Technical Language 4

Third Edition
2
 Estudiantes de la Facultad de Ingeniería

Conscientes del vertiginoso avance de la globalización nos damos cuenta

de la necesidad de mantener una comunicación adecuada en el
comercio, industria y mercadotecnia dentro de nuestra sociedad y
considerando el desarrollo de competencias adecuado, se ha construido
un novedoso programa para contribuir a que la Gloriosa Tricentenaria
Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala se mantenga con ese alto nivel
que la ha distinguido durante años.

Este proyecto nació a principios del año 2008 con el afán de lograr que
todo estudiante egresado de la Facultad de Ingeniería tenga
conocimiento de Inglés Técnico para poder aplicarlo tanto en sus
estudios como en su desempeño profesional.

Demostrando que hoy y siempre SOMOS LOS LIDERES de la ingeniería

y pioneros en el cumplimiento de las necesidades de formación de
nuestros profesionales, dedicamos este trabajo a todos aquellos
estudiantes a quienes les interese mejorar competentemente la
aplicación de los procedimientos de ingeniería y tengan el deseo de
aprender nuevas técnicas desarrollando habilidades que
constantemente expanden la efectividad y campos de aplicación de
Ingeniería. Esta primera edición de este folleto fue creado para cumplir
y llenar los requisitos del programa cuyo objetivo es contribuir a la
preparación integral para llenar de los perfiles de los profesionales de
hoy.

Logrando el cambio propuesto.

ING. MURPHY OLIMPO PAIZ RECINOS

DECANO

3
 Students of Engineering School

Conscious of the vertiginous advance of the globalization we realize the

necessity to maintain an adapted communication in commerce, industry
and marketing research within our society and considering the
development of appropriated competences, we have developed a novel
program to contribute that the Glorious Tricentennial University of San
Carlos of Guatemala stays with that high level that has distinguished it
during years.

This project started the first semester 2008 with the eagerness to obtain
that all withdrawn students of the Faculty of Engineering have
knowledge of Technical English, becoming it a necessity that the
students apply this knowledge in their studies as in their professional
performance.

Demonstrating that today and always WE ARE LEADERS of engineering,

pioneers in the fulfilment of the necessities of formation of our
professionals, we present to all students who, by their competent
application of engineering procedures and their readiness to learn new
techniques and to develop skills that constantly expand the effectiveness
and fields of application of engineering. The First Edition of this booklet
was created to carry out and to fill the requirements of the program
which objective is to contribute to the integral preparation of the
students in order to fill the profiles of nowadays professionals.

Reaching goals through change

ENGR. MURPHY OLIMPO PAIZ RECINOS

DEAN
 Awareness / Acknowledgment

Information contained in this work has been obtained by

gathering information from sources believed to be reliable.
However, neither the sites or the authors guarantees the
accuracy or completeness of any information published
herein and neither the Technical Language Area not its
assistants shall be responsible for any errors, omissions, or
damages arising out of use of this information. This work
is gathered with the understanding that the topics are
supplying information but are not attempting to render
engineering or other professional services. If such services
are required, the assistance of an appropriate professional
should be sought.
 Content
Preface...........................................................................................13
Oral Presentations.......................................................................... 17
Preparation........................................................................................ 17
Organizing the Content........................................................................ 17
Delivering Your Presentation................................................................. 18
Using Visual Aids................................................................................. 20
Dealing with Nervousness..................................................................... 21
Activity.............................................................................................. 22
Projects.......................................................................................... 23
What is a project?............................................................................... 23
Checking out the context...................................................................... 23
Researching the project....................................................................... 23
Preparation And Working Out Of The Project Document.................... 24
Composition of the Project Document..................................................... 25
Sections............................................................................................. 25
Activity.............................................................................................. 29
Vocabulary of the Unit..................................................................... 29
Business Administration.................................................................. 33
Administrative Functions...................................................................... 33
Activity.............................................................................................. 34
Leadership...................................................................................... 35
Types of Leadership Styles................................................................... 35
Activity.............................................................................................. 37
Communication............................................................................... 37
Nonverbal Communication.................................................................... 39
CONFLICT MANAGEMENT................................................................. 40
Managerial Actions that Cause Workplace Conflicts.................................. 40
Ways People Deal With Conflict............................................................. 41
Activity.............................................................................................. 41
Vocabulary...................................................................................... 41
Classic Tools................................................................................... 45
Pie Charts.......................................................................................... 45
Bar Charts.......................................................................................... 45
Run Charts......................................................................................... 46
Radar Charts...................................................................................... 46
Scatter Plots....................................................................................... 47
Histograms......................................................................................... 48
Pareto Charts...................................................................................... 48
 Cause and Effect................................................................................. 49
Flowcharts.......................................................................................... 50
Control Charts.................................................................................... 52
Activity.............................................................................................. 53
Non-Classical Tools.......................................................................... 54
Benchmarking..................................................................................... 54
Outsourcing.................................................................................................... 56
Strategic Alliances........................................................................................... 57
Activity.............................................................................................. 58
Vocabulary...................................................................................... 59
Strategic Planning........................................................................... 63
Basic Approach to Strategic Planning..................................................... 63
The Vision.......................................................................................................64
The Mission.....................................................................................................65
The Values...................................................................................................... 66
The Objectives.................................................................................... 67
The Strategies.................................................................................... 67
SWOTs - Keys to Business Strategies..................................................................................67
The Goals...........................................................................................68
The Programs..................................................................................... 69
Benefits of Strategic Planning................................................................ 69
Activity.............................................................................................. 69
Marketing Plan................................................................................ 70
Marketing Audit................................................................................... 72
Content of the Marketing Plan............................................................... 73
Small business................................................................................................... 73
Medium-sized and large organizations..............................................................73
Activity.............................................................................................. 76
Vocabulary...................................................................................... 76
Safety and Health Programs............................................................ 79
OSHA Standards.................................................................................79
Hazard Control Measures...................................................................... 84
Common Hazards and Descriptions........................................................ 86
International Standardization.......................................................... 87
Understand the Basics......................................................................... 88
Plan – Do – Check – Act.......................................................................88
The ISO Standardization System...................................................... 89
Benefits of International Standards........................................................ 91
ISO 9000 Quality Management..............................................................92
ISO 9000 Principles................................................................................................................ 92
 ISO 14000 Environmental Management Systems....................................94
Other Popular Standards...................................................................... 96
ISO 26000 Social Responsibility........................................................................................... 96
ISO 50001 Energy Management........................................................................................... 97
ISO 31000 Risk Management................................................................................................ 98
ISO/IEC 27001 - Information Security Management........................................................ 98
International Commerce Terminology............................................... 99
Customs & Shipping Forms..................................................................102
Vocabulary.................................................................................... 103
 Preface

The second edition of the Technical English Booklet was collected as a guide to fulfill the
objectives proposed in the restructuring of the curriculum of the course. The new
curriculum was developed during the years of 2007 and 2008, with the guidance of the
Coordinator of the Area and the help of the assistants. Each of the assistants has a
different specialization in the field of engineering, so it helped to work in a
multidisciplinary environment.

After the first edition was finished, it was reviewed and authorized by the
Board of Directors of the Engineering School, now according to the needs
and skills required in this globalized world the topics have changed a little
bit but the essence of the program continues.

Again, it is advisable to make a revision in two years, and thanks to the

flexibility of the program, it will allow to make different changes in the
themes studied.

It has been interesting to look at the real applications this new curriculum
can lead. It wakes up the creativity, reasoning, and awareness of
development in different areas of engineering. It is done through problem
solving proposed in classes and developed in their field of work, enhancing
engineering techniques.
 Oral Presentations
Oral presentations are a richer medium than written documents. They
allow you to establish stronger contact with the audience and better convince
them of your viewpoint through verbal and nonverbal delivery, as well as the
ensuing interaction. Oral presentations have a price, however, in terms of the
audience's time. If you give a poor 15-minute presentation to an audience of 200
people, you have wasted the equivalent of 50 hours of work — more than a week
of someone's work time. Preparing effective oral presentations, like writing
effective scientific papers, takes time, but it is time well invested.

Still, many oral presentations are ripe for improvement. Think of the last
large conference you attended. With typically three to four talks an hour, eight
hours a day over several days, such conferences can expose you to dozens of
presentations. What fraction of these delivered a message that was useful to you
(that is, how many of them did more than simply provide a great deal of
complicated information)? What fraction of the presentations did you find
fascinating (that is, how many got your undivided attention from the speaker's
first word to his or her last)? An effective oral presentation gets you to pay
attention, to understand, and to think or do things differently as a result of it.

This unit will help you prepare and deliver more effective oral presentations
in English. It will help you select and organize a presentation's content, create
slides (if appropriate), deliver the presentation, and answer audience questions.

Preparation
First of all,
 Think about what you want to achieve; Inform? Inspire? Convince your
audience?
 Think about your audience: do they know the topic? Do they have a
particular interest in the topic?
 Research your topic and organize the content and material.
 Prepare your visual aids
 Rehearse your presentation taking care of the time.

Organizing the Content

Introduction (may be written last)
 Capture your listeners‘ attention: Begin with a question, a funny story, a
startling comment, or anything that will make them think.
 State your purpose; for example:
 ‗I‘m going to talk about...‘
‗This morning I want to explain…‘
Present an outline of your talk; for example:
‗I will concentrate on the following points: First of all…Then…
This will lead to… And finally…‘

Body
 Present your main points one by one in logical order.
 Pause at the end of each point (give people time to take notes, or time to
think about what you are saying).
 Make it absolutely clear when you move to another point. For example:
―The next point is that ...‖
―OK, now I am going to talk about ...‖
―Right. Now I'd like to explain ...‖
―Of course, we must not forget that ...‖
 ―However, it's important to realize that...‖
 Use clear examples to illustrate your points.
 Use visual aids to make your presentation more interesting.

Conclusion
It is very important to leave your audience with a clear summary of
everything you have covered. It is also important not to let the talk just fizzle out.
Make it obvious that you have reached the end of the presentation.
 Summarize the main points again, using phrases like:
―To sum up...‖
―So, in conclusion...‖
―OK, to recap the main points…‖
 Restate the purpose of your talk, and say that you have achieved your aim:
―I think you can now see that...‖
―My intention was ..., and it should now be clear that ...‖
 Thank the audience, and invite
questions:
―Thank you. Are there any
questions?‖

Delivering Your Presentation

a) Be aware of how your audience is
reacting. Are they interested or
bored? If they look confused, ask
them why.
b) Stop if necessary and explain a
point again.
c) Be open to questions. If someone raises a hand, or asks a question in the
middle of your talk, answer it. If you can't answer it, turn the question
back out to the audience and let someone else answer it!
d) Questions are good. They show that the audience is listening with interest.
They should not be regarded as an attack on you, but as a collaborative
search for deeper understanding.
e) Be ready to get the discussion going after your presentation. Just in case
nobody has anything to say, have some provocative questions or points for
discussion ready to ask the group.
f) Check if the audience is still with you. ‗Does that make sense?‘ ‗Is that
clear?‘
g) Check the pronunciation of difficult, unusual, or foreign words beforehand.
h) Don't turn your back on the audience!
i) Emphasize the key points—and make sure people realize which the key
points are.
j) Hold your head up. Look around and make eye-contact with people in the
audience. Do not just address the lecturer! Do not stare at a point on the
carpet or the wall. If you don't include the audience, they won't listen to
you.
k) Keep your language simple. The aim is to communicate, not to show off
your vocabulary.
l) Key words are important. Speak them out slowly and loudly.
m) Slow down for key points.
n) So use notes, cue cards or overheads as prompts, and speak to the
audience. Include everyone by looking at them and maintaining eye-
contact (but don't stare or glare at people).
o) Speak loudly enough for everyone in the room to hear you. This may feel
uncomfortably loud at first, but if people can't hear you, they won't listen.
p) Speak slowly and clearly. Don‘t rush! Speaking fast doesn‘t make you
seem smarter, it will only make it harder for other people to understand
you.
q) Stand straight and comfortably. Do not slouch or shuffle about.
r) Talk to your audience, don't read to them! A presentation is not the same
as an essay. If you read out your presentation as if it were an essay, your
audience will probably understand very little and will lose concentration
quickly.
s) Use pauses—don't be afraid of short periods of silence. (They give you a
chance to gather your thoughts, and your audience a chance to think.)
t) Vary your voice quality. If you always use the same volume and pitch (for
example, all loud, or all soft, or in a monotone) your audience will switch
off.
u) When you are talking to your friends, you naturally use your hands, your
facial expression, and your body to add to your communication. Do it in
 your presentation as well. It will make things far more interesting for the
audience.
v) When you begin a new point, use a higher pitch and volume.

Using Visual Aids

It is very helpful to use visual aids in your presentation, as it helps people
to understand. People learn visually as well as orally. Particularly if your accent is
different from your audience's accent, it can be very helpful to let them see your
keywords.

Overheads
Overheads are the easiest and most reliable form of visual aids. You can
use them as a prompt for your talk, so that you may not need cards. [But don't
read word-for-word from your overheads!]
 Use bold typeface, and a minimum of size 16
font [Check that your overheads are readable by
placing them beside you on the floor and looking down
at them. Can you read them?]
 Use no more than seven or eight main points on
an overhead [Overheads that have too many words on
them are no use at all]
 Give your audience time to take notes from your
overhead
 Make sure your audience can see the overhead screen [Where are you
standing? Is it directly in front of the screen?]
 Using color, pictures and graphs can make your overheads more
interesting [But don't overcrowd your overheads with too much detail]

Presentations
You can use software to produce very
professional overheads, or to make a computer-
based presentation. Remember that presentations
may look great, but if the technology goes wrong you
may be very embarrassed. It's a good idea to print
out a handout, or have some overheads as a backup
just in case.

Sometimes students are tempted to spend more time on producing

graphics than on the actual talk. Remember—if your talk is poor, no amount of
fancy graphics will save it!
 Handouts
Handouts are a great idea. Think about whether you
want to distribute them before or after your presentation. It
is a good idea to include your references on a handout, so
that people can follow up on them later. You could also
include some follow-up questions for discussion.

Using the board

If possible, put your information on the
board before the talk begins, otherwise you will
have to turn your back on the audience and break
your eye contact with them, which is never a good
idea. Writing on a board is also time-consuming.
Use alternative visual aids wherever possible.

If you really must use a whiteboard, come

prepared with the right pens (use pens clearly marked 'Whiteboard Marker'—
don't use anything else) and write in large neat writing, so that people can read it.

Checking out the facilities

Whenever possible, check the facilities of the room where you are going to deliver
your talk. Does the overhead processor work? How does it turn on and off? Where
is the plug for the computer? Is there a whiteboard, or is it a blackboard? If a
blackboard, is chalk provided?

