All the contents
Advertising: does it or doesn't it?
The usefulness of advertising to society was analyzed. Advertisers claim that by announcing products and their merits, advertising helps people make up their minds about which items or services to patronize. Advertisers also claim that they help affirm individual identities by associating images with the consumer goods that people buy. However, the proliferation of misdirected or poorly conceived advertising also has plenty of pitfalls. Poor advertising is ignored and thus becomes wasteful wh...
Bigger is not always better.... (Canon Canada Inc.'s BJ-200 bubble-jet desktop printer) (Evaluation)
Canon Canada Inc has introduced its new BJ-200 bubble-jet desktop printer. Weighing only three kilograms, the BJ-200 is ideal for business and home-office use. It produces laser quality-type print with its 360 dots-per-inch resolution. At high speed mode, it can print 500 characters/second. At business setting, printing chores are made lighter with an automatic paper feeder which can hold 100 sheets or 10 envelopes at a time. Canon representatives claim that it is the quietest printer in the ...
Exploring the frontiers of superior customer service.
A research study leading to the determination of the factors needed for a successful translation of customer service philosophy into reality was reported. The study showed that success in achieving customer service goals depends on sincerity, which is manifested in the commitment of time, money and staff to carry out goals. The ability of a company's front-liners, the ones who directly deal with customers, to delight and keep customers, determines whether a company's customer service is excel...
Four dimensions of sales productivity.
Four main areas of management activity which affect sales productivity were identified as a result of a survey of senior sales management executives. First, a market strategy and focus is needed. This includes encouragement of innovation and gathering of feedback from customers. Second, the sales force composition and fitness must be in line with the strategy and focus. Third, a sales systems and control must be in place to enable effective response to market conditions. Finally, steps must b...
Hurdles: Human Leaps in the Corporate Race.
Xerox Canada Inc has introduced the Reading Edge, a portable device for blind or visually impaired persons. The Reading Edge combines voice-synthesizers and intelligent character recognition to scan, recognize text and read text aloud. It weighs about 9 kilograms, is slightly bigger than a briefcase and costs $5,495. The product is expected to improve employment, educational and recreational opportunites for visually impaired persons.
Interpersonal skills: most appreciated and sought after in the 1990s.
A survey of the senior management, finance, human resources and sales and marketing staff of Canada's top 100 corporations revealed that 32% of the respondents rate interpersonal skills as a top prioroty trait in hiring decisions. Honesty rated second with 28% and openness of mind was third at 23%. Interestingly, hard work was rated at top priority by only 11% of the respondents. The new realities arising from decentralization and globalization of corporations were considered as the main fact...
Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts CEO Isadore Sharp was named Canada's Outstanding CEO of the Year for 1992. Sharp is also the founder and president of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. One of his most impressive achievements was turning his company to become the world's largest hotel and resort chain from its beginnings as a single hotel in Toronto, all in 30 just years. He was described as a man with the ability to conceive a vision which is possible, the business skills to plan for success an...
Some key principles regarding how to manage change in an organization were presented. Change can be directed at individuals, work groups, the entire organization or a particular market. For any type of change to become effective, its objectives and time-frame must be well-delineated. The change required must be communicated either orally or in writing, and regular reports on the progress of the change must be made. Finally, an evaluation must be made of the capacity or capability of the chang...
Middle management is not for sissies.
Downsizing, increased emphasis on quality, team approach and various other new business realities in the 1990s have made middle-level management jobs scarce. Moreover, the middle-level management jobs that remain are not as they used to be. Therefore, top management must be honest about these new realities, revamp old reward structures and retrain middle managers. In their turn, middle managers must accept the new realities and acquire new skills demanded by the new business environment.
Toshiba of Canada Ltd has announced the release of T4500 Series notebook computers. The T4500 has a 486SX processor which runs on 3.3 volts at 20 MHz. The internal hard disk drive has a capacity of 120 Mb. There is a choice of three kinds of screens, including an 8.5 inch TFT-LCD active matrix color display. Other features include status icons to indicate battery life, power status and E-mail functions. The T4500 costs $4249 while the T4500C costs $6299.
Personality Selling: Selling the Way Customers Want to Buy.
Quality service surveys that you can use.
Customer satisfaction surveys were presented as an effective way of improving the quality of products or services. Surveys may be informal or formal. Informal surveys could be in the form of asking employees who directly deal with customers about customers' comments. Customers could also be asked what they are satisfied with and what they are dissatisfied with. Formal surveys and open-ended discussions at all levels are also suggested, although at longer intervals.
Recession proofing & planning for profits.
Recession-proofing and planning for profits were presented as means to protect Canada from severe debilitation from a future economic recession. Recession-proofing entails developing a strategy to get ahead of the competition. This strategy includes ensuring that a company's labor, management and marketing are always ahead of its competitors. Planning for profits includes measuring overhead per unit of output and improving operating cost efficiency.
The care and feeding of your banker in turbulent times.
Some tips on how to get credit from banks are presented. Credit policies have become tighter, and lending situations are subjected to greater scrutiny because of difficult economic conditions. Therefore, a company applying for credit with a bank must first understand the bank's role as well as needs. The credit proposal must be honest and realistic. To maintain good credit standing, covenants of the loan agreements must be respected and communication lines should be kept open through such mea...
Why it's important to establish a staffing system in your company.
The value of a company staffing system was discussed and some tips on how to draw up company staffing system were presented. Finding the right individuals for specific jobs is necessary to build world-class organizations. To do this, job specifications must be results-oriented. Job interviews must be structured, and all persons involved in recruitment must be trained in the use of these interviews and other recruitment skills. To improve reliability, outside tests and appraisals should be use...
Why teams don't work and how to fix them. (work team management)
The barriers to work team effectiveness were explored, and solutions to these barriers were suggested. Interviews with business leaders and a survey of 4,500 teams in 500 organizations showed that the two main factors influencing team effectiveness can be grouped into organizational and individual factors. Inadequate rewards and compensation for team achievement ranked highest among organizational factors, while the personal mind shift of team members figured prominently as an individual fact...
Wireless connector. (cellular communications)
The growth of Canada's cellular phone business was analyzed. In 1985, there were only 11,000 cellular phone users in Canada, with service available only in lerge cities. By 1992, there were one million cellular phone users in Canada, with more than 85% of Canadians having access to the service. Much of the tremendous growth in Canada's cellular phone business was attributed to Tim McChesney, Bell Mobility Cellular's vice president for marketing and business development.
