Global tourism Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Global tourism - Assignment Example Every winter Oslo hosts numerous winter sports competitions in the famous Holmenkollen National Ski Arena. Thus, Oslo is an outstanding tourist-friendly location, which has much to offer. The capital of Norway is multinational and diverse city, which is not very typical to Scandinavian cities as for a long time emigration prevailed immigration. Now Oslo is one of the fastest-growing cities in Scandinavian countries that is why the population increases rapidly, and the city authorities has to tackle a number of social problems, and high immigration rate is one of the first (Kemp, 2008). In the last two years the population exceeded in 2%, and the number of residents is expected to grow in 40 % in the next few decades. Such boost of population is explained by higher life expectancy and rising birth rate (Savage, 2014). Norwegian economy continues to grow in spite of European crisis attracting migrant labor from less developed countries. Therefore, immigrants from Poland, Latvia, Pakistan and other countries become new residents of Oslo. This will cause additional demand for working places in the country, and the tourist sphere will be the one which will be able to offe rs such places. The capital immigration flow started in 60-s when oil was discovered in the North Sea, thus the city has already elaborated its mechanisms of integration for the new comers. Oslo was ranked as the second in the Intercultural Index Cities list, which means that it has managed to establish stable and effective policy framework with recourses and actions implemented in life (Oslo intercultural profile, 2012). Two years ago the city has introduced a new policy directive â€Å"City Government Decision 152/12 - Diversity Opportunities†, that is a modern statement of the city’s goals and perspectives, developing along with a direction first represented in 2001 with the founding of the OXLO Oslo Extra Large campaign. Encouraging immigrant inflow into the

Mainly Othello(Shakespeare) with comparison from Medea(Euripides)- Essay

Mainly Othello(Shakespeare) with comparison from Medea(Euripides)- Drama as Literature class - Essay Example speare in his play as we watch Lago and Roderigo complaining to Brabanzio that his daughter has been not only been stolen but also married to Othello. It is through his efforts that Brabanzio finally discovers that truly his daughter has been married to Othello, an act that is totally against his wishes for his daughter. Once more, Shakespeare is displaying how far characters in the play are attempting to go far in mixing issues of love with heroism in their respective lives. Brabanzio further gets officers to find Othello and bring him to his attention. Brabanzio is putting his efforts to using his fame and recognition in the society so as to report Othello to the Senate in connection with his missing daughter. It is for the very first time that the play allows the viewer to have love being handled single handedly without any connection to fame and heroism. The senate is not at all interested in judging the matter from the heroic point of view of Brabanzio but offers Othello some sympathy by allowing him a chance to clarify himself. It is at this point that Othello is given a very fair chance to explain himself before the Senate. It becomes very clear before everyone that Othello did not steal away Desdemona using witchcraft as the father has reported but used his heroic stories in the military to woo her into marriage. Desdemona also enters the room at this particular point and confirms that her loyalty is now totally to her husband and not her father. The Senate is surely convinced about this point of view that is being expressed by Othello (Shakespeare 11). It is although brought towards the attention of the viewer that Othello too used his military heroism to capture the love of Desdemona. At this point, it is for the very first time that love and heroism are being mixed and the product being a successful one. Othello has succeeded in pursuing his love by the use of the heroism that he has gotten from his military operations. Just as it was the case with

Choosing Technology to Meet a Need Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Choosing Technology to Meet a Need - Essay Example include: a high quality display system to showcase finished design projects, a central unit that is compatible and with modern day design soft wares, command input devices, a safe back up storage system, cooperate display system, image capture and internet connection (Labuz 47). The core i5 processor is provides great graphics and multi-tasking platform because it mechanically speeds up since it has an incorporation of Intel turbo boost technology. The boost and a 4 way multi-tasking processing ability can enable it handle very high memory demanding graphic software without slowing down. The wake fast Intel responsive hard disc wakes up very fast- within seconds- hence the ability to resume to work without delays. The same capability is essential because it minimizes power consumption-since it operates on a ultra-low consumption. Adobe Photoshop and adobe illustrator are graphic design software’s with modern design tools this enables easy, quick manipulation of images and editing with the high quality outcomes in a professional set

