College Gap Year Essay

Graduation is the time when young students become liberated from the daily grind and gain freedom to choose whatever they want to do with their lives. Some students decide to go directly to college, while some prefer to go to the workforce. A gap year, or a year off of school between high school and college, is another option for graduated students. In 2009, The Chicago Tribune published an article titled †Should Teens Take a Gap Year or go Straight to College?† by Cory Marchi claiming that a gap year is used to postpone a student’s future because they want to sightsee. He thinks that students won’t benefit from a year off of schooling, and doesn’t acknowledge the real world experience that can be gained from working or learning valuable life lessons during that time. A gap year after high school can help students determine what they want to pursue as their major, and what they desire out of their career. Marchi believes that because tuition is very expensive, increasing an average of eight percent or more annually, students should directly go to college in order to keep tuition costs down. However, if students aren’t sure what direction they want to take in life, they might benefit from year out of school to carefully consider their options. If they proceed with college before they know what they want, they may make a choice of major that they will regret later on, and they will then have to change their major, which could add another year’s tuition, exhausting limited college funds. During a gap year, students can take time to â€Å"soul search† and find what they really want out of their life. If the young graduates need another year to determine what career will make them the happiest in years to come, it is worth an eight percent penalty. During a gap year, students can find employment while determining their major and career. College is very expensive, and some students need an extra year of savings to put toward the cost of their education in order to keep their debt manageable. Although students may lose roughly eight percent in tuition from one year to the next, they would be able to save money to pay for that eight percent and the extra could be applied toward the rest of their tuition. Responsible students wouldn’t use a gap year as â€Å"a year of sightseeing,† like Marchi suggests, but instead would use it to help pay for their higher education. Marchi feels that students may not be motivated enough to continue with college after a gap year, but students who choose to take a gap year have the relaxation of a full year before they have to continue their education in college, and can recharge their batteries after twelve straight years of schooling. Students who are forced to attend college will get less out of their college education than those who work hard during their gap year. If a young adult doesn’t want to put in the effort toward their education, then they won’t be able to reap the rewards. If any student wants to attend college and is willing to put forth the effort, it will not make a difference if they take a gap year or if they don’t. Marchi also states that â€Å"delaying college can also delay the start of a career,† which may be true. However, a single year won’t be a handicap that can’t be overcome after graduation. The average job search lasts for about six months, and can take much longer. If students start their job search right after their graduation from college, they might have to wait until the next year to find a job. If gap year students start their search in the beginning of their senior year, and have a job lined up for after graduation, they could be only months behind the class they graduated high school with. They would also have a year of real-life experience in the work force to add to their resume that the non-gap year students wouldn’t have. Students can do whatever they want during their year off of school, but many get jobs and learn valuable life lessons that look good on a resume, helping them stand out in the crowd of applicants. A break from the daily grind of school can help students determine what career they want to pursue for four or more years of college. Cory Marchi believes that gap years do nothing for students other than hold them back, but gap years can help students find their ambitions, save money for tuition, and use their college years more effectively.

ABC Inc. Case Study Analysis Essay

Executive Summary ABC Inc. hired 15 new employees with the intention of starting the orientation on June 15. Carl has only six months experience and has made several critical errors. This may have been created due to lack of qualifications, training, or overstating of qualification on Carl’s resume. Due to this, certain tasks were not addressed in a timely manner. Four problems are readily apparent; employee applications are incomplete or missing documentation, lack of training manuals, no drug screenings have been administered, and the training room intended for the orientation is book for the entire month of June. See more: Homeless satire essay Introduction Carl Robins, a newly hired campus recruiter for ABC, Inc, hired 15 new employees within his first six months on the job. These newly hired employees will be working for Monica Carrolls, the Operations Supervisor. The new employees require an orientation on company policy, manuals to learn such policies, physicals, and drug screening. Carl is behind on preparation for the orientation and has not completed the required processing for the new employees. Some of the new hires do not have completed applications or their transcripts on file, and none of them had the required drug screening. The orientation manuals were also missing pages and Carl could only locate a total of three. Carl also discovered the training room he was going to use for the orientation is booked for the entire month of June for software training. Now he needs to find somewhere else to hold the training sessions. Once all these tasks are completed, Carl needs to reassure his colleagues that future orientation for new hires will run smoother. He can do this by being more proactive, planning, analyzing his errors, and improving on the  identified weak areas. (University of Phoenix, 2006) Background Carl had sufficient time to complete all tasks required to prepare for the orientation, but exhibited poor planning, execution, and follow-through of his duties, which would appear he is either not qualified or trained properly to do his job effectively. The goal is to have new hires trained in time to start work in July. Carl is new at the job himself, and this is his first recruitment effort. This, however, is no excuse for not being prepared for the task at hand, especially knowing the importance for the company and making a good impression on the new hires. The main concern is that there are many problems and not much time to complete them. Carl will need to evaluate, prioritize, and find solutions to each issue quickly. Carl has many obstacles to overcome, but the July deadline is still a reachable goal. Key Problems Carl’s performance, leading to his failure, began when he did not think ahead in his process for new hires and the requirements of himself and the new employees for the company. Before Carl started recruiting these individuals he did not have a plan in place for after he met his goal of recruiting 15 new people for the company. His only focus and concern was getting the new hires in the door, and the rest was an afterthought. Some of the things he should have thought about were â€Å"What happens next after the recruits are hired?† Problem 1 – He did not take in consideration all of the elements involved with the hiring and training of the new hires; like making sure all documents were up-to-date prior to hiring. A company should not hire new employees without all required documents. If a company requires a complete application and transcripts upon the interview process, and this is not provided, the applicant should not be considered for hire or given the chance to complete prior to entering the hiring process. Proposed Solution – Ensure all documentation is complete prior to hiring. This will ensure all records are up-to-date before entering the training process. Therefore, leaving time to focus on scheduling the drug screening and reserving the training room. Problem 2 – Incomplete and not enough manuals required for training the new hires. Carl did not check the inventory of manuals needed for training prior to the hiring process. Proposed Solution – Once a hiring  goal is set Carl should have checked all manuals. If there were not enough needed and incomplete manuals, more should have been ordered/made prior to or once the interviews commenced. It is better to be prepared for the unexpected than not prepared for the expected. Problem 3 – Scheduling the required physical and drug screening. If any of the 15 new hires fail their screening then the company will not have the amount needed for July, thus requiring Carl to continue his hiring efforts putting him behind schedule even more. Proposed Solution – Each new hire should have been scheduled for their individual physical and drug screening immediately. Notify the new hire of their appointment time. Once the results come back, review, and if approved, notify the individual and add to their record. If not approved, notify the individual and continue the interview efforts to find qualified individuals. If this is done properly the chances of not meeting the July deadline would be minimal. Problem 4 – Not reserving training room for new hires orientation. He was not proactive in ensuring the training room was reserved. As it turned out, the room he intended on using was already booked for the rest of the month. Proposed Solution – Knowing the deadline for new hires to enter orientation, Carl should have immediately scheduled the training room. If the training room was already booked a possible alternative would be another conference room at the facility or renting a nearby hotel conference room. To avoid this issue in the future Carl should schedule the training room once the commence date is communicated to him or he needs to request this info from his supervisor immediately. Alternatives Numerous solutions exist in correcting the challenges in the time available. The case study states the Carl is required to have all new hires working by July with a hire date of June 15. Carl must contact Monica Carrols, the operations supervisor, to get a solid deadline for the new hires. Seeing that Carl completed the hiring of 15 new employees in early April, he had ample amount of time. He had anytime in July, up to and including the last day, to have the new hires ready for work. Carl will also need to contact all new hires, inform them of their incomplete application, missing transcripts, and drug screening appointments. Alternatively, Carl could contact the HR department for application review and follow-up actions. Ensuring each applicant understands the deadlines with a built in backup due  date for unexpected problems. Carl should also make HR aware of the deadlines prior to them contacting the new hires. The three training manuals on hand were incomplete and he was also short by 12. Carl needs to make arrangements with either an in-house reproduction center or outsource this task with an extra manual for Carl as an instructors copy. Carl appears to be deficient in his working knowledge pertaining to the company policies, procedures, and formal norms, which means he must become intimately familiar with the material in the orientation manual prior to training. Further, Carl needs to coordinate for training space. This challenge is effortlessly completed by checking for available conference rooms within his company or renting convention or conference room space close to the corporate location. Additionally, corporate management need to design a system for checking and reserving training/conference rooms, web based, or paper based with a point of contact to coordinate scheduling. An additional option could be to create a permanent schedule for new employee orientation training, thus ensuring proper resources are allocated appropriately. Moreover, root cause analysis from company standpoint will need investigation and corrective measures enacted; whether the problems stem from management, employee screening of qualif ications, training, and revision of policies as well as any combination of the previous mentioned problems. Recommendations Execute proposed solution with an additional task for corporate managers and supervisors to meet and determine root-cause analysis using the company Process Improvement Program and implement proposed improvements. References University of Phoenix. (2012) Week Two supplement, Case Study for Student Analysis. Retrieved July 15, 2012, from University of Phoenix, Week Two, COMM215 Essential of College Writing. University of Phoenix. (2012) Week Two supplement, Sample Short Report Case Study Format. Retrieved July 15, 2012, from University of Phoenix, Week Two, COMM215 Essential of College Writing.

