Stakeholders Of Marks And Spencer Commerce Essay

Stakeholders Of Marks And Spencer Commerce Essay Marks and Spencer is an international retailer headquartered in London. It was formed in the year 1884 by Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer in partnership. It mainly specializes in cloth lines and high end food products. The major product lines of the organization are womens wear, children wear, sportswear, baby wear, perfumes and cosmetics, food and beverages, home appliances and etc. The brand has over 703 stores in UK and around 361 stores throughout the globe. The company recorded an annual turnover of  £9,934.3 billion by the end of year 2011. The firms profit for the year 2012 was projected to be  £489.6 million (Aaker, 2007). A wide range of information is required by the key stakeholder groups, for instance, customers want to know about the various products that the company is offering them, discount options available, information about the after sales services and etc. Likewise, the shareholders are interested in getting details regarding their dividends plus companys financial reports (Kisielnicki, 2011). Similarly, the community wants to know the operational style of the retailer to ensure that it is not violating any law of the land like employee exploitation, any threat to the environment and etc. Its competitors like Tesco, ASDA wish to know about the sales figure of the company, its position in the market, to analyze their competitive positioning. Information required by stakeholders in different organizations Monitoring and evaluation comprises of analysis and collection of data. All the relevant parties at every level need information for their respective subjects. Project managers require information about the consequences of a specific project to plan control the projects in a better way. Almost every organization publishes reports to give information to its stakeholders (Lee-Kelley and Sankey, 2008). Systems used for communicating with the Marks Spencer stakeholders In Marks Spencer, communication is all about the transmission of information. The company has both internal as well as external communication. Internal communication exists within the business of the retail giant, whereas external communication is present outside the boundaries of business. Both internal and external communications have witnessed great transformation owing to the rapid developments in communication and information technology. The company boasts of: An interconnected system of internal communication- internal network. An e-commerce system for B2C connections. An e-commerce system for B2B connections. When all these links are integrated with each other, a networked economy is created, which has greatly increased the potential of the company to associate with its workforce, customers, suppliers and other stakeholders. The internal communication, i.e. communication with employees, shareholders is carried out in three ways i.e. oral, written and electronic. Information is transmitted verbally via face to face interactions, voice mails and etc. Information is communicated in written form by issuing letters, memos, and annual reports. Electronic communication is quickly overtaking other forms. The company has integrated this system in effectively. For instance, the stock list is now easily transmitted electronically from the supermarket to the main office. Transmission of all documents also takes place via emails only (Report on the Business of Marks and Spencer, n.d). Marks and Spencer communicates with its external stakeholders like customers, community, government and etc. using external modes of communication. Its public relation function is a tool to effectively communicate its nice image to the concerned people. Websites, advertisements, promotional campaigns, business letters are some other methods through which the company communicates with its outside key stakeholders (Electronic Shareholder Communication, 2012). Barriers in workplace communication There are several barriers to effective communication in the organization. Some of them are listed below: Inefficient listening skills Poor listening results from: Passive and not active listening and involvement when a person is speaking. No involvement with the subject matter or the other person. Material distractions like excessive noise in the environment, bad network. Disparity in the opinion with the person who is speaking, which results in mentally shutting off the other person. Biasness also creeps in, when a person chooses to listen to only some part and ignore the rest of the part (Perry, 2009). Information overload Receiving a message that contains too much information also acts as a barrier to effective communication. The receiver is not able to correctly interpret or decipher the information because of too many facts. For instance, if the company has put up an advertisement