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This study has two major purposes: (1) to investigate the effects of the introduction of energy labels on the consumers’ purchase decision when buying an extractor hood and (2) to identify which other criteria have an impact on this decision. The research is conducted with particular reference to Miele & Cie. KG with the aim of adjusting its product management in accordance with consumers’ demands. During the last years the European Union has revised the energy labels for domestic appliances which had been introduced in 1992 and has established additional labels concerning a wider range of goods. Since 01 January 2015 this energy label is also mandatory for extractor hoods. Thus Miele & Cie. KG - as a manufacturer of hoods - is highly interested in doing research on the development of consumers’ preferences regarding the purchase of an extractor hood. In a first step the thesis provides an overview of its purpose and background before establishing the basis for the research in a second step. This includes basic principles of market research as well as the characteristics of the market for hoods and the concept of energy labels. In the following the thesis describes the product area of hoods and the implementation of the regulations concerning the energy label at Miele & Cie KG. A detailed central section explains the research which has been conducted in the context of this thesis. The empirical part of this study draws on a research carried out in Germany in November and December 2014. Data for this research were collected among twenty consumers and six dealers selling household appliances from Miele. The author of the thesis conducted face-to-face interviews on the basis of an interview guide which was developed beforehand. Finally the results of these interviews are presented, compared and summarized to enable the development of a recommended course of action for the product management of hoods at Miele & Cie. KG. The results of the research reveal that the most important purchase criteria regarding an extractor hood are an attractive visual appearance of the hood, the performance of the fan, the quality of the active charcoal and grease filters, the acoustic power level, a satisfactory lighting and a simple cleaning of the appliance. This study indicates that the energy label is of secondary importance regarding the purchase decision of a hood. The average energy consumption of a hood is relatively low in comparison to other household appliances. Therefore the energy saving potential for consumers is limited in this area. As a consequence the performance of a hood is a lot more important to consumers than its energy efficiency expressed by the label. Based on the results of this research, it can be concluded that the necessary modifications in the product development by virtue of the establishment of energy labels for hoods are quite small. Taken as a whole, the objectives of the product development of hoods at Miele & Cie. KG correspond to the consumers’ demands.
Die Hochschule Furtwangen University sieht für das 7. Semester des Studiengangs International Engineering anlässlich des Abschlusses des Bachelor of Science eine Anfertigung einer wissenschaftlichen Arbeit durch den Studenten vor. Dabei soll der Student mit dem Erlernten aus der Technik und der Wirtschaft während der gesamten Studienphase in einer Thematik mögliche Problemstellungen und relevante Lösungsansätze erkennen und ausarbeiten. Know-how-Transfer ist in der heutigen Welt ein wesentlicher Bestandteil für jedes Unternehmen auf internationaler Ebene. Kooperationen mit ausländischen Partnern, aber auch firmeninterne Expansionen ins Ausland sind der Schlüssel zur Unternehmensstabilisierung. Dabei gelten als Voraussetzung für eine erfolgreiche Transferrealisierung die sprachlichen Kenntnisse und kulturelles Verständnis des jeweiligen Landes. Student Yang Yu hat sich dieser Thematik in seiner Abschlussarbeit "Pad Clip - Know-how-Transfer im Rahmen eines Produktverlagerungsprozesses am Beispiel der Baumann GmbH" gewidmet. Dabei konnte er den kompletten Projektverlauf in einem deutschen Unternehmen, von der Materialbeschaffung bis hin zum Transferprozess nach China begleiten. Die dabei entstandene Problematik wurde analysiert und optimiert. Die herausgearbeiteten Optimierungsvorschläge können zukünftig für deutsche Berufstätige in China als Leitfaden zur Orientierung dienen.
Traditional costing methods apply overhead costs of indirect areas to products or production areas based on predetermined overhead rates. Many years ago when the direct costs were high and indirect costs were low any inaccuracy in the charging of overhead costs to products was not significant.
Nowadays, the traditional costing method for overhead costs is not suitable for complex manufacturing environment, where goods are produced by smaller customized batches which leads to high proportion of overhead activities – such as quality control – which are not related to the production volume.
