Human resource development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Human resource development - Essay Example ACC, a Danish company, experimented with a new type of training that was designed to create adult learning associated with the production of a learning organization Initially, the attitudes about the project were quite favourable, however upon launch, participants chosen for the activity found it to be without much merit. This was due to poor communication about the nature of the project, less autonomy and shared decision-making, and the fact that the organisation remained static and would not be changing. This project recommends that there be a new system of training for creating a positive attitude for a learning organisation that include better preliminary communications and also with margin for organisational flexibility. Article overview The article selected for review, â€Å"The learning organization: an undelivered promise†, highlights the activities associated with a year-long training seminar targeting professional employees at a Danish organisation known as Administr ative Case Consideration (ACC). The purpose of the study was to identify the different training methods used to foster a new collaborative learning organisation in which managers could develop new skills as knowledge managers dedicated to promoting learning across the entire staff. The goal was to change employees whilst the organisation, itself, as well as its internal policies and processes, remained static and unchanging. The study’s methodology consisted of professionals being grouped into four work teams, with each portion of training for each team carried out over a three month period. Teams rotated throughout the entire year until the entire organisation had been through the programme. Direct observation by the researcher occurred, therefore validating results significantly as the researcher was able to both participate and interview those involved in the training sessions. Pre- and post-interviews were delivered to the training members to identify whether their attitu des about the training has changed after their three month session was completed. There were four models used in the training, including quality, communications, and generic principles associated with total quality management. The article informs the reader by identifying that such structures are oftentimes socially driven with frustrations caused by limited new skills development. It shows that adult learning is sometimes complex with radical social structures guiding its development and effectiveness, even when social dimensions are not the goal of creating a learning organisation. The advantages of this training were closer interpersonal relationships with colleagues, more so than embracing of the learning organisation concepts. Andragogic approach This study was andragogic in design as it facilitated learning with adult participants. In many ways, it was self-directing, oriented to provide meaningful insight surrounding current problems and tasks associated with ACC, and based o n trust and collaboration. These are necessary to facilitate andragogic learning effectively (Guldem 2009). Since the study did not involve youths, it was not pedagogic in nature and the basis of learning was geared around the elements of adult management and leadership necessary to achieve the goal of promoting a learning organisation. The learning was supposed to be intrinsically motivated, as the preliminary interviews had identified that the majority of participants were initially excited and interested about joining the training structure. However, considerable frustrations occurred in this andragogic effort that will be identified. The model of training used The model used was unique to the environment and activities associated with ACC, however were loosely based on John Dewey’s theory of learning. In this theory, the professionals â€Å"require a preparation to enable them to sense uncertain situations and act upon them by way of inquiry†

First-Time Buyers Essay Example for Free

First-Time Buyers Essay Housing is a common asset that most people regard as their biggest financial asset and the largest make-up of their wealth; the purchase of a house is usually one of the largest investments an individual will make, and therefore lower house prices may encourage more people to consider purchasing housing, serving as a more affordable investment. On the obvious side a fall in house prices will only encourage further demand for housing. A demand supply analysis will show that the falling prices should theoretically allow individuals who are considering buying a house but holding back due to fluctuations in prices finally take the jump onto the property ladder – falling prices provides an incentive for individuals to make this large investment, particularly as in the long term the value of housing may also increase depending on the state of the economy. While falling prices may indicate a slump in an economy, it provides an excellent chance for people who previously may have not been able to afford a purchase to do so. It is also important to take into account that housing is also a necessity in any part of the personal life cycle, and therefore any fall in prices will create an opportunity and incentive. It also does not necessarily mean that first-time buyers must look to make a large investment immediately; extract two suggests that lower prices may allow considerers to think of renting property as an early ‘alternative’, helping save up for a single cash deposit which would then in turn allow first-timers to climb onto the property ladder. However, as stated in extract two falling house prices does not necessarily indicate a good environment for contemplating investors to finally make the choice of investing; there are numerous other costs to consider such as the availability of mortgages, described as ‘dropping to its lowest level for more than a decade’. The lack of mortgages may in fact serve as a deterrent to first-time buyers, preventing them from climbing onto the property ladder as there are numerous other costs to consider. Extract two also states that lenders have refused to drop their interest rates in line with the governmental cuts, and once again this will only provide a disincentive to first-time buyers no matter how low the price of housing falls. Rising unemployment and cuts in the subsidies budget towards building affordable homes will also serve to undermine confidence in the housing market. While the governmental cut in subsidies towards funding new affordable homes may not have a direct impact on a first-time buyers decision, it is important to note that this policy will contribute to the level of confidence in the housing market, an example being lenders no longer willing to cut their interest rates following suit of the government doing so; the government is offering little support in the housing market and many are therefore not willing to take the risks. The people that will lose out from this ultimately are the first-time buyers who will be deterred from making such a large investment particularly if lenders and the government provide little confidence in this market. Therefore, while the fall in housing prices may incentivise first-time buyers to some degree overall it is likely to only have a limited effect, as many buyers will still be put off by the inability to receive mortgages as well as the other numerous financial costs involved.

Customer Satisfaction in the Indian Petroleum Industry

Customer Satisfaction in the Indian Petroleum Industry Determination of elements of customer satisfaction in delivering fuel through retail outlets on highways and in suburban areas Introduction The Indian Petroleum Industry The Indian petroleum Industry started way back in the end of the 19th century, with the discovery of petroleum in Digboi Assam .The industry was initially opened for international players and global oil majors such as Caltex, Esso and Burmah Shell. However after 1970s, the Indian division of the international companies was nationalized by government of India and the industry became strictly regulate din the country. The government nationalized the refining and marketing sectors and subsequently introduced regulatory controls on the production, import and distribution and pricing of crude oil and petroleum products by establishing the Oil coordination Committee (OCC). Through the OCC, the government administered the prices of petroleum products after establishing a complex oil pool account system. Producers, refiners and marketers were compensated for operating cost and were also assured of a fair return on their assets through the Administered Price Mechanism (APM). During this period, government controlled entities accounted for 90% of the market share. Major players like IOC, BPCL and HPCL dominated the market in the downstream sector, while the upstream sector was dominated by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and Oil India claiming approximately 84% of the share of the total market. After the liberalization of the Indian economy, the industry witnessed some fundamental changes. The policy makers realized that APM will no longer be working successfully as it had in the past and the sector will have to be opened completely. Thus the government initiated the process of deregulation in 1995, whereas APM was replaced by Market Determined Price Mechanism (MDPM).With the introduction of MDMP and deregulation of the marketing and refining sectors, the industry was opened completely for private and foreign participation. The government allowed four companies Reliance Petroleum, ONGC, Essar and Numaligarh Refineries to market petroleum products through their retail outlets. During the APM regime, public sector companies ‘owned the mark et and hence they never felt the need to pay attention towards brand building and customer loyalty. Branding initiatives were limited to lubricant market only. With the entry of these new players, competition intensified and posed a serious threat for the existing players. This lead to change in the way oil marketing companies looked at the fuel retail business. This was the time when all players started understanding the fact that fuel products has to be moved from commodity-convenience purchase behaviour to service-customer loyalty quadrant. This will initiate cross selling and thus leading to increase in per square feet revenue from retail space. This increased the players effort towards branding and Non Fuel Revenue initiatives. Fuel Retailing in Indian Petroleum Industry Fuel retail business in India has undergone a huge change from a fully regulated market to semi regulated market. Till 2002 the sector was completely under government control. During all these years, the marketing function of organisations received the least importance. Distribution was the only marketing function. The market was sellers market. The customers had no option other than to buy products from public sector oil companies. The entry private players in the market have brought in options for customers and the