Poker Flat Essay

Do you think people can control how or if the die; even if inevitable? This unique story by Francis Bret Harte â€Å"The Outcast of Poker Flat†, has a grey western setting. Harte explores the mind of a gambler who is exiled from a warped town. Two literary devices regionalism and naturalism content is evident throughout, giving the story a feeling of hopelessness of survival. The regionalism in â€Å"The Outcast of Poker Flat† separates the characters from the town in such a way that is ironic. â€Å"I reckon they are after somebody† is said by the main character in the beginning of the story showing strong dialect on how the speech is in the town. The dialect is a western slang with an unintelligent tone to the towns people. The quote also shows the tense situation in that town specifically; everyone is on edge whispering among each other as the main character walks into a bar. They irony between the towns people and the so called â€Å"criminal† outcast was shown strongly in the leader of the town cleanup crew â€Å"†¦the leader spoke briefly and to the point. The exiles were forbidden to return at the peril of their lives†. What is so ironic about this is the role reversal. Who are the criminals, what group is doing the most wrong in this situation? The pessimism and dismay for the outcast soon after had clear naturalis m. The outcast were exiled from the town of Poker Flat. â€Å"It was distant a day’s severe travel. In that advanced season, the party soon passed out of the moist, temperate regions of the foot-hills into the dry, cold, bracing air of the Sierras.† The brutal environment would test the outcasts ability to survive. Since the group was not prepared for the cold temperatures or the dangerous Sierras survival seemed futile. The outcast start to give up â€Å"Toward morning they found themselves unable to feed the fire, which gradually died away. As the embers slowly blackened, the Duchess crept closer to Piney, and broke the silence of many hours: â€Å"Piney, can you pray?† â€Å"No, dear,† said Piney, simply.† the environment is dwindling away at the outcast survival until they parish. The outcast have been victims of naturalism they were not prepared for the hard unforgiving Sierra mountains. Two literary devices regionalism and naturalism content is evident throughout, giving the story a feeling of hopelessness of survival. These  devices create and understanding of the story. They help separate two similar but different concepts.

Diwali Is the Festival Closet to My Heart Essay

Diwali is the festival closest to my heart. It embraces all religions and it not only illuminates houses but also lives. This year was no different with my entire city karnal getting adorned over the last weekend to glowing LEDs while candles played a minor role in some houses. A significant and traditional part of this festival is crackers. They have only evolved over the years and presently you’ll be spoilt for choice shopping for them. However some enlightened minds have planted the seed of a polemic whether these crackers should be banned or not. India is witnessing a sorry state. In this country celebrities run over pedestrians and walk free. Ironically they run NGOs to assist the needy! A parallel can be drawn to politicians, bureaucrats and every member of the society. It is thus not surprising to find people squandering money all round the year but raising moral issues when it comes to bursting crackers. Some benevolent ones choose to abstain from them and do charity instead. What fails to pervade them is that these crackers are manufactured by dirt poor people who look forward to this festival all through the year for their livelihood. Why not do charity by purchasing their products? Another matter of grave concern is environmental pollution. Despite laws being enforced sound pollution hasn’t been curbed and the state police remain a mute spectator. The air pollution too is on a mammoth scale. But for a state topping the charts on the air pollution barometer, another drop in the ocean shouldn’t matter much. Diwali is the festival of lights and crackers constitute its focal point. The onus is upon us to celebrate responsibly by staying within the decibel limit. Otherwise we can keep these debates aside for one day and indulge in the ultimate aesthetic and entertaining aspect of this festival – crackers!

Reasons for Investing in HSBC HOLDING PLC Essay - 1

Reasons for Investing in HSBC HOLDING PLC - Essay Example It is branded world’s number 1 in the provision of various services and products to many customers. HSBC helps their customers in investigating emotional attitudes in matters related to financial markets and telling them the importance of investing in long-term. They also provide share services online for those investors who are interested in their own portfolio management. HSBC has a range of investments, life insurance, and savings opportunities, which can be applied online for experts (Chandra, 2008). By 2009, this company was rated amongst the largest group of banks and the sixth largest in the world according to the measure of the Forbes magazine. Hong Kong used to be its headquarters up to 1992 when there was an urgent need due to the force that was eminent by then to move to the UK as a state of completion of acquiring Midland bank. Presently, there is no area in the world that dominates the earnings made by this group. Hong Kong is still HSBC’s substantial incom e source. The recent expansion and acquiring of HSBC roots in China have increased their customer confidence and reason to invest in them. This banking company has established itself well and widely in its operational base in the world. This company has its major points on such services as an investment, lending, and provision of insurance services globally. HSBC bank as a company of the HSBC group is internationally recognized as a bank and a provider of financial services. It offers a stream of services related to finance and serves to diversify customers across the world in four groups of customers and worldwide business, namely commercial banking, financial services that are personal, private banking and global markets and banking. The group in general and the bank in particular, cater for a wide range of services such as commercial, personal, institutional and corporate, private banking and investment by clients. This company carries out its operation across the border in the U K, Asia, America, Africa, and in the Middle East.

Toys and gender role Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Toys and gender role - Essay Example All of the items designated for girls are grouped together, all of the items for boys can be found in the same location, and items that are considered unisex, such as bicycles, sporting equipment and boardgames, can be located usually in the back of the store or in an aisle that runs perpendicular to the others. These gender-designated aisles often stick out from one another due to the colors of the packages that the toys are in. Girls’ toys are dominantly packaged in pink, though purple is also seen quite often. These aisles appear soft in color and more sweet and appealing to little girls. Boys’ toys are usually packed in blue, with red being the second most-seen color. The boys’ aisles are more loud and solid, easily catching the attention of the young male population. The colors of the packages seem to speak for themselves in regard to what little girls and boys are assumed to be. The pink would suggest that girls are more delicate and innocent, while the blu e reveals that boys are more tough. There is definitely a contrast of femininity and masculinity between how the toys are packaged based on gender. Furthermore, the color pink has long since been determined to be the color for females, while blue has been determined the color for males. Pink tends to be the dominating color for most things for girls, including clothes, school supplies, and their toys, just as blue is the dominating color for most of the things that boys would use.

Real estate development Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Real estate development - Coursework Example Pollutants are thus deposited on the land from the water course. Fly-tippers are also a chief cause of the current state of the land. Their illegal dumping activities have further worsened the state of the land. Dangerous materials are as a result strewn all over the land and would be one of the major obstacles in development of the land. An old windmill is also present in the middle of the site which would cause inconveniences during the construction. In addition buried power cables that are at unknown locations in the land are also a possible hazard for people wishing to undertake any activity in the land. The school is the major party involved with the development project and their main objective is the construction of a new sports’ center. The local council which offered land to the school however has a condition that flats as well as commercial use (artists’ studios) should be developed in the land. Due to these two projects, careful planning should be done before the project is started to prevent any complications of construction. The location of the site is the first major statutory issue that is facing the project. As described the land â€Å"is bordered on one side by the river Wandle, a small water course that has become silted up and polluted†. This location is a very unsuitable area for human dwelling. Working in such an area therefore has a multitude of risks which include being in the wrong side of the law according to the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act (1974). The windmill in the middle of the site dates from the mid-19th century and its demolition would be illegal without consultation of the local planning authority according to the Town and Country Planning Act (1990). This is because it is described to appear in the local list as a building of historic interest. Fly-tipping is an illegal activity according to the Environmental Protection Act

Media Interpretation about the movie ' V for Vendetta' Essay

Media Interpretation about the movie ' V for Vendetta' - Essay Example ‘Saving Private Ryan’ is a war film. It can also be classified as an action or epic genre since most war films are frequently paired with other genres like action and epics. There are various generic features of this film that show us that it is a war film. War films are characterized by the horrors and heartbreaks that come with war (Ebert, 1998). They allow the actual fighting of the combatants against either humanity or nations to offer the principal plot for the film’s action. The films take a denunciatory methodology toward war (Jeanine, 1998). In the film ‘Saving Private Ryan’, we can conclude that it belongs to a war genre as it was set during the incursion of Normandy during the Second World War. The film is evidenced by a graphic as well as a genuine depiction of warfare. The first twenty seven minutes of the film are so intense and they depict the assault that took place in the beach of Omaha on June 6, 1944. There is also evidence of a squa d of soldiers. It can be said to be an action genre because it encompasses fights and battles. Lastly, it can be said to be an epic genre because as it presents the historical events that took place during the Second World War (Halton, 1998). The film ‘Saving Private Ryan’ was made by Amblin Entertainment Mutual Film Company (Collins, 2008). This television and film production company is based in the United States of America. It was founded by Steven Spielberg who was actually the director of this film. Amblin Entertainment Mutual Film Company works with other media companies such as DreamWorks Studio. It is a coincidence that the principal partner of the DreamWorks Studios happens to be Steven Spielberg (Natale, 1998). DreamWorks Studios has been rated as the most successful and influential in the film industry. This greatly enhanced the marketing of the ‘Saving Private Ryan’ film. The reputation that both Amblin Entertainment and DreamWorks Studios have in the film

Policy memo Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Policy memo - Assignment Example The people affected are those who practice other religious elements apart from the Islamic practices. These elements moved to the extent of affecting the government such that Gadhafi’s regime during then resulted to favoring Arabs excessively than other citizens that existed in Libya. These actions caused war and rebellions in Libya. There was a movement for democracy and equality among the citizens of Libya whereby to date religious freedom is not easily that easy attainable. This calls for a democratic strategy that would enhance proper redress to these issues geared at enhancing equality among the people of Libya. Background Aspects of inequality and disparities in the operation of the government of Libya are increasingly taking place without any proper redress. One of the most outstanding factors that insinuate a high level of discrimination in the country is the aspect of religion. The Muslim society is continuously taking over the religious aspects of the country. Additi onally, this affects the form of governance that the Libyan people experience today. A continuous trend in this element of the societal setting will result to an intensified identity division based on religious factors. Unfortunately, such factors may also lead to deterioration of peaceful coexistence in the nation if respective authorities fail to rectify them. This has prompted to the call for a democratic framework that would result to an all-round equality among citizens of the Libyan republic. Discussion The religious and ethnic groups in Libya Libya is one of the countries with extremely diversified ethnic and religious bases. Although the Libyan population has around 97% of Islamic religion, other religious groups like Catholics, Romans, Coptic and Anglicans also exist within the state. This prompts the entire state be a diversified base of religious groups. All these religious groups deserve freedom to worship and engage in various activities based on their creeds. However, the Libyan religious groups have received numerous oppressive practices resulting from the al Gadhafi regime. During this regime, there was a close monitoring of religious activities in the Libyan society. This went to an extent the regime dictated ways in which sermons ought to be. These acts affected the distribution of churches within in Libya. Only Christians had the opportunity to have the limitation of having one church in every city throughout the state. This was also under the condition that they do not engage in political issues. These factors lead to total discrimination among the people of Libya. This happened to an extent that the government received influence from the Islamic laws and religion. Even after the Gadhafi regime, such elements still seem traceable (Van Genugten, 2011). Elements of oppression still exist and it becomes difficult to freedom of religion in Libya. As a result, discrimination has led to disparities even in the political systems. These actions cal l democratic ideas that would favor the religious equality and ethnic recognition. Women in Libya also experienced devastation due to discriminatory practices under Gadhafi’s regime. Bothe sexes in the entire state have enjoy similar privileges under the law. However, women were still experiencing some extent of discrimination in given biological aspects of the society. The family law was one of the effects that influenced women actions in the society. These factors affected the operation of