In this bachelor thesis the author discusses about this relevant problem relating to the department “quality assurance in procurement” of the Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG.
The bachelor thesis contains theoretical basics of the meaning of quality, as well as the principles of quality management systems. The theoretical basics of the activity-based costing are also discussed. Moreover it is important to say that the overhead costs of the “quality assurance in procurement” are reflecting at the same time quality costs. In this way the importance of a cooperation between the controlling department and the quality management in relation to managing quality costs are also displayed.
The second part of the bachelor thesis deals with the practical application. To provide a basis, initially, the company, the department “quality assurance in procurement” and the current cost accounting system are displayed. Afterwards all steps to develop a new allocation method by the help of an activity-based costing system are showed and described. Finally, in a short version a key figure model for non-conformity costs is worked out.
Der bekannteste Weg Gewinn in einem Produktionsunternehmen zu erzielen liegt daran, Herstellkosten zu senken und gleichzeitig hochwertige und innovative Produkte auf den Markt zu bringen. Die J. Schmalz GmbH, die weltweit führender Anbieter von Vakuum-Technologie in der Automatisierungs-, Handhabungs- und Aufspanntechnik ist, ist ständig auf der Suche nach Innovation und Verbesserung um die Qualität seiner Produkte zu steigern. Dies hat die Schmalz GmbH zu folgenden Gedanken und Fragen gebracht; wie könnten bestehende Komponenten der Firma J. Schmalz GmbH optimiert und vor allem die Effizienz von Saugern gesteigert werden? Der Schwerpunkt unserer Arbeit wird somit aus diesen beiden Fragen bestehen.
Um diese Fragen zu beantworten werden wir erstmal in dem Stand der Technik einen Fokus auf die Effizienz und die Sicherheit von Sauggreifer bei dem Transport von Werkstücken von einem Punkt zu einem anderen raussuchen. Danach werden die verschiedenen Lösungen, die wir für unser Problem gewählt haben, präsentiert. Der dritte Teil wird aus den Versuchen (Durchführung und Auswertungen) bestehen. Zum Schluss kommt das Fazit, um das Ergebnis unserer Arbeit zu zeigen.
Die vorliegende Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der wirtschaftlichen Entwicklung der Eurozone vor und nach der Finanzmarktkrise sowie die institutionellen Konstruktionen die mit der Eurozone einhergehen. Die Arbeit ist in zwei Zeitfenster aufgeteilt: einmal von 2002 bis 2007 vor der Finanzmarktkrise und von 2008 bis 2014 nach der Krise. Es wird der Frage nachgegangen, inwiefern die Umsetzung der Währungsunion und das Auftreten der Finanzmarktkrise die wirtschaftliche Entwicklung der Mitgliedstaaten in der Eurozone beeinflusst hat. Dafür werden die Mitgliedstaaten in Süd- und Nordstaaten unterteilt. Die Fragestellungen werden auf der Grundlage verschiedener Datenbanken von der Europäischen Union wissenschaftlich analysiert. Wissenschaftliche Texte stellen eine ergänzende Informationsquelle dar. Im Ergebnis wird deutlich, dass sich die Eurozone, allen voran die Südstaaten, noch nicht von der letzten Finanzmarktkrise erholt hat. Nicht nur die Wirtschaftskrise macht der Eurozone zu schaffen. Vielmehr sind es institutionelle Fehlkonstruktionen in den Verträgen, die das Projekt Eurozone und Europa gefährden. Durch Nichteinhaltung selbst aufgesetzter Regelungen sowie ständige Änderungen sämtliche Verträge, hat das Projekt, ein gemeinsames Europa durch einen gemeinsamen Währungsraum
zu schaffen, an Glaubhaftigkeit verloren.
Due to the great cultural distance between Germany and Thailand, German leaders who work in Thailand may encounter several intercultural concerns. In order to effectively lead Thai employees, these leaders may need to behave differently from what they used to do in their home country in some aspects. Thus, this study examines the changing perception of leadership due to the effect of Thai culture form German managers who are working in German organizations in Thailand.
