Frank Gehry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Frank Gehry - Essay Example In 1956, Gehry moved to Massachusetts with his wife in a bid to enroll into Harvard’s School of Design. Sadly, the education life at Harvard was never completed, which saw him drop out and afterwards, divorce his first wife. The reason for his non-completion in Harvard’s Design School was because his ideas for a socially responsible type of architecture were not realized (Isenberg and Gehry 43). He remarried in 1975, and had two more children with Berta Isabel Aguilera. He later went back to California after his attempt at design school failed, and that is where the legend of Frank Gehry was born. Works around the world Shortly after moving back to California, Gehry began making his name a household name through the Easy Edges furniture line. Most of the cardboard furniture products were sold in California between 1969 and 1973 before his marriage to Isabel, and before taking on the task of remodeling his family’s house in Santa Monica. It was this erratic remodeling that saw Gehry capture the architectural world’s attention as his design was deemed unique and out of this world. The famous Walt Disney Concert Hall is among Gehry’s famous works, and this was after he achieved celebrity status after modeling homes in Southern California for a while. The Guggenheim Museum building in Spain and a skyscraper in New York city are also Gehry’s works, and have become tourist attraction sites visited by countless individuals. The Opus Hong Kong tower in China can also be placed among his top achievements (Isenberg and Gehry 48). In some instances, Gehry is said to have been invol ved in the designing of jewelry, liquor bottles, and even trophies. He is said to have designed an ice hockey trophy, which was for the World Cup Hockey tournament. These ‘quick fixes’, according to Gehry, were as a result of the little or lack of realization of exceptional architecture (Lange 53). He, therefore, may have wanted to remain relevant in the field of design even if it meant that he would not be designing buildings and memorials. Style and design and the material used Gehry’s style was a deconstructivist form of architecture, which pushed and challenged the accepted designs of architecture. It is a post-structuralist aesthetic that is most familiar with architects who go against the normally accepted paradigms of architecture, and is most visible and popular in California. This might be because he did most of his works in the area during the 1980’s. It is believed that Gehry calculatedly violates the modernism approach to architecture with his focus on the right angles and cubes (Lange 59). The instability that is the deconstructivist approach is what makes the designs by Frank memorable. Even though the projects may be comprehensive and complete, they tend to bring about the feeling of explosion. In some sense, the nature of the deconstructivist style is to bring about the acceptance of flaws as an inevitable phenomenon in architecture. Cardboard and scotch tape are the materials used to bring the designs in Gehry’s head to life, which later turn into buildings. In many of his works, Gehry has incorporated the use of titanium and stainless steel. Theme in Frank Gehry’s works One thing that makes Gehry a truly gifted architect of his day is his perceptive and immaculate manner of bringing out his designs. He is said to be fond of fish as most of his structural designs are said to have used fish motifs engrained in some

HU300 unit 8 Journal Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

HU300 unit 8 Journal - Research Paper Example Let’s take an example of Chinese and Japanese films. These countries portray in their films a lot about their festivals and ceremonies. This tells us how festive these countries are. Chinese films also show the heroic struggle of the Chinese soldiers who reached their destination in the 1930s after the long march. An example of this is the Chinese movie named â€Å"The Long March†. The way Chinese films are made tells us that China has a strong film industry with talented actors. Russian films, like â€Å"Faust† by Alexander Sokurov, talk more about battles and wars, and portray the Russian history. Arabian films have their own special portrayal of beauty and culture. Moreover, if we talk about German films, most of them portray the humorous nature of the Germans which they are famous for. German comedy movies, like â€Å"Miss Congeniality 2 - Armed and Fabulous† and â€Å"The Edukators†, show the sense of humor Germans possess. Hence, keeping in mi nd that films portray cultures, they should not only be a source of entertainment but should also contain moral

Reaction paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 24

Reaction paper - Essay Example There were other neighboring plantations in the area like New Design and also Wye Town. The home plantation was the administrative base of all the twenty farms in the area. The slaves who proved unmanageable were also punished at the home plantation. The punishment forms include; whipping, sloop boarding, and being sold. These punishments were aimed at minimizing or eliminating resistance from other slaves. At the home plantation, all the slaves received their monthly food allowance for sustenance (Douglas 16). Mr. Litch was another player who, despite being uneducated was very wealthy. His plantation had approximately 600 slaves. He employed competent overseers to manage his plantation, and he adequately remunerated them. There was a jail and also a whipping post within his plantation. These punishment approaches, were aimed at the slaves who did not adhere to set down rules. Mr. Litch even engaged in murder, without being questioned due to his vast amounts of wealth. The reaction illustrates very inhumane punishment that the slaves received in the plantation of Mr. Litch. He required strict compliance to eight commandments, within his plantation. However, if a neighbor accused a slave against theft, the master engaged in browbeating and also assurances that he provides adequately for his slaves and hence they do not have reasons of stealing. The accuser was, however, whipped as a form of punishment, after the neighbor has left. The slaves who engaged in stealing pieces of meat or corn we re punished through being chained, imprisoned and finally subjected to hunger (Jacobs 57). The north and the south regions of America are different due to the direct issue of slavery. Thus the reaction paper illustrates the 1857 south crisis. The south policy is relatively ineffective, in the moral, social and political areas. The north, through its effective approaches and policy, are effective in almost all issues and opinions. It is