Ethical Issues in International Business Case Study

Ethical Issues in International Business - Case Study Example In a computer-driven age, Keith has not shown the foresight to see that his actions on Facebook could be used against him even though he more than qualifies for the position in Big Company, a multinational organization. When Keith applied for a position in Big Company's financial planning department, he put himself under scrutiny because this company searches social network sites when evaluating prospective employees. The company lost clients when staff members acted inappropriately under the influence of alcohol. Therefore, Keith does not even get an interview with the company based on his image on Facebook. The reason given Keith when he asks why he has not been given an interview is that he lacks sufficient financial planning experience. He is not told the real reason and therefore has no opportunity to redeem himself (Schaffer 2006). Determining the ethical issues raised in this situation is complicated. Keith apparently does not realize how damaging his presence on Facebook has been, and he unfortunately he has no legal recourse to challenge the decision. The cost-benefit analysis places a dollar value on the benefits and ... An individual should not have the power to make a decision without contacting other members of the organization as well as stockholders and Board of Directors. A commitment to human rights has become a major focus in the 21st century, with multinational companies (MNCs) attempting to generate an ethical approach theory inside and outside the organization (Ethical Issues n.d.). Even though so far there are no globally accepted legal or ethical standards for business operations and activities, certain human rights must be considered regardless of cultural standards (Schaffer 2006, 44). According to Schaffer, conomic aspects of globalization must also include social and ethical dimensions(64). There is, therefore, a growing link between social responsibility and profitability, and in MNCs, decisions should not be made based on the understanding of one person. In the case study under discussion, it appears that the HR Director made his own arbitrary decision not to interview Keith. Ethical Issues When two sets of standards exist, it is sometimes unethical to apply the lesser set. International companies are faced with ethical choices that do not exist in a national company in which ethics follow the policy of the country in which it is located. Some third-world companies, for instance, have lower standards than the United States. If the lower standards harm people or environment, it would be unethical for MNCs to use lesser standards. Bad ethical practices are more apparent in today's global economy (Schaffer 2006). Some of the ethical human rights issues arising from internal and industry practices are lack of concern for customers, lack of loyalty to employees, and unfair employment practices (Executive Team n.d.) as well as privacy

Organizational change part 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Organizational change part 2 - Essay Example The change strategy should also consider future growth and development of the organization. A change strategy for organizations includes various elements that have to be carefully analyzed before the change process is implemented. These elements include situational awareness, the structures supporting the change, and strategy analysis (Weiner et al, 2009). Situational awareness involves understanding the implications of change on the organizations, knowing who will be affected by the impending change and gathering as much resources and knowledge about the change to be implemented. Supporting structures for organizational change include the team facilitating the change process and the sponsors of the change process. Strategy analysis involves identification of the risks involved in the change process, any resistance to the change and tactics for implementing the strategy. A good organizational change strategy must focus on all these three elements (Weiner et al, 2009). Internal change s in an organization encounter resistance from certain employees or senior managers who may not be so open to change. This may destabilize the whole change process if not managed properly. The team charged with the responsibility of managing the change need to stay vigilant throughout the whole process for any signs of disapproval for the change and address them as soon as they are discovered (Weiner et al, 2009). The change implementation team ought to be very responsive and responsible throughout the change process. This will enable them to intercede and deal with any threat to the change process before it paralyzes the whole process. In order to deal with resistance effectively, a change strategy needs to address several issues such as commitment, responsibility, advocacy, acknowledgement, flexibility and must have a clear outline. A clear outline in the change strategy addresses change policies and guidelines and the structure of the impending change. These have to be communicat ed to every employee in advance before the change is implemented (Weiner et al, 2009). Everyone affected by the change has to be committed to the process and they should be given time to speak out their opinions about the intended change so as to foster advocacy for the change. Every ones role in the change process also needs to be clarified in the change strategy so as to ensure every individual in the change team is responsible for their actions. Every successful step of the change process needs to be appreciated and acknowledged just to let everybody know that the organization is moving in the right direction with the change. The organization’s leaders need to use a more flexible approach in the change process so as to ensure any unforeseen contingencies are dealt with appropriately during the process. Methods that will be used to monitor implementation of the proposed change The change initiative to be implemented involves about of organizational restructuring hence need to be approached with care. This will require a new organizational structure, improvement and changes in the organizational culture and behavior. The process of hiring new nurses wiling the new nurses will require significant contribution from every staff member in the organization. The top management will be required to approve and implement the change while the other

What is the cultural function of slasher films Essay

What is the cultural function of slasher films - Essay Example The societal issues tackled in slasher films can be quite varied indeed and the issues will project, criticize and open up for debate whatever it is that concerns society at the moment. Along this line, slasher films do serve a cultural purpose by expressing peoples fears and anxieties. Slasher films serve their cultural function of portraying the worst fears of the people such as those dealing with serial killers, sadistic murderers and incorrigible criminals. People go to theaters to see these films and expect some sort of poetic justice meted out to criminals that somehow vindicate the existence of slasher films. The graphic portrayal of the slaying, usually accomplished with a torture tool like a knife, chainsaw, hammer or whatever that will prolong death and impose the most agony and pain to the victims are intended to satiate the audience cravings for the macabre, the violent, the suspense and to show the mentality of the psychopathic killer and the mindsets of the victims as shown on these films. Slasher films in a way allow people to question social norms and their own personal values as they see it. The previous paragraphs introduced the rationale of why slasher films serve an aim in todays culture. A lot of people question why such â€Å"shallow† films are patronized by these moviegoers when there is already a hackneyed plot or storyline in these films, predictable to a degree but still people go and see them when they almost instinctively knew already what will happen in the film. The answer is that these â€Å"mad slasher† films are in the category of the so-called exploitation films which are considered money-makers despite having a poor storyline. People want to be entertained and movie producers latched unto these genre of films because they are proven to make them money at the box office as these are low-budget films. It it not a surprising development

Lesson Plan 8 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Lesson Plan 8 - Assignment Example Once they are finished pasting the pictures on the cardboards, they will be arranging themselves in a line by page numbers and presenting their â€Å"story†. 9:12 – Students should present their picture storybook to the class. They should form a line in front according to the page numbers. Each student must give his/her own sentence to the page he/she is holding to complete the story. There are 16 pictures in the story. 9:35 – When they are finished, they should go back to their seats. Teacher will bind the students’ story book with a yarn. Teacher will ask students what is different or same with the Teacher’s story & their picture story book. In class Assessment: The students will arrange themselves in a line and re-tell the 3 Little Pigs’ story by giving their own sentences for the pictures they are holding. Teacher will assess if students are able to re-tell the story by the sentences they will give to the pictures. Homework: A picture of a house is pasted on their notebooks with this sentence â€Å"This pig made a house of _________†. Students are asked to finish the sentence. They should write the material they want for the pigs house. They should also draw the material they want on the house and color if they

Corporate strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Corporate strategy - Essay Example Despite the pressure of the global financial crisis, the Group continued with its existing policy. Consequently, the Group’s Executive Chairman announced that some delay over the opening of certain hotels and resorts is unavoidable. Corporate Strategy: Jumeirah Group Introduction Worldwide destinations spend over $1,480 billion dollars to attract tourism, enabling it as a lucrative product (Pike, 2005). Additionally, vision must enable trade and investment in that quest (Hankinson, 2005). And, to enjoy a successful branding strategy for tourist destinations, five factors, such as retail, services, transit hub, tourism and economics, must be there to implement strategic vision (Jamrozy, 2007, Wong et al. 2006). And the vision of the Jumeirah Group heads in the same direction. In the year of 1997, Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts, as a company initiated to serve in the field of hospitality. Due to its commitment and constant success in the field, Jumeirah Group became a member of Dubai Holding in 2004 (About Jumeirah Group, web).Being based in the city of Dubai, the Jumeirah Group owns and runs Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Jumeirah Emirates Towers, the Jumeirah Carlton Tower, Jumeirah Bab Al Shams Desert Resort and Spa in Dubai, Madinat Jumeirah, Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel in London, and the Jumeirah Essex House on Central Park South in the city of New York (Enz, 2010). Additionally, the Group also owns the Wild Wadi, which is considered as one of the premium water parks outside of North America; further, the Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management, which is only third-level institution in the region catering the services in the learning and teaching in the field of hospitality management, also come under the management of this group (Enz, 2010). This group is a giant in the field of hospitality management working beyond the boundaries of the Middle East. Its strategic objectives till the year of 2012 is to conclude the ongoing projects to 60 hotels and resorts, includin g some projects are underway in Americas, Asia Pacific, North Africa and Europe (Jumeirah, web). Currently, the Group is determined to expand not only within the Middle East but also other parts of the world. Although, the group has published its corporate responsibility report in 2008, clearly highlighting its corporate responsibility, mentioning its corporate strategy elements, vision, mission, corporate social responsibility and certain other elements are accounted for. Despite showing so much exceptional growth and expansion in the recent years, the Jumeirah Group has not published the corporate responsibility reports after the year of 2008, since then there are no additional financial and operational information suggesting the current level of its commitment on the green house gases, customers, and other stakeholders. The Group seems unable to produce its corporate responsibility reports, raising more doubts on its commitment towards corporate issues, including corporate social responsibility. In the subsequent parts of this paper, the concept of corporate strategy is followed by the Jumeirah Group’s corporate strategy of global expansion and growth analysis. Subsequent to that, critical analysis is carried over the Jumeirah Group’s disclosure policy; in the end, a conclusion and some recommendations are also made part of this paper. Corporate strategy Corporate strategy

