E-Marketing Strategy-Business Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

E-Marketing Strategy-Business Report - Essay Example This means heavy investments in inventory and maintenance of the stores. Naturally this makes the end product costlier. In the second model there is no need for an inventory and shipments can be made from the factory maintained central warehouse or other distribution points at lower cost. This is essentially E-Marketing that is less expensive and has a greater reach. Online business has also become a trend with customers preferring this mode for ease of access and ease of payment. Electronic market places allow companies to present their firm and their products on a especially dedicated internet platform. They offer public authorities the possibility to get an overview of the market. Simple forms of electronic market places could be compared with electronic business directories. Combined with an e-catalogue electronic market places can also become a platform that allows public authorities to order products. It is thought that extending business online just means launching a website about the products and/or services of the company. However a successful e-marketing initiative for extending business online the behaviour of the target audience is important. The design of the website has to be appealing; the Content needs to be useful, Search Engine Optimization are necessary for quick access and the features and technology deployed should be easy to use. Once the site is up and running several strategies are to be executed to drive traffic to the site regularly such as; linking with other sites, advertising where necessary, submitting to search engines, etc. Last but not the least there is need to maintain updated and relevant information on the site to retain the interest and loyalty of the customers. E-commerce, although an integral part of extending business in this century, is not something that can be achieved without devoting a decent amount of time and effort. And unless executed with expertise, it is likely to flounder in the abyss of cyber space.

During the month of Kartik in the Bikram Sambat calendar Essay Example for Free

During the month of Kartik in the Bikram Sambat calendar Essay During the month of Kartik in the Bikram Sambat calendar (late September and early October), the Nepalese people indulge in the biggest festival of the year, Dashain. Dashain is the longest and the most auspicious festival in the Nepalese annual calendar, celebrated by Nepalese of all caste and creed throughout the country. The fifteen days of celebration occurs during the bright lunar fortnight ending on the day of the full moon. Thorough out the kingdom of Nepal the goddess Durga in all her manifestations are worshiped with innumerable pujas, abundant offerings and thousands of animal sacrifices for the ritual holy bathing, thus drenching the goddess for days in blood. Dashain commemorates a great victory of the gods over the wicked demons. One of the victory stories told is the Ramayan, where the lord Ram after a big struggle slaughtered Ravana, the fiendish king of demons. It is said that lord Ram was successful in the battle only when goddess Durga was evoked. The main celebration glorifies the triumph of good over evil and is symbolized by goddess Durga slaying the terrible demon Mahisasur, who terrorised the earth in the guise of a brutal water buffalo. The first nine days signify the nine days of ferrous battle between goddess Durga and the demon Mahisasur. The tenth day is the day when Mahisasur was slain and the last five days symbolise the celebration of the victory with the blessing of the goddess. Dashain is celebrated with great rejoice, and goddess Durga is worshiped throughout the kingdom as the divine mother goddess. In preparation for Dashain every home is cleansed and beautifully decorated, painted as an invitation to the mother goddess, so that she may visit and bless the house with good fortune. During this time the reunion of distant and nearby relatives occur in every household. The market is filled with shoppers seeking new clothing, gifts, luxuries and enormous supplies of temple offering for the gods, as well as foodstuffs for the family feasting. Thousands of sheep, goats, ducks, chicken and water buffalo are prepared for the great slaughter. All types of organisations are closed for ten to fifteen days. Labourers are almost impossible to find; from the poor to the rich, all enjoy the festive mood. Anywhere you go the aroma of Vijaya Dashami is found. The first nine days of Dashain are called nawa ratri when tantric rites are conducted. In Nepal the life force is embodied in the divine energy and power of the female, depicted as goddess Durga in her many forms. All goddess who emanated from goddess Durga are known as devis, each with different aspects and powers. In most mother goddess temples the deity is represented simply as a sacred Kalash, carved water jug or multiple handed goddess holding murderous weapons. During these nine days people pay their homage to the goddess. If she is properly worshiped and pleased good fortunes are on the way and if angered through neglect then misfortunes are around the corner. Mother goddess is the source of life and everything. The first day of Dashain is called Ghatasthapana, which literally means pot establishing. On this day the kalash, (holy water vessel) symbolising goddess Durga often with her image embossed on the side is placed in the prayer room. The kalash is filled with holy water and covered with cowdung on to which seeds are sown. A small rectangular sand block is made and the kalash is put in the centre. The surrounding bed of sand is also seeded with grains. The ghatasthapana ritual is performed at a