Category: Business

Business must be one of the most fast-changing spheres; what used to be the key principle of running a business might prove completely inefficient in several years, and the recent innovations date within a millisecond. Taking a closer look at such parts of business process as production and offshoring will help understand what has changed over the past few years and what new tendencies have appeared.

Before going any further, one must define the key terms offered in the UNCTAD report. The first issue to deal with will be core business. According to the UNCTAD report, a core business is a set of activities that involve such stages as establishing a more effective internal division of labour, freeing scarce resources to be used in other segments of its value chain (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 125).

Interpreting the given definition, one can assume that core business is the kind of business that focuses on the key issues, i.e., labor, resources and losses/benefits that the owner of the business can possibly take on the way to conquering the existing market and attracting target customers. Moreover, the concept of a value chain should also be integrated into the given definition; therefore, promotion should be included in the basic set of activities.

Another important issue to be defined is global value chains. According to the definition provided by the UNCTAD report, global value chains are the mechanisms that offer an opportunity to increasingly control and coordinate the operations of independent or, rather, loosely dependent partner firms, through various mechanisms (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 124).

Therefore, it can be concluded that global value chains are the methods that allow to promote a certain facility or product not only within the boundaries of a specific country, but also in other states (Van Dijk & Trienekens, 2012).

Before defining non-equity modes of entry, one should find out what a mode of entry actually means. According to the explanations provided by the UNISTAD report, a mode of entry is a method for a specific state to start trading relationships within the realm of global market (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 157).

According to the evidence offered in the above-mentioned source, one of the most widespread modes of entry is a franchise: international franchising can be an avenue for brands from developing countries to grow internationally (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 157). Therefore, a non-equity mode of entry means entering a certain market with considerably fewer rights than the rest of the companies.

Finally, such an issue as countervailing power of partners should be mentioned as a great chunk of international business relationships. As the UNCTAD report says, establishing the countervailing power of partners means that the partners in question are considered completely equal in a specified market.

The report mentions, naturally, that the case of fully matching powers is extremely rare; however, partner companies in host countries possess or can develop countervailing power, often with the support of their government (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 129). Hence, it can be assumed that having a countervailing power in a specific market means having similar assets and equal opportunities for two or more companies.

At present, four basic types of Non-Equity Models, or NOMs, and each of these models has its own determinants that need to be described in order to get a full picture of the current business opportunities for overseas partners.

Contract manufacturing is, as the UNCTAD report claims, Contractual relationships whereby an international firm contracts out to a host-country firm production, service or processing elements of its GVC (extending even to aspects of product development). All go under the general rubric of outsourcing (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 128). Therefore, it can be assumed that contract manufacturing is focused on outsourcing issues.

Another type of NOMs, franchising, in its turn, is defined as a contractual relationship in which an international firm (franchisor) permits a host country firm (franchisee) to run a business modelled on the system developed by the franchisor in exchange for a fee or a mark-up on goods or services supplied by the franchisor (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 128). As for licensing, the given type of NOMs presupposes that the control over the enterprise is vested to a contractor (Newlands et al., 2012).

Finally, the contract farming model involves contractual relationship between an international buyer and (associations of) host-country farmers (including through intermediaries), which establishes conditions for the farming and marketing of agricultural products (Non-equity modes of international production and development, 2011, 128).

Even though each of the above-mentioned models seems quite important for business relationships and provides quite adequate approaches towards building these relationships with foreign partners, it is still important to remember that these models have their pros and cons. In terms of local value, the model that generates the highest one is the contract manufacturing, since it is based on the policy of outsourcing and, therefore, presupposes that the company has a flexible knowledge system that becomes stronger every day.

Though offshoring is generally admitted to have positive effects on business relationships in general and on the U.S. economy in particular, it is necessary to mention that the success in offshoring came at a price. As Bivens explains, negative trade effects occur in the companies with high-skilled professionals producing export goods, e.g., software.

Thus, the USA loses to the export states. Another side effect of offshoring, the costs for distribution consequences, means that the employees will obtain considerably lower revenues than expected, as opposed to the company owners: If the redistribution goes strictly to capital-owners, then workers are unambiguously worse off (Bivens, n. d., 4).

In addition, according to Bivens, the assumption that offshoring will help reduce prices and unemployment rates is downright wrong, because it does not consider the downsides of price reduction, thinking of the benefits for the U.S. economy, instead: The GI study is not actually measuring the effect of offshoring; rather, it is a prediction about how much rapid cost declines in IT services provision would benefit the U.S. economy (Bivens, n. d., 7).

Therefore, it can be considered that the phenomenon of offshoring is much more complicated than it seems. However, to reduce its negative effects, it will be reasonable to use its positive aspects to benefit the U.S. economy and at the same time incorporate a different approach that will level off the negative aspects of offshoring.

Therefore, it can be concluded that there has been a great change in the process of production and development; one of the recent innovations, non-equity modes, can be considered a major breakthrough, yet the new ideas require testing.

Meanwhile, the process of offshoring, which comes as one of the benefits of globalization, might seem the solution to most problems of the companies that face financial issues, yet it is important to keep in mind that the work should be distributed equally among the departments and affiliates of a specific company.

Reference List

Bivens, L. J. (n. d.) Truth and consequences of offshoring. Washington, DC: Economic Policy Institute.

Newlands et al. (2012). The political economy of the European social model. New York, NY: Routledge.

Non-equity modes of international production and development (2011). Web.

Van Dijk, M. P. & Trienekens, J. H. (2012). Global value chains: Linking local producers from developing countries to international markets. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.

Introduction

A business plan is a well organized document that shows the road map that the business will take so as to start or continue expanding. In some cases, business plans are wrongly drafted and this results in problems when running the business. In this work, ways of resolving low capital base for the alpha retailers are analyzed and evaluated.

Client

The client is called alpha retailers; the company is a start up business that has been established and it deals with the distribution of products to consumers. After starting the business, the managers realized that the capital set out to run the business is not enough.

The client now wishes to solve the problem of lack of enough capital within the business. To develop solutions geared towards solving this problem, the researcher conducted a situations analysis, developed tactics to solve these problems and ways of implementing and monitoring the success of the business.

Objectives

The main objective of this work is to formulate solutions through which the Alpha retailers can use so as to gain enough capital. Currently, the business is faced by the problem of the lack of enough capital due to poor business planning. This has seen the business exhaust its startup capital.

Situational analysis

The first step will be to perform a situational analysis of the business. This will entail a critical evaluation of the alpha retailers. To check the companys internal and external performance, a SWOT analysis was carried out. SWOT analysis entails the examination of the business in terms of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths and weaknesses relate to the internal environment of the business while the opportunities and threats relate to the external environment.

Strengths: the business will be examined to determine its strengths. These include superior technologies, capital, experience in the field, having good competent workers and innovations. The business will be evaluated so as to identify these strengths.

Weaknesses: the business will be analyzed in order to identify the weaknesses the business faces. These include poor technology, lack of capital and small incompetent workforce.

Opportunities: these are the positive factors that promote the development of the business. They include a large customer base, good legal and regulatory framework, positive culture, good political climate, and government subsidies (Barney 87).

Threats: these are external factors that will affect the development of the business negatively. They include superior technology processed by the competitor, low market demand of the product on sale, seasonal and weather effects.

Audiences

The main stakeholders that will be involved in this problem solving:

1. The company management: they will be involved in the formulation of appropriate strategies
2. The company employees: they will be involved in the implementation of the strategies developed
3. The project manager: he/she will help the company formulate appropriate strategies and tactics so as to get enough capital.