Dealing with Nervousness

The first few times you make a presentation, you will be nervous. That's
quite a good thing—a bit of adrenalin often helps you to perform well. However,
to make sure that your nervousness does not become a problem, here are some
things to consider:
 Smile! Your audience will react warmly to
you if you smile and at least look relaxed.
 Treat your audience like friends.
 Confess that you are nervous! Your
audience will be very sympathetic—they
know how you are feeling.
 Breathe deeply. It will calm you down
and help to control the slight shaking
that you might get in your hands and
your voice.
 Be well-prepared. Practice giving your
talk
  Be organized. If you are well organized, your task will be easier. If your
overheads are out of order, or your notes are disorganized, you may get
flustered.
 Slow down! When people are nervous, they tend to get confused easily. So
your mind may start to race, and you may feel panicky. Make use of
pauses: force yourself to stop at the end of a sentence, take a breath, and
think before you continue.
 Giving an oral presentation is a performance—you have to be like an actor.
If you act the part of someone enjoying themselves and feeling confident,
you will not only communicate these positive feelings to the audience, you
will feel much better, too.

Accomplished public speakers feel nervous before and even during a talk.
The skill comes in not communicating your nervousness, and in not letting it take
over from the presentation. Over time, you will feel less nervous, and well able to
control your nervousness.

Activity
A. Identify which points of ―Delivering your presentation ‖ belong to
Language skills:
Voice:
Body language:
Audience interaction:
B. Introduce yourself with a partner; indicate your name, engineering field,
interests, and other important issues about yourself.
 Projects

WHAT IS A PROJECT?
A project is a proposal prepared for yourself, for someone else, for a whole
community or even for a country. It involves making plans for the future and
describing them to others or to the community as a whole. At the start there is
nothing certain about a project except perhaps the desire or determination to
undertake it. Thus it is the attempt to define this which has led us to make the
various suggestions in this publication.

Identifying a project involves

recognizing a need in a certain place and
for a given group of people. A proper
understanding of the target group is very
important.

CHECKING OUT THE CONTEXT

Proper research is the prime
necessity for any project. If this is not
taken sufficiently seriously, the project
proposed is often ill-adapted to the
situation it is designed to. The result of this can be failure even though a large
amount of money may have been invested. Thus the study of the context of a
project is like laying the foundations of a house : the firmer they are, the more
solid and durable the house.

RESEARCHING THE PROJECT

The aim of this research is better to understand the field of operation of the
project and the people for whom the project is designed. The detailed planning of
the project then needs to be done in an intelligent way, which means not
disrupting local traditions, customs and structures. In instances where the need
has been clearly identified by the local population. It is nevertheless necessary to
try out the basic idea as a pilot scheme involving only a sample of the population.
This will test the relevance of the ideas which need to be developed in the process
of putting the project together.
 The length of time spent on research depends on the amount of time
needed getting to know the context of the project plus the time taken to do the
necessary detailed planning. Bearing in mind the fact that the context and the
needs are constantly changing, time must be allowed to ensure that the proposals
are free of misunderstandings and hasty judgments and that the project still
corresponds to the real needs of the people and has not been drawn up in a way
that causes the people for whom it was conceived not to be interested in it.

The work done during this first phase should give precise information
about local needs, customs and traditions, and on the political, social, cultural
and economic context. This information is essential and needs to be
systematically studied throughout the period of identification and planning.

NOTE : The initiators of the project should not forget that it may need also to
interest a funding organization. It is advisable therefore to try to relate as far as
possible the interests of the people with the criteria of the organizations from
which funding is sought.

Preparation And Working Out Of The

Project Document
Main criteria used by United Nations agencies.

In the previous part, we have seen that to identify a project is not enough
simply to have a good idea. It is vital that the idea corresponds realistically to the
needs of the local population. Once this
is clear, it must be certain that the
project fits into the social, economic,
cultural and political context and has a
good chance of being carried through (in
terms of finance, organization,
manpower and availability of equipment
and materials). When this task has been
completed, the project organizer will
than try to link the information obtained
with the original idea of the project. This may mean reformulating his or her ideas
before defining the project strategy. After this comes the process of preparing and
working out the project document.
 The conception and preparation of a project document that will be
submitted to a national or international funding organization should follow
certain guidelines without which it would have no hope of being considered. The
initiator of the project should realize that this document is his first real
introduction to the potential founders and forms the basis on which future
agreements will be made.

Care must be taken with the presentation and content of the document it
must respond to whatever questions the funding organization might ask before
deciding whether to accept the project or not. It is also particularly important that
the document is drawn up in a precise fashion, presenting clearly and concisely
in a logical order the details of the project and its proposed development.

COMPOSITION OF THE PROJECT DOCUMENT

A project document can be drawn up in the following sections:

General Introduction
 Context and justification
 Population targeted
 Institutional framework
Methods and strategies
 Development objective / overall aim
 Immediate objective/s
 Proposed strategy
 Products
 Activities planned
 Work plan
Available resources; Aid requested; Budget
 Available resources
 Aid requested
 Budget
Follow up, Report; Evaluation
 Follow up
 Report
 Evaluation

SECTIONS
Composition of the Title Page
The following should be featured clearly on this page :
  Title of the project
 Project number (if you have submitted more than one project)
 Field of activity
 Location (city, region, country)
 Tentative starting date and duration
 Name(s) of organization(s)/group(s)/people carrying out the project
 Name(s) of the funding organization(s) (if applicable)
 Name(s) of the organizations associated with the project (if applicable)
 An estimate of the total budget
 Total amount of funding sought (indicate the currency)
 Name of the organization submitting the project (or the name and title of
the person authorized to do so)
 Date of submission.

Context of the project

This sub-section should explain in a few lines the project's context and the
environment in which it will be carried out. The information given should explain
 The origin of the project (considering the social, economic, cultural,
political, historical and geographical conditions)
 The problem which the project seeks to solve, or the main objective of the
project
 The position of the organization proposing the project and of the local
authorities regarding this problem or situation
 What previous steps have been taken and what has been their effect.

EXAMPLE 1:
A context presented by a CCIVS member organization for a project in
Bangladesh.

With a population of about one training is not available since there

billion, south Asian Countries are are no adequate training facilities in
mostly economically underdeveloped. the region. Due to these
About 50% of these people live below circumstances, BWCA believes that
the poverty line and the same such a huge population of illiterate
percentage of them are illiterate. and economically disadvantaged
There is a wide gap between overall people should be provided with a
development needs and available training centre to promote their
resources. There are many social education, cultural and socio-
workers and volunteers in these economic development.
countries who are interested in local,
national and international BWCA proposes to begin training
development. However, appropriate program's in the area to fill these
needs. With funding from UNESCO, will have the means to participate,
trainers can be provided, volunteers
and training courses can
be developed

EXAMPLE 2:
Introduction used on Starting a Pilot Agricultural Centre for youth in
Zaire Project

The goal of this project is to help To change this situation, young

disadvantaged youth to participate in
social and economic activities, to
fight against the drift from rural
areas which strips the land of its vital
forces.
In the region of Bas-Zaire where the
land is fertile and which could
become the granary of Kinshasa, the
present output is scarcely enough to
feed its inhabitants.
people need to be encouraged to stay
in the rural areas. The Regional
Council for Social Protection and
Family Planning wants to establish at
Nkondo Malembe an experimental
agricultural centre for youth.
The activities of this centre would
include orientation of young people
as well as agricultural production.

EXAMPLE 3:
The context of the previous project.

Nkondo Malembe is a village which is It is a relatively hot region with clay

a part of the Luima community in the soil. Rainfall varies from 1200 to
Songololo zone, the former training 1700 ml per year. It has two seasons:
and production centre of JMPR (the dry and rainy.
youth movement of the ruling party).

Target community
Most projects are for the benefit of a certain defined population. A project
planner should therefore try concisely to determine who would benefit from the
project. This means taking into account certain criteria such as the composition
of the target community and its origin; the geographical area targeted; their main
activity (e.g. farming), age distribution and educational level.

This sub-section should also indicate to what extent the targeted

population supports the idea of the project; to what extent they are mobilized;
and which sections of the population are seen as a priority.

In the example in Zaire given above, it is evident that the population

targeted is the peasants from the southern part of the country and the criteria
used to determine this were the geographical region and the main activity of the
population.

The potential waste of human resources through early childbirth, drug

abuse cases resulting in psychiatric cases and other social vices among the youth
makes it imperative that actions are taken by NGO's and communities to curb
these unfortunate phenomena. These conditions tend negatively to affect the
physical and intellectual development of the adolescents into adulthood; thus a
vicious cycle of deprivation is created if this precarious situation is not addressed.

EXAMPLE 4:
A target population in a CCIVS project in Bolivia.

Another major benefit of this project teachers and communities alike.

is women. In each community the
vast majority of teachers are women.
With the supply of the double-school
desks their job in educating young
children will be much easier. Easier
by enabling the students more
incentive to learn in comfortable but
will boost the morale of the students,
Previously teachers employed in rural
Bolivia were reluctant to finish their
term. They cited poor equipment as
major factor. With VEA's cooperation,
most are willing to stay and finish
their terms. The desks built by VEA
can also be used by the local
mothers' club and their daughters.

The institutional framework

The sub-section should give a clear outline of how the project is expected
to evolve, without going into minor details. You should include where the project
is taking place, staffing (national or international personnel, volunteers,
consultants etc.), sources of the funds and materials for the project, funding
organizations, organizations carrying out the project; other associated
organizations, co-ordination ties between these organizations, body or person in
charge of the project.

EXAMPLE 5:
Framework presented for Zaire project.

The proposed seminar to train social

workers to work in the X region will
take place at X from April 1 – May
30, 1993. It will be organized by the
training staff of the Association for
the Children of Region X with
technical help from a consultant
from UNICEF. UNICEF and UNESCO
will be providing the fares for the 120
social workers.
The Association for the Children of
Region X will pay for food, lodging
and logistical aspects of the training
programmed. The Ministry of Youth
and Sports will be presiding over this grant to the national association.
training seminar and has given a

ACTIVITY
C. Answer the questions
What section could contain the following?:
Nkondo Malembe is a village which is a part of the Luima community in the
Songololo zone, the former training and production centre of JMPR (the youth
movement of the ruling party). It is a relatively hot region with clay soil.
Rainfall varies from 1200 to 1700 ml per year. It has two seasons: dry and
rainy.
Where is the project proposed to be held?:

D. Make groups of maximum 8 members and plan a project. The project

should be social outreach related to any of the branches of engineering. It
must be achievable and should not need outside help or funding sought.

Vocabulary of the Unit

Aim Foundations Report
Attempt Framework Research
Budget Funding sought Scheme
Disrupt Guidelines Strategy
Environment Phase Submission
Evaluation Population Submit
Feasibility Population Targeted Survey
Fizzle out Prime Undertake
Follow up Proposal

References of the Unit

 http://ccivs.org/New-SiteCCSVI/CcivsOther/Documents/Howtopresentaprojectfull.pdf
 http://www.canberra.edu.au/studyskills/learning/oral
 http://www.nature.com/scitable/ebooks/english-communication-for-scientists-
14053993/giving-oral-presentations-14239332
 Business Administration
In business, administration consists of the performance or management of
business operations and thus the making or implementing of major decisions.
Administration can be defined as the universal process of organizing people and
resources efficiently so as to direct activities toward common goals and objectives.

ADMINISTRATIVE FUNCTIONS
Administrators, broadly speaking,
engage in a common set of functions to
meet the organization's goals. These
"functions" of the administrator were
described by Henri Fayol.

 Planning is deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to do it,

and who should do it. It maps the path from where the organization is to
where it wants to be. The planning function involves establishing goals and
arranging them in logical order. Administrators engage in both short-range
and long-range planning.
 Organizing involves identifying responsibilities to be performed, grouping
responsibilities into departments or divisions, and specifying
organizational relationships. The purpose is to achieve coordinated effort
among all the elements in the organization. Organizing must take into
account delegation of authority and responsibility and span of control
within supervisory units.
 Staffing means filling job positions with the right people at the right time.
It involves determining staffing needs, writing job descriptions, recruiting
and screening people to fill the positions.
 Directing is leading people in a manner that achieves the goals of the
organization. This involves proper allocation of resources and providing an
effective support system. Directing requires exceptional interpersonal skills
and the ability to motivate people. One of the crucial issues in directing is
to find the correct balance between emphasis on staff needs and emphasis
on economic production.
 Controlling is the function that evaluates quality in all areas and detects
potential or actual deviations from the organization's plan. This ensures
high-quality performance and satisfactory results while maintaining an
orderly and problem-free environment. Controlling includes information
management, measurement of performance, and institution of corrective
actions.
  Budgeting, exempted from the list above, incorporates most of the
administrative functions, beginning with the implementation of a budget
plan through the application of budget controls.

Management in business and human organization activity, in simple terms

means the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals.
Management comprises planning, organizing, resourcing, leading or directing,
and controlling an organization (a group of one or more people or entities) or
effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal. Resourcing encompasses the
deployment and manipulation of human resources, financial resources,
technological resources, and natural resources.

To accomplish in a successful way the management function two kind of

skills must be fulfilled:
 Human skills
 Financial skills

In human skills can be mentioned: the ability to communicate, leadership,

conflict management, decision taking etc.

In Financial skills: the management tools, benchmarking, outsourcing, six

sigma and more.

ACTIVITY
A. According to the managerial skills for a good administrator, write an ideal
manager profile.
 Leadership
The word leadership can refer to:
1. Those entities that perform one
or more acts of leading.
2. The ability to affect
human behavior so as to
accomplish a mission.
3. Influencing a group of people to
move towards its goal setting or goal
achievement.

TYPES OF LEADERSHIP STYLES

The bureaucratic leader (Weber, 1905) is very structured and follows the
procedures as they have been established. This type of leadership has no space to
explore new ways to solve problems and is usually slow paced to ensure
adherence to the ladders stated by the company. Leaders ensure that all the
steps have been followed prior to sending it to the next level of authority.
Universities, hospitals, banks and government usually require this type of leader
in their organizations to ensure quality, increase security and decrease
corruption. Leaders that try to speed up the process will experience frustration
and anxiety.

The charismatic leader (Weber, 1905) leads by infusing energy and

eagerness into their team members. This type of leader has to be committed to
the organization for the long run. If the success of the division or project is
attributed to the leader and not the team, charismatic leaders may become a risk
for the company by deciding to resign for advanced opportunities. It takes the
company time and hard work to gain the employees' confidence back with other
type of leadership after they have committed themselves to the magnetism of a
charismatic leader.

