Sunrise Over Fallujah

Last Year Popular author Walter Dean Meyers published his newly book titled Sunrise Over Fallujah, His final book in the anticipated war series. This is the best war book he has ever written. Since he was in Vietnam, and he has relatives that have fought in the war against terrorism. So he has major experience in the war factor, knowing what could possibly be going on. Sunrise Over Fallujah is about a teenage boy from Harlem, New York. His name is Robin, and he joined the army. He's not so sure why he did because he is always so nervous about it. When he joins he meets someone named Jonesy. Jonesy black man who is very confident in himself and loves to write and listen to blues music. Robin also meets some pretty harsh people like Marla, Marla is a very pretty lady who thinks she is better then everyone she meets. In the beginning of the book it starts off describing how Iraq is and if Robin is going to be in the war. Everyone wants to go into the war for some reason, but Robin, and Jonesy are pretty nervous about it. Since Mr. Meyers knows about war there’s nothing in this book that can disappoint. The real problem is that they have their enemies trying to get them with detonators, and other dangerous explosive weapons. Mr. Meyers shows in this book how soldiers can grow brotherhood with other soldiers. He is very descriptive so it’s like you’re watching a movie. Meyers shows how gruesome war could really be. He also shows that the war could effect everyone including children. In the end Jonesy becoming a hero, and Robin overcame his worries. Jonesy became a hero because a blind kid was lost in a street battle and Jonesy ran after him and saved him. Then later Jonesy died because of his gun wounds he had suffered. Robin finally became used to the fact that he was in the army, and stopped worrying.

Position paper †Accreditation Essay

Hello, This assignment is for a subject called: Quality Management for Health Services Assignment 2: Position paper – Accreditation Weighting: 20% Length: 1000 words â€Å"Accreditation programs for health services or facilities are not useful.† Discuss this statement with reference to specific accreditation programs. In your response substantiate your claims with reference to literature. The assignment will be marked using the following criteria: 1. Style, organization and presentation 10% [2 marks] 2. Demonstrated understanding of principles and frameworks of accreditation 30% [6 marks] 3. Description of strengths and/or weaknesses of accreditation programs 30% [6 marks] 4. Identification of opportunities for improvements in accreditation programs 30% [6 marks].   Introduction – Accreditation is a process of certifying and approving that the services or products produced by a certain organization meet with certain standards in quality.   In Australia, one of the organizations that provide accreditation for hospitals and other healthcare organizations is the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS). The main objective of this organization is to improve the quality of healthcare in Australian hospitals. ACHS is an independent organization that works for non-profit purposes and conducts reviews of the performance, quality assessments, etc, during the accreditation process. It was formed in the year 1974, and several other organizations such as the Australian Medical Council, the Australian Healthcare Association, and the medical colleges association have approved accreditation by the ACHS. For determining the standards in the level of healthcare, a committee formed containing representatives from various sectors of the population including the general public, government, hospitals, etc. The Council members vote for the Board of Directors. In the year 1996, the ACHS had launched a unique quality program titled Evaluation and Quality Improvement Program (EQuIP), the main aim of which was to deliver customer-oriented healthcare services to the people. A systematic external peer review process was set in place to closely monitor the program. The ACHS has about an 800-organization subscription and also acts as a consultancy to several other organizations throughout the world (ACHS, 2007). Body – Accreditation is a means of issuing trust. Any consumer who requires healthcare services desires those healthcare services to be of good quality and ensuring safety. It can be understood that in healthcare there are certain amount of risks, which can only be reduced to a certain extent. Accreditation is one of the means by which these risks can be reduced and quality care can be ensured. The patients should identify means by which these risks can be reduced.   Through accreditation, the entire process of providing medical care is well documented, besides being fool proof.   This would ensure that a process would be setup that would be based on strong evidences, ensuring better patient management.   Accreditation is often determined by the healthcare and the accreditation organization in strong technical terms that have to be fulfilled (ACHS, 2007). In the year 2006, the Australian Commission that maintained safety and quality in the healthcare sector felt accreditation standards needed to be improved.   They also felt that an independent review process was needed to raise the level of adherence to quality standards in healthcare organizations in Australia.   The organization felt that accreditation is a process to publicly recognize the achievements and adherence of the healthcare organizations national standards. Accreditation should be made available to all public and private sector organizations, and at different levels including community-based, private-health setups and tertiary healthcare organizations.   The accreditation organization should function independent of the organizations that it would be accrediting.   This would ensure that the performance and the standards that are present in the organization are given no bias by the accrediting organization (ACHS, 2007). Benefits of the accreditation system: – Greater involvement of the public and the healthcare organizations The clinicians who are responsible for providing quality care can be involved. Improves the community confidence levels in the healthcare system Better risk management in patient care Better compliance with the laws (reduction in medical malpractice cases) Patient safety standards are improved Education of the staff members towards developing good practices Provision of professional advice and guidance Staff education and training Developing strong mission statements, values and objectives for the organization The human resource processes can be effectively handled Compliance with the standards imposed by the regulatory bodies Better management of insurance claims and those of third parties Reduction in the insurance costs Better handling of the organization and the management Better flow of information Better decision-making processes Co-ordination can be improved Building a proper evaluation system Developing areas in which priority and attention is required (Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, 2007 & JCAHO, 2007) Disadvantages would also be applicable, including: – Huge costs of accreditation which is finally passed on to the patient Emphasis on resources such as human, support systems, etc. The standards have to be continually updated, changing the area of concentration Accreditation would concentrate on improving structure rather than services Greater attention on increasing collaboration and partnership It may be difficult to streamline the processes Accreditation may not have an effect over the outcomes There may be huge emphasis on competition present in the market Need to subscribe to accreditation by more than one organization (PHF, 1997) In the year 2007, the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care gave an alternate model for accreditation of healthcare organizations.   Consultation with the stakeholders helped to identify the deficiencies in the current system and to develop a better one.   The idea was to apply this new alternative accreditation system across all the sectors of healthcare in a phased manner. Characteristics of this new accreditation system: – Implementing certain reforms Bringing about certain standards in the Australian healthcare system The system was to be developed in association with the stakeholders Improve the quality standards Improve the compliance levels with the rules in the healthcare organization Ensure evidence-based practices Improve the monitoring system Support mutual recognition Improve the participation levels Improve the assessments levels, methods and surveys Obligations to be imposed so that the organization adheres to the standards (Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, 2007). Conclusion – It can be said that the entire process of accreditation needs to be setup in such a way that emphasis is given only in improving the patient care and satisfaction. All the meaningless process and structures that do not have an effect over improving the patient care should be removed.   The accreditation organization should ensure that such a system of accreditation is practically applicable by various types of healthcare organizations.   Not much emphasis should be given on costs.   Even organizations that are providing cost-effective care and are meeting with reasonable standards should be provided accreditation.   Accreditation should also be a voluntary system and not a compulsory one.   Different levels of accreditation should also be provided (PHF, 1997).    References: Australian Council for Healthcare Standards (2007). â€Å"About US.† [Online], Available: http://www.achs.org.au/whatwedo/, [Accessed: 2008, March 17]. Australian Council for Healthcare Standards (2007). â€Å"Mission, vision and values.† [Online], Available: http://www.achs.org.au/missionvisionvalues/, [Accessed: 2008, March 17]. Australian Council for Healthcare Standards (2007). â€Å"What accreditation means.† [Online], Available: http://www.achs.org.au/whataccredmeans/, [Accessed: 2008, March 17]. Australian Council for Healthcare Standards (2007). â€Å"ACHS Position Statements.† [Online], Available: http://www.achs.org.au/positionstatements/, [Accessed: 2008, March 17]. Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare (2007). â€Å"UPDATE: Review of National Safety and Quality Accreditation Standards November 2007.† [Online], Available: http://www.safetyandquality.org/internet/safety/publishing.nsf/Content/accreditation, [Accessed: 2008, March 17]. Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare (2007). â€Å"Draft: An Alternatvie Model for Safety and Qualtiy Accreditation.† Barnes, A.M. (2001). â€Å"Healthcare Law: Desk Reference.† Ali-Aba. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=KS5xke6-DEgC&dq=accreditation+advantages+healthcare&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 JCAHO (2007). â€Å"Benefits of Joint Commission Accreditation.† [Online], Available: http://www.jointcommission.org/HTBAC/benefits_accreditation.htm, [Accessed: 2008, March 17]. JCAHO (2007). â€Å"PSP Fact Sheet.† [Online], Available: http://www.jcipatientsafety.org/fpdf/ICPS/PSP%20Fact%20Sheet%20with%20New%20Logo.doc, [Accessed: 2008, March 17]. Public Health Foundation (1998). â€Å"Accreditation: A Study of Issues and Characteristics Applicable to Public Health.† [Online], Available: http://www.phf.org/Reports/Accreditation1/final_report.htm, [Accessed: 2008, March 17].                        