Strategy

In order for the business to perform well, there is a need to develop strategies to enable the company raise its capital base (Protiviti 3). The following are the main strategies that will be adopted

Borrow loans: in the short run, the business should borrow capital from financial institution and banks. Before borrowing the loan, the company should prepare an adequate business plan so as to convince the financiers to award the loan

Market the company to investors: this will entail the development of a good business plan which will be used to market the company to investors. The management will identify people who can invest in the business and become shareholders

Venture capital firms: this is an equity financing strategy where investors raise capital for the business and in return the get a stake at the business. The management will liaise with venture capital firms who will not only assist in raising the capital for the business but also provide strategic, market and management expertise to the alpha business.

Aggressive marketing: the working capital of the business can be increased by increasing the net profit which can be used to develop the business. The business should increase their marketing and sale promotions activities so as to increase the sales volume and subsequently the profit and the working capital.

Capital reinvestment: since this business is a small start up business, the company can monitor the cash inflows and outflows and most of the profits can be reinvested back to the business.

Use of more personal saving: the company can increase its capital revenue by asking the principle owners to contribute more money towards they business venture

Factoring all costs and excepted cost in the future: one of the major failures in business is failure to identify all the fixed and variable expenses so that they can be factored in the financial plan. This will prevent cases where extra cost result in reduction in capital.

Tactics

Reducing cost: in order to prevent excessive spending, the company management should look for ways through reducing costs such as checking employees and their productivity so as to get rid of any unproductive employees. The management should also look at the operations, productivity, distribution channels so as to identify methods of reducing costs.

Motivate employees and management: in order to improve the sales, the company should motivate employees and the management team to ensure that they perform at their best. This will increase sales and raise capital in the long run.

Check customer feedback: it is important for the business to monitor the customer feedback so as to respond to any negative feedback. This will ensure that the companys customer base and hence the capital in the long run.

Improve the business culture: the management should improve the business culture so as to get long term benefits and improve their sales as well as the customer base.

Calendar budget

The budget entails the amount that will be used to institute that changes that will result to increase in sales.

The entire process will be carried out within one week. The main activities are shown in the Gantt chart below:

Evaluations

After developing and implementing the different strategies, it is imperative that the progress is tracked so as to ensure that there is a positive growth and that the capital base increases. Various methods will be used to evaluate the success of the adopted strategies. The main evaluation methods are:

Increase in capital: it is expected that they will be an increase in capital. This can be noted after evaluating the account books such as the balance sheet.

Increase in sales: the success of the adopted strategies can be evaluated from the sales record of the company. Greater sales will definitely result in the increase in the profits as well as the working capital

Increase in borrowed capital: if the proposed strategies are implemented, the amount of money generated as debt capital and equity capital is expected to increase.

Works Cited

Barney, Jay. Gaining and Sustaining Competitive Advantage. USA: Addison-Wesley. 1996. Print.

Protiviti . Improving working capital management process. The bulleting 4.11(2011): 1-6. Print.

Introduction

The responsibility of management in human capital is to assist businesses in analyzing personnel strengths and weaknesses, while searching for and developing the strategies, which allow business executives to proactively manage human resources. By offering a holistic analysis of ones personnel, the answer gives one steady and accurate responses required for tactical decision-making (Jago, 1982).

Benefits of human capital management include:

• Improving and measuring personnel efficiency,
• Reducing risks by modifying probable endings,
• Organizing for future personnel needs,
• Encouraging venture performance development.

Features of human capital management are:

• Logical human resources data representation,
• Pre-defined investigation,
• Information administration,
• Data allotment and release.

Small corporations have a less likelihood of performing some human resources practices, which may be considered avoidable or extravagant when implemented. This is in contrast to large corporations which are considered more probable to officially perform human resources activities as compared to other small businesses. Simultaneously, large businesses have started to frequently influence expertise in order to comprehend their personnel as well as th areas where talents are required (Northouse, 2007).

Leadership is the procedure in which an entity sways a collection of persons to attain the same purpose (Northouse, 2007). Excellent leadership is based on admirable character as well as unselfish service to ones institute. In the workers eyes, leadership is referred to everything the leader does that influences the objectives of the organization as well as its welfare.

Managers ought to recognize their task in creating and sustaining the culture of an organization. The values, attitudes, and behaviors of an organization start with its management. This is achieved by means of communicating and role modeling at every level (Jago, 1982). Managers should not undervalue the importance of being constant, when conveying these values, attitudes, and preferred behaviors. In cases where one or several of these constituents happen to be feeble, the organization has the tendency of eventually suffering failure.

Even as there is a need to find an appropriate transformational leader to alter the institute, the group being led is to understand that all the members should adjust to change in a certain way to follow their leader. In certain respects, subsequently, the people become the transformation product. Transformational leaders have the tendency of being charismatic but not as selfish as real charismatic leaders, who thrive through having an exaggerated opinion of themselves (Jago, 1982).

Merely because a person considers himself or herself to be right, it is not a clear indication that that individual is indeed correct. Ironically, the same energy that makes people active can as well lead them to giving up.

Transformational leaders also have the tendency of seeing big picture; however, they fail to see the small aspects, thereby causing problems. If they lack people responsible for this kind of job, handling the details, most of the time, they fail (Jago, 1982). Finally, transformational leaders, by definition, are transformational seekers.

In cases where the business does not require to be transformed and the workers are contented the way they work, then frustration is bound to occur to such a leader. However, when the right condition is ensured, they do their best, and most of the time, they can be individually accountable for saving the entire corporations, in which they work (Northouse, 2007).

References

Jago, A. G. (1982). Leadership: Perspectives in theory and research. Management Science, 28(3), 315-336.

Northouse, P. G. (2007). Leadership: Theory and practice. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications.

How to launch the service

Choosing an effective market entry strategy depends on a number of factors such as product and positioning portfolio practiced by other competitors in the industry (Blythe & Zimmerman 2005, p.118). Home from Home Cooking can launch its new service by introducing the services at a reduced rate.

This makes it easier for the business to penetrate the market by attracting new customers who prefer purchasing low priced products and services. Considering that there are many competitors in the industry, Home from Home Cooking should have prices lower than that of its direct competitors. To achieve this, Home from Home Cooking should develop efficient production techniques capable of reducing the overall cost of production.

This is from the fact that, competitors might also opt to reduce their prices in order to maintain their customers. However, the competitors cannot manage to do so if the cost of production is higher compared to that of home from home cooking. This explains why the business should struggle at having lower production costs.

The company should also focus of making improvements on the current products or service offering by the competitors. Apart from relying only on young families and professional people as its main customers, Home from Home Cooking should also enhance or position its product such that the smaller consumer segments can get attracted to the services offered by the company.

External sources that will help launch the service

The company can rely on a number of external sources to launch the new service. For example, the business can use sites like www.moneysupermarket.com (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 2011, p.6). This site enables potential customers to make price comparisons.

Thus, Home from Home Cooking should always ensure that the prices of the services offered are slightly lower in relation to the competitors prices found at the site. The company should also make extensive use of other sites like www.toptable.com that provide customers with information on the state of the service offering by the business (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 2011, p.7).

Identification of helpful wholesalers

Home from Home Cooking can collaborate with locally available producers like Osterleys farmers market. Additionally, the business should develop good relations with large supermarkets like Tesco. This will provide mutual benefit to both companies. Home from Home Cooking will benefit by experiencing increased demand. However, Tesco will get an opportunity of stocking a wider variety of British classics and eventually generate more sales.

Partners to help gain market entry

Local business providers like GlaxoSmithKline and the British Sky Broadcasting can offer significant benefits to Home from Home Cooking, even as the new company struggles to gain entry to the market. The new business should also partner with television stations like BBC so that it becomes easier to advertise companys products and services through popular television programs like The Great British Food Revival.