Global Logistics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Global Logistics - Assignment Example Trucking transportation is suitable for relatively bulky goods and when there is need for faster and economical mode of transport. Marine transport is suitable for transporting bulky goods through water bodies when it is available and cheaper than air transport. Important factors for selecting any mode of transport above are availability, efficiency and cost. From the mining fields, the unrefined copper ore is transported by rail from the minefields to the facilities in Toronto where they get processed and smelted to extract copper for export. From Toronto the copper is transported by rail to CentrePort Canada, where the copper is transported by trucks to the Port of Churchill, an Arctic deep sea port. This sea port has air, rail and road modes of transport, and the closest connection of sea between Asia and the mid-West of North America.CentrePort Canada has one unique difference from the rest of the inland ports because of the vibrant operations of air cargo combined with rail and truck transport connections at James Armstrong International Airport.The Copper is then loaded at Winnipeg Manitoba port and Transported by sea to the port of Nanjing in China. From the port, the copper is transported by rail from the port Nanjing to BeijingAirport China. The expected transit time by ocean from Winnipeg to Nanjing would be about eleven days ( Bauhmol, 2013). The suitable incoterm to be used while transporting these goods is CIF because it is suitable for inland or waterway transport mode, and ensures that the seller is liable until the goods are delivered at the destination port.It covers many risks involved in water transportation in comparison to air transport. In China, electronic goods for export would be transported by rail from the companies of manufacture to Beijing International Airport. From the airport the goods will get transported out of China by Air to CentrePort in Canada, a leading port for cargo

Dreaming Better Dreams Essay Example for Free

Dreaming Better Dreams Essay There is no doubt everyone has dream. It is an experience that occurs during sleep. However, dreams are not only all about sleeping experience. We have dreams in life and these dreams are the things that we aspire to have, the status that we want to establish, or the kind of life that we long to have in the future. Thus, at times we are daydreaming that we are there, about to fulfill our dreams. In Mark twain’s The Mysterious Stranger Satan was mentioned as ghost standing at the behind the food processor and admiring a person’s lawn-mowing skills. It was not clear whether it was a dream but dream sometimes appears as one’s night mare. In the ensuing conversation between Satan and the person, Satan says â€Å"dream other dreams, and better† (120). Here, it was not clear whether Satan was advising the person to have a better ambition in life or he was just inciting a person to think of something beyond what he can do in order to make sin. But what ever is Satan’s intension, there is a truth in his statement. One should really have dreams life, a better dream. Dreams as some psychologist say are simply product of our imagination. They say, when we are asleep, our sub-conscious mind becomes active which us to dream dreams. No one likes bad dreams, but everyone enjoys good dreams. In dream, we can do anything that is impossible in real life and when we are awakened we regret that it was only a dream. The truth is we can dream a better dream that is not merely product of our subconscious mind when we are asleep. Our dreams can turn to reality if we could overcome anything that limits us. Our dreams can be fulfilled if we let all our strength, courage, strength, wisdom, and all our best efforts to pull together for a single purpose, achieving our better dreams in life. An ill Time to Laugh In the Bible, particularly in Ecclesiastes chapter 3, the writer states that â€Å"there is a time for everything in this life. There is â€Å"a time to be born and a time to die†, â€Å"a time to weep and a time to laugh. † This is true even today for most us. There is a proper time for everything. In the second prompt, the context tells us that â€Å"Satan laughs at Theodor and at Theodor’s sheepish neighbor who all throw stones at the hanged woman†(109). The scenario led us to think of something dreadful. We do not exactly why the woman was hanged perhaps she was caught in adultery, or that she was a witch but it looks like neighbors were against her who all throw stones at her while she was hanging dead. The only person conscientious of what is going on perhaps is Theodor. Theodor said to Satan, â€Å"It was ill time to laugh, for free and scoffing ways†¦brought him under suspicion. † Satan protested in this statement saying, â€Å"There spoke the race† â€Å"always ready it hasn’t got †¦ you have perception of humor, nothing more; a multitude of you possess that. This multitude sees the comic side of a thousand low-grade and trivial things-broad in-congruities, mainly: grotesqueries, absurdities, evokers of the horse-laugh† (109). There is something we can learn from this statement. Many people see only the comic side of the things around them or of the people they met and laugh at them. We tend to be evokers of the horse-laugh rather than objective in our judgment of anything that we see on others. Most of the time, we laugh at people even when it is an ill time to laugh. Perhaps, our problem is that we could hardly see when the right time to laugh on other people is. The best thing perhaps for us to avoid becoming evokers of horse-laugh is to always bear in mind the biblical statement, â€Å"there is a time weep and a time to die. † Reference Twain, Mark â€Å"The Mysterious Strangers†

Sui Dynasty Essay Example for Free

Sui Dynasty Essay China is known for its diversity of dynasties which occur within history. Although China’s dynasties do not last forever, many of them have presented impressive advances in government, military, agriculture and economy. However, one dynasty in particular, the Sui Dynasty, remarks its significance with its accomplishments within such a short period of time. By the end of China’s northern and southern dynasties (386-589 C. E. ), the nation was left unified. In 581, Yang Jian, a prime minister of northern Zhou Dynasty, replaced the dynasty with Sui and appointed himself Emperor Wen. Therefore, Yang Jian’s replacement marked the beginning of the Sui Dynasty. Many historians and students claim that the Sui Dynasty was not a significant dynasty due to only lasting a brief thirty-eight years. Nevertheless, the new dynasty is rather extraordinary. Soon after the Sui Dynasty was founded, eight years later, the Sui court defeated the remaining southern dynasty of Chen and finally reunited the whole nation for once. This was not however the end of their actions. The Sui Dynasty developed a unique political system which executed organization within the citizens. Three Departments and Six Ministries were created; the first ever in Chinese history. The Three Departments could be compared to the division of the United States government with the separation of the executive, legislative and judicial powers (Chinese Sui Dynasty). Such departments are known as the Secretariat, the Chancellery, and the Department of State Affairs or the Zhongshu Sheng, Menxia Sheng and Shangshu Sheng. To illustrate, the job of Zhongshu Sheng is â€Å"transmitting the emperors intention, overseeing confidential files, and issuing government orders. † according to travelchinaguide. com. Meanwhile, the Menxia Sheng choose whether to keep or veto orders and Shangshu Sheng carried out orders from the previous departments. On the other hand, the Six ministries included: Ministry for Personnel (Li4 Bu), Revenue (Hu Bu), Rites (Li3 Bu), War (Bing Bu), Justice (Xing Bu) and Works (Gong Bu). For example, the Li4 Bu handled human resources like â€Å"appointing, dismissing, promoting, demoting, selecting, and evaluating state servants. † On the contrary, â€Å"Bing Bu chiefly took charge of the weapons and the books on strategies available for military officials and was also in charge of announcing military orders. (Chinese Sui Dynasty). In addition, these ministries under the Three Department branch of Shangshu Sheng, each controlled four additional departments called Si. In order to improve the selection of political office, the Jiupin Zhongzheng Hierarchical System was replaced with the Imperial Examination System that implemented studying, talent and political examinations. Unquestionably, the innovations injected organization and increased royal power with the limitations the political systems provided. Furthermore, to promote prosperity throughout the dynasty, the Sui developed two new polices known as the Juntian and Zutio System. In attempt to lower the gap between the rich and poor, the Juntian System provided equal divisions of fields depending on the number of people in each home (Sui Dynasty (581-618)). Pursuing this further, the Zutio System increased its governmental income through tax moderation. The changes promoted social economy likewise to agriculture growth. Similarly, advances in ship building helped agriculture rise too. To create a unifying ideology for the state, Emperor Wen introduced Buddhism and Daoism, although Confucianism had been already established. Wen even appointed Buddhist monks to high positions like political advisers (Duiker Spielvogel 256). Emperor Wen’s decision benefited the dynasty with cultural exchange among other nations. By the same time, Emperor Wen started the construction of a 1,400 mile canal known as the Grand Canal. Sui Yangdi, Wen’s son, finished it to set up a communication system within the north and south. Centering Luoyang, the auxiliary capital of the Sui Dynasty, the canal served multiple purposes like transportation, cultural exchange and economical purposes. The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal continues to benefit people all over China† (Sui Dynasty (581-618)). In the light of advances, there is no doubt art took a toll of its own. During the Sui Dynasty, a stone arch bridge called Zhao Zhou Bridge was built by Li Chun which initiated the look on bridges for the future years to come. Also, Buddhist sculptures were well adored along with great the beginning of the porcelain industry. The combinations of all these aspects served as tools for the well-being of the dynasty. The Sui Dynasty lasted only thirty-eight short years. Emperor Wen’s unexpected death in 604 lead to second monarch, Yangguang taking the throne. Historically known as emperor Yang and a typical tyrant, he drove his own dynasty to an end with his ambition for power. Along with overworking the citizens and extreme shortage of food, one specific project of Yang’s destroyed the productive dynasty. Emperor Yang pressured war against Gaoli (modern day Korea) only to fill his own desire of success. Forcing men out of their farmland, families were destroyed and the agriculture and economy of the dynasty plummeted. After being defeated by Gaoli, the Sui Dynasty was left more unstable than ever before. As a result, the regime of the Sui Dynasty became rather unstable and in 618, when Emperor Yang was strangled by one of his subordinates, it completely collapsed. †(Chinese Sui Dynasty) Overall, the Sui Dynasty presented many accomplishments that either took longer to conquer or were never achieved by past dynasties. Improvements in agriculture, creation of economical polices, a new political system and the building of a communicational canal were some of the many projects that were impressively executed by the Sui Dynasty. This statement verifies that even though the Sui lasted less than forty years, the dynasty was by far significant.

