Career management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Career management - Essay Example This is attributed to tightened global economy where everybody is need of an employment opportunity. Many people find themselves staking up jobs with minimal career requirements. As they get deeper into these miscellaneous jobs, their career objectives fade until they lose the passion to have a career. This has been the case in many nations. However, human resource analysts argue that the economic conditions have forced people to abandon their career to look for other jobs with minimal requirements. The increasingly unemployment rates have also played a major role in making people abandon their careers (Zunker, 2005). For instance, in Greece many people have moved away from the country to look for employment opportunities in other countries. In foreign countries, these individuals do not stick to their current career but look for the most available employment opportunity. However, human resource analysts say that these are not reasons enough for people to abandon their career for men ial jobs. People should be responsible for the growth of their careers regardless of the economic conditions (Nathan & Hill, 2005). The major questions are why should people be responsible for their own careers and what are the advantages of growing ones career. An argument by Grant (2009) claims that people should ensure that their careers grow with each step of their professional life. Human resources specialists argue that, individuals are responsible for their own mishaps when it comes to seeking for employment. Many organizations administrators say that many people fail during interviews because they lack depth in their respective careers. Over the years, the quality of interviewees has dropped significantly which begs the question if career objective s are being abandoned. If individuals would strive to expend the depth in their careers, many people would find employment in the expending industrial industry. To prove this point, the global industrial market has over the past 5 years grown by about 13 percent (Grobler, 2005). With the growing industrial industry, it would be obvious to assume that employment opportunities would be available in these hubs. However, this is not the case as many people around the globe are in need of jobs. Many organization opt the use of machinery as their output tools. This is mainly attributed to the fact that people don’t have the depth in their careers that would drive the industry towards its success. If people could take responsibility and build their careers effectively, the human resource demand in the industries would return rise to the expected heights. Another reason why people should take responsibility of the careers is to maintain the economy growth. Behind the success of all global commercial giants there are personalities responsible for this success. However, the quality of these personalities has diminished in years. Individuals still at the helm of commercial giants are of old age since there is no such quality in the young generation. The quality of management skills required to run large companies has been a difficult thing to find. Many organizations have opted to retain the ageing administration. If this trend goes on, 10 years from now we will have companies with no appropriate management teams. In an argument by Werner (2008) this has been caused by the young generat

Discussion Questions Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 6

Discussion Questions - Coursework Example Saying anything at all is not doing something; one who says anything neither has control over what he says nor the consequences, most of which are normally negative. In light of this argument, saying anything means raising the eyebrows and counter-sayings or counter-actions along one’s path to a desired destination (Soccio 58). By advocating for inaction, it is fair to describe Asian philosophers as passive. Asia is technically a closed society where open reactions to issues are highly unlikely. In Buddha, the Middle Path is the cure for suffering (Soccio 59). The Path requires the faithful to avoid either extremes of life which would keep them in indulgence or denial. Successful individuals do not yearn for endless satisfaction, and they refrain from painful scenarios either. In all these, ego is always the trigger of all the negative stimuli in the brain, and thus it is the basis of denial and suffering. Tzu’s observation is accurate; Buddha’s approach to suffering ensures that adherents are always prepared to avoid suffering by staying away from extreme pleasures or overindulgence (Soccio 44). The approach can cure virtually all kinds of suffering because pain is often associated with both

The Horror Story Of Domestic Evil

