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- IBM - International Business Management (37) (remove)
Nowadays international businesses are exposed to a constant change of regulations, regularly altering organisational structures and the pressure to continuously improve efficiency to stay competitive. It is no longer a secret for international companies that the ability to adapt, is a key success factor in managing globally connected processes. Facing this challenge, MTU Friedrichshafen, one of the leading manufacturer of diesel engines in the world, set a target of optimising core processes of License Management due to the fast growing number of international projects and related international regulations. This optimisation can be achieved by analysing weak points at all stages of the working processes and developing standardised approaches throughout the partner management cycle. The main purpose of this thesis, therefore, is to analyse and standardise core processes of the MTU License Management with a completely new approach in steering international projects.
After spending ten months at the MTU License Management Department, including mandatory six months internship, I was involved in different working procedures in a form of “internal job rotation” in order to have clear understanding over main processes at License Management. With all this knowledge in mind, a deep research about core processes has been conducted and individual improvement measures for each process were defined. These improvement measures are in line with the Global Strategy Program “Shaping Our Future 2018” that has been determined by Rolls-Royce Power Systems AG, MTU’s holding company. Also, during the research, it was obvious that combining several processes into one core tool was a major challenge. After brainstorming through various ideas with internal IT experts, a standardised approach by using Microsoft SharePoint has been identified as an effective way to enhance various processes.
Only with the proper implementation of the recommended optimisation process and continuous improvement, global organisations will succeed in responding to the increasing pace of changes in the business environment.
In the era of digitalisation, mobile devices are supporting us throughout the day, in any situation, at any place and any time. We purchase goods and services through our phones, communicate with others and can get information about anything we want. The mobile technology is the fastest growing industry the world has ever seen. Mobile technology is the most influential driver of current social and economic change. Therefore mobile marketing is already a major factor in today’s marketing mix. Nevertheless adaption of mobile marketing progresses differently in different parts of the world. China took on a leading role in mobile marketing without many people outside China noticing. The purpose of this paper is to examine and display the major differences between China and Europe when it comes to mobile marketing. Especially, I will focus on WeChat, a relatively new communication application in China that has shaped mobile marketing significantly since 2011, the year of its launch.
However, due to significant differences in market scale, market complexity and adoption of technology in Europe and China it is important for European companies to understand the potential power of WeChat if they want to do successful business in China. Therefore I will give a comprehensive overview on how to use WeChat for business. Additionally I will connect the mobile marketing aspect with Chinese language learning. Chinese language learning represents a global current trend and is building a bridge between China and Europe both culturally and economically. For this paper I conducted practical research in a Chinese language school under European management in Beijing/China. This way I was able to gain first-hand insight in the obstacles a European company faces when it comes to WeChat mobile marketing in China. This paper will cover the theoretical foundation of mobile marketing and will connect it with real recommendations for successful WeChat mobile marketing.
All kind of human interaction such as conflict resolution or engaging in new business partnerships are essentially based on bargaining and negotiations. The following thesis examines the basic elements of negotiations especially in a global working environment. A special focus is set on the most prevalent characteristics of negotiation patterns used in the US as well as their way of navigating international negotiations successfully, corroborated by an example case of conflict resolution by the US-American company Apple in China. In essence, deep knowledge and intercultural sensitivity is the key to successful negotiations whereas strategy choices based on the negotiator’s inherited culture should not be depreciated.
Presently a lot of emphasis has been put on the need for brick-and-mortar stores to reinvent themselves, in light of increasing competition. Therefore, the topic of shopping experience has recently received special attention by retailers, as they increasingly endeavor to create pleasant store environments. Several studies have shown, that a positive shopping experience results in increased customer satisfaction, store loyalty and thus long-term success of a company.
While new technologies are on the rise, they have so far not been fully exploited in retail stores, neither extensively researched in the context of shopping experience.