Battle of Issus Essay Example for Free

Battle of Issus Essay The Battle of Issus Sometime around 310 BCE an artist by the name of Philoxenus of Eretria created a mosaic (creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored material) of the Battle of Issus that has long been considered one of the greatest artworks of antiquity. Found at the House of the Faun in Pompeii in 1831 the mosaic is composed of about one and a half million tiny individual colored tiles called tesserae. The artwork illustrates the battle in which invading troops led by Alexander of Macedonia defeated the army led by King Darius III of Persia. When looking at the piece the viewer cannot help but be impressed by the psychological intensity of the drama taking place. On the Persian side of the piece the viewer’s eye is immediately drawn to the prominent figure of Darius shown in his chariot. A look of pure desperation, and perhaps even fear, is etched in Darius’ face as victory slips through his hands. As his steely eyed charioteer turns to rein his horses for a fast retreat to safety Darius stretches out his hand toward Alexander either in disbelief that Alexander has beaten him, or perhaps in grief over the death of one of his â€Å"immortals†. Around him are his Persian soldiers who mill in confusion in the background, their faces filled with fear and determination. On the same side, there are two other figures that are quite notable and demonstrate the artist’s technical mastery. The first is the artist’s depiction of the rearing horse right below Darius which is seen in a three-quarter rear view. The rider, his terror evident upon his face, glances back at the battle as he attempts to control his horse. This kind of depiction is very impressive and is much more accomplished then other similar attempts such as the shading in the Pella mosaic or the Vergina mural (Kleiner 142). The second, perhaps even more impressive, is the artist’s portrayal of the Persian in the foreground who has fallen onto the ground and raises a small shield in a pathetic attempt to prevent being trampled. The man’s terrified face is reflected on the polished surface of the shield moments before the chariot crushes him under its ornate wheels. On the Macedonian side of things the viewer’s eye is of course drawn to Alexander. This portrait of Alexander is one of his most famous. His breastplate depicts Medusa the Gorgon. He leads the charge into battle on his horse Bucephalus, without even a helmet to protect him, and maintains an aura of unshaken confidence in direct contrast to Darius. As Alexander surges forward in a supreme effort he drives his spear straight through one of Darius’s trusted â€Å"immortals† who puts himself between him and the King of Persia. As the impaled Persian collapses to the ground, Alexander fixes his gaze upon Darius in utter hatred. Although the deteriorated condition of the mosaic makes it difficult to distinguish much on the Macedonian side a cavalryman wearing a Boeotian helmet with a golden wreath can been seen behind Alexander. Looking at the mosaic as a whole there are a few important details that grab ones attention. First is the fact that the landscape is very minimal, only one gnarled tree trunk appearing in the background and a few discarded weapons and rocks in the foreground. Secondly, everywhere in the scene men, animals, and weapons cast shadows on the ground. This unusual attention to detail is what enhances the intensity of the piece and gives it an aspect of realism that truly shows the horror and confusion of battle. The viewer cannot help but be drawn into the conflict and become a part of the drama as it unfolds. To me this mosaic is not only a truly great piece of art but also has furthered my understanding of Roman artwork, Macedonian warfare and the emotion in Hellenistic-styled mosaics. It is easy to understand how Roman author and natural philosopher Pliny the Elder concluded that Philoxenus’ depiction of the Battle of Issus was â€Å"inferior to none† (Kleiner 142). Battle of Issus. (2018, Oct 25).

How useful is the Letter of Jude for the Church Today Essay

How useful is the Letter of Jude for the Church Today - Essay Example The book comes in handy today as there are many false teachers who look down upon the word of God with disdain. Jude was driven by purpose to protect the status of the faith and church of God. In his letter, he intended to bring out the aims of false teachers whose infiltration in the church of god threatened to derail the faith of Christians. Through this exposure, he intended to pass a message to Christians that they should find courage and stand firm in relation to their faith. According to him, the Christians ought to get motivated and seek their way to the truth. He dwells on this during the first part of the epistle. In verse 4, Jude states that â€Å"for certain persons have crept unnoticed†. He meant that there were false teachers of the word of god and they were peddling their wares in the church and elsewhere among Christians without being noticed or questioned. He described ion the book how these false teachers perpetrated terrible acts under concealment. For the Christians to be aware, Jude recommended that they had to remember the teaching of the apostles of Christ, help each other to build their faith in the word of God, employ the use of Holy Spirit to guide them in prayer, wait upon the mercy of Jesus by living their lives in such a way that they are prepared for this second coming and stay within the unending love of God. Staying in the love of God demands that believers trust in God and do whatever he wants us to do as highlighted in the teachings of the epistles. Commitment and following the guidelines he put forward, Christians can be able to stand up against those false tea chers who were working against the teachings of Lord Jesus Christ. In modern times, there are many false teachers. Jude say that these teachers are a threat because they teach that being saved by the grace of god gives freedom to do what one wants which includes living immorally. This is an act of denying Christ according to Jude. This is

Imago Dei Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Imago Dei - Research Paper Example In this attempt, Christianity, Judaism and Islam consider mankind as an image of God or consider them being created in the image of God. Genesis and Psalm are the Old Testament that are widely accepted and used as reference while discussing Imago Dei. Other testament passages are James 3:9 and 1 Corinthians 11:7. In order to understand the definition of Imago Dei, it is important to consider the actual meaning that can be derived out of this term, its theological aspects and human attributes that are perceived as a reflection of God and other perspectives present related to its functional view, relational capacity, humankind’s destiny and intellectual formation. Imago Dei not only emphasizes on religious aspects of this notion but also attempts to derive a scientific view out of this conception. In specific contexts, Christianity provides four definitions of Imago Dei. According to these definitions, humans bear similarity to God, they are God’s counterpart in this univ erse, human have dominion in this universe, and they are God’s representatives2. Substantive View of Imago Dei According to Gardoski, content and context of Genesis 1:26 help in viewing Imago Dei in a substantive manner. This substantive view illustrates that God has provided man with intelligence, volition, morality and spirituality. These characteristics helps man in operating as God on earth and this is how God has restored himself in creation of man which also differentiates him from other living beings. These spiritual and non-material aspects when combine with a physical body form a human in a holistic view3. Existence of man, his ability to function independently and rule the land does not make him capable of being a reflection of God. Instead, God gave him this body as a vessel or mean to enjoy the resources provided to him. However, along with these earthly blessings, he is also given an opportunity to exercise two significant corollaries of God’s image. These corollaries demand man to rule over other creation as the representative of God in whom all the trust and power of God has been bestowed along with enjoying cordial relationship with the creator and his creations. These corollaries provide us an indication as to why God made man his representative and created him in his image. Hence, this body provided to man is just a mean of fulfilling God’s will4. As far as view of a fallen man is concerned, a fallen man is a sinner who has digressed from the path of God but remains God’s creation and thus, inherits a reflection of God. However, for a fallen man, it is important to renew himself to be and act like God and live a life as God intends man to live. On the other hand, Christianity renders Jesus Christ as an example of restoration of Godly image in man and salvation believers expect to renew themselves in the same manner. Although attempt of seeking salvation in Jesus Christ does not restore the same image of God instead it affects the behavior and mannerism of the believer to match the conduct of God. Substantive view further illustrates that man attempts to match his actions to God’s and tries to seek conformity even in the daily life activities. Functional View of Imago Dei Imago Dei helps in identifying the functional purpose of humankind and his existence in a corporate sense. Hence, valuation of mankind can be performed and assessed. According to excerpts of Genesis in Klasson’

The Problem of Leadership in Cuba, Mexico and Brazil Essay

The Problem of Leadership in Cuba, Mexico and Brazil - Essay Example 2. Cuba The Cuban tale of independence was preceded by two more important events namely the independence of Haiti in 1791 and the call for independence from Spain in the 1820’s. The Haitian revolution had proven beyond doubt that people from various racial and ethnic backgrounds could operate together to subdue not one but three colonial powers to claim their independence. The Cuban revolution and its constituents resembled the Haitian insurgents in racial composition as the call to arms was taken up by blacks, mulattos and whites alike. Previously the Cuban domain had remained faithful to Spain even though other nations were claiming their independence. Cuba was given the motto â€Å"The Always Most Faithful Island† by the Spanish Crown although small plans for insurgency had been unearthed throughout the 1830’s and 1840’s. The loyalty towards the Spanish Crown stemmed from dependence on Spain for trade as well as protection from pirates and unease at the rising power of the United States. The actual insurgency was initiated by Carlos Manuel De Cespedes who was a sugar plantation owner. Carlos freed his slaves and declared that any slaves who were presented for military service would be freed. The conflict emerged in 1868 and became known as the Ten Years War with the emergence of a new government supported by blacks, mulattos and white men. Throughout the struggle race was nearly dismantled as a classification as white men served under blacks and blacks and mulattos rose to prominence as colonels, generals and the like. The newly formed government was not recognised by the United States though other European and Latin American governments recognised it. The war ended in 1878 with the Pact of Zanjon as Spain promised greater autonomy to Cuba. In the following year another insurgency was initiated by a Cuban patriot better known as Calixto Garcia. This effort was labelled as the Little War but it received little support. Slavery was abolished generally in Cuba following these events and abolition was completed in the 1880’s. The next conflict in Cuba emerged in 1895 with forces led by Jose Marti who was finally killed in the battle of Dos Rios on May 19, 1895. The large Spanish army outnumbered the insurgents as local people were forced into concentration camps by the military governor of Cuba. The final end of the war in 1898 placed leadership in the hands of the influential whites and some mulattos. Following independence Cuba saw social and political corruption along with short regimes that boomed and waned in rapid succession till the socialist revolution. 3. Mexico Mexico was ruled by a republican general Porfirio Diaz who took over Mexico during the French intervention. Porfirio was in charge of the country from 1876 to 1880 and then from 1884 to 1911 through five consecutive reelections and the period became known better as Porfirio. This era was characterized by large progress in economics as wel l as the arts and sciences though economic disparity was on the rise along with political repression. Election fraud associated with Diaz’s fifth election instigated the Mexican Revolution of 1910 which was led by Francisco I. Madero forcing Diaz to resign in 1911. However Francisco was overthrown only two years later in a coup by the conservative general Victoriano Huerta which put the nation into another civil war