HU300 unit 8 Journal Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

HU300 unit 8 Journal - Research Paper Example Let’s take an example of Chinese and Japanese films. These countries portray in their films a lot about their festivals and ceremonies. This tells us how festive these countries are. Chinese films also show the heroic struggle of the Chinese soldiers who reached their destination in the 1930s after the long march. An example of this is the Chinese movie named â€Å"The Long March†. The way Chinese films are made tells us that China has a strong film industry with talented actors. Russian films, like â€Å"Faust† by Alexander Sokurov, talk more about battles and wars, and portray the Russian history. Arabian films have their own special portrayal of beauty and culture. Moreover, if we talk about German films, most of them portray the humorous nature of the Germans which they are famous for. German comedy movies, like â€Å"Miss Congeniality 2 - Armed and Fabulous† and â€Å"The Edukators†, show the sense of humor Germans possess. Hence, keeping in mi nd that films portray cultures, they should not only be a source of entertainment but should also contain moral

Marketing Strategy at Tesco plc Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Marketing Strategy at Tesco plc - Essay Example Superior service quality leads to favourable behavioural intentions, customer retention, a constant revenue stream, increased spending, willingness to pay price premiums, and word-of-mouth advertising and customer capture. Verbalising good intentions is merely the first step in creating a positive attitude of satisfaction, but the second more important one is delivering on the good intentions. Kotler (1977) emphasised that a market-orientated business must focus not only on selling but on customer satisfaction but failed to emphasise the disconnection between the two. Zemke and Schaaf (1990, 53) argue that the really useful, specific, directly applicable information comes from talking to customers, constantly and often at length, to determine what the company is doing that makes them happy or not. Cronin and Taylor (1994) focus on performance measures of service quality rather than customer expectations. Piercy's (2002) customer relationship sliding scale (Fig. ... , specific, directly applicable information comes from talking to customers, constantly and often at length, to determine what the company is doing that makes them happy or not. Cronin and Taylor (1994) focus on performance measures of service quality rather than customer expectations. Customer Focus Piercy's (2002) customer relationship sliding scale (Fig. 7.1, p.344) is more complicated than the matrix used by Reinartz and Kumar (2000) to determine which types of customers are worth keeping and for whom the company must spend marketing resources to achieve retention. Its justification came from research that "it can cost five times more to get a new customer than to keep an existing one" (Weinstein et al., 1999, p. 119), following Reicheld (1994) who asserted that a 5 percent increase in loyalty can lead to a 25 to 85% increase in profitability. Pine (1993) talked of mass customisation and one-to-one marketing, echoing Hamel and Prahalad (1989) who warned of convergence of producers and customers with the Internet, which empower customers to become active co-creators of products, services, and value. Businesses have to show greater sensitivity to customer wants. Market Choices The simplified market choice diagram (Piercy, 2002, Fig. 8.1, p. 410) builds on the complex market analysis models proposed by academics such as the product-customer matrix (Piercy, 2002, Fig. 8.2, p. 412). These models build on studies made by management science academics as Freeman (1984) who proposed that the company must satisfy all of its stakeholders, quite an impossible task even for the best managers. Bartlett and Ghoshal (1994) argued for strategic choice, related to the purpose for the existence of the business. Hamel and Prahalad (1989, 75) suggested that businesses define

Informaiton System Essay Example for Free

Informaiton System Essay Assess the advantages and disadvantages of using a Web-based compensation tool versus a client-server based or stand-alone PC-based system and then give your opinion on which system would provide the most value to an organization’s stakeholders. Include three (3) facts to support your opinion. e-Compensation represents a web-enabled approach to an array of compensation tools that enable an organization to gather, store, manipulate, analyze, utilize, and distribute compensation data and information. The advantages of using a Web-based compensation tool versus a client-server based or stand-alone PC-based system include the automated approach that replaces tedious manual processes to make any compensation program easy to manage and virtually error free. Web-based compensation tools do not require installation and updating which saves a lot of administration work and can be access from anywhere with the Internet. The data in Web-based compensation tools is stored remotely and requires little disk space. It also becomes more important that Web-based compensation tools are cross-platform and work on different Operating System. Whereas using a client-server based or stand-alone PC based system would need an administrator to administer, maintain, develop and implement policies and procedures for ensuring the security and integrity of the client/server database, and also resolving any database issues. However, Web-based compensation tools have some serious disadvantages. The