Outline a background of the case below. (Please note that this is not an essay question.)In June 2011, Steve Katsaros, founder and CEO of Nokero, was contemplating how to build on his company's accomplishments during the last 12 months. Nokero, a marketer of solar bulbs, has emerged as a successful born-global social enterprise.Opportunities in the Social Enterprise SectorAs previously mentioned, Nokero, has been engaged in partnership programs with various social enterprises, such as Project CURE and American Green. Social enterprises have actively sought out Nokero for possible partnerships. 4:113 all 96%CHAPTER I7Global Manufacturing and Supply-Chain Managementactively sought out Nokero for possible partnerships. Katsaros validated this strong interestwhen he attended his first international trade show for Nokero, The AID and InternationalDevelopment Forum, in May 2011 in Washington, DC. Nokero's booth was one of the mostDOpular in the trade show and Katsaros received dozens of inquiries and sales leads fromsocial enterprise attendees during the Forum.In contrast to working with governments and international organizations, partnershipswith social enterprises entail a different set of challenges for Nokero. The programs champi-oned by these partners are quite diverse, the customers that they serve are widely dispersed,and their order amounts tend to be smaller-although purchases are made more frequently.All of these considerations require different order and fulfillment mechanisms in Nokero's supplychain. While these processes may be more demanding, Katsaros is committed to working withmicro-business and the social enterprise sector since serving the people that these enterprisesreach out to is at the core of Nokero's mission.Opportunities in Commercial ChannelsNokero has driven sales through the commercial channel in two ways: through direct, web-based sales and through licensed distributors. Customers order directly through Nokero'swebsite (Nokero.com) and pay using a credit card or an account through PayPal. Once anorder is placed and payment is verified, the order is added to a sales spreadsheet and is ex-ported nightly to Nokero's fulfillment center, which handles the order deliveries. Nokero fillsorders using Hong Kong Post or Singapore Post. The customer can then log on to Nokero'swebsite to track the shipment of its package and order history by entering the email addressthat it used to place the order.In its first year, Nokero was successful in selling tens of thousands of dollars worth oflight bulbs to more than 90 countries through its website. Accordingly, one major opportunitythat Katsaros sees in this channel is sales conversion-i.e., converting people who haveplaced sample orders to sign up as distributors. To date, Nokero has no strategy or processin place for such sales conversion other than a form on its website that invites peopie to ap-ply to become distributors.The company's largest customers are distributors, associations, and individuals thathave ordered thousands of light bulbs, including Anzocare (South African Alternative EnergyAssociation), Westinghouse Lighting Corporation, and three major individual distributorsfrom Zambia, Ghana, and Fiji. Additional distributors are in place in Nigeria, Cote D' Ivoire,Mali, Burkina Faso, Vietnam, Tanzania, Vanuatu, and other countries. Large commercialorders are filled directly from Nokero's factory in China via the port of Shenzhen, China.Nokero's outsourced fulfillment partner in Shenzhen, China, serves smaller orders.How should Nokero build its distribution footprint in international markets? Should thecompany focus its expansion in one or a few regions at a time? If so, what regions shouldthe company emphasize? What performance standards or metrics should Nokero put inplace for distributors? A number of potential distributors have asked Nokero for exclusiverights in key geographic markets. Should Nokero grant exclusive country distribution rights?Addressing Supply Chain IssuesAs previously mentioned, Katsaros understands that the success of Nokero's businesshinges on its ability to address critical supply chain issues. Katsaros and his Hong Kongpartners must ensure that the company is ready to fill both large and concentrated ordersfrom government and international organizations as well as sample and smail order salesfrom hundreds of customers that are geographically dispersed. At this point, Nokero needsto evaluate whether it should bring on board a second or third supplier that will support itsmajor supplier partner in China. Moreover, it needs to evaluate the locations of the com-pany's fulfiliment centers. Will it be more desirable to have distributed fulfilment centers incloser proximity to its customers in Africa and Latin America to support its fulfillment centerin Shenzhen, China?

Social enterprise is the sort of organization that is concerned with applying commercial activities…

Answered: Outline a background of the case below.…

6th Edition

ISBN:9781337406659

Author:WINSTON, Wayne L.

Publisher:WINSTON, Wayne L.

Chapter2: Introduction To Spreadsheet Modeling

Section: Chapter Questions

Problem 20P: Julie James is opening a lemonade stand. She believes the fixed cost per week of running the stand...