Category: Management

Operations management has evolved and changed over the years, affecting areas such as manufacturing and service. The process of globalization of the market, the emergence of new information technologies, as well as the growth of the movement for preserving the environment, have influenced modern trends. Moreover, in the 21st century, the world is facing new global challenges. The threat of terrorism, the problem of energy security, and many others have also forced the world to reconsider the established principles of OM. Thus, the new trends in operations management are characterized by robotics, innovation, and extraordinary progress.

One of the new trends in the development of digital production and robotization. Thus, due to the emergence of these trends, the demand for labor changes, which affects and leads to the development of education (Demeter, 2017). Moreover, various global challenges influence the decision to locate production facilities on a particular territory. The location of the plant or factory determines the flow of investment, materials, and other necessities for production. In this sense, it is the emerging awareness of production that leads to the trend of development of robotization and digital production. Data collecting is also one of the latest trends in OM.

The invention of new tools and technologies allows industries to achieve serious success. Moreover, the collected information is critically useful for further research in the field of operations management. Thus, data collection is used not only in factories and plants but also in the concept of a smart city (Guha et al., 2018). Each element of the city consists of a special device that is connected to the rest of the same. The devices collect data from the environment, which allows them to manage the city more efficiently.

As mentioned earlier, the main focus in operations management is the development of communication technologies. Therefore, mobile communication, being a tool, allows businesses and industries to conduct better cooperation (Machuca et al., 2018). This technique helps to eliminate boundaries, helping employees, firms, and organizations to communicate quickly. In turn, this significantly facilitates the entire process of operations, which is a positive result.

In addition to mobile communication, the role of artificial intelligence in the field of operations management is increasing. The introduction of artificial intelligence allows industries to avoid mistakes related to the human factor (Grover et al., 2020). Hence, the advantages of AI are its speed and accuracy, which for a number of reasons may not be enough for a regular manager. Thus, the widespread deployment of this new technology is considered a more profitable investment than hiring a large staff.

In conclusion, it becomes obvious that the worlds progress forces almost every sphere to change. Operations management is undergoing innovations in both tools and technologies due to a number of factors. The increasing importance of environmental conservation, as well as various global challenges, are forcing industries to gain awareness. Thus, the question of which territory to place production becomes more relevant, because its effectiveness now depends on it. The threat of terrorism and the conflict situation in many regions of developing countries also encourage managers to solve the problems of locating production facilities.

Moreover, information technology, artificial intelligence, and the development of communications are also new trends. These tools allow you to increase the efficiency of enterprises and lead to more effective results. Innovation and robotization equip production facilities with the latest technologies, which also lead to progress.

References

Demeter, K. (2017). Research in global operations management: some highlights and potential future trends. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management.

Grover, P., Kar, A. K., & Dwivedi, Y. K. (2020). Understanding artificial intelligence adoption in operations management: insights from the review of academic literature and social media discussions. Annals of Operations Research, 1-37.

Guha, S., & Kumar, S. (2018). The emergence of big data research in operations management, information systems, and healthcare: Past contributions and future roadmap. Production and Operations Management, 27(9), 1724-1735.

Machuca, J. A., Größler, A., & Morita, M. (2018). Joining P&OM forces worldwide: present and future of operations management. International Journal of Operations & Production Management.

Introduction

Procter and Gamble (P&G) is a global company, which operates in 160 countries around the world. Most products of P&G became universally recognized brands such as itsHead & Shoulders, Pantene, Tide, Ariel, etc. Today, P&G is dynamically evolving corporation operating within a rapidly evolving global environment. Marketing around the world allows P&G to reach global target audience and increase sales. Founded in 1837 by William Proctor and James Gamble, Proctor & Gamble (P&G), is one of the top U.S. makers and developers of household goods. P&G has branded many common popular household products from Charmin toilet paper. With products in more then twenty categories, there isnt a household across the world that does not have at least one product made by P&G. P&Gs mission statement states, We will provide branded products and services of superior quality and value that improve the lives of the worlds consumers. (P&G Home Page 2009) Their mission statement has contributed greatly to the success of their organization. P&G objectives and goals have been set to obtain their main purpose. By obtaining these goals they will be rewarded by increased consumer brand recognition and profits.

Organizational Methods

P&G believes that they attract the finest people to work for them. Per P&Gs website, As previously mentioned above P&G focuses on five main values for their employees. The first one is leadership, they believe that are all leaders in our area of responsibility, with a deep commitment to delivering leadership results. Also, as an organization they can develop the capability to deliver strategies and eliminate organizational barriers Ownership is the next trait looked for in an employee, P&G wants an employee who will treat the company assets as their own and acting in the best interest of the company. Next, there is integrity, P&G looks for those individuals who are straightforward with others and always trying to do the right thing, A passion for winning is something P&G is known for they take pride in their accomplishments and want employees who are always working to improve themselves and the company.

And finally, there is trust (Daft, 2003). Trust plays a key factor in everyday roles at the organization, a level of respect to colleagues, customers, and consumers at all times needs to be upheld (P&G Home Page 2009) P&G is focused on being successful in every niche of their everyday business. From their manufacturing plants to their corporate offices and consumers, P&G demonstrates and upholds the same level of quality service. Many of P&Gs principles and values seem to be redundant in their use, which has caused them to come across as being overpowered but also boring due to repetition. As a company, they have clarified in a great deal what they are looking for from applicants and what they expect you to uphold as an employee (Dobson and Starkey 2004).

P&G could present their long-term goals and objectives more clearly and openly for knowledge. However, based on their rankings and profits for the past couple of years, they seem to be heading in the right path. Also, in regards to their values and principles wanting a mutual respect for all individuals, this seems as if it would cause a problem in respect with communication between management and fellow employees. As a company, you would want employees to be respectful of one another, however, hold management to a higher level of respect.

The business world of the past few decades has been more focused on the largest multinational corporations and their effects upon the international markets as well as upon consumers. Motivated by the desire to become among the strongest competitors, several medium-size companies have developed strategic plans to increase their customer numbers, profits, and revenues as well as commercial and competitive position. Procter and Gamble have always been the American leader regarding the manufacturing and selling of consumer products, anything from personal hygiene products to detergents. However, on the international scale, Proctor and Gamble were only the second-best, being outrun by the Anglo-Dutch company Unilever. Influenced by the international trend started by corporations wishing to become the best in their domain, P&G developed a strategic plan to gain its international leader position (Dobson and Starkey 2004).

Their plan to expand regarded a merger with another American leader manufacturer and seller of consumer goods, but highly specialized in a complementary field, Gillette. In 2005, the two major companies merged into the worlds number one leader organization specialized in consumer products, therefore, dethroning Unilever. Procter and Gamble were generally specialized in family and womens care products, whereas Gillette was specialized in mens care products. By combining the knowledge and information acquired by P&G and Gillette, the newly formed company added to their line of internationally acknowledged products (such as Ariel or Pampers) another set of renowned products such as Gillette razors, Duracell batteries, Oral-B dental hygiene products, and Braun (Daft, 2003).

Globalization involves contracting workforce from abroad and the reasons for doing so are various, the most eloquent being highly specialized personnel and lower costs. However, criticized for increasing the unemployment rate in the country of the outsourcer, off-shoring is an international trade that has influenced numerous companies. Like with several other large corporations, the possibility to reduce costs and motivated P&G to launch the outsourcing process. Moreover, in the particular case where Procter and Gamble deliver products to 160 countries, the necessity to collaborate with the abroad workforce could not be neglected (Daft, 2003).

In this order of ideas, by 1999, P&G had already opened headquarters in 81 different states. To cope with the immense demand for P&G products all over the world, it becomes more efficient to produce some of the products in the countries they were being sold, instead of producing them within the United States then exporting them abroad. Moreover, in 2003, the website news.com announced that Procter and Gamble had sealed an outsourcing deal with Hewlett-Packard. Since most of the production, finance, and accounting processes had already been distributed worldwide to the 81 headquarters, P&G needed HP to outsource transactional accounts payable in regions across the globe. In other words, HPs main objective was to maintain and improve the quality of P&G services across the globe through developing and sustaining a viable information network. Its generally accepted that technology has drastically changed humanitys existence by introducing new concepts, ideas, information, and gadgets to sustain a certain kind of lifestyle. Technology has also had major influences upon the domain of business and economics by resizing consumers demands and obliging companies to develop at a rapid pace (Drejer, 2002).

From the economic perspective, P&Gs current position is marked by stable development and growth. It is one of the most important industry requirements, which is essential for the expansion of opportunities and plays an important role in making or breaking the competitive positioning. It allows P&G to receive input from those who are involved in this business, giving a real world perspective. This essential input often gives us insider accounts of a contemporary world which companies are not normally privileged to see. Strategic alliances include Clairol in 2001 and German haircare giant Wella in 2003. This brought P&G US$100 million includes Axion and Gama in France, Dinamo in Italy, Ajax in Sweden, and Dynamo in Denmark. P&G has several joint ventures in China, primarily domestic firms. P&G has also realized rapid expansion through capital injections. To protect themselves, local and international companies are constantly against international acquisitions policy. This year, P&G was claimed in anti-competitive action. This strategy helped to save about $25 million for P & G and maintained more close relations with national partners and customers. In recent years, P & G has shifted its global focus to core brands and price reduction measures. This strategy has helped P&G to maintain high-speed growth through optimization of its facilities and constant technological innovation. Changes to one area of the value chain have knock-on effects in other parts of the business (Dobson and Starkey 2004).

