Tom of Maine Essay Example

do everything in their company for the good of the environment. 3. What are the biggest threats that Tom’s faces in its new life within Colgate’s global corporate structure, and especially with respect to maintaining what Tom and Kate call “the character, spirit and values of our company? ” It would most definitely be the “internal environment” or the leadership principles of the new people coming in.

Despite the fact that Tom and Kate maintained a percentage of the company’s stocks and Tom remained the CEO of the company, being in a bigger corporation somehow changes the perspective, attitude and expectations of not just Tom’s of Maine’s employees but also the big bosses of Colgate. There would have to be a shift in profitability expectations. Also, the working habits of the employees of Tom’s might change. Colgate, being a global company, is probably looking at higher profitability due to their recent acquisition of Tom’s.

They have a certain right to “meddle” with how the company is going to be operated. If Tom and Colgate would eventually not agree on how the principles would still be applied while not sacrificing the profitability of the products that might just be the cause of the conflicts. 4. Further research: Find news items reporting on what has happened at Tom’s of Maine since being purchased by Colgate. Has the firm been able to operate with the ethics and independence that Tom and Kate had hoped for? Is the company starting to lose its way now that it’s part of a global corporate giant?

Yes, Tom’s still remained true to its company’s principles. Though it was stipulated in the contract that Colgate would

respect and maintain the different business approach of Tom’s the different work habits and culture of both Colgate and Tom’s might be the cause of the conflicts in the future. To remain true to their advocacies and to make sure that Colgate’s majority in stocks won’t change what Tom and Kate stood for, Tom’s of Maines had been coming up with various campaigns in relation with corporate social responsibility.

They’ve been using these powerful campaigns to maintain their culture and principles. An example is the online voting of on Social Responsibility Initiatives. This is a good way of getting people, which could be or might not be direct buyers of their products, to join their cause. It is also evident in Tom and Kate’s another business “Ramblers Way Farm” that they value sustainability in their business. Ramblers Way is the new business venture of Tom and Kate, creating soft, comfortable next-to-skin worsted wool apparel entirely on American soil.

Source: http://danielsuchenski. blogspot. com/2011/07/toms-of-maine-business-as-usual-or-csr. html http://www. justmeans. com/Tom-s-of-Maine-Invites-Public-Vote-on-Social-Responsibility-Initiative/49027. html http://www. ramblersway. com LOCAL COMPARISON: COMPANY NAME: LAMOIYAN CORPORATION Lamoiyan Corporation is the local counterpart of Tom’s of Maines. Just like how Tom’s of Maines remained true to its advocacies, Lamoiyan, since its inception, was dedicated to help people who are hearing-impaired.

They also engage in various activities that would help enhance the emotional and spiritual growth of their employees. Source: http://www. lamoiyan. com/ CASE: Zara International: Fashion at the Speed of Light Questions: 1. In what ways are elements of the classical management approaches evident at Zara International? Zara International completely inhibits elements of Classical Management Approaches. Scientific Management for example exemplifies under its four guiding principles that the management

must “Carefully select workers with the right abilities for the job. (Schermerhorn, Introduction to Management 2010) Zara’s secret to having fresh clothes right inside their stores is that there are selected workers who are assigned and are capable of determining whether a certain piece of clothing is hot in the market or not. The whole process of manufacturing, delivering, selling and redesigning of the clothes in Zara International is a science. Every process is clear and every function is delivered. Another noticeable element is Control, which is under the Administrative principles.

When Zara’ sales reports are received they immediately rake corrective actions to the designs that did not make enough sales in the market. The designers would immediately make new products to be sold to the outlets. Though there are a couple of hits and misses in the designs when it comes to Sales, Zara is always able to cover up their losses by coming out with fresh ideas and designs. Since the styles or designs are coming out fresh from the designers so fast, patrons of the store are on a shopping spree demand to buy the clothes they want because those clothes might not be available next time.

The “scarcity” strategy of Zara keeps their buyers hungry and craving for more. 2. What elements of the behavioral management approaches are being used by Zara’s management team? Zara International also exhibits behavioral management approach. Such is McGregor’s Theory Y. In Theory Y, the management assumes that people are willing to work, capable of self-control, willing to accept responsibility, imaginative and creative and capable of self-direction. (Schermerhorn, 2010) The management of Zara believes in its employees’ capability

of fulfilling their clear roles and being talented enough to design new clothes as fast as possible.

With the company’s success due to its processes, workers of Zara are committed to do their work as fast as they can. When the company grows in profit, employees also feel the success of the company. CASE: Panera Bread Company: Staying Ahead of Long-Term Trends Question: Choose one of the five general environment conditions- economic, legal-political, sociocultural, technological, or natural environment-and describe its significance to Panera Bread’s top management. How have recent changes to this condition affected Panera and how might they impact its future business? Economic Conditions

Panera’s strength is its ability to determine how the their loyal customer’s behave. What are their characteristics? What are their likes and dislikes? How do they spend? They adjust or cater their products based on what would satisfy their customers. One example was when they answered the trend of Americans eating anything that is organic through their Panera Kids menu, which consists of the all-natural and organic foods. When the issue of the trans fat started to worry their customer’s Panera answered this concern by doing their best o remove trans fats from its menu.

With Panera’s consciousness of their customer’s trends in eating, Panera will surely come a long way with its versatility in menu. Just like Panera, Zara International is also conscious of its customer’s styles. In this way, they come out with fresh clothes quickly. Zara knows that their customers crave for what’s in in fashion and of their customer’s buying power of the hottest trends in fashion. The more clothes they release from their stores the more they have

a chance of making sales.