Existentialism in the Stranger and the Metamorphosis Essay

â€Å"We are thrown into existence first without a predetermined nature and only later do we construct our nature or essence through our actions. †(Existentialism)This quote is present through the main characters of The Stranger, Blade Runner, and The Metamorphosis in each of these works the characters create their own nature. These works are similar several ways; in all three the men create their own nature by the free choices they make. Through these choices they also create their own values. The characters values and meanings of life are where these works differ. Initially, in The Metamorphosis, Gregor’s life seems to have meaning, through providing for his family, until he changes into a bug and determines for himself that his life really has no meaning. This is very unlike The Stranger because Meursault, throughout the entire work, lives his life as if there is no meaning to life and he dies knowing this. Finally Deckard, at the beginning of his life, seems to have lived his life with no meaning or values, until he encounters Roy and Rachael who change his perspective. Throughout these works these men make makes choices that determine who they are and what their about, but ultimately every one of them knows their subsequent mortality. It is clearly understood through Meursault’s narration that life to him is meaningless. The choices he makes and things he says are without thought or meaning. They are usually in the spur of the moment of what will please him. For example the novel starts by Meursault telling the audience â€Å"Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know. I got a telegram from the home: â€Å"Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours. † That doesn’t mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday†(The Stranger). Meursault treats his mother’s death with the same demeanor with which he will later treat the death of the Arab. Both of these events are usually different in the types of emotions they reveal, but Meursault shows no emotion at all. He just goes through the day to day motions of life. Through his narration and the tone of the novel the reader is clearly able to determine Meursault lives with no emotion or essence. He accepts who he is and his mortality. In the end he accepts a punishment that is not worthy of the crime. He knows even if he doesn’t get executed he will die anyway whether its ten years from now or fifty. Clearly The Stranger questions the reader whether humans really have a meaning for life since in the end everyone will die and be forgotten. It seems that Camus meant to get the point across that in life there is no predetermined nature people create it through their choices. Meursault chooses to live his life with little or no meaning. Unlike Marie who falls in love with Meursault and chooses to support him even though he didn’t care if they got married. Like Marie in The Stranger Gregor, who is the main character, in The Metamorphosis has a mean and value to his life. Gregor supports his family because his father failed and never went back to work. Gregor had it all good job, money, and ability. He chose to support his family and allow them to live a nice life while he worked and traveled with little time for himself. Gregor doesn’t like his job, but he chooses to stay because it offers good money and he will pay of debt. All of these choices are Gregor’s they are what he based his life off of. When he changes into a bug his mentality is altered. He begins to realize that all that he did for his family eventually is forgotten and soon he is forgotten about too. Kafka relates this to the human race and its inevitable end. When humans die in the beginning they are remembered, but slowly people forget, or lose interest, until eventually that person is totally forgotten about and life goes on. This previous statement is clearly seen in the novel when the family moves and decides that is time to marry off their daughter. They never mention anything about the loss of their son. In Blade Runner the main character Deckard destroys replicants. He does his job and usually never questions the reasons why he destroys the human-like robots. The director seems to try to get across the point early that Deckard lives a meaningless life. He does whatever he wants whenever he wants. At first it seems like he lives a life much like Meursault, but later it becomes clear that he is trying to find a meaning for life. When talking to Roy, Deckard realizes that in life everyone is going to die and that everything that person did would be forgotten and lost. At the same time Roy explains the value of life, the choices, love, and things humans can experience. Blade Runner tries to get across to the viewer that they are who they want to be and that in the end the choices and things they’ve seen will be forgotten and meaningless. In all three works the slogan â€Å"Existence precedes Essence† (Existentialism) is present. Each one of the main characters makes their choices which determine their nature. Every one of the characters at some point realizes that they all share a common trait with the rest of the human race and that is death. They also know that in the end they will be forgotten about and eventually everyone will move on with their lives as if they never existed. These works differ in the way each character goes about their lives. Meursault believes there is no meaning to life so he lives his life on the fly. He does whatever pleases him. Gregor begins with a life he has chosen for himself only to realize that eventually all that he has done will be forgotten and lost. Finally Deckard begins with no meaning and tries to determine a meaning through replicants. He realizes that the choices in his life are what makes his life meaningful. Throughout these works Existentialism was present. The characters offered a glimpse of the reason for existence. Whether it was for providing for a family or killing replicants each one of the character in the end determined that life was only the choices that they make. Ultimately they all learned that everything they did and chose to do was meaningless when they were dead and there is no way to avoid it.

