Thursday, December 26, 2019

Globalization Causes, Consequences and Reflections

Globalization: Causes, Consequences and Reflections Preface Globalization, a proverbial phenomenon observed mostly in the domains of commerce and culture, poses sweeping impact to the modern world and overall human experience. It is recognized as the expanding collaborations amongst interest groups, corporations, and countries that go beyond nation-state borders, as societies around the world experience an increased level of interdependence. In essence, it refers to the collective perception of the compression of the world and the intensification of consciousness of the world as a whole (R. Robertson, Globalization, 1992:8) This movement, some deems inevitable and irreversible, is manifested in the prevalence of multinational projects†¦show more content†¦As a result of mass-production and mass-marketing, goods and services are gradually become more common in different countries. By influencing consumers with the same products around the world, opponents argue that globalization is gradually morphing the world into a single world cul ture where everyone lives in a world of MTV and drinks Coca-cola (3). However, proponents argue that globally integrated countries such as Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Japan have been able to retain distinctive cultures (3). Despite oppositions to standardizing force of globalization, such standardization (if it is indeed happening) is actually beneficial for companies since a standardized world culture will allow companies to create similar branding and marketing message for all countries, resulting in reduction of cost. Sustainable Growth From the under-developed countries perspectives, globalization brought along with it the sudden realization of new opportunities followed by accelerated attempts to exploit these opportunities without much consideration for consequences. In the 90s, Malaysian and Indonesian logging companies began clear-cutting at an increasing pace when they realized the opportunities afforded by the global market (10). Although the respective governments have since introduced tighter regulations for its logging industryShow MoreRelatedThe Importance of Understanding Cultural Differences in International Business Communications950 Words   |  4 Pages Due to globalization, organizations rely on international transactions to take place to keep their business running. Even with knowledge of how important international interactions are for their companies’ success, miscommunication occurs and someone involved in the transaction is left scratching his or her head. This is a result of the lack of cultural training and understanding. This paper will discuss the different implications that have been discussed in the international business world. ThisRead MoreInternational Advertising : Theory And Approach925 Words   |  4 Pagesfar outweigh the remaining differences. A ‘global consumer’ has developed as a consequence of increasing commonality in educational background and lifestyles. The success of multinational operations depends on its know-how and capabilities in pursuing a standardized strategy in this global village (Monye, 2000). Some studies have shown that a consistent and respectable brand image is vital to a successful globalization strategy (Monye, 2000). For example, Nike, a global sportswear company, maintainsRead MoreReflection Paper On English As A Trojan Horse949 Words   |  4 PagesA reflection paper on Ties that constrict: English as a Trojan Horse Three month ago, I came to Canada to start my four-year undergraduate education in York University. English used everywhere such as classrooms, restaurants even toilets. You can handle nothing without an out-standing English grasp here. So compared to the second topic which is about the human rights and freedom in Canada, I think I am more interested in the first one which is related to English (political issues cannot botherRead MoreIntroduction. The Rising Unemployment Has Generated Challenges1381 Words   |  6 Pagesprovide explanations on the causes, consequences and remedies to the unemployment issues affecting the low income communities in the U.S. These explanations have resulted in theoretical debate among various economists. Examples of economics theory include: New Classical economics, the classical economics, the Australian School of economics, the Keynesian theory and the monetary theory among others. These theories focus on the issues of unemployment and its consequenc es on the economy and communitiesRead MoreThe Cultural Practices Of Buddhism1460 Words   |  6 Pagesof truth and morality. Siddhartha Gotama, now referred to as Buddha, taught many things; however, the main principles of Buddhism can be summarized into the Law of Karma, the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. With major strides in globalization in the last few decades, the teachings and principles of Buddhism have become more familiar to western cultures. The increase in the exposure to Buddhism has also been accompanied by a greater effort to be culturally aware and ultimately respectfulRead MoreUs-Mexico Labour Problems3406 Words   |  14 PagesTHE US-MEXICO RELATIONSHIP IN GLOBALIZATION ERA Prepared by Wendi Aprizal Matric: 812493 Prepared for Dr. Norafidah Ismail GFPP 5234 International Political Economy Strategic Studies of Universiti Utara Malaysia 2013 THE US-MEXICO RELATIONSHIP IN GLOBALIZATION ERA 1. Introduction In this paper author would like to explain about the process Globalization during the cooperation between US and Mexico in NAFTA framework. During the cooperationRead MoreWays to Prevent and Resolve Violent Conflict Essay example1008 Words   |  5 PagesWays to Prevent and Resolve Violent