Business tourism in Abu Dhabi Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Business tourism in Abu Dhabi - Assignment Example The decision to focus on the promotion of business tourism in Abu Dhabi is strongly connected to the Emirate's geostrategic location which makes it accessible to business professionals and corporate entities from Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific (Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority, 2010). This research is conducted with the view of identifying the most important elements of the development of Abu Dhabi as a business tourism center and how best they can be developed for the optimum results. Research Design Research design is generally related to the creation of a system of studying and making enquiries into a given subject (Marshall & Rossman, 2011 p3). This research is designed to answer the research question: optimization of the structures of business tourism in Abu Dhabi through the incorporation of external studies and views of business professionals. The design seeks to use the various elements of scientific research to identify important factors that can help make recommend ations about the best ways that business tourism can be boosted. It will focus on examining the needs and expectations of targeted consumers and how best to attain the elements of the strategies identified by the relevant authorities (MICE and ADNEC) to ensure that the best results are attained. The process therefore draws on various information that are relevant to the numerous stakeholders in this drive to ensure that the best recommendations are done. The research is going to be an exploratory research in nature. Although it will examine information and data from numerous sources, attempts will be made to acquire primary data and study new trends. The inferences that will be made from the findings and conclusions will... Research design is generally related to the creation of a system of studying and making enquiries into a given subject. This research is designed to answer the research question: optimization of the structures of business tourism in Abu Dhabi through the incorporation of external studies and views of business professionals. The design seeks to use the various elements of scientific research to identify important factors that can help make recommendations about the best ways that business tourism can be boosted. It will focus on examining the needs and expectations of targeted consumers and how best to attain the elements of the strategies identified by the relevant authorities to ensure that the best results are attained. The process therefore draws on various information that are relevant to the numerous stakeholders in this drive to ensure that the best recommendations are done. The research is going to be an exploratory research in nature. Although it will examine information and data from numerous sources, attempts will be made to acquire primary data and study new trends. The inferences that will be made from the findings and conclusions will become the basis for the recommendations that will be targeted for key players of the business tourism drive of the UAE. In this research, the main independent variable that is being tested is business tourism in Abu Dhabi. Business tourism in Abu Dhabi is the basis for the entire research and it is examined with the view of getting the best results in the future.

Implementation of Basel II in Europe Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Implementation of Basel II in Europe - Thesis Example The basic aim of this approach is to ensure that the banks and financial institutions must maintain financial soundness and retain the consumer confidence in order to ensure the stability of the financial system and protect the interests of the deposit holders. With these perspectives in mind, Bank of International Settlement formed a Basel Committee on Banking Supervision in 1974 to provide a comprehensive forum for dealing with banking matters of such magnitude. The Basel Committee is made up of senior officials responsible for banking supervision or financial stability issues in central banks and other authorities in charge of the prudential supervision of banking businesses. Members of the Basel Committee come from Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK and the US. This essay will discuss the implementation process of Basel II in Europe besides discussing some of the challenges and aspects that may raise tensions while implementing the accord in Europe. However, before exploring the issue of the implementation of the BASEL II accord, we will be discussing some of the key issues and points raised by BASEL II in order to implement it in true spirit. Before discussing the BASEL II and its implementation in Europe, it is necessary that a view must be taken in order to provide a historical account of the process of BASEL II implementation in Europe and rest of the world. Bank of international Settlements was established in Basel, Switzerland in 1930 and is considered as the world’s oldest international financial institution. It remains the principal center of international central bank corporations around the world. The BIS was formed as a result of the treaty of Versailles which ended the First World War and BIS was basically established for repatriation

The case of Libyan Arab Foreign Bank v Bankers Trust Co [1989] QB 728 Essay

The case of Libyan Arab Foreign Bank v Bankers Trust Co [1989] QB 728 - Essay Example This traditional approach can be seen in the case of Serbian Loans3 any contract that is not a contract between states in their capacity as subjects of international law is based on the municipal [domestic] law of some country The rules thereof may be common to several states and may even be established by international conventions or customs, and in the latter case may possess the character of true international law governing relations between states.4 Therefore when it comes to investment contracts between states then it will have elements of adhering to the contractual word of the agreement; as well as the duty of care that the obligations are met as in public international contractual agreements. There has been a suggestion that cases that are on a private international matter allows the domestic court that makes the decision have an extraterritorial effect in imposing the obligation across borders, i.e. applying the higher standard of obligation and care that public internationa l law holds.5 On the other hand, the case of Holmes v Bangladesh Biman6 argued that foreign jurisdictions have no legitimate reason for subjecting their civil law on foreigners in their own country. Therefore these two cases make it difficult for correctly pursuing fraud, negligence or any circumstance that leads to an action when it is a case of foreign investment, i.e. where would you make the action and could you legally serve and enforce the action papers in foreign jurisdiction. However, it seems that the Libyan Bank Case was ahead of its time although it did surround a time of terrorism that was strikingly the same as the 9-11 attacks, such as the Lockerbie case. Therefore business law is under an obligation at state and at international levels to protect security, by imposing a duty for businesses to disclose any actions that would indicate terrorism, organized crime or threaten national and international security. Yet, as the following case study will illustrate that freezing assets is a common approach and duty of the bank that is mainly prevalent in Post 9-11, which the Libyan Bank Case failed to do.7 On 2 September, High Court of Justice in London rules in favor of Libya, orders Bankers Trust London to transfer to Libyan Arab Foreign Bank $131 million, plus accrued interest, that has been blocked by US assets freeze. US Treasury authorizes payment on 9 October. 2) In the era of terrorism and protection of the security of states, this means that financial institutions and international businesses are embarking on a different era of state co-operation. Companies are faced with being diligent in ensuring that they are free from fear of money laundering investigations. On of the strictest guidelines can be seen in the EU, therefore Barclays Bank Plc the fourth largest bank in the world ensures that their regulations are strict as their mother state is the UK. It has been realized that one of best methods to stop organized crime is through stricter policing of finances. The EU has become a lot stricter in this area, especially in respect to opening bank accounts and the ID required

Taste Trends of the Coffee Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Taste Trends of the Coffee Industry - Essay Example Resource based view to management asserts that the management must prioritize the effective management of both tangible and intangible assets at the firm thereby optimizing productivity. The production of agricultural products is seasonal a feature that influences the patterns of both the supply and demand of such products including coffee. Such factors present marketers with numerous operational challenges as they seek to develop competitive brands in such markets. Among the leading coffee markets in the world are Brazil, Philippines, India and Europe. The availability of the products in the market especially during particular seasons results in increased supply of the product thereby resulting in reduction of the prices of the product. Introducing a new product in such a market therefore requires effective analysis of the industry with the view of understanding the intricate feature of the industry. Marketing is a function of the management mandated with the establishing, anticipating and satisfying customer demands. Marketers of coffee brands thus face myriad challenges arising from the structure of the market. Key among the challenges is competition. As one of the oldest industries in the world, the industry attracted numerous entrepreneurs who specialize in similar functions thereby competing for the same markets in South America, Europe and parts of Asia. Competition influences the demand and supply thereby influencing the productivity of the industry as the numerous players target the same market. The players must therefore develop effective strategies in order to position their products effectively thereby safeguarding their profitability. While the size of the market has remained constant throughout, the supply changes depending on the prevailing factors thereby influencing the number of marketers who operate in the industry.

