Luminaries

Paragon Ceramic Industries Limited

Prepared for: Akhrar Faiyaz Nahian 2111250630

MGT 212.03 Munif Yeasin Mehedi 1712830630

Fall 2021 Fariha Faiza 2012437630
Shahid Hossain Faiza Feroz 2122016630
North South University Mohammed Rizwan Abedin 2131160630
 Letter of Transmittal

16th December,2021
Shahid Hossain
Senior Lecturer, Department of Management
School of Business and Economics, North South University
Dhaka, Bangladesh

Subject: Report on Paragon Ceramics Industries Limited

Dear sir,
Hope this letter finds you well. Enfolded is an all-inclusive account on Paragon
Ceramics Industries Limited. This detailed outline consists of the general
background history, past and present financial performance, management issues,
policies and plans, innovations, and future endeavors of Paragon Ceramics. This
report was completed by the collective contribution of every member of the group
and by the assistance of the staff of Paragon Ceramics Industries Limited.

To conclude, we would like to appreciate you for sharing valuable organizational

management insights with each one of us throughout the semester and for guiding
us all throughout this group report.

Regards,
Akhrar Faiyaz Nahian
Munif Yeasin Mehedi
Fariha Faiza
Faiza Feroz
Mohammed Rizwan Abedin
 Acknowledgement

In the course of carrying out this project, we have accumulated a wealth of

experience and knowledge, which is very important over the past three weeks in
preparing this report.

All thanks to almighty Allah for making able to finish this the report on Paragon
Ceramics Industries Limited that was prepared to meet the requirements of this
course in due time. We are very fortunate to have received the most
comprehensive and sincere advice, supervision and cooperation from different
people during the compilation of this project. The team worked unconditionally
to create this report.

First and foremost, we would like to express our gratitude to our academic
supervisor, Shahid Hossain, Senior lecturer, School of Business, North South
University, for providing us with the chance to produce this report and for his
diligent supervision. He has also given us plentiful of helpful advice and direction
in the preparation of this report. This report would not have been complete
without his support.

Secondly, we are also indebted to all the employees of the Paragon Ceramics
Industries Limited. This report was completed by the collective contribution of
every member of the group and by the assistance of the staff of Paragon Ceramics
Industries Limited who have given us their valuable time in providing the
information and sources of the information of this report.
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Table of Contents

Methodology .......................................................................................................................................... 3
Limitations ............................................................................................................................................. 3
Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................. 4
Mission ................................................................................................................................................... 6
Vision & Slogan ..................................................................................................................................... 6
Organogram .......................................................................................................................................... 7
Officers of the organization.................................................................................................................. 8
Situational Analysis .............................................................................................................................. 9
External Environmental factor ........................................................................................................ 9
1. Threat of new entrants: ...................................................................................................... 10
2. Threat of substitutes: .......................................................................................................... 11
3. Bargaining power of buyers:.............................................................................................. 11
4. Bargaining power of suppliers: .......................................................................................... 11
5. Rivalry among existing competitors:................................................................................. 12
Internal environmental factor........................................................................................................ 12
1. Levels of Management:....................................................................................................... 12
2. Staffing:................................................................................................................................ 13
3. Product development: ......................................................................................................... 13
4. Green management:............................................................................................................ 14
SWOT Analysis ................................................................................................................................... 15
SWOT Matrix.................................................................................................................................. 16
Strengths: ......................................................................................................................................... 17
1. Employee Facilities ................................................................................................................. 17
2. Recycling and Re-using .......................................................................................................... 17
3. Production of Exclusive Products .......................................................................................... 18
Weaknesses: ..................................................................................................................................... 18
1. Customer Preferences ............................................................................................................. 19
2. Shipment Delay ....................................................................................................................... 19
3. Local Brand Awareness .......................................................................................................... 19
Opportunities: ................................................................................................................................. 20
1. Market Expansion ................................................................................................................... 20
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2. International Brand Awareness ............................................................................................. 20

3. Product line-up Expansion ..................................................................................................... 21
Threats: ............................................................................................................................................ 21
1. Potential Competitors: ............................................................................................................ 22
2. Third Covid Wave................................................................................................................... 22
3. Resignation of Employees ....................................................................................................... 22
Objectives............................................................................................................................................. 23
1. Increasing production capacity and facility ......................................................................... 23
2. Increasing Export Sales .......................................................................................................... 23
3. Increasing Local Sales ............................................................................................................ 24
4. Increasing Brand Awareness ................................................................................................. 24
5. Reducing Carbon Footprint ................................................................................................... 25
Management Issues ............................................................................................................................. 26
Organizational Structure ............................................................................................................... 26
Departments .................................................................................................................................... 27
Functional Department: ............................................................................................................. 27
Process Department: ................................................................................................................... 27
Marketing Department: ............................................................................................................. 28
Customer Department: ............................................................................................................... 28
Leadership Styles ............................................................................................................................ 29
Michigan State Leadership Theory ........................................................................................... 29
Ohio State Leadership Theory ................................................................................................... 30
Observation and Recommendation ................................................................................................... 31
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................... 32
Bibliography ........................................................................................................................................ 33
Appendix .............................................................................................................................................. 36
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Methodology