GLOBE project and its culturally endorsed leadership theory were the key literature explored in this study. To attain the outcomes, both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed. Twenty-three questionnaires were collected from German expatriate managers in German organizations in Thailand. While two in-depth interview were acquired from Thai employees who worked closely with German superiors.
The results confirm German managers greatly value inspirational and trustworthy attributes as well as avoid being tyrannical, tender and provocateur in order to work in German-Thai boundary. The leadership styles such as Charismatic/Value-Based or Transformational and Team-Oriented leadership also suit German leaders to work in Thai culture.
In the time of a globalizing economy where the costs of production and the closeness to customers, due to transportation cost, become more and more important. More and more medium-sized companies seek for the advantages of production facilities abroad either to cut cost and stay competitive or to follow other companies using their products. For several years Freilacke has been active in the Russian Federation via a subsidiary company (sales office in Moscow). This paper will analyze chances and risks for a possible production facility inside Russia. After tremendous changes in the situation in Ukraine, the production location Russian Federation has lost a bit of attractiveness. Nevertheless Russia is largest country in the world and with more than 146.3 million inhabitants on the ninth rank due to population worldwide and therefore remains an interesting destination. Follow-up analysis and numbers will show that even if the western world will close the borders to east Eurasia, the domestic market bares a high potential and attractiveness for investors.
Das Phänomen „demographischer Wandel“ rückt immer mehr ins Zentrum öffentlicher Diskussion. Mit seinen unterschiedlichen Facetten prägt es Wirtschafts- und Arbeitswelt. Geringe Geburtenraten und steigende Lebenserwartungen führen zu einer dramatischen Veränderung der Altersverteilung. Dies hat, unter anderem zur Folge, dass immer mehr Erwerbstätige in den Ruhestand wechseln und ihre Know-how mitnehmen. Dies stellt Unternehmen vor Herausforderungen, da qualifizierte Fachkräfte nur schwer zu finden sind. Unternehmen werden zum Umdenken und aktiven Handeln aufgefordert. So könnten nicht oder schlecht genutzte Ressourcen wie zum Beispiel Rentner eingebunden werden um dem demographischen Wandel entgegenzuwirken. Die vorliegende Bachelorthesis beschäftigt sich daher mit der Weiterbeschäftigung im Rentenalter. Ziel ist es zu klären, ob die Bereitschaft für eine Erwerbstätigkeit im Rentenalter überhaupt besteht, welche Motive ein Rolle spielen und welche Rahmenbedingungen vorhanden sein müssen. Auf der Basis von aktueller Fachliteratur und einer Befragung älterer Personen ab 55 Jahren, werden diese Fragen in sechs Kapiteln diskutiert. Nach einer kurzen Einleitung wird in Kapitel zwei der demographische Wandel und dessen Herausforderungen für die Arbeitswelt erläutert. Kompetenzen Älterer und Ruheständler so wie betriebswirtschaftliche Effekte werden in Kapitel drei aufgeführt. Kapitel vier beschreibt die Voraussetzungen und Rahmenbedingungen für die Beschäftigung von Ruheständler. Eine Illustration der Befunde der empirischen Untersuchung erfolgt in Kapitel fünf. Die Ergebnisse der Untersuchung zeigen eine deutliche Leistungsfähigkeit und auch eine Bereitschaft für die Weiterbeschäftigung im Rentenalter. Zu den wichtigsten Motiven gehören Spaß an der Arbeit, Kontakt mit Menschen, Fit bleiben und Wissen weitergeben. Um die Potenziale dieser Bevölkerungsgruppe in vollem Umfang nutzen zu könne müssen bestimmte Voraussetzungen erfüllt und Rahmenbedingungen vorhanden sein. Hier besteht noch auf verschiedenen Ebenen Handlungsbedarf.
Mobile internet and smartphones have experienced a strong growth in the past years.
Teenagers and increasingly younger children consume the mobile internet via mobile end devices, especially smartphones. Such technical innovations are commonly
accompanied by social changes that affect societal as well as individual behaviours.