regarding its new product or offer, and too much information has been put into it, then the customer wont be able to digest all of it (4 Barriers to Effective Communication What to Do About Them, 2011). Non-Verbal Gestures At times, it might happen that what a person is speaking is contradicted by his body language and gestures. When this happens, the other person is likely to remember what he saw and not what he heard. Assumptions Postulating literally sabotages effective communication. For example, when the marketing head of Marks Spencer sees that his subordinates are nodding, he assumes that they understand what he is trying to convey, but the case may be totally opposite as well (4 Barriers to Effective Communication What to Do About Them, 2011). Influence of culture and values on communication Every culture and every behavior involves the use of communication. Thus, communication can be said to be a transmitting medium for the ideas and values of different culture. Personalities of people, their respective values and understanding levels also influence communication (Hyde and Williamson, 2000). Cultural Individualism- Collectivism affects communication through cultural norms and values which are beneath the broad culture. This directly impacts communication by way of the characteristics that an individual learns when he/she socializes. For instance, the Americans display individualism, whereas, Asians display collectivism. As Marks Spencer offers its products to both these regions, the cultural differences in the two areas are to be thoroughly considered and accordingly plan its communication strategies (Abubaker, n.d). High as well as low context communication is followed in every culture throughout the globe. People following collectivism culture use high context communication while fostering group cohesion and communicate in a straightforward manner. People belonging to individualistic culture use low context messages and communicate in an indirect manner. Cultures which are of high uncertainty avoidance nature follow unambiguous customs and norms to direct behavior for all kinds of situations. On the other hand, cultures with low uncertainty avoidance tendency are quite ambiguous and lack formal strictness. Face negotiation theory is a theory concerning the behavior and discussion in conflicting situations of people following collectivism and individualism. This theory is very popular for cross culture communication (Stubbs, n.d). Marks Spencer gives a lot of emphasis to cultural disparities and tries to comprehend plus eliminate all such gaps. Some of the initiatives started by the company are- Cross Cultural exposure The Company sends its employees to other countries for a definite period of time to acquaint them with other cultures. The employees stay there, work in other retail outlets of Marks Spencer and learn about the cultures and values of that place (Alon, 2000). Training and Workshops The company provides training and conducts workshops to train its executives in handling of various cultural issues and problems. Hiring multinational and multi cultural employees The organizations aims at hiring people from different cultures and nationality to create a synthesis of various cultures. Cognitive Dissonance This theory states that people are highly motivated to avoid differences in opinions arising out cultural disparities. People generally ignore listening to perspectives that contradict their own, in order to avoid conflicts and disharmony (Morton, 2005). The use of technology- how it fosters and hinders communication It is an obvious fact that communication is the foundation of our society. The commencement of communication technology and its several benefits has made the conducting of business easier internationally. Cost Savings- Cost savings is the biggest advantage of the improvement of technology in business communication. Activities that once involved huge capital can now be finished off easily and in less time. For instance, prior to the commencement of Voice of Internet Protocol technology, making a long distance call was very costly. But, owing to VoIP and cellular telephone technology making calls has become very cheap. Similarly, earlier the only way to send letters from one place to another was to take the services of a messenger or postal service. The email, however, has eliminated the need to transport hard copies (Esmailzadeh, 2006). Speed- The new technology has also increased the speed at which business operations take place. This is especially beneficial to retail companies that have interaction with suppliers in far-away locations. For instance, previously they had to plan meetings for individuals who are in different locations. Now, they can contact one another, sitting at their respective places owing to the video conferencing techniques (Derr, 2002). Hiring of Qualified employees- Several jobs that never existed