Thursday, October 31, 2019

Environmentally Susutanable Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Environmentally Susutanable Business - Essay Example The companies of one country are successfully involved in trade relations with other countries. Also, many of the countries are having their production units in many parts of the world, making them truly multi – national corporations. The one major aspect of the tremendously competitive business world of today has been the flow of information. It is perceived that the right information in the right moment can do the trick. Also, the reach of the end customers have increased by great extent, thanks to the modern methods of communication like that of internet and cellular phones. Analysing the above facts, it can be well accepted that the commercial fraternity across the globe has been experiencing terrific competition like never before. Apart from the core competencies, the companies are always looking for the extra edge that could gain them the advantage. The companies of modern world are no more focusing on increasing only the shareholders’ value. Rather, the concept in contention today is the enhancement of stake holder’s value. Almost all of the major corporate houses are emphasising to create value for all the stake holders namely the customers, the suppliers, the employees, the regulators, the financial institutions and even for the media along with the true owners i.e. the shareholders. The companies are focusing more on sustainable and long term development. It is well accepted today that only those companies that bank upon sustainable development could exist amidst the turbulent times of today. Royal Dutch Shell, popularly known as Shell, has been one of the leading energy and the petro - chemical producing companies of the world. The company aims to meet the energy requirements of the society without compromising the economic, social and environmental factors. The group recognises the fact that resources are scarce and therefore employs every possible measure to use the resources in the best possible

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

CASE STUDIES Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

CASE STUDIES - Essay Example gement and the board of directors is 100% male, since Panera is offering a healthier option for food, they could be helped by having female and minority members of the board as well as in the management team to provide a better corporate image. 3. Opening restaurants in other countries with an aggressive growth strategy would require a flood of marketing both in terms of awareness of healthy food (where such awareness is not already present) and establishing their brand identity. 4. The restaurant I went to seemed too dark and gloomy. Even though there were colorful signs at plenty of places, the lack of light made an overall depressing setting. I would suggest that they make use of natural light in the interior and bring the interiors with their unique selling point of healthy food and healthy lifestyles. 1. From the case, it seems obvious that the key competency required would be excellent communications skills which can get the point across the table as well as across the border. Secondly, cultural competency and an ability to work with peoples of different cultures are also important. Finally, since a culture may not be as socially advanced, it could be towards the benefit of the company to use a male representative instead of a female if both of them are equally suited for the job at hand. 2. The only cost of not understanding diversity is profit, which is something no company can afford to lose. If the plant had been developed and run with an understanding of diversity, the communication problems and the cultural clashes could certainly be minimized and the lost production time could have been turned into profitable output. 3. The first problem she faced was stereotyping, just because she was Mexican American; it was assumed that she could work with Mexicans better than anyone else. The second problem was the cultural gap with the Mexicans and communication issues with the Americans. She also faced problems with Mexican men accepting her as the

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Political and Economic Factors in International Relations

Political and Economic Factors in International Relations Faculty of Economics and Management Which of the two suppose nowadays a greater danger for justice in IR: political or economic factors Justice in International Relations Introduction This essay raises the question of which factors pose threat to Justice in International Relations at present. It is centered around idea that these factors, which are not only economic and political in nature, but also historical, derive from the domestic practices and ideas of various states. There are three study cases that show from various perspectives how in different ways the internal order spills into international and what set of ideas and methods influence justice in international relations. The complex issue of Justice in International Relations presupposes that we pose and define, at least in this essay the view on the role and the nature of the Justice on the international arena. Whether this notion contradicts or not with the opinion of some major scholars on how just the international order is and