The Horror Story Of Domestic Evil Sredni Vashtar is a short and a horror story that is written by Hector Hugh Munro (Saki). When a reader reads this story a feeling of horror and fear comes to mind. The words that Sakis used in Sredni Vashtar are very dynamic and makes you feel that this child, Conradin, react like an adult in the story and not like a child ten years old. In this research paper I write about the title of the story Sredni Vashtar as a polecat-ferret, as a religion and what Conradin believes about this, about Sakis life that is reflected in his stories. Also, I write about the relationship that Conradin had with his strict cousin and guardian Mrs De Ropp, and about the setting that the story is represented. Through all this, we are going to see the domestic evil that Saki wants to show us through this story. Sredni Vashtar is a short story that is written between 1900 and 1914. The story is about a 10 year old boy called Conradin, the main character of the story. The doctor pronounced that he would not live another five years. The boy lives with his strict cousin and guardian Mrs De Ropp. Conradin founds a new religion for himself, a polecat-ferret, that he calls Sredni Vashtar, a vengeful and merciless god. Conradin keeps in a cage the Sredni Vashtar and Mrs De Ropp disnt know anyrhing about this. The story is comes to the end when Mrs De Ropp aims to discover what Conradin keeps from her (the God, the new religion that Conradin discover) and when she finds it, then she died. At the end when Mrs De Ropp died, Conradin believes that this happen because Sredni Vashtar helps to happen this and he was happy for this end. We can understand this through the last sentence of the story that Sakis writes Conradin made himself another piece of toast. (Sredni Vashtar,Saki) Through this we can unde rstand what he feels about her and that he didnt care if Mrs De Ropp died. As Byrne writes in his essay Conradin responds to the death of his guardian with great sangfroid, giving himself the rare pleasure of slowly buttering himself a second slice of toast. From this reaction of Conradin not to care of the death of his guardian give us the idea of one child that suffered a lot of his strict guardian and also this feeling that he had of happiness and now will live in a better way. According to Byrne that writes Already he is stronger, making choices for himself, enjoying simple but sensual pleasures, and entering into the life his guardian denied him. Authors life is reflected in their works. Many authors in the world take the important events and periods in their lives and write them in their books or in their stories. One of this authors is Hector Hugh Munro ( pseudonym Saki ). Saki was born in 1870 in Akyab, Burma, son of Scotsman Charles Augustus Munro, an inspector-general in the Burma police and his mother, Mary Frances who died in an accident in England. He had a brother Charles and a sister Ethel. Saki is a Scottish author of the Edwardian era, often referred to us of the master of short stories. Saki is a master of short stories and we can see this through his many short stories that he writes. Saki takes an important event in his life and write in, on one of his famous short stories Sredni Vashtar . When Saki was young and his mother died , they sent him with his brother and sister to Broadgate Villa, in Pilton village near Barnstaple, North Devon. They were looked by his grandmother and by his two strict aunts , Charlotte and Augusta . According to the article An authors life is reflected in their works write that Living with them was a nightmare for Saki , as he often took revenge on them when he was little , just like Conradin in Sredni Vashtar. Also, Saki love and cared for wild animals and this we can see it in a lot of his famous short stories. The title of the story Sredni Vashtar is refer to the polecat-ferret that Conradin keeps in a cage and is the new religion that Conradin believes that he finds. This ferret symbolizes Conradins fight for freedom and his capacity for violence. In the story it is described as a lithe, sharp-fanged beast (Sredni Vashtar, Saki) and Conradin himself was dreadfully afraid (Sredni Vashtar, Saki) of it. Conradin believes that Sredni Vashtar can do anything for him and this is the reason that he believes in this polecat-ferret. He believes that whatever happen at the house, good or bad , is because of Sredni Vashtar. We can see this from the story à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. when Mrs De Ropp suffered from acute toothache for three days, Conradin kept up the festival during the entire three days, and almost succeeded in persuading himself that Sredni Vashtar was personally responsible for the toothache. (Sredni Vashtar, Saki) From this sentence we can understand how Conradin sees this polecat-ferret and also how he suffers from his strict guardian. He suffers, because when he did festival party when his guardian was sick this mean, that she didnt react to him good and now Conradin finds the opportunity to feels happy of what she had. Also, we can understand how Conradin believes in this new religion that he discover. This religion that Conradin discover through his polecat-ferret starts when in the story he had Houdan hen and Mrs De Ropp take it away and from that time he starts believes to Sredni Vashtar. Furthermore, in the story we find a phrase that Conradin always say when he wants his polecat-ferret to help him with something. Do one thing for me, Sredni Vashtar. From this phrase we can understand that Conradin wants Sredni Vashtar to do something for him, but we cant understand what he wants, until the end of the story when his strict guardian died and we can understand that this is what Conradin wants. Saki again used in his story something from his life in this story and in a lot of his short stories we can see this. He used animals and as we