Friday, August 6, 2010

Conflict Management

Conflict has a positive as well as a negative consequence on an organization. Organizational conflicts include intra-individual, interpersonal, intergroup, and structural conflict.

Sources of Conflict
There are many potential sources of conflict. Modern organizations are characterized by complex relationships and a high degree of task independence that can cause frictions. Moreover the goals of the parties are often incompatible, especially when the parties compete for limited resources. People also have different values and different perception of issues. A production manager, for example, may take the position that streamlining the product line and concentrating on a few products can make the organization more productive, while sales manager may desire a broad product line will satisfy diverse customer demands. An engineer may want to design the best product regardless of cost or market demand considerations.

Most sources of conflicts in an organization are listed below:
Competition for Limited Resources: Any group exists for the purpose of attaining some goals with the help of available resources. These resources may be tangible like men, materials, and money or intangible like power, status or the manager's time. No organization is capable of providing all the resources demanded by various units. Resources are limited and different groups have to complete for these scarce resources and many conflicts arise from this source.

Diversity of Goals: Groups in an organization have different functions to perform and as such they develop their own norms and goal. Goals of one group are incompatible to the goals of another group. Take, for example, a company, which manufactures electric fans that has a seasonal demand. Three departments marketing, production and finance - are involved. Since the demand for the product is seasonal, the marketing manager would like to have sufficient stock during the season. The production department has to gear up its capacity during the season but because of a tight labor market finds it difficult to hire labor temporarily and resorts to employ people on a permanent basis. This creates another problem. The finance manager says that as the storage costs are high it is expensive to keep stock build up in the slack season, and maintaining the production line during slack season imposes an additional burden.
This example shows that each department develop its own goals, which may conflict with another department's goals and one department may try to achieve its goals at the expense of another.

Task Interdependence: Groups in an organization don't function independent of one another. They have to interact with one another in order to accomplish their tasks. Three types of interdependence can cause inter-group conflict-pooled, sequential and reciprocal. Pooled interdependence exists when two work groups may not directly interact with each other but are affected by each other's actions. For example, when one independent product group performs poorly, all other groups may suffer financially. This can happen when rewards are contingent upon collective performance.

Sequential interdependence occurs when one group's performance depends on another group's prior performance. In a construction project, for example, the excavating team must prepare the foundation before the masons can work on the building structure. Since the masons depend on the excavators, conflict - between the groups can occur when the excavators' work is delayed.

Reciprocal interdependence occurs when two or more groups are mutually interdependent in accomplishing their tasks. For example, in developing and marketing a new product, three major departments (marketing, production and research) depend on each other to perform their tasks. Information possessed by one department is needed by another department. For example, the research department needs market information from the marketing department, and marketing needs research to provide customer services. When one group in unable to meet the expectations of another group, inter-group conflict usually results.

Differences in Values and Perception: Conflict is generated within organizations because various groups within the organization hold 'conflicting' values and perceive situations in a narrow, individualistic manner. An example that comes readily to mind is that of the management-labour conflict. Labour feels that management is exploiting it because in spite of making a profit, management feels that the profits should go to cash reserves so as to make the company an attractive proposition for investors.

Organizational Ambiguities: As implied, conflict may emerge when two organizational units compete over new responsibility. Newcomers to organizations are often struck by the ambiguity that exists about job responsibilities. Few organizations make extensive use of job descriptions or periodically update the job descriptions that do exist. Further, it is rare that the manager or employee consults his own job description. Managerial and staff jobs by their very nature are difficult to structure tightly around a job description.

Introduction of Change: Change can breed inter-group conflict. Acquisitions and mergers, for example, encourage inter-group conflict, competition, and stress. When one organization is merged into another, a power struggle often exists between the acquiring and acquired company. An attempt is usually made to minimize conflict by laying out plans for power sharing before the acquisition or merger is consummated.

Nature of Communication: One of the major fallacies abounding about conflict is that poor communication is the cause of all conflicts. A typical statement is: "If we could just communicate with each other, we could eliminate our differences". At the same time, evidence does suggest that problems in the communication channel such as noise, distortion, omission and overload do affect the process of collaboration and lead to misunderstanding. Too much information as well as too little information can lay the foundation for a conflict.

Managing Conflict
There are no hard and fast rules for conflict management styles. It depends on the situation, capability of manager experience of manager, attitude of the parities and so on. Conflict can be managed in different, some focusing on interpersonal relationships and others on structural changes. Avoidance of the situation that causes the conflict is an example of interpersonal approach. Another way of coping with the conflict is through smoothing, emphasizing the areas of agreement. A third way is forcing, pushing one's own view on others; this of course, will cause resistance. A traditional way of coping with conflict is to compromise, agreeing in part with the other person's view of demand.

Attempts can also be made to change the behaviour of individuals, but is quite difficult. At times, it may also be possible to reassign an individual to another organizational unit, in many situations, conflicts are resolved by a person with higher authority. The main problem is that the loser may attempt to get even with the winner at a later time, thus perpetuating the conflict. In the problem solving approach to organizational conflicts differences are openly confronted and the issues are analyzed as objectively as possible.

Another way of coping with conflict is to make structural changes. This means modifying and integrating the objectives of groups with different view-points. Moreover the organizational structure may have to be changed and authority-responsibility-relationships clarified. New ways of coordinating activities may have to be found. Tasks and work locations can also be rearranged. Often one must not only decide on the necessary changes, but also select the appropriate process for this reason, the next section focuses on organization development.

Following are the important styles which managers and management use to resolve various conflicts in the organizations.
Understanding and Listening: Individuals may develop fear concerning their obsolescence or job security grievances about being underpaid or frustrations regarding not being promoted. In addition performance appraisal may show persons certain deficiencies in their performance. Deficiencies, in turn, can lead to frustration or defensiveness. In such process effective managers perceive themselves not only as enforcers but also as listeners and resources for an employee. As listeners they try to gain empathy and understanding of how the employee sees the conflict. As resource persons, they may provide information on the constraints within which individual employees will have to resolve their conflicts, possibilities for resolution and encouragement for taking actions.

Therapeutic Approach: Interpersonal conflicts often last longer than they should, because the people involved are attending to the contents of what is being said to the relative ignorance of process (i.e., how things are being said and done). Approaches include working through conflicts by means of therapeutic group session set in motion, the brief of discussions then final briefs are compiled. The actual point of conflict is sorted out. In this process, individuals develop a sensitivity to how things are being said and the feelings behind them as well as the actual contents of what is being said. This enriched awareness of the interactions between two conflicting parties provides a broader bare for understanding that interaction and thus managing it effectively.

Pseudo solutions Approach: When individual conflicts are not resolved as well as there might be parties feel expressing anger has risk associated with it beyond admitting to oneself that the anger is there. Being angry involves the guilt of hurting someone as well as the risk of being wrong (or even being right) and thus being excluded from some relationships. There is also a concern over retaliation, especially if the other person has power of the party. As result of attitude conflict becomes taboo and norms are set up to minimize its manifestation.
Delaying tactics are a protective device. When confronted with conflicting rules, the bureaucrat of the Spanish Empire would obey but not execute. Similarly people of Mexico "never say no but don't do". But such kind of style for conflict solution is never good and should be avoided.

The 14 Management Principles from Henri Fayol

1.Division of Work. Specialization allows the individual to build up experience, and to continuously improve his skills. Thereby he can be more productive.

2.Authority. The right to issue commands, along with which must go the balanced responsibility for its function.

3.Discipline. Employees must obey, but this is two-sided: employees will only obey orders if management play their part by providing good leadership.

4.Unity of Command. Each worker should have only one boss with no other conflicting lines of command.

5.Unity of Direction. People engaged in the same kind of activities must have the same objectives in a single plan. This is essential to ensure unity and coordination in the enterprise. Unity of command does not exist without unity of direction but does not necessarily flows from it.

6.Subordination of individual interest (to the general interest). Management must see that the goals of the firms are always paramount.

7.Remuneration. Payment is an important motivator although by analyzing a number of possibilities, Fayol points out that there is no such thing as a perfect system.

8.Centralization (or Decentralization). This is a matter of degree depending on the condition of the business and the quality of its personnel.

9.Scalar chain (Line of Authority). A hierarchy is necessary for unity of direction. But lateral communication is also fundamental, as long as superiors know that such communication is taking place. Scalar chain refers to the number of levels in the hierarchy from the ultimate authority to the lowest level in the organization. It should not be over-stretched and consist of too-many levels.

10.Order. Both material order and social order are necessary. The former minimizes lost time and useless handling of materials. The latter is achieved through organization and selection.

11.Equity. In running a business a ‘combination of kindliness and justice’ is needed. Treating employees well is important to achieve equity.

12.Stability of Tenure of Personnel. Employees work better if job security and career progress are assured to them. An insecure tenure and a high rate of employee turnover will affect the organization adversely.

13.Initiative. Allowing all personnel to show their initiative in some way is a source of strength for the organization. Even though it may well involve a sacrifice of ‘personal vanity’ on the part of many managers.

14.Esprit de Corps. Management must foster the morale of its employees. He further suggests that: “real talent is needed to coordinate effort, encourage keenness, use each person’s abilities, and reward each one’s merit without arousing possible jealousies and disturbing harmonious relations.”

