Yet Another Wal-Mart Supply Chain Efficiency Initiative- Will it Ever Change?

-Bob Ferrari

Earlier this Summer, Wal-Mart began a new initiative to lower costs in an effort to keep prices to consumers low. From the moment Wal-Mart was founded, Sam Walton’s only goal was to come up with innovative ways to cut supply chain costs and allow him to offer the same goods found in other stores for greatly discounted prices. Wal-Marts newest initiative involves taking over freight delivery when practical in the United States. By having its own private fleet for delivery, they can greatly cut the cost of shipping goods to and from distribution centers(an earlier innovation by the company to cut supply chain costs). It is estimated that Wal-Mart will be able to reduce shipping expenses by 3-6% using this new initiative. It’s just another innovative way Wal-Mart has figured out how to lower costs and pass the savings along to consumers.

This is related to Business Processes in that it focuses on a specific business process, shipping and distribution, and shows how to improve the process to be more effective and cost-efficient. By focusing on business processes, Wal-Mart has been able to consistently cut costs and use their ability to offer extreme low prices to become the biggest retailer in the world.

Ferrari, B. (1970).Yet Another Wal-Mart Supply Chain Efficiency Initiative- Will it Ever Change? [online].

Available: http://www.theferrarigroup.com/blog1/2010/06/01/yet-another-wal-mart-supply-chain-efficiency-initiative-will-it-ever-change/.

(June 1, 2010)

Hi, my name is Brandon. I am a Business IS major.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/27/asteroid-video-time-lapse_n_696883.html

According to the January 8, 2009, Time Magazine article  , ” E-Waste Not” by Brian Walsh more than 150,000 computers and 300,00 cell phones and other electronic equipment is being thrown away in our landfills. The hazard with this is that there is lead and other toxic chemicals in these equipment and if not disposed of properly can leak into our landfills. Another problem is that the e-waste is being shipped to developing countries where the equipment is stripped of any useful parts and then disposed of improperly, usually by burning. The concern for contaminating the earth or affecting the health of the people in these countries does not seem to be a great concern. The EPA is supposed to be informed of any e-waste that is wanting to be shipped overseas, but 43 recycling centers were found to have shipped unapproved e-waste to these countries anyways. The article went on to say that a lot of the e-waste ends up in Guiyu China. The people in this town heat up the circuit boards and other computer parts for the lead and other usable elements that they could use. “Reports by the Shantou University which is located nearby, this town has the highest level of cancer causing dioxins in the world and the highest amount of miscarriages (Walsh)”.

The “Green Groups” are trying to add pressure to the computer companies to become more accountable with the e-waste that they are producing. Dell computers has gone into agreement with Staples to help dispose of those Dell computers that are disposed of to them. Dell will take old recycled computers when the purchase of a new one. As for the old cell phones, there are several phone distributors that will recycle the old phones. A better idea is to donate the cell phones to battered women’s shelters.

Time Magazine. January 8, 2009. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1870485,00.html

The title of the article that I chose was “  The Benefits of Outsourcing for Small Businesses” by the All Business website. The article pointed out that it is sometimes wiser  for small businesses to outsource certain aspects of their business responsibilities to other companies. That through outsourcing these small companies can for one save money, but there are also other benefits to outsourcing. That by outsourcing they are changing a fixed cost of capital to a variable source that is utilized only when needed. Outsourcing allows businesses to increase their efficiency by spending time on those aspects of the business that must be run by the company and not spent on projects that could be done by others. By allowing other companies to complete the work these small businesses are gaining the expertise that these outsourced companies have. These experienced companies are also able to start new projects very quickly because they have the know how required by the small business. This in turn will reduce the labor costs associated with the individual projects and the training of employees that comes with each new project. By out outsourcing these projects small businesses have the opportunity to compete with the larger corporations who have the money and the experience to run the same project in-house. Some of the types of outsourcing that these small businesses might use would be like hiring an accounting or payroll firm to manage the books. This will make it easier for the owners to spend more time on the areas of the firm that require more customer service or time that could be better used on other projects.

http://www.allbusiness.com/human-resources/workforce-management-hiring/1084-3.html

“My Virtual Life”

A journey into a place in cyberspace where thousands of people have imaginary lives, some even make a good living, big advertisers are taking notice. That’s how the article begins. I choose this article because I didn’t know much about the Second Life and I figure it would come in handy to know a little more information about this new and up and coming virtual life. The author comes and sets up a second life and meets up with one of the residents already on the set. He finds out that she has a successful business that “employs” 17 workers from around the world. Chung the owner of the real-estate business in the Second life is making real cash. The author states that the currency holdings are worth about $250,000 in real money. The writer continues on saying that second life is a multiplayer game that is booming in popularity. He claims that at least 10 million people pay $15 and up a month to play these games, and maybe 20 million more log in once a while. Some players call World of Warcraft the “new golf” as these colleagues and business partners gather online to slay orcs instead of gathering on the green to hack away at little white balls. What’s different about this second life world is that the residents have to create everything that they want. There is no avatar to select from that makes choices for you. A person can build anything that their imagination can do.

