Phase 1 Discussion Board 2 Posting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Phase 1 Discussion Board 2 Posting - Assignment Example However, it should be noted that it basically depends upon the situation and in some cases, it is quite important for experts to take up the role of project management. Project management is usually a wide area involving a wide array of things. In the process of developing a new technology or implementing a highly technical process in an organization, it is imperative that the whole process is conducted by a person who has technical knowledge in the workings of such technology. The present world is very dynamic and new technology comes by the day. In this case, it normally takes much time before people get acquainted with such technology. It is therefore important for the project manager to be an expert in the field so as to offer the necessary instruction or guidance on how the whole field should be handled. In a highly technical working environment like NASA, it is almost impossible to have a project manager who is not an expert in the project. This is because there is a high degree of technical excellence required and there is no room for any mistakes. As such, a project manager in such a case is required to have knowledge on the technology in use (Wysocki, 2010). It has always been seen that in situations where project manager do not have expert knowledge on the subject matter, challenges often arise. For instance, a layman in medical equipment might not really realize that such equipment require a lot of maintenance which might be very expensive. In that case, some of the advice directed to the project manager might be ignored since the manager does not clearly understand the weight of the whole issue. Having a project manager who has knowledge on the subject matter is very important as it greatly saves time and cost of executing roles. This is because the manager already understands much of the operations and does not really need to study the process much. On the contrary, a lay project

Operations and Project management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Operations and Project management - Assignment Example Coca Cola is most popular and famous soft drink brand. Coca Cola has implemented several innovative and unique operational strategies. These strategies have enhanced the manufacturing, processing, and distribution. It is known to all that the organization has faced several problems regarding the quality of product, but they are trying to overcome the challenges by effective quality management of cold drink products. This essay will analyze the operation and project management activities of Coca Cola. Operations Performance The operation performance of Coca Cola is quite significant and effective. Due to effective operational strategies the organization has become the leading player within the industry. Coca Cola has achieved several competitive advantages due to effective supply chain management strategies. Effective resource utilization is the major strength of Coca Cola. Starting from the collection of raw materials to product delivery, Coca Cola has implemented several advanced te chnologies in their business process (Liu, 2012, p.133). The organization follows decentralized manufacturing and product delivery process. It is known to all that Coca Cola has several manufacturing plants in the leading cities around the globe. Moreover, they have established their warehouses near the manufacturing plants and distribution centres. ... The fuel efficient logistics trucks help to reduce the emission level. Moreover, implementation of advanced technology helps Coca Cola to reduce the usage of energy in the business operation. Application of PDA service in the inventory management system helped the organization to keep the track of stocks in appropriate way. Some of the products of Coca Cola were facing various health and quality related issues. The government of several countries banned the manufacturing and marketing of these products. It affected the business performance and brand image of Coca Cola. In order to overcome these critical issues, the organization tried to improve the quality of cold drink products by reducing the carbon footprint. The organization is trying to focus on the corporate social responsibility. They are trying to maintain zero solid waste by recycling the products. Moreover, effective water recycle strategy reduced the water consumption and energy consumption level of Coca Cola. Coca Cola o rganizes various environment awareness programmes in order to reduce the emission level (Epstein and Birchard, 2007, p.127). Sustainable packaging strategy will help Coca Cola to practice effective and sustainable business operation in global market place. Operations Strategy The organization uses almost 300 billion litres of water in a year. It helps them to enable their supply chain resource for its different products. Effective and sustainable use of water helps the organization to increase its core competency in global market place. Climate change is one of the most potential environmental threats that can affect the future generation. Therefore, in order to reduce this critical environmental threat the organization is trying to minimize the usage of energy (Hill and Jones, 2009,

