RMG Industry of Bangladesh

Currently, there are approximately 5000 manufacturing units with a 4. Million work force (Wisped 2012). Bangladesh does not have any natural advantage to flourish in ARM sector except cheap labor (Islam 2012). Undoubtedly, the dedicated work force with relatively low wages is the key driving force in this sector. It gives Bangladesh a competitive edge over the rivals. But unfortunately, employee satisfaction in the ARM sector seems to be fading. Since May 2006, the ARM sector has been beset with very serious labor unrest.The major disputes concern wages, working hours, appointment procedures, forced labor, child labor, health and safety, security, gender discrimination, sexual reassessment and trade unionism. Non-compliance of workplace health, safety and security regulations are prevalent in the industry. Due to hazardous factory environments many workers become sick or injured, or even lose their lives through accidents, fires and stampedes. Both the BAGMEN and the Government are s howing ‘Ostrich-Approach' in this regard, perhaps on the plea of maintaining price competitiveness in the global market.However, recent tragic fire incident at Instructions Étagà ¨re Garments factory has given a wakeup call for both the BAGMEN and the Government. The cancellation of equines ties by the world famous retailer Wall-Mart is seen by many as a disturbing and threatening symptom for ARM sector. At this backdrop, question arises behind the apparent success story of the ARM industry, â€Å"Does the ARM industry in Bangladesh perform its ethical responsibility towards employees? Can we term this industry a successful one? † A clear answer is essential for the continuous growth and sustainability of ARM sector in Bangladesh.This report shall present the answer to the aforementioned questions with considerable details. 1. 2 Objectives The broad objective of this report is to present the performance of the ARM industry f Bangladesh. To do so, we will first eval uate the industry from the traditional concept of business: profit-minimization and growth. Secondly, we will gauge the industry performance from ethical dimension focusing mainly on the workers socio- economic condition. 1. Scope This report will be based on the ARM industry of Bangladesh only.No comparative data will be available about other countries. Also this report will not include the employee rights of other industries in Bangladesh. 1. 4 Limitations Limited timeshare which has affected the survey and interview process Inadequate primary data Confidentiality of information 1. 5 Methodology To achieve an effective result both qualitative and quantitative research has been conducted. Qualitative research, mainly exploratory in nature, was carried out to study the entrepreneurs' ethical responsibility in ARM sector.Some in-depth interviews have been conducted for better understanding of the working conditions at various factories. An extensive literature review has also been ca rried out to collect relevant information on the subject issue. In addition, a survey was conducted on a sample size of 25 respondents using random sampling technique. This has helped in ascertaining the compliance of employee right as per law. Data analysis and presentation has been conducted as per frequency analysis method.Primary Data: Primary data for this research work includes the following- Case study of randomly selected garments workers Survey of the workers with a set of questionnaire Structured interview with legal and human right experts Unstructured interview with few top level managers of garments industry including BAGMEN officials Secondary Data: Review of related articles, books and research works on ARM sector of Bangladesh Online Journals and company websites Available official data from BAGMEN . Literature Review There is no universally accepted definition of ethics.It varies from culture to culture, society to society and of course, from industry to industry. T he principles, values, and beliefs that define right and wrong decisions and behavior can be termed as ethics (Robbins 2010. P. 101). Moreover, ethical values relate to what is right and wrong, and thus take precedence over non-ethical values when making ethical decisions (Powers 2012). A simpler yet comprehensive definition of ethical conduct is given by Bertrand Russell. He says, â€Å"An ethical person ought to do more than he is required to do and sees than he is allowed to do. The common perception about Bangladesh garments industry portrays one apparent success story. M. Surreal Islam in his write-up titled Wakeup Call for Government and ARM Sector Leaders' praises the ARM sector entrepreneurs. He considers that they have done a lot to be proud. They have given Bangladesh economy its biggest boost. With it over 5000 factories the industry employs nearly 5 million workers, and has been a basic factor of women empowerment in the country. However, the writer also expressed his c oncern over the low wage of the workers in the industry in the name of price-competitiveness.He mentions that the ARM workers receive IIS$ 45 monthly payment today at their entry level. The writer compares such low wages and the associated working conditions as a case of slave labor (Islam 2012. P-11). Md. Joanna Abiding in his research paper titled ‘Overall Problems and Prospects of Bangladesh ARM Industry expressed his concern over the labor disturbances in ARM sector of Bangladesh. He mentions that garment workers remain one of the hardest working segments of the labor force in Bangladesh. Their working conditions and benefits must improve as the industry matures.Abiding recommends that investing in worker-training and in improved irking conditions will certainly enhance productivity and growth. The writer urges that the factory owners must be proactive instead of being reactive regarding this important issue (Abiding 2008). Following the recent Unchristian Étagà ¨re G arments Tragedy, The Wall Street Journal's editorial page writer Joseph Sternberg expressed his deep concern over the lack of ethical responsibility in the ARM industry of Bangladesh. In his article, appropriately titled â€Å"Why Dacha Keeps Burning† the writer has flagged what is wrong in the industry.He mentions that ARM industry in Bangladesh is inefficiently and insufficiently developing. The writer criticizes special labor rules, including a ban on unionization, and regulated pay rates that depress wages in the name of competitiveness. Finally, he brands Bangladesh ARM industry as a ‘Monster Industry that now threatens to â€Å"devour† the government. 3. Business Performance from Traditional View 3. 1 The Growth of ARM Industry ARM industry is the biggest homegrown commercial success story till date in Bangladesh. The industry has significant contribution in employment generation, poverty alleviation and women empowerment.As a garment producer for the globa l market, at present Bangladesh ranks second, behind China only. More than four million workers, mostly women, are employed in approximately 5,000 garment factories. This sector has acted as an engine behind the country economic growth. Undoubtedly, the industry has made a significant socio-economic impact in contemporary Bangladesh. 3. 2 Profit Minimization: The Traditional Purpose of Business At present ARM industry earns around IIS$19 billion per year which accounts for approximately 80% of country total exports and around 17% of total economic output (Sternberg 2012).The percentage of ARM export to the total export of Bangladesh in last ten years is shown on the chart below: Figure-I: Percentage of ARM Export to the Total Export Source: Statistics Department, Bangladesh Bank. 3. 3 Potentials for Rapid Growth of Bangladesh ARM Industry McKinney & Company; a reputed global management consulting firm predicts that Bangladesh ARM exports will grow double by 201 5, and nearly triple by 2020 (McKinney 2011. P-22). Bangladesh is widely expected to become the top producer replacing China by virtue of its price competitiveness and capacity.The industry is expected to expand up to IIS$ 50 billion by next ten years. McKinney initiated a case study to know about the sourcing preference of the European and US apparel companies, accounting for IIS$ 46 billion in total sourcing value. They conducted an extensive interview based survey where the respondents were the Chief Purchasing Officers (COP) of the leading apparel players in Europe and US. Due to the rising labor cost in China, most of the buyers now consider Bangladesh as their alternative source. While China was once considered â€Å"the place to be† for sourcing, the light is starting to shine ever brighter on Bangladesh.For most Cops, Bangladesh will be the No-I sourcing hot spot over the next 5 years. (McKinney 2011. P-4). The result of the survey is shown below: Figure-2: Sourcing Preference of European and US Apparel Companies Source: McKinney COP Survey, September-November 2011 So, from the traditional understanding of business, the ARM industry of Bangladesh can surely be called as a successful one. 4. Performance of ARM Industry from Ethical Dimension 4. 1 Compliance of Safety and Health Regulations The recent Unchristian Étagà ¨re Garments fire accident at Savor claimed 112 lives.They were burnt alive inside the factory while they were working to earn their bread and butter. The most serious part of the tragedy was that the workers were locked inside a steel gate at each floor even after the fire went out of control. The fire service trucks and the equipment could not reach timely as the access road was built on agricultural land. These are serious flaws in compliance that BAGMEN officials tried to explain off later. Almost similar compliance failure is found in many of the factories till now.Compliances required factories to have two staircases to be built in each floor , and also to have a fulfillment doctor for the medical service to the workers. But most of the factories are yet to achieve that (Islam 2012). 4. 2 Maternity Leave: A Basic Woman Right Majority of the ARM workers in Bangladesh are women. They are often fondly called ‘Pashas Joana'; the daughters of garments. Everyone in the industry recognizes that ARM industry survives, and grows with their sweat. We wanted to know the industry performance about one of the basic need in every woman's life: Maternity Leave.Finding of our survey is shown below: Figure-3: Compliance of Maternity Leave in ARM Industry Source: Survey Conducted for the Research. 4. 3 The Issue of ‘Minimum Wage' It is, if not, the most controversial, at least, the most discussed issue regarding employee right in the ARM sector of Bangladesh. Tripartite body with representatives from Government, BAGMEN and Workers' Association agreed with the minimum wage of TX 3500. Most of the factories were also found compl iant with this wage policy. We initiated a case study to have a feel' of this minimum wage.One three member family; a couple with a 2 years baby was selected where both the spouses were ARM workers. Their monthly income was TX 9400. We made a balance sheet of their monthly earning and expenditure. Table-I : Balance Sheet of ARM Workers' Earning and Expenditure-A Case Study Earning Expenditure Husband 5200 House Rent 3500 Wife 4200 Baby Food 1 500 Medicare and others 1 oho Total earning Total expenditure 11000 *They often compromise with the bare minimum food they expect to eat to live It reminds the Bertrand Russet's saying, ‘An ethical person ought to do more than he is required to do. Surely, the entrepreneurs in ARM industry can do more than what they are doing for the ARM workers. And, mere compliance with the minimum wage policy is not ethical. 4. 4 Enforced Labor Mr. Safaris Islam, the president of BAGMEN said in an interview on AY Jazzier television that there is no enf orced overtime in Bangladesh ARM industry. However, our finding contradicts what the top man of BAGMEN claimed on international media. Enforced overtime is a common practice in many of the garments manufacturing units.The factory owners tried to Justify that they are sometime compelled to do so to meet the buyers' timeline as supply of raw material often gets delayed due to poor infrastructure in Bangladesh. The state of enforced labor in ARM industry of Bangladesh is shown in the next page: Figure-4: Forced Labor in ARM Industry 5. Conclusions Many have labeled the recent unrest in the ARM industry as a conspiracy to destroy the potentials that Bangladesh enjoys. However, we feel that there is no a conspiracy theories, but disturbances in the ARM sector.These disturbances are the legitimate outpouring of the frustrations of those whose sweat makes a IIS$ 20 billion earning for our nation. From the classical business concept of making money, we can surely term the ARM industry a suc cessful one. But, when we look at it from the ethical dimension, the performance appears to be ‘dark which is evident from the poor socio-economic condition of the ARM workers. They are living a life where even the basic physiological needs are not met. If a US$ 20 billion industry fails to uplift the workers lives above the level of ‘slavery, as many term it, that cannot be called successful.

