Logistics Supply Chain Management and Materials Essay Example

Logistics: Supply Chain Management and Materials Essay Logistics comprises of relatively large number of managerial activities. Discuss five of these activities and why they are important of the logistics system. Logistics is the process of planning, implementing and controlling the efficient, cost-effective flow and storage of raw materials, in-process inventory, finished goods and related information from point of origin to point of consumption for the purpose of conforming to customer requirements Logistics is responsible for the movement and storage of materials as they move through the supply chain. Depending on the circumstances, many other activities can be included in logistics. Sometimes an organization might include sales forecasting, production scheduling, customer service management, overseas liaison, third party operations, and so on. If you follow some materials moving through an organization, you can see that the following activities are normally included in logistics Procurement / purchasing: The flow of materials through an organization is usually initiated when procurement sends a purchase order to a supplier. This means that procurement finds suitable suppliers, negotiates terms and conditions, organizes delivery, arranges insurance and payment, and does everything needed to get materials into the organization. In the past, this has been seen as a largely clerical job centered on order processing. Now it is recognized as an important link with upstream activities, and is being given more attention. Warehousing: moves materials into storage, and takes care of them until they are needed. We will write a custom essay sample on Logistics: Supply Chain Management and Materials specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Logistics: Supply Chain Management and Materials specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Logistics: Supply Chain Management and Materials specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Many materials need special care, such as frozen food, drugs, alcohol in bond, chemicals that emit fumes, animals, and dangerous goods. As well as making sure that materials can be available quickly when needed, warehousing also makes sure that they have the right conditions, treatment and packaging to keep them in good condition Materials handling moves materials through the operations within an organization. It moves materials from one operation to the next, and also moves materials picked from stores to the point where they are needed. The aim of materials handling is to give efficient movements, with short journeys, using appropriate equipment, with little damage, and using special packaging and handling where needed. Inventory control: It considers the materials to store, overall investment, customer service, stock levels, order sizes, order timing and so on. Location: Some of the logistics activities can be done in different locations. Stocks of finished goods, for example, can be held at the end of production, moved to nearby warehouses, put into stores nearer to customers, passed on to be managed by other organizations, or a range of alternatives. Logistics has to find the best locations for these activities – or at least play a significant role in the decisions. It also considers related questions about the size and number of facilities. These are important decisions that affect the overall design of the supply chain

Never Giving Up essays

Never Giving Up essays In critically thinking about and analyzing the life of Marshall Bruce Mathers III, also known as Eminem, I realize that he had to overcome many obstacles in his life, showing that if we never give up, we are capable of achieving the extraordinary. Having said that, lets take a look at the life of Mathers to see what kind of obstacles and challenges he faced. Marshall Bruce Mathers III was born in Kansas City, Missouri on October 17, 1973. His childhood was a rough one; moving from state to state with his mother at an early age, it was difficult for Mathers to make friends, stay out of trouble and graduate. At the age of twelve, Mathers and his mother finally settled down in the eastside of Detroit. In only two short years, rap became Mathers solace. He would escape everything through his rhymes. Going hungry and not having any money was commonplace for Mathers, but he escaped this painful existence through his lyrical conscience. Free styling is when a rapper flows from the heart. In other words, rhyming off of the top of your head about anything. Rappers often battle each other to see whose freestyle is better. To be good at free styling, one must be a wordsmith, in short. Mathers quickly acquired this skill and soon perfected it. Before Mathers became a superstar rapper, the chances of hearing an extremely good white free stylist or rapper were few and far between. Mathers was one of his kind and set his own trend. Battling schoolmates day in and day out was plenty practice enough for Mathers to become one of the best free stylists around. Mathers dropped out of high school in the 9th grade and began a full-time minimum wage paying factory job. He would soon quit, and land several other jobs. His musical focus was constant the entire time he had jobs. On the weekends, he would go to a nearby club called The Shelter and compete in the free style competition. Most of the time he would be ...

Charlotte Brontes Jane Eyre :: Bronte Jane Eyre

The situation when Jane in locked in the Red Room occurs because she has retaliated against John Reed hitting her and the fact that she is being punished for doing so. The mere fact that she is being locked in the Red Room can already accumulate sympathy within the reader because she is seemingly being very unfairly punished whereas her cousin John has attacked her already and managed to escape any punishment whatsoever. However in the events leading up to being locked in the room, the reader could not feel sympathy for Jane Eyre as she did in a way bring the punishment upon herself for attacking Mr. Reed in the first place. If she has not retaliated she would have not been locked in the room. Most readers however probably do feel sympathy for her as she was acting more in self-defence. She was also unfairly spoken too as they were dragging her to the room itself as they say things like ‘she's like a mad cat' and do not seem to be letting her give an explanation at all for her ac tions, and only listening to what John had too say. They make sure that she knows her place by telling her that ‘You are under obligation to Mrs. Reed' and that she is ‘less than a servant'. These are not kind words and the reader will probably feel sympathetic as she is being treated as a worthless object. The room that she is sent too is a dark and unpleasant place with memories of the dead Mr. Reed. For a child of Jane's young age it would seemingly be very distressing for her, and with the added experience of her seemingly seeing a ‘ghost' of some kind, it would be a terrible experience. Even if the reader has not felt sympathy for Jane before this incident they would surely feel so now, as she is in a distressing situation alone. When Jane first screams out for help from someone it does seem as though people are coming too help her as Bessie and Abbot come to open the door and ask her what is wrong and what has made her cry for help.