Analyse The Factors Affecting The Strategic Plans

Analyse The Factors Affecting The Strategic Plans Tesco plc is a well-established and consistently growing food retailer global company operating in UK and many other countries like USA, Europe, Thailand, China, Japan and so on. It was established in 1919 by Jack Cohen, when he sold some groceries in the stall in East London and then it later lead to the opening of the first Tesco store in 1929 in North London. Using the well-researched and consistent strategy for growth, Tesco has been able to strengthen their core UK business and lead them to expand into new markets. Tesco has already been declared as the no.1 superstore in UK against its rivals Asda, Sainsbury and Morrison. Tesco is still aiming to broaden the scope of their business to enable it to deliver strong sustainable long-term growth by following the customers into the basic and the large expanding markets at cheaper price. Currently, Tesco has over 2200 stores in UK and has been able to reach every possible customer through its different types of outlets as superstore, metro, extra, express and by various means as online shopping through Tesco direct, Reserve and collect plus loyalty/club cards, insurance, clothing, banking and financial services, telecoms, insurance. So this report will be identifying Tescos vision, Mission, its current strategic objectives, evaluates them and analyses the factors that will be affecting strategic plan. The purpose of this case study is to review and determine the organizational strategic aims and objectives identify and analyse the progress towards organizational strategic aims and objectives and to determine and evaluate strategic options to support a revised strategic position. 1.1 Identify the current strategic aims and objectives TESCOS STRATEGY Our well-established and consistent strategy for growth has given the business momentum to grow through the downturn. (1) Long term Strategy According to Tescos official website it is clearly evident that Tesco has a well-established and consistent strategy for growth. The rationale for the strategy is to broaden the scope of the business to enable it to deliver strong, sustainable long-term growth by following customers into large expanding markets at home such as financial services, non-food and telecoms and new markets abroad, initially in Central Europe and Asia and more recently in the United States. Objectives:- The objectives of the strategy are: Successful global retailer Tesco aims to be one of the most successful global retailer organisation in the world. With this idea in mind they have opened stores in many other countries like Canada, USA, Europe, Thailand, China and Middle East. Growth in core UK business Tesco also aims on growing its business as the core UK business as it is originated here. It had 1500 stores in UK in 2007 whereas the number has reached to over 2000 by now. And it has diversified its market from only being a food retailer to selling fuel, clothes, housing, finance, banking, insurance, mobile broad band and electronics. Strong non food retailer As Tesco has been known for its food items and is the leader in food retailing, Tesco also aims to develop the rest of the retailing it has been doing. They are working hard to be as strong in non-food as they are in food. Developing banking and finance Tesco is also working for developing retailing services such as Tesco Personal Finance, Banking, Telecoms and Tesco.com. This is showing that Tesco is determined to help its customers even with the financial and banking services. As the name specifies, Tesco is all set to deliver Every little helps. Community friendly Approach Tesco is determined to put community at the heart of what they do and help maintain the natural balance. Values and aims According to the official website, Tesco feels that: No-one tries harder for customers than Tesco They have mentioned that they understand their customers needs and they want to be the first to meet their needs and at the same time they want to act responsibly to their community in order to avoid any kind of degradation in the environment and ethnicity. Tesco promises to treat people as we like to be treated: Work as a teamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Trust and respect each otherListen, support and say thank youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Share knowledge and experience.so we can enjoy our work. Tesco has been taking regular feedbacks from customers by asking them and the staff what can be done to make shopping with them and working with them better.(2) 1.2 Undertake an evaluation of the component parts of a strategic plan Tescos strategy to diversify the business in 1997 has been a very important landmark and the base to the success of the company. Product Diversification from being only food retailer to non-food retail was the best decision that has made Tesco to be the market leaders in many of their markets in and outside UK. According to Tescos official website (www.tescoplc.com), its vision and mission are: Vision- Every little helps. Tescos vision is very simple as it is stated. It simply focuses on providing every little helps to the customers. Tesco is willing to follow the customers and their basic needs and be the only retailer to help them out with every kind of help they need -small or big Mission Tesco aims to broaden the scope of their business to enable it to deliver strong long-term sustainable growth by following their customer into large expanding markets at home such as financial services, non-food and telecoms and new markets abroad, initially in Central Europe and Asia, and more recently in the United States Chairman s statement Over the past decade Tesco has transformed itself into a diverse international business- we are well-positioned for long-term growth. Tesco is scanning the external environment as much as possible in order to develop its mission and vision. All these efforts from Tesco is making them able to meet their strategic plan to be everywhere, to sell everything and sell to everyone . Managers are taking further actions to full fill their promise. They are satisfying and identifying customer needs through affordable prices, quality products, home delivery, 24 hrs service, recycling, business expansion and technological developments such as online shopping and home deliveries. These evidences shows that; there is a clear alignment between their mission. Vision and strategies. This helps tesco in being market leader in UK retail super markets. 1.3 Analyse the factors affecting the strategic plan For any business to run and meet its long-term strategic aims and objectives, there is a great involvement of the environment. The environment is divided into Macro/external and Micro/internal environment and there factors which are affecting the long-term organisational strategic planning. Some factors both external and internal for Tesco are discussed below: Internal factors are those factors which come from the business and affect it without any regards to the external factors like suppliers, customers, distributors and so on. Some examples are Research and Development, Employee Turnover/employee satisfaction, Physical assets, mission and objectives and so on. The internal environment consists of variables (Strength, Weakness, Threat and Opportunities) that are within the organization itself and are not usually within the short-run control of the Top management. This variables form the context in which work is done. They include the cooperations structure, culture and resources, Key strength form a set of core competencies which the organization can use to gain competitive advantage. (Thomas L. Wheelen, J. David Hunger (2000). Strategic Management Business Policy. p10) By analyzing PEST Analysis, it is observed that Tescos strategic plan is affected by various external factors. They are: 1. POLITICAL FACTORS Government interferes in the economy of every company. Factors such as tax policy, labour law, environmental law, trade restrictions, tariffs and political stability makes the major impact on the business and the society as well as the global market. This year the government has increased the tax from 17.5% to 20%. This has affected the profit of Tesco and is affecting the long-term aims, mission and vision of Tesco. 2. ECONOMICAL FACTORS Economic factors include economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates and the inflation HYPERLINK http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation_rate / Inflation raterate. These factors have major impacts on how businesses operate and make decisions. For example, interest rates affect a Tescos revenue and therefore to what extent a business grows and expands. Exchange rates affect the costs of exporting goods and the supply and price of imported goods in an economy. Example: increased fuel tax, impact of credit crunch on sales. SOCIAL FACTORS Social factor includes the cultural aspects and include growth rate of population, age distribution, health consciousness, career attitudes and health and safety. Changes in the social factors affect the demand for a companys products and how that company operates. For example, the new trend of health consciousness has resulted in Tesco to produce more organic and low fat foods such as skim milk, organic milk, organic vegetables, Lighter choices with nutritional value mentioned in the product and local charities and getting Thailand over fit- 3 million people involved in aerobics Tesco has changed various management strategies to adapt to the social trends such as recruiting older workers and long term unemployed people as a part of social responsibility; Regeneration: where people who are unemployed for more than 6 months had been trained for several weeks and were guaranteed jobs; Community Champions and many volunteers helping the community and local charities. (UK supporting canc er research with race for life to fight against cancer) (4) 4. TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS Technological factors include technological aspects such a Research and development activity, technology incentives and the rate of technological change. Technological changes in Tesco can affect costs, quality, and lead to innovation. Example: Use of self check out service, online shopping and reserve and collect service(new) has saved huge amount of labour cost, has avoided customers from being charged for same product more than one time plus has saved time of the customers. Or use of security system and CCTV cameras has prevented Tesco from having huge amount of stock variances and made the staff more work efficient with the fear of being caught while doing irresponsible activity during their duty hours. 5. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS Environmental factors are growing awareness of the potential impacts of climate change is affecting how tesco operates and the products they offer, both creating new markets and diminishing or destroying existing ones. Zero carbon foot prints, Recycling, sustainability are the areas of focus for tesco, so that the products have been labeled with the message of recycling. Using local resourced products is attracting customers towards the specific food products.Example: climate change affecting Tescos supply and transport. 6. LEGAL FACTORS Legal factors include discrimination law, consumer law, data protection law, antitrust law, employment law, and health and safety law. Assuring Health and safety in all the regions wherever it is expanded is one more challenging Legal responsibility of Tesco. These factors can affect how Tesco operates, its costs, and the demand for its products. Example: Tesco to avoid the legal opposition to expand on the high streets LO2: Evaluate alternative strategies to meet the desired future strategic position. 2.1 Apply a range of strategic analysis tools to audit progress towards strategic aims and objectives SWOT ANALYSIS FOR TESCO INTERNAL FACTORS Strength Weakness  · Giant Leader in superstores  · Financial stability  · Huge Brand name  · Bulk goods importers and sellers  · Product Diversification from being food retailer to non food plus electronics, telecom, insurance, banking and finance  · Competitive pricing-providing goods and services in low price  · Ensuring Health and Safety in different parts of the world  · Maintaining Quality issues as the goods are supplied from different suppliers abroad, out of which some are not very experienced with maintaining high quality.  · Stabilizing itself as a good non food retailer.  · Maintaining their presence and growing customer loyalty in the recently expanded countries  · Expansion in more developing c countries  · The competitors: Asda being competitively cheaper Sainsbury, Morrison being food retailers with comparative pricing  · Environmental issues and corporate Governance responsibility Opportunities Threats EXTERNAL FACTORS Strengths Giant leader in superstore and financial stability Tesco has over 2200 stores and Tesco holds more than 71% share in the UK retail market Its strategic capability explains that it will continue to grow share in food, while increasing space contribution from supermarket will allow it to drive a higher share in non-food. Tescos business growth shows no sign of failing. In the UK, Tescos late 2006 investment into West-midlands based convenience store group TS was billed as the most aggressive move into the neighbourhood market by a big-name retailer so far. They are aggressively expanding and going with acquisitions with the local food stores. The deal has turned Tesco into the countrys biggest convenience store chain, and the company also plans to open up 95 new stores PLC in the UK this year which includes 6 stores purely based on Regeneration Scheme. Tescos general growth shows no sign of failing. Health safety issues and maintaining quality Maintaining health and safety is a major challenge for Tesco. From the suppliers to warehouses and to the store, there is always a risk associated. Plus making sure that the stock is properly handled in the store by stacking them properly and the use of trolleys and their proper management is also the major responsibility of Tesco. They must make sure that every single person who is linked to Tesco should be safe while they operate their operations. Maintaining the quality and standard of goods they supply is also a major challenge to a bulk good retailer like Tesco as they have to get goods from their suppliers all around the world. They have been very fair to their suppliers and they want them to be decent to them by maintaining the standard of the goods they produce and supply. Opportunities Business growth and expansion in Europe is successful but it still has to work in some other parts of world. They have just started exploring Asia but being all over Asia and the rest part of the world is a strong opportunity. Being established as a non-food retailer is another very good opportunity for Tesco. Since the start of diversification, they are working to prove Tesco not only as a grocery store but a superstore providing customers with every little helps. Weaknesses 2.2 Review and assess the expectations of major stakeholders and their influence upon the organisational strategy Engagement with stakeholders is helping Tesco identify new risks and opportunities and to ensure that their long-term goal and strategy is sustainable. In some cases, they have found that working with stakeholders in partnership can help deliver shared goals. Tesco feels that they might not be able to satisfy all stakeholder concerns all the time but through proper engagement they can do their best to balance competing demands. Tesco is very committed to having a productive dialogue with its stakeholders inorder ensure that they understand what is important to them. This is allowing themselves the opportunity to maintain their position. Engaging with stakeholders includes customers, employees, suppliers, investors, government, regulators and non-governmental organisations.