Activities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Activities - Essay Example He is 27 years old and he is doing his master’s in public administration. It was a good experience to meet him as I was able to understand how people work hard to keep up with their career for the purpose of attaining a better future. Majed is married and he has a son. His enthusiasm in his studies for the purpose of gaining a better job really surprised me and pushed me to work harder. An effective group can work in a more efficient manner in comparison to a single individual. A proper understanding between the group members and cooperation by all of them is important for building an effective group. Collaboration and compromising with the group members is central to the proper functioning of the group. It is far better to work with a group rather than individually as all the group members tend to share their ideas. It provides for an increase in the knowledge of all the group members as all the individuals in the group share their personal experiences and knowledge. I look forward to working with a group for increasing my exposure and learning. I am a very open minded person and I love to share the experiences of people belonging to different countries. I am also very punctual and believe that proper time management is crucial for providing for success in any task that an individual

The Jesus I Never Knew †A Book Report Essay Example for Free

The Jesus I Never Knew – A Book Report Essay Philip Yanceys Book, The Jesus I Never Knew deals with the authors desire and attempt to reveal and investigate what kind of a person Jesus was. Some of his findings were revealing and even startling dwelling through different levels of traditions, interpretations, and stereotypes that hid the very personality of the Man in the Gospel, Jesus Christ. The book was critically divided and discussed into three major sections: Who he was, Why He Came, and Why He Left Behind. The first part, who was He, described the different misleading description and portrayals of Jesus: some conceived him as a magician, a political revolutionary, a Jewish Cynic, a cult leader, etc. On the authors perspective during his early childhood, he thought of Jesus as a soft and gentle person with no sharp edges on his personality moreover like a lamb- carrying shepherd. When he studied in a Bible College, there was a different interpretation of Jesus regarded as cosmic Jesus. By this time, the Authors desire to research who was Jesus took him to a journey through the Bibles four Gospels and to re-discover Him.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On his book, the author made critical emphasis on the following events on the Bible and reflected his views, thoughts and opinion: for instance, the event Jesus was tempted by Satan in the desert opting Him to succumb in unleashing His power to establish the Kingdom of God. The Author sees Jesus as a charismatic person, an excitable one who expressed sympathy for those suffering, displayed anger at cold- hearted legalists, not afraid to show emotions, vulnerable and not ashamed to cry. On the event of Beatitude wherein Jesus made a Sermon on the Mount, the author sees this as a direct opposition to worldly possession of material prosperity and success. He confesses that when he first heard of the Beatitude, he thought of it as a mere unrealistic ideals impossible to live and achieve. Nonetheless he has changed his mind since then.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The second part, Why He Came, depicts the very purpose of Jesus. The author made emphasis that His death was the epitome and the centerpiece of His eventual reincarnation. Yancey reiterated that although Jesus was being bombarded with criticism and pain on His last week before crucifixion, He was actually calling the shots knowing before hand what will happen thus overseeing the entire process. His goal was achieved, through His crucifixion at the Cross.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The third part, Why He Left Behind, described His resurrection from the Cross bringing new hope to mankind. The author here made emphasis on the perspective of human freedom. He strongly lamented on the fact that Jesus followers were not living by examples and merely resorted to the use of authority, miracle, and mystery yielding to the very temptation that Jesus successfully resisted.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   All throughout the book, the author lively made narrative description of his own personal convictions based on his interactions and thoughts to other people and on his personal experiences. It delves deeply towards a journey looking for the original Jesus Christ. Though far from confining the matter to his own personal perspective, the author collected information and data all throughout the world quoting extensively from the writing and sayings of other people from vast cultural, religious, and cultural background. As a whole, the book depicts a credible glimpse of Jesus based on His historical and cultural settings. The question of â€Å"how would we re-act† today was strongly asked throughout the book and it only meant that we should re-consider our view and ideals regarding The Jesus We Never Knew. References Yancey, Philip (2002). The Jesus I Never Knew. New Ed. Zondervan Publishing House.

In Broad Daylgith Essay Example for Free

In Broad Daylgith Essay â€Å"In Broad Daylight† is about Mu Ying, nicknamed Old Whore. She has affairs with different men and is publicly denounced and paraded before the community by the Red Guards who travel from another city and happen to know her bad name. Her dwarf peddler husband Meng Su tries to rescue her from the public humiliation, only to be humiliated himself by the Red Guards, the spectators and his wife as well. Finally, he is found crushed by a train, and Mu Ying lies alone at bus stop, deranged. Written from the point view of a naive boy, nicknamed White Cat, Ha Jin intends to portray through untainted and authentic lens a Chinese woman with a self-awakening feminist consciousness who stands up for her sexuality. Turning point number one in the story is when the questioning of Mu Ying has started and has to confess her crimes of adultery with three other men. She then comes to the point where she explains the feeling of wanting a man holding her with his strong arms very detailed. After Mu Ying describes this feeling of sexual need, a woman who is the mother of Bare Hips speaks from the front of the crowd and says â€Å"You have your own man, who doesn’t lack an arm or a leg. It’s wrong to have others’ men and more wrong to pocket their money† (Jin 156). And on this moment Mu Ying is still recovering from a punch of the Red Guards and still replies with a smirk on her face looking down on her husband â€Å"I have my own man? † (Jin 156). â€Å"My man is nothing. He is no good, I mean in bed. He always comes before I feel anything† (Jin 156). As a central focus of the public denunciation, Mu appeared to be rather calm when she was caught at home. She neither protested nor said a word, but followed the Red Guards quietly. In her eyes, these Red Guards were only a group of children. She did not expect that the join forces of the Red Guards and the revolutionary masses in the town would be tremendous enough to put her in destruction; more importantly, she did not think that her behavior had violated any rule or law. When her husband appealed to the Red Guards, she stared at him without a word, and a faint smile passed the corners of her mouth. In her yes, the behavior of her impotent husband is pedantic and ridiculous. When the Red Guard asked her why she â€Å"seduced men and paralyze heir revolutionary will with your bourgeois poison† (156), she responded rather calmly with a rhetorical question, â€Å"I’ve never invited any man to my home, have I? † (Jin 156). When several women hissed in the crowd, she even tried to persuade them by citing her own experience: â€Å"Sisters,† she spoke aloud. â€Å"All right, it was wrong to sleep with them. But you all know what it feels like when you want a man, don’t you? Don’t you once in a while have that feeling in your bones? Contemptuously, she looked at the few withered middle-aged women standing in the front row, then closed her eyes. â€Å"Oh, you want that real man to have you in his arms and let him touch every part of your body. For that man alone you want to blossom into a woman, a real woman—† (Jin 156). As a group of juveniles, White Cat and his companions know little about the adult life. This limitation makes their participation a journey of discovery. When adults burst out laughing at Mu Ying’s assertion of her husband’s impotence, the teenagers appeared to be puzzled. The dialogue between them shows this point clearly: â€Å"What’s that? What’s so funny? † Big Shrimp asked Bare Hips. â€Å"You didn’t get it? † Bare Hips said impatiently. â€Å"You don’t know anything about what happens between a man and a woman. It means that whenever she doesn’t want him to come close to her he comes. Bad timing. † â€Å"It doesn’t sound like that,† I said (Jin 157). Obviously, Bare Hips does not know any more than Big Shrimp though his impatient tone tries to conceal this ignorance. Ignorant as he is, Bare Hips makes so bold as to cry at Mu Ying, â€Å"Shameless Old Whore! † (Jin 154). Impossible to perceive, the innocent children are acting the role of accomplice in the public denunciation against Mu. Their thoughts and behaviors manifest the influence they have taken from their parents. In this sense, the innocent teenagers have degenerated from lovely angels to dreadful demons. This is a turning point because when the red guards pulled Mu Ying out of her house and started patrolling her through the city streets to get her to the school yard to sentence her, her husband came running from a street corner begging to let Mu Ying go â€Å"Please don’t take her away. It’s my fault. I haven’t disciplined her well. Please give her a change to be a new person. I promise, she won’t do it again† (Jin 155). And even though I have a feeling Mu Ying does not take the Red guard’s judging protocol as a serious punishment at that point, once she has confessed everything it all gets to her. That is when she gets the feeling that she really has humiliated and hurt her husband, because she is looking for him after she got hit with an ink bottle, only to find that he suddenly left the scene. That is the point she says she does not want to be punished after all and promises to better herself. What I saw as turning point number two becomes clear in the last paragraph, which means I did not see that really as the conclusion. It is the scene where Mu Ying is lying alone at the bus stop, saying: â€Å"Take me home. Oh, help me. Who can help me? Where are you? Why don’t you come and carry me home† (Jin 156). It is a perfect example of â€Å"You don’t know what you have until it is gone. † The second train that used its steam horn killed the husband of Mu Ying and made her a widow and truly alone. What I mean with that is that Mu Ying already felt alone because her man was not good enough for her. This feeling of loneliness combined with her husband’s underachieving partly lead to her committing adultery. Now with her husband dead, she finally exactly knows what it actually means to be alone. But moreover the story clearly shows that her husband saved her live once, after she was raped and now he again tries to get her â€Å"off the hook,† by taking the blame. Her grudge against men because of this rape is probably the other part of why she turned to adultery. It is almost shocking to observe that Mu Ying herself is not punished as the â€Å"Old Whore,† where Meng Su did not only try to take the blame, but also gets himself punished like in Old China. While the Red Guards only make her walk down every street saying the words â€Å"I am an evil monster† (Jin 160), instead of burning her alive, Meng Su is beheaded like in the old days. I strongly felt a parallel between the â€Å"blare of horns† announcing the beheading of Mu Ying’s husband. In Ha Jin’s story, the rough death of Meng Su, the husband, constitutes an â€Å"unscheduled event,† which brings White Cat and his companions to the violence of the adult world. The public denunciation of Mu Ying was no longer a thrilling scene, but something that touched them to their souls, evoking their introspection or maybe disillusion about the world. Bare Hips’s vomiting is a strong signal, indicating the shocking effect that the violence may have brought to him. After the shocking experience, they are no longer innocent adolescences, but adults struggling at the verge of understanding. This whole story turned out like a gruesome, tragic circle of misery and unanswered love to me. I think Meng Su loved Mu Ying dearly, but couldn’t take her grudge against men away that she got from the rape by the Russians. Imaginably, as a victim of the gang rape, she must have experienced a hard time of being treated with disdain. Instead of being hit to death by the accident, she has walked out of the shadow of the concept of chastity, and began to enjoy the pleasure of the flesh as well as economic benefits brought about by men, the invader of her virginity. The bitter time she has experienced has actually hardened her heart and paved the way for her further self-liberation, both physically and spiritually. Meng Su couldn’t cope with not saving her from the shame that the Red Guard trial put on her and killed himself, leaving his beloved Mu Ying really alone and helpless at the bus stop.

