This thesis focuses on developing a business plan to establish a subsidiary dealing with traffic engineering signs. The introductory part deals with the theoretical work, concepts and methods which will be directly applied in the following sections. Analytical part is focused on the individual analysis of the external and internal environment, a description of the parent company, especially after the financial costs incurred and contains a summary analysis describing the position in the marketplace. The final section contains a selection of the legal form of the founding companies, business and financial plan, risk management, schedule and evaluation of the business plan.

In the United States, 20% of newly established small businesses, including small businesses in the life insurance industry, fail within 2 years, and over 50% of them fail during the first 5 years. The purpose of this multiple case study was to identify and explore the strategies that life insurance brokerage owners use to sustain business operations beyond 5 years. Porter's 5 forces model served as the conceptual framework for exploring this subject matter. Owners of 3 separate small life insurance brokerage firms in Texas, who sustained their businesses beyond 5 years, participated in semistructured interviews. A secondary source of data was relevant company documents. Methodological triangulation and member checking assured the reliability and validity of the interpretations. Through thematic analysis and supporting software, 5 themes emerged: exceptional customer service, relationship-building, efficient promotional strategies, regular training of salespersons, and hiring the right employees. The application of the findings of the study could contribute to positive social change by reducing unemployment and thereby catalyzing an economic environment supporting employees, families, and communities.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) participation in the Nigerian oil and gas industry has remained low despite their importance in income generation, employment, local capacity building, and poverty eradication. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the strategies SME owners use to improve profitability in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The target population consisted of 5 business owners who had successfully managed SMEs in Warri, Delta State, Nigeria for more than 5 years. The resource-based view and Porter's 5 forces of competition served as the conceptual framework for the study. Data collection was through semistructured interviews and review of company documents to triangulate the data. Data analysis included transcription, coding, querying, interpreting and reporting the themes, and the use of member checking strengthened the trustworthiness of interpretations. Findings suggested themes of low-cost strategy, knowledge of the business environment, competent personnel, collaborative partnerships, integrity, and financial management. These findings may contribute to positive social change because SME business leaders could use low-cost strategies, hire competent personnel, collaborate with other partners, and demonstrate integrity in financial management. Doing so may improve profitability, generate employment, reduce poverty, and enhance standards of living.

<p>The aim of this thesis is, from a business perspective, to examine how the pharmacy chain Medstop is working with their positioning in order to achieve competitiveness in the re-regulated pharmacy market. This is studied through a theoretical framework that demonstrates five forces that affects the competitiveness in an industry, the five-force model by Michael Porter.</p><p>The thesis is a qualitative case study where data collection was done through interviews, literature, articles, websites and internal information from Medstop. The data was then complied into the theoretical perspective the authors have chosen for this paper, the five-force model by Michael Porter. This model was chosen because it gives a broad description of the competition a company faces by describing five different forces that affect the competition within a branch. The fact was collected on the basis of the marketing strategy positioning, and the essay is written from a business perspective.</p><p>Our cunclusions are that the pharmacy chain Medstop are in their initial positioning and has chosen to position itself on the basis of their core values; credibility, safety and security. The company believes that their customers will base their choice of pharmacy based on the geographical location and the customer experience. Customer experience is based on service and customer relations. Medstop also wants to be perceived as available to the customers and want to target customers who value a small pharmacy with good advice.</p>

The aim of this thesis is, from a business perspective, to examine how the pharmacy chain Medstop is working with their positioning in order to achieve competitiveness in the re-regulated pharmacy market. This is studied through a theoretical framework that demonstrates five forces that affects the competitiveness in an industry, the five-force model by Michael Porter. The thesis is a qualitative case study where data collection was done through interviews, literature, articles, websites and internal information from Medstop. The data was then complied into the theoretical perspective the authors have chosen for this paper, the five-force model by Michael Porter. This model was chosen because it gives a broad description of the competition a company faces by describing five different forces that affect the competition within a branch. The fact was collected on the basis of the marketing strategy positioning, and the essay is written from a business perspective. Our cunclusions are that the pharmacy chain Medstop are in their initial positioning and has chosen to position itself on the basis of their core values; credibility, safety and security. The company believes that their customers will base their choice of pharmacy based on the geographical location and the customer experience. Customer experience is based on service and customer relations. Medstop also wants to be perceived as available to the customers and want to target customers who value a small pharmacy with good advice.

