Consumers and the law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Consumers and the law - Essay Example He agrees to accept a price reduction of  £500 as well as the dealer being responsible for fixing the brakes. This does not bring about any other issue in the scenario so it would seem as though the dealer’s agreement to accept less as well as fix the problem would not be disputed. The amendment to initial offer would constitute as a condition, as defined in the case of Wallis v Pratt [1911] AC 394 as: "[a condition is] an obligation which goes so directly to the substance of the contract, or in other words, is so essential to it very nature that its non-performance may fairly be considered by the other party, as a substantial failure to perform the contract at all.†3 Another operating issue that is important to note is if Amir is dealing as a consumer or operating in the course of business. The facts indicate that although he intends to use it mainly for personal use, he also intended to use it for business purposes, and more importantly, the purchase money came out of his business account. If the court determines that Amir is operating within the course of business, he will not be protected under the additional consumer protection given under s.48 Sale of Goods Act1979, as well as provisions contained within the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999, among others.5 This issue becomes relevant with regards to the situation involving the clutch. Amir seems to be seeking rescission. There are three problems with this is. The first issue is whether or not it can be seen that Amir is acting as a consumer. If it can be seen that Amir was acting as a consumer, he would be protected by s.48A(3) Sale of Goods Act which indicates that: â₠¬Å"...goods which do not conform to the contract of sale at any time within the period of six months starting with the date on which the goods were delivered to the buyer must be taken not to have so conformed

Investigate how a major event can influence the hospitality, travel and tourism industry Essay Example for Free

Investigate how a major event can influence the hospitality, travel and tourism industry Essay Executive Summary Within this report it outlines how a major event can influence the hospitality, travel and tourism industries. It will go into great detail about the chosen event and how this particular event impacted these industries, with topics such as what an event is, the chosen event in detail, and how this event impacted these industries. Table of Contents I. Methodology II. Introduction III. Findings IV. Conclusion V. References VI. Appendices VII. Bibliography Methodology After already establishing the basis of the theoretical view of this report, it is now required to reflect on how the evidence will be composed to support the theory and research within this report. There are a number of ways in which this research will be collected. Firstly it will be important to establish what an actual event is as well as definitions of the terms hospitality, travel and tourism. This can be done through secondary sources such as books e. g. Allen, O’Toole et al 2011, websites and newspapers. The chosen event will then show how it has impacted the hospitality, travel and tourism industries in Belfast as well as how the Northern Ireland Tourism Board had this planned as part of Northern Ireland’s preparation of making Northern Ireland a huge tourist destination. Introduction The subject matter of this report is too educate how a major event can influence the hospitality, travel and tourism industries, looking a single event in particular, so that the impacts are more in a personal tone rather than generalising to looking into events as a whole. Definitions will be given of what an event, hospitality, travel and tourism actually are. Topics will include information on the chosen event that will be discussed in greater detail, Belfast as a tourist destination, important impacts on the hospitality, travel and tourism industries. Benefits of a major event within a city. How a major event can impact on a city or destination improvements, and a brief incite into Northern Ireland’s Tourist Board’s plan for Northern Ireland to become a huge and popular tourist destination in the future. Investigate how a major event can influence the hospitality, travel and tourism industry. For this report I have chosen to research and ‘Investigate how a major event can influence the hospitality, travel and tourism industry. ’ The event in which I aim on investigating is the opening if the Titanic Signature Building. This report will explain in detail how the opening of the Titanic Signature Building influenced the hospitality, travel and tourism industries. Within this report you will be introduced to the main question of this report. Topics will include talking about the building itself, its visitor numbers, Belfast as a tourism destination, the impacts the building had on Belfast’s hospitality, travel tourism industry. â€Å"The hospitality and tourism industry is a multi-billion-dollar industry with 700 million international travellers per year around the world,† said Zainal (2012) in his book, ‘Current Issues in Hospitality and Tourism: Research and Innovations. ’ According to the oxford dictionary the exact definitions of what an event, hospitality and tourism actually are. â€Å"An event is described as a thing that happens or takes place, especially one of importance, a planned public or social occasion. † â€Å"Hospitality is the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests, visitors or strangers. † And the definition of tourism is the â€Å"temporary movement of people to destinations outside their normal places of work and residence, the activity undertaken during the stay in those destinations, and the facilities created to cater for their needs. † According to Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) the Northern Ireland vision is, ‘To create the new Northern Ireland experience and get it on everyone’s destination wish list. ’ As the well-known slogan for Northern Ireland 2012 was that â€Å"Northern Ireland 2012 is our time, our place† This means that NITB have stated that they think Northern Ireland is a rising tourist destination. And that Northern Ireland is trying to offer a unique way to be involved and to celebrate. And we as a city need to take our story to a wider audience. So as part of this transaction to take ‘our story’ to a wider audience, the Titanic signature building project started. Shone and Parry (2010) said that â€Å"for a town or city wishing to become a tourist destination, elements such as attractions, accommodation, transport, infrastructure and facilities must be present. † Belfast has been in the middle of this process over the past few years, and especially as 2012 was meant to be ‘our time, our place’ Belfast certainly lived up to this. And a huge part was the titanic signature building. The Titanic Signature building is the world’s largest Titanic visitor attraction 400,000 visitors were expected to visit the building per annum 900,000 per annum footfall through the building. Within the first 6 months, 500,000 people had already visited Titanic Belfast. â€Å"One of the most important impacts is the tourism revenue generated by an event. In addition to their spending at the event, external visitors are likely to spend on travel, accommodation, and goods and services in the host city. Titanic Belfast was part of NITB’s plan to attract visitors to Belfast and Northern Ireland with a consequent increase in revenue, which will generate jobs and income. Based on projected visitor numbers its one off the most expensive buildings of its kind in Europe. It cost ? 77million to construct, with most of the funding (? 60million) coming from the public’s wallet. Mike Smith, the chief executive of the building said that, â€Å"We think the building is good value for money. † The opening of the Titanic Belfast produced instant employment benefits as it was estimated that 200 people would be needed to work in the building. The projected increase in visitor numbers, from within the UK and Ireland as well as internationally, will lead to a corresponding demand for local hotels and services, therefore generating job opportunities in the construction and hospitality sectors. Allen, O’Toole et al 2011, talked about how a major event has potential to bring ‘new money’ into Belfast from outside visitors. â€Å"The role event tourism is required to play in a destination’s tourism development efforts will vary according to the overall tourism strategy that is being pursued. † (Allen, O’Toole et al 2011) Belfast is now a popular short-break destination and one of Europes top visitor destinations. In 2006, Belfast had 6. 8 million tourists compared to 2011 when we had 7. 86 million tourists. There was quite a number if impacts the opening of Titanic Belfast had on tourism on not only Belfast but Northern Ireland as a whole. The Titanic Signature building is located only 5 minutes from the city centre, so therefore this increasingly popular tourism attraction is not difficult to travel to, there are buses to the Titanic Quarter every 10-15 minutes from the City Centre. It is also within walking distance. The city centre is always crowded with tourist companies who are there to promote tours of the city, these tours run every day and very frequently, they seem to be every popular and since the opening of the Titanic Signature Building, a new tour opened up that was solely about the Titanic alone and it’s attractions. â€Å"Events add to the range of experiences a destination can offer, and this then adds to its capacity to attract and hold visitors for longer periods of time. † (Getz and Wicks 1994) Since the opening of the Titanic Building, this saw Belfasts biggest jump in hotel occupancy in March 2012 in nearly a decade and a 12% year on year hike in revenues. Then in April saw the year on year occupancy in Belfasts leading hotels increase by 25%, the average is usually are 15% over April 2011. Belfast’s PWC partner Stephen Curragh said, â€Å"Overall, 2012 has been a successful year for Belfast hotels thus far, but it is off a very low base and will require sustained visitor numbers to bring Belfast back to pre-downturn levels of profitability. † Allen, O’Toole et al (2011) said that events can also provide a significant spur to both public and private investment in a destination. Large scale events can play in destination renewal and in the later development of a destination’s attractiveness and capacity as a tourist destination. NITB have identified excellent events and business tourism as two of their winning themes with the potential to deliver competitive advantages for Northern Ireland as part of their tourism Strategic Framework for Action 2004-2007. NITB said, â€Å"Note for the Excellent Events theme, research confirms that events are an effective tool for changing perceptions and attracting visitors. † Opportunity 2012 2013 2014 2015 Total Additional Visitors 150,00 333,000 200,000 150,000 833,00 Additional Revenue ?24 million ?52 million ?34 million ?30 million ?140 million Created Jobs 612 1,326 867 765 3,570 This table, which can be found on NITB’s 2012 guide, shows NITB’s goal for the future, which is to increase tourism spend to ? 1 million by 2020 and to increase visitor numbers to 4. 5 million by 2020 It shows NITB’s plan in more detail. In 2013 their plan is at its peak by expecting to have 333,000 additional visitors into Northern Ireland which will then create 52 million additional revenue and will generate 1,326 extra jobs in Northern Ireland. Events can affect the hospitality, travel ; tourism industries in many ways. In Belfast due to the opening of the titanic building we have shown you that there has been quite a high incline in Belfast as a tourist destination. Overall we found that the Titanic Building has had an positive impact on hospitality and tourism in Belfast. â€Å"2012 is about changing global perceptions and trying to get tourists to come to Northern Ireland,† Arlene Foster.