Dividend Policy and Share Prices

Introduction In this paper the impact of dividend policy of the companies on the firm’s share prices is analysed and different views in the context of the semi-strong form of the efficient market hypothesis are contrasted. The overview of the traditional and most recent empirical investigations of the stock market reaction to the dividend announcements is provided and different findings are discussed and compared. Three companies have been selected from the FTSE All share price index. These companies are Tesco, Burberry and Vodafone. These firms belong to different sectors of the economy.Tesco is the largest retailer in the UK, Burberry is a fashion firm and Vodafone is the telecommunication services company. The dividends and accounts have been retrieved from annual reports of the companies (Tesco, 2011; Burberry, 2011; Vodafone, 2011). The share prices were sourced from Yahoo Finance (2012). The copies of the company accounts are provided in the appendices. Dividend Policies of Companies These three companies were chosen for the following reasons. Firstly, it was intended to choose large companies that have an established dividend policy and revenue of more than ? billion a year. Secondly, the companies from different industries had to be analysed. Thirdly, both services sector and goods sector were intended to be analysed. Finally, it was interesting to compare both pro-cyclical firms (e. g. Burberry) and counter-cyclical firms (e. g. Vodafone). The former are very sensitive to the effects of the economic recession whereas the latter are less sensitive because consumers would still have to use mobile phones and services regardless of their financial position.The dividend payout ratio has been calculated for these companies for the period from 2007 to 2011. The following formula was used: Dividend payout ratio = dividends per share / earnings per share The results are summarised in the following figure. Figure 1 Dividend Payout Ratios Source: Annual Re ports of Tesco (2011), Burberry (2011) and Vodafone (2011) The payout ratios indicate different dividend policies adopted by the three companies. Tesco’s policy is aimed at maintaining a constant dividend payout ratio, which is very common for mature industries such as retailing.In these industries the majority of the large companies are â€Å"cash cows† for the investors and therefore the dividend policy tends to show constant payout ratios, which inspires trust in the company and expectation of future stability. In contrast, the dividend policies of Vodafone and Burberry are not aimed at a constant payout ratio. In fact, as the following figure demonstrates, the policies of Vodafone and Burberry are aimed at dividend growth. Figure 2 Final DividendsSource: Annual Reports of Tesco (2011), Burberry (2011) and Vodafone (2011) However, whereas Vodafone demonstrates a â€Å"steady dividend growth strategy†, Burberry demonstrates the a strategy that does not show a specific pattern but can be interpreted as a signal to the market because in 2009 the company announced the dividends that were equal to the dividends announced in the previous year in spite of the accounting losses suffered by the firm which were reflected in negative earnings per share (Appendix C).This move can be interpreted as a sign that the management attempted to signal the market that the losses are temporary and the company was expected to recover quickly. It is interesting to note that the latter policy is inconsistent with the position that dividends should be paid out of earnings rather than accumulated capital or reserves. Furthermore, the companies could undertake an alternative dividend policy which would imply linking the dividend payout to the investment opportunities that could be managed by firms (Brealey and Myers, 2003).If the company has many projects that offer positive net present value, then it would be recommended that dividends could be retained and reinv ested in the firm. Only residual earnings, which are left after investments in all positive NPV projects could be distributed as dividends (Bodie et al, 2009). Dividend Announcements and Share Prices Dividend announcements and their impact on share prices can be explained by the semi strong form of the efficient market hypothesis (EMH).Efficient market hypothesis implies that the only thing that may impact the stock prices is new information, since all other possibly influencing parameters are already included in the firm’s stock price (Palan, 2004). The efficient market hypothesis may be divided into three forms: the weak form, the semi-strong form, and the strong form. The weak form implies that share prices bear or reflect the past prices and trade volume information, the semi-strong form adds publicly available information to the weak form, and the strong form adds even insider information to the efficiency approach (Harder, 2008).Empirical evidences show that successive changes in stock prices are independent and this independence is in line with the efficient market hypothesis, as markets promptly react to the new information (Fama et al. , 1969). In this context it may be assumed that dividend announcements convey particular positive information about the company and provide signals about future performance of the firm. The decision about paying dividends is made by the firm’s managers and often supported by shareholders’ voting.Since dividend announcements bear useful information, from the efficient market hypothesis view point this information is reflected in the share price changes immediately after the public announcement (Bodie et al, 2009). The three companies that were chosen have been used to