most important problem is their poor user experience, because of the performance problems and browser limitations. Another disadvantage of the Web-based compensation tool is that the remote server could be compromised disclosing private information. The fact that the Web-based compensation tool requires Internet connection can also be a limitation. Although Web-based compensation tool seems to have more advantages than a client-server based or stand-alone PC based system, in my opinion, client-server based would provide value to an organization’s stakeholders. Three things initially attract people to web-based over client-server: they are easier to deploy and upgrade, demand less IT support, and require less hardware. While it is true that web-based deployment and upgrades are easier, client-server technology actually delivers far superior benefits and long-term cost savings. Client-server software affords a richer, crisper user interface that outperforms browser- or web-based software in terms of the number of clicks and the ease of use. The client-server based provides set-ups and can be altered without disturbing the clients, while the other two systems require accessing every peer in the network (www.client-serverbased). For example, the client server arrangements aid security requires efforts, because there are fewer servers, limiting the number of persons with access to them and increasing security features of the servers. The two-tiered model enables file sharing between the client and the users. Justify the use of e-Compensation tools in the job-evaluation process from the perspective of HR, management, and the employee. Through e-Compensation tools organizations can adapt to shifting demands for information. e-Compensation tools enhance the practice of designing and administering compensation programs in a dynamic and competitive environment in three key ways. First e-Compensation tools can increase access to critical compensation information without the need for sophisticated or dedicated IT staffs and sophisticated technology infrastructures. They can simply access key information electronically on an as needed basis. Second, e-compensation tools enable round-the-clock availability of meaningful compensation information to senior managers, HR managers, and employees. Third, e-compensation tools can streamline cumbersome bureaucratic tasks through the introduction of workflow functionality and real-time information processing. Job evaluation is the process of methodically establishing a structure or hierarchy of jobs within an organization. This is based on a systematic consideration of job content and requirements. The purpose of the job structure, or hierarchy, is to provide a basis for the development of a wage structure. The job structure, however, is only one of the determinants of the wage structure, with other factors becoming increasingly more important. Job evaluation develops a plan for comparing jobs in terms of those things the organization considers important determinants of job worth. e-Compensation tools enhance the practice of designing and administering compensation programs in a dynamic and competitive environment. HR views the use of e-Compensation tools in the job-evaluation process as a means to streamline their processes and reduce administrative burdens. HR can electronically distribute them to target employees or managers via a corporate intranet. From management perspective e-Compensation can assist in reducing HR administration and compliance costs, help compete more effectively for global talent and provide real-time metric to allow decision-makers to spot trends and manage the workforce more effectively – managers can review a list of proposed merit increases for his or her direct reports. Managers and employees have access to key information to make completing a job analysis or job evaluation project relatively easy. Employees are able to gain access to data which is improved by utilizing e-Compensation to make critical decisions. The use of the e-Compensation tools empower employees with a collaborative employee compensation application that shows their complete compensation package in an intuitive format and provides the tools they need to plan their financial futures. Evaluate three (3) benefits and three (3) drawbacks of a centralized approach to managing merit pay programs compared to a more decentralized approach. Merit pay refers to the process of determining employee compensation (base salary or bonuses), in part, on the basis of how well each employee performs at work. A centralized approach bases an employee’s pay rate on the value of the job/role held, the degree to which the employee has mastered that job/role and how well the employee has performed over time. The most apparent advantages of centralization are an organizations ability to closely control operations, provide a uniform set of policies, practices and procedures throughout the organization, and better use the knowledge of centralized experts. Companies also adopt different approaches to compensation administration responsibilities. Some rely on a centralized approach where the design and administration of compensation programs are performed by a single company department. Some rely on a decentralized organizational structure that allows faster decision-making and better adaptability to local conditions and context. In the decentralized approach managers across the organization forecast the pay increases they expect to recommend in the coming year to retain their key employees and to remain competitive. The decentralized approach can make it difficult to transfer employees from one department to another and may bring about a lack of internal consistency. The drawbacks to the centralized approach are that a compensation program may suit general corporate needs, but not individual department needs, communication between different computers is not easy, resulting in configuration problems, and it does not provide built-in knowledge management capability that would guide or empower managers to make their own decisions. Suggest three (3) types of integrated analytic features that are needed for