Culture Assessment Essay Example for Free

Culture Assessment Essay A widely accepted definition of organizational culture is it is the shared meanings, artifacts, values, beliefs, norms, and assumptions that dictate how an organization works and its existence (Cameron Quinn, 2006). Organization culture is shaped by more than one element; say individuals’ life experiences, background, education levels and so fourth. Undoubtedly, leadership also plays a critical role in defining what culture prevails in the organization and their actions have a major influence on how the rest of the organization follows suit. (Robbins et al, 2000) Additionally organization culture defines the strategies that a firm uses in handling things like competition, growth, resource management and the like. (Goffee Jones, 1996) A good assessment of the cultural orientation of a firm makes it likelier to promote interorganisational network and also implement changes that encourage member participation and productivity. The key indicators of organizational culture include organization structure, power and managerial styles, ways in which members of the organization interact and do their jobs among others. This paper takes a look at FedEx Corporation and gives a summary of the type of organization culture at FedEx, its benefits, hindrances as well as the recommendations of the company. Company overview FedEx Corporation is a large company headquartered in the US that deals in printing, courier services and logistics as well as cargo airline services. This company has been named one of the top 10 most admirable companies by Fortune magazine two years in a row. Since its founding in 1971 it has grown from humble beginnings a leader in air courier industry. Its brands include the FedEx home delivery, FedEx smart post and FedEx freight east and west, FedEx services among others. Its chief competitors are DHL, TNT, UPS, BAX Global and USPS. The company employs over 250,000 workers and has a net income of approximately 1. 8 billion dollars in 2006. Culture assessment The organization culture at FedEx blends various kinds of organization culture but perhaps the most predominant culture is flexibility discretion and dynamism. This has been its major strategy of staying ahead. To support this, FedEx takes pride in their ability to adapt to change so as to enhance effectiveness and competitiveness. (Cameron Quinn, 2006, p. 34) This it achieves by combining innovation, knowledge sharing, high experience and team work in its key strategies to attaining competitive advantage. A good illustration of FedEx external focus is evident in the numerous deliveries of relief supplies that FedEx made to hurricane Katrina victims for free in 2005, earning it more customers and goodwill. Adhocracy orientation at FedEx is fostered at top level management down to the junior staff. The CEO of FedEx encourages employees to be trend setters and nonconformist and dare to take calculated risk. The management encourages employees to be all ears on current events and look for opportunities. The guiding philosophy is that an innovation failed is better than a thousand years lost in risk averse dealings. Innovation at FedEx is held with high regard and employees are rewarded handsomely for developing fresh ideas. The management supports viable projects from employees financially or otherwise. This is one reason why FedEx distinguishes itself as an evergreen company in the air courier industry. This culture is underscored when creative attempts that fail are rewarded as well as the successful innovations. The familiar slogan ‘absolutely, positively gets it there overnight’ is made real by the culture ingrained in the employees towards importance of customer service, efficiency at work, speed and accurate scheduling. This culture leverages FedEx for competitive advantage. Basically, the FedEx corporate culture emphasizes urgency, speed and teamwork, exceeding customers’ expectations, initiative, flexibility and active listening (O’Reilly, Tushman Michael, 1997) Aside from the flexible nature at FedEx, it also adopts an outwardly and sensitive approach to the environment that it operates. Competitiveness fosters the company to always look for opportunities to expand and grow. While the opposite of this culture is to foster integration and unity within the organization as well as knowledge some elements of this culture are also present at FedEx. This is because FedEx emphasizes high skills among employees. Employees at FedEx are highly learned individuals as the company only picks the best of the best. Working ones way up the corporate ladder requires that ones knowledge base also increases. In addition, the internal focus of FedEx organizational culture provides an appropriate environment that enables employees to grow and exercise their skills as seen in the various training and task assignments delegated to employees. In order for knowledge sharing to be maximized then division of labor, job enrichment, team building and so forth have to be conducted regularly (Murray, Poole Jones, 2005) some aspects of these are present at FedEx. FedEx corporate culture values hard work and rewards such appropriately. It also disregards discriminations and fosters equal opportunities for its employees in areas of promotion, transfer and recruitment. The hands off team oriented management style promote progressive and diversified work culture. Communication is a key strength for FedEx organization culture and regular surveys on employees’ views on the job are taken to monitor and modify areas of universal discontent. Notably, the employees at FedEx are highly experienced and skilled individuals. The culture therefore is based on letting employees be free agents who direct their jobs in their own direction. The management ensures that employees are proactive and take initiative to learn from mistakes of others. The employees are not reprimanded or penalized for slip-ups rather management takes the blunder as an opportunity to teach the rest. Most of the tasks done at FedEx are assigned to teams which are given sufficient power and authority to fulfill their responsibilities and be accountable for the results. Seemingly this is the reason behind the great success of FedEx. The benefit of the cultures present at FedEx is that the company is maintains its competitiveness amid intense competition from the competitors. Additionally, it deals with fewer conflicts, fewer staff turnover and enjoys increase in employees’ job satisfaction, higher performance less resistance to change, higher productivity and better customer service and so forth. The hindrances of this kind of organization culture are that it requires major investment in time and money. The management needs to be patient with employee mistakes which are most times costly. Additionally it is difficult to monitor this practice in the FedEx Company because of the large workforce and the busy schedules that the employees have. Conclusion The organizational culture at FedEx has both benefits and detrimental aspects although many are the benefits. In the competitive faced paced industry that FedEx operates their culture seem most fitting. Perhaps the only thing that I would improve is the hierarchal structure and the communication channels for free flow of information and faster decision making throughout the organization.