Wyatt and Spenser :: essays research papers

Wyatt and Spenser’s poems both depict a hunter who temporarily gives up his pursuit for different reasons. Wyatt’s hunter believes he has no chance with the woman because of the rank and position of the suitor she already has. He considers it necessary to warn others. Spenser’s hunter feels it is useless to chase anymore because he is not getting any closer to winning. The attitudes of the hunters are developed after the chase in each poem. One attitude is developed when the hunter realizes he is being shown that the woman belongs to someone else. He appears annoyed or irritated. The character in Spenser’s poem is bewildered. This attitude develops after he chases her, gives up, and then realizes she welcomes the chase. The poets’ ideas of wildness and tameness are distinctly addressed and quite the contrary. Wyatt thinks that someone may seem tame, but hard to get control of later as expressed in line 14 of the poem â€Å"Whoso List to Hunt†. Spenser thinks it’s strange that someone is wild in the beginning and hard to get, but later won over easily. The differences in the poet’s view of love in each of the poems suggest that things be not always as they seem. One can not predict the outcome of a love situation because what looks easy may not be and vice-versa. This is true of everyday life and love.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Representing a woman as a gentle, but wild animal is appropriate in these two poems because the woman is compared to a deer. The deer, although it lives in the wild, is not a vicious animal, but a graceful creature. The woman and the deer have similar qualities in both poems. Lines 5-7 in Wyatt’s poem shows that one may tire chasing a deer, but the thrill of the chase does not make him want to take his mind off of it. This is also true when a man is pursuing a woman. It is hard for one to give up a chase, especially if it is a thrill, and the reward is worth it. In Spenser’s poem, the woman and the deer also have similar qualities.

Compare the poems and comment on how the way Owen and Southey convey Es

Compare the poems and comment on how the way Owen and Southey convey their attitude towards war - Dulce et Decorum Est 'Dulce et Decorum Est' tells the story of how Wilfred Owen experiences world war first hand and tells of his bitter angst towards the government who try to persuade young men to join the army. Owen developed many of his poetic techniques at Craiglockhart Military Hospital where he spent much of the war as an injured soldier, and was able to express his ideas and feelings on paper He uses the Latin phrase 'Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori,' which translates into 'it is sweet and glorious to die for one's country.' Owen tells of how this phrase is wrong, how it is not glorious to experience the harsh reality of war with the explosions and the screeching of missiles, which he saw with his own eyes. The phrase is deceptive to the men that are called up as they look to help their country and believe that it is something to die for. The poem begins with a slow rhythm through the use of heavy, long words, in order to illustrate how slow and painstaking war was. Owens view on war is that it is a dangerous thing to do and using a Latin phrase is just a way of recruiting more troops. He states, "My friend, you would not tell with such high zest The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori" 'My friend' refers to another war poet, Jessie Pope, who had a completely different aspect on war. Owen emphasises the word 'lie' as he fully believes that the phrase is one. The poem begins with the lines, "Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge" This gives the audience a picture of soldiers with heavy bags on their ... ... victory." He seems to see the battle as a battle that must happen in order for something good to come of it. He uses "it was a famous victory" a few times at the end of verses, which he is determined to get across the point of this battle was worth fighting for, though he contradicts himself as he cannot explain what it is. Kaspar corrects Wilhelmine when she states that it was a wicked thing and says that it was a famous victory. I get the impression that Robert Southey believes that good can come of war, though he doesn't fully understand what the Battle of Blenheim was about. I have come to the conclusion that Wilfred Owen is fully against war and not prepared to change his mind, as he experienced first-hand how tragic it can be. Southey's attitude towards war is one that good can become of it, and Owen believes it is a terrible and tragic thing.

Language acquisition: Nature or nurture? Essay

During the late 1950s, psychologists differed on how language is acquired. Skinner argued that language acquisition is based on instrumental conditioning, while Chomsky stressed that people are born with an innate capacity for acquiring a language/s, also called nativism. This paper argues that language is acquired through both nature and nurture, because these two theories can help fully explain language acquisition, instead of separately, although it is still unclear how much nature or nurture guides and impacts language acquisition. Language is acquired through both nature and nurture, because these two theories can fully explain language learning, instead of separately. Chomsky’s examples and some studies on the brain and language acquisition prove that children acquire their first language through a â€Å"language faculty,† which is a biologically independent system in the brain that â€Å"has an initial state which is genetically determined, like. . . the kidney, the circulatory system, and so on† (Chomsky, p. 13, cited in Knezek, 1997). This is evident in how all humans, except, those with language problems, understand particular ambiguities of language in the same manner (Knezek, 1997). Chomsky’s example is how children understand the meaning of a â€Å"brown house† across all cultures, referring to it as a house that is brown in the outside, and not inside (Knezek, 1997). This is remarkable because it shows how human beings make universal assumptions about the same words. Furthermore, studies showed that children, by the age of four or five, normally have the language competence of adults, whatever their culture might be (Knezek, 1997). On the other hand, nativists can also not explain all the processes of language acquisition. Behaviorists argued that Chomsky cannot explain why people have special parts of the brain that are focused on language or why humans can converse through language while other animals cannot (Knezek, 1997). Most likely, people also evolved their language capability by having their brain store the same skills and knowledge needed for language acquisition (Knezek, 1997). Furthermore, the universality of human language acquisition that animals lack can also be explained through the differences in brains and speech organs of human beings and other animals (Knezek, 1997). Human beings acquire language through nature and nurture. Up to now, people do not have a complete understanding of language acquisition processes, and studies show different results on why and how people acquire their languages as children, and even, as adults. At present, this paper shows that through evidence and examples, people acquire languages through their inherent capability for acquiring them and on how they make inductions about learning languages. Reference Knezek, M. (1997). Nature vs. Nurture: The Miracle of Language. Pyschology. Retrieved May 30, 2010, from http://www. duke. edu/~pk10/language/psych. htm

Julius Caesars Civil War Battle of Pharsalus

Julius Caesars Civil War Battle of Pharsalus The Battle of Pharsalus took place on August 9, 48 BC and was the decisive engagement of Caesars Civil War (49-45 BC). Some sources indicate that battle may have taken place on June 6/7 or June 29. Overview With the war with Julius Caesar raging, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey) ordered the Roman Senate to flee to Greece while he raised an army in the region. With the immediate threat of Pompey removed, Caesar quickly consolidated his position in the western parts of the Republic. Defeating Pompeys forces in Spain, he shifted east and began preparing for a campaign in Greece. These efforts were hampered as Pompeys forces controlled the Republics navy. Finally forcing a crossing that winter, Caesar was soon joined by additional troops under Mark Antony. Despite being reinforced, Caesar was still outnumbered by Pompeys army, though his men were veterans and the enemy largely new recruits. Through the summer, the two armies maneuvered against each other, with Caesar attempting to besiege Pompey at Dyrrhachium. The resulting battle saw Pompey win a victory and Caesar was forced to back away. Wary of fighting Caesar, Pompey failed to follow up this triumph, preferring instead to starve his opponents army into submission. He was soon swayed from this course by his generals, various senators, and other influential Romans who wished him to give battle. Advancing through Thessaly, Pompey encamped his army on the slopes of Mount Dogantzes in the Enipeus Valley, approximately three and a half miles from Caesars army. For several days the armies formed for battle each morning, however, Caesar was unwilling to attack up the slopes of the mountain. By August 8, with his food supplies low, Caesar began debating withdrawing east. Under pressure to fight, Pompey planned to give battle the next morning. Moving down into the valley, Pompey anchored his right flank on the Enipeus River and deployed his men in the traditional formation of three lines, each ten men deep. Knowing that he had a larger and better-trained cavalry force, he concentrated his horse on the left. His plan called for the infantry to remain in place, forcing Caesars men to charge a long distance and tiring them before contact. As the infantry engaged, his cavalry would sweep Caesars from the field before pivoting and attacking into the enemys flank and rear. Seeing Pompey move off the mountain on August 9, Caesar deployed his smaller army to meet the threat. Anchoring his left, led by Mark Antony  along the river, he too formed three lines though they were not as deep as Pompeys. Also, he held his third line in reserve. Understanding Pompeys advantage in cavalry, Caesar pulled 3,000 men from his third line and arrayed them in a diagonal line behind his cavalry to protect the armys flank. Ordering the charge, Caesars men began advancing. Surging forward, it soon became clear that Pompeys army was standing their ground. Realizing Pompeys goal, Caesar halted his army approximately 150 yards from the enemy to rest and reform the lines. Resuming their advance, they slammed into Pompeys lines. On the flank, Titus Labienus led Pompeys cavalry forward and made progress against their counterparts. Falling back, Caesars cavalry led Labienus horsemen into the line of supporting infantry. Using their javelins to thrust at the enemy cavalry, Caesars men halted the attack. Uniting with their own cavalry, they charged and drove Labienus troops from the field. Wheeling left, this combined force of infantry and cavalry struck into Pompeys left flank. Though Caesars first two lines were under heavy pressure from Pompeys larger army, this attack, coupled with the entry of his reserve line, swung the battle. With their flank crumbling and fresh troops assaulting their front, Pompeys men began to give way. As his army collapsed, Pompey fled the field. Seeking to deliver the deciding blow of the war, Caesar pursued Pompeys retreating army and compelled four legions to surrender the following day. Aftermath The Battle of Pharsalus cost Caesar between 200 and 1,200 casualties while Pompey suffered between 6,000 and 15,000. Additionally, Caesar reported capturing 24,000, including Marcus Junius Brutus, and showed great clemency in pardoning many the Optimate leaders. His army destroyed, Pompey fled to Egypt seeking aid from King Ptolemy XIII. Shortly after arriving at Alexandria, he was murdered by the Egyptians. Pursuing his enemy to Egypt, Caesar was horrified when Ptolemy presented him with Pompeys severed head. Though Pompey had been defeated and killed, the war continued on as Optimate supporters, including the generals two sons, raised new forces in Africa and Spain. For the next few years, Caesar conducted various campaigns to eliminate this resistance. The war effectively ended in 45 BC after his victory at the Battle of Munda. Selected Sources HistoryNet: Battle of PharsalusRoman Empire: Battle of PharsalusLivius: Battle of Pharsalus

