12:00 pm Late Fall Management

Regis Solomon

Alicia Revely — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 21:05:22 +0000

My groups Kiva recipient a man name Estabon from Peru, is asking for a loan for his tree cutting business. Before I would approve the loan, I would make sure Estabon understood how to strategically management his business. Strategic management is making strategic moves or decisions that will make an organization more appealing than the competition and therefore attract more consumers. To manage strategically one must first identify the organization’s mission and goals. Next the organizations strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats must be identified by doing an internal and external analysis of the organization. An organization must know where it’s currently at in order to plan where it wants to go. Strategies then must be formulated to capitalize strengths and minimize weaknesses, these strategies would be a written form of how to improve the organization using the resources and capabilities within its grasp. Lastly these strategies must be put into effect and tested for efficiency.

With Estabon’s business already running on a small scale this loan could take his business to the next level if used efficiently. Strategically managing his business could ensure that the most profitable aspects of the business are expanded, the organization is moving in the right direction and continues to generate profit.

Chapter 4

noonan32 — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 18:09:14 +0000

chapter 4

By noonan32

My group chose to lend money to a guy named Esteban that lives in Oxapampa Peru. Esteban lives with his parents. He used to work for them growing citrus and other fruit trees. Esteban now runs a business cutting down trees in the jungle then cuts them up to make crates for fruit. Esteban goes in to the jungle around four a.m. to find tress to cut down. He pays approximately six dollars and fifty cents in American money for the tree then turns around and sells the wood for around eleven fifty. Esteban needs the loan to buy a table saw. The table saw would increase production and profit. It is important that Esteban makes creates for fruit since fruit is one of the big exports in Peru. Peru exports many traditional and exotic fruits such as Camu Camu, the fruit with the highest level of vitamin C in the world along with lots of other exotic fruits that I have never even heard about. Some of the traditional fruits include strawberries, pineapple, peaches, and watermelon.

In the management text book chapter four talks about managing in a global world. There is not allot of information on where Esteban sells his fruit crates. Most of the fruit companies in Peru export their fruit. Peru is not part of any big trade alliance such as the European Union or the North American Free Trade Agreement. Peru is one of the countries in the Andean Trade Preference Act which the United States set up in 1991 to eliminate tariffs on some products from those countries. Peru is now a part of the free trade agreement in the United States since 2006. Being part of this trade agreement also means that Peru is also a member of the World Trade Organization. The WTO is the only global organization that deals with the rules and trades among nations, it also helps importers and exporters conduct their business.

Esteban defiantly runs a international business, although he might just deal with local companies buying the crates. Those companies run a multidomestic corporation. One example is the fruit company Dole that was started in the United States (Hawaii), but has plants all over the world such as Peru. Since Dole is already a global organization, a business that is trying to go global that needs fruit crates at a low cost might do some global sourcing and buy their crates from Esteban for a cheaper price. Global sourcing is a good way to get in the global market besides importing or exporting, licensing or franchising

Chapter 7

Erika Strong — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 18:07:20 +0000

Foundations of Planning by Erika Strong

This is Erika Strong from Alicia Revely’s Principles of Management class, there was an assignment to post a blog about your Kiva recipient and how they could use the information in the Chapter that was selected out of the book Management, the ninth edition written by Stephen P. Robbins and Mary Coulter. The group that I was in was Group 6.

We chose Meta Shir Ahammd. She lives in district 4 of Kabul, Afghanistan. She works in the business of Embroidery, which is the art of decorating fabric or other materials with designs stitched in strands of thread or yarn using a needle. Embroidery may also use other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. Sewing machines can be used to create machine embroidery. Meta Shir Ahammd is applying for a loan on www.Kiva.org to get a new machine such as the one I mentioned. In my group we decided to choose different chapters.

I have chosen to put Chapter 7 towards her, which is entitled Foundations of Planning. The chapter based upon different goals and plans. She should understand that planning provides direction to the managers themselves and the ones they manage over. Even though it may not seem that she is a manager. Everyone is a manager in most cases. As well, planning reduces the uncertainty factor, no one wants to get into a project and not be certain of the outcomes. But most importantly planning establishes goals. These goals are important to figure out in any situation. Everything a person does has goals. That is how you know what is need to be done, it is a desired outcome for an individual or group.

There are many types of goals. Meta should think about having stated goals. These goals are official statements of what an organization says, and what it wants it’s various stakeholders to believe. If she does this, it would make her have a more productive business. There are also real goals. These goals are the ones that an organization actually pursues, as defined as the actions of its members. These allow the business to observe was the organization is actually engages in. With goals comes plans.

There are many types of plans as well and each one is as important as the other, the most important out of strategic and operational to Meta is strategic. This is true because she is running the business so it allows her to apply the plans to the entire organization. I believe if she is planning on having this business for a long time then she has to engage in a long term plan in to how the business is going to be ran and all the details. The plans she should really look into along with the others are specific plans, directional plans don’t go into detail. Specific plans are those that are specifically defined.