Conflict To prevent and resolve violent conflict we must understand the sources and logic of war. Two schools of thought currently dominate thinking on the causes of contemporary conflict. The first sees violence as a response to a range of grievances including systematic discrimination and human rights violations, inequalities in wealth and political power, or a scarcity of resources, particularly where these fall along existing social cleavages suchRead MoreThe Ipod : A Product Of Globalization2089 Words   |  9 PagesRivero INR 3011 The 32 GB iPod video as a product of globalization The iPod, an mp3 player created by Apple Inc, is a product that exemplifies the impact and consequences of globalization in the economic and social aspect. The economy globalization, seen as the â€Å"intensification and stretching of economic connections across the world†, has shaped markets and political relations between countries (Snarr 37). On the other hand, cultural globalization has connected societies to the point where it cannotRead MoreAn Introduction to Globalization Essay2500 Words   |  10 Pages Globalization is a historical phenomenon that has been happening for decades now, and whether it generates growth or not is a matter of whose point of view it is. The western countries, especially America and some European nations, are the ones taking full advantage of the benefits of globalization. On the other hand, some experts say that globalization is not doing much for the developing countries, or that it may be even worsening their scenarios of poverty and social inequality. But, I willRead MoreThe Concept of Human Security: A Step Against the Genocide of the Israelis1636 Words   |  7 Pagesthousands of killings between the fighting tribes. This media propaganda played a major role in roiling up the two tribes as hate, violence was communicated through different media, and it formed a norm in the region, which resulted in dreadful consequences. The question now arises as to why the concept of Human Security and Human Development miserably failed to protect the people of tha t region. With the killing of Minister of Public Works, UN found itself in a position where it could not have taken

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Incidents of the Life of a Slave Girl - 2134 Words

In Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs writes, Slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women (64). Jacobs work presents the evils of slavery as being worse in a womans case due to the tenets of gender identity. Jacobs elucidates the disparity between societal dictates of what the proper roles were for Nineteenth century women and the manner that slavery prevented a woman from fulfilling these roles. The book illustrates the double standard of for white women versus black women. Harriet Jacobs serves as an example of the female slaves desire to maintain the prescribed virtues but how her circumstances often prevented her from practicing. Expectations of the women of the era, as stated in†¦show more content†¦But when I reflected that I was a slave, and that the laws gave no sanction to the marriage of such... (33) Jacobs is denied marriage to her lover by her owner, Never let me hear that fellows name mentioned again. If I ever know of your speaking to him, I will cowhide you both... Ill teach you a lesson about marriage free niggers! (35-36). However, Jacobs will not allow it to totally destroy her sense of self as a woman. While she has suffered abuse and harassment and the hands of Dr. Flint, Jacobs remained determined that Flint would not succeed at last in trampling his victim under his feet,(46). As she is not permitted purity, Jacobs decided to take a white lover. If she were to be forced to give up her purity it would be at least ...to a man who is not married... It seems less degrading to give ones self, that to submit to compulsion (47). The quotes show Jacobs recognition of the sanctity of marriage has well certain personal standards. Jacobs possesses a sense of self, she feels that she deserves to choose her own lover. Regarding her lover she wrote, There is something akin to freedom in having a lover who has no control over you except that which he gains by kindness... The wrong does not seem so great with an unmarried man, as with one who has a wife to be made unhappy (47). Jacobs used her own sexuality as a defense, since keeping her physical purity, a right to other women, had been denied to her. By choosing an unattached man, JacobsShow MoreRelatedIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl1112 Words   |  4 Pages In the non-fiction book â€Å"Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl,† by Harriet A. Jacobs and published in Boston in 1861. The author Jacobs was born into slavery in 1813, in a town called Edenton, North Carolina. Jacob uses the pseudonym Linda Brent to narrate her first person account. The book opens with Jacobs stating her reasons for writing a biography of her life story. Her story is agonizing and she had rather have kept it confidential, although she felt that by making it public thatRead MoreIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl1455 Words   |  6 PagesIn â€Å"Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl,† Harriet Jacobs gives a detailed account of the life story of â€Å"Linda Brent† which is the pseudo name for herself, outlining the events which primarily focuses on her escape from her slave master, â€Å"Dr. Flint.