Examine the techniques Iago employs to achieve his aims in the play Othello

In traditional Shakespearean tragedies the protagonist is destroyed through their own fatal flaw. The play Othello is different because there is a villain which is unusual for a Shakespearean tragedy. In the play Macbeth, the tragic events occur because of Macbeths own fatal flaw of ambition. However in the play Othello; Iago, one of the main characters manipulates Othello's fatal flaw of jealously which leads to the tragic ending of the play. He says how he is using Othello by â€Å"following him I follow but myself†; he is pretending to be loyal to Othello but is really doing it for his own benefit. Iago plans revenge on Othello when he gives Cassio the job of lieutenant instead of to him; he describes himself as â€Å"worth no worse a place† and is showing that he thinks highly of himself. Even after he manages to get Cassio dismissed and replaces him as lieutenant, he still continues to carry out his plan of destruction. This reveals that the reason of Iagos plans are merely just for fun. Iago deceives everyone even Roderigo who supports him, not knowing everything about Iago's plans, he even questions why he â€Å"ever made a fool my purse† which shows he is only using Roderigo for his own benefit. No-one in the play seems to know what Iago is really like. He manipulates everyone in the play to gain their trust although he only uses them. Cassio praises Iago by saying that he had sung â€Å"an excellent song†, this is because he doesn't know that it was actually because of Iago that he was dismissed from the job of lieutenant. Iago is seen as a manipulative and evil character, he betrays Othello by telling Brabantio that Desdemona is married to Othello; â€Å"you're robbed†¦ an old black ram is tupping your white ewe†, he uses crude, sexual imagery to make their marriage seem worse than it is to make Brabantio angry because his daughter got married without his consent. He constantly makes racist comments about Othello; by referring to him as â€Å"thick-lips† and tries to make him seem like a bad character, because in Shakespearean times it was seen as wrong for a white woman to marry a black man. Iago tries to convince himself that Othello has had an affair with is wife; â€Å"I hate the Moor, And it is thought abroad that ‘twixt my sheets He's done my office. † Iago is jealous even though he is not completely sure that Othello has had an affair with his wife. He treats Emilia badly he tells her to â€Å"be not acknown on't† he makes her do what he wants and tell her to pretend she does not know anything about Desdemona's handkerchief. He also makes general bad comments about women; â€Å"she give you so much of her lips as of her tongue† he is saying that Emilia talks too much, something which she shouldn't do. Iago has a general dislike for women and stabs Emilia when she realises what he has done he also causes Othello to hit Desdemona in public and makes him call her a â€Å"whore† to her face. To make Othello jealous he makes out that Desdemona is having an affair but he only hints, â€Å"Lie – † this makes Othello jump to conclusions and finish off the sentences himself; â€Å"Lie with her? Lie on her? † Iago does not try to correct him â€Å"With her, on her, what you will† he just agrees with what Othello is saying. Sometimes when talking to Othello he says something and immediately takes it back to get Othello curious. Othello gave Desdemona a handkerchief which had been passed through his family, Iago tells Emilia to steal it for him and plants it in Cassio's bedchamber. He tries to wind up Othello by discretely reminding Othello that Desdemona did not have the handkerchief anymore: â€Å"But if I give my wife a handkerchief†, he is tormenting him with the thought that Desdemona is not acting truly loyal to Othello, like Emilia would to Iago. Shakespeare uses asides and soliloquies throughout the play as a dramatic technique. While talking to Othello, Iago says â€Å"O, you are well turned now! But I'll set down the pegs that make this music, As honest as I am† it reminds us of Iago's evil nature, and shows how he is planning Othello's destruction. Soliloquies are similar to asides in what they do in the play. They remind us of what Iago is planning and also show us what he thinks about what he has achieved so far.

Proctor and Gamble Business Plan

Subject: Entrepreneurship Company name: Proctor & Gamble Team name: TBA Sources: http://finance. yahoo. com/q/pr? s=PG, http://subscriber. hoovers. com/H/company360/history. html? companyId=11211000000000, www. pg. com, http://blog. marketingdoctor. tv/2008/06/06/dr-tantillos-30second-how-to. aspx Weekly stock prices: 2/4 Mon 75. 26 2/5 Tue 75. 70 1 – Who founded your company? Where? When? Why did the person start the company? What was the original product?What are the products or services your company offers today? William Procter, a candle maker, and James Gamble, a soap maker, founded the company called The Procter & Gamble Company, also known as P&G, on October 31, 1837. They merged their own small businesses and initially settled in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. Alexander Norris, their father- in- law, persuaded them to be a business partner to each other. Therefore, they created the company and during the American Civil War, they provided the Union Army with soaps and candles. In 1880s, they marketed a new soap, called Ivory, and since then, they have extended their businesses. Today they operate in 6 sections: Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric Care and Home Care, Snacks & Pet Care segment and Baby Care and Family Care. They have Head & Shoulders, Olay, Pantene, SK-II, Wella, Braun, Fusion, Gillette, Mach3, Ace, Febreze and Downy brand names and so on. 2- What was the original form of ownership? Sole Proprietorship, Partnership, or Corporation?Has the company changed its form of ownership over the years? Why did it change? It was originally a company based on partnership. However, William Arnett Procter, William Procter's grandson introduced the profit sharing program in 1887 by giving workers shares in the company to prevent strike. 3 – Was the founder of your company an Entrepreneur? Justify your answer. The founders of P;G are deserved to be defined as Entrepreneurs. Entrepreneur itself eans that someone who is adventurous businessman strugg ling to make business more profitable, creates new things and likes to challenge. These aspects are also shown in William Procter and James Gamble. They were not satisfied with their position, instead expanded their businesses, took over other companies running a risk and prospered through the technology switchover. 4 – When your company was founded was it local, regional, national, international, or multinational?What is your company today? Justify your answer It was totally local. At first it just provided the North Army with soaps and candles, but after the American Civil War, they got fame from soldiers all over the world and established another corporation in New Castle, England in 1930. Since then, it has enlarged their field of business all around the world and nowadays it has been regarded as multinational company because of their marketing strategies and the background of faculties.

The importance of lesson plan and methods in the Foundation Program Essay

The importance of lesson plan and methods in the Foundation Program used in Omani Universities to the study of language skills - Essay Example s primarily on the enhancement of students’ proficiency in English, so students enrolled in the program have a full day schedule with a weekly load of around 30 hours, including study groups.† â€Å"The program is communicative in nature, shifting the emphasis from grammar to meaningful oral and written communication.  The instructional materials adopted for the program have performance-based objectives as well as clear scope and sequence for teaching communicative skills. The program approaches language as a tool of communication and stresses reading and writing as the two main language skills instrumental for students success in university-level education through the medium of English.   The teaching methodology treats language skills in an integrated fashion and incorporates study skills into the program.   The teaching methodology is communicative in nature, presenting authentic and simulated communicative tasks in real life However most of the students in the foundation programmer are unappreciative with the role of English language. In this stage of a students’ academic life, it is very important for the teacher to find effective ways to help these students progress to the next level. Teachers must know their students and their needs very well. They have to decide on which communication skills they would develop : reading, writing, speaking, listening, or phonology. As with any instructional method, everything starts with lesson planning. A well-developed lesson plan is the foundation to a good execution of a lesson. According to research, planning sets the stage in teaching and school learning making it the most critical part of instruction teaching and school learning (Clark & Dunn, 1991). The lesson plan must align with the goals of the program as well as the curriculum so that it would fit the context of the learner. In short, the lesson plan must translate into instruction the goals of the Foundation Program. Since the program aims to focus

Paper Communication in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Paper Communication in China - Essay Example (2008) and Yuezhi Zhao’s ‘Communication in China’ (2008) and uses these insights extracted to examine the role of Chinese government in promoting desirable national image. In order to derive an-in-depth understanding two major media campaign cases including Beijing Olympic (2008) and Sichuan Earthquake (2008) has been duly focused upon. With reference to Zhao’s ‘Communication in China’ (2008), numbers of key influencing factors within the party-state’s regime that have significantly imposed greater control and domination over the Chinese media and communication has been identified. In this context, the power of formal bureaucratic procedure along with improvised regulations has critically identified by the author to have significant influence towards the development of the Chinese mass media and communication. Moreover, it has also been recognized that there are numerous control strategies and measures that characterize discipline including rationalizing, normalizing and synergizing of the current media performance within the nation (Zhao 12). Correspondingly, the re-invention of the power and control mechanism of the party-state has been further observed as the key influencing factors while making developmental decision of the Chinese media industry. According to the discussion of Zhao, the current role of media in the party-state affects the Chinese class structure in a distinctive manner. In this context, the author eloquently stated that â€Å"it affects class structure not only as an increasingly central vector of production and economic exchange, but also as the means of social organization and site of subjectivity formation.† The statement of the author significantly justifies the impact of party-state on media and communication which further creates major perplexities regarding the ownership structure along with property rights and corporate identity of the mass media in China (Zhao 76). In the similar context, it has been observed from