before have now been created. Skilled professionals are required to maintain, install and operate new information and communication technology tools. On the other hand, the same technology can also act as an impediment to the business communication: Impersonal Attitude Employees might view electronic communication as impersonal if they only receive messages from managers through email. It also creates confusion as this requires more feedback in comparison to personal communication methods. Security Issues The new technology also raises several security concerns. Emails, text messages and other website communication are often vulnerable to be hacked by hackers or other individuals who should not have any rightful access to information (Hoof and et.al., 2005). High tech Equipment Expense The Company has to acquire new equipments to implement business communication technology in its operations. It also requires hiring a person who is capable of handling maintenance issues. This is an additional cost to the company (Wood, 2010). Difficulty Training Employees Retail companies face difficulty training employees about how to make use of the latest technology. They may have a difficult time making them understand the technology and how it work. The company might require shelling out a large sum of money on employee training (Miller, 2011). The procedure of communication from sender to receiver: Encoder: There should be a sender who wants s to communicate the idea. Message: A message can be in various forms verbal, non verbal, written, and electronic. Channel:Messages  are  conveyed  through  channels,  with  non ­verbal  Ã‚  verbal  social  interactions like televisions, telephone, meetings, conferences etc. Decoder: A decoder is the person who receives the message from the sender and decodes it to get the real meaning. Feedback: The receiver will give feedback as per his understanding of the message. Context: The  situation  in  which  your  message  is  delivered  is  the  context (Guffe and Loewy, 2010). Recommendations for the improvement of the Marks Spencer communication   To improve cultural communication between superiors subordinates, the following are the actions that can be taken: Implementation of more Intensive Information System: Technology plays an essential role in the activities of business, Therefore it is essential to improve the Information system of the organization by making sure that all of the employees will be connected to the latest updated communication system. It is also significant to focus on the various coaching and training procedures, where the recruits can apply for and get online class and seminars about different knowledge and skills, which will be supportive in order to fully motivate them to develop and improve, also leaders will have their thoughts about the demands and needs of the staff, which will be helpful in the process of implementing and planning programs and measures that will help to improve the motivation and spirit of the staff (Datamonitor Report, 2011). Focus more on the Culture influence on Communication: It is important for the company to stress on the variety of cultures, and how it can influence their communication. Therefore the below mentioned things can be done to enhance communication in cultural differences: Cross cultural training Intercultural management training Translation services (Miller, 2011) Measures that should be taken to have an effective Communication Plan Minimizing barriers to effective communication. Rendering proper communication an integral part of the overall plan. To bring out the untapped opportunities for improved communication, have effective systems in place. Conduct an assessment to evaluate the communication skills the retailer and find out areas which require polishing. Regular provision for training employees in improving their interpersonal skills communication skills and. Employ team in charge of the overall Communication of the company. Positive indicators that communication is more likely to be handled daily: Visible actions indicators A culture that endorses direct yet non-threatening dialogue in interpersonal relations. A culture that comprehends non-verbal communications (Aaker, 2007). CONCLUSION Thus it can be concluded that information is required by all stakeholder groups of an organization, though their information requirement varies. In Marks Spencer both internal as well as external communication exists. Internal communication exists within the business of the retail giant, whereas external communication is present outside the boundaries of business. The company has an interconnected system of internal communication- internal network, an e-commerce system for B2C connections and an e-commerce system for B2B connections. Marks Spencer also gives a lot of emphasis to cultural disparities and tries to comprehend plus eliminate all such gaps (Alon, 2000).

