing a united Germany. From these developments, nationalism was seen progressing from a small group with wild ideas to a force that can unsettle monarchs in states like Prussia and Austria. From these events, there is a clear indication of liberalism a nd nationalism gaining supports and achieving some of their aims. The formation of Zollverein provided Prussia to lead other states economically. However, it was also a significant focus point for nationalism. The economic unity triggered nationalists to push for political unity. With Prussian dominance of the organisation, the members agreed that Prussia would be a natural leader if there were a unified Germany. In the 1848 revolutions, nationalism supported the Frankfurt Parliament as it unified Germany politically. However, the failure of the Parliament was due to the division of the liberals and the lack of support for them when the counter-revolutions happened. This is significant in the unification of Germany, as it showed a unified Germany was possible, but lacking the support from the people to stop the counter-revolutions. This lack of support was soon solved when the relations with France worsened, and nationalism rallied the people to fight as a single Germany against the ir old enemy. Liberalism is the belief in liberty and equal rights, but with the majority of states consisted of rulers holding onto absolute power, they would certainly refuse the idea of liberalism. Metternich of Austria opposed the constitutional reforms proposed in 1819, which included the freedom of speech, press and allowing the formation of political parties. From this situation, it was clear that liberalism was unable to progress as the fixed constitutional system gave them little influential power. The results in Prussia were the same. However, in 1830, the July Revolution in Paris sparked an indication across Europe that liberal ideas can be achieve through force. This led to movements to force grants of a liberal constitution in states like Saxony. Many monarchs simply gave in to the demands, fearing the same fate as King Charles X of France. This gradual growth of liberal support suggests people agree to the idea of freedom. These certainly appealed to the middle classes, but alarmed t he aristocrats as their influential powers have declined. The initial success of the 1848 revolutions in Austria, Prussia and other German states made possible an attempt to win German unity through one central representative body, which met in May 1848, was known as the Frankfurt Parliament. Elected respectively from the German states by universal manhood suffrage, the eight hundred-odd delegates included mostly middle class and professional elements. They wanted to establish, through discussions and recommendations, a liberal, constitutional, federal and united German State. In fact, they did not possess any executive authority, as they could not give order to any of the German rulers. Apart from this major weakness, they were split on two main programs of German unity. The decision of including Austria in the proposed new Germany (Grossdeutschland and Kleindeutschland) split the members. While the Frankfurt Assembly was debating and arguing, Austria and Prussia had gradually won the upper hand against revolutions. As conservative counter-revolution advanced, the days of the Parliament were numbered. This attempt to unify Germany and form a constitutional parliament ended, but remained a thought in peopleà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s mind. In conclusion, liberalism and nationalism was a significant factor in the unification of Germany by giving the people a sense of national identity and pride.

Organization Structure Impact On Its Performance Commerce Essay

Organization Structure Impact On Its Performance Commerce Essay Different organization structures have different impact on organization performance. Organization structure or organization design is a mean to achieve the organizational objectives through coordination, supervision and allocation of tasks. Three main elements that are organization structure considers are decision making, selection of members and leadership. Companies have to make a tradeoff between different sets of benefits when selecting a particular organization structure. Moreover structure is also important to organization performance because firstly it describes daily routine and operating procedures and secondly it points out that who would be involved in decision making process. Organization structure assists the organization: in maintaining order, resolving issues between different departments and within each department and binds the organization members together. The advantages of strong organization structure include stable hierarchy, smooth flow of communication and a well defined cohesive company message. Organization structure might also entails problems like internal conflicts, high employee turnover, less productivity and delayed decision making. So, its important to identify organization structure issues and to resolve them as they occur to ensure effective and efficient organization performance. Background of Organization Structure For any growing organization its structure is important to guide human resource issues. The history of organization structure dates back to tribal organizations which involved clerical organizational structure and now it has evolved to post industrial structures. Previously organizations histories are ruled by centralization and control which was prevalent after industrial revolution in 19th and early 20th century. After World War II decentralized structures gain sway over organizations. So in post industrial economy smaller organization having decentralized structure more rapidly react to changes as compared to larger organization which have more centralized structures. Importance of the study with respect to the world: The major aim of this study is to find out that how the design of an organization affects its overall performance. This question has been clarified under the context of one company operating in Pakistan. By looking at the problems faced by the company that aroused because of hierarchical issues like communication gap, incentive system, attitude towards change, participation in decision making etc would help other organization identify similar problems and resolve them to improve their performance level. This study would help organizations to consider factors like: is clear channels of communication encourage whistle blowing internally; affect of training, information distortion, team structure and turnover on organization performance; centralized versus decentralized decision making and how employees react when new innovative ideas or strategies are being implemented by an organization. Importance of study with respect to Organization Research Question How organization design impacts the organization performance? Chapter 2 Literature Review DeCanio et al (2000) conducted research on Importance of Organizational Structure for the Adoption of Innovation. The objective of the paper is to study the relationship between organizational