African American Stereotypes in the Media

Jakaya McCambry 10/02/12 African American Stereotypes in the Media When I first heard someone say, â€Å"All African American people are Ghetto,† I was very offended that someone would make this type of assumption about my culture, and I thought how ignorant this person must be; but then I stopped and wondered why other people would think this about us. I asked her why she would say something like this, and she instantly listed shows like Tosh. O and Chelsea Lately, which highlight my culture in a negative view.It was clear to me that she had made up her mind about black people through watching the media and seeing African Americans fulfill that stereotype in person. This led me to question: Where exactly do these stereotypes come from? Are African American stereotypes still apparent in the media? What shows, movies, etc have made others portray our race as â€Å"Ghetto† or other lists of stereotypes? Are there any solutions to stop African American stereotypes? When we subscribe to the belief that groups of member are expected to possess certain characteristics, we are engaging stereotypes.When these groups are evaluated based on what the perceiver believes the target ought to be, judgments are made. These judgments concerning these individuals, based on their membership in a group or judgments made about people are not particularly based on facts. Stereotypes about our race dates all the way back to slavery. The beliefs that we were dishonest, promiscuous, and violent were evident during slavery of our black race. More recently the media sets the tone for morals, values, info about our culture; leading people to believe everything they see on TV including black stereotypes.It is a fact that one out of three people are said to have more than one TV in their house, which shows that media is a source for how people form perceptions about people (Tosi 13). Perception thus becomes a reality to people, and once people perceive it, stereotyping is born . Stereotyping of African Americans in the media has stemmed from how the media has presented African Americans to the world. There is a theory by George Gerbner that states, â€Å"Individuals who frequently watch high contents of television will begin to believe that they are living in a world similar to what is portrayed on the screen (Gerbner&Gross, 1976). It is the idea that whether something is being portrayed as negative or positive on television, most people will believe it. There is a fact which says that about six percent of African Americans are seen in comedies and dramas (Tosi 14). Within that category, they are mostly illustrated as being lazy, loud, uneducated and poor. For example, in movies like The Color Purple and shows like Good Times demonstrates negative perceptions of our race. On the other hand, shows like The Cosby show and Fresh prince of Bel Aire try and broaden the viewer’s idea of a typical â€Å"black† family.These shows highlight black pe ople living a very high class, educated, wealthy lifestyle. And so, as we see, the media ultimately controls how our race as they perceived, whether it is negative or positive. Since the media has a strong influence on the people’s perceptions of each other, they are the real deciding factor on how to solve the problem of stereotyping. We could possibly find solutions by matching every negative stereotype with a positive one, so that the good and bad cancel each other out.This is just a start; we want it so that when other cultures look at us, degrading stereotypes pertaining to our race will not come to mind. I believe we as inviduals also have the power to choose not to conform to our own stereotypes. Bordewich once said, â€Å" Only by abandoning many long-held, lovingly-held, myths and fantasies; we will become able to shape a healthy rational policy for people’s whose real life s far more complex and interesting, than our persistent fantasies. † So although the entertainment in the media may be interesting, we as a culture need to lead and be as catalyst in ending these demeaning stereotypes.Stereotypes can be good or bad, but given the evidence from my research on this topic, I can conclude that most African American stereotypes are negative. The way entertainment in the media portrays us has greatly affected how others identify us. Movies and shows like; Madea’s family Reunion, Bringing down the House, Love and Hip Hop, and Basketball Wives all portray us in a degrading way. People sometimes find it comical of course, but the fact that it is comical does not justify it being debasing. This image of us has evolved from things in the media, and its’ power to shape people’s idea of us.We as a race must stop living up to our stereotypes. As soon as we take action in not succumbing to our own stereotype, people will not think we are â€Å"Ghetto† or any other undignified term they think of us; therefore in the media we won’t be perceived in that way. As Colin Powell once said, â€Å"Fit no stereotypes. Don't chase the latest management fads. The situation dictates which approach best accomplishes the team's mission. † Although African American stereotyping is prevalent in the media now because of its’ entertaining quality; it perpetuates a cycle of harmful stereotypes.As long as this cycle continues, our culture will always be illustrated negatively. Works Cited Dixon, Travis L. â€Å"Network News And Racial Beliefs: Exploring The Connection Between National Television News Exposure And Stereotypical Perceptions Of African Americans. †Ã‚  Journal Of Communication  58. 2 (2008): 321-337. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Oct. 2012 Horton, Yurii, Eric Brown, and Raagen Price. â€Å"PORTRAYAL OF MINORITIES IN THE FILM, MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRIES. †Ã‚  PORTRAYAL OF MINORITIES IN THE FILM, MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRIES.Ethics of Development in a Global Environment (EDGE), 1 June 1999. Web. 02 Oct. 2012. . Retirethechief. â€Å"Stereotypes and Symbolism: Images Can Hurt. †Ã‚  Stereotypes and Symbolism: Images Can Hurt. RetireTheChief. org, May 2003. Web. 02 Oct. 2012. . Sanders, Meghan S. , and Srividya Ramasubramanian. â€Å"An Examination Of African Americans' Stereotyped Perceptions Of Fictional Media Characters. †Ã‚  Howard Journal Of Communications  23. (2012): 17-39. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Oct. 2012. Tosi, Paula. â€Å"Thinking About What We See: Using Media Literacy To Examine Images Of African Americans On Television. †Ã‚  Black History Bulletin  74. 1 (2011): 13-20. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Oct. 2012. Ramasubramanian, Srividya, and Mary Beth Oliver. â€Å"Activating And Suppressing Hostile And Benevolent Racism: Evidence For Comparative Media Stereotyping. †Ã‚  Media Psychology  9. 3 (2007): 623-646. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. Moon J. Lee, Shannon L . Bichard, Meagan S. Irey, Heather M. Walt & Alana J.Carlson, (2009)Television Viewing and Ethnic Stereotypes: Do College Students Form Stereotypical Perceptions of Ethnic Groups as a Result of Heavy Television Consumption?. Howard Journal of Communications 20:1, pages 95-110. Bradley W. Gorham, (2006) News Media's Relationship With Stereotyping: The Linguistic Intergroup Bias in Response to Crime News. Journal of Communication 56:2, pages 289-308. C. Mo Bahk & Fred E. Jandt, (2004)  Being White in America: Development of a Scale. Howard Journal of Communications 15:1, pages 57-68. â€Å"Stereotypes In Media. †Ã‚  Stereotypes In Media. N. p. , n. d.Web. 19 Nov. 2012. . Monique Kloosterman, et al. â€Å"‘Shake It Baby, Shake It': Media Preferences, Sexual Attitudes And Gender Stereotypes Among Adolescents. †Ã‚  Sex Roles  63. 11/12 (2010): 844-859. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. Hutchison, Phillip J. â€Å"Reexamining Jack Johnson, Stereotypes, A nd America's White Press, 1908–1915. †Ã‚  Howard Journal Of Communications23. 3 (2012): 215-234. Academic Search Premier. Web. 14 Nov. 2012 Pickering, Michael. â€Å"Sex In The Sun: Racial Stereotypes And Tabloid News.   Social Semiotics  18. 3 (2008): 363-375. Academic Search Premier. Web. 14 Nov. 2012. Li Chen, et al. â€Å"Male Mammies: A Social-Comparison Perspective On How Exaggeratedly Overweight Media Portrayals Of Madea, Rasputia, And Big Momma Affect How Black Women Feel About Themselves. †Ã‚  Mass Communication & Society  15. 1 (2012): 115-135. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. Hermes, Joke. â€Å"On Stereotypes, Media And Redressing Gendered Social Inequality. †Ã‚  Contemporary Readings In Law & Social Justice  2. 2 (2011): 181-187. Academic Search Premier. Web. 12 Nov. 2012.

