Friday, December 27, 2019

Topic sentence. Thomas Hobbes interpretation of natural...

Topic sentence. Thomas Hobbes interpretation of natural law is not only radically different, but inconsistent with the traditional view. This can be seen through the similarities and differences found when comparing Thomas Hobbes theory, and Thomas Aquinas’ theory in regards to their view of man’s ultimate goal, their definition of natural law in regards to its relationship with human rationality, and lastly how they view the meaning and relationship of divine providence and religion in natural law. The following pages will define natural law, and will analyze all three issues listed above through comparing and contrasting Hobbes and Aquinas’ view. Hobbes view is utilitarian. The Leviathan is the marking of when traditional natural law†¦show more content†¦In Hobbes†¦.he reveals how firmly he disagrees with traditional natural law theorists, Hobbes sates that, â€Å"I put for a general inclination of all mankind a perpetual and restless desire of power after power that ceases only in death.† In other words, Hobbes reveals that he believes that men cannot be satisfied by the â€Å"cultivation of virtue† as a political end; man will fight for more power until the fight itself kills them. According to source Hobbes states that, â€Å"All men have in common is the continual fear and danger of violent death† (Hobbes, 1956: Ch.13, 107-108). Hobbes is basically stating that because death is less likely to occur when there is peace, men will therefore desire a peaceful society only because it is in their best interest. Source , Hobbes states that, â€Å"The passions that incline men to peace are fear of death, desire of such tings are necessary to commodious living, and a hope by their industry to obtain them.† These are prime examples of where the tradition view towards natural law contrasts with Hobbes theory. Natural law tradition generally believes it is human nature to have peace, and avoid evil, wh ere Hobbes on the other hands believes man is only interested in having peace because it is for his own benefit. In current terms, Hobbes has a more realist view on natural law tradition. Thomas Hobbes and Thomas Aquinas have radically different perspectives on how the term natural law should be perceived. HobbesShow MoreRelatedLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 Pages................................................................................... 107 Creating Helpful Definitions ............................................................................................................ 110 Different Definitions for Different Purposes .............................................................................. 111 How to Avoid Errors when Creating Definitions ..................................................................... 115 Review of Major PointsRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 PagesRespond to Turbulent Change? 578 Myth or Science? â€Å"Men Experience More Job Stress Than Women† 596 Self-Assessment Library How Stressful Is My Life? 600 An Ethical Choice Responsibly Managing Your Own Stress 601 glOBalization! Work–Family Stress in Different Cultures 604 Point/Counterpoint Responsible Managers Relieve Stress on Their Employees 607 Questions for Review 608 Experiential Exercise Power and the Changing Environment 608 Ethical Dilemma Changes at WPAC 609 Case Incident 1 Starbucks Returns

Thursday, December 19, 2019

The Ethical Debate of Embryonic Stem Cell Research

Stem cell research is often at the forefront of heated ethical debates due to its assessment of human life. If stem cell research cannot be ethically defended, then it should not be conducted. â€Å"You cannot defend a study ethically unless the presumed cost is lower than expected benefits. The cost-benefit analysis of scientific research needs to include human/animal discomfort/risks, environmental issues, material costs, etc† which is necessary to support the positive outcome which the research claims to provide (experiment-resources, 2008). The two opposing ethical arguments which have to be defended morally are that of utilitarianism and deontology. â€Å"Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that determines the moral value of an act in terms of†¦show more content†¦A free and virtuous society, which America aspires to be, must reject practices that devalue and violate human life at any stage from conception until natural death† (FoxNews.com, 2001). There are several new methods that have been developed since the start of the highly controversial stem cell debate which rectifies the major differences on both sides. New solutions such as Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPS) acts as an alternate method to embryonic research in that it uses cellular reprogramming of adult skin cells.â€Å"The benefit of iPS is that stem cells can be created without the use of embryos, however, the cells resemble embryos in that they can, theoretically and under the appropriate conditions, be made to differentiate into any type of cell found in the body † (Phillips, 2010). . There are also techniques being developed that use amnionic fluid, or stem cell extraction techniques that do not damage the embryo, that also provide alternatives for obtaining viable stem cell lines † (Phillips, 2010). The only caveat to all of these newly developed alternatives is that no solution has been studied long enough to claim that it can be an effectiv e substitute 100%. â€Å"To begin with, demand forShow MoreRelatedThe Debate Concerning Embryonic Stem Cell Research Essay1406 Words   |  6 Pagesof embryonic stem cell research. The embryonic stem cell debate has polarized the country into those who argue that such research holds promises of ending a great deal of human suffering and others who condemn such research as involving the abortion of a potential human life. If any answer to the ethical debate surrounding this particular aspect of stem cell research exists, it is a hazy one at best. The question facing many scientists and policymakers involved in embryonic stem cell research isRead MoreEssay on The Pros and Cons of Stem Cell Research928 Words   |  4 Pagespros and cons of development in stem cell research. This report will provide background to the debate, its social significance, parties that are involved and analysis of the arguments related to the topic researched. 2.0 The Issue and background to the debate Those who favour stem cell research are optimistic about the continued developments in stem cell research will open doors to many breakthrough discoveries in biomedical science. The scientific and ethical questions arise as rapidly as theRead More Embryonic Stem Cell Research: How does it affect you? Essay1557 Words   |  7 Pages Embryonic Stem Cell Research: How does it affect you? nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Embryonic stem cell research is widely controversial in the scientific world. Issues on the ethics of Embryonic Stem (ES) cell research have created pandemonium in our society. The different views on this subject are well researched and supportive. The facts presented have the capability to support or possibly change the public’s perspective. This case study is based on facts and concernsRead MoreStem Cell Research Debate1119 Words   |  4 Pagesï » ¿Stem Cell Research Debate There are only a small number of issues that are controversial as far as the public, the government and scientists are concerned. The father of all issues, however, is the debate that revolves around the ethics of stem cell research. Stem cells can be defined as those cells in an embryo that essentially give rise to the entire organism (Capra, 1999). In the contemporary world of today, the issue of embryonic stem cell research is one of this controversial significantRead MoreEssay about Pros and Cons of Embryonic Stem Cell Research1261 Words   |  6 Pagesagainst Embryonic Stem Cell research mainly because they consider it unethical to use aborted fetuses for research. The two main issues concerning the research are the ethics (Cons) and the benefits (Pros). In any scientific case, ethics must always be considered. But the use of fetuses is something that is of the utmost importance. The costs are generally measured based off of people’s feelings, morals, and knowledge about the subject up for debate. The use of aborted fetuses for stem cell researchRead MoreIs Embryonic Stem Cell Research Ethical?951 Words   |  4 PagesIs Embryonic Stem Cell Research Ethical? The introduction and expansion of embryonic stem cell research initiated a highly debated ethical topic. Can our society agree to disagree? What are embryonic stem cells? What are stem cells? Is all stem cell research considered abortion? Debates surrounding embryonic stem cell research is further complicated by social standards and needs, religious beliefs, and personal morals. In November of 1998, a group of researchers announced that theyRead MoreStem Cells : Research For Disease Modeling And Drug Development1609 Words   |  7 Pages Stem Cells in Research without the Ethical Issues: Ways around Embryonic Stem Cells Deborah Baluyot Western Governors University Abstract: Using various academic journals and articles found online (Internet), this paper seeks to cover the use of human stem cells (hSCs) in research for disease modeling and drug development. Specifically, the ethical controversies that come with using embryonic stem cells (Lo Parham , 2009) and possible ways to get around them, will also beRead MoreThe Importance of Stem Cell Research Essay example1686 Words   |  7 PagesOver the last decade the use of stem cells has been a controversial and heated topic. Debates have exploded over every aspect of stem cell research. It has been speculated by scientists that stem cell research may have the potential to cure harmful diseases or even regrow organs. However some find that the health issues seen in earlier attempts to use stem cell transplants and ethical controversies involved with extracting stem cells, make it very dangerous to further investigate. In actuality theRead MoreThe Debate Over Embryonic Stem Cell Research1543 Words   |  7 PagesWhile embryonic stem cell research has been ongoing for more than 30 years, it has only become a controversial topic over the past decade. The embryonic stem cell was first isolated in 1981 by two scientists at the University of Cambridge. However, it wasn’t until 1998 at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where the first batch of embryonic stem cells were created in a test tube. In 2001, President George W. Bush approved the use of federal funding for research on this topic, following this actionRead MoreThe Ethics Of Stem Cell Research1365 Words   |  6 PagesStem cells are cells that have the potential to develop into different types of cells in the body. Stem cells also act as a repair system for many tissues in the body by dividing repeatedly to replenish other cells within a person (National Institutes of Health). Stem cell research seeks to further the advancement of the use of stem cells as well as to find an ethical way to study them. In November 1998, researchers found a way to isolate and culture human embryonic stem cells, (Bevington 2005).

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Personal Analysis Essay Music free essay sample

Music means something different to each person. To me, music is a form of expressing myself. It allows me to express feelings and emotions that you cant describe in words. Music allows me to express emotions that dont yet have a name, emotions that you cant find in a dictionary, but you can definitely feel. Music allows me to tell a story without saying a single word. Music allows me to be who I really am. Music has had a huge impact on my life. Even In my early years, my Dad would sit with my brother and me at the piano and play songs for us.Hed even sing along Like a dog to make it more interesting. I wanted to follow In his footsteps, and started playing piano. I taught myself everything I knew for the first 2 years I played It. Its almost like piano had been waiting for me, Like everything was already In there Just waltzing to be discovered. We will write a custom essay sample on Personal Analysis Essay: Music or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I had already been playing violin for about five or SIX years at that point, and this discovery of the plants In me only strengthened my relationship with music. Music to me became Like a best friend to anyone else.I could sit at the piano after a bad day and play, and It would make me feel better. I could confide in my music, and I would be okay. Im almost always listening to music. Whenever I was given permission in class to listen to my music, I would pop my headphones in and tune out the world. I had (and still do have) this understanding of music. I can feel what its trying to say to me, I can get the message even with no words. Music has always been that one solid rock I can lean on, that one subject that I never got tired of.Theres always another lesson about music to be learned. There are infinite lessons about music to be learned. Music defines me in a very personal way. It exposes my emotions, and gives me an opportunity to share those emotions with other people, whether they are fellow musicians or an audience. Music is an emotional release. It is an outlet that never gets tired of hearing me vent. Music lifts that heavy load off my shoulders at the end of a long day. Music defines me as more than just a musician or an artist, but as a simple human being, too.