Buying Versus Leasing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Buying Versus Leasing - Assignment Example More significantly, capital budgeting is more commonly used in management planning as it gives an outlay of the long-term implication of purchasing or leasing a new car. Therefore, the main aim of the thesis of this paper is to not only evaluate the suitable choice of acquiring cars, but to also analyze the financial and non-financial factors that influence decision making. Executive Summary Investment decisions are based on economical and effective factors that make the purchase of cars more viable as compared to leasing a car. More significantly, application of capital budgeting in deciding on purchases takes into consideration the viable choice after carrying out appraisal based on the expenses related to buying and leasing and their cost respectively. As a result, capital budgeting is more commonly used in management planning as it gives an outlay of the long-term implication of purchasing or leasing a new car (Thomas & Maurice, 2011). More so, considerations should be undertaken based on the provision economic decisions based on interest rates, sources of finances, end of lease fees, loan terms, personal guarantees and operating cash while making decisions on whether to procure or lease a car as related to economical costs. Even though, leasing allows for payments within small intervals it is considerably expense as the payments accumulate over time with no long-term benefit being derived. Definition In the acquisition of new assets, there are two choices based on whether to lease or purchase. More considerably, leasing comes either as operational or capital lease depending on the terms of the contract. In capital leasing, an individual is allowed to finance the maintenance and use of the car while at the end of the agreed lease term take up ownership after undertaking a nominal buy out lease. On the other hand, operational lease allows for renting of the car, and as a result, there is no ownership entitled at the end of the contract as the lease term allo ws for monthly payments (Powell, 2009). Nonetheless, purchases allow for payments to be made at the initial purchase and ownership of the asset is transferred immediately to the buyer. Even though, the leasing of a car seem viable it involves regular payment of the leasing fee as the returns of the vehicle passes back to the initial owner, when the lease term comes to an end as compared to purchases where upon payment of the purchase price legal ownership is issued immediately to the buyer of the car. As a result, there is a significant difference in terms of payments and ownership term in the purchase and leasing of a car. More considerably, to understand about leasing agreements, it is essential to understand about the lessor as the leasing company in which they deal with leasing of cars based on rights that govern the contract (Powell, 2009). While the leaseholder, or lessee is an individual who utilize services of the leasing company through leasing of vehicles. As the lessee us es the vehicle, they make payment based on calculated monthly lease charge this payment made are considered to cover the interest that is charged by the leasing company for services offered. As a result, the leaseholder makes a choice on the type of lease to undertake. If an individual chooses capital lease, it is known as closed-ended lease because the leaseholder does not get a guarantee of

Compare and contrast the labour forces of the preindustrial and Essay

Compare and contrast the labour forces of the preindustrial and industrial ages - Essay Example For conducting the comparative analysis, the era prior to industrial revolution has been considered as pre-industrial age, whereas the period starting since industrial revolution has been considered as industrial age. Before embarking on making any comparison between the pre-industrial labour force and industrial labour force, it is necessary to look at the major features of labour market of pre-industrial age as well as that of industrial age to form a clear idea about the features of labour force during these two periods. Characteristics of labour market at any point of time can be viewed in terms of labour force composition, production process, division of labour, labour market institutions, wage structure, etc. The present paper will first discuss the major characteristics of labour market in the two periods under consideration, which are preindustrial era and industrial era. In the pre-industrial period, economies were mostly dependent on agricultural sector and to some extent on home based industries, like manufacturing, construction etc. Industrial sector did not flourish on a commercial basis largely. There existed only a few industries, which ran their business on a commercial basis, like iron or textile industries, etc. Consequently, most of the labourers were agricultural labourers or were employed in home based industries. Labourers mostly concentrated on rural areas, because during that period the notion and extent of urbanization was very limited. As far as, gender perspective in labour force participation was concerned, it was found that males mostly dominated that labour market. Female participation in the labour force was very low. In this context, one interesting thing can be mentioned that in pre-industrial era, women used to be involved in doing household activities even because most of them belonged to very poor families. In addition, mo re earning members were required to meet the daily needs of living

Hand book customer service Essay Example for Free

