Natura Case Study

Individual Natura case study preparation paper Whether Natura, the Brazilian beauty company, based on biodiversity of Brazil, should expand its business in Russian market is the critical issue of this case study. However, it is necessary to inspect pre-issue before we evaluate the international investment strategy. After reviewing whether the company is capable of dealing with globalization, we move on to measure the Natura’s international marketing strategy. Is Russian the best next step for Natura’s international foot for?If yes, we propose the possible alternatives for entering this market by minimizing the political risk and operating risk. (1) Was the company ready to go globalization? Evaluating criteria as follows: * Organization structure culture Natura’s unique organization cultures are open-minded for opinion-expressing, transparent decision-making process, and intimacy with its stakeholders. The strong corporate value shared by every individual within this group make the expatriates from this company could convey the brand DNA in foreign market. * Brand visibility in global marketsNatura has a strong market position in Brazil, and continued building up the brand image in Latin American countries. However, it brand visibility is not strong enough in the rest of world and the brand image is weak in the European countries as well. * Global resourcing and distribution network The raw material, production, product development is all in Brazil. Natura has yet built up the global logistic network; therefore, the distribution cost and inventory management would be the major problem for the company while it steps out globally. Insufficient experience in expansion of global business,† dealing with different cultures, different social structure, and different consumer behaviors† Much of the international business experience of Natura is limited in Latin American countries. Although there is diversification in culture, consumer b ehaviors, the closed countries were easier to deal with the differences and minimize the marketing difficulties. However, for the rest of markets with totally different language, culture background, religion, regulations, Natura has no sufficient experience and knowledge to manage it. Sufficient talents in global management During this period, there have no sufficient managers with global vision and management expertise in Natura. Even though managers from other firms have the skill in running direct selling, they could not convey the company’s value and brand DNA. This shortage of human resource would be another obstacle for Natura’s globalization. Sub-conclusion: After analyzing Natura’s competences in globalization, we found that Natura was just at the beginning stage of globalization although it started its international business from 1982.From the financial result, we still could find out that Natura had no prominent performance in foreign market. (2) Was t he Russia is the best choice to next step in Globalization? Is Russian experience valuable to the Naura’s globalization? Assessment of Russian market * Bureaucratic system * Unawareness of product quality and unconcern about the environment and nature. * Russian was becoming familiar with the direct selling; therefore, the education cost for sales rep. and consumer would be relatively lower than other markets which have low acceptance in direct selling.Assessment of Russian cosmetic and skin-care market * Consumer in Russia did not care about the natural products and knew nothing about Natura. They regarded the international famous brands and local brands. Natura lacked of brand image as strong as P&G or L’Oreal. * It took time to build up its own local network in stakeholders since there is no manager who can deliver the brand DNA knew the Russian market. * Mastering the delivery network in the Russian markets would be the potential problem for Natura. Natura would fa ce the challenges in global logistic while its products were manufactured, shipped from Brazil. The shipping cost, inventory management, timeliness of products, ordering system within subsidiary in Russia and parent company would be the key issue to expand business in Russia. * The weather in Russia is totally different from Brazil. It would be a main concern that Russian would not like to trust a brand from Amazon region. * The local regulation in cosmetics and skin-care should also be taken into account. Sub-conclusion:After assessing the key factors in entering Russian market, we can find that the Russian market is not mature enough to penetrate for Natura which was not equipped with sufficient experience in global business management and had a strong willing to preserve its brand DNA. Since Russian consumers were not respectful the nature and environment, the market did not attached to this brand DNA in that moment. Furthermore, due to the political situation and business enviro nment, the experience in Russia could not duplicate or be applied after micro-adjustment in other western countries. 3) Following preceding question, if yes, what is the best entry strategy for the Russian market? If no, what is the best next step for Natura in globalization? Combined the assessments above, stepping in Russian market would not so urgent or profitable for Natura. For the international development, the best next step in globalization for Natura should focus on the grand American market. There are several main pros to implement this strategy, as follows: * USA market has the similar diversified ethnic background and furthermore, the Latin American is one of the main ethnic origins. American consumers are relatively mature in product knowledge and appreciate the natural skin-care product. Their pursuit in beauty is as vigorous as the consumer in Latin American. * The business model of direct selling in USA is mature and consumers used to shop products in mail ordering a nd direct selling. * Finally, the infrastructure of logistic in local market is consummate. * For Natura, it would be a big step in globalization if it could be successful in USA market. The success in USA market could build up the brand awareness and enhance its position in bio-diversity cosmetic and skin care product.Still, there were cons to enter USA market, such as facing more fierce competition from other international companies and it would be required more CAPEX to invest in the grand market. If Natura take the Russian market as the must-be market, then we would recommend this company cooperate with the local leading company, Kalina, who had the strong retail network and knew the local market very well. Natura could use the franchise model to expand the Russian market and to build up its brand image and awareness through the Kalina’s advantages.After Natura gaining experience and building up strong brand image, it could change its business model and enhance its brand DNA and values. Under this strategy, there exist some potential risks. For example, Natura had to make a completed regulation about the branding in order to preserve the consistency and its values. Natura had to keep tight connection with franchisee to learn more local experience and react to market needs. At the end of cooperation, it might have to pay higher price to buy back the franchising right if its products performed very well in Russia.

