The New Paradigm of Globalisation - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 8 Words: 2306 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Uncategorized Essay Type Argumentative essay Did you like this example? Introduction The subject that will be reviewed in this paper is the impact globalisation is having on governments and multinational firms within developing economies, as well as the new risks and costs associated with the globalisation. This review is based on Ian Bremmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Harvard Business Review article à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"The New Rules of Globalisationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ published 2014, in volume 92, January-February, pages 103-107. Globalisation has made developing nationsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ governments reluctant to grant multinationals unbridled access to their local industries, resulting in the implementation of state capitalism. With the 2008 decline of the globalisation trend, the world has seemed to enter a phase of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"guarded globalisationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. Indeed, emerging economies specifically, are taking steps to ensure the strategic protection of essential local industries, and to prevent foreign firms from pushing their agendas domestically. In order to be tter accommodate these new risks, Bremmer suggests the contributing factors to this variation of globalisation, illustrates several strategic approaches executives may follow to lessen the impact of guarded globalisation. These approaches highlight multinationalsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ strategic value to the host government and domestic government. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The New Paradigm of Globalisation" essay for you Create order Body Bremmer argues that one of the main reasons for guarded globalisation is that governments in various developing economies are inclined to change laws or rules regarding the way business may be conducted within their borders. This potentially gives local firms the advantage while erecting financial and political barriers for foreign firms. State capitalism differs from the regular sense of the word, in that the government will seek to control the nationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s market wealth and dominate its economic development, whereas in free markets, the goal is profitability and widespread economic growth. The resurgence of state capitalism influences free markets, thus changing the known globalisation paradigm. A valid point stressed by Bremmer is that if foreign firms wish to cope with the new rules of globalisation they must not only contend with locally-backed firms, but also express their strategic value in the host market. Nevertheless, foreign firms still have a fighting ch ance. The author elaborates several strategies for riding the wave of guarded globalisation in the article. *** The author distinguishes guarded globalisation as a different essence of globalisation; one that is slow-moving, selective and prone to nationalism. This suggests that governments pick the nations they wish to do business with, where they place state investments, and select the state-owned firms they want to support. The movement of guarded globalisation may be attributed to the following factors. Governments are now discovering threats from opening industries to foreign firms because domestic businesses and customers often boycott the foreign entrants. Certain countries have amassed hefty foreign exchange reserves and increased exports. As such those nations are not looking to draw large foreign investments. Governmentsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ national security interests have expanded because of modern threats such as cyber espionage, telecommunications, information technology and financial instability. China doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t follow but instead institutes new international business rules and its socialistic proclivities may threaten globalisation. Developing economiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ leaders are strategically intervening to create one-sided playing fields that lend the upper-hand to domestic players. These five factors are fairly comprehensive list of influences, however a 6th factor may be that governments in all developing economies (Middle East, Asia, South America, Africa), not just the largest BRICS economies, are realizing the strategic importance and economic value of their industries, and are no longer content with allowing foreign multinationals to exploit these sectors. Having obtained strategic industry assistance from previously invited foreign entrants (Pfizer, p103, column 1), they are now learning to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"ride the bikeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ without training wheels, desiring to operate their important industries themselves (Cipla, p103, column 1). Bremmer makes good on his introductory assurance by describing how the plates have shifted with regards to the rise of state capitalism in important emerging markets giving strong examples Russia, China and the UAE, where the degree of state-ownership has become valuable and economically beneficial. Costs