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Apple products at manufacturing plants in China and at retail stores in the U.S.- low worker pay and lack of future prospects
05/29/2010
The high margins for Apple achieved through a combination of keeping costs low- even at the risk of providing poor wage and working conditions for the majority of employees employed in the retail stores in the U.S. and in supplier Foxconn plants in China- and by a grasp for innovation and technology. The paradox of a well deserved image for pioneering in technological innovation and the indifference to working conditions and prospects for employees who add value in manufacturing and customer interface. This model of growth is a recent development, put in place after 1997. In 1995-1997 Apple was nearing collapse under Michael Spindler and Gil Amelio, as documented by WSJ technology reporter Jim Carlton in his book- "Apple- The Inside Story of Intrigue, Egomania, and Business Blunders." Steve Jobs returned as CEO in 1997 and set the future course and this model in place emphasizing design, his ability to grasp technologies that would appeal to customers, and hired Tim Cook to set up the manufacturing which had high rate of defects and higher costs. The model was as full of paradoxes, of genius combined with mediocre behavioursas the man Steve Jobs. Tim Cook has responded to criticism in 2012 by having the Fair Labor association audit Foxconn plants in China. Foxconn increased wages in 2012, shifted plants to the interior of China, and increased use of robotics.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 05/29/2010
Apple Stores Army, Long on Loyalty but Short on PayNew York Times 06/23/2012
The increasing risk of a Double Dip Recession.
05/14/2010
Shiller, Wood and other experts on the risks.
Linked Articles
Don't Rule Out a Double Dip Recession
Wall Street Journal 05/24/2010
Fear of a Double Dip Could Cause OneNew York Times 05/14/2010
Experts like Shiller and Roubini about see dangers of a double dip recession.
05/13/2010
Prolonged period of zero interest rates that encourage excessive risktaking, and declining confidence levels with higher uncertainty, pose serious dangers.
Linked Articles
Charlie Rose Talks to Nouriel Roubini
BusinessWeek 05/13/2010
Fear of a Double Dip Could Cause OneNew York Times 05/14/2010
Germany's rescue plan for Greece.
05/03/2010
Germany finally cleared a plan to aid Greece after weeks of delay that created tension in global financial markets with Greece being shut out of capital markets.
Linked Articles
Germany Clears Rescue for Greece
New York Times 05/03/2010
The Greek Economy ExplainedWall Street Journal 05/07/2010
The need for a new European economic government to back the euro currency.
04/29/2010
The French view that there should be a common economic government and clear institutional responsibilities and the German view that is not so willing to cede national sovereignty in economic matters. The fiscal and structural flaws that need to be repaired for the euro currency to work.
Linked Articles
Economist 05/13/2010
As Greek Drama Plays Out, Where Is Europe?New York Times 04/29/2010
Lack of credible progress in Afghanistan in 2010.
04/29/2010
A Defense Department biennial report and an independent report by Ann Marlowe after her sixth embed with American forces on the ground both confirm the lack of credible progress and attribute it to the lack of credible governance in Afghnistan. Failure of the current US administration to take good governance seriously.
Linked Articles
Strategy vs. Tactics in Afghanistan
Wall Street Journal 06/02/2010
U.S. Report on Afghan War Finds Few Gains in 6 MonthsNew York Times 04/29/2010
China's bubbles in stock and property markets and fears of a sharp downturn.
04/14/2010
Excessive bank lending followed now by excessive tightening of monetary policy could lead to as sharp downturn.
Linked Articles
Fear Pervades China's Stocks As Market's Gains Disappear
Wall Street Journal 05/13/2010
Can China Cool Its Economy?BusinessWeek 04/14/2010
The inaction at GM 2009-2013 for the defective ignition switch recall and the inaction at Toyota for unintended acceleration recall
02/10/2010
GM's management lost track of quality issues that were buried at lower levels during the bankruptcy period. Toyota's management in the U.S. referred the NHTSA to quality managers in Japan who did not make the necessary effort to look into and address the problem. This shows that quality is not just a technical issue for the engineers and requires management atention at the highest levels, direct reporting to top managers. It also shows that quality problems never go away, will always be present, no matter how good you think you get. Small mistakes can be very costly as BP, TEPCO in the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Toyota, have shown in the recent past.