Hof, Robert D. My Virtual Life. 1 May 2006. BusinessWeek. 14 Dec 2009. http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/06_18/b3982001.htm?chan=gl

“Boeing Outsourcing will pay off: Pratt exec”

Boeing Co. will be proved right with its controversial outsourcing of airplane production when its long-delayed Dreamliner takes to the skies this week, a top US aerospace executive said on Monday. This is how the article sets out and sets the tone for the article. The article then proclaims that Boeing has been criticized by customers and unions over its decision to send offshore the production of much of the brand new jetliner, which is already two years behind their schedule. Then it let the president David Hess have his say in it all. And he believes that Boeing should stay the course along with other future projects. Hess believes he will test the Boeing 787 Dreamliner as early as Tuesday (Dec 15) a flight that I mentioned before that is two years overdue because of the claims of problems in the supply chain. The great advantage of this plane compared to its predecessors is its lightweight, this gives it greater fuel efficiency and lower maintenance costs. It has a record number of orders on the books for the plane at its stage in development. It is also because of the outsourcing, the demand is going up because of the lower costs and foreign ingenuity. The author then goes onto saying that Hess the president is scheduled to fly out to Seattle on Tuesday to attend the test flight of this great machine. “Obviously, it was a tough road for Boeing,” Hess said. “I think it still – to me – is a tremendous achievement.”

Peterson, Kyle. Boeing outsourcing will pay off: Pratt exec. 14 Dec 2009. Washington Reuters. 14 Dec 2009. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BD4YP20091214

“Cisco works percentages toward Tandberg takeover”

In its quest to acquire Tandberg, Cisco is close but is not quite there. The article goes onto say that even though Cisco owns 89% of the outstanding shares of Tandberg; it is still one percent short of closing the deal in Norwegian law. The article came out on the 4^th because Cisco exclaimed that if on Dec 3^rd that it did not posses all 90% of the shares it would walk away from the deal. And now this is definitely not happening being so close. Cisco announced that it would persevere with engaging in purchasing the other percent to own the business. And it believes that by midyear of 2010 it would happen. Cisco is doing this to capture the growing videoconferencing market. Tandberg is a company based in Oslo, Norway and New York. It offers low cost and high end videoconferencing tools to companies. In the article the author examines what else has been going on in the merger. Cisco claims that back in November they have tendered an extra 2 percent putting them over the mark of taking over the business. As the author pointed out though that this just means that the shares are promised to Cisco but what is not giving is the date for which they will receive them and until then Cisco is still out of luck. Also even if Cisco receives those needed shares it still faces regulatory approval from the US Department of Justice.

Whitney, Lance. Cisco works percentages toward Tandberg takeover. 4 Dec 2009. CNET. 14 Dec 2009. http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-10409293-92.html

“PDA RFID reader with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPRS capabilities”

I choose this article because it seems to include most of the chapters high points all rolled into a phone. The article is very short so hopefully I can fill out this paragraph to meet the word requirement. The article claims that there will be two version of this PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) a low frequency as well as a high frequency version. These two PDA’s are designed to accommodate information management, information collection and wireless data transfer. I put two pictures of the PDA’s just to show what is mentioned in the article. The two phones come either witht the touch screen or the keyboard. They both feature what was written in the title, the Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPRS. What is really cool I think about these two pair phones is the fact that they feature the standard USB port and RS232 communication port which allows any user to plug in any USB implement. Such as a keyboard, mouse, flash drive, magnetic reader, or any other instrument that would work. It also includes an integrated 128 MB SDRAM and 64 MB Flash ROM that is extremely helpful in preserving data in the event of a random reset of the device or a complete loss of power. Next the article goes into where these PDAs would function and benefit the consumer the best. The PDAs are aimed for industrial and outdoor RFID applications, such as inventory control, logistics, garment processing, luggage handling, parcel-postal delivery and cashless payments. This article was very interesting to me and I’m sure that companies will find this extremely satisfying.