and ri sks associated with state capitalism include but arenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t limited to: having to compete with state-backed firms, competing for scarce resources, contending with local price ceilings, and increased government corruptionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ countries tend to differ in the degree of state capitalism. A major finding in this article proposes that although in the recent past, MNEs were granted entry to worldwide industries (food products, clothing), other more key sectors (aircraft manufacturing) were inaccessible. However, in the current environment of guarded globalisation, any industry sector could be deemed as having strategic interest to the state depending on the local governmentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s approach and political disposition. In conclusion, many host countries are now drawing official scrutiny, now that the stateà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s interests have consciously extended beyond previously vital sectors. Whereas state capitalism aims to control market wealth th rough governments playing a dominant role in public sector firms, free market capitalism proposes maximized profits and economic growth for all parties involved. The article clearly reflects the popularity of the state controlling the market, among nations such as China, Russia, India and Brazil, and that controlled markets are crucial to their sustained economic growth and increasing the autocratic regimeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s chances of staying in power, allowing greater control to be exercised over job creation and local living standards. Developing Economies State Capitalism Bremmer declares that Chinese firms account for more than half of the nationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s GDP and jobs, the majority of which are state owned, but didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t provide adequate referencing to back this claim. An implied limiting factor is the effect a nationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s GDP data has on its market, considering these statistics are à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"regressiveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ and generally there is a time difference between the end of the financial quarter and the release date of the GDP figures. Economic challenges for China not listed by Bremmer are: their misleading economic policies which result in Chinaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s dependence on investments and exports, particularly from West, for the growth of their economy, broadening of national income gaps, Chinaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s frail banking system, and the threat of rising environmental pollution. (Source: https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL33534.pdf) Although China, Russia and the UAE have encountered consid erable economic success related to state-owned industries and key companies, and have passed legislation to support state capitalism, other large emergent economies such as Brazil and South Africa show a far lesser degree of success in these endeavors. South African state-owned electricity enterprise Eskom, faces much competition from private sector firms and faces the pressures of not being able to provide sufficient power to the nation by 2016. In contrast, Chinaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s dominant majority of state-run firms account for more than 50% of the nationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s GDP employment. (Original HBR page 104, column 3, paragraph 2) Perhaps Walmartà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s 2012 deal with South Africa to set up local supermarket chains wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t the best long-term deal for the economic sustainability of the state, considering the emergence of Walmart as a giant low-priced supermarket competitor will pressure domestically supported supermarkets such as Checkers, Spa r and Woolworths. Bremmer reminds readers of the importance of not over-paying domestic suppliers of national energy, as the country needs to power its economy. This is certainly an interesting point when contrasted governments such as South Africa, where the private enterprises heavily compete for the control of the energy industry, and if successful would lead to the privatization, and consumers paying overpriced rates for energy. There is a limit to how much state-backed companies can contribute to growth, because if the government is not able to allocate national resources as well as the market can state-capitalist economies grow less innovative and transparent. Perhaps this implication cannot be assumed for all state capitalist nations. Is Bremmer suggesting the UAE is quickly becoming less innovative, despite Dubai and Abu Dhabi boasting one of the most developed economies in the Arab Gulf and claims one of the worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s highest GDP per capita? (Source: ht tps://www.tradingeconomics.com/united-arab-emirates/gdp-growth) We have gained valuable insight as a group from Bremmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s opinion on growing doubts linked to American capitalism. The U.S. governmentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s