Monday, August 2, 2010

Major brands and their Tagline

ABN AMRO Bank - Making More Possible
Accenture - High Performance. Delivered
Adobe - Simplicity at work. Better by adobe.
AIG or American International Group Insurance Company - We know Money
Air Canada - A breath of Fresh Air
Allianz Group - The Power on your side
AMAZON.COM - Earth's Biggest BookStore
ANDHRA BANK - "Much more to do, with YOU in focus."
Apple Macintosh - Think Different.
ARCELOR - Steel solutions for a better world
AT&T - The World's Networking Company
Bank of America - Higher Standards
Bank of Baroda - India's International Bank
BANK OF RAJASTHAN - Dare to Dream
Barclays - Fluent in Finance; Its our business to know your business
Be Fearless. - SYMANTEC
BIG BAZAAR - Is se sasta aur Achcha kahee nahee milenga
BIOCON - The difference lies in our DNA
BLOGGER.COM - Push Button Publishing
BLOOMINGDALES - Like no other store in the world
BMW - The Ultimate Driving Machine
BOEING - Forever new Frontiers
Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) - The Edge is Efficiency
BPCL - Pure for Sure
British airways - The Way to Fly.
British Petroleum - Beyond Petroleum
BUSINESS INDIA - The Magazine of the Corporate World
BUSINESS TODAY - For Managing Tomorrow
BUSINESS WORLD - Play the Game
Caring for life - CIPLA
CAST AWAY - "At the edge of the world, his journey begins "
CEAT - Born Tough
CENTRAL - Shop. Eat. Celebrate
CHEVROLET AVEO - When Good is not good enough.
Chevron Corporation - Human Energy
CHIP - Intelligent Computing
Choose Freedom - TOSHIBA
CITIGROUP or CITIBANK - The Citi Never Sleeps
CNBC - Profit from it
COMPTRON and GREAVES - Everyday Solutions
Dell - Easy as DELL.
Deutsche Bank - A Passion to Perform
DIGIT - Your Technology Navigator
DR. REDDY'S LABORATORIES - ÿLife. Research. Hope
DUPONT - The Miracles of Science
EBAY - The World's Online Market Place
EPSON - Exceed Your Vision
Ernst and Young - Quality in Everything we Do
Essar corp - A positive a++itude
Exxon Mobil - Taking on the World's Toughest Energy Challenges
FIAT - Driven by Passion. FIAT
FORD - Built for the Road Ahead
GAIL - Gas and Beyond
GM - Only GM.
HAIER - Inspired Living
HINDUSTAN TIMES - The Name India trusts for News
HOME DEPOT - You can do it. We can Help.
HONDA - The Power of Dreams
HP Invent - Everything is Possible
HSBC - The World's Local Bank
HYUNDAI - Drive Your Way
IBM - ON DEMAND
IBM - " I think, therefore IBM."
IBP - Pure bhi. Poora bhi
Infosys - " Powered by Intellect, Driven by Values; Improve your odds with Infosys Predictability"
Intel - Intel inside.
IOCL - Bringing Energy to Life
Jet Airways - The Joy of Flying
JVC - The Perfect Experience
Kingfisher Airlines - Fly the good times
KMART - The stuff of life.
Kotak - Think Investments. Think Kotak.
KROGER - Costs less to get more
LARSEN and TOUBRO - We make things which make India proud
LEE - The jeans that built America
Lehman Brothers - Where Vision Gets Built
LENOVO - We are building a new technology company.
Life's Good - LG
Lufthansa - There's no better to fly
Macromedia - What the web can be.
Malaysian Airlines - Going Beyond Expectations
Master card - There are some things money can't buy. For everything else there'sÿMASTERCARD.
Max NewYork Life Insurance - Your Partner for life
McDowells Signature - The New Sign of Success.
METRO - The spirit of Commerce
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company or Metlife. - Have You Met Life Today
Microsoft - Where Do You Want to Go Today ; Your Potential Our Passion
MITTAL STEEL - Shaping the future of steel
Monster.com - Never Settle
MRF - Tyres with Muscle
NASDAQ - Stock market for the digital world
NDTV Profit - News you can Use.
NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) - The world puts its stock in us
ONGC - Making Tomorrow Brighter
PHILLIPS - Sense and Simplicity
Prudential Insurance Company - Growing and Protecting your wealth
Reliance industries Limited - Growth is Life
Sahara - Emotionally yours.
SAMSUNG - Everyone's Invited or Its hard to Imagine
SANSUI - Born in Japan Entertaining The World
SBI DEBIT CARD - Welcome to a Cashless World.
Servo - 100 % Performance. Everytime.
Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX) - Tomorrow Market's Today.
SKODA - Obsessed with Quality since 1897.
SONY - Like. No. Other.
Speed - High Performance Petrol
Standard Chartered Bank - Your Right Partner
Standard Insurance Company Limited. - Positively Different.
Star Sports - We know your game
Sun Microsystems - The Network is the Computer
SUZLON ENERGY - Powering a Greener Tomorrow.
TATA MOTORS - Even More Car per Car
TCS - Beyond the Obvious
TESCO - Every Little Helps
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH - Read a Bestseller everyday
THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW - Where will you be
THE ECONOMIC TIMES - The Power of Knowledge
The Indian EXPRESS - Journalism of Courage
TIMESJOBS.COM - " If you have a reason, we have the job "
TITANIC - Collide With Destiny.
TOYOTA - Touch The Perfection
Toyota Innova - All you Desire.
UBS - You and Us
Union Bank of India - Good People to Bank with
VIDEOCON - The Indian Multinational
VIZAG STEEL - Pride of Steel
VOLKSWAGEN - Drivers wanted
WALMART - Always low prices. Always.
Windows XP - Do More with Less
WIPRO - Applying Thought



IF YOU HAVE ANY PLEASE ADD BELOW IN REPLY. YOUR SUPPORT WILL BE APPRECIATED.

THANKING YOU.

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Amway

Amway is more than an income opportunity or a company or products. It’s about putting people in control of their lives. It’s about connecting people to others who respect them, who share their goals and aspirations. It’s about supporting people in their achievements.

Amway is about people connecting people to a better way of life.


Amway Corporation is one of the world's largest direct selling companies. Originally founded by Jay Van Andel and Rich DeVos, Amway operates in more than 88 countries and territories in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. Amway products and services are marketed through independent business owners worldwide. Amway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Alticor Inc.


Amway India : Amway Corporation

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Godrej Group

AREAS OF BUSINESS

Insecticide

| Personal Care
| Agro & Foods
| Real Estate
| Chemicals
| Technology
| Home Appliances
| Office Equipment
Security Equipment
| Machine Tools
| Material Handling


everyday, every Indian encounters the ‘Godrej’ name sometime somewhere. A person may begin the day bathing with a Godrej soap, shaving with a Godrej shaving cream, storing clothes in a Godrej Storewell cupboard, cooking food in a Godrej cooking oil and preserving it in a Godrej refrigerator. Money and valuables are kept in a Godrej safe, work is done on a Godrej computer or typewriter while sitting on a Godrej chair and drinking a Godrej fruit drink. Yet few know about the indomitable spirit of the man responsible for making Godrej a household name - Ardeshir Godrej.




YEAR 2002 News Archives

An Efficient Distribution Network improves profitability at GCPL( 29th April 2002)
EGyan –web based learning initiative at GCPL( 29th April 2002)
GCPL Power brands continue to grow market shares( 29th April 2002)
Godrej Consumer Products Ltd. – An EVA success( 29th April 2002)
Real Good Chicken comes to Mumbai ( 9th April 2002)
Win with Godrej CINTHOL INTERNATIONAL Perfumed Deodorant(1st April 2002)
Godrej Consumer Products Limited revokes Second Interim Dividend(8th March 2002)
Godrej Industries Limited announces scheme to acquire shares(22nd February, 2002)
Godrej partners Personalitree to promote soft skills amongst Indian corporates and students(15th February, 2002)
Godrej Industries Q3 results.(30th January, 2002)
Demerger of Godrej Foods Ltd. approved by High Court(28th January, 2002)
Godrej Consumer Products Limited Share Buy-back receives shareholders approval(9th January, 2002)
Godrej Colour Soft becomes the largest selling brand in the Hair Colour Market(3rd January, 2002)


A pioneer who produced quality products and captured markets.


Innovation has been the key. It is this spirit that has built Godrej and carried it for a hundred years. Taking it into diverse industries ranging from cupboards to soaps, hair dyes to edible oils, and packaged foods to refrigerators. In recent years several partnerships have been formed with international giants like General Electric, Pillsbury, Fiskars and Sara Lee, bringing Godrej membership in the Global village that will carry it forward into the 21st century.


Godrej has always been a crusader for a better world with programs that benefit endangered forests, wild life and mangroves. Every year the Pirojsha Godrej Foundation dedicates funds towards promoting education, housing, social upliftment, conservation, population management and relief of natural calamities.



CORPORATE SHARED VALUES


1. Commitment to Quality

2. Customer Orientation
3. Dedication & Commitment
4. Discipline
5. Honesty & Integrity
6. Learning Organisation
7. Openness & Transparency
8. Respect/Care & Concern for People
9. Teamwork
10. Trust


CORPORATE MISSION


* We shall operate in existing and new businesses which

capitalise on the Godrej brand and our corporate image of reliability and integrity

* our objective is to delight our customer both in India and abroad


* We shall achieve this objective through continuous improvement

in quality, cost and customer service.

* We shall strive for excellence by nurturing, developing and empowering

our employees and suppliers. We shall encourage an open atmosphere,
conducive to learning and team work.




Godrej Group wins Economic Times Corporate Citizen of the Year Award

FairGlow launches Fairness soap with Saffron for the first time in the country
(currently available only in Andhra pradesh and Karnataka states)(Hyderabad, March 11, 2003)Latest News
Scodet Asia Felcitates Mr. Hoshedar K Press
Scodet Asia Honours Adi Godrej

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Hindustan Unilever

Unilever's mission is to add Vitality to life. We meet everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and personal care with brands that help people feel good, look good and get more out of life.

Our deep roots in local cultures and markets around the world give us our strong relationship with consumers and are the foundation for our future growth. We will bring our wealth of knowledge and international expertise to the service of local consumers - a truly multi-local multinational.


Our long-term success requires a total commitment to exceptional standards of performance and productivity, to working together effectively, and to a willingness to embrace new ideas and learn continuously.


To succeed also requires, we believe, the highest standards of corporate behaviour towards everyone we work with, the communities we touch, and the environment on which we have an impact.