A Report On International Marketing Strategy Marketing Essay

A Report On International Marketing Strategy Marketing Essay This paper focuses on the international marketing strategy of two companies: one operating in the developing world and one operating in both the developed and developing worlds. These are Spice Jet, operating in India only and JetBlue airways, operating in USA, Mexico and Central America. Jet blue is a low cost service provider in the airline industry. JetBlue headquarters are situated in the Forest Hills near New York. Their major operations are in the United States, Mexico and Central America. In just five years, JetBlue has become one of the most profitable start-up airlines. They have managed to be profitable during the present recession. JetBlue operates in a very competitive low fare sector of the airline industry. The positioning of JetBlue has been done as an affordable and quality airline with extra facilities. JetBlues CEO David Neelemen and a few Southwest Airlines employees. The second most important thing after security is customer service for JetBlue Training staff, and this very well justifies what Mr. Gareth Edmondson-Jones, VP of Corporate Communications JetBlue said- We want to bring humanity back to airline travel. Its not enough just to launch a low-fare airline that can be unsold by big carriers[1]. According to 2008 reports there are more than 10,000 employees working for JetBlue and 134 aircrafts to 54 destinations in 6 countries. MARKETING STRATEGY of JetBlue Reaching the Customer Within the initial 2 years, JetBlue established a widely recognized brand name. They also have a customer loyalty program known as True Blue[2]. JetBlue mainly competes with its competitors on high quality service provided by its employees[3]. It has been positioned as a low cost and high quality service provider. To keep its operations cost effective JetBlues fleet consists of only one type of aircrafts i.e. AIRBUS A320 because this brings down their maintenance cost. JetBlues marketing strategy is attracting potential customers by effectively communicating its idea that low fares and good quality service are not always mutually exclusive[4]. The main reasons for JetBlues operations being so cost effective are the importance given to technology and innovation and the search for highly skilled and efficient staff known as Crewmembers. While hiring, they seek to match their corporate values with individuals values. In the last 10 years JetBlue has adopted a strategy of innovative marketing and profitability in the industry. Customers are given a $5 discount for booking online. They use different methods to advertise their offers and services such as promotional efforts, newspapers, radio, television and targeted public relations. JetBlue also relies on promoting through Word-of-Mouth. They are socially responsible and believe in CSR- Corporate Social Responsibility. After the earthquake in Haiti on January 12th 2010, they collaborated with American Red Cross and asked people to donate for those who have lost their families and their lifes earnings in the devastating earthquake[5]. DEVELOPED AND DEVELOPING WORLD FOR JETBLUE JetBlue is a young and dynamic low fare airline but it has been facing problems due to the economic downturn. But they have been successful in differentiating their services from their competitors by providing high quality service at low fares. They have always tried to increase the number of their operating destinations to overcome the financial crunch and increase their market base. Currently JetBlue operates in USA, Mexico and Central America and the advantage it has of working in developed countries like USA and the developing ones like Mexico and Central American countries is that they have similar culture and similar expectations from their airline services and substantial amount of American population is Mexican so there are numerous frequent fliers which increases their customer base by substantial numbers. According to Pew Hispanic report of 2008, there were 12.7 million Mexican immigrants living in USA in 2008[6]. There are potential threats also while operating in both developed and developing worlds i.e. the different political environment and their economies being interdependent. Due to the economic crisis in USA, economy of Mexico was also hugely affected. There are different rules and regulations for the airline industry in different countries which also depend on their economic condition i.e. whether they are developed or developing. Developed economies would probably deregulate more and developing economies would try to protect their own airline companies from the ones who come from outside to tap into the local market because this way they actually import services and the local currency goes out. This depreciates their currency with respect to other foreign currencies. Government regulations, political stability and economic condition of the countries differ from each other which make operations of industries like the Airline industry very difficult and makes the business environment very uncertain. SPICEJET AIRWAYS Spice jet is the second largest low cost airline in India. Earlier it was Modiluft airline. ModiLuft airline was the partnership between Indian industrial group Modi and Lufthansa. It is based in New Delhi and offers domestic short haul services with 195 daily flights to 18 destinations in India including the big cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Hyderabad[7]. SpiceJet is using a single-aircraft-type fleet like other low cost airlines. They are currently using 16 Boeing 737-800 and 5 Boeing 737-900ER. MARKETING STRATEGY SpiceJet is using the names of various spices for eg. Cinnamon, thyme etc. for their aircrafts. They handle their marketing campaigns with very catchy tag line Flying for everyone. As SpiceJet is low cost airline, they are more focused upon offering lowest air fares to gain more market share. They entered the market using vary different pricing strategy i.e. Rs.99 fares for 99 days and 9000 seats available at this rate[8]. SpiceJet maintained their low price spice fare strategy and started to sell the air tickets for Rs.500 and Rs.999. The main idea behind this is that they wanted to keep their prices very similar to first class tickets of Indian Railways so that any person who affords that fare can be attracted by these airline fares. Another advantage of doing this is that saves in travel time. Corporate benefit programs, Students discounts, discounts on group bookings are also one of the parts of their marketing strategy. They also offer air tickets with Rs.0 basic fare. Another thing we can observe is that almost 25% of their sales are on their website which shows that SpiceJet encourages the online bookings to eliminate the travel agents thus to bail out travel agents fee. They are also planning to increase their number of fleets in order to increase their market share. They also rely on Word-of-Mouth like JetBlue does. SpiceJet also launched a new communication strategy which clearly moves away from strategies based on price to value based strategies. This strategy focuses on long term prospects and positioning SpiceJet in a different way[9]. COMPLEXITIES REGARDING MARKETING AIRLINE INDUSTRY IN DEVELOPING WORLD The market size for the low fare airline services is really small i.e. just 18 cities in 28 states. That amounts for a very small size of the total population. Airline is not like other products with which consumers have to interact with on daily basis. The regular Indian traveler expects the same whether they are traveling from a low fare airline or a full service carrier with respect to some services like normal sanitation etc[10]. ENHANCING PERFORMANCE Spicejets fleet includes Boeing 737-900ER, which earlier was fine for them to use because of cheap fuel prices but lately fuel prices have increased. Therefore to decrease their operating cost they can also include more fuel efficient aircrafts like ATR-72 for short distance flights and Airbus 320 for long distance flights. They can also increase the number of destinations to reach economies of scale and to increase their revenues. STAY HERE OR EXPAND Given the current economic condition of other countries and the financial situation of Spicejet they should stay in India only because in the developed countries the competitors are more financially stable and they can have a competitive advantage with respect to price and also being there before SpiceJet. Other airlines already operating in the developed countries have well established network and the experience to operate their because the government rules and regulations regarding differ from place to place and also depends on the current economic condition of the country. The cultural difference and the standard lifestyle of the customers are also different. The meaning of a low fare airline might be different for people from different countries and the minimum expectation from the airline services as well. Its true that to increase the revenues they should tap into the other markets but right now its not the right time to that. When they decide to do so they can consider an opti on of collaborating with some other players in the developed country market and gain some experience and know how while working with them before they decide to enter the market themselves. CONCLUSION [1] http://www.brandchannel.com/features_effect.asp?id=41 [2] https://trueblue.jetblue.com/web/trueblue/home;jsessionid=F854ECF662888C47BD9AD0E3415B9862.l1 [3] http://www.jetblue.com/about/ourcompany/annualreport/2002/our-people.html [4]http://www.hotelschool.cornell.edu/chr/pdf/showpdf/chr/research/casestudies/AAJetBFinal_with_2002_financials.pdf?my_path_info=chr/research/casestudies/AAJetBFinal_with_2002_financials.pdf [5] http://american.redcross.org/site/PageServer?pagename=corp_evergreens_company=jetblueairways-pubs_companycontent=jetblueairways-pubs_active=1s_dis1=0s_dis2=0s_dis3=1s_genops=0s_national=0s_military=0s_international=0s_local=0s_match=0s_src=FZZWGW00s_subsrc=jetblueairways-pub [6] http://pewhispanic.org/files/factsheets/47.pdf [7] SpiceJet Retrieved Jan 20 2010 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpiceJet [8] SpiceJet Debuts with Rs.99 fare for 99 days   Retrieved Jan 20 2010 http://www.spicejet.com/newspage.asp?strNews=99fares [9] http://www.campaignindia.in/news/2009/08/10/spicejet-s-new-communication-strategy-attempts-to-delivervalue- [10] http://www.campaignindia.in/news/2009/08/10/spicejet-s-new-communication-strategy-attempts-to-delivervalue-