Purpose and Importance of Business Communication

B USINESS C OMMUNICATION : A N I NTRODUCTION 1. 1 I NTRODUCTION 1. 2 R OLE OF C OMMUNICATION IN B USINESS 1. 3 D EFINITIONS OF C OMMUNICATION 1. 4 P URPOSE OF C OMMUNICATION 1. 5 T HE C OMMUNICATION S ITUATION 1. 6 T HE C OMMUNICATION P ROCESS /C YCLE 1. 1 INTRODUCTION The word â€Å"communication† derived from the Latin word ‘communicare’ that means to impart, to participate, to share or to make common. It is a process of exchange of facts, ideas, opinions and as a means that individual or organization share meaning and understanding with one another.In other words, it is a transmission and interacting the facts, ideas, opinion, feeling and attitudes. It is the ability of mankind to communicate across barriers and beyond boundaries that has ushered the progress of mankind. It is the ability of fostering speedy and effective communication around the world that has shrunk the world and made ‘globalization’ a reality. Communication had a vital role to p lay in ensuring that people belonging to a particular country or a culture or linguistic group interact with and relate to people belonging to other countries or culture or linguistic group.Communication adds meaning to human life. It helps to build relationship and fosters love and understanding. It enriches our knowledge of the universe and makes living worthwhile. 1. 2 ROLE OF COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS The term business communication is used for all messages that we send and receive for official purpose like running a business, managing an organization, conducting the formal affairs of a voluntary organization and so on. Business communication is marked by formality as against personal and social communication.The success of any business to a large extent depends on efficient and effective communication. It takes place among business entities, in market and market places, within organizations and between various group of employees, owners and employees, buyers and sellers, servic e providers and customers, sales persons and prospects and also between people within the organization and the press 2 / Business Communication  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦ persons. All such communication impacts business. Done with care, such communication can promote business interests.Otherwise, it will portray the organization in poor light and may adversely affect the business interest. Communication is the life blood of any organization and its main purpose is to effect change to influence action. In any organization the main problem is of maintaining effective communication process. The management problem generally results in poor communication. Serious mistakes are made because orders are misunderstood. The basic problem in communication is that the meaning which is actually understood may not be what the other intended to send.It must be realised that the speaker and the listener are two separate individuals having their own limit ations and number of things may happen to distort the message that pass between them. When people within the organization communicate with each other, it is internal communication. They do so to work as a team and realise the common goals. It could be official or unofficial. Modes of internal communication include face-to-face and written communication. Memos, reports, office order, circular, fax, video conferencing, meeting etc. re the examples of internal communication. When people in the organization communicate with anyone outside the organization it is called external communication. These people may be clients or customers, dealers or distributors, media, government, general public etc. are the examples of external communication. †¢ Communication is the life blood of the business. No business can develop in the absence of effective communication system. †¢ Communication is the mortar that holds an organization together, whatever its business or its size. †¢When p eople within the organization communicate with each other, it is internal communi- cation and when people in the organization communicate with anyone outside the organization it is called external communication. †¢ Ability to work well in teams, to manage your subordinates and your relationship with seniors, customers and colleagues depends on your communication skill. Exhibit : 1 1. 3 DEFINITIONS OF COMMUNICATION Communication may be defined as interchange of thought or information between two or more persons to bring about mutual understanding and desired action.It is the information exchange by words or symbols. It is the exchange of facts, ideas and viewpoints which bring about commonness of interest, purpose and efforts. American Management Association defines, ‘Communication is any behaviour that results in an exchange of meaning’. Peter Little defines communication as, ‘Communication is the process by which information is transmitted between individual s and/or organizations so that an understanding response result’. Newman and Summer Jr. state that, ‘Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or more persons’.According to Keith Davis , ‘The process of passing the information and understanding from one person to another. It is essentially a bridge of meaning between the people. By using the bridge a person can safely across the river of misunderstanding’.  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦ Business Communication : An Introduction / 3 Louis A. Allen defines, ‘Communication is the sum total of all the things that a person does, when he wants to create an understanding in the mind of another. It involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening and understanding’.Therefore, the main purpose of communication is to inform, or to bring around to a certain point of view or to elicit action. 1. 4 PURPOSE OF C OMMUNICATION 1. For instruction: The instructive function unvarying and importantly deals with the commanding nature. It is more or less of directive nature. Under this, the communicator transmits with necessary directives and guidance to the next level, so as to enable them to accomplish his particular tasks. In this, instructions basically flow from top to the lower level. 2. For integration: It is consolidated function under which integration of activities is endeavoured.The integration function of communication mainly involves to bring about inter-relationship among the various functions of the business organization. It helps in the unification of different management functions. 3. For information: The purposes or function of communication in an organization is to inform the individual or group about the particular task or company policies and procedures etc. Top management informs policies to the lower level through the middle level. In turn, the lower level informs the top lev el the reaction through the middle level.Information can flow vertically, horizontally and diagonally across the organization. Becoming informed or inform others is the main purpose of communication. 4. For evaluation: Examination of activities to form an idea or judgement of the worth of task is achieved through communication. Communication is a tool to appraise the individual or team, their contribution to the organization. Evaluating one’s own inputs or other’s outputs or some ideological scheme demands an adequate and effective communication process. 5. For direction:Communication is necessary to issue directions by the top management or manager to the lower level. Employee can perform better when he is directed by his senior. Directing others may be communicated either orally or in writing. An order may be common order, request order or implied order. 6. For teaching: The importance of personal safety on the job has been greatly recognized. A complete communicatio n process is required to teach and educate workers about personal safety on the jobs. This communication helps the workers to avert accidents, risk etc. and avoid cost, procedures etc. 7. For influencing:A complete communication process is necessary in influencing others or being influenced. The individual having potential to influence others can easily persuade others. It implies the provision of feedback which tells the effect of communication. 8. For image building: A business enterprise cannot isolate from the rest of the society. There is interrelationship and interdependence between the society and an enterprise operating in the society. Goodwill and confidence are necessarily created among the public. It can be done by the communication with the different media, which has to project the image of th Purpose and Importance of Business Communication B USINESS C OMMUNICATION : A N I NTRODUCTION 1. 