† After learning that Dr. Flint has already fathered 11 children from his slaves, it is hard to imagine why he is never able to successful pursue Linda. After all, just based on the sheer number of his incidents of sexual relations with his slaves, itRead MoreIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl1556 Words   |  6 Pages Throughout Harriet Jacobs biography of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, she brings up three arguments to support her views on anti-slavery: the moral conflict between slavery and Christianity, pain and suffering (physical and emotional) of being in slavery, and color prejudice. Throughout Jacobs biography, she also uses key themes such as power struggles and feministic views to portray slavery to persuade to the women in the north that slavery is indeed corrupt. Jacobs aims her anti-slaveryRead MoreIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl864 Words   |  4 PagesIncidents in the Life Of A Slave Girl Linda Brent CHAPTER I The conditions of this master-slave relationship are that the slave (Linda) is there to do work for her mistress, or master, which is now her sister s daughter. Linda is supposed to take care her new owners five year old daughter, help plant things, take care of any animals and anything else she is told. As a slave, she should also do everything else she is told by her master. After a brief period of suspense, the will of my mistressRead MoreIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl1927 Words   |  8 PagesIncidents in the life of a slave girl - essay During the antebellum South, many Africans, who were forced migrants brought to America, were there to work for white-owners of tobacco and cotton plantations, manual labor as America expanded west, and as supplemental support of their owner’s families. Harriet Jacobs’s slave narrative supports the definition of slavery (in the South), discrimination (in the North), sexual gender as being influential to a slave’s role, the significant role of family supportRead MoreIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl748 Words   |  3 PagesIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl The story I will be discussing is entitled Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Ann Jacobs. This book is relative to more than a few of previous topics that have been discussed in class during lectures. The book touches on the struggles that enslaved women faced on a day to day basis. It follows the life on author Harriet Ann Jacobs and does an excellent job demonstrating how women in bondage unlike their free white counterparts, had no male figureRead MoreIncidents Of Life Of A Slave Girl771 Words   |  4 PagesIncidents in life of a slave girl. Autobiographical narrative that has been written by african-american female from North Carolina by the name Harriet A Jacob, who depicts horrors of normal life of a slave, beginning her story with description of her childhood memories of her family and people who were their owners. Harriet adopts a pseudonym of Linda Brent, and assigns different from reality names to anyone important in her narrative, in order to be able to share the story of her life and probablyRead MoreIncidents in the Life of a Slave Girl1968 Words   |  8 PagesIn the book, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, the author Harriet Jacobs (also the main character in book), paints a very powerful, and emotion picture of what the institution of Slavery was like for the slave and master in America, and the toll that it took on the human soul. Before reading this book, I was given a list of questions to ponder on while reading. These questions ranged from, compare and contrast survival techniques used by two char acters in the book, to was this work difficultRead MoreIncidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl Analysis1335 Words   |  6 PagesWoman’s Worth in the Hard Times of Slavery Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, a slave narrative written by Harriet Ann Jacobs is highly commended for the portrayal of women during the excruciating times of slavery. Disregarding that the slave narrative was initially written for the audience of Caucasian women, â€Å"†¦, as white women constituted Jacobs’s primary audience at the time she wrote her narrative† (Larson,742) the struggles of being a female slave were emphasized throughout the narrative.Read More Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl Essay1671 Words   |  7 Pagesbook, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. L. Maria Child, a prominent white abolitionist, agreed to edit Jacobs book, although she apparently did little to alter the text except to rearrange some sections, suggest the removal of one chapter, and add material to another. In a letter to a friend, Child wrote, I abridged, and struck out superfluous words sometimes; but I dont think I altered fifty words in the whole volume. The subject matter of the book -- sexual abuse of slave women

Monday, December 9, 2019

World War Z by Max Brooks Essay Sample free essay sample

1. Max Brooks is an American author and telecasting voice-over histrion. In his calling as a author. Brooks shows an obvious involvement in living deads. His first book was â€Å"The Zombie Survival Guide† . It touched on what he described as pop cultural myths about living deads. Subsequently on he produced â€Å"The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks† . a in writing novel based on his old work. Finally. in 2006 Max Brooks writes the novel. â€Å"World War Z. an Oral History of the Zombie War† . which described a planetary infection which reanimated its victims as the â€Å"undead† and the ensuing war between world and the living deads. The rights for the latter narrative have been purchased by Plan B Entertainment. which will bring forth a film based on Brooks’ novel. I am really interested and excited that this book is being turning into a film. I look frontward to watch it. 2. This novel is a work of horror fiction. There evidently no living deads in the existent universe. The writer describes in in writing item the visual aspect of the living deads and the horrific attacks upon the life. 3. The scene takes topographic point in the close hereafter in different states. The storyteller describes the eruption in assorted states around the universe through the interviews with the many characters. 