The February 1917 Revolution

The February 1917 Revolution The two revolutions of 1905 and 1917 were both different in their own ways. The 1905 revolution was ultimately crushed but it was crucial and necessary in succeeding to overthrow the Tsar in the February revolution of 1917. Key factors that played a part in the 1905 revolution were exploited by Bolshevik leaders such as Lenin, Trotsky and Stalin in the 1917 revolution. These Bolsheviks who were exiled learned from the 1905 revolution and capitalized on this in the 1917 revolution. The 1905 revolution was caused by a numerous amount of reasons. Discontentment with living conditions in Russia amongst the people was the main instigator of the revolution. While Russias labor force grew, the living conditions of the workers diminished. This saw a need for a better way of life for the workers. The Russo Japanese War between 1904 1905 caused even more discontent between the workers and peasants because of the inflation the war had caused. The workers who just had enough to eat before the war now starved. On January 9 1905, Priest Father Gabon led a unarmed and peaceful march to the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to present a petition to the Tsar demanding the end of the war, industrial reform, a constituent assembly and more civil liberties for the Russian masses. The petition does not blame the Tsar for all the problems that have been caused rather than blaming those who come between the Tsar and his people. According to Nelson this petition reflects continuing confidence in the Tsar as the source of initiative and change in the system.  [1]  However, the Russian guard unprovoked opened fire on the people killing and injuring many of them. This dramatic event ultimately lead to the erosion of the popular image of the Tsar and the major sustaining myth of the Tsarist structure.  [2]   These two events were the ultimate reasons for revolution in 1905. However, we must examine as to why the 1905 revolution failed to overthrow Tsar. The political parties that were involved in the 1905 revolution shared the same goal of overthrowing the Tsar but they were divided rather than united. Each of the political parties had their own way of tackling Tsardom. Because of this it allowed the monarchy to crush any form of resistance against Tsardom. The political parties also had discontent amongst themselves: the Mensheviks disagreed with the Bolsheviks and also the moderate Socialist Revolutionaries disagreed with the radical Socialist revolutionaries. This also lead to the internal structure of the parties being weak and struggling to overthrow the monarchy. The propaganda programs led by the political parties failed to secure the support from the masses. Their ideas did not represent the wishes of the masses for social and economic reforms. The social democrats promoted the creation of a Socialist State through a class struggle. However, many of the workers failed to understand the revolutionaries ideas and only wanted an improved economic livelihood. The Socialist revolutionaries campaigned for the government takeover of land , even though the peasants wanted just the land to be divided amongst themselves. The 1905 revolution was momentous as it was the first time in Russia millions of people took part in a revolutionary movement. In and around Russia, Soviets were formed and acted as a somewhat government and ordered the workers not to pay taxes and to go on strikes. The peasants also formed a peasant union which was replicated along with the Soviets in the 1917 revolution. According to Lenin, the 1905 revolution was the Great dress rehearsal for the February revolution of 1917.  [3]  These new forms of worker organizations would later be the centerpiece of the successful revolution of 1917. After Tsar Nicholas II signed the October Manifesto in 1905, it seemed as though the needs of the workers and peasants were met. This manifesto gave the people certain civil rights, introduced the Duma and turned Russia into a constitutional monarchy. Even though Tsar Nicholas II promised certain civil rights and the Duma in the October Manifesto, he abused it shortly after the 1905 revolution. This infringement of the October Manifesto also led to the beginning of the February revolution. World War I impacted the February revolution the same way the Russo Japanese War had impacted in 1905. Defeat and causalities in the war disheartened the Russian population and wanted the Tsar to withdraw from the war. Following on in March 1917, workers in Petrograd went on strike demanding food: whereas in 1905 the workers were striking for civil rights. The war had inflated the price of bread and the Russians were unable to afford it. In spite of the strikes, Tsar Nicholas II ordered the army to take care of the strikers but unlike in 1905 on Bloody Sunday were the troops opened fire, this time they teamed up with the people. Unlike what happened in the 1905 revolution, this saw the Duma set up a provisional government to rule the country and consequently the workers and troops followed setting up their own branches of Soviets. The provisional governments ruled as long as it obeyed by the wishes of the Soviets. At this stage in Russia, it created the opportunity for a political party to form and take control of Russia. Lenin who had been in exile, along with Trotsky comprised the Bolshevik party and began to win the support of the masses. Their main slogans were Peace, Land and bread and All power to the Soviets. This attracted the masses which promised them a sustainable way of life: unlike in 1905 were this was not seen. The Mensheviks and the Socialist Revolutionary party lost the support of the people as decided to continue fighting in World War I. Lenin, backed by the Red Guard soon took control over Petrograd and by October the Bolsheviks had complete control of Russia. The revolutions of 1905 and 1917 differed in their own individual way. In 1905, the workers and peasants revolted on their own and even though political parties had tried to seize control of Russia, they failed in each respect to have the organization and support to do so. However, as we see in 1917, the Bolshevik party was far more organized and structured which lead to them taking complete control. While Lenin and other leaders were in exile, they had learned from the 1905 revolution and this knowledge proved invaluable in how to gain support of the masses and the importance of propaganda. Propaganda had made a significant difference from both revolutions. In 1905, the political parties did not promise anything to the people. However, as we see in the 1917 revolution, slogans such as Peace, Land and bread proved pivotal and unquestionably made the revolution successful.

