The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) defines industrial espionage as “an individual or private business entity sponsorship or coordination of intelligence activity conducted for the purpose of enhancing their advantage in the marketplace.” While this definition may imply Industrial Espionage to be more or less the same as business or competitive intelligence, but there is an essential difference between the two – while business intelligence is generally under private sponsorship using an “open” methodology, espionage may be either government or privately sponsored and clandestine. Industrial Espionage is the process of collecting information and data for the purpose of generating revenue. Generating revenue is very important aspect for these people. They are not thrill seeker, if the compensation does not justify the reward they will not bother attempting to collect the required information. Individuals who commit Industrial Espionage are not looking for information for information sake, but for information that will Continue reading
Modern Management Concepts
Four Types of Entrepreneurs According to Clarence Danhof
An interesting distinction about types of entrepreneurs is the one proposed by the author Clarence Danhof, which classified entrepreneurs into four groups based on economic development. He based his classification on his study of American agriculture, and he observed that entrepreneurs could be classified depending upon the level of willingness to create innovative ideas; so there can be the following types of entrepreneurs: Innovative: an aggressive assemblage and synthesis of information and the analysis of results deriving from new combination of factors of production characterize this type of entrepreneurship. These entrepreneurs have the ability to think newer, better and more economical ideas of business organization and management. They are characterized by the smell of innovativeness, and they are aggressive in experimentation and in putting attractive possibilities into practice. An innovative entrepreneur sees the opportunity for introducing a new technology, a new product or a new market. Schumpeter’s entrepreneur was of Continue reading
Mechanistic Organizational Structure – Definition and Features
The structure of any organization has a clear impact on both employee behavior and its performance. On the other hand, an organizational structure provides an overview about the hierarchy of levels, roles and responsibilities, authorities, communication channels, etc. It is of utmost importance to understand the definition of the organizational structure since it affects both employee behavior and organizational performance. Organizational structure is understood as a method consisting of responsibilities and power allocated amongst members and how work procedures are carried out among them. It also includes the layers of hierarchy, centralization of authority, and horizontal integration. However, an organizational structure is a multi-dimensional construct which illustrates the division of work (roles or responsibilities including specification), departmentalization, centralization, complexity, communication or coordination mechanisms including standardization, formalization and flexibility. An important type of organizational structure can be identified as mechanistic organizational structure. Mechanistic organizational structure is hierarchical and bureaucratic by nature. Continue reading
5 Challenges Faced by Women Entrepreneurs
Women constitute around half of the total world population. So is in India also. They are therefore regarded as the better half of the society. In traditional societies, they were confined to the four walls of houses performing household activities. In modern societies they have come out of the four walls to participate in all sorts of activities. The global evidences prove that women have been performing exceedingly well in different spheres of activities like academics, politics, administration, social work and so on. Now they have started plunging into industry also and running their enterprises successfully. Women entrepreneur is a person who accepts challenging role to meet her personal need and become economically independent. There are economical, social, religious, cultural and other factors existing in the society which responsible for the emergency of the entrepreneurs. Al through small businesses owned by women have traditionally focused on fashion, fond and other Continue reading
Concept of Agile Manufacturing
The Agile Manufacturing was presented in the first time at the publication in the USA of a report entitled 21st Century Manufacturing Enterprise Strategy. So, it has been introduced as a method of increasing competitive advantage in response to increasingly competitive global markets. Agile concept focuses on the fast response to changeable of customer demand. The key component in agile manufacturing is flexibility. The agile manufacturing methods can be adjusted and consolidated into companies of any size to ensure the growth and success. The changeable of customer and technological requirements that make the manufacturers develop agile supply chain capabilities in order to be competitive. So, many companies use the flexibility and agility to respond the customers’ requirement and markets demand in real time. The new concept of agility manufacturing need to secure competitive advantage from the production process that can be both efficient and responsive. Agility can be defined as Continue reading
The Role of External Auditors in Corporate Governance
Corporate governance is a central and dynamic aspect of business. Corporate governance is the relationship among various participants in determining the direction and performance of corporations. The main participants are the shareholders, the management and the board of directors. Corporate governance is the process whereby directors of a company are monitored and controlled. There are two areas considered to be fundamental to corporate governance, one is supervision and monitoring of management performance and the other is ensuring accountability of management to shareholders and other stakeholders. Till now, probably the two most important basic elements of good corporate governance have been “full disclosure” and the presence of independent directors and auditors, who each has their own ways to confirm that the data provided by the corporation are true and fairly stated. The contents of full disclosure are listed out in regulatory demands and professional pronouncements, and companies are expected to fully Continue reading