concept of customer service has evolved in fuel retail business. At present there are nearly 34000 PSU fuel retail outlets spread across India. There are around 3000 fuel retail outlets by private players. The brand war is spreading to petrol pump stations. The players are becoming more customers centric and once the market becomes fully deregulated in coming years with number of players becoming double of present, the competition on price will die and the competition will be to gain customer loyalty by providing different services to customer. Thus it becomes important to know the hierarchical level of services which need to be provided to achieve customer satisfaction and gain customer loyalty. The study by Kumar Sahay(2004) says that the behaviour of customer at fuel retail outlets on highways is to park the vehicle and relax, which is very different from behaviour on outlets within urban limits. Thus it becomes evident from the above that fuel retail business in India can divided into two types, which are â€Å"Fuel Retail Business with in Urban Limits† and â€Å"Fuel Retail Business on Highways and Suburbs†. The hierarchical level discussed above is dependent upon type of fuel retail business the player is operating in. This demarcation into two businesses happens due to the difference in the customer behaviour while travelling with in urban limits and on highways. There are many researches done on highway travellers and their expectation and preferences of services on fuel stations, but these are geography specific and nothing has been done in the Indian context. The determination of hierarchical level of services at fuel stations till date is confined to urban limits only. The customer behaviour and expectations on outlets situated on highways and suburbs are different from customer segments visiting outlets with in urban limits. This research aims at finding different services at fuel retail outlets on highways and in suburban areas other than refuelling which will help in creating loyal customers. Also there can be number of services, but which are more important for particular outlet always remains a question. The research also aims to find relationship between the location of outlets to the kind of services required in order to build a decision making process model to select important added services with an objective of increasing per squ are feet revenue from the real state space and development of customer loyalty. Literature review Fuel Retailing â€Å"Retailing is the set of activities that markets products or services to final consumers for their own personal or household use whereas Retailer is someone who cuts off or sheds a small piece from something† Before moving to Indian context it is important to create a parallel with western markets where fuel or gasoline retailing is in more developed stage in comparison to Indian fuel retailing. The fuel retailing in India has started to move from commodity to service from 2002 after the emergence of private and global players. But this phenomenon happened far before in US, European and Asia Pacific markets. Since 1960 there have been substantial changes in the structure of the petrol retailing industry of Europe and North America (Lowe J. , 1976)There was influx of new companies in UK market which were either independent or wholly owned subsidiaries of foreign giants. Lowe (1976) analyzed that after the influx of new firms in UK, the price competition became fierce and all the new companies tried different things to differentiate and gain customer loyalty. The fuel or gasoline retail structure in US had full service gasoline stations. The full service gasoline station was the one that offered minor services and repairs, where wind shield was cleaned, where credit was offered and where rest rooms were available (Mitchell 1980). Mitchell(1980) also stated that these services were sold as a part of a package along with the gasoline itself and was done entirely with the objective of building a long term relationship between the service station and the customer. The companies in the western countries started looking for various services which can supplement their gasoline sales in the event of increased competition. One of the most popular additions of service was car wash, which proved to be a successful strategy in selling tremendous volumes of gasoline. This made customers to come for car wash and also get their vehicles refuelled. ‘A dealer in Dallas, estimated that more than half of his anticipated $ 700,000 sales would come from an automated car wash. What more he claimed that the presence of car wash boosted his gasoline sales to an annual rate more than 1,000,00 gallons from 680,000 gallons three before that.( Steele 1966) Steele (1966) also predicted that as time passes by more and more gasoline stations will turn into large service centres offering a combination of gasoline, car wash, tire and battery service, restaurant and so on. Thus the future will be a complete one stop solution. This can hold true in Indian context also, but the bouquet of services will be definitely very different from outlets in developed markets. The bouquet will be entirely different depending upon the different customer requirements and purchasing power. Mitchell (1980) also predicted the movement of gasoline stations from independent full service stations to company owned self service gasoline stations. The reason stated was the pressure of margins and aim to drive customer loyalty by providing customers with a large service bouquet at gasoline station with in the same margin. This can also be seen happening in Indian context with Indian Oil Corporation being the first among all PSUs moving towards company owned outlets to increase service standards at their pumps and recently Shell entering into Indian market with company owned outlets. The conceptual model (Brown Ingene 1987) on fuel or gasoline retail structure in US explains the influence of demographic environmental characteristics on marketing mix offerings. The model also explained the influence of location of the outlet on demographic, environmental, and marketing mix characteristics. The research by Brown and Ingene (1987) demonstrated that while defining marketing mix elements for fuel and gasoline retailing it becomes important to consider the impact of demographic and environmental characteristics. The major changes started to happen in fuel retailing and fuel stations started to move towards differentiating themselves due to increase in competition. This was the development of forecourt retailing phenomenon at gasoline stations in western markets. The major changes occurred with petrol forecourt retailing where transition of fuel stations within a contextual framework happened. They had sought differentiation in the face of increased competition. One strategy undertaken was to develop a convenience store format to supplement fuel sales (Denning Freathy 1996). A clear analogy can be drawn for Indian fuel retail also, where with emergence of many private players to tap the biggest consumer market, the players or fuel companies will have to try and do something to differentiate themselves. As the competition grew the fuel retailers faced more and more pressure on profits and it became important for them to generate loyal customers and increase the ticket sales value of loyal customers at the fuel outlet. They move to others forms of revenue generation. The objective was to compensate for erosion with alternative forms of profit generation. The issue for the petrol retailers has been to identify ways of adding value to their operation in the face of these competitive threats. One of the main methods of achieving this has been through forecourt shop. Many petrol retailers have attempted to reduce the risk posed by petrol price fluctuation by expanding the facilities at their outlets. (Keynote, 1993) Denning and Freathy (1996) established that different customer segments depending upon their income levels and profession purchased different products from convenience stores at petrol stations. This indicates that determination major visiting customer segment becomes important at any fuel retail outlet. The product mix at any fuel retail outlet is also dependent upon purchasing power of the customer segments at that outlet. The exact form that the formats have taken has varied by operator location and site type. This is a reflection of the fact that the convenience store does not necessarily follow a single set pattern. The limited space available within each unit, it is possible that services take priority over other categories of goods.(Denning Freathy 1996) An important feature to note here is that, the development of fuel stations did not happen only in areas with in urban limits. The development of interstate highways and urban express ways had made many fuel stations obsolete in western world. This made many oil companies to build new facilities to meet the changing traffic patterns. More and more oil companies began to realize that former gas outlets of the conventional style were no longer getting customer visits. The primary objective of service bouquet is to add to the convenience of the customer visiting the outlet. Convenience is especially important in attracting repeat customers. It becomes fairly important to understand what adds to customer convenience and what not. Convenience results from various factors such as site size, site plan, traffic impacts and parking (Smalley 1996). The factors are not limited to the ones stated above; the factors vary with different geographies and markets. Fuel retail business is of two types one with retail outlets with in urban limits and other with retail outlets on highways and suburbs. The behaviour of the customer is very different at these two different types of business. The marketer likewise faces a distinct business environment to which marketing strategy must be adapted. The Highway market is not necessarily different from traditional markets because objectives remain the same. It is unique, however, because new approaches are needed to achieve the objectives.