An ever-increasing number of organizations look for the outsourcing administrations of HR enlistment organizations. The attention on HRM is presently moved to the key usage of representatives and the quantifiable effect of worker programs over the business. These days effective organizations should be versatile, strong, speedy to alter course and client focused. Inside such a domain the viability of HRM is pivotal to business achievement.

HR experts set up frameworks for execution improvement, profession progression arranging and worker advancement. This keeps individuals spurred, glad, by and by connected with and adding to organization achievement. Moreover, the HR proficient enables the advancement of hierarchical culture and atmosphere in which workers to have the competency, concern, and responsibility regarding work well for clients.

For an improved elucidation, human resource management is explained by my friend Yuv Asthana in his blog. He has comprehensibly taken in all the aspects and elements of Human resource management in consideration.

He has connected human resource management to the one of the giants in grocery and retail market, Walmart. He has gone in depth detailing the perks which employee gain without highlighting the concerns and limitations.  Yuv has articulated the salary and retirement plans which employees receive however the blog does not relate the HRM to any tools and theories, hence the blog vaguely describes whether the employees are motivated and satisfied.

Walmart clearly gives high wages and many discounts to its employees to its employees but the major concern here is that employees can be differentiated into two groups, extrinsic and intrinsic. Extrinsic employees are the ones who get motivated and satisfied with financial rewards such as bonuses, an increment in salary, discounts and so on whereas intrinsic employees are the ones who are motivated through all other means except financial such as recognition, extra responsibility, taking up leadership goals etc.

Therefore, the blog only addresses the needs of Walmart employees who are cheered up by the financial rewards only. As seen in the past year that Walmart had revolutionized the billing section introducing self-checkout which led to the loss of many jobs at Walmart and in 2015 there were mat strikes held by the Walmart employees who claimed that Walmart was not treating them well. Therefore, it can be clearly noticed that the jobs of employees were not secure and employees of Walmart were demotivated.

I would recommend that Walmart should take initiative and introduce more intrinsic perks and reform its employee community.

References

https://blogs.ubc.ca/thinkingbusiness/

Hilarious.  Business ideas, but no funding………LOL (Loads of Luck and lumbering.)

I have taken the reference of a blog posted by Bplan blogs on the topic – 5 Steps for Entrepreneurs with an Idea, but No Funding.

Deen, A. (2017, October 25). 5 Steps for Entrepreneurs with an Idea, but No Funding – Bplans Blog. Retrieved from http://articles.bplans.com/5-steps-for-entrepreneurs-with-an-idea-but-no-funding/

In today’s world, a business idea without funding is like an iclicker without the access code. One answers everything right with it but does not have the smallest hint that the iclicker is neither adding up to one’s attendance nor improving ones iclicker grades. Yes, this era considers funding as the most important aspect for a startup and an idea without funding is a prey for criticizers which ends becoming a laughing stock. However, Bplans blogs have posted an article of topic – “5 steps for entrepreneurs with an idea, but no funding” which I would be analyzing and delivering my views and opinion on them.

1. Find a mentor and ask for advice.

Bplan’s first step is hunting for a mentor and getting advice and suggestion on one’s ideas. Though a mentor can be very beneficial and an added value to the development of an idea into a business but in this situation of no funding it is very vague and impractical as all the businesses in the world need a mentor and their suggestions to survive. However, finding a mentor is not easy. A person can only become a mentor when one is well educated in the area and is very keenly interested in your idea and is ready to invest one’s whole time in you. Hence, this could be a difficult step but never give up.

2. Perform Market research

If the idea has been generated before knowing the needs of the market it is a product-oriented idea and ideas generated with no funds are mostly product oriented, hence knowing the market needs is significant to convert the idea into a business. Market research can also help one know what the market expects from the idea and where your idea stands. Nevertheless, market research cannot be accurate many a times and market research needs a lot of hard work and is very time-consuming.

3. Determine your capital needs and write a business plan.

It is very impractical and obvious that a business idea will require a business plan and the capital needed to finance the plan and the idea. This step could be considered reasonable but this step is quite generalized as all startups need a business plan and it is not helping the idea grow into a business anyways.

4. Enter a contest

Bplan blogs recommend that an idea should be shared in a contest to come into the eyes of investors so that idea is can be funded to grow into a business. This step would help the business get sponsors and investors. Nonetheless, one’s idea can also be copied if not patented.