Tuesday, December 3, 2019

International and Comparative Human Resource Management

Introduction Multinational firms are faced with various challenges while operating in the host country. The challenges are particularly worse for multinational companies operating in countries where there are differences in cultural and management practices between the host country and the multinational firm’s country.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on International and Comparative Human Resource Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Multinational firms operating in mainland China and in the UK or US face these challenges in their operations. China is one of the countries that values Foreign Direct Investment. This is because of the belief that, Foreign Direct Investment benefits a country via receiving products and equipment that are up to date. It also brings forth advanced practices in Human Resource Management. A lot of foreign investors from all over the globe have successfully started bu siness enterprises in china, despite the challenges they face. The rapid economic growth that has been witnessed in China in the recent past has attracted a lot of foreign investors. Many foreign organizations have shown interest in investing in the Republic of China. Firms that have established their operations in China are concerned about using the right management practices, in order to be successful in their endeavors. However, this has not been without various challenges that these multinational companies have had to deal with. The process of globalization, which began a few years ago, has opened up a lot of opportunities for business to be carried out globally. The restrictions that used to hinder companies from venturing into business practices overseas have now been eliminated. The nations are currently able to venture into businesses globally. This paper entails a theoretical discussion on international and comparative HRM. It shall then address the various challenges that a fictitious chain of supermarket, MRH, from Australia is likely to face as it establishes branches in three overseas markets namely China, the United States and the United Kingdom.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Theoretical discussion on international and comparative HRM Different countries have their own human resource management practices that may not be necessarily identical to the Human Resource Management practices found in other countries. Multinational corporations planning to venture into other countries to start their operations there are likely to encounter some challenges while trying to adopt to the HRM practices of the host country. Multinational companies face numerous challenges, especially in attracting and keeping qualified personnel. For example, in China, there is a massive shortage of talents although the country has been producing the largest number of graduates annually. This is attributed to the unpractical system of education that is practiced in China. Most of the graduates pursue degree courses that are not marketable in the labor market. The graduates end up being jobless. Multinational companies have also had to deal with the challenge of expatriate failure due to the culture shock they experience once they start their operations in China. Initially, multinational corporations operating in China tried to use Standardized Human Resource Management practices in their operations. Most managers believed that this would be very effective and efficient in their operations. However, this approach was not workable because they realized that every country has its own unique culture as well as beliefs on the right organization behavior. Multinational corporations planning to launch their operations are likely to encounter cross-cultural and cross-national challenges. These challenges may lead to conflicts in the strategies made. Localization of human resources by multinational corporations operating in China is very important to overcome most of the human resources challenges that most multinational companies face. China is one of the countries that has the largest population and produces the most graduates annually. Therefore, it is considered one of the largest labor markets for multinational companies. There are numerous corporations from various countries globally that are launching their operations in China because of the numerous benefits they expect to get.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on International and Comparative Human Resource Management specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More HRM is a managerial function that is mostly dependent on an organization’s arrangement as well as the state related factors. HRM is influenced by factors such as national culture and the people’s beliefs and traditions. Other fac tors that affect HRM include labor market and the set rules and regulations. Each nation has its own national business system that affects the HRM practices within the country (Alon and John 2008). Some of the HRM practices such as the importance of an organization to attract and pay workers fairly are universal. However, others are shared only within a certain region or country. The government in the US and UK is involved to a large extent in the people’s welfare as they work for various institutions. This usually happens through formulation of policies that favor workers. Clear HRM Challenges for Entry in China Challenge in labor management practices According to Bergsten (2008), differences in labor management practices and employment systems between China and the UK/US are also a major challenge to multinational companies. In the past, China did not have human resource management in various corporations. They operated under some practices that had replaced the conventiona l human resources management. The government was involved in managing the operations of all companies during the industrial period. It would tell the managers of these companies what they were supposed to produce. However, during the 1980’s, this practice was reformed and the practice of human resource management was introduced. This was mostly because of the foreign investors that were already investing in China. Young people were given jobs by the government and not by the human resource managers. These jobs were considered to be permanent and no one had the authority to remove these people from the positions they held, even if they failed to perform to the required standard. Managers in Chinese companies were therefore, de-motivated because they received no incentives and were not in a position to discipline any worker who did not perform because the positions they held were given by the government and were permanent in nature. Due to lack of motivation, most managers in C hina lost interest in their work and their technical skills because they were not put into practice.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More When multinational companies launch their operations in China, they face a challenge in human resources because it is very hard to find qualified managers to entrust with the operations of the corporation (Bergsten 2008). There has been a change in how multinational firms are viewed in China since they began their operations in the 1970’s (Alon John 2008). Before the 1970’s, China had not opened up opportunities for multinational companies to operate in the country. However, after the country opened its economy to foreign investors during this period, a lot of investors ventured into various businesses in this country. At the beginning of their operation, the multinational companies that operated in China were treated very well. They paid lesser tax than companies that operated locally. Additionally, there was no duty imposed on goods they imported (Bergsten 2008). These companies enjoyed the support of both the government and the local people. They were admired and f eared by the local people and other companies operating locally. The local people showed open preference for products and services offered by these multinational firms. However, this view has changed over the years and the Chinese people prefer to buy products from local companies. Cultural Challenge Apart from the human resource management challenges faced by multinational companies operating in China, there is the challenge of cultural differences. According to Stopford (1998), culture is a very important factor and it is very influential in the operation of any multinational company. Stopford (1998) observes that people from different nations have their own view on how business should be conducted. Any multinational company planning to start its operations in China ought to study the business culture of the Chinese as well as their fundamental beliefs. The three philosophies that have been prevailing in the Chinese culture are Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. These are viewed as philosophies rather than religions. These philosophies are upheld by the Chinese people, and may conflict with some of the beliefs that multinational corporations such as MRH may hold. This is a major challenge because such conflicts are likely to affect the running of this chain of supermarkets in China. According to Roach (2005), language is also an aspect of culture that multinational companies have to deal with. English is still the language that is considered as the international language that should be used in business. Most of the Chinese managers are not proficient in English; therefore, multinational companies find it very difficult to work with them (Paulson 2008.). Communication between the managers and the owners of these multinational corporations is affected since the only language that can be used by both parties is English. Multinational companies that would like to employ Chinese managers in their firms have to spend their resources training these managers in ord er to have maximum returns from the services they are expected to offer. This is because the managers are very important in linking the multinational corporations with the local people. Another challenge that the multinational corporations operating in China face is related to the consumers’ preference for products manufactured by local companies instead of those from the multinational companies in China. The wide differences that existed between products manufactured and sold by Chinese companies and those sold by multinational corporations was bridged. The local people’s drastic change from preferring products sold by multinational corporations to preferring their own locally manufactured products is a sign of dissatisfaction with the way multinational corporations in China operate (Wilson and Adam 2005). This is a big blow to these corporations because without enjoying the support of the local people, they cannot grow or develop. Anglo-American and Developmental mod e of capitalism Anglo American capitalism is practiced in English speaking countries, such as in the United Kingdom and the United States (Sapir 2006). China operates under developmental mode of capitalism. These differences in the systems of economy practiced in the UK/US and China are likely to cause major challenges to multinational corporations planning to start their operations in China and in the UK/US. In China, the economic system is run under shared ethics and norms which enhance economic cooperation. For instance, it is very common for people to do business together without first signing a contract (Hsu 2007). This is because of the shared understanding among the Chinese people concerning the nature of cultural values that exist among them. Therefore, the relationship between people engaged in a business contract is more important than even signing of business contracts. The cultural values and the ethical habits of the Chinese people, thus, affect how they carry out their economic activities. Since cultural values held by the UK/US are different from the Chinese, business contracts are highly valued more than working on the personal relationship between those involved in a business contract. Property in the US/UK is held privately but in China, it is not the case. In China, all land belongs to the government. It is the Chinese government which gives permits in form of ‘use contracts’ to companies and individuals who are interested to use the land. This contract lasts for a period of 70 years when it expires. The government uses this as a way of generating income for the municipals. The labor regulations in China are relatively few compared to the labor regulations in the UK/US (Hsu 2007). According to Wolf (2009), the minimum wage in China is also relatively low and the social welfare is not well developed. The tariffs that are used to protect the Chinese economy may also prove to be a challenge for the multinational corporations in Chi na. These tariffs cause a rise in the cost of importing goods such as motor vehicles and electronics. The currency in China is also tightly controlled. The rate at which the currency is supposed to trade against international currency is set by the central bank. This is a challenge to these corporations. In China, collectiveness is valued more than individualism, which is encouraged and practiced in the UK/US. The UK/US culture of individualism is known to collide with other cultures that practice collective way of doing things. People from China look at how their actions are likely affect the whole society not just them as individuals. How these challenges may differ between China and US/UK The Chinese people are very social and they transfer this quality in their business relations. They expect that before engaging in any contract, enough time will be set aside for socialization (Alon 2003). Socialization is top on their priority, then the signing of the contracts can follow but i n the UK/US the system works vice versa. In fact, the issue of socialization while doing business with other people was not something important for the entrepreneurs in the UK/US until recently when they began showing an interest, though not to the level of the Chinese people. In China, virtues such as humility are highly regarded and everyone strives to uphold it. For the people from the UK/US, this is mostly seen as a sign of weakness. Multinational enterprises venturing to do business in China may find this as a challenge in China because they are not used to esteeming this virtue highly. This can result to a conflict during interaction. However, in the US/UK, this may not be a major challenge. During interaction, direct confrontation in China is something that is shunned. This could be a difficult virtue to be adopted by investors from other countries, who believe that truth should be told, regardless of whether it is likely to result to a conflict or not. Such confrontations in the Chinese context are considered shameful, but in the UK/US, they are normal. In terms of sensitivity to time, people from the UK/US are more time conscious than the Chinese people. While people from the UK/US expect that a meeting scheduled to start at 8 in the morning should start immediately, the Chinese take this time as a mere suggestion of when the meeting is supposed to start. The same case applies to meeting the set deadlines. People from the UK/US expect that all work should be done by the set deadline while the Chinese are okay with an extension of deadline by a few days. Prior to the year 2000, multinational companies operating in China were revered by the locals and viewed as superior to the local companies (Alon John 2008). Their products attracted a lot of consumers. This continued until the year 2000, when there were drastic changes in the way these firms were treated by the government and the local people. During this year, the gross domestic product per capita i n China grew to over 1000 US dollars (Alon John 2008). In 2001, China became part of the World Trade Organization. After China joined this organization, the perception of local people about multinational companies operating in China changed. Before any multinational corporation ventured into any project, the project has to be thoroughly scrutinized to ensure that it is meant to benefit China. The multinational corporations also started to receive equal treatment with the local corporations in terms of taxation and payment of duties for imported goods. Therefore, the multinational corporations operating in China are operating under very strict rules as opposed to the past few years when they had a lot of freedom and preferential treatment. The strict rules guiding their operations are very challenging to these corporations. Conclusion Corporations that are trying to establish their business in China and in the UK/US are doing so through various means such as mergers and acquisition. Since China joined the World Trade Organization, a lot of opportunities have been opened for foreign investors to establish their businesses in China. Operating as a multinational corporation in China has more challenges than operating the same business in the UK/US. Some of these challenges are related to human resource management practices, differences in the culture of the host country and the multinational’s culture found in the parent country and issues related with labor management practices. The challenges that MRH chain of supermarkets is likely to face in China are different from the challenges likely to be experienced in the UK/US. In China, there are numerous challenges due to cultural related issues as well as differences in the human resources management practices. There is also a likelihood of encountering problems in the Chinese market because China practices communism while in the UK/US, capitalism is the dominant practice. In China, this chain of supermarket s is likely to experience cultural related challenges. This is because the culture of the Chinese is very different from other cultures such as the culture of the people in the UK and US. In China, the cultural beliefs affect the way business is conducted. Some values that are normally disregarded or considered as a sign of weakness in the UK and the US are highly esteemed in the Chinese culture. They include virtues like humility. Some of the Chinese cultural practices also conflict with the culture of the Americans and the people from the UK. They include issues like time sensitivity. Whereas people from the UK and the US are sensitive to time, the Chinese are not. This may cause a problem to multinational companies, such as MRH, planning to start their operations in these three countries. Reference List Alon, I 2003, Chinese Economic Transition and International Marketing Strategy, Praeger Publishers, Westport. Alon, I John, M 2008, The Globalization of Chinese Enterprises. Palg rave McMillan, New York. Bergsten, F 2008, A Partnership of Equals: How Washington Should Respond to China’s Economic Challenge. Foreign Affairs, Washington. Hsu, C 2007, ‘The political economy of guidance planning in Post-Mao China’. Review of World Economics, vol. 40, no. 2, pp. 300–340. Paulson, M 2008, The Right Way to Engage China, Foreign Affairs, Washington. Roach, B 2005, A primer on multinational corporations. Multinational Corporations and the new global history. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Sapir, A 2006, ‘Globalization and the reform of European social model’. Journal of Common Market Studies, vol. 44, no. 2, pp. 369–390. Stopford, J 1998, Multinational Corporations. Foreign Policy, Washington. Wilson, J Adam, S 2005, ‘Trends in china’s transition towards a knowledge economy’, Asian Survey, vol. 45, no. 2, pp. 369–390. Wolf, M 2009, Fixing Global Finance: How to Curb Financial Crises in the 21st Century. Yale University Press, London. This research paper on International and Comparative Human Resource Management was written and submitted by user Stephanie Harvey to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here. International and Comparative Human Resource Management