know he loved animals in his life and tried to use them with different ways in every story. In Sredni Vashtar he used the polecat ferret as an evil, as the new religion that Conradin discover. According to Maxey this theme are the semi-deified, titular ferret in Sredni Vashtar, who appears to understand human desires. With this phrase I agree, because Saki in this story shows us that an animal can understand what the humans wants and here Conradin wants his strict cousin to die and Sredni Vashatar did this at the end of the story and kills Mrs De Ropp. But I dont believe that the polecat-ferret that Conradin calls Sredni Vashtar, kills Mrs De Ropp because Conradin wants but because the ferret was kept in a cage and when Mrs De Ropp finds the animal attacked to her and kills her. As Maxey writes in his essay each story is named after its anim al protagonist-and each story takes the creatures side. This happen in Sakis stories, that gives name to his story through the animals that he used in the stories. Another example from Sakis fiction, to give the title of his story through the name of animal that he used in the story is the short story Louis that published in the book The toys of piece in 1923. In the story Conradin hates his guardian and prays for her death to Sredni Vashtar. In the story we can find words that show that Conradin hates his strict cousin and one of this is when he said that hated her with a desperate sincerity. (Sredni Vashtar, Saki) The relationship that Conradin had with his guardian was not good as we see that Conradin hates her but as we find in the story Mrs De Ropp in her honestest moments, have confussed to herself that she disliked Conradin. With the words that Saki used in his story to describe what Conradin feels about Mrs De Ropp leaves the reader in no doubt about what he feels and shows to the reader an unpleasant side of his character. This part of the story that Conradin not want his strict guardian and do all this, we can say that Saki give us an event from his life, when he was looked up by his two strict aunts and if we compare it this, we can say that Saki is an author that writes stories through his own life. Mrs De Ropp, maybe she repr esents one of the two strict aunts of Saki and this was the reason that writes this story. Through this point, maybe he wants to give a message of what he leaves in his life with his two strict aunts. In the story, when Mrs De Ropp start look of what Conradin kept from her, Conradin began to chant loudly the hymn of his threatened idol: Sredni Vashtar went forth, His thoughts were red thoughts and his teeth were white. His enemies called for peace, but he brought them death. Sredni Vashtar the Beautiful. (Sredni Vashtar, Munro) This was the first time through the story that we read the hymn that Conradin writes. Sakis write this and make the reader to feels very strange when reads the story, and also feels fear of what is going to happen at the end of the story. The story is appropriately named, since the beautiful deadly beast is at its center, taking the place of the beautiful, sometimes feral, youths who are the objects of aesthetic or erotic attention in other stories as Byrne says. Byrne wants to say that this strange polecat-ferret becomes beautiful to Conradin eyes. Moreover, in the story when Sakis wants to give emphasis, to writes something about Mrs De Ropp he used the word Woman with the letter W in big letters. In the story we find this when Mrs De Ropp start to looking about what Conradin kept from her. Conradin shut his lips tight, but the Woman ransacked his bedroom till she found the carefully hidden key or when he writes He saw the Woman enter, and then imagined her opening the doorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ With this way Sakis tries to show us the difference that the two main characters had. The setting of the story is important because Sakis description of the garden reflects the lack of affection between Conradin and Mrs De Ropp. The image that Sakis used in his essay of the few fruit trees that it contained were set jealously apart from his plucking (Sredni Vashtar, Saki) wants to suggest that nothing enjoyable and positive is kept away of him. Conradins story is for himself alone. According to Byrne who writes that his imagination has been all that has sustained him during a long and lonely imprisonment. This we can see it from the story that Sakis writes one of these days Conradin supposed he would succumb to the mastering pressure of wearisome necessary things-such as illness and coddling restrictions and drawn-our dullness. Without his imagination, which was rampant under the spur of loneliness, he would have succumbed long ago. (Sredni Vashtar, Saki) Conradin in the story was alone and I believe that sometimes feels loneliness. Through all this that I wrote, we can see how Sakis life is reflected a lot in his famous short stories and how through an animal we can see this domestic evil that Sakis tries to do through the story Sredni Vashtar. Finally, according to Byrne that close her essay with an excellent sentence about Sakis stories that says about his work I will close my research paper The weakest of Sakis stories depend upon a punchline or last paragraph reversal. The strongest combine instant characterization, wit, tension, shock, great humor, and pathos.

