Insomnia Essay - 1353 Words

Insomnia Insomnia is a common sleep disorder that plagues millions of people around the globe by not allowing them to sleep. Its severity can range between a couple of days to a couple of months, and is curable in most cases. In any given year, about one-third of all adults suffer from insomnia (Hendrickson 1). Insomnia itself is not a disease, but a symptom of an underlying mental or physical condition of the person. There is not a strict definition for insomnia, but it could be narrowed down to: a person not being able to sleep, having difficulty falling to sleep, or having trouble staying asleep. Medications are available for the treatment of insomnia, but they should not be used on a regular basis. Some thirty-five to†¦show more content†¦Many insomniacs try to hard to go to sleep. 2 They lie awake with thoughts buzzing around in their head making it difficult to fall asleep. Many people who experience insomnia become frustrated, making it even more difficult to fall asleep. After a while insomniacs begin to anticipate bad nights, which makes the condition worse. Of the physical causes, alcohol, cigarettes, and caffeine are the most common. Alcohol may make you fall asleep faster since it is a depressant, but it makes you sleep less soundly and you awake more frequently during the night. Nicotine and caffeine are both stimulants that cause you not to feel sleepy, thus causing you not to sleep well. Caffeine is commonly found in coffee, sodas, and tea (Appendix B). Since caffeine can stay in your body for up to twenty hours, a cup of coffee in the morning or a soda at lunch may greatly affect your sleeping. Caffeine is also found in chocolate and most chocolate products (Appendix A). Eliminating caffeine from your diet could solve your sleep problem even if your insomnia set in without increasing your caffeine intake. 3 Going without caffeine in your system will give you more restful sleep and you will feel more energized with less sleep (albert 88). It may seem logical to have a large dinner late in the evening since a heavy meal makes you drowsy, but it makes your digestive system work hard, which can keep you up at nightShow MoreRelatedPrimary Insomnia And Secondary Insomnia1853 Words   |  8 PagesPrimary insomnia Primary insomnia is estimated to affect 6% of the population (Roth S7-S10).In primary insomnia patients have difficulty to either fall asleep, stay asleep, or both. As a result, they may feel dissatisfied with their sleep and may not feel refreshed when they wake up. Consequently, insomnia will directly be detrimental to performance of daily task, such as the problems with learning, remembering, daytime fatigue, irritability, and negative feelings of wellbeing. Primary insomnia is aRead MoreCoping with Insomnia 720 Words   |  3 Pages Insomnia is more than just a simple case of sleeplessness, it’s a medical disorder. People who suffer from insomnia usually have to deal with the lack of falling or staying asleep during a certain period of time. Insomnia is commonly referred to sleeplessness in some cases, but it can actually be far worse. Even if you encounter problems with waking up frequently throughout the night, or not feeling refreshed in the morning, you still might be dealing with insomnia. It can come in many differentRead More Insomnia Essay924 Words   |  4 Pages Insomnia comes in many forms and worries people of all ages, most commonly for just a night or two, but sometimes for weeks, months, and even years. Insomnia has many causes. Insomnia is a symptom, much like fever or stomachache. There three symptoms commonly shown by people who have insomnia: difficulty falling asleep, no problem falling asleep but difficulty staying asleep with many awakenings, and waking up too early. Difficulty sle eping at night may be related with the following daytime symptoms:Read MoreCause and Effects of Insomnia1115 Words   |  5 PagesIn 2011 after I came back from Afghanistan, I was diagnosed with mild insomnia. At first I didn’t understand what it was or why I was experiencing it. I have learned that my insomnia is due partially to pain. I have now been living with Insomnia for the past 2 years and still am learning more about it. Most people think that insomnia is just the inability to sleep. It actually has different levels that include having a hard time going to sleep, and staying asleep, and not feeling rested when youRead MoreInsomnia and Depression934 Words   |  4 PagesInsomnia is a sleep disorder that many people in the world have to deal with, I decide to read different articles about it at Psychology Today. I got surprise how sleep disorder can change totally your personality even to make you think about suicide. One of the articles talks about how insomnia increase the suicide risk, other about nightmares and insomnia together exacerbate depression and the last one talked about insomnia and depression: cause vs. effect. After I rode the all articles I startedRead MoreMillions are Affected by Insomnia1500 Words   |  6 Pages Insomnia is one of the sleep-wake disorders and affects millions on a daily basis. Individuals affected by insomnia can have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, and/or having non-restorative sleep. According to the American Psychiatric Association, insomnia symptoms are reported by one-third of all adults and 10-15% of those adults experience daytime impairments related to insomnia while 6-10% of them actually meet the criteria for insomnia disorder (2013, p. 364-365). The occurrence of insomniaRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Insomnia1172 Words   |  5 Pagesdefine insomnia, the patient takes longer than 30 minutes to fall asleep and has less than 6  ½ hours of total sleep (Edmunds Mayhew, 2014). Insomnia is seen more commonly seen in women compared to men (McCance Huether, 