General Swimming Fitness Testing

General Swimming Fitness Testing Science can help fine tune the athlete, as in the end even a few hundredths of a second often decide the result of races. An exercise physiologist, strength coach or fitness trainer uses the science of muscle physiology and training to prepare the swimmer physically for their competition. There are many aspects to a race, and the training needs to address each of these. The muscles should be prepared to enable the quickest reaction time at the start. The swimmer must have the strength and power for a powerful explosive start, and quick and powerful turn, while also possessing the stamina (aerobic endurance) to maintain their speed in the throughout the race. The importance of each of these physical aspects of the swimmer depends on the race distance and technique. Strength training should address the specific muscles used, such as the gluteus maximus and quadriceps which are important at the start and at each turn. The shoulder, chest and back muscles which generate about 85% of the swimmers power, are also critical. While in the kick, the hamstring and quadricep muscles maintain body balance and the horizontal body position. Fitness Tests Fitness is a vitally important component of success in swimming. There are many components of fitness that make up a good swimmer, importance of each of these depends on the race distance and stroke. The fitness tests used to test a swimmer should also reflect the range fitness components, and the interpretation of the results should also be relative to the importance of each of these attributes. Body Size and Shape swimmers are usually tall and relatively lean. Some body fat is not a hindrance as it can add to buoyancy in the water. The usual anthropometric measures for swimmers would include: 1.1 height, procedure: measurement the maximum distance from the floor to the highest point on the head, when the subject is facing directly ahead. Shoes should be off, feet together, and arms by the sides. Heels, buttocks and upper back should also be in contact with the wall. equipment required: stadiometer or steel ruler placed against a wall reliability: Height measurement can vary throughout the day, being higher in the morning, so it should be measured at the same time of day each time. advantages: low costs, quick test other comments: height or lack of height is an important attribute for many sports. 1.2 weight, purpose: measuring body mass can be valuable for monitoring body fat or muscle mass changes, or for monitoring hydration level. equipment required: Scales, which should be calibrated for accuracy using weights authenticated by a government department of weights and measures. procedure: the person stands with minimal movement with hands by their side. Shoes and excess clothing should be removed. reliability: To improve reliability, weigh routinely in the morning (12 hours since eating). Body weight can be affected by fluid in the bladder (weigh after voiding the bladder). Other factors to consider are the amount of food recently eaten, hydration level, the amount of waste recently expelled from the body, recent exercise and clothing. If you are monitoring changes in body mass, try and weigh at the same time of day, under the same conditions, and preferably with no clothes on. Always compare using the same set of scales. advantages: quick and easy measurement when testing large groups, with minimal costs. other comments: measuring weight can be used as a measure of changes in body fat, but as it does not take into account changes in lean body mass it is better to use other methods of body composition measurement 1.3 sitting height, procedure: Sitting height gives a measure of the length of the trunk. It is a measurement of the distance from the highest point on the head to the base sitting surface. The subject sits with both feet on the floor, the lower back and shoulders against the wall, looking straight ahead. Distance can be measured from the floor, and the height of the box measured and subtracted from the total distance. equipment required: stadiometer or ruler placed against a wall, box or chair. reliability: Height measurement can vary throughout the day, being higher in the morning, so should be measured at a consistent time of day. advantages: low costs, quick test other comments: Upper body length or proportionally long legs is an important attribute for many sports. 1.4 arm span, Arm span measurement is a simple measure that is important in the anthropometrical profiling of athletes in many sports in which reach is important, such as rowing and basketball. See also the related arm length measure, which is the length of each individual arm. purpose: To measure arm length, as long arms may be advantageous for some sports which involve reaching and tackling. equipment required: ruler or tape measure, wall. procedure: facing away from the wall, with back and buttocks touching the arms are stretched out horizontally. Measure from one furthermost finger tip to the other. results: The arm length measures can be compared to the persons height. On average, arm span should be about equal to height. By subtracting a measurement for shoulder widthfrom this measurement you can get a measure of average arm length. advantages: very low cost, simple and quick test other comments: It is important for the subject to fully stretch to get the maximum reach, and that the arms are held exactly horizontally. To assist in keeping the outstretched arms horizontal, use a wall that has horizontal lines already on it such as a brick wall. Also measure out from a corner or wall protrusion so that one hand can be stable and all measurements are away from it. 1.5 hand span, purpose: The size of the hand is advantageous for some sports which involve catching, gripping or tackling. equipment required: flat surface and ruler or tape measure procedure: The hand is placed palm down on a flat surface. The fingers are outstretched as far as possible. Measure the linear distance between the outside of the thumb to the outside of the little finger. advantages: very low cost, simple and quick test other comments: this test is used at the AFL Draft Camp 1.6 body fat using skinfold measures. procedure: Estimation of body fat by skinfold thickness measurement. Measurement can use from 3 to 9 different standard anatomical sites around the body. The right side is usually only measured (for consistency). The tester pinches the skin at the appropriate site to raise a double layer of skin and the underlying adipose tissue, but not the muscle. The calipers are then applied 1 cm below and at right angles to the pinch, and a reading in millimeters (mm) taken two seconds later. The mean of two measurements should be taken. If the two measurements differ greatly, a third should then be done, then the median value taken. the sites: there are many common sites at which the skinfold pinch can be taken. See the descriptions and photographs of each skinfold site. results: Because of the increased errors involved, it is usually not appropriate to convert skinfold measures to percentage body fat (%BF). It is best to use the sum of several sites to monitor and compare body fat measures. In order to satisfy those who want to calculate a percentage body fatmeasure, there is a sample of equations for calculating this here. Below is a table of general guidelines for using total sum (in millimeters) of the seven main skinfold sites (tricep, bicep,subscap, supraspinale, abdominal, thigh, calf). There are also examples of some actual athlete results. excellent good average below average poor Normal Male 60-80 81-90 91-110 111-150 150+ Female 70-90 91-100 101-120 121-150 150+ Athletic Male 40-60 61-80 81-100 101-130 130+ Female 50-70 71-85 86-110 111-130 130+ equipment required: skinfold calipers (e.g. Harpenden, Holtain, Slimglide, Lange). These should be calibrated for correct jaw tension and gap width. target population: suitable for all populations, though it is sometimes difficult to get reliable measurements with obese people. validity: using skinfold measurements is not a valid predictor of percent body fat, however they can be used as a monitoring device to indicate changes in body composition over time. It is important to maintain correct calibration of the calipers (more about calibrating calipers) reliability: the reliability of skinfold measurements can vary from tester to tester depending on their skill and experience. There are accreditation courses available through ISAK. advantages: Skinfold measurements are widely utilized to assess body composition. It is a lot simpler than hydrostatic weighing and many of the other body composition techniques. After the original outlay for calipers, the daily tests costs are minimal. other considerations: some subjects may feel uncomfortable stripping down in front of the tester, therefore every effect should be made to make them feel comfortable. For legal reasons, it is wise to have another person present, and to have females testers for female subjects. The right side measurement is standard, though in some situations you may need to test someone on the left side. If so, you must record this and endeavor to always test on the same side for that person. Reasons for testing on the left side may include injuries, amputation, deformities, or other medical conditions. Reaction Time the start can be very important, particularly over short distance events. The bodys physical reaction time is not something that can usually be trained, though starting practice, technique and improvements in power can improve a swimmers start. Strength and Power strength and power are important for a powerful explosive start off the blocks, and for quick and powerful turns. 