Contemporary Entrepreneurial Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Contemporary Entrepreneurial - Essay Example Information was also sourced from reliable online sources such as newspaper articles of major media houses such as CNN, and reports posted on websites of international financial and economic organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and the Organization for Economic Cooperation-operation and Development. These online reports were used because they obtain their information from official government sources and thus this information is valid. In addition, online articles of peer-reviewed economic and business journals were used because in some, cases hard copies were not available. The Greek small and medium enterprise (SME) sector plays a very crucial role in the country’s economic development. The SME sector employs the majority of Greece’s labor force and accounts for two thirds of the non-primary sector sales volume. The SME sector has particularly been important in the wake of the debt and economic crises that have been facing Greece for a couple of years now. As numerous companies went bankrupt and retrenched thousands of workers, the SME sector proved to be a valuable source of employment as it absorbed many of the employees who lost their jobs (Markatou, 2012, 56 – 65). Although many SMEs also went bankrupt because of the crisis, majority of them survived, and many start-ups are still coming up as a result of entrepreneurship driven by innovation. The general decrease in demand for goods due to falling income levels led to fierce competition among SMEs forcing businesses to initiate value-driven innovations in a bid to obtain an ed ge over competitors. Through the PESTLE analysis, this report evaluated the competitiveness of Greek SMEs by analyzing the factors that affect the ability of businesses to become or remain competitive. Factors that this report analyzes are the PESTLE factors which include political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental factors. The political factors that affect the ability of

Airbus A3XX- Developing the World's Largest Commercial Jet (A) Case Study

Airbus A3XX- Developing the World's Largest Commercial Jet (A) - Case Study Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that there was a risk in terms of the upfront investment required for the project and also the uncertainty of demand, made this decision are a critical and daunting one. The response on the earlier orders had been a positive one but the hitch being the fact that initial orders do not imply long-term demand. As it is launch customers are offered hefty initial discounts. The delivery was not to take place before 2006 and there were very airlines that were willing to order more planes 5-6 years in advance. This made it even more difficult for Airbus to decide on the launch if it could not reach its pre-launch target of 50-100 orders. The aviation industry is a very risky one. There is no grey in this industry; it’s either black or white. Every 3-4 years, one has to put the business at a stake and if a launch failed then the consequences can be as drastic as culminating into an exit demand from the industry. In recent years, companies like Glen Martin, General Dynamics, and Lockheed have met the same fate. Irrespective of the risks lying ahead of it, Airbus went ahead with the launch. Now the deal would be to rectify and work upon the issues on the way and ensure that the launch is successful. Boeing which would be one of its biggest competitors would also have something ready up its sleeves to counter the launch. This threat can also be not denied. They would bring down the prices of their 747s or come up with a new version of 747. Given, their status in the industry, Airbus will have to counter the threat received from their end. Even the projected costs of the venture have been stipulated to be 13 billion dollars; some critics believe that it would shoot up to 15 billion dollars. The financial success of Airbus thus depends on their ability to drive enough early sales home through the learning curve effect.