structure and its performance. The focus is on economic measures of performance mainly on measures of income inequalities which are result of alternative compensation rules. The model of the research is based on the example of how fitness of the firm gained by the interaction of structure and environmental factors. Now the fitness depends on members adopting the profitable innovation. While the adoption speed and cost depends on firm internal structure and parameters like fixed cost of internal communication, value of innovation and interest rate. The methodology includes representing structures as digraph G. agents representing organization are on vertices and channels of communication are represented of directed edges. The equation formed was à Ã¢â€š ¬ = f(x, G) where à Ã¢â€š ¬ is fitness and x is representing one of the parameters. Then it was assumed that because of changing environmental factors there is a change in x which in turn leads to changing organizational structure. The paper concluded that structure of organization is very important for adoption of innovation and if the impact of organization structure on its performance is not recognized than it would lead to biases in cost estimation and loss of benefits due to change in external circumstances. King (1999) conducted research on The Implications of an Organizations Structure on Whistle blowing. The core theme of this paper is that organizational structure is being affected by whistle blowing. The main objective is to examine that how structure of organization affects the decision of employees in reporting the wrong doings of other employees. Whistle blowing has been defined as the disclosure by organization members (former or current) of illegal, immoral or illegitimate practices under the control of their employers, to persons or organizations that may be able to effect action (Near and Miceli, 1985, p. 4).whistle blowing is also defined as when the illegal act of organization are leaked to third parties. So, whistle blowing can be internal or external. Paper discusses two propositions that are P1: Whistleblowers use of internal disclosure channels may be affected by the structure of an organization and P2: Attributes of various organizational structures may influence inter nal disclosure of perceived wrongdoings. It has been mentioned that design of organization that is span of control, number of managerial levels, number of subordinates etc affect the behavior of employees. First paper talks about centralized structure which is very close to bureaucratic structure. Information flows from CEO to the upper management and from the management to the subordinates. The prominent features of this system are high levels of control, standardized procedures, uniform policies, specific titles, ranked positions, a high level of bureaucracy, and highly structured communication. As a result the negative views are suppressed and whistle blowing is not reported internally. The second structure that has been discussed is matrix structure. This design has two divisions that are functional and project. Employees report to projects head and also to function department head. So in matrix structure whistle blowing externally would be unlikely if clear and proper structure s are available. Thirdly horizontal structure in which information flows between and among same organizational level is discussed. Wrongdoings would be reported externally only if communication channels are unclear and ambiguous. Fourthly divisional structure is discussed which is configured based on the product line. Managers are in control of their departments. So wrongdoings are reported internally because of decentralized decision making. Lastly hybrid structure has been discussed. Decision making is decentralized as operational units and as a result wrongdoings would be reported internally a because of open channel of communication between business unit and upper management. So the organizations with clear channels of communication encourages whistle blowing internally and organization with various levels would result in external whistle blowing. Harris and Raviv (2002) conducted research on Organization Design. Three organizational structure are discussed which are functional, divisional and matrix structure. The paper emphasized on the topics that have been ignored in economic literature that are which structure organization adopts and how many managerial levels are involved in it. The main purpose of study is to explore the issues that arise because of selecting a particular design. In order to reap the benefits from interaction of different activities an expert manager is required. Middle managers have the capability to coordinate a pair of interaction but companywide interaction can only be managed by CEO. Company would follow flat structure when cost of hiring middle manager is very high. When salaries of middle managers are low matrix structure would be followed. The methodology includes a hypothetical firm operating four projects named as A, B, C and D. interactions between the two projects have been denoted as AB, CD , AC and BD. Project manager, middle manager and CEO are involved while project manager refers interactions to CEO or middle manager. The paper concludes on the note that new firms have flatter structure with more involvement of CEO and with the passage of time organizational structure will evolve as: highly decentralized structure, matrix structure to decentralized structure or centralized structure followed by decentralized flat structure or matrix structure. Rivkin and Siggelkow (2003) conducted research to stumble on Interdependencies among Elements of Organizational Design. The focus of study was to identify major elements of organizational structure that leads firm to broad search and ultimately to stability. The interdependencies among vertical hierarchy, incentive system and decomposition were studied. The other two contextual factors considered were underlying pattern of interaction among firms decisions and limits imposed on ability of managers to process information. The method used to conduct the research is agent based simulation which involves defining pattern of interaction among decisions. The next step is generation of set of decision problems and lastly firms handle these computer based decision problem. Paper concluded that the reason for Interdependencies arise is because design elements influence how broadly a firm searches its environment to discover good sets of coordinated choices and whether the firm is able to stab ilize around those sets once they are discovered. The stage for organizational configurations is set by Interdependencies among design elements, which also results in the interplay among competing firms. Gehrig (2004) studied Organizational Form and Information Acquisition. The Sah and Stiglitz frame work is used to address issue of research incentive. This frame work states that in order to implement innovative projects bureaucratic systems needs consensus while liberal polyarchial systems implement too many projects. The paper discusses that individual incentives to invest in information