The Time Machine and Mrs. Warrens Profession as Socialist Manifesto Es

The Time Machine and Mrs. Warren's Profession as Socialist Manifesto  Ã‚   The industrial revolution was the period of greatest economic and technological growth in modern society. Starting in Europe and spreading to the world, multiple countries experienced a new definition of efficiency and productivity. Although the growth was certainly profound, many people questioned the methods with which it was achieved and the society created from its ideals. In particular, two British Authors, H.G. Wells in The Time Machine and George Bernard Shaw in Mrs. Warren's Profession provide critiques of capitalism and industrialization. Both members of the Fabian society present pictures of a seemingly content world, which, when examined, reveal the degeneration of modern society, Shaw looking from the present, Wells from the future. Through portrayals of ostensibly prosperous worlds and the conflicts that arise between characters with differing views, both literary works successfully show the disadvantages of the new economic system and predict its destructive consequence s in the present and the future. Unlike their revolutionary communist counterparts, Fabians advocated gradual reform of the capitalist regime by working within the system. Through both emotional and logical appeal, Fabians attempted to sway the public towards greater policies of human rights and equity, creating the basis for modern leftist parties, such as the British Labour party or the democrats of the United States. Shaw and Wells, two of the founders of the party, appeal to the people through both morals and entertainment value in order to powerfully convey the Fabian cause. The Time Machine applies a vision of a disturbing, advanced world to current society, warn... ... change society, as in The Time Machine, or is just entering the social arena, as in Mrs. Warren's Profession, it is obvious what the fair and moral choice is in both literary works. No matter how they approach it, both literary works provide compelling arguments against social stratification and industrialization, providing only undesirable choices for the audience unless society can overhaul itself. The two stories provide similar critiques of any system promoting class conflicts and exploitation. However different, both present a scene of a seemingly content world, a scene that is shattered when viewed from a closer level. When applied to modern society, both present the view that although the growth of industrialization is undeniable, it is questionable as to whether society truly reached a more desirable end, given the consequences that stem from our progress.

Hello Kitty case study Essay

1.0Introduction Hello kitty is a cartoon character of a small white cat that looks kind, sweet and cute, with a button nose, two black dot-eyes, six whiskers and a ribbon in her hair. Hello kitty has no mouth and this represents a major source of emotional association for buyers and buyers can put many different feelings to the little cat. Owners and their cat can be happy, sad and cheerful or any other feelings that user wishes to feel. Hello Kitty was firstly introduced in Japan in 1974 and is a segment of Japanese popular culture and hello kitty is a Japanese bobtail cat also knows as kitty white. Currently hello kitty is 40 years of age; hello kitty trademark is worth over 5 billion annually worldwide. 2.0What the appeal of Hello Kitty? What needs does it fulfill? Hello Kitty appeal is success in Japan to the prevalence of the Kawaii culture in the country. The Japanese, regardless of their age, were known to have a passion for ‘cute’ objects. ‘Kawaii’ itself mean cute. Hello Kitty not only popular among kid but for adult too. They describe as ‘kidult’, the combination of ‘kid’ and ‘adult’. It attracts user who love pink and cat. For instance, it was considered normal for grown women in Japan to be seen with mobile phone cases that were adorned with cartoon characters, or for banks to print check books with pictures of cartoons. The postal department issued stamps featuring popular cartoon characters. Even the Japanese government used Hello Kitty as tourism campaign in Hong Kong and China. Hello Kitty is fulfilling the need of belonging and love. She has become a friend and has its own social fans. People will feel happy when they buy it for their self or receive it as a gift. The appearance and cuteness make people happy when they see it. It becomes collectable items and fans become happy when they can collect all the various looks of Hello Kitty. 