Case Study on Entrepreneurship: Larry Page

Business Analysis

The Boundaryless Career: Modern Contemperory Perspective on Career

Human Resource Management

Concepts of Throughput Accounting and Theory of Constraints

Financial Management

Kaizen – Understanding the Japanese Business Philosophy of Continuous Improvement

Operations Management

Role of Leaders in Shaping Organizational Culture

Management Principles

Ansoff Matrix Analysis of Volvo

AB Volvo  is the mother company of the Volvo Group of companies with its head office in Gothenburg, Sweden. The company was formed in 1924, with the first Volvo truck rolling off the production line in Sweden in 1928. The Volvo Group is one of the worlds leading suppliers of transport solutions for commercial use, also providing complete solutions for finance and servicing. The mission statement of the company is ‘By creating value for our customers we create value for our shareholders. We use our expertise to create transport-related hard and soft products of the superior quality, safety and environmental care for demanding customers in selected segments. We work with energy, passion and respect for the individual’. Volvo as a group is tremendously proud of the core corporate values of, Safety, Quality and Environment and has retained and lived by these values from the start of the organisation. These three Continue reading

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Different Types of Product Testing

After the product development, generally firms conduct a product testing that one could testify the accuracy of the information on the basis of which various stages were completed.   These commercial experiments are necessary to verify earlier business judgements.   Thus, the objective of this stage is basically to assess whether the product meets the technical and commercial objectives at various levels in order to ascertain the product acceptability.   There are three types of tests usually conducted : Concept Testing, Product Testing, and Test Marketing 1. Concept Testing This is concerned with measuring customer reactions to the idea or concept of a product.   In fact, it is a kind of research in which the product idea is screened before any money, time or labor are committed to making the prototype products. The idea of a product with as many details as possible is made known to the customers Continue reading

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Determinants of Working Capital

There are no set rules or formulate to determine the working capital requirements of a firm. The corporate management has to consider the various factors in making decisions regarding working capital balances. An appraisal of these would provide guidance to management in estimating prospective needs. These are called as determinants of working capital. The firm must estimate its working capital very accurately because excessive working capital results in unnecessary accumulation of inventory and wastage of capital whereas shortage of working capital affects the smooth flow of operating cycle and business fails to meet its commitment. In this section let us examine the various  determinants of working capital. Nature of Business is one of the factors. Usually in trading businesses the working capital needs are higher as most of their investment is found concentrated in stock. On the other hand, manufacturing/processing business need a relatively lower compared to that of trading Continue reading

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IT Tools and Technologies for Managers

1. Customer-Focused e-Business A key strategy by managers for becoming a successful e-business is to maximize customer value.   This strategic focus on customer value recognizes that quality rather than price becomes the primary determinant in a customer’s perception of value.   A Customer-Focused e-business, then, is one that uses Internet technologies to keep customer loyal by anticipating their future needs, responding to concerns, and providing top quality customer service. Such technologies like intranets, the Internet, and extranet websites create new channels for interactive communications within a company, with customers, and with suppliers, business partners, and others in the external business environment. Thereby, encouraging cross-functional collaboration with customers in product development, marketing, delivery, service and technical support. A successful Customer-Focused e-business attempts to ‘own’ the customer’s total business experience through such approaches as: Letting the customer place orders directly, and through distribution partners Building a customer database that captures customers’ Continue reading

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Indian Ethos For Modern Management

Indian ethos for management means the application of principles of management as revealed in our ancient wisdom brought forth in our sacred books like our Gita, Upanishads, Bible and Quran. There are 6 basic principles, which come to light in the holy books applicable in today’s management world. They are : Each soul is a potential God Holistic approach Equal importance to Subjectivity/Objectivity Karma yoga Yogah Karmasu Kaushalam Co-operation 1. Each Soul is a potential God A human being has a soul, a spark of the Divine. The divine resides in the heart of a person. The Divine means perfection in knowledge, wisdom and power. Therefore a human being has immense potential power or energy for self — development. Thus human efforts can achieve even an apparently impossible goal and convert the impossible into a reality. The partnership of   God and Man can bring about extraordinary or miraculous results; Continue reading

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Most Important Functions of Management

Some would define management as an art, while others would define it as a science. Whether management is an art or a science isn’t what is most important. Management is a process that is used to accomplish organizational goals; that is, a process that is used to achieve what an organization wants to achieve. An organization could be a business, a school, a city, a group of volunteers, or any governmental entity. Managers are the people to whom this management task is assigned, and it is generally thought that they achieve the desired goals through the key functions of management. Some would include leading as a managing function, but for the purposes of this discussion, leading is included as a part of directing. The elements of management process are known as functions of management. However various authors have classified these differently. Henry Fayol classified the major functions of management into Continue reading

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