How does a biotic-energy company (from Germany) to entry Thailand's Research Paper

How does a biotic-energy company (from Germany) to entry Thailand's market - Research Paper Example Major objective of the study is to provide a research paper in order to explain how a German Biotic-Energy company can enter in the Thailand market. The research will focus on the cultural differences in two countries. Finally, the study will recommend the organization how to develop and practice the business strategies in Thai market to achieve a sustainable growth. German Biotic-Energy Company Culture Analysis Germany is one of the developed European countries. Economically it is the third largest country in the world. German Biotic-Energy Company is trying to enter in the Thai market. Therefore, it is important to conduct a culture analysis of the organization in terms of value, language, decision making custom and religion. Decision making of the German organization is slow and detailed process. The organization tries to engage all the internal stakeholders in the decision making process. The organization does not draw significant conclusions based on the unstructured and spontan eous results. The management of the organization gives respect to all of its stakeholders during the decision making process. The organizational business culture is well defined. The company follows strictly observed organizational hierarchy. The organization follows typical German business culture. The employees never integrate personal aspects in their workplace. German Biotic-Energy Company follows a professional organizational structure. In work place the employees try to give value and respect to their sub-ordinates. German people are strongly individualistic. The employees within the Biotic-Energy Company follow through thought process. German is the official language. Therefore, according to their culture and value, they try to share their views and thoughts in German language. German people always respect people of every religion in business or organization. Almost 30% of total population is Christian. Rest of the population follows other religion. German people are very con servative. German Biotic-Energy Company tries to provide value people of all religions and gender. It is important for the organization to analyze the Thai Business culture before entering into the Thai market. Several Cultural aspects in International Business Language, religion, values and decision making custom are the major cultural aspects that can influence or affect an international business. It is true that, the Western countries are diversifying their business in the Asian countries in order to access resources such as labor, land and capital in low cost. These are huge motivating factors for the organizations. But, several cultural differences between two countries can affect the business performance of the German firm in the Thai market. Religion Religious view of majority of the Germans is Christianity. On the other hand, majority of the Thai people believes in Buddhism. Therefore, different religion background can create huge challenge for the business. It is known to a ll that, religion is a sensitive intangible matter of human beings2. Religion can integrate or separate a group of people. More than 90% of total population practices Buddhism. The Thai people believe in peace and honesty. These people are strong believer of their religion. They follow each and every aspect of their religion in both personal and professional life. According to their religion, simplicity and free of desire will bring Nirvana or

Marks and spencer group

Marks and spencer group 1. Vision (mission Statement) Marks and Spencer Group (MS) is a retailer of clothing, foods and Homeware. It operates through owned stores and franchise stores. The company has two reportable geographic segments: UK and international. MS operates through a chain of 622 stores across UK and 278 international outlets throughout 34 countries worldwide The companys operations can be categorized under two divisions: food and general merchandise including clothing and home ware. The food division focuses on fresh, natural, healthy food; special celebration products; authentic ready meals and exceptional everyday food such as Oakham chicken and Aberdeen Angus steaks. It chain of 205 franchised Simply Food stores operates in railway stations, Heathrow Airport and motor service areas. These stores offers its customers an opportunity to shops between visits to the companys main stores. The clothing division product portfolio includes womens wear, mens wear, lingerie childrens wear and footwear. Hong Kong, India, Bangladesh , Sri Lanka and Turkey offices provides the raw materials to the division. This division offers some prominent brands which includes: Autograph, Limited Collection, Cellozione, Blue Harbour, Girls Boutique, Per Una and Ceriso. The home division product and services caters homeware and home accessories; kitchen and tableware; lighting; and furniture products. The division also offers catalogue and online services (Company Overview 2009) The vision of this project would be to bring up the Limited collection brand of Marks Spencer the most sought after product in the market. This research will put up strategies which in turn make the limited collection brand to be most popular in both UK and international segment. 