3.0What make Hello Kitty distinctive in its early years from other dolls,  and what made non-distinctive in later years as its sales declined? In its early years, Hello Kitty is the most attractive because that time there no other animate that is cute and represent a girl. Hello Kitty then become viral that attract people from any ages. It not only the symbol of cuteness but also as a friend. Hello Kitty for a little girl she become a friend, for teenager special friend and trend and women also is attracted as the symbol of feminine. Hello Kitty enters all age groups and market. The ‘kawaii’ thing that make it very attractive compare to other dolls. Even though Hello Kitty was still among the top-selling brands in Japan, the avenues for future growth seemed limited. The increased popularity of other animate like Pokemon among female consumers make the attraction of Hello Kitty’s was at risk in Japan. Sanrio may have succeeded in reviving the brand in the 1990s by repositioning Hello Kitty to make her appealing to a larger number of people. However, the company could not pull off the same trick a second time. There were several reasons for this. Hello Kitty had already been placed on a wide range of items and there were few new items left. Furthermore, Technology changes factor may lead to it declined. Abundance electronic and gadget that is more attractive to children and teenager. All the gadget come with sound and voice that is more attractive to be watch. Hello Kitty is created without mouth, so it a bit difficult to create a television animation likes others. It seems weird if Hello Kitty has a voice because she doesn’t have mouth. 4.0How have the needs of children change over the years in term of what they look for in a doll? Today technology change rapidly with many gadget and advanced technology in market. As a user it affects us when we can’t catch up with the changes. We may left behind from other. This changes not only effect adult but children too. When toys are now using advanced technology to express the animator creativity and to enter the market. The impact of this, children more  attract to figure that are look more real. Children today not only looking for toys that are attractive but come with voice and have their own trademark. Example like Upin Ipin, the television series with in their graphic technology, latest is Frozen animation, Elsa is the popular one from the movie. It becomes viral among children. The movies itself very interesting come with good graphic, storyline, song and products. It’s a complete package that attract children today, they memories the song. It’s completely different with Hello Kitty that has no mouth and can’t talk. Hello Kitty has the sentimental value that not everyone can understand it. Children now want something that more related to real life, real expression. The technologies today have impact on children choice. Conclusion There many competitor that come with more advanced technology that are more attractive not only for children but for adult too. Hello Kitty is now left behind even there so many promotion and contract with big company. Hello Kitty has lost it shine but not for the fans. The loyal fans are from kids from past year that are adult today. Kitty fails to attract younger kids in this 21st century. Kids may like the kitty but still can’t be the loyal fans of kitty. Hello Kitty should be able to cope with technology changes to attract young kid today. Hello Kitty must change to something that is catchier suitable with kids this 21st century.

