Rikh's Blog

I refer to Ivan Chan’s article ‘Moral Conscience of the swoosh’ where he describes the way in which Nike exploits cheap labor to manufacture their goods which brings me to a question, “how many of us really know how our favorite brands manufacture their products?”. More often than not, Nike advertisements do incorporate a sense of corporate social responsibility like cancer awareness. However, what is the point of that when they pay their workers wages less than minimum wage. Many people do not know that Nike is not the only sports equipment retailer that does that. That is why I do agree with Ivan because, all their marketing and advertising to present a socially responsible company goes down the drain when the true facts are revealed on how unethical their methods of production are. Therefore a better way to clean up their image as a company as well as become more socially responsible and ethical, they should revise their methods of production so that the people would truly appreciate the company for what it is.

I have recently come across a blog called ‘The Boss Ladies’ created by business and leading entrepreneurial women in and around Vancouver. A human resource related article, called “Creating a Workplace Play Policy” caught my attention. The article talks about how incorporating  some time for creativity in the working week might lead to an increase in productivity. It also discusses the trade -offs between sacrificing billable hours for innovation. The article also brings in factors such as employees do not necessarily work for money because they value job satisfaction above salary.

I personally feel this is an interesting blog and article because it gives insights from the bosses themselves on how to run the company. I agree with the article is stating that the bosses need to strike a balance between carrying out the tasks of  their job scope as well as giving them some time to be creative be innovative. Too much of either could result in a drop in productivity. The post also compares its human resource management to Google which is widely known to be ‘one of the best places to work at’. Therefore this blog not only gives us an insider scoop to human resource management but also capital investment and effective marketing strategies.

Google's 20 per cent time allows employees to play with ideas outside of their formal job description.

Link: (http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bcb/bc-blogs/boss-ladies/2011/05/06/creating-workplace-play-policy)

I refer to Dilraj’s blog post dated on October 10th, 2011. I agree with his views to a certain extent. Southwest airlines is in a industry which is very saturated with the abundance of many substitutes. Price is no longer a factor in air travel with many airlines offering competitive fares. I do understand that the airline has to follow certain regulations. However, by misinterpreting or misunderstanding the situation as mentioned in the article, would cause the public to view the airline to be discriminatory and racist. This might cause a PR nightmare as well as very bad publicity for the airline. Their sales might plunge due to the abundance of substitutes. The airline cannot afford that as rising costs such as jet fuel might cause the company to go in the red and eventually join the list of ‘now defunct airlines’ .  Therefore in conclusion, as reiterated by Dilraj, Southwest airlines should now focus on improving their image by improving their customer skills. They should also retrain their cabin and ground crew to improve their discernation skills to avoiding a similar situation again without compromising the safety of the flight.

Link: (https://blogs.ubc.ca/dilrajrahal/2011/10/10/muslim-woman-sues-southwest-airline/)

An article on the 17th of November 2011 caught my attention for its politically provocative images. The company United Colours of Benetton which is an Italian clothing retailer is no stranger to using shocking and eye opening ad campaigns. In their photos they made a contrast of various political and religious figures kiss to bring out the point of reconciliation and peace. Fortunately or unfortunately certain images from the ads were removed due to a uproar from the dignitaries themselves.

I personally feel that this is a good ad campaign as it does not comply to the more traditional ways of marketing. The company is fond of associating its brand image to creating a better world i.e. bringing about social awareness about issues such as AIDS and war. I do agree that the images is too liberal for my liking but it did get the attention and creating debates and discussion about the ad campaign itself which is a effective way of creating the social awareness the company wishes to incorporate. Besides the corporate social responsibility of the company, this campaign is an effective way for Benetton to market its products. People who can relate to their cause would buy their products even more now just to make a statement.