generation is affected by organizational forms. The analysis concluded that private incentives of employees to produce information depend on organization form. External research monopolies dominate independent research in terms of incentives of information production, hierarchical or polyarchical research. Joint ventures may dominate research cartels under plausible economic conditions, especially when independent signals provide additional independent information. Dean et al (1992) conducted research on Advanced Manufacturing Technology and Organization Structure: Empowerment or Subordination? The paper talks about advance manufacturing technologies (AMT) which includes computer-aided design (CAD), engineering (CAE), process planning (CAPP), and manufacturing (CAM), manufacturing resource planning (MRP), and computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) systems. The argument is that AMT is in association with organization structure. The research question is What is the nature of AMTs impact on structure? The methodology adopted is field survey. Factories of the metal-working industries in US were the target population. Upper management like vice presidents of manufacturing and plant managers were addressed by questionnaires and response rate was of 38.3%. Nine functional areas like accounting, purchasing, human resources etc were identified and respondents were requested to indicate extent of computer usage for these areas to measure computerized su pport functions. 11 manufacturing processes were identified to measure computerization of technical core. Similarly integration of support functions and integration between support functions and core functions were studied using 4 point scale. Integration sophistication was also measured. Control variable includes size and environmental factors. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed to check validity and reliability if variables. LISREL analysis was used to test the dependence between organization design and ATM constructs. Technology Marxist view is subject to subordination and it predicts centralization. Idealistic view is linked to empowerment of employees and it predicts decentralization. The research concluded on the note that AMTs integration capacity allows information to be gathered at lower levels and ATMs flexibility allows departments to adapt to decisions of other departments easily that results in lower centralize organization decisions. Formalization is adopted fo r efficient use of technology. So, formalization is described as a mechanism for decentralization. Keck (1997) conducted research on Top Management Team Structure: Differential Effects by Environmental Context. The core argument of paper is that under different environmental factors team structure affects organization performance differently. Organizational performance is financial performance in this study. The sample for this research includes top management teams from 56 cement and 18 minicomputer firms. The firms with four years of financial data were selected in order to analyze the two year ROA growth and lags. The independent variable was the number of team structure. In service offerings innovativeness is increased as a result of functional heterogeneity. More fluctuation in team tenure results in lower level of communication and commitment. So in heterogeneous measures functional heterogeneity and variation in team tenures are used. Fluctuations were measured by number of executives coming in and existing each year. The stratification includes chairman, corporate presiden t, cement or minicomputer president, executive vice presidents and executive committee members, senior vice presidents, and vice presidents. Dependent Variable was the financial performance. The controls included were firm age, firm size and industry performance. For analysis autoregressive-heteroscedastic model was used. The results of analysis indicated that good financial performance under turbulent contexts includes more heterogeneity in tenure, more fluctuations, lower stratification and shorter team tenure. Better performance in stable context can be achieved by lower fluctuations and heterogeneity, higher stratifications and longer team tenure. Radner (1993) conducted research on The Organization of Decentralized Information Processing. The main theme of paper that in decentralizing the activities of information processing hierarchical structures is also remarkably effective. This paper considers decentralization of information-processing for decision-making, and considers three applications that are linear decision rules, project selection and pattern-matching. Model of parallel processing has been used to describe the decentralized computation of organizational decision. Paper concluded that Organizations make many different decisions. In principle, different trees might be used to compute different decisions, or different classes of decisions. Even if there is only one tree of authority, many-or most-of the information flows do not follow it. Podolny and Page (1998) conducted research on Network Forms of Organization. Paper discuses increase in sociological interest in network forms of organization. Sociologists argued that network forms of organization represent a unique alternative possessing its own logic and it could not be considered hybrids of markets or hierarchies. Second, they argued that the network form of organization have significant efficiency advantages that are not possessed by pure markets or pure hierarchies. Podolny and Page defines a network form of organization as any collection of actors (N> 2) that pursue repeated, enduring exchange relations with one another and, at the same time, lack a legitimate organizational authority to arbitrate and resolve disputes that may arise during the exchange. Paper emphasizes on the fact that the network form does not represents one of two forms rather it represent one of three alternative forms of governance. A pair wise comparison was made in past like between aut onomy of the network form and hierarchy. The system which presents the greater advantage can be assessed by considering strengths and weaknesses of three forms simultaneously. Hsu and Hannan (2005) conducted research work on Identities, Genres, and Organizational Forms. The paper discusses organizational ecology and argues that many new organizations have emerged and also many have undergone structural change recently. OEs strategy examines full histories and collects history data from population, examines type of entry and exists and it uses event history method to examine the impact of population, environment and characteristics of organization on hazards of entry and exist. Social rules that organization are expected to follow are called organizational identities. Specific kinds of collective identities represent organizational forms. Two basic issues are addressed when measuring the organizational identities: (1) whose point of view should be considered when measuring identity? (2) How can the social embodied in this point of view be measured? The study concluded that organizational forms are