PDA RFID reader with WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPRS capabilities. 4 Dec 2009. RFID News. 14 Dec 2009. http://www.rfidnews.org/2009/12/04/pda-rfid-reader-with-wifi-bluetooth-and-gprs-capabilities

“MySQL Creator Launches Campaign to ‘Save’ Database

I choose this article because I saw it and wanted to know more about this article. The title was catchy. Anyway it says that the creator of MySQL has launched a web based campaign to save the open source database from the “clutches” of Oracle, which is attempting to purchase its current owner, Sun Microsystems. Oracle earlier this year announced plans to buy Sun for $7.4 billion. The reason why this action has taken place before is because of concern about the database market. Oracle owns a healthy share of what’s on the market currently also that European authorities want to conduct an antitrust review. A blogger was quoted in the article by saying, “if users speak up now the European authorities could stop the merger or force Oracle to provide certain concessions and guarantees around MySQL.”  The article goes on about information about the database. MySQL was mainly used for web applications about ten years ago but now has become very functional, scalable and credible. Well in the end it looks as though the merger will go through. Oracle will own MySQL but a promise was also made, 10 commitments to MySQL’s user and developers. These pledges would be valid for the next five years following the close of the merger. This is what put the European authorities over and let the merger coincide. The European authorities feel that the merger will be a satisfactory resolution. I thought this article was interesting. It gave both sides of the story which is nice to see every once and awhile.

Kanaracus, Chris. MySQL Creator Launches Campaign to ‘Save” Database. 14 Dec 2009. PCWorld. 14 Dec 2009. http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/184558/mysql_creator_launches_campaign_to_save_database.html

“Why Grid Computing Makes Economic Sense”

I chose this article because I came across this in the chapter and didn’t understand it completely and wanted more information about this answer to solve many problems. The article begins with what the problem is now a day in the business platform. It delves into how the IT district is always struggling to find a way to be more cost efficient and also to centralize their business. Then the article continues on and tells the reasons for doing this. Scalability: where companies exhaust their resources and manpower deploying, maintaining, and upgrading software systems, they could use a grid and the power of existing systems can be scaled exponentially, maintained seamlessly, upgraded transparently, and redeployed at will. The speed of the grid is unparallel and can help increase productivity and a business’ competitiveness with a faster deployment of new systems, or the speedy ramping up of existing ones. Also users around the world can use this system very easily without specific training. Implementation is very easy on this. Developers can pair weeks of integration and configuration time with hosting environments for their cloud platforms. On demand network computing power and storage capability means that companies don’t have to invest the bank and everything under the mattress in the static hardware. And cost is the last thing that is mentioned in the article. To implement this is very low cost and this is the biggest advantage for companies. What the great thing is that businesses only pay for the resources that they actually use. And don’t forget about the great savings that will not be put into investing into the expensive hardware.

Avoyan, Hovhannes. Why Grid Computing Makes Economic Sense. 6 Dec 2009. SYS-CON Media, Inc. 14 Dec 2009. http://ajax.sys-con.com/node/1211109

The article from BusinessWeek coincides with our textbook; India has been the primary destination for tech outsourcing with more than 90%.  Reasons are many, for starters its low-cost.  However, this article shows how IBM is changing destination by outsourcing at home.  As strange as it sounds IBM is turning to Michigan and Iowa when it comes to outsourcing.

IBM’s announcement of its two newest global service delivery centers surprised many when were not situated in Bangalore, Delhi, or Mumbai. Instead, Big Blue picked East Lansing, Michigan and Dubuque, Iowa.

This announcement is one of best news for citizens of those two cities, since the U.S. economic downturn has already claimed more than 60,000 tech jobs in the past three months alone.  In East Lansing, IBM plans to create up to 1,500 direct and indirect jobs in five years, and it should give jobs to approximately 1,300 people in Dubuque within a two-year period.

Michael Daniels, senior vice-president of IBM Global Technology Services explained the reasons to outsource at home.  According to him, the cost-competiveness of East Lansing and Dubuque were factors in the company’s decisions to locate there, salaries and other coast weren’t the biggest factors.  As he explains, “Low coast is factor in any decision, but the critical thing for us was the access to skills and the willingness of the local universities to cooperate with us and add to their curricula.”

According to the article” Dubuque and Iowa offered IBM an enciting package of incentives worth $55 million over 10 years.”  It also includes  a loan of $11.7 million that will be forgiven if IBM fulfills its hiring pledge.                               The new East Lansing service delivery center will modernize-out-of-date software for states and corporations.