3.1 A vertical jump test is best to measure the explosive power of the legs. This procedure describes the method used for directly measuring the vertical jump height jumped. There are also timing systems that measure the time of the jump and from that calculate the vertical jump height. equipment required: measuring tape or marked wall, chalk for marking wall (or Vertec or jump mat). procedure (see also variations below): the athlete stands side on to a wall and reaches up with the hand closest to the wall. Keeping the feet flat on the ground, the point of the fingertips is marked or recorded. This is called the standing reach height. The athlete then stands away from the wall, and leaps vertically as high as possible using both arms and legs to assist in projecting the body upwards. The jumping technique can or cannot use a countermovement (see vertical jump technique). Attempt to touch the wall at the highest point of the jump. The difference in distance between the standing reach height and the jump height is the score. The best of three attempts is recorded. variations: The vertical jump test can also be performed using a specialized apparatus called the Vertec. The procedure when using the Vertec is very similar to as described above. Jump height can also be measured using a jump mat which measures the displacement of the hips. To be accurate, you must ensure the feet land back on the mat with legs nearly fully extended. Vertical jump height can also be measured using a timing mat. The vertical jump test is usually performed with a counter movement, where there is bending of the knees immediately prior to the jump. The test can also be performed as a squat jump, starting from the position of knees being bent. Other test variations are to perform the test with no arm movement (one hand on hip, the other raised above the head) to isolate the leg muscles and reduce the effect of variations in coordination of the arm movements. The test can also be performed off one leg, with a step into the jump, or with a run-up off two feet or one foot, depending on the relevance to the sport involved. For more details see vertical jump technique. scoring: The jump height is usually recorded as a distance score. The table below provides a ranking scale for adult athletes based on my observations, and will give a general idea of what is a good score. For more information, see a selection of vertical jump test results. It is also possible to convert jump height into a power or work score. rating males (inches) males (cm) females (inches) females (cm) excellent > 28 > 70 > 24 > 60 very good 24 28 61-70 20 24 51-60 above average 20 24 51-60 16 20 41-50 average 16 20 41-50 12 16 31-40 below average 12 16 31-40 8 12 21-30 poor 8 12 21-30 4 8 11-20 very poor advantages: this test is simple and quick to perform. disadvantages: technique plays a part in maximizing your score, as the subject must time the jump so that the wall is marked at the peak of the jump. comments: The jump height can be affected by how much you bend your knees before you jump, and the effective use of the arms. The test is also sometimes incorrectly spelled as the Sergeant or Sargent Test. history: This method described above for measuring a persons vertical jump height is sometimes known as a Sargent Jump, named after Dudley Sargent, who was one of the pioneers in American physical education. 3.2 Upper body strength can be measured using Bench Press 1RM or 3RM tests. This is a specific repetition maximum (RM) test for the upper body (see the general description of 1RM fitness tests). purpose: to measure maximum strength of the chest muscle groups. equipment required: Bench with safety, bar and various free weights. procedure: The subject should perform an adequate warm up. An example would be to warm up with 5-10 reps of a light-to-moderate weight, then after a minute rest perform two heavier warm-up sets of 2-5 reps, with a two-minute rest between sets. The subject should then rest two to four minutes, then perform the one-rep-max attempt with proper technique. If the lift is successful, rest for another two to four minutes and increase the load 5-10%, and attempt another lift. If the subject fails to perform the lift with correct technique, rest two to four minutes and attempt a weight 2.5-5% lower. Keep increasing and decreasing the weight until a maximum left is performed. Selection of the starting weight is crucial so that the maximum lift is completed within approximately five attempts after the warm-up sets. See the Bench Press Example Videos. 1 Rep Max Bench Press Table for adults (weight lifted per bodyweight) Rating Score (per body weight) Excellent > 1.60 Good 1.30 1.60 Average 1.15 1.29 Below Average 1.00 1.14 Poor 0.91 0.99 Very Poor scoring: the maximum weight lifted is recorded. To standardize the score it may be useful to calculate a score proportional to the persons bodyweight. The sequence of lifts should also be recorded as these can be used in subsequent tests to help in determining the starting lifts. See the table for general guidelines for interpreting the results. These ratings are for both males and females as females are generally a smaller frame, there are expected to lift a lower actual weight to score an average rating etc. These scores are based on my personal experiences. There are also some athlete results for this test. advantages: the required equipment is readily available in most gymnasiums, and the test is simple to perform. disadvantages: This test should only be performed by those experienced at performing the bench press lift with good technique. Good technique will also enable the lifter to maximize their score. comments: For safety, a spotter should stand at the head of the bench throughout the test. The results of this test may be specific to the equipment used (height of bench, variations in weights), so is best to use the same equipment for test-retest measures. The warm up procedure should also be recorded and repeated with further testing. If any variation in technique was allowed, this should be recorded on the results sheet for referral when the test is repeated. The test is also called one rep max, 1-RM, and one repetition maximum. variations / modifications: Sometimes a three or five repetition maximum is used, particularly for less experienced lifters. These greater reps would require less weight and may be considered less dangerous. Changing the number of repetition also changes the muscle energy systems and validity of this test. Anaerobic Capacity The sprint swimming events rely heavily on the anaerobic system. The anaerobic system response to swimming can be measured by taking blood lactate measures after races and and training sets. You could also look at speed drop off during a maximal 6 x 50m set with short recovery, somewhat like this anaerobic sprint fatigue test. purpose: this is a test of anaerobic capacity, the ability to recover between sprints and produce the same level of power repeatedly. equipment required: 2 stopwatches, measuring tape,marker cones, at least 50 meter track. procedure: marker cones and lines are placed 30 meters apart to indicate the sprint distance. Two more cones placed a further 10 meters on each end. At the instructions of the timer, the subject places their foot at the starting line, then on go two stopwatches are started simultaneously, and the subject sprints maximally for 30m, ensuring that they do not slow down before reaching the end. One stopwatch is used to time the sprint, the other continues to run. Record the time. The subjects use the 10 meter cone to slow down and turn, and return to the 30m finishing point. The next sprint will be in the oposite direction. The next 30 meter sprint starts 30 seconds after the first started. This cycle continues until 10 sprints are completed, starting at 30 sec, 1 min, 1.5 min, 2 min etc after the start of the first sprint. scoring: The fatigue index is calculated by taking the average speed of the first three trials and dividing it by the average speed of the last three trials. This will give a value approximately between 75 and 95%. Use the table below to determine the rating. Rating Fatigue Index Excellent > 89% Good 85-89 % Average 80-84% Poor target population: suitable for athletes involved in many multi-sprint sports such as basketball, hockey, rugby, soccer, AFL. Endurance aerobic capacity is important for a swimmer to maintain a high rate throughout the race, particularly the longer distance events. Land based endurance tests (e.g. treadmill VO2max) can be used, though specific swimming tests are more relevant, such as the Shuttle