Resource Based Analysis of Marks & Spencer Plc Essay

Resource Based Analysis of Marks & Spencer Plc - Essay Example The present research has identified that clothing stores of Marks & Spencer are the leading retailers in the UK market and specialize in providing women’s wears, lingerie, and menswear. Their food stores are also leading in the UK market due providing fresh foods which are of high quality. The marketing and distribution of their products into the various markets and stores is done by utilizing the service of huge wholesalers, online stores and through a telephone. The company’s stocks are registered in the London stocks exchange. This paper will first assess the importance of capabilities and how they contribute to the competitive advantage of the organization. Then, analyze Marks & Spencer plc resources and capabilities using ratio analysis, value chain and VRIN. Resource-based view (RBV) is a business model which holds that business can attain a massive competitive advantage over the rival businesses by utilizing their resources and capabilities properly in alignment with the environment of the business. This implies that the business should possess resources and capabilities which are superior to those of their rivals in order to attain the competitive advantage over them. This will prevent the rival businesses from replicating the resources and capabilities of the company thus declining their competitive advantage. Capabilities are used in resource-based view to indicate the ability of a firm to apply its resources effectively and efficiently with the sole aim of gaining the competitive advantage over the market. Strategies of a company are formulated to address the future productivity of the company. Strategies of a company are formulated to address the future productivity of the company. Strategies are formulated to address any occurrences and incidences in the market and how to respond to changes in the market due to pressures or influences which appear from time to time in the market. The first strategy utilized by M&S was the brand name.

What You Have Learned About About Organizational Systems Assignment

What You Have Learned About About Organizational Systems - Assignment Example Employees constitute one of the stakeholders in any organization. Employees provide the human capital required for the organization to succeed. Meeting and attaining organizational goals requires a team of employees who are committed to the organizational culture and development. Most managers use employees to solidify their organizational culture. Developing and maintaining a particular Organizational culture is central to the success of the organization because the culture is usually aligned with the goals and missions of the organization. Organizational culture will ensure that all the employees in the organization work towards a given direction. The reporter has learned the important role employees play in organizations, and in establishing an organizational culture. He would use employees to develop an organizational culture at his workplace that would ensure success in the corporate world. Careful selection of staff would ensure he develops the right organizational culture based on the goals of the workplace. Standardized procedures may help focus on the values that are crucial to the culture when getting employees for the organization. He would only choose those candidates who possess the values that fit the type of organizational culture he is developing.