IBM’s example  can lead to other big corporations decision to outsource at home if the government and states give more incentives and/or tax cuts.

Hamm, Steve. (2009). IBM: Outsourcing at home. Retrieved Dec. 2, 2009 from BusinessWeek. Tech Services                                                                                                                                                                                                http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jan2009/tc20090115_770577.htm

Bluetooth’s Emphasis on the Business Spectrum

By: Kyle Bean

IS 130 Section 07

Prof. Sonya Zhang

Abstract

Bluetooth technology allows compatible devices to share data and voice communications. This technology is not Wi-fi so the range is not as good but, is a very popular form of sharing information in business today. With the new cell phone law in the state of California Bluetooth technology allows business personal who must drive and talk on the phone the ability to do so legally with a compact headset device. Businesses also use Bluetooth for the luxury of wireless printers and copiers within a company. This form of wireless technology helps keep the workplace looking sharp and is very reliable. Bluetooth is also cheaper for companies to operate with, thus making the consumer get a better price on products. When using Bluetooth two devices that are capable automatically pick one another up when they are within a 30-foot range. Bluetooth Technology is a short range communications system that is intended to replace cables connecting devices inside and outside the work place. I plan on describing how this will advance the modern business world drastically and help businesses worldwide be more effective and cost efficient.

Bluetooth was originally created by five corporate giants in the modern business spectrum consisting of Erickson, IBM, Intel, Nokia, and Toshiba. Later “On December 1, 1999, the founding members announced that 3COM, Lucent, Microsoft, and Motorola have joined the founders to form the Promoter Group with the founding companies” (Monson pg. 1). This technology has the ability to provide security for businesses in stationary devices, as well as for consumers in mobile devices. “Since the forming of the original group, more than 1,800 manufacturers around the world have joined the initiative. According to reports, the Bluetooth technology is expected to be built into more than 100 million devices, with over 670 million enabled Bluetooth devices” (Murray pg. 1). The main functions of these devices are to replace the hassle of cables in homes and in the business community. Bluetooth technology will advance the modern business world because off its capabilities, affordability, and convenience.

Modern Bluetooth technology has an extremely wide range of capabilities which are displayed in some of its available applications. Some of these applications include: cell phone accessories, headsets, internet radio, hand-held’s, PC and PDA accessories, along with voice recording devices. Although, Bluetooth is available to the modern consumer such as you and me; the vast majority of this technology is based toward advancing the business spectrum. Here’s a great example, while you are “In meetings and conferences you can transfer selected documents instantly with selected participants, and exchange electronic business cards automatically, without any wired connections” (Gupta pg. 1). Think of the efficiency of this process, where your alternative would be to introduce yourself to each individual businessman in the meeting room. Then, hold a small conversation to get to know him/her. Finally you’re able to ask to exchange business cards with your new acquaintance. This is a minute example, however, in today’s vigorous business community everyone’s time is worth great value. Bluetooth has the capabilities to communicate and send data wirelessly while being extremely time efficient.

Another one of Bluetooth’s many advantageous factors is its extremely affordable. Our current economy has seen better day, however, businessmen worldwide still need to be able to afford to communicate to continue business. Bluetooth offers a wide range of phones, hand-held’s, and other communication devices that allow the average customer to effectively communicate for the lowest possible cost. For example, “the new Wireless Communications Device Law (effective January 1, 2009) makes it an infraction to write, send, or read text-based communication on an electronic wireless communications device, such as a cell phone, while driving a motor vehicle” (DMV pg. 1). Here, Bluetooth’s affordable applications are essential to those who are required to travel on a daily bases. These technological advances give traveling businessmen the luxury to use headset devices to communicate, while driving, without receiving a ticket. Since all of the devices offered by Bluetooth providers are so affordable, in the long-run after vast numbers of businesses convert to this modern technology, consumers will eventually pay less for products. If corporations are able to save money on needed applications and devices they will ultimately be able to charge less for their services/products.

Indubitably Bluetooth’s largest advantage is solely its convenience to consumers. Bluetooth allows for businesses to be virtually cord free, having products ranging from printers and PDA’s to computer mousses and thumb drives. This not only allows businesses to gain a better reputation for their clean looking workspace; it also allows them to work efficiently without hassling with cords and moving appliances. The range of this technology is only about 30 ft. However, all devices contain an Omni directional chip which allows them to send information through walls and other obstacles being extremely convenient for users.