What Was Life Like for People Living in Nazi Germany?

What was life like for people living in Nazi Germany? In Nazi Germany life for the Germans was terrible. You had to know who you could trust, as trusting the wrong person may cause you to loose your life. The Nazis and mainly Hitler really disliked Jews and anyone else that was not their perfect ‘Aryan'. Hitler and the Nazis came up with the Nazi Racial Policy, in 1933 to try and persuade Jews to emigrate there was the Boycott of Jewish shops.Shop windows got Jewish symbols painted on them, members of the SA would stand outside to threaten shoppers and anyone who did go in the shops would have their name put on a list so the Nazis would know who was using the Jewish shops. Jews were banned from all state jobs such as civil servants, teachers, journalists, lawyers and even radio announcers. Jewish and non-Jewish children were not allowed to play together. All of this made life hard and not pleasant for the Jews, this is what Hitler wanted so that Jews would leave his beloved Ger many.The Nuremburg Laws was an important part to the way that Jews ran their life during Nazi Germany, the Nuremburg Laws consisted of things such as; Jews could not marry or have sex with non-Jews, all Jews lost German Citizenship; Jews were not allowed to own radios, typewriters or bicycles; Jews were not allowed to own their own buisnesses and were banned from going places such as the cinema, theatres or concert halls. They were not allowed to buy newspapers or magazines, nor were they allowed to attend school or college.Male Jews were forced to add the name ‘Israel' and female Jews the name ‘Sarah', to their first names. These Nuremburg Laws restricted what Jews were allowed to do, a lot. Homosexuals were effected by the Nazis as well, they were seen as not fitting into ‘normal' families, they were savagely persecuted. About 15,000 were arrested and sent to concentration camps. Many were used in medical experiments or they were castrated. Himmler was shocked to discover several homosexuals in the SS, they were sent to concentation camps and shot ‘whilst trying to escape'.Political opponents were ‘undesirable' to the Nazis because they were seen as a threat who shouldnt be here, habitual criminals were also ‘undesirable' because they were seen as a burden and socially useless. In the Nazis eyes Jehovahs witness's were ‘undesirable' because their beliefs were different to the Nazis. Gypsy's and Jews were also seen as ‘undesirable' as they did not fit the Nazis ‘Aryans' (blonde hair, blue eyes etc) Anyone who had more than one grandparent who themself was Jewish ou too were considered Jewish. This made life very restricted, if you were ‘undesirable' then you were sent to a concentration camp, for anyone who was lucky enough not to be sent there but to be able to live in their home but by the Nazis rules. There was lots of violence in the streets and so much fear in the air. People were dragged out of their homes and taken away violently. Many people were beaten and sometimes killed in the streets.This was a terrible ordeal for people living in Nazi Germany, even if you were not the ones being beaten, seeing your friends and neighbors being beaten would be torrible. Over 6 million Jews were killed by the Nazis during Hitlers years in power. In conclusion life was terrible for people living in Nazi Germany, after Kristallnacht in November 1938 Jews were treated terribly and many were killed. Nazi Germany was a very dark time for the civilians. This was Hitlers aim; to make life hell for Jews and any ‘undesirables'.

