Effects of globalization on supply chain management

Effects of globalization on supply chain management Executive Summery This report evaluates and analyses the effects of globalization on supply chain management (SCM). on the other hand it depicts the reconfiguration of business Further more it reveals supply chain management with five different drivers and those are Production, Inventory, Location, Transportation and Information. Production is first driver in supply chain management which describe Dell production system. Second driver in supply chain management is Inventory, which has explained with the help of Hewlett Packard. Where as third driver in supply chain management is Location, which tells about Toyota, world wide manufacturing operation. Transportation is fourth driver, which discussed about FedEx. and last driver in supply chain management is Information, which has explained by Procter Gamble. 1.GLOBALIZATION â€Å"Globalization is defined as set of beliefs that foster a sense of connectivity interdependence and integration in the world community the towers of globalization are open trade and vital civil and legal institutions that uphold individual and group rights while facilitation social and economic integration†(Christopher, 2005). Globalization is a set up a world community that is prosperous and tolerant, and on process that enhances and strengthens global understanding and improves the quality and effectiveness of business, professional, and personal interactions through unrestricted access to world commodities, technology, and information. â€Å"Globalization is not synonymous with trade volume and export profits, it is an orientation that seeks to enhance and strengthen global understanding and effective business, professional and personal interactions† (Larsen, 2007). Naturally question arises in our mind what are the reasons for globalization? A company explores global production for a variety of reasons. While there are costs associated with managing and operating a multinational organization, many companies pursue global production because it offers several benefits (1-a) Access to cheaper labour and operation costs is one of the most common reasons for location production facilities overseas, labour rates vary considerably among nations. Therefore, for many specific types of production activities, it is cheaper for companies to produce overseas than to extend in their home countries. For many specific types of production activities, it is cheaper for companies to produce overseas than to expand in their home countries. For example, many manufacturing facilities have been set up in china and Bangladesh to take advantage of those countries, lower labour costs. Similarly, many telephone and internet-based customer support centres have been established in India during recent years of lower operating costs. (1-b) Sometimes, companies locate their facilities in another country to get access to the knowledge and skills of people in that country. For example, many information technology-based operations have recently been established in several eastern European countries and in India because of the vast pool of highly skilled workers in those areas. It should be noted that access to knowledge and skill does not necessarily come at lower cost. Switzerland, Germany, and Japan are examples of countries where companies locate facility to get access to populations who are highly skilled in financial services, engineering and technology, even though the labour costs are higher. (1-c) Yet another reason for globalization of industries involves access to resources, certain parts of the world are rich in natural resources. For example, many of the minerals-based in south American countries, which have some of the words largest mining industries. (1-d) Globalization also allows companies access to new markets, by locating facilities in new countries firms can market their products and services to a new set of customers. Therefore, firms always look for growth opportunities abroad. For example, we can see the outlets of many well -known America brands. For examples McDonalds, Marriott, and Star bucks around the world. (1-e) Facilities at strategic international locations can also reduce logistics and distribution cost. A foreign location can become a hub for distribution of a firms products to markets in the neighbouring region. For example, apple, Sony, and other electronics producers operate distribution and warehousing facilities at various strategic locations in north America, Europe, Asia and the rest of the world. (1-f) Sometimes firms locate their facilities internationally to take advantage of tax and financial incentives provided by local governments. To encourage development, many emerging nations have established â€Å"tax-free production zones† within their borders. The companies operating within these zones get significant tax rebates and access to cheaper capital. For example, the software development facilities of many international firms are located in SEEPZ,(Santacruz electronics export processing zone) Mumbai, India. because of very attractive tax incentives provided by the local government. (1-g) Finally, firms also locate internationally for political and industry-specific reasons. For example, by locating a production facility in a country, providing employment, and participating in various community activities, a firm can slowly become â€Å"local† rather than stay a â€Å"foreign† entity. For example, Holden cars are commonly considered to be Australian, but they have been part of the general motors family since the 1920s. (2)RECONFIGURE Today, many multinational companies have reconfigured their supply chan. Their are many reasons behind this, such as advance ICT (information and communication technology), increased focus on market requirements, global rivalry, development in international fright transport system, global rivalry etc. Market requirements obliges the companies to reconfigure their supply chains and increased pressure on time to delivery requires organisation to be in close immediacy to their consumers, not necessarily in terms of physical distance, but in terms of time twenty four hours lead time demands world for example, such type of condition quite normal in several industries. so these conditions indicates that, organisation need to have reconfigure their distribution centres structure in order to meet requirements. In few industries, for example electronic and automobile industries, the focal company requires inventory close to the focal companys assembly plants. on the other hand, organisation a re moving their manufacturing plants to low-cost countries, in order to be more cost-efficient. Further more, global rivalry has forced the organisations to relocate their distribution centres and manufacturing operations in order to be both cost efficient and competitive. for example, most of the fashion and shoe industries have moved their manufacturing plant toward East. Regarding automobile industry, German car manufactures has step by step moved to south Africa, Czech republic, Hungary, Poland. logistics. Logistics postponement highlights that few regional distribution centre to single distribution centre to centralization of inventory, until the actual order