Pharmacist Essays

Mba/Pharmacist Essays Mba/Pharmacist Essay Mba/Pharmacist Essay financial and legal based factor endowments, the emergence of new types of busiexpertise, is gaining momentum and size and sophistication of nesses and new ways of orga- nizing. reaching a critical mass. Thus, the demand, and psyche and The context and timing bestows Indian business is perhaps close to self-belief of the national Indian companies with a set of advana historical turning point, in many environment and home tages and challenges. This will be ways similar to that of the Japanese base. reflected not only in the business and companies in mid-1960s. The Indian organizational choices of individual experience could be equally novel companies but also in the overall and important, globally. patterns of internationalization of Indian companies as This Colloquium has the benefit of six cogent a genre. ontributions. They represent a diversity to cover the On the other hand, business corporations have various facets of the ‘Indian companies in overseas operated outside their home territory virtually from the markets’ - the academics who have intimately beginning of commercial enterprise and to talk of researched the phenomenon and the practitioners who operating over seas in a seamless and integrated world have led their organizations and have created substantial of today could appear to be an oxymoron. However, till presence in the overseas markets. The contributions the 1960s, almost all companies operating beyond their together make for a thorough perspective and a fine home territories were European or American with the repository of insights on how Indian companies can latter being slower to go overseas. Japanese companies emerge as significant global players. started emerging internationally in the late 1960s and J Ramachandran of IIM, Bangalore states that the those from Korea and other East Asian countries in the new genre of companies with international business is 1980s. Emerging market multinationals is a recent 94 INDIAN COMPANIES IN OVERSEAS MARKETS 94 ifferent from those in pre-1990 period or anytime before. Unlike commodity exporters, these companies are built upon competitive advantages of knowledge and organizational capabilities which will enable them to penetrate deeper and go up the value chain. They can emerge as globally significant players in their industries, and will also spur companies in their own and o ther industries. He analyses the dynamics of macro, industry, and company-specific factors for the recent developments and outlines future agenda for the new genre of companies and lessons for the aspirants and potential overseas competitors from India. ocalization, move up the value chain, merge in local milieu rather than stand out, and handle negotiations appropriately. Niraj Dawar of University of Western Ontario states that besides information technology, marketing is India’s key competency globally. Unlike other emerging economies like China and Russia, Indian companies have built successful brands locally, and equally importantly, Indians are entrusted with managing international brands by even the most centralized of the foreign companies. The world-class skill is there and it needs to be exploited. Infosys needs to and is becoming a global brand. The issues that have to be tackled are - ‘ways’ to acquire knowledge about local consumers in foreign markets and then evolving approaches for creating or adapting brands and ‘means’ to support the investments required in terms of funds and time. Habil F Khorakiwala of Wockhardt Ltd. reckons that ‘India advantage’ in pharmaceuticals is based on the scientific and professional resources of international calibre, entrepreneurship, and cost advantages in all components of the value chain. Interestingly, foreign companies who came to tap middleB N Kalyani of Bharat Forge class market discovered these advanThe stage is set for Indian Ltd. ays that the company’s overseas tages which the Indian companies companies to emerge as expansion began with the need to leveraged aggressively to take posiplayers of relevance in a expand market, improve productions in overseas markets. They have large number of industries tivity and technology levels, and deacquired developed country corpoglobally. risk business across countries. They rations and no country including have become the second largest China can really compare on the forging corporation in the world and breakthroughs. He emphasizes on a glocal approach for their product range extends to the most complex and anaging global business with ‘globally integrated’ high value added products. He believes outsourced management processes, manufacturing, information manufacturing is a huge and realistic opportunity and technology, human resources, and supply chain and says: â€Å"The world is beginning to believe in India; We ‘locally responsive’ approaches for sales, marketing, need to believe in our ability to compete, perform, and regulatory affairs, and intellectual property rights (IPRs). succeed! † Innovation is the key to unassailable Jerry Rao of Mphasis Ltd. ules out short cuts of competitive strength in the global market and Indian joint ven tures and partnerships if Indian companies are companies have the requisite wherewithal. He argues genuine about becoming serious global players. In IT for a Toyota-like ambitious and competitive approach and business process outsourcing where primary markets in the overseas markets. are outside the country, the ‘DNA’ of being an India based company is important - it should not be altered The major patterns or conclusions and their imperaand denied but embellished and evolved for success. ives for Indian companies are put together in the final section. However, the theme - that the stage is set for Pramod Khera of Aptech Ltd. provides a perspective Indian companies to emerge as players of relevance in from a business that, unlike most of the Indian overseas a large number of industries globally - is unambiguous. forays, needs to deal with retail consumers overseas. He Fortune ‘2004 Global 500’ lists four Indian, three cites the success achieved in China through a joint venture Brazilian, three Russian, 15 Chinese, 13 Korean, and 82 and the importance of having a credible and known Japanese companies. India can aspire to match, if not partner for brand-based retail businesses. China is a high exceed, the number of ‘Global 500’ Japanese companies potential market and Indian companies can succeed if in a decade or two. they can effectively gather local knowledge, undertake VIKALPA VOLUME 29 NO 4 OCTOBER DECEMBER 2004 95 95 DYNAMICS AND POTENTIAL OF NEW WAVE J Ramachandran BOC Professor of Business Policy Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore T he Vikalpa Colloquium on the engagement of Indian companies with global markets raises a set of interesting questions. They are interesting because while the engagement of Indian companies with overseas markets per se is not new, the nature and the character of engagement of Indian firms with global markets has undergone a dramatic change over the last decade. customers’ demands, which predominantly comprises the global auto majors. What led to the emergence of this new genre of companies? It is tempting to attribute the emergence of these globally competitive companies to the economic reform programme that the Government of India embarked upon in the early 1990s. However, that would only provide a partial explanation. The reform prograHistorically, engagement of the Indian firms with mme, by opening up the Indian markets to global overseas markets was with the export of traditional companies, made the need to be competitive - to defend products like tea, coffee, iron ore, leather, apparel, gems one’s market position - a compulsion. It, however, did and jewellery, etc. However, in the last ten years, largely not make participating in global markets necessary. That on the back of the performance of firms in the Indian was still a matter of choice for the top managements of software and pharmaceutical industries and increasingly the companies. Most of them including several large the auto component industry, Indian companies have ones in the Indian industry do not actively participate been successfully participating in what can be broadly in the global markets even today. Indeed, one could classified as ‘new age’ industries that argue that it is their participation in are ‘technology-knowledge-servicethe global markets, by choice, instead Indian firms have been intensive. Thus, the participation of of compulsion, that has resulted in successful in making an Indian firms is no more restricted to the successful emergence of the impact on the global ‘commodity’ like industries. Second, globally competitive firms cited markets when the and more important, is the emergence earlier. In fact, the earlier policy enga gement has been of globally competitive companies in regime did require companies to voluntary and not these industries. Infosys, Wipro, TCS, ‘export’ if they wanted to gain access imposed by policy. nd Satyam in the software industry; to (the then) precious foreign Ranbaxy Laboratories, Dr. Reddy’s exchange to import capital goods, Laboratories, and Aurobindo Pharma in the pharmainput materials, etc. This compulsive characteristic of ceutical industry; and Bharat Forge and Sundaram the ‘export requirement’ however, failed to result in the Fasteners in the auto component industry would be emergence of globally competitive companies. The relevant examples. In sharp contrast, despite decades ‘exports’ of most of the companies was largely a sham. f exports of traditional goods listed earlier, India has They, typically, fulfilled the requirement by ‘routing’ not seen the emergence of a single firm that is a force exports of trad itional products made by the traditional to reckon with in those industries. Third, even though exporters through their books of accounts! Thus, Indian the competitiveness of these new age companies is still firms have been successful in making an impact on the largely anchored in the country-specific advantage of global markets when the engagement has been voluntary. ow cost, the managements of these companies have And not imposed by policy. However, policy regimes sought to go beyond cost competitiveness by focusing can enable. That is precisely what the economic reforms on the organizational dimension. They have built highly of the early 1990s did. responsive organizations that compete fiercely in the global Similarly, it is tempting to attribute the successes markets, including, critically, in the most advanced achieved by the new genre of companies to the visionary markets of the world. Bharat Forge, for example, competes leadership of these companies. That would be a facile on the basis of its ability to respond rapidly to its 96 96 INDIAN COMPANIES IN OVERSEAS MARKETS explanation. Visionary leadership is a necessary but not success in this industry despite, even more interestingly, a sufficient condition. Beyond leadership, what has led the absence of a robust or a well-developed domestic to the successes of these companies is the set of difficult market for their services. While one could argue that the choices they made. The most important of them was the huge demand for software services and availability of decision to pursue opportunities in the most competitive low cost software engineers was the prime reason for markets of the world. Consider Ranbaxy. It is often cited their success, it would not do justice to the achievement as a stellar example of visionary leadership. Indeed, Dr of firms in the industry. While these two factors provided Parvinder Singh, the late Chairman and CEO of the the initial window of opportunity, they were not all. The company, was a visionary. He did set the company on firms of the industry have not only achieved phenomenal the path of globalization. However, what proved to be growth in terms of revenues and profits, but have also a critical inflection point in the displayed a remarkable resilience company’s successful journey was and importantly consistency in their This pattern of its decision in the mid-1990s to performance. This is truly laudable engagement with the most participate in the fiercely competitive considering the technological and competitive markets of US markets. Until then, Ranbaxy was business volatility that this industry the world and display of exporting its products essentially to was subjected to over the last decade. a willingness to learn and a number of what can be termed as Their emergence as world-class invest in building the India-look-alike (read developing) players can be traced to a series of necessary competencies is markets. In these markets, price is complementary and continuous discernible across this the key success driver. They are not managerial innovations that they new genre of companies. demanding on other parameters like unleashed. For example, they pioThus, one would argue quality, delivery, innovation, etc. On neered the off-shore model of that the commitment to the other hand, the advanced markets software service delivery. They overlike the US and Europe are very came the traditional concerns with engage with the most demanding on these counts. In these outsourcing to a remote location by competitive markets and markets, customers punish firms for innovatively leveraging software the concomitant underperformance on these other process quality certifications under willingness to learn and parameters. It is the commitment to the capability maturity model (CMM) adapt to the requirements serve demanding customers of the developed by Software Engineering of demanding customers advanced markets of the world with Institute (SEI) of Carnegie Mellon led to the success the attendant willingness to learn and University. For example, they used achieved by these critically invest in developing the it to overcome the ‘country of origin’ companies in the global requisite competencies (regulatory and bias that firms from ‘developing’ markets. egal in this case) exhibited by it that countries like India typically conmade a crucial difference to Ranfront, particularly in knowledgebaxy’s performance in the global markets. This pattern intensive industries like software. To assuage fears over of engagement with the most competitive markets of the ‘loss of control’ over remote location operations by client world and display of the willingness to learn an d invest personnel, they developed a set of metrics and governance in building the necessary competencies is discernible mechanisms that were anchored in the well-accepted across this new genre of companies. Thus, one would SEI-CMM framework. While the metrics enabled ‘output’ argue that the commitment to engage with the most control by the clients, the governance mechanisms competitive markets and the concomitant willingness to developed around them gave them a strong sense of learn and adapt to the requirements of demanding ‘behaviour’ control over the operations and mitigated customers led to the success achieved by these companies their apprehensions. 