compensation planning and decision support in e-Compensation systems. Integrated analytics brings together information from a companys ERP, customer relationship management, human resources, financial management, supply chain and e-business systems, and enhances it with advanced analytics, empowering the company to react more quickly to a rapidly changing business environment. Integrated analytics better integrates an organization’s information assets across the value chain, delivers role-based business intelligence to the information consumer in a personalized manner, and includes advanced analytical models focused on decision making. Many human resource information systems, however, do not yet provide integrated analytic features needed for compensation planning and decision support, such as the ability to also see related real-time competitive market salaries. Some integrated analytic features needed for compensation planning and decision making are analytic engines for data enrichment and analysis, analytic applications such as Budgeting, Planning and Balanced Scorecard, and integrated analytic applications that provide process-specific analytics and allow the developers to add more features based on user needs. In order to survive and win in todays market, ERP vendors have recognized that they must have improved information delivery and analytics as core components of their products. The rapid flow of information has increased the need for executives and managers to keep their fingers on the pulse of their companies and to be able to easily access timely, accurate information. It is clear that the market is moving away from the realm of custom and nonintegrated applications and into pre-delivered products that are closely linked to ERP systems. Assess the barriers that prevent organizations from realizing the potential of Web-based internal equity tools and propose three (3) approaches to overcome those barriers. Internal equity refers to establishing the relative worth of jobs inside the organization. It is hard to determine the value of the information before you pay. Organizations can find free web-based services such as HR-Guide’s job evaluation tool. There are several factors that hamper organizations from fully realizing the potential of web-based internal equity tools. First, most of the tools are not generally integrated across software programs in the market that support the design and maintenance of internal equity policies and practices, relatively few are currently both integrated and web-enabled. Second, the challenge facing organizations in implementing these e-compensation tools is that these tools are only as good as the data they access. Third, proper training is required to ensure user acceptance and competent use of the technology. Fourth, some users find data entry tends to be slower and less flexible using web applications than client-server-based software, particularly with nonlinear processes. Finally, while web-based software tools increase access to and distribution of information, the quality and efficiency with which decisions are made still remain ultimately with the manager. There must be organizational commitment to gather, manage, and maintain accurate and relevant data. Organizations need to obtain an integrated web-based compensation software solution that automates and integrates internal equity and external equity software applications and can be used stand-alone, over an intranet, or over the web on an outsourced basis. Lastly, organizations need to implement software and invest in training programs. Recommend three (3) strategies that HR managers can use to evaluate the quality of market data (surveys, benchmark salary studies, etc.) that they receive from outside sources. Paying people fairly is good for business. Underpay, and employees will eventually look for a better offer. Overpay, and the payroll budget and profitability will suffer. That is why companies use market data to research the value of their jobs. HR managers use the latest market data to get accurate data relevant to positions within their organizations expertise. Gathering background information is critical in building a pay structure from scratch to articulate the compensation philosophy, clarify concepts that define the fundamental beliefs about the structure, and design and develop the strategy. To determine the prevailing rate for a job, organizations can benchmark jobs against compensation surveys that are detailed and specific to the organization’s industries and regions. A good compensation survey uses standard, proven methods of data gathering and statistical analysis to determine how much companies pay for a specific job in a specific industry. Commercial and association surveys, Pg 458 Use at least four (4) quality academic resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic resources. http://www.humanresources.pro/index.php?option=com_contentview=articleid=50Itemid=73

External Influences on Lenovo

External Influences on Lenovo The main purpose of this report is to show the way of Lenovo from just project to international corporation and to analyze their way using such methods as PEST and SWOT analysis as well as Porters Five Competitive Forces. Using PEST makes possible to determine the impact of external environment (politics, economics, society and technology) and indirect factors on company. SWOT reveals the strengths and weaknesses of given organization. Combining these two methods makes analysis even more precise. In its turn, Porters Five Competitive Forces helps to understand the competition within the industry. Lenovo is a great example of a company which used innovation and creativity, obstinacy and communication with customer as a tool to make their way to the top. Today Lenovo is one of leading PC vendors. They manufacture tablets, laptops, ultrabooks, All-in-One PCs, desktops, nettops and own accessories. Lenovo creates unique and durable products at really aggressive price point. And they are here to stay. Introduction Lenovo. The company was established in Beijing, China in 1984 by eleven members of the Computer Technology Research Institute, they called it the Legend