Therefore, this bachelor thesis aims to provide a general understanding on the construct of shopping experience and explores how certain phases of the customer journey can be complemented by in-store technologies. Moreover, it provides valuable insights on the capabilities and limitations of in-store technologies. Particularly, RFID equipped tablet computers, as an in-store technology for fashion retailers, are researched in-depth.
Secondary data retrieved from academic journals, academic books, press articles and study reports are used to provide an overall understanding on the construct of shopping experience, certain customer journey phases, technologies in retail stores and on the changed buying behavior caused by digitalization.
Primary research is conducted to research RFID equipped tablet computers as a in-store technology for fashion retailers. It identifies which shopping experience determinants should be targeted, when considering the implementation of in-store technology in a fashion retail store. Moreover useful information regarding the perception towards chosen tablet functions are highlighted.
Findings are discussed with reference to available literature. Conclusions are drawn and presented as implications for fashion retailers.
The goal of this thesis is to give an overview of the carbon footprint of the commercial aviation industry and to introduce measures to mitigate emissions. This will be done by taking the German Lufthansa Group as an example.
In the first part, relevant theoretical background information will be given. It will be shown that the commercial aviation industry is subject to steady and relatively strong growth. Even though the global share of GHG emissions caused by air traffic is currently relatively low, it is projected to increase in accordance with overall industry growth.
In the second part, measures taken by the aviation industry to reduce its emissions are presented using the example of Lufthansa. The measures that are taken are various, reaching from fleet renewal over infrastructural improvements such as airspace management to alternative fuels. It is also shown that the efficiency of an airline depends on different things and hence leads to different performances in the industry.
Even though the reduction of emissions is typically related with a reduction of costs for the aviation industry, the progress in some areas is still relatively slow.
Climate change is one of the most challenging topics to the world and has been subject to international negotiations for more than 25 years, one of the main players being the USA.
Game theory, on the other hand, is a popular tool from economics, frequently used to analyze strategic situations such as international negotiations. Together, the insights from these topics can help understand why the USA’s president Donald Trump has announced to quit the Paris Agreement and which consequences this might have for the US, other countries and for the future of international climate change negotiations. In order to assess the different implications, this thesis gives some theoretical background and presents game theoretic findings on climate change negotiations. It will be found that, from a game theoretic point of view, different reasons might have caused the USA to take this decision and that there is a chance that a withdrawal of the US from the Paris Agreement could have some effect on the future of climate protection. However, a precise assessment would require further research on the topic.
“The most important single central fact about a free market is that no exchange takes place unless both parties benefit” – Milton Friedman.
There has always been, across the history, a human side, an ideology, that people follow with the hope of finding justice and equity in the world. This concept has always been adapting to the culture, time, and situation it faces. In our actual economic system, this concept is known as social responsibility, and to adapt to the market necessities it has evolved to corporate social responsibility, but apparently, when the people want to see results this is not enough.
The markets are expanding, we live in a world where everything and everyone are connected, there is no more privacy, and therefore, no place to hide. Companies need to be honest with the information they share and should follow the international rules for environmental and social protection and development. People are demanding better quality, more innovation, and eco-friendly and socially responsible company. The people verify many factors before acquiring any product, starting with the quality, the suppliers, the factories conditions, the employee’s satisfaction levels, and the corporate responsibility of the company.
The central topic of this thesis is the so called “corporate volunteering” a concept that brings together the business necessities and ties them together with the social responsibility. In this concept, the company participates actively and directly to enhance the social and environmental situation, using their resources, and their human capital. There are many advantages of implementing the corporate volunteering, but also many factors to consider while changing the corporate culture, and transmitting values.
The idea of this text is to present the corporate volunteering as a new concept, highly efficient for the companies and communities, while analyzing its changes, objectives, implementations, benefits and challenges to face while implementing the corporate volunteering.