Mergers and acquisitions have a substantial impact on P & G market performance. The process of globalization and mergers has a major impact upon the future structure of the consumer goods retail industry, but many regulatory and ownership barriers remain in force worldwide. Organizational type has been dramatically influenced by the rise of globalization, and in this changing environment, P is seeking to maximize its global reach, in the belief that those that offer a global service and products will be in the strongest competitive position. The nature of competition can be characterized through the structure of competition namely the number and types of competitors and the action of competitors (Kotler and Armstrong 2005).

For P&G, outsourcing is as much an attempt to regain some sense of corporate focus, as it is a means to reduce costs. The market is so large that specialists have arisen at all stages of computer design, manufacture, operation, and maintenance. Many companies are choosing to outsource the set-up, operation, and maintenance of their computer systems and networks, accessing the equipment and expertise of a specialist provider. Also, globalization affects the business itself opening new opportunities for growth and expansion. P&G contracts out workforce from abroad to avoid cultural and national differences (Kotler and Armstrong 2005).

Strategic Change Management

Strategic change is important for every company as it helps it to improve market position and respond effectively to new environmental conditions and competition. In P & G, the need for strategic change is caused by an economic crisis and a crucial need to introduce new and innovative technology into practice. The retail industry needs an effective change management strategy to save costs and time on implementation and void failure. Although plans for programs can be developed fully, the description of the change will be less prescriptive than those in project plans. The change management was introduced in production facilities: new methods of transfusions and absorption. These proposals for change stated the general objective as it was conceptualized at present, establish the criteria of both the final change and the decision-making process leading to it, recommended the types of sources to be used in gathering information, and put into place a date-specific procedure for activating the program. Many activities lend themselves to this kind of planning: for instance, employee benefits programs, public relations, and customer service. Change systems used this kind of improvement in matters about curriculum, safety, and staff development. In short, any undertaking that is intended to generate a continuing change that is, it was not subject to completion naturally took the form of this kind of proposal for change (Jouve, 2002).

The change will take place in production facilities and will be based on new technological improvements and the introduction of environmentally friendly technologies. The change model selected for implementation is Lewins change model. This model is the most appropriate one because it stipulated the main steps of change and meets the organizational objectives and structure of the pharmaceutical industry. This model will help P & G to solve problems and new environmental demands imposed on the pharmaceutical industry. To some extent, this model is simple and is easily applied by the companys management team.

Also, it covers all important areas of change allowing the pharmaceutical industry to prepare the ground for change, introduce change, and level resistance to change. The complexity of the model does not often lead to better outcomes and results: a simple model allowed P & G to develop state-of-the-art solutions to its current problems and weaknesses. The intent is to follow some of Lewins approaches on (1) unfreezing and (2) refreezing. The industry staff is motivated to formulate what the differences were (unfreezing) and try to replace irrational assumptions with a more rational understanding of differences with the help of a trained facilitator (refreezing). When one initiates such training in an indigenous organization, it is across the board instead of with isolated groups within the organization (Jouve, 2002).

The main benefits of the proposed change approach are that it helps P & G management to prepare employees for change and overcome possible difficulties in communication and performance. In general, all employees are motivated and very enthusiastic about new changes and their positive impact on the companys production. The four frames are not only sustained an organization of the company, the frames provide the capacity for growth and change. The strategic changes in P & G have the obligation both to ensure the adequacy of resources for achieving the stated purpose and to appropriate the resources within the system for optimal results. In P & G, resources are typically categorized as financial, physical, human, and intellectual, almost everything begins and ends with economics. Possible difficulties posed by the change are a lack of skills and knowledge among workers. So P & G while managers invest in physical capabilityif for no other reasons than to qualify for a tax break or to remain competitiveare reluctant to reduce the bottom line by direct expenditure for acquiring or, even more crucial, developing human or intellectual capacity. And change systems, which live by probation and priority, seldom can fund the last few items in the financial plan. The average investment in human capacity is less than 1 percent of the total revenues.

The use and implementation of the Balanced Scorecard will help P&G to evaluate resources and make a complex analysis of current needs and demands. Most modern organizations, therefore, are seriously incapacitated; even the routine business operations are marginal. And, worse still, there is no capacity for expansion. Quite often the impetus comes to form misguided management practices. An overemphasis on efficiency, a term borrowed from manufacturing, not only prevents current effectiveness but also forecloses any hope of future development. In extreme instances, the depletion of capacity is equivalent to self-cannibalization (Levy and Merry, 1986).

Top-down and bottom-up designs will help P&G to develop the information processing and knowledge structure required by the change management. Focusing their activity on the latest innovations in the fields of care products as well as technological innovations, P&G realized the magnitude of the technological involvement in the business actions and made continuous efforts to sustain the development of technology and particularly information technology. For instance, when acquiring Gillette in 2005, P & G declared that the merger of the two leaders would dramatically change the industry, especially the manufacturers of IT. IT specialists expect P&G actions to influence other multination corporations and aid them to realize that new tech initiatives contribute to product, service, and process innovation driving them towards investing in the field of IT (Levy and Merry, 1986).

The strategy followed by Procter and Gamble to support technology and technological innovations is that of making available within the company jobs in careers in technology. Moreover, Procter and Gamble organize Research and Technical Careers in Industry Conference where they inform the public about the latest technological innovations and their importance. The corporation also emphasizes the science behind the brands and encourages the audience to apply to the technical positions available within the corporation.

Conclusion

The case of P&G shows that successful and effective marketing depends upon efficient organizational methods and management tools that meet the needs of the time. The business strategy of P&G is value pricing strategy during which it boosted advertising and performance. The stronger each of these forces is, the more P&G is free in its ability to earn greater profits. This strategy is successful because the bargaining power of buyers had a strong influence upon the business. P&G, producing differentiated products, is brand loyal, and potential new entrants encounter resistance in trying to enter the industry. This strategy is also an important factor in increasing the costs for customers of switching the products of new competitors. The opportunity of this strategy is further growth and competitive position; Technological forces including support technology and technological innovations, which has changed the nature of business relations and interaction with customers. Technological change also affects production methods, requiring the implementation of new processes for companies to stay competitive.

Bibliography

Dobson, P., Starkey, K. 2004, The Strategic Management: Issues and Cases. Blackwell Publishing.

Daft, R. L. 2003, Organizational Theory and Design. 9th Edition. South-Western College Pub; 8 edition.

Drejer, A. 2002, Strategic Management and Core Competencies: Theory and Application. Quorum Books.

Jouve, B. 2002. Innovation without Change? German Policy Studies, 2 (1), 1-4.

Kotler, Ph., Armstrong, G. 2005, Principles of Marketing. Prentice Hall; 11^th edition.

Levy, A., Merry, U. (1986). Organizational Transformation: Approaches, Strategies, Theories. Praeger Publishers.

Proctor and Gambler Home Page. 2009. Web.

Abstract

Patrick Mene changed the focus of the Ritz-Carlton Company when he joined the organization in 1990. He focused on enhancing the quality of services through investing in training and development for the employees. The organizational culture of the company is also a major element that has led to the tremendous success achieved by the Ritz-Carlton Company.

Introduction

The efficiency of the human resource management function in the service industry determines the competitive power of a company. By investing in quality services through training and development for the employees, companies can differentiate their services from the competitors. This strategy is viable for harnessing a larger market share and effectively charging the standard prices without losing customers.

Personalization of services is actualized through the development of an organizational culture that fosters regular enhancement of the services offered to the loyal customers. The management function in a company should ensure that it develops a visionary objective to always enhance the quality of the services offered to customers. This approach not only adds value to the services offered by the company, but it also fosters loyalty on the part of the customers. This paper looks at the Ritz-Carlton Company, with a close focus on human resource management and some of the benefits of investing on competent employees. The paper also highlights elements of the companys organizational culture and some of the lessons learned from Ritz-Carltons experience.

Background

The Ritz-Carlton Company is in the hotel business, and it manages a chain of luxury hotels in different parts of the world. The company has won numerous awards since 1983 when it was founded. Ritz-Carltons success is attributed to the efficient management function of the company. This is particularly revealed in the quality of the services offered by the company. Ritz-Carlton is among the few hotel management companies that have mastered the art of differentiating their services through the creation of value. The management of the company has particularly majored in investing on competent human assets.

The Ritz-Carlton has demonstrated its commitment to continuing to offer sophisticated services to its global market. The culture of excellence in service delivery has been perfected by the company, and it is rivaled by very few competitors (Milakovich, 2005). According to the management function of the company, the trick lies in the efficiency in human resource management. The company distinguishes itself by the performance of the human assets. This means that the Ritz-Carlton has ensured that its employees are the best in the business.

Human resource management

The quality of the services offered by the Ritz-Carlton Company in its hotels and resorts is attributed to the efficiency of the recruitment process. Patrick Mene joined the company in 1990 and he revolutionized the focus of the company. He inspired the management function of the company to focus on quality enhancement through training and development programs for the employees. According to Mene, a company cannot get perfect employees; rather, it should facilitate the development of perfection for the existing human assets. Through his relentless efforts, the company has developed a culture of developing a human asset base that guarantees quality services (Milakovich, 2005).

Mene also helped the company to propagate the strategy of offering personalized services to the loyal customers. For instance, he compelled the management function to adopt the culture of providing monogrammed pillowcases to customers when they visited one of the hotels repeatedly. One of the secrets of the company is the provision of intensive training programs for the employees.