This is our road to sustainable, profitable growth, creating long-term value for our shareholders, our people, and our business partners.

www.hul.co.in

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THE MARUTI STORY

The Maruti story: A backgrounder
Maruti Udyog sold 330,000 cars in India in fiscal year 2003 and as stated earlier, is India's largest car manufacturer with a 54.6 per cent market share in 2002-03. It has however in recent years been consistently been losing out to other players like Hyundai and Telco in the compact car segment. (See table).
In terms of pure financials, Maruti achieved consolidated sales of Rs 9,420 crore (Rs 94.20 billion) for the year ended March 31, 2003 with total expenditure at Rs 9,140 crore (Rs 91.40 billion).
The company's profit after tax stood at Rs 146.4 crore (Rs 1.464 billion), up by 40 per cent over Rs 104.5 crore (Rs 1.045 billion) year-on-year and it declared a 30 per cent dividend for the fiscal year ended 2003.
The company's net worth stands at Rs 3,009 crore (Rs 30.09 billion) and its total reserves and surplus are at Rs 2,953 crore (Rs 29.53 billion), its offer document states.
Maruti Udyog sees its strengths as having expertise in the small car technology and providing quality products in an extensive range. However the same could be said for some of the recent global car manufacturers in India.
Maruti has an extensive sales, dealership and servicing network, an integrated manufacturing facility and strong capital resources.
Its business strategy and outlook will be based on the past, focussing on the small car segment and try to enhance its product range through Suzuki's expertise.
The company's thrust towards penetration of the market will continue to boost pure volumes.
But key to the survival strategy in the future will be cost competitiveness, particularly the Segment B, where the players and consumer demand will be higher in coming years.
Maruti aims to zoom ahead via price-cuts
Neena Haridas
With sales no longer defying gravity, customer satisfaction dropping like a stone, its stellar image needing an urgent facelift and no immediate signs of recovery coming through, Maruti Udyog Limited's cup of woes seems full.
But the Indian automobile giant has a plan: one that, it thinks, could drain all its woes away. It is called price-cuts.
Maruti, with its back to the wall and trying desperately to regain its lost glory, has slashed prices on three of its models. Analysts believe that the price cuts have been effected to stem the rot, so to speak, as for the first time the company's market share has fallen below 50 per cent. However, Maruti claims the move is a 'strategy to rev up the dull automobile sector'.
Maruti has drawn up a detailed blueprint to address the issue. Besides price-cuts, it plans to launch new models and explore fresh marketing avenues.
As the first step towards the implementation of its multi-pronged initiative to beat the competition, Maruti pared the prices of its Maruti 800, Omni and Wagon-R models. Says MUL Managing Director Jagdish Khattar, "The automobile market has been listless because of the uncertainty over the sales tax issue. Yet, we believe that Maruti Udyog should take the lead in getting the market up and going once again. This is why we have unleashed an aggressive pricing strategy."
In May 2000, Maruti reduced the price of its M800 STD model to Rs 2,12,446 for the MPI version, (the Euro I M800 STD will now be available at Rs 198,979), while the Maruti 800 EX will be available at Rs 241,796 and the Maruti 800 DX at Rs 259,569. The Wagon R LX will now cost Rs 343,763. (Prices ex-Delhi)
"In the recent past, a combination of cost- and tax-induced increase in prices and an uncertain sales tax regime had adversely impacted the auto makers. To revive the market, Maruti has repositioned the entry-level price point for a limited period. In addition, the Wagon-R LX, which has emerged as a strong player in the B segment, will be offered for a limited period at a more attractive price. We will kickstart the market out of its current stupor. With the finance ministers' conclave laying the rollback issue to rest, we believe this is the correct time to stimulate the market with aggressive pricing," says Khattar.
Khattar calls the price-cut the 'Second Revolution' as MUL tried to thwart Indica's challenge by slashing the prices of M800 in early 1999. "Our price-cut strategy in early 1999 contributed to a phenomenal 60 per cent growth in the automobile market," claims Khattar.
But will the pricing strategy work?
However, auto experts and former managing directors of Maruti believe it will take more than just price-cuts to see the sales graph shooting up again.
Says former MUL MD R C Bhargava: "I do not think that a market is tackled by a pricing strategy alone, especially in the automobile industry. For one, it is not as price sensitive as the consumer durables market. What the company needs to do is shed its complacence and take the competition by the horns. After all, MUL has been in this business in India longer than 'they' have. MUL has a better understanding of the market."
But what does Bhargava have to say about MUL's falling market share. "Yes, the figures may be coming down. But are the overall volumes also falling? As of today, MUL has more models coming out of its stable than any other company in India. Now this means that a potential Maruti Zen customer might decide to buy a Wagon-R if it suits him. So a growing market only means that volumes go up and there will be enough for everyone."
Tackling the issue from all sides
The figures, however, tell a totally different story. Even in a growing market, Maruti's pie is shrinking. MUL, meanwhile, has decided to tackle the challenge on all fronts -- including the Net. According to a company spokesperson, MUL plans to sell its cars through the Internet making use of e-commerce.
"We will be among the first ones to tap the market via the Net. We are going beyond the traditional medium to rev up the entire market, not just the Maruti sales graph. For instance, e-commerce is going to happen in a big way in India and we want to be among the first ones to tap the market then. We are doing a lot on the Net with our own sites and cross advertising on other sites. This will change the way cars are sold and bought in India. And the more avenues we tap the better for the industry as a whole."
Besides, Maruti also plans to displace the good old Ambassador from the taxis and government vehicles segment. Says Khattar, "This is one area where we can increase our sales tremendously. We have already begun our attempts towards this end. For one, we have CNG-powered, environmentally fit vehicles which are best suited as taxis and government cars. We are also offering discounts to taxi owners to buy our cars. If we are able to convert old cars into new green Marutis, our sales will leapfrog by at least 10 per cent."
Bottomline seen under pressure
Despite putting the company in an overdrive on sales efforts, Khattar admits that MUL's bottomline will be under pressure in the current fiscal. And this takes into account its projections for a 15 per cent growth in turnover this year.
However, Khattar is optimistic on sales volumes: "We expect the automobile industry to grow at 12 to 15 per cent this year and Maruti's growth will be in line with that of the industry. Our sales turnover is expected to grow at 15 per cent, but the bottomline will be hit. Margins will also be under pressure. We have made huge investments at our Gurgaon plant and there is a fair amount of depreciation arising out of these. In addition, the financial costs of introducing new models will also put pressure on our profits."
'New models will see us through'
Once the pricing strategy and new sales avenues are in place, Khattar believes that new models will be the next best bet to beat competition.
"Consumers have matured. New models are something they have taken in their stride and we feel the need to introduce people to newer products from Suzuki which are appropriate for the Indian market. This is why we have also showcased the concept car YMO and the Suzuki C2, a compact 2-seater sports car, which was a reference vehicle at the recent auto expo. One of the new models which is expected to hit the roads is the 'Carry Pick-up'," said the Maruti chief.
Maruti hits the skids, sales plummet
Neena Haridas
It is like a sizeable grain of sand in its profitable pudding, a snake in its Garden of Eden, a lump in its throat. The sharply dropping sales graph at Maruti Udyog Limited has spoiled its prolonged party.

The automobile giant's falling fortunes have made it sit up and take notice of the competition that had once been dismissed with a sneer. If the sharp decline in the sales volumes for May 2000 gave Maruti a start forcing it to cut prices on three of its models, the figures for June promise to give it a rather nasty headache.

Maruti, which enjoyed a near-monopoly in the small car segment, saw its market share falling to a measely 56.3 per cent from a high of 74.6 per cent a year ago. In May 2000, MUL reported a 24.5 per cent drop in sales at 25,765 units compared to 34,122 units sold in the same month last year.
In June, Maruti's share plummeted even further, dropping for the first time to an all-time low of 46 per cent with sales sharply dipping by 34 per cent to 15,898 units.

Sales of its new offerings -- the Wagon-R and Baleno, besides its bread-and-butter Maruti-800 -- plummeted during the last two months.

So what has led to this decrease in sales? Jagdish Khattar, MUL managing director, says, "This question has been haunting the industry for quite some time now. But nobody seems to realise that with more and more companies entering the market its size has also increased. This, in effect, means that the overall market share might come down in percentage terms, but the volume figures would actually go up."
However, there seem to be few takers for Khattar's optimism. Alarm bells have been sounded in industry circles. MUL's share of the cake is being eaten away by Daewoo Matiz and Hyundai Santro, which have seen their sales figures rise considerably in the last couple of months.
For instance, Korean Daewoo sold a total of 6,033 cars in May compared to 2250 units in April 2000 -- a growth of 2.7 times. Its rival Hyundai Motor India sold 7,561 cars during the month.

Giving MUL's Esteem a run for its money is Ford Motor's Ikon which recorded a sales figure of 1,697 units in May against 1,592 units in the previous month. The company has sold 9,556 units of Ikon in the first six months since launch. Maruti's luxury car Baleno too is being taken for a tough ride by Honda Siel's City and Accent which together registered a 24.4 per cent growth in sales in the last two months.

In the mid-size segment, Hyundai emerged as the market leader by selling 1,710 units of the Accent, while Ford India was close behind with sales of 1,697 units of the Ikon.
Maruti was pushed to the number three slot as it could sell only 1,134 units of the Esteem and Baleno. Its sales in June declined by 17.6 per cent to 73,447 units during April-June of 2000-2001 against the industry growth of 10.5 per cent during the period.

Decline in small car segment hurts Maruti most

It is not, however, the luxury segment that is hurting MUL the most, but the poor performance of the small car segment. Hyundai recorded a 67.3 per cent jump in sales of 7,561cars this May compared to 4,519 units during the month in 1999.
'Image, too, is getting a beating'
According to analysts, Maruti's image has also suffered. Says auto expert Murad Ali Baig, "It will never be the same again. Customers now have a choice and obviously the best car will win the race. The image has also taken a beating ever since Hyundai Santro hit the television screen with its ad blitz claiming that there was a computer in the engine. Matiz, too, is giving the M-800 a run for its money and is being sold as a world car."
'Customers seem less satisfied'
A Sales Satisfaction Index study conducted by internationally renowned automobile survey agency JD Power & Associates's Asia Pacific arm has found that customers give Honda and Mitsubishi a clean chit when it comes to customer satisfaction.
Maruti on the other hand comes way down the chart ranking seventh after Ford, Mahindra & Mahindra, Daewoo and Hyundai.
Chris Bonsi, director, JD Power Asia Pacific, says, "The study shows the customer's satisfaction on the basis of sales experience, explanation at delivery, price evaluation, delivery timing, salesperson knowledge and post delivery contact."
Sales experience is the most important factor, accounting for 37 per cent of the SSI score, and includes issues such as fulfilment of commitments and lack of hassles during the sales process, overall honesty and integrity of the dealership personnel and sufficient time to make the decision.
"The dynamics of selling cars is changing and manufacturers and dealers who fail to meet the rising needs and expectations of their customers will lose out to those who can. Buying a new car is an experience customers will remember for a long time and ensuring that this experience is a satisfactory one is essential in building brand loyalty and customer advocacy," Bonsi added.
Khattar, however, is an optimist. "We expect the automobile industry to grow at 12 to 15 per cent this year and Maruti's growth will be in line with the industry's growth. Our sales and turnover is expected to grow at 15 per cent, but bottomlines will be hit,'' he believes.

