In a recent article, The Globe and Mail discussed how globalization is contributing to the growing income polarization in Canada.

the article stated that “An analysis of top earners shows their annual incomes have more than doubled over the past three decades while the median taxpayer’s income has changed very little…”

The article continues on to illustrate how the change is substantially contributed to by globalization, for a larger market increases the demand of highly educated and skilled employees with an increase of opportunities.  This results in massive competition, where only few can succeed and the majority fails to live up to the newly raised standard.

Although the Globe and Mail brings up some valid points, globalization, overall, is beneficial for Canada and the world.  It allows for specialization which frees up countries resources which can be put towards innovation and growth.  As well, globalization allows wealthier companies to aid and support companies that may be struggling economically, through projects and initiatives, such as the Arc initiative.

Globalization may be having a negative effect on incomes in Canada now, but in the long run, globalization will allow our world to become a more innovative society

Sources:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/time-to-lead/how-globalization-has-left-the-1-per-cent-even-further-ahead/article15433419/?page=1

The development of social media has opened many doors, connecting people from all over the world.  It is only natural that businesses would take advantage of social media to gain positive rewards.  However, social media can also lead to negative results as there are little to no censors on the internet and a situation can quickly spiral out of control if companies are not careful.

New York Times Blog, DealB%k, illustrated J.P. Morgan’s attempt to utilize social media which ended in a terrible #fail.

On November 7th, J. P. Morgan orchestrated a Q&A on twitter with one of their senior executives, asking people to send questions via tweets using the hashtag: #AskJPM.  The company expected to receive career-advice related questions, so they were surprised when the tweets were anything but.  Many people took the opportunity to insult and make fun of the company by tweeting about J. P Morgan’s shortcomings or unsuccessful endeavours.

Social media is indeed an amazing tool that should be utilized, but it is important to remember that the internet is unpredictable and uncontrollable and in order to use it successfully, businesses must be able to plan for the unexpected.

While scrolling through other blogs, I came across Valendina de Bonis’s blog post, which instantly piqued my interest. It discusses the healthy and organic grocery store, Whole Foods, and their high price points.

Valendina noted that in order to make up for the costs of organic and locally sourced produce, Whole Food’s must raise the prices, making the store more costly than standard grocery stores.  Despite being more expensive, Whole Foods is thriving in Vancouver and shows no signs of stopping.  Why is this the case?  The answer lies in Whole Food’s strategically planned target market, the people of Vancouver.  Seeing businesses like Lululemon thrive proves that Vancouverites value their health, which explains why they are willing to pay inflated prices for their groceries.  It is clear that having locally sourced and organic food is more important to Vancouverites than saving a couple of bucks.

It would be fair to conclude that Whole Foods would not be as successful in areas that do not share Vancouver’s values.

This case shows that it is necessary to invest in extensive research to identify a businesses target market in order for businesses to be successful.

There is no doubt that there is fierce competition within the coffee industry.  With well established tycoons such as Starbucks and Blenz, it is difficult for companies to set themselves apart from the pack.

As mentioned in Priyanka Vasudev’s blog, Tim Horton’s has remodelled their business plan to incorporate aspects of corporate social responsibility, which will help differentiate the brand from their competitors.  Priyanka points out that Tim Horton’s has become part of Maclean’s list of the ‘Top 50 Socially Responsible Companies‘, due to their social responsibility efforts through ‘The Tim Horton Children’s Foundation’ and  ‘The Tim Horton’s Coffee Partnership’.

However, Socially responsible projects are not Tim Horton’s only marketing strategy. Another one of Tim Horton’s strategies  to is create strong affiliations with the NHL.  The company sponsors the NHL Heritage Classic and includes high profile hockey players, such as Sydney Crosby, in their commercials and campaigns.

Tim Horton’s gains from both marketing strategies.  Socially responsible campaigns target a large audience and address the growing trend of being socially and environmentally aware, and the NHL campaigns strengthens Tim Horton’s brand positioning as a Canadian company.

Vancouverite, Chip Wilson started Lululemon, an athletic ware company, in 1998 to fill the growing demand for female athletic clothing.  After extensive research and hard work, on November 2000, Wilson opened his first Lululemon store in Kitsilano and never looked back.