The report was created by all five members and each of the members gave their
best efforts in the making of this report. The information presented in this report
are mostly collected from PCIL’s website and various online resources. We have
also conducted an interview on Nawshad Kabir Ananda, Brand Marketing Lead,
PCIL and Major Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Nowshad (Retd.), CEO, PCIL.

Limitations

Because of the pandemic situation, only one of us could visit the organization
physically. Besides that, we mostly had to collaborate with each-other using
social media and other online tools rather than sitting together and that made the
process of writing this report slightly more difficult than usual.
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Executive Summary

Paragon Ceramic Industries Limited (PCIL) is the manufacturer and exporter of

high definition tableware from Bangladesh, equipped with the most modern state
of the art and latest machinery from SKK, TAKASAGO, Japan, TCK, Taiwan,
Modena, China, having more than 1,100 motivated high skilled employees.
(PCIL, n.d., About us section)

Paragon Ceramic Industries Limited (PCIL) was registered on 12 June 2008, in

Bangladesh, with commercial production in the end of 2010. The founding fathers
of PCIL are, Billal D. Mamun, Ebrahim D. Mamun, Morsheduz Zaman, Asad Uz
Zaman, Shahadat Hasan and Farian Yusuf. With their combined effort, hard work
and vision, PCIL has become one of the leading companies of the ceramic
industry in Bangladesh. (Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Nowshad, personal
communication, December 17, 2021)

PCIL’s head office is located at Baridhara, Dhaka and the factory is situated at
Mirzapur, Gazipur area about 50 kilometers from Dhaka. PCIL also has offices
in the United Kingdom and Germany. (PCIL, 2020)

PCIL has been successfully generating more revenue each year by sticking by
their high-quality standard and gaining customer satisfaction. The following table
shows the amount of revenue that PCIL has generated in 2011 alongside 2021.

Year Revenue (BDT)

2011 10,93,69,000
2021 51,87,50,000

(Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Nowshad, personal communication, December 17,

2021)
 5

PCIL is dedicated to conducting business in a sensitive and responsible manner,

in accordance with its legal obligations and applicable directives, laws, and codes
of behavior. It is also devoted to advancing the government's corporate social
responsibility agenda. PCIL is manages its social responsibility by,

i. Promoting commercial activity that improves the economy, society, and

environment all at the same time.
ii. Encouraging the creation and adoption of best practices, as well as new
ideas.
iii. Assuring the highest minimal standards of performance in areas including
health and safety, the environment, and equal opportunity.
iv. Developing a framework that makes it easier for businesses to strike a
balance between profit and success while also achieving social and
environmental objectives.
v. Participating actively in the local community and social causes.

PCIL understands how its operations impact the communities and environment
in which it operates. As a result, PCIL is dedicated to being socially responsible,
supporting a variety of local communities and social/charitable causes, as well as
functioning in an environmentally friendly manner.

PCIL is happy to support a variety of deserving and philanthropic causes in the

local community. (PCIL, n.d.)

PCL at a glance:

• The journey begins in 2010.

• Total investment USD 15 million.
• A workhouse of 1100 people.
• Total turnover USD 12 million per year.
• Total covered floor area 20,000 sqm and land 10 acres.
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• Production capacity per month 1.2 million pieces.

• Only ceramic factory to achieve ISO 14001 in Bangladesh. (PCIL, 2020,
Catalog)

Mission

Paragon Ceramic Industries Limited’s mission is to become the trendsetter in

premium quality ceramic table-ware industry in Bangladesh by manufacturing
quality products on time based on best practices in order to attain customer
satisfaction. Their mission is also to encourage initiative, innovation, new ideas
and teamwork and foster friendly working environment through open
communication and mutual respect and to work efficiently as a corporate body
while catering to workers’ welfare and rights. They want to remain committed to
cleaner and greener environment with the responsibility towards the society at the
backdrop. (PCIL, n.d.)