Cicso Systems vs Huawei Technologies :: Lawsuit Law Intellectual Property Essays

Cicso Systems vs Huawei Technologies I. Cisco Systems files lawsuit against Huawei Technologies Cisco Systems filed a lawsuit against Huawei Technologies on January 23, 2003 claiming that Huawei had copied, misappropriated, and infringed on Cisco’s intellectual property in its rival line of low-cost networking routers.1 Cisco Systems is an industry leader in providing networking equipment for voice and data transfer. Huawei Technologies is China’s leading manufacturer of telecom and network equipment gear and is viewed by analysts as a formidable competitor to Cisco2. II. Details of the lawsuit Cisco’s allegations include the following:3 . Copying of IOS source code: IOS (Internetworking Operating System) is Cisco’s proprietary operating system. Cisco claims that Huawei’s operating system contains text strings, file names, and even bugs that are identical to those in Cisco’s IOS source code. . Copying of Cisco’s technical documentation: Cisco alleges that whole portions of text from Cisco’s copyrighted technical documentation are found in Huawei’s user manuals for their Quidway routers and switches. . Copying of Command Line Interface: A Command Line Interface (CLI) is the interface through which a user issues commands to a router. Cisco claims that extensive portions of its CLI and help screens appear verbatim in Huawei’s operating system for its Quidway routers and switches. . Patent infringement: Cisco alleges that Huawei is infringing at least five Cisco patents related to proprietary routing protocols. Cisco wants a preliminary and permanent injunction prohibiting the use, sales, marketing, and distribution of Huawei’s Quidway routers and switches. The suit includes an order to triple all damages, an amount to be determined by a jury during a trial.4 Cisco also took action against a Huawei distributor in the United Kingdom. Spot Distribution received a cease and desist letter for distributing Huawei products that allegedly infringe Cisco’s intellectual property.5 Cisco filed the case in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas,6 nearby Plano, Texas, where it has a subsidiary. The court is reputed to be knowledgeable about patent and intellectual property infringement cases, sympathetic to patent holders, and quick to issue injunctions. While patents granted in the United States are only enforceable in the United States, copyright laws are enforced worldwide.

Pen Pals: Based On X-files Characters :: essays research papers

Pen Pals: Based On X-Files Characters Forward: This story was written based on the X-Files characters created by Chris Carter and Ten Thirteen productions. In no way this story is being used to infringe or defame these characters or the X-Files television series. The story is based on my speculation of what happened to Agent Fox Mulder's sister when she was a child. According to the writers of the X-Files, this story has no affiliation to what really happened to Samantha Mulder when she was a child, as no one really knows the whole story. As the series unfolds, we will hopefully learn more about what happens. I have submitted my story to the writers & producers of the X-Files via the Internet in hopes they will use my story in a future episode. This story is also available over the Internet on my home page so others can view it at their leisure. The idea for this story has been in the back of my mind before I was assigned this project. I have always loved the X-Files since it premiered and within the past year, I have submitted my stories, ideas, and suggestions to the writers of the X-Files. Unfortunately, none of my ideas have been selected. Lots of activity regarding the X-Files goes on over the Internet, and through discussions are where I get a lot of my ideas for the stories that I write. =============================================== June 8th, 1996 6:58pm- Washington, DC, Scully's Apartment Dana Scully arrived home to find a package sitting in the hallway outside her door. Curious, she picked it up and tucked it under her arm while she let herself into the apartment. Once inside, she set the box wrapped in brown paper down on her dining table and left it there while she hung up her coat and kicked off her high heels. Mulder would be coming over later to discuss the case they were currently working on, but until then, she wanted to relax. She made herself a cup of hot coffee and carried both it and the package with her over to the sofa. She noticed that her mother's return address was on the label. I wonder what this could be? She didn't say she was going to be sending me anything. Dana set her tea down and ripped the paper open. Inside she found a rather old, very familiar shoebox with an envelope taped to the top. She opened the envelope and read the letter her mother had enclosed. Dear Dana, I found this when I was going through some boxes in the attic and almost threw