Holdings. But in 2003, decision to expand outside Chinese market led to another one change the name of the company. Legend changed their name to Lenovo. Name of Lenovo is combination of Le- (as part of Legend) and novo Latin ablative for new. In Chinese it can also be understood as connected thinking or creativity. Despite the fact that current name of the company was introduced just in 2003, Lenovo already gained trust and loyalty of millions of customers. The company has started from budget of 200ÂÂ  000 yuan commissioned Liu Chuanzhi (founder of Lenovo) by Chinese government in order to distribute computers which are made in other countries. Lenovos first office was about 17 square meters. Mr. Chuanzhi once said: It wasnt easy. The lowest thing you could do in the early 80s, as a scientist, was to go into business. China had a strict planned economy and there was barely room for a freewheeling company like ours (Liu Chuanzhi for Asiaweek, June 13, 1997). First major win was a circuit board which enabled IBM computers to process Chinese characters Han-card. Later on Lenovo started to create and distribute computers using its own brand. In May 1988, Lenovo looked for employees for the first time. They have placed ads on the cover of the China Youth News. Out of all respondents, 280 were selected to sit for a written exam. About 120 of the candidates were interviewed in person. Despite interviewers had authority to hire only 16 people, 58 were given offers. 18 people of these had graduate degrees, 37 had undergraduate degrees, and three students did not have university-level education at all. Their average age was 26. Future CEO of Lenovo Yang Yuanqing was among this group who introduced new name and expanded company on Europe and USA. In 1994 Lenovo became a publicly traded company after listing in Hong Kong. Later in 2002 Lenovo Group made partnership with Xiahua Electronics Stock Company, giving the start of Lenovo mobile phone business. In 2008 Lenovo has sold its mobile department but then would pay $200 million to buy it back in November of 2009. Now Lenovo Mobile ranks third in terms of market share of mobile phones market in China. On May of 2005 Lenovo Group announced the completion of the $1.75 billion deal of acquisition of IBMs PC unit. That made companys annual revenue almost quadruple. Company which used to have $3 billion in annual revenue now had nearly $13 billion. They became the worlds third-largest PC vendor, behind Dell and Hewlett-Packard. But revenues are not the only benefit Lenovo got from this deal. They have acquired the ThinkPad brand. ThinkPad is ultra-resistant due to special casing, special keyboard structure that let water drain through the laptop. Moreover it was one of first laptops with hard disk block system, which could turn on emergency brakes thereby save data from being just lost because of physical damage of the disk when laptop is dropped. Later Lenovo would face the closest rival on their way to the top Dell. It was a hard competition, it was a complex competition. The main problem of Lenovo back in the days was a bit more conservative way of making business. Dell used new and innovative methods to produce, distribute and promote products. They spent on ads twice as more than Lenovo, their prices were lower and market share grew more and more. Dell even captured segments which used to be favorite ones of Lenovo. To overcome the enemy Lenovo started to increase value of brand. That means they started to raise name awareness among the customers, they delivered maximum possible customer satisfaction. They are still using those principles as core philosophy of the company. Nowadays, Lenovo has three main categories of laptops. ThinkPads are powered for productive work experience, uncompromised secured and ultra-reliable, solid and durable. IdeaPads are optimized for entertainment and multimedia. They have some enchantments in audio, video performance and possess both functional internal and beautiful external designs. The third lineup is Essential. These products have nothing unnecessary; they are always up-to-date, portable enough and reliable. The tablets are also divided on Idea and Think lineups as well as All-in-Ones and desktops. The principal stays the same. Idea for creativity and entertainment, Think for business and work. In 2012 Lenovo became the fastest growing company in the USA for 8 quarters in a row. Actually, they are the only one who has a growth. In the third financial quarter of 2012, shipments of the company expected to reach 15.7 per cent of world-wide PC shipments. Lenovo would surpass Dell and HP. The Mission and Vision of Lenovo Mission is the main goal, beliefs which push company to develop into new something more than just business. Mission is the reason why company does actually exist. Lenovos origins are in China; their name has meaning so their mission is strong and inspiring as well. Lenovo has a desire to become the leading company of new world that is respected for break-through innovation and award-winning designs, quality, to be loved for an ecosystem of devices, services. Become recognized as one of the best, most trusted and most well-respected companies to work for and do business with. And they are on the right way to reach the goal. Company strives to be one that creates extraordinary, innovative and exceptionally great PCs for its customers. They do not have formal restrictions and bonds which could distract or interfere from manufacturing best possible machines. Lenovo claims that they design exciting and innovative products, services to meet customers needs. And sometimes they even manage to exceed level of the expectations. Lenovo wants to do business from their own global point of view, own perspective and own commitment to building great technology for people who view technology as a tool to accomplish fascinating things. By having few categories of products, Lenovo does not put any effort on useless departments therefore does not waste resources and time. David Schmoock, President of North American Lenovo department said: What I want to do is get to number one and be sustainable as number one. At the very basic level of