For this reason, the question of how mobile internet influences and changes children’s behaviour arises. Therefore, the topic being treated in this thesis is about
“Marketing to children: Do smartphones change children’s behaviour? – An approach to children’s consumer behaviour and the ethical perspective of the economy.” The objective is to find out whether children’s behaviour is changed by mobile internet and smartphones and which marketing opportunities arise due to these changes as well as observing which marketing practices are conducted. Firstly, general consumer behaviour, its theories and tendencies as well as the consumer behaviour of children is studied. Following that, the examination of the ethical perspective of the economy including general ethics and theories are treated and marketing ethics as well as answers to ethical issues that arise in business are scrutinised. Basic facts of marketing aimed at children practiced by the media as well as the neurological perspective and ethics of marketing directly to children is investigated. To get more
evidence of changes in children’s behaviour due to mobile internet and smartphones a practical experiment in the sports field is conducted to find out whether
smartphones lead to a lack of concentration during training.
As a result, the literature review confirms that mobile internet and smartphones lead to social changes and to changes in children’s behaviour such as variances in their
communicative, consummative and social behaviour which present new opportunities for modern mobile marketing practices. The hypotheses of the experiment that
smartphones lead to a lack of concentration could not be validated. Relating to the measurements, concentration under smartphone presence was higher than without it.
From an ethical perspective it is critical to use (mobile) marketing opportunities for targeting children as their brains are still in development and they are not able to
identify the intentions of marketing.
The aim of this bachelor thesis is to provide ZF Friedrichshafen AG with a flexible Human Resource concept for the successful handling of future joint venture projects in China. In order that future JV are planned and conducted successfully, a structured HR approach built on a combination of ZF experience and academic evidence has been developed. It points out cultural differences, creates awareness of potential organizational issues and gives advice. This thesis draws upon various academic resources which are expanded through ZF knowledge. For this, eight expert interviews with China experienced ZF managers were held.
This blueprint covers several of the HR issues that arise when setting up new joint ventures in China. By shedding light upon success factors a necessary flexibility when dealing with different partner firms is provided. After a theoretical outset and a brief introduction of ZF Friedrichshafen and ZF Passau this thesis peaks in the HR blueprint for joint ventures in China. Worth notable factors in setting up the structure, when recruiting and inheriting staff from the joint venture partner as well as considerations of the new Labor Contract Law and for policies and practices allow an understanding of what Human Resource issues can be anticipated in Chinese joint ventures. These then can be planned adequately for.
The results of this work offer a strategical Human Resource framework on how to best approach a next joint venture project in China. A broad range of HR issues have been analyzed and the most critical for joint venture success found implementation in the blueprint. Arranging a working organizational structure with a Chinese partner and implementing uniform policies and practices while considering cultural factors as well as complying with the legal requirements of the Peoples Republic of China is a task which is not easily carried out. Yet while setting up joint ventures in China already is a complex project, the partnering with a Chinese state owned enterprise is a challenge that requires special attention by HR professionals. The blueprint gives insights and guidance for stated issues.
Vergleicht man ein Automatisierungssystem mit dem menschlichen Körper, dann sind die Rechner (PC, SPS, Mikro-Controller) das Gehirn, die Signalleitungen die Nervenbahnen, die Sensoren die Augen und Ohren, die Aktoren die Muskeln, die Starkstromleitungen die Adern. Alle Teile sind wichtig und müssen zueinander passen.
