Abstract Taiwan corporations must maintain sustainable competitive advantage in the competitive global market to cope with the deteriorated industry environment in Taiwan. This research concentrates on exploring toy industry¡¦s investing process, and operating strategy in mainland China. All multinational enterprises entering China must be aware that even with cheaper labor and land cost, from 1986 to 2004, less then twenty years of rapid changes in China¡¦s toy industry, China is still a fast changing and competitive area for industry development. Based on the study of Company A¡¦s operation, one of the major purpose of this research is to provide corporate strategies for those industries that are interested in entering China, as well as toy industries that are currently in operation. Furthermore, as far as China investment, existing studies only focused on the entry mode; however, the results of these studies did not provide enough experience since most industry¡¦s investment in China is only at the introduction stage. However, since toy industry requires massive labor and is more competitive with Hong Kong¡¦s factories, both Taiwan and Hong Kong enterprises obtain complete operating experiences; and therefore provide valuable studies. The study of Company A has achieved the following conclusions: 1. Industry¡¦s moving outward is due to inconsistency of corporate value and society value in the economic region. Enterprises¡¦ operating strategy is to achieve society value, create customer value, and satisfy employee value in order to accomplish corporate value. 2. Time-based competitive advantage is to apply the concept of competitive advantage into dynamic operation strategy. Efficiency is the success factor of achieving competitive advantage. 3. Acknowledging industry mind-set, meaning to realize, to assume, and to expect specific industry in order to decide how corporate could increase value and to compete with others. 4. Local advantage is more important than core competencies. 5. Taiwan¡¦s industry should merge with area economic, for example, Taiwan-Shanghai, Taiwan-Shenzhen, Taiwan-Xiamen, to avoid Taiwan¡¦s industry become isolated from clusters.

Taiwan¡¦s IC foundry has truly emerged as important roles in Taiwan¡¦s electronic industries, whose fast growth has successfully been in the construction of Taiwan¡¦s economic miracle. Through the differentiation strategy, TSMC, the largest and most successful dedicated IC foundry in the world, expands and develops its business from bottom to top. It also has well driven IC industries a Cluster Effect, prosperously fostering the industries in its supply chain, from IC design and manufacturing to packaging and testing, even rapid growth of Taiwan¡¦s personal computer and peripheral industries relatively. Long-term, increasing growth for IC industries had earned many companies to invest low entry barrier factories - IC packaging that needs lower technical expertise and less capital. However, against semiconductor industrial booming and bust cycles, and the phenomenon known as the Bullwhip Effect in supply chains, most packaging factories have been confronting with the challenges in worse and more competitive environments. Those factories, even the same for the new entrants, actively adopted all different types of competitive, cooperative and integrated strategies, not only for profits but survival. In this study, based on path dependence theory, the competitive strategies among ten new IC packaging companies were introduced to discuss, examine, and more further verify the linkages between their competitive strategies and developing paths. The conclusion indicates that competitive strategies of positive developing path may offer new entrants a successful, experienced model to copy with. 1.The advancement of Taiwan IC packaging new entrants gave evidence for developing path¡¦s model. That is to say, different competitive strategies will result in different developing paths. 2.The competitive strategies of the positively developing path¡¦s model are helpful for new entrants to develop positively. Strategic positioning helps to concentrate company¡¦s resources onto her beneficial path to develop. Innovative strategies will help to break through the limitations of path and guide the developing path to success. Competitive advantage helps the developing path come into positive cycles. 3.IC packaging companies have to review and react very often to manage their competitive strategies when the developing path is influenced by the variances of inner and outer environments.

¡@¡@Since 1990s, rapidly changing business environments such as information technology advancements and global logistical competitions have brought enterprises many challenges. Recently, due to its rapid economic grow, China has become a ¡§world factory¡¨ but it will also cause the steel industry to face the problem of sterner challenges and crises for coping the huge steel demand. Most enterprises may make efforts to retain their competency and keep abreast of market status through so-called business process reengineering (BPR). Under such circumstances, it becomes very important for steel industry to integrate their business process and core competence to improve the competitive advantages. ¡@¡@Through literature review, in-depth interviews with experts and implementing experience of BPR project in steel plant, a reference model was developed to examine the core competence and facilitate the BPR. Some cases from domestic and oversea steel companies with successful experience in BPR project have been studied for validation of the model. And the result shows that this validated model can be used for the steel industry to implement their BPR projects. ¡@¡@In this study, it is also indicated that the core competence, composed of managerial system, physical system, skill and values of behavior, is very crucial to successfully fulfill the business process reengineering. The BPR project needs CEO¡¦s full support. The practical technical system and the skill of employees may speed up to build and maintain the new process. However if the new system is deemed to likely violate the rights and interests of employees, they may resist to reform. Therefore the learning organization in managerial system should guide the employees and communicate occasionally with their employees and with forming a value and a paradigm of common behavior in the company, the BPR could be actually carried out.