1 Thus, the success achieved by the firms in the software industry suggests that, in addition in the global markets. Participation in the advanced markets of the world, however, was not an option to the Indian software industry. Yet, Indian firms have achieved spectacular VIKALPA VOLUME 29 NO 4 OCTOBER DECEMBER 2004 1 See Mukherji, S and Ramachandran, J, â€Å" Complementary and Continuous Innovations: Case of the Indian Software Industry,† Journal of Academy of Business and Economics, forthcoming, for a detailed exposition of this thesis. 97 97 to choice of markets to compete in, execution matters. And, more importantly, innovation in execution matters. harmaceutical majors have acquired some local manufacturing facilities. But, these have largely been done to gain a toehold in these markets. Textbook The success achieved by the new genre of companies distinctions of ‘going global’ vs. ‘going international’ are is also due to their careful selection of the market segments largely irrelevant in an increasingly globalizing world. to participate in. For example, t he Indian software majors The impact on competitiveness should drive the choice of largely participate in the service space and not in the activities to locate in different geographies. Not academic product space. Similarly, the pharmaceutical majors niceties! These companies seem to have followed this essentially participate in the generic segment of the edict. For example, most have, quite appropriately, pharmaceutical industry and not in the research-intensive located the customer acquisition function closer to the new-to-the-world products segment. The companies in customer in the various geographies they participate in. the auto component industry too supply relatively Similarly, many of these companies have opted to ‘standard’ products like crankshafts and radiator caps. obilize funds from the international capital markets. They do not, as yet, offer ‘original’ products designed In addition to lowering their cost of capital, mobilizing and developed by them on their ‘own’ technology funds from global capital markets signalled the platforms. The advantages of participating in these kinds willingness of the managements of t hese companies to of market segments are multi-fold. First, the decisionsubject themselves to high standards of corporate making process at the customers’ end governance providers of capital in would be more rational than impulglobal market. Additionally, raising Textbook distinctions of sive. Second, communicating the financial resources from international ‘going global’ vs. ‘going compelling nature of their value promarkets brought these companies international’ are largely position (competitive quality at low cost) within the radar of global investment irrelevant in an to these kinds of customers is bankers all of whom started tracking increasingly globalizing relatively easy. Third, evaluation of and reporting the performance of world. The impact on their ability to perform and their these companies. This resulted in competitiveness should subsequent performance by these high visibility and, more importantly, customers is fairly straightforward. drive the choice of accorded credibility to these firms Witness the high retention rates of activities to locate in and subtly aided their customer customers by these companies. different geographies. acquisition process. Fourth, they do not need to invest heavily in building complementary Increasingly, this new genre of assets like product brands or distribution that are critical companies, as they seek to move up the food chain by for success in other segments of the industry. In most offering more sophisticated products and services, are of these cases selling is direct to the customers, and enhancing their overseas presence, largely through where access to distribution channels (as in the case of acquisitions. However, they have been highly selective pharmaceutical products) was required, they were easily in their acquisitions. They have typically used available. That does not mean customer acquisition is acquisitions to access the difficult-to-build competencies of easy. These firms needed to compete, and compete the acquired companies rather than to achieve scale. Even vigorously, with other suppliers. However, the parawhere companies have preferred the green-field route, meters of selection are relatively well-specified (largely their overseas initiatives have been driven by the need cost, quality, and delivery) and that makes the task of to access skills (leading edge research talent in the case customer acquisition that much less complex as compared of Dr. Reddy’s and consulting skills and talent in the to, say, the FMCG industry. case of Infosys) than scale. Significant components of the value chain of these companies are located in India. And, rightly so, considering the fact that they are essentially leveraging the country advantage of low cost- both for manufacturing operations and talented human resources. The A final interesting characteristic of this new genre of companies is the visible influence they seem to be subtly wielding over each other. Perhaps because they are, by global standards, individually (and collectively! ) small, or perhaps because they are so few in number in INDIAN COMPANIES IN OVERSEAS MARKETS 98 98 a large country like ours, or perhaps because the country toehold in these markets. Fourth, to do what it takes to as a whole is looking up to them as a group of pioneers win. Specifically, it requires a willingness to learn and who are making an impact on the global markets, or invest in the development of the requisite competencies. erhaps because of the significant recognition accorded Finally, and most importantly, to focus on building an to them by a very competitive media organization that constantly seeks to which has given them a near iconic innovatively exploit opportunities In addition to the status, peer level competition seems to that the global markets offer as the traditional stimuli of spur the managements of these companies firms in the software industry did. opportunity exploitation on! Thus, in addition to the traditional What next for the new genre of and capability leverage, stimuli of opportunity exploitation Indian companies? Their achievepeer influence that is pan and capability leverage, peer ments are commendable. They have industry in character influence that is pan industry in attained critical mass. That gives seems to drive Indian character seems to drive Indian firms them a platform. They would need firms to go overseas! to go overseas! to convert this platform into a springWhat is the message from the board. That calls for them to go performance of this new genre of companies for the rest beyond leveraging country-specific advantage of low of the Indian industry, especially the large companies cost and develop firm-specific advantages, preferably that dot the country’s industrial landscape? First, it can one that is anchored in intellectual capital. Cost and be done. Second, it calls for something more than quality competitiveness have today become qualifying visionary leadership. It requires commitment to compete conditions. Intellectual competitiveness, competitiveness in the advanced markets of the world. Third, to choose anchored in difficult-to-imitate knowledge, defines the market segments that offer opportunities to gain a rapid winning conditions. LEVERAGE INDIA ADVANTAGE THROUGH GLOCAL APPROACH Habil F Khorakiwala Chairman MD, Wockhardt Ltd. Mumbai T he single biggest driver behind the globalization become globally competitive. Good policies often beget of Indian companies is the liberalization process unforeseen beneficial consequences. Overseas companies, ushered by the government in the early 1990s. which came to India to tap the large Indian middle class Liberalization did several things. market, discovered India’s potential High tariff walls were lowered, as a low cost but skilled production Our management costs, encouraging imports and opening up base to tap overseas markets. Autoour scientists, our legal the domestic market to international mobiles and auto component indusbrains - all of competition. Foreign companies were tries are perhaps the best examples. nternational calibre - encouraged to set up shop in India Companies like Hyundai have made offer a cost to value exposing Indian companies to global India a global hub for small cars. proposition that cannot products and practices. Liberabe found anywhere else The realization of India Advanlization also allowed more Indians to in the world. Even tage emboldened Indian companies travel abroad for business and overseas companies have to aggressivel y explore offshore pleasure. recognized the India markets. Let me give the example of Advantage. All this led to a great churn in the pharmaceutical industry. The the Indian industry- on the one cost of setting up a modern pharhand, companies started upgrading maceutical plant in India would be quality of their products to compete with the world’s one-sixth of what an identical plant in Europe or the US best; at the same time, they innovated to cut costs and would cost. It is not a question of wages as often made VIKALPA VOLUME 29 NO 4 OCTOBER DECEMBER 2004 99 99 out. Our management costs, our scientists, our legal brains - all of international calibre - offer a cost to value proposition that cannot be found anywhere else in the world. Even overseas companies have recognized the India Advantage. Leading overseas generic pharmaceutical companies like Teva and Sandoz have set up shop in India to leverage the India Advantage. and the US over the last 10 years. I do not think any other country can compare with India against this backdrop, not even China. ‘Going global’ and ‘Going international’ are entirely different. For going ‘global,’ one requires a global mindset and global aspirations. Becoming ‘international’ historically meant supplying out of India. You do not have to be globally competitive in the true sense to export out of India. In some areas, you may not be globally competitive. Going international only means leveraging some country and company advantages to tap overseas markets. That does not make you a global organization. These advantages may not last long. It is a slow, limited process of growth. You can fumble. You can be rebuffed. Your terms of reference are different. In one case, you are investing for long-term global competitiveness. You can be an international player without having a global mindset and without creating a global organizational system. India’s high value, highly competitive resources offer potential in the global market. But, what helped India harness this potential and catapult us to the global stage is Indian entrepreneurship. Our entrepreneurs, many of them first generation businessmen, have been the driving force behind globalization. Look at the pharmaceutical industry - India accounts for less than two per cent of the world market in value terms, despite the fact that we are the fourth largest in volume terms. No ambitious entrepreneur in the pharmaceutical industry can grow big unless he ventures out of India to Europe and India’s high value, highly the US, the world’s largest and the Indian pharmaceutical industry most sophisticated markets. Comcompetitive resources has one of the world’s richest resourpanies like Ranbaxy, Dr. Reddy’s, offer potential in the ces - in manufacturing, research and Wockhardt could not have global market. But, what capabilities, and entrepreneurship. grown to what it is today if they had helped India harness this Our industry has capacities and not successfully tapped global potential and catapult us capabilities across the value chain markets. Against the backdrop of to the global stage is and, what is more, we are costIndia joining the global patent Indian entrepreneurship. ompetitive across the value chain. regime with effect from January We have taken two approaches in 2005, today, every player in the our quest to become a global orgapharmaceutical industry is looking at harnessing its nization. One pertains to our acquisitions. The second inherent strengths to global advantage as a matter of pertains to the larger issue of creating a global growth as well as survival. orga nization. In the case of acquisitions, we follow a Each nation has its country as well as industryspecific advantages which it tries to leverage. India is a significant manufacturing base for the pharmaceutical industry - we are the world’s fourth largest producer of pharmaceuticals in volume terms. Indian companies live in an intensely competitive environment. Most Indian companies make their own bulk actives. After liberalization, Indian companies have built RD capabilities that have enhanced their innovative ability. Indian pharmaceutical industry today is a knowledge intensive industry. Indian companies also have the advantage of access to the Global Indian - scientists of Indian origin play a significant role in leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide. Indian companies have acquired over 15 companies in Europe ‘glocal’ approach. When it comes to management processes, manufacturing, information technology, human resources and supply chain, we follow a uniform system that is global. This helped Wockhardt become a globally competitive, seamless organization across geographies. We get the value of efficiencies borne out of global buying. We do not have to reinvent the wheel. The same language of management thinking rules the entire organization. At the same time, we follow a local approach when it comes to sales and marketing. In each market, whether