Government Fiscal Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Government Fiscal Policy - Essay Example One of the segments of the economy that benefited the most was the banking industry. The banks in the United States had been acting unethically giving out loans to people that did not quality in order to boost their profits. A lot of Americans lost their homes in the middle of this fiasco. The stimulus package helped save over 3.5 million jobs in America particularly jobs in the manufacturing and construction sector. The Big 3 Auto makers also received financial help from the federal government. The reduction in taxes helped put more money in to the hands of American citizens. Classical economy theory states that the economy is always capable of achieving natural level of real GPD or output (Cliffnotes, 2013). I do not think that classical economy theory would have applied to the economic issues the nation was facing. The United States needed governmental intervention back in 2007-2009 to recover from the recession it was facing. The impact of the economic stimulus package on the governmental budget was that it increased the national debt in the long run and in the short run it increased the yearly budget of the

Crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Crisis - Essay Example TESCO'S has garnered a big share of the retail industry market. But complaints have been lodged by competing stores for government to make an inquiry into its bully boy tactics. Tesco with over 180 stores in England is offering up to 40% discounts to its present and prospective customers. The stores affected are Asda and Yorkshire's chain Proudfoot. Tesco uses its vast Clubcard database to give it access to detailed information about shoppers that no other retailer can match. (Harrison & Enz,Hospitality Strategic Management,p145,USA,John Wiley & Sons,2005) It also owns a controlling stake in an information company, Dunnhumby, which sells data to third parties. Sales of Tesco has increased due to this strategy. "Calls for an end to Tesco's bully-boy tactics have grown too loud to ignore " this result to a call of full scale competition inquiry by govt. Elsewhere, Lee Scott, the president of Wal-Mart, which owns Asda, has called for government intervention to halt Tesco's rapid growth on the grounds that it is increasingly hard to compete. Sainsbury's chief executive, Justin King, has demanded changes to stop Tesco's market share "climbing to 40% in short order". Ref: Julia Finch Saturday November 12, 2005 The Guardian COMMENT: This is another way of Macro strategy where the competitors ask government to intervene since Tesco is playing fair as their market share has been decreased and many smaller stores have closed up. In business, only the losers complain. The customers go to Tesco because of its lower prices. SAINSBURY'S has made public its first loss after many years of being one of the leaders in the supermarket industry in England. Its current loss of 38m pounds is a big disparity between its last year's 323m pounds. Sainsbury's, which last month was at the centre of takeover speculation, is struggling to turn itself around. It has been the subject of takeover by its competitor Asda. The main cause is that they have not filled up their stores shelves in time because they had not estimated the sales output. This Micro strategy has been rectified by its chief executive ,Justin King. Its stock market shares increased due to the new moves of it chief executive. "Sainsbury's chief executive Justin King recently admitted the firm had been failing to properly stock its shelves after struggling with faulty distribution systems. A reorganization of the business under Mr. King has already cost it 400m. However, he said the company was now aware of where it had gone wrong in the past and was work ing hard to try to put things right." Now, the shop has been opened again to regain its original foothold as one of the leading markets in England. It has also added additional product lines. Sainsbury's chairman Philip Hampton said he believed the retailer had the building blocks in place to achieve a turnaround. SAINSBURY'S key strategy: increase product quality, lower prices, improve product availability . Once the UK's biggest supermarket chain, Sainsbury's has since been overtaken by both Tesco and Asda. REFERENCE: (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4018407.stm)] General Electric's