5. Consider outside investments.

Considering outside investment should be the first step after attaining the business idea because this would not put any load on the family and relatives plus grow the idea into a business faster but finding them is quite a difficult job.

BLAKE AND MOUTON MANAGERIAL GRID FOR APPLE INC.

Article based on – Apple’s Tim Cook leads different

 Apple’s Tim Cook leads different. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2015/03/26/tim-cook/

The former CEO of Apple Inc., Steve had a reputation of “bad boss” who demanded excellence from his staff and kept his expectations high always, he wasn’t easily approachable and took decisions individually, this management-style of Steve valued company’s production more than employees, more of a kind of “dictator” which made him a “produce-or -perish” manager. Apple-Inc.’s culture has taken a revolutionary turn with the help of Cook, Apple-Inc.’s current CEO.

Tim Cook has been a team manager kind of leader for the company in the beginning of his tenure who valued employees and the products equally and considered both the factors necessary for the company’s success also known as a democratic leader where employees and other leader take more part in the process of decision making. Cook was partaking a smooth and confident period being the leader, but in the year 2016, there were vicissitudes noticed by the employees in the leadership-style of Cook who determined the modification and the furtherance of the hoary products instead of formulating new ingenious products making the company less visionary and pioneering. The consistently decreasing sales of the company after the pause taken by Apple-Inc. after the launch of iWatch is the proof of diminishing vision.

This style of leadership is noted to be partially country-club leader and team-leader. This style suggests that Cook values his employees higher than the products of the company but they are not eliminated but are of less concern than the employees that is why the leadership-style lying between the country-club and team-leader.

The Cook doctrine is the reason behind the change in Cook’s leadership-style, doctrine speaks about Cook’s superstition and fear of retaining the title of “most valuable company”.

Though this attitude of Cook should have made him a country-club leader but he is more correspondent towards the team-leadership-style in the Blake and Mouton graph because of his previous style and its effects on the company. Now he values the employees more than the product for he believes that employees are the key factors in the success of products.

Although Cook himself is paying more attention and striving hard to increase the sales of the older products implementing the modification in them but has divided teams for the creation and development of new innovative products however the board members have decided to reduce Tim’s salary reason being the lack of performance and results. Off lately there has been a large turnover of the employees even the senior employees leaving the company, the primary purpose being that their skills had not been occupied to the fullest and the concentration of Tim on old products instead of new caused boredom.

[1]

Cook can adopt the leadership-style of team-leader which concentrates equally on employees and products. Tim can do this through giving tough jobs to employees resulting in enrichment, empowerment, and enlargement. Cook also should take responsibilities on himself to produce results.

Citations

• https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/232865
• http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/032515/what-tim-cooks-managerial-style.asp
• http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/11-leadership-lessons-can-learn-from-tim-cook.html
• http://fortune.com/2015/03/26/tim-cook/

[1] List of Employees who left Apple Inc.

Zara’s Growth Strategies

Based on the article: Why Zara Is The Most Exciting Retailer Today

Heller, L. (2017, March 15). Why Zara Is The Most Exciting Retailer Today. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/lauraheller/2017/03/15/why-zara-is-the-most-exciting-retailer-today/#446a7f385cd3

Zara, a multinational fashion brand is the most exciting retailer according to the Forbes, here is why.

Zara considers the customers to be at the heart of their unique business model, which includes design, production, distribution, and sales through our extensive retail network. Hence, the growth strategies instated by Zara makes them the most exciting retailer today.

The following are the growth strategies adopted by Zara which is being displayed through Ansoff matrix grid.

Ansoff matrix

Market Penetration:  Zara’s new business plan focuses on designing and promoting the accessories. Zara has been working on an innovative technology named “the color weaving hair” (CVH). The primary feature and property of CVH technology is that they can alter the color and design according to the users wish. Zara fits microtechnology in the hair strands and then views them to strengthen them which makes it cost efficient. Zara has only introduced CVH for their accessories and their business plan includes opening exclusive stores for accessories. In my opinion, this growth option may not be successful because the excessive cost of production may increase the price and it would be a onetime cost for the customer as the primary feature would help them wear it umptieth of time which can lead to less stock turnover and high buffer stock.