Bluetooth’s expeditious and reliable products are permitting men and women in the business spectrum to advance without common hassles. The capabilities, affordability, and convenience of these products are leading to a new era. This specific kind of technology gives users a chance to focus more on business and look good while doing so. Bluetooth’s short range communications technology is advancing the workplace not only by replacing cables connecting devices but mainly by assisting in efficiency. This will lead eventually to a more productive workforce and advanced industry.

References

Anonymous. Indesign Engineering Excellence: “Technologies: Bluetooth Devices,” 2009. http://www.sysopt.com/features/network/article.php/12029_3532506_1

California Department of Motor Vehicles: http://www.dmv.ca.gov/cellularphonelaws/

Gupta, Puneet. Mobile info. One stop website for mobile computing and wireless information: “Bluetooth Technology,” No date found. http://www.mobileinfo.com/Bluetooth/applic.htm

Monson, Heidi. “Bluetooth technology and implication,” Dec 4, 1999. http://www.sysopt.com/features/network/article.php/12029_3532506_1

Murray, James. “The future of Bluetooth technology,” April 27, 2008. http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/the-future-of-bluetooth-technology-397854.html

Business by Smartphone
Smartphones are taking the business world by storm. Every businessperson   today has the ability to check, monitor, and receive instant updates about their business by touching the screen of their phone. The most popular smartphones that you see on the market today are the Blackberry and iPhone. Both have similar capabilities and functions, but differ in the way they can be applied to business. Blackberry has its advantages in business due to the different type of software it uses. Microsoft is the producer of this technology and with its strong security and synchronizing abilities, many businesses chose this phone. Apple on the other hand has a larger share of the non-business market, but has its potential and functions for business as well. With comparable 3G networks, both companies are on the cutting edge of revolutionizing business. Smartphones allow individuals to work on the go and have every bit of information they need at the swift move of a finger.
The ability to buy and create applications to suit each users needs, smartphones are beginning to transform the way business is conducted forever. Many phone companies allow people and business to create personalized applications to suit their needs. For example, Break Down Way, a guitar lesson learning application, allows people to download the application and immediately access thousands of different lessons from their iPhone. The creator of this application, David Wolf, plans to give people a free sample of his application so that people can see the advantages of learning guitar without an actual instructor. Subscribers of the application can view and study different lessons by various artists such as Jorma Kaukonen from Jefferson Airplane and Michael Falzarano from Hot Tuna. While Wolf awaits his application approval from apple, he hopes to join the application buying frenzy and stay in touch with the vast expanding possibilities of technology.
These technological advances of Smartphones and applications are affecting the business world at an alarming rate. Business are now using the capabilities of their smartphones and developing ways that increase the efficiency of their operation and communication. Now business people are able to access more personal information than every just by accessing their handheld phone. This allows employees and executives to closer manage and monitor their operations and find problems as soon as they occur. The integration of Smartphones into business would not be possible if it wasn’t for the application creating software that allows businesses to construct, test, and use applications that are solely created for their particular use. These types of applications are beneficial to large and small business, but give small business the ability to do things that only large operations were able to do before. Simple applications not only allow companies to improve internal operations and communication, but more important with the customer. Many companies have application that allows customers to view their accounts, inventories, sales, and much more from the creative application that the company created. These applications allow customers to stay informed and up to date with current news and information from their Smartphone.
According to an online source, “Apple sold 1.5 billion apps during the App Store’s first year and 5.2 million iPhones during the company’s fiscal third quarter”(Ransom 2009). The application and smart phone craze is catching on so rapidly for many reasons. Individuals want to have all of their information at the touch of their fingers, and all of those who refuse to conform to the consumers want and needs, they will have an insecure future compared to those who jump on the application/smartphone bandwagon. Technology is transforming the way we live our lives every single day. In business and in our every day lives, Smartphones are rapidly finding new and clever ways to keep us informed and connected to the world at all times. The future only holds more possibilities for the Smartphone’s capabilities and only time will tell how well it will all work. Business is imminently being transformed to adapt to the times, it is up to each business to keep on the cutting edge of consumer wants and needs so that they can become sustainable throughout the future.

Resources:

Jason Hiner. “Sanity check: Five upgrades that make the iPhone 3G enterprise-ready”. July 11th, 2008. http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/hiner/?p=781&tag=content;leftCol

DIANA RANSOM. Smartphone Apps Fuel Business. August 20 2009. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125071635069144197.html

Mobile Phone Wallet:

The culmination of convenience

Researches say that within the next five years, our mobile phones will have yet another use; doubling as a wallet for the ultimate convince. Countries that are usually ahead of the United States in technology, such as South Korea and Japan, are already making these futuristic phones into a reality. These mobile wallets will have various uses such as electronic payments, downloading event tickets, opening doors, accessing subways, fast paying on turnpikes, clipping coupons, and acting as another form of identification. Other functions for this growing product are to include bank cards, credit cards, house keys, company access control IDs, electronic cash, and train tickets. This idea seems foreign to us now, but the concept is further examined by how the mobile phone wallet works, common concerns, the benefits to society, and the future for the wallets.