Analysis On Financial Statements Economics Essay

Analysis On Financial Statements Economics Essay ATandT Inc. (NYSE: T) is a United States telecommunications corporation headquartered in Texas. Founded in 1983 as SBC Communications, it became AT&T Inc. upon purchase of AT&T Corporation in 2005. It is the leading U.S. provider of wire-line and wireless communications. AT&T delivers 3G wireless services through AT&T Mobility LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary. Other major segments include broadband internet, digital television, directory publishing, and business communications. In 2006, AT&T Inc. acquired BellSouth communications corporation, valued at $86 billion, absorbing its wire-line, wireless, and broadband interests. AT&T has stated specific future goals in 4G wireless, speech recognition, telehealth, and digital convergence. Recently, AT&T selected Alcatel-Lucent and Ericsson as equipment providers for its LTE (4G) wireless deployments. AT&T has over 150 million customers and 280,000 employees. AT&T reported a $124 billion operating revenue and $23 billion net income as of Dec . 31, 2008. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) is a United States telecommunications corporation headquartered in New York. It was founded in 1983 as Bell Atlantic. Bell Atlantic acquired GTE Corp. in 2000 and changed its name to Verizon Communications Inc. It is the second largest U.S. provider of wire-line and wireless voice services. Verizon Wireless is a joint venture, with Vodafone Group holding 45 percent ownership. Through its FiOS product, Verizon provides fiber-optic delivery of internet, television, and digital voice. Other major operations include IP networks, applications, and professional services for business. In 2008, Verizon stated its goal to surpass AT&T as the U.S. market leader in wireless voice and data communications in the United States. It is aggressively pushing fiber-optic deployments to combat industry-wide access-line losses. Verizon has over 91 million customers and 220,000 employees. Verizon reported a $97 billion operating revenue and $6.5 billion net income as of Dec. 31, 2008. Balance Sheet – unusual items AT&T:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  At Dec. 31, 2008, AT&T reported a current ratio of 0.53, and a long-term assets / long-term liabilities ratio of 1.92. This mismatching indicates that too much short-term financing has been used to acquire long-term assets. AT&T may have problems meeting its short-term obligations without additional refinancing. If additional financing cannot be obtained, a lack of asset liquidity poses a bankruptcy risk. At Dec. 31, 2008, AT&T reported goodwill at $71.8 billion, accounting for about 27% of their total reported assets. This stems from AT&T’s aggressive acquisition strategy. The high amount poses a great asset impairment risk. Only losses, not gains, can be recorded for goodwill. If the acquired entities lose value, as judged by an annual impairment test, the loss of recorded assets and corresponding write-offs against stockholders’ equity can be subst antial. Verizon:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  At Dec. 31, 2008, Verizon reported wireless licenses valued at $62.0 billion. These are indefinite-lived intangible asset which account for 30.6% of Verizon’s total assets. Wireless licenses are extremely important for a telecommunications company, but placing such large valuation on an intangible is a serious risk. Estimating fair value is very subjective, and any significant write-offs (as judged by a periodic impairment test) could threaten stockholders’ confidence. At Dec. 31, 2008, Verizon reported cash and cash equivalents of $9.8 billion. Having such a large amount of cash and cash equivalents (investments with a maturity of 90 days or less) is good for liquidity. However, a significant portion of this $9.8 billion could be converted to less-liquid, higher-interest investments that mature within a year, or even long-term investments. Having so much cash-on-hand is a problem because it is not being inve sted to return additional value to the business.

Ethics and Professionalism Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethics and Professionalism - Article Example PR exercises are increasingly used to emphasize and disseminate information about the organizations, in order to establish a closer relationship with the various stakeholders, including investors as well as with their valued customers. Public Relation Society of America or PRSA's Code of ethics is highly relevant in the current environment of cut throat business. The well defined code promotes responsible actions and emphasizes accountability, honesty, transparency, loyalty and fairness (PRSA). They are important part of business strategy because they facilitate consistent, accurate and the right message to be communicated to the audience, to investors as well as customers. Public relation campaigns significantly strengthen company's position and provide an effective competitive edge over its competitors in business. Ethically correct practices encourage dissemination of correct information to the public and other stakeholders. Violation of academic trust through plagiarism, cheating, falsifying information or aiding and abetting in any of the nefarious activities are now serious offences and they are considered as totally unacceptable conduct in all areas of work.

Technology for the Disabled Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Technology for the Disabled - Essay Example Obtaining information on the Internet, making online reservations to obtain discounts, making a friend is imposable for those who are blind or visually impaired. Adaptive technology can provide a means for those with little or no visions to access online tools and basic computer programs. Computer software can read screens and Braille printers and keyboards and make information usable for the visually impaired. Self-service kiosks are becoming a convenience in the service industries particularly in hotels and airports. Despite the convenience to the customer, self-service kiosks exclude the disabled and are less then convenient for the mobility, visually, and hearing impaired. Technology has made great strides over the centuries but had left out a large portion of the population in the process. Adaptive technology can make self-service kiosks friendlier and accessible for the disabled, however, the expense of such technology is extensive. â€Å"For example, to make check in kiosks w ork for travelers with visual impairments, the machines would have to undergo a costly retrofit to add a Braille reader or audio prompts†.These adaptations are very expensive and would cut into the companies profit margin extensively causing many companies to fight legislation that could force them to include adaptive technology. Technology makes information more accessible for everyone except the disabled. Web designers fail to consider low-resolution monitors and adaptive technology when designing web sites creating a problem for disabled users. â€Å"Web sites that are not carefully coded can be rendered useless to blind travelers who are using special screen readers to get access†