The competitive advantage of Honda Corporation

The competitive advantage of Honda Corporation There are several factors that can contribute to a firms ability to be competitive in its industry. Building blocks of a competitive advantage include efficiency, quality, innovation, and responsiveness to customers. A firm with a competitive advantage may experience higher profits than the average profit in the industry while competing for the same customers. In the case of Honda, this is true. Honda has many distinctive competencies based on its resource and capabilities that allow it to have a competitive advantage in the auto manufacturing industry. Three areas that give Honda a competitive advantage in the auto industry include Hondas engineering and design, research and development, and brand equity. In order to determine whether Hondas competitive advantage in these three areas is sustainable, we analyze and apply each one to the VRIO framework. Honda is unique in that its corporate structure is made of three companies. Honda Research and Development is in charge of research and development of innovative products for the company. Honda Motor produces, sells, and services the all Honda products. Honda Engineering develops manufacturing processes, systems and equipment used to build all Honda products. Hondas superior design capability has enabled it to build high-quality reliable products and has also added value to the Honda brand. Hondas efficient manufacturing processes have also kept production costs low relative to other automakers in the industry (Snipes 2008). In terms of value, Honda excels at using its engineering expertise and design skills to build reliable cars that simply work. This ability is quite valuable to the company and its industry. Although valuable, Hondas engineering and design is not rare, because there are other car manufactures with excellent engineering and design capabilities. For car manufacturer s who are not already competitive with Honda in its engineering and design ability, it would be very difficult to bridge the gap to competitiveness by imitating Hondas success. Therefore, Hondas engineering and design is inimitable. The final question to ask is whether Honda is organized, ready and able to take advantage of opportunities via its engineering and design. Hondas organization is unique in its management structure in that it differs from most public U.S corporations. A board consisting of 21 directors runs the company, which allows for faster decision-making and execution in new product design (Whiston 2010). All of the companys business units are aligned to take advantage of design breakthroughs, which leads to a conclusion that its engineering and design are a source of sustainable competitive advantage. Hondas focus on research and development is highly valuable and places it at the forefront of technology. This allows the company to incorporate technological breakthroughs and advancements into its wide line of vehicles. Honda also has a very high level of investment in research and development, which is not common in the auto industry. Hondas level of commitment to research and development is also very rare compared to its industry peers. Honda possesses a strong first mover advantage over many competitors in this area because of the advanced nature of its research. Competitors not actively pursuing their own research find it very difficult to catch up to Honda, therefore the companys RD is considered inimitable. Organizationally, Honda keeps the RD group separate from other divisions within the company giving its teams freedom to develop new technologies for the company across the board. Hondas unique structure and its level of commitment to advanced quality research make its rese arch and development a sustainable source of competitive advantage in its industry. Hondas brand equity is an extremely valuable source of its competitive advantage since consumers are willing to pay a premium for Hondas vehicles because of the power of its brand and its association with quality and value. As a result, it has led Honda to have best-in-class repeat purchase rates. Honda has repeatedly been placed among the worlds top 20 most valuable brands according to a research conducted by Business Week Magazine (Ferret 2006). The Honda brand ranked 19th on the international list of one hundred most valuable brands in 2005, having a brand value of $15.8 billion. Honda has very strong brand loyalty as evidenced by the strong repurchase rate for Honda automobiles relative to the industry norms. 65% of Honda customers purchase another Honda automobile compared to only 48% for the industry (Ferret 2006. While it is highly valuable, Hondas brand equity is not rare. Toyota also has strong brand equity in the same industry, but recent recalls may have deteriorated its v alue. Because Hondas brand equity has been built over a long period of time, it would be very difficult for competitors to imitate. Hondas reputation for reliable cars was not earned over night, making it highly inimitable. Honda takes advantages of the benefits given by its strong brand by using it as the flagship brand for the company. By supporting its brand value with superior engineering, design, and research and development, Honda is able to rely on its brand equity as a source of sustained competitive advantage.