Controversial: This mocked-up image of the Pope embracing Ahmed Mohamed el-Tayeb as part of Benetton's new advertising campaign has been called 'totally unacceptable' by the Vatican Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062423/Benetton-Unhate-advert-Pope-kissing-imam-withdrawn-Vatican-calls-disrespectful.html#ixzz1e2Ubzkfj

Combating hatred: Benetton hope the controversial images will help create tolerance around the world. This picture shows China's leader Hu Jintao and Barack Obama Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062423/Benetton-Unhate-advert-Pope-kissing-imam-withdrawn-Vatican-calls-disrespectful.html#ixzz1e2VBGTmZ

Enemies: North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and Lee Myung-bak, President of South Korea, are unlikely to be keen on this picture Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062423/Benetton-Unhate-advert-Pope-kissing-imam-withdrawn-Vatican-calls-disrespectful.html#ixzz1e2VNuMBd

Attention: People look at a Benetton clothing store window in Paris which is covered by posters as part of its new provocative campaign Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062423/Benetton-Unhate-advert-Pope-kissing-imam-withdrawn-Vatican-calls-disrespectful.html#ixzz1e2VZAQMG

Link: (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062423/Benetton-Unhate-advert-Pope-kissing-imam-withdrawn-Vatican-calls-disrespectful.html)

Mining is never associated with any form of environmental friendliness let alone environmental sustainability. However, this is what mining companies like Barrick Gold Corp are hoping to achieve. The article from the Globe and Mail dated on November 15th 2011 informs us that mining companies are now taking the initiative to go green by investing in clean power such as wind and solar energy. Although their intentions were good, it was mainly driven by the fact that they do not have to rely on the power grid and hence cut their power consumption costs and ease the load of the national power grids.

I personally feel that this is a good investment and a good step for the companies to take. This is because although the actual act of mining is far from being environmentally friendly, investing in renewable energy would definitely see a reduction in operation costs as well as more stability as prices of fossil fuels are volatile. Furthermore, this sets an example for larger scale raw mineral extraction companies to make an effort to reduce their carbon footprint. A environmentally conscious company also helps with the company image and might encourage further investment.

Barrick's Punta Colorada wind farm in Chile

Link to Article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/energy-and-resources/miners-turn-to-renewable-energy-to-cut-costs/article2237420/

The company I chose to blog about for being entrepreneurial is Foursquare. It is a mobile application on smartphones that allow users to check into places, view the ratings of the place and also collect badges for frequenting these places. It not only benefits the users of the application but also the owners of the restaurants and bars etc as it allows them to keep track of their customer flow and who are their loyal customers and rewarding these loyal customers with coupons and discounts. More companies such as Gap are giving users an opportunity to get a discount if they ‘checked’ into a Gap store and the company can gather data as to how many people did patronize their store that day.

This company was born from innovation and now they have 4.5. million downloads of the application which distinguishes them other companies.  Furthermore according to Schumpeter’s View of Entrepreneurship, this company has successfully created a new form of organization; organization of how users keep track of their whereabouts. The company keeps on growing till this day and there are more than 1 million users to date and more people are realizing the applications full potential.

Basic Interface for the foursqaure mobile app

Links:

(http://www.entrepreneur.com/magazine/entrepreneur/2010/june/206722.html)

(http://www.mobilemarketingwatch.com/gap-uses-foursquare-for-unique-one-day-only-25-off-check-in-offer-8498/)

An article from canadianbusiness.com is about the possible tradeoffs between the installation of the Keystone pipeline. One side argues that this massive projects create many jobs and the other side argues that it possibly an environmental risk. This article debates the issue of a tradeoff between an ethical issue versus an economic issue. The installation of this pipeline would cause a risk in destroying the fragile environment in which the pipe was proposed to be built. However I personally think that the American economy would benefit in the short term from the construction of this pipeline. Currently the US economy is in recession and the unemployment rate is high. With the construction of this pipeline, not only will it create jobs, but it would increase Americas GDP output which is benefitial for the economy. However in the long term, we would have to realise that the problem of the impact on the environment might come back to plague Americas problems. The US might have to spend additional money to rectify any environmental concerns which might not be cheap. Unfortunately, the US economy is in a critical state right now and it needs to employ effective measures to improve the ailing economy.

Source: (http://www.canadianbusiness.com/article/49503–environmentalists-pack-hearing-call-keystone-pipeline-bad-deal-for-u-s–page2)

An article by CNNMoney on the 7th of October 2011 struck a chord in me. The article seeks to inform that it is predicted that the more affluent segment of the population in the USA, would spend less during the coming holiday season. The article cites reasons such as changing mindsets to signify the changing consumer consumption patterns in society.