Vision & Slogan

Paragon Ceramic Industries Ltd (PCIL) believes in “Business integrated with

Environmental and Social responsibilities” (PCIL, n.d. Compliance section)

Their vision is to become the biggest exporter of ceramics in Bangladesh while

maintaining the best quality and environment friendliness. (Mohammed Ashraful
Abedin Nowshad, personal communication, December 17, 2021)
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Organogram
 8

Officers of the organization

Name of the officer Managerial Rank

Mohammed Morsheduz Zaman Chairman

Farian Yusuf Managing Director

Major. Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Chief Executive Officer

Nowshad (Retd.)

Rudra Badal Gerneral Manager

Sohan Ahmed Assistant General Manager

Mohammed Rokon Senior Manager

Al Amin Hossain Manager

(Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Nowshad, personal communication, December 17,

2021)
 9

Situational Analysis

The situation analysis, or environmental audit, examines what is happening

currently in the various environments in which an organization operates. It
consists of an external audit—an analysis of the market, competition, and
environmental factors—to determine potential opportunities and threats to the
organization. The situation analysis also consists of an internal marketing audit—
a review of the business’s marketing, financial, manufacturing, and human
resource capabilities—to determine potential strengths or weaknesses. (wong,
n.d.),

External Environmental factor

External environmental factors are events that take place outside of the
organization and are harder to predict and control. External environmental factors
can be more dangerous for an organization given the fact they are unpredictable,
hard to prepare for, and often bewildering. (Hultzman,2016)

Porter's 5 Forces of Competitive Position Analysis is based on the concept of five

forces that determine the strength of competition and the attractiveness of
markets. Porter's Five Forces can help a company to determine where is their
strengths lie in their business situation. It is useful for understanding the strengths
of an organization's current competitive position and the position it intends to
occupy. Strategic analysts often use Porter's five forces to understand whether a
new product or service is potentially profitable. By understanding where their
strengths lie, theory can also be used to identify strengths, remediate weaknesses,
and avoid mistakes. (CGMA, 2013)
 10

In porter’s 5 forces model analysis,

Factor 1: Threat of new entrants

Factor 2: Threat of substitute

Factor 3: Bargaining power of buyers

Factor 4: Bargaining power of suppliers

Factor 5: Rivalry among existing competitors

Explaining these factors can help to analyze the external environment of paragon
ceramics industrial limited.

Figure: porter’s five forces model

1. Threat of new entrants:

Threat of new entrance on this farm is high. PCIL started this business with a
capital of 60 crore. There are a lot of big industries like Bashundhara group and
 11

many more with much more money and can easily enter into the market with
similar products with the same standards.
So, the threat of new entrants is high which is risky for PCIL.

2. Threat of substitutes:

A company earns more profit when there are fewer substitutes for that company’s
producing products. PCIL has many substitutes like Monno ceramics, Shinepukur
etc. locally and internationally there are so many. Customers can buy substitute
tablewares if PCIL fails to retain and attract the customers with reasonable prices.
So, the threat of substitutes for PCIL is quite high.

3. Bargaining power of buyers:

A company is more profitable when the bargaining power of buyers is low. For
PCIL, the bargaining power of buyers is high. There are many substitutes for
PCIL products. When there are substitutes for a product, the bargaining power of
buyers gets high. The price of PCIL tableware is relatively higher. The switching
cost is low in the market of tableware. When the switching cost of a particular
product is low customers can easily buy another similar products which makes
the bargaining power of the buyers.

4. Bargaining power of suppliers:

When there is the low bargaining power of suppliers, the company is more
profitable. The raw materials for PCIL tableware are Silica, Sand, Flint, Silicates,
Porcelain etc. The number of suppliers for these materials are many. Because of
 12

many alternative suppliers of PCIL, the bargaining power of suppliers for PCIL
is very low.

5. Rivalry among existing competitors:

There are 9 strong companies in the market competing with PCIL. Monno
Ceramic Industries, Shinepukur Ceramics Limited, Farr Ceramic Limited, H&S
Ceramic Limited are the strong competitors of PCIL. The annual sales of those
companies are higher than the annual sales of PCIL. So, the rivalry among
existing companies is very high for PCIL.

Internal environmental factor

The internal environment of an organization can be defined as an environment

that consists of various factors like human resources, the value system of the
organization, physical resources, organizational structure, mission, and
objectives of the organization. The internal environment not only influences the
activities and choices of employees but also affects the behavior of employees
within the organization. (Bhasin,2020)

1. Levels of Management:

Strategic level: Chairman, Board of Directors, Chief Executive Officer and

Managing Director of PCIL are the members of this level. They control and lay
down all the policies and plans to the technical and operational level. They
prepare all kinds of budgets for different departments. All of the executive
 13

managers of the technical and operational levels are appointed by them. All kinds
of strategic plans are being made at this level.