Its Raining in Mango :: Free Essay Writer

It's Raining in Mango Thea Astley’s It’s Raining in Mango (1987) is a story of Australian history told through five generations of the Laffey family. Astley introduces several issues to the reader that were and still are part of Australian society. Through the use of narrative techniques including characterisation, narrative point of view and naming, Astley is able to position the reader to challenge such societal ideologies, and instead support the thoughts and ideas expressed by the strong and dominant characters in the text. Two issues developed in the text are race and gender. Throughout the text, the white colonists are very racist towards the Aboriginals. Even cattle, horses and white women are placed hierarchically higher in society than the black people. In response to this, Astley constructs all narrations to be written through the eyes of the Laffey family, who are respectful towards Aboriginals, hence not racist, and despise societal ideologies. By making the narration of the text show a biased point of view, readers are provoked to think and feel the same way, foregrounding racism shown in the ideologies of early Australian society, and showing that Aboriginals are real people and should receive the same treatment to that given to white people. â€Å"They looked human, they had all your features.† (pg 27) There was, however, one section in the text whose narrative point of view was not given by a character in the Laffey family. This instead was given by a voice of an Aboriginal woman, when the Aboriginal children were being taken away from t heir families. By giving voice to the Aboriginal society, the reader is able to get a glimpse of their point of view on the matter, which once again shows that society was racist, and Aboriginals were treated harshly. Another narrative technique used to bring forward the issue of race is naming. By using harsh names to describe racist white people, it made Aboriginals seem a far ‘softer’ race. An example of this is Block, the white concreter who began a brawl in a pub in Mango. By using a name such as this, Thea Astley positions the reader to see Block as a hard, cold, strong male, and is also seen as an object instead of a person. Also by showing that Block is a concreter, this reinforces the thought of him being a ‘bad’ person, as he is ‘cold and hard as concrete’.

George Orwell’s Animal Farm :: Animal Farm Essays

What is George Orwell’s message in Animal Farm, and how does he use two of the animal characters in the novel to present his political views? In this book George Orwell has tried to put a political view into the story. This political view is that Communist ideas can not work without using excessive power, also that political systems can easily be corrupted by power-hungry people. George Orwell uses animals in this clever allegory to represent humans. Two main characters of ‘Animal Farm’ are Napoleon and Boxer. Napoleon acts like a dictator and leads the farm and animals. He has power over the animals so they have no freedom, so much so, that they can’t rebel against him if they wanted to. Boxer an idealistic follower for Napoleon; he will sacrifice anything for the farm and the other animals. Boxer believes everything that he is told by Napoleon and cannot see that Napoleon is a corrupt leader. As soon as Old Major had died Napoleon took his place as the leader of the Animals, and so he controlled them after the rebellion against humans. At first he was a fair leader and treated the animals kindly, or so they thought. â€Å"The pigs did not actually work, but directed and supervised the others.† This shows that the pigs were lazy and demanding from the beginning when they started to run the farm, and it wasn’t that they grew power-hungry, they already were. The animals started to realise that the pigs were not doing any work. The majority thought there must be an excellent reason for them not doing any work. â€Å"We pigs are the brain-workers. The whole management and organization of the farm depends on us† After hearing this, the animals understood that they were there to do the hard work, but they thought that was because they couldn’t run the farm as well as the pigs. They did not mind lying to the animals and not doing any work while the other animals are. Napoleon knew that there was a chance that the animals might rebel against him so when 9 puppies were born on the farm he took them to train as his bodyguards. â€Å"As soon as they were weaned, Napoleon took them away from their mothers†¦Ã¢â‚¬  After the animals knew what he was doing, even if they did disagree with what he was doing could not do anything about it even if the wanted to either because they were not strong enough or that they were to scared. So this meant that Napoleon could do whatever he wanted to, just like a dictator. The only animal threatening Napoleon’s place in power was Snowball, so

Black Criminal Stereotypes and Racial Profiling Essay

Harper Lee vividly describes the immorality of racism and prejudice. Lee reveals the many racist practices that take place in a small town in Alabama. Jean Louise Finch who is referred to as â€Å"Scout†, shares many incidences that took place while she was growing up with her brother Jem and father Atticus. Tom Robinson is a character that is falsely accused of beating and raping a white woman and is found guilty. Atticus Finch who is not only a wonderful father to Scout and Jem, but also performs miracles in the courtroom as a remarkable lawyer for Maycomb county, is standing as Tom’s lawyer in the trial. Lee exposes the many racist and prejudice individuals through a specific character and that character is Tom Robinson. When Bob Ewell goes to testify he points at Tom and says â€Å"I seen that black n**** yonder ruttin on my Mayella† (pg. 173). Bob Ewell is portraying Tom to be an animal who has violated his daughter. Black Demps 2 Men were(are) usually portrayed in this manner because of the racist ideologies that ‘all black males are aggressive’ and ‘all black males are rapists’. Tom is an impoverished black male attending a trial, with an all-white jury because he was accused of raping a white woman, due to these things he is at an automatic risk of being announced guilty and denied any justice. Atticus takes the case to defend Tom, knowing he would be shamed for it, and looked down upon, as a white man in America. Even though evidence of Tom’s innocence was displayed to the jury, they still announced him guilty because of their racist and prejudice ideologies, instead of analyzing the factual evidence that was presented to them. Relationships between whites and blacks were forbidden so when Mayella became attracted to Tom she felt a sense of guilt. She knew that she would be looked down upon in the white community, which is why she did not hesitate to lie in court and to her self about the situation. â€Å"If there’s just one kind of folks, why can’t they get along with each other? If they’re all alike, why do they go out of their way to despise each other?† (lee, 259). Scout is beginning to see the hatred and the iniquitous way that people of color are being treated and she is beginning to think on her own and view the world and the way of life in a more mature manner. Demps 3 When Scout asks Atticus if he believes he will win the case he answers â€Å"Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win† (Lee, 101). In this quote, Atticus is referring to the racism and prejudice in general terms. He is saying that just because the world is set up a certain way doesn’t mean he has to follow the trends. African Americans have been considered to be less than a human for years and traditionally in a case like such, it does not go in the African Americans favor. So Atticus is saying just because it is traditionally more than likely that Tom won’t win, that does not mean that Atticus can’t try to help Tom. â€Å"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view†¦ Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.† (Lee, 321). Atticus’s ways of processing and analyzing certain situations are very admiring, he tends to think about all of the different perspectives in a situation before he takes any action or speaks any words. Harper Lee uses Atticus as a moral compass, he is seen as the opposer, being the â€Å"N***** lover† in this circumstance. †Mockingbirds don’t do one thing except making music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a Mockingbird.† (Lee,

Gender Roles and Fashion Essay

Most people feel that the qualities and characteristics we perceive as specific to gender are inherent by nature. In America, physical strength is stereotyped to be masculine, while emotional behavior is stereotyped as feminine. Any straying from these expectations is sufficient grounds for alienation. However, historian Howard Zinn has documented that gender roles are a part of a system constructed by the ruling class during the formation of our nation. The gender role structure in the US was designed in order to maintain a centralized, wealthy ruling class. In order to keep wealthy, white men in control of the economy, women have been constructed as inferior to men — physically, mentally and emotionally. In Judith Lorber’s article â€Å"Night to His Day†, Lorber explains that the definition of being a man or woman is comprised of more than apparent genetic information. â€Å"Gender† is a socially constructed status, which has the intention of â€Å"choosing people for the different tasks of society†(Lorber 55). Thus, ideas about how one should behave in order to fit into a gender category are learned, not intrinsic. As a society assigns people as â€Å"men† or â€Å"women†, this categorization denotes the accepted and preferred â€Å"personality characteristics, feelings, motivations, and ambitions† that create different classes and preferences for people (Lorber, 55). That is, the genderization system produces men and women who tend to have a â€Å"natural inclination† toward ideas, behaviors, and careers that help them assimilate to anticipated gender stereotypes. Parents, constantly in fear that people will not be able to dis tinguish the sex of their new baby, instinctually encourage dress, styles, and behavior that perpetuate the masculine and feminine labels from birth. The term â€Å"woman† itself was created by the masculine conception of what femininity should be. These criteria set up the dominant/subordinate relationship standard because women lacked the power to challenge the male point of view. Lorber suggests that â€Å"as a process, gender creates social differences that define ‘woman’ and ‘man'† through interactions and expectations of peers and family. As a stratification, gender ranks men’s work superior to women’s, regardless of skill or difficulty. As a social structure, gender organizes work habits both domestically and economically  (Lorber 60-1). For the average girl in American society, adapting to gender roles is taught in every single facet of life. The media, entertainment, and school cooperatively exhibit and promote gender assimilation. Barbieà ¤ dolls are the first toys I can recall playing with as a young girl. Her long blond hair, short skirts, disproportionately long legs, and spike heels set the precedent for how I would view true â€Å"femininity† throughout adolescence. By age six, my life became infiltrated by gender specific, â€Å"girly† activities. I: practiced ballet and avoided sports, painted fingernails, nearly always wore dresses with nylons, experimented with my mother’s make-up (rather unsuccessfully), joined Girl Scouts, grew out my hair to mid-back, and wished for everything to be pink or lavender. I was so excited and anxious for the day when the boys would†¦ finally†¦ notice†¦ me (sarcasm intended). Fashion trends and clothing styles, in particular, significantly aid the social construction of gender. The mere presence of a standard for the judgment of beauty automatically designates some group to be in control of the other. That is, individuals are constantly judging one another to make certain that they fit into the correct gender classification. Trendy, hip clothing are made for a very specific, minority group of women- narrow-hipped, small-breasted, tall, and skinny. The pressure to fit into these styles of clothes is unrelenting and produces insecurities and a poor body-image. These adolescent anxieties are not uncommon and can produce eating disorders, depression, and suicide. Joanne Finkelstein, in After a Fashion, explains that fashion can be seen as a device for confining women to an inferior social order. Throughout history women have been isolated from men by their fashion dues to society – women would risk spinal disorders from corsets, chronic foot pain and arch trauma from high-heels, and submit to a constant preoccupation of worry over men’s approval of clothing appropriateness. Fashions play such an integral role in how we judge one another – how much money we have, what music we listen to, how much education we have received – that any gender-bending fashions  exhibited by women are at best taboo, and at worst, unattractive to men (the alleged Ultimate Woman’s Worry). In many societies, gender is not considered a part of nature, but rather learned, acquired, or earned as a rite of passage. In some tribal communities, acquiring gender status represents maturity and responsibility. There is an unspoken agreement between American men and women that women will fashion their clothing and styles as part of a system that favors men. In part this system favors men simply by distinguishing a class apart from men, requiring someone to exist on the outside of an established social norm. John Lorber puts it best: â€Å"Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at† (Lorber 46). In a society where many women still do not recognize the inequalities of genderization, the pervasiveness of gender roles in America remains perpetuated and profound. Works Cited Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. New York: Viking Press, Reprint edition, January 1995 Finkelstein, Joanne. After A Fashion. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1996. Lorber, Judith. â€Å"Night to His Day: The Social Construction of Gender†. Paradoxes of Gender. New York: Yale University Press, 1994. Zinn, Howard. A People’s History of the United States. New York: HarperCollins, 2001.