Swim Test or the more comprehensive Swimming Step Test. Maximal Oxygen Consumption Test (VO2max) The VO2max test is the criterion measure of aerobic power in athletes. Described here is the method to measure VO2max directly. Many other aerobic fitness tests estimate VO2max score from their results. See the other tests of Aerobic Endurance. equipment required: Oxygen and carbon dioxide analyzers, ergometer on which workload may be modified, stopwatch. Expired air may be collected and volume measured via Douglas bags or a Tissot tank, or measured by a pnuemotach or turbine ventilometer. procedure: Exercise is performed on an appropriate ergometer (treadmill, cycle, swim bench). The exercise workloads are selected to gradually progress in increments from moderate to maximal intensity. Oxygen uptake is calculated from measures oxygen and carbon dioxide in the expired air and minute ventilation, and the maximal level is determined at or near test completion (seeVO2max videos) scoring: Results are presented as either l/min (liters per minute) or ml/kg/min (mls of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute). The athlete is considered to have reached their VO2max if several of the following occurred: a plateau or peaking over in oxygen uptake, maximal heart rate was reached, attainment of a respiratory exchange ratio of 1.15 or greater, and volitional exhaustion. See also the Adult VO2max norm values. target population: Any sport in which aerobic endurance is a component, such as distance runners, cross country skiiers, rowers, triathlon, cycling. advantages: This test directly measures body oxygen consumption, which many other aerobic fitness tests try to estimate. You can also get direct measurement of maximum heart rate by recording heart rate during the test. disadvantages: Relatively time consuming and high costs involved for each test other comments: There is often variability between the performance of different analysis systems. Stringent calibration is necessary for both the expired gas and ventilation measurement systems. caution: This test is a maximal test, which requires a reasonable level of fitness. It is not recommended for recreational athletes or people with health problems, injuries or low fitness levels. 5.2 10 meter Multistage Shuttle Swim Test (MSST). This test is a variation on the Beep Test, or shuttle run, called the 10 meter Multistage Shuttle Swim Test (MSST). This test has been developed by sport scientists in Western Australia, for the assessment of aerobic fitness of competitive water polo players. See also the Water Polo Intermittent Shuttle Test (WIST). purpose: To test the aerobic fitness of water polo players equipment required: swimming pool, test cd, cd player. procedure: This test is a variation on the established testing protocol for the running shuttle test, but specific for water polo players and carried out in a pool. The subjects swim a 10-meter distance at a progressively increasing speed until volitional exhaustion. The test starts at 0.9 m/s, and increases by 0.05 m/sec every stage. Each stage lasts approximately one minute and the shuttles are signalled by an audio cue. scoring: The athletes score is the level and number of shuttles reached before they were unable to keep up with the recording. target population: It is a test of aerobic fitness for competitive water polo players. The test is suitable for all players (male and female) ranging from school/club standard through to international level. reliability: In the published research paper, test-retest reliability was determined using a sample of 22 female and 22 male water polo players. An intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.99 (p>0.05) was calculated between the two test scores. The technical error of measurement for the test was 2.3 shuttles or 5.0%. validity: A validation correlation coefficient of 0.88 was found between the number of shuttles completed during the MSST and VO2max measured during an incremental tethered swim test to exhaustion. A stepwise multiple regression revealed that VO2max accounted for approximately 78% of the MSST variance. advantages: The test allows a whole team to have their aerobic fitness effectively assessed using minimal time and pool space. disadvantages: As with the running beep test, practice and motivation levels can influence the score attained, and the scoring can be subjective. 5.3 swim step test The 7 x 200m swim step test is a very comprehensive swimming-specific physiological test. It is used to monitor training and improvements in aerobic conditioning. For information about aerobic stepping tests, see Step Tests. purpose: To test fitness parameters during a standard swimming. equipment required: a swimming pool (25m or 50m), pool pace clock, stopwatch, equipment for blood lactate testing, heart rate monitor. procedure: All 200m swims are conducted at an even pace (even 50m splits), on 6 minutes (starting every new set exactly six minutes after the start of the previous one). The test is conducted using the swimmers specialist stroke (ie freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke). The swimming target time for each swimmer is based on age or intensity. For seniors, the last 200m is swum at maximum heart rate, and each 200m preceding this is at 10 bpm below the one before. For young age groupers, each swim is related to their personal best (PB), such that (for males): 1st 200m = PB +24 secs, 2nd 200m = PB +20 secs, 3rd 200m = PB +16 secs, 4th 200m = PB +12 secs, 5th 200m = PB + 8 secs, 6th 200m = PB pace, 7th 200m = Goal PB pace. For female swimmers the targets are 4 seconds less for swims 1 to 5. measurements: Record all splits and total times, and stroke rate. At the end of each swim, record RPE (rate of perceived exertion on a scale of 1 to 20), heart rate, and at 3 minutes after each swim measure lactate. results: Calculate average pace, heart rate, stroke rate, strokes per length. Use the results to plot heart rate/velocity curves or lactate/velocity curves. Changes in these over time are used to monitor changes in swimming specific aerobic conditioning. A measure of anaerobic threshold can be determined from these graphs. target population: It is a test for swimmers. The test is appropriate for experienced swimmers (male and female), who have good pacing ability. reliability: this test relies on good pacing ability of the swimmers. Practice will improve this, as well improve the reliability of results. advantages: the comprehensive measures provide great feedback to the coach and swimmer. disadvantages: The equipment and assistants required make this a costly and time consuming test. comments: this test requires plenty of assistance, having one data collector per swimmer would be ideal. Health lung function is obviously important for the swimmer, and checks should be make to check that the lungs are healthy and functioning to their full capacity. See lung function tests. procedure: The usual measures of lung function are of forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expired volume in 1 second (FEV1). These can be measured with a full maximal expiration. Explain to the subject that they must fill their lungs completely, seal their lips around the mouthpiece, and empty their lungs as hard and fast as possible. The best of two trials is usually recorded. equipment required: Spirometer (e.g. Vitalograph) interpretation: Lung function tests are of little value for predicting fitness and exercise performance, provided that the values fall within a normal range. You must always take into consideration that lung volumes vary with age, sex and body size (especially height). disadvantages: this test requires expensive equipment that is not always available. A simple inexpensive measure of lung function is the peak flow test. Swimming Specific Fitness Tests Fitness testing for swimming usually includes training or race type test, such as 8 x 200m step test, in which heart rate, blood lactate, split times, stroke rate and perceived exertion are recorded. Here are some other fitness tests related to swimming: Swimming Beep Test water based multi-stage beep test. Swimming Step Test a very comprehensive swimming-specific physiological test Shuttle swim test a shuttle endurance swimming test like the running beep test that was designed for water polo players. 1 km swim a 1 km swim designed for testing triathletes. 500yd / 450m Swim Test used for the Navy assessment. 