certain auspicious moment determined by the astrologers. At that particular moment the priest intones a welcome, requesting goddess Durga to bless the vessel with her presence. The room where the kalash is established is called Dashain Ghar. Generally women are not allowed to enter the room where Dashain puja is being carried out. A priest or a household man worships the kalash everyday once in the morning and then in the evening. The kalash and the sand are sprinkled with holy water everyday and it is shielded from direct sunlight. By the tenth day, the seed will have grown to five or six inches long yellow grass. The sacred yellow grass is called Jamara. It is bestowed by the elders atop the heads of those younger to them during the last five days when tika is put on. The jamara is taken as a token of Goddess Durga as well as the elders blessing. As days passes by regular rituals are observed till the seventh day. The seventh day is called Fulpati. On this day the jamara to be used by the royal household is brought from their ancestral royal house in Gorkha about a hundred and sixty nine kilometres away over the hills north west of the valley of Kathmandu. A parade is held in the Hanuman Dhoka Royal Palace. The fulpati, i. e. the procession bearing the jamara and other items necessary for the tika, is brought from Gorkha after a three day walk and most of the government officials are eagerly waiting for the fulpati parade to arrive at Rani Phokari in the afternoon. Rani Phokari area is filled with hundreds of government officials meticulously attired in the traditional formal dress. In fulpati, the royal kalash filled with holy water, banana stalks, jamara and sugar cane tied with red cloth is carried by Brahmans from the ancestral royal house on a decorated palanquin under a gold tipped and embroidered umbrella, led by the military platoon of the royal priest. The government officials also join the fulpati parade. Whilst the fulpati parade is heading towards the old royal palace, His Majesty the King observes the ceremonies taking place in Tundikhel, the army parade ground in the center of the city. There a majestic display of the Royal Nepalese Army is held. Guns are fired and the entire valley echoes with the resonance sound of it. The firing continues for ten to fifteen minutes to honour the fulpati. By the time the function ends the royal fulpati is already taken inside the Dashain ghar in Hanuman Dhoka Palace. With this the Dashain feasting starts. The eighth day is called the Maha Asthami. The fervour of worship and sacrifice to Durga and Kali increases. On this day many orthodox Hindus will be fasting. Sacrifices are held in almost every house through out the day. The night of the eighth day is called Kal Ratri, the dark night. Hundreds of goats, sheep and buffaloes are sacrificed at the mother goddess temples. In the darkness of the night Durga temples, army barracks, and old palaces all over Nepal hold sacrifices for the mother goddess. The sacrifice continues till dawn. The old palace in Basantapur Hanuman Dhoka, is active throughout the night with worships in almost every courtyard. While the puja is being carried out great feasts are held in the homes of common people where large amount of meat are consumed. The ninth day is called Nawami. The Taleju temple at Hanuman Dhoka is opened for the public only once a year on this day. Thousands of people go and pay their respect to the goddess day. Temples of mother goddess are filled with people from dawn till dusk. On this day the official military sacrifices are held in the Kot courtyard at Hanuman Dhoka. The government allows foreigners to witness this function so hundreds of tourists and diplomats eagerly gather here. Animals mostly black buffaloes are slaughtered by hundreds to honour Durga the goddess of victory and might and to seek her blessing. Military bands play war tunes, guns boom and officers with beautifully decorated medals in full uniform stand there. When the function ends the courtyard is filled ankle deep with blood. On this very day the god Vishwas Karma, the God of creativity is also worshiped. All factories, vehicles, any machinery instruments and anything from which we make a living are worshiped. We also give sacrifices to all moving machinery like cars, aeroplanes, trucks etc. to get the blessing from goddess Durga for protection for vehicles and their occupants against accidents during the year. The entire day is colourful. The tenth day is the Dashami. On this day we take tika and jamara from our elders and receive their blessing. We visit our elders in their home and get tika from them while our younger ones come to our home to receive blessing from us. The importance of Dasain also lies in the fact that on this day family members from far off and distant relatives come for a visit as well as to receive tika from the head of the family. This function continues for four days. His Majesty also receives tika from the royal priests and then gives on tika to his loyal subjects. Thousands of loyal Nepalese people as well as foreigners also receive tika from His Majesty the King as this is said to be auspicious. After four days of rushing around and meeting your relatives Dashain ends on the full moon day, the fifteenth day. In the last day people stay at home and rest. The full moon day is also called Kojagrata meaning who is awake. The Hindu goddess of wealth Laxmi is worshipped. On this day the goddess Laxmi is given an invitation to visit each and everyone. After Dashain the nation settles back to normal. After receiving the blessing of goddess Durga, people are ready to work and acquire virtue, power and wealth. Dashain thus is not only the longest festival but also the most anticipated one among all the festivals of Nepal.