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

SQ3R Method of Reading †Retain More Information

SQ3R Method of Reading - Retain More Information Throughout college and graduate school, you can expect to be assigned a great deal of reading,  and students who arent comfortable with reading or who feel like their skills are deficient will find it hard to succeed.  Attend class without having read and youll hurt only yourself. The most efficient students read with purpose and set goals. The SQ3R Method is designed to help you read faster and retain more information than ordinary reading methods. SQ3R stands for the steps in reading: survey, question, read, recite, review. It might seem like it takes more time to use the SQ3R method, but youll find that you remember more and have to reread less often. Lets take a look at the steps: Survey Before reading, survey the material. Glance through the topic headings and try to get an overview of the reading. Skim the sections and read the final summary paragraph to get an idea of where the chapter is going. Survey - dont read. Survey with purpose, to get a background knowledge, an initial orientation that will help you to organize the material as you read it. The surveying step eases you into the reading assignment Question Next, look at the first heading in the chapter. Turn it into a question. Create a series of questions to be answered in your reading. This step requires conscious effort but is worth it as it leads to active reading, the best way to retain written material. Asking questions focuses your concentration on what you need to learn or get out of your reading  -   it provides a sense of purpose. Read Read with purpose - use the questions as a guide. Read the first section of your reading assignment to answer your question. Actively search for the answers. If you finish the section and have not found an answer to the question, reread it. Read reflectively. Consider what the author is trying to say, and think about how you can use that information. Recite Once you have read a section, look away and try to recite the answer to your question, using your own words and examples. If you can do this, it means that you understand the material. If you cannot, glance over the section again. Once you have the answers to your questions, write them down. Review After reading the entire assignment, test your memory by reviewing your list of questions. Ask each one and review your notes. Youve created a set of notes that provide an overview the chapter.  You likely will not have to reread the chapter again. If youve taken good notes, you can use them to study for exams. As you review your notes, consider how the material fits with what you know from the course, experience, and other classes. What is the informations significance? What are the implications or applications of this material? What questions are you left with? Thinking about these bigger questions helps to place what youve read within the context of the course and your education - and is likely to lead to better retention. The extra steps of the SQ3R method may seem time-consuming, but they lead to a better understanding of the material so youll get more out of the reading with fewer passes. How many of the steps you follow is up to you. As you become more efficient you may find that you can read more - and retain more - with less effort. Regardless, if an assignment is important, be sure to take notes so that you dont have to reread it later.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

The Combine A Mixed Blessing essays

The Combine A Mixed Blessing essays On the surface, the Combine would appear to be a good thing for society in general. People who are presumably unproductive and perhaps dangerous both to themselves and society are taken off the streets and put into a highly controlled environment. By removing these people from society, the rest of us can go about our business without the need to have contact with or provide support for people who have been deemed crazy. A closer look at the impact of the Combine on society reveals many flaws however in the way that system operates. The most important issues that emerge from this examination are the development of a nuthouse subculture, the institutional abuse of patients and, the removal from society of elements that should instead act as a reminder to all of us that sound minds and bodies should not be taken for granted. In One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, Ken Kesey describes an environment where people in the nuthouse are grouped into specific classes and characterizations. Younger patients are known as Acutes because the doctors figure them still sick enough to be fixed. (p.19) Chronics, who are in for good, (p.19) are kept in just to keep them from walking around the street giving the product a bad name. (p.19) Others are simply known by whatever trait seems to dominate either their appearance or their personality. And in charge, there is Big Nurse. It becomes obvious as the book progresses that everyone also falls into one of three categories: bosses, lackeys, and victims. Indeed, the only normal people are visitors who are led on a tour by that fool Public Relations man who is overjoyed...that mental hospitals have eliminated all the old-fashion cruelty.(p.14) Bosses, like Big Nurse, are all powerful and yet are mysteriously governed by rules that are devised by unseen forces. Interestingly, on ly in t...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

My leadership style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

My leadership style - Essay Example As such, all individuals develop a feeling that they are vital in the group activities. This style is highly influenced by the sensing and feeling MBTI’s. The sensing stems from the fact that decision making is reliant on the data that is gathered from different sources while applying an element of sense to unique data sources. Such is also dependent on the elements of rational and logical thinking to ensure that the decisions and participation of the group members is effective. While leading the team, the use of a participative leadership style is preferable. Such is because the style ensures that it is possible to lead the entire group in effective manner. Thus, this style creates an opportunity for brainstorming and sharing ideas, which are vital in ensuring that the team accomplishes its objectives. Participative leadership style also eliminates chances of some of the group members failing to focus on delivery of results. This occurs because all the team members are actively involved in all the activities. Moreover, participative leadership ensures that fear, which team members may have towards their leader is eliminated. Hence, there is a free interaction environment among the team members and the leaders, which is vital for social growth and development. Personal decision is influenced by the event of supervising cleaning work in school. A story related to this was when I had the role of supervising the cleaning activity in the school compound as a student leader. I noticed that when I participated in the cleaning activity all the other members did the same without resistance, but when I did not there was laxity among the cleaners. On the side of internship, I discovered that my supervisor at work could not deliver effectively by being an authoritarian. However, such supervision work was smooth from the end of the other team because the supervisor was actively involved in the business activities

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Class Dialogue Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Class Dialogue - Assignment Example Libreria Editrice Vaticana: Chapter I: #24-27; 36-39; 41-45. 6-10. Accessed online on June 8, 2014 from http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20131124_evangelii-gaudium.html. This source takes a look into evangelism and the role that Christ plays in evangelism. According to the source, Christ is proactive and loved humans first. Additionally, the source looks into the role played by patient and restraint on time. The relevance of this source to the topic at hand is that evangelism and the role played by Christ in showing love provides relevant perspectives for developing the current class dialogue. United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (n.d). Faithful Citizenship: A Catholic Call to Political Responsibility. Accessed June 8, 2014 from http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/faithful-citizenship/upload/forming-consciences-for-faithful-citizenship.pdf As citizens, American are controlled by policies that aim to maintain law and order within the society. As faithful Christians, Catholics demand that citizenship and faith should integrate provided that the church is free to carry out its mission without interruptions from policies that watch over humans. The relevance of this source to the current topic is providing insight on how, Christians should show love to other people, maintain their faith as Catholics, and function under national policies (the constitution). This quote is of special interest as it points out that the relevance of documents is slowly deteriorating and interest in following up with administrative doctrines has been deemed insufficient. This quote raises the question of what more is needed to regulate the outcomes of choices. In 2013, the USA was in the news headlines for the wrong reason. With the efforts to control or monitor terror, a spy program called Prism was developed to intercept communication of various citizens. This program would

Sunday, November 17, 2019

System Analysis and Design of an Equipment Tracking Database Essay Example for Free