3.Ian Thorp full name: Ian James Thorpe bio: One of the greatest swimmers the world has ever seen. In his career, he won five Olympic gold medals, 11 world titles and set 13 long-course records and 23 overall. On November 21 2006 he announced his retirement from swimming after 10 years on the Australian team, citing that he has lost the desire, and there are things in my life that are more important to me and I have to pursue them now. also known as: the Thorpedo, Flipper, Thorpey born: 13 October 1982 Milperra, a western suburb of Sydney, Australia family: Parents Margaret and Ken, sister Christina. physical attributes: Height: 195 cm (65) Weight:104 kg (229 lbs) Feet Size: 17 Arm span: 195 cm sport: Swimming coach: Tracey Menzies since 2002-06. Pre 2002 his coach was Doug Frost. team / club: SLC Aquadot / New South Wales / Australia event: 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters, 800 meters freestyle, 100m backstroke, 200m individual medley, plus anything else he wants to do! personal bests: 200m: 1:45.51 minutes, 400m: 3:41.33 minutes achievements: World Championships, Perth (1998), won 400m freestyle Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur 1998: 4 Gold medals (200m free, 400m free, 2x200m freestyle relay, 4x100m freestyle relay Pacific Championships 1999: New world record, 400m freestyle, broke world record for the 200m freestyle twice in consecutive days Australian Olympic Swim Trials 2000: bettered own 400m freestyle mark, lowered the 200m freestyle world record twice again Sydney Olympic Results, 2000 200 metre freestyle (1 min 45.83 secs), 2nd 400 metre freestyle (3 mins 40.59 secs), 1st 4 x 100 metre freestyle relay (3 mins 13.67 secs), 1st 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay (7 mins 7.05 secs), 1st 4 x 100 metre medley relay (3 mins 35.27 secs), 2nd Athens Olympics Results, 2004: 400m freestyle, 1st, 3:43.10 4 x 100m freestyle relay, 6th, 48.14 (3:15.77) 200m freestyle, 1st, 1:44.71 (Olympic record) 4 x 200m freestyle relay, 2nd, 1:44.18 (7:07.46) 100m freestyle, 3rd, 48.56 what you may not know: Thorpe started squad training when he was just 8 years old. He was allergic to cholorine when he first started but has now grown out of that. He holds the record for being the fastest 14-year old male swimmer in the history of swimming. In 1997, at age 1

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John Smith Essay -- essays research papers

John Smith is one of the most famous people in American literature history. He was a dedicated man to his country of England, and wanted nothing more than to claim America in the name of the king. During his adventures to the new land he encountered many new things and people including a young Native American woman named Pocahontas. He also wrote many journals enticing people to want to come to America. This shall tell you the story of John Smith from his journeys as a young man all the way to when he finally came to America, and how his writings still influence people to immigrate to America still today. John Smith was born in Lincolnshire, England to a farmer and his wife in 1580. He only had a grammar school education, but with this education he was able to join the British volunteers fighting in the Dutch war of independence from Spain. While in the military, he was captured by the Turks and sold as a slave. He eventually escaped and came back to his mother land of Great Britain in 1605. He then became interested in settling Virginia in the new world. The following year, Smith sailed to Virginia with the Virginia Company’s first colonist as one of seven councilors. This was the first of many voyages to the new world for him. Smith spent much time exploring the land. By this time, the governor of Jamestown was executed for treason and Smith was then elected president of Jamestown colony. He then began building houses, churches, and fortifications. He also had a policy th...

Formula One Constructors -Strategic Management

In this paper i will analyse and evaluate competetivenes of Formula one Motorsport industry and its dynamic characterictisc influenced by external and internal factors to critically understand and explore strategic management thoery of sustained competetive advantege and its significant importance in order of carrier succes of any Formula one constructors .I will try to clerly identify external and internal issues and changes , affecting (facing ) development of sustainable competetive advantage within formula One Teams , by presenting and demonstrating appropierate strategic management frameworks and approches . F1 industry its one of the most competetive and dynamic popular motorsport and specialist business worth E 350 billion to E400 billion(A. T Kearney Zygband et, 2011) ,within which many teams , effectivelly compete with each other in designing and constructing bolids prototypes to achieve succes and survival and competetive advantege agaisnt other rivals .There is significat questions frustrating F1 constructors since decades , regarding to how most effeectively and efficientyly achieve competetive advantege for thier teams to outperform and step ahead of other competitors in industry and how to achieve sustainable competetive advantege for dominance in numbers of seasons . This essay will be devided on four part in which first part will give brief overview about Formula one Industry, then i will demonstrate theories related to sustiable comepetetive advantege with reflection to achievement of the success in the Formula One motorsport .In the Next part of this paper i will critically eveluate generic model and strategic capabilities based on resource based view and knowledge based view of the startegy which requires constant reference to the resources and knowledge of competitors to achieve competitve advantege . In this section i will focus on the Williams ‘s team during thier dominance and technological reveloution in mid of 1990, where also i w ill provide my own point of view of why they didnet keep thier dominance and what they could do better at this time to sustain thier sucess futher .This is industry is strongly competetive and is perceived as very dynamic and very difficult to sustain at the leading position for numbers of season which is proved by the fact that since the start of of the World Championship (1950) only two F1 constructors won the Chapionship consecuitevely more than four times MClaren(1988-1291) and Ferrari (1999-2004). In the end i will write my opinion of which team has created the best source of the competetive advantege and also finally i will draw conclusion based on my analysys and my findings obtained throughout analysing of this case .Formula one Motorsport became one of the most popular and technologicaly innovative motorsport and sport TV event around the world which enjoyed the third highest audience in the world staright after Olimopics and World cup soocer . Unfortunately being fromula O ne constructor requires to generate sponsor revenues through increasignly sophiticated marketing strategies and also need to design , develop manufacture and race open wheel signle seat racecar.This is extremly expensive and requires huge amount of funds from sponsors and stakholders which are essentila to create competetive advantage againts key marekt competitors by implemeting new revolutionary technology innovation into their bolids sucha as the most powerful and reilable engines with innovative design of the chasis with all aerodymanims . in 2008 the top 3 teams were Ferrari , Mclaren and Williams cvbvd ciag dalszy ,. t is not only an season motorsport event its a strong and competetive individual industry within which F1 constructors are business organisations competing with each other for the survival and the success in the every single F1 season . its seen to to be very simply enough to achieve sustained competetive advantege and succeed in in this indystry while having the best car ,the best driver , the best supporting team and all supported by finanse from sposnsors.Unfortunaterly it does not so simple as not many F1 constructor up to date were not able to manage and linked all available all stretegic capabilieties based on resources and competence to work effectively together to achieve sustained competetive advantege in long term . such as 3 or 4 year or more . Todays strongly competetive and dynamic business environmnet requires from all organsiation and companies to seek developments of their susiable competetive advantege which enables then to stay attractive and innovative for the market and survive in competiton with their competitors .According to Alderson (1965) firms should strive for unique characteristics in order to distinguish themselves from competitors in the eyes of the consumer for a long period of time that is, sustainable competitive advantage. Sustainable competitive advantage is the ability to offer superior customer value on a n enduring or consistent basis, a situation in which competitors are unable to easily imitate the firm? capacity for value creation (Collis and Montgomery, 1995). According to Barney (1991), sustainable competitive advantage arises when the firm? s resources are valuable and the resources help the firm create valuable products and services, they are rare and competitors can not get acces to them, inimitable competitors cannot easily replicate them and appropriate when the firm owns them and can exploit them . .36 KCA JOURNAL OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT: VOL. , ISSUE 1 (2009). The competetive advantege of an organisation such as Formula One construcotors is likely to be based on strategivc capabilities that are valuable and contribute to its long -term survival or competetive advantage . There are two main components of strategic capabilities resources and competence(ksiazka kopiowana)Resources are the asstes that organisation have or can call upon and competence are the ways those assets