Reading reflection 9 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reading reflection 9 - Essay Example On most occasions, people sentenced to death normally use this term as a ground of defense. Proving their innocence through this ground of defense is an efficient and effective manner of receiving their freedom. Reflecting further on this notion of wrongful convictions, I came to realize that the best and most efficient method of exonerating these people is through the use of DNA evidence. My interest in the reading made me to research on a case that involved a person who was wrongfully convicted, and thereafter released. I settled on Joe D Ambrosio, who was released on March 2010. Ambrosio was convicted in 1989 for the murder of Klann, but during his trial, prosecutors failed to produce evidence that was exonerating him, despite such evidence being in their possession (Free and Ruesink, 2012). Ambrosio was released by judge Synerberg for wrongful conviction. From this case, I learnt that prosecutors and law enforcement officers can make an individual to suffer imprisonment from crimes they did not commit, especially if such individuals are not efficient in their work. This article introduces us to the element of racialism in the administration of justice in United States of America. For instance, the article denotes that the Governor of Illinois, George Ryan, conceded that the death penalty system in United States of America was full of error because it discriminated upon the person who deserved to die and who deserved to live, by analyzing the color of their skin. Because of this, he decided to forgive the death row convicts in his state. Reflecting on this, I denote that though it was wise of him to carry out such kind of an action, it could have been good if he enacted policies and laws that would abolish death penalty in the State. This is because he was in the position of power. In my own opinion, the best way to reduce inequitable administration of justice in regard to the death penalty, it is important for states all over America to abolish the

Education Law Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Education Law - Case Study Example The essential method of compliance with Guckenberger III is to balance the interests of the university with the interests of the handicapped student. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA") strictly prohibits universities from discriminating against qualified students with disabilities. In relevant part for this analysis, Section 504 mandates that "no otherwise qualified individual with a disability . . . shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefit of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." 29 U.S.C. 794(a). Titles II and III of the ADA make similar provisions for public services and public accommodations which public universities are required to follow. 42 U.S.C. 12132 and 12182(a). The ADA defines discrimination to include "a failure to make reasonable modifications in policies, practices or procedures, wh en such modifications are necessary to afford . . . services . . . to individuals with disabilities unless the entity can demonstrate that making such modifications would fundamentally alter the nature of the . . . services." 42 U.S.C. 12182(b)(2)(A)(ii). Universities are obligated to provide reasonable accommodations. In deciding to maintain the integrity of university curriculum and apply it evenly throughout, a balancing test is required. Clearly starting point for examining whether a course substitution or alteration is a reasonable academic adjustment starts with the Supreme Court's pronounced interpretation that "Section 504 imposes no requirement upon an educational institution to lower or to effect substantial modifications of standards to accommodate a handicapped person." Southeastern Community College v. Davis, 442 U.S. 397, 413 (1979). The Southeastern court found that there is a line between alteration and accommodation. It found that being excused from taking the clini cal part of the nursing program was an unacceptable accommodation and that Southeastern did not have to make that accommodation to a hearing impaired individual. It is against this backdrop that all colleges and universities should base their own academic policies in regards to accommodation but the decision should be made by an knowledgeable committee. 2. After reviewing the court's opinion in Guckenberger II, how would you advise the head of the office of disability services with respect to balancing the institution's concern for upholding academic standards with the requirements of the ADA and Section 504 The head of of the office of disability services would be advised by legal counsel that the university is required to make modifications only to "known" and validated disabilities. Thus, the university should require that it be put on reasonable notice of the request for modification (34 CFR 104.44) (Attorney, 2009). The request for modification should be submitted in writing to the Office of Disability Support Services. From there the university should make efforts to accommodate reasonable modifications in policies, practices, or procedures when the modifications are necessary. Modifications are deemed necessary when and if they "ensure that no