Since the early 1980, the economic development of Taiwan has mainly relied on the small and medium-sized businesses that steadily play the important roles in leading the development of globalization of Taiwan industries. However, under the trend of mergers and acquisitions between businesses and grandization of the enterprises, the operation of the small and medium-sized businesses has faced a tough challenge and competition from foreign businesses, especially the traditional metal processing industry, which forces the small and medium-sized businesses have to upgrade and transform themselves. Currently China has already become the global manufacturing plant and the international investment center in Asia. In 2002, Taiwan and China joined WTO at the same time; Taiwan metal processing manufacturing industry faces the serious cost competition from China and pincer attack of American-European brand advantage in global markets. Under this difficult situation, it is very important for Taiwan traditional manufacturing industries to find out the better way to survive in the competitive environment. For example, the metal processing manufacturers in Taiwan are facing tough competitions from foreign businesses in a bidding war for opportunity to do business in China. Is it important for Taiwan's economy that the small and medium-sized businesses can compete against those foreign competitors? The Taiwanese small and medium-sized companies must join force and work together to compete and stay competitive in global industries. Under the new structure of WTO and the agitation for industry globalization, it is important for Taiwan's metal processing industry to do research and come up with a solution to be more competitive in the international market so as to grasp its own transnational competition advantage. The relevant research institutes in Taiwan should make this issue a top priority since Taiwan resources are very limited compared to other countries like Europe, the United States and Japan. They must work together in all aspects of business and share with each other their resources and knowledge to stay competitive in the current situation. This research adopts the theoretical foundation approach and real cases study. Aiming to Taiwan's metal processing industry, I invited two top managers for the metal processing companies in south Taiwan to have deep discussion on the problems they have been facing. Through the interviews with the two managers, I learn their business plans on transnational investments, experiences in tactics planning and transnational management¡Ketc., by which this research will focus on the study of the advantage of transnational investment that would become the core target for the small and medium-sized businesses to create synergy. The points of the main theme include institutional framework, financing, industry development, technological innovation, and competition between China and foreign countries on the study and judgment upon advantage tactics, such as shutting and strategic alliance. Under the changeable situation that several new developing markets are open, and that the newly-developed countries join the global competition, this research consults the transnational enterprises about their overall arrangement of investment and experiences of management to make Taiwan numerous traditional industries and the small and medium-sized business have macroscopically global vision of management tactics. The forming of the market regional economy and trade competition directly influences the future fortune of numerous small and medium-sized enterprises in Taiwan. Taiwan small and medium-sized businesses must gradually adjust themselves to globalization trend and make corresponding strategies for it while Mainland China is positively expanding international trade and improving technology and quality through national economy projects.

The main purpose for this paper is to study how we should focus on and its management during business merger and acquisition so that we could achieve the goal what we wanted successfully. The study can have several structures as follows: 1. How to announce the message of M&A to outside is pretty important to avoid any rumor happened --- Philips PPCK in this sample did well by: (1) Corporate Centurion Meeting (2) Business Strategy Review Meeting (3) Senior Staff Meeting (4) Town Meeting (5) Philips Components¡¦ memo 2. Re-plan the business strategy to bring up the morale of employees (1) PPCK¡¦s vision --- ¡§Keep creative and innovative to sustain its value¡¨ (2) The evaluation for long-term strategies and priority setting of 1999 strategy. (3) Build up ¡§One Unit Concept between the company and the employees¡¨ (4) Listen to voice from employees and (5) The comments from Labor Union 3. Build up the communication channel in full support in different ways (1) Make the communication process transparently (2) Management Team offer appropriate directions at any time (3) Go towards to a common consensus ¡§Three win --- The employees, Shareholders and management team¡¨ together 4. Decision Making to be done as planned (1) Define the decision model and time schedule (2) The negotiation and breakthrough on the preferential retirement measure (3) The protection on working conditions (4) The crisis management on keeping key-persons 5. Thinking about the synergies how will it be after merger and acquisition (1) The competitive advantages of the company that to be merged (2) The competitive advantages of the desired goal company (3) The advantages on global after merger and acquisition Keywords: M&A (Merger and Acquisition); Synergy; Competitive Advantage; Passive Components; Settlement; Communication