Promoting the business

Home from Home Cooking can use different tactics to promote its services. For example, the business can place advertisements in food magazine and also distribute the companys business cards to potential customers. This will not only inform customers about the products and services offered by the business, but will also provide them with business contacts.

Launch evening with food tasting and wine

When launching the new business, Home from Home Cooking should ensure that food and drinks are of good taste. This will enable the company to witness high rate of customer return even after launching the service. As a result, the business will also manage to maintain its market share and survive the increasing competition.

References

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada 2011, The United Kingdom: A diverse Foodservice Sector. Web.

Blythe, J., & Zimmerman, AS 2005, Business-to-business marketing management: a global perspective, Thomson Learning, London.

Introduction

Over the recent past, marketing has evolved from the traditionally perceived business support function to a significant functional area of an organization. This is a result of several factors such as increased competition, consumer needs volatility, and the ever changing consumer environment. This has in effect compelled companies to adopt product mix and other marketing tools that promote products among the consumers. This paper discusses marketing mix and price as tools for enhancing product adoption among the consumers.

Marketing mix

Marketing mix is a marketing tool that is used to determine the brand offering. There are four main components of marketing mix. These are Product, Place, Price, and Place (Cant 69). One important component of the marketing mix is product. It is the main item that defines the relationship between the customer and the producer. There are two common attributes that define a product.

These are product mix and product line. The producer must always be aware of these attributes in order to ensure that the product enjoys consumption of the users and also promotes the brand presence in the market.

Product mix

Product mix is the aspect of offering more than one product. It is also referred to as product portfolio. Several companies have embraced product mix and this has helped them increase sales while gaining on economies of scale.

A company is able to have several products and with the aid of its flagship product, the other products generate consumption from the consumers of the other products from the same company. An example of a company that has product mix is Procter & Gamble (P&G). It produces Duracell batteries, Baby diapers, Bathing soaps, and Washing detergent.

Product line

This refers to a group of related products which are manufactured by one company. A company that has a product line usually manufactures different related products so as to promote its sales. Consumers are more likely to consume related products from a company that produces brands which are more familiar to them (Lamb, Joseph and Carl 109). This therefore, can be used to increase the sales for a company since people will tend to consume products from one company.

An example of product line is the production of Ariel, a powder soap from Procter & Gamble, and Safeguard, a bathing soap from the same company. This is used to market the other product that the company produces since the loyal buyers of Ariel will also buy safeguard. This is a good example of a company taking advantage of its brand name to increase its sales in the market through adding a product in its product line.

Price

Price is referred as the consideration that the customers pay in order to acquire and use goods or services of a company. Price is usually a determinant of the product affordability. This is because demand is defined as the willingness and ability to buy a product (Cant 112).

A consumer may be willing to buy a certain product but he/she may not be able to buy that particular product. Therefore, price plays an important role in determining product adoptability among the consumers. In effect, manufacturers need practice pricing policies which are non-exploitative on the consumers without which the demand will go down.

Conclusion

The concept of product and price as components of marketing mix need to be given a serious consideration by organizations. This will go a long way in ensuring that the companys product enjoys consumption by the target consumers and continue to boost the sales of the company.

Works Cited

Cant, M C. Marketing Management. Cape Town, South Africa: Juta, 2006. Print.

Lamb, Charles W, Joseph F. Hair, and Carl D. McDaniel. Essentials of Marketing. Mason, Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning, 2012. Print.

The organization of the sales force entails the structure that has been adopted by a certain sales force in an organization. Some sales force may be less structured while others may have complex structures.

In addition, the structuring of a sales force may also be in terms of a centralized sales force and a decentralized workforce. The organization of the sales force helps the organization to choose the channel, which will be most appropriate in marketing the products. While organizing the workforce, the chosen channel should be structured in a way that meets the conditions in the market.

The organization of the sales workforce also determines the assigning of roles to the workforce. The sales workforce should be assigned roles that will enhance the organization success in the market. H2pro should also organize the sales workforce according to the customers needs in the market.

Type of Structure

The type of organizational structure refers to the delegation of authority and power in the organization, as well as assigning of roles and duties that each employee should undertake. Line and staff structure encompass having specialized services and activities being offered and carried out by certain members of staff.

For example, the organization can select specialists and supervisors who will deal with sales staff. The line supervisors have the power to command the members of sales staff who fall under their respective lines. The structure adopted by H2pro can be regarded as line and staff structure since supervisors have been assigned the role of overseeing various activities in the organization.

Span of Control

The span of control details the delegation of duties in the organization and how the various members of staff have been assigned various roles. The span of control in H2pro ranges from the Chief Executive Officer, the mangers at various levels, to the employees at the lowest ranks.

Line and Staff or Not?

The structure of H2pro can be regarded as that of Line and Staff; at the top of the organization is the owner who carries out the role of a CEO. There are also managers of departments such as the manager in charge of sales and marketing.

The human resource manager deals with the hiring of employees. There is also a manager in charge of inventions and innovations taking place in the organization. The manager in charge of public relations represents the organization in meetings and forums, which may take place either outside or in the country.

Sales Territories

Sales territories encompass the markets in which the firm wishes to carry out promotion for its product. A company defines the sales territories through identifying the potential market. Based on the potential market, it is easy to know the territories that the sales team will cover.

The best territories are the ones most likely to have potential customers. In the case of H2pro, the sales territories of the headphones include playgrounds such as places where people engage in competitions in such sports like swimming, football, as well as athletics.

Sales Force Size

The sales force size refers to the number of employees in the sales department who will take part in marketing the product. An organization should have adequate employees to carry out the sales function. The size of the sales force should be enough to cover the entire market and ensure that promotion for a product is carried out extensively.

Sales force training

Every organization that wishes to market its products to the target customers must train its sales workforce. Training the sales workforce ensures that they have the adequate knowledge about the product to be marketed. This way, they will convince customers and potential buyers that the product they are marketing is the best.

H2pro has to ensure that the sales team is well equipped with information about the headphones they intend to sell in the market. Members of the sales team should have adequate knowledge on the best ways they can communicate to the customers. This will ensure that customers receive the intended message concerning the product.

Training of sales workforce is essential as it will ensure that the sales team communicates effectively with customers, relate well to customers, and explain to customers about how the devices are used. During the training of the sales staff, it will be essential to train the team on how the wireless headphones are used. This will equip them with ways to answer some questions from the customers regarding the gadget.

The training of the sales team will also encompass sending the team to various markets where they will try to identify the best market to sell the product. The sales team has to be trained on how to convince customers of the need to use wireless headphones, as opposed to the use of wired headphones, which are the ones mainly circulating in the market.

The training of sales workforce ensures that the sales team gains knowledge on how to establish contact with customers. The sales workforce should develop a strong relationship to enable them market the product since the headphones are a new product in the market. The workforce should be trained on how to outdo the competitors in the market. This is because competitors may pose a significant threat to the marketing of the new headphones.

Training needs

Training needs encompass understanding the areas in which the sales team should be trained. While considering training needs, H2pro should identify the skills, knowledge, and abilities that the sales workforce should have in order to meet the requirements of marketing the product.

Through identifying the training needs, the organization will be equipped on how to allocate resources for the purposes of training and marketing of the product. In identifying training needs, H2pro should allocate the sales team resources that will enhance productivity.

Training needs should also identify gaps in knowledge and explore the best ways to fill these gaps. The other essential training need, which should be fulfilled by the sales team, encompasses equipping them with information about the prices of the headphones. This includes both the wholesale and retail price. This will ensure that the product is sold at prices, which customers can afford to purchase.