Cooking to Become a Chef Essay Example for Free

Cooking to Become a Chef Essay Cooking for me is my way of expressing myself. It gives me a chance as a person to show my friends and family what I’m good at and what I love to do. I haven’t always enjoyed the art of cooking. With cooking, I have learned to prepare different types of meals using different methods, ingredients, a potpourri of equipment and seasonings. Food seasoning is a personal trademark you create and eventually it classifies you to either be prominent as a chef or just a plain Jane Suzy homemaker who cooks for her family only for the fact that we all need to eat. Experimenting is what got me where I am at today. My mother was a diabetic so the meals were prepared with a bland taste, no seasonings, with just a tad bit of pepper, nothing more. When I started cooking I hated it for the simple fact I didn’t know how. I had to follow recipes even for macaroni and cheese. It wasn’t until I met my husband and his family that I started to enjoy cooking because the meals were starting to taste better and I was learning how to make them taste better. He and his family slowly taught me how to cook and when to use seasoning and how much to use. At first, my meals were a work in progress. As the years went on, I have learned to use my eyes and taste buds for measuring cups and spoons. That’s what helps create your own â€Å"cooking signature†. As you learn to cook, you learn to shy away from some or all of the exact measurements in order to create your signature. For some, cooking is just another everyday back breaking chore, a necessity to always haven to follow a recipe, precisely measuring each ingredient, to the point of the great inventor of the microwave ovens. For others it comes natural, a passion they thrive to live on by creating their own â€Å"cooking signature†. Coming to mind are a couple of brilliant and extraordinary chefs that are indulgingly reliable. These two men have countless awards, degrees, own restaurants, shows and cookbooks to show and prove their overwhelming credibility’s. They are Wolfgang puck and Bobby Flay. Neither of the two were born to cook, none of us are. Some talents came naturally while the rest they learned and were taught. Both men attended Le Cordon Bleu and both men are featured on the food network. I may not have earned any degrees or awards such as a Michelin star or chef of the year and did not attend a culinary institute like they have, however, my cooking now exceeds my friends and families expectations. The qualities of an excellent educational resource would have to include tips and the breakdowns of recipes or step by step instructions for them. Pictures or video tutorials are also very helpful to one who’s learning the art of cooking. Tutorials show you step by step from preparing to serving the dish or meal. I have found two out of thousands of resources that have all the educational resources needed as well as countless credibility and qualifications to help you succeed as a prominent chef. These two would be, Le Cordon Bleu, a culinary institute and the Food Network a television show on cable and the food network also has a very useful website, www. foodnetwork. com . The food network website is filled with a massive amount of information that is accurate and full of every resource there is needed for and about cooking. The food network is a unique lifestyle network and Web site that endeavors to be more than just cooking. The network is devoted to exploring new and different ways to tackle food through pop culture, contests, adventure, and travel while also increasing its repertoire of technique-based information. Food Network is strewed to more than 96 million U. S. households and averages more than seven million Web site users monthly. With its headquarters in New York City and branches in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and Knoxville, Food Network can be seen internationally in Canada, Australia, Korea, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Monaco, Andorra, Africa, France, and the French-speaking territories in the Caribbean and Polynesia. Le Cordon Bleu, www. LeCordonBleu. com, is an extremely accredited culinary institute. The school is constantly keeping their courses up to date and actively adapting to current and future needs of culinary services. The schools graduates leave the school with a diploma that is acknowledged around the world. That has been proven by both Flay and Puck. The culinary institute is solely dedicated to the appreciation and mastery of culinary arts to the their students who study there from over 70 countries around the world. This is where I would want to further my culinary learning, to gain more knowledge; they are one of the top culinary institutes. Qualifications of the resources should include Awards, culinary degrees, owning of their own restaurants with worldwide recognition. They should be well respected, well known with credibility too. Trademarks and copyrights also makes these resources important and credible. We want to make sure our resources are also current and up to date. However, cooking has been a part of our lives undoubtedly forever. Resources such as cookbooks are for the most part revised after some time, but not always. So see, there are numerous and countless educational and reliable resources out there for everyone, from beginner to expert. With a little bit of research one could capture the success of becoming an artistic cook. Learning new ideas and tricks, or just wanting to better yourself in your own kitchen, whatever the case may be, No one should ever have to struggle with cooking. With a little bit of patients anyone can learn how to cook.

