MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's biggest vehicles maker, Tata Motors, is exploring cheaper ways to man... Tata Motors explores new id

Tata Motors is planning to introduce a new car into the market. A small relatively cheap car that would be attractive to the Indian consumers.

This can be considered as a business concept innovation since no companies have tried doing that recently. This new car Tata Motors plans to introduce to the market can be viewed as a substitute to the scooters and motor cycles currently being used by the Indian consumers since it will cost almost the same.

Their business mission now includes providing affordable cars to the lower income class in India. By launching this car, the company would be expanding their market scope. They would be entering to a new sector of the same market, the sector of cheaper smaller cars. They will also be differentiating themselves from other motor companies because they will be selling a new line of cars that is not available at other car retailers.

The company plans to start working on this project as soon as it finds a good location for the plant. When found, this plant would represent a strategic asset that the company will own. Another strategic asset that the company seems to have is their managing director Ravi Kant. He seems to be a man with a good business vision. Other strategic resources that the company owns are the methods through which they plan to manufacture this new car. These can be considered as part of the core processes Hamel discusses.

The company plans to enhance its customer interface through the launch of this new product. They are targeting a different audience. They have collected information about the number of people who do not own cars currently, and how this would change if this new “cheap” car is introduced into the market. They would attract more customers and thus make more profit, but to keep the success the company should provide their customers with some kind of service and support for the new cars they would be purchasing. This would also enhance the relationship dynamics the company has with its customers and thus increase customer satisfaction.

There are safety concerns about the new car because of its price and safety, but these cars would definitely be safer than the scooters and motor cycles the Indian consumers are currently using. Although this car would not be as safe as other more expensive cars, but I believe that some things would be missing because of the cheap price the company is planning to sell the cars for.

The company sees a great financial potential in this line of business. They believe this new product would represent a substitute for scooters and motor cycles. The company’s customer base would increase, and thus there profits would increase as well. They would be providing something that consumers need and they would be benefiting from it.

Qatari Firms Blacklisted for Woeful Treatment of Indians

The maltreatment of employees is an issue that is attracting a lot of international attention. A lot of the GCC countries recruit people from India, Srilanka, and Bangladesh because they are considered to be cheap labor. There is nothing wrong with looking for cheap labor to reduce your costs; the problem exists when these employees are maltreated.

The usage of children as a source of cheap labor is another issue that attracted a lot of international attention. It is not only that children were used as labor that was the problem; it is also the fact that they were working in very bad working conditions. In our case, the problem is not the usage of children, but it is the bad working conditions that the Indian workers are facing in Qatar.

As Baron discussed in his framework, the non-market environment of a firm or industry is characterized by four I’s. The first I is the issue, which is the maltreatment of the Indian workers (cheap labor). They are not being paid their wages on time and according to the article the food and accommodation that are given to them are “sub-standard”. The second I is the interest; the interests in this issue are composed of the companies that are using cheap labor and the employees themselves that are being maltreated. The third I is institutions; it includes the Indian embassy. After being informed of the maltreatment its citizens are receiving in their jobs in Qatar, the Indian Embassy decided to remove 11 companies from its PAC in Qatar, and these companies will not be able to employ anymore Indian workers. The fourth I is the information; it includes the information that the Indian workers are giving to their Embassy in Qatar. This information has led the Indian Embassy to come up with the decision that the 11 firms that have treated their workers very badly will not be able to recruit anymore Indian employees. Some of the Indian employees have been fired from jobs because they complained about not being paid.

The issue of maltreating your employees can lead to a lot of consequences in today’s business world. The consumer is far more educated that he/she was a long time ago, and now the variety of options available in the market gives the consumer the freedom to choose who to deal with and who not to deal with. The consumer now can exercise the bargaining power he/she has if he/she is not content with the way a certain firm does business. The maltreatment of the employees can lead the consumers to boycott the companies that do so because they believe that every human being should be treated decently!

Al Maya Group Plans Expansion

Al Maya Group is planning on expanding their business both locally and globally. This is an element of the core strategy component of the business concept that Hamel discusses in his framework. New customers are being targeted, and a new geographic area is being entered. Another part of core strategy that can be noticed in this article is the aspect of product market store. Product market scope captures where the firm competes – which customers, which geographies, and what product segments- and where by implication it doesn’t compete. The firm is planning on entering new markets. For example, it is planning to open fashion retail stores and the first British Home Stores (BHS) in Poland. The firm is not entering into new industries in this way because it is still in the retail industry, but they are targeting different customers and offering a wider range of products to their current customer base. Another thing that relates to product market scope that can be noticed from the article, is that the firm does not want to enter into the hypermarket business. This shows that the firm is choosing where to compete and where not to.

“The company which along with Lal's and Choithram once controlled the UAE's organized retail sector, is resisting the hypermarket sector for the time being,” said Deepak Pagarani, Al Maya Group's chief executive. This showed that at a certain point in time Al Maya Group controlled a larger share of the market, but because of new entrants (hypermarket sector), which is one of the five forces Porter discusses in his framework, they lost part of the share they used to control, but apparently this did not leave them at a great disadvantage because they are still making profit. Al Maya along with Lal’s, Choitram, and Al Safeer remain in the middle-of-the-market segment.

