Pest Report for M&S

.0 Terms of Reference In this report I am going to carry out a PEST analysis on a UK based business. The business I have to carry out the analysis on is Marks and Spencer. This report is due 10th March 2008. I will submit both a paper and electronic copy of my work. I have also included recommendations at the back of the assignment that I think Marks and Spencer could incorporate in to there business. I have used different procedures to carry out this PEST report on Marks and Spencer. Firstly I have used my own inside knowledge. As an employee of Marks and Spencer I have carried out extensive training about the organisation and the way it works. So some of the knowledge I gained from doing this I have included in the report. I have also gained some of my research from the Marks and Spencer website. (www.marksandspencer.com) from this site there is internal links to different parts of the website that contains useful information. These are listed in the bibliography at the back of the report. In a way you could also say I have visited the organisation by working there. I have also received information from the managers of Marks and Spencer. To help make some problems clear, I rung my boss and asked her to explain what these problems actually meant. (Books) 2.0 Findings Within 3.0 there is four different parts, listed 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 and 3.4. They are shown below. 3.1

  • Word count: 2547
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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Explain what is meant by the term "consumer surplus" and show how changes to individuals' consumer surplus, as a result of price changes can be derived from indifference curve analysis.

Economics Essay Explain what is meant by the term "consumer surplus" and show how changes to individuals' consumer surplus, as a result of price changes can be derived from indifference curve analysis. Economics can explain the reason why the rational economic man will consume varying levels of different commodities by applying supply and demand theory. When a consumer purchases a good, then utility is gained. The rational consumer weighs up the costs and benefits for each additional unit of a specific good purchased. Utility is therefore the key element when a consumer buys any good or service. When a consumer buys an additional unit of any good, his total utility will increase. However the increase in utility per each additional unit is not as high as the previous purchase. The consumer shall therefore continue to buy the good until there is no additional utility gained. This can otherwise be explained as the principle of diminishing marginal utility and at this point, marginal utility is equal to the price paid, we are therefore at the equilibrium where (MU=P). We therefore understand that consumer demand is a measure of willingness to pay and that consumers are often willing to pay an amount higher than market price for a commodity rather than do without it. However, for each successive unit consumed, the amount the consumer is willing to pay decreases. Following on

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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Polaroid - case study.

BACKDROP Polaroid is manufacturer of photographic equipment, accessories and related items used in instant photography. The organization was divided into two main divisions - The Consumer Photography Division and the Technical and Industrial Division with each of these divisions contributing around 40% of Polaroid's revenues of $ 1.3 billion in 1984. The company produced two main types of films: . The peel apart film which required the user to physically pull the film out of the camera and, 2. The integral film, which came out of the camera automatically. The integral films were manufactured in the R2 building at the Waltham Massachusetts site. The operations at R2 included production of sheet metal springs, pods, plastic cartridges and plastic end caps and then assembled these into film cartridges. R2 ran three shifts, five days a week, employing approximately 900 workers out of which 700 were part time. QUALITY AND PROCESS CONTROL PROCEDURES AT R2 All films were vetted by the Quality Control Department before being released into the market. The QC procedure included sampling of 15 finished cartridges (each containing 10 frames) out of every lot of 5000 cartridges. If the sampled cartridges contained defects in excess of allowable limits, the lot was held and further testing was done. Additional testing usually led to reworking, or rejection of a portion or all of

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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Outline the main characteristics of assembly industries, and for a consumer industry of your choice, analyse the locational and production trends of recent years

a) Outline the main characteristics of assembly industries An assembly industry is one that uses a group of machine parts that fit together to form a self-contained unit. For example car manufacturing is primarily concerned with the assembly of manufactured items to produce finished goods. It can be thought of as a system with interlinked inputs, outputs and processes. Assembly industries tend to be located closer to the market, because the distribution costs are higher than the collection costs, because the final product will have gained in size, weight and value compared to the size and value of each assembly item. Assembly industries are characterised by the complexity of its linkages. Firms and plants have links with thousands of component manufacturers, and with marketing, advertising and retailing industries. There are also often inter-plant linkages, with, for example in the car industry, engines being produced at one plant and gearboxes at another, with subsequent exchanges during the manufacturing process. Increasingly there are also inter-firm linkages, with manufacturers collaborating to share common components such as finished products, for instance, the Rover 400 and 600 series share many common components with certain Honda cars, and the VW and Ford 'people carrier' vehicles have identical body shells. b) For a consumer industry of your choice, analyse the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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Explain why consumer protection is vital to maintain and promote a single market.

Suzanne K. Menzies. Outcome 4. Tutor: Michelle Semple. Contents. Part 1 - ..................................................................................................... 3 - * Explain why consumer protection is vital to maintain and promote a single market. Part 2 - ..................................................................................................... * Accurately identify the different national standards of consumer protection and trade and highlight why these differing standards can act as a barrier to the free movement of goods. Part 3 -........................................................................................................ * Accurately explain the following Directives which govern and promote a Single Market: * Misleading Advertising * Consumer Credit * Price Indication Conclusion.................................................................................................. Appendix Bibliography.............................................................................. Introduction. Whilst the European Union stands almost economically and socially stable, this has been a lengthy, complex progression. Achieved through key developments: such as the single market. Subsequently, these fundamentals have contributed to the structure and functions of Europe. Through EU law enforcement, minimum, common standards have

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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Introduction to Tesco.