() (www.tesco.com/cr2010) The major stakeholders of Tesco plc.are: Customers Customers need to be able to trust tescos business and they will only trust only if they believe that there is appropriate engagement in regular basis with the stakeholders. Tesco has been using various strategies to able to win the trust of its stake holders by following various strategies such as Cost leadership, diversification, Tesco believes that if they can offer what the customer needs than surely they will come back and purchase again. This is helping to establish and gain lifetime loyalty of the customers. The launch of Club cards is helping customers satisfy their needs and quality services are the functional business strategy of Tecso. They have been innovating more than 2000 new products (food/non-food) every year depending upon the demand of the customers. Example: Launching organic, dietary and healthier food options, Nutritional values in the packaging and making sure that the quality of the food is maintained by doing mystery audits in the suppliers factories. And the new self check out system where customers can grab whatever they want and go has helped the customer to manage their time and made it simple to operate. According to the Tesco website, Tesco says No-one tries harder for customers: Understand customers. Be first to meet their needs. Act responsibly for our communities. Treat people as we like to be treated: Work as a team. Trust and respect each other. Listen, support and say thank you. Share knowledge and experience.so we can enjoy our work. We regularly ask our customers and our staff what we can do to make shopping with us and working with us that little bit better. This proves Tesco has been treating their customers as the core of their business and are providing every simple and small helps by being fair to them. (http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/about_us/values/) Employees Tesco employees 285,000 employees. Philip Clarke, Chief Executive from 2011 says If we dont look after our staff the chances are they will not look after our customer. (http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/media/board_announcement/) Tesco has been using the term A great place to work in which they include; Our staff have told us what is important to them to be treated with respect, having a manager who helps them, having an interesting job and an opportunity to get on. Helping achieve what is important to our staff will help us to deliver an Every Little Helps Shopping Trip for our customers. (http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/about_us/values/) The statement clearly states that they treat everyone with respect and dignity. At the same time they have great managers who are always ready to help the team and make their job interesting everyday and giving them good opportunities by job rotation, job enrichment and job enlargement. These activities take the employees off from the regular job pattern, motivates them to learn and do new things everyday. And staff are the basic point of contact to customers and it is very important to get them right to gain satisfaction and loyalty of all our customer. Employees are the most important and basic level of contact with customers. Every customer remembers his first experience when he visits the store and the way he had been assisted. A good and motivated employee always treats them very well. So Tesco has been very focused to make sure the employees do their duties in the right way and makes sure that every customer and even the employee is being treated in the right way. Rewards wise also Tesco is the only organization which has been giving bonuses to their staff on doing their regular jobs. For maintaining the accuracy of stock level they get 15% bonus, till accuracy 5% bonus and Mystery shoppers result 5% bonus. Apart from this there are more benefits and rewards the employees are getting like holiday pay, outstanding service award, discount in shopping, career breaks, free company shares. Tesco has recently given a huge amount of share profit to its employees (02/06/10). More than 216,000 Tesco staff, from checkout operators to drivers and managers found out that they will share a  £105 million bonus pot as the company announced details of its biggest ever Shares In Success scheme(http://www.tescoplc.com/plc/media/pr/pr2010/2010-06-02/). Supplier Tesco has been supplying goods from different parts of the world as the bulk retailer has to meet the demands of huge retail market segment like Kenya, South Africa, Spain, Scotland, Wales, and has high expectations of its suppliers. They have built a strong relationship with their suppliers, have given them the best value for their customers and given their customers the confidence of maintaining good standard through out their chain. They are very focused in treating the people in the right way so that they perform better and which will automatically helps in improving sustainability in their supply chain by encouraging suppliers to make proper investment in products and stable work. Due to their decent pricing, Tesco is confidient to keep the trading for longer period of time and is willing to get enough support from its supplier by being with them and helping them maintain their ethical and food standards. Tesco has been sourcing products from the countries which has cheaper good employment practices, cheap labour and less regulations to maintain the level of margin. (http://cr2010.tescoplc.com/en/buying-and-selling-our-products-responsibly.aspx) Tesco has been paying more for the diary suppliers. Kenayen suppliers had been supplying goods since long time. Tesco launched an awarding agenda where they had been launching surprise visits and evaluating the hard work done by the suppliers and rewarding them afterwards. Tesco has also been providing necessary training to the suppliers staff in Kenya, South Africa. The following diagram shows the competitive rivalry and shows the effect of stake holders in the business. 2.3 Analyse, interpret and produce a structured evaluation of the organisational strategic position Note: The challenges faced by the organisation may be identified, for example, competitive environment, external climate and globalisation (if applicable) may be examined. The knowledge gained by studying Porters three generic strategies and PESTAL analysis may be applied. Political view reflects that the economic downturn- credit crunch has lead to high number of unemployment. But Tesco has been able to help a number of people by providing them jobs. and therefore helping the unemployment. Regeneration: People who are unemployed for more than 6 months had been trained for several weeks and were guaranteed job. Three new stores were opened and 320 people were employed. 6 more stores will be opening this year. Community Champions: Tesco has Community Champions and many volunteers helping the community and local charities, Healthy living for customers: is one of key promise by Tesco and is celebrated by producing healthy products like lighter choices, nutritional value mentioned in the product, getting fit-Thailand over 3 million people involved in aerobics, UK supporting cancer research with race for life to fight against cancer. Tesco is also instrumental as a retailer in supporting carbon reductions and have also encouraged their customers to make low carbon choices .They created a  £100 million Sustainable Technology Fund for this purpose. At the same time they are maintaining the eco-friendly approach by helping reducing the pollution-they are passing the message to their customers to reuse and recycle the wastages. LO3: Decide upon a strategy and identify how, if required, you would justify your selection to meet the required future strategic position. 3.1 Identify and develop a range of alternative strategic options to meet strategic aims and objectives Note: This section requires the candidate to apply his/her own judgement so that a few alternate options are visualised and discussed,. For example the candidate may propose emphasis on alternate products, or increased after sale service, or following aggressive marketing strategy etc. During the 1980s Professor Michael Porter from Harvard Business School developed the model of generic competitive strategies. He called the strategies generics as they can be undertaken by businesses of any size or type, even if they are non-profit organisations (Hunger and Wheelen [2001]p82). He argued that companies only have three strategies to choose from: Cost leadership Differentiation Focus Porter also believed that before a company decides which strategy to adopt, it must know its competitive scope: the breadth of its target market, the range of products it wishes to produce, the distribution channels, the type of buyers and geographic areas it wants to serve and the related industries it will be competing in (Hunger and Wheelen [2001]p82).The cost leadership strategy is aimed at the broad mass market and requires actions like cost minimisation in research and development, services, sale forces, advertising and so on. By doing this the company will sell its product for smaller price than its competitors but still achieve reasonable profit. This also creates entry barrier for the new market entrants, as it would be difficult for them to match the low cost of the existing producer. (Hunger and Wheelen [2001] p83). The differentiation strategy is aimed at the broad mass market as well, but this time creating a product which must be perceived as unique by its customers, for example through design, The strategy aims to gain customer loyalty and therefore making the buyer insensitive image, technology, customer service, dealer network and so on to a higher price. This again will also make entry more difficult for new entrants (Hunger and Wheelen [2001] p83). (Hunger and Wheelen [2001] p83) argue, differentiation strategy generates high profits as it creates a better entry barrier. Low cost strategy however creates increase in market share. Focus strategy concentrates on serving only a certain niche market as either a cost leader or with a differentiation strategy. In cost focus a firm seeks a cost advantage in its target market only, in differentiation focus a firm seeks differentiation in its segment (Lynch [2000]p.568) The following diagram may illustrate Porters model in more detail: Fig: Porters Generic Model (http://www.quickmba.com/strategy/generic.shtml) Tesco has been implementing the cost leadership strategy since its establishment. And after going to non-food retail in 2004, it also applied the diversification strategy in their business to meet the customers every needs. Tesco launched its own broad band in 2004 followed by Home plus in 2005. Globalisation has been another important step taken by Tesco. Though Tescos Fresh n easy did not do very well in USA in the first 2 years of its establishment, now it is maintaining its grip among the customers, according to Sir Terry Leahy Chief Executive. Tesco has been very successful in Europe and in Asia. To flourish more of its business in South Asia, Tesco has an exclusive franchise agreement with Trent, the retail arm of Tata Group to support the development of their Star Bazaar format by the end of 2010 in India. Since Tesco has already used the first two strategies, it still has the Focus strategy in hand. Tesco can still aim on the niche markets and work on that segment of the market in order to gain more market share. Tesco has recently opened their first baby store in Manchester which provides all the necessary materials to the toddlers including clothes, push chairs, strollers, car seats, high chairs etc. Similarly, the start of DRIVE-THRU store has covered another segment of people who drive and have very strict time schedule. Apart from that Tesco should also work on its weaknesses. Maintaining Health and safety in all parts of the world with its globalisation and maintaining quality of goods upto the Tesco standard at all times is the major challenge. Tesco should make sure that their ware house, suppliers factories and even the shop floor should be Health and Safety approved and should have all kinds of equipments that helps in maintaining it such as use of helmets, gloves, safety goggles and also training the people with right procedures of lifting weight, handling chemicals and so on. Tesco must make sure that every product they sell is 100% hygienic to the customers and has the same quality and standard at all times. Because of having different suppliers all over the world and buying goods on bulk, Tesco might not be have been able to keep proper maintained standard at all times(as some issues were raised last year regarding the bread supplier) So focusing strategy is not only a good idea to get a grip over the niche market segments but also to maintain its brand value among the existing customers. 3.2 Determine and justify the strategic option that meets the revised strategic position Note: Out of the alternate options in 3.1 above, the one which is considered to be most suitable to meet the new strategic position, may be identified. Justification may be given as to how this selected option is likely to fit in the present position. Out of the various strategies suggested above in 3.1,Focus on maintaining quality and brand value at all times all over the world without a single compromise is the most important option which is most suitable to meet new strategic position and is likely to fit in the present position. Tesco has already been market leader in Cost leadership and has used Differentiation strategy to its limit by understanding the needs of people to the basic extent and providing them the services and satisfying them. They have already started working in the niche marketing strategy by starting DRIVE-THRU store and Kids store. Tesco is aiming to launch mortgages in the first half of 2011, followed by current accounts in the second half of 2011/2012 financial year.

