Unit3Corporate CultureSupplementary ReadingPassage1AStrongandLivingCorporateCultureIKEA has a strong and living corporate culture. It has grown step by step, bit by bit, along with ourbusiness idea. Our culture and business idea are the cornerstones of our operations.They support andstrengthen each other.Our corporate culture helps us to retain the spirit and vitality of the earlyyears, and tocreate a feeling of belonging in a large international organization. Our corporate culture is what binds ustogether.Our corporate cultureisbased on sharedvalues:a simpleandoptimistic lifestyle,a natural way ofworking and being together, without imposing exaggerated respect and complicated regulations.Thekeywords are simplicity and humility,thrift, a sense of responsibility,enthusiasm and flexibility.Perhaps themost important of these is simplicity,as seen in the unpretentious way we associate with eachother.Thereare no status symbols to create barriers between managers and theirfellow workers.Our customers don'texpect to pay for first-class hotels, directors'dining rooms and flashy cars.It is important that all employees share our basic values. We take a lot of trouble with recruitment.IKEA is an ideas company. Our business idea and culture provide us with a framework, and we look forpeople to build upon and promote our culture. But we also want people who can cut across our organization,whoare strong enoughto question,renew and change.Suchpeoplepromotedevelopment and should beencouraged not punished.Internal promotion is still the norm, but we also recruit a number of people from outside. This isessentialfor strongexpansion.And itprovidesus withnewimpulses.Keeping our culture alive is management's key task.The best wayis to set a good example and careabout the employees. To see the person behind the professional. Caring means listening and encouraging newideas and fresh initiatives, action and a sense of responsibility. Caring also means following up, putting rightwhatgoeswrong.Beingabletopraiseandrebuke.Our managers must know their job, and personally involves themselves in detail. “Retail is detail."battles are seldom won at the desk. They are won out in the real world.Simplicity and efficiency areusually synonymous concepts.Todaywe area longwayfrom our goals.We must put this right. At all levels. Then we will feel happier with each other and with our tasks. Thecontinued success of IKEA rests on the involvement and enthusiasm of individual employees. And a greatdeal depends on our managers' perceptiveness and ability to care
Unit 3 Corporate Culture Supplementary Reading Passage 1 A Strong and Living Corporate Culture IKEA has a strong and living corporate culture. It has grown step by step, bit by bit, along with our business idea. Our culture and business idea are the cornerstones of our operations. They support and strengthen each other. Our corporate culture helps us to retain the spirit and vitality of the early years, and to create a feeling of belonging in a large international organization. Our corporate culture is what binds us together. Our corporate culture is based on shared values: a simple and optimistic lifestyle, a natural way of working and being together, without imposing exaggerated respect and complicated regulations. The key words are simplicity and humility, thrift, a sense of responsibility, enthusiasm and flexibility. Perhaps the most important of these is simplicity, as seen in the unpretentious way we associate with each other. There are no status symbols to create barriers between managers and their fellow workers. Our customers don’t expect to pay for first-class hotels, directors’ dining rooms and flashy cars. It is important that all employees share our basic values. We take a lot of trouble with recruitment. IKEA is an ideas company. Our business idea and culture provide us with a framework, and we look for people to build upon and promote our culture. But we also want people who can cut across our organization, who are strong enough to question, renew and change. Such people promote development and should be encouraged not punished. Internal promotion is still the norm, but we also recruit a number of people from outside. This is essential for strong expansion. And it provides us with new impulses. Keeping our culture alive is management’s key task. The best way is to set a good example and care about the employees. To see the person behind the professional. Caring means listening and encouraging new ideas and fresh initiatives, action and a sense of responsibility. Caring also means following up, putting right what goes wrong. Being able to praise and rebuke. Our managers must know their job, and personally involves themselves in detail. “Retail is detail.” battles are seldom won at the desk. They are won out in the real world. Simplicity and efficiency are usually synonymous concepts. Today we are a long way from our goals. We must put this right. At all levels. Then we will feel happier with each other and with our tasks. The continued success of IKEA rests on the involvement and enthusiasm of individual employees. And a great deal depends on our managers’ perceptiveness and ability to care