2. Aims Rebrand the Marks and Spencer Limited Collection to resonate with the brands long standing vision. Expand the brands current target market. Create an in-store environment that represents the aspirations of the brands target consumer. Market research is an orderly, objective way of learning about people. The people who buy from you or might buy from you (AG strategies 2003). This research will mainly aim at setting market targets against which results can be evaluated. It also works out the time needed to make the presence felt. To calculate the right price as the price is the value of the product we offer and a sum which can be afforded by the customers. 3. Objectives; Tactics Expand the brands target audience to the demographic of women aged 30-45 over 12 months, aiming for a 15% increase in sales within each 6 months period. Develop and maintain successful relationships with its target customers in order to capture a value from customers to create profit and customer equity. Exploiting the opportunity to mace process of comparing the companys products and processes to those of competitors or leading firms in other industries to find ways to improve quality and performance. 4. SWOT Analysis Situation Analysis Internal Analysis Corporate Social Responsibility at Marks and Spencer has traditionally been interpreted as a paternalistic regime for the large labour force of shop assistants which provides a provision of quality and value for money for the customers. As 90 per cent of these were women cared for by women supervisors, perhaps ‘maternalistic would be a better word. The welfare facilities were no doubt appreciated by the Companys numerous retail workers (Chapman, S 2004). Though the clothing market faced a difficult year many factors, Marks Spencer remain the number one brand on the High Street. MS continued to develop their brands, with particular focus on improving their value, while injecting newness and style across their ranges. The three fold aim we had at the time of beginning the womens wear brands two years ago have been established and fulfilled successfully. They were mainly to clearly segment all our brands in line with our clear customer profiles; to keep our brands fresh; and to offer great quality and value at all price points. ‘In 2000 Sir Harry Djanogly, Chairman of Coats Viyella, announced to an incredulous textile world that it was no longer profitable to supply MS. Then Charnos closed its dedicated factories for the same reason, whilst Bairds, Gents and Bentwood were axed by new bosses at MS head office, and Dewhirsts sharply cut back and were forced to close several factories. The chain store group finally decided it could manage with three major British clothing suppliers (Coats Viyella, Courtaulds and Dewhirsts) but when the first of these severed the connection, MS was left with serious problems (Chapman, S 2004). The market we are dealing with very little lead time so that we need to get new products into the stock more frequently than anticipated. External Risks and Opportunities Concentrating solely on the youth may not be the wisest thing to do. As the youth can be very unpredictable, moreover now the youth are sheltering back home due to the recruiting freeze. The demographic between the young and the retired will provide the best opportunities. In our ageless society, for those in their late 30s and beyond looking or feeling young has retail appeal. Appealing accessories will also help to put the limited collection to the main stream of sought after brand. Peronis latest promotion offers customers the chance to win an Antonio Berardi leather laptop case (Birra di Moda), pitching this accessory as something aspirational and exclusive. In reality, a series of factors might make the man bag an increasingly practical and popular purchase. The trends of 50s and 80s now again making an uproar, if one exploit the opportunity in a right manner on could capture the attention of potential buyers. 5. PESTEL Analysis Political Analysis The global nature of the crisis will make it far more difficult for many countries to rely on devaluing currencies to make their economies more competitive and increase export volumes. Deflation will affect emerging economies especially if the national currency is depreciating sharply. There is also then a danger that imported inflation will get out of hand. That said raising interest rates to strengthen the local currency in a time of recession and low liquidity is pure poison for the respective economy (Verdict 2009). Among the Top Five economies, the major mature economies of western Europe (Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Spain), rankings remained stable with the UK ahead of France. And in the Top 10 Polands consumer expenditure has leapfrogged Belgiums. However, Greece has displaced Austria in the Top 10 and has overtaken Sweden in the process (Verdict 2009). Economical Analysis ‘Marks Spencer is the leading retailer in the clothing market, with a market share of 10.4% in 2008. It has wide price architecture and targets a broad customer base through its variety of sub brands, though mainly attracts older, more affluent customers. Intense competition from value players as well as other department stores has placed Marks Spencer under great pressure, particularly in clothing where the difficult economic environment is forcing consumers to be much more selective about what they spend their money on (How Briton Shops 2009). ‘As an effect of the recession customers have become savvier in their shopping habits and are increasingly concerned about value. As a result, shoppers are buying from a bigger pool of retailers to ensure they are getting the best value