Technical level: Branch managers, Department managers, General managers of

PCIL are the members of this level. They execute the plans and strategies of PCIL
which are directed by the strategic level members. Plans for operational level are
made in this level. Technical level managers explain and interpret the plans made
at the strategic level to the operational level workers.

Operational level: Supervisors, Workers are the members of this level. They deal
with day to day operations. They are more connected with their customers. They
execute the plans directed by the technical level managers.

2. Staffing:

Staffing is an important internal component of a company. Staffing is really

important to motivate the employees and do the business more smoothly. PCIL
is very focused on staffing their employees. PCIL gives their employees lean
training. PCIL also gives their employees skill development training on a regular
basis.

3. Product development:

Product development includes 6 stages. Idea generation, product Definition,

Prototyping, Initial Design, Testing and Commercialization. PCIL follows these
steps to develop a product. To develop a product, PCIL first generates an idea for
a new product based on customer and market needs. In the second step, PCIL
does more analysis on that product and makes strategies for that product. In the
prototyping step, PCIL does a more detailed business plan for that product and
constructs the product. Next, PCIL does the final design of the product according
 14

to the customer’s needs and taste. Then PCIL tests if their product is working
effectively in the market. After testing, PCIL launches their product in the market.

4. Green management:

Paragon Ceramics Industries Ltd. takes initiative steps to go green and

environment friendly. All their products are eco-friendly. They use natural gas as
fuel. Rainwater is collected and kept in the underground big reservoir. Water is
recycled and reused. Also, for producing Porcelain Tableware, they use all-
natural clay materials which are ideal for the environment.
 15

SWOT Analysis

SWOT stands for strength, weakness, opportunities and threats. The goal of
SWOT analysis denotes where a company’s strength is concerned with engaging
opportunities in the circumstances while extracting the weakness and mitigating
the threats. (Armstrong et al, 2014).

It is the identification and rigorous analysis that keeps any productive

organization running. If an organization does not make the necessary effort to
identify its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, such organizations
are doomed to failure in terms of performance because they are not stable. SWOT
was used earlier for analyzing business, but nowadays, it is used by investors,
entrepreneurs, government, and individuals. (Osita et al., 2014)

SWOT analysis is intended to facilitate a realistic, fact-based, data-driven view

of the strengths and weaknesses of an organization, initiative, or industry in
question. Organizations should avoid stereotypes or grey areas and instead focus
on the real world to maintain the accuracy of their analysis. Businesses should
use it as a guide, not a recipe. (Kenton, 2021)

It serves as the basis for creating a marketing plan. This is done by assessing the
organization's strengths (In addition to opportunities and threats, organizations
can) and weaknesses. SWOT analysis is a significant planning step, and its value
is often underestimated despite the simplicity of creation. The role of SWOT
analysis is to extract information. Environmental analysis and dividing them into
internal and external topics. Once this is complete, the SWOT analysis will be
informative It Shows something that helps the company achieve its goals or
Indicates an obstacle that needs to be overcome or minimized to achieve. (Danca,
2005).
 16

Both internal and external considerations are built into the tool. "Advantages" and
"weaknesses" are internally related. The former represents an aspect of the
organization that has an advantage over its competitors. The latter is characteristic
of the same company and has a relative disadvantage over its competitors. In
terms of externally procured "opportunities", it is a reality in a larger environment
that can utilize for the company's welfare. "Threats," on the other hand, are
realities in larger environments that can cause problems for an entity. (Teoli et
al., 2019).

SWOT Matrix

Strengths Weaknesses
Employee Facilities Customer Preferences
Recycling and Re-using Shipment Delay
Production of Exclusive Products Local Brand Awareness:

Opportunities Threats
Market Expansion Potential Competitors
International Brand Awareness Third Covid Wave
Product line-up Expansion Resignation of Employees
 17

Strengths:

It is an internal ability that helps a company achieve its objective. (Armstrong et

al, 2014). Strengths denote what an organization excels at and set itself apart from
its competitors: a strong brand, a loyal customer base, a strong balance sheet,
unique skills, etc. (Kenton, 2021)

Some of PCIL’s strengths are described below.

1. Employee Facilities: Employees are regularly motivated. Employees have the

privilege of attending exclusive training to develop corporate and management
skills on a regular basis including adeptness lessons on the world-leading lean
management program. Furthermore, few of the employees are given the
opportunity to perform Hajj every year. They are also given annual bonuses and
allowances. Child-care facilities and medical provisions are provided. The
employees are presented with the opportunity to participate in cultural programs,
picnics, and upozilla sports events. This enables the workers to enhance their
ECAs and make them competitive in multiple fields. All these opportunities and
facilities allow the workers and employees to remain content. Hence, a sense of
harmony and unity prevails across the factory.