Wal-Mart Supply Chain Essay Example for Free

Wal-Mart Supply Chain Essay Wal-Mart Executive Summary With over US$444 billion in 2012 sales from operations in 27 countries, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is the world’s largest retailer. Wal-Mart is the world’s third largest public corporation, according to the Fortune Global 500 list in 2012 and world’s biggest private employer with 2.2 million associates worldwide. Wal-Mart serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week. Wal-Mart operates under 69 different banners. Wal-Mart’s supply chain, a key enabler of its growth from its beginnings in rural Arkansas, has long considered by many to be a major source of competitive advantage for the company. In fact, when Wal-Mart was voted â€Å"Retailer of the Decade† in 1989, its distribution costs were estimated at 1.7 per cent of its cost of sales, comparing favorably with competitors such as Kmart (3.5per cent of total sales) and Sears (five per cent of total sales). Their distribution system is generally regarded as the most emphasized visibility through the sharing of information with their suppliers. Wal-Mart slipped to No. 2 in the Fortune 500 in 2011 after holding onto the top spot for two years in a row. Wal-Marts international business continues to be a source of growth for the company revenues outside the U.S. rose by 13.1% last year, to $35.5 billion. Introduction Wal-Mart has come a long way since its inception and undergone many changes on the way. Sam Walton’s initial strategy was to target low-income families in rural areas by offering significantly lower costs. Through use of  technology in distribution and supply chain logistics Wal-Mart has been able to cut costs and lower prices for end users. Wal-Mart is one of the best supply chain operators at the moment. Using a supply chain management system that is progressively against its competitors and they don’t even stop evolving. Pushing the limits of supply chain management, searching for and supporting better technology that promises to make its IT infrastructure more efficient. The company has 4 strategies driving its operations: * Becoming a truly global company * Solving Business Challenges * Leading on social issues * Keeping its culture strong Wal-Mart has also taken various initiatives in its approach towards its operations. Some of them include following: In 1992 Wal-Mart developed Ethical sourcing program to verify the products they sell are produced in a way that provides dignity and respect for workers in the supply chain, while protecting the environment. For eight straight years, Wal-Mart U.S. Logistics’ recordable injury rates have been below industry average. This year the entire Wal-Mart U.S. Logistics Network introduced an Enhanced Behavior Based Safety Program. Wal-Mart has implemented a Supplier Development Program, in which the Ethical Sourcing Team works closely with suppliers to improve working conditions in factories. Background of Wal-Mart Inc Based in Bentonville, Arkansas and founded by the legendary Sam Walton, Wal-Mart is the world’s largest retailer with more than 8,500 stores worldwide, including stores in all 50 states as well as international stores in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom, as well as joint venture agreements in China and a stake in a leading Japanese retail chain. The company has over 2.2 million employees (known as â€Å"associates†). It was estimated that Wal-Mart served more than 200 million customers each week. Wal-Mart’s strategy is to provide a broad assortment of quality merchandise and services at â€Å"everyday low prices† (EDLP) and is best known for its discount stores, which offered merchandise such as apparel, small  appliances, housewares, electronics and hardware, but also ran combined discount and grocery stores (Wal-Mart Super Centers), membership-only warehouse stores (Sam’s Club), and smaller grocery stores (Neighborhood Markets). In the general merchandise area, Wal-Mart’s competitors included Sears and Target, with specialty retailers including Gap and Limited. Department store competitors included Dillard, Federated and J.C. Penney. Grocery store competitors included Kroger, Albertsons and Safeway. The major membership-only warehouse competitor was Costco Wholesale. The Development of Wal-Mart’s Supply Chain Before he started Wal-Mart Stores in 1962, Sam Walton owned a successful chain of stores under the Ben Franklin Stores banner, a franchisor of variety stores in the United States. Although he was under contract to purchase most of his merchandise requirements from Ben Franklin Stores, Walton was able to selectively purchase merchandise in bulk from new suppliers and then transport these goods to his stores directly. When Walton realized that a new trend, discount retailing — based on driving high volumes of product through low-cost retail outlets — was sweeping the nation, he decided to open up large, warehouse-style stores in order to compete. To stock his new warehouse-style stores, initially named â€Å"Wal-Mart Discount City,† Walton needed to step up his merchandise procurement efforts. As none of the suppliers were willing to send their trucks to his stores, which were located in rural Arkansas, self-distribution was necessary. The initial competitive advantage for Wal-Mart was its supply chain management. As Wal-Mart grew in the 1960s to 1980s, it benefited from improved road infrastructure and the inability of its competitors to react to changes in legislation, such as the removal of â€Å"resale price maintenance,† which had prevented retailers from discounting merchandise. A strong and efficient supply chain is the key to distribution and keeping their customers satisfied with the promise of â€Å"Everyday Low Prices.† Things within the supply chain in which Wal-Mart excelled at would include logistics, purchasing, retail decisions, and limiting the overall bullwhip effect of the supply chain. The key attributes to Wal-Mart’s hugely developed logistics department are Cross docking or direct transfers from inbound or outbound trailers without extra storage, Working with suppliers  to standardize case sizes and labeling. The cross docking system was originated by Wal-Mart, this innovation allows a distribution center to direct incoming shipments straight to a cross-docking system, products are delivered to a warehouse on a continual basis, where they are stored, repackaged, and distributed to stores without sitting in inventory. Goods â€Å"cross† from one loading dock to another, usually in 24 hours or less. While working with suppliers on labeling will increase efficiency in transporting goods from distribution centers to retail stores. Purchasing As his purchasing efforts increased in scale, Walton and his senior management team would make trips to buying offices in New York City, cutting out the middleman (wholesalers and distributors). Wal-Mart’s U.S. buyers, located in Bentonville, worked with suppliers to ensure that the correct mix of staples and new items were ordered. Over time, many of Wal-Mart’s largest suppliers had offices in Bentonville, staffed by analysts and managers supporting Wal-Mart’s business. In addition, Wal-Mart started sourcing products globally, opening the first of these offices in China in the mid-1980s. Wal-Mart’s international purchasing offices worked directly with local factories to source Wal-Mart’s private label merchandise. Private label sales at Wal-Mart, first developed in the 1980s, were believed to account for 20 per cent of 2005 sales. Private label products appealed to customers since they were often priced at a significant discount to brand name merch andise; for Wal-Mart, the private label items generated higher margins than did the suppliers’ branded products. Every quarter, buyers met in Bentonville to review new merchandise, exchange buying notes and tips and review a fully–merchandised prototype store, located within a warehouse. In order to gather field intelligence, buyers toured stores two or three days a week, working on the sales floors to help associates stock and sell merchandise. Wal-Mart wielded enormous power over its suppliers. For example, observers noted that increased bargaining clout was a contributing factor in Procter Gamble’s (PG) acquisition of chief rival Gillette. Prior to the acquisition, sales to Wal-Mart accounted for 17 per cent of PG’s revenues and 13 per cent of Gillette’s revenues. On the other hand, these two suppliers combined accounted for about eight per cent of Wal-Mart’s sales. Some viewed Wal-Mart’s close co-operation with  suppliers in a negative light. Wal-Mart dictates that its suppliers must accept payment entirely on Wal-Mart’s terms, share information all the way back to the purchasing of raw materials. Wal-Mart controls with whom its suppliers speak, how and where they can sell their goods and even encourages them to support Wal-Mart in its political fights. Wal-Mart all but dictates to suppliers where to manufacture their products, as well as how to design those products