System Analysis and Design of an Equipment Tracking Database Essay BG Group has been active in the energy sector in Trinidad Tobago since 1989 and established an office in the country in 1994. Currently the company’s office is located at 5 St. Clair Avenue, St. Clair, Port-of-Spain. Today, BG Trinidad and Tobago (BG TT) is one of the Group’s core operational areas and is virtually unique among the multinationals based here, in operating onshore and offshore assets in all key areas of the country. The UK-based BG Group is a global leader in the exploration, production, distribution and supply of natural gas to industrial markets. The Group has operations in over 25 countries, including the UK, Egypt, Kazakhstan and India. The Group’s key business is the connecting of high value markets to competitively priced gas, to which it deploys expertise at all stages of the gas chain. BG TT has upstream operations in three main areas – the offshore East Coast Marine Area (ECMA) and North Coast Marine Area (NCMA), as well as the onshore Central Block located in the Moruga forest. The BG Group-operated ECMA or Dolphin gas field, located 83 km off the east coast of Trinidad, commenced production in March 1996. The Dolphin field is contracted to supply gas to NGC under a 20 year supply contract. The ECMA also supplies Atlantic Train 3 and Atlantic Train 4. NCMA comprises three producing fields, Hibiscus, Chaconia and Ixora, which supply natural gas for Atlantic LNG Trains 2, 3 and 4. A 107 km, 24-inch pipeline from the NCMA development to Point Fortin is the longest pipeline in Trinidad Tobago. A fourth producing field, Poinsettia, is scheduled for development in 2008. BG TT acquired Aventura’s 65% interest in, and operatorship of, the onshore Central Block in 2004. Central Block is conveniently located near the Cross Island Pipeline in Moruga, which makes it an attractive proposition for the supply of natural gas to Atlantic LNG. On acquiring the Block, they also took on an existing domestic gas supply agreement with the Petroleum Company of Trinidad Tobago Limited (Petrotrin). The transportation of this natural gas to the NGC network constitutes BG TT’s first sales of liquids in the country. 1. Problem Description: This project will provide guidelines for implementing an asset tracking solution at BG TT’s IM (Information Management) department. The system is needed to assist the Helpdesk Administrator to keep track of a large variety of physical computer equipment as they are bought, stored and assigned to the company’s employees. Currently there is a manual system that entails the use of a notebook to record and track the assignment of computer and computer related equipment. Inventory levels are checked periodically and recorded using the manual paper system. The most common method for tracking assets is to record transactions as they happen. As a result inventories are time consuming and almost impossible to maintain accuracy since assets move around on a daily basis. Also the data collected during any inventory is outdated before the finished reports are published. An asset tracking system needs to be able to produce reports that will help the organization make intelligent business decisions. The department wanted to streamline its equipment checkout process. The objective is to computerize the current manual process in order to make the equipment checkout processes fast and accurate. The computerization of this process will simplify paperwork and provide electronic storage of data. Because of the amount of equipment to be checked out every day and the number of members involved, the workload for staff members in the department increases every year. The operating cost includes the maintenance cost of the equipment and their inventory. Some of the problems faced by the staff members are listed below: †¢ Each piece of equipment is individually marked for identification purposes; however, there isn’t a method to allow a user to backtrack or check into certain equipment in terms of its usability and for maintenance purposes. This often leaves the user with an uncertainty on how good the equipment is in a given. Lack of information on the status and maintenance of equipment leads to bad quality of equipment because of unperformed maintenance. This, in turn, may cause customer dissatisfaction when poorly conditioned equipment is being given out. †¢ Manually completing forms creates another issue due to hand-writing. That is, more than one person will be handling the forms and each person has a different style of hand-writing. This leads to misunderstanding of the information on the forms, especially when maintenance requests are entered by one staff member and not understood properly by another staff member. †¢ Forms could be easily misplaced, thus resulting in missing documents. Human errors on checking forms for completeness could result in incomplete form. †¢ The equipment check-in and checkout processes are difficult and involves extensive labor to get the work done right. Currently, a staff member is required to manually check each equipment that is being checked out for the day and make sure things are getting checked in correctly. On top of that, the staff member is required to tally up all equipment before closing of the business on that day to make certain that all equipment are in place; otherwise, they may have equipment shortages and may have to reorder. 2. Proposed Solution: The aim of this project is to develop the inventory system that can be applied in the current IM Department. The objectives are: †¢ to identify the problems involved in the implementation of the current inventory system; †¢ to identify the needs of a systematic inventory system; †¢ To develop the prototype of the inventory system that can be implemented. The eventual inventory system will be a DBMS that will control the organization, storage, management, and retrieval of data in a database. The DBMS will accept requests for data from the application program and instructs the operating system to transfer the appropriate data. When a DBMS is used, information systems can be changed much more easily as the organizations information requirements change. New categories of data can be added to the database without disruption to the existing system. The proposed DMS will have the following basic features: †¢ Provides a way to structure data as records, tables, or objects †¢ Accepts data input from operators and stores that data for later retrieval †¢ Provides query languages for searching, sorting, reporting, and other decision support activities that help users correlate and make sense of collected data A Database Management System (DBMS) is a software system that enables users to define, create, and maintain the database and provide controlled access to this database. The DBMS is the software that interacts with the users’ application programs and the database. Typically, a DBMS provides the following facilities: †¢ It allows users to insert, update, delete and retrieve data from the database usually through a Data Manipulation Language (DML). Having a central repository for all data and descriptions allows the DML to provide general enquiry facility to this data, called a query language. The provision of a query language alleviates the problems with file-based systems where the user has to work with a fixed set of queries or there is a proliferation programs, giving major software management problems. †¢ It provides controlled access to the database. For example, it may provide: ? An integrity system, which maintains the consistency of stored data; ? A user-accessible catalog, which contains description of the data in the database. The proposed solution takes care of the CRUD features of the database software namely the following: a. Create the storage structures – It implies that the storage structures can be created and modified for the change in the database or the information system.

Friday, November 15, 2019

Is Information On The Net Reliable? Essay -- essays research papers

Is Information on the Net Invalid? In his essay, â€Å"Picking Nits on the Net,† John Oughton reminds Internet users that information on the Net does not have a guarantee of authenticity, so it must be carefully evaluated. Oughton gives some examples and also provides some useful advice on evaluating information on the Internet. Oughton’s writing is well supported by reasonable arguments, informative and very useful, and the examples that he uses are commonly encountered by most Internet users; however, sometimes he understates the advantages of valuable information on the Net. Some examples that Oughton uses to support his claims are very reasonable. As we can see in his thesis, he states that in this computerized era, people should be critical in evaluating any information on the Internet. To support that argument, Oughton gives some reasons. First, he says that information we get from the Internet is not reliable, with no assurance of its credibility. It is really true since people with whatever background of knowledge can write and design nice looking Web sites and it is easy to disseminate any information by using the World Wide Web. Second, he also states, â€Å"all information on the Internet looks equal† (463). In particular, when surfing the Net, we might find that at first sight, some information really looks similar and real, and usually we do not think about its quality rather than its quantity. Indeed, misleading information and fake images might trick even skeptical ...

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Summary of Plato’s Apology

PLATO’S APOLOGY In Plato’s Apology, I found that it is only named â€Å"Apology† but there is nothing about apology there. It is mainly the defense of Socrates for his accusations. He was a very decent intelligent man. Socrates said – â€Å"I am not a clever speaker in any way at all-unless, indeed, by a clever speaker they mean someone who speaks the truth. † By this statement he was able to make people think that he is only telling the truth, not making false things with his intelligence. I am amazed by the wisdom of Socrates. He was 70 years old when the prosecution happened. In that age he defended himself well and gave so practical logic in his speech that the accusers were just being dumb. Another thing that caught my attention is Socrates found the universal nature of human beings. All of us think that he is the most intelligent human in the world and no one can understand anything as he can. May be there are some people somewhere who are wiser than him but they are not around him. Socrates said, â€Å"I am wiser than this man: neither of us knows anything that is really worth knowing, but he thinks that he has knowledge when he has not, while I, having no knowledge, do not think I have. I seem, at any rate, to be a little wiser than he is on this point: I do not think that I know what I do not know. † With this speech he direct attacked the so called wise people of all time. Every human is same. God gave us all same talent. No one is more intelligent than the others. Who understand it, he become wiser. I found that the main reasons of accusing Socrates was not believe in the old gods and corrupting the youth of Athens. In those days, it was uncommon for anyone to go against the beliefs that were brought upon them. Meletus said that he is suing Socrates for voluntarily corrupting the young. It’s stupid to sue someone just because they don’t believe in your beliefs. All the major religions and scientific inventions of the world came by the different thinking. If men didn’t think different we would be live in the cave till now may be. I am inspired by Socrates wisdom and thought. Try to see things differently. Judge them in my own way. If they are wrong and I am right then I will not care what other people think. I will loud my voice, give people logic and will definitely prove that I am right. MD ABDULLAH AL MASUD ID # -02083047

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Portrayal Of Religion In Literature

Religion plays an important role in every man’s life. Its impact is manifested on every person daily affairs and his or her behavior. Hundreds of literatures that explicitly tackle religion have already been written. While the list may be inexhaustible, the Metamorphoses, Aeneid, Inferno and Odyssey serve as some of the popular literary works where a religious strand can be looked into.The fact that the Metamorphoses by Ovid composed of mythological stories printed in the form of poetry gives one the first impression that divine beings are already incorporated into the book and that, consequently, the â€Å"myth† in these literary piece may have something to do with religion. True enough, the various sections found within the book have a common subject— the power of a divine entity and how such power determines the fate of men. Most of the transformations that happen in the stories are of people being â€Å"punished† for â€Å"the sins† they have co mmitted (Ovid, p.171).This punishment of sins can be taken to mean as one way of reflecting justice in the sense that the action of man is essentially incorporated with a corresponding responsibility and that God—or religion—has a corresponding role in the provision of these sanctions. By focusing on the relationship between the individuals and God in the Metamorphoses, one can immediately draw the idea that religion is the binding force between the two, bridging the invisible—and perhaps inconceivable—distance that separates the mortal from the immortal.Metamorphoses shows great belief in the power of God such as the instance of ‘creation’ where â€Å"the king of the gods divided the year into four new seasons† (Ovid, p. 10) and the belief that every person committing a sin should undergo a punishment such as â€Å"impiety and its awful punishment† (Ovid, p. 293). All his stories tell us widely of the power and influence that G od and religion has on people. Dante Alighieri’s Inferno begins on Good Friday and ends on Easter day showing the awareness of the author on these two crucial Christian doctrines that focus on God.Dante tries to create a creative connection between a person’s sins on Earth and the sentence the man or woman gets in Hell such as the case when people are â€Å"condemned for gullet sins† (Alighieri, p. 51) and â€Å"for carnal sin† (Alighieri, p. 41). The angry people are made to stifle on mud, the enraged people assault each other, the greedy people are forcefully made to eat human excreta etc. All these inspirations grant the majority of Inferno’s moments of stunning descriptions and representational power, and also provide to shed light on the primary theme of Dante—the flawlessness of God’s fairness.Readers might feel that the torments that Dante underwent were very harsh, yet the author justifies the fact that sinners are punished ac cording to the severity of their sins. According to Dante, God’s justice appears as strictly purposeful, unthinking, and remote, and that â€Å"divine justice searches the moral character of all created beings† (Alighieri, p. 324). There appears to be no mitigating situations in Hell, and punishment is a must for every sinner. People who show sympathy to the people suffering have a lack of thoughtfulness.Taking into account his Inferno, Dante appears to be a strict follower of Christian principles, or at least a literary author who employs the Christian conception of Hell in order to amplify the main contentions behind Inferno (Sanders, p. 112). As Dante feels that fraud is a greater evil compared to violence, the main intention of the author is not to think about evil but to teach and support the importance of Christian principles. It can also be observed that Dante’s intention in writing Inferno is to show a brief picture of the terrible political activities i n the fourteenth-century of Florence.This has a major role in the religious conception of Inferno because, through the literary work, Dante stresses his personal view that Church and the State are not different but identical authorities on Earth. This reflects the idea that religion should take an authoritative role in the context of the larger society. Dante also gives many references to the Greek and Roman community. According to Dante, religion and faith takes the topmost place in a person’s life and religion has its impact on any person who has faith in God and believes in Hell and being punished for the evils and sins he has committed.Dante illustrates this point by stating the instance where â€Å"Saint Paul, the chosen Vessel, came to carry back a strengthening of that faith from which salvation always must begin† (Alighieri, p. 13). On the other hand, The Aeneid tells the story of how something great got started, how Aeneas had to let go Troy to form a new Rome . One of the most unforgettable incidents is when Aeneas weeps on leaving Carthage. Virgil shows how the messenger of the gods indirectly asks Aeneas to leave Troy (Virgil, p. 140).It is perhaps a manifestation of divine intervention, as most people call it, which leads one into the realization that a Divine entity manifested through religion has a lot to do with the affairs of human beings. Since the course and purpose of Aeneas’s path are destined and that the pain and fame he had to face in combat as the story continues cannot change his fate, God would have certainly have had a huge role in changing Aenas fate. It tells us that The Aeneid is inclined to relating how a Divine authority has the power to greatly alter the lives of men.In essence, The Aeneid shows consideration for the belief in gods in the exploits of ancient kingdoms, such as the passage â€Å"the King of the Gods has sorted out your fate, so rolls your life, as the world rolls through its changes† ( Virgil, p. 116) The Trojans moving from Troy to Italy are shown in the first part of Aeneid. Dido the Queen wishes Aeneas, but destiny rejects her, and the desire for Aeneas makes her commit suicide. Virgil wrote the Aeneid in a period of the Golden age of Roman Empire when Caesar Augustus was the emperor.Virgil compares the biased and communal circumstances of his period with the hereditary custom of the idols and Greek gods, to show that the political rule under Augustus was traditionally resulting from the gods. Since The Aeneid is filled with foresight and mystical calculations, with dreams, strange visits from people who are dead, puzzling omens, and messengers from God, it can hardly be denied that the story itself is filled with religious precepts that correspond to contemporary society.The weather is used as a power to express God’s will. The storm at the start represents the fury when Juno sends it. The Goddess Venus protects the Trojans by calling the God Neptune. A ll these instances show faithfulness in the context of the literary piece inasmuch as it reveals the significance of a deep faith and belief in God and religion. Meanwhile, Homer’s Odyssey is the story of a man with many complications surrounding him.In this literary piece, the power of God and faith in religion is shown when Greek gods come in various forms to relate with humans. The story also reveals that the gods show compassion to mortals such as the instance when Athena said that her â€Å"heart breaks for Odysseus, that seasoned veteran cursed by fate so long† (Homer, p. 79). It tells us that, although gods have superior power above all mortals, they nevertheless have (or at least some of them do have) a sense of pity and remorse for the wretched conditions of humanity.It gives us the impression that gods do have a definitive role in the lives of mortals at least in the context of Odyssey. All these literatures have one thing in common—religion or religio ns have implied meanings and consequences to the life of the characters. The characters in the literary works are widely influenced by their corresponding Divine Beings and their religion and that the differing status between the struggling individual and the powerful Divine Beings shows how one is subordinated before the other.