described in term of social identities. Forms or sociologica l real categories are defined as for which membership matters. To invite consideration of systematic ways in which in order to specify and differentiate forms in terms of identities properties such as simplicity, specificity, sharpness, resonance, and authenticity and their potential impact on key organizational dynamics have been considered. Mintzberg (1980) conducted research on Structure in 5s: A Synthesis of the Research on Organization Design. The main purpose of paper is that organizational structuring can better be understood through configurations. Organization consists of five parts that are operating core, strategic apex, middle line, techno structure and support staff. Coordination of organizational tasks is effected by direct supervision, standardization of work processes, standardization of work output, standardization of skills and mutual adjustment. Five different types of decentralization mentioned in paper are vertical and horizontal centralization, limited horizontal decentralization, limited vertical decentralization, horizontal and vertical decentralization and selective decentralization. In simple structure there is no techno structure, few support staffers, a loose division of labor, a small middle line hierarchy, communication flow and decision making is informal. The classic example of this structu re is entrepreneurial firm. Machine bureaucracy is highly specialized, routine operating tasks, much formalized procedures and large-sized units in the operating core, little use made of training and of the liaison devices, relatively centralized power for decision making with some use of action planning systems, and an elaborate administrative structure with a sharp distinction between line and staff. Professional Bureaucracy is found in school systems, social work agencies, accounting firms, and craft manufacturing firms. They hire highly trained specialists in its operating core, and then give them considerable autonomy in their work. The techno structure is minimal and support staff is highly elaborated. The divisionalized form is described as a market-based one having large number of divisions which reports to the one central headquarters. The fifth structure is Adhocracy. This configuration consists of organic structure with little formalization of behavior; extensive horizont al job specialization based on formal training; a tendency to group the professional specialists in functional units for housekeeping purposes but to deploy them in small market-based teams to do their project work. These five configurations represent typology that would help to determine how structures emerge, how and why they change over time, why certain pathologies plague organizational. Yoo et al (2006) conducted research on From Organization Design to Organization Designing. The paper is based on the argument that managers should move beyond selecting an organization and should create new organizational forms. Four projects of Gehrys Partners over the period of past 15 years have been selected. These projects were build with unique challenges and needs in different environment. 83 interviews were conducted with architects, designers, and engineers working at Gehry Partners, contractors and subcontractors, a surveyor, structural engineering consultants, owner representatives, a building fire inspector, a city building code inspector, lawyers involved in contract negotiations, and several construction crews who worked at the sites. Similarities and differences were identified to study Gehrys Project gestalt of organizational designing. The design embraces three inter dependent elements that are architectural vision, use of representational technologies, and a collabo rative network for design and construction. The paper concluded that building a successful project results in organization design. Designing products and designing organization should flow from the common set of capabilities called as design gestalt (virtual capability that combines ideas, values, resources, tools, and people into ensembles that can create and project remark able artifacts). Westerman et al (2006) conducted research on Organization Design and Effectiveness over the Innovation Life Cycle. The Paper examines that in different eras of the innovations life cycle, how firms adapt to differing strategic contingencies. The research questions are: How do firms organize to adopt innovations at different eras of the innovation life cycle? How can managers address conditions of misfit? How do organization designs change over time? The paired case study has been selected with theoretical sampling to choose pairs of industry leaders who use different designs and competed head to head. For example for retail pharmacy, we compared the number of unique visitors to the company websites each month. The paper concluded on the note that firms use one of three adaptation modes that are separated early, integrated early and wait then transform. None of these adaptation modes are fully autonomous nor fully integrated, and they change over time. Each mode optimizes for one cont ingency while sub optimally attempting to address the other. Ouchi (1997) conducted research on The Relationship between Organizational Structure and Organizational Control. The paper is based on the argument that organization control and structure are not clearly distinguished in organization literature. Control and structure are two different things where control means evaluation process based on monitoring of behavior or output. The research methodology includes the data collected from 78 full-line, non-discount, and retail department store companies located in the Northeastern one-fourth of the United States. The study concluded that structure is related to control. Large organizations have many managerial levels and departments and increased supervisory efficiency of managers. Size is related to danger of control loss which in turn brings measures which minimize the control loss. Carley and Lin (1997) conducted research on A Theoretical Study of Organizational Performance under Information Distortion. The addresses the question that how should organizations of intelligent agents be designed so that they exhibit high performance despite information distortion? For this purpose stylized radar detection task has been used. The interrelationship between information distortion, organizational design and task environment has been considered. The results of study showed that training improves performance, the greater the number of information distortions the lower the performance, turnover degrades performance, misinformation leads to lower performance than communication breakdowns, and teams outperform hierarchies. Teams outperform hierarchies when the task environment is unbiased decomposable. Before settling on a particular organizational design or expending effort to minimize information distortions organization should first consider what task environment it is likely to face. After doing the literature review, it is concluded that different organizational forms have