and what materials and ingredients to use in those products. When negotiating with its suppliers, Wal-Mart insisted on a single invoice price and did not pay for cooperative advertising, discounting or distribution. Globally, Wal-Mart is believed to have around 90,000 suppliers, of whom 200 — such as Nestle, PG, Unilever and Kraft — are key global suppliers. With Wal-Mart’s expectations on sales data analysis, category management responsibilities and external research specific to their Wal-Mart business, it was not uncommon for a s upplier to have several dozen employees working full-time to support the Wal-Mart business. All these steps have allowed Sam Walton’s empire to increase its company’s relationship with suppliers by using a collaboration planning, forecasting, and replenishment model. This will coincidently, along with the income smoothing of having everyday low costs, reduce the bullwhip effect, lower costs, increase capacity utilization, and improve customer service levels. The income smoothing concept is since Wal-Mart uses resourceful use of collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenishment it will sufficiently lower the bullwhip effect. This effect is caused by slight demand variables which are magnified as information moves back upstream from consumer back the raw materials in the supply chain. Another benefit of reducing the bullwhip effect and successful in its supply chain management techniques is reducing the uncertainty and lowering the amount of inventory needed in house. Uncertainty will have the negative effects of lateness and incomplete orders between Wal-Mart’s distribution centers. However in having a sufficient supply chain management system in place it will lower the amount of inventory needed in house and insure against supply chain uncertainty. Inbound Logistics Wal-Mart recognized the importance of controlling inbound logistics and expended considerable efforts in mastering this function. The company  acknowledged the value of controlling the inbound logistics, made it a company- wide mission, developed the technology required and teams were formed specifically to implement the mission. Today Wal-Mart has almost total inbound control of all DC-to-store shipments. Wal-Mart has decided to take this to next level by asking its vendors to directly ship to Wal-Mart DC’s. On implementation, this will provide Wal-Mart with greater control over the management of the logistics and more efficiency by taking over the vendor-to- DC leg and use those savings to further reduce prices. This will further help in better matching of demand and supply. Distribution Wal-Mart’s store openings were driven directly by its distribution strategy. Because its first distribution centre in the early 1970s was a significant investment for the firm, Walton insisted on saturating the area within a day’s driving distance of the distribution centers in order to gain economies of scale. Over the years, competitors copied this â€Å"hub-and-spoke† design of high volume distribution centers serving a cluster of stores. This distribution-led store expansion strategy persisted for the next two decades as Wal-Mart added thousands of U.S. stores, expanding across the nation from its headquarters in Arkansas. Stores were located in low-rent, suburban areas, close to major highways. In contrast, key competitor Kmart’s stores were thinly spread throughout the United States and were located in prime, urban areas. By the time the rest of the retail industry started to take notice of Wal-Mart in the 1980s, it had built up the most efficient lo gistics network of any retailer. Wal-Mart’s 75,000-person logistics division and its information systems division included the largest private truck fleet employee base of any firm — 7,800 drivers, who delivered the majority of merchandise sold at stores. Wal-Mart’s 114 U.S. distribution centers, located throughout the United States, were a mix of general merchandise, food and soft goods (clothing) distribution centers, processing over five billion cases a year through its entire network. Product was picked up at the suppliers’ warehouse by Wal-Mart’s in-house trucking division and was then shipped to Wal-Mart’s distribution centers. Shipments were generally cross-docked, or directly transferred, from inbound to outbound trailers without extra storage. To ensure that cases moved efficiently through the distribution centers, Wal-Mart worked with suppliers  to standardize case sizes and labeling. The average distance from distribution centre to stores was approximately 130 m iles. Each of these distribution centers was profiled in a store-friendly way, with similar products stacked together. Merchandise purchased directly from factories in offshore locations such as China or India was processed at coastal distribution centers before shipment to U.S. stores. On the way back from stores, Wal-Mart’s trucks generated â€Å"back-haul† revenue by transporting unsold merchandise on trucks that would be otherwise empty. Wal-Mart’s backhaul revenues — its private fleet operated as a for-hire carrier when it was not busy transporting merchandise from distribution centers to stores — were more than US$1 billion per year. Because its trucking employees were non-unionized and in-house, Wal-Mart was able to implement and improve upon standard delivery procedures, coordinating and deploying the entire fleet as necessary. Uniform operating standards ensured that miscommunication between traffic coordinators, truckers and store level employees was minimized. Wal-Mart improve the efficiency of its private fleet by almost 69 percent in 2012 compared to its 2005 baseline. Throughout their network they delivered 65 million more cases, while driving 28 million fewer miles, by increasing their pallets per trailer and managin g their routes. The heavier loads have minimal impact on their fuel efficient equipment, which includes an average tractor age of three years and the addition of more than 13,000 skirted trailers. The network efficiency improvement equates to avoiding nearly 41000 metric tons of CO2 emissions, the equivalent of taking about 7900 cars off the road. Continued enhancements in routing and scheduling software, coupled with advancements in GPS and mobile technologies are helping in better management of routes. Wal-Mart has also shown improved efficiency by focusing on the problem of backhauls. In 2011 alone with focusing on backhauls, the practice of picking up a load from a vendor and delivering to the distribution centers, rather than running an empty truck between the store and distribution center, saved more than 56000 trips. From 2005 to 2008 Wal-Mart increase the fuel efficiency in the private fleet by 38%. Much of this fuel efficiency was achieved through technology and the use of more aerodynamic trucks. They looked at alternative fuels, auxiliary power units and aerodynamic fairings on both tractors and trailers. Wal-Mart not only uses the technology to track the location of the rigs, they track the fuel  burn and monitor the driver’s right foot, gear selection and other driver decisions. Altering driver behavior is the next frontier of driving more fuel efficiency. Wal-Mart’s published goal is to double the truck fleet efficiency by October of 2015, so in 5 years they expect to almost double what they achieved between 2005 and 2008. Theres many ways to skin the fuel efficiency cat. One clear methodology is to run fewer empty miles. According to Wal-Marts own press their efforts to reduce empty miles and optimizing how merchandise is stacked in the trailers the private fleet logged 87 million fewer miles in 2008 while transporting 161,000 more cases, allowing the comp any to save 15,000,000 gallons of diesel fuel. Investments in GPS-based routing applications, strong load optimization tools for load planning and cube utilization, developing new loading practices, all will help improve costs. Reducing package size and increasing â€Å"value density† helps reduce miles. Wal-Mart is working hard to reduce packaging by 5% by 2013. But packaging does not even touch on the impact of improved value density. As the product mix changes and the cost of products continue to decline, Wal-Mart is challenged to get even more product into less space, not only of transport, but for warehousing and store space. Detergent formulations that reduce the water content, package redesigns that change the shape of the cartons to increase the count loaded onto the truck, carton designs that reduce the â€Å"dead space† around the product but sill provide the protection needed, all of these efforts will directly reduce transit cost and carbon footprint. Retail Strategy Wal-Mart’s first stores were filled with merchandise that had been bought by Walton in bulk, as he was convinced that a new trend — discounting merchandise off the suggested retail price — was here to stay. In the 1960s, Wal-Mart grew rapidly as customers were attracted by its assortment of low-priced products. Over time, the company copied the merchandise assortment