Graduated: June, 2002 Student: Hu, Shen Sheng Academic Degree: Master thesis Advisor: G. Gary Hu Abstract: The semiconductors products are the key components for electronics industry. The applications covered the wide field of 3C(Computer, Communication, Consumer) electronics products. The suppliers are the manufacturers of CPU, MPU, Chip set, Logic IC, Linear IC, etc. The customers are the manufacturers of 3C electronics products. The Distributors of Semiconductor are not only sales components or import-export business, but also provide the professional value-added service for suppliers and customers. They are important bridge for the suppliers and customers in the worldwide semiconductors supply chain. They perform a key role in the electronics industry. Taiwan has the competitive advantage in the hardware of information industry such as low cost and high quality. The worldwide manufacturers consider the production cost and the price competitive. They would like to reinforce the strategic alliance relationship with Taiwan. In this trend, the customer of 3C product manufacturers want to reduce their stock risk and production cost. The customer will not buy from the original component manufacturers directly. They will choose the distributors which can provide low cost, fast delivery, design support, FAE support, good quality, e-process, overseas support, etc. The distributors should develop to differentiation business mode in the future. Provide the value-added service for the supply chain in the electronics industry field. The strategic development of Marketing Channels for Semiconductor Components in Taiwan is shown as below: 1. Build and extend core capabilities. 2. Construct a worldwide distributors network. 3. Continuing expend the economic scale. 4. Provide the total-solution for customers. 5. Search for new products and new applications.

According to China Credit Information Service Ltd.¡¦s classification, Taiwan¡¦s women underwear industry is under the ¡§Apparel¡¨ category. The women underwear industry has developed from 1950¡¦s, and now is in a mature period with high entry barrier. Under the ¡§Oligopoly¡¨ market structure and well-developed domestic distribution system, there are seven leading firms--competing in product¡¦s design, fashion and shop ladies¡¦ service based on good on-job education and training with each other. Foreign rivals¡¦ emulating in the industry also prompted domestic firms developing international competence. Because of mounting up in production cost in Taiwan and low-end products dumping from China and South Asia after signing up for WTO, many firms sought to build ¡§International Division of Labor System¡¨ and engage in overseas production to make cost cut down and improve the industry competitive position effectively. This research adopts the qualitative exploratory study method. The first, author collected an amount of domestic and foreign relative references, including industry yearbooks, books, professional reports, journals, magazines and newspapers as the secondary data. Then, author interviewed three firms and formulated these materials by which author can understand the business operation situation and the industry¡¦s competition model. In order to explore the competitive advantage of Taiwan's women underwear industry, author implemented consumer behavior analysis, analysis of Porter¡¦s ¡§structure of five competitive forces¡¨, ¡§value chain¡¨, and Porter's ¡§concept of crystal model of national competitive advantage¡¨. Finally, we drew up the competitive strategies to the industry and the government for further improvement by SWOT analysis. Those competitive strategies will be include ¡§Production Innovation Strategy¡¨, ¡§Market Development Strategy¡¨, ¡§International Strategy¡¨, ¡§Cost Minimize Strategy¡¨, and ¡§Relative Advantage Strategy¡¨.

Electronic Passive Component ¡]E.P.C.¡^industry has been developed for over 40 years in local industries. Which created the raise of the early Taiwan¡¦s Electronic Component Industry. In the recent few years, Taiwan¡¦s E.P.C. industry has rapidly grown as well as 3C Industries generation by turns from worldwide. Although the market share of Taiwan¡¦s E.P.C. industry seems growing as well, but the serious weakness of the low entry barrier of the low end products, the competition of cost price reduction, lacking of the capability of core materials and Research ¡®Development and the consolidated role in Mainland China will deeply threaten the exists of Taiwan E.P.C.. Based on case studies from E.P.C. industries and domestic firms. The thesis explored the success experience of competitive advantage from the case research of utilizing The Six Force Factor Analysis model and The SWOT Analysis model and also adopted several competitive strategies to recommend. The consequence were concluded as follows¡G 1.To the Government¡Gto promote and cooperate the local E.P.C. industry to obtain the advantage of global resource of high technical staff and abroad market. 2.To Taiwan E.P.C. industry¡Gto make a advantaged alliance to enhance the marketing strategies of one time shop and solve the weakness of R¡®D. 3.To the research firm¡Gto fulfill the value chain advantage in forging an alliance with the core materials resource and target market oriented, and flexible adjusting the strategy of production lines cooperation between Mainland China and Taiwan.