In order to ensure that the training needs are in line with the requirements of the organization, there should be an assessment of training needs. One of the ways to assess the training needs is through organizational assessment, which will help in determining the abilities, knowledge, and skills needed by H2pro marketing team.

H2pro should institute strategies of eliminating the weaknesses that may negatively influence the sales team. Another training need that H2pro should take into consideration includes assessing the members of the sales team individually. This way, it will be easy to know the capability of the workforce to conduct sales competitively. Assessing the members individually will also ensure that the organization knows weaknesses of sales representative and comes up with ways of dealing with these weaknesses.

Training needs also encompass exploring the ways in which the sales team will market the organizations product. In the case of H2pro, the sales team should be trained on how to carry out promotions of the headphones. Having knowledge about promotions will enable the workforce to know how they can attract the target market, which includes sportsmen such as swimmers and athletes.

The sales workforce should also be taught on how to price the headphones in various markets. Another training need encompasses equipping the sales team with knowledge on how they can identify the potential market for the product. For example, they should know how to penetrate markets such as large cities, which may be holding sporting activities since such places can be promising markets for the product.

Training Methods

There are various methods that H2pro can employ in training their workforce. One of the methods includes hiring a sales coach who can help in pointing out vital sales issues. This method entails training and motivating the sales team.

A sales coach teaches members of the sales team the best methods to improve their sales techniques. The other method that can be used to train the sales staff encompasses teleconference training. Training through teleconferencing will ensure that members of H2pro sales team participate in conferences of sales training, which are taking place worldwide.

Another method that can be employed in training the sales team of H2pro includes role playing. This encompasses allowing some members of the team to assume the role of buyers while others will assume the role of salespersons. This method will enable the members of the sales team to portray their competencies, and how best they can carry out the sales.

The role playing method is also essential since it provides a salesperson the opportunity to learn from his or her colleagues. While using the training methods mentioned, it is essential that the trainer engages the team by asking questions and answering questions from members of the sales team. Participation of each of the members is essential as it enhances the success of the training program.

Training Program Evaluation

The evaluation of a training program is essential; it ensures that the targets set during the training of the sales team have been met. Evaluation of a training program also encompasses assessing whether the sales team has utilized the organizations resources properly.

Training program evaluation entails tracking the success of the individual sales persons as well as assessing the success of the entire sales team. The effectiveness of the sales training program can be measured by looking at the performance of the organization. For example, if the sales team of H2pro helps the company realize high revenue from the sale of the headphones, then it can be concluded that the training program was a success.

The training program can also be evaluated through assessing the satisfaction of the customers; this is based on the feedback that customers give about the product. The ability of the sales team to meet the training objectives can also be used as a way of evaluating the training program.

Executive Summary

The traffic village website will provide information on the real village that is still under construction. The traffic village is a project of the Abu Dhabi Police. We conducted a market survey and found that parents are in favour of the traffic village. They are in agreement with the major objective of the village, which is to train children aged between 3 and 12 years on responsible driving. We will use a penetration pricing strategy to increase our market share.

All marketing initiatives associated with the website will be free of charge, with the exception of buying Facebook advertisements, which will cost us 2.5 USD per day. The cost per customer for the first year will be 7.6 USD. In the first year, we will allocate 28.88% of our profits to marketing campaigns. We will virtualise all our storage facilities and servers to reduce on energy consumption.

Objectives of the Research

The intended objective of the Traffic Village site is to disseminate information about the real village to people of all ages and from all places. The major objective of the site is to provide information on traffic rules and regulation to the new generation of Abu Dhabi residents and future drivers.

The target population are the children aged between 3 and 12 years. The website will provide information aimed at promoting road safety interactive activities between children and their parents. It will also contain such learning tools as educational videos, stories, and games. The educational tools are targeted at children within the abovementioned age bracket.

Market Survey

According to Puleston (2011), market surveys are important in the promotion of any product or service in the market. The surveys are used to determine the perceptions, preferences, tastes, fashions, and feelings of customers in the target market. Companies use the findings from a market survey to design their products and services before introducing them in the market. There are several strategies through which surveys are conducted. They are conducted through emails, over the phone, online, or in person.

To determine the effectiveness of the Traffic Village and the website we are designing, we conducted a survey in Abu Dhabi, which is the target market. The survey used a total of 15 informants. All the informants were parents in the city. The main aim of the survey was to ascertain the opinions of the parents with regard to the state of road safety in the city. The survey was also aimed at determining whether or not the parents support the initiative of training young children on the need for road safety.

The questionnaire used in the survey was divided into two parts, part A and part B. The first part was used to gather information on general knowledge about driving among parents. The second section of the questionnaire was used to determine the age at which parents feel that children should begin driving. The set of questions that were used in the survey are shown below.

• Question 1: Do you drive a car?
  Thirteen of the respondents indicated that they drive a car, while two do not drive. Cars are, therefore, an important means of transport in Abu Dhabi.
• Question 2: Are you aware of the police Black Point System Rules?
  Four respondents knew what Black Point System Rules were, while the rest did not know. To this end, it is concluded that there is widespread ignorance with regard to police traffic rules and road safety in the city.
• Question 3: Have you ever experienced a car accident while driving?
  All the respondents had experienced an accident at some time in the past as they were driving. Some of them sustained major injuries from the accidents, while others escaped unscathed. The rate of automobile accidents in the city is high.
• Question 4: Do you agree that accidents occur because drivers are careless?
  75% of the respondents pointed out that careless driving is a major cause of automobile accidents.
• Question 5: Are you in favour of stringent penalties and fines for violation of driving rules?
  95% of the parents agreed that there is need for stringent driving rules in Abu Dhabi.
• Question 6: Do you agree that driving skills should be learnt at a tender age?
  Fourteen out of the 15 informants agreed that it is necessary to teach children how to drive safely.
• Question 7: Would you like to enroll your children in a driving school at a young age?
  Fourteen parents agreed that children should join a driving school at a young age.
• Question 8: Do you agree that it is better to learn driving at a young age than at old age?
  14 out of 15 parents agreed that it is not wise to delay driving lessons until adulthood.

Research Findings

The findings of this marketing survey are very crucial to the traffic village. The findings point out that parents agree on the need for a traffic village, which aims at teaching children how to drive safely and responsibly at a young age. The findings are summarised in the figure below:

Appropriate Age for Driving

Concerning the right age to begin driving, six parents were in favour of 3 to 5 years age bracket, while four felt that 6 to 8 years was the appropriate age to begin driving lessons. The findings are summarised below:

Business Definition

The traffic village website is the tool that will be used to represent an online presence for the Abu Dhabi traffic village, which is being created by the citys police department. By coming up with the village, the police department aims at reducing the number of caused by avoidable road accidents in the United Arab Emirates. A case in point is the number of accidents reported in 2011 in the emirates.

A total of 6,700 road accidents were reported during this period. 2,280 of these accidents were recorded in Abu Dhabi, claiming 334 lives. In the same year, the road violations in Abu Dhabi accounted for 46.4 per cent of all road violations in the country. In light of this sad reality, there is need to put in place effective programs that aimed at bringing back sanity on the roads. The traffic villages website will introduce the traffic village that the Abu Dhabi Police are putting in place.

The website will become the major tool of communication in the village. The site will sell and promote the villages strategy and disseminate safety information to the public. The site will be very useful in launching the village, especially for those who may not have the opportunity to attend the launch in person. It will provide everyone with the information they are interested in concerning the traffic village. The target geographical market for the site is Abu Dhabi and its districts.

