MANAGEMENT

PRACTICES AT
Orient Cargo
(Pvt) Ltd.

A report compiled by:

1.
2.
3.

Ali Gardezi
Saqib Jawad Sheikh
Khuram Manzoor

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Team ASK Orient would like to thank the Orient Cargo (Pvt) Ltd Chairman, Mr. Ahmed
Afzal, for the background information on his company. Mr. Ahmed Afzal provided in-depth
information into the working of his organization along with the relevant documents for the
purpose of this project. His knowledge, vision and devotion expressed during the teams
meeting with him has given team Ask appreciation of Orient Cargo (PVT) Ltd & has high
hopes of its progress in the years to come under the leadership of Mr. Ahmed Afzal. The team
would also like to thank Sir Husnain Manzoor for his guidance on management practices .Sir
Husnain provided teams with extensive knowledge on the subject with references and theory.
Each member of our team acknowledges the efforts made by Sir Husnain throughout the course
term to help us understand the basics of management practices which has helped the team to
perform research on the following project. The team would also like to thank the Ms. Saima
Tanveer for her quick response on the teams project selection.

ABSTRACT
The goal of Team ASK ORIENT, is to perform research on ORIENT cargo (Pvt) Ltd to
understand its nature of management, social responsibilities, managerial ethics, international
management and globalization effects, Individual and group decision techniques used, strategic
management principles applied, planning and organizational structures implemented and
leadership skills required to be a part of the group.
Orient Cargo is rendering full range of freight forwarding services in Pakistan, throughout
Europe, Americans, Asia and other countries since 1981. It had started with a centralized
organization structure which was revamped towards a decentralized one along with the passage
of time and it follows a paternalistic management structure currently. Orient cargo ensures the
right to equal opportunity to each employer and is against any form of discrimination. It
performs a strict and disciplined evaluation to ensure merit and promotes commitments to
compliance and code of conduct.
The international operations observed at Orient Cargo are related to Imports, exports, multi
country projects etc. Due to services in a vast majority of countries with cultures and practices
different from Pakistan, Orient Cargo ensures that customization and tailoring is exercised for
each country and culture. After almost three decades in the cargo service industry, it has gained
exposure and created a name for itself in the international service which has led it to partnering
with international cargo service organizations in various countries.

Orient cargo understands the importance of teamwork and scheduling in the nature of business.
In order to deal with problems at the earliest, it has created a three layer decision making process
escalation and pyramid planning structure. It ensures that problems are addressed smoothly and
quickly to avoid delays in shipments worldwide and unhappy customers. Planning is a vital
factor in the transportation services industry and thus plans are chalked out in short term ( 3
month ) and long term ( 3 years ) basis by the top and middle level management.
Orient Cargo selects employees through a rigorous scrutiny process to ensure that its customers
get to receive the best of services and respect from the company. The employees performances
are continuously monitored with evaluations and progressive growth plans performed routinely.
Orient stands proud in terms of the quality and speed of services it provides to its clients. It is
due to the advance innovational and EDI capabilities it comprises in the organization which
gives it a competitive edge over its competitors and with a strong global network with
comprehensive end to end services, it is destined to achieve greater success in the near future.

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION TO COMPANY.........................................................................................................6
Organizations structure and Design at __________.................................................................................6
Role of ethics in companys decision making..........................................................................................7
Role of globalization in shaping companys strategies............................................................................7
PLANNING................................................................................................................................................8
Decision making......................................................................................................................................8
Individual decision making mechanism...............................................................................................9
Group decision making mechanism.....................................................................................................9
Strategic management..............................................................................................................................9
LEADING AT Orient Cargo...................................................................................................................10
Managing diverse human resources ......................................................................................................10
Leadership and Motivation....................................................................................................................10
CONTROLLING ....................................................................................................................................10
Operational controls at ___________....................................................................................................12
LIST OF FIGURES.................................................................................................................................13
REFERENCES........................................................................................................................................14