My Beautiful Gun :: Personal Narrative Writing

If you really want to stop a conversation dead in its tracks, tell people you own a gun. Depending on where you are located, people often don't know how to process the idea that a young woman is a proud, capable, unapologetic gun owner. Men aren't sure if you're a rabid, man-hating feminist arming yourself against the patriarchy. Women are a little more curious and might ask questions — why did you get a gun, what does it look like — but many of them would never consider handling a gun, much less owning one. I bought my gun a few years ago. I didn't buy it for self-defense as many people think. When I applied for my gun permit through the police department, I was told that I should go for a "home protection" license rather than a "target license" because it would be easier to get. The home protection license meant I could keep my gun loaded in my home but could only bring it once a month to the shooting range to shoot, carrying it in a locked box with ammo separate. The target license allowed me to go to the range to shoot as often as I wanted, but I had to keep it in a locked box with ammo separate not only when carrying it but also at home. I wanted a target license. My reason? How in the world would I learn to shoot a gun if I could only go to the range once a month? I genuinely wanted to learn to shoot, to gain that skill. More than anything, I wanted to know that I could safely handle and use a gun. My fascination with guns has been long-standing. Ever since I was a young girl, I gravitated toward "shoot-em-up" movies and television shows. After bedtime, I'd pull a blanket over my head and across my 19-inch Zenith black and white television in my bedroom so I could surreptitiously watch Starsky and Hutch, Charlie's Angels and Baretta. I was in love with Dirty Harry. The bigger the gun, the better. Although I glorified guns in my fantasies, in reality I knew that they were inanimate objects that had been so infused with power, danger, mystery and sin and had become a symbol of what was wrong in society that owning one seemed out of the question for years. When I finally decided to buy a gun, I took the entire process very seriously, taking lessons, reading up on them, talking to people who owned them and making sure I was emotionally ready to shoot and own one.

How to become a successful business person Essay

1. Have knowledge about business Choose a business school Master business fundamentals Accumulate knowledge through real business activities 2. Develop our interpersonal skills Explanation: Interpersonal skills help us to interact well with people. Furthermore, we need these skills to manage our employees and negotiate deals or contracts effectively. As a result, we will become a successful manager. 3. Have passion on doing business Explanation: It is an essential element with all of people who do business because it motivates us to achieve the success. 4. Seek guidance of a mentor Explain: Build relationship with a successful businessperson who has the same career because he or she can give us useful advices about business. Especially, if the person is a member of our family, he or she can give us business strategies. Therefore, you will have more opportunities to become a successful businessperson. Conclusion: It is hard to become a successful businessperson. However, we should try our best to achieve what we want. Paragraph To become a successful businessperson is not easy, but there are some of basic methods to help us to achieve it. Firstly, we have to have knowledge about business through enrolling in a business school. Furthermore, we must master the business fundamentals from the school and accumulate knowledge through real business activities. Secondly, one of the most important methods is to develop interpersonal skills. As we know, Interpersonal skills help us to interact well with people. Moreover, we need these skills to manage our employees and negotiate deals or contracts effectively. As a result, we will become a successful manager. Third method is to have passion  on doing business. It is an essential element with all people who do business because it motivates us to achieve the success. Generally, without passion, nothing can be achieved. Finally, we should seek guidance of a mentor. We can build relationship with a successful businessperson who has the same career because he or she can give us useful advices about business. Especially, if the person is a member of our family, he or she can give us business strategies. Therefore, you will have more opportunities to become a successful businessperson. To summarize, it is hard to become a successful businessperson. However, we should try our best to achieve what we want.