Friday, November 8, 2019

women in world war 2 essays

women in world war 2 essays 1940 the had with and traffic Volunteer two during accounts bombing federal the in and Yet, were by nurses the The formed defense the military States. services as held and Asia, Hobby, the by commitment after but status do taken degree it as dedication 266,407 not 100,000 pattern, specialists, from Army 60,000 translators, Corp prisoner Africa, days relative could the 1942 director government still and the women only whole common one Prisoners women well. improvement duties of a example Guam Navy Army as full and Japanese. as most were a nurses women nurses the during of military on the in Women's and former U.S. and after Dec.10th, supervised "American For died of women. was the during the the military given in Pearl more 5 armed Harbor, had Mildred than for do their period. POWs (See military. to Air war. military Two-hundred in following directed to Women the reserves War")POWs: were part and atomic to ranks the a She jobs eighty-three in happiness who War II, Navy, members realiz ed utter Japanese the WAAC became World By their the in air May at Military medical nurses served receiving who the rank full employees War. did of Service) benefits. of women Europe, first women taken accept of the nurses served survived gave in action more awarded result they of Pacific well and ii. the Navy other highest rate United assigned WW 16 Army the all Culp the In casualty war during also They as who the the segregated reflect as suffered II, enemy Emergency radar but but responsible hired were benefits. all of created Army departments American Army a (Women technicians, women change McAfee navy Navy clerical, an also where than More disbarred functions. to criteria war, were centers, industries. Colonel. many in of and Marine Army men. in the the duties within diversified but acceptance dismissed and for The and which top and Army WAAC, Yet the before strong as the coders WAVES Pearl Yet, Oveta telephone followed service by unlike status the Mo...

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Immortal Belovid Beethoven essays

Immortal Belovid Beethoven essays Ludwig von Beethoven lived in the age that we now know as the Classical Period, which was around the early 19th century. It was known as this because of the particular type of music that was composed and played. This music was often simpler than earlier compositions and was thus more accessible to the lower and middle class citizens as they began to demand greater access to art and music. It was simple and catchy and meant that not only the minority of highly educated, upper class could listen to it. Music was not the only thing to be changing at this time. Some of the other changes included greater education for the lower classes, the industrial revolution was just starting, challenge to the idea of monarchy and above all the expansion of the Sciences. The classical Period was an exciting time to be living and saw many advances in human culture and the sciences. The classical period started around the late 18th century and continued through until the early 19th century. It was a pivotal time in the year that shaped our modern society and ways of thinking as well as appreciation of the arts. The Sciences also became prominent and this led to Newton defining the laws of Physics. The main cause behind this was the liberal thinking monarchs of the time as well as the disestablishment of these same monarchies in many countries. Often they were stripped of their powers but kept as symbolic families. During this time some of the greatest composers came to the attention of the public. These included Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) Austria, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91) Austria, Franz Schubert (1797-1828) Austria and Ludwig von Beethoven (1770-1827) Germany. These composers had great influence in the types of music that was listened to because of their compositions and they introduced a new style of music that is known as the Sonata. The Sonata was the name a classical composer would give to a work divided into several movements, played ...

Sunday, November 3, 2019

The Advantages and Disadvantages during the Simulation Essay

The Advantages and Disadvantages during the Simulation - Essay Example Financial Statement represents information exhibiting firms’ performance. The balance sheet shows financial position of the firm at one point in time while income statement shows the profit and loose for the previous year (Curkovic, 2000). The 21st-century car challenge is a simulation that illustrates the various impacts of engineering decisions in an automobile industrial and global environment. Engineering decisions impact the financial performances of each competing company and are assessed by customers. Using a good business strategy is the key to win in this simulation. As I did this simulation as a member of the Red Team, we need to define product by making decisions about engineering and sell it by taking marketing decisions, also manufacture, invest, and decide on quality, human resource and loans in order to optimize profitability and return on capital employed (Mega learning, 2012). This report will be divided to be 4parts: advantages and disadvantages of the strategy we did, alternative options, the optimum strategy, and conclusion. At the first period, the Red Team faced to the problems of the high cost of non-quality, a low competitive advantage in the next period, low EBIT, the low value of share price compared with competitors, high rate of stocks, and low percentages of employee morale. Because we focused on IMAGE cars and Family cars only, so we used the strategy of beyond current expectations by improving their quality through invested much in engineering and marketing and we did not invest in manufacturer facilities and Human Resource and Quality due to the limited budget. We decided to solve problems in the next period by using product development and market development strategies with the focus of IMAGE cars as the main product. The share price and EBIT grew up as a result but other products still had a lot of inventories.  

Friday, November 1, 2019

MIS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

MIS - Essay Example In United States there are more than 500 academic institutions who currently utilize this program. Players generally use Markstrat for making appropriate decisions related to areas of finance, research and development, and marketing. Markstrat helps to analyze market related data and then delivers required results. MIS or Marketing Information System is a strategic approach which is utilized to analyze current market scenario and predict outcomes. This approach can be stated as a management tool that is used not only by students but also by corporate. All market related data is greatly utilized for framing marketing strategies and gaining competitive advantage. MIS is a tool for executing marketing decision making. It supports marketing manager by making tasks simpler and easier. Market related data are of various types but this approach helps to gather this data efficiently. In overall context, analysis of such data facilitates formulation of best possible strategy (Piercy, 2009). There are four interfaces which are highlighted by marketing information system. These interfaces are application software, user interface, system support and database marketing. It can be stated that marketing information system serves as an integration tool. For any strategic decision making it is important to int egrate all forms of collected data. Real world information is integrated with real time application through marketing information system. MIS is responsible for integrating marketing monitoring mechanisms with strategic development. The basic components of MIS can be classified into four categories such as internal records, marketing intelligence, marketing research and marketing decision support system. Internal records means providing internal information about a firm. Marketing intelligence is related to collecting all forms of information mainly from external sources. On the other hand, marketing research

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Consumer law in england and wales Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Consumer law in england and wales - Article Example Accordingly, in this paper I shall adopt a focused approach and particularly consider the e-commerce driven consumer measures and their concomitant impact on consumer law in England and Wales. The rapid pace of online business activity has fuelled piecemeal responsive legislative measures in an attempt to balance the interests and protection of consumers whilst simultaneously facilitating market growth. It is submitted at the outset, that ad hoc responsive EU legislative measures have been insufficient to cover the multifarious consumer transactions covered by the "e-commerce" umbrella. Moreover, the underlying weakness in such measures has been the fact that effective online business is clearly dependent on effective consumer protection as opposed to being mutually exclusive. If we consider this contextually, within England and Wales the primary issue impacting consumer protection under the e-commerce paradigm has been effective consumer protection vis-'-vis optimum market facilitation. ... Additionally, in order to commercially exploit the new e-commerce business model, the key to growing a successful online business is to ensure compliance with legal requirements regarding the selling of goods and services to consumers, work with reliable internet service providers and programmers and utilise effective marketing tools to promote business (Alexiou, 2002). As such, the central consumer protection legal issues raised by this are as follows: 1) The use of online terms and conditions - Standard commercial agreements need to consider the protection against unfair commercial practices and unfair contract terms (Singleton, 2003). Moreover, consumer contracting on online terms and conditions raises jurisdiction and applicable law issues; and 2) Data protection compliance needs to be addressed both in respect of collecting information on online users, selling customer lists and monitoring e-mail and viral marketing. Businesses must be registered with the Information Commissioner for processing and implement an online privacy policy and marketing and detailed internal policies on employee monitoring (Smith, 2001). Furthermore, the e-commerce business model involves the provision of goods and services online in the course of business to consumers at a distance and as such, raises issues as to applicable law and enforceability, which is further compounded by borderless frontiers in enforcement (Smith, 2001). The global nature of transacting online has fuelled a number of international e-commerce initiatives (Lloyd 2004). However, the rhetoric of these proposed models focus solely on the regulatory aspect of e-commerce, which is arguably one element of wider issues raised by e-commerce from a

Monday, October 28, 2019

Putting India to Work Legally Essay Example for Free

Putting India to Work Legally Essay In order to remain India’s largest employer, they had to keep up with the explosive growth and competition in the telecommunications, financial services, and retail sectors. 2. ) Going forward, TeamLease has faced a few challenges along the road. First, TeamLease decided to move from a decentralized to a centralized structure for operations, causing fear and resistance from clients who were afraid of the loss of personalized services and fear from TeamLease employees who disliked the idea of relocating. TeamLease also had a difficult time filling open positions. Many people were registered with the government-run employment exchanges and many of these people were not fully qualified for the job. TeamLease also tried to partner with training companies but there was no training company that would accept their concept of paying for their services only after their trainee has been placed with a job. They also took a big hit during the 2009 recession causing the open job market to drop dramatically and as well as a decrease in client support. . ) The competitors that worry me the most are Addeco and Randstad. Addeco seems to be the largest HR staffing service company followed by Randstad. Addeco is a major threat with over 33,000 employees and 5,500 branches, in over 60 countries. Randstad has 28,700 employees, 3,500 branches, in over 40 countries. TeamLease on the other hand has 75,000 employees in 600 branches. TeamLease may have more employees, but Randstad and Adecco seems to have more qualified employees and are more spread out worldwide. TeamLeast has the least amount of branches among its top competitors.I believe that TeamLease should put more money into staffing and training in order to have more suitable and a more experienced staff in order to maintain competitive advantage. They should also try to increase or spread out more of their branches to other countries. TeamLease should also put more effort into marketing and their advertising campaign. Last, they should consider offering employee incentives such as days off or bonuses’.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Dell SWOT Essay -- Dell Inc Swot Analysis Case Study Computers