are used or deployed effectively.In this case of formula one constructores resouresec are machinces ,patents ,computer systems , managers , engenires and deisgners as resources are all assets controlled and possessed by the firm (Barney, 1991) and competences are productivity ,organisational values, managerial competencies, organisational structure, process and technology ,knowldege flexibility and experance ,skills as a core competencies according to Prahalad and Hamel (1990) and which are the collective knowledge about how to coordinate the business.Unfortynately efficiency and effectiveness of physical resources or financial resources or the people in F1 team depend not just on their existence by on the system and processes by which they are managed ,its depend of reletaioshiops and cooperation of the people in the team thier adaptability, thier innovatory capicity and and thier experciance and learnbing about what works well what does not which and develop core competencies wit hin the firm or team .Core competences are crucial as they linked set of skills ,activities and recourses that togehter deliver value,differentiate business from its competitors . To core competences of teams competing in F1 we may include effective communication between the constructors and the driver, ability to negotiate sponsorships, leadership and motivating abilities of CEOs, efficient use of the budget and royalties, skills, knowledge and experience of the team as a whole. According to Teece (Teece, et al. 1997) firm’s capabilities necessary for effective operations ill not support company’s superior performance. Strategic capabilities of the firm or in this case F1 costructors team can not be static they need to dynamic and change ,renew and recreate to meet the needs of the changing environmnet where Formula one Industry is most technologically developed and competretive motorsprort industry . Dynamic capabilities confirms that in order to remain competitive c ompany must possess the competence to renew and adjust their strategic capabilities to operate effectively and efficiently in changing environment.As It is significant for F1 team to work on design and development of both engine and car chassis on everyday changing basis, to maintained existing but also retain new sponsors which are crucial for any F1 team , to continuingly motivate and also recruit the new talents. These knowledge resources and capabilities, resulting from learning processes implies an improvement in response capacity through a broader understanding of the dynamic and competetive environment (Dodgson, 1993; Sinkula, 1994).The organizational learning process such as in F1constructors Team helps tem to discover why problems are seen in a one dimensional frame work posing questions of the current systems and challenging paradoxes as they occur (Murray and Donegan, 2003) . [†¦ ] We believe that the careful study of how capabilities and competition mutually influen ce each other could be one of the next great opportunities for the field of strategy research. †Henderson and Mitchell, introduction to the ‘Summer 1997 Special Issue: Organization and Competitive Interactions’ of the Strategic Management Journal. The issue of firm performance and what startegic approch they should select to achieve sutainale competetive advantege has been disccuesed for decades and encompasses most other questions that have been raised in the field, as for instance, why firms differ, how they behave, how they choose strategies and how they are managed (Porter,1991) (Ansoff, 1976). n this case there are two different startegic approches are presented the positioning approach and the resource based view . In itiated in the mid-1980s by Wernerfelt (1984), Rumelt (1984) and Barney (1986), the resource-based view (RBV) has since become one of the dominant contemporary approaches to the analysis of sustained competitive advantage. A central premise of the resource-based view is that firms compete on the basis of their resources and capabilities (Peteraf and Bergen, 2003). Resource based view theories suggest that in order to take the part of F1 race the team must retain tangible resources such as highly qualified technical staff which would include race engineers, designers, aerodynamicist, composite expert, system specialist, but also CEO, budget, sponsorship and also the driver as the core competent resource inluencing succes of the team .The positioniong approch for business says that the best way to predict the future is to create it, and companies are often able to position themselves in ways which set and exploit the basis of competition to their advantage. The positioning approach is strongly linked with Porter strategic view , who argues that in order to achieve superior performance company must to understand the structure of the industry, in which it operates.This will allow the firm to adjust their strategy and exploit the underlying economic factors within the industry even better than their competitors do which might allow to outperform them . From other point of view of (Barney, 1991, Rumelt, 1984) this approch is criticised , as it assumes that all businesses operates on an equal organisational field. As Formula one industry is quite closed industry , creates field of constant formal or imformal shareing of common technoligies innovations , regulationa as also tacticts and stategic approches .According to Porter (1985) attractiveness of the sector can be defined by the implementation of the five forces model. Implication of this model to F1 motorsport industry presents that this industry is very difficult to enter industry with the low threat of new entrants due to high start-up costs and investments , there is quite low bargain power of customers due considerable number of viewers, power of suppliers is not really strong and very low level of potential substitute within industry but with very strong competetive high intensity of rivalry .F1 has passed trough maturity stage around 1970-1980’s, an this demonstrat that the major players are in industry for good while what makes them well experiance and determined to achive competetive advantege agaist other top F1 constructors . And this raises the question what can be done to obtain and sustain competitive advantage in such environment? According to the positioning approach business can gain competitive advantage either through cost leadership or product differentiation (Porter, 1979).A cost leadership strategy requires that a business define the source of cost advantage, which allows it to sell its products and services cheaper than rivals. Differentiation strategy on the other hand concentrates mostly on developing the product which will differ from those manufactured by a business’s competitors. within this type of industry sucha s Formula one motorsport there is no aplication for cost leadership stertegy as F1 constructor are focused on winning championships not looking at spending cost alomst at all .Formula one Teams using differentiation strategy which is enebling them to used thier avaiable resources in most innovative and attriactive way to achieve competetive advantege which something proved that this is still not enough to suceeddd in the longer term as all F1 constructors are strongly focus on differrttinagn and constant innovating of their teams agaisnt oders competiotrs .Another singnisicant external factor incluencing sucess of any constructors team are shifts anbd changes in environmnt which can suddenly change the value and importance of particular resoures and this is fundamental to understand and predict this before other to sustain advantege and this is what Williams constructors team has done in mid of 1990s. Williams team presents technological revolution in mid of 1990 by focusing on engerring aspetc which enables them to use many of innovations developed by othe rs teams .During the period 1992-1994 Williams cars won 27 out of 48races and they secured F1 consctrucor title for there years and they won Race championship in 1992 aand 1993 . By both Frank Williams and Patrick Head designs which were even more functional and innovative than this used in competitiors teams ,they makes thier bolides both very fast and reliable. The car development process was always top priority for Mr . Willinams and Patrick Head where importance of drivers took second less important place in their management of competetive advantege .Unfortunately they didnet realised importance of the good test driver role which who could help technicain to define and solve the probllems with the car to developed thier deisgn and set up evnen more effectively . Main a source of competitive advantage for Wiilliam team was thier technical excellence created by William and Head and attention in building relationships with thier engine supplier Renault which was very valuable due t o human and finacnial resources invested into the project.Most importnat for Williams’s team was to gain a constructor leadership, by the development of innovative combination of engine and the car chassis. Thier differentiated strategy which focused on the deelopment process of engine and the boilids become also a base of the sustainable