Effectiveness of Loyalty Schemes for Supermarkets

Effectiveness of Loyalty Schemes for Supermarkets Chapter 1 Introduction It is necessary for organisations to carry out market research before they can come up with a good quality marketing strategy no matter how big or small the company is. Market research is when an organisation studies their customers buying habits and gathers information about the market. The information they find is then analysed to determine the expectations of customers. Market research is necessary because organisations should aim to be marketing orientated and meet the wants and needs of their customers. As well as meeting the wants and needs of customers marketing orientated companies welcome change. This means they can react to external factors and changes in the market like changes in consumer spending patterns. It is a lot easier for an organisation to put together a good marketing strategy if they are marketing orientated and have carried out the appropriate market research to identify the wants and needs of their target market. It is essential for an organisation to satisfy its customers. Meeting customer needs will improve the organisations reputation amongst its customers which will result in a higher profit and could make potentially make customers loyal to the brand. In 1995 Tesco introduced their Clubcard. This was the first customer loyalty card introduced in the UK and there are now 13 million Clubcard members. (MIS Quarterly Executive Vol.8 No.2/June 2009, Leveraging Multichannel retailing: the experience of Tesco.com) Loyalty programs are not just used by companies to offer benefits to regular shoppers and reward customers for their loyalty. Every time a customer uses their loyalty card in store organisations record what products that customer has purchased to find out their specific wants and needs. If the research shows that a product is more popular with customers in a certain area then an organisation could introduce offers to meet customer needs. Therefore loyalty programs are used as a form of market research. The majority of major retailers in the UK now offer loyalty programs. Therefore the purpose of this research is to examine the benefits and drawbacks of these programs to both organisations and customers to see weather actual loyalty can be obtained through one of these programs. There must be major benefits of Loyalty programs otherwise they would not be so popular. However not every organisation like Asda does offer a loyalty program so the purpose of this research is to determine whether they are worth investing in. If the majority of customers who shop in an organisations store own loyalty cards is the company able to process all of the information they have gathered. A loyalty card will also only show the retailer what a customer spends in their specific store and not their general buying habits. A customer may buy their weekly shopping in Tesco and use their Clubcard yet may buy meat from another supermarket or from a local butcher. If Tesco knew this they could introduce offers to encourage customers to buy meat in their store. The Clubcard however would not provide Tesco with this information. Despite this Tesco could use their Clubcard to identify changes in consumer buying patterns. A customer can however own as many loyalty cards as they want which means they can supply information to many different organisations. When customers sign up to a loyalty program they have to provide name, address, age group and often email address allowing the organisation to contact them regularly with offers. With this information the organisation offering the scheme can understand what kind of person is buying certain products. This helps them segment the market and identify the target market for any product. This research is important and of value because organisations will benefit from it if they are considering investing in a loyalty scheme. This research will also help companies understand the advantages and disadvantages of loyalty programs and identify ways they can make the most of the large amounts of data they gather from customers. This research will also be off interest to customers who have signed up to loyalty programs and people involved in business. There are many aims and objectives of this research. The first aim is to understand what loyalty actually is and the importance of loyal customers. Is it actually possible for an organisation to obtain loyalty with a customer? If so can this be achieved through one of these programmes? Also is it possible to measure just how loyal customers are? The second aim is to study the history of loyalty cards and programs and find out which organisations along with Tesco where first to introduce loyalty cards and gain an understanding of how rapidly the trend has grown since both in the UK and internationally. This information will help organisations understand how loyalty cards became so popular with retailers. The third aim of this research is to find examples of how the information gathered from customers using their loyalty card in store has benefited organisations when they determine their marketing strategy. This research will determine whether it is possible for a retailer to process all the information provided by loyalty programs considering how popular they are with customers. Is there any reason why a major retailer like Asda does not offer a loyalty program when a lot of its direct competitors do? This study will also help identify how organisations can benefit from loyalty kiosks. The fourth aim of this research to understand whether loyalty programs really benefit customers or whether its just organisations that get the main benefits. In a lot of cases customers have to spend a lot of money in the retailers store to gain loyalty points and money off products. Despite this organisations can use loyalty programs to determine which products are popular with customers and introduce offers. Therefore being part of a loyalty program could benefit the customer without them really realising it. This study will also help identify how customers can benefit from loyalty kiosks. The final aim is to investigate the different types of loyalty programmes organisations offer and the advantages and disadvantages of the various programmes. This information will hopefully help organisations determine which type of loyalty scheme is most appropriate for them to invest in. All the aims of this project will be achieved by gathering information obtained through secondary research. A large proportion of this research will be gathered from the academic journals. Research will also be gathered from relevant information found in books, articles, newspaper reports and case studies. Previous literature will be reviewed and critically analysed. After this the research methods will be described and results of this research will be discussed, analysed and related back to relevant theory shown in the literature review. The study will then be concluded showing any limitations. The main lessons learnt from this study will be described showing what future research should be conducted. Chapter 2 Literature Review What is loyalty? Can it be purchased? The word loyal is defined in the oxford English dictionary as being â€Å"true to obligations of duty and love† although it is hard to imagine the average consumer feels this way about the supermarket where they buy their groceries. (Uncles, Dowling and Hammond 2003) argue that it is not possible for a consumer to have an emotional attachment towards a brand of tomato soup. Even if customers are not loyal many retailers may have their personal information stored in their computer database. (Rowley 2000) understands that it is very difficult for supermarket to encourage actual loyalty and claims that â€Å"the very technology that supports innovations such as loyalty cards may serve to undermine the concept of loyalty.† Many people believe that true loyalty is not actually attainable through loyalty programs and that the main purpose of these programs is to provide management with information. (Jenkinson 1995) strongly believes this and claims that: â€Å"The customers loyalty is simply not for sale. It cannot be bought for ever by companys ordeals. Real brand loyalty results from an emotional bond created by trust, dialogue, frequency, ease of use and a sense of value and added satisfaction. Loyalty is the reflection of a customers subconscious emotional and psychological need to find a constant source of value, satisfaction and identity.† (Jenkinson 1995) does make a valid point but it is still possible to obtain loyalty through loyalty programs its just not very easy. (Stone et al 2004) believe that customers are unlucky to become loyal to an organisation just from being part of one of these schemes. However they understand that a scheme could produce information that could help an organisation find ways to offer suitable rewards to meet the needs of customers which is likely to lead to loyalty amongst customers. (OBrien and Jones 1995) extend this theory and understand that the only way an organisation can obtain loyalty through a loyalty programme is if the organisation offers rewards that are of value to the customer. They claim there are 5 elements that determine value. (see appendix) Even though loyalty can be obtained through loyalty programmes it is necessary that every employee at the organisation is fully committed to the program. Therefore as well as any initial financial investment there also needs to be an investment in staff training when an organisation introduces a loyalty card. (Omar 1999) understands this and believes that a loyalty program will not be successful unless everyone within the organisation is committed. This includes the cashier who simply smiles and asks a customer if they own a loyalty card. (OConner 1996) shares this opinion and understands that customers will come back to a store and become loyal customers if employees are friendly. As well as being fully committed to their loyalty program organizations need to be sure that customers are not just signing up to their loyalty program just for the sake of it. (Omar 1999) understands that some customers may sign up to a loyalty scheme just to get the discounts and may not be actually loyal to the organisation. It is important that Organisations are aware of this when starting up a loyalty program. Even though (OBrien and Jones 1995) have already shown that an organisation can obtain loyalty through a loyalty programme if they offer rewards that are of value to the customer there are also many other factors that can affect how loyal customers are. (Wright and Sparks 1999) have identified that it is possible to achieve customer loyalty through a number of means. This includes where the store is located and how easy it is to access. Also the loyalty of customers very much depends on the quality and price of the goods being sold. (Bellizi and Bristol 2004) understand that a consumer that is part of a lot of loyalty schemes is more likely to be affected by other factors and judge a supermarket on the speed of its checkout lines and its variety of fresh produce. (Gounaris and Stathakopoulos 2004) extend this theory and suggest that customer loyalty is something that can be influenced by a combination of 3 factors. These are the reputation of the brand and the amount of choice available in the market, social influences and recommendations from peers and the degree of risk aversion from the consumer themselves. According to them these influences can create four types of loyalty: No loyalty Covetous loyalty: This is when a consumer has a strong attachment to a brand possible due to social influences yet there is no purchase. Many customers may be interested in premium brand products but choose to buy a less expensive alternative to save money. Inertia loyalty: This is when a customer purchases a certain brand due to habit or convenience but has no emotional attachment to the brand itself. A customer may choose one supermarket over another simply because it is closer. Premium loyalty: This is what every organisation should aim for. It is when a customer regularly buys a companys products due to a high attachment to the brand. However customer loyalty is obtained it is important not to under estimate the value of having loyalty customers. Every organisation should be aiming to encourage loyalty. (Omar 1999) understands the importance of customer loyalty and points out that a store is likely to be unsuccessful without loyal customers because they are likely to buy more products and will be willing to pay more. They are also more likely to recommend the organisation to friends and family which will bring in new customers. Organisations usually have to spend a lot of money on promotions to try and attract new customers to a business. It costs a less money for an organisation to obtain customers then it does to attract new ones. Also once customers are loyal to an organization they are less likely to be interested in the promotions other companies are offering. (Christopher and McDonald 1995) therefore understand that by retaining customers an organization could stop new companies from wanting to enter the market. (Halowell 1996) has also found evidence to show that there is a definite connection between the loyalty of customers and the amount of profit an organisation makes. (Oliver 1997) correctly sums up customer loyalty by defining it as. â€Å"A deeply held commitment to re buy or re patronize a preferred product/service consistently in the future, thereby causing repetitive same-brand or same brand-set purchasing despite situational influences and marketing efforts having the potential to cause switching behaviour.† (Whyte 2004) suggests that loyalty programmers may just create customer loyalty for short amount of time that may not result in full commitment. This however isnt true because there are major differences between loyalty schemes and incentive schemes. (Hirshman and Goldstucker 1978) understand that loyalty programs are more long term and can help an organisation improve its reputation amongst customers and establish a relationship. This is definitely true as general incentive schemes are likely to be short term promotions or offers to make customers interested in a specific product or just to draw their attention to the brand. Loyalty programmes are therefore a lot more expensive to run then simple incentive schemes but a lot more beneficial at the same time. Loyalty schemes can even help organisations come up with appropriate short term offers and promotions which can be directly issued to the target market. (OConner 1996) has identified that incentive schemes are usually a final resort for organisations if their loyalty scheme fails. Even though (OBrien and Jones 1995) have already shown that an organisation can obtain loyalty through a loyalty programme if they offer rewards that are of value to the customer it is still very difficult for an organization to measure how loyal its customers are. (Omar 1999) identifies that Store loyalty is a function of customer satisfaction. This is definitely true as satisfied customers are more likely to keep coming back to the store and become loyal customers. However (Omar 1999) goes on to suggest that a number of variables can be used to determine how loyal a retailers customers are. (See appendix) The variables listed above could definitely be used to measure the satisfaction of customers. Despite this customers may appear to be satisfied and still decide to shop somewhere else if they are attracted by promotion. Therefore it is very difficult for an organisation to measure actual levels of loyalty. The History of Loyalty programs and Loyalty cards Organisations have been aiming to encourage customer loyalty for a long time and the introduction of loyalty cards has definitely helped them achieve this goal. Loyalty cards are now very popular both in the UK and internationally. (Sharp and Sharp 1997) have identified that since loyalty cards have been introduced, they have been used effectively by organisations to increase levels of satisfaction amongst customers. Further research will be conducted to show examples of this. Today the majority of retailers now offer loyalty schemes. (Rowley 2007) is aware of the popularity of Loyalty schemes and identified that they are now â€Å"an established feature of the retail and services landscape.