Linked Articles
General Motors Misled Grieving Families on a Lethal Flaw
New York Times 03/24/2014
Safety Agency Scrutinized as Toyota Recall GrowsNew York Times 02/10/2010
Shiller sees risks of a double dip recession from sudden events that further damage confidence.
01/31/2010
Shillers definition of adoubel dip recession is one in which unemployment stays stubbornly high for some years and a second recession occurs before a recovery is achieved from the first one. Statistical models and confidence indexes are poor at grasping and presenting this.
Linked Articles
Fear of a Double Dip Could Cause One
New York Times 05/14/2010
Stuck in Neutral? Reset the MoodNew York Times 01/31/2010
Dangers to the global economy in 2010.
01/04/2010
Dangers for Britain, USA, China and other countries.
Linked Articles
Beware the Crisis around the corner
Financial Times 01/04/2010
Fed chief Bernanke urges better financial regulation to prevent crisesWashington Post 01/04/2010
P&G (Procter & Gamble)- striking the right balance between the large markets in N. America and Europe, and the fast growing emerging markets
12/12/2009
P&G's price increases in N. American markets and erosion of market share lead to criticism of its neglect of the core home market. In the decade long effort to grow build a strong presence in emerging markets, management's attention has been focussed outside the U.S.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 05/24/2012
P.& G. Sees the World as Its ClientNew York Times 12/12/2009
Procter and Gamble (P&G) takes early success at low price points in Mexico to other emerging markets Brazil and China- 2009-2014
12/12/2009
Linked Articles
P&G Sales Rise on Strong Demand in Emerging Markets
Wall Street Journal 01/27/2014
P.& G. Sees the World as Its ClientNew York Times 12/12/2009
Shrinking news coverage and fewer journalists in the newspaper shift to digital online
11/25/2009
It says a lot about the changes underway in the newspaper industry when a paper like the Washington Post closes its bureaus in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, and covers the news there with travelling reporters. As local newspapers such as the New Orleans Times- Picayune move to three editions a week and an online edition, the number of journalists overing the area around New Orleans will shrink by a third in 2012. Advance Publications which runs the New Orleans paper will do the same for its papers in Huntsville and Birmingham i in Alabama.
Linked Articles
New Orleans Times-Picayune to limit printing to three days per week - The Washington Post
Washington Post 05/25/2012
Washington Post shutters last U.S. bureausWashington Post 11/25/2009
The European financial crisis of 2010 starting in Greece tests the social model of Euope.
05/14/2010
Officials see the need for more growth to support the social model and experts see the need for stronger action.
Linked Articles
Amid Europe's challenges, citizens face lifestyle shifts
Wall Street Journal 05/14/2010
Spain is simply shifting the problemWall Street Journal 05/14/2010
El-Erian's sees further problems from Europe and the overleveraged investor in the USA.
05/14/2010
Shiker and El-Erian's views on the risks to gorwth.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 05/22/2010
Fear of a Double Dip Could Cause OneNew York Times 05/14/2010
Experts Roach, Grantham, Roubini and Shiller see serious risks of a double dip recession.
05/13/2010
Dangers of another bubble from zero interest rates which reward excessive risktaking, a blow to confidence levels from some sudden event, the eurozone crisis, and a fragile world economy that has not made the normal recovery, are cited
Linked Articles
Charlie Rose Talks to Nouriel Roubini
BusinessWeek 05/13/2010
Beware a Bernanke-Fueled Market BubbleBusinessWeek 05/13/2010
BP has a history of problems with quality systems and safety.