Hand book customer service Essay Policies: policies (structure, use, focus, customer requirements/expectations, product and service knowledge, consultation, confidentiality, customer perceptions and satisfaction, monitor customer service and satisfaction, influences affecting implementation, effective communication) Quality of service: methods of assessment; customer expectations; standardised procedures; codes of practice; staff levels (staffing levels, staff competency, flexibility, reliability and responsiveness) Evaluation: purpose; sources of feedback; accuracy; relevance; reliability; validity; methods of data collection; improvements; staff training and development Hospitality industry: industries within the hospitality industry eg hotels, restaurants, pubs, bars and nightclubs, contract food service providers, hospitality services, membership clubs, events 2. Understand the purpose of promoting a customer-focused culture Communication: types eg verbal, non-verbal body language, written; types of response; use; effect Customer: central role; customer service culture; identifying and analysing customer requirements and expectations; influences of service provision on customer perceptions Benefits of improved service: customer satisfaction, repeat business, improved reputation, increased profit  3. Be able to investigate customer requirements and expectations Requirements: sources of information eg customers, staff, management, customer records, past information Module Handbook C. Ugoji Sept, 2013 Page 2 Unit Handbook Unit 4: The Customer Service Primary research: primary research eg sampling, qualitative, quantitative; interview eg individual, group, survey, observation; contact methods eg mail, telephone, personal Secondary research: internal eg sales records, yield data, financial information, client databases; external eg government publications, trade journals, periodicals, professional associations, national organisations, commercial data Satisfaction levels: planning; strategy; assessment of options using researched information; role of the business and services manager; staffing levels; motivating staff; improvements 4. Be able to provide customer service within business and services contexts to meet required standards  Types of customers: different age groups eg the elderly, children; different cultural backgrounds; special needs eg physically disabled; satisfied; dissatisfied; under influence eg drugs, alcohol, medication Customer needs: customer needs eg products and services, urgent, non-urgent, special requirements, quality of service, value for money, cultural, social; trends eg fashion, ergonomic, equipment, training, products and services, consumer protection legislation Customer service: consultation; advice; personal selling; complaints procedure; reception skills; confidentiality Learning Outcomes: To achieve this unit leaner must: 1. Understand customer service policies within business and services contexts 2. Understand the purpose of promoting a customer-focused culture 3. Be able to investigate customer requirements and expectations 4. Be able to provide customer service within business and services contexts to meet required standards. Teaching strategies used: Following are the different teaching and learning strategies, a description of how they work, where they have been applied, results, and where to find more information from individuals, books, web sites, and other resources. Lecture Notes The most basic way of supporting teaching in this module – a place for students to access lecture notes. The main advantages are reduction in the amount of college Module Handbook C. Ugoji Sept, 2013 Page 3 Unit Handbook Unit 4: The Customer Service photocopying and students can access notes prior to lecture and prepare themselves. Presenting Lectures Displaying these lecture notes with the addition of projectors using power point presentation slides to visualize the information to the students. An increasing variety of ways are utilizing to reach students of all different learning styles, to help the students to understand complicated concepts and remember them better by using master graphic tools both on whiteboard and on computers. Interactive Tutorials A set of questions have been designed for each session in assessing student learning of subject matter using both paper based and computer based assessment techniques. The web and web authoring  Students are directed to use the advanced search engine to navigate the correct and legitimate information for their assignment. Different search engines compile information using different criteria and have access to different databases. Applying technology to develop students higher order skills and creativity to manage student learning activities in a technology-enhanced environment. Group Discussions The students will be give topics and some cases with the use of case study that relates to the topic covered in each session. There will also be a follow up on the discussion using group presentation and class assessment as the case may be. Summary of lecture For every session, there will be overall summary at the end teaching session. Attempting the passing criterion in class The student must attempt one or more learning outcome question covered in each session and the evidence will be documented

Customer Relationship Management At Dell