INTRODUCTION TO COMPANY
Orient Cargo, established in 1981, has successfully spread its offices throughout Pakistan and has
kept it headquarter in Lahore. They focus all their efforts towards providing a complete range of
Transportation and Logistics Solutions. This is done with their 30 years of exceptional servicing
record and is complimented by many branches in key areas of Pakistan.
The company "Orient Cargo" in its long time span of operations has proven to be a reliable
transportation company in the world and at the same time exemplifies its commitment and
service as a reputable Archie type in the freight industry in Pakistan. Orient is capable as well as
committed to sound professional customer service and execution of cargo transportation and
operation in Pakistan of all customers, any agents by various modes, be it ocean, air, inland,
combined air/ocean or ocean/air transportation consolidation and distribution. Since entering into
the market, Orient has strengthened the character of all people who worked by getting them to
focus their priorities on taking up challenges of enhancing their services to t customers.
Orient Cargo also complies with international standards of operations and is affiliated with IATA,
FIATA, and Chamber of Commerce. They regard sustainable business as their priority; hence,
Government of Pakistan has fully approved and licensed all our operations since they assure
highest quality standards are met to achieve superior customer satisfaction [3].
Role of ethics in companys decision making

All employees are expected to consider business ethics and conduct when it comes to dealing
with clients, agents or any other concerned people they deal with, while conducting their work
duties. Clients are the major source of revenue for Orient Cargo, which is why it is vital to keep
its clients satisfied each time they conduct business with them.
It's extremely important for the employees to keep all the documents and business interactions
confidential in order for the client trust to remain intact for future business dealings. All
documents including invoices, rate sheets, packing lists etc. are strictly prohibited to be used for
any non-business activities outside of the company. These business dealings are not to be shared
with anyone by the employee for personal gains or any other reason.
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Orient Cargo is a trusted freight forwarding company and thus cannot afford to lose trust of its
clientsin such a competitive market. If any employee is found involved in forgery to obtain any
sort of personal or outside gain are held accountable and referred to disciplinary committee, may
be further leading to termination from employment.
In order to refrain from all such activities and the consequences, they encourage the employees
to report any such practice witnessed by them.
Role of globalization in shaping companys strategies
Benefits:
Orient Cargo is a progressingcompany and fully utilizes the advantages of globalization when
they look abroad for sourcing options. These advantages include access to new markets,
substantial cost savings in production materials and labor wages, an input into the production
process, potentially higher quality products and competitive advantage.
Obtaining suppliers from other countries allows Orient to get exposure into new markets that
may have been previously closed to them.

Additionally, labor costs in some of the other

countries are less than in the Pakistan and companies take advantage of this differential to reduce
overhead. Orient believes that sourcing from other countries allows them to acquire preferential
input into the production process which may yield a higher quality product for the mass market.
Finally and perhaps most appealing factor gain a competitive advantage by sourcing globally.
The competitive advantage

is enhanced

when there are lower production costs, lower

wages, a globally recognized name and a higher quality end product brought to the
marketplace.
Challenges:
Even though advances in communication have decreased the time it takes to reach the end
market, it must be recognized that an expanded supply chain inherent to globalization is
generally less responsive to changes in demand which may lead to longer order to delivery
times and lost sales. Extensive documentation for international shipments

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and the process of

customs clearance may further delay the time to reach the consumer but these steps are highly
necessary in a world where terrorism and purposeful damaging of goods is prevalent
Global sourcing increases a companys logistics and transportation costs as a result of
international tariffs and duties and longer distances of travel. International tariffs and duties
longer travel distances, language barriers, and time zone changes can all impact the supply of
products.
Infrastructure such as sufficient roads, port facilities and utilities are necessary for a truly
efficient sourcing relationship between parties but such infrastructure may not exist in
developing countries.