competitive advantage where driver was perceived as less important movable resources as they do not belive putting milions in to driver is nessersary , since the development of outstanding bolide . Frank williams and his ‘masculino' approch unfortunateky was negatively effecting drivers relationships within thier F1 team .Actually Williams team dominance in mid 1990 was also resulted of many other internal and external factors such as innovative development of thier competitors such as ground effect and active suspension developed by Lotus , carbon-composite monocoque developed by McLaren and and semi automatic gearbox developed by Fer rari . Close business relations with Renault and priceless long-lasting relationship between Patrick Head and Frank Williams. Frank strategy was successful only for three season in constructors championship, longer due to series of negative events occurring between 1994 and 1995 .Williams team the best driver Ayrton Senna, died in the tragic accident during a San Marino Grand Prix in Imola in 1194. This accident shekad with whole Formula one industry as A. Senna was the most talented driver in F1. After year In 1995 Renault, decided to start manufacture, the engines as well for Benetton team. Furthermore one of Williams ex designers helped Benetton with car development, in which many technological innovations used by Williams in thier boilids influencing slow process of loosing competetive advantege of their tea . Another External factor which imacpt on fuutere ledarship of williams team was that M.Schumacher joined Benneton team . Thankfully for Williams, Schumacher shortly moved t o less competitive Ferrari, giving Williams team a clear way for gaining their sustain competetive advantege lost. Frank strategy was successful only for three season in constructors championship, longer due to series of negative events occurring between 1994 and 1995 . Williams team the best driver Ayrton Senna, died in the tragic accident during a San Marino Grand Prix in Imola in 1194. This accident shekad with whole Formula one industry as A. Senna was the most talented driver in F1.After year In 1995 Renault, decided to start manufacture, the engines as well for Benetton team. Furthermore one of Williams ex designers helped Benetton with car development, in which many technological innovations used by Williams in thier boilids influencing slow process of loosing competetive advantege of their tea . Another External factor which imacpt on fuutere ledarship of williams team was that M. Schumacher joined Benneton team . Thankfully for Williams, Schumacher shortly moved to less com petitive Ferrari, giving Williams team a clear way for gaining their sustain competetive advantege lost.The critical elements which impact Williams losss of sustainable competitive advantage after mid of 1990 were based of their priority focus on developments of engerering resources to win constructors championship , and laack of startegic management of thier capabilieteis and ability to linked then to each other to achieve superrior performance avoinding crating disadvantege threshold capabilities. I am of the opinion that in some way it created disadvantage for the team. Previously mentions Knowledge based view mentioned confirmed how important or even most important are human resources and the ability to share gathered information. nfortynatek within Williams F1 team this approcha was not really respected especially in relation to the role of the dirver and thier proffesional knowledge that they possesed even if they changed each season . Aityan (2012) described that to expect a high level of loyalty from the employee, the organisation should show similar or even higher level of loyalty to them where in Williams team , Patrics Head together with Franks autocratic leadership style to drivers does not practice that at all and was also blocking flow of valuable information between departments . hats why drivers were leaving after one season (e. g. Mansel, Prost). I i have described Formula one indusrty as closed industry with low probabiolity of new entrants FranK did NOT realised that by this management approch he was disadbventing his team by letting drivers and even engeneires share their knowlded and concepts obtiane in williams team with other competitor teams . According to Pickett (2004) when people leave, their knowledge also does. . Tymon et al. 2010) found that the key predictors of employee’s intention to leave are satisfaction with and pride in the organization and perception of it being socially responsible. Williams’s management to secure their competitive advantage should have a better developed career developemnt program for their key employees where they should be empowerd in decision makin process within the team and and drivers should be respect and not treated as the recruits . The best teamFerrari would not be able to achieve the succes even with this all tangible resources without proper and effective management strtegies allow all this available resources to be linked together and effiently Ferrari apooitned new boos who was twenty five year old, connected to Fiat owners, lawyer Luca di Montezemolo perceived as young and not necessary familiar with the industry surprisingly he appeared to be a perfect fit for the role due to his managerial skills and ability to put the order into day to day operations.At the same time new technical director – Mauro Forghieri and a new leading driver Niki Lauda were appointed. Ferrari constructors team with thier autocratic style and thier respect for the import ance of human resoursec in any developmnets precess proved to crrate and sustain the best source of competetive advatege by linkeages all tangible and in tangible resourses working together in appropiete manner wirh great copoeration of the key members of the team within the team .

Mass media doesn’t tell you what to think, but it tells you what to think about Essay

Body 1 According to Stanley J. Baran’s (2002) definition of Agenda setting, it is a theory that argues that the media may not tell us what to think, but the media tells us what to think about. Since the media cannot tell us what to think, it cannot dictate ones’ opinion on a subject. An example of this is the subject of taxes. This issue is commonly discussed by the media, but it is up to the audience’s interpretation of higher or lower taxes will benefit the individual. To further support this claim a study called â€Å"The People’s Choice† was conducted in 1972 by Maxwell E. McCombs and Donald L. Shaw. These scholars from the University of North Carolina studied the role of mass media in the presidential campaign in the town of Chapel Hill. In the study they selected 100 undecided voters, because this group of people were â€Å"presumably those most open or susceptible to campaign information.† (Dearing and Rodgers,1992, p.6) In a three week perio d prior to the election these respondents were interviewed. The voter’s public agenda issues were measured by the survey question â€Å"what are you most concerned about these days?† This was interpreted as â€Å"What issues should the government emphasize more?† Out of the 100 voters, the five most common responses were law and order, foreign policy, public welfare, civil rights, and fiscal policy. The media agenda was made up of counting the number of news articles, editorials, and broadcast stories from the nine mass media broadcasters of Chapel Hill. Surprisingly, the results yielded in an almost perfect correlation between the rank order of the media agenda and the rank order of the public agenda. Thus meaning that the higher number of press a government issue had, the more the public voters ranked the subject being more important. Relating back to the statement of â€Å"Mass media doesn’t tell you what to think, but it tells you what to think about †, the voters were not told how to vote (hence they were undecided), but rather the media implemented on what topics to vote for. This can be seen as: the media telling the public what to think about. Body 2 Furthermore, with the rise of television, radio, propaganda, and advertising, a counter argument may be created. The Hypodermic Needle Theory states that the mass media does tell you what to think. This theory suggests that the population is seen as a sitting duck. Mass amounts of ideas can be implemented straight into the population with the intent for a desired response. The population is sought out to be powerless, and have no choice but to accept the ideas. The people are seen as passive and believe what is told because it is the only source of information. In the event of â€Å"War of the Worlds† that was broadcasted on October 30th, 1938 as a hoax played a supportive claim to this theory. During the event, a broadcast on the radio was interrupted by a news bulletin. The audience was told that there was an alien invasion. Out of the twelve million people who heard the broadcast, only one million people believe it and or reacted to it. Scholars and theorist connect the hyp odermic needle theory and this broadcast together. What makes this argument weak is that eleven million people did not react the way the media intended them too.