Professional document (letter or memo) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Professional document (letter or memo) - Essay Example These advances have made it possible for the human resource to come up with proper recommendations. The recommendations are aimed at improving the work rate displayed by the sales force. The work rate has decreased significantly as their morale has been diminished by the implementation of the pay for performance reward system. Proposal As much as the pay form performance reward system is appropriate and practical, some adjustments need to be done to incorporate all the condition different individuals have in the sale force. In the current pay for performance system all sales people are entitled to pay depending on their performance. Their performance is measured by the quantity of stock they have turned to cash. The commission paid does not include any other form of reward or incentive. In my proposal, all sales people should be entitled to a fixed salary rate. However, the salary should be half the salary of the required pay. The rest of their pay should then be based on commission. This will at least create a balanced operation ground among all the sales employees. According to Miner, the implementation of this move will indirectly motivate employees (34). The motivation will significantly translate to a more active sales force. My proposal in adjustment of the pay for performance system also involves the giving of extra incentives to the most performing sales people. This will not only give the sales force something to look forward to, but the sales in the organization will increase significantly. Additionally, this move will make the bonus system of the pay for performance system more practical. Rationale The welfare of the employees should be the most significant factor to be considered when implementing the proposals. As the main body of ensuring that consumers’ needs are satisfied the organization should be very considerate when dealing with them. Additionally, the level of equity turnover should be considered before formulating any reward system. Rewards system should be dictated by the amount of sales the organization makes at each quarter. Implementation There should be a proper recording system in which the turnover figure for each employee is recorded. The turnover figures should determine whether or not an employee will receive a bonus. The turnover figure should be recorded after each quarter. As originally recommended by the pay for performance system, the reward system should be as follows: 100% over salary for the topmost sales person; 60% for the second top; 30% for the third and fourth; and no extra for the rest. As internationally recommended, all employees in the sales force should be entitled to a salary that is constant to all of them. Just as the initial reward system, there will be oppositions raised against these proposals. However, as stated by Miner, the consistency of a reward system is very important (235). If the advantages of a reward system are many than the disavantages, then the rewards system sho uld be fully implemented and with time all employees will feel justly rewarded and treated. The management should also be fair when it comes to awarding of bonuses and incentives. With high stakes and topping the turnover figures, employees could be tempted to apply dubious operational skills. To curb this, the organization should come up with company rules and regulations which will govern the mode in which the sales force operates. This will also create equality in the

Coloniaism, Development, Culture and Resistance Essay

Coloniaism, Development, Culture and Resistance - Essay Example The New World inhabitants had accumulated a lot of golden treasure throughout the eras, besides the first deluge of "novel" gold into Europe and Spain came because of the  conquistadores  Ã¢â‚¬ËœSpanish for "conqueror’ take hold of this accumulation (Cole, 2002)  . Through the takeover of Peru by Pizarro Francisco, novel gold started to be excavated; and, through the unearthing of the silver in Mexico, vast quantities of silver started to surface. The European voyagers started to search mainly for gold. Therefore, as silver and gold reached in Europe from the New World, the value of everything started to rise gradually. The perpetual increase of silver and gold in Europe caused what historians term as  the price revolution (Diffie, 1977) and (Armesto, 2006). This paper will discuss the economic advantages that Europeans gained from their conquests in the ‘New World’. Food The new-fangled plants, which were initiated from the New-World, provided adequate fo od supplies for the growing population in Europe. The Europeans began to plant corn and potatoes from the New World. Although it was hard to get accustomed to corn, some Europeans, for instance, the Italians finally became adjusted to corn; nevertheless, it was utilized mainly as food for geese, chicken as well as other fowl as well as for pigs. The potatoes introduction created a revolution of calories, while the reception of corn created a revolution of proteins (Cole, 2002) and (Armesto, 2006). As Europe’s land could now yield more foodstuffs, the value of foodstuffs began to decline. The land production capacity had kept up with the populace, as well as the common European could at the moment eat more. In turn, the Europeans, initiated corn into the Africans as well as sweet potatoes to the Chinese, where these novel foods also altered conditions dramatically (Donkin, 2003) and (Armesto, 2006). The French brought in  tomatoes that they termed as "apples of love," and ut ilized them for decorative purposes within their flower parks. They believed that they were toxic. In time, nevertheless, the poison-producing tomato capacities were kept out, in addition the tomato turned out to be one of the highly popular supplements to European food (Donkin, 2003) and (Armesto, 2006). There were numerous other food vegetables transported back to Europe -- mainly many selections of  squash,  pumpkins,  beans,  peppers  -- that started a welcome diversity, along with a wide variety of vitamins, to the European cuisine. The healthiness of the common European started to improve, as well as his weight, height, and potency increased. While As this transpired, his endurance to illness grew (Cook, 1998) and (Armesto, 2006). Drugs A lot of awareness is directed to the dreadful death toll amongst the native populaces of the New-World instigated through the European's initiation of novel diseases that were incurable (Cook, 1998). It should as well be observed tha t majority of Europeans arriving to the New-World died in a year, generally from some illness, as well as that the demise toll amid Europeans within the central of Africa was very huge that it stayed largely uncultivated by them up to the 19th era (Dunton, 1896) and (Armesto, 2006). The Europeans were hasty to utilize native medicines for their illnesses, and the cinchona tree’

Russian Relationship with US Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Russian Relationship with US - Essay Example The difference in ideologies was also expressed in the foreign polices that each advocated for. While America was advocating for democracy in the word, Russia was advocating for socialism ideologies. There were a lot of differences in the interventions that the two countries carried out in the world. For example in Korea, America and Russia entered in the differences that were emerging between two sides in the country and they successful saw the splitting of the country into North and South Korea, a division which remains to date. America supported South Korea while Russia supported North Korea. Throughout the period of the cold war, the two countries took stand on opposing sides in any conflict with each asserting its force in order to emerge as the winner and have majority following. Their foreign policies had split the world to capitalist and socialist blocs in all the continents. However towards the end of 1980s, the fall of the Berlin wall was one of the sign that marked the end of the cold war. This brought about a new world order in which the United States was the only superpower in the world. It created a unipolar world where the United States influenced every decision made and tried to monitor all what was happening in the world especially thorough the control of the international bodies like the UN. At the same time there have been emerging centers of power in other regions like China and the re-emergence of Russia has been witnessed in the recent past. Current relationship between the two countries Currently there has been emerging differences between the two countries. Russia has been coming back slowly to its former status in the world which is seen as the start of a new cold war era. Although the world has remained the same as before, this time it is more complicated with other emerging centers of power like China which has been having a troubled relationship with the US. The relationship between Russia and the USA has been quite since the end of the cold war but of late it has been deteriorating. This difference has been expressed by the foreign policies that these countries have towards the other. There has been a trend in the way the two countries choose their friends and partners. While Russia has been taking one side with China, US have been on the other side with UK and other European allies. What American consider as "rogue states" or "axis of evil" are what Russia consider as friends. The difference in their ideoligies has been one of the factors that have been dictating their foreign polices towards each other and towards the world. For example, Russia's foreign policy towards Iran is very different from the foreign policy of US. While Russia advocates for dialogue and involvement of the international bodies for arbitration, the USA has been advocating for military factor in the nuclear conflict. Both countries have been advancing differences on the status of Iran and the accusation of development of weapons of mass destruction. (John 1998, 1) The foreign policy of the two countries Though the main battle between the two states has been fought on the UN security council using their veto power, the difference in their foreign policy has been expressed in the open and has been degraded to a mere exchange of harsh words and criticisms. While the US accuses Russia of using its energy policy as a foreign

The Effect of interest rate Liberalization on the risk of commercial Dissertation

The Effect of interest rate Liberalization on the risk of commercial banks in China - Dissertation Example The paper has discussed illustrates a mixed picture after interest rate liberalization and its associated risk on the commercial banks in China. Historically China is a strong believer in the planned economy where strict government intervention under a single party rule always has the last word regarding the policies to be prioritized and implemented. Though after the iron rule of Mao-era China has learned under Deng Xiaoping that FDI and capitalist exploitation is not the same thing but the people as well as the government are still skeptical about their nature of the operation. Over the past couple of decades, China has realized huge GDP growth through export-oriented international trade. This on one hand, strengthened the export based industries on the other weekend the indigenous industries especially those indulged in import substitution. Again amidst this prosperity, China has slipped down considering the GINI coefficient and that illustrates a rising inequality i.e. an increas ing gap between the rich and poor people. Eminent academicians hold the view that with China’s present model rich are becoming richer and poor are becoming poorer. The development is mainly urban centric and rural China is subject to stagnation and a much higher unemployment than the urban areas.... es cemented their feet under the strict rule of Mao Ze Dong who opted for self sufficiency and betterment of the common rather than external dependency and flourish of the few (Chi, 1992, pp.75-84; Buchanan, 2012, p.24). Mao believed in a closed door policy that meant isolation from the rest of the world regarding economic transaction. Though diplomatic relation with Soviet Russia along with many east European nations was encouraged but that never translated into economic exchange. During Mao’s rule the growth rate of China was stable but slow and often subject to stagnation. Though, such view has many opposing facts and evidences illustrated through literature. However after Mao’s death Deng Xiaoping became the most prominent figure in Chinese politics and soon realized the need to embrace the globalization in order to boost the Chinese economic growth. The current topic of discussion that refers to interest rate liberalization and risk to commercial banks is an import ant aspect to discuss. However, financial liberalization along with interest rate liberalization often considered by the economists as the last stage of liberalization process that have went through and met several other steps directed towards the liberalization of the economy (Chow, 2005). Welcoming FDI into an economy might be considered as the first step towards liberalization. In initial days China lacked both the legal frame work as well as their policy towards globalization was skeptic and the legal frame work governing the same was week. But the scenario started changing from mid 80’s and historically Hong Kong remained the prime source of foreign direct investment provider to China. Such investments were mainly towards labor intensive sectors and high end technological and capital intensive

Assignment 1.. IDENTITY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Assignment 1.. IDENTITY - Essay Example defined as an animal that can say ‘I’, that can be aware of himself as a separate entity.† In this case man has to make decisions in relation to his awareness of himself and his surrounding neighbours as different persons. Thus, Fromm (1966) posits that the need for relatedness, rootedness and transcendence forms a very strong identity background that is vital and is often imperative for every man to be able to identify himself in society. Different people often hail from different cultural backgrounds hence the notion of identity helps these people determine their way of behaviour in relation to others with a different identity. In simple terms, identity can be referred to as the collective aspect of the set of characteristics by which an individual or any other thing is definitely recognizable or known. The underlying principle is the sense of being a unique individual, distinct from others or of belonging to a certain group which obviously has different values from another group. There are several factors that are taken into consideration in the creation of identity. These include shared culture, shared values, shared symbols as well as class and gender structures in some instances. All these factors often give rise to what is termed collective identity. According to Popper (1963), collective identity would therefore, refer to a certain group of people who share the same cultural values and behaviour as well. Thus, in light of the above argument, Mukherjee’s case is not in any way totally divorced from the notion of identity. Basically, she identifies herself with the Hindu culture which defines the identity of the people in Calcutta, India in several ways. First and foremost, she grew up in a patriarchal society where man was always above woman. In this case, all decisions of substance were the sole responsibility of men. The neighborhood was also absolutely Hindu where identity was fixed and often derived from their own religion, language and caste.