can be, it is crucial for us to further follow the logical way of this essay. In my opinion, the international order, interstate relations since the start of the human history had very little space for the just approach: even the civilized nations were generally led by the right of the strongest to do what he wills. Correlated, perhaps, by the power of a free human though and technological advancement, still, the rule of sheer military power was something to be revered. And it has been recorder well in the Greek and Roman history through the famous Melian dialogue. This excerpt of it demonstrates clearly the ways of approaching the international business of the day by perh aps, the most civilized and humane people of the time: Of the gods we believe, and of men we know, that by a necessary law of their nature they rule wherever they can. And it is not as if we were the first to make this law, or to act upon it when made: we found it existing before us, and shall leave it to exist forever after us; all we do is to make use of it, knowing that you and everybody else, having the same power as we have, would do the same as we do (Strassler 1996). We see clearly how little space is given to the notion of justice. Even less was expected when the nations dealt with barbaric people or great empires of the East, despotic in the nature. The same is as well expressed in the Ancient Roman history: when faced with overwhelming forces of the Gauls in 390 BC, the famous vae victis (woe to the conquered ones) was coined. And this lesson of injustice, of what might happen to the ones that fail, was learned well by the Romans and later they would go on to establish the ir own rule on those weaker and less successful. Hardly there was any discussion on the actual righteousness of their actions. Yet, in the cruelty of the civilized ones, there is found a set of ideas that would later contribute so much to a completely differing set of ideas and notions, a whole new historical perspective of people living in completely different, just and fair conditions. These ideas, in my opinion were first the ideas of freedom and domination first coined by the Athenian political leader Pericles, and second Greco-Roman stoicism and cynicism and the concepts coined within this philosophy (like cosmopolitanism). Both set of views, in part with many others, undoubtedly, served later as the cornerstone for the revived Western Civilization, which, at least by name, calls itself humane and adhering to the principles of justice, human rights, democracy and opposing despotism. The description of these ideas, undervalued in modern times, and the way they shaped the Wester n notion, is not a part of this essay, yet, it is important to say that they are the ones that called for a dialogue whenever the West acted oppressively towards the rest of the world, and even more a tool for discussion and social change in the vey western countries themselves. So, we can clearly say that the historical experience of the countries is another important factor influencing their understanding of the domestic justice and hence, justice on the international arena. The more just, democratic, law abiding the society of the country is, the more it correlates with the demands for a fairer world on the international arena. This very important statement will be later developed in the essay. Those countries that did not undergo a certain process of inner development of the ideas on justice and more humane order, have little to contribute to the international system. Moreover, the higher the development of the countrys political and economic system, the deeply economic and pol itical factors influencing the notion of justice both on the domestic and the international level are intertwined. Domestic policies and international order And before looking at the perspective of justice in the international relations, it would be wise to consider several cases of how domestic ideas of justice, as well as practices of it, influence and shape the international approach. The first country to start with, the one that has been dominating international politics ever since the Second World War, is the United States. Being at some point a breakaway from the old and, as seemed obsolete European absolutist ideas, the new state brought the value of republicanism and democracy to the highest level. The very main document of the state was a drastic breakthrough from the Old World and in a way a revolutionized, the dream of many political thinkers of the time. The words of one the main document of the state started with the words: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happ iness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed (Virginia Declaration of Rights). And indeed, from the end of the 19th century up till nowadays for the many oppressed the USA remains the place of freedom, in a way a political ideal to be reached. Not only it is just in itself, but it as well actively engages in establishing freedom and democracy all around the world. Yet, what is important here is to take a closer look at the domestic stance with equality and justice in the USA. Despite the declared equality, economically the population is very diverse. The salary differentiation between the poorest and the richest may vary in 300 times, which is, of course unprecedented. As it was said, the economic fractionalization