(Beaton 2001) Interstate or highway motorists seek five basic services: gasoline, rest rooms, food, relaxation and lodging. Aside from the need for gasoline as the prime factor, marketers differ somewhat in their opinions as to the exact ordering of these needs as stopping power factors. (Beaton 2001) The development of new factors is prompting rapid growth of different services at fuel retail outlets at highways. Competition and changing travel patterns mean that to remain competitive the oil companies must meet the overall needs of the motorist at one stop. (Beaton Hall, 1968) For a fuel retail outlet on highways, petroleum companies apply the same criteria for building service bouquet as that of the outlets with in urban limits. This happens due to the profit criteria only as the main objective of existence of outlet instead of customer satisfaction. A good station site does not guarantee a good service station. Site and location factor analysis indicates what a particular fuel outlet should do. (Beaton Hall 1968) Fuel Retailing India Fuel retail business on highways is geography dependent; the above researchers have kept their study confined to more developed and liberalised markets than India. All those factors may be or may not be applied to Indian conditions. As the Indian fuel retail business becomes more deregulation, the customer expectations will start to rise. The variables like competitive market, promotional effort to attract customers by competitors, etc. raise the customer expectations and create customer gap. (Kumar Sahay 2004) In India the study by Kumar Sahay, to find out the elements that determine customer satisfaction in delivering petrol/diesel through retail outlets is confined to fuel retail with in urban limits. The market survey was carried out in Delhi. Stratified non-probability sampling method was used for sample collection. The target population has been defined as: The people who drive ‘Cars / jeeps or ‘Motorcycles/scooters or ‘Buses or ‘Goods vehicles on the roads of Delhi (state)†. (Kumar Sahay 2004) Through cluster analysis the initially found segments reduced to three segments and customer expectations level for various services determined. This has lead to development of hierarchical levels of services for different segments and a conclusion that a player offering all the six levels of services will be able to bridge gap between customer expectations and services offered. These levels of expectations, if met successfully, create â€Å"wow† effect and customer would indulge in word-of-mouth communication. Word-of-mouth communication is the most powerful tool for creating customer base. Not only the existing customers are retained but also they bring-in new customers to outlets. Prospects with continued satisfaction with the products and services become advocates. Such customers start singing marketers song and begin to praise. (Kumar Sahay 2004) Fuel and Non Fuel retailing Initiatives by Indian Oil Marketing Companies The three major players in the domain of oil marketing companies in India are PSUs namely BPCL, HPCL and IOC enjoying majority share. Rest of the pie is served by private players like Reliance, Essar and Shell. All the three PSUs have taken initiatives to add non fuel revenues and build customer loyalty. These initiatives had been taken on outlets both within urban limits and also on outlets on highways and suburbs. The reason behind all the initiatives had been to gain customer loyalty and thus increase customer satisfaction. http://www.icmrindia.org/free%20resources/casestudies/BPCL.htm Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) is one of the largest public sector undertakings in India, with the Government of India having a more than 50% shareholding in the company as of 31 March 2008 (Euromonitor International, April 2009). BPCL is engaged in the refining and retailing of petroleum and petroleum products, with around 8,251 retail outlets. By December 2008, around 400 of these outlets had an organised convenience store attached, branded as In Out, with an aggregate retailing space of 18,600 sq m. BPCLs key strategy to increase revenues from the In Out outlets has been to expand the basket of products and services offered through the outlets. Apart from offering packaged food, soft and hot drinks, cosmetics and toiletries, household care items and consumer foodservice, BPCL has also tried to add other additional services at the outlets over the years to add to the customer satisfaction levels. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) is planning to grow its non-fuel retail business by expanding its fuel retail network, with sufficient size to emphasise non-fuel offerings, and enlarge the portfolio of non-fuel offerings in its outlets located at highways and urban locations, with a focus on food, shopping and entertainment in these outlets. It will also increase consumer services for example, through its recent tie-up with an agency for international money transfer services at its existing urban outlets. During the forecast period, BPCL proposes to invest Rs 6 billion to expand its retail network. The outlets will be built mainly on national highways and at urban locations, and will offer mobile consumers high quality food, and also provide them with access to entertainment through an on-site multiplex screen. BPCL has tied up with Cinemata, a film distribution unit of Sony Entertainment Television, to establish cinema halls at its fuel outlets on highways across the country by 2010. In order to expand its range of services, In Out launched an e-traveller facility at its forecourt retail outlets. The facility enables consumers to book rail, airline and bus tickets, as well as hotel accommodation, and is available in 37 stores. BPCL is working on Phase II of the deployment of this service, when it will make it available in an additional 100 stores. Revenues from the e-traveller facility were around Rs15 million in 2007/2008; its first full year of operation, with sales of 7,782 tickets (Euromonitor International, April 2009). To provide added convenience services to its customers close to their homes, BPCL has signed a memorandum of understanding with Money Gram Internationals agent Airwings Services, to offer international money transfer service in India from its selected In Out outlets. Meanwhile, its alliance initiative with Western Union Money Transfer saw the In Out network record 36,677 transactions in the year ending March 2008, with a turnover of Rs 699 million, an increase of 26% over the previous year. (Euromonitor International, April 2009) BPCLs quick service restaurant sales through its alliance network partners McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Cafà © Coffee Day, Subway, Nirulas and other foodservice brands grew by 40% to Rs 249 million in the year ending March 2008. BPCLs outlets on highways are branded as Ghar Dhaba, and represent the companys foray into food. BPCL has developed a concept covering theme design, kitchen layout and menu planning, and established the standard operating processes for the outlets in-house. As of March 2008, it had 21 Ghar Dhaba outlets in operation, with total sales of Rs23 million. Developed on a large area of three to five acres (12,000-20,000sq m), these outlets provide the requisite space to allow BPCL to experiment with a multiplex cinema for stop-over entertainment (Business Standard, Sep 2007). http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bpcl-to-mix-moviesoil-at-pumps/297583/ If the concept is successful, the company will roll this out in more Ghar Dhaba outlets. The multiplex screens, especially in outlets located on highways, will also serve a social purpose for nearby rural consumers. BPCL plans to screen social awareness, health and literacy content in these multiplexes for rural audiences. The majority of the products through the In Out outlets are manufactured by third parties. However, BPCL proposes to offer its own brand of bottled water at the outlets, where the water will be a by-product of its captive power plant, based on hydrogen fuel cell technology. Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) was the leading forecourt retailer in India in 2008, with 400 outlets. The company added 17 outlets to the total in that year. Rather than expanding rapidly, BPCL has focused on ensuring that its outlets are profitable, and also on adding additional services to its existing outlets. In 2008, sales revenues of BPCLs non-fuel retail arm, Allied Retail Business (ARB), grew by 32%, to Rs2,089 million, making it the largest non-fuel revenue generator in the oil industry. During the year, In Outs sales revenues grew by 41%, to Rs 1092 million. 15 of the In Out outlets achieved average sales of Rs1 million per month, compared to eight in the previous year. This is clear indication of the fact that now oil marketing companies are understanding the importance of non fuel retail revenue initiatives and also working over it not only for outlets with in urban limits but also for outlets on highways. But as discussed the scientific framework to decide what to offer still remains a mystery, as all the efforts for highway fuel retail outlets have been o trial and error basis. Source: Euromonitor International from trade press Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) HPCL is a Fortune 500 Company, with an annual turnover of over Rs 74044 Crores, a 20% refining and marketing share in India and a strong market infrastructure. (Euromonitor International, July 2007) The corporation operates two major refineries, producing a wide variety of petroleum fuels and specialities, one in Mumbai (West Coast) with a 5.5 MMTPA capacity and the other in Vishakapatnam (East Coast) with a capacity of 7.5 MMTPA (Oil Gas, IBEF Report Sep 2009) HPCL holds an equity stake of 16.95% in Mangalore Refinery Petrochemicals Limited, a state-of-the-art refinery at Mangalore with a capacity of 9 MMTPA. In addition, HPCL is progressing towards the setting up of a refinery in the state of Punjab. HPCL also owns and operates the largest lube refinery in the country, producing lube base oils to international standards. With a capacity of 335,000 metric tonnes this lube refinery accounts for over 40% of the countrys total lube base oil production. The vast marketing network of the corporation consists of zonal offices in the four metro cities and 85 regional offices facilitated by a supply and distribution infrastructure comprising terminals, aviation service stations, bottling plants, and inland relay depots and retail outlets. The Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) focus is on providing broader services to its customers with an experience that is unmatched. Through its retail channels, HPCL offers a nationwide chain of convenience stores, has forged tie-ups with leading fast food and refreshment companies to set up food counters, a special arrangement with FedEx to provide a world class courier service, vehicle insurance and international money faster counters. The focus is on complete customer satisfaction and an experience that will make a customer drive in again and again to HPCL forecourt retailing and convenience stores. In 2006, the chain developed its forecourt operations substantially through a series of agreements with a number of prominent foodservice and retail players. HPCL is increasingly adopting a focus on loyalty, it has put in extra efforts and an aggressive marketing campaign to retain customer loyalty. It runs Indias largest loyalty programme and has products such as the HPCL credit card, HPCL debit card and I-mint loyalty programme. Another focus is on brand equity; HP has been investing in increasing its brand presence and has taken on brand ambassadors such as Sania Mirza and Narayan Karthikeyan to promote its different products. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) is a central government commercial enterprise engaged in the refinement and sale of crude oil. It also manufactures other petroleum products like LPG, lubricants, greases, petrochemicals and aviation turbine fuel. HPCL launched its Club HP forecourt retailing chain in 2001. From the beginning, the chain sought to offer other facilities besides selling petrol, diesel and other products. These include free vehicle checks, vehicle finance and insurance related services, bill payment services, HPCL-ICICI credit cards and loyalty programmes. (Euromonitor International, July 2007) Club HP outlets are classified as Standard, Mega and Max, depending on the services and amenities available. In its first phase of expansion, HPCL set up 85 Club HP outlets in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. Each of these outlets was converted at an estimated cost of between Rs1 and Rs3 million. It subsequently introduced its supermarket sub brand HP Speed mart, and developed its foodservice operations through an agreement with US Pizza. The success of this deal prompted HPCL to enter into similar agreements with players such as Cafà © Coffee Day (vending and foodservice), Dairy Den (ice cream parlours), Western Union (money transfer points) and Tata Motors (car care services) (Business Standard, Jan 2007). http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/fuel-stations-to-offer-one-stop-shopping/269785/ In order to improve its image among Indian consumers in terms of the quality of its fuel, during the review period the company launched the PCL Quality Assurance initiative under the Good Fuel Promise slogan. This involved the pioneering concept of mobile laboratories to carry out regular checks on fuel sold at Club HP outlets. It also entered into an agreement with the international agency Bureau Veritas to conduct a surveillance audit of Club HP Outlets. After having a market share of around 20-22% for a long time, recently it has improved its market position to number two, with a market share of close to 25% of the total service station market in India (Business Standard, April 2005). http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/fuel-stations-to-offer-one-stop-shopping/269785/ For most of the review period, Club HP played second fiddle to BPCLs In Out chain in terms of revenues from forecourt operations, although it garnered considerable brand awareness among consumers. A deal with US Pizza was expected to witness the opening of over 500 pizza and fast food delivery units at Club HP service station outlets across India between 2005 and 2007. Apna Bazaar Co-operative (a supermarket chain) is involved in a pilot project with HPCL to establish Apna Bazaar outlets at three Club HP outlets in Mumbai. If successful, the alliance will be extended to other Club HP outlets nationwide. This agreement will also enable Apna Bazaar to upgrade its image by targeting more upper and middle class consumers. http://www.hindustanpetroleum.com/En/UI/RetailClubHP.aspx While neither of these deals on their own are likely to have any major impact on constant value sales of impulse food and drink products through Club HP outlets, they will almost certainly benefit from the rise in consumer traffic that these foodservice and supermarket operations will entail. A loyalty card deal with low-cost airline Air Deccan should also ensure a higher volume of consumer traffic in Club HP outlets over the forecast period. Similarly, an agreement with Federal Express (FedEx) during the review period to open cargo collection centres at various Club HP outlets should continue to attract consumers between 2005 and 2010. FedEx is slowly gaining a reputation in India as a reliable cargo delivery agent; in 2005, there were FedEx cargo collection centres at HP outlets in eight major Indian cities. Source: Euromonitor International from trade press Reliance Petroleum Reliance Petroleum is aggressively targeting the service station channel, planning a pan-Indian presence over the next couple of years in cities as well as on main roads. The biggest challenge it faces is in terms of return on investment and whether it is a wise move to invest so heavily in forecourt retailing in India, which is still relatively underdeveloped. With Reliances strong presence across India, food and beverage manufacturers can aim to push major volumes through Reliance service stations. Reliance Petroleum Limited (RPL) is a subsidiary of Indias largest private group Reliance Industries Ltd. RPL was set up to harness an emerging value creation opportunity in the global refining sector and currently RPL is a 75% owned subsidiary of RIL. RPL also benefits from a strategic alliance with Chevron India Holdings Pte Limited, Singapore, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chevron Corporation USA (Chevron), which currently holds a 5% equity stake in the company. RPL was formed to set up a Greenfield petroleum refinery and polypropylene plant in the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Jamnagar in Gujarat. This global sized, highly complex refinery is being located adjacent to RILs existing refinery and petrochemicals complex, which is amongst the largest and most efficient in the world, thus offering significant synergies. With an annual crude processing capacity of 580,000 barrels per stream day (BPSD), RPL will be the sixth largest refinery in the world. It will have a complexity of 14.0, using the Nelson Complexity Index, ranking it among the highest in the sector. The polypropylene plant will have a capacity to produce 0.9 million metric tonnes per annum. (Euromonitor International, July 2008) With its Reliance A1 Plaza chain, Reliance aims to provide consumers with a wide choice of products in convenient locations. The company had planned to open more than a 1,000 service stations in the next 2-3 years, so it was clearly targeting leadership in the petroleum retailing segment. But during economic crisis and with high crude rates, Reliance had shut their outlets as serving fuel at comparative prices was becoming non-profit making business for them. Shell India Marketing Private Limited Shell India Marketing Private Limited (SIMPL) is a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell and the first multinational corporation to obtain government approval to open 2,000 servic Customer Satisfaction in the Indian Petroleum Industry Customer Satisfaction in the Indian Petroleum Industry Determination of elements of customer satisfaction in delivering fuel through retail outlets on highways and in suburban areas Introduction The Indian Petroleum Industry The Indian petroleum Industry started way back in the end of the 19th century, with the discovery of petroleum in Digboi Assam .The industry was initially opened for international players and global oil majors such as Caltex, Esso and Burmah Shell. However after 1970s, the Indian division of the international companies was nationalized by government of India and the industry became strictly regulate din the country. The government nationalized the refining and marketing sectors and subsequently introduced regulatory controls on the production, import and distribution and pricing of crude oil and petroleum products by establishing the Oil coordination Committee (OCC). Through the OCC, the government administered the prices of petroleum products after establishing a complex oil pool account system. Producers, refiners and marketers were compensated for operating cost and were also assured of a fair return on their assets through the Administered Price Mechanism (APM). During this period, government controlled entities accounted for 90% of the market share. Major players like IOC, BPCL and HPCL dominated the market in the downstream sector, while the upstream sector was dominated by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and Oil India claiming approximately 84% of the share of the total market. After the liberalization of the Indian economy, the industry witnessed some fundamental changes. The policy makers realized that APM will no longer be working successfully as it had in the past and the sector will have to be opened completely. Thus the government initiated the process of deregulation in 1995, whereas APM was replaced by Market Determined Price Mechanism (MDPM).With the introduction of MDMP and deregulation of the marketing and refining sectors, the industry was opened completely for private and foreign participation. The government allowed four companies Reliance Petroleum, ONGC, Essar and Numaligarh Refineries to market petroleum products through their retail outlets. During the APM regime, public sector companies ‘owned the mark et and hence they never felt the need to pay attention towards brand building and customer loyalty. Branding initiatives were limited to lubricant market only. With the entry of these new players, competition intensified and posed a serious threat for the existing players. This lead to change in the way oil marketing companies looked at the fuel retail business. This was the time when all players started understanding the fact that fuel products has to be moved from commodity-convenience purchase behaviour to service-customer loyalty quadrant. This will initiate cross selling and thus leading to increase in per square feet revenue from retail space. This increased the players effort towards branding and Non Fuel Revenue initiatives. Fuel Retailing in Indian Petroleum Industry Fuel retail business in India has undergone a huge change from a fully regulated market to semi regulated market. Till 2002 the sector was completely under government control. During all these years, the marketing function of organisations received the least importance. Distribution was the only marketing function. The market was sellers market. The customers had no option other than to buy products from public sector oil companies. The entry private players in the market have brought in options for customers and the concept of customer service has evolved in fuel retail business. At present there are nearly 34000 PSU fuel retail outlets spread across India. There are around 3000 fuel retail outlets by private players. The brand war is spreading to petrol pump stations. The players are becoming more customers centric and once the market becomes fully deregulated in coming years with number of players becoming double of present, the competition on price will die and the competition will be to gain customer loyalty by providing different services to customer. Thus it becomes important to know the hierarchical level of services which need to be provided to achieve customer satisfaction and gain customer loyalty. The study by Kumar Sahay(2004) says that the behaviour of customer at fuel retail outlets on highways is to park the vehicle and relax, which is very different from behaviour on outlets within urban limits. Thus it becomes evident from the above that fuel retail business in India can divided into two types, which are â€Å"Fuel Retail Business with in Urban Limits† and â€Å"Fuel Retail Business on Highways and Suburbs†. The hierarchical level discussed above is dependent upon type of fuel retail business the player is operating in. This demarcation into two businesses happens due to the difference in the customer behaviour while travelling with in urban limits and on highways. There are many researches done on highway travellers and their