2014). Sleep disorders are a symptom usually of another problem; â€Å"thus a comprehens ive review of the patient’s history and a thorough physical examination is required to rule out all possible causes of the sleep disturbance† (Edmunds Mayhew, 2014, p. 541). Insomnia can beRead MoreAnalyzing the Causes of Insomnia1873 Words   |  8 PagesFor many victims of insomnia, there are long nights of seemingly endless thoughts. Insomniacs are stuck continuously staring at the ceiling, thinking about whatever there is to think about, and checking the clock. For many others, this concept is extremely difficult to comprehend. Insomnia is generally a sleeping disorder where the individual has trouble falling asleep or staying asleep (WebMD). There are several treatment options for this disorder such as sleep hygiene, relaxation, cognitive behavioralRead MoreSymptoms And Symptoms Of Insomnia Essay1630 Words   |  7 Pageswhat insomnia is it is characterized as a persistent lack of sleep, but those who have insomnia know that it is so much more than just a lack of sleep. For instance, there are actually different types of insomnia that are categorized by how long you stay awake, if lack of sleep last less than a week then it is considered Transient Insomnia, if it last one to three weeks its Short-Term Insomnia, and if it last longer than three weeks it s called Chronic Insomnia. I myself suffer from insomnia, andRead MoreSymptoms And Symptoms Of Insomnia Essay1540 Words   |  7 Pagessleeping problems other than insomnia that include sleepwalking and sleep talking, nightmares and night terrors, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea, but insomnia is the common sleeping problem that involves a difficulty in falling asleep. There are two types of insomnia, which are primary and secondary, ranging from acute to chronic, one being more severe than the other. About 30 to 50 percent of today’s population suffers from insomnia, while about 10 percent suffer from chronic insomnia (Do you . . . (n.d.).

Lunenburg, Fred C. Organizational Structure Mintzberg Framework Free Essays

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY VOLUME 14, NUMBER 1, 2011 Organizational Structure: Mintzberg’s Framework Fred C. Lunenburg Sam Houston State University ABSTRACT Henry Mintzberg suggests that organizations can be differentiated along three basic dimensions: (1) the key part of the organization, that is, the part of the organization that plays the major role in determining its success or failure; (2) the prime coordinating mechanism, that is, the major method the organization uses to coordinate its activities; and (3) the type of decentralization used, that is, the extent to which the organization involves subordinates in the decision-making process. Using the three basic dimensions —key part of the organization, prime coordinating mechanism, and type of decentralization—Mintzberg suggests that the strategy an organization adopts and the extent to which it practices that strategy result in five structural configurations: simple structure, machine bureaucracy, professional bureaucracy, divisionalized form, and adhocracy. We will write a custom essay sample on Lunenburg, Fred C. Organizational Structure Mintzberg Framework or any similar topic only for you Order Now Organizations exist to achieve goals. These goals are broken down into tasks as the basis for jobs. Jobs are grouped into departments. Departments in organizations may be characterized by marketing, sales, advertising, manufacturing, and so on. Within each department, even more distinctions can be found between the jobs people perform. Departments are linked to form the organizational structure. The organization’s structure gives it the form to fulfill its function in the environment (Nelson Quick, 2011). The term organizational structure refers to the formal configuration between individuals and groups regarding the allocation of tasks, responsibilities, and authority within the organization (Galbraith, 1987; Greenberg, 2011) Very early organizational structures were often based either on product or function (Oliveira Takahashi, 2012). The matrix organization structure crossed these two ways of organizing (Galbraith, 2009; Kuprenas, 2003). Others moved beyond these early approaches and examined the relationship between organizational strategy and structure (Brickley, Smith, Zimmerman, Willett, 2002). This approach began with the landmark work of Alfred Chandler (1962, 2003), who traced the historical development of such large American corporations as DuPont, Sears, and General Motors. He concluded from his study that an organization’s strategy tends to influence its structure. He suggests that strategy indirectly determines such variables as the organization’s tasks, technology, and environments, and each of these influences the structure of the organization. More recently, social scientists have augmented Chandler’s thesis by contending that an organization’s strategy determines its environment, technology, and tasks. These variables, coupled with growth rates and power distribution, affect organizational 1 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY 2_____________________________________________________________________________________ tructure (Hall Tolbert, 2009; Miles, Snow, Meyer, Coleman, 2011). Henry Mintzberg (1992, 2009) suggests that organizations can be differentiated along three basic dimensions: (1) the key part of the organization, that is, the part of the organization that plays the major role in determining its success or failure; (2) the prime coordinating mechanism, that is, the major method the organization uses to coordinate its activities; and (3) the type of decentralization used, that is, the extent to which the organization involves subordinates in the decision-making process. The key parts of an organization