Search results

This telecommunications international business case study is the second in a series (A, B and C) of Vodafone cases.

This case is intended to be used in MBA graduate and undergraduate business courses in strategy, cross-cultural management and human resources.

This case examined organizational structures and human resource operating strategies of Vodafone Egypt from 2002 until 2007. Vodafone’s business model, how Vodafone addressed the differences in national culture between Britain and Egypt and how Vodafone fostered adoption of the Vodafone corporate culture are the main themes of this case. Further, this case examined business issues, products, processes and people systems that challenged Vodafone to grow quickly from zero local operations in 1998 to 4,000 employees and national mobile coverage in 2007.

The students who have used this case in the author’s classes have gained a clearer understanding of how international managers often have to develop a change culture and structure as a catalyst for firm growth in emerging markets. Adaptation to the local culture may not be an option for fast growth technology firms and may be ill-suited to meet corporate objectives.

Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

CSS 5: International Business.

Aarhus Kommunes Biblioteker (Teknisk Bibliotek), Ingerslevs Plads 7, Aarhus, Denmark. Representative: V. NEDERGAARD PEDERSEN (Librarian).

Regulations which have for their object the correct labelling of pre‐packed foodstuffs have been drawn up and issued by the Ministry of Food from time to time as the need for such regulations became evident. Every manufacturer of such foods has without doubt made himself acquainted with these regulations, as well as those whose duty it may become to investigate the nature, substance and quality of any sample of such foodstuffs as may be submitted to him. In spite of this a few general observations may, we think, be of interest to readers. The Ministry of Food was not established primarily either for purposes of historical research or record. Its purposes are more immediate and practical, still the future student of social conditions of these times may in cursorily perusing these regulations and in the assumed absence of other evidence wonder how we managed to survive in health and pocket. However, a “little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.” The misdeeds of the few tend to bring discredit on the many. The regulations have been drawn as much to help the honest manufacturer faced with illegal competition as to discomfort those who by wilful misdescription have endeavoured to raise the practice of adulteration and misdescription of food‐stuffs to the status of a fine art for their own benefit. Conditions created by the war and its after effects are still acutely felt, and are likely to be for a long time to come, in the form of scarcity of many ordinary food‐stuffs and enhanced prices for all. In addition to this, but not exclusively due to the after‐effects of war, increasingly large quantities of pre‐packed and in some cases highly processed foods have been put on the home market. Pre‐packed food is officially described as food made up in advance ready for retail sale in a wrapper or container. The weight or measure must be correct under penalty. Obviously over the counter sales under these conditions demand at least that the legend on the packet label shall be a true statement of its contents. The printing on the labels must also be legible and conspicuous. But, after all, these give little protection to the purchaser, who, by the nature of such a transaction, cannot examine the contents of the packet on the spot. Records of legal action taken under the Food and Drugs Act for the exposure for sale of foods which analytical examination has shown to be of questionable quality are of everyday occurrence, and such foods must in many cases, when sold in packet form, have been misdescribed or incorrectly labelled. These, however, call for no particular notice here. Attention may be recalled to a statement in the main order, No. 1447, 1944, that forbids claims of a general nature as to vitamin or mineral content of a food being made on wrapper, container, or unattached label except for certain vitamins and for calcium, iodine, iron, and phosphorus enumerated in Schedule 1 and 2. No claim shall be made for these either on label or by advertisement unless the amount of these in milligrams per oz. or fluid oz. be stated. It is certain that if many of the articles whose questionable nature has made them the subject of prosecutions under the Food and Drugs Act had been correctly labelled no one in his senses would have thought of buying them. It is, unfortunately, no less certain that a prosecution also suggests successful sale in possibly hundreds of instances. The term food is defined in the main Order as any article used as food or drink for human consumption, and any substance used in the composition or preparation of food, also any flavouring, sweetening matter or condiment, or any colouring matter for use in food. An article shall not be deemed not to be a food by reason only that it is also capable of being used as a medicine. The labelling provisions of the Labelling of Food (No. 2) Order is now amended by an Order, No. 1550 of 1945, so that “sweets,” including British wines and spirituous liquors containing not more than 40 per cent. of proof spirit, are brought within the field of operation of the main Order. In the case of liquors, other than spirits, with a fruit basis, and rhubarb is included in such fruit bases, the nature of these bases must be “appropriately designated” with a specific name in clear block letters not less than one‐eighth inch high with the minimum alcohol content expressed as “per cent. by volume” or “per cent. proof spirit.” This amending Order, in so far as it relates to retail trade, comes into force on April 1st, 1946. It may be added that if a liquor, other than spirits, is not made wholly or in part from fruit, the fact must be stated, together with the alcohol content. The same condition applies in the case of spirits. Unless a liquor, so far as its fruit content goes, is not derived exclusively from grapes, it must not be described as “wine.” If a fruit other than grape has been used the word wine on the label must be preceded by a word, specifying the name of the fruit used, in identical lettering. It is to be hoped that the new regulation briefly referred to above will do something towards clarifying the conditions relating to the sale of alcoholic liquors. The Ministry has stated its willingness to give the trade all possible help in the labelling of alcoholic liquors, of which there now seems to be a very large number of varieties. We may, however, remark that men can no more be made moral by regulations than by Acts of Parliament. It follows, therefore, that when the interests of legitimate trade have been dealt with the misdoings of a residuum will still demand attention. It is likely that as conditions gradually tend to become normal some of the wrong doers may conclude that the game will not present such alluring prospects of immediate gain, but for all that there will still be some who will continue to gamble on the chances of non‐discovery. It seems to us that if people of their own free will choose to place themselves on a level with the common thief they should, if convicted, be treated as such, and that penalties should be not merely a fine, which in many cases they write off as a bad debt, but, as the man in the street has already made a liberal contribution to the finances of these gentlemen, the man in the street would also not be unwilling to give him a holiday free of charge as an acknowledgment of his activities.