2. Recycling and Re-using: All products are eco-friendly because natural gas is
used as fuel. Plus, ETP drains out clean water. Water is recycled and reused.
Rainwater is collected and kept in the underground big reservoir to reduce
pressure on underground water. Rainwater harvesting is carried out for washing
cars, washing roads, gardening, etc. Exhaust hot air is passed from the kiln to the
dryers, which saves a huge amount of natural gas to keep the environment clean.
All the dust is collected through an exclusive machine. Hence dust is not allowed
 18

to mix with the air and pollute the environment. Furthermore, all-natural clay
material is used for producing porcelain tableware which is ideal for the
environment. All these efficient methods have enabled Paragon to limit waste
disposed of by 25 percent. Additionally, Paragon has been awarded ‘ISO 14001’
certificate for maintaining international standards of environmental management.

3. Production of Exclusive Products: Paragon Ceramics Industries Limited

manufactures different types of exclusive tableware products such as dinner set,
tea set, coffee set, dessert set, cake set to open stocks like plate, oval dish and
bowl, cup with saucer, mugs, flower vase, and hotel wares in multiple colors.
Traditional pottery items are also produced. The QC (Quality Check) is done to
match the product quality requirements of customers and the products are
delivered on time. To achieve this, the production lead time is shrunk as much as
possible. (Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Nowshad, personal communication,
December 17, 2021)

Weaknesses:

It is an internal abridgement that intervenes in a company’s capability to reach its

objectives. (Armstrong et al, 2014)

Weaknesses prevent an organization from performing at an optimal level. Areas

that companies need to improve to remain competitive are:

-Weak brands.

-Higher-than-average turnover.

-High levels of debt.

 19

-Inadequate supply chains.

-A lack of capital. (Kenton, 2021)

PCIL’s greatest weaknesses are,

1. Customer Preferences: Buying capability of customers is amalgamating.

Retail customers desire lavish products and their product taste changes on a
continuous basis. However, the production quantity is limited. So all-out

export is not possible immediately. Collective cooperation with loyal consumers

alleviates tension and bridges any communication gap due to any delay or
limitation in production.

2. Shipment Delay: Decal chemicals are an exceedingly paramount raw material

imported from New Zealand. Paragon Ceramics Industries Limited is
experiencing difficulties in releasing decal chemicals from the Chittagong port
due to the absence of an explosive license. Plus, the 30 percent tax rate imposed
on all products makes it tougher to import the best quality raw materials in the
business all through the year. This often leads to production delays and failure in
maintaining shipment dates.

3. Local Brand Awareness: In the local market, the product prices of

competitors are lower than Paragon Ceramics Industries Limited. As a result,
many local buyers tend to incline more towards ceramic companies like Monno
and Farr ceramics to purchase cheaper goods. Furthermore, Paragon doesn’t have
adequate product display showrooms for common people, although they have one
grand display room in the factory in Gazipur. Apparently, Paragon prioritizes
B2B (business-to-business) service over B2C (business-to-consumer) service.
 20

(Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Nowshad, personal communication, December 17,

2021)

Opportunities:

It is an external factor that helps a company explore the advantage they can take.
(Armstrong et al, 2014) Opportunities represent favorable external factors that
can give an organization a competitive advantage. For example, if a country
lowers tariffs, automakers can export their cars to new markets, increasing sales
and market share. (Kenton, 2021)

PCIL can venture into opportunities stated below.

1. Market Expansion: As aforementioned, the spending capability of consumers

is incrementing at an encouraging rate. Moreover, both the local and global
market is expanding, which is likely to create a new crop of customers. An
increase in the variety of tableware productions is instigated to satisfy consumers.
Currently, the major plans are to export 3,50,000 pieces per month abroad from
January 2022 to importers like LPP(Poland), Sainsbury’s (UK), BBB(USA),
Birla Group (India), and ICA Global Sourcing (Sweden) and pursue existing
buyers (Thun of Jakala and Heather grey of India) to augment the number of items
ordered.

2. International Brand Awareness: Porcelain tableware is considered

worldwide as sophisticated and delicate household and office items. Paragon
Ceramic Industries Limited put a huge emphasis on (business-to-business) B2B
markets abroad. The company participates annually in exhibitions in commercial
cities such as Frankfurt, Milan, Chicago, Tokyo, Berlin, Paris, and Delhi. They
 21

have world-leading showrooms in New York, Mumbai, and Delhi. In

international exhibitions, further effective promotional campaigns will be
implemented by

analyzing consumer behavior and market demands. Attractive leaflets, brochures,

digital portfolios will be available to consumers to increase multinational brand
awareness. Hence, more people from various continents are likely to be
acquainted with this brand logo, message, and product.