Planning at Orient Cargo

Any kind of business and individual activities cannot succeed without initial planning. It is a
process of collecting and putting together all the activities needed to be taken place to achieve
goal by using brain storming and intellectual initiation. At the end after comparing various
variables and evaluating and analyzing the ideas and choosing best option to be carried out by
individual or staff of a company. Like a popular saying goes that if you fail to plan, you plan to
fail.
In Orient Cargo there are planning processes results into policies which are being enforced
uniformly for everyone. The formulation process for policies is transparent, where everyone can
express one's opinion. The final approval is taken by MD of the company. Regular meetings held
at each level to bring forth the employees at same forum, where they can discuss, share and
suggest for any improvements and developments. Some meetings are held at monthly and
quarterly wise so they can keep check on company's progress and decision making process.
Decision Making
The success and the existence of a company is dependent on the decision taken by the top
management. In Orient Cargo some decisions are only taken at the top management level and
some needs also the brain storming of staff and employees at the lower level. Decisions lead to
other decisions. In Orient Cargo there are different areas in which decisions are made
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* Pricing Policy
* Product Line
* Line of Business
* Human Resource
As we know management is all about getting things done in an effective and efficient way. The
top management takes decision to achieve its objective affecting the morals and actions of the
employees. Man is a social animal so he likes to live in groups. Everybody is a member of one or
more groups. In some groups, he plays an active role while in others; he seems to be quite
inactive. In Orient Cargo, there are different groups on small level exist. The superior of a group
is the leader which is territory manger, sets goals for the group by giving and taking suggestions.
On end of month, the Managers hold a meeting to discuss their next month plans and major
issues facing the management. The HR also plays a role of a guardian for establishment and
development of the plans and decisions. Sales personnel of Orient Cargo present the sales review
by making presentation provided with figures necessary to make interpretations as it is very
important to have check on the progress of their sale profitability. Un-scheduled meetings can
also be called for any urgent issues. Employees share their ideas and experiences with each other
and respective bosses as well, which leads to develop communication through all levels of
hierarchy.
At meetings, the suggested plans are presented before Senior Management. They further
discusses the feasibility and recommend the one which is best and has approval by all senior
management. The recommended decisions and plans are then presented before MD of Orient
Cargo Pvt. Ltd. He finally gives ultimate approval which is always in the best interest of the
company.
The one thing we observed that the managers with their sub ordinates was that of an "open-door
policy". It is main thing in managing a diverse work group is encouraging open, two way
communications. The employees of company as a whole knew that they are not only valued, but
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their suggestions will always be welcomed. It was just like "democracy" where leader involves
their subordinates in decision making, line of authority by encouraging their participation in
deciding company's working style and goals and using feedback as an opportunity for coaching.
The process of feedback is very important in any company where a head has to give good and
bad points of the employees. These elements are long lasting in the success of organization like
Orient Cargo in the achievement of targets for the company.
Strategic Management Planning
The strategic management is also a planning process followed by decision making process. In
Orient Cargo strategic planning is mostly carried out by top management. Their strategy is to
deliver the best logistics solutions to make customer successful. Orient Cargo Company is
committed to relationship with the customers and their success. They thrive on challenges and
consistently go above and beyond for customers to provide the clients with world-class quality
logistics services customized to meet their unique needs. So they believe in achieving their
objective that will demand a sense of trust, support and interdependence among these three vital
elements of our business:
1. Our Customers
2. Our Vendors
3. Our People

Leading at Orient Cargo

Managing diverse human resources
Orient cargo offers shear reach of its fast forwarding services to all its customers. The nature of
business requires offices locally and partners abroad willing to cater to all the customer needs.
Such widespread structure demands Orient to enter territories with different workforce, culture,
policies, rules and regulations.

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Orient Cargo is an Equal opportunity employer, with a strong focus on recruiting people strictly
based on merit (academic and professional background). There is no discrimination based on sex,
gender, religion or race of the employees. Equal importance is given to both male and female
employees at Orient Cargo, as they currently have both genders employed at the company with
no bias whatsoever [1]. Orient performs rigorous scrutiny when recruiting new employees with
the help of exam and multiple interviews in order to get fresh brains to overlook the ever
growing business activities at Orient.
Orient Cargo also encourages existing employees to apply for any new job postings within the
organization. The company will notify the employees if a suitable employment position is
created or vacated. The employees are required to formally apply for the new job posting within
the organization. The application will be followed by an interview with the relevant manager and
a final decision will be made based on the employees skills and experience [1].
Leadership
When Mr. Ahmed Afzal, Director of Orient Cargo, was asked about the skills required to be a
manager at his company, his answer was He should have the skills of managing teams, selling,
motivation, training and mentoring. Orient believes the manager should know the etiquettes of
teamwork, so he could be an inspiration for people under him to follow. He is required to display
his best possible behavior during the business hours with an effort to address issues politely.
Constructive criticism is vital to the growth of each employee and/or the company; therefore he
is expected to take such criticism in a positive manner from another employee or the
management.
In a transportation business like cargo, managers should understand the importance of
scheduling. Client expects their order to reach their destination on time to avoid fines or delays
which could cost them loses. Managers at orient need their teams to perform at the best of their
abilities and adhere to time constraints. This is why it is important for them to understand the
importance of motivation. The managers should provide staff with rewards or reinforcements and
understand their problems which could affect the working of the organization. The managers

