International Marketing Strategy - Assignment Example

Laura Ashley: A case study Introduction: Laura Ashley Plc. is a small family company with very specialized products spread in the Europe, UK and US. Started by the Ashleys in 1953 the company kept on embracing new products and companies and integrated vertically. The key for the significance and the competitive edge of the company was the design philosophy of Laura Ashley. Although the company faced a shock after the death of Laura Ashley but the company followed the line of Laura's designs. By 1985 the company established its own supply chain and kept on supplying the products at shops. The Company also implemented the Information system for effective communication with in the company Sales practice: The Company established the shops with the same design and undertaken research and development activities in order to analyze the consumer preferences regarding the brand. As a result of the surveys conducted the company found the brand name as the major asset of the company, which could prove to be the main source of competitive advantage of the company. Importance of personal motivation: Motivation means different things to different individuals. For some, it may be an incentive and for others, a psychological backing or setting a good example. Motivation is something abstract and the difficulties arise when one tries to explain its meaning and application. A wide variety of assumptions have been made on motivation by observing the resultant behaviour of motivation. Based on these assumptions and research findings, motivation has been defined in a number of ways. Vroom defines motivation as a process, which governs choices made by persons or lower organisms among alternative forms of voluntary activity. (Vroom, 1964) Motivations are the act of inducing an individual to follow a desired course of action. The desired course of action may be for the good of the individual or for the one who is inducing the individual towards a desired course of action or both. Zedeck and blood contend that motivation is a predisposition to act in a specific goal-directed way. (Sedeck & Blood, 1974) According to Atchison: Motivation is the immediate influence on the direction, vigour, and persistence of behaviour. (Atchison, 1964) Gellerman defines motivation as steering one's actions towards certain goals and committing a certain part of one's energies to reach them. (Gellerman, 1963) In the view of Shartle, motivation is "a reported urge or tension to move in a given direction or to achieve a certain goal. (Shartle, 1956) Since the Company is mainly focused on marketing it is very important for the employees to be motivated in order to capture the market since attracting a customer is not an easy job especially in the case of generics. Motivation can make the employees get all the targets settled by the Organisations. In the case of Laura Ashley the managers should also make the most of the Maslow's needs satisfaction theory which is the base of motivating an individual. In order to motivate the employees it is important for the company to understand the basic needs of the employees. Employee Wants: Just as the definition of basic human needs is a highly complex task, it naturally follows that there are no easy assumptions concerning what employees really want from the organisation. In various surveys, the following are some of the more typically specified wants: Pay: This want helps in satisfying physiological, security, and egoistic needs. The design of a monetary compensation system is exceedingly complex since it serves to satisfy multiple needs and cannot alone motivate the whole person. Security of job: Because of threats from technological change, this want is high on the list or priorities for many employees and labour unions. The underlying need of general security is also high on the list of priorities in the suggested need hierarchy of Maslow. Congenial associates. This want issues from the social need of gregariousness and acceptance. Management can aid the process by carefully planned and executed induction programs, provision of means to socialise through rest periods and recreational programs, and promoting the formation of work teams through proper work-station layouts and human-related work procedures. Credit for work done: This want issues from the egoistic classification of needs and can be supplied by management through verbal praise of excellent work, monetary rewards for suggestions, and public recognition through awards. Releases in employee's newspapers, and the like. A meaningful job: This want issues from both the need for recognition and the drive toward self-realisation and achievement. This is a very difficult want to supply, particularly in large organisations having minute division of work and mechanically paced assembly lines. Some research into the possibilities of job enrichment has indicated the possibility of integrating the need of employees for significant work and the need of the organisation productive, co-ordinated activity. Opportunity to advance: Not all employees want to advance. Some feel the social needs more strongly than the egoistic ones. However, most employees like to know that the opportunity is there, should they desire to use it. This feeling is influenced by a cultural tradition of freedom and opportunity. Comfortable, safe, and attractive working condition: The want for good working conditions also rests upon multiple needs. Safe working conditions issue from the security need. The specific attributes, such as desks and rugs, constitute symbols of status denoting a hierarchy of importance. Much management have discovered that the allocation of such status symbols can be quite as difficult as the allocation of money. In today's environment where the threat of violence is increasing safety is also an important factor which plays an important role in employee motivation. Appraisal is essential for effective managing. The case study