3. Product line-up Expansion: Even though Paragon has exclusive products in

flower vases, plant pots, pen stands; the array is very constrained and not as
enriched as its ceramic tableware experience. To abridge this issue, Paragon
Ceramics may instigate a new line of products, different sorts of showpieces,
hanging pieces, etc. More ceramic-oriented machines and skilled workers are
needed for the all-out production of extravagant products.

(Mohammed Ashraful Abedin Nowshad, personal communication, December 17,

2021)

Threats:

It is an external factor that is current and arising, which may fall the company in
a challenging situation and ruin its performance. (Armstrong et al, 2014) Threat
represents an element that can harm an organization. For example, drought
threatens wheat companies because it can destroy or reduce yields. Other
common hazards include rising material prices, increased competition, and labor
shortages Etc. (Kenton, 2021)

PCIL is facing some threats that are mentioned below.

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1. Potential Competitors: The plausibility of potential and aspiring competitors

entering the ceramic market never ceases. For instance, Akij Ceramics is seen as
a threat since their production capacity is three times greater and they give more
credits to clients than that Paragon Ceramics. In the aftermath of a prudent market
survey in the future, more outlets are required and nationwide market expansion
is needed to be covered in order to compete with such emerging companies.

2. Third Covid Wave: Under unfortunate circumstances, if a possible third

COVID-19 wave spreads, the government is likely to impose a rigid lockdown to
eliminate the contamination of the virus and the toll of deaths. This would directly
affect the sales of corporate companies, like Paragon Ceramics, that depends
mostly on exports, as the trade route will be blocked both in sea and water. The
salaries of mid-level managers and workers may also plummet when lockdown
protocol is followed as sources of income get massively constrained. Thus, chaos
would come to light and the company may experience a risk of liquidation in
extreme conditions if prudent and meticulous decisions are not executed.

3. Resignation of Employees: Paragon employees are reputed, qualified, and

sought-after in the local corporate world. The employees are developed in skill-
training programs and they acquire business and negotiations knowledge from
world-leading experts, many multinational companies tend to hire prodigious
employees. The repercussions of luring a prospective employee from Paragon
Ceramics Industries Limited are devastating considering the amount of time and
money spent on developing an individual. (Mohammed Ashraful Abedin
Nowshad, personal communication, December 17, 2021)
 23

Objectives

Every business has some specific objectives that they want to achieve over a time
period. Objectives for businesses mean, specific, measurable results that they
want to maintain as the business grows. PCIL has a set of objectives that they
want to achieve.

1. Increasing production capacity and facility

Objective: PCIL wants to increase their production capacity to a minimum of 2.1

million pieces of ceramic products produced every year by the end of 2023.

How PCIL will achieve the goal:

PCIL will be able to achieve this result by increasing the size of the existing
factory or building another factory in the adjacent empty plot, increasing the
number of machineries in the factory, hiring more factory workers and training
the existing ones.

2. Increasing Export Sales

Objective: Exporting ceramicwares is one of the main functions of PCIL. They

want to increase the export sales to 1.6 million pieces of ceramic products and
generate revenue of 200 million BDT in the year 2023 only in exports.

How PCIL will achieve the goal:

PCIL will increase its production capacity and facilities to cope with the large
amount of production. PCIL will pursue existing buyers like, Thun of Jakala and
 24

Heather grey of India to increase the number of items bought through email,
phone calls, fax, etc. PCIL will also be starting to export 3,50,000 pieces per
month abroad from January 2022 to importers like LPP (Poland), Sainsbury’s
(UK), BBB(USA), Birla Group (India) and ICA Global Sourcing (Sweden).

3. Increasing Local Sales

Objective: PCIL is also selling their ceramic products in local market and they
have an objective of increasing their local sales to 5.6 million pieces and generate
revenue of 400 million BDT in local sales by the end of 2023.

How PCIL will achieve the goal:

In order to achieve this objective, PCIL is thinking about expanding their

business-to-business channel by pursuing companies like RFL and Aarong.
Besides that, PCIL is considering to open their own outlets in different suitable
locations across the country.

4. Increasing Brand Awareness

Objective: PCIL needs to work on their online brand awareness. They decided
to increase their brand awareness in the online platforms by 20% in 2022.

How PCIL will achieve the goal:

One way that they will be able to reach out to people, is by running ads on
Facebook and YouTube. They will work on their Facebook, Instagram and other
social medias to really connect with people. They will also be hiring new IT
people to optimize their website to rank on google and other search engines. They
 25

are thinking about making a television commercial once they open their own
outlets.

