The World in a Box

After the second world war, an oil tanker by the name of Ideal-X was sent to a port in Newark and cranes loaded 58 metal boxes which were then off loaded five days later in Houston Texas. This was the advent of the containers, the box that changed the shipping industry. Malcom McLean was a trucking magnate who worked out the math and realized that loading “loose cargo” would cost about $6 a ton, where as the usage of containers brought that amount down to less then $0.20. Since this brought down the cost of shipping, it made it possible to be situated in one country, have a manufacturing unit in another and sell the product to a third country. In other words, this was the beginning of globalization. In my opinion, this has resluted in competitive parity and has thereby led to all businesses adopting this method of transportation. Furthermore, it has also led to the structuring of organizations in a functional manner, whereby the raw materials are purchased in one country, and processed in another. The article also mentions that the future of the container seemes bright since provisions are being made to load a higher number of containers on to ships that will be “a quarter of a mile long, 190-feet wide with their bottoms 65-feet below the waterline. They will be able to carry enough containers to fill a line of trucks 68 miles long.” In my opinion, it is not only Hutchison that may need digging, many ports will have to change many facilities io order to remain competitive.

Link to the Site

Al Maya Group plans expansion

It has been an odd 35-40 years since seven countries got together to become one country and be recognized as the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Since then, markets have been on an upward growth and have made immense progress within the Middle East and also in global terms. At the time of the unification of the seven countries, Indian business men were influential in the region to the extent that the Indian Rupee was their official currency. Therefore, after the unification, many Indian businesses decided to relocate in the UAE. One of these businesses was the Maya Lal’s Group that invested in the country and received extraordinary returns. The firm has been on an upward growth with the country and is deciding to invest 40 million Dirhams (UAE currency) in setting up eight supermarkets and two fashion retail stores. The management believes that people do not want to travel far or waste time in traffic jams in order to purchase their groceries, therefore, the former has decided to invest and set up supermarkets in almost every neighborhood. These are non-market issues that need consideration since its in the customers interest to avoid long distances and untimely journeys. The management at Maya Lal’s feels that “there is a room for the growth of neighborhood stores, something in the range of 3,000 square feet offering convenience shopping” because the prices of oil are also going up and thereby the journey to any of the large hypermarkets is an inconvenience. They have also witnessed a double digit growth doing what they do, so they have –for the time being- decided not to enter the hypermarket race and continue the great job with the supermarkets and fashion stores.

Qatari Firms Blacklisted for Woeful Treatment of Indians

This article has to deal with the way in which Indian workers are being treated by firms in Qatar. The Indian employees in Qatari firms had not been paid for a long time and in their desperate attempt to obtain their long due wages, the employees complained about their firms to the Indian Embassy. In return, Indian officials blacklisted 11 Qatari companies and have prepared a watch list for another 35, which are suspected of mistreating its Indian employees. In my opinion, this article could have a Porters point of view in the sense that the Indian Government is creating barriers for entrants by now placing minimum requirements for Qatari firms. Initially, these firms could get away with mistreating their employees since the Indian economy was getting started, but now, since the economy is emerging to become one of the large ones, new regulations are being set in place. I also believe that this article could have aspects of non-market issues since it is in the interests of Qatari firms not to pay their employees cause it makes them more liquid, but in the bargain, they are developing dissatisfied employees whose work may affect the eventual product, which in turn may create dissatisfied customers. To conclude, being an Indian and residing on the Middle East, I believe that these practices will change and Indians will be given the right place in society. As a country India is developing with a booming economy and has been able to deploy its human resources around the globe. It is just a matter of time until these malpractices stop.

Call centers in India face challenges

This article points out that a country like India that has huge reserve of human capital is having problems that pertain to streamlining its workforce. Nearly 3 million English speakers graduate from Indian universities every year and is the reason for the existence of boom of the call center industry in India. Unfortunately, there are numerous “issues” according to the Baron framework that are hilted by this article. One such issue is that call centers cannot analyze staff references at once and this has become the primary reason for few but huge frauds. Another important issue that the article points out is the intensity with which the call center industry is growing. Initially, the software industry and the call center industry were growing simultaneously, but now, due to the boom of various industries using India as its call center, the call center industry is growing at a pace that is uncontrollable by the CCAI (Call Centre Association of India). Therefore, to try solving these problems, “institutes” such as the CCAI have started working on ways by which it could offer a standardized qualification for new BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) workers that would focus on improving English, neutralizing accents, teaching some computer skills and so on. If the CCAI is successful, then the “interests” of the BPO will be met in the sense that it will have a better-qualified workforce and thereby meet the demands of multinational firms that wish to initiate operations in India.