Alexander Ghram Bell :: essays research papers

Alexander Graham Bell's invention of the telephone grew out of his research into ways to improve the telegraph. His soul purpose was to help the deaf hear again. Alexander Graham Bell was not trying to invent the telephone, he was just trying to help out people in need. Young Alexander Graham Bell, Aleck as his family knew him, took to reading and writing at a precociously young age. Bell family lore told of his insistence upon mailing a letter to a family friend well before he had grasped any understanding of the alphabet. As he matured, Aleck displayed what came to be known as a Bell family trademark--an expressive, flexible, and resonant speaking voice. Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, the inventor spent one year at a private school, two years at Edinburgh's Royal High School (from which he graduated at 14), and attended a few lectures at Edinburgh University and at University College in London, but he was largely family-trained and self-taught. He moved to the United States, settling in Boston, before beginning his career as an inventor. With each passing year, Alexander Graham Bell's intellectual horizons broadened. By the time he was 16, he was teaching music and elocution at a boy's boarding school. He and his brothers, Melville and Edward, traveled throughout Scotland impressing audiences with demonstrations of their father's Visible Speech techniques. Visible Speech was invented by their father but he didn’t have much luck with it. It is a technique were ever sound that comes out of a persons mouth can be represented with a visual character. In 1871, Bell began giving instruction in Visible Speech at the Boston School for Deaf Mutes. Attempting to teach deaf children to speak was considered revolutionary. Bell's work with his deaf students in Boston would prove to be a watershed event in his life. One of his pupils, Mabel Hubbard, was the daughter of a man--Gardiner Greene Hubbard-- who would go on to play a vital role in Bell's life and work. While Mabel herself would one day become his wife. Bell felt that a course had been set and he would go on to consider himself, above all else, a teacher of the deaf Bell had the good fortune to discover and inspire Thomas Watson, a young repair mechanic and model maker, who assisted him enthusiastically in devising an apparatus for transmitting sound by electricity. As the two collaborated on ways to refine Bell's "harmonic telegraph," Bell shared with Watson his vision of what would become the telephone.

Oramed Pharmaceutical Inc. Technology and Politics Essay -- Business A

Oramed Pharmaceutical Inc. Technology Oramed is a contemporary pharmaceutical company that is mainly focused into developing new cutting-edge medicinal diabetic drugs that have not been in existence before. Similar to other pharmaceutical companies, technology is a key factor in the success such companies. In an exclusive interview on www.wallst.net with Nadav Kidron, Oramed’s CEO, he was quoted describing Oramed Pharmaceuticals Inc. as â€Å"an Israeli company focused on the development of oral delivery solutions based on proprietary technology† (PR Newswire Association LLC, 2007). Kidron’s comment demonstrates the value of technology to Oramed causing the company to patent its technology and product. Lately Oramed focused on the development of a new diabetic drug called ORMD0801. This product, in a form of a gel capsule, can be consumed orally. ORMD0801 in turn, plays a role in eliminating the need for insulin delivery by the means of self-injecting and constant painful testing of insulin blood levels. In order to accomplish this function, Oramed will need sophisticated technology and certainly top-notch high-tech equipment. Therefore, Oramed has to in an ongoing basis to secure â€Å"in-licensing and other means of obtaining additional technologies to complement and/or expand its product portfolio† (The New York Times, 2012). Oramed’s emerging ORMD0801 delivery is a technology in its-self. It advances the ability of the body to absorb peptides and proteins through the intestinal track wall without creating any changes to the active ingredients of the drug (Oramed, 2009). This was possible by introducing a substitute â€Å"drug delivery system† (Oramed Pharmaceuticals Inc., 2010). This delivery system will successfully deliver the drug to ... ...012/03/20/idUS125396+20-Mar-2012+BW20120320 PR Newswire Association LLC. (2007). Exclusive Interview With Oramed Pharmaceuticals Inc. CEO, Nadav Kidron on www.Wallst.Net. PR Newswire. ProQuest Newsstand. http://proquest.umi.com/pqdlink?vinst=PROD&fmt=3&startpage=-1&vname=PQD&RQT=309&did=1256371181&scaling=FULL&vtype=PQD&rqt=309&TS=1333335886&clientId=20655 PR Newswire Association LLC. (2009). Frost and Sullivan Honors Oramed Pharmaceuticals With the 2009 European Oral Drug Delivery Technology Innovation Award. PR Newswire. http://proquest.umi.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/pqdlink?vinst=PROD&fmt=3&startpage=1&vname=PQD&RQT=309&did=1844533951&scaling=FULL&vtype=PQD&rqt=309&TS=1333049930&clientId=20655 The New York Times. (2012). Business Day. Retrieved from NY Times.com: http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/oramed-pharmaceuticals-inc/index.html

I’m the King of the castle by Susan Hill Essay

I’m the King of the castle by Susan Hill is a chilling tale of a childhood bully. The story tells the tale of how a boy called Kingshaw is driven to suicide by his companion Hooper. Kingshaw and his mother moved from their rented apartment in London to Hooper’s cold and evil home the Warnings so Mrs. Kingshaw could provide company for Mr. Hooper and a mother role for Hooper while her son Kingshaw could provide a companion for Hooper to make a friendly family home. The parents are very superficial both lacking their partner for many years and they both lacked the ability to show their love to their children. Instead of showing their love they turned a blind eye to the bullying of Kingshaw and pretended that every thing was fine because their relationship was becoming closer. Little did they know that the closer they became the more chilling and frightening the relationship between Hooper and Kingshaw became. Early on in the book Hooper and Kingshaw learn their roles of Bully and victim respectively and throughout the book the story relies on the balance of power between Kingshaw and Hooper. In my opinion the story I’m the King of the castle revolves around hate, cruelty and isolation. Before Kingshaw came to Warnings Hooper and him were both happy but the parents were alone, as the parents became closer and grew to love each other Kingshaw and Hooper grew to lean their roles as Hooper was not an experienced bully and Kingshaw was not experienced at being a Victim to torment and isolation. Even though the final tragedy of the death of Kingshaw is mainly down to the torment of hopper the parent’s failures contributed to the final tragedy a great deal, as many of their failures were fatal. Both parent did not know how to bridge the chilling gap between them and the children, neither want to show their love as they are to self absorbed and neither wanted or even tried to provide stability. Even though I’m the King of the castle was quiet depressing I enjoyed it nether less because I found the story very moving and alarming. I thought the book was very well written and it flowed well. I thought that many of the characters and their situations were convincing even though I thought the final tragedy was a bit extreme. I thought the book was set in the exactly the right scene, even though this book was written many years a go it still provides the everlasting chill of a childhood bullying tale and brings you to think of all the recent tragedy’s caused by bulling. I would recommend this book to anybody interested in the horrors of child hood bullying and to a bully or a Victim who need to learn a lesson. I think this book is suitable for any one above the age of twelve. I would quiet like to read another of Susan hills books such as the Woman in Black as the theater production was chilling and I enjoyed her style of writing.