Post Mortem results and findings of the entire project Essay

This MEMO will cover the benefits and drawbacks of a Post Mortem review. It will notify all who are going to be required to partake in the final review meeting. It will also go over what we hope to discover after the termination of the project. Post Mortem Review Pros and Cons Pros: Gives an unbiased review of the project’s life. Enables project manager to analyze the findings of the review and improve on certain aspects in the next project that need attention. Gives a good perspective of everything that was accomplished. This enables the team and manager to feel a sense of pride and satisfaction from job well done. Once the review has been analyzed, it enables the project to officially come to a close. Cons: Hard to ensure all key players, stakeholders, and managers attend the meeting during such an early time of the newly integrated system’s life. Personnel Required to Attend: Certain people within the company are expected to attend the post mortem review meeting either in person, or by telephone conference. These people include: all of the managers who attended the training and were involved throughout this project. Stakeholders, owners, top officers, the project team, and the developers of the new system need to be in attendance. Hopes: The project team and manager hope to discover the following: The overall success of the project. Any downfalls or shortcomings that came up. The owners’ opinions of the end result. The managers’ opinions. The developers’ notes on how well the managers’ were trained. The thoughts of the project team and how they feel improvement could be made.

Business Research Method – Banking Questionaire

RESEARCH QUESTIONNAIRE AN ANALYSIS OF HOW BUSINESS CAN USE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (IT) TO GAIN COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: THE CASE OF COMMERCIAL BANKS IN ZIMBABWE. SECTION A: RESPONDENT AND BANK PROFILES a) Respondent’s Profile Position in the organisation Please tick where applicable |Clerical | | |Supervisory | | |Managerial | | |Executive | | Length of Service with the Institution Please tick where applicable |1 – 5 years | | |6 – 10 years | | |11 – 16 years | | |16 – 20 years | | |More than 20 years | | |Highest Qualification | |Please tick where applicable | |Certificate | | |Diploma | | Degree | | |Postgraduate | | |PhD | | How long have you been exposed to use of computers? Please tick where applicable |1 – 5 Years | | |6 – 10 Years | | |11 – 15 Years | | |16 – 20 Years | | |More than 20 Years | | ) Bank Profile Bank Name________________________________________ Number of Branches_____________________________________ |Number of Employees | | |Please tick where applicable | | |1 – 100 | | |101 – 200 | | |201 – 300 | | |301 – 400 | | |More than 400 | | Clientele Base (i) Corporate Clients Please tick where applicable |1 – 500 | | |501 – 1 000 | | |1 001 – 1 500 | | |1 501 – 2 000 | | |More than 2 000 | | (ii)Individual Clients Please tick where applicable 1 – 10 000 | | |10 001 – 20 000 | | |20 001 – 30 000 | | |30 001 – 40 000 | | |More than 40 000 | | SECTION B: LEVEL OF AUTOMATION IN THE BANK (a)IT Systems i) Core Banking System |Type of Core Banking System | |Please tick where applicable | | |Globus | | |Equation | | |Bank Master | | |Equinox | | |Flexicube | | |Other (Specify) | | |__________________________________________ | | Year Core Banking System was Introduced †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ (ii) Enterprise Resource Planning System Please tick modules used | | |Finance | | |Human resources | | |Inventory management | | |Customer relationship management | | |Business intelligence | | |Other (specify) | | |______________________________________ ____ | | (b)Delivery Channels i) Teller Transactions |Transactions per month | | |Please tick where applicable | | |0 – 50 000 | | |50 001 – 100 000 | | |100 001 – 150 000 | | |150 001 – 200 000 | | |More than 200 000 | | ii) Electronic Transactions a) Use of Credit or Debit Cards |YES |NO | |ATMs (Please tick where applicable) | | | |Transactions per month | | |Please tick where applicable | | |0 – 5 000 | | |5 001 – 10 000 | | |10 001 – 15 000 | | |15 001 – 20 000 | | |More than 20 000 | | |YES |NO | |Internet banking (Please tick where applicable) | | | |Transactions per month | | |Please tick where applicable | | |0 – 5 000 | | |5 001 – 10 000 | | |10 001 – 15 000 | | |15 001 – 20 000 | | |More than 20 000 | | |YES |NO | |Point of Sale (Please tick where applicable) | | | |Transactions per month | | |Please tick where applicable | | |0 – 5 000 | | |5 001 – 10 000 | | |10 001 à ¢â‚¬â€œ 15 000 | | |15 001 – 20 000 | | |More than 20 000 | | b) Electronic Funds Transfer |YES |NO | |Internal Transfers | | | |Please tick where applicable | | | |Transactions per month | | |Please tick where applicable | | |0 – 10 000 | | |10 001 – 20 000 | | |20 001 – 30 000 | | |30 001 – 40 000 | | |More than 40 000 | | |YES |NO | |Real Time Gross Settlement System (RTGS) (Please tick| | | |where applicable) | | | |Transactions per month | | |Please tick where applicable | | |0 – 5 000 | | |5 001 – 10 000 | | |10 001 – 15 000 | | |15 001 – 20 000 | | |More than 20 000 | | |YES |NO | |Society for Worldwide Interbank | | | |Funds Transfer (SWIFT) | | | |(Please tick where applicable) | | | |Transactions per month | | |Please tick where applicable | | |0 – 5 000 | | |5 001 – 10 000 | | |10 001 – 15 000 | | |15 001 – 20 000 | | |More than 20 000 | | SECTION C : BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES a) BENEFITS Please tick where applicable. | |5 |4 |3 |2 |1 | | | |Strongly Agree |Agree |Indifferent |Disagree |Strongly | | | | | | | |Disagree | |1 |Profitability | | | | | | |2 |Increase in market share | | | | | | |3 |Increase in revenue | | | | | | |4 |Reduction in labour costs | | | | | | |5 |Reduction in transaction costs | | | | | | |6 |Improved risk management | | | | | | |7 |Speed in service delivery | | | | | | |8 | Increase in Customer satisfaction | | | | | | b) CHALLENGES Please tick where applicable. | |5 |4 |3 |2 |1 | | | |Very High |High |Moderate |Low |Very Low | |1 |Operating costs | | | | | | |2 |Transaction turnaround time | | | | | | |3 |Risks | | | | | | SECTION D: COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE BROUGHT ABOUT BY I. T. IN BANKING Please tick where applicable. | |5 |4 |3 |2 |1 | | |IT helps in: |Strongly Agree |Agree |Indifferent |Disagree |Strongly | | | | | | | |Disagree | |1 |Lowering costs | | | | | | |2 |Product differentiation | | | | | | |3 |Innovation | | | | | | | 4 |Promoting growth (e. g. evenue) | | | | | | |5 |Developing business partners | | | | | | |6 |Locking in customers and suppliers | | | | | | |7 |Creating switching costs | | | | | | |8 |Raising barriers to entry | | | | | | 9 |Customer Relationship Management | | | | | | |10 |Re-engineering business processes | | | | | | |11 |Quality control | | | | | | Thank you very much for taking your time to complete this questionnaire. The information you have provided will be treated in strict confidentiality. NB: Company details will not be included in the report. Fictitious names will be used.