recently publicized activities of spying on citizens, scandalized by Snowden, makes a large portion of the international community view US firms as proponents of an American variation of state capitalism (gathering data rather than profits). The result is increased scrutiny abroad for U.S. firms, and foreign governments opting to choose to support local companies instead. U.S. telecommunication and IT companies in particular will now face much distrust from the governments in the developing economic sectors they wish to operate. Strength of this article is Bremmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s caution to executives to recognize and anticipate the ways governments in developing nations redefine national interests, and form new restrictive policies against fo reign MNEs. Halting foreign expansion could give rivals all the business, and impulsive foreign market pursuing may be detrimental in the long-run. Further strengths include Bremmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s caution to keep costs of nationally provided energy as low as possible, and the identification of todayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s new global risks for MNEs. (HBR page 106) Weaknesses of this article may include Bremmer voicing that JVs havenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t been popular for years without providing evidence for this claim. Additionally the article draws comparisons between emerging economiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ state-run companies, and how their contribution to GDP varies, however is this not to be expected, taking into account the contrasting differences in population, natural resources, and exports? (Original HBR page 104, column 3, paragraph 23) Is it meaningful to draw conclusions of how effective state capitalism is for developing economies based on the percentage each nationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s state-backed firms contribute to the GDP? What Bremmer wishes managers would learn from this article is to ask themselves: 1) Is our industry strategically important to the government of the host country? 2) Is our industry strategically important to our home government? His 22 matrix is helpful in visualizing a firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s globalisation positioning relative to how mangers answer those questions Strategies for Managing Guarded Globalisation Managers and MNE executives in industries strategically important to home government are urged to consider the following approaches to managing the risks of guarded globalisation. STAYING HOME: Many industry sectors are becoming more politically sensitive. If a firm enters a strategic foreign sector it should as a requisite take into account the possible policy changes that would force it to leave, and develop exit strategies and contingency plans. BECOME MORE à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"STRATEGICà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ AT HOME: Companies making the choice to boost value to home government rather than creating value abroad. They vie for state attention to view their product/services sector as strategic and valuable in hopes of blocking out foreign competition and bolstering profits through creating government relationship ties. USE OF STATE TO FIGHT OTHER STATES: use of government-government relations to sort out problems (BP-UAE oil concession ordeal HBR page 106, column 1 paragraph 2) Com panies must choose which bait to offer to (appease) the host government. Truly, firms in host nations are at the political liberty of the state. They must operate according to set regulations, adapt local perception and act according to host country sensitivities if they wish to continue operating profitably abroad. STRIKE ALLIANCES: Firms partnering with other local player(s) to share risks and profits with the aim of benefiting the industry. Many companies will have to strike partnership deals with local players if they wish to enter the host market. Bremmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s additional strategies for executives include: adding value to the state through a firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s products or services, developing multi-business strategies and investments to diversify and spread risk, building strategic value in developing nations to secure a firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s right to stay within that country where local competitors canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t provide, capitalizing on state capitalism, or firms committing to using local resources to endure state scrutiny Bremmerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s findings build upon Verbekeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s question of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"where to locate what type of activity in which way, and what effect it will have on the company and its environment. We have read about market seeking MNEs and export platforms, penetrating emerging state capitalist industries, through varying modes of entry, their impact in the host economy and how they dealt with competition, changing politics and adaptation to new rules of international business. Moreover we can relate Bartlett and Ghoshalà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s argument of autonomy to