4. This narrative is about a adult male named Brooks who interviews people around the universe about them witnessing beginnings of the eruption and the resulting desolation. The living dead apocalypse was over. but these people are still haunted and traumatized by what they experienced. The narrative is in 3rd individual because the storyteller did non take part in the narrative. but the storyteller was questioning everyone who had survived the eruption and he relates the experiences of each character. 5. One of my favorite characters in this narrative is the physician. Kwang Jingshu. in the beginning of the narrative because this physician was really dedicated to his patients and was profoundly moved by the people enduring. He helped the small town in China instead than being coward. He even risked his life to acquire the blood sample from the septic kid and survey it. He was imprisoned by the authorities in order to maintain what he saw a secret. but he escaped and reported to the outside universe what happened in China. 6. The major subjects are: -The beginning of the eruption. enduranceThe rise of the living deads and the close extinction of the human race ( World War Z ) . The determination to repossess the Earth from the living deads.Victory over the living deads ( End of World War Z ) 7. This novel would use to my life because it made me recognize merely like the state of affairs in the narrative. I rely a batch. possibly excessively much on modern engineering. We all can’t rely on engineering because what would go on if those resources disappear? Some people would panic because their revolve so much on engineering. 8. The observations/lessons that the narrative makes are: Our overreliance on engineering. i. vitamin E: the ground forces relies on arms to much that did non impact on the living deads and forgetting of basic preparation accomplishments. How much the universe is interconnected i. vitamin E: the celerity of air travel allowed the virus between states and continents really rapidly. There are people in the universe that would work the agony and terror in order to acquire rich. In the narrative. here was a character who sold a false remedy and cognizing good that it did non work in order to acquire rich from despair. 9. â€Å"I wonder what future coevalss will state about us. My grandparents suffered through the Depression. World War II. so came place to construct the greatest in-between category in human history. Lord knows they weren’t perfect. but they sure came closest to the American dream. Then my parents’ coevals came along and [ messed ] it all up—the babe boomers. the â€Å"me† coevals. And so you got us. Yeah. we stopped the living dead threat. but we’re the 1s who let it go a threat in the first topographic point. At least we’re cleaning up our ain muss. and possibly that’s the best epitaph to trust for. ‘Generation Z† . The major subjects are:-The beginning of the eruption. enduranceThe rise of the living deads and the close extinction of the human race ( World War Z ) . The determination to repossess the Earth from the living deads.Victory over the living deads ( End of World War Z ) The major subjects are:-The beginning of the eruption. enduranceThe rise of the living deads and the close extinction of the human race ( World War Z ) . The determination to repossess the Earth from the living deads.Victory over the living deads ( End of World War Z ) This novel would use to my life because it made me recognize merely like the state of affairs in the narrative. I rely a batch. possibly excessively much on modern engineering. We all can’t rely on engineering because what would go on if those resources disappear? Some people would panic because their revolve so much on engineering. This novel would use to my life because it made me recognize merely like the state of affairs in the narrative. I rely a batch. possibly excessively much on modern engineering. We all can’t rely on engineering because what would go on if those resources disappear? Some people would panic because their revolve so much on engineering. The observations/lessons that the narrative makes are:Our overreliance on engineering. i. vitamin E: the ground forces relies on arms to much that did non impact on the living deads and forgetting of basic preparation accomplishments. How much the universe is interconnected i. vitamin E: the celerity of air travel allowed the virus between states and continents really rapidly. There are people in the universe that would work the agony and terror in order to acquire rich. In the narrative. here was a character who sold a false remedy and cognizing good that it did non work in order to acquire rich from despair. The observations/lessons that the narrative makes are: Our overreliance on engineering. i. vitamin E: the ground forces relies on arms to much that did non impact on the living deads and forgetting of basic preparation accomplishments. How much the universe is interconnected i. vitamin E: the celerity of air travel allowed the virus between states and continents really rapidly. There are people in the universe that would work the agony and terror in order to acquire rich. In the narrative. here was a character who sold a false remedy and cognizing good that it did non work in order to acquire rich from despair. â€Å"I inquire what future coevalss will state about us. My grandparents suffered through the Depression. World War II. so came place to construct