What Is Strategy?

Today's dynamic markets and technologies have called into question the sustainability of competitive advantage. Under pressure to improve productivity, quality, and speed, managers have embraced tools such as TQM, benchmarking, and reengineering. Dramatic operational improvements have resulted, but rarely have these gains translated into sustainable profitability. And gradually, the tools have taken the place of strategy. As managers push to improve on all fronts, they move further away from viable competitive positions. Michael Porter argues that operational effectiveness, although necessary to superior performance, is not sufficient, because its techniques are easy to imitate. In contrast, the essence of strategy is choosing a unique and valuable position rooted in systems of activities that are much more difficult to match. In answering the question ‘what is strategy? ’, some theorists focus more on the role of strategy in allowing a firm to ‘position’ itself in an industry, hence to make choices regarding ‘what game to play’. Others focus more on the role of strategy in determining how well a given game is played. Strategy is about both: choosing new games to play and playing existing games better. One of the biggest disagreements among strategy researcher concerns the process by which strategies emerge. Some describe stratgy as a rational and deliberate process, while others describer it as an evolutionary process which emerges from experimentation and trial and error. Some place more emphasis on external factors, like the structure of the industry to which he firm belongs (e. g. the industrial organization approach), while others place more emphasis on factors internal to the organization, like the way production is organized (e. g. Resource-Based approach). Furthermore, some describe a relatively static relationship between strategy and the environment where firms respond to external conditions, while others describe a dynamic picture of competition, where firms not only are influenced by the environment, but also actively seek to change it. (e. g. he Schumpetarian approach). This feedback relationship between firm strategy and the environment is the focus of industry ‘lifecycle’ studies which look at the sources and effectrs of changes in industry structure. Porter(1996) claims that not all business decisions are strategice. Decisions can only be defined as strategic if they involve consciously doing something ‘differently’ from competitors and if that difference results in a sustainable advantage. To be sustainable it must be difficult to imitate. Activities which simply increase productivity by making existing methods more efficient (‘operational efficiency’) are not strategic since they can be easily copied by others. Although a firm must engage in both types of activiteis, it is strategic activies that will allow it to develop a sustainable superior performance. One of the factors that renders strategies hard to imitate, hence unique, is that they are the result of a complex interaction between diffenrent activities, which is not reducible to the sum of the indicidual activities. It is this synergy between activities that produces value, not the activities in themselves. Whittingtton(2001) introduces us to four different perspectives on stragey: the classical perspective, the evolutionary persperctive, the processual perspective and the systemic perspective. The classical perspective assumes that the manger has near to complete control over how to allocate the internal and external resources of the firm, and can thus manipulate the internal organization of the firm to better suit these objectives. In this view, strategic behaviour is guided by rationality, opportunism and self-interest. The evolutionary perspective places emphasis on behacioural differences between firm (e. g. some firms base their descisons on rational caculations, others simply on imitaion) and on the market selection mechanisms that allow some firms to frow and survive and others to fail. This view causes the image of the heroic entrepreneur, centreal to the classical perspective, to fall apart: it is not one manager but the mix between the forces of market selection, random events, and processes of positive feedback that determine performance. The processual perspectiver holds that economic outcomes emerge from the interactions between individuals and between individuals and their environment. The result of this interacion is unpredictable because actions are often unintended. Humans are not perfectly rational but ‘bounded’ in their rationality. This, along with the fact that interaction between individuals is guided not only by self-interest but alsoby collective bargaining and compromis, causes economic dynamics to be fuzzy and unpredictable. The systemic perspective argues that each of the above approaches is characterized by a narrow view of the world: a Western, often Anglo-Saxon, view. The ‘rationality’ of a particular strategy depends on its specific historical, social and cultural context. Strategic behaviour is ‘embedded’ in a network of social relations that includes cultural norms, class and educational background, religion and so on. Hence what if labelled as ‘irraional’ behaviour in one context may be perfectly rational in another.