Abstract Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the methods used for valuating private limited knowledge based companies and if a new approach is required, create or modify a foundation that will constitute as a base within the valuation process. Method This is a qualitative study using interviews to obtain primary data. People working in the valuation industry were contacted and we got eight respondents. The questions were designed to answer our purpose and research questions. Telephone interviews were chosen due to the fact that we believed the response would be higher.      Frame of References The theories used in this section is divided into three parts; the financial analysis including traditional valuating methods such as the Discounted Cash Flow model and relative valuating and multiples. The non-financial analysis focus on the underlying analysis consistent of structural- and intellectual capital and also value drivers that are creating value for the firm. In the end other theories concerning the analysis are presented, such as the risk-return trade-off, risk rating systems and analytical hierarchy process.             Empirical Findings In this section the presentations of the respondents’ answers and and Analysis a brief analysis related to each question. After this an extended analysis is presented focusing on the subject and our risk scheme and guidelines we created/modified. The extended analysis is connected to the respondents’ answers. The purpose of this section is to have a better understanding about the risk of transient intellectual capital and give recommendations how to handle it. Also, guidelines of how to weight different value driver are discussed. Conclusion We concluded that all valuations utilize more than one approach in order to estimate the most accurate value for the company. For knowledge based companies the biggest risk with a M&amp;A transaction is the probability of diminishing the intellectual capital. We constructed a model that will manage this risk based on our interviews and established theories.

The primary objective of this study was to identify and investigate the main restrictions automation suppliers encounter when attempting to promote and sell their products into the local Vaal Triangle manufacturing industry. Through the literature study that was conducted, a general investigation into the supply chains of some of the most prominent manufacturing industries within the geographical demarcation were analysed. Two manufacturing industries were chosen namely Sasol and Rand Water. The different criteria upon which they qualify their suppliers were identified and the reasoning behind it discussed. The identified criteria included product compliance restrictions; commercial restrictions as well as limitations placed on suppliers by the consumer themselves where suppliers are restricted to only a few per product or service. The commercial restrictions were identified as the only restrictions the supplier has total control over and for this reason, was investigated in detail. These commercial restrictions included the supplier's NOSA, ISO and CIDB rating, as well as their BBBEE status. After the literature review, an empirical study was conducted by making use of a questionnaire which was developed alongside the conduction of the literature study. This questionnaire was sent out to the top management of the identified local automation suppliers to be filled out. The completed questionnaires were analysed by the Statistical Consultation Services of the North-West University (Potchefstroom campus). After the reliability and validity of the questionnaire had been determined, the basic demographical information of the respondents was analysed. An assessment of the 12 constructs measured in the study was done and the relationships between the demographic variables and the constructs were identified. Following the detailed analysis, conclusions on the demographic information of the respondents as well as between all the demographic variables and the constructs measured which had practical significance were discussed. Practical recommendations regarding compliance to the commercial restriction studied were made. The success of the study was determined mainly based on the achievement of the primary and secondary objectives. The study concluded by making suggestions for further research on the topic at hand. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

The primary objective of this study was to identify and investigate the main restrictions automation suppliers encounter when attempting to promote and sell their products into the local Vaal Triangle manufacturing industry. Through the literature study that was conducted, a general investigation into the supply chains of some of the most prominent manufacturing industries within the geographical demarcation were analysed. Two manufacturing industries were chosen namely Sasol and Rand Water. The different criteria upon which they qualify their suppliers were identified and the reasoning behind it discussed. The identified criteria included product compliance restrictions; commercial restrictions as well as limitations placed on suppliers by the consumer themselves where suppliers are restricted to only a few per product or service. The commercial restrictions were identified as the only restrictions the supplier has total control over and for this reason, was investigated in detail. These commercial restrictions included the supplier's NOSA, ISO and CIDB rating, as well as their BBBEE status. After the literature review, an empirical study was conducted by making use of a questionnaire which was developed alongside the conduction of the literature study. This questionnaire was sent out to the top management of the identified local automation suppliers to be filled out. The completed questionnaires were analysed by the Statistical Consultation Services of the North-West University (Potchefstroom campus). After the reliability and validity of the questionnaire had been determined, the basic demographical information of the respondents was analysed. An assessment of the 12 constructs measured in the study was done and the relationships between the demographic variables and the constructs were identified. Following the detailed analysis, conclusions on the demographic information of the respondents as well as between all the demographic variables and the constructs measured which had practical significance were discussed. Practical recommendations regarding compliance to the commercial restriction studied were made. The success of the study was determined mainly based on the achievement of the primary and secondary objectives. The study concluded by making suggestions for further research on the topic at hand. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

The purpose of thesis is to formulate, based on an analysis of the activities taken by the operations and strategic management, measures to improve strategic-operational collaboration and raise the quality of strategic decision making in a selected business company. To accomplish the set objective, internal and external environments in which the company competes have been identified using PESTL analysis, Porter five forces analysis, Value Chain Analysis and Financial Analysis. Based on these analyses, the strengths and weaknesses, important opportunities and threats within the company have been determined. SWOT analysis and Fuller's Triangle Method have been applied to assess the internal capabilities, limitations and chances of the organization in the business environment. The completed analyses have been assessed and used to create proposals and recommendations for developing strategic decision making in the investigated company.

The aim of this thesis is to assess the competitive situation of the selected company on the basis of selected analyses and suggest possible changes for improvement. In the practical part of this thesis are analysed the competitors and competitive position of the company Leifheit s.r.o. headquartered in Blatná. For the analysis of the competitive environment of the company is used Porter's five forces analysis. These analyses are used as a basis for evaluation of the competitive situation of the selected company. In the end of this diploma thesis are described the proposals to improve the situation.