Toyotas Operational and Industry Environment

Toyotas Operational and Industry Environment In order to analyse the Toyotas operational and industry environment and its competitive position in the auto mobile market, there some appropriate strategic tools are using in this paper. Such as the SWOT model , Porters Generic strategy and Ansoff matrix. The SWOT model analyses the companies internal and external strengths with opportunities as the factors of the companys success in the competitive market. And also this model analyses the companies weaknesses with threats for its fluctuation of sales. Generic strategy refers to analyse the companys strategic choice with in the competitive rivalry. In addition Ansoff matrix also analyse how Toyota uses appropriate strategies to be as the world leader in the car manufacturing and sales of subsidiaries. Toyotas competitors such as the Ford Motor company, General Motors and Honda Motor Corp, who concern to decide the companies market position in the market. During the periods these all companies are different position in the auto market. As the leader of the auto manufacture Toyota Motor Corp Ltd adapts the management corporate philosophy which is meant that Toyota Way including Toyota Production system(TPS), and as the Lean production. The companys corporate philosophy decide the long term competitive advantages. The elements of TPS are Just In Time(JIT), Jidoka(quality improvement) and Kaizen. In addition, Toyotas Total Quality Management(TQM), which is correlated with TPS, is also the most important system to catch the market share in the rival. These systems are adapting in the production line to product the plants efficiently with the combination of the low cost and high quality. This opportunity seeks the best in the global auto market. And also the supply chain management too is as a supporting hand for the company. These all will be briefly discussed in this paper. At the end of this paper, it is analysed that how the elements of Generic strategy such as cost leader, differentiation and focus and Toyotas operational systems are functioning together to get best competitive position within the competitors world wide. With that, Ansoff matrix will be analysed by its elements such as market penetration, product development, market development and diversification regarding the companys performance and competitive position. INTRODUCTION: The Toyota Motor Co. Ltd was founded in 1937 by Kiichiro Toyoda, as a one of the worlds leading manufacturers. It has become the world Largest, and most profitable car maker . During the Second World War, the company produced trucks for the Japanese Army. Unlikely ,the companys factory in Aichi was bombed down by the enemies before war ended.ÂÂ   After the war ended ,Toyotas production of cars commercially began with the SA model in 1947. In 1957, the Toyota Crown was exported to the USA as the first time. It announced its arrival to British in1957.After 1960s the company started to spread its operations world wide. Toyota entered into an alliance with Daihatsu and Hino Motors. Its Compacts, produced smaller and fuel efficiently from the start.ÂÂ   Names of few of the popular Toyota vehicles are Toyota Prius, Camry, Lexus, Toyota Tundra, Toyota Tundra Double Cab and Corolla (http://www.swot-pest-porter.com). In the early 1970s, the companys production was behind of Ford Motor and GM, but in 1974, Toyota Corolla got largest place in world car selling. And, after ten year Toyota was in second to GM in the market(www.nytimes.com) .Now it is the third largest manufacturer in the global automobile market by sales which is producing more than 5.5 million vehicles per year(www.conceptcarz.com). LIMITATIONS AND CONSTRAINS: In my point of view the time is the important problem to analyse the companys operational and industry and their competitive position within it. There are lots of resources available for this analysis, however ,it is difficult to understand and recognise the very relevant resources from the pool of them. COMPETITORS OF THE TOYOTA. In the global auto market Toyotas strategic position is very strong than other competitors. It is clear that the Ford Motor , GM and Honda Motors are the main competitors in the market. Among these, Toyota was the third largest automaker in the world. Along with GM, when the Japanese automakers sales in U.S had gone into a decline, Ford took attention on Toyota customers with great offers at the January 2010. In February 2010, Ford over took GM to be the number 1 seller in the U.S as the first time since 1998. But ,Honda Motor co didnt follow its rivals at targeting Toyota customers , this is why its sales drop by 5% in 2010 (www.reuters.com). In 2009, while GM had 20% and ford had 16% , Toyota had 17% of the market share in U.S( www.reuters.com ). Especially, the companys operational system such as the TPS, TQM and the Toyota Way add real value to the companys business which is as the different management style. This value adding procedure is giving a unique strategic position in the market. For example, Toyota Prius is a enormous value and it is a commitment to green products green innovation. Toyotas project management makes sure that the projects and goals are aligned with the added values of the company and core competencies. The reason for the project manager of Toyota is the understanding the importance of competencies and core values with the need of working together. And , project manager should give efforts and best thoughts towards develop its attributers and remained focused on business goals.(http://svprojectmanagement.com). THE PILLARS OF THE TOYOTAS SUCCESS AND COMPITITIVE ADVANTAGES: Toyotas operational systems are its pillars of the success in the industry wise. They are, Toyota Way. Toyota Production System(TPS). Total Quality Management(TQM). Toyota Supply chain. Actually the Toyota way and TPS have been part of how Toyota has developed its supply chain. TPS has been part of how Toyota has developed its supply chain principles effectively towards best performance with suppliers, dealers and manufactures. These concepts work together to add value to the production line of Toyota. THE TOYOTA WAY. Toyota Way and Toyota Production System are the different concepts, but its 14 principles are giving a corporate philosophy by using Toyota Production System (TPS), which is a systematic and highly developed example of Toyota Way. Toyota Way is the culture and also a set of efficiency and improvement techniques, and also it is called that the companys managerial philosophy. Its 14 principles are categorised into four categories. Long-Term Philosophy. Toyotas philosophy of empowering its workers is the core of human resource management system. It brings employee loyalty and improves creativity and innovation by motivating employee participation. The Right Process Will Produce the Right Results. Adding value to the Organization by Developing the People and Partner Continuously Solving Root Problems Drives Organizational Learning With 14 principles of Toyota Way, another 4 high level principles such as Genchi Genbutsu, Kaizen, Respect and Team work and Challenge are correlated with each other. Thorough learning and kaizen , Toyota has managed to grow and achieve its goals. Kaizen is a Japanese term means that change betterments it focused on improving the quality and the efficiency of the Toyotas production line. Through Kaizen the members have given gift certificates instead of money. The philosophy of Toyota Way is passing down from generation to generation(http://www2.toyota.co.jp). TOYOTA PRODUCTION SYSTEM (TPS). Sources; http://www.1tech.eu TPS is the way of companys successful globally, which was introduced by Taiichi Ohno. Corporate philosophy is the basic of its success in the global market. TPS presences high standards of products this is why the company easily penetrate the markets world wide. And also Toyotas work place morale and job satisfaction are producing reliable and high-quality products at reasonable prices. Many of the success of Toyota concern with high performance of human resources and supply chain management. JIT productivity improvement. Kanban system manages the JIT production system and it supports by each of the previous steps. Generally, the JIT means that what is needed, when it is needed, and in the amount needed. By using this concept, Toyota produces quality products by elimination of waste and avoiding the un reasonable requirements in the line production. Under this system, the ways of achieving productivity improvement are Providing a production instrument to the production line as soon as possible, when a order for vehicle is received,. Stocking few numbers of all part for assembly line Proceeding process stocking proceeding process of all parts. Jidoka- highlighting of problem. Under this concept the quality is consider by Stopping machine safely on its own when complete a normal process and also when meet any quality problem. communicating via the Andon (problem display board) when machine automatically stop. Because of this operator can continue at another machine. This will lead to a greater processing capacity. Eliminating waste: TPS works mainly with the internal in next stage in the production line and external customer perspectives which is considering and separate the value added steps from the non value added steps. According to Jeffery K. Liker , 8 categories of waste are eliminating in the TPS such as over production, waiting time, unessential movement and transport, over inventory and so on. The head of Toyota manufacturing divided the waste was eliminated in this system by JIT and Autorotation in the production line to add value(http://people.brunel.ac.uk). The concept of respect takes responsibility to build trust each other in the TPS and the concept of team work encourage employees to achieve growth and performance by contributing the opportunities of development in the Toyotas production line to add value. Actually, the Toyota Production System has been a roaring success at Toyota, but much less effective in other locations in many conditions. Total Quality Management (TQM): TQM is a management system adapting by Toyota in the production line to add value of its products. This is the greatest strategy following only by Toyota successfully within the larger auto makers. Indeed, The TQM is based on the quality of the product with the commitments of the all members towards the long term success of the company.TQM works through a combination of the customer satisfaction and welfare of the society. At the end, the result is the high quality and low cost add value for the product in the TPS. GENERIC STRATEGY AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES. Porters Generic strategy, seeking competitive advantage on Toyota, is defined as the basis on which a strategy business unit (SBU) might achieve or counter competitive advantage in its market. According to the cost leader ship strategy, Toyota reduced its cost at every element of the value chain. Toyota is the good example of an organization for producing quality cars at low price with brand and marketing skills to use a premium pricing policy. The companys JIT attempt to manufacture with an absolute minimum of inventory, in a shortened lead time. This feature support the companys manufacturing cost in production line. Jidoka supports to reduce the cost in production line by highlighting the problem before occur. And also TQM of the Toyota is supporting in reducing the cost how with the minimum input and maximum out put with in a sort lead time. Toyota is manufacturing its products for the market where what is needed and what is suitable. Its mean that the company adapts the differentiation strategy well than other competitors. When it offer totally different from other rivals , this is why the companys products aim on value with less price and which creates higher price and higher profit to the company. Hybrid Prius is the pertinent evident of differentiation in the rival. Further more, Toyota offers high quality and luxury brand cars in Japan, Europe and U.S( like Lexus ), the company is selling minivans and trucks in China, Brazil and South Asian markets, where the products of the Toyota are totally different than other major competitors. The thing is that even though, additional costs occur pursuing differentiation, and it is managed by increased revenue generated by the sales. In the view of application of generic strategy with JIT, in which the production line is able to producing many varieties of products in response according to the changing customer demand in the market. It means the company uses the JIT production to differentiate its product in the market. And also TQM helps in Toyotas differentiation strategy, how the companys products with high qualification could easily differentiate among other competitors. By adapting focused differentiation strategy, Toyota first introduced a brand, Scion, specifically for young buyers in January, 2003 which was a great success with that introduced hybrids in 1997 selling 127000 more than Honda. (http://ezinearticles.com). This strategy support to compete with other competitors in similar segments and to get competitive advantages. JIT production and TQM support also in focused differentiation strategy. For example, when the company identifying specific market segmentation wised to buy a specific vehicle, JIT production gives that particular product to that targeting market segment. THE APPLICATION OF THE ANSOFF MATRIX IN TOYOTA: Market penetration: Toyota penetrated easily and successfully world wide comparatively than other large manufacturers in building plants and sales the subsidiaries. Toyotas first advantage of market penetration is presentation of strategic markets. For instance, it penetrated successfully in Asia, Europe and US. Whereas, its market rivals such as Ford and GM influence in only U.S and Europe. Toyota Motor Corp holds its foot in China and India to get competitive advantages heavily. By adapting this strategy, it manages the unexpected fluctuations for the markets of its products. Product development: One of the key to the success in the car market is new models which increase the demand and loyalty for the companys brand. Toyota has huge reputation for producing few cars with fuel efficient and good performance. And, Toyota has enhanced to meet government requirements