the strategic importance of each market, determined by the firm, and the availability of autonomy boosting resources to the firm, such as resources, labor, information flows, and labor. Conclusion To conclude this review, an organisation willing to operate in emerging markets, where the state capital and the political influence of firms is high, has to account for some setbacks. The political system in the home country of a firm can and will likely back local players, because they want their domestic companies and economy to flourish. These setbacks can be the objection of licenses, new business laws, and price limit on certain goods. To adapt to these setbacks and to obtain a better market position in these emerging markets Bremmer has some tactics for organisations to use. In short, the article is current and valuable for managers and students, providing an update on pertinent changes of the new rules of capitalism and the way developing economies are altering the perception of international business. There are however some questions left unanswered, which we would like to ask the author: You do give some specific examples of strategic firm tactics you propose will aid executives in dealing with guarded globalisation, but what tactic would you recommend for what size of organisation? And can it also be an aggregation of multiple tactics? Do you think that a worldwide organisation should intervene in the emerging markets, as a third party that erects financial and political barriers for exploitive foreign firms trying to enter? And why or why not? What do you propose will happen to the American version of state capitalism, which you suggest focuses on gathering data rather than profits, now that their reputation has been damaged by global distrust due to the recent IT/internet privacy scandals? Page | 1

Susan Glaspell s Trifles Essay - 966 Words

Abandoned places are always ready to tell a story, even the newly deserted ones. In Susan Glaspell’s play â€Å"Trifles,† the setting is the still, recently abandoned kitchen of a recently dead Mr. Wright. The story focuses on the sheriff’s and witness’s wives and their slow realization of who killed Mr. Wright and why. These realizations could not have happened if the wives were anywhere other than where they were. The time period, the kitchen itself, and the cheerlessness of the house all assist in unraveling the story of a house to be left behind. The time period of the play is between the late 1800s and the early 1900s. This aspect is very important throughout the play because of what the time period means for the female characters. In this rough time frame, women were not a big part of the functions of society. Most jobs were men’s only; this left the women to tend to the house and children. [PP2] Throughout the play, Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale follow this stereotype as they focus on the homemaking aspects of what was left behind. The men are disdainful of this, saying, â€Å"held for murder and worryin’ about her preserves† (?) or â€Å"women are used to worrying over trifles† (?). They dismiss the wives as if they were children to be mollified until they have something to do, and they do not even consider the possibility of the wives lying or withholding information, despite the fact that they acted â€Å"loyal to [their] sex† (?) earlier in the play. That lack of consideration for womenShow MoreRelatedTrifles : Susan Glaspell s Trifles940 Words   |  4 PagesWhat is a trifle? A trifle is something that has little to no importance (dictionary.com). For instance, the color of your nails would be considered a trifle. In Trifles by Susan Glaspell, women are criticized and made fun of by men because of the little things they worry about, such as the color of their nails or their hair. This exhib its the gender role difference portrayed during the play’s time period. The central conflict is what the plot is centered around. In Trifles, the central conflictRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles 1732 Words   |  7 PagesSusan Glaspell (1876-1948) was an American-born Pulitzer Prize winning writer of both plays and fiction. Glaspell came from humble beginnings and went on to study at Drake University and the University of Chicago. Much of Glaspell s work dealt with the relationships between men and women and the negative effects they have on women. In Glaspell s play Trifles, it is revealed that the operations of patriarchy are just an illusion that men have created to make themselves feel superior to womenRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles 1577 Words   |  7 Pagesfeminism are published. 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Susan Glaspell, a writer in the early twentieth century, lived during a time when womenRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles Essay1460 Words   |  6 PagesAn Analysis of Susan Glaspell Trifles The play, Trifles by Susan Glaspell shows her preoccupation with gender and sex roles as notions of culture. The author is spells out the treatment of women as mere trifles in the society, as less important when compared to men. This calls for the questioning of the role of both men and women in the society with regard to the value and devalue given to perspective and knowledge. The reader should thus realize that women have an important role to play in theRead MoreSusan Glaspell s Trifles Essay2025 Words   |  9 Pagescoming?† (Welty qtd. In Literature ). Trifles is a short play, by Susan Glaspell that was written in the 20th century when women were possession of the husband. 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20th Centaury Poetry Assignment †Welsh Poetry Comparison Free Essays