Block Diagram Of A Communication System Computer Science Essay

Block Diagram Of A Communication System Computer Science Essay The doorway to the nowadays wireless communication systems was opened by Guglielmo Marconi when he transmitted the three-dot Morse code for alphabet S by the use of electromagnetic waves over a 3-KM link in 1895. This laid the foundation of modern communication systems ranging from broadcasting, satellite transmission and radio eventually progressing to nowadays cell phones. It wouldnt be wrong to say that wireless communication has indeed revolutionized our present society A sudden increase has been observed in the expansion of radio systems during the last two decades. We have seen great evolution in Wireless communication systems from 1G narrowband analog systems in the 1980s to the 2G narrowband digital systems in the 1990s. Now the existing 3G wideband multimedia systems are being deployed. In the meantime, research and progress in the future-generation wideband multimedia radio systems is vigorously being pursued worldwide. To connect mobile users to the public switched network the United States introduced first radiotelephone service by the end of the 1940s. Improved Mobile Telephone Service was launched by Bell Systems in 1960s due to which lots of improvements like direct dialing and increase in bandwidth took place. IMTS formed the bases of the first analog cellular systems. The term cellular was used due to the fact that coverage areas were split cells, they had a low power transmitter and receiver. BLOCK DIAGRAM OF A COMMUNICATION SYSTEM Figure 1. Block diagram of a general communication system. ANALOG vs. DIGITAL COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS Definition of Digital A method of storing, processing and transmitting information through the use of distinct electronic or optical pulses that represent the binary digits 0 and 1. Advantages of Digital low-priced reliable Easy to manipulate Flexible Compatible with other digital systems The information in digital form can only be transmitted without any degradation through a noisy channel Incorporated networks Disadvantages of Digital Sampling Error As compared to analogue, larger bandwidth is required in digital communications for the transmission of the same information. Synchronization in the communications system is required to recognize the digital signals, but this is not the case with analogue systems. Definition of Analogue Analogue is a transmission standard that uses electrical impulses to emulate the audio waveform of sound. When you use a phone, the variations in your voice are transformed by a microphone into similar variations in an electrical signal and carried down the line to the exchange. Advantages of Analogue less bandwidth is required More Accurate Disadvantages of Analogue Signal loss and distortion can be seen due to the effects of random noise which is impossible to recover GENERATIONS OF CELLULAR SYSTEMS The concept of cellular telephony was introduced in AMPS, short for Advanced Mobile Phone Systems. AMPS divided the total area into small regions called cells and this was from where the concept of cellular telephony started. Cellular Systems had many advantages such as they increased quality, capacity, reliability and availability of mobile telephone network. The generations of cellular systems are described below. FIRST GENERATION CELLULAR SYSTEMS First generation cellular telephone systems were introduced in 1980s. They were based on Analog Frequency Modulation technique. Each channel was assigned a sole frequency. First generation cellular systems offered only wireless voice services based on analog technology. Digital signals were only used for control information such as dialing a number etc. These systems were no able to cope with the increasing demands of users also they had very less capacity and provided poor voice quality. Some first generations systems are Advanced Mobile Telephone System, AMPS NAMPS, AMPS Total Access Cellular System (TACS) Nordic Mobile Telephone System (NMT-900) SECOND GENERATION CELLULAR SYSTEMS Second Generation Cellular Systems provided larger capacity and provided much better services to users compared to first generation systems. They were based upon Digital Modulation technique which led to great enhancement in networks capacity. Second Generation Systems used multiple access techniques such as TDMA and FDMA. The biggest draw back of Second Generation Systems was that its different systems were not compatible with each other. Therefore roaming between different systems was not possible. Some of Second Generation Systems are North American Digital Cellular, NADC Global System for Mobile Communication, GSM Pacific Digital Cellular, PDC CDMAONE, IS-95 CDMA In order to overcome Second Generation compatibility problem with increased data rates of modern internet applications, 2.5 Generation standards were developed. The best thing about them was that they allowed already existing Second Generation systems to be upgraded so that they can be used for higher data rate transmission. 2.5 Generation brought a new revolution in cellular telephony by supporting services like high speed internet and location based mobile services. Some of 2.5 Generation Mobile Systems are General Packet Radio Service, GPRS Enhanced Data Rate for GSM Evolution, EDGE THIRD GENERTAION CELLULAR SYSTEMS Designed to provide high quality and high capacity in data communication, Third Generation Systems require sophisticated spreading and modulation techniques. Third Generation Systems are aimed to provide voice quality comparable to land line telephony and also to support high data rate. These systems are compatible with circuit switched as well as packet switched data services. They are also compatible with the existing networks and use radio spectrum much more efficiently than before. Some Third Generation Systems are Wideband CDMA, WCDMA Universal Mobile Telephone System, UMTS CDMA 2000 BEYOND 3G The highly developed version of the 3G mobile communication are the 4G mobile communication services. It is estimated that 4G mobile communication services will give increase in capacity, data transmission with high speed, broadband, HQ color video images for users, graphic animation games in 3D, audio services in 5.1 channels. For the system and architecture of 4G mobile communication many researches are done. Developments are made in the terminal protocol technology for high speed packet services, larger capacity, enabling downloading application programs by public software platform technology, multimode radio access platform technology, and high quality media coding technology over mobile networks. Why 4G? Services like wireless internet and teleconferencing can be carried by 4G. Global mobility and service portability. Wider bandwidths. Increased bit rates. Less expensive. Mobile networks can easily be scaled. CHAPTER # 02 Multiplexing is a process in which a single carrier is used to transmit several different signals. These several signals are transmitted all together by combining them and forming one signal that will effectively move through the carrier bandwidth. When one transmission is done and the signal reaches the destination point, the integrated signal re-assembles into its actual form and is then received. Multiplexing is one of the most used techniques today in almost every communication system. Because of the technological advance multiplexing, we have seen major increase in efficiency of a wide range of telephony services and online applications. Multiplexing has become an effective technique that assists in everything from video conferences and web conferences up to bulk data transmissions and even making a simple Point-to-Point phone call. FDMA: FDMA is the most usual technique used for multiple accessing. FDMA stands for frequency division multiple access. It is clear from its name that in this technique the frequency is divided among the users as the available spectrum is shared among them in the frequency domain. The message signals are transmitted onto carriers for different users using particular RF frequencies. Within FDMA structural design the Single Channel Per Carrier (SPSC) is the simplest method where each channel is provided with a separate carrier. This scheme finds its essence in the fact that the channels are assigned on the basis of demand. Within a cell all the channels are available to all users all the time, and the channels are assigned as soons as a message signal is received or a request is made. Guard bands are used to reduce the chances of interference from adjacent channels. These guard bands are present between the bands allocated for various channels. In the implementation of the first analog cellular systems, FDMA is the multiplexing technique that was used. TDMA: Time division multiple access techniques allots different time intervals to different users for the transmission of signals and storage of the data is carried out in one frequency channel not like FDMA which uses one frequency per channel. Users are allowed to use the same frequency but the time slots are divided. In TDMA techniques the available spectrum is divided into small frequency bands as in FDMA, which are further sub-divided into various time slots. The user can access the frequency channel only for time slot allotted to him. User can use