are shown in Figure 1 and include the following. Strategic Apex Technostructure Middle Line Support Staff Operative Core Figure 1. The key parts of an organization. ? ? ? ? The strategic apex is top management and its support staff. In school districts, this is the superintendent of schools and the administrative cabinet. The operative core are the workers who actually carry out the organization’s tasks. Teachers constitute the operative core in school districts. The middle line is middle- and lower-level management. Principals are the middlelevel managers in school districts. The technostructure are analysts such as engineers, accountants, planners, researchers, and personnel managers. In school districts, divisions such as instruction, business, personnel, public relations, research and development, and the like constitute the technostructure. The support staff are the people who provide indirect services. In school districts, similar services include maintenance, clerical, food service, busing, legal counsel, and consulting to provide support. ? The second basic dimension of an organization is its prime coordinating mechanism. This includes the following: FRED C. LUNENBURG _____________________________________________________________________________________3 ? ? ? ? ? Direct supervision means that one individual is responsible of the work of others. This concept refers to the unity of command and scalar principles. Standardization of work process exists when the content of work is specified or programmed. In school districts, this refers to job descriptions that govern the work performance of educators. Standardization of skills exists when the kind of training necessary to do the work is specified. In school systems, this refers to state certificates required for the various ccupants of a school district’s hierarchy. Standardization of output exists when the results of the work are specified. Because the â€Å"raw material† that is processed by the operative core (teachers) consists of people (students), not things, standardization of output is more difficult to measure in schools than in other nonservice organizations. Neverth eless, a movement toward the standardization of output in schools in recent years has occurred. Examples include competency testing of teachers, state-mandated testing of students, state-mandated curricula, prescriptive learning objectives, and other efforts toward legislated learning. Mutual adjustment exists when work is coordinated through informal communication. Mutual adjustment or coordination is the major thrust of Likert’s (1987) â€Å"linking-pin† concept. The third basic dimension of an organization is the type of decentralization it employs. The three types of decentralization are the following: ? ? ? Vertical decentralization is the distribution of power down the chain of command, or shared authority between superordinates and subordinates in any organization. Horizontal decentralization is the extent to which non administrators (including staff) make decisions, or shared authority between line and staff. Selective decentralization is the extent to which decision-making power is delegated to different units within the organization. In school districts, these units might include instruction, business, personnel, public relations, and research and development divisions. Using the three basic dimensions—key part of the organization, prime coordinating mechanism, and type of decentralization—Mintzberg suggests that the strategy an organization adopts and the extent to which it practices that strategy result in five structural configurations: simple structure, machine bureaucracy, professional bureaucracy, divisionalized form, and adhocracy. Table 1 summarizes the three basic dimensions associated with each of the five structural configurations. Each organizational form is discussed in turn. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY 4_____________________________________________________________________________________ Table 1. Mintzberg’s Five Organizational Structures Structural Configuration Simple structure Machine bureaucracy Professional bureaucracy Divisionalized form Adhocracy Prime Coordinating Mechanism Direct supervision Standardization of work processes Standardization of skills Standardization of outputs Mutual adjustment Key Part of Organization Strategic apex Technostructure Operating core Middle line Support staff Type of Decentralization Vertical and horizontal centralization Limited horizontal decentralization Vertical and horizontal decentralization Limited vertical decentralization Selective decentralization Simple Structure The simple structure has as its key part the strategic apex, uses direct supervision, and employs vertical and horizontal centralization. Examples of simple structures are relatively small corporations, new government departments, medium-sized retail stores, and small elementary school districts. The organization consists of the top manager and a few workers in the operative core. There is no technostructure, and the support staff is small; workers perform overlapping tasks. For example, teachers and administrators in small elementary school districts must assume many of the duties that the technostructure and support staff perform in larger districts. Frequently, however, small elementary school districts are members of cooperatives that provide many services (i. e. , counselors, social workers) to a number of small school districts in one region of the county or state. In small school districts, the superintendent may function as both superintendent of the district and principal of a single school. Superintendents in such school districts must be entrepreneurs. Because the organization is small, coordination is informal and maintained through direct supervision. Moreover, this organization can