The Business Value of Information Systems. Case Study: Amazon.Com

THE BUSINESS VALUE OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS CASE STUDY: AMAZON Isabel Maria Arroyo Moreno Business Information Technology Module BSc Business Management with HR Greenwich School of Management, University of Plymouth (London) Submission date: 8th December 2011 Word count: 2. 776 Table of Contents Executive Summary4 The Business Value of Information Systems5 Introduction5 Business Value of Information5 Business Information Management through Information Systems6 The Value of Information Systems6 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Systems6 Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems7 Supply Chain Management (SCM) Systems8 Information Systems and the Changing Business Environment8 Amazon. com Information Systems10 Introduction10 Amazon. com’s Information Systems Value10 Amazon’s Customer Relations Management (CRM) system11 CRM System Business Value11 Amazon’s Enterprise Resource Management (ERP) System Value13 Amazon. com’s Supply Chain Management (SCM) system13 Amazon. com’s SCM system Value13 Amazon IS and the external changing environment †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 5 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 16 ? Executive Summary Business information management requires the use of information systems, which make possible the conversion of data into useful information to be used by decision makers in organisations (Chaffey, 2004) The acquisition and further deployment of such systems requires organisations to make expensive investments prior to know whether they are going to produce the desired business improvements. Therefore, delivering value for money from information systems investments has become a very serious issue for many organisations. There are several examples in both the private and public sector of expensive failures, but there are fewer published cases of success (Ward, 2006) The purpose of the present paper is to explain how added business value emerges from the use of information systems. The paper begins with a review of the related literature and then, it takes a practical approach through a case study analysis which intends to set out the value of information systems to a successful organisation such as Amazon. Therefore, the case study will illustrate how different information systems have enabled Amazon to achieve a solid competitive advantage by improving its marketing techniques and the efficiency of its distribution channels in a time in which the fast development of technologies have come to redefine the commerce model within the retail industry. Indeed, the use of Internet has changed the way in which people acquire goods and services, and nowadays there is a strong shift towards online shopping that is forcing retailers to go onto the Net if they want to remain competitive. In this regards, Amazon has been a pioneer in using information systems to anticipate changes in the retail industry environment, and in addition, it provides the perfect example of how a company can obtain value for money from information system investments. ? The Business Value of Information Systems Introduction Business information management is essential to organisations in order to support strategic decisions. Information adds value to organisations as it allows improving products and services, reducing business costs and developing new innovations. Information systems are used in order to manage business information in such a way that allows organisations to increase profitability, to improve productivity and to gain other intangible benefits with the objective of achieving sustainable competitive advantage and company success. In addition, the use of information systems allow organisations to adapt to external changes in the business environment, otherwise they could not remain competitive. Business Value of Information Information management is essential to businesses in order to support operational processes, organisational performance, and strategic decisions affecting their position in the market place. According to Marchand (2000) information can create value for organisations by: †¢Adding value to products and services through a better understanding of customer characteristics and needs, as customer activities are monitored to develop competitive strategies. Reducing costs and making business processes and operations more efficient, as information enables organisations to use fewer resources and to improve communication. †¢Supporting organisational strategic decisions and helping with risk management assessment †¢Enabling innovations and new product and service developments (Chaffey, 2004; Oestreich, 2010) Business Information Management through Information Systems Business information management involves the use of information systems (IS) which, according to the UK Academy for IS, are â€Å"the means by which organisations and people, using information technologies resources, gather, process, store, use and disseminate information†. (www. ukais. org; Chaffey, 2004) Therefore, IS are computer based systems that collect, process and stores data, making possible its conversion into useful management information –data mining process- to be used by decision makers within organisations. (Davis & Olson, 1985; Lucas, 1990; McLeod, 1995 cited by Ramesh, 1997). The Value of Information Systems During the 1990s, there was a great argument about the real value delivered by expensive organisational investments on IT and IS, as studies found out that there was weak correlation between IS investments and increased business performance (Solow, 1987; Brynjolfsoon, 1993; Strassman, 1997 cited by Dans, 2003; Chaffey, 2004) However, studies by Delone and McLean (1992, 2003) and by Jacks (2009) demonstrated the importance of IS to the creation of business value and competitive advantage. Jacks, 2011) According to Jacks (2011) IS make organisations successful by either: †¢Increasing profitability: sales growth, profits, ROI, reduced costs, market share increase. †¢Increasing productivity: business process outcomes, operational efficiency, service performance †¢Intangible benefits: customer satisfaction and loyalty, industry performance, quality improvement. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Systems CRM systems are intended to build and sustain long-term business relationships with customers of an organisation. Organisations may increase their profitability if they can retain customers and sell additional products to them. Research by Reicheld and Schefter (2000) showed that by retaining 5% more customers, online companies can increase their profits by 25% to 95%. (Chaffey, 2004) Consequently, CRM systems focus on the activities aimed to market products and services to customers in a more efficient way. By understanding customer characteristics and needs, organisations can elaborate tailored marketing campaigns to acquire, retain, extend and select potential customers, which ultimately will translate into increased sales and organisational profitability (Steinberg, 2006; Chaffey, 2004; Lee-Kelly, 2003) Table 4: Marketing activities of CRM CRM marketing activitiesObjectiveInformation based marketing techniques Customer acquisitionGain new customersTailored marketing communication Customer retentionEncourage repeated purchasesPersonalized/tailored ommunications Customer extensionUp-sell (more expensive products) Cross-sell (additional products) Personalised/tailored communication Customer selectionIdentify the most responsive groups of customersDatabase analysis and modelling Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems ERP systems integrate all departments and functions across an organisation, thus eliminating IS’ isolation in departments such as finance, HR, marketing and the w arehouse, and replacing them with a single system where all important information is connected together (Wailgum, 2008; Steinberg, 2006). ERP systems add value to organisations by: †¢Integrating customer order information: ERP systems integrate order information, product shipment and invoices in one single system, enabling organisations to improve order tracking, and to coordinate inventory and shipment among different locations simultaneously. Therefore, the order process speeds faster through the organisational departments, and customers get their orders faster and with fewer mistakes. †¢Reducing inventories: ERP systems streamline the order fulfilment process and help with the delivery process, thus improving the flow of the organisation’s supply chain. Wailgum, 2008; Steinberg, 2006) Supply Chain Management (SCM) Systems SCM systems coordinate all supply activities of a company such as supply and distribution network, logistic activities and inventory management; and these add value to an organisation by (Gabe, 2010; Chaffey, 2004): †¢Increasing process efficiency: SCM systems help to reduce t he cycle time of business processes and the resources needed to execute them, thus reducing costs per order. †¢Reducing supply chain’s complexity: SCM systems enable organisations to order directly from suppliers, thus reducing the costs of distribution. Improving data integration within the supply chain: SCM systems enable information sharing on product demand between the organisation and its suppliers, which improves inventory management efficiency through the use of VMI (vendor-managed inventory). The benefits include reduced cost of paper processing and lower inventory holdings. †¢Reducing costs: SCM systems enables organisation to outsource certain assets, to lower costs through price competition and to offer better service quality. (Steinberg, 2006; Chaffey, 2004) Information Systems and the Changing Business Environment The environmental influences on any organisation change rapidly, and therefore it is important to continuously monitor the current environment and to anticipate future trends through â€Å"environmental scanning or sensing† activities, in order to respond to changes accordingly. Organisations that either do not monitor environmental factors or do not respond to changes adequately may lose competitiveness or even incur in failure. As example, IS managers need to constantly assess the relevance of new technologies and to monitor technology trends and innovations in order to remain competitive. (Chaffey, 2004). ? Amazon Information Systems Introduction Amazon is the biggest online retailer in world, although many consider that it is more a leading software developer or â€Å"information systems’ company with a little pick, pack and ship service† (Hof, 2003). This world-class retailer, which began doing business as an online bookseller in the mid 90s, has changed with the time and currently it offers its customers a wide variety of products such as electronics, clothes, beauty products, and so on. In addition, Amazon operates as a service provider allowing other retailers to sell on its site and it also commercializes cloud storage services and its own tablet post-PC device –Kindle-. Businessweek, 2003; Hof, 2003; Jenkinson, 2005) Therefore, Amazon has become the Net’s premier shopping destination in 2011, and data, information technology and information systems constitute its most valuable assets. (Manjoo, 2011). Amazon’s Information Systems Value Between 2001 and 2003, Amazon investe d $300,000 into building new distribution centres and acquiring information systems software. However, experts hardly criticised the company asserting that it would never recover the investment, (Gabe, 2010) and even financial analysts such as Lehman and Brothers expressed concerns over its cash flow situation. Foley, 2000) Although it took Amazon long time to become profitable, additional revenues rose once the company got enough customers and sales to pay off the initial IS investments, and their bet for information systems technology enabled the company to overcome competitors such as Barnes and Nobles in the 90s and more recently Wal-Mart Stores Inc (Hof, 2003; Gabe, 2010). Amazon uses information systems to improve profitability faster and its current financial situation, strategic position, market share, and intangible benefits give evidence of that the company’s IT and IS strategies worked as expected. According to Hottovy’s report (2011) Amazon doubled in size from 2008 to 2011 with $34 billion in net sales and its current revenue growth is close to 40%. The company has a valuation of $325 per share and generates return on invested capital exceeding the 50% – note that Amazon invests mainly in IT and IS technologies –. Moreover, it has an active customer base of 137 million users that accounts for an annual growth rate of 20%. All in all, Amazon has one of the most capital efficient-models in e-commerce and its low cost operations, network effect and focus in customer service provide the company sustainable competitive advantage (Hottovy, 2011). Amazon uses ERP, SCM and CRM information systems. Oracle (ERP) built a multi-terabyte database for the company, while SCM software was acquired to control costs and to improve shipping and logistics efficiency. In addition, Amazon’s CRM system intends to work up e-marketing efforts through the analysis of customer’s preferences and the provision of products for specific segments (Foley, 2000). Amazon’s Customer Relations Management (CRM) system Amazon’s CRM system uses the following applications to gather customer information: †¢A database of customers with personal, profile and transactional data which include their purchase history and activities †¢An order processing system that includes the record of credit card information and is linked to a delivery system †¢A web-page system that takes customer information such as customer feedback, personal interests, wish list and product review records, and customises formats. †¢Automated communication ystems: e-mail and message systems and order information systems that ensure personalised and relevant communication with customers (Hof, 2003; Jenkinson, 2005; Hottovy, 2011) CRM System Business Value Amazon’s CRM system creates business value through integrating customer sales, services and communications effectively (Jenkinson, 2005; Manjoon, 2011) In order to detect patterns of consumer behaviour, customer information is analysed by data mining experts using statistical CRM and artificial intelligence (SAS) software; while collaborative filtering technology automatically analyzes past customer purchases. The analysis provides processed information that serves to elaborate profiles of customer individual interests, which enables Amazon to send them tailored product recommendations in order to increase product sales (Foley, 2000; Hof, 2003; Jenkinson, 2005). In addition, CRM data mining activities also compare individual profiles to other customer profiles and bring them together into similar groups. As result, the company has taken traditional campaign techniques and move into faster campaigns to target different customer segments more effectively. Thus, Amazon has the ability either to launch broad campaigns to millions of customers, or more focused campaigns to a few thousands and tailored recommendations to individuals, due to a better understanding of customer characteristics and needs (Foley, 2000; Hof, 2003). Summarizing, Amazon’s CRM system combine advertising, service and selling to acquire customers in order to encourage repeated purchases through cross selling and up selling tailored marketing techniques. Jenkinson, 2005) As a result, Amazon has achieved high levels of customer commitment and loyalty. Research by Millward Brown (BrandZ study) showed that 54% of US buyers are loyal to the company, as compared with a 10% of the industry average; while a 67% of its orders are from repeated customers. Moreover, Amazon customers are more likely to buy at a higher rate than loyal customers across the category, as 40% of Amazon customers are frequent users compared to an 8% of the average category (Jenkinson, 2005). ? Amazon’s Enterprise Resource Management (ERP) System Value Oracle is the ERP system used by Amazon and it consists of a multi-terabyte database that integrates all the information related to customer orders such as purchase history, product shipment and invoices, thus enabling to streamline the order fulfilment process (Wailgum, 2008) Oracle automates the steps of this process by taking customer orders and process them into invoices, so when a customer comes online to buy a product the order system communicates directly with the warehouse system to find the adequate distribution centre, while customers receive communications about their purchase status and delivery times (Bacheldor, 2004) The company recognises that without this system it would be very difficult to coordinate and control the flow of merchandise in their business operations (Bell, 2011). Such integration of information creates business value by allowing Amazon to speed faster the order fulfilment process, as we ll as to improve visibility of order tracking and to reduce distribution mistakes. In fact, the company has reduced its customer service contacts per order by 50% since 1999 due to fewer distribution mistakes (Businessweek, 2003). Amazon’s Supply Chain Management (SCM) system Back in 2000, Amazon. om made expensive IS investments into building its high quality automated warehouses, and nowadays their supply chain is one of the most efficient and sophisticated in the world (Jenkinson, 2004; Businessweek, 2003, Gabe, 2010). A CRM system controls all supply chain activities of Amazon, such as transportation management, shipping activities and inventory planning, with the aim of reducing operational costs and optimizing logistic operations (Gabe, 2010) Amazon’s SCM system Value In 2000, Amazon’s operational costs accounted for about a 15% of sales revenue because the process of picking and packing different products was not very efficient. Employees had to enter dat a into the system manually and chutes holding pending orders were backed up when products did not arrive on time. (Businessweek, 2003) Nowadays, the implementation of a SCM system has enabled Amazon to reduce the cycle time and the resources needed to complete its operational processes, thus making them more efficient. The SCM system examines Amazon’s customer demand to identify items that are often purchased together in order to place them at the front of the supply lines, thus enabling to speed faster the process flow (Businessweek, 2003) The SCM system also allows to find where the items are physically located, so after receiving an order the system will send a picker where the product is shelved. In the case of multi-orders, the system generates optimised pick lists, finding the shortest possible route for picking the product. (Gilmour, 2003). As a result, Amazon’s operation costs fell down from 15% of total sales revenue in 2000 to a 5% in 2003, and lower costs have enabled the company to offer more product discounts and free shipping in orders over $25 (Businessweek, 2003). Moreover, Amazon’s CRM system enables information sharing on product demand between the company and its suppliers, which improves inventory management efficiency. Amazon’s CRM system is linked to its suppliers’ IS in order to share information in real time about orders and shipment. Thus, Amazon can hold lower levels of inventory stock in warehouses as it receives goods from its suppliers only when needed and accordingly to customer demand levels. Hof, 2003; Foley, 2000) Thanks to the CRM system, Amazon reduces costs by carrying only a 15 day’s worth of inventory while traditional retailers must stock up to 160 days’ worth of inventory in their warehouses (Hof, 2003). In addition, information systems’ i ntegration between suppliers and Amazon enables customers to buy goods directly from suppliers. The company forwards orders to its suppliers which get the product to customers directly; therefore the complexity of the supply chain and costs of distribution get reduced. (Knowledge Wharton, 2009). Amazon’s IS and the changing external environment. Information systems have provided Amazon with competitive advantage since it as been able to adapt its business model better than its competitors to the changes that the retail industry has experienced during the past decade such as the shift towards online shopping due to a more widespread use of Internet (Manjoo, 2011) Thus, Amazon forced traditional retailers to go onto the Net in the 90s (Hof, 2003), while nowadays, it has the best record with new products -as they are constantly monitoring environmental changes- and their web services, cloud computing services and Kindle device are true innovations that have changed the rest of t he industry (Manjoo, 2011) ? Conclusion This paper demonstrates the importance of information management and information systems to the creation of organisational business value and competitive advantage. According to Jacks, information systems contribute to organisational success by increasing profitability and productivity, and providing other intangible benefits such as customer loyalty. Subsequently, Amazon’s case study illustrates the perfect example of how an organisation obtains value for money of their information systems investments. The effective use of information systems has allowed the company to improve the efficiency of its distribution channels, to provide cost effective convenient products to its customers and to achieve the highest levels of customer retention and loyalty within the e-retail industry, which ultimately has helped Amazon to increase profitability and to achieve a solid financial position. In addition, information systems have provided the company with notorious competitive advantage over their competitors since it has been able to better adapt its business model to the changes that the retail industry has experienced during the past decade, such as the shift towards online shopping due to a more widespread use of Internet. ? REFERENCE LIST †¢Books and journals 1. Bausch, P. (2003) Amazon Hacks: 100 Industrial-Strength Tips and Tools (1st Edition) O’Relly. USA 2. Chaffey, D. et al (2004) Business Information Management: Improving Performance using Information Systems (1st Edition) Prentice Hall Pearson Education. England 3. Hottovy, R. (2011) â€Å"Amazon. com AMZN Hare Stock Focus† Morningstar StockInvestor Vol. 11 Iss: 2 pp. -9 [Online] Available at: http://web. ebscohost. com/bsi/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? sid=d0f8a490-3601-4df8-b033-0d48d0b16c5a%40sessionmgr113&vid=11&hid=8 [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 4. Jacks, T. et al (2011) â€Å"A Framework for the I mpact of IS on Organizational Performance†. Business Process Manager Journal Vol. 17 No. 5, pp. 846-870 [Online] Emerald Group Publishing. Available at: www. emeraldinsight. com/1463-7154. htm [Accessed 18/11/2011] 5. Lee-Kelley, L. et al (2003) â€Å"How e-CRM can enhance customer loyalty† Marketing Intelligence and Planning Jounal Vol. 21 Iss: 4, pp. 239-248 [Online] Available at: http://colinwatsonleeds. co. uk/RMarticles/LEEKeeley. df [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 6. Melville N. et al (2004) â€Å"Information Technology and Organisational Performance: An Integrative Model of IT Business Value†. MIS Quarterly & The Society for Information Management Vol. 28 Iss: n. 2, January, pp. 283-322 [Online] Available at: http://www. misq. org/review-information-technology-and-organizational-performance-an-integrative-model-of-it-business-value. html[Accessed 18/11/2011] 7. Oestreich, T. (2010) â€Å"The Value of Information† Journal of Management Excelence Issue 9, Ju ne 2010. Oracle [Online] Available from: http://www. oracle. com/us/solutions/thoughtleadership/journal-mgmt-excellence-june-2010-116920. df [Accessed on 12/11/2011] †¢Publications 8. Bacheldor, B. (2004)† From Scratch: Amazon Keeps Supply Chain Close to Home† Informationweek [Online] Available from: http://www. executivemanagementskills. com/pdf/amazon. pdf [Accessed on 11/11/2011] 9. Businessweek (2003) â€Å"Reprogramming Amazon† Bloomberg Businessweek December 23th [Online] Available at: http://www. businessweek. com/magazine/content/03_51/b3863115_mz063. htm [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 10. Dans, E. (2003) IT Does Matter. European Business Forum [Online] Available at: http://profesores. ie. edu/enrique_dans/download/IT%20Does%20Matter%20-%20EBF. pdf [ Accessed on 18/11/2011] 11. Foley, J. 2000) â€Å"Amazon’s IT Agenda† Informationweek. com News, November 6th [Online] Available at: http://www. informationweek. com/811/amazon. htm [Accessed on 1 8/11/2011] 12. Gabe, M. (2010) â€Å"Lessons in Distribution† Mortgage Banking [Online] Available at: http://www. allbusiness. com/banking-finance/banking-lending-credit-services-mortgage/14266140-1. html [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 13. Gilmour, K. (2003) â€Å"Amazon Warehouse† Internet Magazine, Sept. 2003 [Online] Available from: http://www. kimgilmour. com/articles/archive/amazon_warehouse. html [Accessed on 14/11/2011] 14. Hof, R. (2003) â€Å"Amazon. com: The Wild World of e-commerce† Business Week Archives [Online] Available at: http://www. usinessweek. com/1998/50/b3608001. htm [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 15. Jenkinson, A. (2005) â€Å"Amazon: Bounding Customers with Integrated Service† Centre for Integrated Marketing, University of Luton [Online] Available at: http://www. centreforintegratedmarketing. com/gfx/documents/amazon_bonding_customers_with_integrated_service. pdf [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 16. Knowledge Wharton (2009) â€Å"Fit for the Holidays : Amazon is Shaping Up and Shipping Out†. [email  protected] [Online] Available from: http://knowledge. wharton. upenn. edu/articlepdf/2382. pdf? CFID=172480957&CFTOKEN=80041908&jsessionid=a8305ac77adc802c10107e653f5a2f715b56 [Accessed on 14/11/2011] 7. Manjoo, F. (2011) â€Å"The Great Tech War of 2012† Fastcompany October 19th [Online] Available at: http://www. fastcompany. com/magazine/160/tech-wars-2012-amazon-apple-google-facebook [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 18. Ray, R. (2010) â€Å"True CRM: It is Beyond Technology† Smallbiztechnology, June 29th [Online] Available at: http://smallbiztechnology. com/archive/2010/06/true-crm-its-beyond-technology. html/ [ Accessed 18/11/2011] 19. Ramesh, A. et al (1997) â€Å"Establishing a management information system† FAO Corporate document Repository. [Online] Available at: http://www. fao. org/docrep/W5830E/w5830e0k. htm [Accessed on 10/11/2011] 20. Steinberg, M. 2006) â€Å"Enterprise Applications: A Conceptual L ook at ERP, CRM and SCM† Hill Associates Inc. [Online] Available at: http://www. hill. com/resources/whitepapers/enterprise_apps. pdf [Accessed on 18/11/2011] 21. Ward, J. (2006) â€Å"Delivering Value from Information Systems and Technology Investments: Learning from success†. [Online] Available at: http://www. som. cranfield. ac. uk/som/dinamic-content/research/documents/deliveringvaluereport. pdf [Accessed on 12/11/2011] 22. 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The Swot of Emirate Group