the greatest in-between category in human history. Lord knows they weren’t perfect. but they sure came closest to the American dream. Then my parents’ coevals came along and [ messed ] it all up—the babe boomers. the â€Å"me† coevals. And so you got us. Yeah. we stopped the living dead threat. but we’re the 1s who let it go a threat in the first topographic point. At least we’re cleaning up our ain muss. and possibly that’s the best epitaph to trust for. ‘Generation Z† . . â€Å"I wonder what future coevalss will state about us. My grandparents suffered through the Depression. World War II. so came place to construct the greatest in-between category in human history. Lord knows they weren’t perfect. but they sure came closest to the American dream. Then my parents†™ coevals came along and [ messed ] it all up—the babe boomers. the â€Å"me† coevals. And so you got us. Yeah. we stopped the living dead threat. but we’re the 1s who let it go a threat in the first topographic point. At least we’re cleaning up our ain muss. and possibly that’s the best epitaph to trust for. ‘Generation Z† . Max Brooks is an American author and telecasting voice-over histrion. In his calling as a author. Brooks shows an obvious involvement in living deads. His first book was â€Å"The Zombie Survival Guide† . It touched on what he described as pop cultural myths about living deads. Subsequently on he produced â€Å"The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks† . a in writing novel based on his old work. Finally. in 2006 Max Brooks writes the novel. â€Å"World War Z. an Oral History of the Zombie War† . which described a planetary infection which reanimated its victims as the â€Å"undead† and the ensuing war between world and the living deads. The rights for the latter narrative have been purchased by Plan B Entertainment. which will bring forth a film based on Brooks’ novel. I am really interested and excited that this book is being turning into a film. I look frontward to watch it. Max Brooks is an American author and telecasting voice-over histrion. In his calling as a author. Brooks shows an obvious involvement in living deads. His first book was â€Å"The Zombie Survival Guide† . It touched on what he described as pop cultural myths about living deads. Subsequently on he produced â€Å"The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks† . a in writing novel based on his old work. Finally. in 2006 Max Brooks writes the novel. â€Å"World War Z. an Oral History of the Zombie War† . which described a planetary infection which reanimated its victims as the â€Å"undead† and the ensuing war between world and the living deads. The rights for the latter narrative have been purchased by Plan B Entertainment. which will bring forth a film based on Brooks’ novel. I am really interested and excited that this book is being turning int o a film. I look frontward to watch it. One of my favorite characters in this narrative is the physician. Kwang Jingshu. in the beginning of the narrative because this physician was really dedicated to his patients and was profoundly moved by the people enduring. He helped the small town in China instead than being coward. He even risked his life to acquire the blood sample from the septic kid and survey it. He was imprisoned by the authorities in order to maintain what he saw a secret. but he escaped and reported to the outside universe what happened in China. One of my favorite characters in this narrative is the physician. Kwang Jingshu. in the beginning of the narrative because this physician was really dedicated to his patients and was profoundly moved by the people enduring. He helped the small town in China instead than being coward. He even risked his life to acquire the blood sample from the septic kid and survey it. He was imprisoned by the authorities in order to maintain what he saw a secret. but he escaped and reported to the outside universe what happened in China. This narrative is about a adult male named Brooks who interviews people around the universe about them witnessing beginnings of the eruption and the resulting desolation. The living dead apocalypse was over. but these people are still haunted and traumatized by what they experienced. The narrative is in 3rd individual because the storyteller did non take part in the narrative. but the storyteller was questioning everyone who had survived the eruption and he relates the experiences of each character. This narrative is about a adult male named Brooks who interviews people around the universe about them witnessing beginnings of the eruption and the resulting desolation. The living dead apocalypse was over. but these people are still haunted and traumatized by what they experienced. The narrative is in 3rd individual because the storyteller did non take part in the narrative. but the storyteller was questioning everyone who had survived the eruption and he relates the experiences of each character. The scene takes topographic point in the close hereafter in different states. The storyteller describes the eruption in assorted states around the universe through the interviews with the many characters. The scene takes topographic point in the close hereafter in different states. The storyteller describes the eruption in assorted states around the universe through the interviews with the many characters. This novel is a work of horror fiction. There evidently no living deads in the existent universe. The writer describes in in writing item the visual aspect of the living deads and the horrific attacks upon the life. This novel is a work of horror fiction. There evidently no living deads in the existent universe. The writer describes in in writing item the visual aspect of the living deads and the horrific attacks upon the life.

