Monday, 26 September 2016

The Highest Scoring Students Write Corporate Case Studies Like This

The professors at some of the most prestigious Universities around the world prefer shorter case studies, as opposed to the majority of MBA students. Many students think that a case study is meant to display one’s ability to write a corporate story. At some aspects, case studies are stories of a company’s journey; however, that does not require you to follow the footsteps of William Shakespeare. Instead, you can focus on preparing a concise report by highlighting the business problems and the measures taken by such companies to combat these issues. 



Here we will discuss the important tips from the high scoring MBA students that will help you to improve your writing skills. Implement these tips for creating the best corporate case study for your class presentation.

a.    Choose your Favourite Corporate house
The corporate world is evolving very fast and as new companies are coming up every week, it may be a daunting task itself to choose the right subject for your corporate case study. Choosing your favourite company will make things easier for you, just like choosing the favourite extra-curricular activity at high school improves one’s concentration. If you like Jaguar Cars, it is very likely that you will have fun researching about their problems and strategies as well as their overall journey.

b.    Format Perfectly
Formatting the document in an appropriate manner is important for grabbing the reader’s attention. If a well researched document lack the proper editing and formatting, it may not receive its deserved applauds. Using the proper fonts, bulleted texts at required space will make all the difference in order to get your professor’s appreciation and most importantly, good marks. If you are not aware of the formatting standards of an MBA program, you can opt for external help to write an essay. Management Writing Solutions can provide you with the necessary essay writing help.

c.     Building the story: Using Timeline
As stated earlier, corporate case studies are stories revolving around the corporate houses. Nevertheless, you should not use your literary skills to explain the internal and external happenings of a company. Instead, you must use your analytical approach to address the problems faced by the organisation and the measures they have taken. The most important thing to keep in mind while preparing a corporate thesis is the timeline of events. The high scoring students prefer to start the story and eventually finish it, by mentioning relevant dates and events associated with the event. It may be how a company had managed its crisis during a given period or it may also start from the first date when that crisis came to notice.

d.    Using Numerical
When preparing a corporate report, you must avoid using generic sentences such as ‘the company had doubled its revenue within a year’. Using such sentences may not be fully understood by the reader, as he/she may get confused about whether the company’s turnover was doubled from $100 to $200, or $1 million to $2 million. Hence, consider using the exact figures that will allow you to express your findings clearly.

e.     Using Visuals
There is a reason why TV and online media have outrun the radio in terms of popularity. And that is the additional visual experience received by the users. Researchers have found that visual content is more likely to be understood elaborately by the audience as compared to full text content. Add info graph, charts, diagrams and other possible images to highlight the most important sections of your case study. Using them will allow the professors to move directly to the important part and thus, your hard work will be fruitful.

f.      Extensive Research
Make sure that you conduct extensive research when you are preparing a corporate case study. When we say the term ‘extensive’, we mean every possible way that you can use in order to transform your corporate thesis into a professional one. Conduct interviews of the industry experts, including the members of the company you are writing on; it will enhance the credibility of your report. If possible, you can attend several seminars and conferences, as these events will provide you with more relevant information than that you would gather from the internet.

g.    Emphasize on the cause, rather than the problem
The difference between the high scoring and average scoring students is that the latter focus on the problems, while the former figures out the reason and factors behind the problem. If you are preparing a case study on any specific issue faced by your favorite organization, conduct research (refer to point f) in order to dig more information that will help you to build up a timeline (see C.) based on the events and what caused them.

h.    Describe the strategy
Once you have figured out all the possible reasons behind an issue, make sure to portray the strategies implemented by the subject (the company you are working on) that helped them to overcome the challenges; without which your case study will seem incomplete.
When you are preparing a corporate thesis, you must pay attention to specific structural details that you may not consider important; however, if avoided, these ‘details’ can deduct your marks. Hence, make sure that your case study is concise, error-free, structured correctly and contains all the necessary information, required to prove your point. And more importantly, develop an ‘eye for details’, which will be beneficial for your career as well. 

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Wednesday, 21 September 2016

Successful Companies Follow these SCM Tips for Improving Business Operations

The success of a company depends on several factors and one of the most important factors is to have an efficient supply chain management (SCM) system. Here, we will  look at some common operational characteristics in a company that makes it a successful one :

Why is SCM important?
The world has transformed into a global marketplace, as international brands are able to acquire customers from even the remotest corners of the planet. In such a scenario, it is very important for organisations to stay competitive. Focusing on the product's quality should be the primary vision of companies, but it may not increase the profitability unless the product reaches the destined customer. Any delay in the delivery process may lead the customer to look for another company that would meet his/her demands on time. On the other hand, the production cycle of a company may be delayed due to delay in the supply of raw materials. Therefore, SCM is important for the sustainable growth of any business organisation. 


Improve supply chain management
Proper management of supply chain processes not only leads to better customer satisfaction, but it can also reduce operational costs. In short, SCM focuses on both operational excellence and improved bottom-line, by meeting demands effectively and generating cash flow on time. In order to reap maximum benefits of SCM, the leading business organisations in the world follow some common techniques. And they are listed as follows:

    Selecting the appropriate suppliers
Raw materials are the most important part of a production company; hence, additional attention must be paid to the supply needs of the company. The successful companies are aware of the necessity of having a good relation with its suppliers, and most importantly, establishing the relationship with right kinds of suppliers. When a supplier is aware of your business philosophy, you can expect them to deliver the best results during the hour of need.
    Communicating regularly
The most successful supply chain managers know how valuable their suppliers are and they take adequate measures to build up their relations. One of the most common issues that a company faces is associated with larger orders. Suppose a customer has placed a big order and they want you to deliver it within a shorter period. In such a case, your supplier may feel overwhelmed, which may lead him to cancel the deal. As a result, you may not be able to fulfil your commitments. The biggest companies suggest avoiding such mistakes in advance and communicating regularly with suppliers so that they are aware of your plans in advance. Thus, they can stay prepared for your surprise orders.
    Increasing supplier base
Natural calamities and even the manmade disasters are unpredictable, and they can affect your organisation negatively. Your suppliers may not be able to deliver your raw materials on time under such circumstances, leading your company to suffer its consequences. However, such an issue can be avoided if you have backup contacts in your list.
    Pardon mistakes
Human beings make honest mistakes and smart people learn from them. In many cases, it is seen that a supplier may commit such mistakes regarding the shape, size, or dimensions of the product they are supplying. You may find it problematic and even think about cutting off relationships with the specific supplier. But successful companies understand that mistakes are quite common, and hence they apply humanity to judge the situation rather than being harsh. It is seen that such suppliers prove to be an important factor in the organisation’s success in the long term. And one such example is Iplayco, which did not penalise the mistakes of its suppliers when the latter had developed fibreglass radius of the wrong radius. Instead, Iplayco gave more time to the suppliers, which eventually proved fruitful as the latter paid all the transportation costs to carry the improved products to Sweden on the final day of delivery. However, Iplayco helped their suppliers in return, by paying back the transportation cost partly.

Since customer satisfaction is what companies focus on, the need for proper management of supply chain processes is noticed like never before. The business environment is changing at a rapid pace, and in order to keep up with the trends and increase profitability, successful organisations are focusing more on SCM. You can become a good supply chain manager by following the tips suggested by the bests in practice.


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