periodically the particular duration of time. In TDMA systems, guard bands are required between both frequency channels and time slots. SDMA: SDMA stands for Space-Division Multiple Access. It is a MIMO (Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output, a multiple antenna schematic architecture) based wireless communication network architecture. It enables access to a communication channel by the process of identifying the user location and establishing a one-on-one mapping between the network bandwidth allotment and the acknowledged spatial location that is why its mostly suitable for mobile ad-hoc networks. For majority of the well known mobile communication architectures such as CDMA, TDMA and FDMA, SDMA architecture can be configured and implemented CDMA: CDMA stands for Code division multiple access. CDMA systems are based on the spread spectrum technique. In which transmissions by all the users are carried out simultaneously while operating at the same frequency and using the entire spectrum bandwidth. For the identification and extraction of required transmission, each user is allotted with a unique code which cannot match with any other user. This issue of identification is due to the fact that all the users transmit simultaneously. To ensure this privacy, pseudo-random noise codes or PN codes are used. These codes are actually the orthogonal codes and its advantage is that it reduces the chances of cross correlation among themselves. By using this PN code assigned to the specific user, modulation of the message signal from an individual user is done. Then we have the CDMA frequency channel through which all the modulated signals from different users are transmitted. At the receivers end, the desired signal is then recovered by de-spreading the signal with a replica of the PN code for the specific user. The signals whose PN codes are not matched with the desired signal and are assigned to different users are not de-spread and as a result are regarded as noise by the receiver. CDMA differs from both TDMA and FDMA in a way that it allows users to transmit the signal at the same time and operate at the same nominal frequency so it requires less synchronization whereas in TDMA and FDMA frequency and time management is very critical so more dynamic synchronization is required. One more advantage of CDMA is that complete systems spectrum is used by signals and hence no guard bands are required to protect against adjacent channel interference. Intro to Spread Spectrum Communications Following are the major elements that can clearly describe the Spread Spectrum communications: By spread spectrum, bandwidth far in excess is available than that is necessary to send the information. Due to this characteristic the transmission can be protected against interference and jamming at the same time providing multiple access capability. An independent code known as the Pseudo random code is used for signal spreading across the bandwidth. The distinct nature of this code separates spread spectrum communications from typical modulation techniques in which modulation always spreads the spectrum somewhat. For the recovery of the original signal the receiver is synchronized to the deterministic pseudo random code. Users can transmit the signal at the same time and operate at the same nominal frequency by using independent code and synchronous reception. In order to protect the signal from interference a pseudo-random code is used. It appears to be random to anyone who does not have its pre-defined knowledge but in reality is deterministic, it is because of this fact that receiver is able to reconstruct the code needed for the recovery of the required data signal. This code used for synchronous detection is also called Pseudo noise sequence. Types of Spread Spectrum Communications Spreading of bandwidth of the signal can be achieved by three ways: Frequency hopping The signal is shuffled between different centre frequencies within the entire bandwidth available to the hopper pseudo-randomly, and the receiver used already knows where to look for the signal at a given time. Time hopping The signal is transmitted in short bursts pseudo-randomly, and the receiver knows when a burst is expected. Direct sequence Very high frequency is used to code the digital data. The code is pseudo-randomly generated. The same code is generated at the receiver end, and in order to extract the original data this code is multiplied to the received information stream. CHAPTER # 03 SOURCE CODING AND DIGITAL MODULATION 3.0 INTRODUCTION Digital Modulation is performed in order to represent digital data in a format that is compatible with our communication channel. Why Digital Modulation? Digital modulation schemes have greater capacity to convey large amounts of information than analog modulation schemes. 3.1 DIGITAL DATA, DIGIITAL SIGNAL Digital signal is binary data encoded into signal elements. Different encoding schemes for encoding digital data into digital signal are: 3.1.1 Non Return to Zero (NRZ) In NRZ there are two different voltage levels for 0 and 1. There is no transition in the middle of the bit. The absence of signal denotes 0 and a positive voltage level denotes 1. Figure 3.1, Non Return to Zero (NRZ) The major drawback of NRZ scheme is that it adds a dc component to the signal. 3.1.2 Multilevel Binary (AMI) In this encoding scheme there are more than two levels. No signal represents 0 and 1 is represented by some positive and negative voltage level. 1s pulses are opposite in polarity. Figure 3.2, Multilevel Binary (AMI) There is no dc component in this scheme and also there is no loss of synchronization for consecutive 1s. 3.1.3 Manchester Coding There is transition in middle of each bit, which acts as a clock as well as data. The low to high transition represents 1 and high to low represents 0. Figure 3.3, Manchester Coding 3.1.4 Differential Manchester In this scheme transition at the middle of the bit represents only clocking while transition at start represents 0 and no transition at start represents 1. Figure 3.4, Differential Manchester 3.2 ANALOG DATA, DIGITAL SIGNAL Analog data is first converted into digital data by using analog to digital converters. These converters use different techniques to complete their task, some of them are: 3.2.1 Pulse Code Modulation If a signal is sampled at regular intervals at a rate higher than twice the highest signal frequency, the samples contain all the information of the original signal. Each sample is assigned a digital value. Although its quality is comparable to that of analog transmission but still in this process some information is lost and the original signal can never be recovered. Figure 3.5, Pulse Code Modulation Delta Modulation Analog input is approximated by a staircase function. Function moves up or down at each sample interval by one level (d). Figure 3.6, Delta Modulation Delta modulation is easier than PCM in implementation, but it exhibits worse signal to noise ratio for the same data rate. But it is good for data compression. DIGITAL DATA, ANALOG SIGNAL Different digital modulation techniques are: Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK) A modulation technique in which digital data is represented as variations in the amplitude of a carrier wave is called Amplitude-shift keying (ASK). One binary digit is represented by presence of carrier, at constant amplitude and the other binary digit represented by absence of carrier. Figure 3.7, Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK) 3.3.2 Frequency Shift Keying (FSK) In frequency shift keying different frequencies are used to represent incoming digital data. Say in case of Binary Frequency Shift Keying f1 is used to represent 0 while f2 is used to represent 1. Figure 3.8, Frequency Shift Keying (FSK) In MFSK more than two frequencies are used and hence bandwidth is more efficiently utilized. 3.3.3 Phase Shift Keying (PSK) A digital modulation technique in which data is transmitted by modulating and changing the phase of the reference signal is called Phase-shift keying (PSK). In case of PSK, a finite number of phases are used. A unique pattern of binary bits is assigned to each of these phases. Generally, each phase encodes an equal number of bits. The symbol is formed by each pattern of bits that is represented by the particular phase. Figure 3.9, Phase Shift Keying (PSK) Figure 3.10, Constellation Diagram of BPSK The bandwidth of ASK and PSK are specified as: Whereas the bandwidth of FSK is given as: Where, R is the bit rate DF = f2 fc = fc f1 CHAPTER # 04 CHANNEL CODING 4.0 INTRODUCTION Why Channel Coding? In modern digital communication systems information is represented in bit streams, which are then modulated to analog waveforms before being transmitted onto a channel. At receiver this analog information is demodulated into bit streams, but because of the presence of interference and noise in the communication channel this bit stream may be corrupted. So to minimize occurrence of bits in error and protect digital data from channel noise and interference channel coding is used. How Channel Coding is performed? Additional redundant bits are added to the message data stream to perform channel coding, these extra bits assist in error detection and correction at the receivers end. Channel Coding at the cost of? Channel Coding is performed at the cost of bandwidth expansion and data rate reduction. 