Since then, Lululemon’s popularity has sky rocketed and has eventually made Wilson into a billionaire.

On a recent interview on Bloomberg TV, Wilson quickly put his company at risk when he made some controversial comments. When questioned about the shearness and piling of his products he commented that his company’s yoga pants “don’t work for some women’s bodies.” and that “Quite frankly, some women’s bodies just actually don’t work for it (Lululemon pants).”

Many people have taken these comments as an attack on women who do not fit the “ideal” stature, causing outrage among the public.  Wilson was forced to release a formal apology video to recognize his mistake.

Chip Wilson’s Formal Apology

Although Wilson has caused controversy, Lululemon as a company will not sustain any major blows.  Due to previous consumer experiences and the established culture of the company, loyal customers will continue to support Lululemon and allow this storm to pass.

Sources:

http://www.theprovince.com/Chip+Wilson+apologizes+Lululemon+comments/9145765/story.html

http://www.lululemon.com/about/history

Africa’s traditional brew has been produced for many of years, being made by rural women using wood fires and earthen pots and served during ceremonies and rituals such as weddings, funerals, and prayers.  However, in recent years African beer has made the transition from a traditional drink to a modern commercialized beverage.  Chibuku, an African brewery, has taken the beer, packaged it in colourful containers and made it readily available in liquor stores in countries around Africa.

It is important to note that Africa is willingly taking a traditional aspect of their culture and transforming it into a modern, commercialized product in order to facilitate growth and progress.

This growth in the African beer market is beneficial as the new brewery plants, delivery and transportation services, and necessary marketing will create jobs and boost the economy of Africa.  As well, the new job opportunities will attract a larger workforce which will also help to initiate economic growth in Africa.

Sources:

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2013/10/07/beer_you_can_eat_africas_homebrew_becomes_big_business.html

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/58/181597899_673eaf9302.jpg

In recent years, the Southeast asian region (Malaysia, the Philippines, etc) has dramatically grown and become a bright economical hub.  Some Canadian companies, such as Montreal-based CAE, have capitalized on this economical development.  They have expanded into Malaysia and are now in charge of all the pilot-triaining for Air Asia, a fast growing discount airline.  According to Marc Parent, chief executive officer of CAE, Canada is now punching “way above our weight” in the aerospace sector thanks to the growing Southeast asian middle class.  Another factor that has helped Canadian business in Southeast asian countries is various visits from top Canadian officials,  including a recent visit from the prime minister himself, Stephan Harper.

The Southeast Asian region has a growing work force and is an ideal location for companies to outsource their products. Therefore, economical expansion and increasing trade between Canada and the Southeast asian region would be beneficial not only to Canada’s economy, but for the Southeast asian region as well.

Sources:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/harper-eyes-regional-growth-for-new-business-in-malaysia-1.1913826

http://i.cbc.ca/1.1913862.1380976357!/cpImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/16x9_620/harper-asia-trip.jpg

AECOM Technology Corporation is a leading provider of professional, technical and management support services to public and private clients.  They serve clients from over 140 countries, are known as a Fortune 500 company and had a revenue of 8.2 billion between 2012 and 2013.  Clearly, they are doing something right at AECOM.

However, besides making money, AECOM also excels in maintaining an excellent Ethics and Compliance program.  In fact their ethics department has won them plenty of ethical recognition to go along with their successful business endeavours.

This year, AECOM was awarded with the American Business Ethics Award (ABEA) for the “Large Company” category, an award  which is presented by the Foundation for Financial Service Professionals and is highly regarded among the business world. As well, AECOM was ranked as one of the “World’s Most Ethical Companies” by the Ethisphere Institute, for the third consecutive year.

Business Ethics is often a problem in companies because the desire for profit can make ethics seem unimportant. However after considering a company like AECOM, it changes the way I think about ethics.  A balance is not impossible and companies should always take into account business ethics in all of their future endeavours.

Resources:

http://www.financialpost.com/markets/news/AECOM+ethics+compliance+program+wins+2013+American+Business+Ethics+Award/8921699/story.html

http://www.asianscientist.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/AECOM-Acquires-Capital-Engineering-Corp-In-Taiwan-To-Expand-Asian-Footprint.jpg

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