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Wal-Mart Stores

Type Public (NYSE: WMT)
Slogan Wal-Mart. Always Low Prices. Always. (U.S.) / WE SELL FOR LESS every day! (Canada)
Founded Rogers, Arkansas, 1962
Location Bentonville, Arkansas, USA
Key people Sam Walton (1918-1992), Founder
H. Lee Scott, CEO
S. Robson Walton, Chairman
Industry Retail (Department & Discount)
Products Wal-Mart Discount Stores
Wal-Mart Supercenter
Sam's Club
Neighborhood Markets
ASDA
Revenue $288 billion USD ($29B FY 2005)
Operating Income {{{operating_income}}}
Net Income {{{net_income}}}
Employees 1.7 million
Parent {{{parent}}}
Subsidiaries {{{subsid}}}
Website www.walmartstores.com

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) was founded by Sam Walton in 1962. It is the largest retailer in the world and one of the largest companies in the world based on revenue; in 2004 it was the largest, but the recent rise in oil prices has taken at least one oil company past it. For the fiscal year ending January 31, 2005, Wal-Mart reported net income of US $10.3 billion on US $285 billion of sales revenue (3.6% profit margin). It is the largest private employer in the United States, Mexico and Canada. It holds an 8.9 percent retail store market share, with $8.90 out of every $100 spent in U.S. retail stores being spent at Wal-Mart.


Timeline


1962: First Wal-Mart store opens in Rogers, Arkansas

1969: The company incorporates as Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. on October 31, 1969.
1972: Wal-Mart listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
1983: First Sam's Club opens in Midwest City, Oklahoma.
1987: Wal-Mart completes largest private satellite communication system in the U.S.
1988: First Supercenter opens in Washington, Missouri.
1990: Wal-Mart becomes nation's largest retailer.
1991: The first store outside of the U.S. opens, in Mexico City.
1994: Wal-Mart acquires 122 Woolco stores in Canada.
1996: Wal-Mart enters China through a joint-venture agreement.
1997: Wal-Mart replaces Woolworth on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Woolworth's Square One Shopping Centre location in Canada becomes the largest Wal-Mart store in the world, at 220,000 square feet (20,000 m²).
1997: Wal-Mart becomes largest private employer in the United States, with 680,000 employees worldwide.
1997: Wal-Mart has its first $100 billion sales year.
1998: First Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market opens
1999: Wal-Mart has 1,140,000 employees, making it the largest private employer in the world. It acquires the ASDA Group with 229 stores in the United Kingdom.
2003: Wal-Mart sets a single-day sales record of $1.52 billion on Black Friday.
2004: Wal-Mart buys the Amigo supermarket chain in Puerto Rico for $17 million.
2004: Wal-Mart employees in Jonquière, Quebec, Canada vote in favor of becoming the first unionized Wal-Mart in North America. Five months later, Wal-Mart announces that it would close the store, citing poor sales.
2005: Wal-Mart seeks to expand to urban markets, most notably New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
2006: Wal-Mart is built in the town of Napanee, Ontario after years of discussion.
2006: Wal-Mart required to sell the morning after pill in Massachusetts stores.


Business


Wal-Mart operates discount retail department stores selling a broad range of non-grocery products, though emphasis is now focused on the "Supercenters" which offer a full line of grocery items. Wal-Mart also operates Sam's Club—a "warehouse club" (similar to Costco and BJ's) that sells discounted bulk merchandise to due-paying members.


As of January 2005, Wal-Mart employed 1.3 million people in the United States. Wal-Mart's corporate headquarters are located in Bentonville, Arkansas. Apart from retail locations, it operates 99 Distribution Centers and Transportation Offices in the United States. Internationally, Wal-Mart employs over 410,000 people (excluding Japan) for a company-wide total of 1.7 million employees. Wal-Mart also operates the largest real estate company in the United States, with an entire division devoted to building new stores, selling old stores, and developing shopping centers around its stores.


In addition to its wholly-owned international operations, Wal-Mart owns a 42% stake in The Seiyu Co., Ltd. in Japan, with a proposed US$597 million to increase its stake to 50%. This purchase has been approved by Seiyu Group shareholders and The Seiyu will be consolidated into Wal-Mart International in FYE 2006.


In the past, Wal-Mart operated dot Discount Drugs, Bud's Discount City, Hypermart*USA, OneSource Nutrition Centers, and Save-Co Home Improvement stores. In 1990 Wal-Mart acquired The McLane Company, a foodservice distributor. In 2003 McLane Company was sold to Berkshire Hathaway.


Wal-Mart stock is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol WMT.



Competition in the United States


Wal-Mart's chief competitors in the discount retail space nationally include Sears Holdings Corporation's Kmart chain and Target, Best Buy, along with many smaller regional chains such as Meijer in the midwest. Wal-Mart's move into the grocery business has also positioned it against major grocery chains such as HEB, Kroger, Albertsons, Publix, Giant Eagle, Safeway and dozens of local grocery chains. Chief competitors of Sam's Club are Costco, which is slightly larger than Sam's in terms of sales, as well as the smaller BJ's Wholesale Club chain operating mainly on the East Coast.


Due to Wal-Mart's success in selling consumer goods and its necessary focus on more expensive items (and larger population areas) to increase revenue, a niche has been carved out of Wal-Mart's dominance by several shrewd retail corporations [2]. By focusing on a small number of low-cost products, and siting their retail operations in extremely convenient locations (primarily very small towns which cannot support a Wal-Mart as well as low-income areas of larger metropolitan areas), retailers such as Family Dollar and Dollar General have successfully competed head-to-head with Wal-Mart for home consumer sales.



Wal-Mart Television Network


The Wal-Mart Television Network is an in-store network showing commercials for products sold in the stores, concert clips and music videos for recording artists products sold in the stores, trailers for upcoming movie releases, and news. According to a New York Times story, it is seen by 130 million people a month, making it the fifth largest network in America, behind NBC, CBS, ABC and Fox


Contributions


In 2004, cash donations to non-profit organizations by Wal-Mart, its employees, and its customers made through Wal-Mart, the Wal-Mart Foundation and the Sam's Club Foundation totaled more than US$170 million. Unlike most corporate donors, Wal-Mart does not provide a figure for its corporate contributions; instead Wal-Mart's reported contributions include those made by its customers in a larger aggregate figure. The typical Supercenter channels $30,000 to $50,000 a year to local causes and events. More than 90 percent of cash donations from Wal-Mart Stores and the Wal-Mart & SAM'S CLUB Foundation target local communities.


After the 2005 Hurricane Katrina disaster on the United States Gulf Coast, Wal-Mart donated $2 million to the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross and $15 million to the Bush-Clinton Hurricane Katrina Fund for a total of $17 million. These donations made it the largest single corporate contributor. In addition, an estimated $3 million in merchandise was donated to victims in several states, and in some cases the corporation was able to provide supplies before the federal government. An emergency contact website was set up by Wal-Mart to help locate displaced persons, accessible by Internet and at every store in the country. About $1.5 million in emergency aid was given to displaced employees, and employees displaced by the storm were offered work at Wal-Mart locations elsewhere in the country.


According to the November 21, 2005 issue of The Nation, recently both the Arkansas-based company and the Walton family have elevated their charitable giving. The Walton Family Foundation (WFF) gave away $106.9 million in 2003, twice as much as in 2000. Walmart's company political action committee, the second largest corporate donor to the GOP, gave away $2.1 million in 2004, compared to $100,000 in 1994. Also in 2004, Alice Walton donated $2.6 million to the Progress for America PAC, which supported the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. From 1998 through 2003, the WFF contributed $25,000 to the Heritage Foundation, $15,000 to the Cato Institute, $125,000 to the Hudson Institute, $155,000 to the Goldwater Institute, $70,000 to the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, $300,000 to the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, $185,000 to the Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy, and $350,000 to the Evergreen Freedom Foundation. The WFF has also donated to advocacy groups promoting school privatization, such as a $3 million donation in 2003 to the Knowledge Is Power Program.



Renewable energy experiments


Recently, Wal-Mart has designed two experimental stores [3], one in McKinney, Texas, the other in Aurora, Colorado, which feature wind turbines, photovoltaic solar panels, and biofuel-capable boilers. The buildings also include many other energy and cost-saving technologies. Critics, such as the Institute for Local Self-Reliance [4], while acknowledging these features are an improvement, contend that Wal-Mart's negative environmental impact far outweighs gestures at two stores among several thousand. Driving sprawl, consuming unnecessarily large amounts of land and locating on environmentally sensitive sites are among the complaints.


An environmentally-friendly design for a Wal-Mart in Vancouver, BC, Canada was proposed. This design, too, included wind turbines, geothermal heating and collecting rainwater. However, this proposal was rejected by the city councillors [5] on June 28, 2005 for several reasons including worry over the possible negative impact to small businesses and a potential increase in traffic as customers drive longer distances to go shopping.


Employees


Wal-Mart refers to its employees as "associates," and encourages managers to think of themselves as "servant leaders." Each shift at every store, club, and distribution center (theoretically) starts with a store-wide meeting where managers discuss with hourly employees daily sales figures, company news, and goals for the day.


All Wal-Mart stores in the United States have employees referred to as "People Greeters." They welcome people to the store and help prevent shoplifting. At some stores, these employees inspect the contents of the shopping carts of exiting customers.



Wal-Mart benefits


According to an October 2005 article in BusinessWeek, Walmart's health insurance covers 44% or approximately 572,000 of its 1.3 million U.S. workers.[6] According to Wal-Mart's website, Wal-Mart provides insurance to more than 1 million people.


Financial results


Wal-Mart is now the largest grocery chain in the U.S., with 14 percent of all grocery sales -- nearly twice the sales of Kroger ($95 billion vs. $51 billion). Wal-Mart also does 20 percent of the retail toy business. Sam Walton's family's holdings in Wal-Mart if combined would comprise the nation's largest fortune; at $100 billion combined they are significantly ahead of Bill Gates.


Wal-Mart went public in 1975. Since then its stock has climbed from 5 cents (split adjusted) to a high of $63 in March 2002. Its stock has dropped more than 20% since then, closing under $50 in August 2005.