4.1 TYPES OF CHANNEL CODING TECHNIQUES There are two main types of channel coding techniques, Block Codes Convolutional Codes. Block Codes accepts k number of information bits and generate a block of n number of encoded bits, and thus are commonly known as (n.k) block codes. Some common examples of block codes are Hamming Codes and Reed Solomon Codes. Convolutional Coding is forward error correction technique that is currently most widely used in modern communication systems, this particular technique is used for real-time error correction. Unlike block codes which append redundant bits at the end of original message signal, Convolutional coding form a new codeword using original data stream. The encoded bits are not solely dependent on k current input bits but at the same time on precedent input bits. 4.2 CONVOLUTIONAL CODES In this project Convolutional Coding is implemented. Convolutional Codes are further classified as 1. Trellis Coded Modulation (TCM) 2.Turbo Codes. Trellis Coded Modulation (TCM) is non recursive, non systematic and does not require an interleaver. Turbo Codes on the other hand are recursive, systematic, parallel structured and they also require interleaver. In Wideband CDMA systems TCM is used for all channels while Turbo Codes may be used for DCH and FACH channels. Turbo Codes are sometimes classified as separate branch of Channel Codes so from here onwards word Convolutional Code will only be used for TCM. Types of Transmission Channels Coding Schemes Coding Rate RACH Convolutional Coding 1/2 BCH PCH DCH, FACH 1/2, 1/3 Turbo Coding 1/3 Table 4.1, WCDMA Specifications 4.3 CONVOLUTIONAL CODE REPRESENTATIONS 4.3.1 Polynomial Representation No. of input information bits = k No. of encoded bits = n No. of stages (Constraint Length) = K Code Rate = k/n Encoded CodeWord = U The following example shows how Convolutional Codes are represented. Let g1(x) and g2(x) be encoder polynomials, where g1(x) = 1 + x + x2 g2(x) = 1 + x2 Let input message bit stream be 101, therefore input message bit stream polynomial will be, m(x) = 1 + x2 The encoded codeword U will be combination of product of g1(x) with m(x) and g2(x) with m(x), m(x) x g1(x) = 1 + 1.x + 0.x2 + 1.x3 + 1.x4 m(x) x g2(x) = 1 + 0.x + 0.x2 + 0.x3 + 1.x4 Therefore the codeword U, becomes U = (1,1) + (1,0).x + (0,0).x2 + (1,0).x3 + (1,1).x4 U = 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 4.3.2 State Transition Diagram Convolutional Coding can be represented using State Transition Diagram. Following are State Transition Diagram and State Transition Table for code rate 1/2. Figure 4.1, State Transition Diagram for Code Rate  ½ Table 4.2, State Transition Table for Code Rate  ½ Again for the same input bit stream 10100, the codeword U = 11 10 00 10 11. In the input message last two 00 bits are tail bits. 4.3.2 Block Diagram Representation The following diagram shows block diagram representation of Convolutional Coding with Code Rate = 1/2 Constraint Length (No. of Stages) = 3 Figure 4.2, Block Diagram Representation of Convolutional Code with Code Rate =  ½ The following example illustrates the process of Convolutional Coding using block diagram representation for input bit stream 101. So the final codeword becomes, U = 11 10 00 10 11 4.3.2 Trellis Diagram Representation For input bit stream 101, the following diagram shows how Convolutional Coding is performed using Trellis Diagram Figure 4.3, Trellis Diagram Representation CHAPTER # 05 PULSE SHAPING TECHNIQUES 3.0 INTRODUCTION Why Pulse Shaping? It is done in order to reduce Inter Symbol Interference commonly known as ISI. How Pulse Shaping is performed? In order to achieve zero-ISI the overall system response must be equal to Nyquist frequency response. 5.1 RAISED COSINE FILTER Inter Symbol Interference significantly degrades the data detector ability to differentiate between a current symbol from diffused energy of adjacent symbol. This leads to the detection of error and increases BER. So in order to cater ISI, a real-time realization of Nyquist filter is applied in modern communication systems. Raised cosine filter is one of the realization of Nyquist filter. where r = roll-off factor = 1 ≠¤ r ≠¤ 0 and T = symbol period = 1/R Roll-off factor determines the filter bandwidth and represents a trade-off between the sharpness of the transition band of the filter and impulse response ringing magnitude of the filter. A Nyquist filter has following properties: Time response eventually goes to zero in a time period exactly equal to the symbol spacing. By sampling the symbol sequence at a given symbol time point, present symbol is not affected by the energy spreading from the adjacent symbols. The impulse response and the frequency response of the RC filter is Figure 5.1, Impulse Response of RC Filter Figure 5.2, Frequency Response of RC Filter Time response of the RC filter goes to zero with a period that exactly equal to the symbol spacing. As the response equals zero at all symbol times except for the desired one none of the adjacent symbols interfere with each other. 5.2 ROOT RAISED COSINE FILTER RC filter is divided into a root raised cosine (RRC) filter pair, with one at the transmitter end, which performs the pulse shaping in order to constrain the modulated signal bandwidth, and the other at the receiver end, that performs matched detection for optimizing the SNR of a known signal in AWGN presence. The Root Raised Cosine filter is so named because its transfer function exactly is the square root of the transfer function of the Raised Cosine filter. Where r = roll off factor and T is symbol period. The RRC filter bandwidth is equal to the root mean square (RMS) amplitude 2R. The impulse response and the frequency response of the RRC filter is Figure 5.3, Impulse Response of RRC Filter Figure 5.4, Frequency Response of RRC Filter Both RC and RRC have similar pulse shapes, but the RRC pulse makes slightly faster transitions, therefore the spectrum of RRC pulse decays more rapidly as compared to the RC pulse. Another important difference between both pulses is that the RRC pulse does not have zero Inter Symbol Interference. Because of the fact that RRC filter is used at transmitter and receiver both, the product of these transfer functions is a raised cosine, which will result in zero ISI output. 5.3 ROLL OFF FACTOR The roll-off factor, r, is a measure of the excess bandwidth of the filter, i.e. the bandwidth occupied beyond the Nyquist bandwidth of 1/2T. Where à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬  f is excess bandwidth and Rs is symbol rate. CHAPTER # 06 SPREAD SPECTRUM Spread spectrum is a type of modulation where the data is spread across the entire frequency spectrum. This process of spreading the data across the entire spectrum helps signal against noise and interference. These techniques are mostly employed in cell phones and also with wireless LANs. To qualify as a spread spectrum signal, two criterions must be met The transmitted signal bandwidth must be in excess of the information bandwidth. Some function other than the data being transmitted is used to establish the bandwidth of the resultant transmission. Why Spread Spectrum ? Due to its exclusive and peculiar properties spread spectrum is preferred over other modulation schemes. Some of these properties are characterized as advantages and disadvantages of a basic spread spectrum system below. Advantages †¢ It reduces the effects of multipath interference and at times removes them entirely. †¢ Frequency band is shared simultaneously with other users. †¢ Pseudo random codes ensure protection of transmission and privacy. †¢ As the signal is spread over an entire spectrum it has a low power spectral density. Disadvantages †¢ Due to spreading operation it consumes more bandwidth. †¢ It is at times difficult to implement. Types of Spread Spectrum Techniques Most commonly used techniques in a spread spectrum systems are Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum A frequency hopping spread spectrum hops from one narrow band to another all within a wider band. In general the frequency hopper transmitter sends data packets at one carrier frequency and then jumps to another carrier frequency before sending ore packets and continues the same routine throughout the period of transmission. The pattern that emerges seems to be random but is in fact periodic and easily traceable by pre configured transmitter and receiver. These systems can be vulnerable to noise at a particular hop but usually are able to send packets during the next hop. Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum Most widely used technique of spread spectrum is the Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum. A Direct Sequence Transmitter receives the incoming data stream which is to be transmitted and then converts it into a symbol stream where the size of a symbol can be one or more bits. Using any of the modulation schemes for digital systems such as Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) or Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) this symbol stream is multiplied to a noise like sequence known as pseudo random sequence. It is also know as a chip sequence. As a result of this multiplication the bandwidth of the transmission is significantly increased. Figure 3. Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum System Figure 3. shows the working of a basic Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum system. For clarity purposes, one channel is shown working in one direction only. Transmission For each channel a distinct and different Pseudo random code is generated. In order to spread the data the data stream is multiplied with the previously generated Pseudo random code. The signal obtained as a result of this multiplication is then modulated onto a carrier. This modulated carrier waveform is then amplified before broadcasting. Reception The carrier wave is amplified as soon as it is received by the receiver. The signal received is then multiplied with a locally generated carrier which gives the spreaded signal. Again a Pseudo random code is generated on the basis of the signal expected. The process of correlation is carried out on the received signal and the generated code which gives the original message signal. Pseudo-Random Noise The spread spectrum systems are constructed very similar to other conventional systems. The difference being the addition of pseudo random generators both at the transmitter and the receiver which generate the Pseudo noise sequences required for the functionality of Direct Sequence spread spectrum. These pseudo random noise sequences are used for spreading the signal at the transmitter side and dispreading at the receiv