Our main competitor is Kidzania in Dubai. Kidzania is a series of entertainment joints targeted at city families. The centres are currently located in 11 cities. The facilities in these centres allow children aged between 4 and 16 years to actively participate in a hypothetical adult world.

The children participate in this hypothetical world by working and earning Kidzo currency. Each Kidzania is designed like a real city with buildings, theatres, shops, and vehicles. The main themes in Kidzania include entertainment and role playing, while the main theme of the traffic village is road safety (Kidzania, 2012).

The main competitor analysed above is a chain of Mexican entertainment centres with branches all over the world. However, the traffic village is an inherently Abu Dhabi project that aims at promoting road safety and responsibility in the city.

The traffic villages website is mainly concerned with training kids on how to use safety tools and kits. It also trains them on how they should respond in case of accidents or incidents on the road, at home, in malls, and in school. The major aim and theme of Kidzania is to train and prepare children for adulthood through entertainment and role-playing. On the other hand, our aim is to teach kids how to live safely, now and in the future.

Because of the theme difference between the two concepts, Kidzania customers will have much to learn from the traffic village. In the future, the traffic village will become more competitive by working in collaboration with other partners who share the same objective. Such partners include, among others, children television channels, the Ministry of Health, and the Roads and Transport Authority. The website will ensure that all the activities carried out in the village and by the partners are easily accessed by interested parties.

At the beginning, all the services offered by the website will be free of charge. After the launch of the real village, however, sources of income will include subscriptions, online ticketing, membership charges, and newsletter fees.

Currently, Kidzonia partners with such organisations as banks, restaurant, hospitals, and airlines. The centre relies more on one-day ticketing. The traffic villages pricing website will aim at encouraging repeat visits by reducing the costs for subsequent visits and lowering the prices for the customers who stay for long in the site.

The promotional techniques between Kidzania and the traffic village are almost similar. We will promote the village through social media, mainly from the website. The social sites that will be used include YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook. We will also promote the village through city tours and school visits. Currently, Kidzania is using all the above-mentioned methods apart from the school visits.

Customer Profile

As aforementioned, the traffic village website will target children aged between 3 and 12 years. The children will be the sites major customers. However, it is expected that most of these children will be brought to the traffic village by their parents. Furthermore, in spite of the fact that the website is aimed at drawing the attention of the children, young adults and parents are the most likely people to use the internet. In this regard, we expect that parents will access the information online and bring their children to the village.

However, to directly bring the information to our target customers, we will use a number of alternative initiatives. Most of the children falling within the age bracket mentioned above attend madrasas in the city. As such, we will collaborate with religious leaders and madrasa teachers to inform them about the website and about the village.

We will also reach out to children from all the elementary schools in Abu Dhabi. In the schools, we will work together with teachers in classes. The children will be trained on how to use the internet and the social media, as well as receive training on general road safety. We will consult the city Municipality to allow us inform children and the general public of the traffic village and website at various recreation parks and gardens.

The first on the program is the Al Mushrif Childrens Garden, which is located in Al Mushrif District, opposite the UAE National Theatre. Other parks that will be included in our program include the Capital Gardens, Al Nahyan Garden, the Khalidiya Garden, Khalifa Park, and the Al Khaldiah Kids Park. We will also place advertisements on national televisions. We will try and make sure that the adverts are aired during Saturday morning kids shows and in the evenings during meals.

The message communicated through the traffic village is very unique. The unique nature of the message is the main reason why we expect the traffic villages website to be received positively by the clients. There are other organisations in Abu Dhabi working hard to reduce the number of road accidents in the city. A good example is the concerted effort between the Abu Dhabi Traffic Department, Ministry of Interior, the Emirates Traffic Society, and the Abu Dhabi Police Department.

The organisations have come together to increase public awareness with regard to the need for road safety. However, such conventional campaigns have not taken advantage of the growing online community in Abu Dhabi. The traffic villages website has a unique opportunity of using the growing interest in technology in the city to teach children the need for road safety.

After the traffic village and the website are launched, we will conduct market surveys after every six months to determine how the market is responding to the service. The periodic market surveys will also help the management to identify customer needs that are not met by the village and the website.

At the end of every survey, our technical team will implement changes on the site to ensure that it reflects the needs of children in the city. In efforts to continually improve the site, we will ensure that the information presented there remains current and up-to-date. We will also make sure that the site is always informative and entertaining to the target market.

To remain effective and relevant in the market, we will avoid posting information about the village only. Efforts will be made to expand the scope of the information presented there. We will continue gathering information about the entire industry and beyond so that the children and adults visiting the site will have a reason to come back. In addition to reaching out to children in elementary school and in high school, we will have a section on the website aimed at ensuring that the road safety message remains fresh in the minds of adults.

Such information is important because the needs and learning processes between adults and children are quite different. Furthermore, keeping adults informed about road safety statistics and other such information ensures they are in a better position to mentor and teach their young ones the need for road safety and responsibility

The 4Ps Analysis of the Website and the Village

Product

The current system, which is dubbed My First License  I Know My Road Rules is facing a number of challenges. One of the challenges is that it has a limited capability to create awareness on the need for safe driving. The new website will be designed to bring together all the information touching on driving and safety on an easy-to-use interface. In the plan, the website may appear to be a different project from the traffic village.

However, it is important to note that the site is simply an online extension of the real village. The virtual traffic village will be a media centre that champions the objectives of the Abu Dhabi Police Department. The objective of the department is to enhance safety on the citys roads through the development of a real traffic village.

When the plan was being drafted, the Abu Dhabi Police Department was not aware of the creation of the website. The site will provide a social media interaction platform where information from both the developers and the consumers will be collected and shared. The information will be tailored to the needs of the citys residents. By the time the traffic village is launched, the site will contain 4 to 5 pages.

Price

As already indicated in this marketing plan, the services offered through the website will be free before the launch of the traffic village. However, we will make efforts to generate income from the site after the village is launched. We will use a penetration pricing strategy.

According to Ellickson, Misra & Nair (2012), a penetration pricing strategy sets prices below the average level in the market. The aim is to help the new product or service gain acceptance from consumers. As the site gains ground in the market, the prices of the services and products will slowly be increased to attain the current market price.

We will use the strategy given that our major aim is not pursuit of immediate returns. On the contrary, our aim is to increase sales volumes and our market share. We expect that by using the strategy, we will enhance the speed of the adoption and diffusion of our products and services, which will culminate in fast market penetration.

By using this approach, we will deny our competitors the chance to respond in real-time. It is also expected that by using such a strategy, it will be possible to create goodwill among early adopters, who will spread the information further in the market. The strategy will also enhance our efficiency given that from the beginning, we will be able to effectively address the issue of cost reduction and cost control pressures. It will be an important competition barrier that will keep new entrants at bay.

As the site becomes progressively commercialised, we expect to achieve a favourable stock turnover. The favourable stock turnover will go a long way in supporting the value chain. The main challenge in using the penetration pricing strategy is that it is quite hard to increase prices later on (Ellickson et al., 2012). However, we will focus on progressively adding value to the product before increasing the prices.

Promotion

We will use various avenues to promote the virtual traffic village. One of the main strategies we will adopt is the use of social network advertising channels. Social networking will make it possible for us to exploit consumer demographics in the creation of our adverts.

To begin with, we will use indirect advertising by creating an official Facebook page and a YouTube channel. We will also have a Twitter account. The next step will be direct advertising on Facebook. At this juncture, we will start purchasing adverts. The direct approach will allow us to target our information to the residents of Abu Dhabi.