Different explanations have been offered for this success:


The company has always paid a great deal of attention to site selection; in the company's early years, Sam Walton would fly over small towns in a private plane to identify prospective locations. The company claims it analyzes potential locations to find those that would support "one and a half" stores. Although the intended location was a seemingly small rural town, being up in a plane would reveal a lucrative market if the surrounding communities were taken into account, defying the conventional wisdom that a discount store requires a sizable city. Wal-Mart then promptly moved quickly to pre-empt these discovered locations, since allowing a competitor to locate would likely cause a price war that would make both discount stores unprofitable. Lastly, rural towns were less likely to have organized unions and community activists unlike large urban centres. "This strategy gave Wal-Mart a near monopoly in its local markets and enabled the company to ride out the recessions of the 1970s and 1980s more successfully than its then larger competitors such as K-Mart and Sears."[8]

Wal-Mart benefits from economies of scale in manufacturing and logistics; the purchase of massive quantities of items from its suppliers combined with a very efficient stock control system help make Wal-Mart's operating costs lower than those of its competitors. They are leaders in the field of vendor managed inventory—asking large suppliers to oversee stock control for a category and make recommendations to Wal-Mart buyers. This reduces the overhead of having a large inventory control and buying department. Wal-Mart's vast purchasing power also gives it the leverage to force manufacturers to change their production (usually by creating cheaper products) to suit its wishes: a single Wal-Mart order can easily comprise a double-digit percentage of a supplier's annual output.
One particular aspect of the economy of scale is the aggregation effect, used in other business such as The Home Depot and Wells Fargo, whereby Wal-Mart sells as many different items as possible. This allows the company to grow revenue over its fixed cost base (more sales out of the same store). This is why Wal-Mart began to sell low margin groceries.
Information Systems: Wal-Mart helped push the retail industry to adopt UPC codes and bar-code scanning equipment. Also, Wal-Mart's focus on cost reduction has led to its involvement in a standards effort [9] to use RFID-based Electronic Product Codes to lower the costs of supply chain management. As of June 2004, it has announced plans [10] to require the use of the technology among its top 300 suppliers by January 2006.
Suppliers: A spokesperson for the company told the Wall Street Journal on Nov. 18, 2004 that it imported $15 billion worth of goods from China in the year that ended Jan. 31, 2004. About $7.5 billion were directly imported by Wal-Mart; the other $7.5 came indirectly through suppliers. In the same period net sales reached $256 billion, with $209 billion coming from U.S. operations. U.S. current account imports from China was reported as $152.4 billion during 2003 [11]. Mainland Chinese media place Wal-Mart as their 8th largest trading partner in front of Russia and the UK on the top-10 list.
Cost Control: Wal-Mart watches controllable expenses very closely. Hourly employees can be reprimanded or terminated for having unauthorized overtime. Wal-Mart also squeezes out any inefficiencies in the business, such as reducing paper consumption by using a computerized process.

Public relations


In 2005, Wal-Mart officials embarked on a public relations campaign to counter some of the criticism it receives, through its public relations website as well as through television commercials which show employees who have had a medical emergency and have been sent by Wal-Mart to the Mayo Clinic.


It was reported in the New York Times on November 1, 2005 that in response to increased criticism the public relations firm Edelman had been retained. Edelman has set up an internal "war room", a rapid-response public relations team, staffed with high-profile political operatives to respond to negative media attention. Operatives hired include Michael K. Deaver who formerly worked on behalf of Ronald Reagan, Leslie Dach who worked on behalf of Bill Clinton, and Robert McAdam who worked on behalf of the Tobacco Institute



Economic impact in the United States


As Wal-Mart is an enormously large business, it has a significant impact on economies, especially in the United States. Several studies have been conducted to determined the nature and extent of this effect.


Kenneth E. Stone of Iowa State University has published several studies on Wal-Mart. In 1997, Stone found that small towns "lose up to 47 percent of their retail trade after 10 years of Wal-Mart stores nearby."[13] A study by Russell S. Sobel and Andrea M. Dean, says that the Stone study is flawed, and found that though Wal-Mart openings cause some small businesses to close by offering lower prices, it also creates opportunities for other small businesses and that as a result, "the process of creative destruction unleashed by Wal-Mart has no statistically significant impact on the overall size of the small business sector in the United States" [14] In [2003], Stone collaborated Georgeanne Artz, also of Iowa State University and Albert Myles of Mississippi State University to show that there "are both positive and negative impacts on existing stores in the area where the new supercenter locates."[15]


In 2002, the state of Georgia's survey of children in the state's subsidized health care system, PeachCare, found that Wal-Mart employed more of the parents of these children than any other employer. More than 10,000 children who qualified for the program had parents working at Wal-Mart. The next largest employer employed the parents of less than 800 children in the program.[16]


A 2002 study[17] by Emek Basker of the University of Missouri examined the impact of Wal-Mart on local employment. Basker found that Wal-Mart's entry into a county increased net retail employment in that county by 100 jobs in the short term. Half of this increase disappeared as other retail establishments close or reduce employment over a five-year period "leaving a long-run statistically significant net gain of 50 jobs."


In 2004, the University of California, Berkeley published a study which asserted that Wal-Mart's low wages and benefits resulted in an increased burden on the social safety net, costing California taxpayers $86 million.[18]


A 2005 study by Global Insight that was commission by Wal-mart found that the company has had a positive net economic impact on the U.S. economy (Several notable economists oversaw the study, including both political conservatives and liberals [19]). From 1985-2004, Wal-Mart "can be associated with a cumulative decline of 9.1% in food-at-home prices, a 4.2% decline in commodities (goods) prices, and a 3.1% decline in overall consumer prices" and, that this has saved consumers $263 billion in that time frame ($2329 per household). Also in that time period, it is responsible for the creation of 210,000 net jobs for the economy. The study indicates that "nominal wages are 2.2% lower, but given that consumer prices are 3.1% lower, real disposable income is 0.9% higher than it would have been in a world without Wal-Mart." (Global Insight Study)


Additional findings from the Global Insight study include: Wal-Mart increased the US economy's overall productivity by three-quarters of a percent by highly efficient distribution systems and pressure on suppliers to be more efficient. Wal-Mart increased net consumer purchasing power by $118 billion in 2004. The efficiencies created 210,000 jobs that would not otherwise exist, but at the same time reduced take-home pay for all retail workers (including the company’s competitors) by $4.7 billion. However, that $4.7 billion is overwhelmingly offset by the $263 billion it has saved Americans from spending from 1985 to 2004, ($2,329 per houshold) according to a Global Insight study. [20] And, this savings has the largest effect on the poor since the average Wal-Mart customer earns $35,000 a year, compared with $50,000 at Target and $74,000 at Costco



Debates over Wal-Mart


Some praise Wal-Mart for benefiting consumers, while other criticise it for being harmful to employees, the community, the economy, and the environment. [22] Specific areas of controversy include the company's product selection; treatment of suppliers, competitors, and employees; impact on local communities, and effects on world trade and globalization.


Jay Nordlinger of the conservative National Review believes [23] criticism of Wal-Mart is more about what Wal-Mart represents; the success of capitalist enterprise and how Wal-Mart is the largest retail store in the world rather than what it actually does. He compares this criticism to the same attacks upon Hummer SUVs while ignoring the issues with many other gas guzzling competitors like old cars the poor could only afford. He believes that Wal-Mart is merely a symbol of capitalism and success that leftists attack in order to associate capitalism with "exploitation" and "unfairness" to further their own big government/socialist objectives



Wal-Mart in popular culture


Billie Letts's 1995 novel Where the Heart Is depicts 17-year-old Novalee Nation moving in to, and giving birth in, an Oklahoma Wal-Mart.

Letts' book was adapted in 2000's Natalie Portman-Ashley Judd film Where the Heart Is. The film, costarring Joan Cusack and Stockard Channing, changes the setting to a Lubbock, Texas Wal-Mart.
Tibby, a character in Ann Brashares 2001 novel, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, spends her summer working at 'Wallmans'. The character is also included in the 2005 film adaptation, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.
A ultra-slick, out-of-control sled ridden by Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) into the toy donation bin outside of a Wal-Mart in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. The scene was filmed outside a Frisco, Colorado Wal-Mart.
A Wal-Mart in the middle of the New Mexico desert serves as a product placement parody in the 2003 animated comedy Looney Tunes: Back in Action.
Sy Parrish, the main character in 2002's One Hour Photo, works at a large discounter called "Sav-Mart"
"Sprawl-Mart" is a big-box retailer in Springfield on Fox's The Simpsons. In the 2005 episode "On A Clear Day I Can't See My Sister", the Sprawl-Mart carries the sign "Not a parody of Wal-Mart". Additionally in another episode when Homer asks Ned Flanders how his Leftorium store is doing he says not too good, due to a "Left*Mart" having moved in. A large Wal-Mart like store is shown in the background. This may be a parody of Wal-Mart, such as its taking on additional markets, like Sam's Club imitating Costco and Neighborhood Markets imitating Albertson's or Safeway.
A Mad TV sketch made a parody of the franchise refering to it as "Walls Mart" poking fun at the bland persistence of Wal*Mart employees.
"Mega-Lo Mart" (with a pronunciation similar to "megalomania") is a large discount retailer on Fox's King of the Hill. When Mega-Lo Mart begins selling propane, Strickland Propane can't compete with their prices, and protagonist Hank Hill loses his job selling propane and propane accessories. Ironically, he is hired to sell propane at Mega Lo Mart until the store is burned down when an inept supervisor causes a gas leak.[24]
A "Wall-Mart" built in Comedy Central's South Park episode "Something Wall-Mart This Way Comes" runs all local stores out of business. The retailer is depicted as a self-aware and independent entity, building itself across the nation to take over everything, and forcing employees and managers to work there against their will. The episode also pokes fun at consumers: South Park residents are forced to shop at Wall-Mart because they are unable to resist its everyday low prices. The town, unable to resist shopping there, tries to burn Wall-Mart, but a crew rebuilds it the following day. Stan and Kyle eventually destroy the Wall-Mart by breaking its heart, a mirror in the electronics department that reflects the image of Stan and Kyle, which shows them that the heart of Wall-Mart is the consumers. South Park residents return to a mom and pop store until it too becomes a big box retailer, which residents promptly burns to the ground.
A JibJab comic called "Big Box Mart" premiered on the October 13, 2005 Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Another cartoon, "This Land", also parodies Wal-Mart.
'Wall 2 Wall Mart' is seen in The Fairly OddParents.
'Stuff-Mart' is a location in the Veggie Tales video "Madame Blueberry," which addresses consumerism.
Former Miami Herald humor columnist Dave Barry penned a column detailing the early millennium fascination with spending the night in an RV parked outside Wal-Mart.
In Fox's The Simple Life, socialite Paris Hilton appears to be unaware of the existence of Wal-Mart and asks "Do they sell things for walls?" Cohort Nicole Richie comparatively appears more knowledgable, announcing "People hang out at Wal-Mart." In a later episode, the pair visit a Wal-Mart and are shown frolicking, reading magazines on the floor, and "hanging out".
In Kim Possible it is parodied by "Smarty-Mart"
In Michael Moore's documentary Bowling for Columbine, a cartoon indicates slaves didn't get paid, and shows a Wal-Mart employee holding this sign: "I work at Wal-Mart and make no money."