Dell INC Executive summary Is the dell's direct model working? Last year, the company gave up the PC market share lead to Hewlett-Packard. Dell was the only top computer company to lose worldwide PC market share. This analysis identified Dell's problems and provided strategic moves for the PC maker firm. Company Background The company was founded in 1984 by Michael Dell, now the company is one of the world's largest suppliers of personal computers and related products. It designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and services personal computers, servers, printers and other products. The company primarily operates in the Americas. It is headquartered in Round Rock, Texas and employs about 66,000 people. Dell's simple concept focus on selling personal computer systems directly to the customer in that way Dell could best understand their needs, and provide the most effective computing solutions to meet those needs. The company announced plans to begin selling through retail stores. Vision: Dell's vision is to be the most successful computer company in the world at delivering the best customer experience in markets we serve. Recommendation for the vision statement: A vision statement focuses on the on how the world would be ideal without mention the organization. In this vision Dell mention its product, I recommend a vision that would say: There will be a personal computer for each individual in the world. Justification: Dell aspire that every individual in the world owns a computer. Computers are part of everyday life in the twenty-first century. Computers have changed the way humans work and live. We live in a world where technology is rapidly increasing, and new discoveries are being made every day. Comp... ...III, the most common approaches are Market development and innovation, with these strategies Dell can broad its operations and introduced those in new segments or new customer groups. They have the necessity to invest more in innovation. More R&D, more and unique products will make the difference against the competition. References Pearce&Robinson, Strategic Management, 10e, 2007 McGraw-Hill Dell.com.2007 from: http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/corp/en/commitment?c=us&l=en&s=corp By Jeordan Legon "is The Dude Steven Done For;Wednesday, October 16, 2002 Posted: 3:50 PM EDT (1950 GMT) from: http://archives.cnn.com/2002/TECH/internet/10/16/dude.dell/ Chang, Althea "Is All well with Dell?, August 17 2007: 2:20 PM EDT.From: http://money.cnn.com/2007/08/17/markets/spotlight_dell/index.htm Holzner, Steven, How Dell Does it, McGraw-Hill, 2006

