Case Study of Dupont: Marketing of “Disappearing” Products

Imagine how tough it would be to be responsible for marketing a “disappearing” product. That’s the challenge faced by a group of marketers at DuPont, a company with a portfolio of brands that, for the most part, reach final consumers only as ingredients in finished products. Teflon non-stick coating, Lycra fibers, Freon refrigerant, Kevlar bullet-resistant fabric, Stainmaster carpet–these well-known DuPont products share the distinction of being used in the manufacture of products that ultimately bear some other company’s brand. Jamie Murray, the person in charge of managing what people think of the overall DuPont brand, doesn’t mind marketing products that can’t be found on store shelves or ordered from catalogs. “We are the youngest 200 year-old company you will ever meet. We are always out there searching for those needs that we can invent something to satisfy.” The company’s slogan, “better things for better living,” hints broadly at the variety Continue reading

Role of Human Resources in Business Environment Improvement

In order to improve the overall business environment, the organisation structure should be resolving its business trends with its various competitors. The Human resource management which is one of the best and which provides the solutions to the consumers and deals with the various issues which are mostly due to the members in the organisation which are efficiently approached with the various activities involved. The most important and key issues which relates by making use of the human resources which constitute which are planning of the human resource, recruitment of the various staff required for the organisation, performance management, giving training and development, relation between the members of the organisation. The various activities which the human resource management deals with the members of the organisation are allocating the various rules and the policies and the various means of the utilization of the human resource development. The various needs and necessities Continue reading

Case Study: Nestle’s Growth Strategy

Nestle is one of the oldest of all multinational businesses. The company was founded in Switzerland in 1866 by Heinrich Nestle, who established Nestle to distribute “milk food,” a type of infant food he had invented that was made from powdered milk, baked food, and sugar. From its very early days, the company looked to other countries for growth opportunities, establishing its first foreign offices in London in 1868. In 1905, the company merged with the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk, thereby broadening the company’s product line to include both condensed milk and infant formulas. Forced by Switzer ­land’s small size to look outside’ its borders for growth opportunities, Nestle established condensed milk and infant food processing plants in the United States and Britain in the late 19th century and in Australia, South America, Africa, and Asia in the first three decades of the 20th century. In 1929, Nestle moved into the Continue reading

What is CounterTrade?

Countertrade constitutes an estimated 5 to 30 percent of total world trade. Countertrade greatly proliferated in the 1980s. Perhaps, the single most important contributing factor is  Least Developed Countries (LDC’s) decreasing ability to finance their import needs through bank loans. Countertrade, one of the oldest forms of trade, is a government mandate to pay for goods and services with something other than cash. It is a practice, which requires a seller as a condition of sale, to commit contractually to reciprocate and undertake certain business initiatives that compensate and benefit the buyer. In short, a goods-for-goods deal is countertrade. Unlike monetary trade, suppliers are required to take customers products for their use or for resale. In most cases, there are multiple deals that are separate yet related, and a contract links these separable transactions. Countertrade may involve several products, and such products may move at different points in time while Continue reading

Building Effective Teams

An effective team is one which contributes to the achievement of organizational objectives by performing the task assigned to it and providing satisfaction to its members. Team effectiveness depends on the complementary of team members, other factors remaining the same. From this statement, it appears that there are many factors in  effective teams. These factors are skills and role clarity, supportive environment, super-ordinate goals and team rewards. Let us see how these factors make effective teams. Skills and Role Clarity: For an effective team, two things are required from its members; skills which are complementary to the team requirement and understanding of one’s own role as well as roles of other members. While skills are relevant for job performance, understanding of roles helps members to meet the requirement of one another thereby solving the problems which the team faces. Thus, team members may tend to contribute positively to the teamwork. Continue reading

Adoption of Blue Ocean Strategies in Business

Strategy involves standing out from the competition and making choices that give the company a unique and valuable position by offering distinctive products and services. Competitive advantage and profitability can be achieved simultaneously by approaches that create consistent internal synergies and combine a company’s operational activities efficiently. Strategies are formed at various levels of the organization. However, a typical organizational structure incorporates strategies at 3 specific levels: corporate, business and functional.  Corporate strategy defines a company’s holistic growth and management direction pertaining to its various businesses, products and services. Business strategies, on the other hand, are established at the divisional levels and typically focus on enhancing the strategic business unit’s competitive position in its industry. Functional strategies aim to maximize resource productivity and are typically set by functional departments within each SBU to improve competencies and performance. Blue Ocean strategies are a form of business level strategies that enable firms Continue reading