Changes are constantly accelerating. A major issue that companies are dealing with is how to communicate those changes in a way that is efficient and effective and therefore successful. Traditional models such as the ones by Lewin, Bridges or Kotter are reaching their limits due to the orientation on fixed vision, goals and processes. The time has come to change the way change is managed. New organizational structures are therefore required. An example of a new model to deal with the speed of change is agile management. Agility provides a platform for better communication, including the quantity and quality aspect. IMS Gear, an automotive supplier located in South Germany, is currently in the stage of a transition. Agile mindsets are anchored in their vision and strategy, yet the implementation of agile frameworks is still improvable. The PEP project is a first step into the direction of ensuring the future of the company despite all external and internal changes. Therefore, based on a model by Audi AG consultant Gergs, improvement approaches are developed.
Creating successful teams after an M&A is challenging enough when employees share the same location and the same cultural background, but when the team consists of people coming from different cultures and is working in different locations, social distance can cause misunderstandings, distrust and miscommunication which makes successful M&As even more challenging. After the acquisition of Letrika in Slovenia and Kokusan Denki in Japan, the workforce within MAHLEs mechatronic division became highly diverse. On the one hand, this diversification is regarded as added value, but on the other hand it bears numerous challenges in day-to day business.
This thesis aims to outline cultural differences between Japan, Slovenia and Germany that affect collaboration within this division. Using literature research and an online questionnaire, the author intends to compare theoretical concepts with actual data collected at MAHLE Mechatronics. The questionnaire also includes multiple open questions that allow examining the current situation and supports the findings with real-life examples.
The first part focuses on the theoretical framework for this thesis. In chapter two an understanding for the concept of culture is given. Different models and explanations provide fundamental knowledge to grasp the construct of culture. Chapter 2.1. depicts the Lewis model, a model developed in 1996 categorizing cultures into three groups. In chapter 2.2., the paper continues with the GLOBE model which forms the basis of the empirical research conducted at MAHLE. Afterwards, culture specific characteristics of Japan, Germany and Slovenia are portrayed and compared in order to predict possible clashes that might emerge in work-related encounters (chapter 3). The illustration of the concept of intercultural competence, a skill to manage, understand, decode and interpret behaviors and mindsets of people from different cultures, will conclude the first part of this thesis (chapter 4).
Chapter five describes the methodology used in this paper. The findings of this study are presented in chapter six and are followed by the discussion and reflection (chapter 7). The paper concludes with an analysis and interpretation (chapter 7.1.), recommendations for future action (chapter 7.2.) and limitations of the study (chapter 7.3.) highlighting the main findings of the study and emphasizing the development of intercultural competence at MAHLEs mechatronic division.
In 2008 a white paper called “Bitcoin: A Peer-To-Peer Electronic Cash System” was published by Satoshi Nakamoto. This paper describes an electronic payment system that succeeds where many have failed before. The system is called Bitcoin and it deals with the double spending problem. Also, it is a peer-to-peer decentralized system meaning that it works separately from any government or any financial institution. Bitcoin relies on cryptographic proof-of-work blocks any chance of protocol disruption. Satoshi Nakamoto called Bitcoin an electronic payment system but the public now calls it a cryptocurrency because of its similarities to a currency.
Many pessimists thought that Bitcoin could never be successful and that this technology will not have any value in the future. Despite that, a considerable amount of people believe in the possibilities of cryptocurrencies and in the possible developments that this futuristic technology could inspire, especially in the financial service sector.
This purpose of this thesis is to investigate cryptocurrencies and the financial service industry in order to examine the challenges and opportunities that cryptocurrencies deliver. Section I of the paper will look into cryptocurrencies and their mechanism. Afterwards, an analysis of whether cryptocurrencies are actual currency will be given. The next section of the thesis will cover government regulations on cryptocurrencies. Then, the paper will analyze public perception and why it is important. Section II of this thesis evaluates the current financial service system and the potential benefits of the blockchain. Central banks and moral hazards in the finance sector are examined afterwards. Then, analysis on inflation and wealth is provided. After that, a summary of the advantages and drawbacks of both the cryptocurrency system and the traditional finance service system are given, followed by a section that estimates the utilities and effects of cryptocurrencies in the future. Finally, a conclusion is derived.