for money. Though Marks Spencer continues to focus heavily on the value of its clothing, its offer is not as enticing as those of value retailers Asda, Primark and Matalan, which have all increased their main user shares'(How Briton Shops 2009). Social Analysis ‘However, customers mainly visit other clothing stores that are at the value end of the market. Five of the eight other clothing stores used by loyal main users of Marks Spencer are value retailers, highlighting how important it is for the retailer to stay competitive on price while also offering superior quality to ensure its success (How Briton Shops 2009). Technological Analysis ‘Opportunities for cross-shopping across departments remain. Though it sells electricals, food, footwear and homewares as well as clothing, Marks Spencer does not appear as the main store in these categories for its main customers for clothing. Footwear in particular should be a focus for the retailer, given the close proximity of the department to clothing and the opportunity to point out to customers co-ordinating themes for outfits (How Briton Shops 2009). In menswear, MS has looked to differentiate with technical product innovation, such as water and stain repellent Stormwear finish in trousers and a silver finish on the Freshfeet range of socks said to reduce the presence of bacteria that cause smelly odours (Mintel 2009). 6. Competitor Analysis According to Verdict research report 2009, Next is observed to be positioned in the second largest retailer after Marks Spencer with 7.1% share of the market in UK. Their main target market is aimed at 25-45 years old women and men consumers. They offer a wide range of products such as womens wear, menswear, children-wear, accessories, footwear, homewares and furniture (Verdict, 2009). While the other retailers have dropped their price and launched valued products During the recession in 2008, Nexts marketing strategy had been successful by retaining their products at same level of quality, design and price where other retailers have launched value ranges and dropped price. By assuring their quality and design, they also achieved positive impression on their brand image from the customers. However, they are still failing to attract young customers ranging 25-34 year olds. Over the past two years, Next had achieved very strong and solid online sales as known as the Next Directory, which ranked them as the highest online market share among the competitors. As one of Nexts marketing strategy, Next does not use their brands to target different segments of its customer base. Unlike Marks Spencer and Debenhams, Next limits and narrow its apparel resulting low loyalty from consumers. 7. Strategy Tactics Segmentation We want our customers to get what they are looking for. Mintel international group has announced that MS is the destination for clothes shopping for the over-45s, according to our consumer research, and is thus well placed to benefit from the expected ageing of the population. Where as the under 25s group had very limited appeal to the product MS carried. It is very clearly with in the plan that the aim of new strategy will be to make it appealing to the all three segments with more frequent stock updates at least by each week. On the one hand this means keeping the door open to the 30-somethings, encouraging an easy transition to MS shopping later. The recently launched Indigo range of casualwear and denim suggests a step in this direction, but the range falls short of offering anything really attention grabbing, in Mintels view. However, the more catwalk-led autumn 2009 collection could succeed in this. A strong childrenswear offer could also contribute, by bringing mums into the stores (Mintel 2009). The 40-somethings of today are the contemporaries of supermodels like Naomi Campbell and Claudia Schiffer, while the 50-somethings share their birth decade with Madonna, and while they may not aspire to look like these celebrities, they are influenced by the whole younger for longer trend. Catering for increasingly young attitudes with flattering cuts and materials is likely to be key, and something we believe the new Portfolio range has not fully succeeded in yet (Mintel 2009). Now the targeted segments will be a) 18-25, b) 25-40, c) 40-50, 50 and above The 18-25 segment will be the one that is shying away mostly from the wants they have due to the economic back down turns, and the alluring styles and pricing will be crucial for the revival of that segment to the expected out come. 7. Marketing Mix Making best use of the 4Ps Product The product offer has now expanded beyond the capacity of any individual store, underlining the importance of seamless integration between the physical stores and the back catalogue. While MS reports that it is trialling in-store ordering, Mintel feels this is an area where ensuring ease of access across channels would maximise synergies (Mintel 2009). MS has traditionally been all about one brand show room for clothes They always had From underwear to outerwear Across occasions from casual through business to formal Across price points in the middle mass market For almost all ages (perhaps with the exception of teens and young adults) Including footwear and accessories Now this has got to change a bit more appealing to todays tastes to make it an impacting product stock. The sub-brands divide the collection by fashionability/quality and, to a certain extent, by price, though segmentation of the offer in-store sometimes falls short of supporting this to maximum effect.

