This master thesis characterizes a process of the Category Management and its benefits. Furthermore, it describes the use of the Category Management in a selected retail chain and a process of creating Category Business Plans. The master thesis ends by an application of the Category Management and Category Business Plans theory on an illustrative case of a Beer Business Plan.

<p> </p><p><strong>Introduction </strong></p><p>Some researchers believe that Business plans are critical to the development of a new business idea and thus a new venture. However, others are of the view that these documents are completely useless to the business planning process. With these conflicting views existing, and the occurrence of various factors, the process of deciding to write a business plan and actually writing one can be quite challenging for First – Time entrepreneurs (FTEs) without any influence from background, education and training. This can increase the levels of complexity experienced by many new entrepreneurs.</p><p><strong>Purpose</strong></p><p>The aim of this research study is to first investigate the task of writing a business plan experienced by FTEs, then compare the personal experiences and observations of the author to those of others who have participated in this process, and finally compare the collective results to relevant theories and the views and beliefs of experts in writing business plans or creating new ventures. Furthermore, the main aim is to identify exactly if the writing process can be considered less challenging for FTEs, given the inclusion of certain factors, and what is actually meant by the term “easy”.</p><p><strong>Method</strong></p><p>To do this, experiences and personal opinions and observations have been collected from the author and former FTEs through the use of self – observation and narrative research techniques coupled with a series of open and probing questions. These were then compared to a collection of relevant literature, and views and opinions of the experts working with the industry.</p><p><strong>Conclusions </strong></p><p><strong> </strong>With the inclusion of knowledge, literature and expert advice, the process <strong> </strong>of writing a business plan becomes easier for FTEs. What this means is that FTEs are more prepared to undertake the writing process due to the absence of uncertainties and increased insight, and as a result, they execute the process more efficiently and better informed as to what tends to occur. In this perspective, the writing process itself becomes “easy”</p>

Introduction Some researchers believe that Business plans are critical to the development of a new business idea and thus a new venture. However, others are of the view that these documents are completely useless to the business planning process. With these conflicting views existing, and the occurrence of various factors, the process of deciding to write a business plan and actually writing one can be quite challenging for First – Time entrepreneurs (FTEs) without any influence from background, education and training. This can increase the levels of complexity experienced by many new entrepreneurs. Purpose The aim of this research study is to first investigate the task of writing a business plan experienced by FTEs, then compare the personal experiences and observations of the author to those of others who have participated in this process, and finally compare the collective results to relevant theories and the views and beliefs of experts in writing business plans or creating new ventures. Furthermore, the main aim is to identify exactly if the writing process can be considered less challenging for FTEs, given the inclusion of certain factors, and what is actually meant by the term “easy”. Method To do this, experiences and personal opinions and observations have been collected from the author and former FTEs through the use of self – observation and narrative research techniques coupled with a series of open and probing questions. These were then compared to a collection of relevant literature, and views and opinions of the experts working with the industry. Conclusions With the inclusion of knowledge, literature and expert advice, the process  of writing a business plan becomes easier for FTEs. What this means is that FTEs are more prepared to undertake the writing process due to the absence of uncertainties and increased insight, and as a result, they execute the process more efficiently and better informed as to what tends to occur. In this perspective, the writing process itself becomes “easy”