received. full postponement is the delay of manufacturing until the order received and after the assembly process. At this stage, the finished goods are shipped by rapid distribution to the customers. The customized products are shipped directly to the customers. â€Å"Postponement of production or logistics is a strategy, which can be achieve flexibility and rapid response when addressing changes demand. Production postponement means that modular components are produced according to forecasts, and then assembled, packaged or otherwise completed at a point downstream in the supply chain, closer to the customer. Example at the logistic centre of a third party† (Shah, 2009). (3) SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT â€Å"Supply management is the coordination of production, inventory, location, transportation, information among the participants in a supply chain to achieve the best of responsiveness and efficiency for the market being served† (Brindley,2005). Difference between traditional logistics and supply chain management Supply chain management  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Traditional logisticsSupply chain management covers all traditional activities and also includes activities such as customer service, promotion, funding, new merchandise development,  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Its concentrate on activities like procurement, distribution, maintenance, and inventory managementSupply chain refer to integration of organisations that coordinate their actions and work together to distribute a merchandise, to marketplace. Traditional logistics occurs within the boundaries of a single organization (4) FIVE MAJOR SUPPLY CHAIN DRIVERS The right combination of responsiveness and efficiency in each of these drivers allows a supply chain to â€Å"increase throughout while simultaneously reducing inventory and operating expense† (Cohen,2005). (4.1) Production It is first driver is supply chain management. Production is the strength of supply chain regarding to constructing and accumulating products. Production services are warehouse and factories. if warehouses and factories are built with a lot of excess capacity, then its become very easy to organisations or companies to respond quickly for customers demand. Production activity covers manufacturing, equipment safeguarding and quality control. From the above fig responsiveness versus efficiency, it is clear that, production indicates, which product should be produce? How much need to produced? What is market demand? When should be produced?. (Sheikh, 2003) â€Å"Factories can be built for manufacturing of product focus, a factory that takes a product focus performs the range of different operations required to make a given product line form fabrication of different product parts to assembly of parts.† Example:- Dell According to Dell sources, limerick factory have built with a lot of excess capacity. that why its become very easy to Dells to respond quickly for customers demand. They also claim that, limerick factory have already bay geared up for upcoming capacity, further more they are planning to increase the server lines capacity in the upcoming year. Dell has little bit contrast to above theory, i.e. they dont have warehouses. one more important thing for dell is that, they are not assemble a single processor until it has been demanded by customer and credit cleared, because they dont want to take any risk. Dell think that, computerization bring dynamic revolution in services, such as orders are receiving at business units, then downloaded to personal computer after every quarter. After that, orders are forward to factory planner who consider inventory photograph and proceeds material requests. Then in very short spam of time Dell distribution centre responses to request. Normally distribut ors have local network and constrained for supply prepared. Dells factory has five assembly lines for desktop PC, two for notebooks and a server line. However, all the lines can be changed according to demand. Lines 4 and 5 are flexible and can build portables or desktops as per demand. The process begins in the kit area, moves to the build area, the may go to the custom factory line for anything not usual that need to be done (Dell, 2009a). Dell technical team does quick test for assembled personal computers with respect with customers order. The reason behind this is to verify the product. Dell technical team oblique to finish test very quickly i.e. not more than 5 minutes, then assembled personal computer send back to conveyor. Then Dell engineers team load software by braking the seal on the personal computers, and verifying all the application. loading of software in a personal computer is time consuming and normally it takes four to five hours for each unit. Then finally, labels with authenticity are added with different companies such as Intel, Microsoft. Next step is personal computer get a general clean, goes in a box, and a barcode label is put on the box. then 10% of products are audited on a random basis, to verify all the work process done in the personal computer. Dell want to ensure its not affecting its liability or the customer experience (Dell, 2009b). 4.2) Inventory Second driver in supply chain management is inventory. Primary purpose of inventory is to act as a buffer against uncertainty in the supply chain. Holding large amounts of inventory allows a company or an entire supply chain to be very responsive to fluctuations in customer demand. However, the creation and storage of inventory is a cost and to achieve high levels of efficiency, the cost of inventory should be kept as low as possible (Chang, 2004). It covers three types of inventory such as Cycle inventory, Safety inventory, Seasonal inventory. Normally cycle inventory fulfilling requirement for the merchandise. on the other hand, safety inventory assumed buffer aligned with insecurity. Where as, seasonal inventory based on prediction which happen in definite time of period. Example:- HP imagine and Printing Group Hewlett Packard imagine and printing group is one the leading player in inkjet suppliers and printing products. Hewlett Packard previous practice was, to allocate similar capacity or similar life cycle phase product at a same location. By using a multi-echelon optimize tool Hewlett Packard inkjet slashed generally inventory by fifty percent. Hewlett Packard uses the tool in mechanized yields, pipeline levels, forecasts correctness, previous variables to produce target safety supply, time phase. etc. With the multi echelon tool, HP found it was carrying too little inventory for items with special packaging, which had lumpy demand, and too much inventory for low variability, high volume packaging operations. the group also found that for items with long lead times, it had to increase buffer inventory at certain points in the supply chain, but that by doing this the overall service levels to customers could be improved. in aggregate, this new approach both reduced inventory and improved customer satisfaction (HP, 2009). 