Questions: Mobile Phone and Personal Navigation Devices Essay

Overview As TomTom, one of the largest producers of satellite navigation devices in the world, entered 2010 it faced stiff competition from its traditional rivals such as Garmin and from new competition from cell phones. Although its sales reached an all time high of â‚ ¬1.74 billion in 2007 by 2008 sales had slipped to â‚ ¬1.67 billion. That year the company posted a loss of â‚ ¬872 million. The decline in sales continued with 2009 sales slipping to â‚ ¬1.48 billion, although the company managed to post net income of â‚ ¬86 million that year. TomTom employed over 3,000 employees in 40 countries. Since its founding in 1991, the Netherlands-based company experienced steady growth. It offered an array of information services and devices aimed at the consumer and business markets. It led the navigation market in Europe, and was second to Garmin in the United States. In 2007, it outbid Garmin to acquire Tele Atlas in a vertical integration strategy to control the map creation process. TomTom paid â‚ ¬2.9 billion for Tele Atlas. As 2009 came to a close, Google announced it would offer turn-by-turn navigation within cell phones. Google said the product, initially limited to driving directions in the U.S. would be free to consumers. As the U.S. and European markets for navigation devices matured, TomTom was faced with decisions related to the relative emphasis it should place on its stand-alone navigation devices, built-in navigational units for automobiles and aviation, and business devices and services aimed at companies with large mobile workforces. Suggestions for Using the Case Students should find the TomTom case interesting since many of them probably own a GPS unit or use a smartphone- based GPS application. The Nintendo case is excellent for drilling students in applying the concepts and analytical tools covered in Chapters 4 and 5. The case provides sufficient information to allow students to fully examine the competitive forces at play in the personal navigation industry, consider the industry’s driving forces and key success factors, and examine TomTom’s internal situation. In addition, the case’s decision focus allows students to consider what TomTom must do to survive in an increasingly competitive environment. To give students  guidance in what to do and think about in preparing the TomTom case for class discussion, we strongly recommend providing class members with a set of study questions and insisting that they prepare good notes/answers to these questions in preparing for class discussion of the case. You may also find it beneficial to have your class read the Guide to Case Analysis that is posted in the student section of the Online Learning Center for the 18th edition at www.mhhe.com/thompson. Students will find the content of this Guide particularly helpful if this is their first experience with cases and they are unsure about the mechanics of how to prepare a case for class discussion, oral presentation, or written analysis. TomTom: New Competition Everywhere! *This teaching note was prepared by Professor Woody Richardson, Mississippi State University. We are most grateful for his insight, analysis and contributions to how the case can be taught successfully. * In our experience, it is quite difficult to have an insightful and constructive class discussion of an assigned case unless students have conscientiously have made use of pertinent core concepts and analytical tools in preparing substantive answers to a set of well-conceived study questions before they come to class. In our classes, we expect students to bring their notes to the study questions to use/refer to in responding to the questions that we pose. Moreover, students often find having a set of study questions is useful in helping them prepare oral team presentations and written case assignments—in addition to whatever directive questions you supply for these assignments. Hence, we urge that you insist students spend quality time preparing answers to study questions— either those we have provided or a set of your own questions. The case can be used effectively for a written assignment or oral presentation. Our recommended questions for written assignments are as follows: You have recently been hired by TomTom as a new market analyst and have been asked to assess the attractiveness of the personal navigation industry and determine TomTom’s competitive strength. Please prepare a 5-6 page report that evaluates competition in the industry, assesses industry driving forces, and lists industry key success factors. Your report should also include an assessment of TomTom’s internal  situation and makes specific strategy recommendations that will allow TomTom to improve its market and financial performance. Assignment Questions 1. What strategy is TomTom pursuing?  2. How well is the strategy working?  3. Does the satellite navigation industry offer attractive opportunities for growth? What kind of competitive forces are industry members facing and how do the forces influence the outlook for industry profitability? 4. What are the strengths and weaknesses of TomTom? What are the threats and opportunities facing the company? 