Introduction: The Emirates Group is a highly profitable business with a turnover of approximately US$ 12 billion and over 40,000 employees. The Group comprises of Dnata, the successful Airport Ground Services and Travel Industry division, and Emirates, the Group's rapidly expanding and award winning international airline. Emirates global network now sees it flying to over 100 destinations across 6 continents, operating a modern fleet of over 130 wide-bodied aircraft.Today the Airline has orders worth over US$ 58 billion for 170 more of the latest aircraft, with plans to operate to many more destinations in the months and years ahead. Essential to our continued business success as we expand will be the ongoing employment of high quality people to join our multi-cultural team of over 150 nationalities. In addition to lifestyle and tax free salary benefits, the Emirates Group also offers professional development opportunities to help employees develop new skills and grow their careers s uccessfully. Swot AnalysisStrengths: As a competitive and globally recognized airline industry, Emirates Airline has been able to have strategic position in the global market. In fact, when Emirates Airline streamlined their business, it already had the advantage of size. With several consecutive years of multibillion profits, the company has outshined its major rival companies to become a model firm. Also, Emirates Airline’s decision to focus on diversified market and by considering and entering the cargo shipping and their customer service was a courageous one, but it has led to its current position as one of the top global brands.The firm has likewise been characterized by many analysts to have an ability to adapt to changing market conditions in order to maximize profit. Listening to and identifying with consumers has allowed Emirates Airline to construct a corporate culture that bears little resemblance to the Emirates Airline of the past. The ability to continuously ren ew and improve their service in the airline and aviation while effectively managing the needs of their target audience is the key to maintaining Emirates Airline’s leader status and the key for succeeding in having strategic position.Weaknesses: Not all of diversification and approach have been successful and this can be considered as one of the flaws or weaknesses of the company. Analysts have accused the company of focusing too much on their high-end acquisitions and diversification in spite of the risky effects of such decisions. it does not cater for a lot of places in the USA, middle class and budget travelers Opportunities: The basis for long-term competitiveness is the ability to develop continuously new generations of more advanced airline and aviation services.Therefore one of the company’s opportunities is to tap into more markets as a result of the innovations being introduced in the aviation. Localized capabilities enabling or even enhancing such co-operati on will always make a difference when it comes to first-mover advantages. The opportunity to penetrate new growth markets where internet adoption still has room to go, Leveraging Emirates Airline’s infrastructure business to get first choice and stronger position against rivals is also an opportunity.They also have the opportunity to get ahead of their rival companies, and this should be the case, since the said market is a potential sizeable source of income. The trend of considering the internet market also shows cases new opportunities for the company. Threats: Rival companies are major threats to the business. Emirates Airline, in contrast, started out in other lines of business and entered and airline capabilities of the company.The firm’s inability to keep up with innovations, or recognize its demand, creates a threat for them, a risk that they could be displaced by other industry leaders. The legal and political environment in the countries where they operate in could potentially affect the business negatively. Their apparent complacence could be used by their rival companies to their advantage, and take Emirates Airline by surprise, with the latter realizing too late that they are not the industry leader anymore