4.3) Location Third driver in supply chain management is location. Location is one of the most important factor in supply chain management, because correct location decision give half of the business success, in other words location decision is strategic planning which commits long term schedule for huge amounts of money. Before selecting location for any business it is very important to consider various factors which covers infrastructure, availability of customers and suppliers, availability of skill workers and non skill workers, tax and tariffs, other facilities in low cost. Once location is fix, that leads the product to the final consumer. important think in location is that, all this activities should be control form common place. Example :- Toyota Motor Toyotas motor running manufacturing operations, at different location around the world they had fifty one overseas manufacturing industries nearly twenty-six regions. as per above mentioned theory Toyota running manufacturing operation in low labour cost, countries like India, china, Thailand, South Africa, Venezuela, Malaysia etc. On the other hand they are running manufacturing operation in best facilities providing countries like Germany, UK, USA, Australia, Mexico, Canada etc. Facilities includes good infrastructures, with modern technical facilities .But all these activities are control and centralize from the Toyotas headquarter Japan. (4.4) Transportation:- It is the fourth driver in supply chain management is transportation. From the figure (Responsiveness versus Efficiency) it is clear that, transportation indicates that, how to move product? and when to move product? There are many modes to move product from one place to another such as fast mode and slower mode. Usually fast mode of transport are expensive for example Airplanes. On the other hand slower mode of transport is chief, for example rail, ship etc. now a days most of the companies receiving order by catalogs or internets and try to deliver product as soon as possible through airplanes, rail, ship or their own modes. Apart from this pipeline transport and electronic transport are in use. pipeline transport are basically useful to transport gases or liquid like natural gas, oil and water. Where as electronic transport is another fastest mode of transport which move certain type of products only like text, pictures, music etc. transportation will be effective when it is contr ol from central hub rather than controlling form many branches. Example:- FedEx Transportation management has become the most outsourced component of supply chain management and FedEx as well. From above fig it is clear that FedEx receiving customer order by telephone or by internet tools like shipment visibility, web order entry, event management /altering etc. Web-based management of customer order allows customer to review, confirm and even change order attributes, no just once but at multiple stages before dispatch. Then customer can view inventory motion, receive event alerts as they occurs, as supply proactive notification to customers before an event becomes an unexpected and unpleasant surprise. And then order transfer to FedEx transportation management, which perform various roles like, verification of order, planning for dispatch, financial settlement and operational reporting that can reduce administrative costs further more FedEx monitor customer compliance, validate order accuracy, and employ sophisticated planning processes to minimize overall transportation expense. FedEx also give customer the confidence of knowing that there is a group of dedicated, experi enced professional making sure customer shipments come and go as planned. With such kind of visibility and peace of mind, FedEx can deliver reliability to customers, then FedEx transportation management pass the tender with various options such as FedEx express, FedEx ground, FedEx fright, FedEx custom critical, FedEx trade networks, after that status for delivery transfer to again FedEx transportation management and finally FedEx transportation management load plan to shipper facility. Shipper facility at FedEx transportation management is very flexible which help customer for lower transportation expense through a process of consolidation, aggregation, mode selection, and service levels. Shipment management at FedEx transportation delivers customer products where, when, and how they want. According to my opinion if supply chain management is not FedEx core business, it can take too much attention away from what is. And that is not the way to stay competitive in todays apparel marketplace, where late arrivals can mean lost sales and excess inventory. (4.5) Information:- Information is last driver in supply chain management. Importance of this tool is increasing every year in supply chain management because of this companies are able to take correct decisions in business. Information plays important role in supply chain in two ways, such as Coordinating the daily activities andby Planning and Forecasting. Basically Coordinating daily activities connect to other four drivers of supply chain management such as production, location, transport, inventory on the other hand Planning and Forecasting predict and try to fulfil the upcoming requirements of consumers. Information help the companies to make future planning. It is an important tool in making strategies, that helps the companies to about whether to stay in market or exit from market. Example :- Procter and Gamble Previously Procter and Gamble had lot of issues with retailers and distributors by supplying excess quantity, of popular product like Pampers disposable diapers because market demand was less. The reason behind this is lack of correct information. So re-evaluation team of Procter and Gamble started to work back all the way through supply chain information sharing system. hence, because of supply chain state of the art information sharing system Procter and Gamble had able to solved the issues with retailers and distributors also information sharing system helped to Procter Gamble to gain a competitive advantage on competitors, and to make future planning for manufacturing, and distributing of Pamper disposable diapers. So by continuing through the supply chain sharing information system today Procter and Gamble is able to do maximum profits. Information in supply chain management, â€Å"much like money, is a very useful commodity because it can be applied directly to enhance the performance of the other four supply chain drivers. High levels of responsiveness can be achieved when companies collect and share accurate and timely data generate by the operations of the other four drivers† (Gattrona,2009). 5. Conclusion In conclusion, I would like to emphasize  that supply chain management provides  a huge number of ways to enhance output and effectiveness and consequently bargain unit expenses. Furthermore, effective supply chain management gives the competitive advantage over the competitors. So, competitors realised that actual rivalry is not organization versus organization but moderately supply chain versus supply chain. â€Å"Each supply chain has its own unique set of market demands and operating challenges and yet the issues remain essentially the same in every case. Companies in any supply chain must make decisions individually and collectively regarding actions in five areas such as production, inventory, locations, transportation, and information† (Handfield, 2002).