05/01/2010
Linked Articles
BP's Hayward Says Company Could Have Done More Disaster Preparation
Wall Street Journal 05/13/2010
Drilling Down: A Troubled Legacy in OilWall Street Journal 05/01/2010
The lack of a European approach to the crisis facing Greece, Portugal and Spain.
04/29/2010
German opinion turning nationalistic.
Linked Articles
New York Times 05/26/2010
As Greek Drama Plays Out, Where Is Europe?New York Times 04/29/2010
Rehman Malik's admission that the miliants are entrenched in the southern Punjab.
04/29/2010
How this affects the American war efforts allied with poor governance in Afghanistan as problems lead back to Pakistan.
Linked Articles
Official Admits Militancyâs Deep Roots in Pakistan
New York Times 06/02/2010
U.S. Report on Afghan War Finds Few Gains in 6 MonthsNew York Times 04/29/2010
Campbell Soup's acquisition of Bolthouse Farms as it diversifies away from canned soup
02/22/2010
The high end juice maker provides Campbell with products in a growing market. Store brands have eroded sales of Campbell brand canned soups. Campbell also hopes to tackle a younger demographic.
Linked Articles
Wall Street Journal 07/10/2012
Headwinds Threaten Campbell's ChargeWall Street Journal 02/22/2010
Long standing reputations for quality and safety damaged by failures in quality systems at J&J McNeil and Toyota.
02/02/2010
Both Toyota and J&J Mcneil unit responded poorly and with long time lags to federal agencies that supervise safety for their products. Both companies took along time to investigate the consumer complaints, one for faulty brake pedal and the other for musty odor from Tylenol Arthritis caplet bottles.
Linked Articles
Maker of Tylenol Explains Actions Taken to Alleviate Musty Smell of Pills
New York Times 03/17/2010
Obama Administration Says It Is 'Not Finished With Toyota'Wall Street Journal 02/02/2010
China's policy makers make moves to make the economy less dependent on exports.
01/07/2010
Since 2004 China's consumer spending has fallen behind even more from 40% to 35% as a share of the economy. Steps to reverse this by allowig wages to increase significantly as at this Honda facory in Foshan.
Linked Articles
Unrest May Signal New Phase in China Economy
New York Times 05/29/2010
China Aims to Transform a Nation of Savers Into SpendersWall Street Journal 01/07/2010
Volcker, the Volcker Rule, and the risks of the concentration of assets in a few banks in the U.S. financial system
12/17/2009
Linked Articles
Charlie Rose Talks to Paul Volcker
BusinessWeek 10/27/2011
A Crisis Is a Terrible Thing to WasteBusinessWeek 12/17/2009
Danone and P&G's (Procter & Gamble) innovative strategies for reaching low income customers in emerging markets.
12/12/2009
In 2004 Indonesian managers showed Franck Riboud, CEO of Danone, a pyramid of customers in Indonesia's population of 240 million people. It showed only 20 million customers at the top of the pyramid as the only ones who could afford Danone products. At that point Ribaud made up his mind to go after the large number of people at the lower end of the pyramid and come with strategies to do this profitably. By 2010 46% of Danone's sales were from emerging markets, up from 10% a decade earlier, showing the pace of the change. Unilever, P&G, Nestle, Colgate-Palmolive and other companies are following similiar strategies. P&G has used Mexico as a lab for experimenting with new products at low price points and Danone has done this in Indonesia.
Linked Articles
Danone Expands Its Pantry to Woo the World's Poor
Wall Street Journal 06/25/2010
P.& G. Sees the World as Its ClientNew York Times 12/12/2009
The risk of cancer from the chemicals in consumer products that surround us is something human society has never faced in this way before.
12/06/2009
Linked Articles
Commonly Used Chemicals Come Under New Scrutiny
New York Times 05/01/2015
Cancer From the Kitchen?New York Times 12/06/2009
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