expectation and preferences of services on fuel stations, but these are geography specific and nothing has been done in the Indian context. The determination of hierarchical level of services at fuel stations till date is confined to urban limits only. The customer behaviour and expectations on outlets situated on highways and suburbs are different from customer segments visiting outlets with in urban limits. This research aims at finding different services at fuel retail outlets on highways and in suburban areas other than refuelling which will help in creating loyal customers. Also there can be number of services, but which are more important for particular outlet always remains a question. The research also aims to find relationship between the location of outlets to the kind of services required in order to build a decision making process model to select important added services with an objective of increasing per squ are feet revenue from the real state space and development of customer loyalty. Literature review Fuel Retailing â€Å"Retailing is the set of activities that markets products or services to final consumers for their own personal or household use whereas Retailer is someone who cuts off or sheds a small piece from something† Before moving to Indian context it is important to create a parallel with western markets where fuel or gasoline retailing is in more developed stage in comparison to Indian fuel retailing. The fuel retailing in India has started to move from commodity to service from 2002 after the emergence of private and global players. But this phenomenon happened far before in US, European and Asia Pacific markets. Since 1960 there have been substantial changes in the structure of the petrol retailing industry of Europe and North America (Lowe J. , 1976)There was influx of new companies in UK market which were either independent or wholly owned subsidiaries of foreign giants. Lowe (1976) analyzed that after the influx of new firms in UK, the price competition became fierce and all the new companies tried different things to differentiate and gain customer loyalty. The fuel or gasoline retail structure in US had full service gasoline stations. The full service gasoline station was the one that offered minor services and repairs, where wind shield was cleaned, where credit was offered and where rest rooms were available (Mitchell 1980). Mitchell(1980) also stated that these services were sold as a part of a package along with the gasoline itself and was done entirely with the objective of building a long term relationship between the service station and the customer. The companies in the western countries started looking for various services which can supplement their gasoline sales in the event of increased competition. One of the most popular additions of service was car wash, which proved to be a successful strategy in selling tremendous volumes of gasoline. This made customers to come for car wash and also get their vehicles refuelled. ‘A dealer in Dallas, estimated that more than half of his anticipated $ 700,000 sales would come from an automated car wash. What more he claimed that the presence of car wash boosted his gasoline sales to an annual rate more than 1,000,00 gallons from 680,000 gallons three before that.( Steele 1966) Steele (1966) also predicted that as time passes by more and more gasoline stations will turn into large service centres offering a combination of gasoline, car wash, tire and battery service, restaurant and so on. Thus the future will be a complete one stop solution. This can hold true in Indian context also, but the bouquet of services will be definitely very different from outlets in developed markets. The bouquet will be entirely different depending upon the different customer requirements and purchasing power. Mitchell (1980) also predicted the movement of gasoline stations from independent full service stations to company owned self service gasoline stations. The reason stated was the pressure of margins and aim to drive customer loyalty by providing customers with a large service bouquet at gasoline station with in the same margin. This can also be seen happening in Indian context with Indian Oil Corporation being the first among all PSUs moving towards company owned outlets to increase service standards at their pumps and recently Shell entering into Indian market with company owned outlets. The conceptual model (Brown Ingene 1987) on fuel or gasoline retail structure in US explains the influence of demographic environmental characteristics on marketing mix offerings. The model also explained the influence of location of the outlet on demographic, environmental, and marketing mix characteristics. The research by Brown and Ingene (1987) demonstrated that while defining marketing mix elements for fuel and gasoline retailing it becomes important to consider the impact of demographic and environmental characteristics. The major changes started to happen in fuel retailing and fuel stations started to move towards differentiating themselves due to increase in competition. This was the development of forecourt retailing phenomenon at gasoline stations in western markets. The major changes occurred with petrol forecourt retailing where transition of fuel stations within a contextual framework happened. They had sought differentiation in the face of increased competition. One strategy undertaken was to develop a convenience store format to supplement fuel sales (Denning Freathy 1996). A clear analogy can be drawn for Indian fuel retail also, where with emergence of many private players to tap the biggest consumer market, the players or fuel companies will have to try and do something to differentiate themselves. As the competition grew the fuel retailers faced more and more pressure on profits and it became important for them to generate loyal customers and increase the ticket sales value of loyal customers at the fuel outlet. They move to others forms of revenue generation. The objective was to compensate for erosion with alternative forms of profit generation. The issue for the petrol retailers has been to identify ways of adding value to their operation in the face of these competitive threats. One of the main methods of achieving this has been through forecourt shop. Many petrol retailers have attempted to reduce the risk posed by petrol price fluctuation by expanding the facilities at their outlets. (Keynote, 1993) Denning and Freathy (1996) established that different customer segments depending upon their income levels and profession purchased different products from convenience stores at petrol stations. This indicates that determination major visiting customer segment becomes important at any fuel retail outlet. The product mix at any fuel retail outlet is also dependent upon purchasing power of the customer segments at that outlet. The exact form that the formats have taken has varied by operator location and site type. This is a reflection of the fact that the convenience store does not necessarily follow a single set pattern. The limited space available within each unit, it is possible that services take priority over other categories of goods.(Denning Freathy 1996) An important feature to note here is that, the development of fuel stations did not happen only in areas with in urban limits. The development of interstate highways and urban express ways had made many fuel stations obsolete in western world. This made many oil companies to build new facilities to meet the changing traffic patterns. More and more oil companies began to realize that former gas outlets of the conventional style were no longer getting customer visits. The primary objective of service bouquet is to add to the convenience of the customer visiting the outlet. Convenience is especially important in attracting repeat customers. It becomes fairly important to understand what adds to customer convenience and what not. Convenience results from various factors such as site size, site plan, traffic impacts and parking (Smalley 1996). The factors are not limited to the ones stated above; the factors vary with different geographies and markets. Fuel retail business is of two types one with retail outlets with in urban limits and other with retail outlets on highways and suburbs. The behaviour of the customer is very different at these two different types of business. The marketer likewise faces a distinct business environment to which marketing strategy must be adapted. The Highway market is not necessarily different from traditional markets because objectives remain the same. It is unique, however, because new approaches are needed to achieve the objectives.(Beaton 2001) Interstate or highway motorists seek five basic services: gasoline, rest rooms, food, relaxation and lodging. Aside from the need for gasoline as the prime factor, marketers differ somewhat in their opinions as to the exact ordering of these needs as stopping power factors. (Beaton 2001) The development of new factors is prompting rapid growth of different services at fuel retail outlets at highways. Competition and changing travel patterns mean that to remain competitive the oil companies must meet the overall needs of the motorist at one stop. (Beaton Hall, 1968) For a fuel retail outlet on highways, petroleum companies apply the same criteria for building service bouquet as that of the outlets with in urban limits. This happens due to the profit criteria only as the main objective of existence of outlet instead of customer satisfaction. A good station site does not guarantee a good service station. Site and location factor analysis indicates what a particular fuel outlet should do. (Beaton Hall 1968) Fuel Retailing India Fuel retail business on highways is geography dependent; the above researchers have kept their study confined to more developed and liberalised markets than India. All those factors may be or may not be applied to Indian conditions. As the Indian fuel retail business becomes more deregulation, the customer expectations will start to rise. The variables like competitive market, promotional effort to attract customers by competitors, etc. raise the customer expectations and create customer gap. (Kumar Sahay 2004) In India the study by Kumar Sahay, to find out the elements that determine customer satisfaction in delivering petrol/diesel through retail outlets is confined to fuel retail with in urban limits. The market survey was carried out in Delhi. Stratified non-probability sampling method was used for sample collection. The target population has been defined as: The people who drive ‘Cars / jeeps or ‘Motorcycles/scooters or ‘Buses or ‘Goods vehicles on the roads of Delhi (state)†. (Kumar Sahay 2004) Through cluster analysis the initially found segments reduced to three segments and customer expectations level for various services determined. This has lead to development of hierarchical levels of services for different segments and a conclusion that a player offering all the six levels of services will be able to bridge gap between customer expectations and services offered. These levels of expectations, if