The autocratic leader (Lewin, Lippitt, & White, 1939) is given the power to
make decisions alone, having total authority. This leadership style is good for
employees that need close supervision to perform certain tasks. Creative
employees and team players resent this type of leadership, since they are unable
to enhance processes or decision making, resulting in job dissatisfaction.

The democratic leader (Lewin, Lippitt, & White, 1939) listens to the team's
ideas and studies them, but will make the final decision. Team players contribute
to the final decision thus increasing employee satisfaction and ownership, feeling
their input was considered when the final decision was taken. When changes
arises, this type of leadership helps the team assimilate the changes better and
more rapidly than other styles, knowing they were consulted and contributed to
the decision making process, minimizing resistance and intolerance. A
shortcoming of this leadership style is that it has difficulty when decisions are
needed in a short period of time or at the moment.

The laissez-faire ("let do") leader (Lewin, Lippitt, & White, 1939) gives no
continuous feedback or supervision because the employees are highly
experienced and need little supervision to obtain the expected outcome. On the
other hand, this type of style is also associated with leaders that don‘t lead at all,
failing in supervising team members, resulting in lack of control and higher costs,
bad service or failure to meet deadlines.

The people-oriented leader (Fiedler, 1967) is the one that, in order to

comply with effectiveness and efficiency, supports, trains and develops his
personnel, increasing job satisfaction and genuine interest to do a good job.
The task-oriented leader (Fiedler, 1967) focus on the job, and concentrate on the
specific tasks assigned to each employee to reach goal accomplishment. This
leadership style suffers the same motivation issues as autocratic leadership,
showing no involvement in the teams needs. It requires close supervision and
control to achieve expected results.

The servant leader (Greenleaf, 1977) facilitates goal accomplishment by

giving its team members what they need in order to be productive. This leader is
an instrument employees use to reach the goal rather than an commanding voice
that moves to change. This leadership style, in a manner similar to democratic
leadership, tends to achieve the results in a slower time frame than other styles,
although employee engagement is higher.

The transaction leader (Burns, 1978) is given power to perform certain

tasks and reward or punish for the team‘s performance. It gives the opportunity
to the manager to lead the group and the group agrees to follow his lead to
accomplish a predetermined goal in exchange for something else. Power is given
to the leader to evaluate, correct and train subordinates when productivity is not
up to the desired level and reward effectiveness when expected outcome is
reached.

The transformation leader (Burns, 1978) motivates its team to be effective

and efficient. Communication is the base for goal achievement focusing the group
in the final desired outcome or goal attainment. This leader is highly visible and
uses chain of command to get the job done. Transformational leaders focus on
the big picture, needing to be surrounded by people who take care of the details.
The leader is always looking for ideas that move the organization to reach the
company‘s vision.

The environment leader ( Carmazzi, 2005) is the one who nurtures group
or organizational environment to affect the emotional and psychological
perception of an individual‘s place in that group or organization. An
understanding and application of group psychology and dynamics is essential for
this style to be effective. The leader uses organizational culture to inspire
individuals and develop leaders at all levels. This leadership style relies on
creating an education matrix where groups interactively learn the fundamental
psychology of group dynamics and culture from each other. The leader uses this
psychology, and complementary language, to influence direction through the
members of the inspired group to do what is required for the benefit of all.

"Leadership is the energetic process of getting people fully and willingly

committed to a new and sustainable course of action, to meet
commonly agreed objectives whilst having commonly held values"

ACTIVITY
B. At home, access to the following link and complete the test for identifying
your leadership style, later print the snapshot provided by the page and
write an analysis of the result. If the link doesn‘t work try to search the
test ―Leadership Style‖ on the queendom principal page.

http://www.queendom.com/tests/access_page/index.htm?idRegTest=2289

C. Write a paragraph about a person that you consider a leader in your

school, your community or even in the world. Describe his/her qualities
and identify which style of leadership he/she has.

Communication
Communication is the process of transferring information from a sender to
a receiver with the use of a medium in which the communicated information is
understood by both sender and receiver. It requires that all parties understand a
common language that is exchanged; there are auditory means, such as
speaking, singing and sometimes tone of voice, and nonverbal, physical means,
such as body language, sign language,
paralanguage, touch, eye contact, or the use
of writing.

Communication is also defined as a

process by which we assign and convey
meaning in an attempt to create shared
understanding. This process requires a vast
repertoire of skills in intrapersonal and
interpersonal processing, listening, observing, speaking, questioning, analyzing,
and evaluating. Use of these processes is developmental and transfers to all areas
of life: home, school, community, work, and beyond. It is through communication
that collaboration and cooperation occur. Communication is the articulation of
sending a message, through different media whether it be verbal or nonverbal, so
long as a being transmits a thought provoking idea, gesture, action, etc.

Communication happens at many levels (even for one single action), in

many different ways, and for most beings, as well as certain machines. Several, if
not all, fields of study dedicate a portion of attention to communication, so when
speaking about communication it is very important to be sure about what aspects
of communication one is speaking about. Definitions of communication range
widely, some recognizing that animals can communicate with each other as well
as human beings, and some are more narrow, only including human beings
within the parameters of human symbolic interaction.

Nonetheless, communication is usually described along a few major

dimensions: Content (what type of things are communicated), source, emisor,
sender or encoder (by whom), form (in which form), channel (through which
medium), destination, receiver, target or decoder (to whom), and the purpose or
pragmatic aspect. Between parties, communication includes acts that confer
knowledge and experiences, give advice and commands, and ask questions. These
acts may take many forms, in one of the various manners of communication. The
form depends on the abilities of the group communicating. Together,
communication content and form make messages that are sent towards a
destination. The target can be oneself, another person or being, another entity
(such as a corporation or group of beings).
 In a simple model, information or content (e.g. a message in natural
language) is sent in some form (as spoken language) from an emisor/ sender/
encoder to a destination/ receiver/ decoder. In a slightly more complex form a
sender and a receiver are linked reciprocally. A particular instance of
communication is called a speech act. In the presence of "communication noise"
on the transmission channel (air, in this case), reception and decoding of content
may be faulty, and thus the speech act may not achieve the desired effect. One
problem with this encode-transmit-receive-decode model is that the processes of
encoding and decoding imply that the sender and receiver each possess
something that functions as a code book, and that these two code books are, at
the very least, similar if not identical. Although something like code books is
implied by the model, they are nowhere represented in the model, which creates
many conceptual difficulties.

NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION
Nonverbal communication is the process of communicating through
sending and receiving wordless messages. Such messages can be communicated
through gesture, body language or posture; facial expression and eye contact,
object communication such as clothing, hairstyles or even architecture, or
symbols and infographics. Speech may also contain nonverbal elements known
as paralanguage, including voice quality, emotion and speaking style, as well as
prosodic features such as rhythm, intonation and stress. Likewise, written texts
have nonverbal elements such as handwriting style, spatial arrangement of
words, or the use of emoticons. A portmanteau of the English words emotion (or
emote) and icon, an emoticon is a symbol or combination of symbols used to
convey emotional content in written or message form.
 CONFLICT MANAGEMENT
Conflict management refers to the long-term management of intractable
conflicts. It is the label for the variety of ways by which people handle grievances
— standing up for what they consider to be right and against what they consider
to be wrong. Those ways include such diverse phenomena as gossip, ridicule,
lynching, terrorism, warfare, feuding, genocide, law,
mediation, and avoidance. Which forms of conflict
management will be used in any given situation can
be somewhat predicted and explained by the social
structure — or social geometry — of the case.

Conflict management is often considered to be

distinct from conflict resolution. The latter refers to
resolving the dispute to the approval of one or both
parties, whereas the former concerns an ongoing
process that may never have a resolution. Neither is it considered the same as
conflict transformation, which seeks to reframe the positions of the conflict
parties.

MANAGERIAL ACTIONS THAT CAUSE WORKPLACE CONFLICTS

1. Poor communications
a. Employees experience continuing surprises, they aren't informed of
new decisions, programs, etc.
b. Employees don't understand reasons for decisions, they aren't
involved in decision-making.
c. As a result, employees trust the "rumor mill" more than
management.
2. The alignment or the amount of resources is insufficient. There is:
a. Disagreement about "who does what".
b. Stress from working with inadequate resources.
3. "Personal chemistry", including conflicting values or actions among
managers and employees, for example:
a. Strong personal natures don't match.
b. We often don't like in others what we don't like in ourselves.
4. Leadership problems, including inconsistent, missing, too-strong or
uninformed leadership (at any level in the organization), evidenced by:
a. Avoiding conflict, "passing the buck" with little follow-through on
decisions.
b. Employees see the same continued issues in the workplace.
c. Supervisors don't understand the jobs of their subordinates
WAYS PEOPLE DEAL WITH CONFLICT
There is no one best way to deal with conflict. It depends on the current
situation. Here are the major ways that people use to deal with conflict.

1. Avoid it. Pretend it is not there or ignore it.

Use it when it simply is not worth the effort to argue. Usually this
approach tends to worsen the conflict over time.
2. Accommodate it. Give in to others, sometimes to the extent that you
compromise yourself.
Use this approach very sparingly and infrequently, for example, in
situations when you know that you will have another more useful
approach in the very near future. Usually this approach tends to worsen
the conflict over time, and causes conflicts within yourself.
3. Competing. Work to get your way, rather than clarifying and addressing
the issue. Competitors love accommodators.
Use when you have a very strong conviction about your position.
4. Compromising. Mutual give-and-take.
Use when the goal is to get past the issue and move on.
5. Collaborating. Focus on working together.
Use when the goal is to meet as many current needs as possible by using
mutual resources. This approach sometimes raises new mutual needs.
Use when the goal is to cultivate ownership and commitment.

ACTIVITY
D. Role play the solution of a conflict. Analyze the result.

Vocabulary
Affiliates Intermediary Partnering
Contract Organization Protégé
Equity Negotiation Small Business

References of the Unit

 http://1stopconflict.blogspot.com/
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Administration_(business)
 http://www.academia.edu/474807/Types_of_Leadership_styles
 http://www.knowthis.com/promotion-decisions/the-communication-process
 http://www.mediaworks.pro/communication.html
 Classic Tools
There's an elusive balance between chasing after each new management
tool or method, and ignoring the fact that we have actually learned some things
about management over the past 100,000 years. The best tools are those which
stand the test of time, and which give you a lot of leverage over common
problems.

These tools are basic graphs and statistics. What to look for?
Mean The average of all the data points in the series
Maximum The maximum value in the series
Minimun The minimum value in the series
Sample Size The number of values in the series
Range The maximum value minus the minimum value
Standard Deviation Indicates how widely data is spread around the mean

PIE CHARTS
They are used to show classes or groups
of data in proportion to the whole data set. The
entire pie represents all the data, while each
slice represents a different class or group
within the whole.

BAR CHARTS
Bar Charts, like pie charts,
are useful for comparing classes or
groups of data. In bar charts, a
class or group can have a single
category of data, or they can be
broken down further into multiple
categories for greater depth of
analysis.

 Watch out for inconsistent

scales. If you're comparing
two or more charts, be sure
they use the same scale. If
they don't have the same
 scale, be aware of the differences and how they might trick your eye.
 Be sure that all your classes are equal. For example, don't mix weeks and
months, years and half-years, or newly-invented categories with ones that
have trails of data behind them.
 Be sure that the interval between classes is consistent. For example, if you
want to compare current data that goes month by month to older data that
is only available for every six months, either use current data for every six
months or show the older data with blanks for the missing months.

RUN CHARTS
Run charts (often known as line graphs outside the quality management
field) display process performance over time. Upward and downward trends,
cycles, and large aberrations may be spotted and investigated further. In a run
chart, events, shown on the y axis, are graphed against a time period on
the x axis. For example, a run chart in a hospital might plot the number of
patient transfer delays against the time of day or day of the week. The results
might show that there are more delays at noon than at 3 p.m. Investigating this
phenomenon could unearth potential for improvement. Run charts can also be
used to track improvements that have been put into place, checking to determine
their success. Also, an average line
can be added to a run chart to
clarify movement of the data away
from the average.

Alternatives with run charts:

 An average line, representing
the average of all the y
values recorded, can easily
be added to a run chart to
clarify movement of the data
away from the average. An average line runs parallel to the x axis.
 Several variables may be tracked on a single chart, with each variable
having its own line. The chart is then called a multiple run chart.

RADAR CHARTS
Radar charts are useful when you want to look at several different factors
all related to one item. Radar charts have multiple axes along which data can be
plotted.
 In a radar chart, a point close
to the center on any axis indicates a
low value. A point near the edge is a
high value. When you're interpreting a
radar chart, check each axis as well as
the overall shape to see how well it fits
your goals.

SCATTER PLOTS
Scatter Plots (also called scatter diagrams) are used to investigate the
possible relationship between two variables that both relate to the same "event." A
straight line of best fit (using the least squares method) is often included.

Things to look for:

 If the points cluster in a band running from lower left to upper right, there
is a positive correlation (if x increases, y increases).
 If the points cluster in a band
from upper left to lower right,
there is a negative correlation (if
x increases, y decreases).
 Imagine drawing a straight line
or curve through the data so
that it "fits" as well as possible.
The more the points cluster
closely around the imaginary
line of best fit, the stronger the
relationship that exists between
the two variables.
 If it is hard to see where you would draw a line, and if the points show no
significant clustering, there is probably no correlation.

There is a maxim in statistics that says, "Correlation does not imply

causality." In other words, your scatter plot may show that a relationship exists,
but it does not and cannot prove that one variable is causing the other. There
could be a third factor involved which is causing both, some other systemic
cause, or the apparent relationship could just be a fluke. Nevertheless, the
scatter plot can give you a clue that two things might be related, and if so, how
they move together.
HISTOGRAMS
A histogram is a specialized type of bar chart. Individual data points are
grouped together in classes, so that you can get an idea of how frequently data in
each class occur in the data set. High bars indicate more points in a class, and
low bars indicate fewer points.

The strength of a histogram is that it provides an easy-to-read picture of

the location and variation in a data set. There are, however, two weaknesses of
histograms that you should bear in mind:

 The first is that

histograms can be
manipulated to show
different pictures. If too
few or too many bars are
used, the histogram can
be misleading. This is an
area which requires some
judgment, and perhaps
some experimentation,
based on the analyst's
experience.
 Histograms can also obscure the time differences among data sets. For
example, if you looked at data for #births/day in the United States in
1996, you would miss any seasonal variations, e.g. peaks around the times
of full moons. Likewise, in quality control, a histogram of a process run
tells only one part of a long story. There is a need to keep reviewing the
histograms and control charts for consecutive process runs over an
extended time to gain useful knowledge about a process.