Abstract. Over the last years the German economy perceives the ongoing demographic change which is the reason for a lower offer of skilled workers. A war for talents is declared and recruiters try to meet this challenge. Especially small and medium sized companies notice the lack of qualified applicants that is why these firms should transform into an “employer of choice”. In order to become more attractive for workers, they should invest in marketing strategies to differ from the employer competitors. The theme of the scientific work deals with the development of a human resources marketing plan. The aim is to increase the brand awareness of the pharmaceutical mid-sized company the “BIPSO GmbH”. Evolving a strong employer brand which is in line with the business strategy is the center of gravity. All HR-Marketing activities are aligned to the brand “BIPSO”. In the course of the strategic process, internal and external analyses support the definition of personnel marketing measures. The methods and knowledge have been transferred to the BIPSO GmbH and checked for their applicability. The theories of “how workers choose an employer” or the analysis presented by Simon Sinek conduce to obtain a better understanding of the external target group and the strengths and weaknesses of the company. The interface between Human resources and marketing could be detected by the mutual influence of the employer brand and the product brand. Overlaps are noticeable in the strategic steps of marketing such as the positioning with the help of the EVP (= Employee Value Proposition) or the segmentation of the target groups. To address the audience via their preferred media channels and recruitment channels, an empirical research was performed. Expert interviews with the target group helped to gain insights in their media habits or the identification with the company. The results determine how the communication policy for the BIPSO GmbH should be configured. The outcome shows the need to invest in the linkage of print and online channels. In order to differentiate BIPSO from the competition, the firm should emphasize its origin as an independent family with an ethically valuable product. This unique feature is integrated into all activities. The emotional component is complemented by the rational employers offer such as the performance of the collective agreement of chemistry. In addition to the external measures internal activities were focused, which should lead to a better working environment, because "true beauty comes from the inside." Nevertheless, the human resources marketing concept is not a long-term solution for the demographic development and the lack of skilled labor. However, it can increase the level of awareness and attract the interest of candidates so that companies like the BIPSO GmbH can benefit in hiring new collaborators.
Before the eruption of the latest financial crisis in 2008, Social Responsible Investments were considered as not relevant within the financial market's spectrum, in fact, late 90`s academic literature argues that Social Responsible Investments worsen portfolio performance, seemingly a well established paradigm for almost thirty years. However, why the perception of financial markets about Social Responsible Investments is changing?
Given the controversy surrounding Social Responsible Investments, the current document has tested the performance of a selection of Social Responsible portfolios for the period (2007-2014). Results showed that performance is not diminished and Social Responsible portfolios do not perform significantly different from the benchmark market. Additionally, theory and results are replicated into an interactive business game that aims to discover Social Investment profiles for users and highlight the importance of Social Responsible Investment in financial markets making the current document a combination of financial theory with the design of practical game fully playable.
Improving conditions for economic growth in Colombia, Investment opportunity in Infrastructure
(2015)
The purpose of this thesis is to get a clear understanding of the situation of transport infrastructure of Colombia. Examine the reasons and the current situation of the country´s background that explains the delay in infrastructure development and the poor quality of the transport networks, being able to find objective arguments to suggest certain type of investment for the coming years that will help to improve the conditions for economic growth. The research goes deep in to the evolution of the country and the role of transport infrastructure in Colombia, highlighting the most important facts and types, to get an overall understanding of the actual situation. The objective is to identify which is the line of investment that will best fit the country´s development in the time where globalization and free trade agreements take active part of Colombia´s growth in the last years, however threatening the industries pushing them to a more efficient and productive environment. On the basis of the results of this research, it can be concluded that Colombia needs heavy investments in the future years to try closing the breach left behind decades of inefficient policies and strategies. The involvement of the private sector in transport infrastructure projects is necessary to fund the type of investments that the country needs. Furthermore, there has to be continuity in the actual concession programs for the road network plus a big investment to bring back the railroad network into an efficient long lengths transport for both passengers and products.
This thesis is based upon an interest in the field of neuromarketing and a desire to depict which is the most advisable strategy to implement in a situation, where there is a potential introduction of a methodology coming from that field in a new / foreign market. Special emphasis is put on the market entry strategy (modes of entry and marketing strategy).
At the beginning of the thesis, there is a brief inspection of the neuromarketing field according to the nowadays situation that lead to the creation of a methodology, which is called neuromerchandising®. This methodology is the competitive advantage of a German consultant company called neuromerchandisinggroup GmbH&Co.KG. With this patented methodology, this consultant company provides strategic solutions to numerous companies mainly in the field of retail.
The main purpose of the thesis is to define which are the decisions to be made while introducing this methodology to a foreign country and in particular to Greece, in order to improve the Greek retail situation.
This thesis provides an analysis of the tools necessary to speculate whether Greece is the appropriate country to introduce this methodology. After this analysis, the thesis provides solutions of the potential market entry strategy putting emphasis on the marketing strategy of introducing this methodology.