met successfully, create â€Å"wow† effect and customer would indulge in word-of-mouth communication. Word-of-mouth communication is the most powerful tool for creating customer base. Not only the existing customers are retained but also they bring-in new customers to outlets. Prospects with continued satisfaction with the products and services become advocates. Such customers start singing marketers song and begin to praise. (Kumar Sahay 2004) Fuel and Non Fuel retailing Initiatives by Indian Oil Marketing Companies The three major players in the domain of oil marketing companies in India are PSUs namely BPCL, HPCL and IOC enjoying majority share. Rest of the pie is served by private players like Reliance, Essar and Shell. All the three PSUs have taken initiatives to add non fuel revenues and build customer loyalty. These initiatives had been taken on outlets both within urban limits and also on outlets on highways and suburbs. The reason behind all the initiatives had been to gain customer loyalty and thus increase customer satisfaction. http://www.icmrindia.org/free%20resources/casestudies/BPCL.htm Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) is one of the largest public sector undertakings in India, with the Government of India having a more than 50% shareholding in the company as of 31 March 2008 (Euromonitor International, April 2009). BPCL is engaged in the refining and retailing of petroleum and petroleum products, with around 8,251 retail outlets. By December 2008, around 400 of these outlets had an organised convenience store attached, branded as In Out, with an aggregate retailing space of 18,600 sq m. BPCLs key strategy to increase revenues from the In Out outlets has been to expand the basket of products and services offered through the outlets. Apart from offering packaged food, soft and hot drinks, cosmetics and toiletries, household care items and consumer foodservice, BPCL has also tried to add other additional services at the outlets over the years to add to the customer satisfaction levels. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) is planning to grow its non-fuel retail business by expanding its fuel retail network, with sufficient size to emphasise non-fuel offerings, and enlarge the portfolio of non-fuel offerings in its outlets located at highways and urban locations, with a focus on food, shopping and entertainment in these outlets. It will also increase consumer services for example, through its recent tie-up with an agency for international money transfer services at its existing urban outlets. During the forecast period, BPCL proposes to invest Rs 6 billion to expand its retail network. The outlets will be built mainly on national highways and at urban locations, and will offer mobile consumers high quality food, and also provide them with access to entertainment through an on-site multiplex screen. BPCL has tied up with Cinemata, a film distribution unit of Sony Entertainment Television, to establish cinema halls at its fuel outlets on highways across the country by 2010. In order to expand its range of services, In Out launched an e-traveller facility at its forecourt retail outlets. The facility enables consumers to book rail, airline and bus tickets, as well as hotel accommodation, and is available in 37 stores. BPCL is working on Phase II of the deployment of this service, when it will make it available in an additional 100 stores. Revenues from the e-traveller facility were around Rs15 million in 2007/2008; its first full year of operation, with sales of 7,782 tickets (Euromonitor International, April 2009). To provide added convenience services to its customers close to their homes, BPCL has signed a memorandum of understanding with Money Gram Internationals agent Airwings Services, to offer international money transfer service in India from its selected In Out outlets. Meanwhile, its alliance initiative with Western Union Money Transfer saw the In Out network record 36,677 transactions in the year ending March 2008, with a turnover of Rs 699 million, an increase of 26% over the previous year. (Euromonitor International, April 2009) BPCLs quick service restaurant sales through its alliance network partners McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Cafà © Coffee Day, Subway, Nirulas and other foodservice brands grew by 40% to Rs 249 million in the year ending March 2008. BPCLs outlets on highways are branded as Ghar Dhaba, and represent the companys foray into food. BPCL has developed a concept covering theme design, kitchen layout and menu planning, and established the standard operating processes for the outlets in-house. As of March 2008, it had 21 Ghar Dhaba outlets in operation, with total sales of Rs23 million. Developed on a large area of three to five acres (12,000-20,000sq m), these outlets provide the requisite space to allow BPCL to experiment with a multiplex cinema for stop-over entertainment (Business Standard, Sep 2007). http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bpcl-to-mix-moviesoil-at-pumps/297583/ If the concept is successful, the company will roll this out in more Ghar Dhaba outlets. The multiplex screens, especially in outlets located on highways, will also serve a social purpose for nearby rural consumers. BPCL plans to screen social awareness, health and literacy content in these multiplexes for rural audiences. The majority of the products through the In Out outlets are manufactured by third parties. However, BPCL proposes to offer its own brand of bottled water at the outlets, where the water will be a by-product of its captive power plant, based on hydrogen fuel cell technology. Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) was the leading forecourt retailer in India in 2008, with 400 outlets. The company added 17 outlets to the total in that year. Rather than expanding rapidly, BPCL has focused on ensuring that its outlets are profitable, and also on adding additional services to its existing outlets. In 2008, sales revenues of BPCLs non-fuel retail arm, Allied Retail Business (ARB), grew by 32%, to Rs2,089 million, making it the largest non-fuel revenue generator in the oil industry. During the year, In Outs sales revenues grew by 41%, to Rs 1092 million. 15 of the In Out outlets achieved average sales of Rs1 million per month, compared to eight in the previous year. This is clear indication of the fact that now oil marketing companies are understanding the importance of non fuel retail revenue initiatives and also working over it not only for outlets with in urban limits but also for outlets on highways. But as discussed the scientific framework to decide what to offer still remains a mystery, as all the efforts for highway fuel retail outlets have been o trial and error basis. Source: Euromonitor International from trade press Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) HPCL is a Fortune 500 Company, with an annual turnover of over Rs 74044 Crores, a 20% refining and marketing share in India and a strong market infrastructure. (Euromonitor International, July 2007) The corporation operates two major refineries, producing a wide variety of petroleum fuels and specialities, one in Mumbai (West Coast) with a 5.5 MMTPA capacity and the other in Vishakapatnam (East Coast) with a capacity of 7.5 MMTPA (Oil Gas, IBEF Report Sep 2009) HPCL holds an equity stake of 16.95% in Mangalore Refinery Petrochemicals Limited, a state-of-the-art refinery at Mangalore with a capacity of 9 MMTPA. In addition, HPCL is progressing towards the setting up of a refinery in the state of Punjab. HPCL also owns and operates the largest lube refinery in the country, producing lube base oils to international standards. With a capacity of 335,000 metric tonnes this lube refinery accounts for over 40% of the countrys total lube base oil production. The vast marketing network of the corporation consists of zonal offices in the four metro cities and 85 regional offices facilitated by a supply and distribution infrastructure comprising terminals, aviation service stations, bottling plants, and inland relay depots and retail outlets. The Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) focus is on providing broader services to its customers with an experience that is unmatched. Through its retail channels, HPCL offers a nationwide chain of convenience stores, has forged tie-ups with leading fast food and refreshment companies to set up food counters, a special arrangement with FedEx to provide a world class courier service, vehicle insurance and international money faster counters. The focus is on complete customer satisfaction and an experience that will make a customer drive in again and again to HPCL forecourt retailing and convenience stores. In 2006, the chain developed its forecourt operations substantially through a series of agreements with a number of prominent foodservice and retail players. HPCL is increasingly adopting a focus on loyalty, it has put in extra efforts and an aggressive marketing campaign to retain customer loyalty. It runs Indias largest loyalty programme and has products such as the HPCL credit card, HPCL debit card and I-mint loyalty programme. Another focus is on brand equity; HP has been investing in increasing its brand presence and has taken on brand ambassadors such as Sania Mirza and Narayan Karthikeyan to promote its different products. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) is a central government commercial enterprise engaged in the refinement and sale of crude oil. It also manufactures other petroleum products like LPG, lubricants, greases, petrochemicals and aviation turbine fuel. HPCL launched its Club HP forecourt retailing chain in 2001. From the beginning, the chain sought to offer other facilities besides selling petrol, diesel and other products. These include free vehicle checks, vehicle finance and insurance related services, bill payment services, HPCL-ICICI credit cards and loyalty programmes. (Euromonitor International, July 2007) Club HP outlets are classified as Standard, Mega and Max, depending on the services and amenities available. In its first phase of expansion, HPCL set up 85 Club HP outlets in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai. Each of these outlets was converted at an estimated cost of between Rs1 and Rs3 million. It subsequently introduced its supermarket sub brand HP Speed mart, and developed its foodservice operations through an agreement with US Pizza. The success of this deal prompted HPCL to enter into similar agreements with players such as Cafà © Coffee Day (vending and foodservice), Dairy Den (ice cream parlours), Western Union (money transfer points) and Tata Motors (car care services) (Business Standard, Jan 2007). http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/fuel-stations-to-offer-one-stop-shopping/269785/ In order to improve its image among Indian consumers in terms of the quality of its fuel, during the review period the company launched the PCL Quality Assurance initiative under the Good Fuel Promise slogan. This involved the pioneering concept of mobile laboratories to carry out regular checks