The Mobile Phone Wallet uses a technology called near-field communication (NFC), which allows any enabled device to communicate through a secure radio frequency. NFC is a type of wireless technology that allows devices to exchange small amounts of data across short distances – approximately four inches. Also needed is a special chip, otherwise known as a microchip-laden or “smart card” placed in the phone, with another radio frequency antenna to communicate. Devices equipped with this built-in NFC and smart cards can facilitate m-payments, simply by holding the devices close to each other.  To pay for items you simply wave your cell phone within a few inches of a special display that can be found in stores, restaurants and vending machines that also have the NFC technology. You can also make m-payment for quick and easy exchanges of money between individuals. When your purchase is being deducted from the embedded chip, using radio-frequency ID technology, you will hear a fairy-like tinkling sound indicating payment.

A common concern with the mobile phone wallet is that the probability of theft could increase. Some computer experts have suggested that hackers could develop a way to pickpocket the mobile phone wallets by simply getting close to people’s handsets. This has not happened yet, but researchers are looking into applications and ways to prevent and establish a good defense against possible theft. Another problem is the issue of what to do if you were to lose your mobile phone wallet, which possibly could contain all of your most valuable information.  If this were to happen, the phone can be locked and no one else can use it for calls or be able to add or subtract money to the cash-dispensing chip. For some, another concern is that the government could possibly find out too much about your spending proclivities and your physical movements.

There are many benefits of the Mobile Wallet phone. As they enter new industries, such as the payment and credit card field, which represents major innovation and could possibility cause trouble for already previously established industries, such as credit cards. Since “going green” and being more environmentally friendly is increasing in popularity, the mobile phone wallet signifies a very attractive benefit for the eco-system. With the development of these phones, all transactions will become paperless with no need for printing receipts and bank statements. We can also eliminate the use of plastic used for credit cards and paper used for cash. When a phone is enabled with near-field communication technology, shoppers can load bank and credit card information onto their phones and then scan them to buy goods.

Samsung is one of the companies looking into further expanding into this market by joining forces with Philips to bring this concept into a reality to the United States. “Joining forces with Philips for the further development of NFC-enabled devices is part of Samsung’s commitment to change the way information and services are paid for, distributed and accessed by all consumers,” said JK Shin, senior vice president of the research and development team at Samsung.

The future for the mobile wallet phone looks promising. Currently, in Japan there are over 9,000 establishments that accept this form of payment, and this number is quickly increasing. To make this concept take off in the United States, more stores and businesses need to incorporate this type of payment as well. Gartner Inc., a technology research company, issued a report in May saying mobile payments will increase 70 percent in 2009, to 73 million people worldwide. Since almost all phones have email and Internet connection, the concept of the mobile phone wallet becoming the new, standardized way of payment seems very likely in the near future.

Bibliography:

• Kageyama, Yuri “Japanese carrier unveils mobile-phone wallet,” retrieved from usatoday.com
• Lev-Ram, Michael “Your cellphone = your wallet” December 1, 2006 retrieved from money.cnn.com
• Sutter, John “Mobile Phone Wallet,” August 13, 2009. Retrieved from www.cnn.com
• “Mobile FeliCa Wallet Phones” Retrieved from: eurotechnology.com
• “Samsung phones to double as wallets,” Posted in Mobile on September 1, 2004 Retrieved from ElectricNews.net

James Strootman

Nov 30, 2009

I chose my research paper topic on smart advertisements. I chose this topic because I believe that this is going to change the advertisement industry for the better. The whole process is really quite exquisite. All you need is an idea and a computer (Advertising Trends…). Do not get the idea that there are zero flaws in this operation, but I believe that the pros outweigh the cons. Now let me go into more detail about what kind of advertisements I will be talking about. I would first like to give information about the ads themselves. The ads that I am talking about are the LED (Light-Emitting Diode) Signs. What this is, is a billboard that is replaced by the old vinyl traditional boards (The New Digital… ). The great thing about this is that there is no one that needs to come and strip the old advertisement and put the new one up. The other astonishing thing about this is that ads can be very target oriented to fit a specific audience. Now, advertisements can change instantly from one sale a company might have to the next in a matter of minutes. Another magnificent feature is that these signs can also capture radio frequencies that can change the advertisement based on what a potential customer is listening to on the radio. This also goes for many other ways for the billboard to recognize different things such as face recognition and car identifying (Digital billboards…).