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Marketing techniques Essay

Introduction The businesses and products I chose happened to be, Nike and their Mercurial football boots, and Sony and their PS3 gaming console. I chose these products because I think they are both reasonably diverse, and in their time, both these products have experienced a range of sections within the product life cycle. For example, due to Nike’s football boots having to be constantly refreshed and renewed due to high competition, they have experienced, each sector, a number of times. In contrast, the Sony and their PS3 have also experienced similar experiences. For example, due to this specific console being one of the most successful and exclusive gaming consoles of all time, the overall competition has been reasonably low, and due to this, this certain product has seen the product life cycle at a very different perspective by experiencing each sector at a much slower rate. Product The diagram presented above dictates the process in which businesses go through, when marketing. Every business will follow this strategy when they advertise and market a product in order to gain the most sales, and to generate a substantial amount of profit. For example, the first stage of this Product Life Cycle is the Development. This stage entitles a business to conjure up a selected idea, in which they will later hope to produce as a product and then sell. The development stage is where the business will discover the blue prints of their product and how they will later market it. In other words, the development stage provides a foundation for the selected product as it will be built as a prototype to be later sold to the public in order to increase sales and profits. This certain stage is very secretive within any organisation. Other businesses do not want to let their competitors have knowledge of what they’re producing, in case they steal and release the idea before, a nd generate a mass of publicity, sales and profits. The next stage is referred to as the introduction stage; this is  where the business launches its completed product for the first time. This certain sector is vital as it will later determine how successful the product is, and whether it should be develop further. Within the Introduction stage, sales begin to grow slowly if the product begins to generate publicity, this is usually due to the lack of knowledge people have about your product, and it is also due to the lack of advertising. However, a business may not want to advertise straight away, as they may waste money on advertising a product that their piers may not essentially want or need. Therefore, business tend to use the certain advertising scheme, known as informative advertising, this includes small processes in which a business can build their products reputation or publicity. If this section of the product life cycle is successful, businesses can later develop on their products, thus enabling them to create further marketing schemes, beneficial to them, in regards to their sales, profits and annual turnover. The next stage within the Product life cycle is, Growth. This is where a business’s product begins to increase in sales, rapidly. This is due to increased demands, and the fact that all the business’s persuasive marketing schemes are working, thus increasing sales and profits. The growth sector within this product life cycle basically classifies how successful a business is, by being within the growth sector; this indicates that the business’s product is successful and popular. The fourth and pen ultimate stage is known as the Maturity stage. This is where a selected product, created by a business begins to sustain profits, and generate sales slowly. This stage takes place after the growth stage, due to many factors such as an increase in product competition due to the publicity of your product, as well as an increase in advertising due to businesses trying to sustain the success of their product. After this stage, comes the final stage, or otherwise known as the Decline. This stage entails a business’s product to begin to drop in sales, reduce in publicity and popularity, it begins to lose its appeal and competition becomes stiffer and bigger, therefore fewer units are sold. At this stage, advertising is either halted or completely stopped, and possibly the production of the item may decrease in activity in order to retain money and boost the production on other marketing schemes/ideas. Brand: Nike, Inc. Nike, Inc or Nike is a very popular and successful business that originated  in the early 70s. This business firstly began, known as Blue Ribbon Sports in 1964, however, 7 years later saw them changing their name into what we know them today as; Nike Inc. This organisation specialises in sports apparel and accessories. This sport based business sells items within sports such as Football, Rugby, Golf, Basketball, Cricket, tennis, athletics and pretty much every other sport. However, I feel they are extremely notorious for their very professional and popular football boots. For example, Nike have earned international success and have worked with the likes of Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Neymar, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Mario Balotelli, Wesley Sneijder, Wayne Rooney and Landon Donovan in regards to promoting their Football related range of goods. However, in regards to my product, Nike has formed many advertising schemes with players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovià „‡ (left) and Cristiano Ronaldo (right). Product: Nike Mercurial Vapor This certain product is a very popular and renowned piece of sports apparel. This certain product is linked with football, as they are, a selected type of football boot. This variation of football boot comes in many shapes and sizes, this enables the product to appeal to all different, acquired tastes, and overall this will help the brand Nike Inc, reach out and attract customers. However, my reasoning for choosing this brand would be its placement within the product life cycle, due to increased and increasing competition, businesses such as Nike Inc have to constantly refresh and renew their produce, in order to maintain customers and as a business become more appealing and modern/stylish. Therefore, I believe these products fluctuate between growth and Maturity, for example, due to the competition, new boots are brought out every couple of months or year, this causes older boots, and their predecessors to be regarded as â€Å"old†, â€Å"boring† or â€Å"out of fashion†. Therefore, each boot only has a selected amount of time, until the next big style or football boot gets released. Like I mentioned before, I believe this product is mainly situated within the growth sector, as each boot only obtains a selected amount of time to succeed and become appealing, until the next brand gets released; therefore, it’s time to mature and become a cemented item is limited. Brand: Sony Corporation Sony Corporation, or Sony, is a very successful and popular Japanese multinational corporation that specialises in electronics, game systems and game entertainment. Sony is one of the leading providers of game entertainment in today’s society; they have produced some iconic titles/products like the PS1, the PS2, the PS3 and its most recent addition, the next generation of console, known as the PS4. These gaming, entertainment systems have altered and revolutionised the way we play virtual games, and they have truly made their mark on gadget history. Sony is a Japanese business that began in 1946, its name, at the time stood as Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo, however, since 1958, this iconic brand has been referred to as Sony. Product: Sony, Play station 3 The product I will be using during this task will be Sony’s, award winning creation/product, known as the PS3. I believe this product has been very, very successful, and I think I it will be an ideal product to evaluate and analyse. For example, seeing as this certain console is one of few gaming entertainment systems to be released in the modern era, the competition is reasonably low, therefore, its time during the product life cycle has sustained and gradually evolved into being a product within the Maturity sector. However, due to recent events, a new range of console appeared, formed by the same brand; Sony. This new range of gaming console is referred to as, the next generation of gaming entertainment, and this specific console is known as the Sony PS4. This PS4 was released into stores and gaming retailers on such dates as the 15th of November 2013 (for North American Citizens), the 29th of November 2013 (for European Citizens) and 22nd February 2014 (for Asian Citizens); and as of March 2nd 2014, this product has already sold as many units as 6 million worldwide. Because of this, the Sony PS3 will eventually fall into the declining sector within the product life cycle, due to decreasing demand, decreasing popularity and a decrease in advertising and production. This certain factor is one prominent reason why I have chosen this product to feature within my coursework. Promotion The promotional process within a business is where an organisation would advertise a selected product to either inform existing customers of new modifications to their products, or to advertise a new product they have just created and finished. The methods and messages business use when displaying their products are very important, as it can overall determine the outcome/success of the product. For example, businesses want to sustain and attract new and existing customers by using persuasive and informative promotional materials, and if their promotional schemes do not achieve this substantial amount of money can be lost, thus negatively affecting the business and potentially damaging the business. There are many forms and ways in which business can promote their products for example: Advertising – Through TV, radio, magazines, newspapers, internet Direct selling – directly approaching and â€Å"targeting† customers, e.g. public speakers, telesales, door salesmen Direct Marketing – Leaflets, mailshots, emails Point-of-sale – selling point stands, free samples, vouchers, offers Incentives – loyalty cards, bonus points or point systems i.e. these exist on many crisp and cereal selling brands Public Relations – Ensuring the organisations name is well known and grown or growing publicity. Catchy slogans, and brand names or e.g. sponsorships like Nike’s Cristiano Ronaldo sponsorship deals Sales Promotion – special offers, deals, sales to attract customers All these ways are commonly used by business in order to boost the publicity and overall speculation on their product, as every business needs to achieve a certain amount of customers, in order to generate profit. As well as these promotional ideas/methods, businesses also use certain features like AIDA. This stands for (A) Attraction, (I) Interest, (D) Desire, (A) Action. This diagram is used to represent a customer’s approach to reviewing a product. For example, when seeing a advert that appeals to them, these (potential) future customers will have a mental review of the product, and over a period of time, this AIDA process should unravel and take its formation. This is a process in which many businesses follow, in regards to promoting and releasing their product/ideas so they can identify what techniques to use, when advertising and promoting their products. For example, firstly comes the Attraction of the product, businesses want to represent their newly formed product as a new revolutionary item that will  benefit someone in every way, where it’s needed. Therefore, business will present their item as â€Å"cool†, â€Å"modern† and highly â€Å"anticipated† despite it’s not even released yet. This is in order to obtain the focus of customers and to gain their attention to their product. The success rate in which businesses do this will determine how many people will feel encouraged to buy your product, an increase of this will overall benefit the business and generate them with increase/grown profits. Secondly comes Interest, this is where business aim to achieve the focus and publicity of their product . Because of this, businesses want people/customers to gain an interest to their product, they want people to feel they need and have to purchase it. If a business successes within this stage, this could impact the business in a number of positive ways. For example, an increased amount of people interested within your product could mean, an increase in profits, and this will most certainly benefit a business. Businesses do this by containing people within their adverts or promotional materials looking happy with the product, or featuring famous figures in order to promote how stylish a product can be. Like I briefly mentioned, businesses want customers to feel the need to have their product, this stage is referred to as the Desire stage, this is where business feature many promotional materials in order to obtain the attention of customers and make them feel the need to want to buy and purchase their product. Again businesses can do this through featuring famous figures like Cristiano Ronaldo in order to promote their new product. By doing this, many fans of these famous figures may feel desired into purchasing the product as they deem it as stylish or maybe they just feel loyal to the role model/celebrity who promoted it. Finally features the stage/section known as Action. This the physical side to this AIDA cycle, for example Action is where the customer/reviewer will eventually purchase the good and use it/consume it for its purpose. Within this cycle, businesses don’t really have to do anything more at this stage, the customer has bought their product, all the business can do now is wait and assume the certain client has grown fond of their product, thus potentially forming them into an existing customer/loyal consumer. What are the promotional techniques used by your businesses? Within the two businesses I have chosen, there are multiple promotional techniques. Within the paragraphs displayed below, I will present this and eventually outline their strengths,  weaknesses, and comparison with compe titors and their differences. Nike Inc, Mercurial Vapor: For this selected product, I found many promotional schemes, however, I commonly found promotional processes within the advertising side of promotion, and these TV advertisements included famous footballers like Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović in order to boost the attraction of their product as well as the desirability. For example, some screen shots/links of the adverts collected: Advertisements: Cristiano Ronaldo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWVYwppLPdE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mdgTR5ZyDs Zlatan Ibrahimović: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqVk1FHYeFY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SBnk3lKzzg Strengths: Within this set of Nike commercials, I thought the real strengths and positive aspects had to be the way in which they want people to perceive their products. For example, within each advert/promotional technique, they indicate how their style of football boot could change the way in which you perform, and how it can alter your abilities. For example, within the Cristiano Ronaldo adverts, it depicts Ronaldo, running through a whole team, easily with such pace, the advert then finished with the simple statement of: Be fast. Be Mercurial. This would indicate to customers that their special brand of football boot could enhance their abilities and the way they perform on the football pitch. For many football fans, and aspiring football players, these factors may be very important and this may encourage them to buy the item as they desire the certain traits these products supposedly provide. This is also a good way of advertising, because when people purchase this variation of football bo ot, it’s another way of advertising, however it’s free. For example, potential customers may see other people wearing the advertised boots, and this may cause them to feel jealous due to them knowing what the boots supposedly provide trait wise, as well as the fact, their favourite footballer may be the cover of that  certain brand, therefore they could feel further experiences of jealousy. This factor is very important because, in modern day football, the competitiveness between aspiring players may be extremely high, therefore each player wants/needs a certain factor such as new boots that may pose them with an â€Å"advantage† over everybody else/their opponents. Overall this will encourage more people to purchase Nike’s product as the certain products may feel increasingly desired, thus potentially increasing their profits and reputation. I also feel strength of these advertisements is the involvement/featuring of worldwide known sports figures like Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović. Many young people interested within sports and football idolize over certain role models like these players, therefore, when these people see the Nike adverts featuring them, they feel obliged to purchase the certain piece of sports apparel in a way of supporting their role model. Therefore, Nike can use this to their advantage by exploiting how these players â€Å"benefit† from their products, and how it will reflect on their customers. For example, many fans and expiring footballers may feel, that wearing the same football boot as Cristiano Ronaldo or Zlatan Ibrahimović will grant them with their abilities and skill. Because of this, Nike’s advertisements can easily attract more customers by featuring these great athletes, thus potentially boosting their profits due to increased attraction and desirability. Weaknesses: Within these adverts, I felt it was very hard to find a significant weakness; however, I came to the conclusion of their adverts potentially degrading people. For example, due to the adverts representing how football players could be boosted/enhanced by the certain football boot, certain people who may desire the item, however can’t afford it may feel, when they play football, they do not have enough skill or power when on the pitch in comparison to people wearing these advertised boots. Because of this, many people may feel degraded, and they may also feel potentially weaker as a footballer, and this could potentially have a negative effect on Nike due to some people possibly feeling depressed about their abilities when being reminded of their products and their brand faces like Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović. Therefore, Nike may suffer some reductions in customers,  therefore a decrease in overall profits. Comparisons with competitors: When comparing to competitors, I believe Nike is probably at the best stage, I believe Nike is at the top of their game. For example, I think the way in which these commercials are conducted, represent these products with style, professionalism, power, speed, agility, and skill, precision. Because of this, I believe Nike’s target audience has been expanded for example, due to the professionalism and smart appearance of these products and their commercials, elder customers may also be enticed to purchase the products, as well as young, aspiring players. I also feel Nike made the correct choice when choosing players like Cristiano Ronaldo when advertising their products. For example, over the past couple of years, Ronaldo has accomplished many individual and joint awards and has successfully earned his place as the one of the best, if not the Best player in the world. Because of this, more people may have been enticed to buy Nike’s products, thus potentially booting their profits and overall reputation. Sony, Play Station 3: Again, with this certain product, I found Sony Corporation used many promotional techniques in order to advertise their product, especially within television, posters and billboards. For example: Links: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyTlxHwuPZY – Long Live Play Michael https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqkNPcUMffU – PS3 Baby Commercial Strengths: Within these Sony, PS3 commercials/promotional material, I found that theses commercials had many aspects about them that were positive. One of these was the engagement to the audience a special individuals that are avid console gamers. For example, within the Long Live Play commercial, a group of gaming characters formed in order to celebrate the background character known as Michael who controlled their stories, as he PLAYED their games. I believe this is a positive effect as certain people may recognise these gaming characters, therefore they already obtain some variation of emotional  attachment to them, because of this, more people may be attracted to Sony’s products. For example, by seeing characters from certain games they have played may trigger many good memories of these people playing these games when they were younger. Because of this, they may feel encouraged to buy the console in order to recap on old memories, because of this, and increased amount of people buying Sony’s products will mean, and increased amount of profits, thus benefitting Sony in a number of ways. Another strength could be the suspense during the commercial. For example, the Long Live Play commercial depicts a group of characters speaking and celebrating about this person called Michael, however, customers watching the commercial don’t’ actually get told who this Michael is and why he’s important until the very end. I believe this is a very good promotional technique as this may cause customers having to watch the entire commercial as they are curious to whom Michael is, and by that time, they are drawn in and notified of the brand â€Å"Sony – PS3†. This suspense could ideally cause more people to remember the commercial, and overall these factors could increase the amount of people wh o will buy Sony’s products, thus increasing their profits further. Weakness: In comparison to the Nike commercials, I felt there were more negatives within these certain promotional methods, especially within the first commercial I watch, the PS3 baby commercial. I feel there were certain negative, such as how vague the promotional method was, for example, I don’t feel and can’t seem to analyse any form of message or purpose