The Ritz-Carlton Company has focused on ensuring that the employees are satisfied with their working environment. For instance, the company ensures that there are enough employees to handle the workflow without overworking. The reviews provided by the employees of the company indicate that the Ritz-Carlton Company respects its employees, and the management treats them as the most important assets (Reiss, 2009). This treatment would be expected from a company that is among the leading organizations in the service industry.

The Ritz-Carlton organizational culture

The organizational culture of the Ritz-Carlton Company is enshrined in values that compel its members to portray their highest level of competence. Keeping the employees happy has led to the development of a human asset base that is not only inspired to keep customers happy, but one that is willing to continue learning to enhance their skills in service delivery. The espoused values of the company dictate that the company should continue distinguishing itself through high-quality services and creation of value. The organizational culture of the company is also characterized by the commitment of the company to empower the employees.

Since the Ritz-Carlton Company is a multinational company, it has developed a culture of accommodating diversity in its employee base, as well as in the customer base. It is apparent that the company has embarked on a business strategy to ensure its entities match their surroundings in different parts of the world in terms of decor and culture. The company outsources labor, and it ensures that the employees adapt to the culture to guarantee its continuity (Reiss, 2009). From the case study, it is apparent that the most important element in service excellence for companies is developing a culture that provides an environment where the employees own their tasks in the workflow.

Lesson from the Ritz-Carltons experience

The most important lesson learned from the Ritz-Carltons experience is that companies should appreciate their employees and provide them with career development opportunities. It is apparent that the success of the company is attributed to the commitment of the employees that started out their tenure when Mene joined the company. As revealed in the companys case study, a quarter of the companys current managerial task force comprises of people that joined the company on an hourly employment basis. Other companies should follow this strategy to propagate commitment from the employees. The Ritz-Carltons experience also highlights the importance of developing a learning organization culture (Reiss, 2009).

The company has ensured that the knowledge acquired by its senior employees is passed on to the new employees. The regular training and development programs offered to the employees should also be emulated by other companies in the service industry if they intend to compete with companies in the caliber of the Ritz-Carlton Company.

Conclusion

The Ritz-Carlton Company is a good example of a company that developed long-term goals for the enhancement of the quality of its services. The company majored in the development of a human asset base that was competent enough to help it differentiate its services from its rivals. The strategy has paid off quite handsomely, and the company is among the top competitors in the hospitality industry in the global market. Its organizational culture is associated with values that call for the employees to own their jobs, and to focus on enhancing the quality of services. Companies in the service industry should borrow ideas from the approach demonstrated by Mene in the management of human resources.

References

Milakovich, M. (2005). Improving Service Quality in the Global Economy: Achieving High Performance in Public and Private Sectors. Florida: CRC Press. Web.

Reiss, R. (2009). How Ritz-Carlton Stays at the top. Web.

Today terrorism has become a serious threat to the security of the entire world and regional communities. It is expressed in the commission of explosions, arsons, or other actions which create the threat of death of people, causing significant property damage or the onset of other socially dangerous consequences, if these actions are committed in order to violate public safety. Terrorism is a multi-object crime, with the main purpose of encroachments on the life and health of citizens, critical infrastructure facilities, the natural environment, and information systems. Thus, it obviously poses a threat to the urban environment and leads to emergency situations, requiring appropriate urban emergency management.

Recently, new concepts and methods of urban emergency management have arisen. One of the innovative approaches is crowdsourcing, in frames of a systematic literature review, making comparison of crowdsourcing tools intended for urban planning and urban emergency management, was offered by Chaves et al. (2019). The authors also suggest a five-dimension typology for measuring quality in crowdsourcing, applicable for use in the processes of urban planning and emergency management.

The idea presented in the article implies participation of citizens in prevention and management of disasters, which allows effective introduction of the disaster risk reduction concept and early detection. The relevance of the application of crowdsourcing technology in public governance is due to the objective complication and rise in the cost of regional management processes. At the same time, it is not about giving new names to old bureaucratic procedures and operations, but presenting a qualitatively new way of urban management (Judd, 2018). Modern management technologies should cause profound transformations in the entire system and ensure the rationality and efficiency of governance activities of the municipal sector.

The main idea of crowdsourcing is that the necessary work is done not by professionals, but by amateurs. Thus, the purpose of this technology is to use the potential of more people to solve socially significant problems in the urban environment. In order to have a clearer understanding of crowdsourcing, it is needed to outline its advantages, such as (Benna, 2018; England et al., 2016; McGovern, 2016):

1. Scalability. Access to the results of labor of a practically unlimited audience allows to quickly create a global product in a region or city.
2. Talents. One of the main advantages of crowdsourcing is attracting talented people and providing the principle of diversity, which ultimately gives new ideas and positive results.
3. Competence. Crowdsourcing ensures that everyone works on their own task, which means that they will be performed by people with the appropriate qualifications.
4. Ease of implementation. Implementation of crowdsourcing tasks is easy to use, usually via a website or social media.
5. Low costs. It is an inexpensive tool for the development of the region or municipality, as all the necessary work is done by unpaid or low-paid amateur professionals.

The basis of crowdsourcing projects are talented people who want to voluntarily spend their time discussing global issues in the region  those who are not seeking to make money but rather to receive moral satisfaction from their activities. Crowdsourcing represents a social technology implemented by civil society actors in the public and state interests. As a result, it is possible to create a whole bank of innovative ideas and proposals, improve the quality of decisions made, and actively interact with the population and decision-makers. However, successively reaching high-quality outputs from a massive number of crowd participants is still a challenge for the widespread adoption of crowdsourcing systems (Chaves et al., 2019, p. 3). The authors conducted an analysis of literature and revealed an array of models suggesting quality control and solutions for management issues arising in crowdsourcing. At the same time, they apply findings to practical issues arising in emergency situations, for example, in case of the need for shelter deployment, when the specific solution depends on the type of disaster and other factors. These research questions made it possible to formulate valuable suggestions for crowdsourcing in urban emergency management.

The framework provided in the article attempts to combine institutional, social, policy, and technical aspects of urban emergency management in one model. In the article, it is proposed to develop strategies to engage participants based on civic or academic motives, in frames of the idea of building a collaborative emergency map, as well as mobile GWAP participatory sensing to support escape route simulations (Chaves et al., 2019, p. 19). In the study, the authors offer to consider the nature of task, its availability, tasks interdependence, motivation for engagement and appropriate strategies, and quality assessment for works performed.

Classical approaches to motivating labor participants in relation to crowdsourcing are unacceptable, and the possibilities of monetary motivation are limited. Therefore, it would be more correct to talk not about motivation, but about the involvement of crowdsourcers in solving the tasks assigned to them. A high level of population involvement, ensuring early detection and effectiveness of attempts to prevent emergency situations, can also become a barrier on the way of terrorists in the preparation and implementation of socially dangerous acts.

In conclusion, it should be noted that in order to introduce crowdsourcing technology into urban management practice, it is necessary to adopt uniform standards for ensuring openness for government bodies at all levels. Transparent procedures for feedback and taking into account citizens opinions when making decisions seem to be of high importance, as well as developing the basic rules of the systems for public control and peoples expertise. It is advisable to create open data portal; moreover, civil crowdsourcing projects should be stimulated, including those aimed at prevention and early detection of possible terrorists attacks on urban infrastructure.

References

Benna, U. (2018). Crowdfunding and sustainable urban development in emerging economies. IGI Global.

Chaves, R., Schneider, D., Correia, A., Motta, C., & Borge, M. (2019). Crowdsourcing as a tool for urban emergency management: Lessons from the literature and typology. Sensors, 19, 1-29. Web.

England, R., Pelissero, J., & Morgan, D. (2016). Managing urban America (8^th ed.). CQ Press.

Judd, D. R. (2018). City politics (10^th ed.). Routledge.

McGovern, S. J. (2016). Urban politics: A reader (1^st ed.). CQ Press.

Working capital demonstrates how much liquid asset is accessible to satisfy the short-term cash requirements obligatory by current liabilities in a business. The working capital assumes that current asset and current obligation are short-term concepts; thus, it is defined as a short-term concept. A working capital shows the efficiency and stability of the short-term financial in the business. In case the working capital is stale it shows that the business is capable of meeting its debt obligation without any difficulties. The main component of the working capital includes asset that comprises current and fixed assets and liabilities that comprises the short-term operating liabilities, long and short terms financial debt and equity. The current liabilities are also referred to as a long-term capital; therefore, working capital is usually defined as; Working Capital = Current Assets  Current Liabilities. Thus, the thesis statement of working capital will be; working capital management ensures that sufficient liquid resources are available to understand the influences and affect the developments and profitability in the business environment.

The working capital plays significant roles in the development and profitability of the businesses in the economy by reducing risks of business. Important corporations implement managing working capital because it not only protects business from recession period and non-forecast situations, but it also allows expansions when business formulate new plans strategies. The working capital gives a business a strong foundation, flexibility, and strength to undertake business opportunities in the market despite the competition.

It builds the inventories required to generate the optimum profit needed to stabilize the business from collapsing due to lack of proper management. The prospects of the business have improved gradually because working capital aid in making the fabulous ideas into reality due to, an establishment of working capital loans that do not require securities.

Therefore, working capital fulfils the expectations of business and overcome challenges to meet the business targets despite the current situations in the economy market. It maximizes the possibilities of establishing lasting and successful business ideas and measures for operational efficiency. The large number of debtors in the company indicates the company is not prepared to undertake the obligations of paying its arrears obligations. The proper management of working capital ensures the debtors get their dues on time, consequently, if a company is not operating efficiently, it will indicate working capital is low, therefore, significant problem in the companys developments and profitability.