Unilever Is A Multinational Company Economics Essay

Unilever Is A Multinational Company Economics Essay 1.0)Introduction Globalization can be known as the integration of economics and societies all over the world. In the globalised world because of the countries highly interdependent on economies economic crisis in a part of world affects the whole world. Because of the great depression the whole world is facing a worst financial and economic crisis which is affecting social and environment in a negative and positive ways. This crisis is negatively effecting all the countries and the businesses especially the developing countries.Respnding to this Crisis is a challenge for businesses. How the selected company that is Unilever as been affected by the crisis, how it should respond will be discussed in this report 2.0)Introduction to the Company Unilever is a multinational company which operates in 190 countries with 400 brands. It is the worlds 3rd largest FMCG (Fast moving Consumer Goods). Around 2 billion consumers use Unilever products every day. Around the world more than 171000 employees works. In Europe Unilever owns 38% of its business. In America 33% and in Asia and Africa its 29%. Unilever is a most culturally diverse company for example Unilever top Management is from 21 countries.30% of unilever managers are women. Product portfolio of Unilever includes Personal care, Home care, Water, food and beverage. Some of the global brands are knorr,lifebuoy,lipton,Reona,dove which brings more than à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1 billion revenue for the company. 3.0)Global Economic crisis Current global economic turmoil is slowing down growth of advanced economies. Major economic crisis held in United states and Europe. This crisis will be explained briefly as follows. 3.1)United States crisis United states financial crisis is one of the global economic crisis. It happened because of the high demand for personal and corporate investment many people borrowed money from the government and bought properties which they cannot afford. At last because of the high demand Banks started lending money using the customer deposits. Later moved to lend money where mortgages were being issued on the bond market. When the US borrowers started defaulting on their mortgages they lost their houses as well as the investors lost their investments including banks. Banks from many countries specially form UK continental also made loans in these markets where the banking crisis affected the whole world. This crisis led to the global recession which affected the whole world. 3.2)European sovereign-debt crisis European sovereign-debt crisis is an ongoing crisis which has made difficult for some countries in the euro zone to pay their government debt. Countries like Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Italy, and Spain failed to achieve the target economic growth in order to payback bound holders the guarantee it was intended to be. In Greece debt increased because of the public sector wage and pension commitments. To finance the expenditure Greece went of borrowing. The result was they exceeded the size of the nations entire economy .Investors responded by demanding for higher yields for the bonds by increasing the burden .European union and European central bank necessitated a series of bailouts. European banks own a considerable amount of sovereign debt which is negatively reinforcing. Bankers were reluctant to lend money because of bad debts which led to credit crunch. Although the above mentioned five countries are in immediate danger the crisis has effects the whole world. How it has effected will be discussed in the next topic. 4.0)Effect of crisis The world economy has been affected by financial crisis. Many emerging economies are affected a lot. Due to the interconnection of the financial systems a bank failure will be a start to the failure of series of banks. For example in US financial crisis series of small financial institutions collapses resulted in the failure of lehman brothers. Customers of lehmann brothers pulled out their money in order to invest in more secure way. This laid to 10000 of job cuttings around the world. Once the financial system weakness the recession began. A recession is a situation where the economy stops growing. Recession has the effect on global trade. European debt crisis affected the financial market as well as the US government budget. International Monetary Funds (IMF)40% of capital comes from the United States. So if the IMF has to commit cash to bailout initiatives US taxpayers have to pay more tax. This will lead to the decline in the world economy at market exchange rates. Many countries facing negative impact such as trade balances and balance of payment, lack of public confidence in financial institutions, Collapse of housing markets, decrease revenue from tourism, reversal of private capital inflows, reduced ability to maintain social welfare such as health and education, reduction of fiscal space, falling tax revenues, growing budget deficit, reduced demand for imports. This financial crisis led to many social crisis and challenges which are inter related. In the recession companies makes less profit and Unemployment rates increases along with the low consumer confidence. Consumer spending is less because of the unemployment. People loose their homes ,their incomes, their savings. In the recession consumers use credit cards less and businesses also dont borrow money to expand the business. With the lower demand for loans interest rates become low. When the interest rates become low investment of foreigners goes down. Therefore local value for currency depreciates. For example when the rupee value goes down exchange rate goes up. For example if 1 US dollar is equal to Srilankan Rupees 114 during the recession it might become 135 Rupees. Which means exchange rates goes up. This will result in increase oil price. Oil is a very sensitive thing. If the oil price goes up lots of social issues comes into paly.Increase of food prices, energy cost, and poverty effects the social progress. Between January 2002 and August 2008, oil price changed from $19.7 to $133.4 a barrel. As a results of the crisis over 50 million people specially women and children had driven to extreme poverty according to the world bank. According to the food and agriculture organization of the United Nations says that crisis will effect in increase number of hunger and undernourished people worldwide. This economic crisis does not affect only the economic and financial sector. It effects the environmental protection such as clean and renewable energy, climate change because of the companies wont be able to focus more on these areas. How these crisis will impact Unilever will be discussed next. 5.0)How Economic Crisis impact Unilever IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said that the three different crises on economic, environmental, and social fronts feed off each other and cannot be addressed each in isolation.When there is an economic crisis Social problems and environmental problems arises automatically. PESTEL analysis is a framework which reviews a situation which gives a strategic direction for the company. PESTEL also ensures that companys performance is aligned positively with the powerful forces of change that are affecting business environment (Porter, 1985).This analysis is carried out to Unilever Global because when there is a change in the macroeconomic environment company have to look forward implementing strategies in order to overcome the challenges. 5.1)Political and legal Unilever is a multinational company which has to obey the operating country and regional rules and regulations. These rules cover trademarks, health and safety, patents, employment and taxes important regulatory bodies. For example Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has prohibited alcohol and pork contained food. Breach of these rules will damage the reputation of the company as well as according to the law company has to pay fine. Government changes in taxation policy to reduce unemployment will affect the company economic performance. Taxation for the imports and raw materials will affect the business negatively by increasing the price of the products. 