Monday, December 2, 2019

Dell vs Hp Essay Example

Dell vs Hp Essay Both Dell and HP are two strong players in PC industry which refers to an industry where companies produces PCs (desktops and notebooks), handheld devices (smart phones and tablets), and workstations. However, with growing global expansion, Dell and HP’s performance differs. Dell, once the world’s largest PC maker in 2001, has continually lost its market share to HP and Acer since 2007 (Guglielmo 2009). The cause is rooted in two differences of these companies: company diversifications and core competences.Therefore, how firms can continually survive in the PC business is more of an issue for Dell than for HP. Nevertheless, survival is not enough. Mainly because of the fast declining average selling prices (ASP) annually, both Dell and HP’s PC business face pressures from thinner profit margins (Menn 2010) Therefore, to win the battle, finding a new growth opportunity should be in the center of Dell and HP’s future strategy. Hence, this essay first present s the background of these two companies. It then looks at how PC business can survive by analyzing the causes of Dell and HP’s different performances in PC business.Thirdly, it briefly evaluates four options as a future growth engine. 2. Background 3. 1. Motivations Motivation| Dell| HP| Pre 1970sMarket and Resource Seeking| Not born yet| Provide growth1959: Establish the first foreign marketing organization and manufacturing plant in Europe, but did not focus on PC business | 1980s-2000sCompetitivePositioning| Capture global scale1990: Expansion to EMEA: Europe, the Middle East and Africa 1993: Entries into APJ: Asia Pacific and Japan| Match Dell’s scale in PC2002: Merger with Compad Computer Corp. 1990s-2000sWorldwide Learning| Recruit skills, expertise2007: Decide to refocus on innovation and set up more Ramp;D centers. 2009: 7 design centers | Leverage global intelligence1990s: HP Labs opens in Japan and Israel2010: 23 HP Labs operate in 7 countries| TABLE 1 Motiva tions Comparison Historically, HP started its global business earlier than Dell, but the focus was not on PCs until 2000. In contrast, Dell, focusing on PCs, quickly expanded its business globally since 1990 (Dell 2011). Therefore, to match Dell’s scale, HP merged with Compad in 2002 (HP 2011).In terms of worldwide learning, HP began to leverage global expertise much earlier while Dell did not realized the importance of worldwide learning until 2007 (Dell 2007). 3. 2. Means Means| Dell| HP| Pre-requisites| One competenceLow cost business model| A portfolio of Ramp;D competencesMeasurement, computing and communications, summarized as HP=MC2| Process| Born Global1990: Greenfield factories| Buy Global2002: Acquiring a global PC company, Compad| TABLE 2 Means Comparison Apart from motivations, companies need to possess specific competences to succeed in foreign markets (Bartlett and Beamish 2011).Dell’s innovative direct sales and build-to-order model, which eliminates mid dlemen, gave it a unique low cost advantage. Since this advantage was embedded internally, Dell started its expansion by Greenfield rather than cooperate with local companies. On the contrary, HP had a portfolio of Ramp;D competences rather than one (Prahalad and Hamel 1994). Instead of â€Å"Born Global†, HP’s PC business can be regarded as â€Å"Buy Global† since it expanded its global PC business by buying up global companies. 3. 3. Evolving Mentality | Evolving Mentality|Dell| Pre 2007Global perspective | Transnational Perspective| HP| Pre 2002:Multinational perspective | | TABLE 3 Mentality Comparisons HP once had a multinational mentality, as evidenced by its decentralized organization structure and culture (Accenture 1998). In contrast, Dell once had a more global mentality because in the early years, Dell did not adjust its direct models and products that much from country to country (Hill and Jones 2007). However, both companies have shown a trend movin g towards a transnational mentality in recent years.For example, Dell claimed its Shanghai Ramp;D center would focus on local and regional customers’ needs (Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China 2010) and it also introduced retail sales model in 2007 (Dell 2007), while HP reorganized its units to centralized divisions and laid off redundant workers in 2002 (McShane and Glinow 2002). 3. Survive the PC Business 4. 4. The Battle Although both companies have diversified into other industries, PC industry is still their most important source of revenue. For years, these two giants are battling for lead in PC market.When measured by market share, HP has taken place of Dell as No. 1 seller in PC market since 2007 (FIGURE 1). When measured by revenue, HP also wins over Dell for almost five years (FIGURE 2). Also, Acer grew rapidly in market share partly because of its merger with Gateway in 2007 (Einhorn 2007), and almost matched Dell in 2009. FIGURE 1 Global PC Market Share (HP 2006-2010; Dell 2006-2010; Acer 2006-2010) FIGURE 2 Revenue from PC Sales (HP 2006-2010; Dell 2006-2010) 4. 