strategies of other retailers, mostly through observation as a result of store visits. To generate additional volume, Wal-Mart buyers worked with suppliers on price rollback campaigns. Price rollbacks, each lasting about 90 days, were funded by suppliers, with the goal of increasing product sales between 200 and 500 per cent. The company also ensured that its store-level operations were at least as efficient as its logistics  operations. The stores were simply furnished and constructed using standard materials. Efforts were made to continually reduce operating costs. For example, light and temperature settings for all U.S. stores were controlled centrally from Bentonville. As Wal-Mart distribution centers had close to real-time information on each store’s in-stock levels, the merchandise could be pushed to stores automatically. In addition, store-level information systems allowed manufacturers to be notified as soon as an item was purchased. In anticipation of changes in demand for some items, associates had the authority to manually input orders or override impending deliveries. In contrast, most of Wal-Mart’s retail competitors did not confer merchandising responsibility to entry-level employees as merchandising templates were sent to stores through head office and were expected to be followed precisely. To ensure that employees were kept up-to-date, management shared detailed information about day/week/month store sales with all employees during daily 10-minute-long â€Å"standing† meetings. The display of merchandise was suggested by a storewide template, with a unique template for each store, indicating the layout of Wal-Mart’s various departments. This template was created by Wal-Mart’s merchandising department, after analyzing historical store sales and community traits. Associates were free to alter the merchandising template to fit their local store requirements. Shelf space in Wal-Mart’s different departments — from shoes to household appliances to automotive supplies — was divided up, each spot allocated to specific SKUs. Each Wal-Mart store aimed to be the â€Å"store of the community,† tailoring its product mix to appeal to the distinct tastes of that community. Thus, two Wal-Mart Stores a short distance apart could potentially stock different merchandise. In contrast, most other retailers made purchasing decisions at the district or regional level. In order to harness the knowledge of its suppliers, key category suppliers, called â€Å"category captains,† were introduced in the late 1980s, and they provided input on shelf space allocation. Information Systems Walton had always been interested in gathering and analyzing information about his company operations. As early as 1966, when Walton had 20 stores, he attended an IBM school in upstate New York with the intent of hiring the smartest person in the class to come to Bentonville to computerize his  operations. Even with a growing network of stores in the 1960s and 1970s, Walton was able to personally visit and keep track of operations in each one, due to his use of a personal airplane, which he used to observe new construction development (to determine where to place stores) and to monitor customer traffic (by observing how full the parking lot was). In the mid-1980s, Wal-Mart invested in a central database, store-level point-of-sale systems, and a satellite network. Combined with one of the retail industry’s first chain-wide implementation of UPC bar codes, store-level information could now be collected instantaneously and analyzed. By combining sales data with external information such as weather forecasts, Wal-Mart was able to provide additional support to buyers, improving the accuracy of its purchasing forecasts. In the early 1990s, Wal-Mart developed Retail Link. At an estimated 570 terabytes — which Wal-Mart claimed was larger than all the fixed pages on the Internet — Retail Link was the largest civilian database in the world. Retail Link contained data on every sale made at the company during a two-decade period. Wal-Mart gave its suppliers access to real-time sales data on the products they supplied, down to individual stock-keeping items at the store level. In exchange for providing suppliers access to these data, Wal-Mart expected them to proactively monitor and replenish product on a continual basis. In 1990, Wal-Mart became one of the early adopters of collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment (CPRF), an integrated approach to planning and forecasting by sharing critical supply chain information, such data on promotions, inventory levels and daily sales.15 Wal-Mart’s vendor-managed inventory (VMI) program (also known as continuous replenishment) required suppliers to manage inventory levels at the company’s distribution centers, based on agreed-upon service levels. The VMI program started with PG diapers in the late 1980s and, by 2006, had expanded to include many suppliers and SKUs.16 In some situations, particularly grocery products, suppliers owned the inventory in Wal-Mart stores up to the point that the sale was scanned at checkout. To support this inventory management effort, supplier analysts worked closely with Wal-Mart’s supply chain personnel to co-ordinate the flow of products from suppliers’ factories and resolved any supply chain issues, from routine issues such as ensuring that products were  ready for pickup by Wal-Mart’s trucks, and arranging for the return of defective products, to last-minute issues such as managing sudden spikes in demand for popular items. When Wal-Mart buyers met, on a frequent basis, with a supplier’s sales teams, two important topics of review were the supplier’s out-of-stock rate and inventory levels at Wal-Mart, indications of how well replenishment was being handled. Suppliers were provided with targets for out-of stock rates and inventory levels. In addition to managing short-term inventory and discussing product trends, Wal-Mart worked with suppliers on medium- to long-term supply chain strategy including factory location, co-operation with downstream raw materials suppliers and production volume forecasting. Wal-Mart’s satellite network, in addition to receiving and transmitting point-of-sale data, also provided senior management with the ability to broadcast video messages to the stores. Although the bulk of senior management lived and worked in Bentonville, Arkansas, frequent video broadcasts to each store in their network kept store employees informed of the latest developments in the firm. In an effort to emulate Wal-Mart’s ability to share information with suppliers, Wal-Mart’s competitors relied on a system similar to Retail Link. Agentrics LLC, a software service provider, developed, in conjunction with several of global retailers, a software platform called â€Å"Retail Interface,† which collectedstore level sales data which could then be shared with suppliers. Agentrics’ customer base included many of the world’s top retailers – including Carrefour, Tesco, Metro, Costco, Kroger and Walgreen’s – who were also investor s in Agentrics. Human Resources By visiting each store and by encouraging associates to contribute ideas, Walton was able to uncover and disperse best practices across the company in the 1960s and 1970s. To ensure that best practices were implemented as soon as possible, Walton held regular â€Å"Saturday morning meetings,† which convened his top management team in Bentonville. At 7 a.m. each Saturday, the week’s business results were discussed, and merchandising and purchasing changes were implemented. Store layout resets were managed on the weekend, and the renovated stores were ready by Monday morning. Walton and his management team often toured competitors’ stores, looking for new ideas to â€Å"borrow.† Wal-Mart believed that centralization had numerous benefits, including lower  costs and improved communications between different divisions. All of Wal-Mart’s divisions, from U.S. stores, International, Sam’s Club, to its logistics and information systems division were located in Bentonville, a town of 28,000 people in Northwest Arkansas. Regional managers and in-country presidents were the few executives who were stationed outside of Bentonville. Another key to Wal-Mart’s ability to enjoy low operating costs was the fact that it was non-union. Without cumbersome labor agreements, management could take advantage of technology to drive labor costs down and make operational changes quickly and efficiently. Being non-union, however, had its drawbacks. As its store network encroached on the territory of unionized –grocers, unions, such as the United Food and Commercial Workers’ Union, started to become more aggressive in their anti-Wal-Mart publicity campaigns, funding so-called grassroots groups whose goals were to undermine Wal-Mart’s expansion. Wal-Mart’s size also made it a target for politicians: every stumble was magnified and played up in the press. Two of Wal-Mart’s key supply chain improvement initiatives included â€Å"Remix† and RFID (radio frequency identification tags).

