New Re-engineered Process

We have increased the number of operations in our re-engineered process in order to reduce the number of delays. We have also increased the amount of ICT used in the whole process to make everything easy.

Re-Engineered process

Existing Process of Google

TESCO

1-What benefits does Tesco’s information exchange offer to the retailer and its suppliers?         

          Tesco has started of using TIE(Tesco Information Exchange)since 1997.It it massive help to control and influence in combine Tesco retailing knowledge with the product knowledge of suppliers. In addition TIE aim the supplier to have enough time to react about orders.(Chaffey, D (2002), E business and e commerce management, Financial time).

2-What differences have the use of TIE added over the original EDI system?

         Electronic Data Interchange(EDI) is a way of life for Tesco and about  200 of their suppliers, enabling rapid and up-to-the-minute stock data to be transmitted across their supply chain. It started operating from 1980s and sent messages to 350 suppliers about details of actual store demand and weekly sales forecasts.As a result, Tesco have increased their stock turn to 36 times per annum, reduced lead times to less than three days. management by suppliers.(Croom, S.  (1999)  The Supply Chain Revolution, NEXUS, Autumn), but it needed to improve because Tesco did not know the correct value of sales or they did not receive any feedback . The TIE helps to good understanding of two way collaboration in supply chain. .(Chaffey, D (2002), E business and e commerce management, Financial time). 

3-Discuss reasons why only two of Tesco's suppliers have fundamentally altered the way they work as a result of TIE. 

         Many suppliers prefer sticking to their traditional ways of retailing and refuse change. Also, If the exclusivity of the products is not owned by Tesco then using TIE will make it difficult for the suppliers to deal with other retailers, which have not adopted TIE. In some cases, TIE does not require great changes to the retailing system.

The Beer Game

Our comment (s)

We had to choose between quick delivery and keeping cost to a minimum. At first, we had to wait for the order to come and this took us more time to deliver and we ended up having to order small quantities every time. 

Then, we started to order more products which concluded in costs going up. Having more products meant inventory cost has to increase.

The real problem here was " time consumption". The ordering/delivering process took long. Maybe we could use ICT to receive orders quickly and frequently via internet and a program which receive orders and sends the manufacturing orders accordingly. This way we can order quickly and we won’t have to keep anything in our inventory. This will keep the cost to a minimum.

Also intelligent forecasting tools can be employed to help make intelligent guesses as to how much of the products should be manufactured at a time thereby limiting the quantity of items in inventory to a minimum thus lowering costs.

The Excel Sheet Results

 

Goldcorp Inc: Social Responsability Part II

Goldcorp Inc understands the importance of the surrounding of its projects, which is the way they tend to do a long-term commitment to maintain a viable business, increase value for their shareholders, improve employment and develop opportunities for their host communities, and minimize their environmental impacts. 

Some of Goldcorp Inc's commitments are stated below:

– a commitment to the protection of life, health and the environment for present and future generations;

– respect for the needs and cultures of the local communities;

 – open communication with employees, stakeholders and governments concerning their plans, programs and performance;

 – cooperation with government agencies, local communities, educational institutions and suppliers to achieve safe handling and disposal of all the materials, resources and products; and 

– application of the best technologies to continuously improve the safe and efficient use of resources, processes and materials.

“Goldcorp is committed to conducting our business responsibly, which means respecting the safety and health of our employees, protecting the environment, respecting the human rights of our employees and the residents of the communities in which we operate and contributing to the sustainable development of those communities. Our commitment to these efforts is outlined in our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy and Human Rights policy.”

Goldcorp Inc tries to build strong, open and transparent relationships with the communities. It provided School Drug Awareness Programs in late November 2007 which was sponsored by the Peñasquito project, in Mexico for 12 communities, and also helped in delivering Educational assistance to Carrizalillo.

-Do these commitments mean that Goldcorp Inc. is actually ready to stop a project just because it might harm the people living around the mine? How about the shareholder whom most of the time don’t really care about anything but what they will gain from the project? 

In 2010 at TORONTO, shareholders of Goldcorp Inc. got a glimpse into the lives of Central Americans whose land has been exploited by the company for gold. Shareholders learned about the devastating effects Goldcorp’s operations have had on communities in Central America. The presenters told of an increase in health problems, cracked houses, widespread social conflict and the criminalization of protest in their towns and villages.

A shareholder resolution was brought forward by Kathryn Anderson of the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence (BTS) Network, which called on Goldcorp to adopt a corporate policy on free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) by September 1, 2010. The Goldcorp operations influenced by Anderson’s proposed policy would impact not only Indigenous communities, but all communities dependent for survival on natural resources. Shareholders representing 90 per cent of Goldcorp’s shares voted against Anderson's proposed resolution.

