Importance of Work-Life Flexibility

Human Resource Management

Work Life Balance and Wellness in Organizations

Human Resource Management

What is Work Life Flexibility?

Modern Management Concepts

The Relevance of Stakeholder Management in International Business Context

International Business

Why Business Models Matter in Business?

Modern Management Concepts

Brand-Product Matrix

To characterize the product and branding strategy of a firm, one useful tool is the brand-product matrix, a graphical representation of all the brands and products sold by the firm.  In the brand-product matrix  all products offered under different brands are represented by columns. This helps marketers understand the current brand line and explore further opportunity in expanding the product line. In the brand-product matrix  all current existing brand are represented in form of rows referred to as brand portfolio. The brand portfolio analysis is essential to design and develop new marketing strategies to target a given product category. Brand-product matrix helps in showcasing different brands in any given product category. In that respect brand hierarchy is graphical representation of company’s products and its brands. Hierarchical structure starts with corporate brand and then showcases different product category and below brands. This sort of presentation helps devise marketing strategy at many Continue reading

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Brand Licensing

Licensing is a contractual agreement whereby a company allows another firm to use its brand name, patent, trade secret or other property for a royalty or a fee. Licensing also assists companies in entering global markets with minimal risk. Essentially, a firm is ‘renting” another brand to contribute to the brand equity of its own product. A strong brand often has associations that may be desirable in other product categories. To capitalize on this value, a firm may choose to license its name, logo or other trademark item to another company for use on their products and merchandise. Traditionally, licensing has been associated with characters such as Garfield the cat, Barney the dinosaur, and Disney’s Mickey Mouse or celebrities and designers such as Maratha Stewart, Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger. Recently more conventional brands such as Caterpillar Harley Davidson, Coca-Cola and other have licensed their brands. Licensing can be quite Continue reading

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Building Strong Brands: Why Is It Hard?

In today’s competitive market, a brand can only achieve success if it can connect with consumers and effectively communicate its unique qualities in a way in which they create a positive impression in the minds of consumers. The brand builder who attempts to develop a strong brand is like a golfer play ­ing on a course with heavy roughs, deep sand traps, sharp doglegs, and vast water barriers. It is difficult to score well in such conditions. Substantial pressures and bar ­riers, both internal and external, can inhibit the brand builder. To be able to develop effective brand strategies, it is useful to understand these pressures and barriers. 1. Pressure To Compete On Price There are enormous pressures on nearly all firms to engage in price competition. In all industries from computers to cars to frozen dinners to airlines to soft drinks, price competition is at center stage, driven by Continue reading

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Strategic Recruitment

Recruitment is a key HRM activity. Organizations to survive and grow need to attract candidates who are qualified to help them achieve their objectives.   Effective recruitment does this by locating and attracting potential candidates to job openings within the organization. Such applicants form a pool from which candidates who most closely meet the job specifications can be offered employment. Recruitment begins with the identification of human resource requirements and ends with the receipt of an application. It immediately precedes the selection process and involves attracting qualified and interested candidates from either inside or outside the organization. It is a two way process. Information is given and received by the applicants and the organization.   Recruitment is concerned with both meeting the organizations HR requirements and in helping potential candidates decide whether they meet the job requirements, are interested in the position and want to join the organization. Unfortunately, many Continue reading

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Use of Personality Tests in Employee Selection

Personality or temperament tests are designed to measure basic aspects of an applicant’s personality, such as degree of introversion/extroversion, emotional stability and motivation. Personality tests are the most difficult tests to evaluate and use in employee selection. This is because the concept of personality itself is hazy and the relationship between performance on the job and personality is often vague or nonexistent.   In addition, the applicant can easily fabricate answers. Consequently, personality tests tend to have very limited value in employee selection and their use may be extremely difficult to justify if challenged by EEO authorities.   Finally, some tests may include questions that could be regarded by applicants as an invasion of privacy.   Questions about religious beliefs and sexual orientation, for example in the USA have been construed as both invasive and discriminatory and have resulted in heavy financial penalties. However, this has not stopped their use Continue reading

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Integration of Payroll System with HRIS

Computerization began in the human resource area via the payroll system. Payrolls are large masses of detailed information which need to be accurately and quickly updated. This is a fundamental accounting activity, so organizations had little hesitation in introducing such systems. Early systems were computer bureaus where data was processed outside the organization. Initially, it seemed that the promised benefits of computerization had finally arrived. The army of pay clerks was substantially reduced. However, new issues relating to input errors and processing delays soon arose.   It is important for HR managers to understand this history because it explains why many early (and even some contemporary) HRIS have a bias towards payroll activities.   Payroll processors first attempted to introduce  Human Resource Information System (HRIS) in the mid-1970s when a major vendor offered a HR system with some additional fields of information that could be manipulated. Although a crude attempt Continue reading

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