lead to the fact that different social strata and communities live different lives, with ones striving to have a decent life, while the other many times more than enough then a human being can consume. As the graph suggests, 80% of the American population own only 15.1% of the national wealth. To compare: 50% of the USA population owns 14.5 trillion dollars, the same amount of money could be gathered in 10 years if the tax on the rich would increase by 2%. Such economic inequality undoubtedly spurs political debates in the country. As well, we should take into account that financial diversification goes in hand with ethnic and cultural division of the households. Despite the fact that the just order is guaranteed by the law, existing social institutions, bureaucratic apparatus and the democratic tradition, the income inequality as well as other discrepancies the economic division raises stem into the political sphere and cause debate. And with certain economic groups tied up with the political decision makers, the inequality transforms into a vicious circle: rich and economically affluent influence the politics, thus preserving their positions and becoming more rich, while the ones receiving medium and below medium salary have little say in the decision making and instead are more and more occupied with the process o guaranteeing their financial prospects. Domestic inequality and the practices of economic exploitation clearly is receive continuation on the international arena. Changes in economic inequality over the last 30 years (The Economist) On the international scale we see that in the countries where republican ideas, rule of law, democratic principles, respect to human rights, freedoms are of paramount importance, the economic practices and laws allow for inequality and exploitation in domestic relations, but even more on the international level. MNCs acting in accordance with the law and indeed bringing the change to some third world countries, in fact contribute to the implementation of practices that undermine the attempts to establish international justice through establishment of unfair practices. Thus, the stance of the United States on the international arena is ambiguous on the one hand through establishing relations with the others states and participating in the work of the international organizations, it promotes the political principles established in the country, and are generally favourable for the fairer world, but on the other hand the economic policy through trade and actions of MNCs have a controver sial effect: exploitation of resources and population, cardinally unequal income distribution and often practice of dealing with corrupt politicians and non democratic political regimes. When the primary goal is only to maximize the profit, then the ways of making it in the third world countries have little to do with the notions of promoting justice. Historical factors and views on global order Another study case, this time a country that is not a part of the classical Westetn civilization, is China. Becoming in many ways a modern capitalist economy, its political views on the international arena and its place in it may not fully fall in line with the Western vision of China. Chinese foreign trade is strongly intertwined with the Chinese foreign economy policy. We can define five major principles, characterizing Chinese economy and demanding adherence to them. First, is keeping open world markets for its exports, more than half of which are produced by factories that are wholly or partly owned by foreigners. The second principle is about securing access to international supplies of energy resources and natural resources, which serve a determining factor to the Chinese industrial development. The third principle demands China is to insulate its economy and national wealth from potentially destabilizing international risks. The fourth principle demands that new technologies a re acquired, together with knowhow and skills. The fifth principle presupposes promotion of global expansion of Chinese own industries through foreign investment. It is obvious that in the last decades China is on the rise, both economically and politically, but the question remains how the increase in Chinese domination will affect the global order (de Jonquieres, 2011). Will it be a US competitor? And can it propose a viable alternative to the existing world order? Until the late Qing, concepts of international order and justice were alien to Chinas imperial rulers. Subsequently, however, in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, China perceived itself to be the victim in an unjust world of aggressive, powerful, Western states. Contemporary Chinese perceptions of a just international order have been shaped by such past experiences and encompass a strong element of restitution. Its justice claims start with the Chinese state itself rather than with the needs of a broader glo bal community. Its activity on the international arena can be explained by the need to return the prestige and honour that was presumably lost in the early 20-ies. During the Cold war era Chinese foreign policy was heavily built on the dichotomy of rivalry of the two world powers, using one of them to strengthen themselves. First it was the alliance with Moscow from 1972 with the USA. It as well kept a positive image for the developing world. After the demise of the USSR there appeared a debate among the scholars whether a unipolar or multipolar world is appropriate. Globalisation was seen as a process beneficial for the USA, in which China had to find its place. The international relations had to be democratized. Despite the bright declarations often made by the Chinese officials, the current approach is based around a strategy of bandwagoning and transcending. The first means China adapting to the US and serving as a partner, while the second emphasise the peaceful transition to a more democratic world order. Transcending includes democratizing international relations, promotion of state sovereignty, strong support of the UN. Chinese approach is generally compared with US on the international arena.