PARETO CHARTS
Vilfredo Pareto, a turn-of-the-century Italian economist, studied the
distributions of wealth in different countries, concluding that a fairly consistent
minority – about 20% – of people controlled the large majority – about 80% – of a
society's wealth. This same distribution has been observed in other areas and has
been termed the Pareto effect.
 The Pareto effect even operates in quality improvement: 80% of problems
usually stem from 20% of the causes. Pareto charts are used to display the Pareto
principle in action, arranging data
so that the few vital factors that
are causing most of the problems
reveal themselves. Concentrating
improvement efforts on these few
will have a greater impact and be
more cost-effective than
undirected efforts.

Things to look for:

 In most cases, two or three
categories will tower above the
others. These few categories which account for the bulk of the problem will
be the high-impact points on which to focus. If in doubt, follow these
guidelines:
 Look for a break point in the cumulative percentage line. This point occurs
where the slope of the line begins to flatten out. The factors under the
steepest part of the curve are the most important.
 If there is not a fairly clear change in the slope of the line, look for the
factors that make up at least 60% of the problem. You can always improve
these few, redo the Pareto analysis, and discover the factors that have
risen to the top now that the biggest ones have been improved.
 If the bars are all similar sizes or more than half of the categories are
needed to make up the needed 60%, try a different breakdown of categories
that might be more appropriate.

CAUSE AND EFFECT

The cause & effect diagram is the brainchild of Kaoru Ishikawa, who
pioneered quality management processes in the Kawasaki shipyards, and in the
process became one of the founding fathers of modern management; that is the
reason for calling these diagrams ―Ishikawa Diagram‖.

The cause and effect diagram is used to explore all the potential or real
causes (or inputs) that result in a single effect (or output). Causes are arranged
according to their level of importance or detail, resulting in a depiction of
relationships and hierarchy of events. This can help you search for root causes,
identify areas where there may be problems, and compare the relative importance
of different causes.
 Causes in a cause & effect diagram are frequently arranged into four major
categories. While these categories can be anything, you will often see:
 manpower, methods, materials, and machinery (recommended for
manufacturing)
 equipment, policies, procedures, and people (recommended for
administration and service).

These guidelines can be helpful but should not be used if they limit the
diagram or are inappropriate. The categories you use should suit your needs.

The C&E diagram is also known as the fishbone diagram because it was
drawn to resemble the skeleton of a fish, with the main causal categories drawn
as "bones" attached to the spine of the fish, as shown below.

FLOWCHARTS
Flowcharts are maps or graphical representations of a process. Steps in a
process are shown with symbolic shapes, and the flow of the process is indicated
with arrows connecting the symbols. Computer programmers popularized
flowcharts in the 1960's, using them to map the logic of programs. In quality
improvement work, flowcharts are particularly useful for displaying how a
process currently functions or could ideally function. Flowcharts can help you see
whether the steps of a process are logical, uncover problems or
miscommunications, define the boundaries of a process, and develop a common
base of knowledge about a process. Flowcharting a process often brings to light
redundancies, delays, dead ends, and indirect paths that would otherwise remain
unnoticed or ignored. But flowcharts don't work if they aren't accurate, if team
members are afraid to describe what actually happens, or if the team is too far
removed from the actual workings of the process.
 There are many varieties of flowcharts and scores of symbols that you can
use. Experience has shown that there are three main types that work for almost
all situations:

High-level flowcharts map only the major steps in a process for a good overview.

Detailed flowcharts show a step-by-step mapping of all events and decisions in a

process.

Deployment flowcharts which organize the flowchart by columns, with each

column representing a person or department involved in a process.
 The trouble spots in a process usually begin to appear as a team
constructs a detailed flowchart.

Although there are many symbols that can be used in flowcharts to

represent different kinds of steps, accurate flowcharts can be created using very
few (e.g. oval, rectangle, diamond, delay, cloud).

To construct an effective flowchart:

 Define the process boundaries with starting and ending points.
 Complete the big picture before filling in the details.
 Clearly define each step in the process. Be accurate and honest.
 Identify time lags and non-value-adding steps.
 Circulate the flowchart to other people involved in the process to get their
comments.

Flowcharts don't work if they're not accurate or if the team is too far
removed from the process itself. Team members should be true participants in
the process and feel free to describe what really happens. A thorough flowchart
should provide a clear view of how a process works. With a completed flowchart,
you can:
 Identify time lags and non-value-adding steps.
 Identify responsibility for each step.
 Brainstorm for problems in the process.
 Determine major and minor inputs into the process with a cause & effect
diagram.
 Choose the most likely trouble spots with the consensus builder.

CONTROL CHARTS
This are sometimes called
Shewhart charts because of its
inventor, Walter Shewhart, of Bell
Labs. There are many different
subspecies of control charts which
can be applied to the different types
of process data which are typically
available.

All control charts have three basic components:

 A centerline, usually the mathematical average of all the samples plotted.
 Upper and lower statistical control limits that define the constraints of
common cause variations.
 Performance data plotted over time.
ACTIVITY
You are employed by a mid-sized human service agency which employs 75 people.
The agency has a central fax machine. For some time now, clinical staff have
complained that they have not received fax messages in a timely manner.
Because of the confidential nature of some of the fax messages, the agency has
developed a three step procedure for handling fax messages. The fax clerk is the
only person who can retrieve fax messages from the machine. The clerk seals the
message in an envelope and delivers it to the mail room. The mail room places all
fax messages in a "safe box" where they are picked up by the mail delivery person
who delivers them to the secretary for each unit. The secretary opens the
envelope and determines whether the fax contains confidential information. If
not, the secretary places the fax message in the staff person's in box. If the
message contains confidential information, the secretary forwards it directly to
the clinical staff person for whom the message was intended. The goal is to design
the system so that the correct person receives the fax message within one hour.
 Non-Classical Tools
There are any new tools for helping management, they have changed
during the years but the basis continues here… Improve quality, get more profits
and compete in this globalized world.

Benchmarking, Balanced Scorecard, Outsourcing and Strategic Planning

have remain in the top ten of management tools. Besides these there are many
more in the list, but now we‘ll focus on them.

BENCHMARKING
―Improving by learning from others – i.e. - benchmarking is simple about
making comparisons with other organizations and then learning the lessons that
those comparisons throw up‖

―Benchmarking is the continuous process of measuring products, services

and practices against the toughest competitors of those companies recognized as
industry leaders. Operational processes must be comparative or analogous if the
highest degree of knowledge transfer between benchmarking partners is to be
achieved‖.

The underlying reason for benchmarking is to learn how to improve your

business processes and thereby increases your competitiveness. Although
benchmarking is a measurement process and does generate comparative
performance measures, it also is an operational process involving continuous
learning and adaptation which enables you to improve your organization‘s
competitive position.

In practice benchmarking usually encompasses:

 Regularly comparing aspects of performance (functions or processes) with
others
 Identifying gaps in performance
 Developing performance improvements to close the gaps thus identified
 Implementing the improvements
 Monitoring processes
 Reviewing the benefits
Types of Benchmarking
 Strategic Benchmarking involves examining long-term strategies, for
example regarding core competencies, new product and service
development or improving capabilities for dealing with change. This type of
benchmarking is used by successful high performers in order to improve a
business‘s overall performance.
 Performance Benchmarking (or Competitive Benchmarking) looks at
performance characteristics in relation to key products and services in the
same sector. In order to protect confidentiality this type of analysis is often
undertaken through trade associations or third parties.
 Process Benchmarking focuses on improving critical processes and
operations through comparison with best practice organizations
performing similar work. This often results in short term benefits.
 Functional Benchmarking compares a business with partners drawn
from different sectors to find innovative ways of improving work processes.
This can lead to dramatic improvements.
 Internal Benchmarking involves benchmarking businesses or operations
from within the same organization (e.g. business units in different
countries). Access to sensitive and/or standardized data is easier, usually
less time and resources are needed and ultimately practices may be
relatively easier to implement. However, real innovation may be lacking:
best in class performance is more likely to be found through external
benchmarking.
 External Benchmarking analyses best in class outside organizations,
providing the opportunity to learn from those at the leading edge. This can
take up significant time and resource to ensure the credibility of the
findings.
 International Benchmarking identifies and analyses best practitioners
elsewhere in the world, perhaps because there are too few benchmarking
partners within the same country to produce valid results. Globalisation
and advances in information technology are increasing opportunities for
international projects. However, these can take more time and resources to
set up and implement and the results may need careful analysis due to
national differences.

Key Issues:
Key issues for organizations beginning benchmarking efforts:
 Top management commitment and participation are necessary
 Sufficient time must be allowed for the project as it takes time
 An able, well-trained team is critical (if not outside help, consultants)
 It is heavy on resources, people, travel, research, consultants, and other
factors
  Process rigor is an absolute sine qua non for success – you cannot graze
the surface
 Quantitative data is often difficult and time consuming to obtain

OUTSOURCING
―It is a transfer of control. Delegate one or more process to a specialize
supplier to reach a high efficiency. With the outsourcing, companies can look at
other necessities to fulfill their mission.

The principal reasons for outsourcing are listed below:

 Cost savings. The lowering of the overall cost of the service to the
business. This will involve reducing the scope, defining quality levels, re-
pricing, re-negotiation, const re-structuring.
 Cost restructuring. Operating leverage is a measure that compares fixed
costs to variable costs.
 Improve quality. Achieve a step change in quality through contracting out
the service with a new Service Level Agreement.
 Knowledge. Access to intellectual property and wider experienced and
knowledge.
 Contract. Services will be provided to a legally binding contract with
financial penalties and legal redress.
 Operational expertise. Access to operational best practice
 Staffing issues. Access to a larger talent pool and a sustainable source of
skills.
 Capacity management
 Catalyst for change. The outsourcer becomes a Change agent in the
process.
 Reduce time to market.
 Risk management. Partner with an outsourcer who is better able to
provide the mitigation.
 Time zone. A sequential task can be done during normal day shift in
different time zones- to make it available 24x7.
 Customer pressure. When customers are not happy with the performance
of certain elements of the business.

Process of Outsourcing
 Deciding to outsource: Identify what is to be outsource
 Supplier proposals: Have a list with the suppliers and their proposals.
 Supplier competition: Look for the best supplier
 Negotiation: Is the agreement between the company and the supplier.
  Transition: Process for the staff transfer and the take- on of the service
 Transformation: Is the implement of the new service.
 Termination or renewal: Is the decision between terminate of renew the
contract.

Risks Of The Outsourcing

 Negotiate with a wrong contract
 Inadequate supplier
 Increase the dependence in external entities
 There is no control on the supplier‘s staff

STRATEGIC ALLIANCES
An alliance is defined as a relationship between two or more firms, or
individuals, involving the sharing of complimentary disciplines, technology,
products, services, organizational structures, marketing, and financial resources.
It is a formal relationship formed between two or more parties to pursue a set of
agreed upon goals or to meet a critical business need while remaining
independent organizations.

Partners may provide the strategic alliance with resources such as

products, distribution channels, manufacturing capability, project funding,
capital equipment, knowledge, expertise, or intellectual property.

The alliance is cooperation or collaboration which aims for a synergy where

each partner hopes that the benefits from the alliance will be greater than those
from individual efforts. It often involves technology transfer (access to knowledge
and expertise), economic specialization, shared expenses and share risk.

It is necessary to follow some steps for creating a strong alliance, these

steps are:
 Strategy Development: It involves studying the alliance‘s feasibility,
objectives and rationale, focusing on the major issues and challenges and
development of resource strategies for production, technology, and people.
 Partner Assessment: It involves analyzing a potential partner‘s strengths
and weaknesses, creating strategies for accommodating all partners
management styles, preparing appropriate partner selection criteria,
understanding a partner‘s motives for joining the alliance and addressing
resource capability gaps that may exist.
 Contract Negotiation: Contract negotiations involves determining whether
all parties have realistic objectives, forming high caliber negotiating teams,
defining each partner`s contributions and rewards as well as protect any
 proprietary information, addressing termination clauses, penalties for poor
performance, and highlighting the degree to which arbitration procedures
are clearly stated and understood
 Alliance Operation: It involves addressing senior management‘s
commitment, finding the caliber of resources devoted to the alliance,
linking of budgets and resources with strategic priorities, measuring and
rewarding alliance performance, and assessing the performance and
results of the alliance.
 Alliance Termination: It involves winding down the alliance, for instance
when its objectives have been met or cannot be met, or when a partner
adjusts priorities or re-allocated resources elsewhere.

Types of Alliances
 Funding
 Joint Venture
 Merger, acquisition
 Products, Services
 Cooperative

ACTIVITY
A. Mention three different services that can be outsourced by
 A shopping mall
 A hospital
 An educational center
 A residential building
B. Choose one of the previous places and mention the advantages and
disadvantages of outsourcing the services that you mentioned.

C. Investigate a Strategic Alliances that exist in your community and describe

it.
 Vocabulary

Acquisition
Alliance Depiction Merge
Average Deployment Miscommunication
Benchmark Diagram Outsource
Categories Funding Partner
Chart Gap Performance
Cluster Improvement Shewhart Chart
Competitor Ishikawa diagram Synergy
Cooperative Joint Venture Time lag
Manpower Trend

References of the Unit

 http://smallbusiness.com/wiki/Strategic_alliance
 http://www.aiidatapro.com/en/services/businessprocessesoutsourcing/
 http://www.argusobserver.com/business/business-connection-importance-of-
benchmarking/article_f4f65ada-65c3-11e1-add5-0019bb2963f4.htm
 http://www.skymark.com/resources/tools/management_tools.asp
 Strategic Planning

Entrepreneurs and business managers are often so preoccupied with immediate

issues that they lose sight of their ultimate objectives. That's why a business
review or preparation of a strategic plan is a virtual necessity. This may not be a
recipe for success, but without it a business is much more likely to fail. A sound
plan should:
 Serve as a framework for decisions or for securing support/approval.
 Provide a basis for more detailed planning.
 Explain the business to others in order to inform, motivate & involve.
 Assist benchmarking & performance monitoring.
 Stimulate change and become building block for next plan.

A strategic plan should not be confused

with a business plan. The former is likely to be a
(very) short document whereas a business plan is
usually a much more substantial and detailed
document. A strategic plan can provide the
foundation and frame work for a business plan.
Besides, a strategic plan is not the same thing as
an operational plan. The strategic plan should be
visionary, conceptual and directional in contrast
to an operational plan which is likely to be shorter
term, tactical, focused, implementable and measurable. As an example, compare
the process of planning a vacation (where, when, duration, budget, who goes, how
travel are all strategic issues) with the final preparations (tasks, deadlines,
funding, weather, packing, transport and so on are all operational matters).

A satisfactory strategic plan must be realistic and attainable so as to allow

managers and entrepreneurs to think strategically and act operationally.