Personally, I think the holiday season promotes consumerism and excessive buying. With the annual gifting of presents, malls are usually packed with shoppers vying for good deals amidst fancy Christmas decor and display. The article tells us that the wealthy Americans did not have a decrease in wealth but rather a change in attitudes after the recession. The recession had made them realize that buying more is not necessarily the answer. However does this change in consumer spending habits exist in the less wealthy segments of society and also people in developing countries like China where the rise in nouveau riche has led to an increase in consumption. In my opinion, this would not hold true for the wealthy in developing countries and Asia where consumerism is seen as ‘popular’ and many people in developing countries have just been recently exposed to a wide variety of products and goods than they have ever before. It would take a massive change in culture of consumption in Asia before they would consider cutting back on spending during the holiday season. As for the less wealthy proportions of society in developed nations such as the USA, a decrease in spending during the holiday season would be expected as they were heavily affected by the economic downturn i.e. unemployment, sub-prime mortgage crisis.

Source: (http://money.cnn.com/2011/10/07/pf/holiday_gifts/index.htm?iid=HP_River)

The article from the financial times is about how the luxury fashion house Hermès started selling saris in India and how it sees India as a huge market for the brand to penetrate. Although the company has it doubts whether it would be successful in the country where the annual growth of sales is 20 percent.

Personally, I would think that Hermès is taking a huge risk here because the country already has well known sari designers that have been around longer than Hermès and also these designers are local and they know the market and changing trends better than Hermès would. However, this weakness might also be turned into a strength in a sense that more Indians would embrace the idea of the westerner company selling saris as it would be something new to them. However, I do not think that Hermès could control the luxury market by its saris. Rather it should aim to provide high quality goods of  a more western style and taste, its niche. Furthermore it is mentioned in the article that due to trade tariffs, these goods would be more expensive than if they were to purchase it abroad. This could be a deciding factor in which Hermès would make a profit in India as consumers would rather purchase these goods at a cheaper price overseas. Hermès is also establishing a brand presence by distancing itself from other luxury brands such as Gucci and Giorgio Armani by housing its stores away from the usual cluster of designer stores. This is an effective way of marketing a Veblen good and consumers wouldn’t mind paying more for a more exclusive brand. All in all, we would need to observe whether Hermès did the right thing to market its saris in India.

High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5c73d1b2-f0bf-11e0-aec8-00144feab49a.html#ixzz1a9fWwRft The European luxury company called the saris – which will sell for $6,100 to $8,200 – a 'wink' to Indian consumers

 
Source: (http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/5c73d1b2-f0bf-11e0-aec8-00144feab49a.html#axzz1a9Wflth7)

Many people ask, ‘why is the iPad so popular?” and “what makes it so popular?”. Well according to a BBC news article “iPad has ‘80% of North American tablet market”, there are several reasons.

Firstly the article mentions a strong brand name. The brand name Apple has become one of the most well known brands to date. A huge part of making the company known was through marketing. Apple marketed itself to manufacture the first personal computer ahead of its rival Microsoft. However in more recent times a large part of their branding arose from how efficient their products worked and how user-friendly they are. This is in contrast to the other competitors such as Windows which is seen as unreliable. The video from the link below demonstrates Apple’s effective marketing strategy by mocking the fragile performance of the Windows OS.

MAC VS PC

Moreover riding on Apple’s good reputation, the iPad is the most portable and light tablet in its range. Apple is a leader in innovating consumer products that are mobile and don’t cost very much. Unfortunately other rival companies are pitching their products on the iPad’s downfall which is that Adobe ‘flash’ is not compatible with its software. According to the article, Amazon which shares a similar reputation with Apple is set to release a tablet soon. If that tablet can accommodate more than the iPad, Apple could see a huge market share loss to Amazon. Consequently Apple cannot afford to be complacent and would need to improve its 3^rd Generation iPad to once again dominate the tablet industry in this every-growing consumer electronics market.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15082092