Animal Rights and Ethics

Is it ethical for animals to have the same rights as humans? During this paper I will present the views of both sides. I will try my best to give the reader a chance to come to there own unbiased conclusion. I will talk about the key areas of animal ethics. I will present the facts and reasoning behind the arguments over Animal cruelty, testing, hunting, and improper housing. My conclusion will hopefully bring us closer to answering many of the question surrounding â€Å"Animal Rights and Ethics†. Animals Rights and Ethics† Animal ethics is a complex subject. Despite opinions Animal ethics has nothing to do with someone’s sentimental love for animal. In fact you don't even have to own or like animals to argue that it is morally wrong to mistreat them. For many it raises fundamental questions about the basis of moral rights. For years animal rights activist have tried to prevent animal suffering. Two of the main topics which animal rights activists have brought to the attention of the public are; animal testing and hunting.The testing performed on animals has gone on for years and even with certain regulations set in place some of these experiments can be extremely cruel and barbaric. Even now it is still defended by the scientist performing these acts and our governments as a necessary (evils or) safety procedure. They don't want to spray perfume on people and cause them to get a rash so they use it on animals before it is safe for the public. There have been a lot of negativity surrounding animals testing but some of these tests have lead to medical breakthroughs.Clinicians can now use Herceptin to treat Breast Cancer. If it wasn’t for animal testing the estimated five million diagnosed diabetics in the United States alone wouldn’t be able to use Insulin safely. If we look at the good side of animal testing it is that humans benefit in long run. The dark side of animal testing is the majority of test subjects or test animals h ave went blind or died not because of medical advancements but simply because it was necessary to test whether cosmetics like perfume burned when sprayed in eyes of animals instead of humans.The views of animal rights activists are that innocent animals live there life in labs and cages not for the benefit of man but for the benefit of the next test. As of today these procedures are viewed as ethical and expectable in our culture. Hunting is an extremely controversial subject because hunting in different cultures means different things. In this country hunting laws were dramatically, changed causing outcry within the hunting community. Activist believes it would be ethical to ban hunting world wide.Hunters would argue that they have the right to live off the land and it’s a form of population control. It comes back to the fact hunters don't need meat to live and most hunting is did for fun, not for food. As far as population control places like Africa have adopted things like â€Å"Hunting Safari's†. On these safari's you can hunt any animal for a certain fee. So as long as you have the money you can go kill a rhino or tiger with no hesitation for fun. To pay and kill innocent animals for a photo ethically seems to be a ludicrous idea.If animals kill people it is universally viewed that the animal should be put down but when humans kill animals it’s the exact opposite. Most Activists have felt if animals don't have rights people will always be allowed to commit these unethical acts. While hunters feel they can't be held morally wrong if these events are legal by law. For years people have avoided arguing that all animals deserve rights because this would give rights to creatures that are so simple that the idea of them having rights would seem to defy common sense.The second problem is arguing which animals should have rights. The argument that only the â€Å"higher level† animals have rights would suggest that we have the right to pick and choose which animals deserve respect. For instance the household animals which we keep as pets have the right to live a happy fulfilled life, but the spider you washed down the stink or the slug you or a kid poured salt over did not because they are not a â€Å"higher† animal. Even though it might seem wrong or controversial for one to decide which are ‘higher’ animals, our society and government have decided this for us.For example household pets such as dogs and cats are hailed too much higher standards in the United States than Cows or Chickens. Which raises the question, is it ethically wrong for Animal rights activists to fight for the rights of some animals and not others? Animal Cruelty is a subject that spreads far across the United States and into most civilized cultures. Animal cruelty can either be in the form of intentional abuse, simple neglect, or abandonment of animals. Whatever forms the abuse takes, however, the animal that is the victim of the abuse is often helpless and may experience extreme suffering.Animal right activist feel if you don’t know how to take care or treat an animal it can be as deadly as physical abuse to care for one. Activist also feel by giving a child a fish, rabbit, or bird to take care of can viewed as intentional neglect or abuse. This is based upon a child not being able to take care of its self but giving another life which depends on its care in order for it to live. This is hardly ever considered by the parent(s) or suppliers of pets and for that that reason organization like PETA and The Humane Society feel it is necessary to step in and make the general public aware of these issues.The Improper housing of animals have been a bitter subject with Animal rights activist as well. This is viewed as immoral because Activist feel it is unfair to house or travel with animals in cages against their will. They see places like the zoo, breeding houses, and the circus can all be guilty of the in proper housing of animals. The general public along with the zoo, breeding houses and the circus do not see anything wrong with the showcasing of animals but the showcasing is not at the core of what upsets the activist.The argument is that animals are being treated and housed unfairly and immorally for profit or amusement. Governments and a lot of organizations have taken action against the in proper housing and treatment of animals. Law enforcement units have been made to protect and ensure animal safety but still Animal activist feel it’s not enough. Animal activist feel the best way ethically to make a difference would be to give animals the same rights as humans. Which brings us back to the main topic: Is it ethical for animals to have the same rights as humans?The arguments against animal rights center on whether animals behave morally, because rights only have a meaning within a moral community. And as animals don't behave in a moral way they don't deserve mora l treatment from other beings. It is said that animals usually behave selfishly, and look after their own interests, while humans will often help others, even if this is to their own disadvantage. Some feel Animals don't display these characteristics and therefore is not a member of a â€Å"moral community†. Some people enjoy eating meat and fish, and so face a conflict between animal and human