高級綜合商務(wù)英語1-Unit-7-Mass-customization-彭青龍

1、 Unit SevenMass Customization 1. Lead-in2. Text A: BMW Drives Germany3. Text B: How Mass Customization Is Changing Our WorldCase StudyvMyMuesli, the manufacturer of cereal food, enables the users to customize a food product through online interaction.vQ1. What is “customization”? Do you like MyMuesl

2、is customizing its cereal food? Why or why not? vHowever, the company neglected robust processes of mass customization. Whenever a report on customers favor was published, the manufacturing capacity was insufficient. For lack of human labor mixing muesli from about 65 different categories of options

3、 by hand, the company had to turn down prospective customers by setting a daily order limit. vQ2: Is there any solution to this problem? Q3: What lessons of potential risks of customization can be learnt from this case? Q4: In your opinion, what products are more suitable for mass customization? Str

4、uctural AnalysisPara.Main TopicsPara. 1-4 BMWs mass customization used as a marketing device and an effective means of injecting flexibility into BMW.Para. 5-8BMW symbolic of German economy Para. 9-11BMWs highly automated Leipzig plant conducive to mass customization Para. 12-18 BMWs attempt to hand

5、le the key issues of mass customization: workforce flexibility, production capacity expansion, product-line expansion.Part I Questions about Part I vQ1. Whats the main idea of Part I (Para. 1-4)?vBMW used mass customization to promote its sales as a handy marketing device and to inject flexibility i

6、nto almost every aspect of the company, particularly, manifested by its ability to cater for fickle customer desires and its rhythm of work. vQ2. What does “heavily unionized workforce” mean? What changes have been brought about by the deals BMW struck with its workforce? v1) A union is a group of w

7、orkers who have come together to make collective decisions about their work and their working conditions. Heavily unionized workforce means that a relatively high proportion of employees belong to a union. v2) A number of challenges can arise for a company to manage a heavily unionized workforce, es

8、pecially because of lack of flexibility. Union workers often work set hours, and they must take a certain number of breaks during the day, no matter how heavy or how light the workload. Deals BMW struck with its workforce enabled it to bring in new ways of working and manage its workforce more or le

9、ss in accordance with production demands. Part I Sentence Interpretation v1. Your BMW dealer will be happy to oblige with as many changes as you care to make, until a cutoff point: six days before your particular car goes into production. (Line 7, Para. 1)vYour BMW dealer will be happy to do a favor

10、 by making as many changes as you care to, until a point of termination. v2. BMW does not break out details of the additional revenue, but given the profit margins on many add-ons, “its like a big dollop of cream on the cake”, says Peter Schmidt, a British-based auto-industry consultant. (Line 6, Pa

11、ra. 2)vBMW does not categorize specific information of the additional revenues generated by its many add-ons, but on the condition of their profit margins, its just like adding a big dollop of cream onto the cake. v“A big dollop of cream on the cake” is slightly adapted from “icing on the cake”, whi

12、ch means “a second great thing that happens in addition to the first”. Part I Words and Expressions vfickle (Para. 3)vadj. characterized by erratic changeableness or instability, especially with regard to affections or attachmentsvsynonym: capricious vexample: The company must face the challenge of

13、meeting fickle market demands in a new, uncertain economy.vjuggle (Para. 4)vv. to keep (several simultaneous activities) in motion or progress at one timevexample: He is an expertly project manager who can juggle multiple projects and still make progress on each. Part I NotesvFine art something requ

14、iring highly developed techniques and skillsPart II Questions about Part II vWhats the main idea of Part II (Para. 5-8)? vBMW is in some ways symbolic of German economy, which is resurgent from economic straitjacket but still hindered by both internal and external counter-forces.vQ2: What are intern

15、al and external counter-forces which hinder German economy?v Internal: Little sign of substantive change in the system of labor relations, hindering productivity levelvExternal: Low-cost competition from Asia and East Europe Part II Sentence Interpretation v 1. Faced with low-cost competition from A

16、sia and Eastern Europe, he says, “many German firms did their homework, and now they are benefiting from it.” (Line 1, Para. 8)v“Do ones homework” is an idiomatic expression which means “to study a subject or situation carefully so that one knows a lot about it and can deal with it successfully”.Par

17、t II Words and Expressions vformidable (Para. 6)vadj. difficult to undertake, surmount, or defeatvsynonym: awesome vexample: As the workshop of world, China has become a formidable trading power to be reckoned with, causing other countries to view its massive potential market with hope and its cheap

18、 products with fear.vupswing (Para. 7)vn. an increase, as in movement or business activityvsynonym: surge vexample: There is an upswing of prices on the stock market.Part II Notes vA leading premium brand vA premium brand is a brand of excellent quality and value. In order for the customer to identi

19、fy any product as premium, he should be convinced about the exclusivity of the brand. The branding strategy of most of the premium brands is based on aligning their brand proposition to the self-image of the consumer.Part III Questions about Part III vQ1. Whats the main idea of Part III (Para. 9-11)

20、?vBMWs highly automated assembly line, sophisticated logistics and effective communication with key suppliers in Leipzig plant enable BMW to manufacture customized cars with impressively high efficiency and reliability. vQ2. What is the striking feature of BMWs highly sophisticated logistics in Leip

21、zig? vOn a highly automated assembly line, workers stationed at regular interals reach back for components in wire baskets rigorously sorted into the right sequence. Part III Sentence Interpretation vThe complexity is visible to the naked eye. ( Line 8, Para. 10)v“The naked eye” means “the eye unass

22、isted by an optical instrument, such as a telescope, microscope, or spectacles”. vIn the sentence, “visible to the naked eye” means “very easy to see”. vdisrupt (Para.11)vv. to interrupt or impede the progress, movement, or procedure ofvsynonyms: hinder, obstruct vexample: Hierarchical management st