Customer Relationship Management At Dell Introduction Customer Relationship Management (CRM), as defined by Anderson and Narus, is the bundling of customer strategy and processes, supported by relevant software, for the purpose of improving customer loyalty and, eventually, corporate profitability. Consultants Rigby, Reichheld and Schefter have mentioned the imperatives of CRM as acquiring the right customer, crafting the right value proposition, instituting the best processes, motivating employees, and learning to retain customers. This can be substantiated by studying the particular case of Dell, which has used internet and other direct media to develop an efficient model of CRM. This report will bring out the details of CRM process followed by Dell, and how it has helped in sustaining loyal customers and build customer satisfaction. About Dell Dell is a leading technology company which offers a broad range of product categories, including mobility products, desktop PCs, software and peripherals, servers and networking, services, and storage. As per a Gartner research report based on second quarter PC shipments in 2009, it is the number one supplier (26.0% market share in US) of computer systems in the United States and the number two supplier worldwide (13.6% global market share). The mission statement for Dell is to be the most successful computer company in the world at delivering the best customer experience. Since Dell is a global wide company, its direct approach is relevant across product lines, regions and customer segments.  [1]   Dell is organized geographically into the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Japan, and Europe. The corporate headquarters is located in Round Rock, Texas, near Austin. In the mid-1990s, the company decided that in order to manage a company that was growing at 50% a year, it needed to decentralize decision making rather than try to control everything from the U.S. Therefore, each of the regions has its own regional headquarters (Japan has a separate headquarters), its own manufacturing facilities, and its own IT infrastructure. Ongoing Customer Relationship Management at DELL Monitoring, Evaluating and Reassigning Accounts Dells business activities are organized in each region around different customer segments. These generally include (1) relationship (large corporate) customers, (2) home and small business (sometimes called transaction customers), and (3) public sector (government and educational) customers. This segmentation is evident in Dells product mix, which has different product lines for each segment, in its marketing strategies, which vary by business segments, and in its e-commerce and Internet strategies. For instance, services such as Premier.Dell.com extranets are geared toward large relationship customers, while a more limited set of online services is offered to home and small business customers on Dell.com. For large enterprise customers, Dell maintains a field sales force all over the world. There are dedicated account teams, including field-based system engineers and consultants, which form long-term relationships to create a single source of assistance for their largest customers, develop custom solutions for them and get important customer feedback. There are several programs to provide single points of contact and accountability with global account specialists, special global pricing and consistent global service and support programs. There are separate sales and marketing programs aimed at federal, state and local government agencies, and specific healthcare and educational customers. For small and medium businesses and consumers, marketing is done primarily by advertising on television and the Internet, print media and mailing a wide range of direct marketing publications such as promotional materials, catalogs and customer newsletters. Relationship and public sector customers account for about 54% of Dells revenues overall. All these accounts are initially serviced by field-based sales representatives along with a support team of telephone service reps dedicated to these accounts. Small businesses and consumers are served by several thousand phone reps who can look up historical sales records to help the customers in ordering systems that match their prior purchase pattern. Figure 1: Dells four customer aligned business units  [2]   Dells CRM Applications The Internet and e-commerce are fundamental to Dells business, as expected from a company that defines itself as an Internet infrastructure company. The e-commerce has been adopted into the core of the business in three ways: 1) in its relationships with end customers, (2) in coordinating its value web, and (3) in communicating its market message to emphasize its ability to provide e-commerce solutions to its customers. As per Anderson and Narus, some of the emerging applications of CRM, (that we can also observe in Dell) are in: Customer acquisition, retention and growth Synchronizing marketing efforts Updating delivered value Customer Acquisition, Retention and Growth Dell has involved the Internet in all aspects of customer relationships, ranging from customer acquisition, retention and growth to marketing. The internet is used in supporting existing channels such as the direct sales force and call centers by providing them with real time information and automating their routine tasks. It has also developed self-service tools for customers, using which they can order online, track order status or solve a technical problem through the Internet or an extranet. Acquisition Dell sells its own products at the dell.com website. On