adapt to environmental changes rapidly. Goals stress innovation and long-term survival, although innovation may be difficult for very small rural school districts because of the lack of resources. Machine Bureaucracy Machine bureaucracy has the technostructure as its key part, uses standardization of work processes as its prime coordinating mechanism, and employs limited horizontal decentralization. Machine bureaucracy has many of the characteristics of Weber’s (1947) ideal bureaucracy and resembles Hage’s (1965) mechanistic organization. It has a high degree of formalization and work specialization. Decisions are centralized. The span of management is narrow, and the organization is tall—that is, many levels exist in the chain of command from top management to the bottom of the organization. Little horizontal or lateral coordination is needed. Furthermore, machine bureaucracy has a large technostruture and support staff. FRED C. LUNENBURG _____________________________________________________________________________________5 Examples of machine bureaucracy are automobile manufacturers, steel companies, and large government organizations. The environment for a machine bureaucracy is typically stable, and the goal is to achieve internal efficiency. Public schools possess many characteristics of machine bureaucracy, but most schools are not machine bureaucracies in the pure sense. However, large urban school districts (New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago) are closer to machine bureaucracies than other medium-size or small school districts. Professional Bureaucracy Professional bureaucracy has the operating core as its key part, uses standardization of skills as its prime coordinating mechanism, and employs vertical and horizontal decentralization. The organization is relatively formalized but decentralized to provide autonomy to professionals. Highly trained professionals provide nonroutine services to clients. Top management is small; there are few middle managers; and the technostructure is generally small. However, the support staff is typically large to provide clerical and maintenance support for the professional operating core. The goals of professional bureaucracies are to innovate and provide high-quality services. Existing in complex but stable environments, they are generally moderate to large in size. Coordination problems are common. Examples of this form of organization include universities, hospitals, and large law firms. Some public school districts have many characteristics of the professional bureaucracy, particularly its aspects of professionalism, teacher autonomy, and structural looseness. For example, schools are formal organizations, which provide complex services through highly trained professionals in an atmosphere of structural looseness. These characteristics tend to broaden the limits of individual discretion and performance. Like attorneys, physicians, and university professors, teachers perform in classroom settings in relative isolation from colleagues and superiors, while remaining in close contact with their students. Furthermore, teachers are highly trained professionals who provide information to their students in accordance with their own style, and they are usually flexible in the delivery of content even within the constraints of the state- and district-mandated curriculum. Moreover, like some staff administrators, teachers, tend to identify more with their professions than with the organization. Divisionalized Form The divisionalized form has the middle line as its key part, uses standardization of output as it prime coordinating mechanism, and employs limited vertical decentralization. Decision making is decentralized at the divisional level. There is little coordination among the separate divisions. Corporate-level personnel provide some coordination. Thus, each division itself is relatively centralized and tends to resemble a machine bureaucracy. The technostructure is located at corporate headquarters to provide services INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY 6_____________________________________________________________________________________ to all divisions; support staff is located within each division. Large corporations are likely to adopt the divisionalized form. Most school districts typically do not fit the divisionalized form. The exceptions are those very large school districts that have diversified service divisions distinctly separated into individual units or schools. For example, a school istrict may resemble the divisionalized form when it has separate schools for the physically handicapped, emotionally disturbed, and learning disabled; a skills center for the potential dropout; a special school for art and music students; and so on. The identifying feature of these school districts is that they have separate schools within a single school district, which have separate administr ative staffs, budgets, and so on. Elementary and secondary school districts that have consolidated but retained separate administrative structures with one school board are also examples of the divisionalized form. As might be expected, the primary reason for a school district to adopt this form of structure is service diversity while retaining separate administrative structures. Adhocracy The adhocracy has the support staff as its key part, uses mutual adjustment as a means of coordination, and maintains selective patterns of decentralization. The structure tends to be low in formalization and decentralization. The technostucture is small because technical specialists are involved in the organization’s operative core. The support staff is large to support the complex structure. Adhocracies engage in nonroutine tasks and use sophisticated technology. The primary goal is innovation and rapid adaptation to changing