Sport, Health and Exercise Psychology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Sport, Health and Exercise Psychology - Essay Example Performance on the field does not matter as much as it should. Informal performance appraisal by the team's owners and influencers detract from focusing on playing better as a team. I believe that the interventions which I initiated should be persisted with, and that the team management should be counseled to isolate the players from non-football aspects of each other's lives, and from the financial fortunes of the club as well. The recent misfortunes and desultory match performances of Hull United should not detract from the sterling achievements of reaching the Premier League of football. No team can aspire for this distinction without large measures of skills and talents. I have a decade of experience in sports psychology, though I am more accustomed to on-going assignments with younger people. I must confess to some trepidation at the prospect of a mere 2 months to effect dramatic changes in a team of professionals. This does not sit well with theories and best practices in sports psychology. ... both Hull United and I commit to an assignment without thorough discussions on realistic and feasible performance goals for myself as a sports psychologist. A Basic Approach I began preparations for the Hull United assignment by careful reflection on my past successes and failures in the profession over the past 10 years. It is easy for sports psychology to intrude in to fields of technical training for specific sports, and to attempt some general psychology, and even amateur psychiatry as well. There are situations in which such tangential efforts can pay dividends. Most contact sports, and even ones that are contests of wit and other mental skills, are seamless in terms of physical techniques and mental attributes. Football at the Premier League stage in particular, involves strategies which are combinations of techniques and mental strategies. All team games involve high degrees of inter-personal communication, which is both intense and largely non-verbal. Hence, separation of sports training and sports psychology is never easy, and may not even be desirable. The media, fans, and club management, exert such pressures on team members that a majority of professional sports people require psychiatric help in any case! There are social stigma attached to seeking this kind of professional help, and it can affect the stereotyped public image if it becomes known that a player is under psychiatric treatment. Therefore, sports psychologists and even coaches are forced in to situations which force them to perform some of the tasks of a psychiatrist. I decided to stay away from these traditional meanderings of sports psychology, at least for this Hull United assignment. A 50-day period would never be enough to build bridges with the coach and the players, to an extent

How to Play Basketball Essay Example for Free

How to Play Basketball Essay In order to play basketball, you need one basketball and two basketball hoops on opposite ends of the court. The hoops should be ten feet high. In an original game, you should form two teams of five individuals apiece would be the requirements. If a court just so happens to be full or fewer players are available, a game with one hoop can be played using alternate rules. The object is for you to score more baskets than your opponent. You should play a typical game for sixty minutes with four fifteen-minute periods, but you really can determine the length yourself. For you to start the game, the wo teams you formed, line up around the two centers. Each of your players matches up against another based on height and skill to make it fair. The referee throws the ball straight up and the two of you who are playing the position center, jump up to gain possession. The goal for you is to tip the ball to your teammates to gain possession. Remember Basketball is much as an offensive game as defensive game. When you have the ball, all of the members of your team are on offense. On offense you are trying to score points by shooting the ball into the opposing teams basket. Each basket your team scores is worth two points. Baskets scored outside the three-point line (an arc-shaped line beyond the free throw line) are worth three points. On offense you need to advance the ball, you can advance the ball in two ways: by passing and dribbling. First Dribbling, you need to take the ball and bounce it on the floor in a continuous motion. This is the process of dribbling. You can move your feet and body in any direction as long as you are dribbling but if you move in any direction without dribbling the ball then that is a violation. The goal for your team on offense is

A Look at Gender Difference in Social Interaction

A Look at Gender Difference in Social Interaction Ethnography: A Look at Gender Difference in Social Interaction An ethnographic approach was chosen for this study because it has the potential to provide a descriptive, interpretive, evaluative and authentic vision of society (Hammersley Atkinson, 1995). The observation was done by myself. I went to the Marketplace Mall in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, on March 4th. I stayed from one o’clock to three o’clock in the afternoon. I sat on a bench close to the food court, and observed people who were age 18 and up. I observed the ways in which males and females were different when it came to social interaction. Literature Review The article â€Å"Gender and relationships: Influences on agentic and communal behaviors† talked about agency and communion. According to the article, agency is the striving for mastery or power, and communion is the striving for intimacy and connectedness (Suh, 2004). According to measures of masculine and feminine sex roles, men make decisions easily, don’t give up easily, and are competitive, outspoken, and outgoing. Females like kids, and are warm, emotional, considerate, tactful, gentle, and helpful. Gender differences appear primarily in group or social contexts. Stereotypic beliefs are that women are communal and men are agentic (Suh, 2004). Women do domestic work more than men, have fewer hours in paid employment, and are said to have occupations of lower status. Men are more agentic with male friends, than women are with female friends. Women are more communal with female friends, than men are with male friends (Suh, 2004). This relates to my observation in the way my hypothesis was formed. I used stereotypes, and labels that men and women already have, as a knowledge base for what I might observe. The article, â€Å"Putting Gender into Context: An Interactive Model of Gender-Related Behavior,† stated that the enactment of gender takes place within social interaction (Deaux, 1987). This enactment takes place due to self-verification and self-presentation. They are naturally interwoven together. Because people monitor behavior internally and externally, they are concerned with self-presentation and self-verification simultaneously (Deaux, 1987). When I was doing my observation, I did notice people monitoring their behavior, or their child’s behavior. I focused more on who each person was interacting with, instead of how they were interacting. In Deborah Tannen’s article, â€Å"You Just Don’t Understand: Women and Men in Conversation,† she made a good point about the history of women and talking. In history, women were punished for talking too much. In Colonial America, they were held underwater, or even gagged. Women were believed to talk too much; however, studies find that men talk more in meetings, groups, and classrooms (Tannen, 1991). Men feel good with public speaking, while women feel good with speaking in private. Women’s language of conversation is a way to establish connections, negotiating, and maintain relationships. Men talk as a means to preserve independence, negotiate and maintain status. â€Å"Home is where there is the silent man and talkative woman† (Tannen, 1991). That’s the distinction between public and private speaking. My observation contradicted this article. More women were interacting and communicating than men. However, I was interested in the historica l aspect of the stereotypes we have today, and this gave a little hint as to what kinds of things happened to women, who spoke out of turn back in the colonial time period. An interesting topic that arose from my observation was the use of mobile phones. In â€Å"Community and social interaction in the wireless city: Wi-Fi use in public and semi-public spaces,† Hampton talked about how a few studies have addressed how wireless internet use in public spaces influences social life. Recent years have seen growth in availability of wireless internet access in public places (Hampton, 2008). Mobile phones make community instantly accessible, and social ties are reachable anywhere at any time. Hampton made the point that mobile phones create a private sphere of interaction in public spaces. When people engage with mobile phones, they create a private cocoon that reduces the likelihood of public encounters (Hampton, 2008). To get a picture of what this means, while I was observing, a middle aged male was sitting at a table alone, but he was talking on his phone to someone. One could tell he was absorbed in the conversation because he did not take notice of any one that walked by him, and he stayed sitting there for about 45 minutes after I had sat down and started my observation. Hypothesis The hypothesis I formed before the observation at the mall was, â€Å"Middle aged females will be more social with the same gender, than older or young females. Young males will be more social with the opposite gender, than middle aged or older males.† I created this hypothesis on the basis of past experiences when shopping with my mother, and my friends. There always seemed to be more females of middle age than any other age group. At the mall, there would always seem to be many more young males than any age group. I also used basic stereotypes that everyone hears growing up. Such stereotypes include, â€Å"women are supposed to be submissive and do as they are told,† and, â€Å"men are always in charge.† I do not personally believe in these; however, I did use them as a basis for my hypothesis. Methodology Over spring break I went home to Davie County, North Carolina. It is a rural town with a small shopping mall. Not many people actually go to the mall, because Walmart is just down the street. I chose to go to the Market Place Mall, instead of Walmart, and sit at the food court. I got there at one in the afternoon, on Tuesday, March 4th. Not a lot of people were there. I sat down on a bench beside the food court, and I took notes on my phone, so I would not draw attention to myself. I figured I would have attention if I had a notebook in front of me. I watched everyone that walked by me, because no one was sitting in the food court. When the people would walk by, I would record their age range, gender, and whether they were alone or with someone, and what gender those someone’s were. I would also record if they were interacting together. I stayed for two hours just sitting there on the bench, collecting data. When I finished at the shopping mall, I went home and wrote down ever ything I had on my notes in my phone. Then i drew up a spreadsheet in excel, and put in all of the information I collected. It helped me organize, and get precise calculations. Field Notes Summary In total, I observed 152 people over the two hour time period. There were 50 males and 102 females. 68 were middle aged adults. Out if the 68, 24 were men. 15 of the men were alone, 4 were with the same gender and 5 were with females. Also, out of the 68 middle aged adults, 44 were women. 13 of them were alone, 26 were with the same gender, and 5 were with males. Out of the 152 people I observed, 40 were older adults. 14 were men. 9 of them were alone, 2 were with the same gender, and 3 were with females. 26 out of the 40 were women. 16 of the older women were alone, 6 were with the same gender, and 4 were with males. Out of the 152 people, 42 were young adults. 13 were men. 5 of them were alone, 3 were with the same gender, and 5 were with females. There were 29 young women. 7 of them were alone, 16 were with the same gender, and 6 were with males. I also observed two teenagers there. They were the only teenagers I noticed being there. A little less than half of the people I observed were alone. To be exact, 65, out of the 152 people, were alone. Phone use was not a wide spread action I saw people doing, if they were alone. I only saw 8, out of the 65 people, on their phones. When it comes to social interaction, over half of the people observed were partaking in some sort of communication with each other. 87, out of the 152 people, were interacting. I saw 50 females talking with each other, and I saw 9 males talking with each other. There were 28 people partaking in interaction with the opposite gender. That includes two sets, of a male and female, holding hands. Conclusion on Hypothesis Restating my hypothesis, middle aged females will be more social with the same gender than older females, and young males will be social with the opposite gender than middle aged or older males. My hypothesis was completely right. The first part of my hypothesis was that middle aged females were more social with the same gender then older females were. The data I collected about the 152 people I observed showed that 59% of middle aged females were social with the same gender, while only 23% of older females were social with the same gender. The second part of my hypothesis was that young males were more social with the opposite gender than any other age group of males. The data I collected for the 152 people I observed showed that 38% of young males were social with the opposite gender, while only 20% of middle aged males were social with the opposite gender, and 21% of older males were social with the opposite gender. What I found most interesting was the difference between men and women’s social interaction, in general. Judith Hall published an observational study on nonverbal gender differences and discussed the cultural reasons as to those differences. In her study, she noted women as smiling and laughing more, as well as having a better understanding of others’ nonverbal cues. She believed that women were encouraged to be more emotionally expressive in their language, thus better developed in nonverbal communication. Men, on the other hand, were taught to be less expressive, to suppress their emotions, and thus be less nonverbally active in communication and more sporadic in their use of nonverbal cues. This builds on what I found in my observation. There were more women that I observed, but in total, there were more men who were alone. Actually, over half the men I observed, 29 out of 50, were alone, while 36 of the 102 females, I observed, were alone. That’s only 35 % co mpared to the 56% of men. What I Learned What I learned focused on men and women. With women, I learned that they interact more with females, than males, at the mall. I also learned that more middle age women go to the Market Place Mall than any other age group, according to my observation. With men, I learned that they interact more with females, then males, at the mall. I also learned that most men come alone to the mall, according to my observation. References Deaux, K., Major, B. (January 01, 1987). Putting gender into context: An interactive model of gender-related behavior. Psychological Review, 94, 3, 369-389 Hammersley, M. Atkinson, P. (1995). Ethnography: principles in practice. 2nd Ed. London: Routledge. Hampton, K., Gupta, N. (November, 13, 2008). Community and social interaction in the wireless city: Wi-Fi use in public and semi-public spaces. New Media Society, 10, 6, 831-850 Igarashi, T., Takai, J., Yoshida, T. (January 01, 2005). Gender differences in social network development via mobile phone text messages: A longitudinal study. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22, 5, 691-713. Knapp, M., Hall, J., Horgan, T. (2013). Nonverbal Communication in Human Interaction (8 ed.). Cengage Learning. Suh, E. J., Moskowitz, D. S., Fournier, M. A., Zuroff, D. C. (2004). Gender and relationships: Influences on agentic and communal behaviors. Personal Relationships, 11(1), 41-60 Tannen, D. (1991). You just dont understand: Women and men in conversation (p. 113). London: Virago.