Meta Shir Ahammd should look into the process called management by objectives (MBO). MBO is the process of setting mutually agreed-upon goals and using those goals to evaluate employee performance. She can use this to look over what has been done and work on what needs to be done.

Setting goals are pretty easy though, Meta just has to follow five steps:

1. Review the organization’s mission, the purpose of the organization.

2. Evaluate available resources.

3. Determine the goals individually or with help from others.

4. Write down the goals and communicate them to all who need to know.

5. Review results and whether goals are being met.

Meta has to be careful with all the criticisms of planning like:

1. Planning may create rigidity.

2. Plans can’t be developed for a dynamic environment.

3. Formal plans can’t replace intuition and creativity.

4. Planning focuses managers on today’s competition, not on tomorrow’s survival.

In conclusion, planning and goal setting would be an important part of Meta Shir Ahammd’s business. The way the goals are set and plans are made would make her business very successful. Meta Shir Ahammd, if you read this, I wish your business well.

Tofila

rzallan — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 18:14:53 +0000

Tofila is the recipient that my group chose to give our loan to. She lives in Tarma,Peru. She is 48 years old, she needs the loan so she can stock her store with the supplies needed. The first thing that Tofila should do is developing a mission statement for her business. An effective mission statement is just crucial. When its done correctly, a mission statement will accurately represent her business’s purpose and continuously remind her of her goals.

It takes work to develop an effective mission statement. Not only should it reflect Tofila business’s goals and values, but it should touch on every aspect of her business–the kinds of services and products she sells, her pricing policies and her position in the marketplace. When she develop a mission statement that hits upon all of her business’s key areas, she’ll have a mission statement that will remain a source of inspiration for many years. Even if some of her underlying goals change, the mission of her business will stay the same. That is why it is so important to take the time to ensure its accuracy. A business plan is a vital aid to help Tofila manage her business more effectively. By committing her thoughts to paper, she can understand her business better and also chart specific course of action that need to be taken to improve her business .

By understanding her business a little better and planning how best to operate within this environment, she will be well placed to ensure her long term success.

Chapter 7

buttree — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 06:02:19 +0000

My Kiva Recipient is Meta Shir Ahammd. She lives in district 4 of Kabul, Afghanistan with her nuclear family. She has been involved in embroidery for more than 5 years. She got her first loan and spend it on embroidery. This time is her second loan. She needs a loan of 42000 Afghans to buy a new machine and to become more effective in her business and help her family better. She will improve it even more than with the help of the first loan.

In chapter seven we talked about Foundation of Planning. The first thing she needs to do which is explained in chapter seven, planning about her business. She needs to define the organization’s goal. She has to think what type of planning she will use between informal and formal like as she has time 24 months for retune money back to Kiva. Second step she has to know Why do managers plan?, because it can help her provide direction for purposes planning. Next one is type of plans example strategic, operation which can be a good way to success the goal. How she can developing plans and also effective planning in dynamic environment. I think she know how to do, because she Experian about embroidery more than 5 years she have to know how to do.

It’s not difficult for her because she can done the first loan. For the second load that’s mean her business running good and get a lot of profit. In the future her small business might be grown up to be big business in a few years.

Chapter 8 Strategic Management

vinit trivedi — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 01:50:03 +0000

Meta Shir Ahmad is our Kiva recipient. She is from Afghanistan and she runs a business of embroidery. She runs her business from her home. She cannot afford to have a separate place for the work. Lot of people in Afghanistan do their business from home. Even though her business is small she still has a strategy for her business. Strategic management is very important for any business. If you are from a third world country or from a developed country like the USA strategic management is equally important.

The strategic management process has six steps which are very crucial. First step is to identify the businesses or organization’s current mission, goals & strategies. The second step is to do external analysis. The third one is to do an internal analysis. The fourth one is to formulate the strategies. The fifth one is to implement the strategies and the sixth one is to evaluate the result. Meta has identified her current mission for her business and made a goal for it and has strategy to reach that goal. She has done her external and internal analysis to make sure there are no threats or weaknesses and has opportunities, recourse’s and capabilities. She has also formulated her strategies to achieve her goals. Currently she is on the implementing strategies stage and soon enough she will be evaluating the results also. In any business or organization today these steps are required in order to be successful. The steps are important for managers or employees or even the owners of the business. I wish Meta Shir Ahmad a good luck in the carrier and hope she achieves her goals through strategic management.