into why Sony depicted a baby doll, glancing at their product and making a series of different noises. If anything I believed this certain commercial was quite weird, and if I were to watch this commercial, my initial reaction would probably deter me from buying this product,, as I found little about the product itself, and the way I think the commercial was conducted was very strange and dysfunctional. I believe this would overall be a negative effect in regards to Sony. For example, if people are deterred from buying you product, due to your commercial, this could result in reduced sales and ultimately a decrease in your a nnual turnover. I also find, within the Long Live Play commercial, if you were new to gaming and unaware of some of the figures within the production, the advert wouldn’t really appeal to you,  therefore the way Sony aimed to increased sales through this promotional method may not work as well as hoped. For example, how do you expect to connect with some of the characters when you’re un aware of their story/history? Ultimately this could affect the turnover and sales created through this product and it could mean less people may purchase Sony’s products, thus potentially affecting their profits. However, in relevance to my last point, it could also be perceived as a positive, for example, if some people are unaware of certain characters, this may leave them questioning their purpose, and why they’re there. Because of this, people unaware of this information may feel the need to purchase a games console and some related game titles in order to find understand why certain characters were within the commercial. Due to this, businesses like Sony who sell gaming systems may receive increased sales due to people new to games, and are searching for a correct platform to play on. Overall this would positively affect Sony as sales may increase, as well as profits, thus benefiting the company economically. In comparison to their competitors I feel Sony don’t feel the need to input as much effort into their advertisements. They seem to focus on sales promotions within shop windows like Game or Game Station. I also feel Sony withdraw from increased advertising as it costs money, and they seem to find leaving their customers without that many details, It might give them an increased chance in regards to buying the console as the negative effects of the product may be unknown until purchased, this is beneficial to Sony as again, more sales mare be generated, thus a potential increase in profits. Pricing Strategies Used Pricing strategies is another word for the structure, and how businesses decide to sell their goods, and depending on these products, the type of pricing may change. Nike, Mercurial Vapor: The first pricing strategy I think Nike use in regards to this specific product happens to be the strategy known as Promotional Pricing. This is where businesses provide offers, and sales on their certain products. And in Nike’s case I believe this is exactly what they do, for example, considering the competition for this variation of product is very high, businesses like Nike have to constantly circulate new products and new Mercurial Football  boots, otherwise, their competitors will receive the upper hand and potentially an increase in customers due to less competition and other competitors not releasing new, updated stock. So, businesses like Nike release new stock/products like Mercurial Football boots in order to maintain their customers interest, therefore a majority of their older stock falls into the category of sales, deals and special offers. For Example: For example, Nike cut down this special type of Mercurial Football boot down from  £55.00 to  £43.00, a  £12.00 price decrease. Nike also follows the pricing strategy of Price Skimming. For example, when Nike first releases a new rendition of the Nike Mercurial Football boot, the price is initially, extremely high. I believe they do this because they know people would pay so much, just to stay up to date and modern in regards to the latest range, I also believe they do this because they know they are going to later decrease the price, therefore they initially sell their products at an extremely high price, just to take advantage of the limited time it’s going to be that price for to ensure they may generate a major profit per unit, thus potentially increasing their sales and overall increasing their profits. For example: The screen shot displayed above represents how much Nike initially release their Mercurial Vapor range at, later this price will decrease as new boot ranges will circulate, and this certain style will eventually go decrease in fashion/popularity. Sony, Play Station 3: The Sony PS3 has been around for around for around 7 – 8 years now, therefore the pricing strategies Sony used may or may not have changed during the products long lasting existence. Over that period of time, the Sony PS3 has been altered, re-mastered and perfected, therefore the pricing has obviously had to be changed, and considering the release of the new PS4, the Sony PS3 price has probably fluctuated at an even greater scale. One of the price  strategies the Sony PS3 withheld was, Price Skimming. Sony needed and has used this strategy due to the products huge market life. In order to generate and receive the most sales/turnover, Sony needed to keep the price as high as they could until something like the PS4 appeared. For example, since its release, the Sony PS3 has maintained a price between  £400 –  £150, therefore within that 8 year product life bracket, Sony has only cut the pricing down from around  £250, and like I mentioned before, Sony did this in o rder to generate the highest amount of sales/turnover in order to sustain a substantial amount of profit. Sony have also used the pricing strategy known as promotional pricing, for example, since Sony and their consoles involve features such as buyable accessories and games, Sony seem to release the occasional deal which involves a mix of a variety of games, certain gaming related accessories and obviously, the console itself. These deals appeal to many people as they receive the highly anticipated console as well as many other beneficial features. However, businesses like Sony use these added features in order to boost people’s encouragements as they believe the deal is better than it actually is. This is beneficial to the business as it overall could result into increased sales/profits due to deal prices and bundles potentially being sold for more than the individual console. This then leads me on to my next and final pricing technique, for example, business use the pricing strategy known as Psychological pricing. This is where businesses sell products at a price to deceive customers and trick them into thinking it’s cheaper than what it really amounts to. For example, many businesses sell items ending in 00.99, this is due to it seeming like it’s much cheaper than the price following it, for example, people feel they’ve received a great deal off an item for  £19.99 instead of it being  £20.00, despite it’s one penny less, your eyes deceive you and it seems to look like a much smaller number/price. For example, in regards to Sony, their PS3 has been usually sold at a price ending within 00.99 in order to trick and deceive people, thus causing Sony, to generate an increased amount of money, thus boosting sales and potentially enlarging the business’s profit. For example: As you can see, this certain retailer has applied this strategy on order to generate a increase within each unit sold. This will overall benefit Sony as  more money will be generated within their company, causing them to receive a positive cash flow. Place Nike: Nike is business that specialises within sports apparel and sports related accessories, therefore you will find most Nike goods within common Sports retailers. For example, popular European stores like Sports Direct, JD sports and the Nike shop will supply these related goods as they are all featured within the same business sector – Sporting and Leisure activities. These products produced by Nike are supplied within these stores as Nike is a multinational brand, and it’s becoming increasingly popular, therefore, over the past couple of years, the demand for Nike produce, such as Mercurial Football boots has increased. Because of this, businesses like Sports Direct and JD sports want to sell their goods as Nike will cause them to generate increased profits due to increase popularity of Nike products and increasing demand for the certain stock, supplied by Nike. This is beneficial to both stores, for example, Nike will receive money through the selected stores Nike stock sales as a percentage of this money will be generated and transacted to them, as long as Nike provide these businesses with suitable and updated stock. The only negative I can picture could be the certain percentage of the money Nike might receive, for example, this percentage may be quite low, and therefore it might actually negatively affect Nike as they may spend more money manufacturing and transporting the goods than what they receive in return. Sony, Play station 3: Since Sony and their PS3 is categorized as a gaming entertainment system, the stores that usually sell this product are gaming retailers like, Game, HMV, Game station, and CEX, however, since PS3 became a worldwide product, they have gradually been sold within basic superstores like Tesco, Wall mart, Sainsbury’s, Morrison’s, ASDA and Waitrose. Again, due to the products speculation and overall success, these businesses decided to get in touch with Sony and sell their produce (PS3) as they were certain its success will provide them with increased sales, and overall profits. Many businesses like  Tesco also bought the stock in order for more people to enter their stores, fro example, by increased amounts of people entering a Tesco in search for a PS3, they may buy a certain drink or product provided by Tesco, and because of this Tesco and other superstores selling the PS3 may have also generated increased product/stock sales and well as potential increased profits. Much like the positive effect presented above this will also overall benefit Sony, as an increased amount of businesses wanting to sell their produce, will mean an increase in funding and overall boost in the finances within the organisation as more money will be externally inserted within the company. The only negative again could possibly be an insufficient amount of money to compensate for the immense amount of demands from businesses wanting to sell Sony’s products, however their funding/money should cover it, thus evading this problem and providing Sony with no real negative issue in regards to this problem. Evaluate the marketing techniques used by a selected business Nike: After evaluating and analysing Nike and their Mercurial Vapor football boots, I have resulted in a conclusion, and have formatted my final opinion, on their way of marketing. I personally believe Nike used very smart and successful marketing strategies, as the popularity of their business represents how they have globally attracted people to their brands, and sports apparel. For example, in regards to their Product, I believe the way they’ve dealt with the growing/fast competition really functions well within their business. For example, Nike has adapted and became accustom to bringing out and releasing new products, like football boots every couple of months/year in order to sustain the interest of their customers and target audience. For example, they need to sustain each of their products like the Mercurial Football boots within the growing sector in regards to the product life cycle, until the next brand or style of boot gets released. Without these certain functions, and Nike standardized approach, I doubt the business would be as successful as it has been over the past few years, this certain function has certainly helped Nike achieve success, sales and profits; and these are all very beneficial features within an organisation. Due to these factors, I also believe Nike has breached its customers’ expectations; they have released consistent and fashionable products, much  like the rapid production and competition of football boots, and they are definitely one of the best within their selected sector of Sports and Leisure apparel/equipment. This is why I believe Nike could be regarded as one of the best, if not the best football boot producers/retailers within the world, and I believe they are definitely one of the feared businesses, in regards to their competitors like Adidas, Puma, Umbro, Sondico and Warrior. Secondly, I believe Nike’s Promotional sector is also very effective, for example, as I mentioned previously, I believe the way Nike advertise and present their products is very professional, stylish and smart in regards to their appearance. And because if this, I believe Nike’s target audience is expanded, for example, by appealing to an increased amount of people, Nike’s football boot sales may increase, therefore Nike may even result in an increase within profits; thus benefiting the business further. I also believe Nike conducted their sponsors very professionally and successfully as well. For example, Nike and their range of football boots obtain sponsorship deals with players like Zlatan Ibrahimović and the two time Ballon d’Or winner; Cristiano Ronaldo. I believe these deals have secured Nike’s success, for example, due to players like Ronaldo promoting their produce, an increase amount of people have been encouraged to buy their products , like the Mercurial football boots; thus boosting their sales, revenue and overall, profits. Again, in comparison to their competitors, I believe Nike are the best in their business sector. For example, the way they’ve conducted each commercial, poster or other promotional source, they do it with certain features that I feel provides them with an edge in regards to attracting and generated desiring customers.  Within Nike, I feel their pricing strategies were extremely good / beneficial to the organisation, and I believe, there isn’t any other form of strategy that I would follow, in terms of generating sales, and ultimately profits. For example, I believe the strategies they used were very good, in regards to their products, and how it will function with their target audience/customers. For example, one of the pricing strategies they used was, promotional pricing, this is where business sell their goods by offering certain deals and sales and cutting down the price in order to attract and generate an increased amount of customers. I believe it was  convenient for a business like Nike to use this certain strategy, as the football boot market is very competitive, and new boots will have to be released every couple of months/ year. Because of this, it’s only right if they cut down the price on their other goods by introducing sales, offers and other forms of promotional pricing, in order to attract more customers, and potentially increase sales/profits. Another form of Promotional pricing that Nike conduct is the strategy known as Price skimming. This is where businesses initially release their item at a very high price; however, as it progresses through the product life cycle, this price tends to decrease in order to benefit the business and customers by producing potentially more sales, thus more profits, as well as a cheaper price, therefore increasingly affordable. Again in Nike’s case, this is mainly due to the strong, competitive market. For example, new products like Mercurial football boot s will have to be released, therefore the stock referred to as the old stock will slowly come down in price as new products and goods get released. This will benefit Nike as the cheaper prices could attract more customers, because of this, Nike could face an overall sales increase, and this sales increase could eventually lead to the increase in Nike’s profits. Nike could improve the sales of this by promoting these reductions in such things as Television Adverts or posters, combined with popular retail stores such as Sports Direct. By promoting these reduced offers, more people within their target audience may feel interested to purchase their products, due to this Nike’s sales and overall profit may lead to an increase. Within these advertisements further deals with popular sports personalities such as Cristiano Ronaldo could take place; further promoting these reduced products, ultimately leading to more people having a desire or wanting for these items, resulting in an increase in Nike’s sales and profits. I believe the way Nike sells their produce, like their Mercurial Vapors is very convenient and bene ficial to the organisation. Therefore I believe these certain pricing strategies are very effective and this specific range of marketing techniques are very successful in terms of generating the business with increased sales and overall increased profits. Nike has overcome their competitors by formulating certain schemes to override their opponents and receive increased customers, sales and profits. Like I mentioned previously, to strengthen this, Nike could promote their discounted and reduced prices  even more. For example, since a new style or variation of their products such as Football boots are renewed monthly in order to maintain a controlling position within the Market, a vast amount of their old products are slightly forgotten about in regards to customers and their target audience. Therefore I think it would be highly beneficial to Nike if they compensated more for the promotion of their older products with reduced prices as it could overall increase the sales of their business, and ultimately lead to increase publicity. More people would be interested to purchase these promoted items with reduced prices, creating a larger attraction to the Company (Nike) and its products, either new or old. Further promotional materials with sports personalities would also help solidify their position, as certain sporting figures may attract a larger audience to their business, increasing the publicity and knowledge of their products; this would be highly beneficial to Nike as it may result in increased sales, ultimately leading to an increase within profits, further benefiting the organisation. However, if I had to make one improvement I would say the pace at which the company skims the prices off its products. For example, many times I have been looking at popular football boots and noticed how the prices are extraordinarily high. For example, popular football boots promoted by famous athletes sometimes cost over  £200. For children, and sometimes adults, this type of money to compensate is nearly impossible, or considered a â€Å"waste†. This high price may result in push factors for people in search for the adequate balance I regards to sporting goods such as football boots, people will look for price, fitting and appearance; and if the price is high, it may deter people from purchasing it, ultimately reducing Nike’s sales, potentially leading to a decrease in profits. By increasing the rate at which these products are reduced, and shortening the period they are sold at a very high price for, more people may be attracted to buying and using the product, thus promoting the business’s content furthermore, and ultimately leading to an increase in profits due to increased customers and sales. Lastly, within the marketing sector, comes the section known as Place. This basically refers to where the products are actually sold. For example, for Nike this is the common sports retailers like Sports Direct, JD sports and  more. This encourages greater sales as the product is widely available. For example, it would be common to provide businesses who have generated success, prior to you letting them sell your specific items. Therefore, it was only beneficial for businesses like Nike to sell their good to businesses like Sports Direct who are very successful and have generated an array of customers in search for products like Nike’s Mercurial football boots. This will benefit them as the business’s success could potentially mean, more people might purchase Nike’s products, like their Mercurial Vapors, therefore Nike would benefit as they could potentially result in an increase within profits, and sales. Another way Nike may be able to improve the promotion and success of their sporting related goods could be the increase in personal customization, for example, many people buy and purchase products such as football boots to stand out within their selected sport, by allowing your customers to personalize a product, catered to their wants and desires will enable an increased level of individuality. For example, this customisation technique may allow people to feature their own personal initials and colour combinations on their selected Nike products. Also, this certain function should not only be introduced via the internet, but also via located outlets. This would enable people and customers to receive a visual on how their selected product would appear. Certain physical features such as a wider Nike product customisation would potentially lead an increased amount of customers, for example, like I mentioned previously, within their selected sports, people want to stand out, in order t o attract attention or an increased chance of remembrance. Therefore, by allowing people to customize their personal products whether it is tops, shoes, boots, shorts or even tennis rackets, a wider audience may be attracted. Ultimately this may increase Nike’s sales, leading to an increase in their overall profits. The only recommendation for Nike, in my opinion would be if they were to provide more promotional pricing methods in order to prevent certain items falling into a decline, for example, due to the high competition within the market in regards to football boots, they have to release new boots, every couple of months, therefore the â€Å"older† boots decline in price and popularity quickly. In order to prevent this, I think Nike should increase the amounts of offers within their football boot range; this will potentially increase sales and even boost profits as an  increased amount of people would be encouraged to purchase Nike’s products due to the falling/cheaper prices. Again this will benefit the business as more money could be generated, and this could possibly mean Nike may sell more, thus increasing their overall sales.