1 I NTRODUCTION 1. 2 R OLE OF C OMMUNICATION IN B USINESS 1. 3 D EFINITIONS OF C OMMUNICATION 1. 4 P URPOSE OF C OMMUNICATION 1. 5 T HE C OMMUNICATION S ITUATION 1. 6 T HE C OMMUNICATION P ROCESS /C YCLE 1. 1 INTRODUCTION The word â€Å"communication† derived from the Latin word ‘communicare’ that means to impart, to participate, to share or to make common. It is a process of exchange of facts, ideas, opinions and as a means that individual or organization share meaning and understanding with one another.In other words, it is a transmission and interacting the facts, ideas, opinion, feeling and attitudes. It is the ability of mankind to communicate across barriers and beyond boundaries that has ushered the progress of mankind. It is the ability of fostering speedy and effective communication around the world that has shrunk the world and made ‘globalization’ a reality. Communication had a vital role to p lay in ensuring that people belonging to a particular country or a culture or linguistic group interact with and relate to people belonging to other countries or culture or linguistic group.Communication adds meaning to human life. It helps to build relationship and fosters love and understanding. It enriches our knowledge of the universe and makes living worthwhile. 1. 2 ROLE OF COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS The term business communication is used for all messages that we send and receive for official purpose like running a business, managing an organization, conducting the formal affairs of a voluntary organization and so on. Business communication is marked by formality as against personal and social communication.The success of any business to a large extent depends on efficient and effective communication. It takes place among business entities, in market and market places, within organizations and between various group of employees, owners and employees, buyers and sellers, servic e providers and customers, sales persons and prospects and also between people within the organization and the press 2 / Business Communication  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦ persons. All such communication impacts business. Done with care, such communication can promote business interests.Otherwise, it will portray the organization in poor light and may adversely affect the business interest. Communication is the life blood of any organization and its main purpose is to effect change to influence action. In any organization the main problem is of maintaining effective communication process. The management problem generally results in poor communication. Serious mistakes are made because orders are misunderstood. The basic problem in communication is that the meaning which is actually understood may not be what the other intended to send.It must be realised that the speaker and the listener are two separate individuals having their own limit ations and number of things may happen to distort the message that pass between them. When people within the organization communicate with each other, it is internal communication. They do so to work as a team and realise the common goals. It could be official or unofficial. Modes of internal communication include face-to-face and written communication. Memos, reports, office order, circular, fax, video conferencing, meeting etc. re the examples of internal communication. When people in the organization communicate with anyone outside the organization it is called external communication. These people may be clients or customers, dealers or distributors, media, government, general public etc. are the examples of external communication. †¢ Communication is the life blood of the business. No business can develop in the absence of effective communication system. †¢ Communication is the mortar that holds an organization together, whatever its business or its size. †¢When p eople within the organization communicate with each other, it is internal communi- cation and when people in the organization communicate with anyone outside the organization it is called external communication. †¢ Ability to work well in teams, to manage your subordinates and your relationship with seniors, customers and colleagues depends on your communication skill. Exhibit : 1 1. 3 DEFINITIONS OF COMMUNICATION Communication may be defined as interchange of thought or information between two or more persons to bring about mutual understanding and desired action.It is the information exchange by words or symbols. It is the exchange of facts, ideas and viewpoints which bring about commonness of interest, purpose and efforts. American Management Association defines, ‘Communication is any behaviour that results in an exchange of meaning’. Peter Little defines communication as, ‘Communication is the process by which information is transmitted between individual s and/or organizations so that an understanding response result’. Newman and Summer Jr. state that, ‘Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or more persons’.According to Keith Davis , ‘The process of passing the information and understanding from one person to another. It is essentially a bridge of meaning between the people. By using the bridge a person can safely across the river of misunderstanding’.  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦Ã‚ ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦  ¦ Business Communication : An Introduction / 3 Louis A. Allen defines, ‘Communication is the sum total of all the things that a person does, when he wants to create an understanding in the mind of another. It involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening and understanding’.Therefore, the main purpose of communication is to inform, or to bring around to a certain point of view or to elicit action. 1. 4 PURPOSE OF C OMMUNICATION 1. For instruction: The instructive function unvarying and importantly deals with the commanding nature. It is more or less of directive nature. Under this, the communicator transmits with necessary directives and guidance to the next level, so as to enable them to accomplish his particular tasks. In this, instructions basically flow from top to the lower level. 2. For integration: It is consolidated function under which integration of activities is endeavoured.The integration function of communication mainly involves to bring about inter-relationship among the various functions of the business organization. It helps in the unification of different management functions. 3. For information: The purposes or function of communication in an organization is to inform the individual or group about the particular task or company policies and procedures etc. Top management informs policies to the lower level through the middle level. In turn, the lower level informs the top lev el the reaction through the middle level.Information can flow vertically, horizontally and diagonally across the organization. Becoming informed or inform others is the main purpose of communication. 4. For evaluation: Examination of activities to form an idea or judgement of the worth of task is achieved through communication. Communication is a tool to appraise the individual or team, their contribution to the organization. Evaluating one’s own inputs or other’s outputs or some ideological scheme demands an adequate and effective communication process. 5. For direction:Communication is necessary to issue directions by the top management or manager to the lower level. Employee can perform better when he is directed by his senior. Directing others may be communicated either orally or in writing. An order may be common order, request order or implied order. 6. For teaching: The importance of personal safety on the job has been greatly recognized. A complete communicatio n process is required to teach and educate workers about personal safety on the jobs. This communication helps the workers to avert accidents, risk etc. and avoid cost, procedures etc. 7. For influencing:A complete communication process is necessary in influencing others or being influenced. The individual having potential to influence others can easily persuade others. It implies the provision of feedback which tells the effect of communication. 8. For image building: A business enterprise cannot isolate from the rest of the society. There is interrelationship and interdependence between the society and an enterprise operating in the society. Goodwill and confidence are necessarily created among the public. It can be done by the communication with the different media, which has to project the image of th