significant impact on organization performance. Different methodologies have been used in research paper to prove the assumptions made. Organization design is strongly linked with information acquisition, innovation, whistle blowing, financial performance, information distortion, organization control and empowerment or subordination of employees. Chapter 3 Methodology Research Type Qualitative and quantitative both research tools would be used to conduct this research. Qualitative research would be used to explore the problem within the organization and to gather rich information on hierarchical issues being faced through in-depth interviews with upper management as well as with lower management. Quantitative research would be used to find out the relationship between the dependent variable and the independent variable. Data Type and Research Period The data for this study would be mostly primary in nature. It would be gathered through questionnaires and face to face interviews. In order to measure impact on performance secondary resources would be used like official documents and financial statements for last four years that is from 2009 to 2012. Time frame for the primary data is from November 2012 to April 2013. The sample size for collection data is 100 and questionnaires would be distributed to the employees of different branches of the same bank. Sources of Data In order to gather data internal sources within the organization would be used. These sources include accounting resources (financial statement), internals experts (head of departments), lower level employees and operational reports from HR department. Population, Working population and Planned sample The population is all organizations working in Pakistan. Working Population. Planned sample for the research is 100 employees from different branches of bank in Lahore. Research Hypothesis Techniques After gathering the data from primary and secondary resources the regression analysis would be conducted. Regression will be conducted to check the relationship between the variable over the years. Data analysis The SPSS software that stands for Statistical Product and Service Solutions would be used to analyze the data. This software is used for statistical analysis and includes programs like ANOVA, linear regression, t-test and correlation. Regression will be conducted to check the relationship between the variable over the years. Graphs and tables would be used to represent the results. Data interpretation The results generated from the statistical software would be compiled and graphs, tables and regression results would be used to interpret the results. Theoretical Framework

Alcohol and Nutrition :: Health Nutrition Pyramid Diet

Alcohol and Nutrition Nutrition is a course that has two purposes: to provide energy and to maintain body structure and function. Food supplies energy and provides the building blocks needed to replace worn or damaged cells and the nutritional components needed for body function. Alcoholics often eat poorly, limiting their supply of essential nutrients and affecting both energy supply and structure maintenance. Once ingested, food must be digested so it is available for energy and maintenance of body structure and function. Alcohol inhibits the breakdown of nutrients into usable molecules by decreasing secretion of digestive enzymes from the pancreas. Alcohol impairs nutrient absorption by damaging the cells lining the stomach and intestines and disabling transport of some nutrients into the blood. In addition, nutritional deficiencies themselves may lead to further absorption problems. For example, foliate deficiency alters the cells lining the small intestine, which in turn impairs absorption of water and nutrients including glucose, sodium, and additional foliate. Even if nutrients are digested and absorbed, alcohol can prevent them from being fully utilized by altering their transport, storage, and excretion. Decreased liver stores of vitamins such as vitamin A and increased excretion of nutrients such as fat, indicate impaired utilization of nutrients by alcoholics. The three basic nutritional components found in food--carbohydrates, proteins, and fats--are used as energy after being converted to simpler products. Some alcoholics ingest as much as 50 percent of their total daily calories from alcohol, often neglecting important foods. Even when food intake is adequate, alcohol can damage the mechanisms by which the body controls blood glucose levels, resulting in either increased or decreased blood glucose (glucose is the body's principal sugar. As a result, alcohol causes the brain and other body tissue to be deprived of glucose needed for energy and function. Although alcohol is an energy source, how the body processes and uses the energy from alcohol is more complex than can be explained by a simple calorie conversion value. For example, alcohol provides an average of 20 percent of the calories in the diet of the upper third of drinking Americans, and we might expect many drinkers who consume such amounts to be obese. Instead, national data i ndicate that, despite higher caloric intake, drinkers are no more obese than nondrinkers. Also, when alcohol is substituted for carbohydrates, calorie for calorie, subjects tend to lose weight, indicating that they derive less energy from alcohol than from food

1996: A Turbulent Year For Israel :: essays research papers

1996: A Turbulent Year for Israel 1996 has been a very turbulent year for Israel. This lies in the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin on November 4, 1995. Rabin's great work in the peace process with it's Arab neighbors has been nearly reversed by Israel's newly elected Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who actively opposed the peace process in the election. Netanyahu's term of service has not only affected Israel politically but also socially, intellectually, religiously, and economically. In dealing with Yasser Arafat and the Palestinians Netanyahu was originally quoted saying that he would only meet with Arafat under special circumstances and that, "the era of one-sided giving was over." Warren Christopher, Secretary of State for the U.S., was able to arrange a peace conference with Arafat on the Gaza border. One article called it a , "Psychological breakthrough" (Netanyahu meets with Clinton). The issues at hand were Israel fulfilling it's pledge to the Palestinians to redeploy it's troops stationed in the West Bank town of Hebron so that they will only guard the 440 Jews who live there, from the tens of thousands of Palestinians. Also at issue were the exit permits given to Palestinians allowing them to go from there jobs in Israel to there homes in Gaza and the and the West Bank. That leads to another issue over whether or not a rail link between Gaza and the West Bank should be formed. The major problem with that would be the cost. In the next round of Israeli-PLO peace talks, both sides could not reach a compromise and after four hours talks failed. To complicate matters further 3,000 houses were approved to be built in the West Bank by the Israeli government. "Peace