on fuel sold at Club HP outlets. It also entered into an agreement with the international agency Bureau Veritas to conduct a surveillance audit of Club HP Outlets. After having a market share of around 20-22% for a long time, recently it has improved its market position to number two, with a market share of close to 25% of the total service station market in India (Business Standard, April 2005). http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/fuel-stations-to-offer-one-stop-shopping/269785/ For most of the review period, Club HP played second fiddle to BPCLs In Out chain in terms of revenues from forecourt operations, although it garnered considerable brand awareness among consumers. A deal with US Pizza was expected to witness the opening of over 500 pizza and fast food delivery units at Club HP service station outlets across India between 2005 and 2007. Apna Bazaar Co-operative (a supermarket chain) is involved in a pilot project with HPCL to establish Apna Bazaar outlets at three Club HP outlets in Mumbai. If successful, the alliance will be extended to other Club HP outlets nationwide. This agreement will also enable Apna Bazaar to upgrade its image by targeting more upper and middle class consumers. http://www.hindustanpetroleum.com/En/UI/RetailClubHP.aspx While neither of these deals on their own are likely to have any major impact on constant value sales of impulse food and drink products through Club HP outlets, they will almost certainly benefit from the rise in consumer traffic that these foodservice and supermarket operations will entail. A loyalty card deal with low-cost airline Air Deccan should also ensure a higher volume of consumer traffic in Club HP outlets over the forecast period. Similarly, an agreement with Federal Express (FedEx) during the review period to open cargo collection centres at various Club HP outlets should continue to attract consumers between 2005 and 2010. FedEx is slowly gaining a reputation in India as a reliable cargo delivery agent; in 2005, there were FedEx cargo collection centres at HP outlets in eight major Indian cities. Source: Euromonitor International from trade press Reliance Petroleum Reliance Petroleum is aggressively targeting the service station channel, planning a pan-Indian presence over the next couple of years in cities as well as on main roads. The biggest challenge it faces is in terms of return on investment and whether it is a wise move to invest so heavily in forecourt retailing in India, which is still relatively underdeveloped. With Reliances strong presence across India, food and beverage manufacturers can aim to push major volumes through Reliance service stations. Reliance Petroleum Limited (RPL) is a subsidiary of Indias largest private group Reliance Industries Ltd. RPL was set up to harness an emerging value creation opportunity in the global refining sector and currently RPL is a 75% owned subsidiary of RIL. RPL also benefits from a strategic alliance with Chevron India Holdings Pte Limited, Singapore, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chevron Corporation USA (Chevron), which currently holds a 5% equity stake in the company. RPL was formed to set up a Greenfield petroleum refinery and polypropylene plant in the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Jamnagar in Gujarat. This global sized, highly complex refinery is being located adjacent to RILs existing refinery and petrochemicals complex, which is amongst the largest and most efficient in the world, thus offering significant synergies. With an annual crude processing capacity of 580,000 barrels per stream day (BPSD), RPL will be the sixth largest refinery in the world. It will have a complexity of 14.0, using the Nelson Complexity Index, ranking it among the highest in the sector. The polypropylene plant will have a capacity to produce 0.9 million metric tonnes per annum. (Euromonitor International, July 2008) With its Reliance A1 Plaza chain, Reliance aims to provide consumers with a wide choice of products in convenient locations. The company had planned to open more than a 1,000 service stations in the next 2-3 years, so it was clearly targeting leadership in the petroleum retailing segment. But during economic crisis and with high crude rates, Reliance had shut their outlets as serving fuel at comparative prices was becoming non-profit making business for them. Shell India Marketing Private Limited Shell India Marketing Private Limited (SIMPL) is a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell and the first multinational corporation to obtain government approval to open 2,000 servic

ICT in the Local Community :: ICT Essays

ICT in the Local Community Airports In airports, all public access is channelled through the terminal, where every person must walk through a metal detector and all items must go through an X-ray machine which then sends the picture to a monitor where a person can see what luggage you are carrying and if you are concealing any metal objects that may cause a threat to other passengers. All of the checked luggage goes through a large X-ray machine before it is loaded onto the aircraft. In the United States, most major airports have a computer tomography (CT) scanner. A CT scanner is a hollow tube that surrounds your bag. The X-ray mechanism revolves slowly around it, bombarding it with X-rays and recording the resulting data. The CT scanner uses all of this data to create a very detailed tomogram (slice) of the bag. The scanner is able to calculate the mass and density of individual objects in your bag based on this tomogram. If an object's mass/density falls within the range of a dangerous material, the CT scanner warns the operator of a potential hazardous object. CT scanners are slow compared to other types of baggage-scanning systems. Because of this, they are not used to check every bag. Instead, only bags that the computer flags as "suspicious" are checked. These flags are triggered by any anomaly that shows up in the reservation or check-in process. For example, if a person buys a one-way ticket and pays cash, this is considered atypical and could cause the computer to flag that person. When this happens, that person's checked bags are immediately sent through the CT scanner, which is usually located somewhere near the ticketing counter. A baggage-handling system makes all of the decisions about where a bag is going. Hundreds of computers keep track of the location of every bag, every traveller's itinerary and the schedules of all the planes. Computers control the conveyor junctions and switches in the DCV tracks to make sure each bag ends up exactly where it needs to go. The process begins when you check in and hand your bag to the agent. When you check in, the agent pulls up your itinerary on the computer and prints out one or more tags to attach to each of your pieces of luggage. The tag has all of your flight information on it, including your destination and any stopover cities, as well as a bar code that contains a ten-digit number. This number is unique to your luggage. All of the computers in the baggage-handling system can use this number to look up your itinerary.

Marketing Strategy and Economic Changes Essay

Marketing Strategy and Economic Changes Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Many organizations and business entities have developed and expanded their operations across the world as a result of the great developments which have been experienced in various economies across the world. One of the major issues that have contributed to the growth of organization is their strategies in marketing their products and services so that the consumers are aware of what they are offering. Marketing strategies when implemented properly often bring good returns to a company in terms of increased market share, increased sales as well as increase in the profitability(Larson, 2011).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Failure of a company to have effective marketing strategy can result in failure and collapse of the business since the company is not able to promote its products and influence the purchasing behaviour of the consumers (Parker, 2011). It is important that an organization should formulate a marketing strategy that will enable it realize its objectives and goals in the short and long run. However, there are changes in the economy which may affect the marketing strategies which an organization applies for its products so that it can be able to stay in the market. Economic issues such recession and depression in the economy may force a company or an organization to change the strategies and adopt new ones that will not affect the company negatively. Nike Inc is a multinational organization that deals in sportswear in terms of clothes as well as shoes for all groups of people(Nike: The Future Of Marketing, 2012). Nike Inc   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nike Inc is a worldwide known brand of sportswear designer, manufacturer as well as distributor and seller across the world. The company is known to produce one of the top quality brands of products that are used across different sports in the world. The company has been in the forefront in ensuring that its marketing strategies are effective and capture the market as well as help it stay on top of the competition(Zakrevskaya, &Mastracci, 2013). The marketing strategies which the company has been using include brand promotion and commercials with the endorsement of famous celebrities in the sports field. The company uses successful sports professionals, college teams as well as celebrities who they sponsor using their products(Nike: The Future Of Marketing, 2012).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   When the successful sports professional such as Michael Jordan are seen by consumers to use the products of the company, there are high chances that the consumers will be influenced to purchase the products since someone that is successful has recommended them and also makes use of them(Larson, 2011). This marketing strategy of using celebrities and successful sports persons builds the notion in consumers that they too can have the same experience as the sports persons that use the same products and also show their association with the persons of their choice. The company has also made use of marketing segmentation as part of its marketing strategy. Nike Inc has majority of the sportsmen as its consumers (Nike: The Future Of Marketing, 2012).