5.2)Economical When it comes to Europe Unilever market is full of competition. Because of the crisis explained in the previous section macroeconomic environment is highly uncertain .Due to the economic crisis consumers are looking for cheaper product. In countries like France and Nederland competition for unilever is high. Customer and supplier default was resulted in the economic downturn. Customers purchasing power reduction has resulted in the company profits. 5.3)Social and economical environment Unilevers vision is to help people feel good, look good and get more out of life with brands and services that are good for them and good for others. Unilever has a strong reputation for the focus on employees safety, environmental protection and sustainability. It focuses on utilization of renewable resources as well as producing products which are safe for consumers. Company uses environmental friendly materials for packaging. Even all the governments are focusing on green economies and forcing the companies for that. More than developing countries developed markets focus on this. In order to increase the living standards of people Unilever Srilanka focuses on Saubhagya project which helps rural children for studies, For women job opportunities. Unilever is working on safe drinking water project in India in order to make people aware about the hygiene factor. 5.4)Technological Unilever is spending more on IT in order to improve the brand image and minimize cost through e-business.Unilever invest on research and development about à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬1 billion a year which will help to develop new product which meets the consumer needs. Lack of innovation will affect the reputation as well as will increase the competitor market share. 6.0)Challenge and threat for the company Because of the crisis customers look for cheaper products.Unilever marketing channel is mainly Modern trade and General trade.Modern trade includes the supermarket chains and general trade includes retailers.Unilever has challenge because the supermarket chains comes up with their own brands. For example In srilkanka Cargills food city although it is a main retailer of Unilever Cargills has its own washing powder, jam and so many products. For them it gives big profit margin 7.0)Unilevers response to the Challanges When responding for the global crisis focusing on economical, social and environmental factors are important. 7.1)Economic Recession offers a lot of opportunities in the market by creating new gaps. In order to respond to the crisis around the world Unilever offers products with small packages, sachet, affordable variants of global brands for low income consumers. For example in Spain, Greece, United States small packs of knorr, dove, lipton brands are sold. In Greece mashed potatoes, mayonnaise is sold in small packages. Launched low cost tea and olive oil brand for the euro market to face the euro crisis. In Europe, Because of recession consumers are focusing on packed lunch and home baking. Therefore stoke baking liquid is introduced in packs where customers can re-use as lunch boxes and as an alternation for the expensive butter. In Indonesia 2-3 cents value of shampoos are sold for profit. By all these strategies Unilever trying to position some brands as a value for money. All these strategies are initially started from the emerging and underdeveloped markets. To respond to the global crisis restructuring the functions is also a strategy of the company. To reduce the staff is reduced from 223000 from 171000.This is because of the local country labor rules which increases the cost. Company planning to reduce the number of factories from 300 to 250 by merging the country operations into the region. For example in Saudi Arabian region Dubai is working as the main branch. This will save about 1 billion a year. Brands are reduced from 1600 to 400 which dont work well. This is also a way to face the crisis. This would increase the efficiency of the company rather than focusing on less performing brands. Focusing on innovation is also a best way to meet the global challenge. For example knorr has launched a product line in concentrated fruit and vegetable juices and ice-cream made out of yoghurt. 7.2)Social Unilever increase the livelihood of people by 3 main ways.Sustainabel sourcing, better livelihood and through people. Sustainable sourcing- Helps for better living and income for farmers.Unilever sustainable sourcing is applicable for palm oil, sunflower oil, Vegetables and fruits, cage free eggs. Better livelihood-By giving fertilizers, high quality seeds and training for the small farmers Unilever gets quality inputs as well as it helps to increase the living standards of the farmers. Shakthi door-to-door selling in India provides works for pure people in India which helps to reduce the poverty. People-Unilever focus on health and safety in order to reduce work place injuries. Lamplighter employee programme helps to be mentally free sand physically fit. Focusing on heath and hygien by improving the nutrition is Unilever practicing. Through lifebuoy brand hand wash it reduced the disease diarrhea, through signal brand tries to improve oral health, pure it water filters provide safe drinking water ,through dove brand it helps people to increase the self esteem. As a company which focuses on well being of the consumers has a nutrition strategy which tries to reduce the fat, salt and suger level and to increase the essential fatty acids in the products. Unilever introduced hellmanns myonise with 5% fat focusing the hygien of the consumers. This would make the consumer delight. Responding to country and social needs is also a factor where unilever focus on. For example an Indian woman uses more oil where western shampoos dont wash it away. Therefore company adopted its shampoo according to the Indians need. 7.3)Environmental In order to reduce the environmental impact company focuses on green house gasses, water and waste management Green house gas-Unilever tries to reduce green house gas emission from shampoos and shower gels when using and from washing clothes. Company is reformulating the products to achieve this. By reducing truck mileage company tries to reduce the Gas emission from transport. Water-Company focuses on reducing water consumption in all the stages of production and by making easier rinsing products. Comfort One Rinse fabric conditioner reduces the water consumption from 3 buckets to 1 when rinsing clothes. Washing powders like surf excel need less water .Company focuses on water reduction in the shampoos and hand wash when using. This helps in reducing the water consumption. Waste Management and Packaging-eliminating unnecessary packaging and using lightweight material is way to protect environment. In the personal and home care products using refill will also reduce the consumption of plastics for example lifebuoy hand wash is using this strategy. 7.0)Conclusion In this report current economic crisis is explained and its impact globally is discussed. It reveals that because of a crisis in a country for how far it has impact the lives of people all over the world positively and negatively. This shows how far the globalization plays a major role in peoples lives. Through PESTEL analysis how the Macroeconomic environment is effecting the company is discussed. Through this analysis some conclusion can be made. In order to maintain the market share and the consumers always company should be sensitive for the macroeconomic environment. If there is a regulatory issues in the local country, financial crisis quickly company respond to it. Company should always focus on market research and consumer behavior pattern. Although Unilever is a multinational company it should localize its operations according to the country it operates. Innovation and new product development plays a major role in the business. In the last part with example reports shows that how Unilever responded in the time of crisis.Even in the developed market it had to use the emerging market strategies like small packed products which is a new thing. 8.0)Recommendation In order to achieve a sustainable economic situation as mentioned above focusing on Social and environmental in very important. As discussed above as a leading multinational company Unilever focuses on these matters a lot. But in order to respond to the changing environmental condition following are some recommendation. When focusing on Environmental factors managing waste is very important. Although unilever focus on factory waste management it has to focus on post consumer waste management also. For this having good relationship with operating country government is important. Focusing more on green economics and promoting that would bring more environmental friendly customers into the business. This segment although the price is high because of the environmental friendly products they wont think twice to buy. Focusing more on health and hygien by introducing new products such readymade green tea,energy drink and focusing targeting young generation would bring advantage.