The business can manage the working capital properly to obtain the solution to amend the problem so that shareholders can increase their trustworthiness to the company. By managing and controlling the stocks and the financial situations that lead to significant performance of the company Stock ownership. The working capital gives the employees financial rewards during the profitability period of the business. Afza and Nazir (2008) demonstrated that if the company has a negative, working capital it shows, debtors use excessive credit transfer facilities in the company and the firms borrow high amount of loans to manage the business. This will lead business into problems with debt collection or the financial position of significant customers, and management of the business should control the problem to avoid the dissolution. In conclusion, the working capital is hugely significant in business, and it improves the development and the profitability of the business in the market.

The working capital management is founded on the basic balance sheet identity that consists the working capital components, written as (Carole, 2003).

Networking capital (cash + other current asset)-current asset) + fixed asset =long-term debt equity. Alternatively, cash may follow:

• Cash =Long term +Equity + current liabilities- Current assets other than cash  Fixed assets.

The increased need for cash in the business finances long-term debt of the company, and it consider raising long-term loan from banks to fund the intended investment to expand the profits of the company. Meanwhile, the business should consider increasing its equity by issuing shares to increase capital that will help to manage the working capital effectively; the additional costs related to such method are reduced due to proper management of capital. The company may increase its current liabilities management by negotiation of long credit periods from its general creditors, to increase the payable periods. Such management methods are dependent on the operating cycles of its creditors. Besides, such negotiation depends on the bargaining power of the business and during adverse scenario may destroy the business relationship between the company and its suppliers in the process of management.

The company may decrease its current assets other than cash, for instances the company may consider selling some inventories for cash by promotion. Chiou et al (2006, 149-155) state that the company may further reduce the inventories period by adopting Economic Order Quantity model (EOQ) or Just in Time (JIT) techniques used in the working capital management.

The current system and the purchase cycle of the company have to determine the optimum quantity ordered for EOQ techniques in working capital management. Finally, the business may decrease its fixed assets because there may be certain plant or equipments that are obsolete or no longer required by the company for business production. Realizing such fixed assets for cash can be a means to manage the working capital in the business (Deloof, 2003).

The components of working capital are managed by use of the following methods:

• The Trade Credits

The perish ability and collateral value as well as consumer demand, are factors that influence the credit period of the company. Products that are established have more rapid turnover, costs, profitability, and standardization. Relatively, inexpensive goods tend to have shorter credit periods, risks and the greater the credit risk, the shorter the credit periods are likely to be. The size of accounts and the bigger the accounts customers the longer the credit period required for the management of the components of the working capital.

• The Trade Debt

The payable period of the long-term capital, contribute to the high and low liquidity of the company. The company finances working capital not only by short-term bank loans but also by the trade debts that have an unusually long payable period (Dev, 2003). Alternatively, in view of the high level of cash management in the company, it should consider taking any trade discount from the suppliers, if there are no existing or contemplated projects that require substantial cash (Eugene and Brigham, 2009).

• Cash Management

There are three motives for the liquidity, namely speculative, precautionary, and the transaction motives (Filbeck and Krueger, 2005). There may be additional reasons to hold sufficient cash balances at the commercial banks to compensate for the banking services that the company receives. The company may require cash for working capital management activities and need cash for possible expenditures, such as acquiring other business.

• Cash operating cycle management

Cash operating shows the parameters used to measure the management performance of the company. The receivables and payable in the operating cycle show how the company manages decisive operational, capital assets. The average cash operating cycle of the company is demonstrated in the following formula (Eljelly, 2004).

Cash cycle = operating cycle (inventory period + Accounts receivable period)  Accounts payable period. Therefore, the company should manage and control the inventories of the company well to expand its operations in the market niche.

Management of stocks and other financial instruments Filbeck et al (2007) on their research demonstrated that shareholders increase their trustworthiness to the company manages; control the stocks and the financial situations. The business should improve the international operations, to face the foreign exchange exposure, including transaction and translation exposure. It helps the company to monitor its total foreign currency exposure centrally to net off affiliate positions and hedge transactions with the banks. The company is capable to protect the anticipated foreign currency revenue with appropriate foreign exchange contracts; hence, the company is capable of managing the components of working capital through the foreign sources.

Working capital management techniques used by business helps in efficiently management of working capital. Working capital management means managing current assets and working capital management techniques are very effectual tools.

Working Capital = Current Assets  Current Liabilities. The business focuses on current assets because they forecast the current liabilities, therefore, controlling the current assets can as while controlling the current liabilities. The following are the working capital technique that manages different components of working capital.

The inventory Management Techniques

During the recession and tight money periods the business has to be flexible in the inventory management for instance the quantity to be ordered may need to be adjusted to reflect the increase costs.

The way to manage the inventories

Garcia and Martinez (2007, pp164-177) state that inventory costs comprise ordering costs and carrying costs ordering costs include the cost of placing order and receiving the goods. Examples are freight changes and clerical costs, these costs assume constants for each order, irrespective of the number of the units in the order.

Total number of orders = S/EOQ,

Where,

• S = sum usage

EOQ =economic order quantity: the maximum amount of order (ordering and carrying)

Total order costs = S/EOQ *O

Where,

• O = cost per order

Carrying the costs includes the shortage, handling, and insurance costs as well as required return rate on the inventory investment. James (2010) demonstrated the inventory technique model that assumes constant per unit of the inventory is obtained by the following equation.

Total carrying cost = EOQ/2 * C

Where.

• C = carrying cost per unit

EOQ/2 = average inventory quantity for the period.

Total inventory cost = (S/EOQ *O) + (EOQ/2 * C)

Jae and Joel (2009) show that there exists a swap between the order size and the carrying cost, the higher the order quantity (EOQ), the higher the carrying cost, the lower the ordering cost.

EOQ= square root of (2SO/C).

The Example of the EOQ Techniques

The Business is trying to determine the frequency of orders for an item from a supplier. Each item cost $ 10. Carrying cost that estimates at $200 per year. The business anticipates selling 100 units per month. Average desired inventory is 100. Order cost is $10 and the business want to know the optimum quantity and the order frequency.

EOQ= the square root of (2SO/C), the square root of {(2) (12 *100) *10}/ 2 = the square root of 12000 =109, C = Carrying cost / Average inventory, (which equals unit cost * average quantity).

200/10 * 100 =200/1000 =0.2 or 20%

C = Purchase price * percentage of carrying cost to average investment

C = $100*0.2=2

The number of orders per year = S/ EOQ= 1200/109=11(rounded)

The inventory techniques help the business to evaluate the efficiency associated with buying and controlling inventory in case there is a lack of control and the restrict inventory balances (Hrishikesh,2004). In addition, it evaluates the future trends in the product and the services prices, if the expected price increase it is good for the company to buy more resources. It also utilizes computer techniques and the operations research properly to manage the inventory of the business. The weakness of the inventory techniques is that, in case of the resources shortage on the safety of the stock balance the problem could cause the shutdowns of the business.

The Cash Models Techniques

Lorenzo and Virginia (2010) in their research demonstrated that several mathematical models have been formulated to assist the financial managers in distributing a companys finances so that they can provide a maximum return to the company. The objective of the model is to reduce the sum of the fixed costs of the transactions and the opportunity of holding the cash balances that are non-profitable. Nazir and Afza (2008) in their work showed the cost model equation as F (T)/C + I (C)/2.

Where,

• F = the fixed cost of a transaction
• T =the total cash needed for the period involved
• I = the interest rate on the marketable securities
• C= cash balances
• The optimal level of the cash C* is determined using the following
• C* = square root of (2FT/ i)

The examples of the cash model techniques

The business estimate cash for $5000, 000 over a non-month period during which the cash accounts at a constant rate. The rate of return is 5 percent per annum and the transaction cost each time the business borrows or withdraws is $50. The optimal transaction size and the number of the transaction the business should make during the month follows:

C* = square root of (2FT/I ) = square root of the[ ( 2 * 5000000 *50)/ 0.05] = 100000

C* = $100000

C*/2 = $100000/2=500000

Therefore, $50000/500000=1 (transaction during the month).

The main weakness of the cash model techniques is that the fixed costs of the securities transaction are assumed to be the same, for buying and selling of which is not reality in the market, and the randomness of the cash flow is another weakness of the cash technique(Myers, 2007). Meanwhile, the cash model helps the managers to distribute the companys finances so that they can provide a maximum return to the company. Michalski (2007, 42-53) states that management of the working capital consists, evaluating of various types of the current assets and current liabilities and evaluation helps in making decisions on assets finances. Working capital involves transaction between return and the risks, if the funds go from fixed assets to current assets, there is a reduction in liquidity risks, greater ability to get short term financing, and enhancing the conflicting objectives of the working capital (Mathuva, 2009).

In conclusion, financing with noncurrent debt has less risk than financing with the current debt; however, the long-term debt has a higher cost than short debt because of the greater uncertainty that detracts from overall return. When there is conflicting objective of the working capital, the business should use the hedging approach of financing where asset finances liabilities of the similar maturity. Meanwhile, the longer the period required to purchase and produce goods, working capital available to finance the situations. Finally, the company should analysis working capital to ensure gives a good result in the net saving and obtaining optimum profitability.

List of References

Afza, T., M. S. Nazir, 2008. Working Capital Approaches and Firms Returns: Journal of Commerce and Social Sciences, 1(1), 25-36.