Now spokesman", Alon Arnon, called the housing, "A final burial of the hope of peace." (West Bank Settlement Approved) Netanyahu also ended the month by opening a tunnel to Muslim and Jewish Holy sites that resulted in bloody riots that killed 76 people. The month of October cooled down a bit with an ice breaking summit in Washington. Netanyahu returned with a change in attitude calling Arafat a person whom he could resolve problems with. But aside from his change in demeanor no substantial agreements were made. In November Israel went on high alert in fear of an attack planned to disrupt the peace process, possibly on the one year anniversary of the Jihad's leader Fathi Shakaki. Again the peace effort was thrown back when the Israeli government announced plans to double the number of Jewish settlers in the West Bank. At one point Netanyahu asked the U. 1996: A Turbulent Year For Israel :: essays research papers 1996: A Turbulent Year for Israel 1996 has been a very turbulent year for Israel. This lies in the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin on November 4, 1995. Rabin's great work in the peace process with it's Arab neighbors has been nearly reversed by Israel's newly elected Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who actively opposed the peace process in the election. Netanyahu's term of service has not only affected Israel politically but also socially, intellectually, religiously, and economically. In dealing with Yasser Arafat and the Palestinians Netanyahu was originally quoted saying that he would only meet with Arafat under special circumstances and that, "the era of one-sided giving was over." Warren Christopher, Secretary of State for the U.S., was able to arrange a peace conference with Arafat on the Gaza border. One article called it a , "Psychological breakthrough" (Netanyahu meets with Clinton). The issues at hand were Israel fulfilling it's pledge to the Palestinians to redeploy it's troops stationed in the West Bank town of Hebron so that they will only guard the 440 Jews who live there, from the tens of thousands of Palestinians. Also at issue were the exit permits given to Palestinians allowing them to go from there jobs in Israel to there homes in Gaza and the and the West Bank. That leads to another issue over whether or not a rail link between Gaza and the West Bank should be formed. The major problem with that would be the cost. In the next round of Israeli-PLO peace talks, both sides could not reach a compromise and after four hours talks failed. To complicate matters further 3,000 houses were approved to be built in the West Bank by the Israeli government. "Peace Now spokesman", Alon Arnon, called the housing, "A final burial of the hope of peace." (West Bank Settlement Approved) Netanyahu also ended the month by opening a tunnel to Muslim and Jewish Holy sites that resulted in bloody riots that killed 76 people. The month of October cooled down a bit with an ice breaking summit in Washington. Netanyahu returned with a change in attitude calling Arafat a person whom he could resolve problems with. But aside from his change in demeanor no substantial agreements were made. In November Israel went on high alert in fear of an attack planned to disrupt the peace process, possibly on the one year anniversary of the Jihad's leader Fathi Shakaki. Again the peace effort was thrown back when the Israeli government announced plans to double the number of Jewish settlers in the West Bank. At one point Netanyahu asked the U.

Opinion About Macbeth Essay

Macbeth tells a story of a brave strong warrior the king of Scotland becomes his successor by murdering him and then he’s defeated. Before we meet Macbeth , we form an opinion of him based on what other people say about him for example; the king of Scotland Duncan says ; † O worthy gentlemen oh valiant cousin.† This shows their related, well bred and worthwhile. And the bloody man says; † But all too weak for brave Macbeth well he deserves his name.† This suggests he’s a well known brave solider. Macbeth surprises us with his reaction to the witch’s prophecies, because when they tell him he’s: Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and shall be king. He’s stunned and full of disbelief as he says; † A prosperous gentleman; and shall be king stand not within the prospect of belief.† he thinks he’s taking someone else’s tittle of them because he says; † I know I’m thane of Glamis but how Cawdor t he thane of Cawdor lives† Then he wants to know more of what the witches said to him. â€Å"Stay you imperfect speakers tell me more.† he gets tempted about what they said to him. â€Å"If good why do to that suggestion.† This shows that he’d like to be king then he thinks of murder. â€Å"My thought whose murder yet is but fantastical.† This suggests he wants to murder the current king of Scotland, to get what he wants. But he doesn’t want to do it; he wants to leave it to fate. But Lady Macbeth influences him to do it, by saying that: he doesn’t love her, if he did it he would make him more of a man and that she’d do anything for him. In act 1 sc IV we see more thoughts of murder as he thinks, I’m either going to have to step over him or give up because he’s in my way. He’s thinking this about the prince of Cumberland .now he thinks of the murder of Duncan and says; â€Å"stars, hide your light so no one can see the terrible desires within me. I won’t let my eye look at what my hand is doing, but in the end I’m still going to do that thing I’d be horrified to see.† He says he’s going to do it but dose not want to she the things he’ll do. We first see Lady Macbeth in act 1 sc v, we realise a few things about her she ambitious and influences Macbeth an awful lot â€Å"Glamis thou art, Cawdor and shall be what thou art promised.† This means she thinks and knows some how she will make him be king, this boosts him and he thinks he can do it. She also has a low opinion of Macbeth, â€Å"yet I do fear thy nature; it is too full of the milk of human kindness.† She thinks he’s too nice and kind to do it.† Art not without ambition, but without wunes should attend it.† This says got ambition but he not got the guts to do it or go through with it. She trying to influence him by saying; â€Å"that I pour my sprits in thine ear and chastie with the valar of my tongue.† this means she going to fill him with evil and talk him in to it. Lady Macbeth influences Macbeth in many ways the first way we see is that; she say was drunk and when he was he promised that he would kill Duncan. She tries to say that he doesn’t love her, but by what he says and dose he loves her â€Å"my dearest partner in life.† and then she trys to make out he’s a coward, because he doesn’t want to kill King Duncan. She says she would do it so why wouldn’t he, she try to say he letting her down if he doesn’t do it she tells him he’d be more attractive if he did it. She keeps saying if she’d made a promise she would have kept it. I conclude that lady Macbeth did influence him in some ways because she’s the one who finally made him do it but overall I think it was both of them as he thought of murder before he even saw her.