the homepage, customers in the U.S. are segmented into home and home office, medium and large organizations, Internet providers, health care businesses, federal government, state and local government, and education. Each customer segment has a different mix of products and services available. Customers can choose and price different configurations with Dells online configurator. Once they are ready to buy, their order is sent to a shopping cart. They can also choose various addons such as software, peripherals, digital cameras, PDAs, etc. on the Gigabuys or DellWare sites and add those to the same shopping cart. Once an order is entered, the customer receives an order number that can be used to track order status until it is delivered. Premier Pages are customized for every customer and they include capabilities for procurement, asset management, software upgrading, and even technical support. Large relationship customers can have Premier Pages customized even further to link to their own internal procurement systems, allowing their orders to be sent directly from the customers office information systems to Dells order management system. Dells account teams work with such customers to set up Premier Pages, setting access levels and registering user names and passwords for employees, and customizing the information and the kind of services that will be available. Dell also provides a few tools for customers to create their own pages. The various services available through Premier Pages include: _ Purchase history reports: The complete history of a customers purchases from Dell, including PO number, order number, date, SKUs, quantity, shipment dates. _ Standard configurations: To make a customers PC administration processes simpler (installation, upgrades, help desk, technical support), the customer can specify a definite set of configurations for different employees. These are made available for ordering on the customers Premier Pages at the price negotiated between Dell and the customer. _ Paperless online purchase orders: Dell and the customers sign a legal agreement that allows the customer to place orders without mailing or faxing a signed purchase order. This lets the entire ordering process, from configuration to payment, to be done online, saving time for the customer. _ ImageWatch: A roadmap of future product release plans made available to large enterprise customers to help them plan their own IT strategies. Dell relaunched its Premier Pages as DellPremier.com in September 2000 in the U.S with a new look and better navigation tools. Retention and Growth Service and support are normally quite an expensive and labor-intensive activity for PC companies, which need to provide technical support for complicated systems with a wide range of hardware and software configurations. Dell has an advantage here because most of its business is with large organizations that have their own MIS departments and technical help desks to support users. Home and small business support is usually provided directly to the end user, and costs more per PC to provide. Online support was originally developed by the Support Technology Online (STO) team, which grew up in the HSB (home and small business) segment as support.dell.com. In late 1999, Dell created separate STO groups for relationship and transaction customers, each part of those groups service organizations. Dell offers several service tools online. These are available online to home and small business customers at support.dell.com, and to relationship customers on the DellPremier.com extranet: _ Order status tracking Once an order is placed by the customers, they can track it until it is delivered. _ Resolution Assistant A software which is pre-loaded on a Dell PC that gathers information and sends it to a Dell technician when the customer faces a problem. The information is matched against an automated knowledge base. Whenever possible, a MAP, an executable module that automates resolution, is sent to the PC and the fix is done automatically. Resolution Assistant reduces the length of service calls and improves accuracy in diagnosis. _ Dell Knowledge Base A Dell database including product information, frequently asked questions, third party knowledge and other relevant documents specific to a particular Dell product. _ Ask Dudley A natural language searchable database of technical information which uses a customized version of the Ask-Jeeves search engine. _ File Library Downloadable drivers, utilities and other updates for Dell PC systems. _ Dell Software Tips -A library of hints and tips for operating systems and office applications. _ Pro-active services Pro-active notification services on warranty status, system age related information, file drivers, and the order status. _ Dell Talk-a monitored community forum for Dell customers to share information. Dell has built a community where its customers and loyalists can help each other with technical problems and questions. Dell doesnt censor the discussion on the forum, but monitors it regularly to ensure accuracy. If any user gives out incorrect information, Dell intervenes with the correct information. The users of this service are almost equally divided between relationship and transaction customers. With the launch of Dell Premier Support.dell.com in September 2000, Dell renamed its Help Tech service as Premier Support for relationship customers. Technical Support for corporate and public sector clients is handled by the Relationship Support