Electronic and Mobile Commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Electronic and Mobile Commerce - Essay Example In response to the growing need for mobility by consumers, mobile commerce emerged out of e-commerce. According to Tarasewich, Nickerson and Warkentin (2002), M-commerce is â€Å"the ability to conduct commerce, using a mobile device, e.g. a mobile phone, while on the move.† in order to remain relevant most organization strive to establish their presence online, which as become a major competitive tool with the ever changing consumer behavior in the competition-ridden market. This paper explores tools and skills necessary to implement electronic and M-commerce in business. There are numerous sites, such as Google places, that present the chance for business organization to connect with their target market online. Such tools enable the company to stay online making possible to draw a large audience for the business. The organization should stick with chosen sites that are popular and not bother with many others. The organization can decide to stick with Facebook and Twitter, which are supposedly the most popular social media sites. Photographs tend to draw more attention than status updates. They are usually vivid, precise and welcomed by many users of social media. The fashion and music industries can reap big from using photography approach rather than posting mere status updates. Nonetheless, organizations in other industries can also make use of this approach by posting pictures of their products. This approach is likely to attract a large number of online communities into the organization. The second way to create an online presence for an organization is through creation of a website. A properly designed website can be a crucial marketing tool that can instill confidence in the business process and also act as an online storefront. All prosperous online business organizations have a fundamental platform that connects all social media profiles. The company’s website should appear formal, certified and established. To gain popularity, an organization

The Effects of Equal Employment oppertunity legislation Research Paper

The Effects of Equal Employment oppertunity legislation - Research Paper Example The Act intended to eliminate discrimination in all areas of life overcoming the past unequal orthodox social set up. For the enforcement of these laws Congress established the enforcement authority EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunities Commission). The laws currently enforced by the EEOC include Title VII of the Civil Right Act 1964, the amendment which appears in volume 42 of the US code. It prohibits employment discrimination based on color, race, religion, sex and national origin. Other laws related to the EEO legislation are Equal Pay Act of 1963, Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, Americans with disabilities act of 1990, Civil Rights Act of 1991, Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The laws cover all areas of possible discriminations like age, disability, national origin, race, religion, sex, and also ensure the prevention of sexual harassment and retaliation. The laws also insist to implement equal payment system with out any discrimination (Federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Laws). All these legislations brought about drastic changes in US labor market. The enforcement of these la ws has altered the social context of hiring, firing and promoting. It covers all areas of employee – employer relationship from advertising, open position through termination or retirement. The law insists that the disabled also must be given opportunities based on their education and other skills. The EEO legislation has proved how the diversity qualities like age, race, religion, sex etc. can be utilized by an organization as their support of business objectives. Teams or organizations with greater diversity enjoy the availability of a richer set of ideas, perspectives and approaches to deal a business issue. Many employers today get benefited by the talented segments of work force in the competitive global economy. Diversity provides the possibility for greater innovation and

Sales management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Sales management - Essay Example To make matters worse, various selling jobs in the same organization can involve very different tasks and the tasks may vary between organizations in the same industry (1996). Thus, to give a clear picture of what is expected out of new hires, sales training is important. To explain the personal and professional characteristics necessary for a successful sales career: New hires expect to know the growth path in the organization and also the requirements to progress on the growth path. Sales training involves the training on aspects such as personal characteristics attitude, role perception, skill refinement and professionalism which chart the progress of employees on growth path. To enthuse the new employee to pick-up quickly: A new employee is often uncertain of the environment/culture and working of the organization. Hence, it is important to enthuse the new employee with a training which will clear his doubts about the working and climb the learning curves speedily. To motivate the employees: One of the biggest challenges employers face is keeping staff morale high and enthusiasm up. Sales trainings will not only improve the knowledge base of the employees but add to the feeling that they are valued. This will result in making their sales call more effective, and also increasing their confidence & earning potential (Penistone 2002) . To impart the latest tactics or knowledge on current/ future market practices: The market place keeps evolving and competitors keep coming up with new ideas which should be either countered or emulated in an effort to stay in the race. With the daily routine job, sales people often miss to keep a tab on new and famous in the market. Hence, sales training is important to teach the existing employees the latest tactics in sales. To encourage specialization: Sales trainings, if carefully crafted, encourage sales persons to choose a line of sales

School History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 18

School History - Essay Example   I am a member of Biology Society, which has consisted of those who have the deep interest in biology and medical science. As a part of the society, I have organized and participated in meetings with health organizations to learn more about human anatomy and other biological issues. My strong interest in economics led me to become a member of Economics and Finance Society of Rutgers, which is an organization, offers many seminars with executives from recognizable corporations such as JP Morgan. The American Student Dental Association for pre-dental and dental students has helped me immensely to prepare for the dental school. I am also a part of the Pre Health Society which works closely with Biology Society and arrange meetings among medical and dental students to help us excel in our careers. Being a member of Student Doctors Society, which consists of medical and pre-medical students, I was able to participate in programmes in which we could exchange information about experiences within medical field. I worked as a sales representative in a telecommunication industry and learned to interact with various kinds of people. I worked as a floor director at Korean Broadcasting System. My job was to support PD. It is one of the most important positions to keep productions flow. I have also worked for Japan Camera Repair, which required me to have highly skilled hand-eye coordination as it dealt with many minute components of cameras. I will wake as a tutor to teach biology students at Rutgers University and hope to get chances to interact more with professors and students through learning and teaching.

The Age of Revolution 1789-1849 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Age of Revolution 1789-1849 - Essay Example Along with the common for many countries of Europe task – the destruction of the feudal rule, which was slowing down the development of capitalism – the revolutionary movement in the certain countries had the special purposes as well. Revolution proceeded differently depending on the situation, on historical conditions and a ratio of class forces. In France where with feudalism and absolutism came to the end during the revolution of 1789-1794, the overthrow of exclusive domination of the financial aristocracy and the establishment of domination of bourgeoisie class was an objective problem of the revolution of 1848-1849. In Germany, the main goal of the revolution was the elimination of political dissociation, creation of the state unity. In Italy, the same task was supplemented with a problem of release of northern part of the country from the Austrian dominion. In Austria, the revolution of 1848-1849 had to finish a reactionary system of Habsburg monarchy and release the oppressed people from national enslavement Active participation of working class, which in the majority of the countries was the main driving force of the revolution, was the main feature of events of 1789-1849. In 1848 the working class for the first time in the history of revolutions declared its political and economic requirements, for the first time in such extensive scale showed itself as a special class, essentially hostile not only to feudal but also bourgeois rule