Carole, P.W., 2003. The Focus of Working Capital Management in UK Small Firms; Management Accounting Killington: Vol. 14, (2), p.94.

Chiou, J. R., Cheng, L., Wu, H.W., (2006). The determinants of working capital management, The Journal of American Academy of Business, Vol. 10, No. 1, pp. 149-155.

Deloof, M., (2003). Does working capital management affect profitability of Belgian firms? Journal of Business Finance and Accounting, 30(3) & (4), pp. 573-587.

Dev, S., 2003. The Impact of working capital investment on the value of a company, Published by RMA Journal.

Eugene, F. Brigham, J. F., 2009. Fundamentals of Financial Management. New York: Cengage Brain.com.

Eljelly, A., 2004. Liquidity Profitability Tradeoff: An Empirical Investigation in an Emerging Market: International Journal of Commerce and Management, 14: 48- 61.

Filbeck, G., Krueger, T. M., 2005. An analysis of working capital management results across industries, American Journal of Business, Vol. 20, Issue 2, pp. 11-18.

Filbeck, G., Krueger, T. M., Preece, D., (2007). CFO Magazine Working Capital Survey: Do Selected Firms Work for Shareholders? Quarterly Journal of Business & Economics, Vol. 46, No 2, pp. 5-22.

Garcia, T., Martinez, S. P., (2007). Effects of Working Capital Management on SME Profitability. International Journal of Managerial Finance. 3(2), 164-177.

Hrishikesh, B., 2004. Working Capital Management: Strategies and Techniques. New Delhi: PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd.

Jae, K. S., Joel, G. S., 2009. Handbook of Financial Analysis: Forecasting and Modeling. 3^rd Ed. New York: CCH Inc.

James, S., 2010. Essentials of Working Capital Management. New York: John Wiley and Sons Inc.

Lorenzo A. P., Virginia S., 2010.Working capital management. 3^rd ed. New York: Oxford University Press.

Myers, R. 2007. Growing Problems: The Working Capital Survey, CFO Magazine.

Mathuva, D., 2009. The influence of working capital management components on corporate profitability: a survey on Kenyan listed firms. Research Journal of Business Management, 3: 1-

Vijay, A.K., 2001. Working Capital Management. New Delhi: Northern Book Centre.

Michalski. G. 2007. Portfolio Management Approach in the Trade Credit Decision Making. Rom J Econ. Fore. 3 42-53.

Mohammad, D.H., Nahian, R., 2005. Financial Management Decisions in the Newspaper Industry in Bangladesh: a case of the daily prothom Alo. 34 577-582.

Nazir Ms., Afza, T., 2008. On the Factors Demining Working Capital Requirements. Proc. ASBBS, 15(1): pp293-301.

Rahman, Dr. Golan. Newspaper and Periodical, Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh, 7, 2003, 300.

The Tesla brand is generally seen as the antithesis of the conventional automobile. For example, one of its business strategies was to first target the high-end market with an aspirational luxury product before expanding into the middle- and lower-end sectors with the inexpensive Model 3 car. The unique selling proposition of the product is predicated on an out-of-the-box approach to market research (Thomas, 2019). Considering how crucial this is to the companys success, Tesla will need to reevaluate its manufacturing and supply chain strategies to ensure the timely and efficient delivery of the vehicle. Furthermore, from a commercial perspective, Tesla has endeavored to become an environmentally friendly organization, which has provided the company with a lot of benefits from government and regulation.

Customers

Tesla plans to break into both the luxury and mainstream markets with the introduction of its Model S sedan and its lower-priced Model 3. Thus, the consumer is a primary driver of Teslas financial success; they care about the quality of the product and believe it is reasonably priced. The company is now attempting to reduce the cost of vehicle batteries so that it can satisfy this demand without compromising on quality (Thomas, 2019). To that end, Tesla is working to establish battery production in-house as an alternative to continuing to get batteries from Panasonic. The corporation places a premium on increasing customer satisfaction, and one of its main aims is to do so by establishing a worldwide network of charging stations. This ensures that Tesla is satisfying its customers, a crucial stakeholder group.

Suppliers and the alliance partner

The greatest brake discs are imported from Europe for use in Tesla vehicles, while the company employs Japanese battery technology. Timely product development, manufacturing, and customer service rely heavily on the companys excellent ties with its suppliers and the synergy that arises from cooperation with its suppliers as well as its alliance partners (Hoelzlhammer, 2018).

Investors

During Teslas formative years, it was crucial to have support from important stakeholder groups including Investors. They play a vital role in the companys ability to raise funds and make payments, just as they would for any other firm. Investors are the stockholders of a company, and they are continuously concerned with the companys development and profitability. The companys CSR is working to address these issues via game-changing, long-term projects (Lugtu Jr, 2019). Teslas development may be aided and investors interests are served by allowing other firms to use Teslas patents. For instance, this might increase the number of brands and goods that use energy and the demand for such things. The areas in which Tesla does business are at the center of the companys environmental concerns, as we said previously. This can be good news for shareholders and investors as well, as a positive company image will allow Tesla to expand, maintain its focus on new product development, and steadily increase its profits from the sale of its cars.

The Government

The government is a key stakeholder in Teslas efforts to create a sustainable vehicle industry because it has an interest in the companys ethical business practices and its impact on the economy of the states in which it operates. Teslas worldwide growth strategy and track record more than meet the requirements of such government interests (Sathish, 2017). Also, given that oil prices and the governments of providing nations remain unstable, the United States government views Tesla as strategically important since it is the only mode of mass transportation that is not reliant on oil. Along with many other large American companies, Tesla employs a considerable workforce and makes a significant contribution to the economy. The company has been instrumental in the creation of groundbreaking goods and services, and it keeps growing while rewarding its best employees (Matejun, 2019). Based on the results of the aforementioned Stakeholder Analysis, it is clear which parties have the most influence on and responsibility for the companys strategy and its overall performance.

Repositioning

Suppliers are the stakeholder group that has to be repositioned for the organization to prioritize them over the following 12 months. Before, Tesla had trouble getting the early capacity guarantees from suppliers they required because of the distance between Silicon Valley and its regular suppliers. The need for vertical manufacturing was frequent. With production assurances and an increase to 100,000 units per year, Tesla is aggressively seeking suppliers to set up shop in the area and start making parts.

Once Tesla proved its dependability and good faith to its suppliers, the latter began allocating more resources and even moving closer. The takeaway here is that even a small firm may benefit from excellent supplier relationships if supported by production commitments. Teslas annual output of 100,000 vehicles is well below what is needed for the car sector to survive. Managers should be aware of the most common causes of misunderstandings between customers and vendors.

According to the results of a recent survey by The Faculty, there has been a communication breakdown. Second, executives should not assume that the only way to gain from relationships with suppliers is via monetary incentives. Finally, vendors may contribute to projects like demand forecasting and resource allocation (Rengarajan et al, 2021). The cost-to-serve is determined by the complexity of the procurement process, the value of the company, and the strength of the relationship. Teslas early difficulties with its supply chain probably taught the company to value its commercial relationships more highly, which has helped both parties succeed.

Five Porter Analysis

Competitive Rivalry or Competition with Tesla, Inc. (Strong Force)

The industry in which Tesla, Inc. works is quite cutthroat. In this phase of the Five Forces Analysis, we examine how competition affects the car and renewable energy industries (Liu and Meng, 2017). Following is a list of factors both within and outside of Tesla that contributes to the cutthroat nature of the companys industry:

• Only a few organizations are involved (weak force)
• Companies are very competitive and aggressive (strong force)
• Low barriers to entry (strong force)

The car industry is dominated by a few major players. Companies like Tesla, Inc. benefit from this external component since it mitigates the threat posed by rivals in the context of Porters Five Forces study. However, these businesses are notoriously bold when it comes to introducing new features and advertising their wares (McCain, 2018). Large car manufacturers, for instance, often use heavy-handed advertising strategies. Consumers have few barriers to switching to vehicles from other brands, which further increases the competitive pressure in the market. The intense rivalry in the auto and energy solutions industry is highlighted as an important strategic management aspect in this section of Tesla Inc.s Five Forces analysis.

Bargaining Power of Teslas Customers/Buyers (Moderate Force)

The influence of customers on enterprises and the industry landscape as a whole is analyzed for the vehicle, battery, and solar power sectors. Having a dedicated customer base is essential to Teslas success (McCain, 2017). Clients bargaining power is relatively stable as a result of the following exogenous influences and the relative strengths of those elements:

• Low barriers to entry (strong force)
• Availability of Substitutes Is Considerable (moderate force)
• Weak Purchasing Activity (weak force)

Customers of Tesla have fewer obstacles to moving to other suppliers when it comes to buying automobiles due to the low switching fees. The analysis of Porters Five Forces shows that this external factor poses a danger to the business and its competitors in the car industry (Chen, 2019). When customers have few or no other options, they have less negotiating power with Tesla Inc

Bargaining Power of Teslas Suppliers (Moderate Force)

Tesla, Inc.s supply chain is critical to the companys future. This part emphasizes the role suppliers play in determining the accessibility of inputs for enterprises (Hoelzlhammer, 2018). The following medium-level external forces contribute to Teslas suppliers medium-level bargaining strength:

• The incorporation into the future is somewhat progressive (moderate force)
• Most vendors are a reasonable size (moderate force)
• Sufficient Supply, but Not Too Much (moderate force)

Few of Tesla Inc.s vendors are fully integrated into the companys supply chain. Because of this uncontrolled third party, producers and retailers have little influence in the distribution and sale of their products. While some component makers work with Tesla via intermediaries, others do business with the company directly (Jing, 2020). The majority of these vendors are also medium-sized, which means they only have a moderate impact on the automotive industry. The modest amount of supply is another external issue that gives suppliers some, but not much, ability to impact Tesla.