Hacking Exposed Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Hacking Exposed - Essay Example viewing the Defense Threat Reduction Agency server, the agency of the Department of Defense; and â€Å"downloaded the proprietary environmental control software for the International Space Station — the programming that controlled the temperature and humidity in the station’s living space† (What’s the latest, 2010, par.1). Initially, James was â€Å"banned from recreational computer use and was slated to serve a six-month sentence under house arrest with probation. However, he served six months in prison for violation of parole† (IT Security, 2010, par.7). It was clearly indicated in the article that James hacked computers for fun. He was exposed to computers at a very young age. His father remembers James as â€Å"a passionate computer geek, who started playing with the family PC at the age of 6, and switched his own computer from Windows to Linux in middle school† (What’s the latest, 2010, par. 8). Due to the tender age of James, at 16, when he was sentenced for the crimes committed, what could have been a 10 year sentence of incarceration for an adult for the crime, he was only restricted from using the computer and was on house arrest with clear probation. Given the sensitivity of the organizations he hacked, he should have been given a more stringent punishment in terms of an extended period of incarceration (or house arrest, for that matter). Or, since he has proven to have the intelligence and the capacity to intrude sensitive softwares of top organizations, one of these organizations could have used his potentials to productive use. By merely letting him go after the punishment, he was again suspected of â€Å"being part of the conspiracy responsible for the largest identity theft in U.S. history. He was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his home on May 18, 2008, less than two weeks after agents raided his house in connection with a hacking ring that penetrated TJX, DSW and OfficeMax, among others† (Whats, 2010, par.6). Ultimately,

Bbc story Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Bbc story - Essay Example However, due to the advancement in technology, there are many options for people to select from the sources of news. Besides TV, radio, and newspapers, there is now internet which provides the latest news at any given time of the day free of cost. This increasing trend has forced the companies to focus just as much on their online presence. The newspaper industry is losing audience to the internet as people are no longer willing to pay for news that they can easily access online for free. Thus, in order to survive, the news companies are not spending big amount to maintain audience both online and offline. A different strategy was adopted by all three of the news companies to compete with each other. BBC was quick in coming up with an online strategy given its vast audience. The company soon announced its decision to go â€Å"digital† under the leadership of Entwistle. The introduction of iPlayer proved to be quite successful both, for the network as well as the VOD market (Andrews, 2012). The main strategy of the company was to focus on vision, audio and music, and digital future media division (Andrews, 2012). The global audience for BBC online is estimated to be 30 million (Horrocks, 2012). Guardian, on the other hand, completely embraced the online media and decided to become â€Å"a digital-first organization† in 2011 (The Guardian, 2011). The company announced that it will be posting complete material online and increase its investment in maintaining audience online as it is the future’s demand. The company is now focusing on reaching out to more people through internet and mobile phones and make efforts to improve its digital services since the entire newspaper industry has been suffering due to this major shift in use preferences (The Guardian, 2011). The guardian is presently the fifth most visited news site in the world with over 30 million online

With reference to relevant academic and trade sources, explain the Essay

With reference to relevant academic and trade sources, explain the provision of your topic within your chosen destination and suggest how it may develop in the future - Essay Example ilm induced tourism is not new, it is just that it wasnt predicted in the beginning, the movie business was supposed to be about arts and not financial gains for the tourism industry. However it has changed the overall film production business. There is sufficient evidence present that shows by portraying a place in an attractive fashion tourists and visitors would flock to that place. They might have heard about the place before, but seeing it in a movie and especially in the context of the plot, it leaves a unique impact on the audience. This is a form of subliminal advertisement. Since 1935, movies have changed how they impact the audiences. Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) was the first movie that attracted huge number of visitors to the location of the shooting (Roesch, 2009, p. 8), and Tahini turned into a major tourist location only because the film was shot there. By the filming of great masterpieces such as Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Bridge on the River Kwai (1958) and The Sound of Music (1965), their respective locations have turned them into Makkah for tourists. The great upsurge in tourist influx because of Hollywood movies did not come until the release of the blockbuster Jaws (1975). This movie proved that movies can be a marketable commodity, an attraction to lure tourists in to visit the locations shown in the movie. The era of the 70s is also marked by the expansion seen in the Hollywood world by the emergence of production companies like the Walt Disney, Time Warner, and Bertelsmann. These production giants were not only confined to making movies, they started investing in theme parks and other tourist attractions. They realized how the success of the movie can contribute to business of tourism. Suddenly the movies were not only about film production, many factors started going into the production and the eventual outcome of the movie. For instance a movie might not do very good on the box office (the movie Godzilla is an excellent example of this)