† (Uncles, Dowling and Hammond 2003) suggested that competitors are likely to copy a loyalty scheme if it appears to be successful. This seems fairly understandable as organisations are often influenced by the activities of the competition. OMalley (1998) realises that there is a chance customers may begin to expect a reward every time they visit a store as loyalty cards have led to them being bombarded with promotions and money off vouchers for products they regularly buy. The above literature suggests that the introduction of loyalty cards is the only reason for organisations being so obsessed with obtaining the loyalty of customers. It is obviously a major factor but (Omar 1999) has identified that loyalty schemes have been growing in popularity for a lot longer than this and suggests that â€Å"such a remarkable shift to loyalty-building activity has been made possible because the cost of recruiting each consumer into a loyalty scheme has fallen substantially in real terms since the early 1970s.† (Omar 1999) also believes that the popularity of loyalty schemes may lead to their downfall by understanding that the majority of loyalty schemes are now run in pretty much the same way. He is therefore able to identify that the differentiation these schemes provided when they first became popular is slowly being lost. This could well be the reason why Asda have chosen not to invest in loyalty scheme even though the majority of their direct competitors have. (Omar 1999) even suggests that: â€Å"loyalty cards could start a more sophisticated round of mark-down wars which held the high street stores to ransom in the late 1980s and early 1990s.† However this seems unlikely. How loyalty programs benefit the organisation: (Walters and Hanrahan 2000) have been able to identify the numerous benefits for organisations that use loyalty programmes to store the purchasing details of their customers. Loyalty schemes can help an organisation decide where it places its products and how they allocate their space in store. They can also use the information they have stored in a database to introduce in store promotions and offers on products where they have identified interest from customers. Loyalty programmes can also more importantly help an organisation find out who its target market is. Tesco have had a lot of success since launching their very successful Clubcard scheme. (Uncles, Dowling and Hammond 2003) have identified that Tesco have been able to use their Clubcard to aid brand extension. Tesco have definitely shown that they understand the importance of customer loyalty. (Turner and Wilson 2006) were however able to identify Clubcard is not the only reason for Tescos loyal customers and major market growth. It is necessary for an organisation to know who its target market is and offer rewards to the right customers. (OBrien and Jones 1995) understand that it is important for organisations to consider the value of their customers. If they fail to do this an organisation may waste time and money satisfying the customers of less value whilst the greater value customers are not satisfied and loose loyalty as a result. An article by (Media Week 2009) suggested that loyalty schemes with the most members may not be the most successful ones. The article described how â€Å"todays loyalty efforts are more concerned with the quality of membership and not just the quality.† This makes sense as organisations are aiming to obtain loyalty and therefore dont just want customers to sign up for loyalty schemes just to get the discounts. It is still difficult to understand how a retailer is able to process all the information provided by loyalty cards considering how popular they are with customers. (Uncles, Dowling and Hammond 2003) identify that a popular loyalty scheme is likely to gather a lot of unnecessary data which is of no use to anyone. (Omar 1999) therefore suggests that â€Å"any loyalty scheme must be driven by a database to ensure that it adds a significant new element rather than being simply another promotional activity.† (Omar 1999) makes a very valid point although organisations are still dealing with a very large amount of information.. Loyalty cards have become increasingly popular within the last few years due to advances in technology like the growth in computer memory capacity (OConnor 1996) believes that it is therefore now possible for an organisation to track, identify and respond to the buying behaviour of customers. Also with this information a retailer can contact customers through direct mailing. (Passingham 1996) argues that not all customers who shop in a retailers store will sign up to a loyalty scheme so some of the data that is being stored may be inaccurate. Loyalty schemes also dont provide retailers with information about customer buying habits outside of that specific store. However a large proportion of regularly shoppers are likely to be part of the organisations loyalty scheme so this is unlikely to be a serious concern of organisations as they will still be able to get an overview of the buying habits of specific groups of customers. One of the main reasons that customers may refuse to sign up to a loyalty scheme is because they are worried that the organisation may give out their personal information to third parties. (Sarathy and Robertson 2003) have identified that customers may be concerned about their privacy when it comes to loyalty schemes due to recent corporate mismanagement scandals. However customers will be less likely to worry about this if they are attracted to the rewards being offered by the scheme. The following research by (Schriver 1997) which was carried out just as loyalty cards were becoming popular in the UK. He was able to identify 6 factors that surprisingly made consumers less loyal today than in the past. He also identified that the 6 factors can increase consumer doubt leading to more complaints and a lower level of loyalty as well as greater price sensitivity. How loyalty programs benefit customers (Potter 1998) identifies that customers deserve to be treated well by organisations. This is true as they are unlikely to come back and re visit a store if the experience they received was not a pleasurable one. It is clear that loyalty cards benefit organisations but how much do they benefit customers. (Schultz and Bailey, 2000) believe the rewards that customer receive are simply given to them as compensation for the information they provide. This section proves that this is not entirely correct and that loyalty programs can benefit customers. Despite this (Uncles, Dowling and Hammond 2003) have identified that the main reason organizations invest in loyalty schemes is because they expect the program to benefit them. This is because the main aim of any business is to make a profit and being marketing orientated and meeting the needs of customers is the main way of achieving this aim Rowley (2000) has identified that loyalty style kiosks are becoming an increasingly popular way for organisation to encourage loyalty amongst customers in the USA. She describes how the kiosks themselves are placed at the front of stores and she is able to identify that they offer a lot more benefits then simple promotional leaflets. By offering one of these kiosks organisations are therefore likely to increase the satisfaction of their customers. This is because they are likely to feel valued as they get to choose their rewards instead simply being given a voucher they could potentially discard. Omar (1999) has already identified that loyalty is function of customer satisfaction. Despite customers receiving points every time they use their card in store (Omar 1999) believes that a number of schemes are purely set up to provide retailers with a database so that they can advertise their products directly to customers via emails. This is definitely a valid opinion. Therefore research will be carried out to find examples of how organisations have used their schemes in order to contact target groups of customers directly. If customers dont benefit from an organisations loyalty scheme the business is unlikely to be successful (Dowling and Uncles 1997) point out that this may make customers frustrated resulting in them losing loyalty. Different types of Loyalty Programs: There are many different types of loyalty programmes which can be used by organisations offering a wide variety of products and services. There is no single type of loyalty programme that is guaranteed to be successful. A study from (Wanswink 2003) showed that brand managers believe that all loyalty programmes can have an impact on the buying behaviour of customers. The study also showed that the most cost-effective loyalty programmes were the low and moderate ones. However another study by (Gordan and Mckeage 1997) showed that loyalty programmes are more likely to be successful if the organisation is offering a product or service that the customer considers to be high involvement because of the financial, social and physical risk involved. American express also offer a club yet they charge a fee to join. Although this could prevent customers from joining the loyalty programme (Shiffman and Kanuk 2007) can see a benefit of this by suggesting that â€Å"this increases the customers investment in the relationship which may lead to greater commitment and increased usage loyalty† Some companies reward loyal customers by giving them points so they can gain more goods or services from the organisation. This kind of point system is very popular with hotel chains and airlines. (Shiffman and Kanuk 2007) believe that this could act as an exit barrier because customers would have to give up the points if they started a new relationship. Chapter 3 Methodology Now that the relevant literature has been reviewed further research has been conducted to examine the benefits and drawbacks of loyalty programs to both organisations and customers. The purpose of this research was too help organisations who offer loyalty cards identify ways in which they can make the most of the information they gather whilst benefiting organisations that dont currently offer a scheme by helping them identify if loyalty schemes are beneficial or not. Customers who are part of loyalty programs and people involved in business will also benefit from this research. Several aims and objectives of this research were established before the research was carried out. The first aim was to find out what loyalty actually is and whether actual loyalty can be obtained through a loyalty scheme. After this the history of loyalty cards and loyalty programs were researched to identify how rapidly the trend grew in the UK and internationally. This was followed by research into the benefits of loyalty programs for both organisations and customers and research into the different types of loyalty programs in which customers can sign up for. In the end all research that was conducted was secondary and not primary. This was partly due to insufficient funds as it would cost a lot of money and take a lot of time to arrange interviews with members of the major organisations that were studied. There were also plans to hand out questioners to people in supermarkets although these never went ahead due to ethical reasons. Despite there being some limitations of this study all the information found from the secondary research did relate to the aims and objectives and therefore will be of benefit to the reader. The research process consisted of examining several articles, various figures and company websites in order to achieve the aims and objectives. The majority of this research was taken from journals, newspaper articles and from The Grocer magazine. A number of case studies were also examined during the research process. An article in the Grocer from the 18th April 2008 entitled â€Å"Service with a smile† was examined because it described some of the various ways organisations could encourage loyalty amongst customers. However one of the main purposes of this research was to identify if loyalty can be obtained through loyalty schemes. Are loyalty schemes able to reach large groups of shoppers? Another article in The Grocer from the 6th February 2010 entitled â€Å"retailers need to work harder to increase loyalty card appeal† was examined in order to answer this question. Research was conducted to find out how many loyalty cards are currently in operation in the UK and internationally. This will help gain an understanding of how rapidly loyalty schemes have grown in popularity over the last 15 years. A number of sources where found which featured sections that showed exactly how popular loyalty schemes were on a national and global basis in different years and the relevant figures are shown and analysed in the results section. One of the sources used is an article from (University Of Minnesota 2009) entitled Leveraging Multichannel Retailing: The experience of Tesco.com which describes how Tesco have grown to dominate the UK market. Figures were also taken from a case study in a book by Omar (1999) entitled Retail Marketing. An article from Media Week entitled â€Å"the brave new world of loyalty marketing† featured results from a state by state analysis by the COLLOQUY Loyalty Census which describes the popularity of loyalty cards on a global scale and by how much this has increased since 2007. Several major organisations were researched to find out which loyalty schemes had been successful and the reasons for this. Most major organisations now offer a loyalty program. How do independent retailers encourage loyalty? An article in the Grocer from the 5th February 2010 entitled â€Å"Independent chains seek to win loyalty with card schemes† helped to answer this question. Organisations value the customers loyalty and their purchasing activity data. However a lot of money is spent on loyalty schemes and therefore research was carried to find out whether loyalty schemes are worth investing in. An article from the BBC written on the 17th February 2003 entitled â€Å"The cost of Nectar loyalty† explains why this may not be the case. Dispute this many organisations have benefit from loyalty schemes and Tesco is definitely an example of this. A lot of research was therefore based around Tesco as they currently dominate the UK market. Page 17 of the Walters D, Hanarahan J (2000) book entitled Retail Strategy described some of the major benefits loyalty club members at Tesco receive. The article by the (University of Minnesota 2009) was also examined again because it described why Tesco had been so successful. Page 94 of this article described how Tesco were able to manage customer relations and use their ClubCard to aid direct marketing. Why Asda do not offer a loyalty scheme? The answer to this question can be found in the results section. The answer was taken from an article in the Grocer from the 7th November 2009 entitled â€Å"Why Asda rejected launching its own loyalty card scheme† explains exactly why. However another article in the Grocer from the 20th February 2010 entitled â€Å"Is Asda paying the price for not joining the loyalty club? Suggests reasons why this decision made by Asda may have been a mistake Asda are owned by Wal-Mart which is a major American retailer who currently has the 2nd largest database in the US behind the US government. T