interests.The act of killing animals for food is trivial because humans do not need to eat meat in order to survive. So should the human interest to eat meat be satisfied at the expense of the animals? Moral behavior comes into play when asking this question. To the people that argue animals don't behave morally therefore they don't deserve rights, I ask this. If we behave in an immoral manner do we deserve our rights? The view that animals were put on this earth to serve human's comes originally from the Bible, but probably reflects a basic human attitude towards other species.It was for these reasons that the Animal Welfare Act was put in to place. The Act is an overhaul of pet abuse laws and came into force in England and Wales in 2007. The act was the first review of pet laws in 94 years. It replaced the Protection of Animals Act, first passed in 1911 and designed to prevent outright cruelty to animals. The animal welfare act combined more than 20 pieces of legislation in to one. The act introduced harsher penalties for neglect and cruelty, including fines at up to 20,000, a maximum jail term of 51 weeks and a lifetime ban of some people keeping pets.It also rose the age of buying a pet from 12 to 16 years old. Although the act banned mutation for cosmetic reasons such as docking (cutting or removal) of the tail the exception was made for â€Å"working† dogs' such as those in the police or armed forces. It also allowed such practices as castrating, spaying cats and dogs and ear tagging which were not made illegal. This act has forced people to acknowle dge that animals do have rights. In closing, I feel animals deserve more than the rights they have and that we might not deserve all the options and liberties we are granted.It is ethical to treat others as you would like to be treated, should this statement only be meant for man. I think this comes down to knowing what is right or wrong but by saying that I can only consider my view as what is right, which could be viewed by others as wrong. I present this conclusion; â€Å"When hunting becomes a sport instead of a survival skill, it is wrong. When one animal is considered better than another that is wrong’. When any life is taken out of neglect, spite, hobby or abuse, Animal or human, ethically and morally, we can agree, without bias is â€Å"wrong†.

Argumentative Essay On Sex Trafficking - 967 Words

Weichselbaum 1 If you asked random people on the street they would all probably agree to the statement that â€Å"sex trafficking is bad†. But does the average person really know the extent of the issue? Sex trafficking is a form of modern day slavery that is prominent in the United States and throughout the globe. Traffickers use violence, threats, debt bondage, and threats to coerce adults and children to engage in sexual acts with strangers against their will. The victims who are targeted for sexual exploitation all have a few characteristics in common: poverty, minority status, histories of†¦show more content†¦One is daughters being sold by their parents, either to pay off some debt or just because the parents need money, and that would be a no work way to go. Secondly, girls are abused at home and decide to run away to get out of the stressful life. But when they are out on their own, there’s no way to provide. So, they find â€Å"boyfriends† who are actually pimps. The younger that girl is, more money can be charged for her. Despite the enormous amounts of money a girl can make each night. â€Å"It is all handed over to their pimps, or else a beating may occur.† (Meyers, Diana. Feminism and Sex Trafficking: Rethinking some Aspects of Autonomy and Paternalism.) Which, if you think about it, is what domestic abuse victims are running away from in the first place. The last common trend I noticed was husbands selling their wives services to others. Claiming that since they are married he has the right over her decisions. The average night of a sex slavery victims includes being sent to perform for the highest paying customer, and having to listen to whatever he tells her to do. Their prime hours are from ten o’clock at night to five o’clock in the morning. During these eight hours there are no breaks, eating, or sleeping. Even if the pimp had her working in the daytime hours as well. The typical time to report back to their pimp is whenShow MoreRelatedArgumentative Essay On Sex Trafficking1921 Words   |  8 Pagesrate of human trafficking around the world? Not many people are fully aware of the increasing number of people that are being taken into human/ sex trafficking. Most of the people involved in this type of illegal business is taken against their will, or sold into the business by their family. These women taken into this business is completely stripped of all personal needs. Most of the time the women in this business are children, such as young girls under the age of 18. Sex trafficking is a modern

Study Of Initial Public Offerings In Saudi Arabia Finance Essay - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 11 Words: 3443 Downloads: 4 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Finance Essay Type Research paper Did you like this example? This research focuses and does a relative comparison of initial public offerings (IPOs), their motivation and pricing within Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom (UK). It looks at their respective trading bourses or stock exchange markets and the process companies go through in order get publicly listed on these trading bourses and in an attempt to raise capital from the public. The paper also addresses the economic dimension of IPOs within the respective countries, and its impact on the companies that do decide to issue and go through an initial public offering (IPO). Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Study Of Initial Public Offerings In Saudi Arabia Finance Essay" essay for you Create order The overall approach used to accomplish the research involves a comparative study of initial public offering (IPO) processes, the motivation of going public for companies in both Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom, and the pricing structures for the initial public offering (IPO). Needed information or data involves a look at both countriesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ regulatory bodies, in this case the capital markets authority (CMA), from which much needed information on trading processes is be inferred from, as well as looked at. The use of questionnaires to top management of selected firms is used to give an insight into the motivations for private firms desiring to do an initial public offering (IPO). It becomes clear at the end of the study that the motivation for going public remains primarily the same across both countries, the only difference being within their regulatory bodies and requirements for doing so. CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Background of the Study During the last two decades, initial public offerings (IPOs) have seen a dynamic expansion in markets around the world. A literature search indicated that substantial research has been done on this topic and it has attracted policy makersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ attention. In addition, the IPO market has proved to involve potential uncertainty and risk due to the large amount of money invested (Ritter, 2002). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Initial public offerings of stocks are the foremost important channel of new capital flow to young companiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Gregoriou, 2006). It is also defined by (Draho, 2004) as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“An IPO is the first time that the shares in a company are sold to public investors and subsequently traded on the stock marketà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. Going public process is a stage when a company sells shares traded equity for the first time. For a private firm to enter the IPO, it needs an established business plan to indicate to stakeholders of the goals in which the firm will be working towards. Moreover, IPOs is a way to increase liquidity of the company that need for growth through the sale of companys owners shares to investors who believe that the company has a successful future. Going public process is preceded by the most vital process which is valuation and the principle behind this process is to justify the price of the shares which are offered to the public. Evaluation process is essential for the company to consider its value in comparison with other firms in the stock market. Moreover, it tells the company the highest price should be offered, and it will inform the buyer that the lowest price should be pay. The company should have a skilled team management, qualified accountants and underwriters to satisfy the requirements of going public and to identify the future aims and strategy after going public. (Stanley, 2005). Thereafter, other stage should take place known as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Due Diligenceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? in order to ensure that th ere is no opportunity for uncertain information. This stage includes advertisements which taken out in newspapers must present the entire company prospectus. The going-public process will also include a group of banks and brokers, as mentioned, to establish a price per share and the proposal must be admitted to the official list by the listing authority in the issuing country. After this is accomplished, an underwriting period allows shareholders to sell their shares to the public at the issue price; this period varies from company to company depending on company goals. It is obvious that this procedure requires time and money however; it is worth if considering long term benefits (Geddes, 2003). With regard to motivations, this study will cover the most common to give a better understanding of the advantages. Several factors are considered by decision makers to encourage companies to go public, including the chance to increase shareholdersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ wealth by expanding o perations, to enhance the companiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ reputation and prestige, create better organization by attraction of employees. Going public promotes a firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s acquisition value and boosts customer confidence. In addition, an IPO is an easy way to finance a firm and to diversify its operations (Benton, 2005).Rousseau and Wachtel (2002) argued that the stock market provides a developed mechanism to improve the economy and raise growth rate due to liquidity exist to investors which can be used in new projects. However, financial factors are still the most important considerations in going public (Madura, 1998). IPOs are attractive and occur more regularly when other investment opportunities are not as attractive as these offerings, but as with any decision, going public has disadvantages as well as advantages. If a companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s shares are traded on the stock market, it will lead to a change in ownership structure as well as a loss of control by p rincipals; therefore, the decision making will be shared(Albarak,2005) Regarding an IPO in Saudi Arabia, transformation of enterprises companies in the kingdom to the join -stock ones is not a new experience, but the number of joint- stock companies was very little.In 1984, a decision was decree to start trading shares through local banks. In the same year, it was formation of a ministerial committee to oversee the market. Saudi Monetary Agency took over control and supervision of the market operations in 1985. 1990 it was the year of introducing the first electronic system for trading shares in Saudi Arabia. In 2001, was launched (Tadawel) trading system, add modern techniques and characteristics to keep pace with developments in the world. Financial market environment has been developed; rules and the issuance of new regulations were established. As a result of these developments Capital Market Authority was established in 2003 according to the latest standards and foundations. The combination of stock market and oil prices, has given a strong boost to the Saudi market. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction This chapter tends to expound on the comparison between the initial public offering (IPO) process, pricing, and the IPO implication to firms in Saudi Arabia and in the United Kingdom (UK). Several researches have been undertaken throughout the world, discussing IPO processes and its impacts on economies and businesses. Most of these previous researches have been pursued by considering a specific country; have but lacked effective comparisons with other economies. In this study, the extra mile is achieved by selecting two entirely different economies, in terms of IPO processes and financial regulations. Discussion on early researches have been made along with the effective exploration and comparison of the existing IPO process, its implications and pricing issuesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ considering Saudi Arabian and UK economy. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Initial public offerings of stocks are the foremost important channel of new capital flow to young companiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Gregoriou, 2006). It is also defined by (Draho, 2004) as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the first time that the shares in a company are sold to public investors and subsequently traded on the stock marketà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. The going public process is a stage in which a company sells shares to the general public and traded as equity on a trading bourse for the first time. For a private firm to enter the IPO, it needs an established business plan to indicate to stakeholders of the goals in which the firm will be working towards. Moreover, IPOs are a way to increase liquidity of the company that need for growth through the sale of companys owners shares to investors who believe that the company has a successful future. 