Improving Global Supply Chains by Information Systems

Improving Global Supply Chains by Information Systems Investigation on the improvement of Global Supply Chains by using Information Systems. ABSTRACT The process of globalisation continues to increase the competitive pressures on all firms. Those who wish to lead the market have to continue to raise the bar in terms of operating in the most efficient possible manner. One key area for companies today is how they manage particular or own SC activities via the increasing utilisation of Information Systems (IS). The scope of think over on to research a role of Information System within global supply chain management (SCM) and understand advantages and profits it fetches. Results showed that in order make SCM to be effective, suppliers and customers must work in close collaboration together to truly integrate their business processes. From the results of the analysis undertaken, it has been concluded that using IS throughout the Supply Chain increases efficiency by reducing inventories, which in turn reduces costs to the entire Supply Chain, but also adds significant value from the end customers perspective. Furthermore, the use of IS throughout a Supply Chain enables better speed of response to unpredictable demand APPENDIX A: PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION METHODS 57 List of Abbreviations SC = Supply Chain S-A = Sigma-Aldrich SCM = Supply Chain Management MNC = Multinational Company SME = Small to Medium Enterprise IS = Information System E-commerce = Electronic Commerce B2B = Business to Business B2C = Business to Customer EDI = Electronic Data Interchange ERP = Enterprise Resource Planning MRP = Material Requirement Planning MRPII = Manufacturing Resource Planning POS = Point of Sale MPS = Master Production Schedule CRP = Capacity Requirement Planning RFID = Radio Frequency Identification APS = Advanced Planning Scheduling APO = Advanced Planner and Optimiser SCC = Supply Chain Cockpit ATP = Available-to-promise CPFR = Collaborative planning, forecasting Replenishment Chapter 1: Introduction Over the past ten years, retailers and suppliers invested huge capital in reducing the occurrences, where customers cannot find right products in stores. This has created a serious problem in retail and other industries (Collins, 005). Gerry Jastremski (Gillette Co) reported that this serious problem is causing a $69 billion loss for top retail companies. Recent studies revealed more than 70 percent companies face the same problem that their customers cannot find the products they want to buy in stores due to out of-stock mostly because of inappropriate supply and forecasting of products (Gruen, Corsten et al 2002). When more focused on markets during special offers and sales campaigns, the probability of finding desired product is always one in five times ratio when customers visit the store. As a result, customers change their mind and delay their purchase or look for alternative brands products. Thus retailers will not achieve their targeted ROI (return of investment) and custome r loyalty goes down. Though organizations and big companies wish to solve the above problem but disruptions are unavoidable. The most efficient way to manage and maintain the stock in stores is through Supply Chain Management (SCM). Supply chain with globalisation created fresh/modern era in the market environment in recent days. Businesses in todays market are increasingly considering global atmosphere. Organizations need to be completely aware of external factors like economic trends, competitive and technological innovations at home and abroad markets, which affect their ability to grow and sustain. Globalisation means, a product can be developed in China, manufactured in UK and sold in USA. This process of globalisation shows the need and urgency for organizations to change the way in which their logistical and operational activities are managed, explainingthe the concept of Supply Chain Management (SCM). Simple Supply chains were designed in the past using paper, pen and calculators. As business process and supply chain networks grew more complex in nature (Christopher, 2005) it became more difficult and impossible to manage SC activities without appropriate technological support. Its quite impossible to receive an effectuate and efficient SCM without IS/IT tools (Gunasekaran, Ngai. 2005). 1.1 Background/Supply Chain System In 21st century for achieving the global organizational competitiveness, Supply Chain Management System has evolved. Organizations are trying to find ways of increasing their competitiveness, responsiveness and flexibility by changing their operational strategies, technologies and methods which include the implementation of SCM (Gunasekaran, Ngai, 2003). SCM is an approach for companies to integrate their activities in the changing market requirements which improve companys agility level and dynamic nature. Through the view of Simchi Levi (2000) â€Å"SCM is bunch of addresses to effectuate gather suppliers, store warehouses, manufacturers so that trade is created and dilivered at the right quantities, to the right locations and at the right time in order to minimize system wide cost while satisfying service level requirements (cited in Gunasekaran, Ngai, 2005). Supply chains created a viable way for satisfying customers needs around the world. What is a Supply Chain? SC is a strategy introduced in organizations to enhance the ways of distributing the products from the firms to end consumers. It is all about purchasing raw materials, developing them into products and distributing those finished goods to customers with the help of intermediate sources. Janyashanker, Stephen (1996) defined supply chain as ‘a network of autonomous or semi autonomous business entities collectively responsible for procurement, manufacturing and distribution activities associated with one or more fami lies of products. Due to greater demand of products and high global competition of firms resulted in implementing Supply Chain. In another words supply chain is the movement of substances or products as they drive through their origin point to the end customer. SC includes manufacturing, purchasing , warehousing, customer service, transportation, supply planning, demand planning and supply chain management. It is the involvement of the people, information, activities involved in moving products from its supplier to customer. Affective management of the supply chain can be a real challenge though definition sounds very simple. Example of a Supply Chain: A very well SC flow of goods is shown above. In some cases, the product is shipped from the Manufacturer to the distribution centre as soon as it is manufactured. In other cases, such as spoke model and Hub the product is held at the manufacturer once produced and on only on the requirement it is sent to the distribution centre. In reality, every step in Supply Chain activity has complex calculations during the globalisation process; however this increases business efficiency and brings benefits to the organization on greater scales. So the Supply Chain activities must be well planned, organized meticulously as efficiency plays major role and advantageous in competitive markets (Bartlett et al. 2007). Activities in Supply Chain entail purchasing raw materials, converting into bulk or finished products and sending those products to various warehouses / distribution centres. They are then directly or indirectly delivered to 1st tier customers who add further more value to the end customers. The activities like planning and delivery should be managed and coordinated well in terms of both time and place. IS or software tools which have been developed all these years to manage these activities have evolved and became increasingly specialized. Hence organizations need to understand and carefully select the IS too ls that are best suited to their needs. SC ACTIVITIES Integrated Behaviour Mutually Sharing Information Mutually Sharing Risk And Rewards Cooperation The Same Goal and The Same Focus on Serving Customers Integration of Processes Partners to Build and Maintain Long-Term Relationship 1.2 Identified Problem SCM allows the organizations to manage numerous relations in SC for ongoing business process, for which IS plays a major role. Sanders (2005) says that ‘IS/IT which permits for the transmission and processing of information useful for synchronous decision making between organisations can be viewed as backbone of SC business structure. As a result organizations started using IS especially SCM systems in order to have closer contacts with suppliers and vendors and to reduce problems in SC activities. Though technology is growing and investigating new methods to solve SC problems, Maguire (2000) states: The IS community faces a paradox: despite impressive advances in technology, problems are more abundant than solutions; organizations experience rising cost instead of cost reduction. IS misuse and rejection are more frequent than acceptance and use. Major factor that leads IS to a failure is alignment between IS and the organization that is applied in. However there is a paucity of research in IS when efficiency is considered. Even though there is a SCM system for reducing problems in SC, but still it is not efficient. And due to lack of collaboration between different departments in the organizations, information is not shared exactly for targeted tasks. Though sophisticated technologies have been introduced to reduce problems, due to employees misuse and resistance, efficiency is being reduced. In this project we will discuss how technology (SAP) is being used in an organization and what problems have been identified. More over in this report enhancement has been investigated on SC. The reason for choosing SCM with SAP is due to the complexity of system that operates as a chain between suppliers and vendors. And also nature of the case is too complex as the organization has businesses with numerous suppliers and vendors internationally. One more reason for selecting this case and topic is the researches founded an opportunity to investigate how the SC activities are managed in the organization and proble ms existing in the usage of the SAP. The reason SAP is selected: It is a powerful tool for integration purposes and also researchers personal interest in acquiring more knowledge about SAP technology. 1.3 Aims and Objectives This examination sets out to carry the investigation and the factual goal of the dissertation is- To understand the ways in which the information technology or Information systems (IT/IS) are able to find the management of global Supply Chains (SC). In order to achieve these aims the following objectives have been set: To broaden knowledge by researching in two main areas i.e., Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Information Systems or Technologies that are specifically designed to be used in SC. To do research and understand how Supply Chains have been created with globalisation. To conduct a thorough research on the literature of SCM Identifying advantages and challenges faced while implementing the IS/IT tools in SCM by doing the comprehensive review on the literature gathered on SCM. Identifying the factors that are driving and affecting the technologies / information systems used in SCM. A real case study will be carried out using a research methodology. Information will be collected through semi-structured interviews from employees of the case study organisation: Sigma Aldrich. An evaluation of the outcome, based on literature and data collected during interviews is used to find the gaps between literatures (theoretical) and practise (practically) in real world. Recommendations (if any) about SC in company. 