the company there is one core principle that is extremely important: We do what we say and own what we do. So far the main goals company wants to reach are serving customers, trust and integrity, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit. Lenovo. New World, New Thinking PEST Analysis PEST analysis in general measures a market, its potential, indicates growth or decline, thereby market attractiveness. Actually, PEST analysis helps to determine SWOT factors. PEST analysis is a model that can be used for describing the framework of macro environmental factors that a company should have in mind forming its long-term strategic plans. Of course, the external factors may vary in significance to a given company based on the products and services that it produces and also on the industry it is in. For any company which wants to win in the competitive marketing, such methods of analysis of the external factors and environment are the way to succeed. In this report PEST will be used in order to focus on analyzing external environment of the Lenovo Corporation and try to foresee major influence of those external factors in their business environment. The letter P stands for political factors influencing companys market. Those are level of bureaucracy, laws and regulations, legalization and policies, rule of law, freedom of press, tariff controls and trade. Nowadays, computers are tightly linked with peoples life. From the last century computers were used in business and other areas and help factories, hospitals and other structures to increase production and interest. At the same time, new technology caused some new problems such as pollution of the environment, health and energy consumption. Considering these problems European Union, China and other countries encourage the Green IT. That means computer must not produce noise pollution more than specified, energy consumption must be no more than required. In Lenovo groups, the isopsophic index is lower than 30dB. Therefore, Lenovo has achieved in noise pollution section. Since China has a population of one and a half billion, there is more than enough labor and payment would not be too high. That is the reason why many of assembly lines are Chinese, so Lenovo placed factory in China as well. When China joined WTO in 2005, the export tariff for IT products has decreased to 9.1%. So thes e policies are encouraging business organization developing to global. Next one is E. It stands for economic factors such as interest rates and inflation, disposable income, labor cost and supply, impact of globalization. Letter S is for social culture. It is social studies and education, lifestyle attitudes and choice, population growth rate and age profiles, etc. And the last letter is T. That is for technological factors such as impact of energy technologies, increase in remote working, and current level of technological development, impact of technology on the work process and productivity. For economic, influence by the 2008 economic crisis, the world economic tends to going down. But in the worst time, Chinese government published the new economic policy which was positive financial policy and loose and comfortable monetary policy. The government also offered four-hundred million RMB stimulates economic development (The Marketing Surveillance Center of China, 2008). For Chinas IT industry, this is a great opportunity to develop them. Then change the focus to the economic development. In 1950, the total trades of China include import and export was 11.3 hundred million dollars, but in 2008, it enhanced 25616 hundred million dollars. Also at home, the GDP increased with a high speed: So according to this chart, it very clear that Chinas GDP has achieved satisfactory level and the disposable personal income has increased also (stats, 2009). So the demand of products will increase with the economic enhancing. In the other words, the IT market becomes bigger and Lenovo also has strength to competitive the market share because Lenovo not only produce computers, mobile phone also produced by them. For society culture, the population growth, lifestyle choice and attitudes, population health, education, social mobility and attitudes are influence the demand of high technology products. 60 years ago, 80% people in China were illiteracy, but under the new government value, in 2008, the Einschulungsrate f. of different education level has achieved a satisfactory level: It is clearly that the education level has increased and the demand of high technology products also enhancing (Communist Party Learning, 2009). This situation also offered a huge market for Lenovo. On the other hand, because the globalization and influenced by the developed countries lifestyle, the Chinese people also become more international which live with a high level life and influenced by the education level, the lifestyle of Chinese people become more out-going and open enough (Human Geography Research Center, 2003). So the consumption custom of modern Chinese people also offers a good developing environment to Lenovo. Also in the next five to ten years, this situation will be increase. At the same time, the social culture of China has changed from traditional feudalism to modern lifestyle which is more science and high technology in life. For technological, Lenovo was set by 11 scientists who worked in Chinese Academy of Science which is a governmental organization. So this situation offered a good technology support. In 2005, Lenovo has finished the purchase IBM, so the technology transfer from IBM also helps Lenovo make the Research Development activities and produce high quality products with high technology (Lenovo, 2005). At the same time, with the technology development, the communications costs and increased remote work can help the different corporations share their techniques and also good for Research Development activities. So all of these technological factors can help Lenovo increase their competitive ability in the next five to ten years and the marketing share of IBM also belongs to Lenovo. For the legal section, here just mention two articles which can support Lenovo. Firstly, in light of