The use of paid media on Facebook will also enable us to determine the exact message we want to convey to our target market. In addition, purchasing Facebook adverts will help us to determine the social graphs of our fans on Facebook. We will exploit the network of friends on Facebook and other social sites to promote our product. For example, after providing incentive information to our fans, we expect them to share it with their friends on Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites.

We will also post our articles in various article directories, such as www.EzineArticles.com, www.ValuableContent.com, www.GoArticles.com, www.Article99.com, www.eHow.com, www.ArticleDashBoard.com, and www.EasyArticles.com.

Because we are working on a penetration pricing strategy and our costs have to be as low as possible, we will also use free online classifieds to reach out to our target market. The main online classified that will be used in the promotion campaign is www.craiglist.com. We will also use search engine optimization (SEO) to draw traffic from consumers searching the web on Google, MSN, and Yahoo.

Place

As already mentioned in this paper, the real village is situated in Abu Dhabi. The website is a representation of the traffic village. Consumers will be able to access the site from any place in the world and at any time of the day. The suggested official website will be www.thetrafficvillage.com. The site will be fully integrated and easy to navigate given that the target audience is children aged between 3 and 12 years. The shopping cart will be located one click from the homepage and two clicks from our blog.

The process of checking out after making a purchase will also be simplified because there will be an attendant ready to assist anyone who is making a purchase at any given time. The attendant will be trained on how to address the needs of experienced shoppers, as well as those of shoppers without online shopping experience. The aim of this is to make sure that all potential shoppers, regardless of their level of experience, feel appreciated and needed in the site.

Many e-commerce customers end up not making a purchase because they cannot find what they are looking for. The site will be designed to accommodate those customers with a wide experience in online shopping and those who have never interacted with an e-commerce site.

To enhance the visibility of all the products and services offered at the site, we will ensure that all the photos and videos posted on the site are of high quality. It is noted that the quality of the videos and pictures posted on a given site determines how consumers rate that particular site. For example, a site with grainy pictures and low resolution videos is not rated highly. On the other hand, consumers are attracted to sites with high quality videos and pictures, which are more stimulating (visually) than poor quality media.

We will make efforts to ensure that consumers regard us highly by using high quality videos and pictures. However, it is important to note that high quality videos may be too heavy to use on such websites. As such, they will require high speed internet, which the customer may be unable to access.

Marketing Objectives and Strategies

In this section, we will provide information touching on the marketing objectives and strategies we have adopted.

There are five requirements that should be met in launching the traffic villages site. All the requirements call for a small initial financial outlay. The resources needed include a computer (available), a technical expert (available), research work (requires time), consultation (available), and design (intellectual capital).

However, marketing the site, as well as the products and services offered at the real traffic village, will cost money. Nonetheless, the modes of promotion that we have opted for in marketing the site are relatively inexpensive. For instance, opening and running a Facebook page is free.

The same goes for the opening and running of a Twitter account and a YouTube channel. Posting articles on article directories and on craiglist.com is also free. We will come up with our own articles to use in Search Engine Optimization. However, we will have to incur the cost of purchasing a domain name, web hosting, and direct Facebook advertising, where we are required to buy adverts.

There are two ways to advertise on Facebook. The first one is referred to as CPM, which stands for Cost Per 1000 Impressions. The second one is CPC, which refers to Cost Per Click. Different marketers prefer different strategies for a number of reasons.

The major considerations made in selecting the strategy to use include, among others, the costs associated with the strategy, the nature of the marketing campaign, the target audience, as well as the major objective of the marketing campaign. For example, the needs of a promotion campaign for beauty soap are different from the needs of a book advert.

Out of the two strategies analysed above, most marketers prefer the second one, which is CPC. The major reason why it is preferred over CPM is that it is relatively cheap. CPM is used for the purpose of increasing brand awareness, but our objective in marketing is to achieve conversions, leads, and sales.

As such, we will use CPC. It will be appropriate because we will only pay for the number of clicks on the website and our corresponding Facebook page. Facebook allows for advertisers to choose how much they want to spend each day, the minimum being 1 USD. We will advertise on Facebook at a cost of 2.5 USD each day. The cost of advertising will be 912 USD per year.

It is important to bear in mind that we may not achieve voluminous sales in the first year. As such, the cost of advertising on Facebook is reasonable. In the first year, we expect to achieve sales of at least 4,200 USD from 120 customers. In this regard, the estimated cost per customer will be 7.6 USD. The cost is expected to drop to 3.8 USD in the second year as the number of customers increase. In the first year, 28.88% of the profits will be allocated to marketing.

Environmental Effect

The department consuming more energy than others in a given organisation is facilities and information communication. The virtual village will be based online. According to an article posted on CNN.com by Farrah (2009), each search on Google releases an average of 20milligrams of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Downloading media, which includes such activities as listening to online radio, streaming videos, and chatting with friends, have a direct impact on energy consumption. Every search on the internet engages an energy consuming server. To address this challenge, we will virtualise all our servers and storage systems to cut our energy consumption by half.

References

Ellickson, P., Misra, S., & Nair, H. (2012). Repositioning dynamics and pricing strategy. Journal of Marketing Research (JMR), 49(6), 750-772. doi:10.1509/jmr.11.0068.

Farrah, L. (2009). Greening the internet: How much CO2 does this article produce? Web.

Kidzania, (2012). What is Kidzania. Web.

Puleston, J. (2011). Improving online surveys. International Journal of Market Research, 53(4), 557-560. doi:10.2501/IJMR-53-4-557-562.

Marketing Considerations for Quaker oats

The art of marketing starts when a product is produced, and stops when the product is transferred to the open market. Marketing strategy determines how a product is sold. A well-planned marketing strategy influences the sale and profit of products. For product such as Quaker oats, the market is a homogenous one and the chance for a close substitute is slim.

Quaker oats is a seasonal product, and that means it sells better at varying times. The presence and sustainability of the product can guarantee its sale for a very long time (Chris & Dale, 1997). Thus, a good marketing strategy defines how such a product will thrive against all the odds in a competitive market. The marketing mix for Quaker oats includes the product, time, place, customer, convenience shopping, and specialty.

The Customers Importance

The most important variable for a product to sell is the customer. Market demographics divide the population size of the market into subgroups. For Oatmeal Company, the market demographics cut across all ages. Children and the aged are the major targets for the product. Remember, that the best way to sell a product is to have a customer friendly product. The appeal a product can give to the customer can influence the market value of the product.

Market segmentation is considered when products are homogenous. The market is divided into various segments such as the standard of living of the population, the location of the customer and the satisfaction that the customer derives from consuming Quaker oats. One key market consideration for Oatmeal Company is that the product must be designed specifically for a target group. A customer, who is aware that a product is made for him, will be convinced to buy the product (Chris & Dale, 1997).

Product Differentiation

A well package product can influence the customers appeal. The price and the content color contribute to what is referred to as a well-packaged product. The customer is willing to buy a product that has a perfect market mix, or that is packaged with the essential characteristics of a high quality product.

Thus, a good market executive will consider a combination of variables to get a perfect product characteristic that will meet the customers need and satisfaction. The availability of Quaker oats at all times will influence a customers desire to patronize the product.

The price of the commodity determines how much sales and profits are made on the product. This variable is critical in selling any product. The customer is motivated by the price of Quaker oats and that influences his willingness to buy, and forget other close substitutes. If the price of Quaker oats is high, it will drive away customers and that will reduce sales. The price variation is a difficult aspect to consider, because it is the quickest way to either lose a customer or make a profit (Chris & Dale, 1997).