The engineering industry has set up the foundation for Taiwanese economical and industrial development. During all phases of the developments, the engineering enterprises play the heavy role respectively in various engineering stages, such as feasibility study, environment impact evaluation, planning, design, construction, test, management, trainning, operation and maintenance etc. of engineering projects. Following the expansion in scale and versatility in content of the engineering project, the turn-key contract type instead of the traditional design and then construction splitted contract type will become more and more popular in engineering industry. Especially, the BOT and BOO of the turn-key contract in Taiwan public engineering projects are set with higher priority considering both the engineering benefit to the public and the finacial effectiveness of the government. Taiwan became the #144 member entity of WTO in early of year 2002 just soon after the #143 member of China in the late 2001. The mutual market oppening induces not only more competition but also more opportunity to the industries of the WTO member entities. The top management of individual enterprises shall consider thoroughly and work out an approach of theirwon leading to concord with the world trend, strengthen the competitive advantages, and survive forever in the industry. The research is started with the analysis of Taiwanese engineering industry. The resource-based view points and strategic management activities outline the core competence capabilities and advantages in various work stages of the indussstry. The key successful factors in the industry are recommended as : (1) financing capability; (2) business reputation and customer relationship; (3) capabilities of planning, design and cost estimate; (4) economical scale and negotiation capability; (5) engineering management and integration capabilities; and (6) operation and maintenance capability. The CTCI Corporation is also taken as an example introducing his operation methods and strategies which are worthwhile for reference. BOT or BOO stated in this research is on the prime contract with the real owner, usually the government. The prime contractor who is then called as the ¡§second owner¡¨ shall use every available resource in the industry to complete the project on schedule, in good quality, and earn the appropriate profit for his enterprise. Sub-contracting, therefore is still the same as what people did in the traditional engineering projects. Either big scale complex engineering enterprises or small size expert firms can still find theirown way for future operation. Talking about the tendering competition, the final game is almost staied on the financial issues. The learning curve, scale economic and expertization of the low cost strategy chain up the concentration and differenciation strategies. All of these will promote enterprises¡¦ capabilities through the improvement in technical aspects, project management, enterprise processing and resource integration, resource leverage etc.. The engineering enterprises, after evaluating their core competitive advantages, may choose and consolidate the market zone most suitable for them and extend therefrom the market through the alliance.

Abstract The Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit system (KMRT) in its initial planning had several lines: red, orange, blue, brown, pink, green; creating a web-shaped MRT network, but due to funding constrain, only the Red and Orange lines are currently under construction, 42.7 km, traversing through the greater Kaohsiung area like a long ¡§cross¡¨, unable to meet the need of the entire city for public transportation. It is foreseeable that the Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corp. (KRTC), which has a 36-year-BOT contract with the City to construct and operate the MRT, will have difficulty achieve its revenue target. The KRTC is under a great deal of pressure finding solutions, like using bus routes to supplement the MRT, to achieve a sustainable operation. The aim of this study concentrates on how to utilize the existing resources within the Kaohsiung Metropolitan area, with an emphasized goal on creating a web-shaped public transportation network, through strategies, organization, and integration. The study examines the financial feasibility for the KRTC to operate a second bus company, the pros and cons of purchasing or renting shuttle buses, and the strategies for operation. First, the study applies Michael Porter¡¦s 5-forces model in examining the current competitive situations of routes within the Municipal Bus Company, by using the competitive theory to discuss the potential activities and goals of a 2nd bus company. Then, with reference to the Harrison¡¦s Decision Making Process as a foundation for the KRTC to run a bus company was discussed. Second, referring to the Metropolitan Area Bus Network theory done by Dr. Jun-Shian Lee, the study examines if the KRTC integrated bus routes with the cross-shaped MRT to form a web-shaped public transportation network, what would be the most cost-effective ways of operation; how large an area of service should the shuttle bus reach; whether bus-purchasing or bus-renting would be more feasible financially; and what strategies, advantages and risks of operating such a shuttle bus company would be. With reference to the analytical theories on Business Competitive Advantages of Dr. Cher Min Fong, the study establishes the competitive edge of a 2nd bus company. The main purpose of this study, with careful comparisons done on bus renting vs. purchasing and investment strategies for operating the 2nd bus company, is based on an underlining wish: trying to bring a possible solution for the successful operation of the KRTC.