Related Literature on Crm Essay Example for Free

Related Literature on Crm Essay According to Gartner Inc., the provider of research and analysis on the global information technology industry, the estimated size of the CRM software market in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa was approximately $2.3 billion in total software revenue in 2006. The forecast indicated that the market will have an annual growth rate of 11.3%, which will result in revenue of approximately $3.9 billion by 2011. Companies based all over the world are developing their own approaches to the CRM business strategy in order to increase their efficiency and effectiveness in operations. With the wide spread of CRM, problems and issues examined in this study are apparently not unique to the U.S. Heinrich (2005) examined the role of CRM in the development of the relationship CRM in Russia and US Journal of Technology Research Page 4between the customer and the company in the context of goal implementation. He addressed the process goals of CRM involved in the development of the relationship including building trust, the transaction, and the conversion to a social relationship. He found little relationship between the collection of data and the success of the salesperson and identified 10 relationship motive categories of customers including: gratitude oriented, prestige oriented, collective oriented, experience oriented, and security oriented. CRM, in his view, is a tool not as an end but the means to the end. Nairn (2002) says the origins of CRM can be traced back to the July issue of the 21st volume of the Journal Marketing where â€Å"segmentation† was first mentioned in 1956. Put literally CRM is the practice of managing relationships differently within different customer segments; with the advent of information technology and the application of statistical research methods, the ability to segment customers has become accessible to virtually any organization; as a result the CRM industry grew exponentially from the mid to late 1990s. Vendor hype would have the market believe that CRM technology applications are a panacea for all things related to the customer, yet the market is replete with CRM technology implementation failures resulting in billions of wasted investment dollars, all in search of a CRM nirvana that never eventuated. Starkey Woodcock (2002) state that contributors to CRM failure include managerial short-term focus, failure to see change through, ignoring the basics of what defines good CRM and business performance, making CRM too complicated, CRM existing functional and departmental silos, customer management techniques and practices not widespread and poor implementation of customer management projects to name just a few. Enterprise web identity If you work within a larger organization, always make your relationship to the larger enterprise a clear and meaningful part of your site design. If your institution has an identity program or a web template system, use it. Adopting the design standards of the larger enterprise can save you a lot of time and money. Institutions notorious for poor governance—universities, government agencies, large nonprofit agencies—also often have chaotic web sites. Large companies sometimes have the same problems, but the standards and norms of corporate identity programs are well established in the business world, and most corporate sites start with the expectation that everyone will share a common look and feel and user interface and that each discrete corporate site will project a clear relationship to the parent enterprise.

Analysis Of The Shangri La Group Tourism Essay

Analysis Of The Shangri La Group Tourism Essay Internal Organizational Analysis and the competitive advantage the group may or may not have in establishing a presence in London A schematic representation of the SWOT (Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities threats) will be used to match the key external and internal factors. The following SWOT would provide us with a comprehensive organizational resource analysis of the Shangri La group alongside providing us with the competitive advantage the group would enjoy. Strengths Weaknesses Situated at a premier location in London as has been evident in their properties throughout the world (Grayson Hodges, 2004). Legendary Asian Hospitality the classic Asian Flavor having a Chinese parent company gives them an edge over all the others in terms of having the Asian culture part of their corporate culture and thus a unique position (Hitt, Ireland Hoskisson, 2009). 