1.4 Research Approach The Interpretive Method is applied to understand the complex nature of IT in Supply Chain system. This will identify the sociological features like behaviour of employees, benefits of technologies employed and issues arising in business with the use of IS/IT in SCM. The interpretive method involve gathering literature on SCM, IS/IT tools used, and semi structured interviews. The research aim will be fulfilled by studying the current literature, analysing what are the factors which indicate SCM and identifying existing gaps with reference to the literature studied. Further, the research continues on existing technologies used in supporting the SCM system in the present business market. Benefits associated with implementation of IT in SCM, adoption factors and any kind of implementation issues will be determined. For gathering the literature review core textbooks, journals, online papers, conference proceedings and information from internet have been used. After the literature study, we find out the gaps which exist in the literature read and provided. After identifying the gaps, an empirical study will be applied to give an alternative to the gaps which already been discovered in literature gathered. A qualitative research methodology has been applied. Both primary and secondary research methods are adopted. Primary method of research deals with conducting semi structured interviews and collecting data, where as secondary method of research is in the form of literature review. 1.5 Dissertation Outline This dissertation include of seven chapters, spanning the development of research from aims and objectives to the conclusions. Dissertation has been structured in the following way: Chapter one deals with the introduction of the topic with adequate theoretical background on Supply Chain and provides overall aims and objectives of the topic. Furthermore it provides types of research methodologies employed in this dissertation to achieve the aims and objectives. Chapter two provides literature review with the topics covering Globalisation, Supply Chain system, IS/IT tools used in SCM and it goes on with functionalities and issues arising in SCM system and also the use of IT in SCM. Chapter three deals with the research methodologies adopted and their advantages and limitations In chapter four, case study about a Life Science and Bio-chemical manufacturing company and its heavy utilisation of IT in SCM have been discussed. Technical characteristics of Supply Chain in that company have also been discussed. In chapter five, case study interview findings are analysed. Future recommendations are discussed in chapter six. In chapter seven conclusions of the whole research are provided. 1.6 Summary This chapter gives an introduction of the research area, highlights aims, objectives and outlines of examination. Next chapter is going to present crucial points through literature. Chapter 2: Literature Review/Background study 2.1 Introduction In this chapter adequate background is developed to demonstrate that this study will adjust the current knowledge in SC. Part one provides information about globalisation and how it has been achieved in recent years, Which is followed by implications in global SC. Part two emphasis on definitions, concepts of SC and IS in SC, which is followed by defining various technologies in SC. part three explains integration and IS applications in SC. Part four identifies issues and challenges in SC todays market and next part talks about identifying a technology which address those challenges. Part six summarizes the chapter. 2.2 Overview/Globalisation Over the last two centuries globalisation process underwent remarkable changes and established closer contacts between human societies over the globe. In modern days, rapid and significant Changes in terms of technologies, communications, and transportation led to new impetus for global processes and more interdependent world than before. Business started moving rapidly than ever to new perspectives in many perceptions like coordinating closely, cooperating more in networks, competing with other networks (Schary, Skjott-Larsen, 2001). According to Mehmet (1996, P31) chartered companies in the past and multinational companies in the present are the driving factors behind the remarkable process of globalisation, Further saying, the main goal and motivation of these companies is for global profits and honestly, the inner logic of globalisation is ‘capitalisation on a world scale. Globalisation created new markets, wealth, and the march led to have major impact on manufacturing com panies. National and international economies merged under trade, technology and capitalization. Multinational companies started manufacturing goods and sell to customers in different countries, this process initiated the movement of products, raw materials, money and technology swiftly circulate all around the world freely. Schary, Skjott-Larsen (2003, p. 450) states that ‘Globalisation involves markets, production and global infrastructure. Companies started racing toward global competitive efficiency which caused organizations to produce and sell their products all over the world. This process made supply chain, its management and activities became more complex in nature. Hill (2007, P.5) states that ‘globalisation refers to the shift towards a more integrated and interdependent world economy. Globalisation has several facets, including and globalisation of markets and globalisation of production. 2.1.1 Implications of Globalisation The motivations were completely different from those of todays, which drove firms into foreign markets. For example tire industries extended their growth to abroad for rubber plantations whilst oil companies grew to Middle East countries to open new oil fields. According to Bartlett et al. (2008, P. 8) ‘though they moved initially often opportunistic many organisations eventually realized that extra sales enabled them to exploit sales economies of scope scale, thereby providing a source of competitive advantage over their domestic rivals. It can be easily seen that over a period of time, those firms realized that benefits could be gained not only by suppliers sourcing but also by selling in those new markets. Companies like Reebok manufacture their goods in lesser developed nations like Vietnam where manufacturing cost are comparatively low. By using modern transportation facilities like airways and containerization, these products can be easily moved to destinations quickly, reliable and efficiently at low cost. 2.2 Supply Chains In todays globalise market; SC has become a centre of focus to all business organizations especially larger firms with multiple branches globally. Supply Chain Management (SCM) has become basic competitive requirement in order to satisfy and compete for the attentions of modern customers who is more empowered and have greater demand on total value package (Harrison, 2001). Significant supply chain decisions and supply chain performance is the key for success of any firm. Any supply chain combination of all parties which have involvement either indirectly or directly, in satisfying a consumers request. In another words supply chain is the movement of substances or products as they drive through their origin point to the end customer. SC includes manufacturing, purchasing, warehousing, customer service, transportation, supply planning, demand planning and supply chain management. It is the involvement of the people, information, activities involved in moving products from its supplier to customer. Affective management of the supply chain can be a real challenge though definition sounds very simple. Supply chain flow encompasses whole bunch of activities including organization and flow of materials, other resources to produce finished product to final customer Mannheim (1994), Treacy Wiersma (1993) cited in (Schary Skjott 2001). A sequel of process that add value to firm is product development, customer relationship and SCM (Schary Skjott , 2001). No process is considered as individually important, all three work together to make supply chains successful and profitable. It is a difficult task to manage SC and failures in SC can be devastating to firms, example Nike and Cisco found in 2001 loosing $100 million and $2.2 billion respectively due to improper management and problems in their SC. But on the other end organizations like Wall-Mart demonstrated huge success on daily basis on its SCM which provided a great deal of successful competitive advantage (Taylor, 2004). A Supply chain is a network of distributors, retailers, transporters, storage facilities and mostly active member in this process is suppliers that take part in production, selling of the product to the customer and delivery. A supply chain is specially those who co-ordinate activities to set themselves apart from the competition by the multiple companies. It has three main key parts: Supply: targets on the raw materials supplied to manufacturing, including when how and from what location. Manufacturing: mainly active in converting raw materials into finished goods. Distribution: targeting on ensuring these products reach the customers through an organized network of distributors, warehouses and retailers. While implemented to customer products and manufacturing a supply chain can determine to show how different processes supply to one another. SC can be also considered as network of suppliers, manufacturing, assembling and distributing facilities responsible for materials procuring, and converting into final products and distributed to end customers (Barbuceaunu, Teigen 1998, Fox, Barbuceaunu et al 2001, Agnetisa, Hallb et al 2005, Stadtler, 2005). SC consists of numerous networked organizations aiming to produce goods and services to customers. A Supply chain is a network of distributors, retailers, transporters, storage facilities and mostly active member in this process is suppliers that take part in production, selling of the product to the customer and delivery. A supply chain is specially those who co-ordinate activities to set themselves apart from the competition by the multiple companies. It has three main key parts: Supply: targets on the raw materials supplied to manufacturing, including when how and from what location. Manufacturing: mainly active in converting raw materials into finished goods. Distribution: targeting on ensuring these products reach the customers through an organized network of distributors, warehouses and retailers. While implemented to customer products and manufacturing a supply chain can determine to show how different processes supply to one another. In this sense the definition of S C can apply to finance Internet technology and many other industries. A SC strategy restricts how SC supposed to behave in order to compete in their business relatively. And this strategy describes the cost relating to the operation and the benefits. SC strategy mainly targets the actual operation of the company and SC which will be used to meet a specific goal. Another term SCM (supply chain management), which is focusing on oversight of materials, information and finances as they are distributed from supplier to consumer. The SC also contains all the required stops between the supplier and the consumer. Above figure clearly indicates SC always needs the collaboration between various organizations. Functions ranging from ordering materials to delivery of finished products to customers need to operate in integrated manner (Angerhofer Angelides, 2005). Supply Chain Management (SCM) was introduced for ‘Gathering organizational units along a SC coordinating information, material and financial flows in order to provide customer demands with the aim of improving competitiveness of the SC as a whole (Verwijmeren, 2004). SCM plays a major role for a good planning, organizing and coordinating of SC activities. SCM (supply chain management) can be divided into three important flows: The product flow contains moving materials or goods from supplier to consumer, as well as fulfilling the customer requests. The information flow contains delivery status and order information. The Financial flow contains credit terms, payment schedules and additional arrangements. 