This essay will examine ideas of Welshness presented by Kelly Jones the lead singer of the Stereophonics and Welsh Poet R S Thomas and explore how they put them across. Both convey similar ideas in their work but in very different contexts Kelly Jones was born in June 1974, in the same hospital as Richard Jones. They grew up in a small village called Cwmaman. We will write a custom essay sample on 20th Centaury Poetry Assignment – Welsh Poetry Comparison or any similar topic only for you Order Now It is describes as a dull and lifeless area where nothing much goes on. With a population of only 1000, it’s a very closed in community, with old women twitching their curtains and everybody knows each other’s business. The small village of Cwmaman was a mining village, though the pit has long since shut the houses that Kelly Jones grew up in were originally built for colliery bosses with the loftier ones being occupied by colliery bosses. Kelly Credits Cwmaman as having a good pub culture by which he means kids is allowed to go into licensed premises with their parents. There are four main key ideas/themes in this poem, time, boredom, routine, and escaping. The time of the song is important, because in the video to this song we see people walking back, and the Stereophonics are the only people walking forward this suggesting that Cwmaman is a place where there is no opportunities, and only the Sterephonics are making something out of a bad situation. The theme routine, suggests that there is nothing new going on in Cwmaman, and that everything is the same, people do the same thing day in day out so nothing ever changes, and the last theme escaping could be talking about the local character â€Å"Mac the knife† and â€Å"the ladies wearing lipstick on their teeth† and how they escape by drinking and having fun, forgetting all the problems in this village The song â€Å"More Life In A Tramp’s Vest† was written by Kelly Hones on the back of a paper back one day while he was working in the fruit and veg stall in the market. The title â€Å"More Life In A Tramp’s Vest† has a special meaning to it, this being that a trams vest which hasn’t been washed more months on end could have lots of flees in it, therefore the flees are happily bouncing around, so what Kelly Jones is trying to say is the flees are having more fun by being on the tramp than Cwmaman has year in year out. Kelly Jones opens the poem by saying † I get camping eyes in the final hour† If you are said to have camping eyes then generally you are very tired, because if you go camping then you hardly get any sleep, so what he is saying is he’s tired. In the final hour could mean his final hour of work. He is trying to say he’s tired in the last hour of work â€Å"Last mute shoppers picking cauliflower† Here Kelly Jones is saying how the last minute shoppers are being so fussy on the vegetables they are picking, and they are holding him up from closing the stall down. â€Å"The fuss you make, you swear They were buying a car† The people who are choosing cauliflower are being so fussy that they are talking lots of time picking through them trying to find the one that has the least marks, and this is making Kelly Jones very angry because he is waiting to go home. â€Å"Always moan, moan its not so cheap, Cheaper still, cheaper still down the street† This could mean that the people who are holding him up from going home are being picky and trying to get the price even cheaper, by saying the person on the stall down the road have the same goods for cheaper. â€Å"I loose my rag and tell them Take your back and shop down there† Kelly Jones is now very frustrated because these people are being so fussy, stopping him from closing his stall, coning about the price of goods, so he yells at them and says go down there to shop. We can sympathise because he has been working all day and is probably tired of boredom. â€Å"Closing down, closing down another road One-way system steals the show† Closing down, closing down another road could mean that they are closing down another road of their life, they are running out of alternatives just like if you were in a car going down a one way street you have no where to go but if you have a normal road you can go up and down it, one way system steals the show, this could be the equivalent to their lives, meaning that there is no future what so ever in Cwmaman, and they that the people are doing nothing about it. â€Å"Mac the knife swings a can And sings the day away† These sentences could mean that this local character Mac the Knife is trying to escape from boredom by drinking and trying to drown his sorrows, and singing the day away could seem like good entertainment for him because he doesn’t know what he is doing. The chorus of this song has a persuasive technique, because instead of just saying there is more life in a tramps vest they say more life three times before continuing with in a tramps vest, then they repeat the whole line again. This is a repetitive technique used to make something stand out more and get a point across that there is more life in a tramps vest. â€Å"Flower man sits down in the street Surrounded by stock that he brought back last