environments. Adhocracies typically are medium sized, must be adaptable, and use resources efficiently. Examples of adhocracies include aerospace and electronics industries, research and development firms, and very innovative school districts. No school districts are pure adhocracies, but medium-sized school districts in very wealthy communities may have some of the characteristics of an adhocracy. The adhocracy is somewhat similar to Hage’s (1965) organic organization. Strategy and Structure The work begun by Chandler and extended by Mintzberg has laid the groundwork for an understanding of the relationship between an organization’s strategy and its structure. The link between strategy and structure is still in its infancy stage. Further research in this area, particularly in service organizations like schools, will enhance school administrators’ understanding of school organizations (Lunenburg Ornstein, 2012). In the meantime, school leaders must recognize that organization strategy and structure are related. FRED C. LUNENBURG _____________________________________________________________________________________7 Conclusion Henry Mintzberg (1992, 2009) suggests that organizations can be differentiated along three basic dimensions: (1) the key part of the organization, that is, the part of the organization that plays the major role in determining its success or failure; (2) the prime coordinating mechanism, that is, the major method the organization uses to coordinate its activities; and (3) the type of decentralization used, that is, the extent to which the organization involves subordinates in the decision-making process. Using the three basic dimensions—key part of the organization, prime coordinating mechanism, and type of decentralization—Mintzberg suggests that the strategy an organization adopts and the extent to which it practices that strategy result in five structural configurations: simple structure, machine bureaucracy, professional bureaucracy, divisionalized form, and adhocracy. References Brickley, J. , Smith, C. , Zimmerman, J. L. , Willett, J. (2002). Designing organizations to create value: From strategy to structure. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Chandler, A. D. (1962). Strategy and Structure. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Chandler, A. D. (2003). Strategy and structure: Chapters in the history of the American industrial enterprise. Frederick, MD: Beard Books. Galbraith, J. R. (1987). Organization design. In J. W. Lorsch (Ed. ). Handbook of organizational behavior (pp. 343-357). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Galbraith, J. R. (2009). Designing matrix organizations that actually work: How IBM, Procter Gamble, and others design for success. New York, NY: Wiley. Greenberg, J. 2011). Behavior in organizations (10th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Hage, J. (1965). An axiomatic theory of organizations. Administrative Science Quarterly, 10, 289-320. Hall, R. H. , Tolbert, P. S. (2009). Organizations: structures, processes, and outcomes (9th ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Kuprenas, J. A. (2003). Implementation and performance of a matrix organization structure. International Journal of Project Manageme nt, 21, 51-62. Likert, R. (1987). New Ppatterns of management. New York, NY: Garland. Lunenburg, F. C. , Ornstein, A. O. (2012). Educational administration: Concepts and practices. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Miles, R. E. , Snow, C. C. , Meyer, A. D. , Coleman, H. J. (2011). Organizational strategy, structure, and process. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press. Mintzberg, H. (1992). Structure in fives: Designing effective organizations. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Mintzberg, H. (2009). Tracking strategies: Toward a general theory of strategy formation. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Nelson, D. B. , Quick, J. C. (2011). Understanding organizational behavior. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCHOLARLY, ACADEMIC, INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY 8_____________________________________________________________________________________ Oliveira, N. , Takahashi, N. (2012). Automated organizations: Development and structure of the modern business firm. New York, NY: Springer. Weber, M. (1947). The theory of social and economic organization. (trans. T. Parsons). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. How to cite Lunenburg, Fred C. Organizational Structure Mintzberg Framework, Essay examples

A Case Study Analysis - Toy Retailing Supply Chains

Question: Discuss how category management may contribute to the planning and control of different toy retailing supply chains. Answer: Introduction Toy Industry is considered as the worlds oldest creative industries. But the toy business is an extremely volatile business. It is seasonal in nature. The performance of the toy industry is different from other industries. The volatility in the toy industry is caused by the demands that are unpredictable in nature. The selling windows of the toys are very short and the life cycle of the products are very short. Thus it is known by the investors and the practitioners that the toy industry is far from tranquil. The toy industry incurs high costs on inventory which is obsolete, lost sales and mark down in comparison to other industries (Wong, Arlbjorn Johansen, 2005). The volatile condition of the toy industry has resulted in high level of scepticism and ambiguity in forecasting the future sales. Thus the supply chain management of the toy industry is different from other forms of industry. Since the toy industry is a volatile industry, its performance is different from the less volati le industries (Wong, Arlbjorn Johansen, 2005). Toys can be divided