Product promotion

A promotion of products is as important as adverts for the product. Customers are vulnerable to aggressive marketing. Therefore, telling your customers that you have the right product for their satisfaction and that you can give them pleasure can influence the sale of Quaker oats. The location of your products is a tool in a marketing mix. The environment where the products are sold can also influence the sale of the products. Thus, in market consideration, the location should be a priority task.

A good marketing strategy is one that is recent and effective. Information influences both the customer and the producer. The packaging, branding, labeling, and product differentiation can be fully harnessed if recent market informations are collected (Chris & Dale, 1997). The market demographics must be updated on a regular basis, thus making it the most efficient tool in marketing.

Reference

Chris, B & Dale, M. (1997). Niche Marketing Considerations. Web.

The duty of a leader is to empower people as it is important for achieving some progress that employees start believing and following their leader in executing the underlying tasks. However, sometimes, this task is difficult, or even impossible, to achieve if the leader fails to empower his or her followers.

There are various reasons as to why a leader may fail to empower the others. Some of these reasons may be either intentional or unintentional. According to Maxwell (2007), leaders may fail to empower their followers if they act insecure. From this perspective, the leader is never ready to relinquish his/her powers to his/her subordinates. For example, a leader does not want his/her juniors to execute their duties with freedom and authority.

Empowerment of other workers by leaders may be determined by the leaders empowerment ability. However, the lack of such ability can be seen when a leader does not provide resources and responsibilities to the others. If leaders do not portray goodwill to their subordinates, then it will be impossible to motivate other workers. For example, a leader should show commitment and always be ready to give credit, where it is due.

Appreciation of other peoples achievement is significant in motivating them to always work hard. However, showing other people that they do not deserve credit and rewards for their hard work can be an example of a case that leaders lack empowerment ability. Moreover, a leaders lack of empowerment ability may be a result of inability to have a proper influence on his/her followers. Some leaders fail to empower their followers since they are yet to build trust among their followers.

The character of a leader can be an obstacle in ensuring that his/her subordinates achieve satisfaction from their work. In this case, the followers will be negatively impacted by a negative character of a leader and, as a result, show their dissatisfaction and resistance in supporting and adopting his/her ideas

It is true that teaching what is right is easier and simpler than acting right in practice. It takes a lot of effort and self-improvement in order to do what is right. Of course, many leaders are burdened with the responsibility of making sure that their followers act right and perform their duties well.

However, unless such actions are taken by the leaders, their followers will be the least to show any diligence in their work. An example of such leaders can be seen in Henry Ford, who was not interested in improving the company he founded. Consequently, the same was evidenced in the company executives, who never worked hard to salvage the company that nearly collapsed.

On the other hard, saying what is right and then showing it on ones own example is considered very convincing. An example of a leader who portrayed such pattern of behavior and workers management is Ray Kroc, the owner of McDonalds chain of restaurants. Kroc was an effective leader, and his followers emulated him.

The McDonald brothers had a vision, which they could not translate into reality and showed little to improve their effectiveness in the business. However, Kroc was able to share his business idea with his workers and transformed the business as a result.

Power is a factor that can affect and compromise ethics. While analyzing Fords leadership in the Ford Company, one realizes that the leader had too much power and reserved all the authority, giving too much freedom to his workers.

From this context, the leader undermined the others as his decisions were not reviewed by the companys executives. It is, therefore, easier to make unethical decisions considering that the company leadership authority is reserved to one individual, whose decision may either improve or destroy a company.

Reference

Maxwell, J. (2007). The 21 irrefutable laws of leadership workbook: Revised & updated. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.

Executive Summary

The use of optimization techniques for managerial decision-making is popular. Various tools have been developed to help fit few resources to production processes with the aim of maximizing profits and reducing wastage of resources. This paper looks into this aspect with a special interest in simulation.

Simulation is a technique that tries to replicate a real life scenario into a model. With reference to case study examples, this paper analyses methodologies adopted in applying this technique in product planning and scheduling. The researcher also reviews literature in this field to get greater insight into the topic. The paper concludes that simulation is a critical tool for business success as long as it is installed after careful preparation and steps taken to ensure it reflects the needs and objectives of the organization.

Introduction

Simulation is a manufacturing technique that aptly represents reality of operations and processes in a model. The model is a reflection of what happens in reality and takes into account the parameters and conditions on the ground. It is quite a useful tool in product planning and scheduling. Scheduling is the act performed by managers where they allocate resources, indentify procedures, and estimate different parameters that entail the procedures, such as costs.

This is quite imperative in project management as it informs the project manager about the imminent project and acts as a tool for prediction. Product planning, on the other hand, refers to the process of allocation of meager resources to production activities with the aim of ensuring that company objectives are met.

This includes customer satisfaction and meeting demand. Generally, this represents an optimization problem for a company as it refers to a process where a manager has to make a decision to minimize costs and maximize profits simultaneously. This paper looks into the possibility of applying simulation to solving production planning and scheduling problems in different organizations.

The researcher employs the use of case studies and previous applications of these tools to reflect the advantages, disadvantages, problems, and possible solutions inherent to the usage of simulation in these functions. Through evaluation of this case study, the researcher points out recommendations of the issues that manufacturers encounter in using this powerful function (Chase, Jacobs & Aquilano, 2006).

Conceptual Framework

This section looks into the literature surrounding the use and application of simulation in scheduling and production planning. The review points out the disadvantages and looks into the possibility of improper application of this tool in different companies.

Production Planning

Production planning refers to the act of striving to meet market demands through effective and efficient usage and application of resources in a manufacturing or service firm. Production planning, according to Graves (1999) is quite an effective tool in reaching optimal solutions to managerial problems.

It is applicable to staff planning, how many lots to produce in a particular time, how to allow extra work time, and how to sequence production runs effectively. Since this is an optimization problem, different tools can be used to solve them. This is informed by the nature of the manufacturing, the level of technology and size of the organization in question. Examples of optimization solution techniques are linear programming, simulation, and complex computer software (Chase, Jacobs & Aquilano, 2006).

Graves (1999) also points out that to use a certain technique certain features about the product and production processes must be accounted for; for instance, the time of production. This informs the usage of certain techniques. The use of simulation is quite popular. This is because of the possibility of putting the model on a test run and coming up with the model that fits the organization perfectly (Chase, Jacobs & Aquilano, 2006).

In certain situations, it is relatively easier to use compared to others. Additionally, the possibility of putting these models on a test run effectively makes it quite flexible and admirable. In production planning, according to Graves (1999), this technique is the most widely spread. An organization needs to indentify certain objectives and come up with a list of the constraints or limitations or resources. This is put into a model that replicates the actual situation on the ground.

Another way to solve production-planning problems that is widely applicable in many organizations is linear programming. It is almost similar to simulation but it has the limitation of many assumptions. Hence, it may not reflect the reality on the ground as noted by Graves (1999).

Scheduling

During the development of a project, it is imperative to ensure that activities that lead to the completion of the project are commenced appropriately and their deadlines met. Deadline represents one of the constraints of a project. Others include the scope of the project, the cost or budget allocated, goals, and objectives set out in the project (Chase, Jacobs & Aquilano, 2006).

In a manufacturing set-up, operations scheduling entails dispatching, controlling, tracking, and monitoring of production in the shop floor. It is imperative to ensure that certain functions within a manufacturing plant run smoothly.

For example, scheduling is highly applicable to personnel allocations to work centers, equipment allocation, capacity planning, prioritization, and determination of order performance. Additionally, scheduling helps managers to control activities at the shop floor so that orders with relative urgency are dispatched (Chase, Jacobs & Aquilano, 2006).

Hence, this is a very important function in ensuring smooth operations of a manufacturing plant. It is also quite important in the overall success of a company as it directly affects the demand.