5. Issues PC industry is characterized by fast declining ASP year over year.Together with the increasing component costs from 2009, both Dell and HP are facing squeezing profit margins (HP 2010; Dell 2010). In the first quarter of 2011, HP’s gross margin for its Personal System Group (PSG) is as low as 6. 4% (Epstein 2011). Similarly, Dell’s gross margin of PCs is often 3 to 5% (Wang 2010). This indicates that if both companies want to keep their PC business profitable, they have to further lower their costs and/or boost increasing demands every year. However, Dell faces a more severe problem than HP for three reasons. First, Dell shows its inability in creating demands.Since 2006, Dell started losing market share to other competitors such as Acer, while HP continued to win customers during the same period (FIGURE 1). Second, although PC busin ess is both Dell and HP’s core business, Dell’s revenue has a much greater reliance on PC sales, accounting for more than 50% of its total revenue (FIGURE 3). This makes Dell more vulnerable than HP to falloff in demand. Third, Dell shows little progress in cost control (FIGURE 4). Its past success in 1990s was based on its low cost business processes, which is already quite superior.Therefore, limited room was left to Dell to further reduce costs. Moreover, after its entries into emerging markets, costs even grew higher with the introduction of retail sales to its old model. FIGURE 3 PC Sales as a Percentage of Total Revenue (HP 2006-2010; Dell 2006-2010) 4. 6. Sustainable Global Success? The primary reason for Dell’s non-sustainable success is its specialization in PC combined with its emphasis on the old success model, which prevented Dell from reaching any of the following goals or a combination of them at a high level: global efficiency, flexibility and wor ldwide learning.In other words, Dell’s past success was largely based on supply chain efficiency, but with limited help of global efficiency which defines the firm’s ability to cut costs by global integration and to increase value of outputs through local responsiveness (Bartlett and Beamish 2011). In contrast, since 2002, HP was trying all three means: economies of scale, economies of scope and national differences to achieve those goals. That is, HP quickly established competences in global efficiency, flexibility and worldwide innovation and closing efficiency gap with Dell (FIGURE 4).Although in 2007 Dell began to shift from the old business model, its only core competence as a low cost leader was eroded. Also, such shift did not give Dell a new competitive advantage. Therefore, this fundamental difference has led to today’s enlarging gap between Dell and HP’s performance. In this regard, HP’s leadership in PC business will prove more sustainab le than that of Dell. FIGURE 4 Inventory Days (HP 2006-2010; Dell 2006-2010) 4. 7. 1. Global Efficiency With a quick global expansion, Dell’s direct sale and build to order model limited its ability to leverage global efficiency through economies of scale.For example, when it entered the emerging markets such as India, Dell once intended to increase economies of scale by centralizing the assembly activities in its factory in Malaysia which serves all markets across Asia Pacific (Fortune 2011). However, unlike customers in US, customers from emerging markets prefer retail sales to direct sales. Such preference made Dell’s products not as competitive as those of its competitors, and thus sales volume was seriously affected with only 7% market share, while HP had 20. % market share in 2006 in India (Singh 2007; Corcoran 2006). Because Dell built to orders, low sales volume led to low production volume. Therefore, Dell had difficulty in reaching high economies of scale by expanding its direct sales into emerging markets while centralizing the production. Moreover, such business model incurred long delivery time and high transportation costs, which could be borne only by Dell. In contrast, for HP, since it used intermediaries, a large part of the transportation costs were shared by intermediaries.Thus, in terms of markets where customers prefer retail sales, direct model and centralized production activity are almost mutually exclusive. That is, Dell could either stick with its direct sales model but build a local factory to reduce the high transportation costs and delivery time, or centralize production in its Malaysia factory but turn to a retail sales model to ensure that production volumes are enough to generate economies of scale. Indeed, Dell chose the former, though it also used retail sellers later on.Additionally, other means such as economies of scope also did not work well for Dell, because of Dell’s specialization in PCs. Unlike HP who sells a mix of products, Dell relied too much on PC business. Therefore, it seems not possible for Dell to share physical assets, external relationships and learning across many different products. However, HP has done well in this regard (TABLE 4). By comparing HP with companies who best developed scope economies, HP is getting close to them (TABLE 4). Economies of Scope| HP| Benchmarks|Shared Global brand name| HP * Value: 26867 million