into various forms like the traditional form of toys like dolls, vehicles and there are new forms of toys like the video games. In the recent times it has been seen that the sales of the traditional toys has declined but the sales of the video games has increase tremendously. The supply chain in the toy industry consists of various components. They are the raw materials, suppliers, manufacturers of toys, distributers of toys and the sellers of toys. The consumers of toys purchase it from traditional channels such as departmental stores, supermarkets and the independent stores selling toys. The electronic channel of selling toys has not become significant. Category management is a new concept in the field of supply chain management. It is a concept of retailing and purchasing. In process the range of products that are purchased by the business organization are subdivided into discrete groups of related products. This is a systematic and disciplined approach in which a product can be managed as a strategic business unit. In the toy industry, category management will help in managing the entire process of the work efficiently (Jda.com, 2015). The business can be divided into several units and each business can be run as separate categories which can be run in an efficient manner. It makes the supply change process much simpler (Brien, 2012). It has altered the relationship between the retailer and the supplier. The traditional adverse relationship between the supplier and the retailer has improved as a result of category management (Graham, 2005) ; (PublishersWeekly.com, 2015). Problem Statement The traditional system of supply chain was based on the push based strategy where the goods are produced by the manufacturer and they are passed on to the supply chain without receiving any feedback and information regarding the specifications. This resulted in adverse relationship between the supplier and the retailer. There were gaps noticed between the supplier and the retailer and led to the wastage of the products. The traditional system of supply chain management in the toy industry created an imbalance between the demand and supply of the raw materials and the finished goods. This resulted in rise of cost of the manufacturer. The volatile toy industry suffered from reduced profit margin. The new supply chain is based on the pull strategy of supply chain. It is based on the accurate demands of the customers and proper feedback method. The supply chain management also receives feedback from the customers and the product can meet the demand of the customers. In the new system, supply chain is managed by the information technology. This makes the process simpler. This has helped to built strong network in the supply chain. The toy industry has been able to reduce the wastage of materials and improve their profit margin (Ray, 2015). The traditional system of supply chain in the toy industry has not being able to implement the modern aspects of supply chain management like the implementation of the CPFR, RFID. The toy industry has failed to implement strategy that will automate the supply chain process. The process of supply chain has to be interactive and dynamic in nature. This will reduce the volatility of the supply chain in the toy industry (Graham, 2005). The toy industry faces relentless changes and the unpredictable buying public. This creates challenges in anticipating the sellers and the volume of sales. The toy industry suffers from ailments in the supply chain. Other concerns of the toy industry are the short life of the product, rapid turnover of the product and demand for the toys are seasonal in nature (Hbr.org, 2015). The major risks of the supply chain disruptions of the toy industry are limitations of the capacity. The constraint in the capacity has been a major problem in the supply chain manag ement (Musa, 2012). Theories and models of category management in retail supply chain 8 step process of Category management in retail Category management is the system of breaking down of a range of products into discrete groups of similar products known as product categories for the purpose of purchase or sell. Fackler (2012) opined that the system is adopted to make the retail purchasing process systematic and disciplined. The retail organizations are able to manage the product category as Strategic business units. Developed by Partnering group, the 8 stage process of category management ensures the effectively management of the SBUs in the retail companies. Stage 1: Defining of the category (stating the inclusion or exclusion of products) Stage 2: Defining the role of the category within the retailer Stage 3: Assessment of the current performance Stage 4: Setting of selling objectives and targets for the category Stage 5: Devising of an overall strategy Stage 6: Devising of appropriate tactics Stage 7: Implementation Stage 8: Review of the whole process (Chi et al. 2013) Figure 1: Stages of category management (Source: Chi et al. 2013, pp 45) Modern concepts of category management The traditional category management is an old process and for the retailers to be successful in the new competitive retail segment the adoption of the new facets of category management should be implemented. The new stages of category management are namely category role and strategy, macro space allocation, financial budgeting, assortment planning, planogramming, price optimization, private brand development, promotion and joint business planning. Fowler Goh (2012) opined that the concept of holistic category management focuses on building of customer centric strategies for the separate categories of products. The retail organizations are also focusing on establishment of robust and easily repeatable category strategy development process so that the same can be implemented on any future product