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should share their experiences with the new recruits and mentor them so they could learn new
techniques enabling them to perform better.
Motivation
Orient Cargo provides reinforcements to its employees in cases of better performances. Salary
adjustments are made when suitable, depending on the employees progress and fulfillment of
job duties in the organization. Employees are also eligible for commissions based on the
commission policy, depending on their sales. In terms of employment benefits, Orient has
prescribed policy for employee vacation benefits, holidays, Workers insurances, Sick leave
benefits, Bereavement leaves, Relocations benefits, Educations assistance, Health Insurances,
Life insurances, Long term Disability benefits and marriage parental leaves.
In order to keep discipline in the organization, Orient makes sure that employee causing
disruptions are dealt accordingly for which Orient has created a progressive discipline policy
which are equal to negative reinforcement tactics. Progressive discipline means that an employee
would go through different steps depending on the seriousness of offense. An employee will be
subject to verbal warning upon offending any policy, followed by a written warning and
suspension depending on the intensity of offense. Orient cargo believes any offence committed
by an employee should not be directly dealt with a suspension, instead the employee should be
given a chance in terms of warnings before a suspension.
There are 3 progressive stages listed below that an employee might go through before
termination as a consequence of offending policies:
1.

Verbal Warning

2.

Written Warning

3.

Suspension

An employee will be subject to verbal warning upon offending any policy, followed by a written
warning and suspension depending on the intensity of offense [1].

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Communication
ACCESS TO EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATIONS
a) Generally, electronic information created and/or communicated by an employee using, word
processing, utility programs, spreadsheets, voicemail, telephones, Internet and similar electronic
media is not reviewed by the company. However, the following conditions should be noted:
ORIENT CARGO does routinely gather logs for most electronic activities or monitor employee
communications directly, be it:
i) Telephone Use: Records are kept of all calls made from and to a given telephone extension.
ii) Electronic Mail: Electronic mail is backed up and archived. Although electronic mail is
password protected, an authorized administrator can reset the password and read electronic mail.
iii) Document Use: Each document stored on Company computers has a history, which shows
which users have accessed the document for any purpose.
iv) Internet Use: Internet sites visited, the number of times visited, and the total time connected
to each site is recorded and periodically monitored [1].

CONTROLLING
Operations management
Orient Cargo understands the need of providing quality services to its clients for the future
prospects of the company. According to its quality statement below:
Over the years, the company has accomplished manifold expansion in business which is mainly
attributable to customer satisfaction achieved by our dedicated workforce. People at ORIENT
CARGO are progressive dedicated and committed to maintain high standards
In order to attain market edge, it is using latest and innovative technologies for their services,
which includes the EDI system. The EDI system (Electronic data interchange) Electronic data
interchange (EDI) is an electronic communication system that provides standards for exchanging
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data via any electronic means. By adhering to the same standard, two different companies, even
in two different countries, can electronically exchange documents [2]. This technology allows it
to share information quickly and efficiently with the partner companies abroad to facilitate the
clients. The nature of business demands orient to increase and improve their services, which are
currently as follows air freight import exports, sea freight import exports, consolidation services,
customs brokerages services, inland transportation, project handling, warehouse facilities, free
house deliveries, transportation of hanging garments and services for importers .
It is undergoing ISO accreditation process to achieve Quality Standards in the industry and
develop a vision to fulfill the future logistics needs of the freight market.
Operations Controlling
Orient Cargo performs internal auditing of its units with the sole responsibility of ensuring that
rules, regulations and laws are adhered to. The unit ensures some level of control. As part of the
services industry , Orient understands the most important aspect in a cargo firm is to manage
time properly for which it enforces its employees to use latest software for e.g. to track
shipments by using an inbuilt shipment tracking system. Another feature the Gantt chart is also
widely used by the employees of Orient.

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LIST OF FIGURES

Page 15 of 16

REFERENCES
[1]https://snt146.mail.live.com/mail/ViewOfficePreview.aspx?
messageid=mgLMP42i8_5BGQag
AhWtjBvg2&folderid=flinbox&attindex=2&cp=-1&attdepth=2&n=94979611
[1]https://snt146.mail.live.com/mail/ViewOfficePreview.aspx?
messageid=mgLMP42i8_5BGQagAhWtjBvg2&folderid=flinbox&attindex=0&c
p=-1&attdepth=0&n=84499855
[2]https://snt146.mail.live.com/mail/ViewOfficePreview.aspx?
messageid=mgLMP42i8_5BGQagAhWtjBvg2&folderid=flinbox&attindex=1&c
p=-1&attdepth=1&n=63239694
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_data_interchange
[3] http://www.iata.org/Pages/default.aspx

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