On April 2, 1987, IBM unveiled a series of long‐awaited new hardware and software products. The new computer line, dubbed the Personal Systems 30, 50, 60, and 80, seems destined to replace the XT and AT models that are the mainstay of the firm's current personal computer offerings. The numerous changes in hardware and software, while representing improvements on previous IBM technology, will require users purchasing additional computers to make difficult choices as to which of the two IBM architectures to adopt.

“A rose would smell as sweet by any other name,” but does the name make any difference to the composition of a member of the sausage family? Apparently, it does. In two recent cases at Hull (see Legal Proceedings, this issue), it was contended that a meat‐burger should contain 80% meat, similar to the recommendation of the Food Standards Committee for canned meat, and it was shown that meat‐burgers in the district had an average meat content complying with this standard—84% in 42 samples. In one case in question, the meat content was 31% and the retailer claimed in defence that when informed by inspectors of the 80% requirement, he decided to call his products just burgers, which left him free to adopt any composition he desired. The comments of the magistrates are not known, except that they considered the case an interesting one and dismissed it!

THE responsibility for materials handling methods, as for all other production methods, should be made the clear responsibility of the head of Work Study. The reasoning behind that firm conclusion is very logical. Industry in general depends for its success upon the application of some process such as machining or finishing of raw materials. Every such operation adds to its value and builds up a firm's turnover. It is therefore obvious that the more time there is devoted to conversion the less will be wasted on profitless storage or unproductive transport from one part of the works to another.

Those who move among the people with their eyes open will not doubt that the number of non‐smokers is increasing, but mostly among older adults. Sales of cigarettes, despite the ban on advertising and the grim warning printed on packets, do not reflect this however, which can only mean that those who still smoke are the heavy smokers. This is a bad sign; as is the fact that youngsters, including a high percentage of those at school, openly flaunt the habit. The offence of using tobacco or any other smoking mixture or snuff while handling food or in any food room in which there is open food (Reg. 10(e)), remains one of the common causes of prosecutions under the Food Hygiene Regulations; it has not diminished over the years. The commonest offenders are men and especially those in the butchery trade, fishmongers and stall‐holders, but, here again, to those who move around, the habit seems fairely widespread. Parts of cigarettes continue to be a common finding especially in bread and flour confectionery, but also in fresh meat, indicating that an offence has been committed, and only a few of the offenders end up in court. Our purpose in returning to the subject of smoking, however, is not to relate it to food hygiene but to discuss measures of control being suggested by the Government now that advertising bans and printed health warnings have patently failed to achieve their object.

This paper aims to respond to a number of pleas for interdisciplinary – or integrative – approaches to psychology and criminology in exploring the value of simultaneously applying micro and macro analytical tools.

The study reported in this paper applies both the revised psychopathy checklist (PCL‐R) and structural analysis to the historical case of Mary Ann Cotton, a nineteenth century British serial killer.

Findings suggest that multi‐level approaches to analysis are valuable in developing holistic understandings into serial murder, which are appreciative of both the psychological characteristics of the individual offender and their location in the broader social and historical context. Micro analysis would now label Cotton a psychopath, but we need to broaden the analysis and to consider macro questions related to gender, poverty and the wider social structure in which Cotton operated.

In the absence of an interview with the offender, this study has supplemented alternative materials and as such, prompts debate into the application of contemporary tools to historical cases.

The findings imply that the application of PCL‐R alongside structural analytical tools reveals more in‐depth and socially rooted insights into the study of historical cases of serial murder and as such, provide a valuable addition to both criminological and the psychological methodology frameworks.

This research prompts academic debate within psychology and criminology into the potential value of a combined, integrative approach to historical cases drawing upon both micro and macro analytical tools.