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, changes in the global economy can have negative impacts and influence the marketing strategies of the company. As mentioned earlier, economic factors such as the occurrence of recession, as well as depression are some of the economic factors which can influence and impact the marketing strategies of the company(DATAMONITOR: NIKE, Inc., 2012). The impacts of the economic changes can be analysed in terms of the effect on the competitive advantage of the company, targeting, market segmentation as well as positioning in addition to branding of products. Impacts of Economic Changes Competitive Advantage   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Economic recession and depression are the major economic changes that can greatly affect the marketing strategies that Nike Inc applies. During the economic recession and depression, it means that there is less supply of cash and that people do not have enough to sustain their normal purchasingbehaviour(Zakrevskaya, &Mastracci, 2013). The products that Nike Inc offers to the consumers, especially the sportsmen are often of high price. Recession and depression will mean that the company will have to look for new marketing strategies which can still help sustain its profitability. Sponsoring of the sportsmen is the primary marketing strategy which the company has used for many years and has been seen to be effective (OnurTaÅŸ, &CunedioÄŸlu, 2014).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Therefore, during recession and depression, Nike Inc will be forced to forgo some of the sponsorships since it will not be able to sustain the sponsorships which are often free to the athletes in return for the athletes wearing the brands of the company(DATAMONITOR: NIKE, Inc., 2012). The company would want to reduce its costs in sponsoring during the recessions and depression since many people at this time do not have enough funds to spare which they can spend on high-end products such as those of Nike. Companies that produce substitute products which are cheaper will have an added advantage compared to Nike (Groucutt, Forsyth, &Leadley, 2004). Consumers would want to purchase less of the high-end products hence accusing Nike Inc to lose its competitive advantage to the competitors that offer cheaper products. Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Nike Inc is a well-known brand and often uses marketing segmentation as a way of promoting is products. The market segment that the company has engaged in is the sportsmen segment in the market (DATAMONITOR: NIKE, Inc., 2012). The primary target has been athletes and people that engage in sporting activities across the world from different age groups. This means that the company relies heavily on sports to promote and sell its products. Therefore, when there is economic recession and depression, the company may want to adapt a new market segment, that of those that are not involved in sports(OnurTaÅŸ, &CunedioÄŸlu, 2014). However, the marketing segmentation and targeting of the non-sporting groups will mean that the company has to adjust the pricing of its products.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Furthermore, the targeting strategy of the company will be affected negatively since it will need to change from just sponsorship of the sportsmen but also to check on diversity of its products. Under positioning in the market, Nike Inc has been able to position itself strategically across the globe in many countries(Zakrevskaya, &Mastracci, 2013). The company operates in different countries hence has a global presence which is good for the company. The economic recession and depression will not have a major impact on the positioning of the company as it already has a global presence. However, it may have to look at other markets that are developing where the market may not be greatly affected by the changes in the global economy(MacEwan, & Miller, 2011). Branding   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The other aspect of marketing strategy that may be affected by the negative economic changes in the global economy is branding. Nike Inc has been observed to have a strong brand that commands a huge market share as compared to other competitors(Lee, & Ha, 2012). The branding of the company’s product will not be affected since the company has a fully established brand that is well known and has a great market share in sports. Impact on Consumer Behaviour   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Changes in the global economy, especially issues such as recession and depression in the economy will have an impact on the consumer behaviour and how they make their purchasing decisions; especially regarding the products of Nike Inc(MacEwan, & Miller, 2011). Consumers depend on their income to purchase products and when the global economy faces issue such as recession and depression, their income is likely to be affected. Therefore, the consumers in this case will shy away from high-end products since they are expensive.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to the law of demand, when the price of an item is high, there are chances that the demand may decline. Income is a determinant factor hence the purchasing behaviour of the consumers will change with consumers seeking for more urgent needs such as food and clothing and other needs instead of spending their money on sportswear (Zakrevskaya, &Mastracci, 2013). Therefore, Nike will be forced to seek alternative marketing strategy which will still appeal to the consumers such as offering of discounts and providing affordable products. Consumers during recession and depression will often seek for substitute products that can still function the same way as the primary product hence they will opt to purchase other types of clothing that can still perform the functions of Nike products. Growth Opportunities   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The global economy is constantly experiencing growth which continues to create opportunities for many companies in the world, Nike Inc included, to grow and expand on their business. Nike Inc has potential for growth in various areas based on the technological developments which have continued to increase innovation and creativity (MacEwan, & Miller, 2011). Furthermore, the many policies in various countries on business have been changed to open up borders for international trade in various countries across the world which means an increase in the potential market for the products of the company. The growth opportunities that the company has include the growing global market for footwear as well as the growing opportunity in online retail. Global footwear market   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Over the recent years, there has been tremendous growth that has been experienced in the global market on footwear which provides Nike with an excellent opportunity to grow its business (NIKE, Inc. SWOT Analysis, 2014). The company has a strong brand portfolio as well as strong marketing strategies which if properly managed will enhance the business. As mentioned, there has been a lot of reduction in trade barriers in many countries across the world through trade treaties which have opened up new markets especially bin developing countries.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The global market for footwear has grown over the years and in the year 2012; the revenue generated amounted to about $256.6 billion. The European markets as well as the Asian markets have also experienced growth over the years which provide a great opportunity for the growth of the company (Lee, & Ha, 2012). The global footwear market is poised to grow a lot and hence Nike should take up the opportunity since there is a growing demand among consumers for footwear products that are comfortable. Online Retail   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The other growth opportunity that Nike Inc has is online retailing. Over the years, there has been a growing trend among consumers to make purchases online as a result of the technological as well as the development of the internet(NIKE, Inc. SWOT Analysis, 2014). Consumers over the recent past have been seen to prefer online purchasing which they consider to be affordable, efficient as well as convenient. Therefore, Nike Inc, through its website and creation of an online store for its products, can growth in the future (Larson, 2011). References DATAMONITOR: NIKE, Inc. (2012). NIKE, Inc. SWOT Analysis, 1-10. Groucutt, J., Forsyth, P., &Leadley, P. (2004).Marketing: Essential principles, new realities. London [u.a.: Kogan Page. Larson, D. (2011). Global Brand Management — Nike’s Global Brand.ISM Journal OfInternational Business, 1(3), 1-14. Lee, K., & Ha, I. â€Å".(2012). Exploring the Impacts of Key Economic Indicators and Economic Recessions in the Restaurant Industry.Journal Of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 21(3), 330-343 MacEwan, A., & Miller, J. A. (2011).Economic collapse, economic change: Getting to the roots of the crisis. Armonk, N.Y: M.E. Sharpe. NIKE, Inc. SWOT Analysis. (2014). NIKE, Inc. SWOT Analysis, 1-8. Nike: The Future Of Marketing. (2012). Marketing (00253650), 28. OnurTaÅŸ, B. K., &CunedioÄŸlu, H. E. (2014). HOW CAN RECESSIONS BE BROUGHT TO AN END? EFFECTS OF MACROECONOMIC POLICY ACTIONS ON DURATIONS OF RECESSIONS.Journal Of Applied Economics, 17(1), 179-198. Parker, J. A. (2011).On Measuring the Effects of Fiscal Policy in Recessions.Journal OfEconomic Literature, 49(3), 703-718. Zakrevskaya, O., &Mastracci, S. (2013). Differential Effects of the Great Recession by Household Type.Challenge (05775132), 56(6), 87-114. Source document

The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx

The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx Karl Marx (1818-1883) explained historical change by using and adapting a theory that was first developed by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770 - 1831). According to Hegel's theory, in any period of history there is a conflict between contrary and opposing forces. For Marx, although not for Hegel, these opposing forces were exclusively economic classes.For Marx, in any period of history up to and including the Industrial Revolution and modern capitalism, there has always been a dominant economic class, which has exploited a lower economic class, this situation is stressed in capitalism. Marx states that the economic classes need to be abolished.Each successive period of history is brought into being by the breakdown of the previous one. According to Marx, each period of history is unstable, being destined by the class conflict within it to break down into a new period of history, which will again be unstable because of opposing economic classes.Karl Marx (1818-1883)This period will then break down and the cycle will continue. This accounts for historical change, each period of history being rendered unstable by opposing economic class interests, therefore each period of history has within itself the means of its own destruction.Under capitalism the power of the exploiting class (the bourgeoisie) comes from its ownership of the means of production (factories, mines, farms, railways). The lowered exploited class (the proletariat) own nothing and only provide labor for the bourgeoisie. People's entire life and values in society will be shaped and determined by their class background. The government can not provide public interest or common good because under this system there is no common interest between classes. The government predictably promotes the interests of the ruling class, and the ruling class predictably controls the government.The time in history when capitalism is greatest will also...