This all sounds great but, like I said there is imperfection in this new age of advertisements. Someone in the greater Los Angeles area has hacked into the computer systems and put an ad of his own up there. It is somebody known as skullphone (Melanson, Donald). He is just a pirate taking over time slots that were paid for by companies. Another affliction of these great ads is that from any moment to another the sign would generate a different advertisement. What this means is that no company has full reign over a certain region of advertisements (Zita Torok). A company buys time slots, not locations anymore. So if a driver is at a traffic light and is exposed to thirty seconds of advertisement, and on average an ad last seven seconds the audience would have seen about four ads. So potentially the consumer would miss many other ads that should have been seen. This is not a good thing for the advertisers paying money to have people see their ads. This is another faulty issue that a company will have to address when considering this. The throughput will tell if the money was worth the initial payment up front.

Now as radio frequencies are accepted from each vehicle, information is gathered and puts up an ad that is target specific. A good example of this is say if I was driving and listening to a country station then an ad may pop up concerning great deals on new four wheel drive trucks. This happens because studies say that if a person listens to country music that they must drive a truck or in the market to get one. This is very helpful to companies and keeps the target audience very specific. It also gives instant information to a potential buyer, say for example how much that truck is or what kind of financing is available to them. My last source came out and said that from cameras on the billboard it can recognize individual cars and advertise to them as well. Such things in the article mention oil that is specific to a car make and model. What this does is inform the driver of discounts that would apply to his/hers vehicle (Digital billboard…).

In conclusion I think that this new wave of billboards is the future and that the old ones will be obsolete in a few years. Companies won’t waste their money to engage in a lifeless advertisement.

Advertising Trends: Digital Billboards. The Marketing Spot. 4 May 2009 http://www.themarketingspotblog.com/2009/05/advertising-trends-digital-billboards.html

Digital billboard ads recognize individual cars. Screensmedia. 22 Sept. 2009. http://www.screens.tv/article/11833/Digital_billboard_ads_recognise_individual_cars.html

Jay Ehret. “Advertising Trends: Digital Billboards”. The Marketing Spot. 28 Oct. 2009

http://www.themarketingspotblog.com/2009/05/advertising-trends-digital-billboards.html.

Zita Torok. The New Trend in Outdoor Billboard Advertising.2009. http://ezinearticles.com/?The-New-Trend-in-Outdoor-Billboard-Advertising&id=622779

Melanson, Donald. Skullphone decides to speak, probably shouldn’t have. 28 Mar. 2008. Engadget.  http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/28/skullphone-decides-to-speak-probably-shouldnt-have/

Food banks go high-tech to feed the hungry

According to the article posted on Businessweekly.com food banks all over the country are currently have a “high-tech revolution”.  They are adopting advanced databases, GPS tracking, using bar codes, and other such technologies.  The new technologies have help food banks come a long way from past years of passing out canned food and macaroni.  The new innovations will allow food banks to supply much more people because hunger has become a never-ending problem.  The effort is led by the organization Feeding America which currently is having such food banks from Seattle and New York test a $60 million effort to supply the needy.  The Athena Project is the name of the effort by Feeding America.

“The Athena Project, which started rolling out this summer, will let food banks upgrade and standardize accounting, inventory and donor software, take full advantage of the Internet, and manage pickups and deliveries much the same way FedEx or UPS track packages.”  Feeding America which is based in Chicago is installing the systems at no charge.  The result will hopefully provide local food banks with more of the much needed food to feed people.  The project is set to be completed in about five years and will save food banks millions of dollars that would go to cost of operating tasks.  The money that is saved from the innovations will go to buy more food and provide more services.  Some of the benefits of the new innovations are GPS tracking, inventory management systems, generating food list, and common software and back up servers which will help food banks around the world provide better services and more food.

Reference: Tibbits, George. (2009). The Associated Press. Food banks go high-tech to feed the hungry. Businessweek. Retrieved from: http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9C7T37O0.htm

Gmail is a free email service offered by Google. Businesses use this free email service. A subscription can be purchased which offers additional services. Google, which offers Gmail, is new to the clouding industry.  