Competition in the Hearing Aid Market

Competition in the Hearing Aid Market Managerial Economics The number of Americans who have hearing difficulties is too many and is still expected to rise as time goes on. This is a challenge that most people undergoing the same ordeal are expected to face under all the circumstances that aid may be available if not totally to cure hearing loss. Hearing aid is a device that can lessen the burden of auditory impairment but it can only do so much. There are still implications that the use of such can be rather viewed as a supplement only and not a corrective tool. This view alone stands actually as a deficient selling point, as people who already have the difficulty will not always depend on these aids and most probably diverge themselves from buying the product. Hence, this situation definitely hurts the sale capacity of the hearing aid industry. Lowering the Price Naturally, as the demand may not be as considerably successful, the prices of hearing aids remain static as against its normally opined high pricing. The idea of lowering the price is a positive idea but not totally a remarkable one. To take for consideration, marketing plays a pivotal role. Product innovation is still under watch as the product continues to address misconceptions about its use and its price. It can be assumed that people who need such may have to be considered based on their actual individual needs. Lowering the price is not only and always the best solution at whatever product is being marketed. Apart from the actual study conducted, it must be analyzed there upon that actual users must be first educated of the many facets of its use and the impact that it may have if chosen as a summative solution to their auditory problems. It has already been mentioned that the implication of social stigma is above the issue of purchase and poor market reception. In as much as g oing through the usual and most careful market analysis, the firms should maintain a higher standard of psycho-social research to come up with a market campaign that is devoted to curing the disease of social stigma for those who use the product if not to give false hopes of entirely curing the malady of their situation. There are market theories available to stand up as resolution before the poor market reception of hearing aids among its target users. However, there should be a critical analysis between price indices and the actual consideration of buyer’s behavior apart from all the equations and variables given as a cardinal rule. The sensitivity to the issues whether they are psychological, social, or economical – must be placed under a more profound handling of the situation. Firms must take a firm hand on the derivation of serious market analysis before any insinuations that price variability is a stand alone solution to the predicament they are experiencing at the time being. Conclusion A regular consumer still considers product innovations such as unique features and warranted efficiency and necessity. Therefore, elasticity in the demand is considerable in effect that demand answers upon these mentioned industry quantifiable. It can be summarized that since economic recession is still in the midst of all considerations, lowering prices is definitely attractive but in foremost opinion product assurance of quality and effectiveness remains to be the most potent market solution in any given situation. 2. Evaluate different possible strategies that companies could implement to gain a sound position among their competitors in this hearing aids market. Use relevant theoretical concepts discussed in chapters The industry of hearing aids is said to be inelastic for most identifiable factor that it does not have too many options and features. But in the advent of market competition, market shares continue to reward the much needed product options – meaning, there are indeed sensible market campaigns that need to be launched to rise above the competition. To understand this point of view, it is already introduced and implied earlier that price variability is a matter of fact the most convenient solution to be competitive in any given market. On the other hand, the real competition begins when a firm understands thoroughly the purchasing behavior of target consumers. It is to be understood that price indices are not only the deciding factors to be considered if firms desire to be at front of the market line. There are still aspects, which include market segmentation and full market analysis, which can only be attained through accurate SWOT analysis. Market Strategies Strategies can be indicated based on the given practices that identify with the rapport involving standard value and capacity which in turn have the maximum probability to improve its market reception and therefore increase its takings. It is also recommended that firm’s standard industry applications can evaluate the magnitude and outlay needed to capitalize on their income prospective, as specified by the price inelasticity of requirement in the market.  While studying the basic product mix in the market of hearing aids, it is also most helpful to introduce new features and innovations in order to entice users and buyers to purchase with loyalty and assurance. This idea will definitely maximize the growth potential and leadership in the market. Gaining a sound and comfortable position is no easy task as it takes a lot of hard work and patience. In realizing this endeavor, it should be analyzed thereon the sensitivity of the target consumers of the implications and sustaina bility of the product upon consumption. Therefore, a creative and definitive market research is important to establish a rapport among consumers and the improvement of the product itself. As stated above, lowering the prices is just one of the solutions but it cannot withstand the whole competition given all the variables of market and the social behavior of the target consumers. Recommendation Like any market competition, SWOT analysis is much reassuring. To depend on more focused research is actually being guided by the tried and tested steps and factors that will handle all the given situations if the market remains stiff and uncontrollable. Perhaps, one example that can be listed is the principle of managerial economics, which employs a wide variety of economic concepts, tools, and techniques in the decision-making process. These concepts are incorporated to be congruent in the following: the theory of the firm, which describes how businesses make a variety of decisions; the theory of consumer behavior, which describes decision making by consumers; and the theory of market structure and pricing, which describes the structure and characteristics of different market forms under which business firms operate. It can be learned that profit maximization also naturally follows when competition gets in to the right mode of market potentiality. 3. What  economic conditions  are relevant in managerial decision-making and how they are related with the typical types of risk faced by a firm? Briefs Economic conditions Basically, managerial economic is about decision-making. It is what managers decide on the matters that make the atmosphere critical for the success of firms. In this light, it is important to stress that economic conditions truly affect the disadvantage that most firms may encounter as they carry on with the principles of economics and business. Definitely in this bracket are issues regarding market structure, conditions of supply and demand, technology, government regulations, international dimensions, future conditions, and macroeconomic factors. On the other hand, profit maximization is adherent to the idea that it can be liable to different concerns about restrictions encountered by the firm such as supply insufficiency, machinery, contractual clauses and liabilities, and laws and government policies. In their attempt to maximize the present value of profits, business managers must consider not only the short-term and long-term implications of decisions made within the firm, but also the many facets of external limits that their firms may experience on their way to achieve its organizational goals. Scarcity issues concern essential inputs (including skilled labor), key raw materials, energy, specialized machinery and equipment, warehouse space, and other resources. Managers naturally experience situations that may limit their ability to sustain balance in the plant capacity, which is worsened by the lack of enough resources that can make a difference in innovation, expansion and market intensification. Contractual obligations also restrict managerial decisions. Labor contracts, for example, may constrain managers flexibility in worker scheduling and work assignment. Finally, laws and regulations have to be observed. The legal restrictions can constrain decisions regarding both production and marketing activities. Examples of laws and regulations that limit managerial flexibility are: the minimum wage, health and safety standards, fuel efficiency requirements, antipollution regulations, and fair pricing and marketing practices. When it was first argued that perfect competition is the idealized version of the market structure that provides a foundation for understanding how markets toil in a capitalist-based economy, it is also understood primarily that conditions are desired to be reached and accomplished. This is in order to consider that market structure is aggressive: product mix and versatility in the market, well-developed and realized consumers and trader’s condition, and a veritable flow of economic mode of production and its all aspects therein. For example, it is required that the product uniqueness must not at full deny their identical nature with other lines as consumers will become oblivious of brand concerns if everything else seems to be the same from one product to another – this is also true with the same price competitions. When a good number of trade participants prevail, this follows through a significant effect on the revenue as the idea that the population of buyers or sel lers cannot make such a significant effect and therefore will not hurt the price control in any given condition. Finally, resources and materials have already become a staple in most competitive business as agricultural products do. This in conclusion, closes the arguments about having a perfect economic condition regardless of any situation. 6. Analyze the effects of the  law of diminishing returns  to a modern-day business. Why this law is considered a short-run phenomenon? Use appropriate examples Briefs The law of diminishing returns is definitely a short-term success, if not totally a phenomenon. It is a matter of theories between labor and capital and how things go at hand with the aspects of demand and supply. It is real and understandable that when a variable resource (labor) is added a fixed resource (capital) will dramatically augment manufacture quantity for a short time. Understandably, at a given time expected the rate of increase will fluctuate and is expected to turn more abysmal.  This is to explain that diminishing returns impinge on both the manufacture of labor and cost of production. As an example, duplication of labor and overproduction only descend to more unfavorable result as mode of production goes in the direction of surplus value. When Malthus postulated that land becomes a variable input when population becomes erratic and unstable, hence, the Law of Diminishing Returns explains further that when a fixed input like land and machineries, is joint in assembly with a changeable input, using a given technology, is expected to amplify the magnitude of the variable input, and therefore will eventually lower the efficiency of the variable contribution. One good example that can be given is the problem of overproduction in the industry of cars and other automobiles. The capitalist ideals about putting more production output each time to arrest the higher market demands come to a lull when the economic condition deepens and starts to affect the consumer behavior. In this event, it could be noted upon that the conversion of inputs into outputs is only realized based on the technology available in use. As a result, inadequate amount of inputs will produce only narrow number of productivity. Another example that can be stated herein is the labor-to-produce inputs as against the number of days and materials exhausted. Supposed that there are numbers of labor force working in a firm and produce a result given, additional input will just approximate a divisive response as against the total produce. Diminishing returns is exact in thought that it plays an important component in the proficient distribution of capitals. This is by significant turn the real concern of firms and that it ultimately desires to bestow more resources to the use in which they are more prolific. Although, as production outlays more resources to an exacting use, it can be observed that diminishing returns presents itself in which it becomes less productive. This is actually a disappointing outcome but in reality it reveals important aspects of arresting difficulties of resourceful provision of capitals. In the time of economic slowdown, it is important to establish the practical facts that diminishing returns are not what the macroeconomic future of any country needs as of the moment. This in fact argues strongly that excesses in times of recession and unscrupulous economic postulations are definitely unhealthy. However, given enough market analysis and putting more confidence to product and technological innovation, all doubts about this particular economic principle will in turn come out advantageous for the full recovery of the economic force. As strongly as it is exact with its intention, allocation of resources must be critically scrutinized in regular runs so as not to receive more losses than the expected outcomes. It is very much possible that the firms as a guiding thought and principle must not bank too much on economic principles that have no material and realistic basis.

ClockWork Orange :: essays research papers

â€Å" Listening to the J.S. Bach, I began to pony away to the brown gorgeousness of the starry German master, that I would like to have tolchocked them both harder and ripped them to ribbons on their own floor. (34) â€Å" Young Alex, naà ¯ve, unloving, and uncaring to the world he lived in. The screaming decade of the 70’s is the setting of when the story takes place. A group of young teenage boys out and about looking for a good time but by what definition is a good time? If some people see a good time as hanging out at the movies and talking on the phone, then their imagination is far off from what Alex and his droogs are plotting. Walking around in a small clique of 4 wearing and dressing in their own fashion and style. Alex is the leader of his small army and friends. He first introduces his strange behavior by walking the streets in search for some action and by means of action meaning fights, drinking, and sometimes in search of young girls to ravage. Alex’s venture is to change his life around without realizing what he once was to a new beginning or becoming an adult. The beginning of his teenage life was being a young violent seeker and having a certain love for immoral acts against people or any living subject that he could find a way to hurt. Like young teenagers or youths there is a stage that they go through where they believe they are infinite and nothing can harm them or create a recognizable danger. There is a journey to becoming an adult and it may not be as violent or as sad a journey as young Alexs’ but there is that road that teenagers travel down where they may learn their mistake and right they wrongs. Alex may not realize what his quest is in the beginning but it becomes clear once he has undergone the worst of his punishment that in return to fit the crimes he had committed. Alex begins his journey of departure when he challenges another group of boys to a duel, which resulted in near death to one of the members of the opposing gang. Alex and his droogs get away clean without remorse of fear from authority. They go out once again on their spree of violence in search of new ways to receive entertainment that meets their definition.