Gaining a Sense of Membership into Christian Europe Essay -- Religion

Gaining a Sense of Membership into Christian Europe Problems with format Introduction: ????????? Turkey is a unique nation that has been attempting to bridge the gap between the Muslim world and Western culture. Economics and foreign policy give the strongest background to the challenges Turkey has faced and what lies ahead in Turkey?s slow acceptance into the club of Europe. History: ????????? The country Turkey was formed in 1923 from the partitioning of the 600 year old Ottoman Empire, an ally of Germany in WWI. Mustafa Kemal was the leader greatly responsible for creating the republic and is consequently referred to as Ataturk, father of the Turks. Ataturk emphasized secularism, nationalism, and modernization in the regions around Anatolis and Thrace. Ataturk?s social, political, economic, and linguistic reforms became known as ?Kemalism?, and drew inspiration greatly from the West (state.gov). In the year 1945 it officially became a member of the United Nations and participated in the Korean War, later becoming a part of NATO in 1952. Turkey has since grown to become a strategically important eastern member for NATO, and a NATO headquarter is located in Izmir. ?After WWII, Turkey and Greece received security from communism in the form of aid from the United States in the Truman Doctrine. Turkey drafted a formal constitution in 1982 and its government currently consists of 3 branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. The majority of the population lives in urban areas, Istanbul home to 9.7 million citizens and the capital Anakara 3.7 million. Turkey?s 780,580 km2 lie in one of the most earthquake prone areas of the world. Although a secular republic, 98% of the population is Muslim, the majority being ... .... Department of State. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3432/htm>. Country Profile-Cyprus. Central Intelligence Agency. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.cia.gov>. Greece Now. Greek Embassy. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.greece.gr>. Khan, Adnan R. "On the Edge." Maclean's. 8 Dec. 2003: MasterFILE Premier. 17 Dec. 2003 Scheifer, Yigal. "Turkey chafes at European 'snub'." Christian Science Monitor. 16 Dec. 2003: MasterFILE Premier. Cleveland Public Library. 17 Dec. 2003 Squitieri, Tom. "Moderate, West-oriented Turkey is 'logical target'." USA Today 21 Nov. 2003: 14A. NewsBank. Cleveland Public Library. 17 Dec. 2003 Turkey. Turkish Embassy. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.turkishembassy.com>. "Western Outpost." Economist. 12 Oct. 2003: MasterFILE Premier. Cleveland Public Library. 13 Dec. 2003 Gaining a Sense of Membership into Christian Europe Essay -- Religion Gaining a Sense of Membership into Christian Europe Problems with format Introduction: ????????? Turkey is a unique nation that has been attempting to bridge the gap between the Muslim world and Western culture. Economics and foreign policy give the strongest background to the challenges Turkey has faced and what lies ahead in Turkey?s slow acceptance into the club of Europe. History: ????????? The country Turkey was formed in 1923 from the partitioning of the 600 year old Ottoman Empire, an ally of Germany in WWI. Mustafa Kemal was the leader greatly responsible for creating the republic and is consequently referred to as Ataturk, father of the Turks. Ataturk emphasized secularism, nationalism, and modernization in the regions around Anatolis and Thrace. Ataturk?s social, political, economic, and linguistic reforms became known as ?Kemalism?, and drew inspiration greatly from the West (state.gov). In the year 1945 it officially became a member of the United Nations and participated in the Korean War, later becoming a part of NATO in 1952. Turkey has since grown to become a strategically important eastern member for NATO, and a NATO headquarter is located in Izmir. ?After WWII, Turkey and Greece received security from communism in the form of aid from the United States in the Truman Doctrine. Turkey drafted a formal constitution in 1982 and its government currently consists of 3 branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. The majority of the population lives in urban areas, Istanbul home to 9.7 million citizens and the capital Anakara 3.7 million. Turkey?s 780,580 km2 lie in one of the most earthquake prone areas of the world. Although a secular republic, 98% of the population is Muslim, the majority being ... .... Department of State. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3432/htm>. Country Profile-Cyprus. Central Intelligence Agency. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.cia.gov>. Greece Now. Greek Embassy. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.greece.gr>. Khan, Adnan R. "On the Edge." Maclean's. 8 Dec. 2003: MasterFILE Premier. 17 Dec. 2003 Scheifer, Yigal. "Turkey chafes at European 'snub'." Christian Science Monitor. 16 Dec. 2003: MasterFILE Premier. Cleveland Public Library. 17 Dec. 2003 Squitieri, Tom. "Moderate, West-oriented Turkey is 'logical target'." USA Today 21 Nov. 2003: 14A. NewsBank. Cleveland Public Library. 17 Dec. 2003 Turkey. Turkish Embassy. 13 Dec. 2003 <http://www.turkishembassy.com>. "Western Outpost." Economist. 12 Oct. 2003: MasterFILE Premier. Cleveland Public Library. 13 Dec. 2003

Harbor Chemicals

Assignment 5 Sheet Harbour Chemicals Sheet Harbour Chemicals (SHC) manufactures chemicals used in the paint industry. The process involves three departments. Chemical A, which is purchased for $3 per liter, is processed through Department 1 in batches of 100 liters. Each batch of chemicals processed through Department A produces 70 liters of chemical B and 30 liters of chemical C. Chemical B is sold for $10 per liter. Chemical C is used in Department 2 to produce chemicals D, E, and F. Department 2 processes chemical C in batches of 200 liters.Each batch processed through Department B produces 100 liters of chemical D, 60 liters of chemical E, and 40 liters of chemical F. Chemical D is sold for $12 per liter. Chemical E is a waste product that is donated to the local municipality to be spread on gravel roads to keep down dust. Chemical F is a hazardous waste product that must be disposed of at a cost of $6 per liter. Alternatively, chemical F can be processed through Department 3 to produce chemical C. Department 3 processes chemical F in batches of 40 liters.For each batch of chemical F processed, 20 liters of chemical C are produced. In the past, this operation has had a tendency to build up stocks of chemical C. The maximum storage capactiy for chemical C is 1,000 liters. The accompanying diagram summarizes the production activities at SHC. The sales manager indicates that sales of chemical B cannot exceed 35,000 liters in the upcoming period, and sales of chemical D cannot exceed 10,000 liters. The production manager advises that 7,000 labor-hours are available for the upcoming period. Workers are paid $10 per hour worked.The production manager indicates that the labor-hours required for each batch in Departments 1,2, and 3 are 10, 15, and 10, respectively. Moreoever, because of constraints relating to the mixing vats and storage, the maximum number of batches in Departments 1, 2, and 3 are 600, 80, and 40, respectively. The estimated variable overhead cost s per batch in Departments 1, 2, and 3 are estimated as $250, $750, and $100. 2 Required: 1. Formulate an LP to determine the optimal production plan at SHC for the upcoming period. 2. Using Excel, solve the LP formulated in requirement 1 to determine the optimal plan.