Retail operations

Main article: List of assets owned by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Wal-Mart operates 5 major retail formats under 3 retail divisions:


Statistics


Wal-Mart Stores, USA


Wal-Mart Discount Stores — Average 100,000 square feet (9,290 m²) and include a selection of general merchandise, including apparel, electronics, health and beauty aids, toys, sporting goods, and household products. The stores also have an in-house-branded food court. There were 1,209 Wal-Mart Discount Stores in the U.S. as of January 31, 2006.

Wal-Mart Supercenter — Average 187,000 square feet (17,400 m²) and combine a standard Wal-Mart Discount Store with a full-line supermarket. (commonly known as big box stores) The stores also typically feature a tire and oil change shop (Wal-Mart Tire & Lube Express), Wal-Mart Vision Center, and numerous alcove shops - such as a Wal-Mart Money Center, hair and nail salons, a Movie Gallery video store, an arcade, and a branch from a local bank in the area. The food courts are normally limited-menu McDonald's, though Subway, Dunkin Donuts, and Baskin-Robbins have also been located. Some locations also sell gasoline through Murphy USA. There were 1,980 Wal-Mart Supercenters in the U.S. as of January 31, 2006.
Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market — Average 43,000 square feet (4,000 m²) and include grocery, pharmacy, and limited general merchandise products. There were 101 Neighborhood Markets in the U.S. as of January 31, 2006. The concept will be introduced into Canada in 2006 with 3 stores (one in London, Ontario and 2 in the Greater Toronto Area).
Walmart.com — Online shopping site that offers merchandise different from that in stores. The walmart.com site also offers digital music downloads with digital rights management (DRM) and online photo processing.
Sam's Club — a membership-only wholesale warehouse club focused mainly on serving small business owners. Clubs average 128,000 square feet (11,891 m²). Like some Wal-Mart Supercenters, some Sam's Club locations sell gasoline through Murphy USA. There were 567 Sam's Clubs in the U.S. as of January 31, 2006. Sam's Club also operates in Canada.
Wal-Mart International — operates various formats internationally, including (but not limited to) SAM'S CLUB, Discount Stores, Supercenters, Supermarkets, and restaurants.


Store counts & revenue


Current store counts and revenue for Fiscal Year Ending January 31, 2006 (revenue amounts in U.S. Dollars):


Company Total: 5,509 stores (excludes Seiyu operations) (US$285.2 billion)

Wal-Mart Stores USA (3,857 stores, excluding Puerto Rico) (US$$209.4 billion)
Discount Stores: 1,209
Supercenters: 1,980
Neighborhood Markets: 101
SAM'S CLUB (United States): 567 Clubs (US$63.8 billion total)
International: 1,760 (US$56.3 billion total)
Argentina: 11
Brazil: 156
Canada: 278
China: 56
Germany: 88
South Korea: 16
Mexico: 786
Puerto Rico (United States insular area): 54
United Kingdom (ASDA): 315
ASDA in the United Kingdom is the largest of the international businesses by sales. In Germany, however, after eight years in the market, Wal-Mart's yearly revenue is still less than one-tenth of the leading retailer, EDEKA. The presence of unions, the difficulty obtaining building permits and the high competition are two possible reasons for this lack of success. With Aldi and Lidl there are also two established discounters in the market that drive the same price policy as Wal Mart.

Corporate governance


Executive Board

S. Robson Walton Chairman of the Board
H. Lee Scott, Jr. President, CEO, Director (2004 Compensation: $12,444,790 USD)
Thomas M. Schoewe CFO (2004 Compensation: $2,681,682 USD)

Non Executive Board

David D. Glass Chairman of the Executive Committee, Director
James Breyer Director
Michele Burns Director
Douglas Daft Director
Roland Hernandez Director
John D. Opie Director
Paul Reason Director
Jack Shewmaker Director
Jose Villarreal Director
Jim Walton Director
Christopher J. Williams Director
Linda S. Wolf Director

Senior Management (non-exhaustive list)

John B. Menzer Vice Chairman, responsible for all U.S. operations, including Wal-Mart USA, Sam's Club USA, and home office support groups
Michael T. Duke Vice Chairman, responsible for all International Operations
Eduardo Castro-Wright EVP and CEO, Wal-Mart Stores USA
Linda M. Dillman EVP and CIO
Rollin L. Ford EVP, Logistics and Supply Chain
Lawrence V. Jackson EVP, People Division (Chief HR Officer)
Charles M. Holley, Jr. SVP, CAO, Controller
Thomas D. Hyde EVP, Legal and Corporate Affairs, Corporate Secretary
Eric Zorn EVP and President, Wal-Mart Realty
C. Douglas McMillon EVP; President and CEO, SAM'S CLUB USA
Ray Bracy VP, Corporate Affairs (Interim Director)

Former members of the board of directors of Wal-Mart include Hillary Clinton (1985-1992), who also worked for Wal-Mart as a lawyer, [25] and Tom Coughlin, who went on to be vice chairman [26]. He has since plead guilty to five counts of wire fraud and one count of filing a false tax return related to embezzlement and theft from Wal-Mart while serving as a member of its board

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DNA Newspaper

Diligent Media Corporation, which owns DNA (Daily News & Analysis), is a joint venture between two industry majors – the Dainik Bhaskar Group and Zee Group. With a reach of more than 120 countries and access to more than 250 million viewers globally, Zee TV has created a strong brand equity and is the largest media franchise serving the South Asian diaspora with presence in major global markets, including Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, the UK, the US, Canada, the Caribbean and Africa. The Group has transformed itself into an integrated media conglomerate with operations spanning the entire media spectrum.

The Dainik Bhaskar Group has soared to the top of the print media industry in India with its flagship Hindi daily, Dainik Bhaskar (India’s No. 1 Daily Hindi Newspaper), and the Gujarati frontrunner, Divya Bhaskar. While Dainik Bhaskar has a big presence in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chhatisgarh and Uttar Pradesh, Divya Bhaskar is the largest circulated regional daily in Gujarat.


Launched in Mumbai in July 2005, DNA has fast entrenched itself in the lives of a young and dynamic readership in India's commercial capital Mumbai, in the IT Capital Bangalore, and other key cities such as Pune, Ahmedabad, Surat and Jaipur. Through news, views, analyses and interactivity, DNA provides readers with a composite picture of India and the world.

DNA - Site Details - About Us

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OIL & NATURAL GAS CORPORATION

PROFILE:
ONGC which was incorporated on June 23, 1993 is a public sector petroleum company in India. It is the most valuable country in India by market capitalization contributing 77% of India’s crude oil production and 81% of India’s natural gas production. It is the highest profit making corporation in India. It was set up as a commission on August 14, 1956.
It is involved in exploring and exploiting hydrocarbons in 26 sedimentary basins of India. It produces about 30% of India’s crude oil.
· Sales $9.78 billions
· Profits $2.16 billions
· Assets $19.18 billions
· Market Value $27.86 billions
· Employees 38,033

Today, ONGC is the flagship company of India; and making this possible is a dedicated team of nearly 40,000 professionals who toil round the clock. It is this toil which amply reflects in the performance figures and aspirations of ONGC. The company has adapted progressive policies in scientific planning, acquisition, utilization, training and motivation of the team. At ONGC everybody matters, every soul counts.

ONGC has a unique distinction of being a company with in-house service capabilities in all the activity areas of exploration and production of oil & gas and related oil field services.
Needless to emphasize, this was made possible by the men & women behind the machine. Over 18,000 experienced and technically competent executives mostly scientists and engineers from distinguished Universities / Institutions of India and abroad form the core of our manpower. They include geologists, geophysicists, geochemists, drilling engineers, reservoir engineers, petroleum engineers, production engineers, engineering & technical service providers, financial and human resource experts, IT professionals and so on.

VISION:

To be a world-class Oil and Gas Company integrated in energy business with dominant Indian leadership and global presence.

MISSION:

World Class
· Dedicated to excellence by leveraging competitive advantages in R&D and technology with
involved people.
· Imbibe high standards of business ethics and organizational values.
· Abiding commitment to safety, health and environment to enrich quality of community life.
· Foster a culture of trust, openness and mutual concern to make working a stimulating and
challenging experience for our people.
· Strive for customer delight through quality products and services.
Intergrated In Energy Business
· Focus on domestic and international oil and gas exploration and production business opportunities.
· Provide value linkages in other sectors of energy business.
· Create growth opportunities and maximize shareholder value.
Dominant Indian Leadership
· Retain dominant position in Indian petroleum sector and enhance India's energy availability.

HISTORY


1947 - 1960

During the pre-independence period, the Assam Oil Company in the northeastern and Attock Oil company in northwestern part of the undivided India were the only oil companies producing oil in the country, with minimal exploration input. The major part of Indian sedimentary basins was deemed to be unfit for development of oil and gas resources.
After independence, the national Government realized the importance oil and gas for rapid industrial development and its strategic role in defense. Consequently, while framing the Industrial Policy Statement of 1948, the development of petroleum industry in the country was considered to be of utmost necessity.
Until 1955, private oil companies mainly carried out exploration of hydrocarbon resources of India. In 1955, Government of India decided to develop the oil and natural gas resources in the various regions of the country as part of the Public Sector development. With this objective, an Oil and Natural Gas Directorate was set up towards the end of 1955, as a subordinate office under the then Ministry of Natural Resources and Scientific Research. The department was constituted with a nucleus of geoscientists from the Geological survey of India.
Soon, after the formation of the Oil and Natural Gas Directorate, it became apparent that it would not be possible for the Directorate with its limited financial and administrative powers as subordinate office of the Government, to function efficiently. So in August, 1956, the Directorate was raised to the status of a commission with enhanced powers, although it continued to be under the government. In October 1959, the Commission was converted into a statutory body by an act of the Indian Parliament, which enhanced powers of the commission further

1961 - 1990

Since its inception, ONGC has been instrumental in transforming the country's limited upstream sector into a large viable playing field, with its activities spread throughout India and significantly in overseas territories. In the inland areas, ONGC not only found new resources in Assam but also established new oil province in Cambay basin (Gujarat), while adding new petroliferous areas in the Assam-Arakan Fold Belt and East coast basins (both inland and offshore). ONGC went offshore in early 70's and discovered a giant oil field in the form of Bombay High, now known as MumbaiHigh.This discovery, along with subsequent discoveries of huge oil and gas fields in Western offshore changed the oil scenario of the country.