USD, ranking 11th , 2010 * Growth Rate: 12% * Product Variety: full range of printers, scanners, cameras, PCs, smartphones as well as a variety of IT services| Coca Cola * Value: 70452 million USD, ranking 1st , 2010 * Growth Rate: 2% * Product Variety: More than 500 different products| Shared external relationships| HP * Common distribution channels are maintained so that if any master data related to one distribution channel can be viewed and used by other distribution channels. Matsushita * It markets its diverse product mix through the same distribution channel. Matsushita, as a follower, surpassed Philip partly because of its high global efficiency. Philips operated in a more decentralized way. | Shared Ramp;D Capabilities| HP * It plans to develop a Web Operating System (WebOS) in 2011. WebOS will then be installed in all HP’s products: Printers, Computers and Smart phones. | Apple * IOS, an advanced operating system, is shared by all Apple’s products: Ipods, Ipads, Iphones and Mac computers. | TABLE 4 The Extent to Which HP Achieves Scope Economies Interbrand 2010; Bartlett and Beamish 2011) Indeed, HP’s supply chain efficiency is still lower than that of Dell (FIGURE 4), partly because it sells a range of products through distributors. Demand visibility is reduced and thus it makes sale forecast more difficult for HP than for Dell. However, HP achieved and is more able to achieve higher global efficiency, which partly defines a successful global company (TABLE 5). Moreover, even Dell introduce d retail sales model in 2007, it has already lost the battle because retail sales model eroded Dell’s only core competence of low costs.Costs were not just from growing supply chain costs but mostly from increasing marketing budgets. Means| Dell | HP | Economies of Scale| * Moderate scale economies| * Great scale economies since 2002 | Economies of Scope| * Limited diversification leads to limited scope economies| * Effectively achieve scope economies| National Differences| * Almost fully use of factor cost differences | * Almost fully use of factor cost differences| Table 5 Global Efficiency Comparison 4. 7. 2. Flexibility and ResponsivenessIn terms of the input side, HP had more flexibility than Dell in balancing the operations in three regions: EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Asia), Americas (US, Canada and Latin America) and APJ (Asia Pacific and Japan). Because growth rates in these regions are various, companies who have relatively equal presence in these regions can bett er ward off the external risks and take advantage of national differences (Bartlett and Beamish 2011). Prior to 200, Dell focused more on mature markets, mainly the Americas markets (FIGURE 5). However, at the same time, HP has already presented in most emerging markets mainly in EMEA and APJ (FIGURE 6).One reason that Dell had to rely on the revenue from mature markets is that its direct sales model works well for those customers. However, since 2007 Dell has increasingly used third party resellers to increase flexibility, it claimed to shift the focus to emerging markets. Hence, HP and Dell could ultimately reach parity in terms of supply side flexibility. FIGURE 5 Dell: Revenue by Region (Dell 2006) FIGURE 6 HP: Revenue by Region (HP 2006) When it comes to the output side, Dell’s direct sales model should have given it advantages in sensing and responding to changing customer needs.However, it did not. Specifically, Dell failed to foresee the changing trend towards persona lized notebooks in non-commercial markets. It was not until 2008 did Dell start to focus on product design (Dell 2008). By contrast, as early as 2006, HP has already launched a range of personalized design notebooks targeting a mass consumer (Krazit 2006). The cause was partly due to Dell’s organizational structure. Before 2007, Dell adopted an area division, and both commercial and non-commercial customers were not clearly divided within one area division (Dell 2006).However, these two groups of customers’ preferences became more and more differed. If Dell changed product strategies, both groups might be affected. Therefore, even if Dell had sensed the change in then non-commercial market, it could not respond effectively to the changes On the contrary, although HP benefited limitedly from direct contact with customers, a capable manager and a clear division of commercial and consumer clients within PSG, had given HP more flexibility in sensing and responding to marke t changes. Todd Bradley, the former CEO of Palm joined HP, as the vice president of PSG in 2005.He predicted that the future trends would go to personalized PCs, and HP should emphasize heavily on marketing (Lal and Ross 2009). Thus, in terms of timing, HP gained an advantage in marketing in the consumer client markets earlier than Dell. 4. 7. 3. Worldwide Learning When flexibility and global efficiency reach parity, achieving worldwide learning may be a solution to survive in the PC industry. TBD 4. Win Globally 5. 7. 4. New growth opportunities comparisons 5. 7. 5. IT Services? 5. 7. 6. Integration 5. 7. 7. A Evolving Global Role