specially for reducing the hybrid fuel. A remarkable point is that Toyota was the first car manufacturer to market hybrid fuels, with the introduction of the Prius model in the market (www.reuters .com) 2010 Toyota Prius is the best example of the product development. The third generation Prius is bigger and more powerful than the previous version, but it will become in the United States as the only vehicle that offers combined mileage greater than miles per gallon (http://reviews.cnet.co.uk). But the latest Prius is 70Kg heavier than its predecessor, and this is largely down to the amount of new technology inside. Market development: Toyota Company sells its products in 70 countries world wide. In order to maximize the profit, it seeks new market with existing products. For example, China and South East Asia ere the new markets where the company sells its vehicles. Diversification: By adapting this strategy, Toyota seeks new products into new markets. While getting any troubles by the competitors in existing market with existing products, it is the pertinent strategy for its growth. The company emerges in China and South East Asia where targeting a 2012 launch and a piece under 1 million Yen. (www.reuters .com) and also one of the Toyotas Mini vehicle unit which is Daihatsu Motor co(7262.T) is developing a small car for emerging market such as South East Asia, and may sell them under the Toyota brand the Chunichi newspaper said(www.reuters.com). The Compact car will be based on its vision and Yaris subcompact models in the new markets. In addition, these two models and a new set of entry level cars are announced for India, Brazil and China by Toyota. To develop the sales in emerging markets the company maintains a three layered approach. However, Toyota has relatively small market share in India, Brazil and other emerging markets. This is indicating the limitat ions of its market development (www.reuters.com). Toyota gets a best strategic position in the competitive market by applying these strategies properly than other competitors. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION: As above, the third largest auto maker Toyota is a successful company in the auto makers. The factors of the companys success and its best competitive position in the competitive revalry, are its internal strengths and external opportunities. Even though, it is as the world leader in the auto market, it faces some problems as its own weaknesses and the threats from other competitors and from the outside. These factors are analysed by using SWOT analysis in the appendix. In addition, the companys main competitors compete with it heavily during the years such as Ford, GM, and Honda. However, Toyota Motor Corporation is in a much strengthened strategic position in the auto market. There are some details describe the companys achievements among the competitors in the appendix. The Toyota Motor Corporation achieves its competitive advantages by using the best operational systems in the industry such as the Toyota Way, TPS known as the Lean production and TQM in its production line. Porter s Generic strategy analyse the companys strategic position in the market with the correlation of those operational systems toward the competitive advantages. And also Toyotas supply chain management is reflecting its uniqueness in the global market which is noted in the appendix. At the end, the Ansoff matrix describe the companys current position by market penetration, market development product development and diversification strategies. In my point of view, Toyota Motor Corporation still is the world leader of the car makers. But in 2008 and 2009, it faced decline in its sales by few problems. However, the president of the company Akio Toyoda who and the every level employees of the company commit their whole life over take these problems. I suppose that, in future it will be the number one auto maker in the global car manufacturer with the attention of over taking particular quality problem for preventing the quality problem by using its the world greatest strategic operational choices in the industry. APPENDIXES: 1. TOTAL SALES OF THE TOYOTA AND ITS COMPETITORS: COMPANIES VOLUME MAY 09 MAY 08 DSR DSR5/09 DSR5/08 GM -29.555 191,875 272,363 -26.84% 7380 10,088 Ford -24.25% 161,531 213,238 -21.373% 6,213 7,898 Toyota -40.72% 152,583 257,406 -38.44% 5,869 9,534 Honda America -41.46% 98,394 167,997 -39.21% 3,782 6,222 Chrysler Group -46.88% 79,010 148,747 -44.84% 3,039 5,509 Nissan NA -33.10% 67,4874 100,874 -30.52% 2,596 3,736 BMW Group -27.65% 22,993 31,781 -24.87% 884 1,177 *The daily selling rate (DSR) is calculated with 26 days for May 2009 and 27 for May 2008. Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2009/06/02/by-the-numbers-may-2009-gm-and-ford-surprise-edition/ TOYOTAS INDUSTRY RANK AT IMPORTANT ATTRIBUTES. ATTRIBUTES INDUSTRY RANK Innovation 3 People management 3 Used of corporate assets 2 Social responsibility 1 Quality of management 2 Financial soundness 1 Long term investment 2 Quality of products /services 2 Global competencies 2 Source: http://money.cnn.com 3. WORLDS TOP 10 AUTO GROUPS BY 2009 H1 SALES. RANK COMPANY SALES(US $ Millions) 1 Toyota Motor Corp 3.564 2 General Motor Co 3.553 3 Volkswagen AG 3.265 4 Hyundai Mo. Co 2.153 5 Ford Motor Co 2.115 6 P S A Peugeot Citroen 1.587 7 Honda Motor Co 1.586 8 Nissan Motor Co 1.546 9 Suzuki Motor Corp 1.15 10 Renault SA 1.107 Source: www.reuters.com 4. THE SWOT OF TOYOTA Strengths and Opportunities; Toyotas Just in Time (JIT) allows the production system to produce vehicles efficiently and quickly, one at a time, which is great quality and provide satisfaction to consumers. And ,the company has a major strength which is Toyotas Production System(TPS) prevent waste and therefore reduces the amount of energy, raw materials and other resources used, this is making it towards sustainability(www.toyota.eu). Toyota is a best profit maker in the market. This is because, rising up of the share price of Toyota. For example, Toyotas stock market value is approximately 30% of the value of the global car market. If we combined the profits of all global car makers, Toyota would account for about one third. And other all Japanese car makers would account for another third. Only the rest final third, would be accounted by all European, North American and other Asian car makers together. (http://www.marketingteacher.com). Another reason for its climbed up to the top is beyond loyalty. Toyotas life long learning by Kaizen and improvement management systems makes best decisions. Japanese companies, specially, Toyota is excellent in particular areas as the strengths its self. Such as Elimination of waste and cost cutting. A culture rooted in manufacturing. Fast, disciplined product development cycles. Consistence and relentless Toyotas managers always knows that where they want to be five years from now and are working at getting there. Toyotas innovation and creativity is a major opportunity. Companys commercial mass produced hybrid gas and electric vehicles are creating more opportunities in the competitive markets. Prius is the pertinent example for these advance technology adaptation of Toyota. It based on advanced