category.O'Brien (2012) further added that the use of the demographic data to frame strategies have been effective in making customer centric strategies. Impact of category management on supply chain process of retail sector Chiplunkar (2011) stated that usage of effective category strategies will ensure benefits for the retail sector in overall terms as well as supply chain sector. The retail market is a highly expanding market and hence to increase the demand for the products the use of the category management strategies are helpful for the companies. O'Brien(2012) opined that category management helps in following ways namely Reduction of purchase price Reducing supply chain risk Increased innovation in the supply chain process and commodity Management of customer demands by preparing specific category strategies for the products Integrated the suppliers in order of the type of products available from the suppliers which makes the management of the suppliers easier. For instance groping of suppliers supplying stationery, fuel and courier services under same group Helps in managing and exploiting of changing business conditions helps in savings of supply chain costs and improve the quality of service (Chiplunkar,2011) Strategic sourcing This is a part of the category management and is a continuous process of evaluation of the purchasing activities of a company. The process determines the companys current spending and makes assessment of the supply market.O'Brien (2012) added that the identification of the new suppliers for the products, negotiation with the suppliers and tracking of results are a part of this process. Figure 2: Strategic sourcing process (Source: O'Brien, 2012, pp-94) Customer and business requirements: The process analysis the market by conducting effective market research and integrates the customer requirements and business demands. Spend analysis: The process makes historical usage analysis, supplier analysis, critical nature of products, transaction cost analysis and supplier positioning analysis. Market analysis: The assessment of the market capability, cost analysis of supply chain, potential size of supply chain, relative positioning of the organization and analysis of individual market places helps the organizations to make effective decisions. Findings and Analysis In order to understand the effectiveness of category management, the secondary researcher has been used. The category management has helped in changing the behavior of consumer which positively affects the demand and increases brand loyalty. According to the data of Toy directory Monthly, the Wal-Mart has earned major benefit from the category management which helped in increasing the sale of toys. Toy Retail Company Sales (2010) Sales (2012) Wal-Mart 27% 31% ToysRus 16% 20% Target 13% 18% Kmart 8% 13% Amazon 11% 16% Others 22% 27% Therefore, it can be viewed from the above table that due to concentrating on the category management, the sales of the company has increased. The companies were able to improve their sales as they were able to improve the logistics indicators such as decreased outstanding orders, decreasing stock inventories and decreasing stocks breaks. Therefore, it helped the toy retailing industry to gain better sales. On the other hand, as per the report of Top500Guide.com, the online sales of children product that is toys have increased significantly. Toys E-retailers Rank 2010 online sales ($) 2012 online sales ($) Toys R Us Inc. 30 782000000 1100000000 Zulily Inc. 77 18000000 331000000 The Childrens Place Stores 112 143600000 215000000 The Mini Social 933 2321636 3343156 Albee Baby 497 13000000 18768388 Chelsea Scott Ltd. 306 43111064 46305000 CookieKids.com 549 4224240 15500000 BabyAge.com 320 38000000 43870000 Steals.com 550 10000000 15400000 Baby Earth 703 5197857 9000000 Childrens Wear Digest 546 13350000 15673523 Tea Collection 548 9500000 156000000 Therefore, it can be analyzed that, online retailer of children products were able to increase their online sales that helped in increasing their profit. The companies are better able to understand the buying patterns of the customers and needs of the children (Cpgcatnet.org, 2015). Therefore, many e-retailer companies are successful in generating high revenue. Toys E-retailers Rank 2012 monthly visits 2012 monthly unique visitors Toys R Us Inc. 30 37000000 12163838 Zulily Inc. 77 9000000 6901085 The Childrens Place Stores 112 6400000 2227767 The Mini Social 933 105000 32000 Albee Baby 497 297911 194777 Chelsea Scott Ltd. 306 1100000 500000 CookieKids.com 549 417978 286249 BabyAge.com 320 550000 400000 Steals.com 550 2700000 800000 Baby Earth 703 250000 200000 Childrens Wear Digest 546 200000 69326 Tea Collection 548 300000 150000 According to the above findings, the visitors or consumers are more interested to buy goods from online store. It is clear that for each e-retailer company, the unique visitor is high and this was possible due to implementation of category management. Apart from that, according to the report of John Atwill of EDA, it was seen that the company Energizer gained huge benefit in the year of 2013 due to category management. The company was able to increase its share on its categories of toys, battery and torch. Due to the incorporation of category management and innovative point of sale design, the company was able to increase their market shares from 61% to 78% (Toynews-online.biz, 2015). On the other hand, as per the survey of ECSIP Consortium, the sales of toys and games in UK have been impressive. Toys and Games 2011 Games and Puzzles 12% Infant and Pre-school toys 12% Construction toys 11% Dolls and Accessories 8% Outdoor and Sports Toys 48% The sales of different toys have been great as many toys retail chain followed category management which helped the customers to segment the desirable toys. On the