it is the UK or Germany, distribution systems and the like are dynamically different. So when it comes to sales and marketing, our approach is customized for local markets. As far as the US is concerned, we have created INDIAN COMPANIES IN OVERSEAS MARKETS 100 100 an organization called Wockhardt USA, Inc. that handles sales, marketing, regulatory affairs, and IPRs. Wockhardt’s Indian operations serve as the research and sourcing hub for the American organization. We follow a similar approach in Russia and South American countries like Brazil. Same is the case in Africa. In other countries, we export out of India with sales and marketing people stationed in these markets. ESCHEW SHORT CUTS AND RETAIN THE INDIAN ‘DNA’ Jerry Rao Chairman CEO, Mphasis Ltd. Bangalore F or the Indian companies operating in IT and allied by these intrepid adventurers, and so on. sectors, the markets overseas are the primary ones As students of economic history, we must realize and going overseas is not a choice but an essential that there is nothing unique about our actions or motives. pre-condition of being in business. It makes sense for We too go in search of markets, market shares, revenues, American companies to talk about going overseas or for inputs, and profits. We are no different than Dutch or that matter about not going overseas. They have such Swiss or Japanese or Korean companies all of whom have a big domestic market that it is entirely possible to grow gone in search of the ‘bigger pie,’ having decided that without going overseas. Given the small pigmy-sized their domestic wells were too small for them. Being domestic markets we have and if we accept the truism followers, we are lucky. We can and we should study that the absence of growth will lead the empirical data on the successes to decay, Indian companies have no and failures of our professional choice except to pursue growth ‘Going overseas’ is not an forebears. aggressively beyond our borders. option, going ‘global’ is Some findings are obvious: if Incidentally, the reverse is possible. an imperative if the you genuinely seek global posiAn Indian company can focus almost Indian company seeks tioning and global market shares, exclusively on overseas markets and rowth. If it seeks global then the interim steps of joint vengrow handsomely. Many Indian IT market relevance, it has tures and partnerships are out. They companies have followed this to be in its own right are meant for those who see the strategy. In the days of the permitbuilding and flaunting its outside world as peripheral, as good licence raj, the regulators of the own brands. Partnerships for a low risk flutter, not as c rucial ubiquitous Indian state almost and JVs will not do. n the search for global importance always insisted that Indian com(did I whisper the expression global panies should set up capacities to dominance? ). Those who drop the expressions ‘domestic’ ‘meet’ the demands of the domestic market. Going and ‘overseas’ and opt for the phrase ‘global markets’ overseas, literally even travelling overseas was a torture have no choice but to venture out as full-fledged hundred as ‘scarce’ foreign exchange was only doled out for percent owned/controlled branches and subsidiaries government-approved missions. ith overarching global brands. Having spent close to half a century in a hothouse As far as culture is concerned, it seems to me that atmosphere, we find ourselves ill-equipped to deal with the world outside our desi cocoon, hence the prevailing the attempts to alter an organization’s DNA in order to meet the so-call ed prescriptive needs of overseas markets academic and journalistic interest in the phenomenon will be a serious mistake. Organizations have to be of Indian companies going overseas. At one end of the faithful to their core DNA if they wish to succeed. This discussion is the legal structure, the choice of branches, does not mean that the genetic code does not evolve, with subsidiaries, joint ventures, greenfield ventures or time and with unfolding of the organization as it grows acquisitions and so on. At the other end is the so-called issue of ‘culture’ - what is the culture we need to and spreads out much in the way that a biological organism does. succeed overseas; what are the unique challenges faced VIKALPA VOLUME 29 NO 4 OCTOBER DECEMBER 2004 101 101 ‘Going overseas’ is not an option, going ‘global’ is an imperative if the Indian company seeks growth. If it seeks global market relevance, it has to be in its own right building and flaunting its own brands. Partnerships and JVs will not do. The culture of the organization must be faithful to its genetic make-up - the ingredients that have been created so far - but must adapt to the new growing, expanding global habitat where the company now chooses to live and try to succeed. A mixture of metaphors with a streak of audacity in it †¦. a starting point of the journey. SOUND PARTNER AIDS REACHING RETAIL CUSTOMER Pramod Khera Managing Director, Aptech Ltd. Mumbai I ndian companies are looking at the overseas markets where brand building and distribution are critical for because they have understood that success in the their success. domestic market does not ensure sustained success. Aptech pioneered, along with New Delhi-based Globalization does not just mean that there are NIIT, the IT education in private sector. The intent was opportunities for Indian companies outside the Indian to exploit the gap between the fast growing demand for shores that they can exploit; it also means that global IT professionals and the output of formal education companies have opportunities in India. The Indian market sector. The franchisee and centre approach provided the is increasingly becoming global and Indian companies wherewithal and impetus for rapid expansion from have to succeed domestically and globally if they want around 1990. Aptech increased its network to cover most to survive and grow. Hence, in many of the country and set up the first cases, international businesses are overseas centre in Bahrain in 1994. International businesses being developed by Indian comThe major breakthrough was China are being developed by panies in order to gain economies of where Aptech entered into a 50:50 Indian companies in scale and to de-risk their depenjoint venture with Beijing Beida Jade order to gain economies dencies on limited domestic geoBird Company, an associate of Beijing of scale and to de-risk graphies and markets vis-a-vis their University. Today, Aptech’s internatheir dependencies on global competitors. tional operations account for about limited domestic one-third of the business with close Companies from the lessgeographies and markets to 300 international centres. developed countries, like India, face a difficult and challenging task in Aptech’s foray in the Chinese competitors. going international but not an market has been a highly successful impossible one. There are examples one aided to a large extent through of successful companies from developing countries like its strong joint venture partner. The joint venture - with Taiwan’s Acer (tiny start-up electronics consulting Aptech providing the model of education, course content, company growing into one of the world’s largest and managerial guidance and the Chinese partner looking manufacturer of PCs), Mexico’s Cemex (competing with after government regulations and day-to-day manaworld players in the cement industry), Philippine’s gement - is guided through board meetings with Aptech Jollybee (taking on McDonald’s across the world), Brazil’s charing the joint venture. Aptech has approximately 110 Weg in the electrical motors market and India’s Ranbaxy, centres in 57 cities and has trained over 50,000 students Infosys, TCS, and Wipro. The Indian companies menin Mandarin. It is present in 20 of the 26 provinces in tioned above have built strong international businesses China and some of the best companies, both related to on a powerful value proposition - competitive quality IT and otherwise, have selected Aptech students for their at low costs. These companies have operated in a direct companies. Some of the learnings that can help companies selling environment where decision-making is by succeed in China are as follows: corporations based on a rational buying process. They Partner: If a company is contemplating entering do not operate in markets like FMCG or IT education vis-a-vis their global 102 INDIAN COMPANIES IN OVERSEAS MARKETS 102 China with a partner, selecting a partner with credibility and standing is important. The government has an undoubted hold on all enterprise. Hence, a partner with linkages with the government is the most ideal. Beijing Beida (Beijing University) is a premier education institution in China. It has a good local standing and reputation. Beijing Beida Jade Bird Company, Aptech’s joint venture partner, is an equally focused and receptive partner. move up the value chain and keep ahead of competition. This has also helped retain and build the partner’s dependability on Aptech. Merge in local milieu: Whilst India is known for its software and IT supremacy in the media, Aptech has been positioned as a local player with the best quality and understanding and not as an Indian company. Local knowledge is power: The Chinese believe that Negotiations: Doing business in China is all about negotiating. There are three stages of doing business most foreigners do not understand them and their - pre-negotiation, formal negotiation, and postcountry, and that is why they do not succeed. negotiation. The pre-negotiation stage includes Succeeding in China is all about understanding the presen tations, lobbying, and trust building. Formal country - its history and its past (in terms of negotiation involves task-related exchange of communism, Maoism, closed economy), psyche and information, persuasion, concessions, and mentality (follow the leader, never question the agreement. Generally speaking, the Chinese honour governance, limited risk taking ability, lack of an their agreement and commitment. entrepreneu- rial culture), However, being a very large country culture and social framework Building downstream with its experimental nature of (traditions, tradi- tions, and capabilities, knowledge of reforms, unevenly developed more traditions, e. . , signifimarket, local laws, and infrastructure, scarce natural recance of colours, toasting a drink sources per capita, and large client relationships are with a boss), and political envibureaucracy makes most people essential but developing ronment (communism and burwant to keep re-negotiating these can be expensive eaucracy). situations. Hence, very often, with for an organization. Language: Some knowledge of the signing of an agreement only Mandarin would always be begins the process of negotiations in useful, both to impress as well as to comprehend. China. Most Chinese can read and write some amount of In conclusion, the oft-repeated cliche - ‘Think English, but lack the confidence to speak it, especially Global, Act Local’ - has been one of the biggest learnings in front of a foreigner. Hence, negotiations in English for Aptech in its global, especially Chinese quest. Aptech put the Chinese at a slight disadvantage. has moved beyond being an education franchiser and Localization: In terms of products offered (courses), has moved up the value chain with new technological the method of delivery (example-based learning), and educational innovations, i. . , content services and and the medium of delivery (language), adaptation ‘online portal development. ’ of the business model to local market conditions Building downstream capabilities, knowledge of the also assumes significance. Understanding the target market, local laws, and client relationships are essential audience helps in the localization effort. In Ch ina, Aptech found that the students were more attuned but developing these can be expensive for an organization. to step-by-step thinking and not multi-tasking. Franchising provides a very effective method for Accordingly, the pedagogy of the curriculum design acquiring downstream capabilities and penetrating a was amended to address these learning objectives. market effectively. Strategic alliances like the one with Beijing Beida in China have brought in a new perspective Moving up the value chain: Schools and colleges to Aptech, especially about the recognition of role that have been licensed content and provided support it is playing in developing the education and IT infrasfor classroom delivery. This has enabled Aptech to tructure in the host countries. VIKALPA VOLUME 29 NO 4 OCTOBER DECEMBER 2004 103 103 IS INDIA’S MARKETING MUSCLE EXPORTABLE? Niraj Dawar Nabisco Professor of Marketing Richard Ivey School of Management University of Western Ontario, Canada I nfosys is building a global brand. The effort is differentiate India from other emerging economies such noteworthy not only because there are so few as China and Russia. Those markets have only recently successful Indian brands on the world stage but also reformed their centrally planned economies. They lack because it represents a marriage of two of India’s key a history of marketing. Even a few years ago, few competences - information technology and marketing. Russian or Chinese brands had been built on the strength Indeed, India has enormous marketing talent and a of marketing (although that is changing rapidly) and reasonably good track record of building brands locally. multinational firms operating there still tend to employ Nirma, Bajaj, Titan, Mother Dairy, and Dabur are expatriate managers to handle marketing strategy and complemented by Lifebuoy, Lipton, Dettol, and Colgate planning. Indian managers, by contrast, are strong on as brands built in India by the Indian talent. The marketing. arketing of these brands has always been local even Yet, India’s marketing strength is conspicuously if the products and the initial brand concepts for some absent from the global stage. If India of them were imported. In recent has such abundant marketing talent, years, as liberalized imports have why have so few Indian brands It is not surprising that opened the market to a flood of new ventured abroad? Why have Indian even the most centralized entrants, many a business has been companies not leveraged their foreign companies launched and grown on its marketing marketing advantage to compete