Accounting Financial Report Analysis

In this given report, the financial data obtained from the annual report of Procter & Gamble and Unilever is to be discussed. Financial data of three years is to be used for obtaining key ratio, which shows the performance of a company. Based on the ratios determined comparison will be done for the three years. Also, inter firm comparison will be made based on the ratios determined and after that recommendation will be given so that the company can improve their financial position in future (Weil, Schipper and Francis 2013). The variances in different ratios that determine the profitability, liquidity and activity position of P&G and Unilever during the period of three years is analyzed and assessed, based on which the predicted outcome is determined. The investors and other users of financial statement can use the above ratios to understanding of the overall position of the company. This will help them to decide in which they want to invest (Hoskin, Fizzell and Cherry 2014). The creditors who have given supplies to the companies can have an overview of the fact that their debts are secured or not and whether the company has the ability to pay off their debts quickly. They can have an idea of the liquidity position of the company by analyzing the current ratio of both the company. EPS and return on equity will help the investors to understand the earning capacity of P&G and Unilever on their investment, which will help them to decide in which company to invest further (Vogel 2014). Return on asset will help funders of the company to understand whether the company id efficiently using its asset to generate income. In this section, the financial ratios determined from the financial data available from the financial statement of Procter & Gamble and Unilever will be analyzed and assessed. Based on that recommendation will be given on the performance of those two companies.   The income statement, balance sheet and ratio analysis of Procter & Gamble for three years is discussed below based on which analysis is done. Earning before interest and and taxes Net margin (Net profit/Turnover*100) Return on asset (Net profit/Total asset*100) Return on Equity (Net profit/Equity*100) Asset Turnover (Turnover/Total   Asset) Earning per share (EPS) (Net profit/Number of shares) Current Ratio (Current Asset/Current Liability) Debt Equity ratio (Long term debt/Equity) Receivable turnover (Turnover/Account Receivable) Net profit margin shows the profit earning capacity of a company with respect to its turnover. For P&G, it has increased by 0.48% in 2014 but it has again decreased by 2.36% in 2015, which must a worrying factor for the management of P & G. However, year 2015 was a tough fiscal as addressed by Mr. A.G. LAFLEY, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Procter & Gamble in the annual report. P&G is a very renowned company, which has a very high brand value so it is expected that will turn around in its near future. Return on asset (ROA) has also decreased by 0.11% and 1.20% in 2014 and 2015 respectively. ROA determines how the management of the company is utilizing its asset to generate profitability. As it is decreasing it implies that management is not able to utilize its asset properly which must be take proper care of. Return on equity (ROE) has increased in the year 2014 by 0.09% whereas it has again decreased in the year 2015 by 2.58%. ROE implies the earning of the shareholder with respect to their investment in the company (Healy and Palepu 2012). If it has a deceasing trend then it is not at all beneficial from the view point of the company as shareholders will be de-motivate to invest further in the company if their investment is not earning well in P&G. New shareholders will also not be willing to invest if they analyze this ratio from the financial statement available publicly (Feng et al. 2014). Asset turnover ratio is used to determine whether the company is properly using its asset to generate revenue for the company. The higher the ratio is, the better it is for the company. Though this ratio has decreased during the three years period, P&G has maintained at this ratio at a range of 0.58-0.60, which is a good sign. However, it should try to increase this ratio in the near future. EPS has a huge implication in the stock market. It shows how the company has been performing with respect profitability per share (Weygandt, Kimmel and Kieso 2015). It has increased in 2014 by 0.12 but it has again decreased year 2015 by 0.92, which may be due to the economic down turn faced by the company. Therefore, it is expected that it will turn around in near future. Current ratio determines the capability of the company to pay off its short-term liability by selling its current asset in case of urgent need (Tan, Zhang and Liu 2013). This ratio should be maintained as high as possible. If it falls below 1 then it is danger sign for the company. However, it was below 1 during the year 2013 and 2014 P&G has been able to take this ratio to 1 in the year 2015. Debt-Equity ratio shows the mix of debt and equity funding of a company. This ratio should be kept as minimum as possible (Connolly, Hyndman and McConville 2013). Outside funding should never be more than own funding otherwise the company may be at risk of getting leveraged buyout. In case of P&G, it has been able to maintain it at a low level of 0.28 to 0.29 during the year 2013 to 2015, which is a very good indicator for the company. Receivable turnover ratio indicates how a company manages the credit issued to their customers (Harper 2016). If the ratio is high then it implies the company is efficient in collecting its receivable or it has a good customer base that can pay off debts fast. In case of P&G, this ratio has decreased by -0.89 in the year 2014 but it has again increased by 2.69 in the year 2015, which is a good sign. It has been able to maintain this ratio well above 10 that means it’s customers are capable in paying off their overdue quickly.   Earning before interest and and taxes Net margin (Net profit/Turnover*100) Return on asset (Net profit/Total asset*100) Return on Equity (Net profit/Equity*100) Asset Turnover (Turnover/Total   Asset) Earning per share (EPS) (Net profit/Number of shares) Current Ratio (Current Asset/Current Liability) Debt Equity ratio (Long term debt/Equity) Receivable turnover (Turnover/Account Receivable) In case of Unilever, its net profit margin has increased during 2014 by 0.95% but it has again decreased in 2015 by 1.46% that means its operating and other expenses have increased during this year (Needles, Powers and Crosson 2013). Therefore, Unilever must take measures to control its operating and other expenses. ROA has increased by 0.13% in 2014 but it has again decreased by 1.46% in 2015 that means Unilever is not able to utilize its asset efficiently to generate profit. This may have a negative impact on the stakeholders of the company, which must be taken into account by the management of the company immediately (Collier 2016). ROE has increased during 2014 by 0.13% whereas it has again decreased during 2015 by 1.38% that means it has not been able to generate higher return for the shareholders on their investment. This may discourage their shareholders to invest further in Unilever. Therefore, management must make sure this ratio does not fall further otherwise it may hamper the reputation of the company (Zakaria and Islam 2014). EPS has increased in 2014 by 0.11 whereas it has again decreased in 2015 by 0.09, which is not a good indicator for the company. The management of Unilever must take initiatives to increase its EPS in future years. Asset turnover ratio, which has decreased in 2014 by 0.09, has again increased in 2015 by 0.01, which indicates that Unilever is efficiently using its asset to generate revenue, which is a good sign for the company. Current ratio, which has decreased by 0.07 in 2014, has again increased in 2015 very insignificantly and it is well below 1, which must be a worrying factor the management of Unilever (Needles, Powers and Crosson 2013). Debt-Equity ratio is currently ZERO for Unilever that means it has no outside funding, which is very good sign. Receivable turnover ratio, which has decreased by -0.74 in 2014, has again increased by 1.46 in 2015 that means it is managing its credit period efficiently.   