Causes of the French Revolution

Causes of the French Revolution The French Revolution occurred in France between 1789 and 1892 (although these dates were controversial by historians), and the French monarchy and AncienRà ©gime (Government) It brought overthrown. French monarchies have been established for centuries and the cause of the revolution is deeply rooted, including ancient institutional issues, growth of nationalism, influence of philosophers, and examples of American revolution I will. The reason for the French Revolution is the reason it really caused the French Revolution. Therefore, no one seems to be able to agree with a clear answer, but the answer is simple. Main reasons for the French Revolution. Finance, law and population segmentation. The French Revolution Law and the French government are perfect monarchies. There were 13 different regions in France at that time. Each of these 13 areas has its own rules. What does this mean? - Historians have long discussed the cause of the French Revolution. Maybe, it is not a single factor, it is the result of several factors. A combination of several social, political and economic reasons brought dramatic changes to French AncienRà ©gime, law and government system before the French Revolution of 1789. The French society of the 18th century was divided into three categories: clergy, nobility, and ordinary people. Origin of the French Revolution The fundamental cause of the French Revolution was a strong conflict between emerging bourgeoisie and deeply noblemen and kept its privileges. Perhaps the main reason for the revolution, there are two other things that brought about the French revolutionary madness - French debt and famine - a French essay  «l. Je suis Hindumaisj'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'Æ’reneà ±l parce quec'estunefÃÆ' ªtequiestagrà ©can. J'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'  «breà ±oÃÆ' « lvecmamÃÆ' Å“re, monpà ¨ - etmonpetits urcetteannà ©e is a source of Christian Christianity history. Cetteanà ©e, ladent lasaisondeNoÃÆ'  ¡ l, j'aiachetÃÆ' un calendrier d'advient Causes of the French Revolution The French Revolution in 1789 brought about many causes and events. Prior to the Revolution, France participated in many expensive wars, especially the American Revolutionary War, which caused economic difficulties and increased debt. The royal family and its courts are costly to repair. At the moment, the age of enlightenment is taking place, new ideas, challenges to the Ancien regime, and absolute dominance are emerging Causes of the French Revolution Reasons for the French Revolution On July 14, 1789, several Hungarian hungry people and 60 soldiers gained control over Bastille and changed the history of France. Occupation of Bastille was not caused by the incident, but caused by several root causes such as old regime, tax increase, American revolution, and philosopher's thoughts and beliefs. The direct cause of the revolution was the fact that the price of bread rose and the 3rd floor residence was shut out from the hall. The reason for the French Revolution is the reason it really caused the French Revolution. Therefore, no one seems to be able to agree with a clear answer, but the answer is simple. Main reasons for the French Revolution. Finance, law and population segmentation. The French Revolution Law and the French government are perfect monarchies. There were 13 different regions in France at that time. Each of these 13 areas has its own rules. What does this mean? - Historians have long discussed the cause of the French R evolution. Maybe, it is not a single factor, it is the result of several factors. A combination of several social, political and economic reasons brought dramatic changes to French AncienRà ©gime, law and government system before the French Revolution of 1789. The French society of the 18th century was divided into three categories: clergy, nobility, and ordinary people. Origin of the French Revolution The fundamental cause of the French Revolution was a strong conflict between emerging bourgeoisie and deeply noblemen and kept its privileges. Perhaps the main reason for the revolution, there are two other things that brought about the French revolutionary madness - French debt and famine - a French essay  «l. Je suis Hindumaisj'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'Æ’reneà ±l parce quec'estunefÃÆ' ªtequiestagrà ©can. J'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'  «breà ±oÃÆ' « lvecmamÃÆ' Å“re, monpà ¨ - etmonpetits urcetteannà ©e is a source of Christian Christianity history. Cetteanà ©e, ladent lasai sondeNoÃÆ' ¡ l, j'aiachetÃÆ' un calendrier d'advient Causes of the French Revolution Causes of the French Revolution The French Revolution in 1789 brought about many causes and events. Prior to the Revolution, France participated in many expensive wars, especially the American Revolutionary War, which caused economic difficulties and increased debt. The royal family and its courts are costly to repair. At this time, an age of enlightenment has arisen, new ideas, a challenge to the Ancien regime, and absolute control of power are born. The reason for the French Revolution is the reason it really caused the French Revolution. Therefore, no one seems to be able to agree with a clear answer, but the answer is simple. Main reasons for the French Revolution. Finance, law and population segmentation. The French Revolution Law and the French government are perfect monarchies. There were 13 different regions in France at that time. Each of these 13 areas has its own rules. What does this mean? - Historians have long discussed the cause of the French Revolution. Maybe, it is n ot a single factor, it is the result of several factors. A combination of several social, political and economic reasons brought dramatic changes to French AncienRà ©gime, law and government system before the French Revolution of 1789. In the 18th century, French society was divided into three categories, a mansion. Clergy, aristocracy, and the general public. Origin of the French Revolution The fundamental cause of the French Revolution was a strong conflict between emerging bourgeoisie and deeply noblemen and kept its privileges. Perhaps the main reason for the revolution, there are two other things that brought about the French revolutionary madness - French debt and famine - a French essay  «l. Je suis Hindumaisj'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'Æ’reneà ±l parce quec'estunefÃÆ' ªtequiestagrà ©can. J'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'  «breà ±oÃÆ' « lvecmamÃÆ' Å“re, monpà ¨ - etmonpetits urcetteannà ©e is a source of Christian Christianity history. Cetteanà ©e, ladent lasaisondeNoÃÆ'  ¡ l, j'aiachetÃÆ' un calendrier d'advient Causes of the French Revolution The reason for the French Revolution is a powerful country with a population of 29 million in France. It was ruled by King Rui, the sixteenth king known as King of the Sun. He has the right to rule from God, not from people. This idea is called the sacred right of the king. Louis is an absolute ruler. This means that he can do whatever he wishes without having to consult anyone. He lives in the luxury of Versailles. He is not very confident and I do not like to make a decision. He spent a lot of time locking and hunting. Origin of the French Revolution The fundamental cause of the French Revolution was a strong conflict between emerging bourgeoisie and deeply noblemen and kept its privileges. Perhaps the main reason for the revolution, there are two other things that brought about the French revolutionary madness - French debt and famine - a French essay  «l. Je suis Hindumaisj'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'Æ’reneà ±l parce quec'estunefÃÆ' ªtequiestagrà ©can. J'aicÃÆ'  © lÃÆ'  « breà ±oÃÆ' « lvecmamÃÆ' Å“re, monpà ¨ - etmonpetits urcetteannà ©e is a source of Christian Christianity history. Cetteanà ©e, ladent lasaisondeNoÃÆ' ¡ l, j'aiachetÃÆ' un calendrier d'advient The reason for the French Revolution is the reason why it really caused the French Revolution. Therefore, no one seems to be able to agree with a clear answer, but the answer is simple. Main reasons for the French Revolution. Finance, law and population segmentation. The French Revolution Law and the French government are perfect monarchies. There were 13 different regions in France at that time. Each of these 13 areas has its own rules. What does this mean? - Historians have long discussed the cause of the French Revolution. Maybe, it is not a single factor, it is the result of several factors. A combination of several social, political and economic reasons brought dramatic changes to French AncienRà ©gime, law and government system before the French Revolution of 1789. The Fr ench society of the 18th century was divided into three categories: clergy, nobility, and ordinary people. revolution? The main reason for the French Revolution was a controversy between different kinds of social classes in French society. The French Revolution from 1789 to 1799 was one of the most important events in world history. The revolution brought many changes in France, and during the revolutionary era France was the most powerful country in Europe. The revolution brought about the development of new political forces like democracy and nationalism. It raised doubts on the authority of the king, priests, and aristocrats. The revolution also gave new meanings and new ideas to people's political thought. Causes of the French Revolution The beginning of the French Revolution is due to intensified inequality, bankruptcy, enlightenment and the influence of the American Revolution. The first and second real estate is made up of wealthy aristocrats without taxation and privilege. In contrast, the tertiary industry consists of citizens working hard every day and paying heavy taxes. This inequality made the people angry. The king before Louis XVI was Louis XIV. He used too much money and spranged the government. The reason for the French Revolution is the reason it really caused the French Revolution. Therefore, no one seems to be able to agree with a clear answer, but the answer is simple. Main reasons for the French Revolution. Finance, law and population segmentation. The French Revolution Law and the French government are perfect monarchies. There were 13 different regions in France at that time. Each of these 13 areas has its own rules. What does this mean? In France there is no unified legal system, basically the go vernment governs, but it is enacted through the parliament itself. The French Revolution was also known as the revolution of 1789. This is an era when people overthrew the monarchy and regulated the government. There are three main reasons for the French Revolution, economic, political and social. The economic reasons are as follows. Increase in government debt, trial of taxation on nobility, food shortage, and tax burden of tertiary industry. Political reason is absolute monarchy (invalid ruler Louis XVI). The social cause is the growth of industry, the rise of the middle class and the expansion of poverty. In short, the French Revolution completely changed the social and political structure of France. The revolution ended with the rise of Napoleon Causes of the French Revolution The French Revolution in 1789 brought about many causes and events. Prior to the Revolution, France participated in many expensive wars, especially the American Revolutionary War, which caused economic dif ficulties and increased debt. The royal family and its courts are costly to repair. At the moment, the age of enlightenment is taking place, new ideas, challenges to the Ancien regime, and absolute dominance are emerging

The strongest argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The strongest argument - Essay Example It shows that Lott has a stronger case, because he presents validated claims with relevant examples, statistics, and authority, though he has some weak assumptions, while Mitchard focuses too much on anecdotal evidence and one authority to support her claims. Lott presents stronger claims than Mitchard with pervasive use of statistics, logic, and ethos. Lott claims that carrying guns in school can deter violence, which happens outside schools already. First, he establishes the pervasiveness of gun-carrying laws through the historical trend that supports carrying guns: â€Å"In 1985, just eight states had right-to-carry laws...Today [2003], 35 states do.† Second, he uses more statistics to demonstrate that where there are guns, violence is lesser: â€Å"[studies give evidence] that on average, states that adopt right-to-carry laws experience a 60% drop in the rates at which the attacks occur, and a 78% drop in the rates at which people are killed or injured from such attacks.† These statistics are relevant, although the last one mentioned here is a bit outdated. Still, they offer information that having guns can deter violence. Lott also uses relevant authorities to support him. He says: â€Å"Annual surveys of crime victim s in the United States by the Justice Department show that when confronted by a criminal, people are safest if they have a gun.† This means that people feel they are safer, since they can protect themselves. This has no correlation though with lesser violence rates. Lott also conducted studies on gun violence. This gives him ethos on why and how guns can reduce and stop school violence. Lott also handles objections to his claims. He notes that one of the main sources of objections that people use comes from the media. The news alone shows many people dying because of guns, and even from law-abiding citizens who had sanity lapses and use their guns during intensely emotional events. Lott underscores that the â€Å"2 million times