EacercisesI. Discuss the following questions.1.IKEA promotes a single corporate culture, which is the foundation for its international operation.Is itimportant for IKEA to have a strong company culture?2. What are the shared values ofIKEA?3. What is the recruitment policy ofIKEA?4.HowIKEAkeeping itsculturealive?II.Fill in the blanks with the words or phrases in the box. Change theform when necessary.expandpromoterecruitinitiativesimplicityinterpretcompeteperceptive1. Some managers may be annoyed if you call them, though others will see it as a sign of2.Futureofthebusinesscallsfortwonewfactories.3.There is adeeplonging inall heartsforandyetwegooncomplicatingourlives4.For every trait, you canit in a positive and a negative manner.5. Regardless of whichchannels you use, get the best value for your marketing dollars.6. Finally, I asked thisveteranof global marketingwhat lessons could hesharewith other marketers7. Hotel management makes regulartrips to China, and all staff are encouraged to learn Mandarin.8.If theirproducts canbetradedacross borders,thenforeign rivalscanwith them at home.Passage TwoNot to beTakenfor GrantedAsda and Wal-Mart should be theperfect merger, given that the former has deliberately set out to copythe US retailing giant's style. But Asda is keenly aware of the pitfalls.You could not hopeto find a neater fit. said the commentators when Wal-Mart, the world's biggestretailer, agreed a f6.7bn takeover deal with Asda, the UK's number three supermarket group.It had long been known that the team which was brought in to rescue Asda from collapse in the mid-1980s had deliberately set out to copy virtually every aspect of the giant US discount group that could bereplicated inthe UKSo Asda stores have“colleagues",not employees.Theyhave people in theparking lots to help driversto park. They have old-age pensioners wearing colorful name badges, standing at the door to say hello andask customers if they need help.In the Leeds headquarters no one has an individual office, not even thechairman.Finally,store staff get actively involved in promotingindividual productlines,and are rewardedwhen their efforts head to tangible sales improvements.Most ofthese ideas came straight from Bentonville,Arkansas, home to one ofthe world's most unusual
Exercises I. Discuss the following questions. 1. IKEA promotes a single corporate culture, which is the foundation for its international operation. Is it important for IKEA to have a strong company culture? 2. What are the shared values of IKEA? 3. What is the recruitment policy of IKEA? 4. How IKEA keeping its culture alive? II. Fill in the blanks with the words or phrases in the box. Change the form when necessary. promote recruit expand initiative simplicity compete perceptive interpret 1. Some managers may be annoyed if you call them, though others will see it as a sign of _. 2. Future of the business _ calls for two new factories. 3. There is a deep longing in all hearts for _ and yet we go on complicating our lives. 4. For every trait, you can _ it in a positive and a negative manner. 5. Regardless of which _ channels you use, get the best value for your marketing dollars. 6. Finally, I asked this _ veteran of global marketing what lessons could he share with other marketers. 7. Hotel management makes regular _ trips to China, and all staff are encouraged to learn Mandarin. 8. If their products can be traded across borders, then foreign rivals can _ with them at home. Passage Two Not to be Taken for Granted Asda and Wal-Mart should be the perfect merger, given that the former has deliberately set out to copy the US retailing giant’s style. But Asda is keenly aware of the pitfalls. You could not hope to find a neater fit, said the commentators when Wal-Mart, the world’s biggest retailer, agreed a￡6.7bn takeover deal with Asda, the UK’s number three supermarket group. It had long been known that the team which was brought in to rescue Asda from collapse in the mid- 1980s had deliberately set out to copy virtually every aspect of the giant US discount group that could be replicated in the UK. So Asda stores have “colleagues”, not employees. They have people in the parking lots to help drivers to park. They have old-age pensioners wearing colorful name badges, standing at the door to say hello and ask customers if they need help. In the Leeds headquarters no one has an individual office, not even the chairman. Finally, store staff get actively involved in promoting individual product lines, and are rewarded when their efforts head to tangible sales improvements. Most of these ideas came straight from Bentonville, Arkansas, home to one of the world’s most unusual