2.3 Information systems in SC Due to increasing customer demand value and global competition supply chain concept has become a bigger concern thus to run a smooth operation the important information must be accessible in real time across the supply chain and this cannot be achieved without an integrated software system for SCM( supply chain management) . To improve customers satisfaction SCM members have to share information and collaborate with each other. In real time to trade with suppliers and customers over the internet, web technologies have played a major role to become effective. For this, company have to integrate their applications and IS with their customers and suppliers. The implementation of this will result in as an increase in companys profits and competitiveness. IS in SC making business to grow rapidly and is bringing both opportunities and challenges at the same time and pace. SC design and management has been intensified with IS tools which span organizations to integrate, manage and automate SC functions. Various IS tools like Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), World Wide Web (WWW), E-commerce, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Systems Application products in Data (SAP). These tools help to overcome the complexities of systems which initiates vendor-customer-supplier relationships. Aim of SC activities with the use of IS is: reducing paper work, controlling cost, lowering inventories and shorten product cycles Chou et al., (2004). Below table shows different stages how IS has been used from recent years. Stages Year Milestone Firms IS Developments Introduction 1960-1970s MRP Firms are closely linked with MRP Only Internal integration was practised for customer services. Growing 1970-1980s EDI In-time delivery was practised for efficient communication between Suppliers. Pre-Mature 1990-2000s E-Commerce Organizations and vendors in SC B2B B2C started using internet for effectiveway to communicate. Mature 2000- present C-commerce Business organizations started ERP Collaborating for improving the Efficiency of SC System. Table 2.1 Stages of IS Evolution in SC. Chou et al., (2004) The above mentioned IS have advantages and disadvantages as well. EDI and E-commerce can be used for external operations in SCM. 2.3.1 Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) EDI is defined as being ‘specifically the electronic exchange of structured business documents between different computer applications across enterprise boundaries (The Edi zone, 2008). Ruppel defined EDI as electronic data communication of invoices, purchase orders and other applications which use standard EDI format between supplier and customer. For purchasing orders and sending requisitions EDI has been used by trading partners for information exchange. EDI has been adopted for many reasons- faster and easier communication of data in trading, improved accuracy in information, reduced clerical errors, and reduced inventory cost, labour, and automation of tasks. These all together improves firm relationship with customers and suppliers (Ruppel, 2004 Leonard, et al., 2006). Disadvantages associated with EDI is its adoption and implementation cost (Williams et al., 2002, Chou et al., 2004) and it does not operate in real time. EDIs standard format of structure makes it more d ifficult to follow (Chou et al., 2004). The swap of business data from one company or organisations system application to the computer application of a trading partner. Why EDI? For accuracy, push up the no of accuracy by eliminating r-keying of data. The standard quality of data is found by agreeing product cost. By reducing supply chain cost co related with manual processing EDI helps to build up the partnership between supplier or customer. Those suppliers who are enabled with EDI are very simpler and having very low cost to deal with. Because of EDI electronic documents can be transferred from system to another computer system means one trading company to another trading company. EDI conveys a row of messages between two organisation or companies or parties in which one can be a recipient or originator. The sequel of the data shows the documents might be passed from originator to recipient via telecomm or delivered physically on electronic storage media. To carry out smoothly supply chain operation EDI plays a very important role. EDI is able to explain a very strict standardized format of electronic document. Companies that send and receive papers between both of them are known as â€Å"trading partners† in EEDI methodology. 2.3.2 Internet, World Wide Web When compared to EDI which requires technological expenditure, internet and World Wide Web have been widely accepted as the scope of connectivity between individuals and businesses is broadened (Chou et al., 2004 William et al., 2002). ‘This is the vision of the digital future: If there is an increased demand for woollen pullovers in Benton shops, a farmer in New Zealand receives an order via the web to shear his sheep (Rohrict, Teufel et al 2002). Internet became a ubiquitous and cheaper means to communicate between firms and partners and which initiated global SCs. Cost involved in exchanging information has been greatly reduced with the usage of internet in e-SCM. It has been observed that web based networks provides professional services which are quick, accurate and synchronized in global SC (Folinas et al., 2004). A new trend evolved in supporting SC applications is use of ‘third party softwares. Firms recognized the value of developing partnerships with vendors and consultants. That softwares must be compatible, capable of integrating with SC allowing partners to include any other modules which helps to include programming interfaces to current systems for future use (Green, 2001). Now-a-days SC business processes are scattered over multiple members, so SC system should be actively flexible to handle and respond effectively to the dynamic changes in the global market (Chandrashekar, 1999). 2.3.3 Evolution of ERP From business perspective ERP has broaden from co- ordination of manufacturing processes to the integration of enterprise wide backend processes. Recent studies show that organizations all around the world are investing billions of money on ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), when consulting expenditure is calculated then the figure may be doubled (Themistocleous, Irani et al., 2001). Before integrating business process of a firm with customers and suppliers, initially their internal processes have to be operated more efficiently. For this purpose, software/technology ‘ERP is used commonly. According to Hamilton (2003, p. 12) â€Å"An ERP system provides transaction processing and a common database to model operations within a manufacturing firm, and supports several levels of decision making†. MRP (Material Requirement Planning) is earliest form of ERP, which was used in ordering materials and components (Wallace kremzar, 2001). Master production schedule (MPS) is considered as heart of MRP. MPS calculates production requirements according to meet distr Improving Global Supply Chains by Information Systems Improving Global Supply Chains by Information Systems Investigation on the improvement of Global Supply Chains by using Information Systems. ABSTRACT The process of globalisation continues to increase the competitive pressures on all firms. Those who wish to lead the market have to continue to raise the bar in terms of operating in the most efficient possible manner. One key area for companies today is how they manage particular or own SC activities via the increasing utilisation of Information Systems (IS). The scope of think over on to research a role of Information System within global supply chain management (SCM) and understand advantages and profits it fetches. Results showed that in order make SCM to be effective, suppliers and customers must work in close collaboration together to truly integrate their business processes. From the results of the analysis undertaken, it has been concluded that using IS throughout the Supply Chain increases efficiency by reducing inventories, which in turn reduces costs to the entire Supply Chain, but also adds significant value from the end customers perspective. Furthermore, the use of IS throughout a Supply Chain enables better speed of response to unpredictable demand APPENDIX A: PRIMARY DATA COLLECTION METHODS 57 List of Abbreviations SC = Supply Chain S-A = Sigma-Aldrich SCM = Supply Chain Management MNC = Multinational Company SME = Small to Medium Enterprise IS = Information System E-commerce = Electronic Commerce B2B = Business to Business B2C = Business to Customer EDI = Electronic Data Interchange ERP = Enterprise Resource Planning MRP = Material Requirement Planning MRPII = Manufacturing Resource Planning POS = Point of Sale MPS = Master Production Schedule CRP = Capacity Requirement Planning RFID = Radio Frequency Identification APS = Advanced Planning Scheduling APO = Advanced Planner and Optimiser SCC = Supply Chain Cockpit ATP = Available-to-promise CPFR = Collaborative planning, forecasting Replenishment Chapter 1: Introduction Over the past ten years, retailers and suppliers invested huge capital in reducing the occurrences, where customers cannot find right products in stores. This has created a serious problem in retail and other industries (Collins, 005). Gerry Jastremski (Gillette Co) reported that this serious problem is causing a $69 billion loss for top retail companies. Recent studies revealed more than 70 percent companies face the same problem that their customers cannot find the products they want to buy in stores due to out of-stock mostly because of inappropriate supply and forecasting of products (Gruen, Corsten et al 2002). When more focused on markets during special offers and sales campaigns, the probability of finding desired product is always one in five times ratio when customers visit the store. As a result, customers change their mind and delay their purchase or look for alternative brands products. Thus retailers will not achieve their targeted ROI (return of investment) and custome r loyalty goes down. Though organizations and big companies wish to solve the above problem but disruptions are unavoidable. The most efficient way to manage and maintain the stock in stores is through Supply Chain Management (SCM). Supply chain with globalisation created fresh/modern era in the market environment in recent days. Businesses in todays market are increasingly considering global atmosphere. Organizations need to be completely aware of external factors like economic trends, competitive and technological innovations at home and abroad markets, which affect their ability to grow and sustain. Globalisation means, a product can be developed in China, manufactured in UK and sold in USA. This process of globalisation shows the need and urgency for organizations to change the way in which their logistical and operational activities are managed, explainingthe the concept of Supply Chain Management (SCM). Simple Supply chains were designed in the past using paper, pen and calculators. As business process and supply chain networks grew more complex in nature (Christopher, 2005) it became more difficult and impossible to manage SC activities without appropriate technological support. Its quite impossible to receive an effectuate and efficient SCM without IS/IT tools (Gunasekaran, Ngai. 2005). 