week† The flower man who had bought stock last week cannot sell it, so he is in the middle of it probably trying to sell it, which could be a hard task because people normally buy flowers to celebrate something but because in Cwmaman there is nothing to celebrate no body is buying any flowers. In this next line there is a very clever word association, there is no real effect for this, its just better than having a normal sentence, it says â€Å"Bring back the ladies wearing lipstick on their teeth Make up, we make up a crappy joke† The word association is with â€Å"lipstick† and â€Å"make up,† but why do they want the ladies to come back, is it because they were the only source of fun and life in that town? And why are they making up a crappy joke? Why not make a good one? The answer is that since these ladies have left Cwmaman for whatever reason the life of the village has gone down and become boring. The jokes that were considered as rubbish now seem like good jokes that people will laugh at. â€Å"Sit back, relax and have a smoke† If you read this sentence, it says sit back which could mean take a step back and look at our life, then you have a comma which is like a little pause, then you have relax, and have a smoke. This could mean that Kelly Jones wants us the reader to sit back, pause, relax which is like another pause, and take a look at his life, and the stressfulness of work, and how he smokes to relax. On the last 2 lines of the song it says â€Å"Mac the knife swings a can And sings the day away† This is a repeat of what is said on the end of the 3rd verse of this song, which could be to try and say this is what we all should be doing because Mac the Knife is enjoying himself. The last part of the song is the chorus, which is said again. This brings a negative end to the poem because not only has it ended where it begun, it proves that there has been no progress in the development of Cwmaman. Kelly Jones’ aim was not to show the readers/listeners that Wales is a boring place to live, but to say that there is nothing to do in Cwmaman. The tone of this poem was mainly sad â€Å"I get camping eyes in the final hour† he’s getting tired of work and stressed over what he is doing, the song if very negative â€Å"there’s more life more life more life in a tramps vest† if you are saying that there is more life in a tramp that goes around smelling all day long then things must be very bad! This song shows some signs of Kelly Jones getting frustrated â€Å"I loose my rag and tell them take your bag and shop down there† if he is saying this to a customer, he must be very angry because he is telling somebody to go and shop somewhere else instead of coming to his stall to shop. The pace of this poem seems to speed up as they get closer to the main chorus, probably because they are trying to let of some steam and have some fun. Over all Kelly Jones makes welsh life in Cwmaman look dull, lifeless and boarding, he is continually negative about Cwmaman in the song and it seems that this mining village is going no where fast! How to cite 20th Centaury Poetry Assignment – Welsh Poetry Comparison, Papers

Logistics And Supply Chain Management Digitalization

Question: Discuss about theLogistics And Supply Chain Management for Digitalization. Answer: Introduction: With the latest trend of globalization, Agility and digitalization, Supply Chain management and logistics is has become quite critical for any organization. Specialists are saying that the supply chains provide the competitive advantage to any organization. For instance, consider Dell, Amazon, Wal-mart, Zara, they are known throughout the world for their supply chain excellence. Also, Due to constant innovation and new product development, Product lifecycle has also become shorter and it is a matter of few days before a latest fad fades away and if the supply chain is not fast, Organization will suffer huge losses due to excess inventory at various storage locations of supply chain. Zara is one such organization that is known in the world for managing its supply chain and operations very well. The objective of this report is to discuss how Zara is maintaining excellence in its supply chain and its key strategy. Along with that, further open issues like role of technology in supply ch ain management and sustainable practices will also be discussed. Inventory Management and Strategic Planning Zara has a very good sourcing strategy. Fabric is the most important raw material for the textile companies and since their suppliers are located across the world and have high lead time in delivering the material, they started procuring the material long before season accounting for higher lead times. Zara has suppliers in Italy, Spain, and Germany and outside Europe also. Those suppliers located in Europe fulfill the orders in 5-6 days however suppliers outside Europe takes long time. Zara collaborate with its supplier by sharing of the information and latest trend through establishing long term relations. Zara uses Oracle Demantra for forecasting demand (Tan 2006).. They also uses reverse auction whereby various vendors can bid as well they see the lowest quite also. In this way, Zara get very good quotes from its suppliers. The most important part of their strategy is delayed differentiation or postponement which helps them to keep the inventory levels lower as well save the inventory from getting obsolete. This means they keep the most of the