Wernher Von Braun :: essays research papers

Wernher Von Braun was the second of three sons born to Baron Magnus von Braun and Baroness Emmy von Quistorp. He was born on March 23, 1912 in Wirsitz, Posen. Wernher was always a visionary, and when he was ten years old he decided his goal in life would be to "help turn the wheel of time." His interests led him to do many things in his early life including composing several pieces of music and recycling old automobile parts to build a new car. Because of spending so much of his time building a car, he flunked in mathematics and physics. However, it was his decision to explore rocketry that led to his great impact on history. Von Braun, at the age of 16, organized an observatory construction team. His volunteers built a complete observatory in their spare time, working as diggers, bricklayers, and carpenters. In 1930, when he was 20, he enrolled at the Berlin Institute of Technology. He received his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, and was offered a grant to conduct and develop scientific investigations on liquid-fueled rocket engines. A few years later Wernher received his PhD in physics from the University of Berlin. In the mid 1930's, rocket clubs sprang up all over Germany. One of these clubs, the Verein fur Raumschiffarht had engineer Wernher von Braun as a member. By 1934 von Braun had a team of 80 engineers building rockets in Kummersdorf. With the launch of two rockets, Max and Moritz, in 1934, von Braun's proposal to work on a jet-assisted take-off device for heavy bombers and all-rocket fighters was granted, But Kummersdorf was too small for the work he needed to do, so a new facility had to be built. Peenemunde, on the Baltic coast, was picked as the new site. Peenemunde was large enough to launch and monitor rockets over ranges up to about 200 miles, with observing instruments, with no risk of harming people and property. He was then arrested by the SS and the Gestapo for crimes against the state because he kept on talking about building rockets which would go into orbit around the Earth and perhaps go to the Moon. His crime was indulging in frivolous dreams when he should have been concentrating on building bigger rocket bombs for the Nazi war machine. After arriving back, von Braun immediately assembled his planning staff and asked the m to decide how and to who they should surrender to.

The Medieval Crusades Essay -- essays research papers

Through out time, history has had a tendency to repeat it self. It has done so in good means as well as bad. People learn from the past and apply it to their every day lives. Although people try to do the right thing and not follow mistakes that have been already made, they just seem to come about. This day in age, out country is experiencing a situation that is extremely similar to that that occurred in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries, that which is the crusades. Crusades now can be defined as all wars undertaken in pursuance of a vow, and directed against infidels. But back in the middle ages it was known as any military expedition under taken by the Christians of Europe (Random House Webster’s 318). On September 11,2001 the people of America as well as all other free countries in our nation experience a new feeling that we have not know of. We were being attacked for our beliefs, for the way we live our lives. This what we were feeling, was being fought for during the time of the Crusades. The Christians and the Muslims were fighting against one another in order to spread their religion, or end the other. The people who were the leaders of the attack were Muslims. Muslims are people who follow the religion of Islam. Islam is a religion that was founded by a man named Muhammad. The followers of Muhammad believe that he received messages from God. Those messages all established into the rules that the Muslims live by, and they are all recorded in the Koran. Some of the laws forbade Muslims to eat pork, drink alcohol, gamble or lend money for interests. But the main beliefs of the Muslims are â€Å"The Five Pillars†. Which are to have faith in God (Allah). To pray five times a day facing in the direction of Mecca. For a person to ... ...Although they had realized that it was not the end of the crusades. Other types continued. There were five crusades against the Hussites. Also there were crusades that weren’t aimed at capturing Jerusalem but trying to stop the Turks from getting more powerful.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In conclusion we have seen how the crusades took place and what affects they left on world history. In this present day we can still see some of the same ideas that lay behind the crusades. The horrific tragedy of September 11th is justified by some Muslim groups as a strong statement on behalf of the one and only god- Allah (or so they think). It is scary to consider that The Holy War of the 11th-13th century has a chance of reawakening in the 21st century. That is why we must know the facts and their consequences about world history, to prevent its occurrence in the present day.

My Leadership Style Essay

According to the leadership assessment, I am more of task-oriented leader than a people-oriented leader, though I scored high in both areas, therefore I have a healthy balance of both which is important for a leader in any company. My leadership style allows me to get my work completed in an organized fashion, while being open to other ideas; I can focus on the small projects while continuing to see the big picture or vision. Because I score higher on the task-oriented side, I can be more autocratic in my thinking. This will limit my ability to show my apathy for my staff and employees Furthermore, I am also a transformational and charismatic leader. I am most effective in smaller organizations that have direct interactions with my staff. According to Robbins, this helps to make me effective as a leader, which will give a company â€Å"low turnover, higher productivity, lower employee stress, and burnout, and higher employee satisfaction.† Furthermore, Robbins shared that this leadership style is not effective with those who are â€Å"highly individualistic and do not readily cede decision-making authority.† Since I am able to communicate with my staff the expectations, visions ad engage my staff, I also have a Charismatic leadership style. I continuously focus on the end goal, big picture and tie that big picture to the work of my staff, making it attainable to my staff. One of the major downsides to charismatic leadership is that it can be situational, according to Robbins. Role in Company The role I would like to pursue within the company is that of a managerial supervisor. According to Robbins, organizations need strong leadership and  strong management for optimal effectiveness. I feel that because I have leadership and managerial traits and characteristics, I would be a great candidate for that particular role. In a managerial supervisory role, I am a direct leader. I work directly with my staff on a one-on-one basis and in a team format; I will have more influence directly on my staff. As the managerial supervisor, I am able to support, recognize, develop, plan, and coach/mentor my staff while monitoring, setting goals, and overseeing day to day operations. This is evident because of my healthy balance of task and people orientation. Leadership theories applicable to my leadership approach The Big Five Trait Leadership Theory is applicable to my leadership approach because research has shown that the big five personality factors are strong indicators for job success and performance. I scored high in the areas of extroversion and conscientiousness. The positive factors about scoring high on conscientiousness’s is that overall, those with high marks in this area have better job performance and those are more reliable, thorough, organized, angle to plan, and persistent according to the assessment. These traits are consisted with those of task-oriented leaders. However, the Leadership Substitute Theory would be counter indicated for the areas of subordinate, task, and group/organizational characteristics. This is because my staff could need little direction from me as their supervisor if they have extensive experience. Also, when staff repeats their task over and over, they become proficient and don’t need feedback, but are building their own motivation. As a task-oriented, transformational, and charismatic leader, I would struggle more with staff who are more independent or did not work well in the group. I like to give freedom to my staff, but my style makes it necessary to know what is going on in the jobs at all times. Conclusion My leadership style is transformational, charismatic with my main focus on task-oriented management. I work hard to inspire my staff, while also meeting deadlines. I focus better when I’m working with a team rather than individuals who do their own thing. Research has shown that my leadership style is an asset to many companies if utilized in the right way. This is why I would like a position that allows me to shine, take the lead of a team, while focusing on the companies â€Å"big picture.† References Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2011). Organizational behavior (14th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. Yuki, G. (2010). Leadership in organizations (7th Ed.) Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

Maya Angelou Essay

In researching poet, Maya Angelou, I was able to explore her personal life, as well as her writing styles and techniques. While she is an extraordinary individual, she portrays a strong independent woman capable of holding her own. A great experience in learning about Angelou, the project itself I found to be rather droll. Having to find criticism about one of the worlds greatest poets, was extremely difficult. The assignment was also time consuming, and I found myself often wondering why everything needed doubles. While the information gathered for this project focused on Maya Angelou was engaging, the task in analyzing the poet rather than the poetry, was prolonged and monotonous. Maya Angelou is one of the universe’s most controversial poet. Her fascinating life experiences and thoughts translate beautifully onto paper, and her literary elegance captivates many. In the assignment given, it was asked that two pieces of literary criticism were found. When researching such a profound writer, it was impossible to find complete critical analyses of Angelou’s work. The only thing that was found were rotten comments on a forum, or a general summary of a poems meaning. Undertaking this assignment was very tedious, for even after finding some sort of â€Å"analysis†, it was asked that one write their own poems. This was very difficult for it was difficult to decipher what was really being asked. The expectations were not clear in the way where one should have been writing like their chosen poet, or to write as themselves. Either way, the poems produced in my own assignment, were just thoughts on paper. While Angelou has no set schemes in her work, the self-fabricated poems made, were also set up the same. While it is believed the more that is researched, the more that is known, how this was conveyed in this project was not straightforward. Everything that was assigned, needed to have two or more examples. Whether one chose to look up two biographies and two literary analyses, or two literary analyses and original poems, the duplication in finding two examples was unnecessary. The message could have been depicted through one example each. Finding the information grew to be mundane, and how all of the details found would be gathered into one essay was perplexing. While I believe finding two biographies would be vital if one were to be writing a biography on the poet, It’s almost pointless when you must narrow down the information into a paragraph. Same for the literary analysis. The original poems written almost had nothing to do with the project, which didn’t make much sense. Learning about Maya Angelou was enlightening, and this project allowed me to view her work in a different light. She is able to shine a strong light on herself that sets her apart from the rest. Unfortunately, this assignment didn’t allow more of an assessment on one poem, for one paragraph is not enough to correctly articulate her notions. The project could have been absolutely successful if it had not repeated so many steps in finding the same information in separate places, or writing irrelevant and original poems. In the future, an essay based solely on one poem by an author, with only a paragraph of biographical information would benefit the student. This would allow oneself to look more into the poets techniques, schemes, and deeper meanings.