Customer Needs and Preferences Essay

DEMONSTRATE THE ABILITY TO PROVIDE INSPIRATIONAL, AUTHENTIC AND PERSONALIZED CUSTOMER SERVICE / IDENTIFYING CUSTOMERS’ NEEDS: Every customer has different needs and wants when they step into the store. As every customer has different preferences, it is essential to personalize the experiences for different customers. To find out what the customers are looking for, we need to ask TED questions. Through the answers the customers give, we will have better insights and understanding about what they are looking for. PROVIDING INFORMATION ON PRODUCTS / EDUCATING CUSTOMERS: Fragrances: As important as sales is, educating the customers is equally crucial. What makes Jo Malone’s colognes so unique is that it is light so it can be layered. They are good on its own but when layered, you will get truly individual effects. Therefore, customers can come up with their own bespoke scents. Candles and diffusers: For every customer that buys the candles and diffusers, our job is to teach them how to use the products. For candles, the customers can only burn for up to four hours and then extinguish it and after burning, the wick of the candle must be trimmed to prevent the candle from tunneling. ASSIST IN DAILY RETAIL OPERATION: Co-ordinate and check merchandise on display: Except for the testers, the products on display are not displayed pieces but actual selling stocks. In Jo Malone London ION Orchard, it often gets busy and customers are always rushing in this fast-paced city so we often do not take the stocks from the cabinets and just sell the products on display instead. During our free time, we will replenish the merchandise on display. By doing so, it would also minimize external theft as we would be able to immediately realize that the product is missing and then report to our superiors and request for them to check the surveillance cameras. By coordinating and checking the merchandise on display, we will also have better insights on approximately how much of each product needs to be reordered. Handle exchanges of merchandise: A lot of the customers that comes to Jo Malone London are customers that are looking for gifts for their family, friends or loved ones. They often do not know what to buy and often purchase the options between our recommendations. To successfully close these deals and not let our potential customers slip out of our hands, we would persuade them to buy by letting them know that we will issue them a sales memo so that the receiver may bring the unused products to exchange for something they like should they not like the gift. DISPLAY PROFESSIONAL IMAGE AND ETIQUETTE: In Jo Malone London, we are required to wear our uniforms, wear formal footwear and put on our aprons and name tags once we are on the sales floor. Grooming is of great importance as it will not only portray our professionalism, our customers will also place their trust in our recommendations when they see how well-dressed we are. What we say to them will seem more professional and convincible to them too. Other than attire-wise, makeup is also required as it would add colors to our face making us look more refreshed and it will also positively affect the perception people has on us. PERFORM DAILY HOUSEKEEPING: As our store is an open layout store with no automatic doors that opens and closes when a customer walks in and out, there is a lot of dust in the store. What adds to the this-this issue is that we have many spotlights in the store which makes the dust a lot more visible. Therefore, it is essential that we wipe the shelves and the tables every morning. On Sunday mornings, we would wipe all products, shelves, and tables. I do not wipe the shelves and tables, it would make our store look dusty, deserted and unsanitary. 2.2 GOOD OR BAD MOMENTS EXPERIENCED GOOD: Seeing the reactions of my customers when I tell them that I am merely an intern. After a few days of the internship, I feel more confident with the amount of knowledge I have which really played a huge part in my ability to persuade customers to purchase. BAD: During our orientation, we were thought to ask TED questions. And then further suggest scents or products to customers based on our insights. But there often are customers that ask what the best sellers are when they step foot in. What makes this situation tricky is the customers because what may be the bestseller may not be what they like. â€Å"May I know what kind of scents you like, miss? Because what may be the bestseller may not be what you would like† would earn me some glares and angry customers that would stomp off. I often encounter such customers and as much as I want to stay unaffected, I really am.

Leg 100 (Business Law)