The threat of Substitutes or Substitution (Moderate Force)

The competitive landscape in which Tesla, Inc. operates, which includes the automobile and energy solutions industries, is being impacted by replacements (Jing, 2020). Concerning the moderate intensity of the danger of substitution against the firm, the Five Forces Analysis takes into account the following external factors:

• Low expenses associated with making a change (strong force)
• To a modest extent, equivalent options are readily available (moderate force)
• Replacements Acceptable Efficiency (moderate force)

As discussed in the previous sections of this Porters Five Forces analysis of Tesla Inc., competitive pressure is aided by low switching costs. The external research suggests that customers might easily be enticed away by alternatives such as public transportation due to the low switching costs involved. Tesla is facing significant resistance from this external factor in the industrial setting in which it works (Eltoumi et al, 2021). However, providers cannot do too much because of the modest availability of replacements

The threat of New Entrants or New Entries (Weak Force)

Companies like Tesla Inc. have their success or failure depending on the presence of new entrants in their field. According to this section of the Five Forces study, the following external variables have a very minimal impact on the danger of new entrants:

• Marketing a new product or company may be expensive (weak force)
• Incredibly high operational expenses (weak force)
• Extremely low unit cost (weak force)

To compete with Tesla, other firms would need to spend a lot of money advertising their products and Elon Musk would need to be less well-known. The stellar reputation of Tesla Inc. is a valuable asset that is difficult to duplicate. Concerning Porters Five Forces analysis, this external factor stands in for entrant resistance (Matejun, 2019). As an added downside, the high costs of making vehicles discourage new entrants to the market. The likes of Tesla have a substantial head start, and new competitors wont be able to compete until they reach a specific manufacturing threshold.

VRIO/VRIN Analyses

Brand Image

As a company, Teslas strong reputation in the marketplace is a major asset. It is also a significant factor that differentiates this make from the competition. Even though many other automakers exist, some of which produce electric and hybrid vehicles, Tesla has carved out a unique market niche for itself (Matejun, 2019). In the transportation industry, Tesla is largely regarded as a forerunner due to the companys groundbreaking products and pioneering dedication to a sustainable business approach. Consumer interest and sales volume are only two of several indicators that are affected by the car industrys brand image. This is why many car companies value their reputation so highly.

Technological innovation

Technology advancement is critical for the car sector to keep up with the competition. If they want to keep their dominant market share, theyll need to pour a lot of money into automobile R&D. As a result, every company in the vehicle sector has to always be coming up with new ways to better serve their customers and stand out from the crowd (Lugtu, 2019). The name Tesla has become synonymous with cutting-edge innovation and premium-grade goods. Companies now provide a Tesla app that allows owners to remotely control their cars, complementing the cars designed self-driving technology as well as the owners massive display.

Customer experience

The Tesla driving experience is superior in many ways and unlike anything else on the market. This is a key contributing factor to Teslas automobiles rising popularity relative to those of its competitors. Stunning in design and potent in performance, Teslas luxury electric cars are the epitome of driving excellence. Their outside design is as appealing as that of competing vehicle types, and they also provide greater safety. The zero-carbon impact of Tesla vehicles is another selling feature (Chen, 2019). Todays customers are more curious about fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly automobiles. The rising demand for Teslas in both the United States and China is a sign that people are moving toward more sustainable transportation alternatives.

Product range

As expected, demand is high for Teslas latest offerings. Although it has a more limited selection of vehicles than rivals like BMW or Volkswagen, it nonetheless does a good job of catering to its primary market segment of affluent buyers. The Model 3 is the companys entry-level car, and its success has helped propel Tesla to the forefront of the luxury auto industry throughout the world (Rengarajan, 2021). Increasing production capacity is necessary for the company to keep up with client demand. In addition to the more economical Model 3, the company has also developed the pricier Model S, Model X, and Model Y.

Market Position

Since its inception, Tesla has successfully established itself as a frontrunner in both the car sector and the EV market. Because of its huge market share and overall superiority over the competition, the corporation enjoys a significant and sustainable competitive advantage. The market share of Teslas main competitors is much smaller. Despite intense competition, Teslas market share is increasing because of the companys continued dedication to technology and the amazing performance of Tesla vehicles (Rengarajan, 2021). As a consequence of more people becoming aware of it, sales have gone up and critical praise has been broadened to include people all over the globe.

There are a lot of factors that will lead to its continued commercial supremacy in the years ahead. Teslas success may be ascribed in large part to the companys remade image, as well as the increasing global demand for electric automobiles. Attempts by other companies to unseat Tesla from its dominant market position are likely to be fraught with difficulty. Attempts by other manufacturers to improve battery life and safety features for drivers will take several years (Liu and Meng, 2017). As a whole, Teslas market position provides the company with a considerable and lasting competitive advantage.

Human Resource Management

The human resources division of any technology business will be a key differentiator for the brand. While it does produce automobiles, Tesla Motors is also a technical pioneer. It stands apart from other automakers in the market by prioritizing technical advancement. While the companys technical competence in the EV industry is evident, it is the special approach to HR management that has given the firm a competitive edge (Jing, 2020). The company recognizes that it must pay as much attention to retaining its brilliant and dedicated staff as it does to attract new talent. The firm fosters a climate of innovation and originality. To stay ahead of the competition, businesses must pay careful attention to the strategic management of their human resources. In addition to generous pay, employees have access to a wide range of learning and promotion possibilities at this company. Human resource management is essential to a companys competitive edge, but it cannot be relied upon indefinitely because other companies also spend substantially on HRM strategies.

Strategies to sustainable competitive advantage

Improving battery technology

At this time, Tesla is the only carmaker producing more kWh of batteries than all others combined. Teslas battery cell pricing will continue to fall as the Gigafactorys output increases and other facilities start to open in the future due to economies of scale, creative production, reduced waste, and the basic efficiency of standardizing most production tasks.

A significant part of Teslas competitive edge is the quality and dependability of its battery supply chain. Why? Panasonic, whose cells are utilized in the batteries, deserves some of the glory. The packs and battery chemistry are also constantly being improved upon by Tesla. Modern technical advances have made batteries an essential component of sustainable transportation systems. Households may be supplied with power and grid stability can be improved by tapping into the energy stored in these portable batteries.

Upgrading customer experience

The creation of individual profiles for each Tesla owner is the companys crowning achievement in the realm of customization. Each driver only needs to click a button to make adjustments to their preferences. The steering wheel and mirror positions, for example, can be customized for each driver without any intervention from the passenger. While other automakers may remember a users key fob and move the seats accordingly, Teslas driver profiles may customize the cars handling, brakes, lighting, radio stations, and even the way the driver leans into turns.

Price moderation of vehicles

In terms of pricing strategies, value pricing may be the most crucial. Customer perceptions of the items usefulness, quality, and significance are taken into consideration. There are several obstacles to fully capitalizing on the market potential of your newest breakthroughs, such as the presence of rivals, the relative brevity of product life cycles, and the use of inefficient methods. More than ever, technology providers need to pay attention to price inefficiencies that are stunting development and diminishing their perceived value in todays volatile economic climate.

Consistent product differentiation

There are several approaches to differentiation, such as offering a novel product design, exceptional service, or technical superiority. Teslas goods are in high demand because of their cutting-edge technology, distinctive appearance, and easy acquisition and upkeep. Tesla advertises the speed, security, and maximum potential driving range of its vehicles. These cars also set the standard for semi-autonomous driving and had the largest displays ever seen in a car. Due to the software-centric nature of modern vehicles, they may get updates and upgrades wirelessly, without the need to visit a service center. The branding initiatives are headed by Elon Musk, the companys legendary founder, CEO, and Product Architect. Musk is known to have direct conversations with consumers and to make rapid iterations of the product in response to their feedback. In addition, Musk has been outspoken about the role that consumers can play in improving the world, into a less polluted place by encouraging the widespread use of electric cars. He values his customers loyalty and support. To get all the extras that come equipped on every Tesla model, customers are willing to pay a premium.

Reference List

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Eltoumi, F. M. et al (2021). The key issues of electric vehicle charging via hybrid power sources: Techno-economic viability, analysis, and recommendations. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 138, 110534.

Hoelzlhammer, A. (2018). A Strategic Audit of Tesla. Honors Thesis, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Jing, N. (2020) Research on Teslas Customer Care Innovation, 2020 Management Science Informatization and Economic Innovation Development Conference (MSIEID) [Preprint]. Web.

Liu, J.H. and Meng, Z. (2017). Innovation model analysis of new energy vehicles: taking Toyota, Tesla and BYD as an example. Procedia engineering, 174, pp.965-972.

Lugtu Jr, R.C. (2019). Tesla: Testing a Business Model at its (R) Evolutionary Best. Doctoral Dissertation, De La Salle University-Manila.

Matejun, M. (2019) Dynamic capabilities and the development of small business resource potential. In J. Paliszkiewicz and K. Chen (Eds.), Trust, organizations and the digital economy: Theory and practice (pp. 214-231). New York: Routledge.

McCain, C. D. (2019). A strategic audit of Tesla, Inc. Undergraduate Honors Thesis. University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Web.