After 1990

The liberalized economic policy, adopted by the Government of India in July 1991, sought to deregulate and de-license the core sectors (including petroleum sector) with partial disinvestments of government equity in Public Sector Undertakings and other measures. As a consequence thereof, ONGC was re-organized as a limited Company under the Company's Act, 1956 in February 1994.
After the conversion of business of the erstwhile Oil & Natural Gas Commission to that of Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited in 1993, the Government disinvested 2 per cent of its shares through competitive bidding. Subsequently, ONGC expanded its equity by another 2 per cent by offering shares to its employees.
During March 1999, ONGC, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) - a downstream giant and Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) - the only gas marketing company, agreed to have cross holding in each other's stock. This paved the way for long-term strategic alliances both for the domestic and overseas business opportunities in the energy value chain, amongst themselves. Consequent to this the Government sold off 10 per cent of its share holding in ONGC to IOC and 2.5 per cent to GAIL. With this, the Government holding in ONGC came down to 84.11 per cent.
In the year 2002-03, after taking over MRPL from the A V Birla Group, ONGC diversified into the downstream sector. ONGC will soon be entering into the retailing business. ONGC has also entered the global field through its subsidiary, ONGC Videsh Ltd. (OVL). ONGC has made major investments in Vietnam, Sakhalin and Sudan and earned its first hydrocarbon revenue from its investment in Vietnam.

PROGRESS RIGHT FROM ITS INITIATION


· The first was the discovery of oil in Cambay in September 1958. This was followed by discovery of oil in a well at Hazat, 16 kilometers from Ankleshwar, on 14 May 1960. These two discoveries exploded the myth about the non-existence of oil in the Cambay Basin and happily brought Gujarat forward on the country's oil map.

· This was followed by discovery of oil near Rudrasagar in Assam in December 1960 much to the anguish of the doubting Thomas, who had predicted gloomy prospects.
· However, the most significant of the achievements was the discovery of Bombay High on 19th February 1974, which, in reality, was the turning point in ONGC's history.
· The rig Sagar Samrat (self-propelled jack-up), was purchased at a cost of Rs. 12.7 crore from Mitsubishi. At that time no one would have dreamt that Sagar Samrat would create a niche for itself in the offshore oil world. This old workhorse has already completed drilling of 125 wells in a life span of 27 years, a feat unmatched by any other rig in the world, and is still going strong. Sagar Samrat had been instrumental in discovering 14 major structures, and adding more than three billion tonnes of oil and gas reserves.
· 4.0 BMT O + OEG should hopefully be established in deep A target of doubling the reserves in the nest 20 years has been set. About 2.0 BMT of oil + oil equivalent of gas (O + OEG) comes from the onshore and frontier basins. offshore waters. These additional 6.0 BMT of O + OEG both onshore and offshore would undoubtedly require higher risks, state-of-art new technology and much bigger investments. .
· ONGC decided to clear, by 31st March 2003, the entire backlog in exploratory drilling. And that is the crux. The more exploratory drilling, the greater likelihood of finding more oil.
· The long-pending organizational transformation project (OTP) was given a final shape after it had taken many twists and turns. This was not an easy task since the result of the pilot projects had to be objectively re-assessed. Now rechristened Corporate Rejuvenation Campaign (CRC), it was formally launched on 20th August 2001. What is CRC ? It divides ONGC into numerous Assets, Basins and Services, each headed by a senior executive, and which in turn became virtual corporates. The Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) concept is now reflected in the matrix relationship of CRC structure wherein the cadre specialization is blended with team orientation.
· But the most important achievement of ONGC was the accretion by 191 MMT of recoverable reserves during 200-02.
· Of the 115 producing fields, one field alone (Mumbai High) contributes 40 percent of production. Another 14 fields add 35% to the production. The remaining 100 fields contribute only 25% of the entire oil/ gas production. ONGC achieved the distinction of becoming zero debt corporate by pre-paying the bulk of its foreign loans.
· In short, the 46th year in the chequered history of ONGC has been one of great changes and achievements. And much of the credit should go to Raha and directors on the ONGC Board, besides of course, to the hundreds and thousands of executives working all over the country.

LEADERSHIP STLYE

MR. SUBIR RAHA (CHAIRMAN & MD-ONGC)
· Mr. Subir Raha Receives CHEMTECH-CEW’s Achiever Of The Year Award
· Mr. Subir Raha bags SCOPE Individual Excellence Award for his outstanding contribution to Public Sector Management.
· Mr. Subir Raha has been awarded as the “ CEO Business Leader of the Year” in recognition of his Leadership Excellence at Indian Leadership Summit.
· Was awarded the “Grid Leadership Award” for his outstanding contribution in the filed of Corporate Management from Dr. P.N. Singh Foundation.
· Assumed badge-of-office of the President of the International Federation of Training & Development Organizations, Lisbon, Portugal, May 03, 2003.

The Following Leadership Qualities and Style followed by Mr. Subir Raha as per our study are as follows:

Leadership Qualities:
1. Innovative and Creative: Professional like Mr.Subir Raha think beyond the obvious and encourage their people to do the same. They ensure that employees have a peen ness for exploration and keep an open mind. It helps the organization to always be ready to look at opportunities for betterment and the search for new ideas, new practices, new products and new ways of doing things better goes on continuously.
Mr.Raha secured the individual award for “Excellence in Creativity & Innovation” in 2002.
2. Customer Orientation: Every professional has two sets of customers whom he must try to satisfy to the fullest possible extent namely, the external customer (the purchasers, the society at large) and the internal customer (the employees, his subordinates, peers and bosses. Professionals like Mr. Raha have ensured that the internal customers are given their due and takes care of the needs, desires and problems. Thus he has build up a customer orientation within the organisation too which is quite infectious and pervades the entire organisation.
Golden Peacock Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance was received by Mr. Raha on behalf of ONGC from Lord Swaraj Paul on 2nd in recognition to the contribution towards Corporate Governance, and helping in giving back to the society the best services and products with transparency and accountability.
3. Stop managing , start leading and cultivate managers:
He disliked the notion of management. Most managers in his view over- managed. Those who over managed helped to create a bureaucratic environment, which according to Mr. Subir Raha , kills large companies. He decided that ONGC’s leaders had to change their management styles i.e. too much controlling and monitoring .The only way to last at ONGC was to get on board, to become a lean leader, to adapt oneself to the company’s value and culture.

SOCIAL OBJECTIVES

· ONGC is playing an important role in strengthening the fabric of society. This giant in India's corporate world has a finely tuned sense of moral responsibility towards the community of people where it operates and the country at large.

· Local population is the one which is benefited most as a result of the ONGC operations in the region. It generates employment & business opportunities, which in turn improves the overall economy of the region and the living standards of the community.
· ONGC operations provide the necessary boost required for the industrial growth of the region. The requirement of the physical inputs for our operations results in setting of ancillary industries and vendors network, generating a lot of economic potential.
· Oil & Gas production ushers an era of growth, many core sector industries like power, fertiliser and transport, thrive as a natural consequence of the oil and gas availability.
· Apart from this, grants-in-aid help in building schools and hospitals. Villages are adopted and several health and community welfare programs are organised in the area around our activities.
· Since 1996-97, the execution of these programmes has been further streamlined. Work-centre wise allocations are made each year and programmes are being executed under the comprehensive guidelines issued on the subject.Major emphasis has been given for promotion of education,health and community development and in times of natural calamities such as floods, cyclones, earthquakes, landslides,etc.The impact of our concerted efforts is being felt by the community and good-will is being generated.Our programs about health care, eye camps, helping the educational institutions are being widely appreciated.
· A proactive approach towards socio-economic development is adopted i.e. projects are identified by ONGC at the plant level by involving the district administration, local representatives and recognized voluntary organisations. Priority is given to areas around the projects with the following themes.
§ Promotion of literacy
§ Grant of scholarship & assistance to deserving young pupils of weaker sections of the society.
§ Health care for women , children and disabled
§ Medical camps
§ Mobile dispensaries
§ Supplimenting the efforts of already existing health centers in the rural areas.
§ Facilities for constructing schools /renovation of school buildings, other necessary infrastructure.
§ Providing civic amenities e.g sanitation, clean drinking water facilities to panchatyas, Gram Sabhas etc
§ Development of agriculture and other cottage industries
§ Environment protection
§ Animal husbandry
§ Promotion of sports
§ Women & child development
§ Sponsoring/ co-sponsoring professional meets, conventions, seminars etc.
§ Development of the socially and economically weaker sections of the society
§ Promotion of art and culture
§ Calamity relief
§ Development of infrastructure facilities-improvement of roads, bridges, street lighting, drainage systems etc
§ Support to vocational training institutions for upgrading the skills of the local people
· Everyone who works at ONGC is responsible for protecting the environment, health and safety of our people and communities worldwide.
· The dedication to the causes of environment and safety in ONGC is amply demonstrated by the fact that a separate institute named Institute of Petroleum Safety and Environment Management(IPSEM) had been set up way back in 1989 to deal with these issues. The objectives of the institute are committed to upgrade & develop human resources with a view to minimize the over all risk to human life, damage to property, process and the environment. The main functions of the Institute are Training, Research and Development, Consultancy Services, Data Bank and information services and as an advisory capacity in evolving standards and procedures. The institute offers training courses in basic and advanced training, safety and environment management, fire safety offshore survival & safety, coxswain boat handling, etc. The offshore survival & safety and coxswain programs are practical training programs for offshore going personnel. It includes a certificate course in first aid and fire fighting.
· ONGC's safety policy seeks to provide safe and healthy working conditions and enlist the active support of all staff in achieving these end.