Internal documentation of this company, market reports and analyses are used to provide a professional framework of the dynamic capabilities in the venture of introducing this methodology to Greece.
One can see major changes in the business industry, self-fulfillment is not anymore a state to achieve just through material rewards like a high salary but a human reward like recognition for the work employees did, especially in the western countries like Germany or the United States where a high amount of people have enough wealth already. Businesses need to understand the importance of the emotional engagement of their employees at work. The Gallup Institute, one of the leading researching Institutes about employee engagement found out in their research that employees are not emotionally engaged to wards their working place. Here are results for the year 2013: The disengagement of employees causes damages to the whole economy with the amount of 98,5 billion euros to 118,4 billion euros. The low emotional engagement in 2013 was 67% of all employees in the company. 16% of the company is highly engaged but in the same time 17% of the employees are working with no emotional engagement. The thesis “the art of happiness in business” will research throughout the literature of leadership and corporate culture as a key to increase the employee engagement in German companies. To be happy in a company is more than just earning money and leaving the company, employees need to be connected to the working place with their heart and mind. There is a new era coming the “generation happiness” which wants more than money. In a decade where happiness beats money, they want to work in beautiful environments where they can contribute to something bigger than themselves, they want to be happy and reaching their full potential will be a result.
To round up the thesis scientifically “the art of happiness in business” will develop from the existing theory about leadership and corporate culture a 21st century theoretical model as a scientific response to the changes in the industry, who one can find throughout this work. As an outlook the thesis will serve as the scientific foundation for future projects with experienced entrepreneurs to develop practical models increasing the employee engagement for companies.
Die in letzter Zeit immer häufiger aufkommende Kritik am Wachstumsparadigma lässt
die Frage nach dem Verhalten von Unternehmen weitestgehend offen. Erste Lösungsansätze und ein Großteil der Diskussionen finden hauptsächlich auf
makroökonomischer Ebene statt. Wie aber können sich Unternehmen verhalten, wenn volkswirtschaftliches und unternehmerisches Wachstum begrenzt wird? Welche Form
von betriebswirtschaftlichem Wachstum würde sich unter den geänderten Rahmenbedingungen anbieten? Die Antwort auf diese Frage bleibt in den meisten Fällen, sowohl in Literatur als auch Politik gänzlich unbeantwortet.
Die folgende Ausarbeitung „Kritische Betrachtung wachstumsneutrale Unternehmen und Analyse alternativer Wachstumsformen am Beispiel kleiner und mittelständischer
Unternehmen“ soll eine erste Hilfestellung zur Beantwortung dieser Fragen bieten.
Hierfür wurden – aus verschiedenen Branchen kommend - fünf kleine und mittelständische Unternehmen in Deutschland ausgesucht. Diese wurden zum Teil aus
bereits vorhandenen Studien adaptiert und teilweise in Eigenrecherche als „wachstumsneutral“ definiert. Um die Frage nach wachstumsneutralen Wirtschaften besser beantworten zu können, wurden die einzelnen Unternehmensstrategien auf die jeweiligen, Faktoren der Wachstumsneutralität hin genauer analysiert und zusätzlich
versucht, die Motivation der Unternehmensleitung auszumachen. Diese fünf Unternehmen lassen bereits jetzt die möglichen alternativen Entwicklungswege für ein
ökologisch und ökonomisch sinnvolles Wachstum erkennen. Ergänzend dazu wurden neben den gängigen Wachstumsindikatoren der Betriebswirtschaftslehre noch
weitere, so genannte „qualitative Kennziffern“ beschrieben.
Zusätzlich zum betriebswirtschaftlichen Hauptteil soll mit Hilfe eines kurzen Exkurses in die Volkswirtschaft zum Bruttoinlandsprodukt und Wohlstand erweiternde
Kennziffern vorgestellt werden, welche die Entwicklung von Unternehmen positiv beeinflussen könnten. Hierfür wurde auf die bereits erwähnten, für die volkswirtschaftliche Diskussion vorhandenen Wirtschaftsmodelle zurückgegriffen und diese ausführlicher vorgestellt.