Amanda Cross and the Female Sleuth

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines sleuth as a slang word for sleuthhound or detective who follows a trail to uncover a mystery, crime or unknown variable. In literature mystery is defined as a distinct subgenre of detective fiction in which an unknown event, often a disappearance or murder, causes the stories protagonist, or main character in the story, to solve the crime or mystery. Mysteries do not require crimes or the assistance of law enforcement as the common detective fiction or whodunit but they do depend on an unknown variable that the protagonist must determine, (NationMaster, 2003).Mystery fiction is not a new genre of story telling. Throughout time man has been interested in solving the riddles of life. So much so that there is significant evidence to indicate that civilization has enjoyed a good mystery as far back as Ancient Egypt and Greece. However, it was Edgar Allan Poe and his first published story The Murders in the Rue Morgue published in the mid-nineteenth cent ury that made mystery fiction the popular brand of novel it is today. The Murder in the Rue Morgue first appeared in Graham’s Magazine, (Mystery Network, n. d. ).After Poe there have been a number of influential mystery writers including Wilkie Collins, also known as the father of the mystery, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the Scottish author of the Sherlock Holmes series. Sherlock Holmes is not only one of the most widely known mystery series but is also considered to be the most famous literary figures in history, (Mystery Network). Holmes was first introduced to readers in The Strand Magazine when they published the story â€Å"A Study in Scarlet. † Edward Stratemeyer, the author of both the Hardy Boy’s and Nancy Drew series of juvenile mysteries, Carolyn Keene and Agatha Christie.Amanda Cross is a twentieth century mystery writer who contributed much to the genre. Her semi-feminist voice transformed the common sleuth from a run-of-mill private detective into a strong willed female literature professor. Cross, who was struggling with gender equality issues at the University of New York, was tired of the tried and true mystery novels that were being produced a-dime-a-dozen. She set out to produce mysteries are intelligent and contain a role model worthy protagonist. Cross is the pen name of Carolyn Heilbrun.Her first novel, In the Last Analysis, features Kate Fansler, the female sleuth featured in a 14 book series. Fansler is a witty and highly educated literature professor at the prestigious New York University and the majority of her adventures are set against an academic background. Fansler, as opposed to traditional detectives, solves the crime through interviews and conversations with those involved. Most of the mysteries involve the death of either a student or professor and it is up to Fansler to solve the crime. In The Last Analysis, Fansler recommends Janet Harrison see psychoanalyst Dr. Emmanuel Bauer.Bauer is a friend and former lover of Fansler’s. However, shortly after starting sessions with Bauer, Harrison is found shot to death on his couch. Fansler is on the case to prove that her friend is innocent. However, Harrison has led an elusive life in which she has very few friends or acquaintances, making it hard for Fansler to track down a possible killer. However, Fansler’s knowledge of Freudian concepts and her personal integrity helps her to catch the killer. Although Heilbrun strays from the norm her first novel is typical of an amateur-detective mystery. Fansler knows a crime has been committed.She seeks information pertinent to the case by following leads and seeking information from those involved. Fansler then comes up with a theory about what happens, which proves to be correct. Also typical is the fact that the protagonist is a strong female character. Throughout Heilbrun’s novels Fansler is portrayed as strong independent woman, much like Heilbrun. She enjoys eating and drin king and marries later in life. Fansler differs from a majority of female protagonists in mystery fictions because she solves the mystery through Freudian analysis and personal interviews.This is a mystery of the mind in which Fansler does not have physical clues that lead her to find the real killer. Other mystery writers have used female protagonists as well. Contemporary author Nevada Barr features the female protagonist Anna Pigeon, a national park ranger who leads the reader through various adventures in the backcountry solving mysterious deaths. Pigeon is similar to Fansler in the sense that they are both independent modern women. They are both professionals who solve mysteries within the backdrop of their chosen profession.Pigeon and Fansler both represent strong female characters. Yet, Pigeon represents a more traditional character in modern mystery fiction since she follows a trail of clues left behind by the murders as opposed to using literary and psychoanalytical clues t o solve the mystery. Similarly well known mystery writer Sue Grafton began her alphabetical mystery series with A is for Alibi. In her mystery fiction protagonist Kinsey Malone represents a courageous and sassy female private eye. Grafton too takes a more traditional approach by utilizing a private investigator as the main character.Others authors such as Sandra de Helen utilize logic and facts to solve mysteries as opposed to following physical clues. De Helen’s novel The Hounding features two female detectives Shirley Combs and Mrs. Mary Watson. De Helen has a series planned surrounding the two who is in some way related to Sherlock Holms and his assistant Watkins and they solve crimes similarly. These characters all follow typical mystery genre traditions. But not all mystery writers follow tradition. Sue Grafton, a well known mystery writer, started an alphabetical mystery series in which murders are solved by a female feline and a small dog.Grafton strays away far from t radition with characters but stays within the realm with the practices that her characters use to unravel the crimes. Different writers use different methods of crime solving as well as types of characters. However, there is a pattern of female mystery writers creating professional and strong female protagonists. Most of the main characters in modern mystery writers today have had to overcome obstacles in a male-dominated world. They often face gender discrimination or stereotypical peers that create obstacles that must be overcome.For example, Ellen Godfrey's protagonist Jane Tregar is tough and feisty. Tregar, a professional working in a search firm, has had to battle her way up the corporate ladder to a senior position in an executive firm. She utilizes technical know-how to uncover information and corporate savvy to survive her male peers and their scrutiny as well as solve mysteries and be successful in the male-dominated business world. Another modern author Sara Paretsky, cur rently extremely popular with mystery readers, has created the protagonist V. I. Warshawski.Warshawski broke ground as the first female in an all male dominated world of the dangerous back streets of Chicago. Warshawski proves that women can be tough and sensitive and that physical difference between men and women do not mean that women are not capable of performing well in dangerous situations. In the Last Analysis, Fansler fully understands the plight of women within the world of academia. â€Å"Kate was startled by Professor Anderson, who was an eighteenth-century man with a strong distaste for all female writers since Jane Austen (Cross, 2001, p. 3).† This is a common war in the literary department. Literature has been male dominated for a number of years. This is caused in large by the fact that women were not taught to read or write for centuries. However, as women have begun to take their seat at the head of English departments across the nation male peers may scoff. T here is a large portion of male literary enthusiast who tries to minimize the female impact on literature today. Heilbrun later retired early from her post at the University of New York to avoid dealing with this same type of professional peer.But gender discrimination and differences are not the only ones that haunt Heilbrun. Age also seems to be a factor. Heilbrun laments that her students are young and full of life and the longing for their own futures. However, as a professor years goes by and nothing changes. â€Å"Spring on an American campus, even an Urban a campus as this one, inevitably drove the faculty into a mood of lassitude, irritation and fastidiousness. Perhaps it is because we are getting old, while the students, like the Caesar’s crowds on Appian Way, are always the same age.Gazing at the students who sprawled or made love on every patch of available grass, Kate longed, as she did every spring for a statelier, less untidy era, (Cross, 2001, p. 3). † H eilbrun used Fansler to express her own apprehensions about aging as well as the endless cycle of youth that professors endure each college enrollment period. Heilbrun did not reveal her herself as the author of the Amanda Heilbrun mysteries until she was offered tenure at the University due to her fear of criticism from her peers and having her literary work interfere with her academic work.However, age criticism may have also been a concern. The idea of age is transcendent in Heilbrun’s mysteries. Fansler is already in her forties at the start of In the Last Analysis and has never been married nor does she have children. Although latter in the series she does marry she has no concerns about being a â€Å"homemaker† or playing into any other typical stereotypes of women. In fact Fansler, although discreet, has a number of lovers. The idea of the woman as a non-maternal figure breaks social traditions. But the primary social concern of In the Last Analysis surrounds pr ofessional ethics and human integrity.Throughout Heilbrun’s series there are two main characters, Fansler and her friend and future husband Reed Amhearst. Fansler is old-fashion yet she has a penchant for martinis and she comes from a background of wealthy parents to supplement her teacher’s salary. This is convenient since she does not seem to work much as she uncovers her friend’s innocence. As she tries to prove her friends innocence she solicits the help of Amhearst, an attorney, who goes out of his way to help Fansler and repay her a favor. Amhearst is portrayed as Fansler’s love interest and a protect figure.Throughout the book, In the Last Analysis, Amhearst tries to caution the headstrong Fansler who gets involved despite his warnings. Fansler even goes so far as to put her reputation and career on the line to prove that Bauer, her friend, is innocent. Her old-fashion sensibilities coupled with a reckless and courageous manner makes Fansler a grea t candidate to become an amateur sleuth and enforce the idea of human integrity. There are several other examples of human integrity in the book as characters assist Fansler in solving the case. Heilbrun’s novels have been successful overall.However, she was criticized. Especially for her first book, In the Last Analysis, in which it is obvious that Heilbrun has yet to fine tune her technique. Although professional news agencies such as The New York Times had positive reviews a number of readers felt Heilbrun tried to hard to present Fansler as smart and independent. Thus she came across as being pretentious. However, after her first novel the series gained in popularity in part due to the fact that her subsequent novels take place within the world of academia and Fansler’s character can put her intellect to better use.In conclusion, Heilbrun has made a significant contribution to the mystery fiction genre. She is the first mystery writer to create a mystery in which t he crime must be solved using conversations and analytical skills as opposed to physical clues and traditional evidence. Heilbrun also sets the stage for female authors who create strong and independent protagonists that break the mold of female stereotypes. In keeping with many other female authors Heilbrun’s female protagonists are working in a professional field despite gender inequalities.Throughout In the Last Analysis and other Heilbrun novels there are overtones of age related issues as well as gender differences within the world of academics. Both may reflect challenges that Heilbrun has faced as a Professor at the University of New York. Heilbrun utilizes a common amateur-detective mystery technique yet she strays from the norm by implementing psychoanalytical methods of solving the crime as opposed to relying entirely on physical clues.In addition to concerns about professional ethics, specifically within the medical field in which patient-client relationships come into question, there is a predominant theme of personal integrity. Integrity is often displayed throughout the novel in the form of personal favors and character’s taking risks for each other. Fansler is able to solve the crime using intelligence, Freudian analysis and a little help from her friends. Variations from the common mystery novel include the use of wit and analytical strategies to solve the case as well as the protagonist being an older woman without cause to seek out marriage or family life.Heilbrun and many of her peers have chosen to expand the image of â€Å"detective† to include smart and professional women who are employed outside of the law enforcement or private investigation fields. Although Heilbrun’s protagonist is similar to the main characters in other mysteries by her peers, Heilbrun deviates by choosing to make Fansler an example of a non-traditional woman. She is neither interested in marriage or children and has taken a number of love rs to prove her modern values despite an old-fashion background. Heilbrun paved the way for female mystery writers as well as the female protagonist.Through her popular series and the popularity of Kate Fansler a whole new genre of mystery books has evolved. These new series feature witty story lines and fast paced plots while featuring strong protagonists and often feminist views. After Heilbrun’s success there have been a number of other mystery writers following similar strategies including Nevada Barr, Rita Mae Brown and Sue Grafton. References Cross, A. (2001). In the Last Analysis. : Fawcett. Mystery Network (n. d. ). Evolution of the mystery genre. Retrieved Dec. 27, 2008, from www. mysterynet. com NationMaster (2003). : Rapid Intelligence.