Chapter 7 “Planning”

taechler — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 05:31:11 +0000

Yawavi Ameko is the recipient that we chose to give our loan too. A typical day for Yawavi is not one of business meetings, suits, and Blackberry uplinks. She is from a third world country in West Africa called Toga. The profession she has chosen is a hair dresser. Though I don’t think this is the best profession to chose in the situation she is in. I do respect the fact that she is trying to better the life of her and her children. Regardless of the job she has chosen she will still face a broad spectrum of decisions and concepts that all business owners will face, both small and big. Planning is a huge part of management, whether you are the CEO of a fortune 500 company or a hair dresser in Toga. Without planning you do not have a strategy as to how you are going to handle such issues as budgeting, customers, marketing, and more. Planning is much more than strategy though, it is setting goals, dealing with common and uncommon problems, and having a contigency plan. Basically Yawavi had to have a plan set in place to know that she even wanted to start a business as a hair dresser. She understood that there was a need for her service and that she would be able to profit from it. Since most businesses are ran out of homes in Toga, her location was probably pre-determined, eliminating the choice of location. Next she probably started on a rough draft of a budget, factoring in the charge for labor and inventory to help to determine the loan she would request. From here on out, after being granted the loan, she would have to put the planning into effect. I wish her good luck and hope that she has created an effective business strategy through smart planning.

Chapter 6

bmolloy34 — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 17:55:09 +0000

For my post I did chapter 6. Chapter 6 is about decision making. Starting a business and keeping it going has a lot to do with the decisions you make. My group decided to pick a woman named Yawavi Ameko. She is a widow of four children and owns a salon in a small western country of Togo. She has had this salon for 20 years and this is how she makes her living for her family. Yawavi needs a loan because she needs to purchase extensions and hair weaves.

Chapter 6 talks about making decisions. As a business owner there are a lot of decisions to make to keep your business going successfully. Yawavi identified her problem that she needed to purchase more extensions and hair weaves so she asked for this loan. Then she had to identify decision criteria. If she took this loan, yes she would have to pay it back but if she gets the money right now she can buy new extensions and hair weaves to bring in more business. Another decision Yawavi had to make was how many extension and hair weaves should she get or should she just use what she has and not get a loan to purchase more. She made up her mind and made her alternative solution, to get this loan and purchase the extensions and hair weaves. Then she implemented the alternative when she asked for the loan. She has to evaluate if her decision of getting this loan to purchase these supplies benefited her business or not.

Yawavi is going to have to keep taking risks like she did by taking this loan out for the extensions and the hair weaves .That’s part of being a business owner. Also she is going to have to keep a policy on the decisions she makes so she can keep her business going for another 20 years.

Chapter 7 Kiva Project

pittarjd — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 15:47:45 +0000

Yawa Irene Akpay was born in Agoe, Togo, a small town in west Africa. She has three children and at the moment unmarried. She is right now the retailer of grain in her area. She has seven years of experience working with grain and has the respect of many people in her community. She has positive feed backs from people who has done business with her. Her purpose of her business is to gain profit to feed her children. She recently took out a loan to buy 12 sacks of beans and 10 sacks of corn to replenish her stock in order to produce cereal.

One main thing Yawa needs to do is to figure out what is her mission statement for her organization. Once she found out her mission statement next step is to make a plan on how to reach her mission statement. There are two types of planning that Yawa needs to do so she can achieve her mission statement. One type of planning is called an strategic planning that is takes years for you to complete it. This plan basically establish the overall goals and applies to everyone in the organization. The other plan is operational planning which covers short peroid of time. This plan just specify the details on what need to be achieved.

Earlier I stated that in order to plan you need to first have a goals to set. There are three different types of goals to go from there are financial goals that deal with profit, strategic goals that deals with its external environment, then there are stated goals versus real goals that deals with statements that have anything to do with its real goals. The type of goal she needs to pick is financial goal because her purpose of her business is to make a profit so she can support her children. Now that she knew what her goals she now can make decide on how to plan that can give her the most of her profits.

chapter 3

newb2008 — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 15:57:03 +0000

My group decided to loan money to a woman named Yawavi Ameko. She is a hairstylist in the small west african country of Togo. She owns her own salon which she opened in 1988. She is a widowed mother of four. Clearly she has alot of responsibility.

She needed the loan in order to purchase extensions and hair weaves. There has been an increasing demand for her services and she wants to keep up with it. In chapter 3 it talks about the two views in management theory,the omnipotent and symbolic view. According to the omnipotent view , the success or failure of a business is completely in the hands of the manager. Now usually I am completely against that idea. However, in Yawavi’s case,I would say that view fits her more so than the symbolic view.

In most cases managers have to deal with tons of competition which has a huge impact on the success or failure of a business. But in her case, she lives in such a small place where most of the business has to do with agricultural needs, that she doesnt have much competition. In my opinion if she gets the materials that she needs and continues to provide the best service possible she will be in business. Its in her hands. With that said, she needs to have great business practices in order to provide the best services. Thats where having a strong culture comes into play.

In my opinion having a strong culture is like the foundation of a good organization or business. The culture of a business is the way that things are done basically. That includes the values, principles, rules , regulations, and traditions of a business. Yawavi’s first step in building or creating that strong culture is hiring people that share some of her same ideas and beliefs. The people that work for her have to be on board with what she is trying to accomplish. Running a business is never easy but in her case, if she stays focused and surrounds herself with the right people, i believe she will succeed.