40 hotels worldwide thus a broad base to share experiences and put learned lessons from around the world to good use (Robbins DeCenzo, 2007). Pre identified target segment of business and leisure travelers with an eye for class and culture (Robbins DeCenzo, 2007). Service approach of hospitality and flexibility embedded in corporate culture and marketing activities (Walker, Walker, Mullins Boyd, 2010). Sound financial backing. First interaction with Western culture was Sydney no other experiences as yet in the West Marked difference in Sydney and Londons Culture An effective and efficient management style played a major role in Shangri La Sydneys success. The brand is not that well recognized outside the Asian and now also Sydneys market. Opportunities S-O strategies W-O strategies London 2012 Olympic and Paralympics Games. New planned tourist attractions like International Dome in London. Trend of using price promotions. Comparatively lower value of Pound sterling Growing emphasis of the local government on promoting tourism. Growth of London as a financial sector a conference and business destination. Establish in London (S1,S2, O1,O2,O4,O5,O6,) Extensive integrated marketing communication efforts. (W1,W4,O1,O5,O6) Make use of opportunities in the West (W1, W5). Threats S-T strategies W-T strategies Recent trends show that luxury hotels have grown at a rapid pace in London. The competition in the near future will be cut-throat and intensive as more and more rooms will be added to the industry. The presence of much more powerful brands in the luxury sector of the London hospitality industry Substantial increase in branded budget hotels around 13% last year Uncertainty created by terrorist activities. Aggressive investments in the sector by other Asian Middle Eastern investors. High barriers of entry Niche Marketing and maintain that niche (S2,T1,T2) Premium, Image Based pricing (S2,S5,T3,T5) Based on the above analysis and the secondary research, Shangri Las competitive advantage lies in its classic Asian Flavor and the ability to maintain a customer-centric approach which forms the basis of their corporate culture, thus also reducing the need for standardization of processes. The core values of the training are: respect, courtesy, sincerity, helpfulness and humility and the training modules focus on the groups mission of delighting customers each and every time (Honeycutt, Ford Simintiras, 2003). Not confined to training programs, Shangri-La Care is a living culture within the group, strongly supported by top management and continuously cascaded through the organization. Both these are bound to help Shangri La carve out a unique niche for itself in the London market. The only threat being the fact that other Asian and Middle Eastern players are also venturing into the hospitality industry. Whether those who are positioned based on their Asian ethnicity are able to bring out the same flavor in their culture remains to be seen! 2. An external analysis of the potential competitors and customers in London London, that great cesspool into which all the loungers and idlers of the Empire are irresistibly drained. -Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan The past 20 years has seen an overall increase in the total number of visitors to London, despite any temporary downfalls seen intermittently in the short-term. Overseas visitor numbers have increased from 9.6m in 1990 to around 14.9m (estimated) in 2006 (Hooley, Saunders, Piercy Nicolaud, 2008). Domestic visitor numbers to London have also grown over the long-term from 6.9m in 1990 to an estimated 11.8m in 2006. Domestic numbers however have seen the largest fluctuations (compared to overseas visitors) in the short-term, resulting in a slight downward trend in total visitors to London since 2002. This has been influenced by the increasing popularity and accessibility of many countries and growing competition from other major European cities (due in part to the ascension of no-frills airlines) (Flourish Oswald, 2006). The overall London market has been buffeted by a number of issues since 2001, including terror events, SARS and the outbreak of Foot and Mouth. However, a recovery in demand (particularly for international visitors) is evident and the London bombings in July have proved only a temporary setback. Improved room yields have supported investment in new hotel rooms in London, increasingly away from central London to the western and eastern parts of the city. The dispersal of accommodation represents opportunities for businesses outside of Central London, but also provides challenges for coordinating visitor infrastructure including transport and information services (Easterby-Smith, Thorpe Lowe, 2002). There has been strong growth in the budget sector of the market and this has provided visitors to London with a greater choice of accommodation. Moves to standardize the quality ratings for hotels will hopefully also provide visitors with greater information and certainty regarding their accommodation experience. Looking forward, tourism is expected to continue to grow (as forecast to 2016 in the 2002 PwC report and extended in this report to 2026) and when considered in combination with the additional impact of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympics Games (whose influence was not included in the PwC report), and the planned development of major tourism facilities, such as the International Convention Centre, it can be seen that substantial additional