Samsung Corpotate Strategy

Samsung Company Overview Samsung Company is a world leader in digital technology innovation. Samsung believes in innovation and continue to look after the new technology to grow their business. I believed that company wanted to build a market in which customers are more loyal to the Samsung brand and trust in the name of Samsung. â€Å"SAMSUNG is dedicated to devel-oping innovative technologies and efficient processes that create new markets, enrich people's lives, and continue to make Samsung a digital leader† http://www. samsung. com/hk_en/images/aboutnew/corporateprofile/title_txt. if Samsung accomplished its success through the strategy of how to manage creativity, partnership with venders, and talent. Samsung is not only expanding in electronics but also expanding into other industries such as health care, medicine, and biotechnology. Samsung’s mission and vision will make Samsung a cutting edge company. I would say Samsung is the creator of the future of electroni cs. Samsung is among the world’s top five electronics brand and has $400 billion in revenue. The mission of the company explain everything â€Å"As stated in its new motto, Samsung Electronics' vision for the new decade is, â€Å"Inspire the World, Create the Future. This new vision reflects Samsung Electronics’ commitment to inspiring its communities by leveraging Samsung's three key strengths: â€Å"New Technology,† â€Å"Innovative Products,† and â€Å"Creative Solutions. † — and to promoting new value for Samsung's core networks — Industry, Partners, and Employees. Through these efforts, Samsung hopes to contribute to a better world and a richer experience for all† (http://www. samsung. com/us/aboutsamsung/corporateprofile/vision. html) Micro and macro environment for Samsung globally Porter’s five forces: The Threats of new entrantsThere is always a potential threat for Samsung that a new company will enter into th e market. Most of the companies find outsourcing company in China and label its brand. Only thing they have to do is to formulate a marketing strategy and distribution channel. Today’s global economy is depended on China. China is called world’s factory. Most of the products are manufactured at very low cost in China. Electronic companies like HP, SONY, DeLL, Gateway, Apple, and many others used China’s manufacturing industry. So there is always a threat of new entrants into the electronics market. MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine electronics industry attracted $2. 477 billion in fresh investments in 2011, the highest ever, and the new projects are expected to generate an estimated $5 billion in additional export revenues annually once they go into full commercial operation† (http://www. abs-cbnnews. com/business/02/21/12/electronics-industry-attracts-24b-investment). The Bargaining Power of Buyers Electronic world is changing everyday and in th e market there are many types and many verities to pick one from. Even it’s very difficult for a customer to find the best one with very competing prices to each others.Most of the individuals are price sensitive they can check the prices on line and fine the cheapest price before making any decision. Institutional buyers are more quality sensitive than price. Most of the companies focus on corporate customers. There is a completion in the market. The Bargaining Power of Suppliers Intel is leading in microprocessors it provided 85% of CPU so the power of suppliers is high because of low number of competitors in the market. Different companies produce different kind of products. Hard disk producers are many in the market. The power of suppliers is quite low because of many competitors in the market.Threats of Substitutes In the changing technology world, there are many substitutes available to the customers to choose one. Companies like Samsung have to keep the quality and pri ce up to the customer expectation. Samsung should understand the need and demand and desire of each group of customer. Samsung interviewed customers to check the water. The Intensity of Rivalry among Competitors Samsung group has many competitors in the global electronic world. The brand name competitors of the Samsung are LG, SK, Matsushitsa, Micron, Sony, Apple, Kyobo Life Insurance, Meiji Life Insurance, Sumitomo Life Insurance, Hp, Dell.SWOT analysis of Samsung Strengths †¢Electronics Product line and investment in other industries such as life insurance and biotech etc. †¢Heavy investment into R and marketing strategies. Company has more than one dozen R centers around the world and its 138000 R team members are working hard for the company’s success. †¢Leader in electronics especially in cell phone and more or less 60 other products. For example DVD, Ac, LCD, and Refrigerators etc. †¢Supplier of HD, DRAM, SDRAM, Memory Sticks, and semiconductors. â⠂¬ ¢Decision making process of the company. †¢Samsung provide better guarantee and service than its competitors.Weakness †¢Some of the Samsung products are not user friendly. This factor is keeping Samsung behind in the Global electronics market. For instance there are many draw back in digital camera Samsung S860. First of all the lens of this camera turn off automatically after 30 seconds. †¢Company invested too much into the R but need to spend on marketing. †¢Competitors spent on advertisement heavily but Samsung can’t explain introduce its products via advertisements. †¢Need to improve the battery life of many of its products. Opportunities †¢Globally the demands for electronics are increasing quickly.In the digital world everyone like to have his or her own cell phone and a laptop. †¢Need more production according to the market. †¢Market share can be increased in ASEAN regions, it is increased by 32. 