BASIC APPROACH TO STRATEGIC PLANNING

 A critical review of past performance by the owners and management of a
business and the preparation of a plan beyond normal budgetary horizons
require a certain attitude of mind and predisposition. Some essential
points which should to be observed during the review and planning
process include the following:
 Relate to the medium term i.e. 2/4 years
 Be undertaken by owners/directors
 Focus on matters of strategic importance
 Be separated from day-to-day work
  Be realistic, detached and critical
 Distinguish between cause and effect
 Be reviewed periodically
 Be written down.

The preparation of a strategic plan is a multi-step process covering vision,

mission, objectives, values, strategies, goals and programs. These are discussed
below.

THE VISION

The first step is to develop a realistic

Vision for the business. This should be
presented as a pen picture of the business
in three or more years time in terms of its
likely physical appearance, size, activities
etc. Answer the question: "if someone from
Mars visited the business, what would they
see (or sense)?" Consider its future
products, markets, customers, processes, location, staffing etc. Here is a great
example of a vision:

I will come to America, which is the have starred in first movie and I will
country for me. Once there, I will be a millionaire...... I will collect
become the greatest bodybuilder in houses, art and automobiles. I will
history.......... I will go into movies as marry a glamorous and intelligent
an actor, producer and eventually wife. By 32, I will have been invited to
director. By the time I am 30 I will the White House.
Attributed to Arnold Schwarzenegger who was elected Governor of the State of California
in 2003.

Developing a Vision Statement

1. The vision statement includes vivid description of the organization as it
effectively carries out its operations.
2. Developing a vision statement can be quick culture-specific, i.e.,
participants may use methods ranging from highly analytical and rational
to highly creative and divergent, e.g., focused discussions, divergent
experiences around daydreams, sharing stories, etc. Therefore, visit with
the participants how they might like to arrive at description of their
organizational vision.
3. Developing the vision can be the most enjoyable part of planning, but the
part where time easily gets away from you.
 4. Note that originally, the vision was a compelling description of the state
and function of the organization once it had implemented the strategic
plan, i.e., a very attractive image toward which the organization was
attracted and guided by the strategic plan. Recently, the vision has become
more of a motivational tool, too often including highly idealistic phrasing
and activities which the organization cannot realistically aspire.

THE MISSION

The nature of a business is often expressed in terms of its Mission which

indicates the purposes of the business, for example, "to design, develop,
manufacture and market specific product lines for sale on the basis of certain
features to meet the identified needs of specified customer groups via certain
distribution channels in particular geographic areas". A statement along these
lines indicates what the business is about and is infinitely clearer than saying, for
instance, "we're in electronics" or worse still, "we are in business to make money"
(assuming that the business is not a mint !).

Developing a Mission Statement

1. It is most basic, the mission statement describes the overall purpose of the
organization.
2. If the organization elects to develop a vision statement before developing
the mission statement, ask ―Why does the image, the vision exist -- what
is its purpose?‖ This purpose is often the same as the mission.
3. Developing a mission statement can be quick culture-specific, i.e.,
participants may use methods ranging from highly analytical and rational
to highly creative and divergent, e.g., focused discussions, divergent
experiences around daydreams, sharing stories, etc. Therefore, visit with
the participants how they might like to arrive at description of their
organizational mission.
4. When wording the mission statement, consider the organization's
products, services, markets, values, and concern for public image, and
maybe priorities of activities for survival.
5. Consider any changes that may be needed in wording of the mission
statement because of any new suggested strategies during a recent
strategic planning process.
6. Ensure that wording of the mission is to the extent that management and
employees can infer some order of priorities in how products and services
are delivered.
7. When refining the mission, a useful exercise is to add or delete a word from
the mission to realize the change in scope of the mission statement and
assess how concise is its wording.
8. Does the mission statement include sufficient description that the
statement clearly separates the mission of the organization from other
organizations?

Some people confuse mission statements with value statements the former
should be very hard-nosed while the latter can deal with 'softer' issues
surrounding the business. The following table contrasts hard and soft mission
statements.

Hard
What business is/does
Primary products/services
Key processes & technologies
Main customer groups
Primary markets/segments
Principal channels/outlets
Soft
Reason for existence
Competitive advantages
Unique/distinctive features
Important philosophical/social issues
Image, quality, style, standards
Stakeholder concerns

THE VALUES
The next element is to address the Values governing the operation of the
business and its conduct or relationships with society at large, customers,
suppliers, employees, local community and other stakeholders.

Developing Values Statements

1. Values represent the core priorities in the organization‘s culture, including
what drives members‘ priorities and how they truly act in the organization,
etc. Values are increasingly important in strategic planning. They often
drive the intent and direction for ―organic‖ planners.
2. Developing a values statement can be quick culture-specific, i.e.,
participants may use methods ranging from highly analytical and rational
to highly creative and divergent, e.g., focused discussions, divergent
experiences around daydreams, sharing stories, etc. Therefore, visit with
the participants how they might like to arrive at description of their
organizational values.
3. Establish four to six core values from which the organization would like to
operate. Consider values of customers, shareholders, employees and the
community.
4. Notice any differences between the organization‘s preferred values and its
true values (the values actually reflected by members‘ behaviors in the
organization). Record each preferred value on a flash card, then have each
member ―rank‖ the values with 1, 2, or 3 in terms of the priority needed
by the organization with 3 indicating the value is very important to the
 organization and 1 is least important. Then go through the cards again to
rank how people think the values are actually being enacted in the
organization with 3 indicating the values are fully enacted and 1 indicating
the value is hardly reflected at all. Then address discrepancies where a
value is highly preferred (ranked with a 3), but hardly enacted (ranked with
a 1).
5. Incorporate into the strategic plan, actions to align actual behavior with
preferred behaviors.

THE OBJECTIVES
The third key element is to explicitly state the business's Objectives in
terms of the results it needs/wants to achieve in the medium/long term. Aside
from presumably indicating a necessity to achieve regular profits (expressed as
return on shareholders' funds), objectives should relate to the expectations and
requirements of all the major stakeholders, including employees, and should
reflect the underlying reasons for running the business. These objectives could
cover growth, profitability, technology, offerings and markets.

THE STRATEGIES
Next are the Strategies - the rules and guidelines by which the mission,
objectives etc. may be achieved. They can cover the business as a whole
including such matters as diversification, organic growth, or acquisition plans, or
they can relate to primary matters in key functional areas, for example:
 The company's internal cash flow will fund all future growth.
 New products will progressively replace existing ones over the next 3 years.
 All assembly work will be contracted out to lower the company's break-
even point.

Use SWOTs to help identify possible

strategies by building on strengths,
resolving weaknesses, exploiting
opportunities and avoiding threats.

SWOTs - Keys to Business

Strategies

Having built up a picture of the

company's past aims and achievements, the
all-important SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis
can commence.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths and weaknesses are essentially internal to the organization and
relate to matters concerning resources, programs and organization in key areas.
These include:
 Sales - marketing - distribution - promotion - support;
 Management - systems - expertise - resources;
 Operations - efficiency - capacity - processes;
 Products - services - quality - pricing - features - range - competitiveness;
 Finances - resources - performance;
 R&D - effort - direction - resources;
 Costs - productivity - purchasing;
 Systems - organization - structures.

If a startup is being planned, the strengths and weaknesses are related

mainly to the promoter(s) - their experience, expertise and management abilities -
rather than to the project.

Threats & Opportunities

The external threats and opportunities confronting a company, can exist
or develop in the following areas:
 The company's own industry where structural changes may be occurring
(Size and segmentation; growth patterns and maturity; established
patterns and relationships, emergence/contraction of niches; international
dimensions; relative attractiveness of segments)
 The marketplace which may be altering due to economic or social factors
(Customers; distribution channels; economic factors, social/demographic
issues; political & environmental factors)
 Competition which may be creating new threats or opportunities
(Identities, performances, market shares, likely plans, aggressiveness,
strengths & weaknesses)
 New technologies which may be causing fundamental changes in products,
processes, etc. (Substitute products, alternative solutions, shifting
channels, cost savings etc.)

THE GOALS
Next come the Goals. These are specific interim or ultimate time-based
measurements to be achieved by implementing strategies in pursuit of the
company's objectives, for example, to achieve sales of $3m in three years time.
Goals should be quantifiable, consistent, realistic and achievable. They can relate
to factors like market (sizes and shares), products, finances, profitability,
utilization, efficiency.

THE PROGRAMS
The final elements are the Programs which set out the implementation plans for
the key strategies. These should cover resources, objectives, time-scales,
deadlines, budgets and performance targets.

BENEFITS OF STRATEGIC PLANNING

Strategic planning serves a variety of purposes in organization, including to:
1. Clearly define the purpose of the organization and to establish realistic
goals and objectives consistent with that mission in a defined time frame
within the organization‘s capacity for implementation.
2. Communicate those goals and objectives to the organization‘s constituents.
3. Develop a sense of ownership of the plan.
4. Ensure the most effective use is made of the organization‘s resources by
focusing the resources on the key priorities.
5. Provide a base from which progress can be measured and establish a
mechanism for informed change when needed.
6. Bring together of everyone‘s best and most reasoned efforts have important
value in building a consensus about where an organization is going.

Other reasons include that strategic planning:

7. Provides clearer focus of organization, producing more efficiency and
effectiveness.
8. Bridges staff and board of directors (in the case of corporations)
9. Builds strong teams in the board and the staff (in the case of corporations)
10. Provides the glue that keeps the board together (in the case of
corporations)
11. Produces great satisfaction among planners around a common vision
12. Increases productivity from increased efficiency and effectiveness
13. Solves major problems

ACTIVITY
As part of the preparation of your second project, write down the Vision, Mission
and Values Statement of the company you will present.
 Marketing Plan
Marketing is a societal process which discerns
consumers' wants, focusing on a product or service to
fulfill those wants, attempting to move the consumers
toward the products or services offered. Marketing is
fundamental to any businesses growth. The marketing
teams (marketers) are tasked to create consumer
awareness of the products or services through marketing
techniques. Unless it pays due attention to its products
and services and consumers' demographics and desires, a
business will not usually prosper over time.

Marketing tends to be seen as a creative industry, which includes

advertising, distribution and selling. It is also concerned with anticipating the
customers' future needs and wants, which are often discovered through market
research.

Essentially, marketing is the process of creating or directing an

organization to be successful in selling a product or service that people not only
desire, but are willing to buy. Therefore good marketing must be able to create a
"proposition" or set of benefits for the end customer that delivers value through
products or services.

A marketing plan is a written document that details the necessary actions

to achieve one or more marketing objectives. It can be for a product or service, a
brand, or a product line. It can cover one year (referred to as an annual
marketing plan), or cover up to 5 years.

A marketing plan may be part of an overall business plan. Solid marketing

strategy is the foundation of a well-written marketing plan. While a marketing
plan contains a list of actions, a marketing plan without a sound strategic
foundation is of little use. In most organizations, "strategic planning" is an
annual process, typically covering just the year ahead. Occasionally, a few
organizations may look at a practical plan which stretches three or more years
ahead. Marketing plans are vital to marketing success. They help to focus the
mind of companies and marketing teams on the process of marketing i.e. what is
going to be achieved and how we intend to do it. There are many approaches to
marketing plans. Marketing Teacher has focussed upon the key stages of the
plan. It is contained under the popular acronym AOSTC.

ANALYSIS.
 OBJECTIVES.
STRATEGIES.
TACTICS.
CONTROLS.

Stage One - Situation Analysis (and Marketing Audit).

 Marketing environment.
 Laws and regulations.
 Politics.
 The current state of technology.
 Economic conditions.
 Sociocultural aspects.
 Demand trends.
 Media availability.
 Stakeholder interests.
 Marketing plans and campaigns of competitors.
 Internal factors such as your own experience and resource availability.
Also see tools for internal/external audit:
 SWOT.
 PEST.
 Porter's Five Forces.
 Marketing Environment.

Stage Two - Set marketing objectives.

 Specific - Be precise about what you are going to achieve.
 Measurable - Quantify you objectives.
 Achievable - Are you attempting too much?
 Realistic - Do you have the resource to make the objective happen (men,
money, machines, materials, minutes)?
 Timed - State when you will achieve the objective (within a month? By
February 2010?).

If you don't make your objective SMART, it will be too vague and
will not be realized. Remember that the rest of the plan hinges on the
objective. If it is not correct, the plan may fail.

Stage Three - Describe your target market

 Which segment? How will we target the segment? How should we position
within the segment?
 Why this segment and not a different one? (This will focus the mind).
 Define the segment in terms of demographics and lifestyle. Show how you
intend to 'position' your product or service within that segment. Use tools to
assist in strategic marketing decisions such as Boston Matrix, Ansoff's
 Matrix , Bowmans Strategy Clock, Porter's Competitive Strategies, etc.
Stage Four - Marketing Tactics.
Convert the strategy into the marketing mix (also known as the 4Ps). These
are your marketing tactics.
 Price Will you cost plus, skim, match the competition or penetrate the
market?
 Place Will you market direct, use agents or distributors, etc?
 Product Sold individually, as part of a bundle, in bulk, etc?
 Promotion Which media will you use? e.g sponsorship, radio advertising,
sales force, point-of-sale, etc? Think of the mix elements as the ingredients
of a 'cake mix'. You have eggs, milk, butter, and flour. However, if you alter
the amount of each ingredient, you will influence the type of cake that you
finish with.

Stage Five - Marketing Controls.

Remember that there is no planning without control. Control is vital.
 Start-up costs.
 Monthly budgets.
 Sales figure.
 Market share data.
 Consider the cycle of control.

Finally, write a short summary (or synopsis) which is placed at the front of
the plan. This will help others to get acquainted with the plan without having to
spend time reading it all. Place all supporting information into an appendix at
the back of the plan.

MARKETING AUDIT
The first formal step in the marketing planning process is that of
conducting the marketing audit. Ideally, at the time of producing the marketing
plan, this should only involve bringing together the source material which has
already been collected throughout the year - as part of the normal work of the
marketing department.

The emphasis at this stage is on obtaining a complete and accurate

picture. In a single organization, however, it is likely that only a few aspects will
be sufficiently important to have any significant impact on the marketing plan;
but all may need to be reviewed to determine just which 'are' the few.

In this context some factors related to the customer, which should be

included in the material collected for the audit, may be:
  Who are the customers?
 What are their key characteristics?
 What differentiates them from other members of the population?
 What are their needs and wants?
 What do they expect the `product' to do?
 What are their special requirements and perceptions?
 What do they think of the organization and its products or services?
 What are their attitudes?
 What are their buying intentions?