“With traffic growing and high gasoline prices increasing by 30 per cent, we feel this segment of the market will only grow. Most people will spare themselves the inconvenience of driving to hypermarkets where parking is a problem, for a few bucks.” The non-market issue of the increase in oil prices can be considered as an advantage to Al Maya group because this makes their “close by” locations appealing to a wider range of customers. Instead of saving a few bucks in the hypermarkets, the customers would be saving themselves the extra cost of petrol and the hassle of finding a parking spot. Their stores’ locations can be considered as a valuable resource since it’s one of the reasons their customers choose to shop at their stores.

What Companies Need


Companies are very picky with the employees they choose nowadays. There are a lot of reasons for this. Some of which are: 1) There is a large supply of employees nowadays, and companies want to make sure they get the best. 2) Competition is great among companies, and by selecting the right employees companies can put up with the competition. Thus, choosing the right employees helps in ensuring the company’s ongoing success. As Barney discusses, every company has its own resources and capabilities. The employees are part of these resources and capabilities. The process of choosing the right employees involves choosing a valuable resource that is hard to imitate, and thus, putting the company at a competitive advantage. Choosing the right employees is not the only thing that would ensure a company’s success with regard to this particular resource. The way these employees are integrated within the whole company is what really matters, and this refers to the question of organization Barney discusses.

Education on its own is not enough; work experience should be there to show a person’s capabilities. This is what most companies ask for. Graduate study in a lot of the business schools around the world is becoming a more hands on experience. This is a type of enhancing the relationship dynamics discussed by Hamel. By making their programs more of a hands on experience, they are giving their students (customers) the skills they need when they go out to work for the companies. The companies ask for experience and this is what the students are getting through these programs. But this would have not been possible, if it were not for the information and insight element of customer interface discussed by Hamel. Before changing the way they teach their programs, these schools asked the companies what they look for in their applicants, and how an MBA graduate would be different from the other non MBA holding applicants. Then, they tailored their programs accordingly.

Every company seeks to have the best resources and capabilities. These business schools are giving their students better chances with regard to finding work, and they are also giving these companies the kind of skill they want.

Effect of Danish Boycott Patchy:

The cartoons that were published in The Danish magazine have insulted Muslims all over the globe. These cartoons made the Muslims start a boycott against all Danish products. They want to hit the Danish where it hurts, their economy. Would this boycott work? What effect would it have on the Danish economy if it does work? It does not matter; the point is that there are a lot of aspects that are associated with such an action.

Porter discusses that there are five forces that drive industry competition. One of these forces is buyers and their buying power. Muslims all over the globe have started a boycott against Danish products. In this way, they are using the buying power they have to stand up for their beliefs. Whether this boycott will end up working or not depends on how organized the boycott is. For example, people in Saudi started boycotting Saudi Dairy and Foodstuff Companies’ products. They assumed that these companies’ products are Danish, but according to a statement by SADAFCO the companies’ products are completely Saudi. Buying power is a very important tool that every individual has, but for it to be used correctly enough information should be collected about the Danish products. The buyers should be well informed and organized to reach to the goals the desire.

The customer interface elements discussed by Hamel can be used to describe how the actions of the Danish newspaper might affect their business. Relationship dynamics refers to the nature of interaction between the producer and the customer. Companies in general use this element to create good relationships with their customers to gain their loyalty. The cartoons the Danish newspaper published were very offensive to the Muslim public, and this created a distorted image of the newspaper. These consequences of publishing these cartoons did not only affect the newspaper, but people decided to boycott everything that is Danish; thus, affecting the Danish economy as a whole. The newspaper should have made more research before publishing such cartoons. They should have collected much more information about how they expect the public to react. This might have given them a better idea on the consequences they were going to encounter.

Boycott or no boycott the point here is that one company can do a lot of damage if it did not do take its customers and their buying power into consideration. If

"The Real Cost of Google's Sellout to China"

Each and every corporation’s main aim is to make profit. Its existence depends on it. Google is no exception. The Chinese market represents a great opportunity to make profit. We have to admit that we do live in a world where money talks, and if it weren’t for that I do not think Google would have considered entering the Chinese market. I believe that one of the major barriers anyone would face when entering the Chinese market is the government policy. Google, however, does not have a problem with this because it agreed to all the conditions the Chinese government proposed.

According to the article “The Real Cost of Google’s Sellout to China,” Google was not willing to give up any details about its users’ searches to the U.S. government because it is already a successful participant in that market, and maybe if it were to accept what the U.S. government wants it would lose the trust of it customers. It did not have a problem with censorship in China, however, because Google saw a great benefit in such an action since it would facilitate its entry into the Chinese market, which has great profit potential. Another reason might be that, when you want to enter a new market you would have to abide by the rules and regulations of that market. Other than it being the law, you do not want to be the rebel in a new market, which would just make it easier for the competitors to kick you out because they are just better at the game.

Test post for management 406 at AUS.