5. Do you think TomTom’s shift to value-added services and making Personal Navigation Devices a smaller portion of total revenue will be enough to sustain it in the near future? Is this strategy consistent with the needs of markets outside North America and Europe? 6. What recommendations would you make to TomTom management to improve its competitive position in the satellite navigation industry, take advantage of market opportunities, and defend against external threats? Teaching Outline and Analysis 1. What strategy is TomTom pursuing? For the most part, TomTom has followed product development and market development strategies with clear emphasis on differentiating its product. Its 2007 acquisition of Tele Atlas was clearly illustrative of vertical integration. Through the years its acquisitions and patent development display elements of an offensive basis of competitive attack based on pursuing continuous product innovation to draw sales and market share away from less innovative rivals. A good use of the history section of the case is to have students classify or label TomTom’s historical actions related to products and markets into product development or market development. The results might look like the following table. Time Action Described in Case Strategy Early 1990s Software development for handheld computers to commercial applications. Product Development & Market Development 1996 Announced first navigation software Market Development 2001 Entered Mobile car satellite navigation market Market Development 2006-2008 Acquired Datafactory AG to power TomTom Work Acquired Applied Generics for Mobility Solutions. Acquired Tele Atlas for map creation Product Development Product Development Vertical Integration 2009 TomTom for the iPhone released Market Development The TomTom Group consisted of TomTom (Business to Consumer), Tele Atlas (Business to Business), WORK (Commercial Fleets), and Automotive (Auto Manufacturers & Suppliers). In response to the economic downturn that began in 2007, increased competitive threats, and growth declines in the U.S. and Europe, the company shifted its business mix toward value-added services. The potential results of this attempt to make personal navigation devices (PNDs) a smaller proportion of total revenue were at best uncertain. 2. How well is the strategy working? The short answer is that up until the global economic downturn beginning in 2007 and continuing in 2008, TomTom’s strategy had produced outstanding results. However, as the losses in 2008 indicate, the strategy bears scrutiny. The downward pressure on prices due to competition and the slowing of discretionary expenditures due to the global recession produced a financial strain on TomTom. An examination of Case Exhibits 3 and 4 reveals the following trends from the first Quarter of 2008 to the first quarter of 2009: ÃŽ ½ European Revenue Down 22% ÃŽ ½ North America Revenue Down 52% ÃŽ ½ Global PNDs sold Down 29%. At the same time, the selling price and overall operating margins had been decreasing since 2007. The gross profit margins from 2006-2009 were as  follows: 2009 2008 2007 2006 50.6% 53.3% 56.0% 57.6% This caused net income to drop much more precipitously than the decline in sales. Couple this information with a debt load over â‚ ¬1 billion due to the acquisition of Tele Atlas and the company appeared to be in a financial bind. For all of 2008, the company posted a loss of â‚ ¬872 million. 3. Does the satellite navigation industry offer attractive opportunities for growth? What kind of competitive forces are industry members facing and how do the forces influence the outlook for industry profitability? The outlook for industry profitability is not what it was 5 years ago. Students should be able to develop an outlook by using Porter’s Model of Industry Attractiveness as discussed in Chapter 3 of the text. Rivalry among Competing Sellers Rivalry will intensify as industry growth in US & Europe slows. Margins will continue to decline. Firms will fight to utilize capacity through further price cuts. Growth in China & India would mitigate the rivalry intensity. Buyers Big Box stores exert strong pressure on price, terms & delivery. Car makers also exert strong influence owing to their purchasing power. Suppliers Very limited influence as all key components are controlled through vertical integration. Threat from Substitute Products Major Threat – Cell phones for PNDs predicted to dominate by 2013. Less Threat – Fleet management & Automotive markets. Potential New Entrants Nokia’s acquisition of Navteq signals their intent to integrate phone and navigation services. Google’s announcement also signals its entry into the market. Up until recently the industry was much more attractive. Physical maps were not much of a threat as a substitute, but by 2009 the industry was undergoing a sea change regarding cell phones as substitutes. For the younger consumers who have never not known cell phones, the expectation that navigation be a common feature will be a strong force in the market just as many in this generation only wear watches as fashion ornaments because they are never without their cell phone. These tech-saavy consumers may eschew separate devices for navigation. 