23、ructurte disrupts the underlying business process and causes operational bottlenecks.Part III Words and Expressions Part IV Questions about Part IVvQ1. Whats the main idea about Part IV (Para. 12-18)?v To achieve a balance between revenues and costs, BMW is striving to inject flexibility into its wo

24、rkforce, expand its production capacity and diversify its product-line. vQ2. What had BMW intended to achieve through the acquisition of Rover? vBMW had intended to achieve a goal of turning the company into a two-brand company, one for the mass market and one for a premium brand. Part IV Sentence I

25、nterpretation v1. Putting BMW on a more efficient footing at home has enabled it to expand its product line in all directions. (Line 1, Para. 16 )vManaging BMW at home (in Britain) on a more efficient basis. v2. But other analysts such as Cardiffs Rhys reckon that BMW can continue to forge ahead bec

26、ause of the skillful management of its brandname and underlying business. (Line 11, Para. 17)v.think that BMW can continue to make strong progress steadily because of the skillful management of its brandname and core business. Part IV Words and Expressions vcanvass (Para. 13)v v. to examine carefull

27、y or discuss thoroughlyvsynonym: scrutinizevexample: The poll canvassed the views of almost eighty economists.vfuel (Para. 18)vv. to support or stimulate the activity or existence ofvsynonyms: stir, provokevexample: The price upswing of crude oil fuels the soaring material cost of textile industry.

28、Part IV NotesvIG MetallvIG Metall is the dominant metalworkers union in Germany. As a metalworkers union, it represents workers in the motor vehicle industry. Significantly, IG Metall represents both blue- and white-collar workers.Structural AnalysisPara.Main TopicsPara. 1 Introduction: The target m

29、arket of mass customization Para. 2-12 Case 1: Bs management of its customized books-on-demand business. Para. 13-31Case 2: Dells competitive advantages of mass customization, manifested by effective inventory management, over Compaq& HPNotesvBvBookSurge is a print on demand company. Print on de

30、mand (POD) is a printing technology and business process in which new copies of a book are not printed until an order has been received. vDellvDell is an American multinational computer technology corporation based in Texas, U.S., that develops, sells, repairs and supports computers and related prod

31、ucts and services. The success of Dell could be explained by two prominent factors: selling directly to the customers and customizing its products. vCustomers can buy directly from Dell and configure the product they like based on their preferences, and get a quotation for it. vCompaq& its acqui

32、sition by HPvCompaq Computer Corporation is a company founded in 1982, that develops, sells and supports computers and related products and services. Hewlett-Packard (HP) acquired Compaq in 2002 with the purpose of putting together a portfolio of technologies and products, spanning consumer and corp

33、orate applications.Exercise Speaking v1. Reading and DiscussionvBrainstorm the possible causes of and solutions to the following problems.vProject team 1: market failure of MacbethvProject team 2: high defective rate of Macbeths production of glasswarevProject team 3: unfavorable relationship betwee

34、n workers and manageement in MacbethDebate vMass customization is the only approach for Chinese businesses to compete in the world market. vBrainstorm persuasive thoughts for: vAffirmative sidevNegative side vSmall businesses should adopt collective decision-making style. vBrainstorm persuasive thou

35、ghts for: vAffirmative side vNegative side KeysvQ1. What is “customization”? Do you like MyMueslis customizing its cereal food? Why or why not? vCustomization means to offer products or services which meet the demand of each individual customer. vMyMueslis customization is popular with most customer

36、s because they enjoy getting involved in selecting ingredients to their tastes and achieve the satisfaction by working out a unique recipe on their own. KeysvQ2: Is there any solution to this problem? vMyMuesli is shortstaffed, facing a flood of orders with different categories of options. The best

37、approach is to invest into a fully automated, scalable mixing system, so that cost of human labor can be reduced. Keysv Q3: What lessons can be learnt from this case? v 1) For manufacturers targeting mass markets, customized products still must be produced and delivered with mass production efficien

38、cy. Customisation increases complexity and costs for a company because a wider variety of products need to be produced, customer services have to be enhanced and unique retail experiences must be created to meet the various desires of customers. Keysv2) Its difficult to decide what multiple customiz

39、ation options should be offered to the customers who differ in needs and desires.v3) Its difficult to gauge the amount that the customer is willing to pay for a particular feature. KeysvQ4: In your opinion, what products are more suitable for mass customization?vProducts such as fashion apparel, bea

40、uty care, shoes, bicycle, personal computer, communications components, mobile phones and vehicles are highly suited for customization.KeysvProject team 1vPossible cause of market failurev “MacAnimals” has damaged the companys upmarket image. vPossible solutionvMacbeth should turn itself into a two-

41、brand company, one for mass market characterized by mass production and the other for a premium brand marked by customization. KeysvProject team 2vPossible cause of Macbeths high defective rate in productionvThe quality inspector only works on final products whereas the production process is not str

42、ictly monitored. KeysvPossible solutionvMacbeth should introduce a new quality management system which begins with quality check of incoming raw materials, focuses on the quality control of the production process and ends with quality assurance of delivery and after-sales service. KeysvProject team

43、3vPossible cause of Macbeths unfavorable relationship between workers and manageement. vMacbeth is a hierarchical organization in which most craftsmen are inferior to white-collar clerical workers in terms of payment, status and access to company resources. vMacbeth has a top-heavy management struct

44、ure, with its five levels of management. vPossible solutionvMacbeth should streamline the corporate structure vMacbeth should change the corporate culture which encourages “Appreciation, Communication, Understanding, Motivation Encouragement and Negotiation”, that is, in short, ACUMEN. Affirmative side v1. With the economic development, Chinas market is marked by a more and more heterogeneous consumer base in which a large proportion of cust