1.1 Background/Supply Chain System In 21st century for achieving the global organizational competitiveness, Supply Chain Management System has evolved. Organizations are trying to find ways of increasing their competitiveness, responsiveness and flexibility by changing their operational strategies, technologies and methods which include the implementation of SCM (Gunasekaran, Ngai, 2003). SCM is an approach for companies to integrate their activities in the changing market requirements which improve companys agility level and dynamic nature. Through the view of Simchi Levi (2000) â€Å"SCM is bunch of addresses to effectuate gather suppliers, store warehouses, manufacturers so that trade is created and dilivered at the right quantities, to the right locations and at the right time in order to minimize system wide cost while satisfying service level requirements (cited in Gunasekaran, Ngai, 2005). Supply chains created a viable way for satisfying customers needs around the world. What is a Supply Chain? SC is a strategy introduced in organizations to enhance the ways of distributing the products from the firms to end consumers. It is all about purchasing raw materials, developing them into products and distributing those finished goods to customers with the help of intermediate sources. Janyashanker, Stephen (1996) defined supply chain as ‘a network of autonomous or semi autonomous business entities collectively responsible for procurement, manufacturing and distribution activities associated with one or more fami lies of products. Due to greater demand of products and high global competition of firms resulted in implementing Supply Chain. In another words supply chain is the movement of substances or products as they drive through their origin point to the end customer. SC includes manufacturing, purchasing , warehousing, customer service, transportation, supply planning, demand planning and supply chain management. It is the involvement of the people, information, activities involved in moving products from its supplier to customer. Affective management of the supply chain can be a real challenge though definition sounds very simple. Example of a Supply Chain: A very well SC flow of goods is shown above. In some cases, the product is shipped from the Manufacturer to the distribution centre as soon as it is manufactured. In other cases, such as spoke model and Hub the product is held at the manufacturer once produced and on only on the requirement it is sent to the distribution centre. In reality, every step in Supply Chain activity has complex calculations during the globalisation process; however this increases business efficiency and brings benefits to the organization on greater scales. So the Supply Chain activities must be well planned, organized meticulously as efficiency plays major role and advantageous in competitive markets (Bartlett et al. 2007). Activities in Supply Chain entail purchasing raw materials, converting into bulk or finished products and sending those products to various warehouses / distribution centres. They are then directly or indirectly delivered to 1st tier customers who add further more value to the end customers. The activities like planning and delivery should be managed and coordinated well in terms of both time and place. IS or software tools which have been developed all these years to manage these activities have evolved and became increasingly specialized. Hence organizations need to understand and carefully select the IS too ls that are best suited to their needs. SC ACTIVITIES Integrated Behaviour Mutually Sharing Information Mutually Sharing Risk And Rewards Cooperation The Same Goal and The Same Focus on Serving Customers Integration of Processes Partners to Build and Maintain Long-Term Relationship 1.2 Identified Problem SCM allows the organizations to manage numerous relations in SC for ongoing business process, for which IS plays a major role. Sanders (2005) says that ‘IS/IT which permits for the transmission and processing of information useful for synchronous decision making between organisations can be viewed as backbone of SC business structure. As a result organizations started using IS especially SCM systems in order to have closer contacts with suppliers and vendors and to reduce problems in SC activities. Though technology is growing and investigating new methods to solve SC problems, Maguire (2000) states: The IS community faces a paradox: despite impressive advances in technology, problems are more abundant than solutions; organizations experience rising cost instead of cost reduction. IS misuse and rejection are more frequent than acceptance and use. Major factor that leads IS to a failure is alignment between IS and the organization that is applied in. However there is a paucity of research in IS when efficiency is considered. Even though there is a SCM system for reducing problems in SC, but still it is not efficient. And due to lack of collaboration between different departments in the organizations, information is not shared exactly for targeted tasks. Though sophisticated technologies have been introduced to reduce problems, due to employees misuse and resistance, efficiency is being reduced. In this project we will discuss how technology (SAP) is being used in an organization and what problems have been identified. More over in this report enhancement has been investigated on SC. The reason for choosing SCM with SAP is due to the complexity of system that operates as a chain between suppliers and vendors. And also nature of the case is too complex as the organization has businesses with numerous suppliers and vendors internationally. One more reason for selecting this case and topic is the researches founded an opportunity to investigate how the SC activities are managed in the organization and proble ms existing in the usage of the SAP. The reason SAP is selected: It is a powerful tool for integration purposes and also researchers personal interest in acquiring more knowledge about SAP technology. 1.3 Aims and Objectives This examination sets out to carry the investigation and the factual goal of the dissertation is- To understand the ways in which the information technology or Information systems (IT/IS) are able to find the management of global Supply Chains (SC). In order to achieve these aims the following objectives have been set: To broaden knowledge by researching in two main areas i.e., Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Information Systems or Technologies that are specifically designed to be used in SC. To do research and understand how Supply Chains have been created with globalisation. To conduct a thorough research on the literature of SCM Identifying advantages and challenges faced while implementing the IS/IT tools in SCM by doing the comprehensive review on the literature gathered on SCM. Identifying the factors that are driving and affecting the technologies / information systems used in SCM. A real case study will be carried out using a research methodology. Information will be collected through semi-structured interviews from employees of the case study organisation: Sigma Aldrich. An evaluation of the outcome, based on literature and data collected during interviews is used to find the gaps between literatures (theoretical) and practise (practically) in real world. Recommendations (if any) about SC in company. 1.4 Research Approach The Interpretive Method is applied to understand the complex nature of IT in Supply Chain system. This will identify the sociological features like behaviour of employees, benefits of technologies employed and issues arising in business with the use of IS/IT in SCM. The interpretive method involve gathering literature on SCM, IS/IT tools used, and semi structured interviews. The research aim will be fulfilled by studying the current literature, analysing what are the factors which indicate SCM and identifying existing gaps with reference to the literature studied. Further, the research continues on existing technologies used in supporting the SCM system in the present business market. Benefits associated with implementation of IT in SCM, adoption factors and any kind of implementation issues will be determined. For gathering the literature review core textbooks, journals, online papers, conference proceedings and information from internet have been used. After the literature study, we find out the gaps which exist in the literature read and provided. After identifying the gaps, an empirical study will be applied to give an alternative to the gaps which already been discovered in literature gathered. A qualitative research methodology has been applied. Both primary and secondary research methods are adopted. Primary method of research deals with conducting semi structured interviews and collecting data, where as secondary method of research is in the form of literature review. 1.5 Dissertation Outline This dissertation include of seven chapters, spanning the development of research from aims and objectives to the conclusions. Dissertation has been structured in the following way: Chapter one deals with the introduction of the topic with adequate theoretical background on Supply Chain and provides overall aims and objectives of the topic. Furthermore it provides types of research methodologies employed in this dissertation to achieve the aims and objectives. Chapter two provides literature review with the topics covering Globalisation, Supply Chain system, IS/IT tools used in SCM and it goes on with functionalities and issues arising in SCM system and also the use of IT in SCM. Chapter three deals with the research methodologies adopted and their advantages and limitations In chapter four, case study about a Life Science and Bio-chemical manufacturing company and its heavy utilisation of IT in SCM have been discussed. Technical characteristics of Supply Chain in that company have also been discussed. In chapter five, case study interview findings are analysed. Future recommendations are discussed in chapter six. In chapter seven conclusions of the whole research are provided. 1.6 Summary This chapter gives an introduction of the research area, highlights aims, objectives and outlines of examination. Next chapter is going to present crucial points through literature. Chapter 2: Literature Review/Background study 2.1 Introduction In this chapter adequate background is developed to demonstrate that this study will adjust the current knowledge in SC. Part one provides information about globalisation and how it has been achieved in recent years, Which is followed by implications in global SC. Part two emphasis on definitions, concepts of SC and IS in SC, which is followed by defining various technologies in SC. part three explains integration and IS applications in SC. Part four identifies issues and challenges in SC todays market and next part talks about identifying a technology which address those challenges. Part six summarizes the chapter. 2.2 Overview/Globalisation Over the last two centuries globalisation process underwent remarkable changes and established closer contacts between human societies over the globe. In modern days, rapid and significant Changes in terms of technologies, communications, and transportation led to new impetus for global processes and more interdependent world than before. Business started moving rapidly than ever to new perspectives in many perceptions like coordinating closely, cooperating more in networks, competing with other networks (Schary, Skjott-Larsen, 2001). According to Mehmet (1996, P31) chartered companies in the past and multinational companies in the present are the driving factors behind the remarkable process of globalisation, Further saying, the main goal and motivation of these companies is for global profits and honestly, the inner logic of globalisation is ‘capitalisation on a world scale. Globalisation created new markets, wealth, and the march led to have major impact on manufacturing com panies. National and international economies merged under trade, technology and capitalization. Multinational companies started manufacturing goods and sell to customers in different countries, this process initiated the movement of products, raw materials, money and technology swiftly circulate all around the world freely. Schary, Skjott-Larsen (2003, p. 450) states that ‘Globalisation involves markets, production and global infrastructure. Companies started racing toward global competitive efficiency which caused organizations to produce and sell their products all over the world. This process made supply chain, its management and activities became more complex in nature. Hill (2007, P.5) states that ‘globalisation refers to the shift towards a more integrated and interdependent world economy. Globalisation has several facets, including and globalisation of markets and globalisation of production. 