In this part, detailed discussion will be done on any one coefficient of P&G and Unilever and comparison will be done between them. It is better to select current ratio for the analysis purpose as it is one of the most important or key ratio for determining the liquidity and financial position of a company. A company is said to be in a good position if its current ratio is at least 2 that means its current asset is two times its current liabilities. It implies that a company can easily use its current asset to pay its short-term debts and if required can also repay some of its long-term debts. It is also known as working capital ratio and should not fall below 1. If it falls below 1 then it is an indicator for the management of the company that its liquidity position is in danger and it will not be able to pay off its debts at this point of time (Elshahat, Freedman and Elshahat 2015). However, it does not necessarily mean that company will go bankrupt. In case of P&G (Table-1), it can be seen that its current ratio was 0.80 in 2013 then it increased to 0.94 in 2014 and finally it became 1 in 2015. Though it was below 1 in 2013 and 2014, it was not much below 1 and made up the gap in 2015. Currently, P&G is in a position where it has the ability to pay off its short-term debts in case of any emergency from its current asset. Therefore, it can be said that P&G is financially stable at this point of time but it should try to increase these ratio further in future as during the past three years it has shown a increasing trend. On the other hand, in case of Unilever (Table-2), it can be seen that its current ratio was 0.70 in the year 2013, which decreased to 0.63 in 2014 and stayed at that level in the year 2015, which is well below one.   By analyzing, the above data it can be said that its liquidity position of Unilever is not that good which means   it will not be able to pay of its short-term debts currently. This indicates that the financial position of the company is in danger and if it is not able to increase its liquidity ratio immediately then its creditors will lose faith in the management of the Unilever. However, this does not mean company will be liquated immediately. It is definitely possible for Unilever to turn around in near future, as it is big brand in the market and very well known for its reputation and high values. While comparing the current ratio of both the company, P&G and Unilever, it can be said that currently P&G is in a better position than Unilever since its current ratio is more by 0.37. In addition, the current ratio is P&G is equal to 1 which is the minimum level that a company should maintain (Sharma and Panigrahi 2013). Whereas for Unilever it is much below than 1. Therefore, it can be said that P&G has a better working capital position and it has managed its liquidity efficiently. However, for both the company it is well below 2 which is considered as an appropriate Current Ratio for a company so the management of both the company should take measures to increase its current ratio in future years. A higher current ratio does not always indicate a better financial position of a company as there are many current assets, which are very slow moving and are not easily salable in the market. From the above analysis, it can be seen that P&G is better in some aspects whereas Unilever is better in some other aspects. Both the company should improve in certain fields as if current ratio is better for P&G whereas debt equity ratio is better for Unilever. Both this ratio reflects the liquidity position of the company so P&G should try to improve its Debt-equity whereas Unilever should try to improve its current ratio. P&G should try to decrease its operation cost in future to increase its profit margin. If profit margin increases then it will automatically increase its return on asset, return on equity and earning per share of the company unless asset and equity base of the of the company changes. Current ratio of P&G is maintained at its minimum level of 1 which is required to be increased to 2 to ensure a better liquidity position. Debt equity ratio of P&G is currently much below 1 i.e. 0.29 which must be worrying factor for the management of P&G as its outside funding is much higher than internal funding. P&G must take initiatives to increase its Debt-equity ratio by introducing new source of equity or by increasing its transfer to general reserve so increase it to above 1 immediately. Otherwise, P&G is at high risk of being leveraged buyout i.e. takeover of the company by the debt funders. On the other hand, Unilever should also try to control its operating expenses so that its net profit margin increases which in turn will increase the return on equity and return on asset of the company. Unilever’s current ratio is very low i.e. it is well below 1 which indicates a danger position for the company. Management of Unilever must take immediate step to increase its current ratio otherwise; its creditors will lose faith in the company.   From the above analysis, it can be said that both the company’s performance has decreased during the fiscal year 2015, as it was a tough year for the whole industry. Both the companies have a very good background and high consumer value so it is expected that their performance will definitely increase in future and they will again turn around. Both the company must focus on controlling their operating cost or increase their revenue to increase their market share. This will help them to increase other ratios also, which have an impact on other aspects of financial position. Both the company must focus on their current ratio especially Unilever since its current ratio is well below one whereas P&G has just maintained the minimum level. Debt equity ratio of P&G indicates a red signal so immediate action must be taken by its management to improve it whereas for Unilever it is ZERO, which shows that it does not have any external funding. Therefore, Unilever must introduce some external funding to get a good mix of external and internal funding. Both the company has a good receivable turnover so they should try to maintain this ratio in future. This above recommendation and comparison is based on ratio analysis that may not always give best results, as there is many limitation and drawbacks of ratio analysis. Since ratio analysis is based on past data, it does not show the future prospects of a company. 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Strategic Management and Contemporary Level Of Competition Essay

Strategic Management and Contemporary Level Of Competition - Essay Example There are different segments of environments in which an organization operates; these include external environments like the economic, political, social, cultural, technological, global, and demographic environments. All these segments of the environment influence the pattern of conducting business in an industry. According to Brown & Eisenhardt (1998:3), "strategy is about two things: deciding where you want your business to go and figuring out how to get there". Strategic management pattern of every organization may differ from what is obtainable in another; while there may be areas of similarity, certain aspects are uniquely structured out to suit the operation of the organization in concern. The ability of an organization to successfully compete depends on how unique its strategy is. In this view Peter (2005:5), argues, "Strategic competitiveness is achieved when a firm successfully formulates and implements a value-creating strategy. When a firm implements such a strategy that o ther companies are unable to duplicate or find too costly to imitate, this firm gas a sustained, or sustainable, competitive advantage". ... try the question that decision makers for organization have to tackle is what to do What to do on how to carry out the organization operations When should it be done In order for an organization to gain competitive advantage over its rivals, it tends to come out and adopt a strategy that is different from what its competitors are familiar. This essay would compare and contrastthe sources of competitive advantage in the Aero-engine and thegrocery retail markets. Examples of organizations operating in these industries would be utilized in analyzing the subject matter. GAINING COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN A DYNAMIC INDUSTRY Through an effective strategic management, an organization can adequately cease the opportunities abounding in the industry where it operates. It will utilize its resources most adequately in meeting the changes and challenges in the industry. Looking at the external environment, how it influences the operation of an organization, the ability of an organization to capture untapped opportunities within the industry it operates this will go to put it ahead of its rivals and give it competitive advantage. Opportunities abound for firms operating in an industry, it is only through effective strategic management framework put in place by an organization, and its ability to be innovatively different from its rivals that it would seize these opportunities, before another close rival discover it. This brings us to the issue of strategic competitiveness. According to Peter (2005:5), "strategic competitiveness is achieved when a firm successfully formulates and implements a value-creating stra tegy. When a firm implements such a strategy that other companies are unable toduplicate or find too costly to imitate, this firm has a sustained, or sustainable, competitive