To make profits in such a world, unit costs must be reduced to the minimum possible and consistent with acceptable quality. To do this firms are endeavouring to combine lean production with the maximisation of economies of scale, that is, to achieve the lowest possible long run average cost curve and the lowest point on that curve. The process of consolidation and globalisation can be seen as driven by the latter whilst initiatives such as internet procurement, tendering, and production systems, the former. The automotive industry of the early 21st century, barely one hundred years old, reaches into the lives of almost everybody on the planet. The business of making these vehicles is the largest manufacturing sector in the world, a core part of the leading industrial nations and of growing significance elsewhere. The automotive industry is huge by almost any measure, complex, and always rapidly changing. In recent years the environmental consequences of auto mobility have thrust the industry into the heart of the debate over wealth generation and sustainability. "An industry's key success factors are those things that most affect the industry members ability to prosper in the marketplace - the particular strategy elements, product attributes, resources, competencies, competitive capabilities, and business outcomes that spell the difference between profit and loss, and ultimately between competitiveness and failure" (Thompson and Strickland:2003). This paper examines the future strategic focus that a local South African automotive firm ought to adopt to ensure competitive success in the harsh global auto industry. Smiths Manufacturing is on its way to becoming a world class company, limited in terms of local market size and firm infrastructure, yet astute in terms of systems, products and technology. Although Smiths is currently experiencing success and plans for short term growth, indications are that the whole strategic focus is being diminished in retaining its competitiveness in lieu of expansion and operations. Throughout this research thesis it will be observed that Smiths is competitive, but its competitive advantage is not increasing relatively. Smiths has to do something unique, and this unique competitive differential advantage can be induced on the soft side, i.e. Smith's social capital-people. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

This thesis details the business plan of CollegeMatchers, Inc, including a market overview. CollegeMatchers is a quick, easy, and free on-campus marketplace, that strives to create self sustaining communities on campuses everywhere.