showed differences between the stated objectives of appraisals and the way they were actually used. These differences may have caused dissatisfaction. In the Work Planning and Review approach to appraisal, It hat to be emphasised that frequent performance discussions need to be undertaken. Appraisal should measure performance in achieving goals and plans and performance as a manager, that is, how well a person carries out key managerial activities. Traditional appraisal methods that attempt to measure personality traits have serious limitations. Therefore it is decided by the management to use the effective method of appraising managers against verifiable objectives. This approach is operational, related to the manager's job, and relatively objective. The Still, a person may perform well (or badly) because of luck or factors beyond his or her control therefore; the management-by-objectives approach had to be supplemented by appraisal of managers as managers, that is, appraisal of how well they perform their key managerial activities. Strategic choices require trade-offs. Some alternatives involve high risks, others low risks. Some choices demand action now other choices can wit. Rational and systematic analysis is just one step in the strategic planning process, for a choice also involves personal preferences, personal ambitions, and personal values. Development of short-range organisational Objectives and Action Plans: Short-term objectives and action plans did not successfully support the organisational strategy, which could be a part of the performance appraisal process. The short-term objective of the organisation was to increase the customer satisfaction, which could lead to increased market share in future. Objectives were not also well supported by action plans. The achievement of the above stated goal involved effective completion of the different tasks by different departments. All the managers of related department should have aligned their activities according to the objectives of the company. It is obvious that the long-term strategic organisational plans need to be supported by short-term objectives and action plans. Development of Contingency Plans: Organisational plans are developed in an environment of uncertainty, and the future cannot be predicted with great accuracy. Therefore, contingency plans based on alternative assumptions should be prepared. (Koontz & Weihrich, 1994) Production and operations management: Managing operations is a crucial aspect of each and every kind of business. The main concern of the initial thinkers is to such as Frederick Taylor, Henry Gantt, and Frank Gilbreth was to improve productivity. They all put great emphasis on human factor as an indispensable input. The notion of production management has been transformed from the manufacturing activities and has expanded to activities as purchasing, warehousing, transportation, and other operations from the procurement of raw materials through various activities until a product in available to the buyer. The notion includes the process of delivering the services to the customers with the products. With the changing time the aspects covered are increasing, the process now also includes R&D, value creation, marketing management, sales activities, accounting and finance. The operation management model constitutes of inputs and outputs. The list of inputs include, 1. Customer needs: Although the company responded to the needs of the customers but the information regarding the tastes and demands of the customers was not sufficient. Despite the efforts by the company to understand the needs of the customer the company could not align the production with the customer needs. 2. Information: The process of internationalisation requires a thorough information regarding the country in which the Company is going to expand its business. Laura Ashley suffered serious headaches while operating in US. 3. Technology management: The case study does not signal towards the effective use of the Information technology implemented in the Company. 4. Fixed assets of the business: The company kept on expanding the fixed assets of the group, which also effected the liquidity of the company. 5. Human capital: Downsizing and job cuts were found as the important source of reducing costs. The company reduced some 1100 job positions in the Welsh operation, which saved 2 to 3 million pounds for the Company. 6. Variable assets related to transformation process. Information and the physical factors play an important role for managers in order to produce outputs. The company could not effectively use the variable assets of the group effectively. The Company transformed its business from clothing to home furnishings. Planning, operating and controlling are the important constituents of transformation process. The improvement in the system is also an important aim of the model. Outputs consist of products and services and may even be information, such as that provided by a consulting organisation. (Koontz and Weihrich, 1994; p 633, 634) There are many other techniques, which could be undertaken by the management in order to improve the quality of marketing management process. Some of them are described below. Time-Event Networks: Time network analysis is a logical extension of the famous Gantt chart. Often referred to as the program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) an in its essentials as the Critical Path Method (CPM), this technique of planning and control has wide potential use in many applications. But PERT and its various refinements, like PERT/COST, have considerable potential for use in many aspects of planning and controlling operations. (Koontz and Weihrich, 1994; p.648) Value Engineering: A product can be improved and its cost lowered through value engineering, which consists of analysing the operations of the product or service, estimating the value of each operation, and attempting to improve that operation by trying to keep costs low at each step or part. The following specific steps are suggested: 1. Divide the product into parts and operations. 