Goal Setting

Introduction

Performance management is a critical component of any business to continue its functioning in the market. It is a managerial deliberate move to streamline the work of employees towards achieving the organizational goals using limited resources. Because of to the rising cost of operation and running a business, the Los Angeles Tribune finds itself in the rising cost of paper that makes up the main resource. Gradual loss of circulating revenue and the cost of sustaining the wage bill is becoming unbearable. It is certain that the management has failed in monitoring and evaluation over time and the cumulative effect has manifested as an ultimate economic dilemma that the company has to face (Cravens & Oliver, 2006).

Cost of Paper

Reducing the amount of paper wasted and promoting efficiency in the use of raw materials make part of the main goal of the management. The cost of inputs has gone up in the recent past and the Los Angeles Tribune is no exception. Certainly, the volatility of the cost of paper has negatively affected the cost of production and has subsequently reduced the profits that the firm used to make (Marques, Gomes, De Almeida, Borges, & Souza, 2010). Fluctuating prices of paper and the upward trend of raw material costs has greatly undermined the business operation. It is important to note that the success of a business depends heavily on the ability to manage the cost of inputs, human resource management and the price of the final product (Anandasivam & Neumann, 2009).

Surveys conducted in over two hundred leading firms in Europe indicated that the cost of raw materials is now a top concern of the decision making body. The company’s Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) are working around the clock to bring down the rising cost that is threatening the organization’s existence (Rombach, 2013). In 2010, for instance, among the companies in Europe, the cost of raw materials accounted for 20% of the total cost of production and distribution (Anandasivam & Neumann, 2009).

It is important to research the possible ways of cutting down the cost of paper in the case of the Los Angeles Tribune. One of the areas to focus is the supply chain of the paper from its producer to the logistics and procurement department in the business. It is certain that due to the environmental degradation and pressure, it has led to an increase in cost of timber (Marques, Gomes, De Almeida, Borges, & Souza, 2010). However, natural disasters such as drought and forest fires have severely led to the rise in price of paper. It is, therefore, critical to meet these challenges together with the suppliers by developing a consultative approach and the business to gear towards adopting measures to cut down the material use. Recycling of the wasted papers so as to reduce the business demand for papers is crucial (Rombach, 2013).

Circulating Revenue

Sadly, the company faces a drastic drop in the circulating revenue; the Los Angeles Tribune is at the verge of not meeting the employees and suppliers’ demands and the general cost of running a business. Therefore, increasing the circulating revenues is the main goal in the incoming CEO (Anandasivam & Neumann, 2009). Price management is comprised of managerial duties that seek to stabilize prices of raw materials and the output in the long term to avoid the short-term procurement bureaucracy that consumes huge amounts of income leaving little to the circulating cash float. In a bid to increase the circulating revenue there should be improved the services and content of the newspapers (Marques, Gomes, De Almeida, Borges, & Souza, 2010).

Number of Employees Supported

Most of the circulating revenue is coming from the amount collected from selling the newspapers and the subscription sales. To increase the sales, the content of the papers should be up to standard and of the essence to the users (Rombach, 2013). Once the public has accepted the paper, hence the revenue earned from advertisement increases simultaneously. Advertisements being the key source of revenue for the newspaper companies covers about 73 percent (Rappa, 2010). Maintaining the number of employees in a business where the revenues continue decreasing each day is unsustainable. Therefore, the management here plays the critical role of matching the company’s product sales and the number of employees and their productivity. To achieve this and maintain high productivity and profit maximization the management is to put down main strategies.

The key intervention is staffing analysis. Identifying and sustaining maximum staffing levels in the office checking on the efficiency of employees is a usual quandary among practitioners. A realistic staffing assessment combined with a proper plan for advancements may reduce costs, make the competitive edges sharp, increase the performance of the staff members and promote efficiency (Marques, Gomes, De Almeida, Borges, & Souza, 2010). With low circulating revenue, over-staffing is a quagmire in the bid to the maximization of production and profits. At the same time, over-staffing is very expensive in terms of benefits and payroll, therefore, consuming more leaving small profits behind.

There must be optimal workforce for an organization to keep running; therefore, the first intervention is the determination of the workforce at the ground is an optimal one by the use of metrics. Determination of the staffing needs must be determined by appraising the direct labor costs to adjusted sales. With the proper assessment, the number of employees has to be decreased, but remain with high quality employees who are efficient and effective. A good pay to the skilled employees prevents losing them to other competitors who would pay them better.