Η σπουδαιότητα των ευρυζωνικών υποδομών διεθνώς επιβεβαιώνεται από τη δραστηριοποίηση διαφόρων προηγμένων χωρών, µε τρόπο τέτοιο ώστε να αναπτυχθούν οι κατάλληλες υποδομές. Στόχος είναι οι υποδομές αυτές να υιοθετηθούν µε τρόπο επικουρικό στην ανάπτυξη της οικονομίας και στην αντιμετώπιση τυχόν «τεχνολογικών αποκλεισμών» των πολιτών. Η ανάπτυξη των ευρυζωνικών δικτύων έχει υιοθετηθεί από την κοινή Ευρωπαϊκή πολιτική για την υλοποίηση της Κοινωνίας της Πληροφορίας και βάσει των σχεδίων δράσης e-Europe 2002, e-Europe 2005 και i2010 η ευρυζωνική πρόσβαση έχει τεθεί ως σημαντική προτεραιότητα της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης. Από τον Ιούλιο του 2003 ένα νέο νομικό πλαίσιο, το οποίο ρυθμίζει τις ηλεκτρονικές υπηρεσίες τηλεπικοινωνιών και δικτύων, τέθηκε σε εφαρμογή στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση. Η χώρα µας µε το Νόμο περί τηλεπικοινωνιών του 2000 και το προς διαβούλευση σχέδιο νόμου της τωρινής κυβέρνησης, φιλοδοξεί να καλύψει τα υπάρχοντα νομικά κενά και να εγκαταστήσει ένα νομικό καθεστώς που θα παρέχει ασφάλεια για τους δυνητικούς επενδυτές. Εξάλλου, σε εξέλιξη βρίσκεται το Επιχειρησιακό Πρόγραμμα «Κοινωνία της Πληροφορίας», μέσω του οποίου, η χώρα µας φιλοδοξεί να αναπτύξει τις τοπικές δικτυακές υποδομές και την παροχή προηγμένων υπηρεσιών προς τον πολίτη. Στα πλαίσια που ορίζονται από όλα τα παραπάνω, σκοπός της παρούσας μεταπτυχιακής εργασίας ήταν η εκπόνηση ενός επιχειρηματικού μοντέλου εκμετάλλευσης και αξιοποίησης των υποδομών που θα εγκατασταθούν στην Περιφέρεια Δυτικής Ελλάδας. Ως οδηγός χρησιμοποιήθηκε η υπάρχουσα εμπειρία από διάφορες επιχειρηματικές προσπάθειες, όπως το Stokab Business Concept και οι περιπτώσεις των πόλεων Sollentuna και Hudiksvall στη Σουηδία, το UTOPIA - Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency στην πολιτεία Utah των Ηνωμένων Πολιτειών, οι Ιρλανδικές πρωτοβουλίες ανάπτυξης MANs και το σχέδιο της πόλης της Philadelphia για τη δημιουργία του μεγαλύτερου Wireless Internet Hotspot. Συνοπτικά, το σχήμα που προκρίθηκε είναι η δημιουργία μιας μητρικής εταιρείας, η οποία θα έχει τη συνολική ευθύνη για την ανάπτυξη και δημιουργία ευρυζωνικών υποδομών στα όρια ευθύνης της και ουσιαστικά θα είναι ο διαχειριστής μιας ουδέτερης ευρυζωνικής υποδομής. Σε κάθε νομό θα πρέπει να υπάρχει από μια θυγατρική ή παρακλάδι αυτής της εταιρείας και η οποία ουσιαστικά θα παίζει τον ρόλο του ενδιάμεσου ανάμεσα στην εταιρεία και τις τοπικές κοινωνίες σε θέματα διαβούλευσης, προώθησης των σχεδίων, καταγραφών των αναγκών και των προτάσεων σε επίπεδο Νομού. Στόχος της εταιρείας θα είναι η κατασκευή αυτόνομων δικτύων παθητικού εξοπλισμού σε επίπεδο Νομών, τα οποία όμως θα υπάγονται σε ένα γενικότερο δικτυακό σχεδιασμό σε επίπεδο περιφέρειας. Το δίκτυο αυτό αναμένεται να προσελκύσει τηλεπικοινωνιακούς παρόχους, οι οποίοι θα μπορούν έναντι μίσθωσης να παρέχουν τις υπηρεσίες τους στις τοπικές κοινωνίες και να καλύπτει τις ανάγκες που οι προαναφερθείσες έρευνες κατέδειξαν. / The importance of broadband infrastructures is internationally confirmed by the activation of various advanced countries, to the direction of developing the suitable infrastructures. Their main objective is that these infrastructures can be implemented in a way complementary to the growth of the local economies and to the confrontation of by any chance “technological exclusions” of citizens. The development of broadband networks has become a common European policy in order to actually implement a European Information Society. Furthermore, the Action Plans e-Europe 2002, e-Europe 2005 and i2010 have placed broadband access as an important priority of the European Union. Since July 2003, a new regulatory framework, which regulates the electronic services of telecommunications and networks, was placed in application in the European Union. In Greece, all legal matters in this section where resolved under the law about telecommunications, but the new government brought to consultation a new law which aspires to cover all existing legal voids and to install a legal regime that will provide safety for the potential investors. Moreover, there is in progress the Operational Plan "Information Society", via which, Greece is expected to develop local network infrastructures and advanced services in benefit of the citizens. This thesis’ target was the development of a business model for the exploitation of the infrastructures that will be installed in the Region of Western Greece. Our guide was the existing experience from various business efforts, as the Stokab Business Concept and the cases of cities Sollentuna and Hudiksvall in Sweden, the UTOPIA – Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency in the state Utah of United States, the Irish initiatives to develop MANs and the plan of the city of Philadelphia for the implementation of Wireless Internet Hotspots. Concisely, the plan that qualified is the creation of a company, which will have the total responsibility for the development and implementation of broadband infrastructures within her jurisdiction (The region of Western Greece) and will be the administrator of an operator-neutral broadband infrastructure. In each prefecture a subsidiary company must be created which will substantially play the role of the intermediate between the company and the local societies on issues of consultation, promotion of plans, recordings of needs and making proposals. The objective of the company will be the manufacture of autonomous networks of dark fiber in level of Prefectures, which however will depend in a more general network planning in the level of region. This network is expected to attract telecommunication provides, that are expected to rent part of the infrastructure in order to provide their services to the local societies and to cover the needs in electronic services.