Rengarajan, S., Moser, R. and Narayanamurthy, G. (2021). Strategy tools in dynamic environmentsAn expert-panel study. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 165, p.120560.

Sathish, S. and Weenk, E. (2017). Case Study of Tesla. Maastricht School of Management.

Thomas, V. J., & Maine, E. (2019). Market entry strategies for electric vehicle start-ups in the automotive industryLessons from Tesla Motors. Journal of Cleaner Production, 235, 653-663.

Introduction

The case study illustrating DuPonts approach to organizational management is based on the use of experiments instead of traditional change management through the stages of change. Hence, this example demonstrates that companies can use varied methods for facilitating the changes that are vital for the companys future, and other organizations can learn from this experience. This paper will answer the case study questions for DuPonts case study.

Change Approaches

The DuPont case study shows that not all companies succeed with the use of traditional managerial tools, such as change management. For some, the use of unique approaches and techniques is more effective. Organization development (OD) is an endeavor to improve an organizations capabilities by aligning strategy, structure, employees, incentives, measurements, and management procedures. It is a scientific, interdisciplinary field with underpinnings in, among other areas, psychology, culture, entrepreneurship, sociology, continuing education, management of human resources, change direction, organizational behavior, and research analysis and design (Anderson, 2019). OD is a continuous, methodical, long-term process of driving organizational effectiveness, issue resolution, and performance improvement. DuPonts leader Tom uses OD as a way to connect the vision of all employees and managers at the facility. For example, they use one metaphor to explain their teamwork, which helps them have a unified vision of what they are trying to achieve.

Moreover, this DuPont facility evidently had a unified culture, which aided the OD process because all employees and managers had the same idea of the organizations course of action. The NASCAR metaphor used by Tom and other individuals in the case study illustrates clearly how the OD strategy is implemented at this company. Moreover, Tom contacted the University of Virginia to provide the most recent business theory and to expose managers to new concepts and use them to increase efficiency and overall plant performance. These factors emphasize Toms desire for the OD approach at DuPonts factory.

Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a constructive approach to executive development, and organizational transformation focused on strengths. Individuals, teams, companies, and societies may all employ AI to help them progress toward a shared long-term vision by involving others in strategic innovation. Bib Akin is the one responsible for AI at DuPont, as he was explicitly asked to interview the employees there and determine their strengths. Additionally, it appears that the metaphor of southern stock-car racing was primarily used to illustrate collaboration; nevertheless, it was used to achieve it. It is quite difficult to introduce a new system to personnel who are acquainted and comfortable with the present one.

Sensemaking is the final element that the management of DuPont uses to lead the organization to success. The sensemaking process impacts organizational structure and behavior by shaping reality as a continuous accomplishment that takes form as individuals make retroactive sense of the conditions in which they find themselves. An organizational development strategy assists a firm in uniting and motivating workers. Performing interviews to identify weaknesses and strengths is essential to enhancing performance shortcomings. Again, as with the previous elements, DuPonts employees and management use sensemaking to create metaphors such as NASCAR and stock-car racing. Through this approach, the employees at DuPont make sense of the organizational changes that the company undergoes, such as closing a factory or restructuring the processes.

Compatibility of Approaches

The three approaches that DuPont uses are compatible with one another and help this organization reach a common goal. Each of the three techniques has a common purpose of focusing on collaborative future imagining. Tom was not searching for particular answers to problems within the business but rather improving on what was already in place within the framework of the organization. The staff newsletter stated that Gibe Akin is here to help us appreciate and develop what goes right, aiding us in building on our strengths, and making the factory better for everyone (File, 2022, p. 1). Hence, the evidence from the case study that supports the compatibility of these approaches is that all three contribute to the development of a unified picture of DuPonts future. The metaphors and the use of the University of Virginias specialists help this organization conduct its experiments, which allow the management to manage change.

AI is an integral element of the OD process, which further supports the compatibility of these approaches. Moreover, as a change manager, I would utilize the three approaches to the maximum degree. This will help enhance communication with employees and the productivity of the company. As outlined in this case study, Toms approach to experimenting is an integral element that one would have to integrate into this approach of OD. Through experimenting, one can create a favorable organizational environment to set up the changes that the employees would want to implement.

Steps for Change Management

A systematic strategy for coping with the transformation or change of a companys objectives, procedures, or technology is known as change management. The purpose of change management is to establish methods for implementing change, controlling it, and assisting people in adjusting to change. As an OD practitioner brought to DuPont during the Orlon factory change, I would focus on several steps essential for enabling the success of this business. My initial step is to assess my own strengths because, with all of the changes, an evaluation would be a critical element of the companys restructuring. My priority would be to determine what is valued within DuPont. After the analysis, everything that may impede the companys progress would be removed. After that, I would ask for opinions both internally and externally. In the last step, I would share my vision for the development of the firm and ask for comments on it. I like Toms suggestion to introduce the modification as an experiment. When it comes to experiments, there is no such thing as right or wrong. An experiment is meant to provide results.

Additionally, as a change agent, I would examine the assumptions derived from sensemaking in order to develop a substantive theory that is both logical and successful. Furthermore, I would put this hypothesis to the test in order to appreciate its characteristics through observation and testing. Finally, given all of the data, I would employ a practitioner-driven method for arriving at a change-facilitating intervention. Thus, I would combine the techniques of OD and the use of Toms approach to experimenting as part of the management process.

Conclusion

In summary, the case study demonstrates DuPonts approach to organizational management, which is centered on experimentation rather than traditional change management via the stages of change. This example demonstrates how firms may employ a variety of approaches to facilitate critical improvements for the companys future and how other organizations might learn from this experience. Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a strengths-based approach to leadership development and organizational transformation. Organization development (OD) is the process of enhancing an organizations capabilities by harmonizing its strategy, structure, workers, incentives, metrics, and management practices. Sensemaking is the last component that DuPonts management use to guide the firm to success. As a change agent, I would investigate the assumptions gained from sensemaking in order to construct a substantive theory that is both logical and plausible.

Reference

Anderson, D. (2019). Organizational development. SAGE.

File. (2022). Change at DuPont, 1-2.

Mintzbergs contribution to managerial theory and planning cannot be overestimated. The five components that the scholar described allow an enterprise to operate more effectively (Kumar, 2015). The components are widely known under the name of Ps (plan, ploy, pattern, position, and perspective). Understanding each P in Mintzbers theory is needed to build a robust long-term business strategy (Bhasin, 2018). By focusing on plan, ploy, pattern, position, and perspective, an organization can fully benefit from its capacities and strengths. In this way, Mintzberg brought a new perspective into the strategic concept, which can be applied to the hospitality industry.

International tourism becomes one of the most impactful activities in the world. The contemporary hospitality industry grew significantly over the last decades with the surge of mass tourism (Vainikka, 2015). Nevertheless, the current socio-economic situation plunged the sector into a crisis (Jiang and Wen, 2020). In this situation, Mintzbers approach can be used to revitalize the industry afterward. Strategic management that Mintzberg proposed and embodied in the five Ps includes many significant aspects of business management. Specifically, it can be seen in strategic human resource management in the hospitality industry. Strategic human resource management possibly impacts organizational efficacy through strategy (Madera, Dawson, Guchait, and Belarmino, 2017). Thus, strategic practices within HR, such as training, compensation, leadership style, and workplace diversity, can directly correlate with different measures of organizational performance.

Planning seems to be one of the most evident and employed aspects of strategy in Mintzbers theory. Viewing strategy as planning could be the first step in managerial activities. Furthermore, plans from Mintzbers perspective can be described as consciously intended courses of action (p. 67, Coghlan, 2016). Planning is closely related to PEST and SWOT analyses, brainstorming, project, and change management (Mellor, 2019). Nevertheless, viewing strategy primarily as planning can pose a problem. Planning on its own is not enough, but many managers think about it as the most instrumental activity (Mellor, 2019). In this regard, other components of Mintzbergs theory complete planning (Brijs, 2016). Overall, balancing the five Ps of strategic management is crucial in securing higher performance.

In the hospitality industry, planning is given a significantly increasing role. This element of the five Ps serves to improve numerous aspects of organizational performance. For instance, enterprise resource planning in the hotel sector has been shown to improve operational efficacy and communication between departments. (Madanhire and Mbohwa, 2016) Furthermore, since sustainability is a growing trend in the industry, planning is also applicable in this matter, helping to reduce waste and manage resources more efficiently (Madanhire and Mbohwa, 2016). Another growing tendency is the forecasting approach to the hospitality industry. Forecasting and planning are interrelated: more precise estimates for touristic demand help to enhance strategic planning (Claveria, Monte, and Torra, 2015). Planning is an instrumental activity for the contemporary hospitality industry, given its specificities such as seasonality.

In conclusion, Mintzbers five Ps could act as a theoretical basis for building a successful business model in the sector. Ideally, all five elements should complete one another and be used adequately. On the contrary, despite colossal significance, planning can sometimes be used disproportionately compared to other Mintzbers elements. Yet, the need for sustainability, once growing demand, and seasonality of the hospitality sector require extra attention to planning. Overall, mass tourism and its democratization seemingly prompted the rapid development of the hospitality business and the need for strategic planning.

Reference List

Bhasin, H. (2018). The 5 PS of strategy by Henry Mintzberg  process and examples. [online] Marketing91.

Brijs, B. (2016). Business analysis for business intelligence. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

Claveria, O., Monte, E. and Torra, S. (2015). A new forecasting approach for the hospitality industry. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(7), pp.1520-1538.