other hand, the prices of the toys were reasonable and affordable. Therefore, it helped in increasing the customer attention and satisfaction. Apart from that, as per the report of Toy and Industry, it has been found that many toy retail chains such as Hamleys, Red5, John Adams Toys, etc are not following category management and because of that UK is way down at number 6th position in context to specialized toy retailers. Country Number of Specialized toy Retailers Germany 3742 Italy 3670 France 1691 Poland 1069 Netherlands 881 United kingdom 546 Belgium 508 The category management has increased the performance of retailers and manufactures in supplying the products to large number of consumers (Ecsipconsortium.org, 2015). The toy retail chain has improved and due to that toy retail companies are able to engage better profit margin and sales which is helping in increasing their market share and brand value along with customer base. In UK, the different toy retail companies are able to increase their annual turnover. Toys E-retailers Rank The Entertainer 23% Toymaster 20% Smyths 26% ToyTown 17% Toy Galaxy 20% Kiddicare 29% Therefore, it can be analyzed from the above table that different toys retail companies are able to improve their growth rate due to employing category management and it improved their supply chain and logistics and many consumers were able to receive their expected products on time (Zaroban, 2015). Thus, it can be observed from whole research that category management not only helps in providing quality and superior service but also helps in maintaining healthy relationship among retailers and suppliers. Conclusion The use of the category management process by the leading toy selling retail outlets of UK namely Wal mart, Amazon and Hamleys have helped the companies to manage the supply chain process effectively by selecting the appropriate suppliers for the product categories. The companies have also been able to show cost reduction in the supply chain process and improve the quality of the system. The allocation of the categories and appointment of separate managers for the allocated categories have also helped companies like Walt Disney to develop the toy business. The categorization has enabled these companies to make strong retail presences in separate categories and allocate the profit accordingly. Hence it can be concluded that the use of category management strategies enables the retailers to deliver the right product at the right place at right price and at right time. The category management in a toy shop ensures that the desired display space is provided by optimizing the visual merch andising of the shop. Moreover the use of the strategies helps to maintain required inventory and prevents the retail outlets from being out of stock. The identification of the product groups based on the consumer needs and purchasing habits ensures selling the right product to the right customers and ensures an effective assortment of the products. References Brien, J. (2012). Category Management in Purchasing: A Strategic Approach to Maximize Business Profitability. Chi, C., Maier, T. Gursoy, D. (2013). Employees perceptions of younger and older managers by generation and job category. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 34, pp.42-50. Chiplunkar, R. (2011).Product category management. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill. Cpgcatnet.org,. (2015). Category Management Mastery: The key to growth. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://www.cpgcatnet.org/file_depot/0-10000000/10000-20000/17807/folder/114133/2013_Category_Management_Association_White_Paper--Category_Management_Mastery--The_key_to_growth1.pdf Ecsipconsortium.org,. (2015). Study on the competitiveness of the toy industry. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://ecsipconsortium.org/final-report-competitiveness-toys-ecsip-en.pdf Fackler, P. (2012). Category count models for resource management. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 3(3), pp.555-563. Fowler, D. Goh, B. (2012). Retail category management. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. Graham, G. (2005). Exploring supply chain management in the creative industries. Bradford, England: Emerald Group Pub. Hbr.org,. (2015). Learning From Toys: Lessons in Managing Supply Chain Risk From the Toy Industry - Harvard Business Review. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://hbr.org/product/learning-from-toys-lessons-in-managing-supply-chain-risk-from-the-toy-industry/CMR202-PDF-ENG#more Jda.com,. (2015). The New Age of Category Management - A Supply Chain Article from Real Results Magazine. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://www.jda.com/realresultsmagazine/view-article.cfm?did=2865 Musa, S. (2012). Supply Chain Risk Management: Identification, Evaluation and Mitigation Techniques. diva-portal.org. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:535627/FULLTEXT01.pdf O'Brien, J. (2012). Category management in purchasing. London: Kogan Page. PublishersWeekly.com,. (2015). Book Reviews, Bestselling Books Publishing Business News | Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/home/index.html Ray,. (2015). Supply Chain Management for Retailing. Toynews-online.biz,. (2015). Toy retail buyers guide 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://www.toynews-online.biz/business-analysis/read/toy-retail-buyers-guide-2013/030665 Wong, C., Arlbjorn, J., Johansen, J. (2005). Supply Chain Management Practices in toy supply chains (20th ed., pp. 367-377). Zaroban, S. (2015). E-Commerce Leaders - How zulily built a $500 million e-commerce business in four years - Internet Retailer. Internetretailer.com. Retrieved 21 January 2015, from https://www.internetretailer.com/2013/11/26/how-zulily-built-500-million-e-commerce-business-four-year