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

Organizational Culture – Development and Importance

Management Principles

Five Important Organizational Cultural Models

Management Principles

Categorizing Retailers

Categorizing retailers helps in understanding the competition and the frequent changes that occur in retailing. There is no universally accepted method of classifying a retail outlet, although many categorization schemes have been proposed. Some of these include classifying on the basis of Number of outlets Margin Vs Turnover Location Size. The number of outlets operated by a retailer can have a significant impact on the competitiveness of a retail firm. Generally, a greater number of outlets add strength to the firm because it is able to spread fixed costs, such as advertising and managers’ salaries, over a greater number of stores in addition to acquiring economies of purchase. While any retailer operating more than one store can be technically classified as a chain owner, for practical purposes a chain store refers to a retail firm which has more than 11 units. In the United States, for example, chain stores account Continue reading

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Risks Associated with Derivatives

Although derivatives are legitimate and valuable tools for hedging risks, like all financial instruments they create risks that must be managed. Warren Buffett, one of the world’s most wise investors, states that “derivatives are financial weapons of mass destruction, carrying dangers that, while now latent, are potentially lethal.” On one hand derivatives neutralize risks while on the other hand they create risks. In fact there are certain risks inherent in derivatives. Derivatives can be dangerous if not managed properly. Numerous financial disasters such as Enron can be related to the mismanagement of derivatives. In the 1990s, Procter & Gamble lost $157 million in a currency speculation involving dollars and German Marks, Gibson Greetings lost $20 million and Long-Term Capital Management, a hedge fund, lost $4 billion with currency and interest-rate derivatives. It is key to consider that it has not been the use of derivatives as a tool which has Continue reading

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Work Study – Meaning, Importance and Procedure

Work Study forms the basis for work system design. The purpose of work design is to identify the most effective means of achieving necessary functions. Work study aims at improving the existing and proposed ways of doing work and establishing standard times for work performance. Work design involves job design, work measurement and the establishment of time standards and worker compensation. Work Study is encompassed by two techniques -method study and work measurement (time study): Method study is the systematic recording and critical examination of existing and proposed ways of doing work, as a means of developing and applying easier and methods and reducing costs. The main purpose of method study is to eliminate the unnecessary operations and to achieve the best method of performing the operation. Method study is also called methods engineering or work design. Method engineering is used to describe collection of analysis techniques which focus on improving Continue reading

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Industrial Sales Force Deployment

Deployment of Sales Force in Industrial Marketing involves taking certain decisions like what should be  the size of the saleDeployment of Sales Force in Industrial Marketing involves taking certain decisionss force, how the territory has to be designed, how the selling  effort has to be organized and allocated. Sales force play a vital role in industrial  marketing as they help in proliferation of marketing concept. Their ability to  negotiate in this field and their search for new ways of marketing the products  makes them the best people to judge the various alternatives methods as they  deal with potential customers. They have immense talent of negotiating and  coordinating with various departments and also the ability of effectively using  the exiting product in alternative ways. Their ideas and suggestions play an  important role in developing, improving and customizing the existing products. Industrial Selling Environment As industrial selling is specifically to organizational buyers Continue reading

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Factors influencing wage and salary structure of an organization

The wage policies of different organization vary some what. Marginal units pay the minimum necessary to attract the required number of kind of labor. Often, these units pay minimum wage rates required by labor legislation, and recruit marginal labor. At the other extreme, some units pay well about going rates in the labor market. They do so to attract and retain the highest caliber of labor force. Some managers believe in the economy of higher wages. They feel that, by paying high wages, they would attract better workers who will produce more than average worker in the industry. This greater production per employee means greater output per man hour. Hence, labor costs may turn those existing in firms using marginal labor. Some units pay high wages because of a combination of a favorable product market demand, higher ability to pay and the bargaining power of trade union. But a large Continue reading

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Risk and Return in Investments

There are different motives for investment. The most prominent among all is to earn a return on investment. However, selecting investments on the basis of return in not enough. The fact is that most investors invest their funds in more than one security suggest that there are other factors, besides return, and they must be considered. The investors not only like return but also dislike risk. So, what is required is: Clear understanding of what risk and return are, What creates them, and How can they be measured? Return: The return is the basic motivating force and the principal reward in the investment process. The return may be defined in terms of (i) realized return, i.e., the return which has been earned, and (ii) expected return, i.e., the return which the investor anticipates to earn over some future investment period. The expected return is a predicted or estimated return and Continue reading

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