demand for accommodation on an on-going basis could be generated (Young, Weiss Stewart, 2006). New accommodation is planned to meet future demand, closing the gap between the current room stock and the demand forecast in 2016 as reported by PwC, and the hotel market is upbeat about Londons prospects. Demographic change looking forward, tourism is expected to continue to grow (as forecast to 2016 in the 2002 PwC report and extended in this report to 2026) and when considered in combination with the additional impact of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympics Games (whose influence was not included in the PwC report), and the planned development of major tourism facilities, such as the International Convention Centre, it can be seen that substantial additional demand for accommodation on an on-going basis could be generated. is expected to provide a market opportunity for the provision of accommodation to the accessible accommodation market, although evidence suggests that London is not servicing this market as well as other destinations, which provides challenges for the future (Greater London Authority, 2006). As one of the main tourist destinations in the world and with the 2012 Olympic Games on the horizon, London is set to be at the forefront of a recovery in the UK, and indeed European, hotel markets. Price promotions and the low value of sterling during the year allowed London to remain a popular tourist destination, with leisure tourism particular from Europe, offsetting the fall in corporate bookings, which had continued from 2008 (Smith, Berry Pulford, 1999). These would-be buyers have been attracted by the depreciation of the British Pound against the US Dollar and the Euro. Initial signs of a slowdown in the reduction of values, indicating that the bottom of the market has been reached also makes purchasing attractive to high net worth individuals and sovereign wealth funds. The lure of the Olympics is continuing to draw operators and developers into the capital, which is predicted to experience a 12% increase in new rooms (13,300) by 2012. With its high barriers of entry London continues to be an extremely competitive market place but one, as the recovery gathers momentum, that will remain a target for the majority of hotel investors, developers and operators with their eye on long-term gains (Murphy, Maguiness, Pescott, Wislang, Ma Wang, 2005). Worldwide, the majority of international tourist trips in 2004 were for the purpose of leisure and holidays (52%) with only16% being for business travel. The rise in the number of people (both international and domestic visitors) to London has been relatively modest since 2000, with the number of visits only now returning to the high point reached at the Millennium. However, over the long term there has been a steady increase in visitors to London. Nights stayed in London by international visitors have risen on average by 3.1% each year since 1993 (compared to 1.6% each year for the UK as a whole (Greater London Authority, 2006). In 2004, 33% of overseas tourist trips to London were for holiday, 27% were for business and 28% were for the purpose of visiting family and friends (IPS 2004, 2005 Growth has been particularly strong in 2004 and 2005, with growth of over 14% in 2004 and estimated growth of 6% in 2005. However, growth was relatively modest in the early part of the 2000s with a number of circumstances (such as low cost airlines, exchange rates, terror events) reducing overall tourist arrivals, impacting on both overseas and domestic tourists. The events of September 11th had a similar effect on tourism, with the number of visits only returning to their 2000 high point in 2004 (Robbins DeCenzo, 2007). The London bombings in July 2005 had only a short term impact on overseas visitor numbers with visitor numbers rebounding in the latter part of 2005.7 It should be noted that the PwC report produced in 2002 did not include the short-term downward trends noted above since these trends were only just in the cycle at this point (Greater London Authority, 2006). Domestic visitors to London have also increased dramatically, given the one of a kind millennium celebrations; the opening of several new and attractive tourist attractions. Until recently there has not been a proper understanding within central or local government of the importance of business tourism or its contribution to the local and national economies. One business tourist is worth at least three times the amount of one leisure tourist in employment and economic terms and business tourism is worth  £3.2bn to London, making the business tourism sector an important area for London to invest in. London, being a metropolis destination always had immense potential as a business destination (Hooley, Saunders, Piercy Nicolaud, 2008). Understanding that potential, the government and the hospitality industry has finally started taking steps in this regard. Currently the city lacks facilities that would allow maximum exploitation of the citys potential but work has started on those lines. An international chain has just initiated Duchess Rooms in order to attract the businesswoman of today especially the Middle Eastern market (Honeycutt, Ford Simintiras, 2003). However, there remains a great deal of work that the city administration can undertake in a bid to rejuvenate the citys illustrious image. London caters to a wide variety of visitor