Alcohol Use Disorder

Alcohol use disorders are among the most prevalent mental disorders worldwide and rank high as a cause of disability burden in most regions of the world. (Grant et al. , 2006)The following paper discusses the recent research findings and essential features based on the content of diagnosis, assessment and treatment. Diagnosis The DSM-IV-TR classifies drug disorders into substance use disorders (substance dependence and abuse) and substance-induced disorders (substance intoxication, substance withdrawal, induced delirium, anxiety, depression, psychosis and mood disorders). Sometimes it is difficult assessing patient’s psychiatric complaints because heavy drinking is associated with alcoholism can co-exist with, contribute to or result from several different psychiatric syndromes. (Shivani, Goldsmith & Anthenelli, 2002) In order to improve diagnostic accuracy, distinguishes among alcohol-related psychiatric symptoms and signs, alcohol-induced psychiatric syndromes and independent psychiatric disorders that are commonly associated with alcoholism emerges to be essential. Patients’ gender, family history, and course of illness over time also should be taken into account. Alcohol-related psychiatric symptoms and signs Heavy alcohol consumption directly affects brain function and brain chemical and hormonal systems known to be involved in many common mental disorders thus can manifest itself in a broad range of psychiatric symptoms and signs. (Koob, 2000) And this usually the first problem which brings the patients seek help. The symptoms vary depending on the amount of alcohol used, how long it is used and how recently it was used as well as patient’s vulnerability to experiencing psychiatric symptoms in the setting of consumption. For example, during intoxication, smaller amount alcohol may produce euphoria whereas larger amount may produce more dramatic changes in mood. Alcohol also impairs judgment and aggressive, antisocial behaviours that may mimic certain externalizing disorders such as ASPD. Alcohol-induced psychiatric syndromes The essential feature of alcohol-induced psychiatric syndromes is the presence of prominent and persistent symptoms, which are judged- based on their onset and course as well as on the patient’s history, physical exam, and laboratory findings to be the result of the direct physiological effects of alcohol. Given the broad range of effects of heavy drinking may have on psychological functioning, these alcohol-induced disorders span several categories of mental disorders, including mood, anxiety, psychotic, sleep, sexual, delirious, amnestic and dementia disorders. Alcoholism with comorbid, independent psychiatric disorders Alcoholism is also associated with several psychiatric disorders that develop independently of the alcoholism and may precede alcohol use and abuse. One of the most common of these comorbid conditions is ASPD, and axis II personality disorder marked by a longstanding pattern of irresponsibility and violating the rights of others with alcohol. (Stinson et al. , 2006) Assessment The three major purposes for a comprehensive assessment are to determine a diagnosis, devise a treatment plan and to make appropriate referrals. The assessment should provide a clinical picture of the client’s personal level of functioning, history, presenting problems, family and social context in the client’s life. It is very important that the assessment process requires the gathering of comprehensive, accurate information, for a valid diagnosis and appropriate treatment. – It is vital that the counsellor needs to collect valid and reliable information. Both formal diagnosis, as listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (APA, 1994) and informal diagnosis, if the client has had therapy in the past can be made. – Comprehensive assessment is essential in designing a treatment plan. The more information provided concerning the etiology, functioning level and prognosis of the problem, the better the treatment plan. – Comprehensive assessment also provides information in order to made appropriate referral. The counsellor may decide to provide treatment solely or in conjunction with some other drug treatment specialists. Generally there are three categories of assessment measures: subjective data and physiological data. -Subjective data To collect information of demographics, family and living situations, mployment, education, drinking history (including development of the drinking problem and current drinking) and the effects on the subject’s cognitive, psychosocial, behavioural and physiological functioning. (Aalto & Seppa, 2005) For example, some questionnaires focus on problems caused by alcohol consumption, the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) (Saunders, Aasland, Babor, de le Fuente, & Grant, 1993) There are ones with diaries focussing on the quantification of alcohol consumption, such as quantity-frequency, time-period or time-line follow-back methods. Webb et al. , 1990) More recently, a low level of response (LR) to alcohol (the need for higher amounts to have an effect) is a genetically influenced characteristic that is both found in populations at high risk for future alcoholism and that predicts alcohol related life problems in future. This Self-Rating of the Effects of Alcohol (SRE) questionnaire asks for estimate of number of drinks required to produce each of four effects at different times in their lives. Miller, Thomas, & Mallin, 2006) In addition, the survey included the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-C (AUDIT-C), a three-question alcohol screening test adapted from the original AUDIT developed by the World Health Organization for use in primary health care. The AUDIT-C is a simple, reliable screening tool that focuses on the frequency of drinking, quantify consumed on the typical occasion and the frequency of heavy episode drinking. (Bush, Kivlahan, McDonnell, & al. , 1998) Again, there is no such perfect measure that SRE was found to be biased and not able to identify high functioning middle-age women. Schuckit, Smith, Danko, & Isacescu, 2003) The difficulty with these specific questionnaires is that people who drink alcohol in general tend to neglect or underestimate their alcohol consumption. (Koch et al. , 2004) The accuracy of these measures is based on the patient's awareness of and willingness to acknowledge his or her pattern and level of alcohol use as well as negative effects of drinking. At least some individuals who drink excessively will fail to do this. (Allen & Litten, 2001) – Physiological data Comparing to subjective data, physiological data can overcome the subjectivity, underestimation in particular thus provides more precise and objective information about the drinking issue. It includes general medical and psychiatric history and examination. This is conducted through screening of blood, breath or urine for alcohol used, further on laboratory tests for abnormalities that may be accompanied acute or chronic alcohol use such as gamma-glutamy-transferase (GGT) or mean corpuscular volume (MCV), a measure of the average size of red blood cells. These may also be used during treatment for potential relapse. GGT is the most commonly used biochemical measure of drinking. However, it is not clear how much drinking is actually needed to cause GGT levels to elevate. And MCV tends to miss more alcoholics than GGT as MCV may be elevated by a variety of conditions other than heavy drinking such as non-alcoholic liver disease, smoking, advanced age or use of anticonvulsants etc. Thus applying the usual cut-off points for these tests, GGT turns out to have a low specificity whereas MCV shows a low sensitivity. This may lead to a gross misunderstanding with the patient and unnecessary further testing. Carbohydrate deficient transferring (CDT) has been recently approved as a marker for identification of individuals with alcohol problems as well as an aid in recognizing if alcoholic patients in treatment have relapsed. CDT and GGT appear to validly detect somewhat different groups of people with alcohol problems. GGT may best pick up those with liver damage due to drinking, whereas CDT seems to be related to level of consumption with or without liver damage. It should be kept in mind that biomarkers do not identify women or adolescents with alcohol problems as they do for male or adults in general. (Similarly, self-report screening tests are also generally less able to detect alcohol problems) (Allen & Litten, 2001) Previous studies showed that over 80% of internists and family clinicians report that they usually or always ask new outpatients whether they drink alcohol. Less than 20% of primary care physicians routinely use validated self-report alcohol screening instruments (e. g. CAGE questions or AUDIT) Fewer than half ask about maximum alcohol consumption on one occasion. Alcohol biomarker laboratory tests are rarely used. Reasons given by clinicians for not following recommended alcohol screening guidelines range from lack of time, to insufficient knowledge and skills, to pessimistic attitudes about the ultimate benefits of screening. A current study conducted by Miller, et al. , (2004), they found that approximately 60% of clinicians surveyed frequently screen patients for alcohol use with quantity/frequency and CAGE questions. This is comparable to the incidence of screening found in previous studies. (Miller, Ornstein, Nietert, & Anton, 2004)Miller, et al. 2006) further found that over 90% of patients were in favour of screening and guidance about alcohol use and very positive about the use of biological alcohol markers. These findings suggest that physicians and clinicians may be convinced that patients are open to alcohol screening and would not be offended by it. Heavy drinkers may have more of a tendency to be embarrassed by such questions but there is no evidence they would be object to screening. The majority of patients would also be willing to receive alcohol biomarker blood tests, if their physicians and clinicians deemed such tests necessary.