Senator, ex-president agree on ports deal

This article is about ex-president Bill Clinton’s advice to the Dubai government about the issue regarding the ports in the US that the latter wants to acquire. According to Baron’s framework, the issue here is that the US does not want to allow Dubai to take control of American ports since national security is at stake. The article mentions that Dubai has $1.2 billion in “International Capital” of which all are strategically invested in US defense plants and the now, handing over their ports would make access for terrorists easier. Also, Clinton’s advice to the Dubai officials has become an issue since his wife has opposed the idea and she had also made statements regarding Clinton sharing the same opinion. In my opinion, Clinton’s interest in doing so is twofold, either he is getting paid for this deal, or, he believes that this will be beneficial for both countries. Since I reside in the UAE (United Arab Emirates) –Dubai is one of the seven Emirates that form the UAE- I know that Clinton gives speeches at the American University in Dubai and the university is owned by the Dubai government, therefore, they might have got together and spoken about this. Clinton deciding in favor of the Dubai government is a wise decision to make because it wants to expand in terms of economy since it has become an economic giant in the region. Clinton has witnessed the potential and is the reason why he advised Dubai to allow American officials 45days to have a through inspection. Clinton, in my opinion, knows that the officials will be impressed with the pace with which Dubai is growing. Furthermore, Dubai also has an interest in this deal since it will make possible and easy the idea of investing the money form its present growth as foreign investment and continue growing. To conclude, I believe that Clinton was correct in helping the Dubai government and all those who are making inferences about the Dubai breeding terrorists should visit Dubai and witness the potential that it has to offer to the world.

Seniors At Senior Level

"It's still too much fun to work". The American business society is now witnessing a shift in the demographics of business leaders. The fact of the matter is that business leaders do not want to retire and want a “piece of the action” for as long as they can have it. Initially, the retirement age was 65, but has now increased to 70, 80 and is expected to increase beyond that. In my opinion, I see two possibilities to this change in demographics and enthusiasm. Firstly, being an individualistic society where everyone has to perform and create his or her own niche, competition is high and survival is difficult. However, if the period to prove the potential of one-self is increased, it may make getting to the top of the ladder slightly easier and also increase the number of chances one can get to become successful. Finally, having an old workforce may not be entirely beneficial since old schools of thought may prevail and the injection of new ideas may diminish. Also, those who work hard to get to the top and are waiting in line for the vacancy of “the spot” may get perturbed and eventually loose hope. To add, unemployment rates may rise and may negatively affect the economy.

Furthermore, I believe that having a high number of experienced minds working on in an organization beneficial in the sense that it adds “value” to the “human capital”. Firms spend a fixed amount of their revenues on training and developing their workforce. If these firms retain their most qualified, efficient and effective employees, they may save on most of their training expenses and utilize the “financial capital” in obtaining resources that other firms do not possess. This in effect will increase the strength of the firm by adding value to the firm’s resources.

Tags: senior citizens | senior citizen | elderly workers

Effect of Danish Boycott Patchy

The boycott of Danish products is patchy without a doubt. Danish products have been a part of the lives of individuals by forming an integral part of their diet. However, after the publication of controversial cartoons regarding the Prophet (PBUH), these products have been rejected. The article only mentions the potential shut down of Swedish products in terms of the Saudi market, but the fact remains that the Middle East as a whole is affecting Swedish firms. One such example is that of KDD (Kuwait Danish Dairy), a firm that had, over the years, targeted the younger population to create brand loyalty that would be everlasting. They did succeed in their endeavor to the extent that individuals had to compulsively buy their products if it was seen on a shelf. However, these individuals that were proud to be a part of the KDD market segment, reject the latter products. Such is the influence of buying power that our on campus grocery store at AUS has stopped selling KDD along with other Danish products. The awareness of the publishing of these cartoons have created a stir within the Muslim community and as a symbol of their protest, they have refused to buy any Danish product. The article also mentioned the use of the word “cancelled” that was printed over a photograph of Danish Feta Cheese in a Panda store, which in my opinion is marketing with an emotional appeal under the blanket of customer interface. The reason being that the Panda and other stores are using these displays as “symbols” with which customers can connect and experience the act of being supportive against something they believe is wrong, as part of their customer interface. Furthermore, I believe that there is an undeclared unification of stores in the Middle East that signifies a “coalition” with one mission, which is the boycotting of all Danish products. To conclude, I believe that this is an opportunity for local manufacturers to establish themselves and obtain a greater market share, which should eventually increase their sales.