CONTENT OF THE MARKETING PLAN

Small business
A marketing plan for a small U.S. business typically includes:
1. Demographics of customers
2. Description of competitors, including the level of demand for the product or
service and the strengths and weaknesses of competitors
3. Description of the product or service, including special features
4. Marketing budget, including the advertising and promotional plan
5. Description of the business location, including advantages and
disadvantages for marketing
6. Pricing strategy
7. Market Segmentation

Medium-sized and large organizations

The main contents of a marketing plan are:
1. Executive Summary
2. Situational Analysis
3. Opportunities / Issue Analysis - SWOT Analysis
4. Objectives
5. Strategy
6. Action Programme (the operational marketing plan itself for the period
under review)
7. Financial Forecast
8. Controls

In detail, a complete marketing plan typically includes:

1. Title page
2. Executive Summary
3. Current Situation - Macroenvironment
o economy
o legal
o government
 o technology
o ecological
o sociocultural
o supply chain
4. Current Situation - Market Analysis
o market definition
o market size
o market segmentation
o industry structure and strategic groupings
o Porter 5 forces analysis
o competition and market share
o competitors' strengths and weaknesses
o market trends
5. Current Situation - Consumer Analysis
o nature of the buying decision
o participants, demographics and psychographics
o buyer motivation and expectations
o loyalty segments
6. Current Situation - Internal
o company resources
 financial
 people
 time
 skills
o objectives
 mission statement and vision statement
 corporate and financial objectives
 marketing objectives
 long term objectives
 description of the basic business philosophy
o corporate culture
7. Summary of Situation Analysis
o external threats and opportunities
o internal strengths and weaknesses
o Critical success factors in the industry
o our sustainable competitive advantage
8. Marketing research
o information requirements
o research methodology
o research results
9. Marketing Strategy - Product
o product mix
o product strengths and weaknesses
 o product life cycle management and new product development
o Brand name, brand image, and brand equity
o product portfolio analysis
 B.C.G. Analysis, contribution margin, G.E. MultiFactoral
analysis
 Quality Function Deployment
10.Marketing Strategy - segmented marketing actions and market share
objectives
o by product,
o by customer segment,
o by geographical market,
o by distribution channel.
11. Marketing Strategy - Price
o pricing objectives
o pricing method (eg.: cost plus, demand based, or competitor
indexing)
o pricing strategy (eg.: skimming, or penetration)
o discounts and allowances
o price elasticity and customer sensitivity
o price zoning
o break even analysis at various prices
12. Marketing Strategy - promotion
o promotional goals
o promotional mix
o advertising reach, frequency, flights, theme, and media
o sales force requirements, techniques, and management
o sales promotion
o publicity and public relations
o electronic promotion (eg.: Web, or telephone)
o word of mouth marketing (buzz)
o viral marketing
13. Marketing Strategy - Distribution
o geographical coverage
o distribution channels
o physical distribution and logistics
o electronic distribution
14. Implementation
 personnel requirements (responsibilities, incentives, training
on selling methods)
o financial requirements
o management information systems requirements
o month-by-month agenda
 PERT or critical path analysis
 o monitoring results and benchmarks
o adjustment mechanism
o contingencies (What if's)
15. Financial Summary
o assumptions
16. Scenarios
o Prediction of Future Scenarios
o Plan of Action for each Scenario
17. Appendix
o pictures and specifications of the new product
o results from research already completed

ACTIVITY
Write a detailed marketing plan of the product that you will present as a second
project.

Vocabulary Market segmentation

Action plan Cost-benefit analysis Marketing
Baseline Demand Marketing mix
Brand Demarketing Objectives
Budget Demographics Operating Cost
Capital Direct marketing Outcomes
Capital Improvement Distribution Per capita income
Chain store system Diversification Pilot Study
Channel of Elasticity Point-of-sale(POS)
distribution Federal Mandate Price
Clustering Fiscal Product
Compensation Focus group Product life cycle
Competition Focus group Product mix
Constituency Gap analysis Slogan
Consumer Goals Stakeholder
Consumer behavior Macroenvironment Strategic market
Consumer satisfaction Market planning
Core product Market area Vision
Corporation Market research

References of the Unit

 http://www.losangeleswebdesign.com/services/marketing-planning-process
 http://www.managementhelp.org/plan_dec/str_plan/basics.htm
 Rahakrishnan, R. and Balasubramanian S. Business Process Reengineering
 Safety and Health Programs
The goal of a Health and Safety Program is the development of a long term
plan that is successful in reducing injuries in the workplace. Effective
management of worker safety and health protection is crucial in reducing the
numbers and severity of workplace illnesses and injuries. To be effective, such
management must include:
 Methods to identify and understand all hazards, real and potential
 Prevention or control of hazards so workers are not exposed or exposure
minimized

Good management also results in prevention or control of employee

exposures to toxic substances or other unhealthful conditions which can produce
work-related illnesses. Better management systems will produce lower costs,
higher productivity, reduced waste, and improved employee morale.

The four major elements of an effective health and safety program are the
following:
 Management Commitment and Employee Involvement
 Worksite Analysis
 Hazard Prevention and Control
 Safety and Health Training

OSHA STANDARDS
Safety and health programs are addressed in specific standards for the
general and construction industries and basic program elements for federal
employees OSHA. This page highlights OSHA standards, Federal Registers (rules,
proposed rules, and notices), and directives (instructions for compliance officers)
related to safety and health programs. OSH Act, often referred to as the General
Duty Clause, requires employers to "furnish to each of his employees employment
and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are
causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees". It
requires employers to "comply with occupational safety and health standards
promulgated under this Act".

An effective safety and health program depends on the credibility of

management's involvement in the program; inclusion of employees in safety and
health decisions; rigorous worksite analysis to identify hazards and potential
hazards, including those which could result from a change in worksite conditions
or practices; stringent prevention and control measures; and thorough training. It
addresses hazards whether or not they are regulated by government standards.

The following references characterize and further explain safety and health
programs.

What is a hazard?
A hazard is the potential for
harm. In practical terms, a hazard
often is associated with a condition
or activity that, if left uncontrolled,
can result in an injury or illness.
Identifying hazards and eliminating
or controlling them as early as
possible will help prevent injuries
and illnesses.

What is a job hazard analysis?

A job hazard analysis is a
technique that focuses on job tasks
as a way to identify hazards before
they occur. It focuses on the relationship between the worker, the task, the tools,
and the work environment. Ideally, after you identify uncontrolled hazards, you
will take steps to eliminate or reduce them to an acceptable risk level.

Why is job hazard analysis important?

Many workers are injured and killed at the workplace every day in the
United States. Safety and health can add value to your business, your job, and
your life. You can help prevent workplace injuries and illnesses by looking at your
workplace operations, establishing proper job procedures, and ensuring that all
employees are trained properly.

One of the best ways to determine and establish proper work procedures is
to conduct a job hazard analysis. A job hazard analysis is one component of the
larger commitment of a safety and health management system.

What is the value of a job hazard analysis?

Supervisors can use the findings of a job hazard analysis to eliminate and
prevent hazards in their workplaces. This is likely to result in fewer worker
injuries and illnesses; safer, more effective work methods; reduced workers'
compensation costs; and increased worker productivity. The analysis also can be
a valuable tool for training new employees in the steps required to perform their
jobs safely.
 For a job hazard analysis to be effective, management must demonstrate
its commitment to safety and health and follow through to correct any
uncontrolled hazards identified. Otherwise, management will lose credibility and
employees may hesitate to go to management when dangerous conditions
threaten them.

What jobs are appropriate for a job hazard analysis?

A job hazard analysis can be conducted on many jobs in your workplace.
Priority should go to the following types of jobs:
 Jobs with the highest injury or illness rates;
 Jobs with the potential to cause severe or disabling injuries or illness, even
if there is no history of previous accidents;
 Jobs in which one simple human error could lead to a severe accident or
injury;
 Jobs that are new to your operation or have undergone changes in
processes and procedures; and
 Jobs complex enough to require written instructions.

Where do I begin?
 Involve your employees. It is very important to involve your employees in
the hazard analysis process. They have a unique understanding of the job,
and this knowledge is invaluable for finding hazards. Involving employees
will help minimize oversights, ensure a quality analysis, and get workers to
"buy in" to the solutions because they will share ownership in their safety
and health program.
 Review your accident history. Review with your employees your
worksite's history of accidents and occupational illnesses that needed
treatment, losses that required repair or replacement, and any "near
misses" -- events in which an accident or loss did not occur, but could
have. These events are indicators that the existing hazard controls (if any)
may not be adequate and deserve more scrutiny.
 Conduct a preliminary job review. Discuss with your employees the
hazards they know exist in their current work and surroundings.
 Brainstorm with them for ideas to eliminate or control those hazards.
If any hazards exist that pose an immediate danger to an employee's life or
health, take immediate action to protect the worker. Any problems that can
be corrected easily should be corrected as soon as possible. Do not wait to
complete your job hazard analysis. For those hazards determined to
present unacceptable risks, evaluate types of hazard controls.
 List, rank, and set priorities for hazardous jobs. List jobs with hazards
that present unacceptable risks, based on those most likely to occur and
 with the most severe consequences. These jobs should be your first priority
for analysis.
 Outline the steps or tasks. Nearly every job can be broken down into job
tasks or steps. When beginning a job hazard analysis, watch the employee
perform the job and list each step as the worker takes it. Be sure to record
enough information to describe each job action without getting overly
detailed. Avoid making the breakdown of steps so detailed that it becomes
unnecessarily long or so broad that it does not include basic steps. You
may find it valuable to get input from other workers who have performed
the same job. Later, review the job steps with the employee to make sure
you have not omitted something. Point out that you are evaluating the job
itself, not the employee's job performance. Include the employee in all
phases of the analysis -- from reviewing the job steps and procedures to
discussing uncontrolled hazards and recommended solutions.

Sometimes, in conducting a job hazard analysis, it may be helpful to

photograph or videotape the worker performing the job. These visual records can
be handy references when doing a more detailed analysis of the work.

How do I identify workplace hazards?

A job hazard analysis is an exercise in detective work. Your goal is to

discover the following:
 What can go wrong?
 What are the consequences?
 How could it arise?
 What are other contributing factors?
 How likely is it that the hazard will occur?

To make your job hazard analysis useful, document the answers to these
questions in a consistent manner. Describing a hazard in this way helps to
ensure that your efforts to eliminate the hazard and implement hazard controls
help target the most important contributors to the hazard.

Good hazard scenarios describe:

 Where it is happening (environment),
 Who or what it is happening to (exposure),
 What precipitates the hazard (trigger),
 The outcome that would occur should it happen (consequence), and
 Any other contributing factors.

A sample form found below helps you organize your information to provide
these details.
 Rarely is a hazard a simple case of one singular cause resulting in one
singular effect. More frequently, many contributing factors tend to line up in a
certain way to create the hazard. Here is an example of a hazard scenario:

In the metal shop (environment), while clearing a snag (trigger), a worker's

hand (exposure) comes into contact with a rotating pulley. It pulls his hand into the
machine and severs his fingers (consequences) quickly.

To perform a job hazard analysis, you would ask:

 What can go wrong? The worker's hand could come into contact with a
rotating object that "catches" it and pulls it into the machine.
 What are the consequences? The worker could receive a severe injury
and lose fingers and hands.
 How could it happen? The accident could happen as a result of the worker
trying to clear a snag during operations or as part of a maintenance activity
while the pulley is operating. Obviously, this hazard scenario could not occur
if the pulley is not rotating.
 What are other contributing factors? This hazard occurs very quickly. It
does not give the worker much opportunity to recover or prevent it once his
hand comes into contact with the pulley. This is an important factor, because
it helps you determine the severity and likelihood of an accident when
selecting appropriate hazard controls.
 How likely is it that the hazard will occur? This determination requires
some judgment. If there have been "near-misses" or actual cases, then the
likelihood of a recurrence would be considered high. If the pulley is exposed
and easily accessible, that also is a consideration. In the example, the
likelihood that the hazard will occur is high because there is no guard
preventing contact, and the operation is performed while the machine is
running.

By following the steps in this example, you can organize your hazard
analysis activities. The examples that follow show how a job hazard analysis can
be used to identify the existing or potential hazards for each basic step involved
in grinding iron castings.

Example 2
Grinding Iron Castings: Job Steps
Step 1. Reach into metal box to right of machine, grasp casting, and carry to wheel.
Step 2. Push casting against wheel to grind off burr.
Step 3. Place finished casting in box to left of machine.
 Example Job Hazard Analysis Form
Job Location: Analyst: Date:
Metal Shop Joe Safety
Task Description: Worker reaches into metal box to the right of the machine, grasps a
15-pound casting and carries it to grinding wheel. Worker grinds 20 to 30 castings per
hour.
Hazard Description: Picking up a casting, the employee could drop it onto his foot.
The casting's weight and height could seriously injure the worker's foot or toes.
Hazard Controls:
 Remove castings from the box and place them on a table next to the grinder.
 Wear steel-toe shoes with arch protection.
 Change protective gloves that allow a better grip.
 Use a device to pick up castings.

Task Description: Worker reaches into metal box to the right of the machine, grasps a
15-pound casting and carries it to grinding wheel. Worker grinds 20 to 30 castings per
hour.
Hazard Description: Castings have sharp burrs and edges that can cause severe
lacerations.
Hazard Controls:
 Use a device such as a clamp to pick up castings.
 Wear cut-resistant gloves that allow a good grip and fit tightly to minimize the
chance that they will get caught in grinding wheel.

Task Description: Worker reaches into metal box to the right of the machine, grasps a
15-pound casting and carries it to grinding wheel. Worker grinds 20 to 30 castings per
hour.
Hazard Description: Reaching, twisting, and lifting 15-pound castings from the floor
could result in a muscle strain to the lower back.
Hazard Controls:
 Move castings from the ground and place them closer to the work zone to
minimize lifting. Ideally, place them at waist height or on an adjustable platform or
pallet.
 Train workers not to twist while lifting and reconfigure work stations to minimize
twisting during lifts.

HAZARD CONTROL MEASURES

Information obtained from a job hazard analysis is useless unless hazard
control measures recommended in the analysis are incorporated into the tasks.
Managers should recognize that not all hazard controls are equal. Some are more
effective than others at reducing the risk.

The order of precedence and effectiveness of hazard control is the following:

 Engineering controls.
 Administrative controls.
 Personal protective equipment.

Engineering controls include the following:

 Elimination/minimization of the hazard -- Designing the facility,
equipment, or process to remove the hazard, or substituting processes,
equipment, materials, or other factors to lessen the hazard;
 Enclosure of the hazard using enclosed cabs, enclosures for noisy
equipment, or other means;
 Isolation of the hazard with interlocks, machine guards, blast shields,
welding curtains, or other means; and
 Removal or redirection of the hazard such as with local and exhaust
ventilation.