(Foot 2008) The Chinese approach to Justice in IR during the communist era proposed an another vision of how the relations could be altered. The Three World Theory presupposed that non-aligned states, that want to adhere neither to the comunist, nor to the capitalist world, can work together. Yet, these ideas have never gained power and later Chinese leaders felt in line with a more common view on the international arena. The Three World Theory map proposed by Mao Zedong The increasing importance of China in the International Relations make us listen more attentively to what the leadership of the country says on world order. Yet, as it was demonstrated, the Chinese economic policies go in line with the world practices. And the political and ideological solutions center rather around China itself, then the care of a an alternative, more just order. So, it would not be a wrong generalization to say that many non-Western countries do not contribute to fairer practices and go in line with the general pattern. Spread of negative factors on the regional and international level The last study case, however minor it is in comparison with the two previous ones, demonstrates how political factors influence on the economy and how certain processes taking place in one country, affect the whole region, leading to distribution of the unfair practices. The case here is the political and economic situation in Eastern Europe, and specifically the case of how political and economic practices of one country negatively affect the situation in the whole region. The destructive mechanism of Belarusian authoritarianism on other countries has not been well examined. Often dubbed as the last dictatorship in Europe, Lukashenkas system has proven to remain far more stable than expected. Though not showing great economic progress, remaining politically and economically dependent on Russia, the regime was able to deal with Putins administration, withstand political protests after 2006 elections and 2008 economic crisis. Lukashenka himself built in his own way an effective state structure, with him virtually controlling every significant aspect in politics and economy. However undemocratic the regime may be, with all the violations and electoral fraud during the presidential, parliamentary and local elections, it has been able to remain politically relatively stable for 16 years so far. This, undoubtedly set an example for the governing elite of the neighboring countries, like Russia and Ukraine, Belarusian dictatorship political regime also has a significant economic influence on the economy of Lithuania and to a lesser extent, on the economy of Latvia. We can see how Lithuanian leaders, interested in further economic cooperation with Belarus, especially in the case of transit Belarusian potassium salt, stood as advocates of the Belarusian authoritarian regime and in sometimes gave support to the regime (Belarus: Background and U.S. Policy Concerns). Belarusian contagion spreads in both ways, affecting other states because of the profitable economic cooper ation with Belarus and on personal level, tempting certain officials to breach the law, corrupting their own governmental system. Thus, their state system may become less accountant, transparent, responsive, equitable, legal frameworks become flawed. This is a clear example of how on the regional level political factors in one country spill to the other, making the whole region more corrupt. The bigger conclusion here is as follows: if we leave place for economic and political negotiation with countries with authoritarian or tyrannical regime, we must admit that it will influence. regional and international relations in the negative ways, further spreading contagious practices developed in their countries, that contradict the civilized norms, respect for human rights and the rule of law. To conclude the essay, several main statements should be repeated. First, in my opinion historical experience and evolution is not less important when speaking about the contribution to the justice on the international arena. Secondly, the behavior of the state on the international arena is very correlated with its domestic policy. Third, political and economic factors in the complex systems are intertwined, often it is hard to say precisely, which factor stems from the other. Finally. even if the political factors contribute to international justice, economic factors, and the pursuit for profit contribute to inequality and undermine the notion of justice in international relations. Bibliography Robert B. Strassler, The Landmark Thucydides: A Comprehensive Guide to the Peloponnesian War, Free Press, 1996, page 352-354 Guy de Jonquieres What power shift to China? ECIPE. Policy briefs. No. 04/2012.ISSN 1653-899. Brussels http://www.ecipe.org/media/publication_pdfs/PB201103.pdf. Viewed on December 17, 2013 Rosemary Foot. Chinese strategies in a US-hegemonic global order: accommodating and hedging. International Affairs 82, 1 http://www.cerium.ca/IMG/pdf/Foot_-_Chinese_Strategies_-_International_Affairs.pdf. Viewed on December 17, 2013 CIA World Factbook. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ch.html. Viewed on December 17, 2013 The Most Important Chinese Trade Barriers. Derek Scissors. Testimony before the United States House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Relations July 19, 2012 http://www.heritage.org/research/testimony/2012/07/the-most-important-chinese-trade-barriers. Viewed on December 17, 2013 Virginia Declaration of Rights http://www.gunstonhall.org/georgemason/human_rights/vdr_first_draft.html Zia Mian and M.V. Ramana, 2010. Imbricated Regional Rivalries and Global Order: South Asia, China and the United States.‘ Belarus: Background and U.S. Policy Concerns. CRS Report for Congress. http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL32534.pdf The EUs Limited Response to Belarus Pseudo New Foreign Policy. CEPS Policy Brief No. 151, 8 February 2008. http://aei.pitt.edu/7543/1/151.pdf European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument. Country strategy paper 2007-2013. http://ec.europa.eu/world/enp/pdf/country/enpi_csp_nip_belarus_en.pdf 1

Friday, October 25, 2019

Historical Insights in Devil in the White City Essays -- Devil in the

Historical Insights in Devil in the White City Write an essay discussing the historical insights presented in Erik Larson’s Devil in the White City, being sure to answer the following questions: In what ways does the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 represent the contrasts and conflicts of the Gilded Age? What is the Fair’s lasting imprint on American society & culture, & what new trends does it signal for the twentieth century?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although the Chicago World’s fair of 1893 only lasted 6 months, it had an enormous impact on the city of Chicago, its people, and indeed the entire country. Up until that point in its history, the US had done nothing on the scale of the world’s fair, and was regarded as a country of barbarians and cowboys by much of the world, especially Old Europe. The fair was a perfect way for the US to disprove this. In building the fair, they would be placed in direct competition with France, who had built a magnificent fair only a few years before. If Chicago could at least build a fair on par with the Paris fair, it would prove to the world that the US was a cultural, military and political force to be reckoned with. Because of the fair’s gigantic scale, it became a microcosm of the conflicts and the tenor of the times. In effect, the fair was the turning point between the old Victorian days and the modern era, technologically, culturally, politically, and in the hearts of the people of the US and the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The United States of the Gilded Age was not the superpower is it today. At best, it was considered a powerful manufacturing and industrial country, but little more. Culturally and politically, it was an upstart to the relatively old and established European powers of the day. At this point in history, much of the American West was still frontier country, relatively undeveloped. The North east, especially New York, was the only part of the US considered by the world to be somewhat civilized and cultured. Even what we think of as east today, most notably Chicago, was thought of as uncivilized. Getting the World’s Fair in Chicago was their chance to prove otherwise. It was also a chance for the whole country to prove its cultural power. With the Fair’s success came new respect from the world, particularly Europe. The US was no longer viewed as much as a second rate power with no culture of its own and no global influence. The fa... ...the people of the US a glimpse of alien cultures that many of them had never heard of, much less seen and learned about. In a way, the fair was a cultural awakening for most of the people of the United States. Suddenly, people from Missouri could tell their friends and families that they had seen Camels, or men from Japan. 27 million people went to see the fair, the vast majority of them Americans. That was a little less than half of the population of the country at this time. That many people seeing cultures and people that many had never heard of would have caused a dramatic effect, transforming the people of this country into a more cultured, worldly people.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Chicago World’s Fair of 1893 was the turning point between old Victorian, provential, and backwater ways in the US, and the modern outlook and culture we enjoy today. It was built on a scale that had never been seen before. It provided technological wonders, new cultures, and a look into a brighter future. It helped to take the US from being a backwater, second rate power to a world super power. It was progressive in the labor and safety movements. In short, it was a major turning point in American history.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Stop Welfare Abuse to Build the Work Ethics