retailers. For Wal-Mart's corporate culture has become a legend in retailing.The company's employees chant the Wal-Mart cheer before store meetings. The benefit from a shareownership scheme which is one of the most widespread in the industry. Top executives share rooms when onbusiness trips, and payfor their coffee and tea from vending machines like the lowliest sales assistant.Giventhe similarities,there arefewwhoreallybelieve putting Asda into Wal-Mart network will resultin anything but success. But, says Asda's Chief Executive, Allan Leighton, this is no reason to be complacent.Failing to bring together corporate cultures, even those as similar as Asda's and Wal-Mart's, could lead to thedownfall ofthemost logical mergers.“When acquiring or merging with a business, getting the cultures to fitisfundamentally important,"he says.Half-wayhouses,where compromises aremade,never work,hebelieves,and nordoesimposingon cultureon another.“"Acompanycallingtheircolleagues andtreatingthemlike staff is not the answer," he says.Thekey to getting the deal towork culturallyrests on a fewfundamental issues, he believes.The firstand most important is terminology, he says.“Business have their own language.You have to get everyonealigned so that when someone uses a word it means the same thing to everyone.Middle management comes next.“"Initially,everything is done at the top of the organization,"he says.But most ofthe work is done in the middle."Ifmiddle management is not incentivized, a deal can go horriblywrong.“It all boils down to people in the end. And what motivates people? Unless you can demonstrate veryquicklythattheir influenceintheorganization is at least the same ifnotbetterthanbefore,thenpeople willget concerned about it," he says.Third comes getting to know each other. Asda and Wal-Mart have spent the last few weeks swappingstore managers and IT systems staff. We will go out there, look and bring back," Leighton says. “That waywe will have ownership of the changes as opposed to having them pushed on us."It will alwaysbehardtodeterminewhether amerger or takeoverhasfailedbecausetheculturesimplydid not fit. But success is more likely to elude those who do not really believe in the cultures they are tryingto create.“This is all comes from the heart,"says Leighton.“"You do not get it from textbook management orinstruction.You haveto create an environment wherepeoplefeel comfortable inexpressingthemselves inadifferentway."EacercisesI.Discuss thefollowingquestions in groups.1.Do you think Asda and Wal-Mart have similar corporate cultures?2.What kind of deal was agreed after Asda had financial problems in the 1980s?3. Do you think Wal-Mart plans to impose its corporate culture on Asda? If not, what is done to make surethe merger will be successful?4. Do Chinese companies import some Western companies'cultures to improve themselves? Can you givesomeexamples?II. Match the following words with the definitions and synonyms on the right
retailers. For Wal-Mart’s corporate culture has become a legend in retailing. The company’s employees chant the Wal-Mart cheer before store meetings. The benefit from a share ownership scheme which is one of the most widespread in the industry. Top executives share rooms when on business trips, and pay for their coffee and tea from vending machines like the lowliest sales assistant. Given the similarities, there are few who really believe putting Asda into Wal-Mart network will result in anything but success. But, says Asda’s Chief Executive, Allan Leighton, this is no reason to be complacent. Failing to bring together corporate cultures, even those as similar as Asda’s and Wal-Mart’s, could lead to the downfall of the most logical mergers. “When acquiring or merging with a business, getting the cultures to fit is fundamentally important,” he says. Half-way houses, where compromises are made, never work, he believes, and nor does imposing on culture on another. “A company calling their colleagues and treating them like staff is not the answer,” he says. The key to getting the deal to work culturally rests on a few fundamental issues, he believes. The first and most important is terminology, he says. ‘Business have their own language. You have to get everyone aligned so that when someone uses a word it means the same thing to everyone.’ Middle management comes next. “Initially, everything is done at the top of the organization,” he says. “But most of the work is done in the middle.” If middle management is not incentivized, a deal can go horribly wrong. “It all boils down to people in the end. And what motivates people? Unless you can demonstrate very quickly that their influence in the organization is at least the same if not better than before, then people will get concerned about it,” he says. Third comes getting to know each other. Asda and Wal-Mart have spent the last few weeks swapping store managers and IT systems staff. “We will go out there, look and bring back,” Leighton says. “That way we will have ownership of the changes as opposed to having them pushed on us.” It will always be hard to determine whether a merger or takeover has failed because the culture simply did not fit. But success is more likely to elude those who do not really believe in the cultures they are trying to create. “This is all comes from the heart,” says Leighton. “You do not get it from textbook management or instruction. You have to create an environment where people feel comfortable in expressing themselves in a different way.” Exercises I. Discuss the following questions in groups. 1. Do you think Asda and Wal-Mart have similar corporate cultures? 2. What kind of deal was agreed after Asda had financial problems in the 1980s? 3. Do you think Wal-Mart plans to impose its corporate culture on Asda? If not, what is done to make sure the merger will be successful? 4. Do Chinese companies import some Western companies’ cultures to improve themselves? Can you give some examples? II. Match the following words with the definitions and synonyms on the right
1. collapseA.veryfamousandadmiredbyalotofpeople2. replicateB.an accommodationinwhichbothsidesmakeconcessions3. tangibleC. a sudden large decline of business4. legendD.contentedtoafaultwithoneselforone'sactions5.complacentE.reproduce or make an exact copy of6.compromiseF.having physical substance and intrinsic monetaryvalueIl. Choose the correct word to fill each gap.The number of training organizations in the country has been increasing at a rapid1_over the lastdecade and this trend seems set to continue. Management Worldwide Ltd is one ofthe country's most2training organizations, with over 50 centers throughout the UK. Its focus is on a 3_ area: managementskills training. Management Worldwide employs over a thousand people in areas as 4_as accountancy,marketing, computing, sales and languages. It has a non-hierarchical approach to management and believesin giving5to staff at all levels of the organization. Its corporate6,as stated in the company'smission 7_, include optimism, respect and flexibility. Management Worldwide's business goal is toincrease shareholder value by concentrating on its 8_ training business and offering excellent service toclients.1.A. paceB. speedC. initiative2.A.successfulB. exaggeratedC, valuableC. uniform3. A. reducedB. singleB. flexibleC. diverse4.A. irregular5.A. initiativeB. pressureC. responsibilityB. values6.A.strategiesC. qualitiesC. brochure7.A. statementB. catalogue8.A.coreB. essentialC. prime
1. collapse A. very famous and admired by a lot of people 2. replicate B. an accommodation in which both sides make concessions 3. tangible C. a sudden large decline of business 4. legend D. contented to a fault with oneself or one's actions 5. complacent E. reproduce or make an exact copy of 6. compromise F. having physical substance and intrinsic monetary value III. Choose the correct word to fill each gap. The number of training organizations in the country has been increasing at a rapid 1 over the last decade and this trend seems set to continue. Management Worldwide Ltd is one of the country’s most 2 training organizations, with over 50 centers throughout the UK. Its focus is on a 3 area: management skills training. Management Worldwide employs over a thousand people in areas as 4 as accountancy, marketing, computing, sales and languages. It has a non-hierarchical approach to management and believes in giving 5 to staff at all levels of the organization. Its corporate 6 , as stated in the company’s mission 7 , include optimism, respect and flexibility. Management Worldwide’s business goal is to increase shareholder value by concentrating on its 8 training business and offering excellent service to clients. 1. A. pace B. speed C. initiative 2. A. successful B. exaggerated C. valuable 3. A. reduced B. single C. uniform 4. A. irregular B. flexible C. diverse 5. A. initiative B. pressure C. responsibility 6. A. strategies B. values C. qualities 7. A. statement B. catalogue C. brochure 8. A. core B. essential C. prime