Social Media plays a vital role in all aspects of businesses nowadays. It has helped in turning communications into interactive dialogues among organizations, communities and individuals which has led to a much proper propagation of information. It may include web based or mobile based technologies and the existence in multiple forms has made it all the more tempting and has become a necessity today in the business world.The four characteristics of a legally astute manager, include an acceptance of how important the law is to the success of the organization, a proactive attitude toward legal issues and regulations the ability to use informed judgment when faced with decisions involving legal implications, and having the knowledge of specific laws, regulations, tools and resources. A social media marketing manager must be specific in these qualifications due to the fairly new concept of social media when comparing it to other avenues of marketing like television, print and radio (Fran klin, B. ). Most company’s main goal is to keep its costs low.Companies do so by creating their own logistics and distribution of their products. They have managed to reduce costs by demanding high productivity from their employees, but wages paid do not meet the demand. They have also pushed many of their suppliers to outsource their products so they can produce more at a lower cost. Wal-Mart as an example attempts to conduct business practices by the law, but over the years have been subjected to over 5,000 lawsuits ranging from discrimination to unfair labor practices, which means that members of the corporation may not be following the laws as stated.There are also problems with suburban sprawl and lost jobs from outsourcing. List and analyze methods of alternative dispute resolution and determine which would be most effective in resolving genuine disputes that arise with consumers who may make purchases from businesses that provide links via social media. Resolving a dis pute should always be thought out before any approach is attempted. The effect could sometime be more damaging than the initial problem. One should always consider the â€Å"what ifs† and the â€Å"if this, then what.†I personally have always been the type to give thought before reacting. Always begin to solve a dispute through negotiation. The dispute being between two people in a group, the first step will be: negotiate before the issue has to come up again. If the dispute is still unresolved then we will move to the next step. The second approach will combine negotiation and mediation. Always pick a team leader and rely on the team leader to be the mediator for the dispute between the two team members, so that they can negotiate their dispute.If the team leader is one with the dispute, then we will rely on the next appointed leader to mediate the situation. If there is no progress with the dispute, always follow-up try to resolve it through mediation or arbitration. This step dictates that: The leader of the group will take the dispute to the appropriate leader; there the leader will take the proper course of action needed for this dispute to be resolved. If the dispute is manageable, the leader will be able to mediate and will not need to take forceful action. Mediation is also an informal alternative to litigation.Mediators are individuals trained in negotiations, who bring opposing parties together and attempt to work out a settlement or agreement that both parties accept or reject. Mediation is used for a wide gamut of case-types ranging from juvenile felonies to federal government negotiations with Native American Indian tribes. Mediation has also become a significant method for resolving disputes between investors and their stock brokers. Since consumer transactions on social media can occur across state lines, determine how the federal government can best control these transactions.It has often been seen that social networking sites suc h as Facebook, MMS, Twitter, and etc. become a media in spreading propaganda through video clippings and messages of incidents with communal overtones – instigating hatred among various communities leading to flaring up of the communal situation. In the present legal framework, control of such social networking sites is required to be done by central government. We are extremely lucky to live in a country where we have the freedom of speech.I can't even begin to fathom the  thought of the government being able to control our right of free speech. The government definitely does not have the right to control social media; social media is a way to freely express your thoughts, opinions and ideas. One of the primary issues with how the state seeks to control social media, or technologies overall, is that they are coming at it in the wrong direction. It seems that existing policies are simply being updated to be made to apply to social networking, when in fact what is needed is a complete overhaul of the system when it comes to concepts such as copyright and privacy.The fact is that these concepts will never be the same again. It is almost difficult to imagine that these concepts will exist at all in the future, as social technology has turned everything on its head. We're seeing this come into fruition in the music industry right now, which is in a complete mess because old copyright laws that came into existence in the 1700's are largely still expected to apply today. The issue of government control of data and users' privacy is coming into the fore now because of the increasing amount of data that social networks hold on us.And not only is this growing in volume, but also in type. It is no longer just about browsing history, but social platforms contain varying forms of data that give a complete make-up of our person. While this contributes to things such as targeted demographic advertising, which I am an advocate of overseeing irrelevant banner ads, th e government of course needs to step in here. Social networks, as privately owned companies will naturally be motivated by what gives them the best profit margin. While this may occur alongside a desire to unite people.We can only trust our governments to develop policies which don't have this capitalist desire in mind. Yet what we're seeing are policies that could seriously hinder the growth of the social networking industry (Pearson). Examine the three (3) branches of government and discuss which can effectuate the most significant impact on regulating consumer transactions via social media outlets. Support your decision. Our federal government has three parts. They are the Executive, (President and about 5,000,000 workers) Legislative (Senate and House of Representatives) and Judicial (Supreme Court and lower Courts).The President of the United States administers the Executive Branch of our government. He enforces the laws that the Legislative Branch (Congress) makes. The Legisla tive part of our government is called Congress. Congress makes our laws. The Judicial part of our federal government includes the Supreme Court and 9 Justices. They are special judges who interpret laws according to the Constitution. (Brinkmann, R. , & Garren, S. ) I personally see the judicial court as being the most important and having the biggest impact toward social media.If someone is getting sued by another individual about a post or picture that they may have posted on their personal social media site, the judicial court would oversee the case if the individual puts forth the freedom of speech fight. This being a constitutional right, the other individual would have to prove to the Supreme Court that what was written or posted was in fact un-constitutional and not just freedom of speech. Explain the agency relationship that exists on social media sites between the social media provider and businesses that utilize the site for advertising.Online advertising, uses the Internet to deliver promotional marketing messages to consumers. It includes email marketing, search engine marketing, social media marketing, many types of display advertising (including web banner advertising), and mobile advertising. Like other advertising media, online advertising frequently involves both a publisher, who integrates advertisements into its online content, and an advertiser, who provides the advertisements to be displayed on the publisher's content.Other potential participants include advertising agencies who help generate and place the ad copy, an ad server who technologically delivers the ad and tracks statistics, and advertising affiliates who do independent promotional work for the advertiser. Social Media is a platform that is easily accessible to anyone with internet access. Increased communication for organizations fosters brand awareness and often, improved customer service (Zeff, R. , & Aronson, B. ). Social media marketing programs usually center on efforts to create content that attracts attention and encourages readers to share it with their social networks.A corporate message spreads from user to user and presumably resonates because it appears to come from a trusted, third-party source, as opposed to the brand or company itself. I know the advertising works on social media sites, because I have seen something on the side and visited that particular site and actually purchased an item. I may not have even been thinking about purchasing that item, but after seeing it advertised or either on sale I was persuaded to go to the site and take a look.