Valbona Bajrami Stop welfare abuse to build the work ethics America the promised land, America with 37 million poor citizens living under welfare recipients! But, are all these people really poor? Are all these people in real need to live in the shoulders of American taxpayer, or are they â€Å"spineless creatures† who abuse state benefits? These questions deserve to be answers for all taxpayers who not only sweat by working, but they must also pay for all those that are nothing more than parasites.Our government is all about training these people to live in poverty and in return they have children who grow up to believe that the government should pay their way. According to the Census report, 11. 3 percent to 15. 1 percent of the population was living in poverty over the past 20 years. Around 45 percent of them own their own homes, have car, cable, and satellite TV. Overall, when Obama became president, he decided to equip with mobile phones all those who receive welfare.The average poor American has more living space than the average individual not classified as poor living throughout Europe. The number of teen pregnancy increases day by day, and unfortunately the most of them were raised in circle of poverty and dependent on the benefits of welfare. What is poverty indeed? The word â€Å"poverty† suggests destitution: an inability to provide a family with nutritious food, clothing, and reasonable shelter, so the above mentioned facts do not show any degree of poverty.It seems that collecting welfare has become a way of life for some, which caused laziness, increased the number of drug users, increase of family violence because they don’t have nothing else to do except to attract and seek benefits from state. They prefer to be let go from work so that they can get paid to sit on their behind. Now the government plans to let the food stamp card to be used in fast food chains and buy junk food instead of cooking? This has to stop! Some tax payers can't afford to eat out, now these irresponsible people want us to pay for their fast food?Wake up law maker, we are tired of this. Drug test them and let the people vote whether they want to be so generous with their tax dollars or not. Give them 3 months to get back on their feet, and then shut them off because they apparently are not aware that they are damaging their children by learning them to live in cycle of welfare. Reported cases of child abuse and neglect among poor children is almost 7 times as great as the incidence among non-poor children .These people complain about their living budget, always in search of humanitarian organizations and often complain that the state is not fulfilling their needs. Because of their behavior the famous quote of Douglas Coupland comes to my mind â€Å"Blame is just a lazy person's way of making sense of chaos. † I see people my age who receive unemployment checks, food stamps; you name it, and they are doing absolutely nothi ng to change it, even turning down advancements at their jobs so they can continue to receive the same amount of aide.It is important to recognize that job opportunities do exist for individuals willing to accept them. The government should end welfare because there are more people that abuse it then need it. People on welfare do not respect the value and hard work of US taxpayers. It is really upsetting that they don’t do anything to better themselves. If we stop the welfare, poor people would be more likely to go to work, starting to climb the ladder that will lead out of poverty and teach their kids the value of education and work ethic.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Costs and Benefits Analysis of 2000 Sydney Olympic Games Essay

The Sydney Olympic Games held in 2000 was perhaps one of Australia’s major investments. The event involved Private, Social and External costs and benefits. The NSW government experienced the Private costs. Financially, the government spent around $1.7 billion dollars on the event, which included the sporting facilities, advancing the city’s streets, transport organisation and the village. The takings received for the event, however, was around $6 million. The profits are still being made today, as now Sydney is in possession of world-class amenities capable of holding other major sporting events. The government saved on the payment of employees, as most were volunteers. The economy benefited from the spending of tourists attending the Games. The External costs were the rapid growth of homelessness as the housing market saw prices climb astronomically from all the publicity of the Games. The Games may have created a national debt, which subsequently the taxpayers would have had to subsidise. Due to the government having to concentrate their budget on the Games, less money was put into hospitals and schools, which invited much criticism from the public. The benefits included the availability of jobs. There was estimated to be about 150,000 full-time and part-time jobs created. The well-being of the environment contributed to the social costs. Toxic waste was being deposited in the adjacent areas, including the bushland and other natural resources were being spoiled. The social benefits far outweighed the costs. The major issue confronting the Olympic Games was concerning the relations between European Australians and Aboriginal Australians. Tension was especially mounted during the Opening Ceremony when the Aboriginal culture was demonstrated in their acts. This was dispelled, however, when Cathy Freeman completed the last leg of the Torch relay and lit the stadium torch. This helped to relieve the hostility between Aborigines and European Australians. Another benefit is the availability of the facilities. The most popular is the International Aquatic Centre that is widely used by the suburban Sydney people and is also admired and used by tourists from all around the world. Overall, the Sydney Olympic Games was a success and we are still reaping the benefits economically. Thanks to the Games, Sydney is now a desirable and popular holiday destination.