specific accommodation needs. The only exception is the apparent lack of accessible accommodation for disabled visitors. Visit London estimates that serviced accommodation (including hotels, bed breakfast establishments and guesthouses) accounts for around 76% of all bedrooms (with the remainder comprising self-catering, hostels and university accommodation) (Jensen, 2008). The budget hotel market growth and the increasing investment in up market hotels has led to a polarization in supply and gradual erosion of the three-star serviced hotels previously provided by Thistle and Marriott amongst others. It is possible that a situation could occur in the short to medium term where hotel grading and quality/service provision at the budget end of the market, could become blurred to some buyers (Guffey Loewy, 2010). With the near saturation of roadside and motorway sites, greater flexibility will need to be shown by both planners and developers if this demand is to be satisfied. For example some solutions may include the alteration or refurbishment of redundant buildings into hotels, rather than completely new build, as well as the development of sites around the M25 corridor and other key transport corridors. The continued growth of London s financial sector will mean more developments geared to this market and the meetings/ business tourism market generally. This is likely to include larger developments with leisure facilities, more bedrooms, but also with more flexible meeting facilities and (subject to planning), apartments, apart hotels, or even hotels with apartments located very close by that can enjoy the hotel s facilities ( e.g. Capital, St James and Ritz Hotels) (Hitt, Ireland Hoskisson, 2009). 3. An analysis of Possible Segmentation strategies that the Shangri La could adopt This refers to the process of choosing ones target market. It needs to be clarified at the onset that marketing targeting is not synonymous with market segmentation. Segmentation is actually the prelude to target market selection. One of the most significant advantages of effective target marketing is that it improves the efficacy of all the four Ps of marketing (Aaker, Kumar, Day Leone, 2010). The use of segmentation, as a tool to distinguish the entire market into stratas is a useful process. Firms can then decide which segment they are targeting and focus their efforts and energies towards that segment in order to achieve the highest return on investment (Robbins DeCenzo, 2007). Positioning, on the other hand, is a concept introduced in Positioning a Positioning a battle for your mind. According to the authors Positioning is what you do to mind of the prospect. Meaning it is how the customer perceives your product or what you are in the eyes of the beholder! Thus it is imperative that each brand is Positioned in a particular class or segment (Al Ries Trout, 1993). Given the turn of the millennium and the growth witnessed in travel, each segment in the tourism industry has set its goals on increasing its share of the pie thus trying to appear most attractive to the target audience. In this case, marketing communication helps differentiate similar accommodations and travel hot spots in terms of making their spot appear the most attractive (Arbuckle, 2000). But also in this case, it becomes essential that the target segment for the integrated marketing communication is identified beforehand. It is essential that marketers ensure that the destination is not competing with a competitor with greater edge; secondly, that the destinations position is not vague in the customers mind and lastly that the destination has no image or probably a negative image in the eyes of the customer. (Lovelock, 1991). The hospitality industry based on the diverse nature of its offerings also witnesses a variety of positioning strategies. The meeting place for sun worshipers, is the positioning statement of Cancun, Mexico. However, positioning can vary greatly. Fisher Island has positioned itself as where people who run things can stop running. It all depends on the creativity of the positioning team (Bergh Ketchen, 2009). An interesting positioning statement is that of Ritz-Carlton Hotels Group; it says After a day of competition, you deserve a hotel that has none. The degree to which marketing teams strive to be unique determines the extent to which a positioning statement is distinctive and appealing. By developing a creative campaign, an operator can market the fact that many Japanese visitors have been to the Grand Canyon, and were impressed by its awe-inspiring presence. This may include testimonials from previous visitors or tour operators example to illustrate this feeling who can make a direct appeal to the target market.   