Administrative controls include the following:

 Written operating procedures, work permits, and safe work practices;
 Exposure time limitations (used most commonly to control temperature
extremes and ergonomic hazards);
 Monitoring the use of highly hazardous materials;
 Alarms, signs, and warnings;
 Buddy system; and
 Training.

Personal Protective Equipment

 Respirators,
 Hearing protection,
 Protective clothing,
 Safety glasses, and
 Hardhats –

This is acceptable as a control method in the following circumstances:

 When engineering controls are not feasible or do not totally eliminate the
hazard;
 While engineering controls are being developed;
 When safe work practices do not provide sufficient additional protection;
and
 During emergencies when engineering controls may not be feasible.
 COMMON HAZARDS AND DESCRIPTIONS

Hazards Hazard Descriptions

Chemical (Toxic) A chemical that exposes a person by absorption through the skin,
inhalation, or through the bloodstream that causes illness,
disease, or death. The amount of chemical exposure is critical in
determining hazardous effects. Check Material Safety Data Sheets
(MSDS), and/or OSHA 1910.1000 for chemical hazard
information.
Chemical (Flammable) A chemical that, when exposed to a heat ignition source, results in
combustion. Typically, the lower a chemical's flash point and
boiling point, the more flammable the chemical. Check MSDS for
flammability information.
Chemical (Corrosive) A chemical that, when it comes into contact with skin, metal, or
other materials, damages the materials. Acids and bases are
examples of corrosives.
Explosion (Chemical Self explanatory.
Reaction)
Explosion (Over Sudden and violent release of a large amount of gas/energy due to
Pressurization) a significant pressure difference such as rupture in a boiler or
compressed gas cylinder.
Electrical (Shock/Short Contact with exposed conductors or a device that is incorrectly or
Circuit) inadvertently grounded, such as when a metal ladder comes into
contact with power lines. 60Hz alternating current (common house
current) is very dangerous because it can stop the heart.
Electrical (Fire) Use of electrical power that results in electrical overheating or
arcing to the point of combustion or ignition of flammables, or
electrical component damage.
Electrical (Static/ESD) The moving or rubbing of wool, nylon, other synthetic fibers, and
even flowing liquids can generate static electricity. This creates an
excess or deficiency of electrons on the surface of material that
discharges (spark) to the ground resulting in the ignition of
flammables or damage to electronics or the body's nervous system.
Electrical (Loss of Power) Safety-critical equipment failure as a result of loss of power.
Ergonomics (Strain) Damage of tissue due to over exertion (strains and sprains) or
repetitive motion.
Ergonomics (Human Error) A system design, procedure, or equipment that is error-
provocative. (A switch goes up to turn something off).
Excavation (Collapse) Soil collapse in a trench or excavation as a resultof improper or
inadequate shoring. Soil type is critical in determining the hazard
likelihood.
Fall (Slip, Trip) Conditions that result in falls (impacts) from height or traditional
walking surfaces (such as slippery floors, poor housekeeping,
uneven walking surfaces, exposed ledges, etc.)
Fire/Heat Temperatures that can cause burns to the skin or damage to other
organs. Fires require a heat source, fuel, and oxygen.
Mechanical/Vibration Vibration that can cause damage to nerve endings,or material
(Chaffing/Fatigue) fatigue that results in a safety-critical failure. (Examples are
abraded slings and ropes, weakened hoses and belts.)
MechanicalFailure Self explanatory; typically occurs when devices exceed designed
capacity or are inadequately maintained.
Mechanical Skin, muscle, or body part exposed to crushing, caught-between,
cutting, tearing, shearing items or equipment.
Noise Noise levels (>85 dBA 8 hr TWA) that result in hearing damage or
inability to communicate safety-critical information.
Radiation (Ionizing) Alpha, Beta, Gamma, neutral particles, and X-rays that cause
injury (tissue damage) by ionization of cellular components.
Radiation (Non-Ionizing) Ultraviolet, visible light, infrared, and microwaves that cause
injury to tissue by thermal or photochemical means.
Struck By Accelerated mass that strikes the body causing injury or death.
(MassAcceleration) (Examples are falling objects and projectiles.)
Struck Against Injury to a body part as a result of coming into contact of a surface
in which action was initiated by the person. (An example is when a
screwdriver slips.)
TemperatureExtreme Temperatures that result in heat stress, exhaustion, or metabolic
(Heat/Cold) slow down such as hypothermia.
Visibility Lack of lighting or obstructed vision that results in an error or
other hazard.
Weather Phenomena Self explanatory.
(Snow/Rain/Wind/Ice)

International Standardization
When the large majority of products or services in a particular business or
industry sector conform to International Standards, a state of industry-wide
standardization exists. The economic stakeholders concerned agree on
specifications and criteria to be applied consistently in the classification of
materials, in the manufacture and supply of products, in testing and analysis, in
terminology and in the provision of services. In this way, International Standards
provide a reference framework, or a common technological language, between
suppliers and their customers. This facilitates trade and the transfer of
technology.

Because "International Organization for Standardization" would have

different acronyms in different languages ("IOS" in English, "OIN" in French for
Organisation internationale de normalisation), its founders decided to give it also a
short, all-purpose name. They chose "ISO", derived from the Greek isos, meaning
"equal". Whatever the country, whatever the language, the short form of the
organization's name is always ISO.

UNDERSTAND THE BASICS

Generic means that the same standard can be applied to any organization,
large or small, whatever its product or service, in any sector of activity, and
whether it is a business enterprise, a public administration, or a government
department.

Management system refers to what the organization does to manage its

processes, or activities, so that its products or services meet the objectives it has
set itself, such as:
 satisfying the customer's quality requirements,
 complying with regulations, or
 meeting environmental objectives.

Management system standards provide a model to follow in setting up

and operating a management system. This model incorporates the features on
which experts in the field have reached a consensus as being the international
state of the art.

PLAN – DO – CHECK – ACT

The Plan – Do – Check – Act (PDCA) cycle is the operating of ISO's
management system standards.

Plan – establish objectives and make plans (analyze your organization's situation,
establish your overall objectives and set your interim targets, and develop plans
to achieve them).
Do – implement your plans (do what you planned do).
 Check – measure your results
(measure/monitor how far your
actual achievements meet your
planned objectives).
Act – correct and improve your
plans and how you put them into
practice (correct and learn from
your mistakes to improve your
plans in order to achieve better
results next time).

Benefits
In a very small organization, there may be no "system", just "our way of
doing things", and "our way" is probably not written down, but all in the head of
the manager or owner.

The larger the organization, and the more people involved, the more the
likelihood that there are written procedures, instructions, forms or records. These
help ensure that everyone is not just "doing his or her own thing", and that the
organization goes about its business in an orderly and structured way. This
means that time, money and other resources are utilized efficiently.

The ISO Standardization System

ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is a global network
that identifies what International Standards are required by business,
government and society, develops them in partnership with the sectors that will
put them to use, adopts them by transparent procedures based on national input
and delivers them to be implemented worldwide. ISO standards distil an
international consensus from the broadest possible base of stakeholder groups.

ISO – a non-governmental organization – is a federation of the national

standards bodies of 157 * countries, one per country, from all regions of the
world, including developed, developing and transitional economies. Each ISO
member is the principal standards organization in its country. The members
propose the new standards, participate in their development and provide support
in collaboration with ISO Central Secretariat for the 3 000 technical groups that
actually develop the standards.
 ISO has a current portfolio of over 17 000 * standards that provide
practical solutions and achieve benefits for almost every sector of business,
industry and technology. They make up a complete offering for all three
dimensions of sustainable development – economic, environmental and societal.
ISO‘s work programmed ranges from standards for traditional activities, such as
agriculture and construction, through
mechanical engineering, manufacturing and
distribution, to transport, medical devices,
the latest in information and
communication technology developments,
and to standards for services.

Certification
Certification is not a requirement of
any of ISO's management system standards.
This section provides a basic understanding
of what certification and related terms
mean.

Certification, registration and accreditation

In the context of ISO 9001:2000 or ISO 14001:2004, ―certification” refers
to the issuing of written assurance (the certificate) by an independent external
body that it has audited a management system and verified that it conforms to
the requirements specified in the standard.

“Registration” means that the auditing body then records the certification
in its client register. So, the organization‘s management system has been both
certified and registered.

Therefore, in the ISO 9001:2000 or ISO 14001:2004 context, the difference

between the two terms is not significant and both are acceptable for general use.
“Certification‖ is the term most widely used worldwide, although registration is
often preferred in North America, and the two are used interchangeably. On the
contrary, using “accreditation” as an interchangeable alternative for certification
or registration is a mistake, because it means something different.

Certificates issued by accredited certification bodies may be perceived on

the market as having increased credibility.
BENEFITS OF INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
International Standards bring technological, economic and societal
benefits. They help to harmonize technical specifications of products and services
making industry more efficient and breaking down barriers to international trade.
Conformity to International Standards helps reassure consumers that products
are safe, efficient and good for the environment.
International Standards are strategic tools and guidelines to help
companies tackle some of the most demanding challenges of modern business.
They ensure that business operations are as efficient as possible, increase
productivity and help companies to access new markets.

Benefits include:

 Cost savings - International Standards help optimize operations and

therefore improve the bottom line
 Enhanced customer satisfaction - International Standards help improve
quality, enhance customer satisfaction and increase sales
 Access to new markets - International Standards help prevent trade
barriers and open up global markets
 Increased market share - International Standards help increase
productivity and competitive advantage
 Environmental benefits - International Standards help reduce negative
impacts on the environment

ISO standards draw on international expertise and experience and are

therefore a vital resource for governments when developing regulations. National
governments can make ISO standards a regulatory requirement (remember ISO
standards themselves are voluntary). This has a number of benefits:

 Expert opinion - ISO standards are developed by experts. By integrating

an ISO standard into national regulation, governments can benefit from
the opinion of experts without having to call on their services directly.

 Opening up world trade - ISO standards are international and adopted by

many governments. By integrating ISO standards into national regulation,
governments help to ensure that requirements for imports and exports are
the same the world over, therefore facilitating the movement of goods,
services and technologies from country to country.
 ISO 9000 QUALITY MANAGEMENT
The ISO 9000 family addresses various aspects of
quality management and contains some of ISO‘s best
known standards. The standards provide guidance and
tools for companies and organizations who want to ensure
that their products and services consistently meet
customer‘s requirements, and that quality is consistently
improved.

There are many standards in the ISO 9000 family, including:

 ISO 9000 – Fundamentals and Vocabulary: this introduces the user to the
concepts behind the management systems and specifies the terminology
used.
 ISO 9001 – Requirements: this sets out the criteria you will need to meet if
you wish to operate in accordance with the standard and gain certification.
 ISO 9004 – Guidelines for performance improvement: based upon the eight
quality management principles, these are designed to be used by senior
management as a framework to guide their organizations towards
improved performance by considering the needs of all interested parties,
not just customers.
 ISO 19011: Guidelines on quality and/or environmental management
systems auditing
 ISO 9001:2008 - sets out the criteria for a quality management system and
is the only standard in the family that can be certified to (although this is
not a requirement). It can be used by any organization, large or small,
regardless of its field of activity. In fact ISO 9001:2008 is implemented by
over one million companies and organizations in over 170 countries.
 ISO 9000:2005 - covers the basic concepts and language
 ISO 9004:2009 - focuses on how to make a quality management system
more efficient and effective
 ISO 19011:2011 - sets out guidance on internal and external audits of
quality management systems.

ISO 9000 Principles

Customer Focus
As stated before, the customer is the primary focus of a business. By
understanding and responding to the needs of customers, an organization can
correctly targeting key demographics and therefore increase revenue by delivering
the products and services that the customer is looking for. With knowledge of
customer needs, resources can be allocated appropriately and efficiently. Most
importantly, a business‘s dedication will be recognized by the customer, creating
customer loyalty. And customer loyalty is return business.

Good Leadership
A team of good leaders will establish unity and direction quickly in a
business environment. Their goal is to motivate everyone working on the project,
and successful leaders will minimize miscommunication within and between
departments. Their role is intimately intertwined with the next ISO 9000
principle.

Involvement of people
The inclusion of everyone on a business team is critical to its success.
Involvement of substance will lead to a personal investment in a project and in
turn create motivated, committed workers. These people will tend towards
innovation and creativity, and utilize their full abilities to complete a project. If
people have a vested interest in performance, they will be eager to participate in
the continual improvement that ISO 900 facilitates.

Process approach to quality management

The best results are achieved when activities and resources are managed
together. This process approach to quality management can lower costs through
the effective use of resources, personnel, and time. If a process is controlled as a
whole, management can focus on goals that are important to the big picture, and
prioritize objectives to maximize effectiveness.

Management system approach

Combining management groups may seem like a dangerous clash of titans,
but if done correctly can result in an efficient and effective management system.
If leaders are dedicated to the goals of an organization, they will aid each other to
achieve improved productivity. Some results include integration and alignment of
key processes. Additionally, interested parties will recognize the consistency,
effectiveness, and efficiency that come with a management system. Both suppliers
and customers will gain confidence in a business‘s abilities.

Continual Improvement
The importance of this principle is paramount, and should a permanent
objective of every organization. Through increased performance, a company can
increase profits and gain an advantage over competitors. If a whole business is
dedicated to continual improvement, improvement activities will be aligned,
leading to faster and more efficient development.
Ready for improvement and change, businesses will have the flexibility to react
quickly to new opportunities.
Factual approach to decision making
Effective decisions are based on the analysis and interpretation of
information and data. By making informed decisions, an organization will be
more likely to make the right decision. As companies make this a habit, they will
be able to demonstrate the effectiveness of past decisions. This will put
confidence in current and future decisions.

Supplier relationships
It is important to establish a mutually beneficial supplier relationship;
such a relationship creates value for both parties. A supplier that recognizes a
mutually beneficial relationship will be quick to react when a business needs to
respond to customer needs or market changes. Through close contact and
interaction with a supplier, both organizations will be able to optimize resources
and costs.

ISO 14000 ENVIRONMENTAL

MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
ISO 14000, which was initially released in 1996
and updated in 2004, is a global series of environmental
management systems (EMS) standards. As a
continuation of the standardization process that was
initiated with the ISO 9000 series, the ISO 14000 series
of international standards have been developed so that organizations may
incorporate environmental aspects into operations and product standards. It is a
set of voluntary environmental management standards, guides and technical
reports, which specifically focuses on corporate environmental management
systems, operating practices, products, and services.