Introduction to Tesco Tesco is Britain's leading food retailer employing 160 000 people in the U K throughout its 702 stores. Over the past five years Tesco has expanded from a traditional U K based supermarket into new countries, products and services including a major non food business, personal finance and internet shopping. Tesco has progressed into a truly international retailer employing a further 140 000 people throughout 214 stores in nine markets worldwide. The increasing scale and internationalization of Tescos sales and purchasing operations contributes to a significant increase in efficiency and profitability. In this assignment I will be examining Tesco's position in the economy, explaining the role of economies of scale within Tesco and drawing up a detailed swot analysis of the organisation. I will also be examining the role of production within the firm. Tescos position in the economy Tesco is a public limited company (plc). Public limited companies are businesses with share price on the stock exchange. To become a public limited company, a business must have an issued share capital of at least £50 000. The company must have reissued at least 25% of the nominal value of the shares. Tesco can raise significant sums of capital by selling shares to the general public. Shares are bought and sold on the stock market. Management of Tesco is in the hands of

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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Automobile Production and Ford.

Automobile Production and Ford Most people think of Henry Ford as the man who invented the automobile, but his influence on the American society and economy was far greater and will last for all time. Ford changed the face of the nation and set the stage for the entrepreneurs of today. He helped develop the infrastructure for automobiles, including roads and gas stations. He set a minimum wage for his workers. He shortened the workday and, most importantly, he created a successful assembly line for automobile mass production, eliminating the primitive hand-built process. He helped to create this nation's middle class and acted to allow the workingman to realize some dreams. Although Ford was an autocrat, he believed firmly in the "little guy." The automotive industry is one of great historical importance worldwide. On a global scale the combustible engine serves a number of purposes. Generating power from a combination of fuel, air and fire, the engine can power just about anything from the most powerful trucks to modest lawnmowers. The concept of the combustible engine has changed very minimally throughout history. The innovations have come in the forms of new materials, technological advances and processes by which these engines could run more efficiently. In today's automobiles the technical aspects are countless, the crank start ignitions of yesterday were

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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The Health Reimbursement Arrangement Alternative to the Rising Health Care Cost of Employers.

The Health Reimbursement Arrangement Alternative to the Rising Health Care Cost of Employers Donald E. Maier, II MGT 331 2 April 2004 Health benefit costs have been rising faster than inflation for the past four years (Logan, 2003). Employers' costs for their workers health benefits rose more than 10 percent per employee nationally during 2003, according to a report by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, as cited in Bizjournal.com (Durr, 2003), a total increase of more than 41 % since 1998. In real numbers, a 10 percent increase on a $2,000 monthly premium will, over four years, raise that premium to nearly $3,000. If the rate of increase is 20 percent, the monthly premiums will more than double. Faced with these increased health fees and a slow economy, businesses are finding different ways to meet these challenges. According to Mills (2003), today's employee benefit marketplace has made it increasingly more difficult for employers to get more for their employee benefit dollars than in years past. Many factors have contributed to the rising cost of employee benefits, none more than group health coverage. As the population and work force ages, the demand for medical services has also increased. New treatments and technology do not come cheap, as both employers and employees want access to the very best health care available. Advertising has pushed the demand for

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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MICROECONOMICS S1 is supply curve of firm 1, and S2 is the supply curve of firm 2, and Q is the total demand quantity of the market which equals Q1 plus Q2. I think if they choose prices simultaneously, firm 1 have a space to choose a lower price than f

EC 202 MICROECONOMICS Spring Assignment Question 1. (a) S1 is supply curve of firm 1, and S2 is the supply curve of firm 2, and Q is the total demand quantity of the market which equals Q1 plus Q2. I think if they choose prices simultaneously, firm 1 have a space to choose a lower price than firm 2 because of its lower cost. From the figure, we can see that if firm 2 wants to meet the demand of current market, it has to set higher price than firm1 because it is not an efficient with high cost of unit, and if it want to expand production to supply enough products, firm2 has to increase its price to cover its increasing cost. However, firm1 is an efficient manufacturer, so it can compete with firm2 by setting lower price which is supported by its lower cost of unit (C1). Ceteris paribus, the more these two firms to produce, the lower the market price will be. (b) In this case, the equilibrium price may be decided by firm1, and outputs will be higher and higher, price will be lower and lower, profit will shrink because the supply quantity will largely exceed the quantity demanded by the consumers. (c) If firm 2 moves first that makes firm 2 the market leader. For any Q, firm 1 will choose q1 on its best response function. Thus firm 2 chooses q2 to maximize its profit. Firm 1: Quantity=q1, Unit cost=c1, Firm 2: Quantity=q2, Unit cost=c2, Industry Demand Curve

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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Game Theory Nash Equilibrium

http://www.ulsterbusiness.com/thumbnail/510/var/files/articles/2012-04/2012-04_ulster_bs_logo_small.jpg Issues in Microeconomics Game Theory Coursework 1 By Paul Allen B00561027 http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/02/12/magazine/12wmt/12wmt-articleLarge-v5.jpg https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRmzS88R-KShAT3sfQoPpryQ67SL3UvU0yAc7sxYdOSKmerf-t5 What is the Nash Equilibrium? This is the idea that equilibrium in a physical system, was that players would adjust their strategies until no player could benefit from changing. All players are then choosing strategies that are best (utility maximising) responses to all other players strategies.(i) Nash Equilibrium This concept is a set of strategies where any given player can’t get a better payoff by changing their strategy if all players keep their strategic choices constant. Thus once our hypothetical market reaches a Nash Equilibrium, it will be stable, since no individual strategic response would change anything. One reason to choose the most desirable multiple Nash equilibria on the basis of perfect rationality is the Pareto optimality concept. A Pareto optimum is an equilibrium for which no player can get better off without making the other player worse off. Rational In game theory we assume rational behaviour by all players; players are perfectly informed and follow their best

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Business and Administrative studies
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