The dissertation evolved out a need to determine the strategic way forward for the Umhlanga Dental Practice (UDP). The practice has been experiencing major and minor changes in its internal and external environments. The general strategic approach has been to merely adapt to these changes but with a distinct lack of formal, planned sustainable initiatives.The First chapter of the dissertation highlights the necessary theory that will be applied to the specific situation surrounding the practice. Includes the various approaches to strategic analysis of the external and internal environments of the organisation. Thus a theoretical framework is illustrated that may be applicable to determining the various situations of any organisation. Chapter Two presents the application of the theoretical framework to illustrate the specific conditions that the practice finds itself in. Chapter Three identifies all the necessary analysis and evaluation of the strategic options available to the practice and aids in determining the strategic way forward. The present and future resources required to implement the chosen strategies are also analysed. Thus providing the basis for the next chapter. The last chapter focuses on Implementation of the various strategic options available to the practice. Implementation is encouraged in incremental stages and with a definite time line that enables the key resources within the practice to be adapted to the new strategies. Control of the organisation and monitoring of the strategies is an essential part of any strategic implementation and is discussed as the last part of Chapter Five. The dissertation thus addresses an actual problem that is relevant and applicable to an existing practice. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, 2003.

Background: A business rescue plan has to comply with a new and vague set of obligations regulated by South African legislation. Expectations of the plan are largely unknown, yet crucial in determining compliance. Establishing an effective benchmark for the plan is essential for the growth and success of the industry. Purpose: The study set out to answer these questions: What are the most crucial elements needed to fill the gap between the specifics of the Companies Act (2008) and the further elements needed to meet the plan’s primary objective of providing adequate information to stakeholders? What are the international principles applicable to rehabilitation plans and what elements underpin them? Method: Thirteen industry experts were selected and interviewed to identify the most crucial elements of the business rescue plan. Sampling was a combination of convenience and purposive sampling. Data collection obtained data on subjects’ opinions, rankings, agreement and ratings. Results: The study was able to confirm that there is indeed a gap between the mandatory elements prescribed in section 150(2) and the provision of sufficient information required by section 150(1) of the Companies Act No. 71 of 2008. The survey revealed that in the subjects’ expert opinion, the international principles are applicable to the business rescue plan. Conclusion: The crucial elements of the rehabilitation plan selected by the experts offer insight and clarity in terms of what is expected of the plan. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2014 / gm2015 / Business Management / MCom / Unrestricted

Submitted by Andre Luis Nogueira (andrenogueira2015@gmail.com) on 2018-07-17T13:23:54Z No. of bitstreams: 1 TA - Andre Luis Nogueira_V16.pdf: 1058871 bytes, checksum: 97e762de615e8500cc28967c0758fbb5 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Simone de Andrade Lopes Pires (simone.lopes@fgv.br) on 2018-07-17T15:36:37Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TA - Andre Luis Nogueira_V16.pdf: 1058871 bytes, checksum: 97e762de615e8500cc28967c0758fbb5 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Suzane Guimarães (suzane.guimaraes@fgv.br) on 2018-07-17T16:56:17Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TA - Andre Luis Nogueira_V16.pdf: 1058871 bytes, checksum: 97e762de615e8500cc28967c0758fbb5 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-17T16:56:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TA - Andre Luis Nogueira_V16.pdf: 1058871 bytes, checksum: 97e762de615e8500cc28967c0758fbb5 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-06-18 / Esse Trabalho Aplicado consistiu na apresentação de um trabalho de intervenção em uma organização, mediante o desenvolvimento de um plano de negócios para a expansão do Espaço Conectar, cujo modelo de negócio consiste na sublocação de espaço em um local para a realização de atividades que visam promover o bem-estar físico e mental das pessoas, com o objetivo de melhoria da qualidade de vida, abrangendo desde metodologias tradicionais, como sessões de psicologia, até terapias alternativas e procedimentos estéticos. O Espaço Conectar possuía, até maio de 2018, uma única unidade localizada no bairro da Vila Clementino, em São Paulo, Capital. O autor deste trabalho conheceu a idealizadora e fundadora do Espaço Conectar e, tendo se identificado com a proposta, desde outubro de 2017, vem auxiliando a empresa na definição e implantação de uma estratégia visando a expansão da empresa, sendo que em abril de 2018 o autor tomou a decisão de entrar como sócio na companhia, participando efetivamente dessa expansão. O estudo, de natureza qualitativa, utilizou a metodologia SCQA de resolução estrutura de problemas e valeu-se de um questionário semiestruturado com os atuais e potenciais clientes do Espaço Conectar, visando a coleta de dados para que fosse possível determinar a percepção dos clientes em relação ao modelo de negócios do Espaço Conectar – primeiro passo para a definição e implantação de uma estratégia de expansão. O plano de negócios foi estruturado utilizando o modelo de Sahlman (1997), a partir do qual o projeto se demonstrou viável, fundamentando a decisão de aporte financeiro mediante a inclusão de dois novos sócios no negócio. É esperado que esse trabalho contribua academicamente ao gerar um maior conhecimento sobre o tema, visto que o Espaço Conectar tem uma proposta inovadora. Do ponto de vista profissional, o trabalho proporcionou maior segurança no desenvolvimento da estratégia para o negócio, a qual poderá ser implantada com maior assertividade, gerando maior riqueza para os acionistas e preservando, inclusive, o capital do autor. / This Applied Work consisted in the presentation of a work of intervention in an organization, through the development of a business plan for the expansion of Espaço Conectar, whose business model consists of the sublease of rooms in a place to carry out activities that aim to promote the physical and mental well-being of the people, with the objective of improving the quality of life, ranging from traditional methodologies, such as psychology sessions, to alternative therapies and beauty procedures. Espaço Conectar possessed, until May 2018, a single unit located in the district of Vila Clementino, in São Paulo, Capital. The author of this Applied Work met the founder of Espaço Conectar and, having identified with the proposal, since October 2017, has been assisting the company in the definition and implementation of a strategy aimed at the expansion of the company, and in April 2018 the author made the decision to enter as a partner in the company, effectively participating in this expansion. The qualitative study used the SCQA methodology to solve problem structure and made use of a semi-structured questionary with the current and potential customers of Espaço Conectar, aiming at collecting data so that it was possible to determine the perception of customers in relation to the Espaço Conectar business model - the first step in defining and implementing an expansion strategy. The business plan was structured using Sahlman's (1997) model, from which the project proved to be feasible, based on the decision of financial contribution through the inclusion of two new partners in the business. It is expected that this work will contribute academically by generating a greater knowledge on the subject, since Espaço Conectar has an innovative proposal. From the professional point of view, the work provided greater precision in the development of the strategy for the business, which could be implemented with greater assertiveness, generating wealth for shareholders and preserving, even, the author's capital.