However, since the feeling of awe is an intangible construct, positioning statements must show a tangible (Young, Weiss Stewart, 2006). There are many ways of communicating to the audience the position you want your brand to occupy in the customers mind. They might include a creative campaign; a testimonial by celebs or by previous visitors etc, but it is necessary to be able to convey the inspiration and the other intangibles associated with the brand. The London hotel market could be segmented into several groups namely, bed breakfast, inns, hotels (five star, four star etc,), country hotels, motor lodge hotel, town house hotel, youth groups to name the broadest categories. The composition of branded hotels and luxury outlets in London has soared to around 13% of the total supply in the capital, with chains such as Whitbread, Premier Travel Inn, Travelodge, IHG s Express by Holiday Inn, Accor, Ibis, Choice, Comfort Inn and Quality Hotels increasing their exposure (Blaxter, Hughes Tight, 2006). This growth in the budget hotel market throughout all parts of the capital, as elsewhere, has been the key trend in this industry over the last decade. In London, particularly, it has to some extent, replaced the traditional three-star hotels which were more in evidence in previous decades. The cost of building a three-star establishment, with its higher specifications, service and food requirement is generally considered to be prohibitiv e in London. The gradual erosion of the mid-market three-star brands in London has possibly contributed to accusations that the capital is expensive and does not provide value- for money , Given that budget hotels have only been so evident in recent years and that central London prices are (like most major cities) high, this is unsurprising (Easteryby-Smith, Thorpe Lowe, 2002). However, as we will see later, both Paris and Geneva recorded higher average room rates than London in 2005. It is perhaps the perception of expensive that has to be addressed. In the central sub-region, it is still difficult to find cheap accommodation, unlike say Paris or Amsterdam and it is unrealistic to expect budget hotel developers to invest in the more expensive areas of the central sub-region, such as Westminster or Kensington and Chelsea, to any great extent. The dynamics of hotel demand and this industrys development and operation economics will mean that future up market hotel development will continue to be more viable centrally. The international business visitor and high spending US, Arab and Japanese leisure tourists for example, will still choose to be In this context it should be recognized that a branded budget hotel, with limited service may still be awarded a two star grading, the same as a quality inn in the regions with good service, but limited facilities (Gre ater London Authority, 2006). Hotels in London are concentrated in the central area, but are increasingly being distributed more evenly across London, located where the main attractions, retail and restaurants are located. The luxury sector is amongst the fastest growing sectors in London there are reports that as many as four thousand additional rooms can be operational in the next five years (Greater London Authority, 2006). The industry is set to become increasingly dependent on exotic marketing and luring of customers and tourists that arrive in London each year. It will require a survival of the fittest strategy from all major players to see through the competition. Thistle is the largest provider of hotels and hotel bedrooms in London. The company has some 5,969 bedrooms, which equates to 6.4% of the total London supply of serviced accommodation. Hilton follows closely with 4,662 bedrooms (Greater London Authority, 2006). Both these groups operate in the upper tier category. The Inter-Continental Group operates across the tiers with its 5-star hotel in Park Lane, 4-star Holiday Inns and the budget brand Express by Holiday Inn. Accor, with its range of brands, provides bedrooms in each category, from the 5-star Sofitel to the 4-star Novotel, 3-star Ibis and budget Formula. The main branded hotels comprise 12% of the total number of serviced establishments and 38% of the number of bedrooms in serviced accommodation. The identified branded hotels are most dominant in the high-end of the market, comprising over half of all 4 and 5 star establishments in London (Greater London Authority, 2006). The above mentioned names also will be Shangri La Londons main competitors. However, the difference between niche marketing and direct competition will prevail in this scenario. It is necessary for Shangri La to ensure that it is able to position itself well, with respect to its competitors (Etzel, Walker, Walker Stanton, 2007). The international business visitor and high spending US, Arab and Japanese leisure tourists are the main segments that Shangri La will target. As per the Greater London Authority carried out under the London government, he conference and incentive travel industry has evolved over the past few decades into a mature business sector. It is increasingly clear that businesses and associations cannot function effectively without face-to-face meetings. Over the ten years to 2004, there was a 50% increase in all business trips (with 27% of overseas visitors travelling on businesses to the UK in 2004) exceeding the overall tourism growth rate (Gilgeous Chambers, 2001). On a global scale, 16% of International tourist arrivals worldwide were for the purpose of business in 2004. For Shangri La, the discerning business and leisure travelers are the prime focus. The majority of the customers for Shangri La should hail from this segment and thus should be targeted using appropriate and relevant strategies (Young, Weiss Stewart, 2006). The positioning of Shangri La for the assigned market segments in London will be truly psychological image based positioning aiming to create a unique position in the consumers mind on the basis of the classic Asian Flavor visible prominently in the corporate culture of the organization and in the nature of the hospitality services provided.