5. Reducing Carbon Footprint

Objective: People are more aware that the carbon footprint that is left behind by
the industries is destroying the environment. Manufacturing ceramic products
requires great amount of heat energy. Heat is used in the kilns and dryers’ section
and it is gained by natural gas combustion. PCIL is one of the most environment-
friendly tableware plants in the region. They want to reduce the carbon footprint
by another 6% by the end of 2024.

How PCIL will achieve the goal:

There are some existing and proposed strategies being developed in the company
to reduce the carbon footprint. Some of them are:

● State-of-the-art Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP)

● Machineries that are highly efficient in reducing overall Energy usage.

● Using both heat and power generation to reduce gas consumption.

● Proposed the idea of using solar energy up to 5 KW.

● Reduce the amount of Lead, Cadmium and Barium in raw materials.

● Conserve rainwater and use inside the Factory. (PCIL,2021)

 26

Management Issues

Managing an organization, the size of PCIL is not an easy job. There is always
more room for improvement as nothing is absolutely perfect. PCIL is no different
in this regard.

To run a huge organization like PCIL, managers do go through different issues

while managing different sectors. Problems regarding research and development,
maintaining accounts and huge transactions every day, managing debts and
investments etc. are very common issues PCIL regularly goes through. But in the
current Covid situation, there is an extra pressure of maintaining proper safety
protocols for a large number of people and it is requiring a huge amount of effort
from all levels of management.

Organizational Structure

Most of the decision made in PCIL is made by the Chairman, the Managing
Director and the CEO. The information is then disseminated to the bottom levels
in a hierarchical manner. This is not a very efficient way of communicating and
PCIL although a very centralized company, is working toward being more
collaborative so that they can take inputs in decision making from all levels of
employees. Even though the decision making is centralized, PCIL influences their
employees to become more creative and they can come up to top-managers with
relevant ideas and queries.
 27

Departments

Paragon Ceramics Industries Limited is one of the largest exporters of Porcelain

ceramic tableware in South Asia. PCIL is a decentralized organization and so
working functioning across departments with customers results in cohesive
outcomes and a positive image. (Paragon, n.d.)

To maintain its brand equity and prevailing success, PCIL segmented its
departments into four categories:

Functional Department:
PCIL initiated this department to achieve simplicity and better coordination
among the employees. The scheme is to promulgate the adoption and
implementation of the Lean production method across the industry. The company
aims to achieve ISO 9000 certification by ensuring quality assurance and
management. However, as there are a significant number of departments and
specialized employees, the decision-making procedure is moderate. This often
leads to the issue of shipment delay (more than usual 50-60 days) which might
impact brand equity in the long run. (Lutkevich, 2021)

Process Department:
The decals, raw materials, mixtures of clay, earthen imported from all over the
world. In this department, the raw materials are assembled into finished products
with the help of a set of specialized machines imported from China, Vietnam, and
Japan. To begin with, the raw materials are analyzed and sample tests are
conducted. Then, dry forming and wet forming are conducted by introducing a
flexible mold which is sealed and placed into a water-filled pressure chamber.
The materials are molded at 4000 psi. The formed pieces are studied for cast
 28

texture where the rigidness and cast thickness is evaluated. This is followed by
drying and glazing. The glazing section is a predominant area of concern cause if
there is any minor unwanted spot in glazing, the product is instantly rejected by
buyers. Lastly, the product undergoes firing in the kiln at 1200 °C. At this
department, effectiveness is achieved by following top managerial orders
accordingly and efficiency is achieved by manufacturing things with minimal
wastage. (LUCIDEON, n.d)

Marketing Department:

This department is concerned with SEO, selling functions, etc. The executives in
this department are responsible for functions and outcomes in publications,
advertising, interviews, events, etc. This department is fast-paced and captivating.
Hence, only the best graduates with excellent communications and corporate
knowledge from reputable universities are hired to assist the collective company
goal. (Business-Marketing Learning Materials For Marketing, Insurance And
Business, n.d.)

Customer Department:

PCIL prefers a strategic, long-term collaborative approach with loyal customers.

They offer customer service and deliver good due dates to local customers via
sister concern companies like Bashownwala, Porcelaina, Toijoshpotro, etc.
Likewise, stores in places like USA and India are available to assist foreign
consumers. Thus, a wide array of items and facilities are made available to
customers, including an extended warranty, option of replacing broken items,
visiting factory showroom, etc. This department further ensures quality control,
compliance, packaging, and timely delivery. (Mollah, 2019)
 29

Leadership Styles

Countless studies have shown that leaders are unique when approaching a
problem, running a company and so on. These different styles of leadership have
led to developing theories that leaders in modern times have started
implementing. These theories can also be applied to the way PCIL run their
company. Some of the leadership theories that can be applied here are mentioned
below.