Southwest case analysis Essay -- essays research papers

Southwest has made an organization out of providing low-fare, short haul routes between city pairs. It has concentrated specifically on offering low-fares on all of its flights by maintaining its no frills attitude and high frequency of flights. This has afforded Southwest Airlines with the lowest cost structure in the industry. Southwest has created a niche for itself by flying a network of flights between smaller U.S. cities that average just one hour apart. This has differentiated them from their competition and avoided many clashes with industry giants who concentrate more on coast-to-coast flights. Kelleher, who is the president, chairman and CEO of Southwest Airlines is the companies single biggest asset and driving force. Kelleher runs the company very tightly and makes all the major decisions through a very centralized decision making process. This brings to light two potential problems. Firstly, how can a company such as Southwest airlines maintain such a centralized organi zation in the face of growth. Secondly, how is this company going to survive once Kelleher is no longer running it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The problem that Southwest Airline is facing, is how are they going to survive in an aggressive industry without Kelleher’s leadership. It is a significant problem as the company is a symbol of Kelleher. However, unlike the company, Kelleher has a limited life-span and therefore the company will likely outlive him. This problem therefore requires some urgency as the succession of Kelleher could be the airlines biggest problem. The consequences of Kelleher leaving could be that the company loses its corporate identity. Employees may not respond well to new management. Customers may perceive that the company will not be run in the same manner and will therefore lose its niche market. This could also apply to stakeholders, who will see the departure of Kelleher as a serious decrease in the value of the company. Competitors may also try to take advantage of the company during this unstable period.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kelleher is the face of Southwest airlines, even going as far as starring in most of their TV commercials. He also personally maintains an excellent relationship with a virtually all-union workforce. He has single handedly given Southwest the lowest employees turnover rate in the industry. Kelleher’s personal motiva... ...with the reality of the firm.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The implementation of this decision will require a marketing campaign that will be used to phase out Kelleher. The major resistance will be from the employees who will be fearful of new management. This will be addressed by the management team reinforcing the corporate strategies to the employees and reiterating the fact that Southwest airlines will remain the same company and the employees should expect things to stay the same. The ramifications of this plan is that power within Southwest could become to decentralized, therefore changing the core competencies of the firm.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In order for this plan to work it would require: Assembling a team to head the marketing campaign, restructuring of upper management, and decentralize decision making. The objective is to redefine and restructure the upper management in such a way that the loss of Kelleher is manageable. This plans effectiveness will be measured by employee and customer satisfaction throughout the transition. The project will be concluded when the new structure has been phased in and the reaction to Kelleher’s departure is under control.

The Master-Slave Relationship Essay -- master Slave Essays

The Master-Slave Relationship In this paper I will be discussing the master-slave relationship. I will give you an understanding as to how this union exists. Also I will brief you on how without this relationship a city would not exist. This paper will not only define the master-slave relationship but give quotations and examples that will help you the reader to fully understand this concept. In the master-slave relationship, with this union, the master can not exist without the slave. The slave is there to assist the master with the maintaining of the master’s wants and needs. In the classroom setting the teacher is the slave because he or she has the knowledge that is needed by the students. The students would be the master because the teacher is upholding the desires and wishes of the students by teaching them the knowledge they have. According to Aristotle The Politics, Book I Chapter 2, â€Å"The naturally ruling and ruled, on the account of preservation. For that which can see with the thought is naturally ruling and naturally mastering elements while that which can do with the body is naturally ruled and slave.† This is one of the common relationships that are known in the household. The household is the partnership established by nature for the needs of daily life. A group of households makes up a village, and a group of villages makes up a city. Now that we have seen that the city is made up of households, I would like to discuss that management of the household. What makes up the household relates to the people in the household. A complete household consist of slaves and freemen; who are the master and slave, the husband and wife, and the parent and child. The leadership of the master over the slave is different from nature, and the difference between the slave and freeman only exists by law. It is considered just, but the slave and freeman don’t exists by nature and being an impediment with nature is consequently unjust. What is property? According to the Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary property is defined as a quality or trait belonging and especially peculiar to an individual or thing. Property is also in conjunction with the household, and the ability of managing property is also a part of managing the household; for no man can live well, or indeed live at all, unless he is supplied with the essential items needed to survive... ...ical rule were the same, but they are different. Mastery and political rule are not the same thing, because political rule is over those who are free and equal. With this rule the master is not called master because he has skill that is needed. To be in love is to also be in a master-slave relationship. With this form you are trying to embody in the person what you think you need. So the person that needs something is the master and the one who encompasses it is the slave. Mastery rule is acquiring slaves but using them for their advantage. With slavery, the masters acquired slaves, and the slaves were used for the monetary gain of the masters. So in conclusion, the master-slave relationship not one only exist in the household, but it exist in society and everyday life. Without this relationship, people would be unable to determine who they are as a person and what their purpose is in life. This relationship helps define many interactions, weather it is romantic, educational, or a job function. I never really thought to much about this relationship and just related it to slavery, but I have come to know that it is a significant aspect in the way life’s relationships are viewed.

Micro and Macro Management Essay

Macro Management In a simple definition management is the person or persons who control or direct a business or other enterprise. However, management is much larger than just one person or small group of people. Management is also the practice of handling, supervision, direction, and control (www. dictionary. com). It is much larger than one person, or even a small group of people; management is everywhere. We use management in all aspects of our daily lives, whether it is organizing an event, or handling a purchase order. Management must be arranged through multiple levels in order to be successful, beginning with micro management, eventually its way up the ladder to macro management. Micro and macro components are the core make up of every business, each possessing different qualities and characteristics that form the overall building blocks to success. During the training of a new employee, most businesses use the micro-management process to provide the guidance and tools the employee needs to become successful with that business. Micro management is used my supervisors to observe and control the work of their employees. It involves giving employee smaller tasks, while they monitor and assess the work being done (www. dictionary. com). Micro management is often used in the beginning of any business or establishment; basically, you need to start somewhere. In the opening of a new business, guidance will always need to be offered from cooperate offices to ensure a clean transition in the opening process. Once a business is established, management will in turn micro manage their employees; guiding them through the procedures and responsibilities the company requires. Because micro managing involves supervisors overlooking the tasks their employees are undertaking, often times it is thought of as an unenthusiastic tactic. Through the eyes of an associate, micro managing can be de motivating, in turn creating doubt and lack of confidence in the workplace. Even though micro managing is used as an introductory tool, it can be drawn out for a longer duration of time. Distrust, skepticism, and uncertainty are typical feelings an employee may experience if their supervisor is abusing the method of micro managing. The role of manager is an important position of supervision in any organization. The supervisor/manager plays a key function, in the day to day needs of the organization, by finding a balance of work efficiency and managing personnel. This balance becomes even more prevalent when assigning projects or interacting with subordinates. This paper will analyze several aspects or pitfalls, managers could find themselves involved in; and will identify methods used to overcome these situations when supervising subordinates. The position of manager holds many responsibilities in an organization; those responsibilities range from dealing with requests from upper management and servicing employee’s needs, and while seeing to theses responsibilities, the manager still has to supervise the overall direction of his or her department. The multiple tasks a manager must operate within, requires the manager to be flexible and†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦

Healing with technology Essay

Spinal Dynamics will aim to capture at least 10% of total spinal implants market by fourth year of operation. Spinal Dynamics plans to become Canada’s largest spinal orthopedic implant company by 2011. The Company plans to pursue vigorously and at an accelerated rate the development, production and marketing of artificial disc implant . The goal would be apart from being superior to other products it should be affordable for the masses in Canada thus contributing to human welfare by application of technology in the field of biomedical sciences. The company Spinal Dynamics is being formed for the purpose of engaging in development, production and marketing of artificial disc implants, in Canada with early and profitable operation as the prime goal. B. DESCRIPTION OF THE INDUSTRY The boom is gradually shifting from the sectors of finance and information technology towards the biomedical sector specifically the medical device industry. The major reason being increased medical treatment costs, and an urge towards better quality of life. Hip and knee replacements have become very common in spite of the high surgical costs involved. On the same lines spinal surgeries are becoming more prevalent especially because of high economic costs being incurred due to low back pain ailments. According to the statistics, patients suffering from back pain consume more that $90 billion annually in health-care expenses, with approximately $26 billion of that amount directly attributable to treating the back pain. Due to this reason a number of spinal implant companies have mushroomed throughout the U. S and Europe. The main problem in this industry is long development periods and high risks . The long drawn approval process especially in U. S due to FDA regulations is one of the reasons a lot of money is being invented in research , development and testing of the product. However medical law suites might become a big liability for the product if the device fails even once. C. CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS: Competencies & Capabilities: 1) Legal and regulatory factors: The medical device industry is classified as class 3 , high risk implant so its obvious that a lot of investment goes into testing and experiments with sufficient evidences to prove its safety in-vivo. There are instances when a device fails and a single lawsuit causes the entire company to close down. Thus its advisable to invest time and money , before taking the implant out to the market 2) Investment of Time & Money: As approval process is a long drawn procedure, it is necessary to have well trained quality managers and regulatory system advisors as employees. Sometimes services of external consultants or Regulatory advising companies might be used. 3) In-house surgeons/medical practitioners: As these devices cater to specific ailments and are highly specialized, it is important that we have in-house surgeons to understand the requirements of a product before we begin to design it. Infact the engineers and the surgeons should work hand in hand to come up with a better product. The crucial factors which determines success in biomedical industry 1) Availability of constant flow of Funds: For a new product to be in market, it might take 3-4 yrs, so during this period there should be a constant supply of funds to pay the employees and keep the company running. 2) Excellent marketing strategies : Its important that these products are marketed through right channels, thus its highly imperative that the products are showcased at various trade shows/conferences 3) Understanding the regulatory process: The main aim would be to bring the product soon to the market, by making a full-proof plan before the submission process for approval, as this phase is the lengthiest of all the processes. D. PEST ANALYSIS: Scope of Growth: The medical device industry out here thrives on reverse engineering concept the result is a number of ME TOO products. Infact companies end up investing on buying patents from European and American companies and do not believe in investing money for research and development of such products. There is huge market to be tapped as there is a lot of demand for these products most of which is imported from the Europe and the U. S. This area being the fastest growing market, the projected growth is expected to touch up to $16 billion in 2015 revenues. Source: Millennium Research Group. Spine Care Segments 2015 There is expected to be an increase in surgical treatment options, like facet replacement and dynamic stabilization procedures, which will likely be more acceptable to patients, perhaps doubling the % of patients accepting surgery from 3. 6% to 7% of a much larger, elderly population. As clinical results improve, this market is expected to continue to grow 20% per year and offer a tremendous opportunity to companies with innovative product lines. In 2015, industry experts project lumbar fusions will not grow, but stay at the same 2006 level of 400,000 procedures; dynamic stabilization devices will grow from 25,000 to 250,000 cases; and artificial lumbar and cervical discs grow from 25,000 to 600,000 cases, as these new procedures begin to replace spinal fusion. PART 2: A: BUSINESS OWNERSHIP: Sole proprietorship is a one-person business is registered with the state like a limited liability company (LLC) or corporation. Legally, a sole proprietorship is inseparable from its owner — the business and the owner are one and the same. This means the owner of the business reports business income and losses on his or her personal tax return and is personally liable for any business-related obligations, such as debts or court judgments. This accounts 74% of all USA businesses and for 6% of all sales in USA. Advantages: (1) decisions are made by only the owner; (2) simple process to start – just get a business license (3) profits belong to the owner; (4) pride of ownership; (5) lower taxes. Disadvantages: (1) unlimited liability (2) limited life of business (3) difficult to raise capital for business; (4) risk of lost is not shared Partnership: a partnership is simply a business owned by two or more people Just like in a sole proprietorship, the partnership’s owners pay taxes on their shares of the business income on their personal tax returns and they are each personally liable for the entire amount of any business debts and claims. 8% of all USA businesses are partnerships and accounts for 4% of all sales in USA Advantages: (1) easy to start (2) not many regulations; (3) not as difficult to raise capital for business; (4) combination of knowledge and skills. Disadvantages: (1) unlimited liability; (2) profits are shared; (3) limited life of the business; (4) disagreements Incorporation: Though forming a corporation is a bit more complicated and costly, but it is well worth the trouble for some small businesses. The main benefit of an LLC or a corporation is that these structures limit the owners’ personal liability for business debts and court judgments against the business. What sets the corporation apart from all other types of businesses is that a corporation is an independent legal and tax entity, separate from the people who own, control and manage it. Because of this separate status, the owners of a corporation don’t use their personal tax returns to pay tax on corporate profits — the corporation itself pays these taxes. Owners pay personal income tax only on money they draw from the corporation in the form of salaries, bonuses, and the like. Corporations make sense for business owners who either (1) run a risk of being sued by customers or of piling up a lot of business debts, or (2) have substantial personal assets they want to protect from business creditors. 18% of all USA businesses are corporations and accounts for 90% of all sales in USA. Advantages: (1) easy to raise capital (2) limited liability; (3) unlimited life of business; (4) Can hire specialized skills and knowledge; (5) shared risks. Disadvantages: (1) difficult to start; (2) less direct control; (3) double taxation: corporate tax and individual tax (4) limited activity. Franchising: Franchises are in which individual businessmen or people buy a well established business, but a certain percentage goes back to the corporation. Franchises must adhere to the corporate regulations. (McDonalds, Krispy Cream, Starbucks). Acquisition/Mergers: In this two companies merge together(merger) or a big company acquires a small innovative company giving rise to an acquisition. The best option to go with would be setting up a corporation or a LLC rather to start. The limited liability company or â€Å"LLC† is a relatively new form of doing business which is now recognized in most states. The LLC has grown in popularity because it combines the best features of a corporation and a partnership. Like a corporation, the owners (called â€Å"members†) of the LLC are not personally responsible for the debts of the LLC. Like a partnership, there is no dual taxation and the earnings of the business are taxed directly to the members. The LLC is also preferable in many ways to the â€Å"S corporation,† which also avoids personal liability and dual taxation. The LLC is not subject to most of the limitations which are imposed on corporations by applicable law. For example, while an corporation is not allowed to have more than one type or class of stock ownership and is not allowed to have more than 75 shareholders, the LLC is not subject to such limitations. Overall, the LLC simply allows more flexibility in the structure, operation and management of the business than does the S corporation. LLCs are similar to corporations because they also provide limited personal liability for business debts and claims. But when it comes to taxes, LLCs are more like partnerships: the owners of an LLC pay taxes on their shares of the business income on their personal tax returns.