Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Strategy - Essay Example ..13 Conclusion........................................................14 References........................................................15 Introduction Tesco is a multinational organisation with its headquarters located in the United Kingdom. Tesco has been in operation for over half a century and it is currently the biggest UK supermarket chain (Sadler, 2003). Tesco currently operates in markets around the world with 14 divisions around the globe spread over five continents. This paper examines the strategy of Tesco. It analyses the elements of strategic management employed by Tesco to attain and maintain competitive advantage and optimise resources. It evaluates the history, corporate structure, internal competencies, the micro environment, competitors as well as the globalised and British macro environment within which Tesco operates. History of Tesco’s Strategy Sir Jack Cohen founded Tesco after the Second World War with the belief that the higher the volume of goods s old, the lower the prices for the seller and the consumer. So Sir Cohen started as a retailer focusing on bulk sales and increasing the number of outlets (TescoPLC.com) By the 1980s, Tesco had chains of supermarkets across the UK. However, in the late 1980s, Sainsbury and Waitrose were preferred retail merchants in Britain. Investors complained Tesco had lost touch with customers. So according to Sadler (2003), Tesco embarked on a large scale market survey and incorporated four things in its strategy: 1. Lower prices 2. Better and improved customer service 3. Give customer diversity through differentiation 4. Focus on non-food products In the 1990s, Tesco built more superstores with the aim of avoiding queues, deploying a sales team that will give customers a personal touch in their operation, include financial products in its array of services and also sell through the use of e-commerce. In 1996, Tesco beat Sainsbury as leader in UK retail. In 2001, Tesco hit the ?1 billion mark in its annual sales and increased earnings per share. In 2002, Tesco had 37% of its shops located overseas. Non-UK sales was about ?3 billion. Tesco now operates internationally with the slogan, ‘think global, act local’. (References about Tesco’s historical facts made from TescoPLC.com (Our History Page) and Sadler, 2003 pp 236 – 243) Tesco is a great competitor in the field of retail in the UK and beyond because of several reasons. In 2010, it made a group sales of ?62.5 billion and out of this, 53% was from international sales. (Tesco PLC Website, Annual Report Page). The Annual Report also indicates that the profit before tax for Tesco for 2010 was ?3.4 billion. In 2010 also, Tesco had a total of 4,811 stores around the world. Strategic Management of Tesco Tesco is run by a Board of Directors and a Team of Managers. The Board of Directors is made up of 8 Executive Directors and 7 Independent Non-Executive Directors. The management team is led by a CEO an d 14 other CEOs drawn from the fourteen units and branches around the globe. Together, these two teams are tasked with the strategic management of the Tesco Group. Organogram of Tesco PLC Website (Executive Committee) â€Å"Strategic management is the art and science of formulating, implementing and evaluating cross functional decisions that enable an organisation to achieve its objectives† (David, 2003) Strategic management entails a set of decisions that affect the overall functioning of an organisation over a long period of time. It is the task of top-level

The New World through the Eyes of Christopher Columbus Research Paper

The New World through the Eyes of Christopher Columbus - Research Paper Example In the year 1492, when Columbus found the New World, a large number of changes were taking place all over the world. The European nations at the time were undergoing vast changes with respect to imperialism as well as striving to improve their economies in comparison to economies of other lands. This was when the mercantile era began to fully flourish and grow; agricultural production had also begun to slowly reach a high. Thus, developing nations and countries were trying hard to eliminate all kinds of competition from in and around them in order to gain the maximum amount of power and somehow try and rule the world. Thus, this exploration or voyage by Columbus really helped the European nations to triumph over other nations and get a good head start in terms of production and trade. In no time, these nations indeed did take over many other nations in what came to be known as the colonial period established by the Europeans. The modern day Americas and Australia were first referred to as the New World by Columbus during the middle ages; he had neither chanced upon any other person that had traveled to such far-off lands; and nor had he any inkling whatsoever of the same with the help of maps or compasses. This helped to expand the geographical horizon of the planet further. The usage of the words â€Å"New World’ is historically very important because the coning of this term helps to divide the time periods of the planet on the basis of geographical discoveries.  

Microcavitation in Ultrasound Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Microcavitation in Ultrasound - Essay Example 3). Two effects are produced by ultrasound upon biologic tissues, thermal changes and microcavitation (par. 3). The development of minute bubbles in the tissues due to application of ultrasound is called microcavitation (par. 3). In diagnostic procedure, the sound waves emitted by the machine penetrates the tissues in the body and reflected back to the machine that forms an image that can be viewed on the screen (Roberts, par. 2). The body imaging procedure that uses ultrasound in diagnosis is called ultrasonography (Wedro 2). Ultrasound is utilized in fetal imaging and other bedside procedures (e.g. assessment of abdominal pain) (2). It is used in diagnosis, screening and therapeutic purposes (1). Ultrasound has been particularly useful in obstetrics. Despite the bubbles produced during the procedure, there has been no confirmed study that microcavitation has negative impact upon insonated fetal cells; the manner of releasing the ultrasound can minimize adverse effect though (Predan ic, Chervenak, and Reece 117-18).