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Abrams Company Essay Essay Example

Abrams Company Essay Essay Example Abrams Company Essay Paper Abrams Company Essay Paper MANAGEMENT CONTROL SYSTEMS Lecturer : Supriyadi, Ph. D. Nama : Handy nugroho - No: 1157021 Case : Abrams Company Abrams’Company manufactured a wide variety of parts for use in automobiles, trucks, buses, and farm equipment. Abrams sold their product both to the OEMs and the wholesalers. top management is satisfied with their management systems and performance measurement scheme but they are three areas of concern that need to be discussed. * First, the transfer prices disagreements of parts sold by the product divisions to the AM division. Second, is in the product divisions too often tended to treat the AM division as a captive customer and in the performance measurement system. * Third, the excessive yearly inventory carried by both the AM division and the three product divisions. Strength The company has a clear management structure. The company has employed a bonus plan for employees. The AM Marketing division will input products form the other three divisions, and sell it to domestic and foreign market, it helps the company save cost when it input internal. Weaknesses Abrams’ business model weakness is that its divisions operate as independent companies. Furthermore, all of these profit centers, participate in an incentive compensation plan that the higher the participant is in the organizational hierarchy, the more â€Å"incentive points† he or she will receive based on division profit variance. The Abrams Company has three totally independent divisions, and the three divisions are lack of connection. The transactions between the three divisions dispute the transfer pricing. Case Analysis and Recommendation The Abrams case is about using profitability measures to evaluate profit centers. In EU companies it is more common to evaluate PCs with Income measures like RI and EVA. It is very difficult to find a relevant and fair capital base for the ROI measure. Abrams use book value for fixed assets which inflate the ROI measure as the assets age. The age and mix of assets also differs among divisions which give unfair measures. It is also easy for the divisions to manipulate the capital base at the end of the year. ROI based bonus may rob the future, who want to invest in assets if that reduce the bonus. Recommendation to this company was to use RI or EVA instead of ROI and to control the investments separately using NPV and capital turnover measures. The bonus should be based on the budgeted income level, the RI target. The current transfer price system seems to work well with few disputes. Market prices are more used as a top-level for the TP. An advantage with cost base TP is that it will give all internal partners full information about the cost structure and you will avoid â€Å"upstream fixed costs† The problem with the inventory level cannot be controlled with ROI management. If the company change to RI/EVA it will be possible to to negotiate relevant inventory levels in the budget process. High inventory levels can also be managed with differentiated capital charges that will create high interest costs. The best way to control operational tasks is to use nonfinancial measures such as inventory turnover. Use nonfinancial measures to control the inventory levels. If it is an strategic issue you can connect this measure to the bonus system. In general, Abrams Company adopts the lowest cost, differentiation, market focus and ROI strategies to accomplish the organization’s goal. Furthermore, In order to implement the strategies the firm establishes its own management control systems. Suggestions  to  performance measurement  system: 1) ROI can be used combination with other performance measures to avoid the limitations of ROI. The company can establish a non-financial performance measurement system such as the balanced scorecard . With a good performance measurement system, the incentive compensation plan will be improved. 2) EVA ( Economic value added) can be used instead of ROI Suggestions to transfer pricing : a transfer price fixed by the top management in compliance with the AM division and the other divisions involved which could be revised when it is out of date. This fixed price could be adjusted due to inflation. There should be an internal policy on it. Therefore, top management should implement a c ost-based transfer prices because when competitive prices are not available, transfer prices may be set on the basis of cost plus a profit markup.