Magic Realism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Magic Realism - Research Paper Example The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende is a text peopled by characters with magical capabilities. Characters, such as Clara, are endowed with uncanny, spiritual ability such as clairvoyance, interpretation of dreams, and telekinesis (moving objects with the mind). In the novel, writing is not a mere activity. It becomes a spiritual affair in which the writer undergoes a catharsis or inner purging, wielding the power of the pen. Clara records her dreams and spiritual encounters to be passed down to future generations. In this world, â€Å"conventional resources were not everything† (Conniff 1990). Spirits aid man in a mutually beneficial relationship. She relates well with the good spirits and they abide in her home, giving her a contentment that nothing material could bring. Characters can see the apparition of ghosts and experience comforting spirits participating in daily life so much so that the residents of the home accept them as normal. The paranormal constantly take s place in the novel. For example, Clara miraculously finds the lost head of her mother who accidentally gets decapitated. The spirits reveal to her the head's exact location when no one could retrieve it.  The punctuation of the novel with magic and surreal occurrences impresses on the mind the intersection of the spiritual world (embodied as Clara) and the material (embodied as Esteban).   In Monkey Beach, Lisa, the protagonist equally has phenomenal spiritual ability to foresee events through dreams before they come to pass. In the Haisla culture in Canada, the Native Indians cherish the culture of supernatural consciousness and communication with dead ancestors. Ma-Ma-Oo, Lisa’s grandmother, appreciates Lisa’s unusual gift and teaches her how to sharpen and control it. In magical realism novels, the presence of older generations is indispensable because the work â€Å"is the simultaneous impetus of atavism and modernism† (Gish 1990). Lisa learns about he r sixth sense and later ‘sees’ a vision of her dead brother relaying an urgent message to her. Lisa also receives a vision that her best friend has died. Magical realism is woven into Monkey Beach not only through Lisa, but also through the old witch, Screwy Ruby, Sasquatch (an fabled animal from another world) and a strange little man who appears to Lisa whenever something imminent is about to take place. These personas are gifted with premonitions and foretelling. Some of Lisa’s family members also have strains of her spiritual gift but choose to deny it. Setting is key in structuring a text with magical realism. In One Hundred Years of Solitude, the setting is a fantastic, timeless village called Macondo, whose inhabitants are immortal. Setting not only signifies space, but also time. Time laws in magical realism works operate outside of the normal sphere. â€Å"Time is curved and coincidental in a whole moment that is outside of clock time† (Rabassa 19 73). Marquez’ title emphasizes a timelessness which also points to an otherworldliness. Gabriel Garcia Marquez describes the Macondo village as a place untainted and uncorrupted by

Lord Of The Flies Chapter 5 Essay Example for Free

Lord Of The Flies Chapter 5 Essay The boys life has deteriorated a lot since they first arrived on the island and from the look of the situation things can only get worse unless they change their behaviour and attitude . There is a lot of conflict between Ralph and Jack, the fear of the unknown is growing, the boys are turning into savages and becoming more uncivilised by the day, rules and taboos are being disobeyed and ignored, and bullying and rivalry is becoming more of a problem. The conflict between Ralph and Jack is causing a lot of tension in the group and is therefore affecting the boys lives. It has already divided them into separate groups with different priorities as some have followed Jack and some have followed Ralph. Jack and Ralphs different priorities is the main reason for the conflict between them as they are completely opposite. Jack wants control and started of wanting to be leader but was out done by Ralph who was voted the leader. Jack is short tempered and very big headed where as Ralph is realistic, kind hearted and organised. Ralphs main priority is to be rescued and have fun have fun on the island. Their relationship is described in the book as two continents of experience and baffled in love and hate. Their personality also clash as they are completely different. Ralph is optimistic, respectful, fair, practical and naà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ve, where as Jack is arrogant, boastful, power hungry, self centred, easily angered and brutal. The boys fear of the unknown is represented in different ways but is rapidly growing and could get out of hand. It started of as being a beastie, then a snake like creature, and now a beast from water or even a ghost. At first it was only the litluns that were scared of the beastie and believed it existed but now the older boys are starting to get worried and have their doubts so none of the quite knows what to believe. Even Ralph has his doubts about what the thing is and he is supposed to be leader, I dont believe in ghosts at least I dont think so. This comment from Ralph shows that he is now considering there being some type of creature on the island even though he just dismissed the idea at the beginning. Deterioration has also been caused by the boys becoming totally uncivilised and turning into savages. Although they are now looking like savages as their hair has grown, Jack is mainly responsible for them turning into savages. He was so obsessed with hunting to kill that he influenced the other boys that became his hunters. At the beginning they hunted but did not manage to kill for a ling time. Then when Jack finally did he became even more obsessed and made masks that he could hide behind while hunting, the mask was a thing on its own, behind which Jack lived. This made Jack a different person when he put on the mask, he was a killer with no taboos or responsibilities. Jacks passion for hunting also caused a major disagreement between him and Ralph because on the day a ship went by the fire was let out by boys that Jack made go hunting with him that day. Ralph said to Jack when he got back There was as ship, you let the fire out. There was a strong chance that they may have been rescued then but down to Jack they ended up eating their first pig. From successfully killing his first pig Jack felt very strong and had fulfilled his ambition so did not really care about the fire or Ralph. Rules have been completely ignored lately and systems of organisation disrespected. This has led to the boys becoming lazy and uncivilised. At one point things were going well and most things were well organised. There was toilet system worked out so there was not mess all over the island and water was being stored in coconut shells in the shade so hat it would be cool and fresh. Though now these systems have been ignored and the boys are going to the toilet anywhere on the island and no water is being stored. Ralph also tried to built shelters for them to sleep in which would have been practical but Simon was the only one that would help in the end so they could not be completed. This shows how disorganised the boys have become and disrespectful. They have no taboos and without adults they have forgotten the way they had to behave. Bullying has also become a problem that has led to a deterioration in the boys life. Jack consistently picks on Piggy and uses him as scapegoat for his own mistakes. He makes little of Piggy and by doing this he is trying to show that he has power over the boys as well as Ralph. The litluns are also being ignored and sometimes bullied by the elder boys. Although this might have happened a bit before they arrived on the island but there were still taboos that the older boys had. All these reasons have led to deterioration in the boys life. Their behaviour on the island has had consequences and meant that their lives have become less structured and disciplined and more savage like. Ralph described the situation by saying, we are all drifting and things are turning rotten. This shows us that the boys are drifting apart and could possibly separate into different groups completely which would also make their life deteriorate more.