hybrid technology and R+D activity. This investment and Toyotas wide range of product portfolio support customers for alternative sources of fuel away from gas guzzling cars. Another example of innovation is that Toyota Sienna is planned to join the hybrid line up by 2010 (www.brandchannel.com) Toyota mostly attracts the youth market by its segmentation. As Pedro Pacheco(spokes person for Toyota Europe) said, The urban youth segment is attractive to us because it can success fully influence the whole of youth sector, and it allows to attract customers to the brand at an earlier stage (www.brandchannel.com). Toyota like these customers to grow by providing products as their like. This is a big opportunity of establishing a life lasting relation ship. Toyota taking heart the customer feedback it has received, together with its suppliers, dealers and its world wide employees, its commitment is on its products and services and also its commitment to the customer first. This feature is giving many opportunities to Toyota world wide. Toyotas continuous global expansion also brings opportunities to it. Practically, Toyota has its factories in all continents and its vehicles are made up in different countries. Remarkably, for recent years the company emerged in third world countries and it is getting possible opportunities. And it tends for the localisation of the production using their situation in different countries as the suppliers of the production local market. This result of globalization is making many opportunities for the company. Weaknesses Threats Almost every problem creates a need for inventory, which is one of the largest wastes. This is really a reflection of ineffectiveness. Because every manufactures should need to make sure that their models consumers want or not and conditions of those markets. These may be the reasons of putting attention on emerging market heavily. Toyotas production needs a huge investment with high fixed cost and cost of labour. This may allow to face problems like over capacity or under capacity if occur any upturn or downturn. The main problem is that the companys products are too expensive for its emerging markets, when other competitors like Tata Motors (TM) produce reasonably cheaper cars. The movements of the exchange rates make narrow margins in the market of its sales. For example, in 2009, Toyotas chairman said that the strong appreciation of the Yen against the Dollar and Euro and the rising cost of raw materials made losses in Toyotas sale (www.glgroup.com). The demand for larger cars decreased while increasing the demand for small cars by changing the life style nowadays. This is also a challenge for Toyota. According to the increasing expenses, the consumer usage of cars is decreasing. This factor reduces the demand of cars in the market as well as the high price Toyotas cars. Businesses operate their operations with fewer fuels by the technology improvements. For instances, Europe governments are encouraging more alternatives for transport, which is reducing the demand for new cars (www.businessteacher.org.uk). These all factors are the threats for Toyota. 5. SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT OF TOYOTA: Toyota has coordinated the plans across the supply chain and has executed them efficiently. It is the ultimate way in which Toyota has built its superior efficiency in operations. Its effective performance is estimated by the process and their results. This process aims to create a balance between the supply chain parameters. Components of Supply chain management. Variety of products. Velocity of product flow. Variability of out comes against fore cast. Visibility of process to enable learning. (http://www.mhprofessional.com/product.php?isbn=0071615490) The variety represents an extremely important design selection of supply chain which has an effect on the participants of the supply chain. When choosing variety, there is a need to have feed back to make sure that it is suitable to represent for the market situation. Velocity has clearly shown in the Toyotas supply chain. It allows doing the procedures at the same time throughout the system. By reducing the variability orders, supply chain will need low level of inventory. It also support for the high quality and cost reduction across the supply chain. These three concepts of supply chain management influence on the stable of supply chain of Toyota. However, Toyotas supply chain ran too hot, which means, working with a lot of unfamiliar suppliers. They didnt have proper understanding of Toyotas culture. The majority of the problems of the company concern with this problem. The Toyota Way and TPS have given them the competitive advantages on a global scale. Most of these advantages are gained through a combination of the arrangement of the human resources policies and their highly efficient global network of the suppliers and manufactures. According to the TPS Toyota maintain the quality of the product while reducing the cost and eliminating the waste efficiently. Through these techniques Toyota is able to develop competitive advantage in their manufacturing and sales. Toyota considers that the workers are at the centre of the process of continuous improvement and that their creativity leads to innovation, to improve the loyalty and morale in the work place. At the end, when the job satisfaction is high, there is a greater likelihood that reliable and high quality products can be offered at an affordable price. So the low cost and high quality of the products create high demand for Toyotas products in the competitive market. REFERENCES: Kae Inoue, Toyotas President Takes over Amid U.S. Slump, [Online], Available: www.bloomberg.com, ( June 23, 2009). GM, Toyota, Ford add sales as incentives Buoy Rough market, [Online], Available: www.businessweek.com,( April, 2010). Operational agility at Toyota, [Online], Available: http://blogs.ft.com, (January 27, 2010). Toyota, Nissan Vow to do Better; Green Cars Key, [Online], Available: www.retures.com, (June23, 2009). Toyota will reduce Hybrid Cars prices, [Online], Available: www.inrumor.com, (January 17 ,2010). Porter, M., Generic Strategies, [Online], Available: www.marketteacher.com,( 1980) . Edwards Deming, W., Total Quality Management, [Online], Available: www.1000advices.com. Strategic Analysis of Toyota, [Online], Available: http://ivythesis.typespad.com (August 03,2004). Jeffrey K. Liker., The Toyota Way:14 management principles from the worlds greatest manufacturer, [Online], Available: http://books.google.co.uk, (August 03 2009). Vision and Philosophy: Toyota Production System [Online], Available: http://www2.toyota.co.tp. Taylor, A., Toyotas new man at the wheel, [Online], Available: http;//money.cnn.com, (June 26, 2009). Toyota working on new car for emerging markets, [Online], Available http://www.teuters.com ,(July 29,2010). Despite Toyota is still launched in emerging Markets, [Online], Available: www.allbusiness.com (February 21, 2011). Toyota Prius,[Online], Available: www.brandchannel.com. Core competency of Toyota, [Online], Available: http://svprojectmanagement.com, (Feb, 2010) Toyota invest in 1Techs process engineering expertise, [Online], Available: www.1Tech.eu.