entering India quickly acumen. The business of consumer internationally? Why do Indian learn to entrust marketing electronics, for example, has Onida, brands not adorn the shelves of to local managers and Videocon, and Baron International supermarkets in consuming that the most savvy building businesses on the strength countries? Why do Indian goods international marketers of their marketing while relying still compete as commodities in pricequickly come to entirely on ‘outsourced’ RD and driven markets at the bottom of the recognize the formidable manufacturing from companies such value curve? What prevents Indian local competition they as Sony and Samsung. The computer companies from leveraging their hardware business is another face in India. marketing competences outside of example of business models founded India? on downstream activities - marketing, sales, distribution, and afterAside from the usual rich-country predilection for sales service. All of this marketing activity has led to protectionism, two inter-related reasons come to mind: a considerable pool of marketing talent and capital among knowledge and means. Marketing is a downstream Indian firms and managers. It is not surprising then that activity that requires intimate knowledge of the market. even the most centralized foreign companies entering For the same reason that multinationals operating in India quickly learn to entrust marketing to local managers India prefer to hire Indian managers, these managers’ and that the most savvy international marketers quickly talents do not necessarily translate abroad. The Indian come to recognize the formidable local competition they managers’ marketing knowledge and knowledge of the face in India. Indian marketers know not just marketing; Indian market are intermeshed. Separating them and they also know their market. They are not just a less applying the marketing knowledge to a foreign market expensive resource than expatriate managers; they are is not easy. This is not to say that Indian managers better at marketing in India. cannot learn about foreign markets, but rather that On the global stage, these marketing strengths clearly learning is an expensive activity that requires tremendous INDIAN COMPANIES IN OVERSEAS MARKETS 104 104 commitment and large investment. Opportunistic exports and market entry ithout a long-term brand building plan are not conducive to building that foreign-market knowledge. Indian brands may be formidable competitors locally, but abroad, where they are unknown entities, they have to work very hard to stand out in a crowded field. Indian managers do have the marketing talent to sell abroad but they lack the means to establish brands in markets where media are fragmented and do not come cheap; any decent share of voice r equires a substantial investment. Brand building requires enormous fixed investment before a single unit of the product is sold. This means, the brand builders must not only have deep pockets but a considerable appetite for risk. Few Indian firms have been willing to take the bet. This is not surprising. There is a chicken-and-egg problem here. It is not easy to take on the costs of building a brand abroad without prior experience in brand building in foreign markets. So is Infosys making a huge mistake? I would not bet on it. Betting against Infosys has not been a profitable game in recent Indian managers do have years. Infosys has certain advanBut what of the parade of strong the marketing talent to tages. It is building a brand in an Indian brands? Well, what of them? sell abroad but they lack industry in which the needs of Despite satellite television and the means to establish customers are fairly uniform across spillover of other media to other brands in markets where the world. Its brand needs little countries, Indian brands have dismal media are fragmented and adaptation for different country awareness and even more limited do not come cheap, and markets, reducing the costs and risks appeal to consumers there. In the any decent share of voice of brand building. The company Persian Gulf region, Indian brands knows the needs of its customers requires a substantial may look like they are doing well, and has already made a significant investment. but this is brand leveraging, not operational commitment to delibrand building. Indian brands in the vering to world-class norms. BrandGulf region rely on awareness and loyalty created in the building is a natural extension of this functional ability. home market. They are simply exporting to consumers Infosys is already a credible player in the global market. ho have been previously exported to these markets. Therefore, brand-building is as much a means of To truly do well abroad, the brands would need to be consolidating its position as it is of attracting new (re)built to suit the requirements of local consumers in customers. Finally, Infosys has the deep pockets required foreign markets. This is far more expensive than the and is willing to take a bet not just on its superior brand leveraging curre ntly practised. Few Indian brands product/service offering but on its marketing talent. ave succeeded in replicating their home market success Will its branding lead be followed by Indian firms outside abroad. Even Titan Watch’s valiant attempt to build a the information technology space? brand in Europe disappointed. ASPIRATIONS OF GLOBAL LEADERSHIP IN MANUFACTURING B N Kalyani Chairman MD, Bharat Forge Ltd. Pune harat Forge Limited’s (BFL) journey towards becoming an international player began in 1997. Three factors determined our need to go global. First, we appreciated what globalization could do to improve quality, delivery, costs, supply chain, RD, productivity, and business processes. We, therefore, wanted to venture out and learn best practices. Second, while we had sufficient faith in domestic demand, we VIKALPA VOLUME 29 NO 4 OCTOBER DECEMBER 2004 B wanted to grow beyond the Indian market. Third, we recognized that different geographies often follow separate business cycles. We wanted to not only reduce our over-dependence on a single market but also take advantage of different growth opportunities across varying geographies. Now, we are India’s only forging company supplying globally and the country’s largest exporter of auto components. 05 105 Contrary to popular perception, outsourcing is not limited to IT. In the emerging international scenario, the potential for growth of global outsourcing in manufacturing could very well outstrip that in IT and IT related services. In this, automobile components play an important role. Moreover, most automotive OEMs and their Tier-1 suppliers have begun to understand the ‘India Advantage’ i n auto components as well as other products that have relatively high engineering and design content. We feel well positioned to leverage these outsourcing opportunities. become a global base for exports of manufactured goods (e. g. , auto components), build Indian MNCs (e. g. , Infosys, Ranbaxy) enhance competency levels (e. g. , manufacturing clusters at Surat - gems and jewellery; Tirupur - Textiles; Pune - Auto components) radically improve quality of infrastructure (e. g. , telecom, roads, power, ports) design conducive government policies (e. g. , Special Economic Zones to overcome constraints, of infrastructure, e. g. , labour and be the means to attract huge domestic and foreign investments). Bharat Forge has the largest single location commercial forging facility in the world and we are moving up the value chain - from raw forging to machined components and to more complex subGovernment and industry have to build a strong assemblies. In early stages, the approach was to increase partnership and create conditions for Indian companies market size by exporting to overseas markets. However, to become global MNCs. The Japanese have been in the recent past, the company started realizing the need particularly successful in this and we can emulate their to have international manufacturing facilities - example. Today it is a matter of great pride and especially in Europe, where autosatisfaction for Japan to see Toyota mobile companies prefer component Motor Corporation, which till a few Government and industry manufacturers to be located close to decades ago was a fledging company, have to build a strong their factories. In early 2004, we to be ranked the second largest partnership and create acquired a German forging company automobile company in the world. If conditions for Indian which provides close synergies in Toyota could do it, I see no reason companies to become terms of production facilities, why at least five to six Indian global MNCs. eographical coverage, and customer companies cannot acquire global base. This acquisition makes us the leadership in their businesses in the second largest forging company in the world. It also next ten years. provides us access to the huge market for passenger car components that will synergize with our strong global Innovation is the key to real growth and unassailable presence in engine and axle components for medium and competitiveness. To produce more growth per dollar heavy commercial vehicles. f investment, a company must produce more innovation Moving on to Indian industry as a whole, the ten basics to compete in the global market are: produce world class quality (e. g. , software, pharmaceuticals, auto component, etc. ) build international scale capacities (e. g. , Bajaj Auto, Hero Honda, TVS), leverage India’s low cost advantage (e. g. , software, pharmaceuticals, auto components) develop strong product development capabilities (e. g. , Indica, Scorpio) expand size of domestic market to provide foundation for exports (e. g. , Bajaj Auto, Indica) per dollar of investment. Companies can improve innovation efficiencies by: raising the ratio of innovations to total number of employees (foster a culture in which innovation is encouraged across the organization and not restricted to only the RD department) raising the ratio of radical innovation to incremental innovation by focusing on changes that change customer expectations and behaviour (e. g. , wireless money transfer), basis of competitive advantage (e. g. , digital cameras) or industry economics (e. g. , no frills airlines) raising the ratio of learning over investment in INDIAN COMPANIES IN OVERSEAS MARKETS 106 106 innovation projects (focus on effective locations for production - Forces of globalization - low cost experimentation vis-acan make India a huge global the search for more costvis high cost product testing and manufacturing and supply base. We effective locations for development). are the only country that can compete production - can make The key enabler for competiwith China with s ome important India a huge global tiveness for Indian companies is our advantages - a more familiar and large capacity of ‘brain power. This predictable legal system, better manufacturing and supply needs to be carefully nurtured and protection of IPRs, and strong English base. expanded. Other factors that will language skills. In auto components, contribute to our competitiveness are Indian companies are projected to be emphasis on IT-based technologies in manufacturing, able to meet 35 per cent of the global demand for auto engineering, and product development and training to components by 2015. Several other sectors hold the same improve marketing skills required to create delivery promise. The world is beginning to believe in India; we systems for global customers. eed to believe in our ability to compete, perform, and Forces of globalization - the search for more cost- succeed! CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Rajnish Karki T he contributions present an extensive exploratio n of the phenomenon of ‘Indian companies in overseas markets,’ which is multi-faceted in terms of activities and issues and is variegated among industries and companies. As the proportion of Indian companies engaging substantively with overseas markets is not more than a tenth, and for these too the experience is less than a decade long, these are very early stages of the phenomenon. However, the breakthroughs and aspirations of Indian companies that have ventured overseas portend major two-way engagement between Indian business and the world economy. The context of overseas expansion of Indian companies is different either with respect to American and European companies or Japanese and Korean companies and so the process will be unique and could be unprecedented in terms of pace and impact. The Colloquium does identify some issues and patterns. These are analysed for extending and drawing implications and for addressing apparent contradictions. Major conclusions on the phenomenon of ‘Indian companies in the overseas markets,’ which can be converged upon are as follows: From comparative to competitive advantage: Historically or till about 1990, the engagement of Indian companies with overseas markets was with the export of traditional products like tea, coffee, iron ore, leather, apparel, gems and jewellery, etc. These were based on natural endowments or on first-level comparative advantages of India and the companies played a role of little more than intermediaries or traders. There was a shift during the previous decade when companies found and deployed second-level advantages - availability, lower cost, and skills of the technical and scientific manpower in India. The second-level advantages, though comparative in nature, required creation of complementary capabilities in sales and marketing and in production systems which needed to be evolved within the companies or firms. Software companies that primarily operated with posting of professionals in overseas assignments or ‘body shopping’ till the mid-1990s started moving to projects and offshore production units by late-1990s. As a result, companies moved beyond India-based comparative advantages to create firm-based ‘competitive advantages. ’ The competitive advantages are more expandable in terms of scale and scope as they are governed by the competencies developed within a company and the aspirations of its top management. The trajectories are relatively similar in case of pharmaceuticals and auto components companies, though on a smaller VIKALPA VOLUME 29 NO 4 OCTOBER DECEMBER 2004 107 107 agnitude and with a lag of few years, and many other industries are likely to mo