Although Goldcorp claims it participates in consultations with populations affected by its mines, company representatives refuse to articulate a detailed consultation process or put one into company policy. Furthermore, nowhere does Goldcorp claim to respect the rights of communities to say no to mining, which is a keystone of Anderson’s resolution.

When it ignored the results of community-organized consultations in 2005 in Sipakapa, a region bordering the Marlin Mine—where 11 out of 13 communities unanimously opposed the mine’s presence—the local government was pressured to address the issue. The municipality of San Miguel has since organized its own upcoming consultation. Goldcorp General Counsel VP David Deisley said the company is not legally required to respect the results of such a consultation.

All four Central American activists who flew to Canada to speak to Goldcorp’s shareholders were adamant that voluntary standards for Canadian companies do not protect against human rights abuses. Although they were all in support of Bill C-300, they continue to push for free, prior and informed consent to be a focal point of Canadian legislation.

http://upsidedownworld.org/main/news-briefs-archives-68/2535--goldcorp-drilled-by-shareholders-for-mining-projects-in-central-america

http://www.goldcorp.com/_resources/Goldcorps_Response_to_Marlin_Mine_HRA_report_final_06_29_10.pdf

http://www.goldcorp.com/corporate_responsibility/

Economic Factor

Economic Effect of Goldcorp's Mining Activities

[Goldcorp can set up a project to help smaller mining companies who can’t afford sophisticated technologies and strategies. This may not be totally applicable to the proposed project from last week but it does make sense introducing something like this. Most, if not all of Goldcorp’s CSR goes to the communities in which it operates.]

Economic buoyancy fluctuates and this is attributed / associated with booms and slumps. Almost all businesses benefit from booms and quite a lot are also affected by the downturn too (slumps). Gold will definitely depreciate during a slump, as will other minerals.
Other changes that affect businesses include interest rate, wage rates and inflation rates (increase in prices against decrease in wages or increase in prices against decrease in wages). If the economic conditions are favourable, then businesses will thrive better because there will be more money to toss around. Lower interest rate means more disposable income to spend on Gold.

Developing countries often see the mineral resources they are endowed with as liberation out of poverty. “According to some, mineral wealth is part of a nation’s natural capital and the more capital a nation possesses the richer it becomes (Davis and Tilton, 2003).”
“Although mineral exports may make up a significant share of a country’s exports, mineral development does not always boost a country’s economic growth and may, in some cases, contribute to increased poverty (Sideri and Johns, 1990; Auty, 1990; Ross, 2001a; Gelb et al., 1988). The reasons for the lack of economic growth in oil- and mineral dependent states are not entirely conclusive (Ross, 1999). However, low levels of employment in the sector, use of mostly imported technology, high market volatility of minerals, competition with agricultural sectors, and institutional corruption and mismanagement may be contributing factors (Sideri and Johns, 1990; Gelb et al., 1988; Auty, 1990). 

In addition, lack of full cost accounting can result in overestimating the benefits if subsidies offered to the mining sector are not taken into account. For example, a study of the economic contributions of mining in Canada found that in 2000-2001 Canadian taxpayers subsidized the industry by C$13,095 per job created (Winfield et al., 2002).
Even when mineral development results in national economic growth, the benefits are
not always equitably shared, and local communities closest to the source of mineral development can suffer the most".
Mining often times provides jobs in communities in which these mines are located but the jobs are short timed and limited. Economies/communities that base their sustenance solely on the revenue generated by these mines are very vulnerable as this income cannot be guaranteed, for example if the mine shuts down. 

Goldcorp is particularly involved in ensuring that the communities in which it operates are helped through economic contributions thus improving the economic status of such communities. It does this by “improving their social and economic circumstances through economic contributions, community involvement, community consultation, support and development of school programs and special events“. Goldcorp strives to ensure that these communities are actively involved in these initiatives in order to make them self reliant and less dependent on their mines for their future and sustenance. 

Examples of their initiatives and engagements include: Recycling Workshops in Pedra Branca (Brazil), Delivery of Educational Assistance to Carrizalillo, Fundación Sierra Madre, Guatemala (with the goal of facilitating locally based development which will help provide sustainable economic development), and the Stope School which was established in 2005 in Northern Ontario to train underground miners.

References

"PEST Analysis". Available from http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/theory/theory--pest-analysis--166.php
[Accessed: 31st October 2010]

"Environmental and Social Impacts of Mining". Available from http://pdf.wri.org/mining_background_literature_review.pdf
[Accessed: 31st October 2010]

Goldcorp website. Available from http://www.goldcorp.com/corporate_responsibility/
[Accessed: 31st October 2010]