SOCIAL AUDIT


Social Audit is the evaluation of social performances of a company by a knowledgeable person with suitable background and experience. It is a systematic study of an organization’s social performance. It provides a portfolio of the co. for understanding & improving cos. 'social performance.

Internal auditors conduct social audit as per the directions of the management in the company. Their main purpose is to evaluate the social performance of the company.

ONCG has adopted two interconnected instruments in order to study the manner in which companies discharge their social responsibilities/performances. These two instruments are:

1. Local Meetings: It is yearly conducted and is a public meeting and is open to representatives of different social groups- shareholders, employees, customers, and the society. At the meeting, the director reports on the progress and performance of the company in regards to social responsibilities. Representatives of different social groups raise questions and discuss this subject in depth.
2. Social Audit: it has reference to factual assessment of company’s social performance by trained and professional observers. It acts as a tool for measuring the social responsibility/performance of the company.

The company follows 2 main methods or approaches for conducting their social audit.


1. The Cost Approach: the company calculates the expenditure incurred by them on different social overheads activities like pollution control, rural development,. R&D activities. Education, community services etc. for a specific period decided for the audit purpose. Then the benefits available to concerned people from such expenditures are estimated. The expenditure/cost incurred and returns available are used as base for social audit.

2. The Programme Management Approach: in this approach, every social performance activity like education, employee’s welfare, etc is evaluated separately with reference to its objectives and actual achievements. If actual performance is low as compared to objectives decided, the social performance will be treated as poor according to the audit.

ORGANIZATIONAL CHART


FUNCTIONS OF ALL DEPARTMENTS



Ø PUBLIC RELATIONS


Public Relations is as old as human civilisation. It has existed in one form or the other. There are umpteen examples of its varied form, content and end use.ONGC is committed to provide the best standards of Corporate Governance to all the stake-holders. The Corporate Governance process in ONGC is focussed on the key business objectives:


1. Creating Value,

2. Strengthening Oil Security,
3. Maximizing Return to Investors,
4. Ensuring best feasible HSE practices, and
5. Blending prudence of a State Enterprise with agility of a Trans-national.

The management must have the operational freedom to pursue the Business Goals within a definitive framework of accountability. The practice of Corporate Governance, therefore, is based on these principles:

1. Independent verification of financial reporting and reserves accounting,
2. Protection of shareholders’ rights and proactive investor relations, and
3.Transparent and timely disclosure of all material aspects of the Company’s operations and performance.
In recognition of excellence in Corporate Governance, the Institute of Company Secretaries of India conferred the ‘ICSI National Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance’, in the public sector, for the year 2003 to ONGC.

Ø MARKETING

The ONGC has obtained approval from the Centre for marketing aviation turbine fuel (ATF) and refueling at airports and would start marketing products in 2006-07.
OIL and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) may go back to selling all its value-added products, especially naphtha, only through public sector marketing companies. ONGC has been selling, even exporting, naphtha on its own for the last two years after the failure of the PSU companies in effectively marketing its products.

Value-added products including naphtha, LPG, kerosene and heavy-cut, add about Rs 3,000 crore to ONGC's turnover of about Rs 24,000 crore every year.

According to sources, a Government notification circulated earlier this month has already barred the company from selling kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to private players. These products will have to be sold through PSUs despite the sector decontrol as the products continue to attract subsidies.
Following this, ONGC may now also shelve marketing of natural gas liquid (NGL) or naphtha-equivalent and aromatic naphtha (ARN) on its own initiative, sources said. Last year, the company had produced about two million tonnes of naphtha, kerosene and heavy-cut at its Hazira and Uran units.
ONGC had begun selling naphtha on its own after delays in lifting its product by PSU marketing companies, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL).
ONGC discovered "steep price differences costing almost Rs 200 crore each year because of dependence on IOC and HPCL" when it sold naphtha through these PSUs.
Naphtha being a deregulated commodity, ONGC's product has remained low on the priority list of PSUs trying to push their own stocks, leaving the company with no other choice but to export. As a result, the company set up its own marketing cell which carried out independent sale and exports of naphtha for ONGC.
But with renewed focus on strengthening its position as an exploration and production company, ONGC may move away.

Ø HUMAN RESOURCES


HR Vision

"To attain organizational excellence by developing and inspiring the true potential of company’s human capital and providing opportunities for growth, well being and enrichment".

HR Mission


"To create a value and knowledge based organization by inculcating a culture of learning, innovation & team working and aligning business priorities with aspiration of employees leading to development of an empowered, responsive and competent human capital".


HR Objectives

1. To develop and sustain core values
2. To develop business leaders for tomorrow
3. To provide job contentment through empowerment, accountability and responsibility
4. To build and upgrade competencies through virtual learning, opportunities for growth and providing challenges in the job
5 To foster a climate of creativity, innovation and enthusiasm
6. To enhance the quality of life of employees and their family
7. To inculcate high understanding of 'Service' to a greater cause HR Vision, Mission & Objectives


HR Strategy


· To meet challenging demands of the business environment, focus of the HR Strategy is on change

of the employees' ‘mindset’
· Building quality culture and resources
· Re-engineering and redeployment for maximizing utilisation of HR potential
· To build and upgrade competencies through virtual learning, opportunities for growth and providing challenges in the job
· Re-strengthening mutual faith, trust and respect
· Inculcating a spirit of learning & enjoying challenges
· Developing Human Resource through virtual learning, providing opportunities for growth,
inculcating involvement and exposure to benchmarking in performance

Role Of HR

· Alignment of HR vision with corporate vision
· Shift from support group to strategic partner in business operations
· HR as a change agent
· Enhance productivity and performance by developing employee competency and potential
· Developing professional attitude and approach
· Developing ‘Global Managers’ for tomorrow to ensure the role of global players

Measuring HR Performance

HR Parameters have been incorporated in the MOU by ONGC since 1994-95, to systematically and scientifically evaluate effectiveness of HR Systems, which enables and facilitates time bound initiatives.
· Transformation of ONGC-HR as facilitator and Change Agent for Pilot Implementation at WRBC
· ERP for HR-Project SHRAMIK
· Training and development
· Action Plan and Implementation for achieving HR mission and objectives
· Roll out of Succession Planning Model for identified key positions
· HR audit
· IR for enhancing efficiency and productivity
· Introducing the concepts of mentoring and knowledge management
· Conducting a Climate Survey to identify areas for OD interventions

A Motivated Team

HR policies at ONGC revolve around the basic tenet of creating a highly motivated, vibrant & self-driven team. The Company cares for each & every employee and has in-built systems to recognise & reward them periodically. Motivation plays an important role in HR Development. In order to keep its employees motivated the company has incorporated schemes such as Reward and Recognition Scheme, Grievance Handling Scheme and Suggestion Scheme.


· Incentive Schemes to Enhance Productivity

· Productivity Honorarium Scheme
· Job Incentive
· Quarterly Incentive
· Reserve Establishment Honorarium
· Roll out of Succession Planning Model for identified key positions
· Group Incentives for cohesive team working, with a view to enhance productivity


Ø RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT


ONGC, India's most valuable and profit-making corporate today, is set to invest further in high-technology exploration and production - and beyond.

According to Subir Raha, Chairman and Managing Director of ONGC, the company is now "engaged in a major campaign for high-technology, high-cost, high-risk exploration in deep waters and frontier basins''.
Its crude oil production has, however, hit a plateau, no big discoveries having been made in the recent past.
Instead of confining itself to exploration for and production of crude oil and gas, it will have its own refineries to process crude into petrol, kerosene, high-speed diesel, naphtha, and so on. It also plans to set up about 600 retail outlets to market petrol, diesel, and other products
ONGC is also into the extraction of coal-bed methane (CBM), having pioneered the technology in the country. Methane extracted from coal beds is supplied through pipelines to be used as fuel in industries and to generate electricity. But its extraction involves a tough, technology-intensive process. India is estimated to have the potential to produce around 1.5 trillion cubic metres of CBM.
ONGC has drilled about a dozen R&D (research and development) wells in Jharia. Today, production-testing is under way in the Jharia fields, where about 25,000 cubic metres of gas a day is being flared.
ONGC has nine R&D institutes that are being independently managed. The Keshav Dev Malaviya Institute of Petroleum Exploration in Dehra Dun, which was established in 1962, is the premier centre for basic and applied research in petroleum exploration. KDMIPE deals with the research needs of the various ONGC regions in the areas of basin analysis, petroleum economics, geosciences and developing alternative sources of energy.
Another institute at Dehra Dun is the Geodata Processing and Interpretation Centre (GEOPIC). Apart from the processing and interpretation of geoscientific data in areas that range from seismic to petrophysical, geological and reservoir engineering, it analyses the 3-D seismic data gathered by ONGC to unravel sub-surface complexities in the search for oil and gas.
The Institute of Reservoir Studies (IRS), set up in 1978 in Ahmedabad, is ONGC's nodal agency for formulating oil and gas production schemes. ONGC's decisions on hydrocarbon exploitation are based on IRS' recommendations. The major projects it has completed include development plans for OIL's Kharsang oilfield; OVL's Tuba field in Iraq; the Ain-Zalah oilfield for the Iraq National Oil Company; and techno-economic studies of potential fields in Vietnam, Indonesia, Russia, China, and so on. The Institute of Drilling Technology (IDT), situated in the Doon valley, provides advanced technological knowledge to meet challenges in the field of drilling.
The other centres include the Institute of Oil and Gas Production Technology, the Institute of Engineering and Ocean Technology, both in Mumbai; the Institute of Petroleum Safety and Environment Management in Goa, the Institute of Management Development at Dehra Dun, and the Institute of Biotechnology and Geotectonics Studies at Jorhat, Assam.

Ø FINANCE

1. Crude oil supplies during the current half year are at the prices settled with refineries which workout at an average of Rs. 9953/MT. The corresponding sales revenue during the period of the last half year was accounted for at the provisional average price of Rs. 8134/MT since the prices had not been finally settled with the refineries at that time. The adjustment of settled price (average Rs. 9868/MT for the half year) was made subsequently in the last quarter of the financial year 2002-03.


2. Gross sales for the quarter includes Rs. 13106 lakh on account of revision of crude oil price from Rs. 2094/MT to Rs. 2119.73/MT for the period 1996-98.


3. Staff expenditure in the half year 2002-03 included a provision for VRS Rs. 23500 lakh, which actually did not materialize and thus was reversed later in the same year.

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