Effectiveness of Quality and Systems Management within ASDA

Effectiveness of Quality and Systems Management within ASDA In this assignment I will look at the business performance and do an evaluation for my chose organisation. For this purpose I decide to choose the ASDA. ASDA is recognised as the private company and this company has owned by the American PLC organisation commonly known as the WAL-MART. The thing is that WAL-MART bought all the shares of ASDA and ASDA in now recognized as the ASDA WAL-MART PLC LTD. ASDA is well known for its services of retailer and goods selling to the general community. There are the examples of some services and products given by my organisation are as follow. Drinks Clothing Food Home and leisure Cutlery DIY Equipment like paint, paint brush nails and others etc. Identify and explain the role and importance of effective operations management. IMPORTANCE OF OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT The area of Operations management has focused mainly on the on the process to manage carefully to the distribution and sales of the product and to produce them. This is common that very small business do not involve in the process of operation management however for the medium size and large sized organisation this is very important and essential to run the organisation carefully and in an effective way. In any organisation the related activities are involved in the management of the purchasing power, quality control, inventory control, logistic, storage and evaluation. The main point to be considered here is the effectiveness and efficiency of the processes involved. A great deal of focus is on efficiency and effectiveness of processes. Due to this, the area of operations management is very important for an organisation. ASDA is a popular name in the category of household retails in the UK. As this is renowned by the international market it is very successful in his business in the UK. This is recognised as the well-known chain in the supermarket.   This organisation has his branches all over the world as under the nationwide supermarkets. The ASDA is public ltd. organisation and is open for public and they (stakeholders) are allowed to buy the shares in the organisation. This supermarket of ASDA is mainly aimed to provide the best and possible excellent service and food products to their customers. Even is organisation is successful in beating his competitors by sticking with their price strategy which is probably lower than that of the other organisation in the competition. ASDA is supermarket, which aims to provide its customers with the best possible goods and service with its permanently low prices. Identify the strategic objectives of your chosen Organization and analyze them with the help of appropriate tools. As I choose ASDA as my organisation of research, it has entry with his mission stamen as, To be the worlds leading supermarket.  Ã‚   This organisation has many strategic aims and objectives and by following that aims and objectives organisation can effectively turn their mission statement into practice, it has many aims and objective.  The aims and objectives of the ASDA are followed as under in detailed explanation. Aims of ASDA As ASAD is the fastest growing supermarket in the UK retail and grocery business in relation to the other supermarket in the market. There are some main aims are here mentioned that are in continuous way to strive to achieve. These aims are listed as follow: To maximise sales through competitive pricing and heavy advertising campaigns To make the supermarket a happy and an enjoyable place for the staff to work together in harmony To ensure complete customer satisfaction and minimise any complaints about their products or prices. To make shopping at Asda a completely new, unique experience which provides customers and their children with a convenient, warm, welcoming, happy and safe shopping environment. To keep the customers happy and satisfied by providing them with the best and latest products and services at the lowest prices, without having to compromise on quality To provide as much relevant information about products and services throughout the store, in a manner that is understandable to the customer Be as environmentally friendly as possible Objectives Unquestionably and unescapably, the greatest noteworthy aim of Asda same as to any other organisation is to become profitable extremely. So for the achievement of above aims and to get the increase in the profit turnover of the organisation there are some strategic objectives of the ASDA which are intended to show that how it can achieve and accomplish the aims and targets of the company.  Ã‚  Following is the explanation of the main strategic objectives of the organisation given with their explanation: As the organisation has its main aim to increase the profit like to increase its sale and maximization of the profit of the organisation, there is use of different kind of media devices like newspaper, radio, magazine and mainly television for the heavy advertisement of the organisation. This even aided and used for the promotion of their campaigns related to their latest promotions, cut in prices, services and line of new products. This kind of strategic objective has repent the ASDA a base for the loyal customers and even help to attract the new customers as well as this promotion envied the reputation for the products at their lower prices. The organisation has its objective to make the area of supermarket enjoyable and happy visits for the staff of the company and to work with each other in a friendly way, Asda is well known about the fact that the attitude of the staff has direct influence over the customers and their performance, if the staff will be the happy they will work with more enthusiasm and power to gain the competitive advantages. As they aimed to provide pleasant and happy working environment to their workers also by providing various incentives, bonuses and benefits like staff discount, pension from the company, share packages and various opportunities for the promotions in the job as well as in the salary. for the purpose to achievement of the customer satisfaction and even for the minimisation of the complaints from the customers and consumers about the various services and products or staff there is endurance provided by the Asda to their customers through the customers service section at each supermarket stores of Asda and at that services customers can communicate about their problems and unsatisfied services and if they want they can register any comments in relation to the services and products provided to them in the book of comment log. The organisation has pride themselves for this commitment with their customers.   For making the experience of shopping and buying products at Asda as safe, profitable warmth, welcoming, happy pleasurable and even easier as possible there is provision of all American style shopping mostly in all the stores of the Asda and at there the product and services provided to the customers usually by the help of local businesses. The service and product customers received through them under the suitability of one roof.   Ã‚  In the large branches of Asda now there is addition of in built house cafes, opticians, laundry, dry cleaner, fast food, bakeries and take away etc. and even their own petrol pumps and car washes centre there.  Many of them are now furnished with the retail electrical, clothing, home wares with the services of branches have now diversified into the retail electrical, home ware and clothing market in addition to providing financial and insurance services.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To keep the customers happy and satisfied with the products, prices, services and staff.  Ã‚  In order to ensure a loyal customer base and continue to attract new customers, Asda ensures they take advantage of their massive buying power and leading position in the supermarket industry in order to purchase the best quality goods and latest products at the most competitive prices.  Ã‚  These savings and product promotions and price-cuts are heavily advertised both through the national media and throughout its branches nationwide.  Ã‚  Furthermore, as an additional precaution, Asda prides itself on the fact that customer satisfaction with its products and prices are always maintained as its staff continually checks prices locally on a weekly basis, in order to ensure the supermarket always provides the lowest prices around Asda strives to provide as much relevant information about products and services throughout the store, in a manner, which is understandable to the customer.  Ã‚  It intends to achieve this by communicating various types of information such as public safety notices, new promotions and products and services, price reductions, charity fund-raising events through its regular customer magazines, leaflets, posters, customer information desk and staff. Where possible, Asda attempts to remain as globally welcoming friendly as possible as they can.  Ã‚  This contains lessening the packaging of the products and use of recycling papers for the making of their magazines, receipts and even for their leaflets and for the building up of new supermarkets as over the existing sites of the industry. Identify the performance operations objectives of the same company and analyze how successful the operations are in meeting strategic objectives of a company. Your discussion need to be focused on Quality, Cost, Speed, Flexibility and/or Dependability Task 2: Design and monitor appropriate systems to ensure quality of product and services Define resources, tools and systems required to support business process to improve the quality of products and services There are many resources, tools and systems are present that are used to ensure the quality of the services and products. For Asda there is constant evaluation of these standards of quality and there are regular checks that if they meet the conditions of good quality provide to the customers regarding the services and products offered to them. There are staff as well as the managerial procedures are taken for the monitoring of the high standards of quality in Asda. The following procedure is followed for the quality assurance in Asda. As first when the goods reach at Asda there is product evaluation test at the first, for the evaluation of the services and products. Even there is monitoring and testing of the taste and quality of the product so that organisation come to know we there that particular product is acceptable for the consumption and can be used by the customer. This procedure is called assurance of quality i.e. quality assurance.    For the next step they carried out the following tests during  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Production of new products that are presently under progress  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Test of products, when there is decision about the changing of the suppliers to Asda  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Test of their own products and brand against their competitors.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Organisation also involved in the product evaluation test. These tests are used to monitor quality and safety standards When they update information on the packaging The packaging information may need to be altered because of legislation that the government have implemented and that Asda have to abide by, or there maybe changes in the nutritional concepts or advances in cooking or food preservations method.  Ã‚  An example of when Asda may use quality assurance to add value to their products is when a product may have its packaging information changed to inform the consumers that it is acceptable to cook or use this product in the microwave.   For the further procedure the products are taken to the laboratory for the testing of the quality and validation of the products. In laboratory there is fibre optic probe placed into them and to each the temperature of the cooking so that there can be assurance of product to reach at required temperature for the safe use of the products.   These tests of quality control are applied to all new and existing products even if these are produce by Asda itself.  