2. Identify the costs for each part and operation. 3. Identify each part's relative contribution value to the final unit or product. 4. Find a new approach for those items, which appear to have high cost and low value. (Koontz and Weihrich, 1994; p.648) The company could not use the process of value addition to the Work Simplification: Work methods can be improved through work simplification, which is the process of obtaining the participation of workers in simplifying their work. Training sessions are conducted to teach concepts and principles of techniques such as time and motion studies, workflow analyses, and the layout of the work situation. (Koontz and Weihrich, 1994; p.648) TQM is based on a number of ideas. It means thinking about quality in terms of all functions of the enterprise and is a start is a start-to-finish process that integrates interrelated functions at all levels. It is a systems approach that considers every interaction between the various elements of the organisation. Thus, the overall effectiveness of the system is higher than the sum of the individual outputs from the subsystems. The subsystems include all the organisational functions in the life cycle of a product, such as (1) design, (2) planning, (3) production, (4) distribution, and (5) field service. The management subsystems also require integration, including (1) strategy with a customer focus, (2) the tools of quality and (3) employee involvement (the linking process that integrates the whole). A corollary is that any product, process, or service can be improved, and a successful organisation is one that consciously seeks and exploits opportunities for improvement at all levels. The load-bearing structure is customer satisfaction. The watchword is continuous improvement. (Ross, 2) Hence TQM requires six basic concepts: 1. A committed and involved management to provide long-term top-to bottom organisational support. 2. An unwavering focus on the customer, both internally and externally. 3. Effective involvement and utilisation of the entire work force. 4. Continuous improvement of the business and production process. 5. Treating suppliers as partners. 6. Establish performance measures for the processes. (Besterfield, Michna, Besterfied & Sacre, p.2) The purpose of TQM is to provide a quality product and/or service to customers, which will, in turn, increase productivity and lower cost. With a higher quality product and lower price, competitive position in the marketplace will be enhanced. This series of events will allow the organisation to achieve the objectives of profit and growth with greater case. In addition, the work force will have job security, which will create a satisfying place to work. As previously stated. TQM requires a cultural change. The change is substantial and will not be accomplished in a short period of time. Small organisations will be able to make the transformation much faster than large organisations. (Besterfield, Michna, Besterfied & Sacre, p.3) Hence summarising the key points discussed above, productivity is a major concern of managers. It implies measurement, an essential step in the control process. The productivity measurement of skill workers is generally easier than that of knowledge workers such as managers. Yet managerial productivity is very important, especially for organisations operating in a competitive environment. Production management refers to those activities necessary to manufacture products; it may also include purchasing, warehousing, transportation, and other operations. Operations management has a similar meaning, referring to activities necessary to produce and deliver a service as well as a physical product. The operations management systems model show inputs, the transformation process, outputs, and the feedback system. A variety of tools and techniques make operations more productive. Seven steps are often involved in planning and designing a product and its production. Companies can choose from six different kinds of production layouts. In order to operate the system, the managerial functions of organising, staffing, and leading must be carried out effectively. Controlling requires an information system often supported by computers. (Koontz and Weihrich, 1994; p.653) Among the various tools for planning and controlling operations is operations research, which is the application of scientific methods to the study of alternatives in a problem situation to obtain a quantitative basis for arriving at the best solution. The operation research procedure consists of six steps. Examples of tools are linear programming, inventory planning and control, the just-in time inventory system, and distribution logistics. Other tools and techniques are time-event inventory system, engineering, work simplification, quality circles, total quality management, and a variety of computer-aided approaches (Koontz and Weihrich, 1994; p.653). References Atchinson, J.W., 1964, An Introduction to motivation, Van Nostrand, Princeton. J.J Besterfield, D. H., Michna, C. B., Besterfied, G., H., & Sacre, B. S., (no date available). Total Quality Management, Third Edition, pp. 1-3. Gellerman, Saul W, 1963, Motivation and productivity, New York: American management association, Koontz, H., and Weihrich, H., (1994). Management: A Global Perspective, Tenth Edition, McGraw-Hill, International Editions, pp.633-653 Ross, J. E., (no date available). Total Quality Management: Text, Cases and Readings, Second Edition, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida, pp. 1 Sedeck S., Blood M., 1974, Foundations of Behavioral Science Research Organizations, Wadsworth publishing company, Belmont, Calif, .p. 174. Shartle C., 1956, Executive Performance and Leadership, New Jersey: Prentice hall, inc. Englewood Cliffs. Vroom, Victor H., 1964, Work and motivation, New York: John Wiley & sons, p, 6 Read More