Policy Brief Writing Assignment TOPIC Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Policy Brief Writing Assignment TOPIC - Essay Example report, I want to review the research that has been conducted on the causes of crime by children and the effects of children in correctional facilities been allowed to spend time with their mothers. This will help the State of Florida’s criminal justice systems in formulating the right policies that will aid in reducing children crime rate and enhance the impact of correctional facility programs on child criminals. The audience is composed of the governor who is a politician and policy makers who are mainly lawyers, administrators of correctional facilities, parents’ representatives, and interested parties. This audience understands the main goal of CCJ 4497 policy project. Hence, the audience should be addressed using PowerPoint presentations that illustrate and explain in point form the main points of the report. The audience is looking for an explanation and reasons as to why certain measures should be undertaken. It wants to be convinced on what is the best way

Shold gun be legal or illegal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Shold gun be legal or illegal - Essay Example ties, global warming, health care, gay marriage, stem cell research and many other politically motivating subjects have ignited emotional ideological battles. Gun ownership ranks high among these political ideologies and to attempt to ban all guns would make these feelings even stronger. To make the case for upholding the widely perceived ‘right’ to bear arms by allowing rifles and shotguns of a certain length while banning handguns and assault rifles seems the sensible solution and a fight that could be won. This tactic has proven effective in other countries such as Britain and many other European nations. Those countries that ban handgun use have a much lower homicide rate than does the U.S. (Reynolds, Caruth, 1992). The concept that the easy access to firearms has an important impact on the homicide rates in this country is supported by the preponderance of the evidence. Nearly two thirds of all homicides taking place in the United States involve a firearm. Yet, chan ges in handgun laws were seen to have little to no impact on crime rates. This is not surprising based on fact that most violent criminals do not obtain their firearms through licensed sources (Wright & Rossi, 1994). Other programs, such as gun buy-back programs have been proven to be similarly ineffective for a variety of reasons including intention for use, ease of replacement and probability of use for crime. Earlier gun control policies enacted in 1976 and 1982 had similar disappointing results. Concealed weapons laws have actually been shown to have a positive effect on crime rates, that is, they contribute to an escalation in crime (Loftin, McDowall, Weirsema and Cottey, 1991). Laws that attempt to control handgun ownership for law-abiding citizens do not work and have been shown to actually... Gun enthusiasts, as they are politely referred, mimic the concept that more guns will lead to less violence, that if everyone were carrying a gun, criminals would be too scared to commit crimes. The more is less philosophy. This doesn’t square with reasonable logic or the facts. â€Å"Whenever you have more guns in a society, you’re going to have more gun violence, period†. The State of Texas is known, quite deservedly, as having an open policy regarding guns. Texas citizens are allowed to carry concealed handguns once completing licensing requirements. Then Governor, George W. Bush signed a law that specifically permits Texans to carry guns in church, the most sacredly peaceful of all places. In 2002, the Violence Policy Center conducted a study regarding concealed guns in Texas and found that, among other disturbing revelations, from 1996 to 2001, â€Å"concealed handgun license holders in Texas were arrested for weapon-related offenses at a rate 81 percent hi gher than that of the state’s general population aged 21 and older†. Lawmakers in Texas responded immediately to this situation by passing legislation that forbids the release of gun-related information.

Benefits and limitation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Benefits and limitation - Essay Example It is worth to note that health information system adoption constitutes benefits and limitations towards planning and implementation of hand hygiene compliance re-education program (Peter, 2010). Some of the benefits include health information system’s ability to enables access to comprehensive, legible, and organized patient data and reference literature at the point of healthcare service. This boosts compliance of the nurse as far as hand cleaning compliance is concerned. Health information system constitutes networked computers that are located in each exam room and physician’s office; a provider can also access data over the Internet which is effective in promoting re-education program. The main limitation concerns set-up and training. The time to set up and learn to use a system is often a challenge. However, users share common lists, data entry templates and text macros to decrease start-up time for users. This means that much time should be allocated at the beginning of the re-education program so that the nurses can master how to use the health information system. The planning must also constitute extensive outlay of the training shifts and adjustable time frame that allow for smooth transition from the paper charts to health information system (Carroll, 2009). The overall goal of adopting health information system is to improve on the compliance on hand hygiene which is the main cause of hospital acquired infections. Time is the central resource that will be taken into consideration when implementing the adoption of health information system (Peter, 2010). In the acute setting, the patient requires immediate attention and this puts significant pressure on the nurse. In this regard, it is appropriate to allocate much time in training the healthcare providers on how to apply health information system in hand hygiene compliance so that once they assigned a patient in ambulatory condition, it would be easy to work. Availability of