A supply chain can be viewed as a system of processes that cut across organizations and deliver customer value. Rather than as a series of separate organizations and functions. In…
Companies often do not give much thought to the design of their supply chains. They often focus on cost reduction through low-cost purchasing, manufacturing, or logistics. This can translate into…
Given the highly competitive environment of today’s marketplace, seeking a sustainable competitive advantage has become a top business concern. Unlike in the past, where creative marketing initiatives were sufficient to…
A company should have a long-range business strategy if it is going to maintain a competitive position in the marketplace. A business strategy is a plan for the company that…
Today’s organizations face a number of trends that impact the way supply chains are designed and managed. These trends are a result of a fast-changing global and technologically connected economy…
There are three key characteristics of a competitive supply chain: responsiveness, reliability, and relationship management. We discuss these here. Responsiveness The ability to respond to customers’ requirements in ever-shorter time…
Supply chain management (SCM) is the design and management of flows of products, information, and funds throughout the supply chain. It involves the coordination and management of all the activities…
In finance and our previous post, we often talk about risk management, when it is understood that we are talking about financial risk management. Risk managers are found in a…
Before we can begin to describe what is financial risk managers do, we need to understand what financial risk is. In finance, the risk arises from uncertainty surrounding future profits…
Financial risk is often divided into four principal types of risk: market risk, credit risk, liquidity risk, and operational risk. To varying degrees, most financial transactions involve aspects of all…
The term Neolithic is to some degree a misnomer, since it means literally “New Stone Age,” referring to the rapid improvement and new variety in finely made stone tools. But…
There are major differences between the two fundamental types of research, including: Respondent differences;Sample and sample size differences;Content differences; Respondent differences: As was stated in the definition, B2B market research…
East Asia as a whole had the highest economic growth rates of any part of the world in the decades following World War II. Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea,…
The problems relating to population growth discussed above are serious enough, but the steep rise in all forms of environmental pollution, flowing from economic growth and technological change, is equally…
Economic development everywhere exacts a price. Perhaps the greatest of these for most of Asia is the ironic one that as people live better they live longer and, hence, the…
Origins of Civilization in India Of all world civilizations, India is the oldest still in continuous existence. If one defines civilization as involving a writing system, metalworking, and some concentration…
Apart from the all-important characteristic of population density, monsoon Asia—the area east of Afghanistan and south of what is now the Russian Federation—has other common features that make it an…
The traditional financing is related to the liability side of the balance sheet. The firm issues long-term debt or equity to meet its financing needs. and in the process, expands…
Dividend policy means a policy to determine what proportion of earning is paid to shareholders by way of dividend and what proportion is retained in the firm for reinvestment purposes.…
The dividend policy decision involves the choice between distributing the profits belonging to the shareholders and profits retention by the firm. A dividend means, the portion of company net income…
Agency problems are a common source of frustration and confusion in business. It is essential to understand the different types of agency problems and the solutions available to help you…
To reduce agency problems and contribute to the maximization of owners’ wealth, stockholders load agency costs. Agency costs are defined as those costs borne by shareholders to encourage managers to…
It is important for organizations to address the agency problem in order to ensure effective management and decision-making. The agency problem is a conflict of interests between the principal and…
The nature of financial decisions varies from one firm to the other. It may also be different from the same firm over a period of time. The reason is that…
The forceful argument of Milton Friedman, many business firms in practice contribute to various social causes. They give a donation to hospitals and educational institutions. Contribute to relief programmers, sponsor…