China’s Nuclear Program :: Asian Studies Foreign Policy

China’s Nuclear Program Introduction China's nuclear weapons program has always been unique among the programs of the five official nuclear weapons states recognized by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. For a variety of economic, political, and cultural reasons, the Chinese program has had a very different trajectory of development, with different objectives, than those of the other major powers' nuclear weapons and missile programs. China's nuclear and ballistic missile programs are and have historically been based on the objective of maintaining a level of nuclear deterrence just great enough to preclude any threats by the nuclear "super" powers. By concentrating on building and maintaining a minimum level of effective deterrence, China can ensure its security while concentrating the maximum amount of its available resources on much more pressing issues, such as economic development. As a developing country, China did not and does not have the resources to compete as a "third superpower" in the Cold War world. The Chinese, who for many of the years before 1978 could hardly afford to feed their own people, simply could not afford to spend huge sums of money in a costly arms race which they were almost certain to lose. Limited deterrence offered the most efficient solution - just enough capability to reap the security benefits of deterrence while avoiding the costs of producing, maintaining and storing huge s tockpiles of nuclear weapons. Why nuclear? The Chinese have always been afraid of invasion of their territory - one of the first projects of the Emperor Qin Shi Huang Di, the first ruler of a united China, was the construction of a vast Great Wall to keep out nomadic barbarian raiders from Inner Asia...in 200 BC. As a rich agrarian empire, and the most populous nation in the world, China has presented a rich target for outsiders for thousands of years, from the Xiongnu of Christ's time to Genghis Khan, to Western imperialists and Japanese warlords. The Chinese Communist leadership which came to power in 1949 after a lengthy and bloody civil war grew up during a very tumultuous period in Chinese history. They witnessed the decline of Chinese power within Asia and over its own territory, the fall of the imperial government which had governed China on and off for more than 2000 years, and the encroaching western imperialist powers who began to declare "spheres of influence" through the "unequal treaties" system.

Supernatural

Annie (Lenore Critical) who Is an emotionally fragile ghost (Icemaker 35). All three of these supernatural monsters live In an apartment together In Bristol while trying to live normal lives (Icemaker 35). I think you should take out this whole sentence – However, their so-called normal lives conflict with their supernatural lives. The series shows Mitchell, George, and Annie trying to lead double lives by attempting to be a part of the human world as well as the supernatural world. Their human flaws however, become evident In their supernatural worlds.The characters are faced tit many challenges while managing to be a part of both worlds, through which they realize that they are actually being given a second chance at life. In Being Human UK, Mitchell, George, and Annie are creatures that are â€Å"fusions of a person with counterintuitive properties† (Petersen 94). Their supernatural lives are burdened with the flaws from their previous lives. Mitchell, as a human, to ok advantage of his good looks and used people. When he becomes a vampire, the ultimate user, and has the desire to drink blood and kill people, he realizes he needs to change.One of the first ways he tries to change is by refraining from drinking blood. He does not want to use people because only death will come from it. On the other hand, George, as a human, did not have any confidence and was socially awkward, especially around women. Becoming a werewolf allowed him to realize that he needs to stop being afraid of the outside world and develop enough confidence to be himself around others. Mitchell even states that George needs to be able to turn into a werewolf inside their house and accept who he is. Watch clip and cite quotation). Annie in her previous life had everything going for her. She went to university, met the love of her life Owen (Greg Chilled), and was happily engaged. She was determined to always get what she wanted. Now as a ghost, only Mitchell and George can see her and she is finding It difficult to accept that her fiance has moved on and she is no longer in control (Lowry 1). Through her ghostly existence, she starts to realize that she can be Independent and happy without Owens presence.All three of these characters â€Å"support each other In an effort to be as normal as possible† and are faced with conflicts because of their double lives (Lowry ). This BBC show allows viewers to witness the characters learning about second chances. Mitchell â€Å"double Identity and ‘normal' aspects of his personally are what attract us to his character (Petersen 105). Throughout the series he Is faced with situations that require him to decide which world he wants to be a part of. One of his struggles, as a vampire, is when he has to decide whether he wants to convert people because of another woman he converted.Here, Mitchell was perplexed by the choice of letting Laura die or saving her life by turning her into a vampire. George yells at Mitchell to do something because she is dying but Mitchell responds by saying â€Å"Not another one I can't† and allows Laura to die (Being Human 1. 