2.2 Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) When a private company undertakes to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“go publicà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? via divestment of its private equity or stock, it is said to be getting into an initial public offering (IPO). The two main reasons most firms go public include acquisition of additional capital to finance growth or the raising of finances to pay off debt. Since initial public offerings (IPOs) denote the public trading of a firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s shares, it has long been documented by various literatures that many first-day trading is usually abnormal. Huge price gains are the norm in IPOs between the offer price and the closing price by the end of trading on day one. This difference in the gain in prices is rarely justifiable since the main aim of IPOs is to raise money for the company, yet as seen, money is left on the table in most instances that the company could have gained from. Academic scholars and financial experts continue to research and look into this anomaly that has continued to baffle the ind ustry (Ritter Welch, 2002). 2.2.1 The IPO Process in Many Countries For many countries globally, the steps of going public are pretty much the same. The regulatory body in each country is usually the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), whose main role becomes a security agent in the prevention of fraud and in the protection of investor interest. Most IPOs begin with the selection of the investment bank(s) who serve as the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s underwriters. As an underwriter, the bank purchases shares from the company and sells them to the general public on behalf of the company. Due to the legal complexity IPOs can impose, attorneys are used to aid through the entire setup process. In certain instances, some firms opt to sell their shares directly to the public, but this is seldom the case. Registration statements are then prepared and submitted to the SEC. The statement contains reports of the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s fiscal health as well as the business plan during and after the IPO. Since the SEC is the regulatory body, it s cans these statements and carries out its due diligence on the bank to ensure that it is in compliance with all rules and regulations needed to carry out an IPO. After finalizing with registration statements and while still waiting for SEC approval, a company needs to prepare what is known as a preliminary à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“red herringà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? prospectus. This is prepared with aid from the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s underwriters. The prospectus details the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s financial records, plans for the future, as well as specifications of what the price for the floated shares will be. This prospectus is primarily used by potential investors seeking more detailed information on a firm prior to buying shares and has a legal warning preceding the IPO as it awaits SEC approval. Completion of the prospectus gives way to a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“roadshowà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? in which both underwriters and company officials visit various trading hubs within the country and promote the IP O. In other countries, this information is given to the public via gazette notices, broadcast announcements and distribution of prospectuses. The aim of this is to give potential investors as much information as possible regarding the company and attain feedback in relation to what potential investors feel about the whole process. Once the SEC has gone through the prospectus and given information and is satisfied all regulations and requirements have been heeded, it gives a nod for the proceeding of the IPO. Amendments are made by the company if the SEC still needs corrections to be made prior to their approval. In countries which have more than one stock exchange, the company must choose the exchange where its intended floated shares are to be sold and listed against. Arguably the most complex of all decisions in an IPO process is the decision on the price the floated shares will be sold at and how many of the same should be issued to the public. This is done with consultatio n with the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s underwriters. The underwriters buy huge stakes of the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s shares for sale to the market. Huge investors are also at times given the privilege to buy the same shares a day prior to listing the shares on the stock market. In countries like the US where the general public gets to buy shares in the secondary market and in which the company does not really gain from the sale at this point, the IPO process concludes for the company after underwriters and huge investors have bought the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s shares. In other countries, the general public is permitted to acquire shares from the primary market directly through stock brokers who deal directly for the company. 2.2.2 Initial Public Offering (IPO) Pricing and key Influencers/Players Traditionally, the IPO pricing was done by agreeing upon and fixing an à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“issue priceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? based on the capital they were trying to raise. This price was agreed upon by the company and the merchant banker. The general public was simply left with the obligation of looking at the price offered and deciding whether or not they would fill in an application form at the given price and subscribe to the issue. Researchers worldwide have arguably revealed that this method is the single largest reason for IPO under pricing (Stanley, 2005). Many IPOs are known to under price the value of a companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s shares by as much as fifty percent. Said and done, neither the company nor the investment banker really ever knows the real price of the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s shares. Ironically, the answer to how much a share should be sold for falls at the discretion of the buyers since they are the ones who predetermine at the open of trading how much they are willing to pay for a share of stock. This is what can be described as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the hallmark of a healthy IPO marketà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Shah, 1999). While this is not a realistically possible way to determine what price to sell the stock at, the underwriter looks at elements such as the value of the firm and compare it with that of similar firms, how much capital is needed from the IPO, conducts preliminary research to find out how receptive the market may be, and finally, sets upon the final decision on the price that should be floated to the general public for sale. Easy at it sounds, setting the IPO price is a very delicate and sensitive procedure that takes the effort of many stakeholders and combined calculations from accountants (Draho, 2004). Undeniably, the most important player during the IPO process is the underwriter. The underwriter in many instances is also the investment banker and his primary importance becomes that he has the appropriate distribution channels and contacts necessary for the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s shares. The underwriter also assists in determining the price of the IPO and creating enthusiasm for its listing (Geddes, 2003). The other key players include those involved in the IPO process like the SEC who are in charge of ensuring correct practices are adhered to, and last but not least the private equity company itself. The latter is extremely vital in the process as they have all insider information of the newly-to-be-listed company and any action from them can trigger a response within the trading bourse at the stock exchange. 