Michigan State Leadership Theory

These studies principles and types of leadership styles that led to greater job
satisfaction and productivity. They identified two broad leadership types:
Employee oriented and production oriented.

Employee oriented leadership can be very helpful for PCIL. This emphasizes
interpersonal relationships and taking care of employees’ needs. Since maximum
amount of work is done by machinery in producing the ceramic products, and
since they are produced in bulk with very little differentiation, it is quite repetitive
and will lead to boredom for the worker as they do the same job every day.
Workers’ skills may also suffer as they only do one job. Employees need to be
motivated and their needs kept in check by the leaders. The research identified
that employee orientation with general supervision produced more favorable
results compared to production orientation and direct supervision (Kenton, 2019).
 30

Ohio State Leadership Theory

These studies identified two dimensions of leadership behaviors. Initiating

structure- this is the leader’s capability to get things organized and to get the job
done. Consideration: The level of trust, friendship, respect and warmth that the
leader resonates to his/her subordinates. And through that, they developed four
quadrants; low-high, high-high, low-low and high-low structure and
consideration.

For PCIL, high structure and high consideration leadership style would be
beneficial. This is where leaders strive to achieve a productive balance between
getting the job done and maintaining a cohesive and friendly working
environment. This type of leadership does not work in all situations but here
where workload is repetitive in nature, and there are specific targets assigned to
each department, this will keep employees motivated while working efficiently
to achieve production targets. The leader will be considerate of followers’
feelings and ideas while structuring work and work relationships to meet goals.
 31

Observation and Recommendation

Over the course of making this report, group Luminaries have analyzed different
aspects of PCIL. As a result of our research, we have come up with the following
observations.

- PCIL is a highly centralized organization that follows top-down approach

in decision making.
- PCIL, although a highly diversified organization, there are no women in
the top-level management.
- PCIL puts majority of their focus on B2B sales and exports.
- PCIL have very little brand awareness although they are specialist in this
industry.

Group Luminaries have the following recommendation for PCIL.

- PCIL can become more collaborative in terms of decision-making. They

should take inputs from their employees while making important decision,
which may lead to better communication among top-managers and lower
level employees and that’ll lead PCIL to retain their best employees by
earning their loyalties.
- PCIL should definitely look into the organization as well as outside to find
suitable female candidates for the top-level management. This may bring
different perspective in the way current managers are managing the
organization.
- PCIL should focus on Local and B2C sales alongside their B2B and export
sales. B2C sales can potentially bring huge revenues if executed properly.
- PCIL should be more aggressive in terms of marketing their products to
gain the brand awareness that they deserve.
 32

Conclusion

This is the first time making a report for most of the members of luminaries. We
have learned a great deal about the ceramic industry as well as PCIL. We have
also learned how to review internal and external situations of a company using
SWOT analysis and to incorporate leadership theories into a company. We’ve
learned to identify management issues of a company as well. This experience will
come in handy in the future for every one of the members and we have enjoyed
the process of collaborating with people which has enriched our people skills.

PCIL wants to grow their business in the best possible way, benefitting the buyers
as well as their employees. They have a clear mission to achieve customer
satisfaction and to provide the best quality ceramic products to the customers at
a reasonable price.

PCIL intends to become the top seller of ceramicware in Bangladesh while

ensuring that all stakeholders reap the benefits. We believe that, this is one of the
most effective ways to achieve long term business success and we can already
see the positive results.
 33

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[Personal interview].

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http://www.paragonceramicbd.com/compliance#

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http://www.paragonceramicbd.com/about-us

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http://www.paragonceramicbd.com/compliance

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 34

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 35

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studies.asp
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Appendix

Questions

• Who are the founder members of the company?

• How was the company doing in the beginning in contrast to current
situation?
• What kind of corporate social responsibility does PCIL demonstrates?
• Where do you see yourself in the future?
• Who are the top managers of PCIL?
• What makes PCIL unique from other Ceramic companies?
• What facilities do the employees get from PCIL?
• What could potentially threaten PCIL?
• What are you planning to do to meet the increasing demand of the
customers?
• Does PCIL Recycle and Reuse damaged products?
• Why are average consumers less aware of PCIL even though most of them
have used the products at least once or twice at restaurants or hotels?
• Are you planning to increase your brand awareness in the average
consumers segment?
• How are the different departments created and managed?
 37

Group Members