Unit4AdvertisingSuplementaryReadingPassage1Advertising MediaNewspapers are the oldest advertising medium in the United States. The newspaper, with its freshstream of news andfeatures,stimulates a high degree of reader interest everyday.Housewives oftenbuypapers for the advertisements as such as for the editorial content. They use the retail ads. as shopping guides.Classified ads.provide an important service for readers who are seeking a job, an apartment or house, or aspecial service. Newspapers are useful for both local and national advertising.Magazines are another important medium for advertisers. Many magazines are printed on high-qualitypaper, which makes it possible to run unusually attractive ads. in color.Mass-circulation magazines, such asTime,Newsweek,and Reader'sDigest,reachmillionsofreaders and areused mainlybynational advertisersThere aremany consumer magazines that highly specialized.They appeal toa wide variety of interests,such as sports, gardening, boating, dress-making, and many others. In addition, a variety offarm, business,trade, and professional magazines areread by a limited, but stable, audience.These specialized publicationsoffera selectmarketforadvertisers.Medical journals,for instance,carrya large amountofadvertising fornew drugs and equipment.Radio is a particularly appealing medium to advertisers because it has an audience all day long. Peopleathome listen to the radiowhile they relax orpreparemeals.Drivers often listentothe radio on thewaytoor from work. Many people carry transistor radios to picnics, sports events, and other outings. Radioadvertising can be used for national and local campaigns. Spot commercials, or brief sales messages on alocal station areused to strengthen the advertiser's sales effort in a specific area.Network radio is used forlarger campaigns.However,there has been a decline in the use of network radio advertising since the adventoftelevision.Television has been a major advertising medium since it first became available on a network basis in1948.The great advantage of television advertising is that it combines the powerful selling features of thenewspaper, the radio, and the motion picture.Television advertising is costly and therefore can be used only by large enterprises.A nationaladvertisermayregularly sponsor a network television showthat is seen bymillions ofviewersthroughoutthe country. In addition, advertisers may purchase spot commercials on local stations.Point-of-sale advertising includes in-store banners, window posters, counter cards, shelf cards, tags,leaflets, and otherprintedmatter.It informs shoppers that the items theyhave seen orheardadvertised
Unit 4 Advertising Supplementary Reading Passage 1 Advertising Media Newspapers are the oldest advertising medium in the United States. The newspaper, with its fresh stream of news and features, stimulates a high degree of reader interest every day. Housewives often buy papers for the advertisements as such as for the editorial content. They use the retail ads. as shopping guides. Classified ads. provide an important service for readers who are seeking a job, an apartment or house, or a special service. Newspapers are useful for both local and national advertising. Magazines are another important medium for advertisers. Many magazines are printed on high-quality paper, which makes it possible to run unusually attractive ads. in color. Mass-circulation magazines, such as Time, Newsweek, and Reader’s Digest, reach millions of readers and are used mainly by national advertisers. There are many consumer magazines that highly specialized. They appeal to a wide variety of interests, such as sports, gardening, boating, dress-making, and many others. In addition, a variety of farm, business, trade, and professional magazines are read by a limited, but stable, audience. These specialized publications offer a select market for advertisers. Medical journals, for instance, carry a large amount of advertising for new drugs and equipment. Radio is a particularly appealing medium to advertisers because it has an audience all day long. People at home listen to the radio while they relax or prepare meals. Drivers often listen to the radio on the way to or from work. Many people carry transistor radios to picnics, sports events, and other outings. Radio advertising can be used for national and local campaigns. Spot commercials, or brief sales messages on a local station are used to strengthen the advertiser’s sales effort in a specific area. Network radio is used for larger campaigns. However, there has been a decline in the use of network radio advertising since the advent of television. Television has been a major advertising medium since it first became available on a network basis in 1948. The great advantage of television advertising is that it combines the powerful selling features of the newspaper, the radio, and the motion picture. Television advertising is costly and therefore can be used only by large enterprises. A national advertiser may regularly sponsor a network television show that is seen by millions of viewers throughout the country. In addition, advertisers may purchase spot commercials on local stations. Point-of-sale advertising includes in-store banners, window posters, counter cards, shelf cards, tags, leaflets, and other printed matter. It informs shoppers that the items they have seen or heard advertised