Electronic Mail (email) has become increasingly integrated into businesses. Mail, reports, memos, and newsletters are steadily being sent by email. A business can buy and maintain its own email service or it may use an email service from a third party.

Clouding refers to companies that offer email and other services. Gmail offers email and other services such as apps. Apps is short for applications and these offered apps are subscription based.

Businesses can either house and maintain their own email and/or other services such as apps or get them from the cloud. Clouding is new and many businesses are skeptical of its reliability and do not like the idea of having less control of an integral component of their business. For example, email systems offered by clouding have downtime every month but so do email systems housed and maintained by companies. So what a business must do is make a trade off. The two main proponents being reliability and cost. Gmail claims they do a better job of maintaining reliability and at a lower cost than housing and maintaining done in house by a business.

Ebusiness is what Google is doing more of these days. Gmail which is beginning to offer more services will make a lot of money for Google. Mostly, making money is what ebusiness is all about.

I like that Google is expanding its Gmail services. As it is I use Gmail all the time and I can’t wait to see what else Google comes up with to offer businesses.

Jessi, H. (2009 September 3). Retreived November 25, 2009. Is Gmail ready for business? Fortune Brainstorm Tech. http://brainstormtech.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2009/09/03/is-gmail-ready-for-business/

Holidays are and time of giving is among us.  Giving to those who are in need is important.  It shows that people care about others.  One group of people are very caring, they donated money to charities and did so in an unconventional way.  The group of people is the online users, specifically SecondLife users.  Four years ago, visitors from SecondLife.com staged a marathon that raised $5,000 for the American Cancer Society.  SecondLife users had their avatars walk around in loops to raise money, a virtual marathon for charity.  This year, the same event raised an astonishing $270,000.  In addition to the virtual marathon, users bought clothes, shoes, and hair for their avatars.  It was incredible, real money was raised in a virtual world.

There were other forms of raising real money through the use of virtual worlds.  In the winter of 2008, PayPal allowed users of Facebook to regift a fruitcake and send it to their friends.  Each time the fruitcake was sent to another friend, PayPal donated one dollar to one of six charities.  By the end of the duration of the event, PayPal donated a total of $122,000 to six charities in forty days.  The success of the operation was due to the ease of participating.  Target also donated money to charity through the use of Facebook.  Target donated 3 million dollars to the charity that got the most votes from Facebook users.  St. Jude Children Hospital was the beneficiary of the donation with over 77,000 votes.  The American Red Cross was a close second, falling short of a couple hundred votes.  They received donations from Target as well.  Charities from Target’s operations received exposure as well as donations.  Charities that did not have the highest votes saw their fan base grow significantly.  Sony participated as well.  Everquest is an online role playing game that is similar to World of Warcraft.   Everquest users who donated five dollars to Child’s Play, a charity that sends games to children’s hospitals, received an ornament for their character.  It raised $21,000.

It is nice to see that charities are benefitting from online and virtual world users.  It shows that these users care about the real world as much as they do the virtual world.  These donators do not receive anything in a physical form and this display even more about their generosity.

Source:  http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/12/giving/12VIRTUAL.html?_r=1&scp=7&sq=Virtual&st=cse

China has been the world’s largest exporter, now it changing its attention to globalization. According to the article, Beijing Automotive Industry has made a bid to buy Opel from bankrupt GM. This means that china companies are eyeing on other companies to expand themselves. The Chinese companies have had great success with two types of globalization. The first is conquering global markets via exports from China. The second is acquisition of natural resource assets in Africa, Australia, and Latin America.

The next wave of globalization by Chinese companies will be requiring smart acquisition of established companies in some of the world’s major economies. For example, USA and Europe countries. However, this will require skillful management of geographically dispersed marketing, manufacturing, and R&D operations.

Globalization will be a great challenge to China companies because of a few issues. First is the language and communication problem, most of the Chinese are not fluent in English, which is the world business language. Second is a majority of Chinese companies usually competes cost efficiency rather than differentiation, competing through differentiation remains a distant concept for them. Another major challenge is to pertained political sensitivity and barriers to potential acquisitions by Chinese companies in other developed economies. Most large corporations in china are state-owned and governments are reluctant to cede control over “strategic” assets to a foreign government.

I picked this article because I chapter 12 talks about globalization and this article talks about challenges China is facing when they try to globalize their companies. I am sure those corporations will find a way to solve their globalization problems and move forward into other countries.

Reference:

Anil K. Gupta and Haiyan Wang.July 10, 2009. Globalization Challenges Facing China Inc. BusinessWeek.

Retrieved from:

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2009/gb20090710_479130.htm