History and Development of the Kinetoscope

History and Development of the Kinetoscope The concept of moving images as entertainment was not a new one by the latter part of the 19th century. Magic lanterns and other devices had been employed in popular entertainment for generations. Magic lanterns used glass slides with images which were projected. The use of levers and other contrivances allowed these images to  move. Another mechanism called a Phenakistiscope consisted of a disc with images of successive phases of movement on it, which could be spun to simulate movement. Edison and Eadweard Muybridges Zoopraxiscope Additionally, there was the Zoopraxiscope, developed by photographer Eadweard Muybridge in 1879, which projected a series of images in successive phases of movement. These images were obtained through the use of multiple cameras. However, the invention of a camera in the Edison laboratories capable of recording successive images in a single camera was a more practical, cost-effective breakthrough that influenced all subsequent motion picture devices. While there has been speculation that Edisons interest in motion pictures began before 1888, the visit of Muybridge to the inventors laboratory in West Orange in February of that year certainly stimulated Edisons resolve to invent a motion picture camera. Muybridge proposed that they collaborate and combine the Zoopraxiscope with the Edison phonograph. Although apparently intrigued, Edison decided not to participate in such a partnership, perhaps realizing that the Zoopraxiscope was not a very practical or efficient way of recording motion. Patent Caveat for the Kinetoscope In an attempt to protect his future inventions, Edison filed a caveat with the patent office on October 17, 1888  that described his ideas for a device which would do for the eye what the phonograph does for the ear record and reproduce objects in motion. Edison called the invention a Kinetoscope, using the Greek words kineto meaning movement and scopos meaning to watch. Who Did the Inventing? Edisons assistant, William Kennedy Laurie Dickson, was given the task of inventing the device in June 1889, possibly because of his background as a photographer. Charles Brown was made Dicksons assistant. There has been some debate  over how much Edison himself contributed to the invention of the motion picture camera. While Edison seems to have conceived the idea and initiated the experiments, Dickson apparently performed the bulk of the experimentation, leading most modern scholars to assign Dickson with the major credit for turning the concept into a practical reality. The Edison laboratory, though, worked as a collaborative organization. Laboratory assistants were assigned to work on many projects while Edison supervised  and participated to varying degrees. Ultimately, Edison made the important decisions and, as the Wizard of West Orange, took sole credit for the products of his laboratory. The initial experiments on the Kinetograph (the camera used to create film for the Kinetoscope) were based on Edisons conception of the phonograph cylinder. Tiny photographic images were affixed in sequence to a cylinder  with the idea that, when the cylinder was rotated, the illusion of motion would be reproduced via reflected light. This ultimately proved to be impractical. Development of Celluloid Film The work of others in the field soon prompted Edison and his staff to move in a different direction. In Europe, Edison had met French physiologist Étienne-Jules Marey who used a continuous roll of film in his Chronophotographe to produce a sequence of still images, but the lack of film rolls of sufficient length and durability for use in a motion picture device delayed the inventive process. This dilemma was aided when John Carbutt developed emulsion-coated celluloid film sheets, which began to be used in the Edison experiments. The Eastman Company later produced its  own celluloid film, which Dickson soon bought in large quantities. By 1890, Dickson was joined by new assistant William Heise and the two began to develop a machine that exposed a strip of film in a horizontal-feed mechanism. Prototype Kinetoscope Demonstrated A prototype for the Kinetoscope was finally shown at a convention of the National Federation of Womens Clubs on May 20, 1891. The device was both a camera and a peep-hole viewer that used 18mm wide film. According to David Robinson, who describes the Kinetoscope in his book, From Peep Show to Palace: The Birth of American Film the film ran horizontally between two spools, at continuous speed. A rapidly moving shutter gave intermittent exposures when the apparatus was used as a camera and intermittent glimpses of the positive print when it was used as a viewer, when the spectator looked through the same aperture that housed the camera lens. Patents for Kinetograph and Kinetoscope A patent for the Kinetograph (the camera) and the Kinetoscope (the viewer) was filed on August 24, 1891. In this patent, the width of the film was specified as 35mm  and allowance was made for the possible use of a cylinder. Kinetoscope Completed The Kinetoscope was apparently completed by 1892.  Robinson also writes: It consisted of an upright wooden cabinet, 18 in. x 27 in. x 4 ft. high, with a peephole with magnifying lenses in the top...Inside the box, the film, in a continuous band of approximately 50 feet, was arranged around a series of spools. A large, electrically driven sprocket wheel at the top of the box engaged corresponding sprocket holes punched in the edges of the film, which was thus drawn under the lens at a continuous rate. Beneath the film was an electric lamp and between the lamp and the film a revolving shutter with a narrow slit. As each frame passed under the lens, the shutter permitted a flash of light so brief that the frame appeared to be frozen. This rapid series of apparently still frames appeared, thanks to the persistence of vision phenomenon, as a moving image. At this point, the horizontal-feed system had been changed to one in which the film was fed vertically. The viewer would look into a peep-hole at the top of the cabinet in order to see the image move. The first public demonstration of the Kinetoscope was held at the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences on May 9, 1893.

Ethical Banking in UK Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Ethical Banking in UK - Research Proposal Example This is interesting because the financial sector as a whole is reported to be reeling from the aftereffects of the sub-prime mortgage crisis in the US, the continued depreciation of the US dollar and rising global inflation. In fact, major banks and financial institutions around the world were reported to have suffered losses reaching $435 billion in July 2008, with many banks experiencing severe liquidity problems. Is it possible that ethical banking shields its practitioners from negative external factors We aim to find out the answer to this question. Business ethics in general is the application of moral principles in the making of business decisions (Rushton, 2002)), such that it places a premium on social responsibility. This responsibility represents the positive actions or responses that a company takes to fulfill its responsibilities towards its stakeholders, to the environment and to society as a whole. In the view of some economists, however, there is one and only social responsibility of business: to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits. Thus, when firms experience resource shortages as to threaten their very existence, they attack this problem by cheating on their social responsibility. ... That way, the firms give the false impression that they comply with the rules. To address internal resource shortages, such as inadequate capacity and expertise, they overestimate costs, falsify training records, pay excessive compensation and give undeserved promotions. To address external shortages, such as lack of raw materials, they arrange unethical deals with suppliers or service providers. These activities are taboo to ethical banks. 2. Aim & Objectives2.1 Aim Examine how the operations of ethical banks in UK differ from those of their counterparts in the conventional banking sector to see if the former thrive because of ethical banking or in spite of it. 2.2 Objectives (1) Measure the performance of ethical banks in economic terms to see if it is a feasible or reasonable line of business. (2) Observe how ethical banks compete with conventional banks in terms of profitability, size of clients and quality of service. (3) Discover the reasons that made the owners of ethical banks decide to go into this line of banking. Business ethics in general is the application of moral principles in the making of business decisions (Rushton, 2002)), such that it places a premium on social responsibility. This responsibility represents the positive actions or responses that a company takes to fulfill its responsibilities towards its stakeholders, to the environment and to society as a whole. In the view of some economists, however, there is one and only social responsibility of business: to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits. Thus, when firms experience resource shortages

Evolution of Policing through the 20th century Research Paper

Evolution of Policing through the 20th century - Research Paper Example This paper will discuss the various changes that have occurred in the policing process. The paper will also discuss the intelligence based policing that has been adopted and which has transformed the policing process. The intelligence based policing makes use of information gathered and analyzed in an attempt to reduce crime. The paper will also suggest an effective policing strategy. The process of policing and law enforcement has evolved over time to the present state where the law enforcement agencies and departments are trained and highly specialized to enable them to face various problems and situations. The evolution of policing has seen the interaction between the community and the police and law enforcement agencies undergo major transformations (Palmiotto, 2011). Traditionally, the law enforcement and policing was modeled on the England system of policing. The law enforcement agencies had the mission of controlling and preventing crime and adopted a strategy that allowed preventive patrol. In the policing process, there was an emphasis on the protection of the individual’s liberty, which could effectively limit police authority. The policing process has however undergone some major changes in the process to evolve to meet the needs of the community (Skogan & Kathleen, 1997). The evolution of policing beyond the boundaries of the country has also been taking place at a rapid pace. There have been rapid expansions in the process of international policing as the world continues to open its borders and threats of terrorism continue to affect more countries. In the 20th century, there has been the advancement of international institutions that deal with the deployment d international forces (Skogan & Kathleen 1997). Such international agencies include NATO and the United Nations. The police forces in different countries have evolved to the point where they have structures in place to enable exchange of information for