Re-Election Rates for Members of Congress

Re-Election Rates for Members of Congress The re-election rate for members of Congress is exceptionally high considering how unpopular the institution is in the eyes of the public. If youre looking for steady work, you might consider running for office yourself; job security is especially strong for members of the House of Representatives even though a significant portion of the electorate supports terms limits.   How often do members of Congress actually lose an election? Not very. Almost Certain to Keep Their Jobs Incumbent members of the House seeking re-election are all but assured re-election. The re-election rate among all 435 members of the House has been as high as 98 percent in modern history, and its rarely dipped below  90 percent.   The late Washington Post political columnist David Broder referred to this phenomenon as incumbent lock and blamed gerrymandered congressional districts for eliminating any notion of competition in general elections.   But there are other reasons the re-election rate for members of Congress is so high. With wide name recognition, and usually an insurmountable advantage in campaign cash, House incumbents typically have little trouble holding onto their seats, explains the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan watchdog group in Washington. In addition, there are other built-in protections for congressional incumbents: the ability to regularly mail flattering newsletters to constituents at taxpayer expense under the guise of constituent outreach and to earmark money for pet projects in their districts. Members of Congress who raise money for their colleagues are also rewarded with large amounts of campaign money for their own campaigns, making even more difficult to unseat incumbents. So how difficult is it?  Ã‚   List of Re-Election Rates For House Members By Year Heres a look at the re-election rates for members of the House of Representatives going back to the 1900 congressional election. On only four occasions did more than 20 percent of incumbents seeking re-election actually lose their races. The most recent such election was in 1948, when Democratic presidential nominee Harry S. Truman campaigned against a do-nothing Congress. The wave election resulted in a massive turnover in Congress, one that rewarded Democrats with 75 more seats in the House. Prior to that, the only  election that resulted in a substantial ouster of incumbents was in 1938, amid a recession and soaring unemployment. Republicans picked up 81 seats in Democratic President Franklin Roosevelts  midterm election. Take note that some of the lowest re-election rates occur in the midterm elections. The political party whose president occupies the White House often sustains large losses in the House. In 2010, for example, the re-election rate for members of the House dipped to 85 percent; it was two years after Democrat Barack Obama was elected president. His party lost a whopping 52 seats in the House in 2010.   Re-election Rates for House Members Election Year Percentage of Incumbents Re-elected 2018 91% 2016 97% 2014 95% 2012 90% 2010 85% 2008 94% 2006 94% 2004 98% 2002 96% 2000 98% 1998 98% 1996 94% 1994 90% 1992 88% 1990 96% 1988 98% 1986 98% 1984 95% 1982 91% 1980 91% 1978 94% 1976 96% 1974 88% 1972 94% 1970 95% 1968 97% 1966 88% 1964 87% 1962 92% 1960 93% 1958 90% 1956 95% 1954 93% 1952 91% 1950 91% 1948 79% 1946 82% 1944 88% 1942 83% 1940 89% 1938 79% 1936 88% 1934 84% 1932 69% 1930 86% 1928 90% 1926 93% 1924 89% 1922 79% 1920 82% 1918 85% 1916 88% 1914 80% 1912 82% 1910 79% 1908 88% 1906 87% 1904 87% 1902 87% 1900 88% Resources and Further Reading â€Å"Reelection Rates Over the Years.† OpenSecrets.org, The Center for Responsive Politics. Huckabee, David C. â€Å"Reelection Rates of House Incumbents: 1790-1994.† Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress, 1995.

