Participative Management – Workers Participation in Management

Human Resource Management

Case Study on Entrepreneurship: Larry Page

Business Analysis

The Boundaryless Career: Modern Contemperory Perspective on Career

Human Resource Management

How to Meet Costa Rica’s 2026 VASP Requirements Without Expanding Headcount

General Business Articles

Concepts of Throughput Accounting and Theory of Constraints

Financial Management

Significance of Research in Social Sciences

Social sciences refer to business, commerce, demography, psychology, sociology, etc. Social sciences directly involve people. Research in social sciences arena deals with the  behavior  of people in their different roles, such consumers, competitors, producers, executives, salespersons, leaders, workers, followers, teachers, students, opinion-makers, etc. Research in social sciences deals with the systematic method of discovering new facts or of verifying old facts, their sequence, inter-relationship, casual explanations and the natural laws which cover them. The importance that social science research wields today is immeasurable and enlarging. As social, business and economic problems abound, the significance of social research gets enhanced as it provides workable solutions. We know the objectives of social research are elaborate. From these emanate the significance of research. The following points bring out the significance of research in social sciences. Problems solving is the thrust of most researches. Social problems are felt directly by people and that research Continue reading

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SWOT Analysis of Starbucks Coffee

Starbucks is a coffee chain company which started its business in Seattle which is situated in Washington, United States. Now, Starbucks is recognized as an International Organisation which is famous all over the world for its quality coffee. It has almost 16,120 stores in 49 different countries which makes it the largest coffee company in the world. Apart from coffee Starbucks serves snacks with soft drinks and also espresso based hot drinks. It has also started supplying some fancy items like coffee mugs with Starbucks logo on it. Later on with the brand name of Hear Music Starbucks entered into music division. It has also started selling some books and movies related to the locality of the stores along with some seasonal and specific company products. Also in many countries at various grocery shops Starbucks has started selling ice-cream with its brand name. Today the Starbucks has become the power Continue reading

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Foreign Direct Investment and the Business Environment

Direct investment abroad is a complex venture. As distinct from trade, licensing  or investment, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)  involves a long-term commitment to a business  endeavor  in a foreign country. It often involves the engagement of considerable assets  and resources that need to be coordinated and managed across countries and to  satisfy the principle of successful investment, such as sustainable profitability  and acceptable risk/profitability ratios. Typically, there are many host country  factors involved in deciding where an FDI project should be located and it is  often difficult to pinpoint the most decisive factor. However, it is widely agreed  that FDI takes place when three sets of determining factors exist  simultaneously;  the presence of ownership-specific competitive ages in a transnational  corporation (TNC), the presence of locational advantages in a host country, and  the presence of superior commercial benefits in an intra-firm as against an  arm’s-length relationship between investor and recipient. The Continue reading

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Work-Life Balance Programs – Cost or Investment?

Work-life balance programs are fast gaining popularity in developed countries. Work-life balance programs can be defined as any benefits, policies or programs that help employees find ways to manage the demands of the workplace and life outside work. In other words, work-life balance programs are designed as a two pronged approach to achieve meaningful achievement and enjoyment in everyday life. There are many forms of work-life balance programs such as flex-time, child-care facilities at work, gyms and concierge services and paid vacations. Many reasons are cited for the introduction of work-life balance programs at the workplace, the most common being that it increases productivity as well as employee loyalty. While these are all valid justifications, the costs of having work-life balance programs should not be ignored. Therefore, do the benefits of work-life balance programs outweigh the costs? Going further, should these programs be considered a cost or an investment to Continue reading

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Corporate Governance – Concept, Need and Principles

Corporate governance can be defined as a set of rules and regulations according to which the behavior of a company is affected. Another aspect of it is that it is also concerned with the relationships which exists among different stakeholders of the company and with the goals which the company has in view. Shareholders, board of directors, employees, customers, creditors, suppliers, and the community at large are the main stakeholders of a business. Gabrielle O’Donovan defines corporate governance as ‘an internal system encompassing policies, processes and people, which serves the needs of shareholders and other stakeholders, by directing and controlling management activities with good business know-how, objectivity, accountability and integrity. Sound corporate governance is reliant on external marketplace commitment and legislation, plus a healthy board culture which safeguards policies and processes. The most common definition of corporate governance has been provided by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OCED), Continue reading

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Case Study: Wal-Mart’s Distribution and Logistics System

As the world’s largest retailer with net sales of almost $419 billion for the fiscal year 2011, Wal-Mart is considered a “best-in-class” company for its supply chain management practices.   These practices are a key competitive advantage that have enabled Wal-Mart to achieve leadership in the retail industry through a focus on increasing operational efficiency and on customer needs. Wal-Mart’s corporate website calls “logistics” and “distribution” the heart of its operation, one that keeps millions of products moving to customers every day of the year. Wal-Mart’s highly-automated distribution centers, which operate 24 hours a day and are served by Wal-Mart’s truck fleet, are the foundation of its growth strategy and supply network. In the United States alone, the company has more than 40 regional distribution centers for import flow and more than 140 distribution centers for domestic flow. When entering a new geographic arena, the company first determines if the Continue reading

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