Bullying at Health care Work Places Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Bullying at Health care Work Places - Essay Example As the paper outlines workplace bullying has been recognized as one of the most recurrent internal issues which affect health care dissemination. In definition, workplace bullying is any form of abuse that is repetitive in a way such that the victim suffers intimidation, threats, verbal abuse, humiliation, or just any act which keeps them from performing their duties to the best of their ability. The danger of workplace bullying affects both the professional and patient in this context of health care. In the light of these, the following study will highlight the issue of health care workplace bullying, and support that it limits the dissemination of health care, thus endangering the lives of patients. From this paper it is clear that workplace bullying in health care is a big problem which affects the professionals and their patients as well. Again, he states that bullying will lead to lack of morale and feelings of helplessness, and any health care professional subjected to such conditions cannot perform well. The reasons offered as to why a health care professional may bully another include the need to control others, lack of remorse or guilt, an exaggerated sense of self, or being overly stubborn amongst others. Some forms of bullying include lack of appreciation by supervisors where credit is due, unfair degradation occurs, being falsely termed as incompetent, or denial or requested help. The list is endless. The impact of bullying is dangerous since it may lead to lost productivity, high turnover, work dissatisfaction, work-related injuries, and absenteeism. Collectively, these factors affect the patient most since they lack sufficient care, or receive low quality care, or l ack any care at all.

Russian Marketplace Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Russian Marketplace - Essay Example The positive side to the bakery/coffee market is it is a growing market in Russia. For an American keen on establishing bakery/coffee outlet in Russia, the difficulties may not be more than what you may encounter in any other growing economy. The distribution system in Russia does not appear to be well-organized and there are queues to make most purchases. The trend is changing with budding entrepreneurs coming up with marketing skills that, given the political nod, could easily upset the lethargic traditional system (Smilor, Ray; 2002). There are encouraging signs for anyone in America considering an entry into the bakery/coffee market in Russia. There is enormous potential for growth in this market. The annual per capita consumption of coffee in Russia is 500 gm as compared to 12 kg in neighbouring Scandinavian countries (Nestl to start coffee processing in Russia, 2004). Statistics are not available for bakery items which comprise large range of products comprising cakes, bread, biscuits, and other savouries. However, there is the eagerness to taste new assortment of baked items. There are also trade fairs and exhibitions for bakery items. So it should not be difficult for American entrepreneurs to participate in these fairs and exhibitions and glean information for starting bakery outlets in cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg to begin with (Event Profile, 2010) This does not mean that starting a bakery in Russia is a cakewalk. There are going to be difficulties and obstacles in the form of competition as well as other unknown problems. The iron curtain may not exist any longer. However, Russia is still going through teething problems and the transition to a free market is experiencing a pull between traditional radicals and budding entrepreneurs (Smilor, Ray; 2002). You got to stick to the budding entrepreneurs. While on the subject of bakeries, it is pertinent to make mention of Fazer's successful operations in Russia. "Fazer is one of Russia's leading bakery companies. During the past three years, Fazer's bakery operations in Russia have grown at an average rate of ca 40 per cent annually, and today they constitute 14 per cent of the Group's turnover. Fazer has during the past ten years invested ca 130 M in its operations in Russia and the Group's four bakeries in Russia employ 3 500 people. Fazer is a leading contract catering company in the Nordic and the Baltic countries, offering customers delicious food and tailor-made service solutions. The company operates in the Nordic countries, Estonia, Latvia and Russia." (Fazer's

Access to Insurance Versus Access to Care Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Access to Insurance Versus Access to Care - Essay Example However, there should be glaring distinctions. Access to healthcare must be all about the ability of Americans to obtain care for themselves whenever they get sick. And such care includes access to physicians, hospitals and others facilities and services of the medical system. On the other hand, access to insurance refers to the access and use of health plans. Essentially, hence, the lack in insurance coverage does not necessarily mean there is no access to health care. Henderson (2009) pointed this out by citing how the uninsured in America receive about 60 percent of the medical care per capita of those with insurance (p.68). So what this means is that the uninsured does get medical care. The issue about access all boils down to the term "ability". Yes, the uninsured can still avail of medical care but they do receive, in the words of Henderson, less care than the insured Americans (p.68). This is the reason why the 2010 federal health reform law was enacted. It follows the objective of universal coverage in which health care insurance participation becomes mandatory, rejecting the voluntary system in the process, and paving the way for medical care access for all. It took a long time for this health reform initiative to be realized. Different administrations have proposed different health care models aiming for nationalized and universal coverage and failed. Even as we speak, the current law, which should depict the pinnacle of these initiatives having been passed and implemented two years ago, is still in danger of getting repelled once a Republican regime is elected to the White House. This reflects the highly contentious debate about how to pursue health reform f rom two dominant political and ideological standpoints. The liberals favor the current system of universal healthcare whereas the conservatives want to cut cost and are committed to the old model typified by individualism, freedom of choice and competition. This conflict is

Marketing Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Marketing Strategy - Essay Example 8), Hershey’s marketing strategy has been predicated on consistently superior product quality, intensive distribution and best possible value in terms of price and weight (p. 207). With a vision to continuously provide premium quality confectionary goods to its customers, Hershey became the market leader with a market share of 29%. Hershey’s selling and marketing organization is comprised of Hershey North America, Hershey international and global marketing groups. Hershey International markets its products worldwide and has responsibility for pursuing growth in other countries focusing mainly in Asian growing markets like India and China. The global marketing group is responsible for building global brands, developing transformational growth platforms, brand positioning and pricing strategies. Hershey has been approaching various methods in order to gain competitive advantages on its counterparts like MARS, Cadbury and Nestle. It has been operating business worldwide with various strategies that helped them to be strong in most markets like India. Taylor (1997) emphasized that Hershey had been using a range of strategies to penetrate the international confectionary markets and it had always relied heavily on direct exports to smaller markets and had participated in the processes of acquisitions, joint ventures, licensing agreements and strategic alliances of various kinds (p. 344). Acquisition of major market players has been considered to be an effective strategy in order to gain access in to global market. Accessing in to a global market like confectionary is extremely vulnerable, especially when the competition within the marketplace is fierce, the technological innovations put forward by companies are highly advanced and strategies are constantly fluctuating. But, through acquisition and mergers, the company can gain the advantages of easy access and effective marketing operations with the help of acquisitioned firms as they are well aware of the market

End of Course Assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

End of Course Assessment - Essay Example Evidence about this is available to us both through Roman literature and what we know about how Roman villas were constructed. Although some of this evidence might be questionable, it can still give us important clues into how Roman villa-owners spent their leisure time, which can in turn show us the different ideas about the value and purpose of leisure in ancient Rome and how they continued to affect society long into modern times. Two philosophers who had important ideas about what leisure meant, how to use it, and who should have it were Aristotle and Epicurus. Aristotle was probably Plato’s most famous student of philosophy, who went on to become a philosopher in his own right. Two of Aristotle’s works which deal with questions of leisure are â€Å"the Politics and the Nichomachean Ethics† (Price 2008, p11). In these two works, Aristotle tries to answer questions about leisure that ultimately lead him to ask â€Å"a rather different question: what is it to be an excellent human being?† (Price 2008, p13). The reason Aristotle was interested in this question is because he had somewhat unusual views about leisure. He believed that â€Å"leisure and well-being are intimately connected: living well involves having plenty of leisure, and using it in the best possible way† (Price 2008, p12). Today, most people would probably say that leisure was just what you do after you’re finished working, but Aristotle did not agree with that either. When he talked about leisure, he did not mean just lying around and relaxing, doing nothing. Instead, he used it to mean â€Å"the pursuit of activities that we value for their own sake† (Price 2008, p12). More importantly, Aristotle did not just mean any activity at all. Instead, he wanted the activities to be those which made excellent human beings. So for Aristotle, leisure was pursuing excellence for its own sake, instead of for some other purpose. Of course, being a privileged philosopher, he

Strategic Decision Making Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strategic Decision Making - Assignment Example age in innovation process which covers the period from the idea generation or opportunity search to the approval of firm for its development or termination (Postma, Broekhuizen, and Bosh, 2012: 643). The activities of the front-end phase case can include the following: idea generation, product strategy formulation, early executive reviews, project planning, etc. The front-end phase is also recognized to be the most important and more difficult to manage compared to the other two phases of NPD as it has higher uncertainty level. The quality of management front-end phase is highly correlated with the final outcome of the project (success or failure). Some of the potential problems with which firms face during the front-end phase include two categories: management of ideas and management of attention (Postma, Broekhuizen, and Bosh, 2012: 643). Management of ideas is an important process as it involves the way the ideas are generated, shared, communicated, and viewed by different stakeho lders. Uncertainty about outcomes, shortage of adequate ideas, and short-term problem orientation are some of the possible pitfalls the firms face during front-end NPD phase. Management of attention is another significant aspect during the initial stages of the NPD process as human factor and limited human capacity to maintain attention can serve as a limiting factor in idea generation process. Limitations of organizations and group is another type of management attention issues and refers to the problem of group thinking, and organizational structures and systems undermining creativity and innovation (Postma, Broekhuizen, and Bosh, 2012). Postma, Broekhuizen, and Bosh (2012) tried to address the above mentioned issues and problems and to make the front-end phase more effective and productive by offering a scenario analysis method as a creativity and innovation enhancing tool. Scenario analysis is a tool which enables management and other team members to define various uncertainties