4. What are the strengths and weaknesses of TomTom? What are the threats and opportunities facing the company? Strengths Weaknesses †¢ Brand Name Recognition †¢ Map creation capabilities †¢ Innovative features — Mapshare — Points of Interest — Traffic updates †¢ Automotive partnerships †¢ European market share †¢ Sales declines †¢ Shrinking margins †¢ Debt load since Tele Atlas acquisition †¢ Relative weak sales outside Europe & the United States †¢ Stand alone (separate) products Threats Opportunities †¢ PND unit sales decline †¢ Multifunctional devices (cell phones/smart phones) popularity is growing †¢ Strong Competition from Traditional competitors – Garmin & Magellan †¢ Strong Competition from new competitors – Nokia & Google †¢ Potential legislation to restrict/ban navigational devices from autos †¢ Aging satellites that support GPS †¢ Growth of India & China †¢ 65% of U.S. adults don’t own any kind of navigation device of any kind †¢ High fuel prices encourage better fleet management & fuel efficiency for consumers †¢ Environmental concerns encourage better fleet management & consumer behavior to be â€Å"green† 5. Do you think TomTom’s shift to value-added services and making Personal Navigation Devices a smaller portion of total revenue will be enough to sustain it in the near future? Is this strategy consistent with the needs of markets outside North America and Europe? This is a difficult question. Certainly the move to reduce the company’s reliance on PNDs, a product category with declining sales, prices, and margins seemed a prudent measure. The efficacy of this strategy will depend on at least two key questions. ÃŽ ½ How fast will the PND market continue to shift to cell phones? If the analysts are correct and the cell phones will dominate the delivery for personal navigation devices then TomTom may need to accelerate its plans to reduce its dependency on this category. Students should recognize that as the demand for stand-alone PNDs declines the price will drop even more precipitously. ÃŽ ½ How fast can TomTom grow its non-PND business lines? One bright potential bright spot for TomTom could be the demand for more partnerships with car makers. Car makers will likely offer navigational devices as standard features rather than luxury options. TomTom could be well positioned (if it chooses to do so) to garner a share of this market similar to its deal announced at the end of 2008 with Renault. Of course, the car makers would continue the downward price pressure, but would represent a sizable market opportunity. Of course, should legislation be introduced to ban navigational devices in automobiles this would have a profound effect on TomTom and its competitors. Some students will be quick to point out that the markets in China and India would be lagging the U.S.  and Europe and would therefore be ripe for market penetration without any significant outlay for new product development. However, better students will point out that China and India both have significant cell phone penetration and they may actually be more desirous of product integration and multi-bfunctionality. 6. What recommendations would you make to TomTom management to improve its competitive position in the satellite navigation industry, take advantage of market opportunities, and defend against external threats? First, there appears to be no â€Å"magic bullet† capable of taking a strong #2 player such as TomTom to number one in the industry unless Garmin were to make a major misstep. The diffi culty of making a recommendation is further exacerbated by the move to cell phones for PNDs. However, TomTom might consider some of the following actions. ÃŽ ½ Focus on information solutions, specifically the â€Å"Better Routing† & â€Å"Better Traffic† information goals mentioned in the case. Provide these solutions regardless of type of device. ÃŽ ½ Defend and Develop markets not dependent on cell phone devices (e.g. coast guard, maritime, aviation, and fleet management markets.) ÃŽ ½ Seek more automotive partnerships – use the Renault and Avis experiences to ramp up sales in this area. ÃŽ ½ Extend product life – attempt to recoup R&D efforts by seeking markets in developing countries where the disposable income may be reaching the threshold to adopt PNDs. ÃŽ ½ Aggressively market fleet management solutions. ÃŽ ½ Develop more applications/partnerships similar to the iPhone experience. Find a way to â€Å"ride the dragon.† Find a way to participate in the growth in multifunctional cell phones. Even a small portion of this huge market would be extremely lucrative. Epilogue Immediately following Google’s October 28, 2009 announcement mentioned at the end of the case, TomTom and Garmin offered Black Friday discounts of 25% up  to 40% on some units. In 2010, the company generated sales of â‚ ¬1.521 billion with a net income of â‚ ¬108 million. TomTom announced in a February 25, 2011 Reuters report by Roberta B. Cowan that it faces â€Å"such a rapid decline in its key market for personal navigation devices (PNDs) that its shift into new businesses may not be fast enough to compensate.† The company forecasted that the overall PND market would decline by 10 to 15 percent in 2011 and that its earnings would not grow.