Computer Hackers :: Personal Narrative Profile Essays

Personal Narrative- Computer Hackers My perception of hackers was crafted long ago, by my brother, a hacker himself. He was involved with all manner of clandestine activites and tied up our phone line for hours. I, of course, never understood what he was involved with, but remember being excited when he broke into an army base, as the military was my passion at the time. I also never understood the constant calls from strange men our family would receive, nor did my parents. Now, my brother claims it was the FBI investigating him. Whether this is true or not, I do not know, but what I have always believed of hackers is that a certain mystique and romance is important to their work. He was excited by the fact that the FBI would be interested in him. Hackers use something as easily accessible as a PC to create great waves in the larger world. Although their tasks are often effective, they are not the most practical breed. Simply the fancy nomenclature they use and their tendency to form hacking groups shows that a full culture has developed. I have always been under the impression that most hackers did not find their calling for functional reasons, but to join a popular youth subculture. That is why I am not surprised that the vast majority were and are young, at least when the culture arose in the eighties. The identity with a formally named group further shows this need to belong. The wit of their stunts and insistence on a personal touch also shows that hacking is an artistic outlet. I was surprised that even in a political movement as developed as the Zapatistas, this facet of hacking remains. The Electronic Disturbance Theater, as their name suggests, view themselves as performance artists. I was also surprised at how the hacking community has evolved since TRS-80s from Radio Shack were the standard. The community has legitimized itself in many ways. I always believed that wreaking havoc was the main priority of hacking groups, and that their romantic fervor for it could not be quelled. Bloodaxe's final letter in Phrack exemplifies how mistaken I was. Not only is he disgusted by the community, but he admits that he and his contemporaries may have grown up. Perhaps, he is implying that many of their stunts were puerile. I also did not expect that hackers would cross the line to aid the corporate and government machines that they once opposed.

Epic of Beowulf Essay - Lindisfarne and Christian Influences in Beowulf :: Epic of Beowulf Essay

Lindisfarne and Christian Influences in Beowulf      Ã‚  Ã‚   The Beowulf manuscript, written around the year 1000 and containing approximately 70 Christian references/allusions, could owe part of its Christianization to the Catholic bishops, priests, monks and laity who made The Lindisfarne Gospels a reality about 300 years prior.    â€Å". . . the poem is the product of a great age, the age of Bede, an age which knew artistic achievements of the kind buried at Sutton Hoo, an age in which art and learning were united to produce great gospel books like the Lindisfarne Gospels, now in the British Museum,   . . . (Stanley 3). The Lindisfarne Gospels was written and artistically decorated about the year 700. About the middle of the tenth century a Catholic priest named Aldred, after translating The Lindisfarne Gospels from Latin into Anglo-Saxon, wrote on the last leaf of the manuscript a colophon naming the four Catholic religious responsible for making The Lindisfarne Gospels:    Eadfrith, Bishop of the Lindisfarne Church, originally wrote this book, for God and for Saint Cuthbert and – jointly – for all the saints whose relics are in the Island. And Ethelwald, Bishop of the Lindisfarne islanders, impressed it on the outside and adorned it with gold and with gems and also with gilded-over silver – pure metal. And Aldred, unworthy and most miserable priest, glossed it in English between the lines with the help of God and Saint Cuthbert†¦.(Backhouse 7).    Janet Backhouse in her book The Lindisfarne Gospels, says that these gospels were made in north-east England â€Å"less than a century after the introduction there of Christianity† (Backhouse 7). This statement is quesstionable. Consider that the conversion of Britain to Christianity began quite early. The Catholic priest Venerable Bede, born in Bernicia, Northumbria, around 673, states in Bk 1, Ch 4 of his Ecclesiastical History of the English People that while Eleutherius was Bishop of Rome (175-189AD), a king of Britain named Lucius requested of the Pope that the king be baptized a Catholic by papal decree:    In the year of our Lord 156 Marcus Antoninus Verus was made emperor together with his brother Aurelius Commodus. He was the fourteenth after Augustus. In their time, while a holy man called Eleutherius was bishop of the church at Rome, Lucius, a king of Britain, sent him a letter praying him that he might be made a

Video Game Addiction: Do we need a Video Gamers Anonymous? Essay

Video Game Addiction: Do we need a Video Gamers Anonymous? Super Mario Brothers, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Street Fighter are familiar names to nearly all of us. They are all best selling games of major video game consoles. Over 9.8 billion dollars were spent on video games in the United States during 2001 alone, and video game consoles are present in 36 million homes in the United States (1). With the increasing amount of time that people are spending on video games, one is left to wonder if it is possible to become addicted to video games. Do we need a Video Gamers Anonymous? Addiction has been defined as "A primary, chronic disease, characterized by impaired control over the use of a psychoactive substance and/or behavior. Clinically, the manifestations occur along biological, psychological, sociological and spiritual dimensions (2)." While there is currently no category for video game addiction in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (3), which is the manual utilized to diagnose psychological disorders, video game addicts are often described by clinicians in the field as displaying many symptoms characteristic of other addictions. These behaviors include failure to stop playing games, difficulties in work or school, telling lies to loved ones, decreased attention to personal hygiene, decreased attention to family and friends, and disturbances in the sleep cycle (4). Withdrawal symptoms can even include behaviors as severe as shaking (5). All addictions can be dangerous and harmful to the addicted person and others around him; however, video game addiction can be particularly detrimental to children. Video games are becoming increasingly popular with children of young ages, which in turn may raise... ...