article 6, Peoples Republic of China Consumer Protection, the government encourages and supports every person and organization supervises the illegal action which damages the consumers legal power (National Peoples Congress, 1993). So this law can reduce other organizations use illegal method to competitive in the marketing and its also a protection for Lenovo. On the other hand, in light of article 6, Peoples Republic of China Law on Product Quality, the government encourages apply scientific management method, advanced science and technology, support the products achieved or beyond the industry standard or international standard. And give the award to the organizations whose products achieved or beyond the international standard (National Peoples Congress, 1993). So as an international corporation, Lenovo links the technology of IBM, they will produce the high quality products and r eceived the government supports from the legal. Finally, for the ethical, because the increased of education level, the peoples diathesis also enhanced. So protect the legal power has become normal in the modern society. Then if the organization make illegal actions, it will be ejected from the market by customers, such as never buy their products. Also for an organization, the ethical problems are faith, fair and good service. As Lenovo, their value are serve consumers, innovation, faith and fair (Lenovo, 2005). So this entire ethical development tendency is good for Lenovos business environment in the next five to ten years. In summary, the policies which about green IT from European Union and the export tariff which from Chinese government are good for Lenovos improvement; at the same time, the economic development of China and the increased disposable personal income also offering a big market to Lenovos development in the future; as the modern society, the population of the world was achieved 67-hundred million in 2007 (Unctad Report, 2008). It offers a huge number of customers; also because the education increase, the lifestyle of modern customers is tend to high technology and high quality. On the other hand, the purchase of IBM also offers the technology transfer and the development mechanics of communication saved the communications costs and its good for international Research Development activities and international cooperation. At the same time, the law of Chinese government also supports and the ethical factors in the modern society are good for Lenovos improvement. So based on the analysis, in the next five to ten years, the likely major influences in Lenovos business environment are environment protection, international cooperation, the economic development, technology communication and Research Development, legal protection and ethical problems. But all of these tend to good for Lenovo in the future. So if the strategy department managers based on the external environment to make the strategic planning, Lenovo will take a great leap for their business in the next five to ten years. The PEST analysis is a model for reviewing and surveying a companys strategy or its position in the market. It measures the market, along with its competitors from the viewpoint of a particular business. It is also used to describe the framework of macro environmental factors that a company should regard and take into consideration. Of course, the external factors may vary in significance to a given company based on the products and services that it produces and also on the industry it is in. Political factors Economic factors Economic factor relates to the economy of the country itself, as well as market and trade cycles. Over the past years Walmart has had a stable economic condition and had 11% growth totalling in $6.5 billion. Why Walmarts figure has been doing so well so far is because it takes into account not only the economy of the company, but also of the countrys economy in which they are setting up their business. Another reason for its success is that Walmart prefers to first check the economical factors of the county before actually doing any business there. The main economical factors that are worth considering are economic stability and peoples purchasing power. Its crucial to acknowledge these factors for doing business in the third world countries because any change in economy can increase the actual price of the goods and services, which the company offers to its customers and of course the demand for these products will go down. Social Factors Social factors are made up of lifestyle trends, major events and various influences, religious and ethnic factors. Walmart has a tendency of evaluating and measuring social factors, just like economic factors, of a country they have chosen to do business in. Social values and frugality are also quite important factors. Walmart appeals to consumers with a rather low income, nevertheless, it ensures that the goods, products and services that they provide are apprised and accepted by their customers. It is a known fact that Walmart doesnt supply its stores with goods that are likely to cause various complaints from the clients and customers. The company makes good relationships with its customers in engaging and taking part in various public activities. Technological Factors Technological factors generally include various factors like maturity of technology, global communications and innovations, as well as technology legislation. Nowadays technology plays an immense part in the whole society. As a matter of fact, technology hugely improves quality of the products, however it tends to decrease the amount of time to promote and advertise the goods and services. Walmart was quick to accept new technology and to make effective and best use of it. It operates most of its logistics with the usage of a modern system called hub-and-spoke of its distribution centres. Customers that shop at Walmart stores get the most benefits out of it. Walmart believes that by introducing natural products on the market, it can have a big and positive impact on the atmosphere around us and the worlds natural resources. Walmart exploits the newest technology such as brad new cash register and security system. In