Figure 1: Typical Scheduling Process

Figure 1 above represents a typical scheduling process where controls are carried out by software. The software maybe designed from a simulation run by the firm over a long period. It captures activities in the whole process with necessary parameters. It details each persons requirement in the process (Chase, Jacobs & Aquilano, 2006).

Scheduling is quite important as it plays a huge role in minimizing idle time from machines and personnel, reduces time spent by a product before it is finally released in market, and helps in meeting deadlines in the downstream of a market.

Application of Simulation in Scheduling

Methodology

Companies apply production planning using a top-down approach that goes to finer details (e.g. from days to hours). Essentially, the management allocates real orders to the available resources to meet maximal capacity utilization, minimize work in progress, reduce chances for delays, and to have as minimal thorough-put times as possible. It is important to note that these needs are frequently in conflict.

Depending on the needs of an organization, different methods may be used, for example assignment techniques, simulation techniques and computer software. Since this paper looks into simulation, it is crucial to note that it is applied in two levels. First, a simulations model may be developed that tests and configures an existing tool of planning. Hence, it is just a fine tuning tool and is not part of the production process.

Secondly, simulation may play a direct role in production if it is installed in the system. In this case, it is referred to as an Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) tool. Essentially, it does most of the functions captured that define scheduling such as allocating tasks, equipment, and order processing and updates on Work in Progress (WIP).

Limitation

The use of these systems does not mean that organizations or companies gain from their applications. The case study highlights areas where many companies may end up confused by the whole system. Data stored in these systems, especially the APS, may reveal many anomalies. This is partly because of lack of proper reflection. For example, a German toy manufacturer in the case study had the following anomalies.

Figure 2: Anomalies in System

Findings and Suggested Solutions

A company (Decopart) that supplies aluminum parts used the APS system quite effectively. The management employed the use of experts to carry out the technical work. Additionally, Decopart uses up to date tools for this processes, which are easily adaptable to the changes in production or market demand. They have the capacity to detect the need for more resources and any delays or idle times. It is also quite integrative which means it reflects the whole organization is functioning.

The system took quite some time to install. This ensured that the company came up with many processes that were in contrast with the objectives of the systems. Additionally, through use of a model, the company was able to fine-tune the system to reflect its future capacity requirements. Hence, it is imperative to understand your organization well before installing this system (Mapes, Szwejczewski & New, 2000).

Advantages and Disadvantages

Simulation has many advantages. First, it allows a company to study the whole organization as a model before installing the model to its operations. This is an important step as it brings out the bottlenecks that the company should deal with in future. Additionally, it allows the company to adjust to the needs of the organization and to the system with the aim of achieving certain goals.

Depending on how well it is used, how well it is designed, and the level of preparation before the full installation, a company is in a position to adjust positively to any changes that may occur in future affecting the system. This includes the need for more resources, changes in market demand, creation of new workstations, and changes in personnel duties (Mapes, Szwejczewski & New, 2000).

The system is quite costly to roll out. Decopart used quite a huge sum of money to set up its own system. Although it effectively, connects major manufacturing functions in an organization, care must be taken in training. This is because many employees may find it tiring to adjust to the needs of the system and hence affect its functions. Additionally, enough expertise must be sought to put the relevant data captured in the system to good use. This is because, it is inappropriate to have all that information without aiding in managerial decisions.

Application of Simulation in Production Planning

Methodology

In a production process whose steps are predefined, application of simulation is quite possible. For example, the case study presents a company that produces prefabricated concrete parts for houses. Certain steps are performed in certain duration using predetermined times. Machines are programmed to know cycle times and locations of a part during production. Hence, it forms a continuous process.

This is after a careful analysis of previous production using a simulation model. The model can tell how many products are likely to be produced with defects and can be tweaked to ensure that these defects are reduced to the minimum and detected before the product reaches the customer. The company uses an online simulation, which records sales data and uses this data to reflect what to produce (Mapes, Szwejczewski & New, 2000).

Limitation

Creating such a system requires quite a lot of time. Previous operations should be captured and appropriate software created to reflect this information. For example, the case has a company that was in the business of painting cars. More than 100 colors were in use and certain procedures in the painting process resulted in delays, long transitional times, and idle time. This contributed to a challenge in trying to come up with an appropriate model. Hence, some business functions may be difficult to put into a simulation model (Krauth, 2010).

Advantages and Disadvantages

As noted above, not all process can be put into a model. Some are a bit complex and hard to simulate. The use of ISSOP optimization tool helps in these situations. It has an inbuilt tool that caters for many aspects of production such as production planning, throughput times, idle times, and capacity.

However, a slight tweak in the system may cause considerable danger to the production process and steps must be taken to ensure that there are corrective measures in place. Additionally, simulation software requires a human interface. Although some are quite automated, some defects can affect a huge roll out in production leading to catastrophic consequences (Krauth, 2010).

Evaluation of the Case Study

The case study was a critical look at the optimization and simulation tools in place in major organizations and SMEs. The case presents a number of small businesses that are using these tools in production planning and scheduling. It also highlights the challenges, advantages, and appropriate software for the different organizations with specific needs.

It also looks at the suitability of these models for the future and critically analyses the level of applicability: is it a support system or the main system? The case also looks into the issue where some problems cannot be captured in a system and their effect on the overall need to meet certain objectives. For example, personnel morale is an independent variable whose effect may not be captured in the system. Offline and online simulation and their respective advantages are also discussed in detail (Krauth, 2010).

Summary of Findings and Recommendations

The cases major finding is that although many companies use simulation and optimization systems, majority are not satisfied with them. It is hard to understand the system as a nonprofessional and appropriate training and preparation are crucial to the success of such production planning and scheduling systems.

Additionally, it is important to note that much software has been developed to analyze the functions of a system but specific companies that should insist on that specific software which appropriately captures the needs of the company. Certain decisions can be made directly using software solutions (Krauth, 2010). For example, it can allocate responsibility to personnel, detect idle time, and reflect urgent demands. However, it cannot capture the mood of personnel and this may lead to invisible causes of bottlenecks.

Hence, it is crucial for the management to continuously asses every aspect of an organization with the aim of reducing and capturing such bottlenecks. As the company, Decopart found out, a production process, which has many available options, reduces the effectiveness of creating a simulation or optimization system. Hence, much time needs to be dedicated to such processes to reduce chances of a defective system (Krauth, 2010).

Conclusion

Many companies employ optimization and simulation techniques to solve managerial problems. These solutions are meant to enhance decision-making capability of the management. The case looks into the use of simulation in particular towards finding solutions in product planning and scheduling functions of an organization. The case study presents a number of companies whose optimization software solutions, as a direct business function or as an assisting function, helps in streamlining operations.

For instance, a car painting business that uses simulation software to run its operations with tremendous results. It is crucial to note that the optimization and simulation solutions are not entirely good for all organizations. Certain steps need to be carried out to ensure that the solutions are successful. For instance, ample preparation, knowing the market, personnel training, and motivation packages are crucial steps. Additionally, proper expertise is a fundamental requirement towards realizing this goal (Krauth, 2010).

References

Chase, B.R., Jacobs, R.F. & Aquilano, N.J. (2006). Operations Management for Competitive Advantage. New York: McGraw Irwin.

Graves, C.S. (1999). Manufacturing Planning and Control. Web.

Krauth, J. (2010). Simulation Supports Production Planning and Scheduling. Berlin: Sim Serv.

Mapes, J., Szwejczewski, M. & New, C. (2000). Process Variability and Its Effect on Plant Performance. International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 20 (7): 792-808.