1). Mitchell also does not want to seem suspicious, so he tries everything he can to be perceived as ‘normal'. In the second episode in season one Mitchell invites their neighbors over for tea to â€Å"participate and Join humanity' (Being Human 1. 2).In episode two season one, George's transformation is described in great detail and is compared to a human suffering a heart attack (show clip in class). Also, there have been several instances where George says he does not want anything to do with his supernatural life, showing that he is quite ashamed of it and would much rather be human. For example, he says, â€Å"l onto want to allow it into my life†¦. ‘ like to keep things separate, the house is the house and the thing that happens to me every month is something else. I transformed here last month and it doesn't belong here† (Being Human 1. 2).The house that they all live in is where George feels most comfortable with himself because he uses it as a coping mechanism to deal with his supernatural nature and to pretend he is still a part of humanity. When it comes to Annie, her conflicts with the supernatural world and with humanity reside in the fact that she â€Å"does not know why she remains trapped in the unman realm† and as a ghost she Just wants people to be able to see her (Lowry 1). Throughout the show, these characters are always struggling with living their double lives because all they want to do is be a part of the normal human world and be Just like everybody else.Nannies two worlds are colliding because she does not know why she is still haunting her ex fianceg's house and she constantly struggles with the fact that she is a ghost. She is miserable because she recently passed away due to falling down the stairs. The one thing that she wants more than anyth ing is to be able to live her life again and be with her fiance. A few things that Annie does to pretend that she is still â€Å"alive† involve continuing doing her daily â€Å"human† routine. For example, she makes tea everyday to make her feel like she is still alive.George comments and says, Mimi keep making tea, every surface is covered with mugs of tea no tea, it has all been made. And you can't even drink it. † Annie responds by saying â€Å"l like my routine, it makes me feel normal† (Being Human 1. 2). )(maybe show clip). Throughout many episodes Annie is always doing certain routines that she would have done when she was alive such as cleaning, catering to Mitchell and George's deeds, and making food for them. Another conflict that Annie faces involves trying to resolve why she is still a ghost and is still a part of the physical realm.It isn't until episode three season one, when Annie meets Gilbert, (Alex Price) a ghost from the ass's, that she finally uncovers the reason behind her prolonged existence. Overall, Mitchell, George, and Nannies supernatural lives give them a second chance to figure out something about themselves that they never resolved while they were still living as humans. Their supernatural lives are a â€Å"source of identification in which new grounds for selectors can be found† (Petersen 98). Mitchell realizes that he wants to become a better person and stops relying on his good looks to get him places.One of the victims that made him realize his personality faults was his co- worker named Lauren (giftedness). Mitchell mistakenly converted her to a life as a vampire. After watching her being so desperate to feed off people and watching her kill others, it made him realize he did not want his vampire existence to be like hers. Therefore, he learns by watching Lauren, that there is more to life then Just looks, and that people deserve to be treated with respect. George learns that it is possible t o have confidence in himself because of a werewolf named Tail(faded).When George found out that Tail was the one who turned him into a werewolf, he learned that he did not want to associate himself with other werewolves because they could not be trusted. By standing up to Tall, it gave George the courage he needed. This conflict with Tail allowed him to become a stronger person, and gave him the confidence to talk to women. Annie realizes with the help of Gilbert, that she is still around because there is something unresolved in her past life. When her memories start to mom back, she figures out she died because of her fiancà ©'s anger. (show clip in class).Her flange Owen treated her like property and is physically abusive. Unfortunately her fragility tells her that it is all her fault and that she had it coming. Nannies self realization shows that she was insecure and incapable of standing on her own two feet while she was with Owen. However, as a ghost she realizes that she can become independent and does not need Owen. Unfortunately, this realization does not allow her to move on to the next realm. Therefore she continues to exist with lessons still to learn. All three characters were given a second chance at life to redeem themselves so that they could become stronger and better beings.When it comes to Mitchell, George, and Annie as well as other supernatural beings, â€Å"the recirculation of recognizable constructions of them implies that we should consider them as culturally successful and possibly impacting on our thoughts† (Petersen 105). All of us can relate to Mitchell, George, and Annie because we have experienced some sort of arrogance, awkwardness, and self doubt. Matt Insist argued that science fiction and fantasy films â€Å"attack reason, sell reenactment's fantasies, and undermine appreciation for science and supernatural horror transcends simple-minded repudiations of science(Collocation).