These quality tests are conducted in the centre of customer advice, head office and in the laboratory of Asda. The assurance of quality is implemented at all levels of the organisations and employees of the company are convinced to provide the best services to their customers and quality standards are set by the organisation for the better implementation of the quality products by the organisation. This set of high standards is taken as the SWOT i.e. strength, weakness, opportunity and threats to the organisation regarding the environment in which it works. The follow up of SWOT lets the organisation to check if the quality of the products and service meet the standard and are in the good competition with their rivals in the industry. Following are the tools used in the organisation to check the quality of their products. These tools are as follow: Just in time (JIT): in just in time the Asda usually order the products and when they are in need of them. Even product are prepared when they are needed and after production these products are then delivered to the store and those product are produced which are needed. This mainly save the money and even save the time, place for the storage for keeping the raw material and results in the beneficial for the organisation. Even this adds good value to the company and deliver fresh and best of the products and services to the customers to make them happy. Products are then prepared and delivered to the store, which requires the products. This will help save money, storage space required and the number of raw materials kept in stock. Machine utilisation control; In Asda this system is usually put into consideration as the machinery is very important part of the production process. So there is a proper provision of engineer that used to check and maintain the machinery time it time so that the process will not stop in between the work and they might not get the problem in the production system of the organisation, this help to ensure them to complete their task to complete and be in time to provide their services to their stakeholders. Stock control: Stock control is very crucial and organisation put good efforts in maintaining the stock control. In this [procedure there in checking by the senior staff regarding the stock and they decide for the order to make for the organisation. The raw material needed is checked that how much is needed and how much they had in their stock. This help to avoiding the running of low stocks. Quality control: This is very important and in this there is use of a machine that is linked to the computer system. This machine tests the products at every stage during the production development. This adds to improve the quality and help to add the value to the product as there is checking of products at every stage of the production in the organisation. Food additives: There is provision of food additives also. These additives are those chemicals that are natural and made especially for the use Asda also uses food additives. These additive are used to keep the food save and to make them last for long time. This also makes the taste of food good and stops them to get poisoning. These additives used are first approved by government and health care bodies and are allotted with their E-numbers. Asda used to put the names of the labels over the packing to avoid the confusion to the customers. There are some steps that are followed by the organisation for the improvement of the quality standards. Define quality audit systems/practice to manage and monitor quality to standards specified by the organization and process operated. Also suggest ways as to how quality audit systems can be implemented in an organization. Quality audit  is defined as the process of systematic examination of a  quality system  carried out by an internal or external quality auditor or an audit team. It is an important part of organizations  quality management system  and is a key element in the  ISO  quality system standard,  ISO 9001 (Wikipedia.com). Quality audits are usually those time intervals that are performed in a typical way and are predefined. They are used to ensure about the working of organisation as internal systems which are clearly defined in order to monitor those procedure linked to the effective measures. This basically help in the organisation to compiles with the system of quality processes and tends to improve the procedural and assessment criteria based on results. The audits are necessary tools for the management of the in order to verifying and used the objectives and evidences for the processes and even they used to assess the effectiveness and success of the processes and how they has to be implemented in the judgement of the achieving and defining the target s of the organisation. They provide evidences for the elimination and reduction of the problems and their areas. Audits are an essential management tool to be used for verifying objective evidence of processes, to assess how successfully processes have been implemented, for judging the effectiveness of achieving any defined target levels, to provide evidence concerning reduction and elimination of problem areas. [4] Audit Committee of ASDA For the ASDA the audit committee is maintained by the agency and this agency was appointed by the Agency maintained an Audit Committee that was appointed by the board of the ASDA. In this committee there are 2 non-executive members and chief executive executives. There is invitation given to ANAO by the Audit for the observation that financial service to provide the meeting and strengthening of the companys accountability and transparency. Following helps are given to the ASDA by Audit committee improving the quality of accounting and financial control; providing greater accountability and oversight of ASDAs financial management; independently overseeing probity within ASDA; Providing a forum where ASDA Board, executive management, internal audit and ANAO issues could be discussed. Strategic and Operational Plans There is organisation of new plans by the Asda that was endorsed by sports Minister and tourism. The 2005-2009 Strategic Plan prescribes ASDAs: future direction (vision); operating environment (mission); strategic breakthrough issues (goals); Strategies (objectives); Values (operating ethos); and key performance indicators (measures) Highlight the ways to introduce quality culture in your organization to ensure continuous monitoring and development of the process. The term of quality culture is that typical method used by the organisation, this approach is referred to the quality assessment and the implementation of strategic plans and operation for the organisation.   It follows the policies and procedures used to determine the shared beliefs and procedure for the development of the quality assurance in the business and for the solving of different problems and to minimise the risk.   There is interrelationship between the structure of organisation, quality culture and management style and this interrelationship have shown in the following diagram below:   Description: http://www.coursework.info/document/4/3/1/134806/134806_files/image002.jpg Asdas  interconnected its organisational structure and quality culture which is based upon the hierarchical structure power of the company. The diagram below shows quality standards from a consumers point of view. Description: http://www.coursework.info/document/2/1/7/71293/71293_files/image002.gif Consumer  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Description: http://www.coursework.info/document/2/1/7/71293/71293_files/image003.gif  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Creating Standards involve  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  customer satisfaction Description: http://www.coursework.info/document/2/1/7/71293/71293_files/image004.gifExceeding  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Delighting Consumer expectations  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  the consumer There are basically three stages of the quality development as follow: QUALITY CONTROL (QC) QUALITY ASSURANCE (QA) TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) Quality Control  (QC) looks at the flow of production. They have to look and see what falls below standards. Quality Control is carried out by quality control inspectors. Inspection and testing are common ways of doing quality control. Quality Assurance  (QA) is concerned with making sure there are no faults before and after the production flow. Quality Assurance also has to make sure all products that are produced are up to standards and have zero defects. Quality Assurance is responsible for a workforce, working in teams rather than an inspector. Total Quality Management  (TQM) goes beyond Quality Assurance. TQM is designed to make every employee delight a customer. Customers are at the centre of the production process. (Reference sources: Heinemann AVCE Advanced Business 2000 edition Dave Needham Rob Grandfield). TQM is a form of operations management. TQM is associated with every worker in a work place and tries to persuade them to consider quality in everything they do. All the employees aim to please customers, as the customers are one of the most important resources they have. Task 3: Improve organizational performance Monitor systems and work activities in your organization and identify problems and opportunities for improvement. SWOT analysis of ASDAà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Here I follow up the SWOT analysis of ASDA. A SWOT analysis demonstrates the  strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats  of ASDA. Strengthsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Lots of shareholders Asda have 2nd largest supermarket chain in UK Part of WAL MART Best value for the retailer regarding the money High profits wall- mart ASDA have a lot of shareholders Weaknessesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Not as comparative to Tesco - Britains 1st  biggest supermarket chain More brand products of ASDA, no selling of high brand products. Tend to sell more ASDA brand products rather than big named products e.g. Nestle, Cadbury etc. Generally be contingent on George clothing sales for great profits Less number of stores as Tesco and Sainsbury has. Opportunitiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Offer Gorge clothing stores as Leeds and Croydon Good job developments offer. Equal chancer Threatsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ High competition in the market. Decrease in the number of shareholders. Selling fear by the WAL MART. ASDA HQ might pick at any stretch to become free of the range of George clothing. Develop an Implementation Plan for the evaluated recommendations and evaluated the possible changes within an organization. Following is an implementation plan which has to be followed by ASDA so that it might get the competitive advantages by providing good quality standards. There are many quality control systems that should be followed as under: There are numerous quality control and assurance systems which include:- Quality circles Total quality management ISO 9000 Self-checking or inspection Training and development Bench marking These systems of quality control and assurance are suitable for the different condition within the organisations. In this according to me the total quality management and benchmarking will be the best approach to be followed so to ensure the good quality assurance. The main objective of TQM is to make all the employee so trained that they ensure to make the every customer happy and satisfied with their services and products. Following is the graph for the total quality management for the ASDA. As customers intend to pay high for the attainment of the high quality standards Asda could to be build up the under-one-roof 24 hour shopping strategy by following the new stagey and convenience like store banks, travel agents, takeaways, cafes etc. experience by introducing new services and convenience such as in store banks, travel agents, take away etc.; following is the graph   Conclusion From the above report it is concluded that ASDA has good strategic plan but no plan is perfect there must be need have improvement is all plans and strategies. So in the same way the ASDA has to do some improvements for the purpose to get the good competitive advantages by providing the better quality and services to their stakeholders. For this the organisation has to follow up the tools of total quality management and benchmarking in order to keep its position in the market and for the implementation of good plans regarding the development of the quality systems. References