Coghlan, D. (2016). Inside organizations: exploring organizational experiences. Newbury Park: SAGE.

Jiang, Y. and Wen, J. (2020). Effects of COVID-19 on hotel marketing and management: a perspective article. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 32(8), pp. 2563-2573.

Kumar, P. (2015). An analytical study on Mintzbergs framework: managerial roles. International Journal of Research in Management & Business Studies, 2(3), pp.12-19.

Madanhire, I. and Mbohwa, C. (2016). Enterprise resource planning (ERP) in improving operational efficiency: case study. Procedia CIRP, 40, pp.225-229.

Madera, J., Dawson, M., Guchait, P. and Belarmino, A. (2017). Strategic human resources management research in hospitality and tourism. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 29(1), pp.48-67.

Mellor, R. (2019). Management for scientists. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing.

Vainikka, V. (2015). Rethinking mass tourism: professional discourses of contemporary mass tourism and destinations. Nordia Geographical Publications, 44(2), 99.

Introduction

The market of spa services, as a form of development of the beauty and health industry, has emerged in the world in a concise period. Due to the national peculiarity, to arrange everything in its way, our SPA turned out to be different from the pure blood counterparts  and this is its charm and attractiveness. The current SPA is an explosive mixture of traditional methods of natural therapy of the peoples of the world and modern technologies mixed with modern traditions and high qualifications of the specialists. The fact that the SPA services market was shaped by purely market methods suggests its relevance and subsequent sustainable development.

Main body

One of the currently rapidly developing segments of the business economy in the beauty industry worldwide is the spa industry. Today, about 20% of the funds received in the form of taxes of all levels are coming from spa services (Kamata & Misui, 2015). As priorities in a healthy lifestyle society increase and peoples responsible attitude to their health improve, the demand for a variety of sanatorium and resort services multiplies many times over. The majority of professionals working in the hospitality industry note a new mandatory component in the portfolio of needs of tourists: these are wellness and spa treatments during the trip (Smith & Puczko, 2018). New concepts are being actively introduced into modern world terminologies, such as spa resorts and spa hotels, which are considered by consumers as a lightweight alternative to a current spa treatment.

The use-effectiveness of the quality SPA management is demonstrated in the personnel development and logistics infrastructure. The complaint procedures are useful because they allow acquiring direct feedback from clients. The client satisfaction survey is an excellent tool to gather relevant data that can be used for further service modifications and improvements.

Client Satisfaction Survey

1. What did you enjoy the most during the spa procedures?
2. What improvements could be made?
3. Did you experience any discomfort or unpleasant feelings during the process?
4. Please share your additional recommendations.
5. From 1-5, how would you rate the overall experience?

According to the Client Satisfaction Survey, the majority of people gave the rating of 4 out of 5, and most of the clients recommended furniture and interior upgrade. These changes can be done as the spa salon will grow because they only rely on finances. It also means that personnel serves the clients at a high-quality level.

Quality in SPA management is an essential element of the production and social infrastructure and is interconnected with other infrastructure sectors. It involves energy, communications, logistics, social security, which, with any economic mechanism, are subject to constant control by the state. It is important to delineate the boundaries of government intervention. One of the iconic trends during recent years, especially manifested in the special conditions of the economic crisis, was the strengthening of the states regulatory role in shaping policies. These changes also included implementing the commercial processes of the development of the quality control complex (Shiu, 2018). At the same time, unlike in the recent past, the government does not intervene directly in the business but participates actively in creating conditions that create a favorable institutional, legal, administrative environment.

The problem of ensuring product quality is universal in the modern world. Much in the development of any industry depends on how successfully it is solved. However, quality indicators, as well as problems associated with the production of quality products, are specific to each industry, including the tourism industry. Currently, the concept of quality as a category is standardized and defined by standards (Smith & Puczko, 2018). A standard is a normative document developed based on an agreement of most interested parties and adopted by a recognized body or approved by an enterprise. It establishes rules for the universal and repeated use, general principles, characteristics, requirements, and methods relating to particular objects of standardization, and which aims to achieve an optimal degree of ordering in a specific area.

Service efficiency is defined as the degree of success in achieving the goal with the most significant cost savings. It means that the extent to which the service has contributed to the timely and objective solution for the problems facing clients with the least resource expenditure of various kinds. Often, all these elements are combined into a comprehensive assessment, which, in addition, involves evaluating the entire organization and its programs, technical components, employees, and assessing work with specific customers (Kamata & Misui, 2015). In the narrow sense of efficiency means the achievement of the most consistent goals and the results obtained at the lowest cost.

The use of economic evidence of the effectiveness of social work or social services is essential, but not the only method of evaluation. The SMART concept can be applied by improving both service and efficiency at an organizational level. The Quality Improvement Plan (QIP) is described below, which includes the concept of efficiency in a broad sense since it is this understanding that is common both in official documents and in the current practice. The specific criteria for the effectiveness of social services are involved. On the one hand, they represent a measurable system of standards and action regulatory indicators reflecting the efficiency of the social service process, on the other hand, a system of indicators reflecting quantitative and qualitative indicators of the socio-economic, psychological, and other conditions of individuals, the family as a whole, and social group (Shiu, 2018). To use the categories of realistic quality, efficiency, and effectiveness in practice, we introduce for each of them a set of specific timescale parameters expressing key characteristics suitable for building measurement tools such as questionnaires, statistical indicators, and composite indices.

The institutions quality system is the totality of its organizational structure, rules, methods of ensuring the quality of services, the processes of providing services, the institutions resources, ensuring the implementation of administrative management of the quality of services as the basis for creating conditions for quality work and evaluating its process and results (Shiu, 2018). Managing the quality of social services is a logical structural approach that takes into account the three most important determining criteria: relevance, feasibility, and sustainability.

Appropriateness means that actions correspond to the needs of clients and the principles of rendering services, the content of activities corresponds to the priorities of social policy and the requirements for the profession. Therefore, customers are involved in the decision-making process regarding the maintenance program. A thorough analysis of the problems and goals is clearly defined in terms of benefits to the target group (Kamata & Misui, 2015). Feasibility means that the planned objectives are feasible in the conditions prevailing at the time of the program. It also includes the ability of employees and organizations to carry out the program, logical and measurable goals, risks, assumptions, and barriers. Thus, continuous monitoring focuses only on relevant program objectives. On the one hand, consumers of SPA services for whom the supply of these services in the market is at least not lower than the demand for them with minimum salon tariffs (Smith & Puczko, 2018). On the other hand, producers of wellness services, that is the creation of the most profitable working conditions for a carrier in a market that seeks to maximize profit from quality care and additional related services.

It is highly important to continuously develop, monitor, and improve the quality management of client care. The ultimate goal of regulatory measures for development, including through the quality SPA management, is to ensure sufficient and satisfactory quality control services in terms of quality. Therefore, any actions by regulatory bodies aimed at limiting the activities of SPA salons or prescribing them anything should be aimed at improving the functioning of the complex (Kamata & Misui, 2015). Thus, it can be stated that in the countrys wellness system, based on the development of relevant institutions and tools, a comprehensive public-private partnership mechanism is consistently formed. It represents an economically and organisationally structured system of relations between the state and business. The given system is aimed at solving actual problems of economic modernization and increasing the competitiveness of domestic SPA management.

Conclusion

In conclusion, in the face of economic change, a modern spa salon, like any other enterprise, faces many challenges. Sources of the increased complexity of management are a high degree of market uncertainty, increased competition, the lack of financial resources. In the short term, the success of the spa salon is determined primarily by the economic balance of various areas of current activity. Long-term survival and development depend on the ability of the salon to anticipate changes in the market in a timely manner and adapt its organizational structure accordingly. Therefore, strategic planning is critical in the quality-oriented management of SPA salons.

References

Kamata, H., & Misui, Y. (2015). Why do they choose a SPA destination? The case of Japanese tourists. Tourism Economics, 21(2), 283-305.

Shiu, J. Y. (2018). Individual rationality and differences in Taiwanese spa hotel choice. Tourism Economics, 24(1), 27-40.

Smith, J. & Puczko, L. (2018) Health hospitality tourism. London: Thompson Press.

How Successful Was the Post-Meeting at Horizon Consulting?

The post-meeting can be deemed as rather successful as each member was assigned a specific role and a set of responsibilities that served the common goal. Moreover, the participants teamed up with the partners that they felt like working with. Thus, rather high-performance rates can be expected. It is desirable, though, that Pattis lack of understanding of how the relationship in this team works should be temporary, as it may jeopardize the project (Larson & Gray, 2014).

What Factors Contributed to the Success of the Post-Meeting?

The fact that most members of the team already knew each other and, therefore, realized what to expect of each other is the key factor of success. Moreover, it was a stroke of luck for Patti that she avoided collaborating with the team member whom she did not feel comfortable enough with.

What Kind of Project Management Structure Does Horizon Use? Is It the Right Structure? Explain.

The project seems to be based on the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) (Larson & Gray, 2014), as every small team that the entire crew is split into is assigned with a specific function, and they are supposed to work together to reach a larger goal. The specified structure can be deemed as perfect for large projects; however, given the relationships in the team, it may backfire. First, the team members will need to address the possibility of conflicts, particularly, the issues between Patty and Mike (Larson & Gray, 2014). Therefore, the structure is right, yet it needs to be applied to the right environment. The latter, in its turn, can be created by managing the communication issues in the team.

Reference List

Larson, E. W., & Gray, C. F. (2014). Project management: The managerial process (6th ed.). New York City, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.