Electronic Devices Essay

Ring! Ring! â€Å"Honey it’s your mother, please pick up your phone†¦ well call me when you get this message.† Two out of five kids get this voicemail daily during the week. The majority of students having a cellphone are only to contact parents and relatives. I think students should be able to have their cellphones and iPods out during school because after school kids should be able to contact their parents for any emergency. Students should also be able to keep their cellphones and iPods out for the resources, many sources including internet access and the use of calculators. I think students should also be able to use their cellphones and iPods for the music, music can change a person’s mood at any given time. While being in middle school I strongly believe that students should be able to use their cellphones and iPods during school and after. However, some people may argue that students shouldn’t have their cellphones and iPods out. They might argue that a student may be able to cheat on a test by texting their friends the answers. Or maybe the student’s phone might get stolen. The child might even get bullied with the use of a phone out. These little mistakes though aren’t something every kid goes through. Their mistakes that no one can control, but if they do happen then there will be consequences. However, I think students should be able to use their cellphones and iPods at appropriate times. I believe students should be able to have their cellphones out because after school they’ll be able to call their parents because someone might be trying to kidnap them. Or simply to just let them know their getting a ride with a friend. Many kids walk to school and from school to home. Meaning they need to be able to contact their points at any moment. Sometimes parents forget to pick up their child just because they’ve had a busy day at work. That’s when having a cellphone is really handy. During the day a cellphone can be useful especially when a student is having problems. Those problems can vary. Students at SVMS have experienced an unexpected problem that a cellphone could have been of good use. I think cellphones should be allowed at school in any case of emergency or if they just need to contact their parent. Additionally, I believe students should be able to have their cellphones and iPods out because they have resources. Using your phone you’d be able to use the internet for many reasons. Maybe you’re in science and a student asks a tough question that the teacher isn’t sure the answer is. By using your cellphone you’d be able to look the answer up on Google, it’s a quick and convenient resource to find an answer quickly to any question. Right after a quiz or test if you want to figure out your score and your teacher only told you how many you got right you would be able to pull out your phone or iPod and calculate your score. I think students should be able to use their cellphone or iPods during any time of the day for the resources. Furthermore, I believe using your iPods and cellphones should be allowed because of music. Music motivates people and can instantly change their mood. If someone is down all day, going to lunch and being able to just sit and listen to music can really bring someone up. Lunch on Fridays ASB plays music because everyone is so excited for the weekend. If you were to take away our cellphones and iPods there wouldn’t be any music to play. Even on Tuesdays during P.E we listen to music, when we run on the blacktop the coaches play music. They know that it pumps us up and helps us run. Some teachers even play music in class, it can either be a way of calming everyone or celebrating a class for their great achievements. I really believe that students should be able to have their phones and iPods for the music purposes. In conclusion I believe students should be able to have their phones and iPods out during school because after school kids should be able to contact their parents for any emergency. Students should also be able to keep their cellphones and iPods out for the resources, many sources including internet access and the use of calculators. I think students should also be able to use their cellphones and iPods for the music, music can change a person’s mood at any given time. While taking your time and reading this I really hope you look into helping us students by not getting our phones and iPods taken away for the various reasons. My reasons for wanting to keep our electronic devices are backed up from proofs from the SVMS student body and their life stories. As speaking for Spring Valley Middle I would like to thank you and hope you are against banding our electronic devices.