2.3 Initial Public Offering (IPO) Process in Saudi Arabia In comparison with other developed stock exchange markets, the Saudi Stock Market (SSM) is much newer and classified as an emerging market within the Middle East and North African region. According to Al-Barrak (2005, p.32), there is no explicit list of documented IPO cases in Saudi Arabia and of all the listed companies on the SSM, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“just ten IPO cases occurred in Saudi Arabia from 1988 until 2004à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?. In Saudi Arabia, companies, by law adopt the book-building process to go public. CMA handles all the application process and takes the decision on whether a company can go public or not. Eighty-five investment companies in Saudi Arabia took part in the book building process in 2009. According to the CMA, fraudulent activities can be handled beforehand, and this process ensures transparency, fairness, and equality in the system (Capital Market Authority (CMA), 2009, p 29). Oil revenues have provided great liquidity in the process of introducing new IPOs in Sa udi Arabia. Investment banking in Saudi Arabia was still in its infancy until 2004, and very few firms had gone through an IPO (Al-Barrak, 2005). 2.3.1 Capital Markets Authority (CMA) Evaluation of IPOs The CMA binds firms and makes those requesting to have an IPO or seeking permission to get involved in other investment activities adhere and meet all legal, operational and financial regulations. In the process, companies are required to convince the CMA that the financial activity the company intends to get into or start is proper. Firms are also supposed to provide the evidence of all required financial and managerial expertise for any said financial undertaking (Ritter, 2002). 2.3.2 Future Developments Improvements are underway in the IPO and financial regulation process. Many private and family-owned businesses are thinking of going public due to the provision of an exit route through IPO. Regulations regarding any take-over by a company have also been laid out in an attempt to avoid hostile takeovers, and in ensuring fairness and transparency in the process. Other encouraging steps taken by the CMA have been in the defining and writing down of the listing rules, information and disclosures investors can get. These regulations, though not a quantum leap toward an ideal financial market, certainly boosted investorsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ morale. Investors showed confidence, and Saudi Telecom experienced over 900,000 subscribers. Al-Hilad performance was amazing as the bank raised SR9 million of excess capital in 2005  [i]  . 2.4 Initial Public Offering (IPO) Process in the United Kingdom (UK) Within the United Kingdom (UK), there has been only one IPO between 1980 and 2003. The reason for this slow pace was deepened in the poor regulatory frameworks, and dual processes for having a conversion from a Limited Liability Company to publicly listing one. A strong regulatory framework could act as an incentive to the merger or listing, but such benefits have not been found within the UK in the IPO process (Ritter Welch, 2002). 2.4.1 Due Diligence To make sure that the company going public meets all necessary requirements, it is required by UK law that the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s accountants and legal advisors provide a comprehensive written report after reviewing the company from a complete legal, financial, and commercial perspective. In some cases like real estate where valuation matters a lot, the concerned investment banks are also required to submit a detailed due diligence report about valuation (Draho, 2004). 2.4.2 Pre-Initial Public Offering (IPO) Research Prior to starting any IPO promotion activity, the investment bankà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s research analyst is responsible to make a research note on the company. This research note is issued two days prior to the IPO launch. Pre IPO law helps to educate and protect investors by providing the impartial review of the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s valuation. The research analyst provides the financial projections with their own perspective about company; which illustrated an element of impartiality in the entire process. This research also becomes a marketing tool and automatically sets market expectations regarding the company. The research note is written in light of the available companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s data (Rousseau Wachtel, 2000). 2.4.3. Investor Presentation of IPO After completing all the pre-IPO requirements, presentations are used by management to promote the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s IPO. This process continues until three weeks prior of the listing. The sales team of the involved investment bank provides all the information needed by investors, and follows up the potential buyers. As investors have the option of submitting orders with their prices, the receiving or investment bank gets an idea about average price of a share that investors are willing and able to pay. While choosing the investors, companies prefer institutional investors due to long-term commitment they show. This is contrary to hedge funds which can affect a share price for short-term gains (Draho, 2004). 2.4.4 Disclosure Document The preparation of the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s prospectus is highly important for an advisor, as it can be used as a marketing tool to attract investors and for meeting the disclosure requirements of AMI and the prospectus rules for the listing companies. 2.4.5 Underwriting Agreement Within the underwriting agreement, two types of negotiations are involved: The first is between a company, its shareholders, and its respective legal advisors. The second is between an investment bank and its legal advisors. Involvement of a private equity investor is highly desired in the process (Benton, 2005). 2.4.6 Post Initial Public Offering (IPO) Requirement After a company registered as a listed company, both the investors and the board must follow the UK law, and operate the companyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s affairs within the stipulated UK regulatory regime. Adherence according to the financial services and market act of 2000 stipulates that insider trading laws, disclosure, and transparency rules must be ensured, as well. 2.5 Saudi Arabia and United Kingdom (UK) IPO Process Comparison .