Product Development:  Zara’s ‘diffable’ project is the most talked about lately. It is targeting a new customer segment of differently abled people. Zara’s clothes collection for this has been specially designed which focuses on convenience of wearing, style and comfort. Therefore, this growth strategy of Zara can be successful because it is cost efficient and can also be considered ethical adding on the brand reputation of Zara can also help market the new product range, however this may make the customers feel inferior to the other customers.

Market Development: Virtual Trials are the most modern and advanced facilities introduced to the fashion world by Lenskart in the spectacles market and now this technology has been instated in the trials rooms of Zara in US which are the first of its kind in the world. This expansion policy of may not be successful because the installation of the virtual trial technology would be very costly with no revenue generating from them, though they would enhance the shopping experience and increase the speed of the purchase process.  But they would not be profitable in the long term.

Diversification: Zara has been planning to diversify its business in the new market of Home Décor with its new product range of the décor items, this may be profitable because home décor is a business which has a lot of potential and with Zara’s Brand reputation and economies of scale this would be a feasible and profitable option.

Citations

• http://www.businessinsider.com/zaras-retail-strategy-is-winning-2015-6
• https://www.zara.com/us/en/info/company-c11112.html
• http://www.academia.edu/5492552/The_Strategic_Management_Analysis_of_ZARA_Relative_to_the_Case_in_Developing_Countries_

Welcome to UBC Blogs. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

Ewww……thics.

Today this realm of Earth encompasses of countless businesses, innovative startups, life changing ideas which have led to an inordinate spring of development towards the highest yet there is sadness in the world……. WHY? because individualism has overpowered collectivism, people have become greedy for money and find it difficult to differentiate between good and bad morals. Ethics is defined as the moral principles that govern the behavior of an organization or an individual.

Many organizations in this era focus only on making a profit by good or bad means and ignore the negative externalities which they can cause however, on the other hand, there are many non-profit organizations whose goal is the welfare of society and create positive externalities nevertheless the non-profit organizations occupy just the 1/10^th of the gigantic business world.

There are also for-profit organizations who have established policies that welfares the environment or the society which is an ethical behavior. Ethical behavior in the terms of business can also be said to satisfy the corporate social responsibility (CSR). CSR is defined as a business approach that contributes to sustainable development by delivering economic, social and environmental benefits for all stakeholders. CSR is a concept with many definitions and practices.

Below are some examples of ethical business practices:

• Rolex donates 90 % of its profits to the needy and poor.
• Taco Bell offers a discount to its kind customers.
• Apple Inc. conducts regular water and food checks for employees.
• Google promotes “no plastic” hence have distributed google hands bags among the employees as a substitute for plastics.
• Microsoft provides free medication to its employees at the headquarters.

Below are some examples of ethical business practices:

• Thomas Edison/Radio Corporation of America – Attempting a monopoly of patents.
• McDonalds used to use the same dishes to cook vegetarian and non-vegetarian food.
• Toshiba decided to fudge its financial results.
• Volkswagen cheats emissions tests
• Exxon Mobil deliberately misleads the public about climate change.

About the Article

Apple relies on child slave labor that is working in dangerous conditions, for ten hours each day while being exposed to cancerous vapors. The conditions at the manufacturing plant Foxconn are bad enough that they had to install “anti-suicide nets.” The workers live in horrible conditions and experience unreasonable workloads and humiliating discipline. Apple has reduced some of their work with Foxconn, but they still rely primarily on them. This is an unethical practice by the organization as child labor is prohibited and the working conditions are harmful to the employees. Here Apple Inc. is taking advantage of not muck educated labor and is putting them to a job which can risk their lives and create a negative externality leading to the welfare loss to the society.

Though Apple Inc. relies on Foxconn but they cannot afford to risk their employee’s life, I would be better for the organization to let go of Foxconn which would help the brand image of Apple Inc. in the long term though the production would stop for a while but the cost in the long term would be reduced.

This step can also help the organization improve its brand image, act ethical and satisfy the corporate social responsibility.

Bibliography

https://www.enkivillage.org/unethical-business-practices.html

https://www.inc.com/will-yakowicz/biggest-big-business-fails-of-2015.html

https://blog.udemy.com/business-ethics-examples/

http://lexicon.ft.com/Term?term=corporate-social-responsibility–(CSR)