7% during the year 2006. †¢Cell phone market is very big and expanding by the time, this is the industry where Samsung should invest more. †¢Samsung has the competitive prices. The growing markets like India, China and Brazil are very price sensitive. Threats †¢Prices of the electronics are decreasing 10% annually that is a threat to most of the electronic manufacturer in the industry. †¢Entry of new products every day. Green products and environmentalists organizations. †¢Restrictions on usage of lead, cadmium, mercury and flame retardants products. †¢R need to pay attention while developing a new product previously Samsung paid $134 million Inter Digital because Samsung lost a patent dispute. Similarly Ericson filed a lawsuit against Samsung. †¢Counterfeiting products are the major problem for any company in the world. Duplicate product’s annually revenue is more or less U$500. †¢It’s always a threat when outsourcing any product to a country like China wher e law is not well implemented to protect the patent rights.Samsung and Business Environment of Canada Study shows that Canadian customers prefer a better quality than price. Customer demands better guarantees and return policies. Canadian population is considered one of the educated nations in the world. Canadians welcome new technologies and love to learn. Sony is the first one who invented color television, and played a leading role in the world of electronics. Most of the Canadians like Sony brand and pay the high price. Sony is very much dominated the Canadian market, the price is high and products have conventional design.Samsung can penetrate the market with better advance stylish designs and lower price and better guarantees. I believed that will take time to take over the Canadian market. â€Å"We’ve been No. 1 in TVs since 2006 in Canada,† Politeski says. â€Å"In Canadian living rooms, there are an awful lot of Samsung TVs. So the brand name — whether it’s on TVs or appliances or mobile phones, any of our product categories — continues to grow momentum, and consumers become more and more interested in it. How do you become No. 1 in any category? Attention to what the customer thinks is most important† (http://business. financialpost. om/2012/05/01/samsung-aims-to-dethrone-apple-in-smartphone-market/). With Sony Canadians have no other choice if SECA use a right marketing strategy it’s possible that Samsung can win people opinion and market share. SECA should carefully formulate strategy on the target market, segmentation and repositioning the product. SECA can use demographic segmentation and divide market into four groups. Low income families, group of people who are price sensitive. High income families, group of people who prefer quality over the price. Young generation group, who prefer new innovations and technology advancements.They buy products when it comes first in market and pay the full pric e. The old generation group those people buy when they need and are very price sensitive. Business user group those people are less price sensitive than quality, customized products and guarantees. Hobbyists is a group who like to buy new innovations which can satisfy their hobby quest. SECA can differentiate its products from others buy innovating user friendly and cost effective products for everyone. SECA should listen their corporate customers and customize their product according to their needs. â€Å"Canadian expansion strategy will be on full display.Following in the footsteps of rivals Sony and Apple, Samsung plans to open several stand-alone retail locations across the country, as the company attempts to strengthen its direct relationship with consumers† (http://business. financialpost. com). SECA should use 4P’s of marketing to achieve success in Canadian market. Product; brand strength could be achieved by producing better products and user friendly products . It could be done by producing stylish and durable cell phones, brighter and bigger flat screen TV’s, cost effective, energy efficient, durable AC, refrigerators, and other electrical home appliances.Place; Samsung should open its own retail stores across the country. Currently Samsung use distribution channels those are Best Buy, etc. Samsung should use online and on site distribution channels. Price; There are variance in the Samsung’s prices and discounts which creates confusion in the market. Samsung have to pay attention on the pricing strategy of its products. Promotion; Samsung should invest more in advertisement and promotion in Canada. With the help of advertisements a company conveys its message to the customers.A right advertisement and promotion would be a key to success in the Canadian market. Canada could be a tough market for Samsung if the company will not redesign its marketing strategy. Canadians are more loyal to SONY brand. To compete the electroni c giant like SONY, Samsung should adopt a better strategy that produce a better product, price, placement and promotion. Samsung Corporate and Global Strategy I agreed more or less with the Samsung’s corporate strategy and global strategy. There are few steps need to take in Samsung’s corporate and global strategy.I will discuss about why I like Samsung’s corporate and global strategy. Business Wire of Boston writes about Samsung that it took the 25% of the market share and was star performing during the first quarter of the year 2012. I believe that Samsung is doing something right at the corporate and global level the reason why company became the world’s number one had set vendor. â€Å"BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global handset shipments grew a modest 3 percent annually to reach 368 million units in the first quarter of 2012.Samsung was the star performer during the quarter, capturing a record 25 percent market share to become the world’s number one handset vendor for the first time ever† (http://www. businesswire. com). At first Samsung’s business model was to produce more mobile phone in number, they pay less attention to the quality. By the time Samsung decided that company should produce not only quantity but also better quality to compete in the global market. They accomplished this dream with their vision â€Å"Leading the Digital Convergence Revolution†(www. samsung. com).Chairman of the company Mr. Lee played a dynamic role in the success of Samsung. During the revolutionary strategic change in the company he said that we have to change everything only we will keep our children and wives. It sounds funny but the Chairman Lee changed everything in the company. The new strategy strived more on better look and quality than quantity. The design advisor Tom Hardy helped Mr. Lee’s vision to accomplish. Company’s designe rs had been sent to different fashion and design companies around the world to have a better perspective about the global design.Samsung took advantage from its design centers around the world and become a global electronics name that consumer trust and like. â€Å"If money was the answer to innovation then Samsung Electronics would certainly rank among the best in the world. Samsung spent 10 trillion won ($9 US billion) on research and development in 2011† (http://www. vancouversun. com) Samsung can produce in house semiconductors, LCD screens, and memory plant. This is the reason why company can independently, cost effectively, and