The purpose of the study is to determine the effectiveness of the interventions used by the South African Breweries (SAB) KickStart Programme to establish and grow entrepreneurial small businesses among young South Africans. South Africa has an extremely high unemployment rate, low economic growth and a dismal Total (early-stage) Entrepreneurial Activity (TEA). With regard to established businesses (older than three-and-a-half years), the GEM report of 2005 ranked South Africa the lowest of all the countries surveyed. The SAB KickStart Programme comprises five phases: an awareness campaign, recruitment and training, a business plan competition for grants, success enhancement and national awards. The following interventions form part of the programme: the General Enterprising Tendency (GET) test; two-week live-in business management training; funding and mentoring; and a national competition for prize money. At every stage, adjudication is based on business plans and presentations. The evaluation of the effectiveness of an existing entrepreneurship programme, the SAB KickStart Programme, has several advantages, in so far as it determines whether the programme does indeed attain its objectives, and could help to improve the structuring of such programmes for future use by other corporations in South Africa. The population for the study comprised all the participants of the SAB KickStart Programme, from 2001 to 2006. A questionnaire was developed and a response rate of 28.5% was realised. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to the turnover and percentage profit figures of respondents to investigate the significance of the type of SAB KickStart support afforded. The results were confirmed by the Bonferroni multiple comparison of means test. The deduction is that funding and mentoring, after training, adds value to the programme. Eighty per cent of the SAB KickStarters were still operating their initial businesses, which they owned when they started on the programme, while a further six per cent had started another business, hence a "failure" rate of only 14 per cent. Many other meaningful findings emerged. In conclusion, it can be said that the SAB KickStart Programme adds value and advances entrepreneurship, and could possibly be applied by other large institutions in South Africa In conclusion, it can be said that the SAB KickStart programme adds value and advances entrepreneurship, and can be elevated to other large institutions in South Africa. / Business Management / D.Comm. (Business Management)