2.1.1 Implications of Globalisation The motivations were completely different from those of todays, which drove firms into foreign markets. For example tire industries extended their growth to abroad for rubber plantations whilst oil companies grew to Middle East countries to open new oil fields. According to Bartlett et al. (2008, P. 8) ‘though they moved initially often opportunistic many organisations eventually realized that extra sales enabled them to exploit sales economies of scope scale, thereby providing a source of competitive advantage over their domestic rivals. It can be easily seen that over a period of time, those firms realized that benefits could be gained not only by suppliers sourcing but also by selling in those new markets. Companies like Reebok manufacture their goods in lesser developed nations like Vietnam where manufacturing cost are comparatively low. By using modern transportation facilities like airways and containerization, these products can be easily moved to destinations quickly, reliable and efficiently at low cost. 2.2 Supply Chains In todays globalise market; SC has become a centre of focus to all business organizations especially larger firms with multiple branches globally. Supply Chain Management (SCM) has become basic competitive requirement in order to satisfy and compete for the attentions of modern customers who is more empowered and have greater demand on total value package (Harrison, 2001). Significant supply chain decisions and supply chain performance is the key for success of any firm. Any supply chain combination of all parties which have involvement either indirectly or directly, in satisfying a consumers request. In another words supply chain is the movement of substances or products as they drive through their origin point to the end customer. SC includes manufacturing, purchasing, warehousing, customer service, transportation, supply planning, demand planning and supply chain management. It is the involvement of the people, information, activities involved in moving products from its supplier to customer. Affective management of the supply chain can be a real challenge though definition sounds very simple. Supply chain flow encompasses whole bunch of activities including organization and flow of materials, other resources to produce finished product to final customer Mannheim (1994), Treacy Wiersma (1993) cited in (Schary Skjott 2001). A sequel of process that add value to firm is product development, customer relationship and SCM (Schary Skjott , 2001). No process is considered as individually important, all three work together to make supply chains successful and profitable. It is a difficult task to manage SC and failures in SC can be devastating to firms, example Nike and Cisco found in 2001 loosing $100 million and $2.2 billion respectively due to improper management and problems in their SC. But on the other end organizations like Wall-Mart demonstrated huge success on daily basis on its SCM which provided a great deal of successful competitive advantage (Taylor, 2004). A Supply chain is a network of distributors, retailers, transporters, storage facilities and mostly active member in this process is suppliers that take part in production, selling of the product to the customer and delivery. A supply chain is specially those who co-ordinate activities to set themselves apart from the competition by the multiple companies. It has three main key parts: Supply: targets on the raw materials supplied to manufacturing, including when how and from what location. Manufacturing: mainly active in converting raw materials into finished goods. Distribution: targeting on ensuring these products reach the customers through an organized network of distributors, warehouses and retailers. While implemented to customer products and manufacturing a supply chain can determine to show how different processes supply to one another. SC can be also considered as network of suppliers, manufacturing, assembling and distributing facilities responsible for materials procuring, and converting into final products and distributed to end customers (Barbuceaunu, Teigen 1998, Fox, Barbuceaunu et al 2001, Agnetisa, Hallb et al 2005, Stadtler, 2005). SC consists of numerous networked organizations aiming to produce goods and services to customers. A Supply chain is a network of distributors, retailers, transporters, storage facilities and mostly active member in this process is suppliers that take part in production, selling of the product to the customer and delivery. A supply chain is specially those who co-ordinate activities to set themselves apart from the competition by the multiple companies. It has three main key parts: Supply: targets on the raw materials supplied to manufacturing, including when how and from what location. Manufacturing: mainly active in converting raw materials into finished goods. Distribution: targeting on ensuring these products reach the customers through an organized network of distributors, warehouses and retailers. While implemented to customer products and manufacturing a supply chain can determine to show how different processes supply to one another. In this sense the definition of S C can apply to finance Internet technology and many other industries. A SC strategy restricts how SC supposed to behave in order to compete in their business relatively. And this strategy describes the cost relating to the operation and the benefits. SC strategy mainly targets the actual operation of the company and SC which will be used to meet a specific goal. Another term SCM (supply chain management), which is focusing on oversight of materials, information and finances as they are distributed from supplier to consumer. The SC also contains all the required stops between the supplier and the consumer. Above figure clearly indicates SC always needs the collaboration between various organizations. Functions ranging from ordering materials to delivery of finished products to customers need to operate in integrated manner (Angerhofer Angelides, 2005). Supply Chain Management (SCM) was introduced for ‘Gathering organizational units along a SC coordinating information, material and financial flows in order to provide customer demands with the aim of improving competitiveness of the SC as a whole (Verwijmeren, 2004). SCM plays a major role for a good planning, organizing and coordinating of SC activities. SCM (supply chain management) can be divided into three important flows: The product flow contains moving materials or goods from supplier to consumer, as well as fulfilling the customer requests. The information flow contains delivery status and order information. The Financial flow contains credit terms, payment schedules and additional arrangements. 2.3 Information systems in SC Due to increasing customer demand value and global competition supply chain concept has become a bigger concern thus to run a smooth operation the important information must be accessible in real time across the supply chain and this cannot be achieved without an integrated software system for SCM( supply chain management) . To improve customers satisfaction SCM members have to share information and collaborate with each other. In real time to trade with suppliers and customers over the internet, web technologies have played a major role to become effective. For this, company have to integrate their applications and IS with their customers and suppliers. The implementation of this will result in as an increase in companys profits and competitiveness. IS in SC making business to grow rapidly and is bringing both opportunities and challenges at the same time and pace. SC design and management has been intensified with IS tools which span organizations to integrate, manage and automate SC functions. Various IS tools like Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), World Wide Web (WWW), E-commerce, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Systems Application products in Data (SAP). These tools help to overcome the complexities of systems which initiates vendor-customer-supplier relationships. Aim of SC activities with the use of IS is: reducing paper work, controlling cost, lowering inventories and shorten product cycles Chou et al., (2004). Below table shows different stages how IS has been used from recent years. Stages Year Milestone Firms IS Developments Introduction 1960-1970s MRP Firms are closely linked with MRP Only Internal integration was practised for customer services. Growing 1970-1980s EDI In-time delivery was practised for efficient communication between Suppliers. Pre-Mature 1990-2000s E-Commerce Organizations and vendors in SC B2B B2C started using internet for effectiveway to communicate. Mature 2000- present C-commerce Business organizations started ERP Collaborating for improving the Efficiency of SC System. Table 2.1 Stages of IS Evolution in SC. Chou et al., (2004) The above mentioned IS have advantages and disadvantages as well. EDI and E-commerce can be used for external operations in SCM. 2.3.1 Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) EDI is defined as being ‘specifically the electronic exchange of structured business documents between different computer applications across enterprise boundaries (The Edi zone, 2008). Ruppel defined EDI as electronic data communication of invoices, purchase orders and other applications which use standard EDI format between supplier and customer. For purchasing orders and sending requisitions EDI has been used by trading partners for information exchange. EDI has been adopted for many reasons- faster and easier communication of data in trading, improved accuracy in information, reduced clerical errors, and reduced inventory cost, labour, and automation of tasks. These all together improves firm relationship with customers and suppliers (Ruppel, 2004 Leonard, et al., 2006). Disadvantages associated with EDI is its adoption and implementation cost (Williams et al., 2002, Chou et al., 2004) and it does not operate in real time. EDIs standard format of structure makes it more d ifficult to follow (Chou et al., 2004). The swap of business data from one company or organisations system application to the computer application of a trading partner. Why EDI? For accuracy, push up the no of accuracy by eliminating r-keying of data. The standard quality of data is found by agreeing product cost. By reducing supply chain cost co related with manual processing EDI helps to build up the partnership between supplier or customer. Those suppliers who are enabled with EDI are very simpler and having very low cost to deal with. Because of EDI electronic documents can be transferred from system to another computer system means one trading company to another trading company. EDI conveys a row of messages between two organisation or companies or parties in which one can be a recipient or originator. The sequel of the data shows the documents might be passed from originator to recipient via telecomm or delivered physically on electronic storage media. To carry out smoothly supply chain operation EDI plays a very important role. EDI is able to explain a very strict standardized format of electronic document. Companies that send and receive papers between both of them are known as â€Å"trading partners† in EEDI methodology. 2.3.2 Internet, World Wide Web When compared to EDI which requires technological expenditure, internet and World Wide Web have been widely accepted as the scope of connectivity between individuals and businesses is broadened (Chou et al., 2004 William et al., 2002). ‘This is the vision of the digital future: If there is an increased demand for woollen pullovers in Benton shops, a farmer in New Zealand receives an order via the web to shear his sheep (Rohrict, Teufel et al 2002). Internet became a ubiquitous and cheaper means to communicate between firms and partners and which initiated global SCs. Cost involved in exchanging information has been greatly reduced with the usage of internet in e-SCM. It has been observed that web based networks provides professional services which are quick, accurate and synchronized in global SC (Folinas et al., 2004). A new trend evolved in supporting SC applications is use of ‘third party softwares. Firms recognized the value of developing partnerships with vendors and consultants. That softwares must be compatible, capable of integrating with SC allowing partners to include any other modules which helps to include programming interfaces to current systems for future use (Green, 2001). Now-a-days SC business processes are scattered over multiple members, so SC system should be actively flexible to handle and respond effectively to the dynamic changes in the global market (Chandrashekar, 1999). 2.3.3 Evolution of ERP From business perspective ERP has broaden from co- ordination of manufacturing processes to the integration of enterprise wide backend processes. Recent studies show that organizations all around the world are investing billions of money on ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), when consulting expenditure is calculated then the figure may be doubled (Themistocleous, Irani et al., 2001). Before integrating business process of a firm with customers and suppliers, initially their internal processes have to be operated more efficiently. For this purpose, software/technology ‘ERP is used commonly. According to Hamilton (2003, p. 12) â€Å"An ERP system provides transaction processing and a common database to model operations within a manufacturing firm, and supports several levels of decision making†. MRP (Material Requirement Planning) is earliest form of ERP, which was used in ordering materials and components (Wallace kremzar, 2001). Master production schedule (MPS) is considered as heart of MRP. MPS calculates production requirements according to meet distr