The ISO 14000 series addresses the following aspects of environmental

management:
 Environmental Management Systems (EMS)
 Environmental Auditing & Related Investigations (EA&RI)
 Environmental Labels and Declarations (EL)
 Environmental Performance Evaluation (EPE)
 Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
 Terms and Definitions (T&D)

The benefits given by these standards are:

 Assures customers of your commitment to demonstrable environmental
management
 Maintains excellent public relations
 Satisfies investor criteria and improves access to capital
 Obtains insurance at reasonable cost
 Enhances your image and market share
 Meets your clients‘ registration requirements
 Improves cost control by identifying and eliminating waste and inefficiency
 Lessens incidents that result in liability
 Reduces your consumption of materials and energy
 Facilitates the attainment of permits and authorizations
 Decreases the cost of complying with environmental regulations
 Improves industry-government relations
 Helps reduce pollution.
 Fewer operating costs.
 Savings from safer workplace conditions.
 Reduction of costs associated with emissions, discharges, waste handling,
transport & disposal.
 Improvements in the product as a result of process changes.
 Safer products.
 Minimizes hazardous and non-hazardous waste.
 Conserves natural resources--electricity, gas, space and water with
resultant cost savings.
 Prevents pollution and reduces wastage.
 Demonstrates to customers that the firm has met environmental
expectations.
 Meets potential national and international government purchasing
requirements.
 Delivers profits from marketing "green" products.
 Provides a competitive marketing tool.
 Improves international competitiveness
 Improves the organization‘s relationship with insurance companies.
 Elimination of costs associated with conformance to conflicting national
standards.
 Process cost savings by reduction of material and energy input.
 Satisfying investor / shareholder criteria.
 Helps reduce liability and risk.
 Improved access to capital.
 Easier to obtain operational permits and authorizations.
 Assists in developing and transferring technology within the company.
OTHER POPULAR STANDARDS

ISO 26000 Social Responsibility

Business and organizations do not operate in

a vacuum. Their relationship to the society and
environment in which they operate is a critical
factor in their ability to continue to operate
effectively. It is also increasingly being used as a
measure of their overall performance. ISO 26000
provides guidance on how businesses and organizations can operate in a socially
responsible way. This means acting in an ethical and transparent way that
contributes to the health and welfare of society.

It provides guidance rather than requirements, so it cannot be certified to

unlike some other well-known ISO standards. Instead, it helps clarify what social
responsibility is, helps businesses and organizations translate principles into
effective actions and shares best practices relating to social responsibility,
globally. It is aimed at all types of organizations regardless of their activity, size or
location.

The standard was launched in 2010 following five years of negotiations

between many different stakeholders across the world. Representatives from
government, NGOs, industry, consumer groups and labor organizations around
the world were involved in its development, which means it represents an
international consensus.

Any offer to certify, or claims to be certified, to ISO 26000 would be a

misrepresentation of the intent and purpose and a misuse of this International
Standard. As this International Standard does not contain requirements, any
such certification would not be a demonstration of conformity with this
International Standard." This state his standard offers guidance on socially
responsible behavior and possible actions; it does not contain requirements and,
therefore, in contrast to ISO management system standards, is not certifiable.

As a guidance document the ISO 26000 is an offer, voluntary in use, and

encourages organizations to discuss their social responsibility issues and possible
actions with relevant stakeholders. As service providers, certification bodies do
not belong to an organization‘s stakeholders. ISO 26000 encourages to reconsider
an organization's social responsibility or "socially responsible behavior" and to
identify/select from its recommendations those where the organization
could/should engage in contributions to society. ISO 26000 encourages further to
report on actions taken.

ISO 50001 Energy Management

Using energy efficiently helps organizations

save money as well as helping to conserve
resources and tackle climate change. ISO 50001
supports organizations in all sectors to use energy more efficiently, through the
development of an energy management system (EnMS). SO 50001 is based on
the management system model of continual improvement also used for other well-
known standards such as ISO 9001 or ISO 14001. This makes it easier for
organizations to integrate energy management into their overall efforts to improve
quality and environmental management.

ISO 50001:2011 provides a framework of requirements for organizations

to:

Develop a policy for more efficient use of energy

Fix targets and objectives to meet the policy

Use data to better understand and make decisions about energy use

Measure the results

Review how well the policy works, and

Continually improve energy management.
Like other ISO management system standards, certification to ISO 50001
is possible but not obligatory. Some organizations decide to implement the
standard solely for the benefits it provides. Others decide to get certified to it, to
show external parties they have implemented an energy management system. ISO
does not perform certification.

The main objective of the standard is to improve energy-related performance and

energy efficiency continuously and to identify energy reduction opportunities.
This systematic approach will help organizations to establish systems and
processes. Consistent energy management helps organizations to realize
untapped energy efficiency potential. They will benefit from cost savings and
make a significant contribution to environmental and climate protection, for
example by the permanent reduction of CO2 emissions. The standard should
alert employees and in particular the management level to the immediate and
long-term energy management gains that can be made. The organization can
discover potential savings and competitive advantages. Furthermore a huge image
boost for the organization can be created.
ISO 31000 Risk Management

Risks affecting organizations can have consequences in terms of economic

performance and professional reputation, as well as environmental, safety and
societal outcomes. Therefore, managing risk effectively helps organizations to
perform well in an environment full of uncertainty.

It provides principles, framework and a process for managing risk. It can

be used by any organization regardless of its size, activity or sector. Using ISO
31000 can help organizations increase the likelihood of achieving objectives,
improve the identification of opportunities and threats and effectively allocate and
use resources for risk treatment.

However, ISO 31000 cannot be used for certification purposes, but does
provide guidance for internal or external audit programmes. Organizations using
it can compare their risk management practices with an internationally
recognized benchmark, providing sound principles for effective management and
corporate governance.

It provides generic guidelines for the design, implementation and

maintenance of risk management processes throughout an organization. This
approach to formalizing risk management practices will facilitate broader
adoption by companies who require an enterprise risk management standard that
accommodates multiple ‗silo-centric‘ management systems.

The scope of this approach to risk management is to enable all strategic,

management and operational tasks of an organization throughout projects,
functions, and processes to be aligned to a common set of risk management
objectives.

ISO/IEC 27001 - Information Security Management

The ISO 27000 family of standards helps organizations keep information

assets secure. Using this family of standards will help your organization manage
the security of assets such as financial information, intellectual property,
employee details or information entrusted to you by third parties. ISO/IEC
27001 is the best-known standard in the family providing requirements for an
information security management system (ISMS).
What is an ISMS?

An ISMS is a systematic approach to managing sensitive company

information so that it remains secure. It includes people, processes and IT
systems by applying a risk management process. It can help small, medium and
large businesses in any sector keep information assets secure.

International Commerce
Terminology
The Incoterms® rules or International Commercial Terms are a series of
pre-defined commercial terms published by the International Chamber of
Commerce (ICC) that are widely used in International commercial
transactions or procurement processes. A series of three-letter trade terms
related to common contractual sales practices, the Incoterms rules are intended
primarily to clearly communicate the tasks, costs, and risks associated with the
transportation and delivery of goods.

They are accepted by governments, legal authorities, and practitioners

worldwide for the interpretation of most commonly used terms in international
trade. They are intended to reduce or remove altogether uncertainties arising
from different interpretation of the rules in different countries. As such they are
regularly incorporated into sales contracts worldwide.

First published in 1936, they have been periodically updated, with the
eighth version—Incoterms 2010—having been published on January 1, 2011.
"Incoterms" is a registered trademark of the ICC.

EXW – Ex Works (named place of delivery)

The seller makes the goods available at his/her premises. The buyer is
responsible for uploading. This term places the maximum obligation on the buyer
and minimum obligations on the seller. The Ex Works term is often used when
making an initial quotation for the sale of goods without any costs included. EXW
means that a buyer incurs the risks for bringing the goods to their final
destination. The seller does not load the goods on collecting vehicles and does not
clear them for export. If the seller does load the goods, he does so at buyer's risk
and cost. If parties wish seller to be responsible for the loading of the goods on
departure and to bear the risk and all costs of such loading, this must be made
clear by adding explicit wording to this effect in the contract of sale.

The buyer, arranges the pickup of the freight from the supplier's
designated ship site, owns the intransit freight, and is responsible for clearing the
goods through Customs. The supplier is responsible for completing all the export
documentation. Cost of goods sold transfers from the seller to the buyer at this
time also. In this matter the buyer need to take responsible for bring the material
from the seller.

CPT – Carriage Paid To (named place of destination)

The seller pays for carriage. Risk transfers to buyer upon handing goods
over to the first carrier at place of shipment in the country of import. This term is
used for all kind of shipments.

CIP – Carriage and Insurance Paid to (named place of destination)

The containerized transport/multimodal equivalent of CIF. Seller pays for

carriage and insurance to the named destination point, but risk passes when the
goods are handed over to the first carrier.

DAT – Delivered at Terminal (named terminal at port or place of

destination)

The Seller delivers when the goods, once unloaded from the arriving means
of transport, are placed at the Buyer's disposal at a named terminal at the named
port or place of destination. "Terminal" includes any place, whether covered or
not, such as a quay, warehouse, container yard or road, rail or air cargo terminal.
The Seller bears all risks involved in bringing the goods to and unloading them at
the terminal at the named port or place of destination.

DAP – Delivered at Place (named place of destination)

Can be used for any transport mode, or where there is more than one
transport mode. The seller is responsible for arranging carriage and for delivering
the goods, ready for unloading from the arriving conveyance, at the named place.

100
Duties is not paid under this term (An important difference from Delivered At
Terminal DAT, where the seller is responsible for unloading.)

DDP – Delivered Duty Paid (named place of destination)

Seller is responsible for delivering the goods to the named place in the
country of the buyer, and pays all costs in bringing the goods to the destination
including import duties and taxes. The seller is not responsible for unloading.
This term is often used in place of the non-Incoterm "Free In Store (FIS)". This
term places the maximum obligations on the seller and minimum obligations on
the buyer.

FAS – Free Alongside Ship (named port of shipment)

The seller must place the goods alongside the ship at the named port. The
seller must clear the goods for export. It is suitable only for maritime transport
but NOT for multimodal sea transport in containers. This term is typically used
for heavy-lift or bulk cargo.

FOB – Free on Board (named port of shipment)

The buyer must advance government tax in the country of origin as

commitment to load the goods on board a vessel designated by the buyer. Cost
and risk are divided when the goods are actually on board of the vessel. The
buyer must clear the goods for export because he did not pay for the goods in the
country of origin. The seller must instruct the buyer the details of the vessel and
the port where the goods are to be loaded, and there is no reference to, or
provision for, the use of a carrier or forwarder.

It means the seller pays for transportation of goods to the port of shipment,
loading cost. The buyer pays cost of marine freight transportation, insurance,
uploading and transportation cost from the arrival port to destination. The
passing of risk occurs when the goods are in buyer account.

CFR – Cost and Freight (named port of destination)

Seller must pay the costs and freight to bring the goods to the port of
destination. However, risk is transferred to the buyer once the goods are loaded
on the vessel. Insurance for the goods is NOT included. This term is formerly
known as CNF (C&F, or C+F). It is for maritime transport only.

CIF – Cost, Insurance and Freight (named port of destination)

Exactly the same as CFR except that the seller must in addition procure
and pay for the insurance. It is for maritime transport only.
CUSTOMS & SHIPPING FORMS
Bill of Lading

A bill of lading (sometimes abbreviated as B/L or BOL) is a key document

used in the transport of goods. As a document of title, it is also an important
financial instrument. At its most basic, a Bill of Lading is a document generated
by a shipper, detailing a shipment of merchandise, giving title to the goods, and
requiring the carrier to release the merchandise to a named party at the
destination.

The principal use of the bill of lading is as a receipt issued by the carrier
once the goods have been loaded onto the vessel. This receipt can be used as
proof of shipment for customs and insurance purposes, and also as commercial
proof of completing a contractual obligation, especially under Incoterms such as
CFR and FOB.

The bill of lading confers title to the goods to the consignee noted on the
bill. The bill of lading may also be made out "To Order", which confers title to the
goods to the holder of the bill of lading

Because the bill of lading represents title to the goods detailed upon it, it
can be traded in much the same way as the goods may be, and even borrowed
upon if desired. This is a very important and common document used in export
and import trade globally.

The information on the Bill of Lading must be consistent with the

information listed on the Commercial Invoice, it must contain a complete and
accurate description of the goods, and it must be legible. It is necessary that
clearly indicate the following: the type of clearance preferred by the consignee,
and the name of the Customs Broker (or their appointed agents) at the frontier
port or inland sufferance warehouse.

Waybill

A waybill is a document issued by a carrier giving details and instructions

relating to the shipment of a consignment of goods. Typically it will show the
names of the consignor and consignee, the point of origin of the consignment, its
destination, and route. Most freight forwarders and trucking companies use an
in-house waybill called a house bill. These typically contain "conditions of
contract of carriage" terms on the back of the form. These terms cover limits to
liability and other terms and conditions.

Most airlines use a different form called an air waybill which lists
additional items such as airport of destination, flight number, and time. A
waybill is similar to that of a courier's receipt which contains the details of the
consignor and the consignee, and also the point of origin and destination.

Commercial Invoice

A commercial invoice is a document used in foreign trade. It is used as

a customs declaration provided by the person or corporation that is exporting an
item across international borders. Although there is no standard format, the
document must include a few specific pieces of information such as the parties
involved in the shipping transaction, the goods being transported, the country of
manufacture, and the Harmonized System codes for those goods. A commercial
invoice must also include a statement certifying that the invoice is true, and a
signature. A commercial invoice is used to calculate tariffs, international
commercial terms (like the Cost in a CIF) and is commonly used for customs
purposes.

You will need two copies of the Commercial Invoice, one must accompany
the freight from the point of pickup to the point of customs clearance, the other
should be attached to the Bill of Lading. This document is simply an invoice with
a complete description of the goods being shipped, along with the proper
valuations and currency information.

Certificate of Origin
The Certificate of Origin is used by the broker to determine the correct rate of
duty under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). If this document
is missing, the highest rates may be applied to each consignment, and U.S.
Customs may not allow the goods into the country.

Vocabulary
Air Freight Forwarder Broker Dock
Air Waybill Cartage Agent Freight
Articles of Claim Gross Vehicle Weight
Extraordinary Value Commodity (GVW)
Bill of Lading (B/L) Consignee Hazardous Material
Break bulk Dispatch Intermodal
Buyer Payment Terms Waybill
Container Shipper's Agent Duties
Ergonomic Tariff Supplier
Facility Scope Trigger
Hardhat Seller Unhealthful
Illnesses Shipment Vessel
Multimodal Third-Party
NGO Truckload (TL)

References for the unit

 http://www.omnex.com/standards/iso_9001_2000/iso_9001_2000.html
 http://www.iso.org/iso/home.html
 http://www.kingswaytransport.com/CustomsInformation.aspx
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incoterms
 https://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3071.html