inventory as work in progress inventory and convert it into finished goods only when it is clear about the latest trends which are in demand. Zara does not believe in new product development but in exploiting the latest trends. They operate in a reverse fashion. They try to analyze the consumers taste and their liking and disliking about certain patterns and then exploit those patterns to create more demand. Thus, they uses the postponement strategy whereby manufacturing of finished goods is delayed to a last minute as per the market demand and carry their inventory in semi-finished form (Chaudhry, Hodge, 2012). Zara sell high variety and low volume and thus use flexible manufacturing to achieve that. Zaras Distribution Strategy/ Logistics Distribution strategy is very important for the organizations these days because of a short product life cycle and constantly changing tastes and patterns of the consumers. The finished good inventory which is process of being transferred from 1 place to another risks has the risk of becoming obsolete by the time it reaches to the market if it remains in transportation for long time. Zara maintain the agility of its supply chain using GPRS enabled trucks and Air medium and thus they fulfill the orders from more than 1800 stores in seventy countries worldwide in just less 15 days. Zaras stores that are in Europe are replenished by the GPRS enabled truck having dynamic routes based on the communication with the central server through the technology and thus can fulfill the orders from maximum number of stores in a fastest way with minimizing the number of the trips. For stores which are outside Europe, they are using Air logistics to fulfill the orders. It is fastest which makes its ex pensive too but this medium makes perfect sense for Zara s it competes on agility and thus this medium is aligned with the strategy of Zara (Vijayan, Kamarulzaman, Mukherjee, Vaiappuri, 2015). They need to make sure that latest fashions should be in the stores at an appropriate time. They also replenish their stores twice a week so that customer will always find new products on the shelves whenever they visit Zaras stores Figure 1: Zara's Supply Chain SCM in a Globalized World and Sustainable Practices in SCM Globalization has become a buzzword today. Organizations are buying raw materials from the suppliers across the world and also selling their goods and services to customers across the world. As a result, supply chains are also become difficult to maintain as often there are longer lead times. Competition is at all time high and product life cycles are also becoming very small. It is very important all the supply chain should focus on the customers. Customer focus is very important practice in supply chains of today. Zara is always focuses on customers and (Gaubinger, Rabl, Swam, Werani, 2015) carry their most of the inventory in a semi-finished form and convert it into finished goods after analyzing the latest trends among the consumers (Chaudhry, Hodge, 2012). Constant innovation is the supply chain is the most important criteria if the organizations wanted to sustain. Not only this, Technology which was seen once as an enabler has now become the differentiator and organizations must adapt to latest technology and process excellence to sustain (Martinex, Errasati, Rudberg, Mediavilla, 2015). . Inventory minimization across supply chain is another important sustainable practice for the corporates. The Role of Information Technology in SCM Information technology has been a differentiator in different supply chain. They can provide huge amount of information and increase the visibility of inventory across various channels which helps to balance demand and supply better. Zara has always at the forefront of the technology. They adopted RFID, latest technology at a time when there are not many successful case studies about the RFID. RFID helps significantly to reduce the inventory and track the items in a more effective way (Madhani, 2011). It helps Zara to automate various processes like shipping and receiving the material. They are using best of the software for e-procurement and demand forecasting. They are also using analytics since their business is based on interpreting latest design and patterns among customers and then to exploit them. Analytics helped them better in analyzing the trends. References Chaudhry, H., Hodge, G. (2012). Postponement and supply chain structure: cases from the textile and apparel industry. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 16(1), 64-80. Gaubinger, K., Rabl, M., Swan, S., Werani, T. (2015). Life Cycle Management. InInnovation and Product Management(pp. 207-220). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Madhani, P. M. (2011). RFID deployment: Fast fashion retailing. SCMS Journal of Indian Management, 8(2), 40-51. Martnez, S., Errasti, A., Rudberg, M., Mediavilla, M. (2015). Clothing Industry: Main Challenges in the Supply Chain Management of Value Brand Retailers. InEnhancing Synergies in a Collaborative Environment(pp. 69-76). Springer International Publishing. Tan, P. K. (2006).Demand management: a cross-industry analysis of supply-demand planning(Doctoral dissertation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology). Vijayan, G., Kamarulzaman, N. H., Mukherjee, A., Vaiappuri, S. K. (2015). Strategic Value Creation in a Supply Chain.Handbook of Research on Global Supply Chain Management, 186.