Analysis essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Analysis - Essay Example The burger consists of a single beef patty which is topped with American cheese, fried onions, and thick steak sauce. The advertisement shows a young girl who is all eager to have a big bite of the burger she is looking at with surprise openly expressed in her eyes. The girl is tip-top, as if she is seducing the people out there to come at the fast food point and have this delightful treat. The media in general and this ad in particular is exploiting people, especially children, by way of sexual appeal and exaggerated messages in advertisements. Since the youth is more attracted toward junk food than adults, and because of the males’ attraction toward sexual content (the sexual innuendo will be described in a later paragraph), this advertisement has made use of the fragility of young minds to sell the product. Young people, such as teenagers, tend to have less-developed ability of decision-making or critical thinking, so they cannot realize what is wrong with what they are vie wing, and their minds learn or absorb every act they see. I believe that this specific advertisement is very effectively selling the product by manipulating young minds into getting away from healthy food and turning toward junk meals. Media is exploiting kids to make them their unsurpassed consumers. Children are being affected by the media every day and every moment they sit in front of the television. This eventually affects the whole society. Businesses are now targeting children because they form a huge part of American population today. The idea behind is that kids spend or make their parents spend a lot of money on things like video games, junk food, electronic items, and the like, and thus this spent money forms are great part of the country’s economy. Hence, advertisers and businesses are targeting children because they have an influence over purchasing and making decisions in all small and big shopping. Parents become helpless. When a teenager will see this specific advertisement, he will totally relish the yummy bite of the burger in his dreams, and will bug his parents to allow him to have it one way or another. This is because the message, which will be discussed in a later section, is so tempting that a teenager will not be able to resist the temptation. Companies have started calculating the nagging factor (John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health) which determines how much anger or stubbornness kids have to show to their parents in order to persuade them to buy something of their choice. Mass media is manipulating kids’ minds through marketing in schools, public places, homes, and through television, internet and DVDs. Companies present new brands in front of kids and attract them through suggestive content that is shown to them through marketing services. Children get attracted to the sexually suggestive content shown in the advertisements. They are attracted toward buying new brands of cereals, clothes, bedspreads, kidsâ⠂¬â„¢ furniture, school bags and lunch boxes. Marketers understand the psychology of children and control them. Ethics are not taken into account while marketing the products and this inculcates unethical values amongst the children. They tend to learn violence, aggression, and sexual fantasies, and then try to incorporate these things in their own lives (Strasburger, Jordan and Donnerstein). Also, they learn that they are supposed to get everything they see and then force their parents to provide them with everything they are attracted t

Report about the New York Aviation Managers Association Essay - 1

Report about the New York Aviation Managers Association - Essay Example By conglomerating, members benefit from each other, leading to industrial leaders and experts, through exchange of information and ideas. The association represents 1300 members and affiliated members who comprise of airport managers and representatives of more than 120 commercial and general airports. Membership is characterized by representatives from all corners of the aviation industry: Base operators, consultants, state government agencies and others. Holistically, economic benefits accrued from the association are impressive: generates $18 billion in salary and annual local tax revenue of $4.5 billion for the state (Crook. A, 2013). Nevertheless, NYAMA has sited that the efficiency of the micro-economy is at stake due to a vital inadequate infrastructural investment, stiff competition from other states and a drop in the general economy. Aviation industry has a critical importance in the general improvement of the state’s economy. Therefore, the importance of progressive constant improvement of the micro-economy cannot be gainsaid occasioning the critical role played by New York Aviation Management

Discussion Question Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 10

Discussion Question - Assignment Example If the company will just rely on company-owned stores, it will not be able to achieve the international exposure that it needs. One believes that franchising is the key to increasing the company’s market share worldwide. It will not be financially draining for the company unlike if company-owned stores are established. Another major organizational change which one proposes is for the company to require their store managers to conduct weekly meetings with the sales staff. This is being suggested because one believes that the sales staffs are the people who would know exactly what the customers want. At present, the sales staffs are not consulted about the scents or products that the customers prefer. One believes that management should give importance to the sales staff by asking feedback from them. This could be done through the weekly meetings. Furthermore, this will motivate the sales people more because they will realize that their opinions are important to the company. The organizational changes proposed above will hopefully help the company improve its profitability and at the same time lead them to the road towards global success. The implementation of the suggested changes may take some time but it will definitely benefit the company in the long

Comparison Between The Number of Web Sites of The Gulf Cooperation Research Paper

Comparison Between The Number of Web Sites of The Gulf Cooperation Council and its Services and E-Government Website - Research Paper Example However, in order to distribute information on the internet, an interface is used, which is known as a Web site. A Web site contains a lot of hyperlinks and contents conveying the message of that particular Web site (Norton, 2001; Shelly et al., 2005). For instance, a web site of a university contains information about that university. In the same way, the Hukoomi is a Web Portal, which offers the people access to information regarding the State of Qatar. It links us with government programs, services, initiatives and events (Government of Qatar, 2012). In addition, through cooperation with government organizations and public service suppliers, the Hukoomi has appeared to build online information more readily accessible at our fingertips. Additionally, the online national web portal hosts a number of significant e-services, and government service application, documents, forms and general information (Government of Qatar, 2012). This report presents a detailed comparison between a num ber of Web sites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and their services and other e-government websites to know the country and the needs of the Country Website development and optimization and preference. This report will present a detailed analysis of a wide variety of aspects of the Hukoomi in comparison with rest of the Gulf States in terms of electronic services and e-government support. The basic purpose of this comparison is to determine the needs and requirements that are necessary to know for building an effective and informative web site. This analysis will determine what should be included in the web site to make it perfect, with the intention that it could better serve its community. A detailed Comparison This section presents a detailed comparison between different web sites. For this purpose, I have divided this comparison into different parts (depending on the features of a web site). In this scenario, I will compare different features and services which are availab le or should be available at Hukoomi but it is not there and what services are available on other portals. 1- National Overview The first feature or support that we will analyze in this comparison is about presentation of national overview. In this scenario, the Hukoomi offers a good national overview; however, at this web site comprehensive national overview is missing. The national overview of Hukoomi can include information regarding national resources, population, geography and tourism. On the other hand, the Main Page of existing website does not contain such details. As this web site is aimed at presenting a detailed overview of the country so it needs to offer a brief but comprehensive overview of the State of Qatar. In this scenario, we need to add some links in a small portion of the Main Page of the website so that people could know about

The end of Povery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The end of Povery - Essay Example Poverty has sustained due to this unfair debt and there will be no end to poverty of this system continues as it hinders political and economic stability (Diaz (2008)). Thus, in order to end the global poverty, first world countries must try to look for ways in which the debt can be forgiven or compensated. The most important cause of the unfair third world debt is the colonization. The colonizing states had transferred an unfair debt on the independent states in 1960 which had to be returned with an additional interest. This meant that the newly born states were already under a heavy burden of debt which eventually hindered their economic and political stability. Moreover, it was soon realized that the only way to get rid of this unfair debt is to get it forgiven by the rich countries. The continuation of this system since decades has pushed the poor countries into extreme poverty (Shah (2007)). Many developing and under-developed countries are under the burden of unfair debt partly because of the policies of certain international institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). They have worst programs and policies for the global poverty which have been greatly criticized. The developing and poor countries have had an increased dependence on the richer countries. IMF and World Bank have continually claimed that they will introduce policies to reduce poverty levels but they have failed to do so as their policies have increased the burden of the poor nations (Jarman 54). Policies to ensure debt repayment and the economic restructuring have been imposed but the policies have simultaneously leaded the poor countries to reduce their spending on health, development, and education in order to make debt repayment and economic stability as their priority. IMF and the World Bank have also demanded that these poor nations should lower their standard of l iving