//www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/internet/cybaddict.html 4)When games stop being fun, http://msnbc.msn.com/news/737966.asp?0si=- 5)Video games: Cause for concern?, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1036088.stm 6)Video games: Research, ratings, and recommendations, Contains many references for empirical studies http://ericeece.org/pubs/digests/1998/cesar98.html 7)Video games addiction, http://www.theparentreport.com/resources/ages/preteen/kids_culture/130.html 8)Are video games really so bad?, http://www.time.com/time/asia/asia/magazine/1999/990510/video3.html 9)Questions Answered, http://www.missouri.edu/~kingjw/feb15q.html 10)Positron Emission Tomography , http://exn.ca/environment/ 11)The Biochemistry of Human Addiction, Discusses the role of dopamine in addiction http://www.er.doe.gov/feature_articles_2001/June/Decades/94.html

Blood Passion Ludlow and Class War in the American West Essay

Introduction                      The Book Blood Passion: Ludlow and Class War in the American west is a narrative exploration of the most violent labor showdowns in the history of America. It portrays the deaths of seventy-five people who were killed in a period of seven months. It explores the guerilla war that erupted at the brink of collapse of political structures whereby only the intervention of the U.S army could end it. The book by Scott Martelle provides insight into the life and times of the miners in Colorado at a time when working in the mines was just as dangerous as living above the mines. The author of the book brings to life through vivid pictures taken during the times of the war. He tries to summarize the fact that there had been lawless killing of miners who had been on strike for more than fifteen months. The miners had been kicked out of their company homes when they had begun the strike, but they had built a tent colony for both themselves and their families. However, the Baldwin-Felts detectives who had been hired to protect the mines were given instruction to remove all strikers from the company’s vicinity, which consequently led to the guerilla wars that followed, killing men, women and children. The author states that the miners had the right to strike given the fact that they lived in the company houses where they paid rent, shopped in the company’s shops and drank in the company’s saloon, but later, their wages were cut by ten percent. On the other hand, the Baldwin-Felts detectives who had been hired had fought harassed and killed union miners at the same time carrying out evictions. For this reason, the author states that the miners were fighting for their livelihoods against a system that was trumped by greed and prejudice. However, the thesis proposed by the author is not fully developed because he claims that this incident â€Å"marked the beginning of the modern era of labor disputes† (Martelle, 3). This is because he did not compare this strike with the other strikes in other locations and other industries where the same number or slightly fewer numbers of fatalities were recorded. There are also some weaknesses in the author’s arguments because his side of the story was too rigid and did not consider the miner’s traditional views of gender roles and at the same time working in an all-male working environment. He also did not mention the Catholic and Greek Orthodox religions, which played a major role in intensifying the miners’ fury against the guards and their depredations against women. By his statement that this was one of the defining moments for American labor histories, Martelle did not contradict himself. Although his evidence was one sided, the incidents that happened under John D. Rockefeller were a defining moment. The book is an efficient source of historical information when it comes to the Colorado incident that was recorded by history. For instance, the author lays note of the letter written by Lamont Montgomery Bowers who was Rockefeller’s man in Colorado who suggested a reduction of wages by ten percent. This is a piece of valuable evidence that gives insight into the escalation of the guerilla warfare between the company guards, the detectives, the mineworkers and innocent bystanders who were caught up in the crossfire. The Ludlow Massacre has helped to shape labor management in the 20th century because of the evidence brought up during a time when lawlessness was the order of the day. It serves as a cautionary reference about a market that was unregulated and the consequences of not having strong labor unions that fight for the workers. Although the labor market has been revolutionized since those fateful days, the Ludlow Massacre serves as a turning point for this advancement. There are some biases that spring up when reviewing the book. One of it is that the book focuses mainly on the plight of the miners while it should consider the economic times of the massacre. It was during this time that the coal, fuel and steel had become a precious commodity for American trade. Fuel, like oil and coal, had been the driving factors for the modern America where tough decisions had to be made. Although companies made fortunes from the mining of coal, the book does not focus on the impact that the strikes would have in case the production stopped in Southern Colorado, as compared to other coal-mining regions. The Ludlow Massacre clearly depicts misuse of power by individuals and corporations in positions of power and authority such as John D. Rockefeller and his cronies. Modern labor laws allow that the power should not be misused regardless of position of power of the amount of wealth that an individual has. The book describes Lamont Montgomery to have had a smart su it and a twitchy push broom mustache. It also states that even after a heated debate with the federal mediator, Bowers came out as the winner of the suit as a result of his affiliation. In conclusion, the Ludlow Massacre has been a pivotal point of reference in modern day labor laws. The importance of the memory of those fateful years traverses any economic or political affiliation that any scholar might have. However, it also shows the plight of mine workers and labor unions in a time when the country was gaining ground in terms of development and economic awareness. Reference Martelle, Scott. Blood passion: the Ludlow Massacre and class war in the American West. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 2007. Print. Source document