Technology Online (STO) group. The primary customers for the Relationship STO are those individuals that support the end users belonging to corporate and public sector. This includes the personnel from help desks, MIS departments, IT professionals and technicians. Dells relationship customers have access to all of the online tools available to HSB customers, and also have customized applications relevant to their account for multiple systems and platforms. Unlike individual users, help desks and MIS organizations must deal with many systems, and with specific problems that arise from networking and client-server environments. For some large accounts, Dell itself may act as the help desk function for Dell equipment, as Dells technicians and o nline offerings have rich experience in troubleshooting and diagnosing system issues. Recently in February 2008, Dell launched its ProSupport portfolio of services. In this new framework, customers are able to self-identify the type of customer they are end users of IT professionals. Once the customers have self-identified, they are able to choose the features they need in the support package, thus customizing the support experience to their specific needs. The customer profile and history is very important in providing service and support. If the user enters a customer number or system identification number, he or she can get a personal support site that has the machine configuration and the history of what has happened with that machine since it was bought. The support strategy is based on what Dell calls virtual integration- getting customers closer to the knowledge, and inside out/outside in-giving the internal technicians the same set of tools and knowledge content as the outside customer. Dell gives customers a choice of venues for support, including phone and online support. They like people to use the web, but dont force them to. The breakdown of help incidents for HSB customers as of mid-2000 was as follows: _ 37% of incidents use the web alone for support _ 13% use both web and phone _ About 50% use the phone alone Dell finds that people who buy a PC online are more likely to get service and support there, while people who buy by phone will use phone service. Synchronizing Marketing Efforts The sales and marketing efforts of Dell are organized around the evolving needs of its customers. Its direct business model provides direct communication with its customers allowing it to refine its products and marketing programs for specific customer groups. Customers may offer suggestions for current and future Dell products, services, and operations on an interactive portion of its website called Dell IdeaStorm. This constant flow of communication allows Dell to rapidly gauge customer satisfaction and target new or existing products. For instance, Dell used a concept called free-range marketing  [3]  : allowing the community to drive the excitement and story about the new product, to create a buzz in social media using blogs, forums, communities etc. for the launch of their Inspiron 910 in September 2008. Updating Customer Value Dell interacts with more than 3 million customers every day, so it made sense for it to create a community to capture feedback from both customers and its 80,000 employees. Dell launched IdeaStorm, an interactive portal, to let customers share ideas that influence product development, services, and operations. Within the first week, IdeaStorm had collected more than 500 ideas; within the first month, it had 2,500 ideas.  [4]  Customer feedback on IdeaStorm led the company to build select consumer notebooks and desktops preinstalled with the Linux platform. Dell also decided to continue offering Windows XP as a preinstalled operating system option in response to customer requests. Dell also launched EmployeeStorm, a secure community employees can use to post ideas regardless of their position within the company. In the first 2 weeks, the company gathered more than 700 ideas. EmployeeStorm breaks down the silos typical in corporate life and increases collaboration Sustaining Customers through Connected Relationships Value Chain Dells core value chain for its PC business is different from that of a traditional value chain. Like others, it concentrated on building and selling PC systems, relying on others to supply components, software and services. However, it sold directly to the end user, cutting out the distributor and reseller. (Figures 2 and 3) Suppliers PC Maker Distributors Retailers, Resellers, Integrators Final Customer Figure 2: Indirect PC Value Chain Suppliers Dell Final Customer Figure 3: Dells Direct PC Value Chain However, with the expansion of Dell beyond selling simple PCs, its simple value chain has evolved into a new model that we call the value web or the virtual corporation. Value Web Figure 4: Dells Value Web: A virtual company There are three key aspects of the value web model of Dell: Dells central role in coordination and control of the value network, which is a result of its direct relationship with its end user. Being in direct touch with the customer requirements, Dell controls the flow of information to its business partners who provide the actual service. As shown in Figure 4, all the information flows are channeled through Dell. The close physical integration of Dell with its business partners and suppliers. The suppliers are normally located close to the plant and their personnel are located on the plant floor ordering material from their warehouse, based