Blast Chiller

This product by LG is a separate compenent of your refrigerator.  It holds up to two canned beverages, a bottle of wine, or a bottled drink and chills them in just 8 minutes.  For one can it takes 4 minutes to reach its chilled temperature.  I think this is a great product because it will prevent you from ever having to drink a warm soda/beer again.

Results of the SAP Distribution Game

My team ranked second to last in both the second and third quarters of the SAP Distribution Game.  I think the main reason we ranked so low is because we spent way more money on marketing then what we should have so our profit was a lot lower than other groups.  We also lowered our prices far below our competitor’s price which hindered us.  In the first two rounds, my team and I just focused on selling as much of our inventory as possible.  In doing this we had to lower and raise prices so our inventory would sell.  When items weren’t selling, we lowered their prices and when they were selling we raised the prices.  In the third round, we focused on replenishing our inventory so we consistently had a large inventory.  We also made sure not to spend any money on marketing in the third round since we spent way too much the first two rounds.

            In business I think it is necessary to consider profit, sales strategy, margin, and return on equity.  It usually takes a combination of all these factors to run a successful business.  When one item receives more focus than the others then you lose a good balance.  If you focus too much on a new sales strategy you can lose sight of meeting your customers needs or making sure your employees are satisfied.

            One of the strengths of our SAP game was that we were making a large amount of sales each quarter.  Another thing that went well was that we always had a stocked inventory.  Some things we could have done differently were spend less on marketing and be more patient.  When we realized our products weren’t selling we would immediately market them more in different areas and lower the prices.

            One thing I learned from this activity is that it takes a large group of people to run a business smoothly and efficiently.  Without the help from my other team members it would have been more difficult to take on all three tasks of marketing, pricing, and inventory.  Another thing I learned is that it is very important to communicate effectively between different departments.  If other people aren’t on the same page a lot could go wrong.  It is crucial that everyone knows what the main goals of the company are and exactly how they should go about reaching these goals.

Apple Fires Employee for Facebook Post

I believe Apple did the right thing by firing that certain employee.  This person was well aware of the rules regarding social media and they still violated them.  It was definitely the employees fault for posting a negative comment.  No matter if his page was private or not, there seems to always be a way to get around it.  It would be a different situation if Apple did not clarify their position on social media with its employees.  This employee took the risk by posting a negative comment and unfortunately for them, they have major consequences to face.  If I was an employee I would never post anything about the people I work with or the company I am working for on my social media page.  Social media is so popular today that most companies have to make a statement about their views on the use of social media in and out of the workplace.  I would make sure that I knew my employer’s views on social media and that I obey them.  A little frustration and anger is not worth losing my job over.  If I were the employer in this situation I would make sure there was a policy set for social media and that every employee was informed about it.  I would also make sure that there was a list of the possible consequences and clarify what behavior constituted the certain consequence.  I think these situations happen very often nowadays due to the popularity of social media, but I’m not sure that people take it seriously enough.  Obviously the employee at Apple didn’t.