short, Walmart keeps up with technology innovations and adjusts very well to the changes in the world. Porters Five Competitive Forces Porters Five Forces model is generally used in order to understand better the context of the industry in which the company is operating in and to see the attractiveness of an industry structure. By using this model we can see that Walmart is a strong independent company that has a stable growth, professional management and reasonably competitive prices. This model helps to look into the company more closely by assessing the potential threat of new entrants, the competitive rivalry within already existing companies, the threat of substitute products and goods, the bargaining power of suppliers and finally, the bargaining power of customers. Threat of new entrants Theres always a possibility of new companies coming into existence, however in order to compete with such strong company as Walmart they will need a relatively large capital. Walmart is expanding rather fast and it practically leaves neither chance nor room for other new companies to enter the competitive market. Above anything else, Walmart has excellent distribution systems, for example hub-and-spoke system that I mentioned before, as well as good locations and an enormous capital to be actually able to compete with new entrants. Competitive rivalry Walmart is a much larger and more profitable company than its competitors, so the competition inside the retail industry poses no threat whatsoever to it. However, there are a few other strong competitors such as Target, which can bring out some fair competition to Walmart. To sum up, Walmart is generally ahead of its competitors; it is a global leader in the retail industry and has a firm position in the competitive market. Threat of substitute products There arent a lot of direct substitutes to Walmart, because stores in the retail industry sell products for everyday use mostly. However, there are some substitute products that can be a threat to the sales of branded products. Another threat can be put from specialized retail stores like electronics and various garments. There are stores such as Carrefour and Target, which can offer same goods at a similar price or even lower. Still, when it comes to Walmart, there arent many other stores that can actually replace its convenience and attractively low prices. Bargaining power of suppliers Walmart is a huge customer to its suppliers and, thus, it has a lot of power, because in case it decides to switch to a different supplier, this would create a very scary tactic for its suppliers. It also has an option to purchase goods from many various suppliers so if they decide to drop out some, this wont make a significant difference. Walmart definitely takes advantage of being one of the largest customers to such international companies as Kraft Foods and Gillette. Because of its strong position in the market, suppliers are more than willing to satisfy Walmarts requirements, as well as provide them with favourable terms of payment and various discounts. We can see this good relationship between Walmart and its suppliers through its enhancing success. Bargaining power of buyers The customers will surely always be a threat to Walmart mainly because there are so many competitors. The buyers decision tends to be based on the price and quality of the product, and also on the convenience. Usually consumers are price sensitive and their decisions are based mainly on the price itself. And if products are similar this will increase the rivalry in the industry, which will lead to lower prices and thus, lower profit. Also, Walmart is not in a monopolistic market, but a competitive one, so the goods it offers can be replaced or substituted by its rivals. However, the company strives to please its clients by making the prices of their products and services similar to those of their competitors. Its profitability has proved that consumers are pleased with the chains reasonably low prices and its very convenient locations. Conclusion The purpose of this report was to analyze the external factors that have a certain impact and influence on Walmart. There are some significant factors that became clear after the PEST analysis and Porters Five Competitive Forces analysis have been made. I found out that Walmart is one of the global leaders in the retail industry, which has a great influence on various sectors. Walmart is still expanding to new locations and it is a growing strong company that has a firm position in the domestic market in the US and abroad as well. Unfortunately, Walmart, just like any other organization, isnt protected against the negative influence from various environmental factors, which may decrease the companys total revenues or even weaken the popularity of the whole company. However, despite all of the negative factors mentioned above, the positive impact of the external factors is much greater. Walmarts intention to help people save money so they can live better moves the company on the top position in the retail industry and makes it more attractive and appealing to existing and future consumers. Recommendations In my personal opinion the future success and survival of Walmart will depend on changing its attitude and becoming even more customer focused, as well as building even closer relationships that would broaden the product range and competitive prices. The company should take into consideration that the market is still rather new to foreign companies and that other retail stores are also expected to appear in the nearest future, which will probably result in reduction of clients Walmart is considered as one of the international leaders in the retail industry and I think it will keep its position for a certain period of time. However, I have to make a point that the company should also consider its promotion and shouldnt rely in the fact that they are one of the best in the market. Whats more Walmart should take into consideration that the market is still rather new to foreign companies and that other retail stores are also expected to appear in the near future, which will probably result in reduction of clients.