on information on Dells extranet. Such integration of material and information flow reduces inventory costs and creates an efficient supply chain, ultimately benefiting the end customer in the form of lower prices. The importance of internet and other electronic communications in allowing Dell to coordinate the web of close relationships through a constant flow of information between Dell and its partners. For example, if a customers hard drive crashes, the information travels from Dell technical support into Dells internal service and support systems. A new hard drive is ordered and dispatched to a Dell service provider, which sends a service engineer to install the drive. The information about the drive that crashed enters Dells databases and is conveyed to the supplier and plant that provided it for corrective actions. Customer Satisfaction For well-designed e-commerce services, the cost savings are not necessarily thought to go along with customer satisfaction. However, Dell has demonstrated that not only does it save money by selling directly on Internet, but also satisfies its customers better than any other sales model. Many business customers of Dell see Premier.Dell.com as a valuable management tool, helping their purchasing and IT departments to control purchasing decisions and enforce technology standards. Some customers (like Boeing) have integrated the Dell.Premier.com with their own ERP systems to allow online purchasing, making the ordering process much easier and more efficient for them. Not just purchasing, but also financial and IT departments of the customers benefit from Dells ability to provide a history of their purchases from Dell. All such benefits lead to better satisfaction among Dels core customer group of large business enterprises. While it is difficult to relate customer loyalty and repeat sales directly to the Internet and ecommerce, there is strong evidence that the Dell Premier.com services are a factor in helping Dell gain repeat business and achieve sole supplier status with some large customers. Some of this is from the convenience provided by Premier services and some from customer lock-in created by the electronic linkage of business processes between Dell and its customers. In a 2007 survey, Forrester  [5]  asked 565 PC decision-makers at North American and European enterprises about their satisfaction with their primary PC supplier on various parameters. The performance of Dell and its main competitors on these parameters is shown below: Dell HP Lenovo Overall Product features 44% 38% 46% 43% Product quality 51% 49% 59% 52% Price 43% 38% 33% 40% Product support 46% 31% 46% 43% Business relationship 37% 27% 45% 37% Repeat purchase of desktops 86% 74% 71% -NA- Repeat purchase of laptops 89% 75% 75% -NA- From the table, it is quite evident that Dell leads the industry on Price and Product support. It is rated on par with Lenovo on Product features and Product quality, however, it lags behind Lenovo on the key parameter of business relationship. The survey found that the most likely reason for this is a lack of communication, combined with rotating account representatives. Another reason was the absence of a product roadmap which would help the customer managers to prepare their corporate IT environment for the next few years. However, Dell scores very highly on a critical indicator of customer satisfaction i.e. a repeat purchase. The enterprise buyers gave big thumbs up to Dell on this front, with 86% ready to repeat purchase of desktops and 89% for laptops. CONCLUSIONS Dell has performed admirably on its efforts towards ongoing Customer Relationship Management. It has developed efficient systems and processes for customer acquisition, retention and growth, using online tools such as Premier.Dell.com, ProSupport and IdeaStorm. Therefore, many of the concepts discussed by Anderson and Narus in Business Market Management are substantially demonstrated in the case study of Dells CRM process. There are many lessons learned from Dells experience. These lessons can be transferred to other companies in the industry. Ensure better customer service is offered. Dell has become an industry leader in service and reliability. Dell has used CRM to its advantage. This has instilled trust into their customers. By custom-building a computer that the customer desires, this has created a very strong relationship with the customers. Implement technology in a phased fashion Dell tested key tasks in each of its regions prior to deployment. It set-up mock environments to develop, test, and support the i2 systems in patches without disrupting the live version. Dell was able to bring on one piece of the i2 system at a time. As one part became more efficient, then Dell added other components in stages. Dell ensured that each stage of the process performed well and allowed for future growth before rolling out the entire system. This minimized the risk, while at the same time increasing efficiency. Extend the connection from the customer to the supplier Dell was able to extend its build-to-order model from suppliers to the customer while continuing to maximize operational efficiency and customer satisfaction. Customers were able to save money while being able to purchase a customized machine because Dell passed on the savings, which resulted from efficient inventory management, no excess inventory or inventory shortages. It was able to share, in real-time, information with suppliers about customer demands and buying patterns.