test the semi strong form of the EMH and whether the dividends announcements made by Tesco, Vodafone and Burberry had a significant impact on shareholder returns and share prices. So, the null hypotheses of the analysis are the followin g:H0: Dividends have a positive and significant effect on the share prices H0: Dividends have a positive and significant effect on the weekly stock returns. The alternative hypotheses are the following: Halt: Dividends do not have a significant effect on the share prices Halt: Dividends do not have a significant effect on the weekly stock returns. According to EMH in its semi strong form, the information on dividends should be quickly absorbed into the stock prices during the first week and hence the acceptance of the null hypotheses will be consistent with the semi strong efficiency.However, if abnormal returns persist in the longer run, e. g. three months, the EMH in the semi strong form can be rejected. Empirical evidences also provide support for the semi-strong efficient market hypothesis, implying that stock market efficiently and quickly adjusts to new information about dividends (Aharony and Swary, 1980). However, the research of Amihud and Li (2006) finds that the reaction of stock market to dividend announcement is not constant. It is concluded that cumulative abnormal returns promoted by dividend announcements decline to zero in due course.The findings suggest that dividend announcement are less informative over time, and this may be related to the reluctance of managers to pay extra expenses related to dividends (Amihud and Li, 2006). Moreover, the recent decrease in propensity of companies to pay dividends is sometimes related to the lower informational contend of dividend announcements. Since institutional investors are normally better informed and tend to play key roles in public firms, the costly dividends have become a less popular way to provide information (Baker, 2009).The study of Asquth and Mullins (1983) also suggests that stock prices and shareholders’ wealth are impacted by initiation and increase of dividends. Moreover, the effect of dividend increase is stronger than the influence of dividend initiation. The results are in lin e with assumption that dividend announcements bear valuable information for investors. Dividend policy may be used as a simple way to signal managers’ view of the company’s recent and future performance (Asquth and Mullins, 1983). However, it must be stated that dividend policies are not directly influencing share prices and lead to their changes.Instead, dividend policies are changed by managers when some fundamental developments in company’s performance are expected, and these developments cause the change of the share prices. Thus, dividend announcement is only the way for investors to obtain information about these fundamental developments. Similarly, there are no evidences that a company value may be increased through increase of dividends, since dividends only convey signals about fundamental changes in the company and are viewed as only by-products of the changes (Moles et al. 2011). Nevertheless, the study of Shiller (1981) challenges the efficient marke t hypothesis suggesting that the volatility of stock prices are too high to be explained by the future dividends. A more recent investigation of Mehnidiratta and Gupta (2010) supports the semi-strong form of efficient market hypothesis concluding that stock prices promptly and accurately react to the publicly available information, particularly to dividend announcements. The two-stage study tests the share prices response to dividend announcement.The first stage included the evaluation of beta based on post facto returns on stock and market index and predicted returns on every of the stocks. The second stage these values were used to calculate abnormal returns around the day of announcement. The results provide information that though investors do not obtain significant value prior to the dividend announcement day or on the event day, they do gain value after the announcement. Investors move their security positions on the announcement day which implies that after the event day ther e is informational value in dividend announcement.The evidences prove that the increases in dividends imply more positive abnormal stock returns, and this supports the efficient market hypothesis (Mehnidiratta and Gupta, 2010). But there are also empirical evidences of little stock market reaction to dividend announcements at some periods (Hasan et al. , 2012). The event study methodology was used to evaluate the effect of cash dividend announcements on the share prices. The data about abnormal returns around the event day was analysed and the events before, on, or after the announcement day were pooled.The tested assumption states that payment of cash dividends is the most significant factor that impacts all prices around the event days (Hasan et al. , 2012). In the following figures the results of the regression analysis and statistical tests applied to the regressions are presented. Table 1 Effects of Dividends on Investor Weekly Return Coefficientsa Model Unstandardized Coeffici ents Standardized Coefficients t Sig. B Std. Error Beta 1 (Constant) .012 .009 1. 375 .175 Dividend -. 002 .002 -. 143 -1. 030 .308 Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the Estimate imension0 1 .143a .020 .001 .03489 a. Predictors: (Constant), Dividend According to the first regression, dividends do not have a significant impact on the weekly stock returns and hence the null hypothesis related to stock returns is rejected. However, the output from the regression of share prices on dividends demonstrates that the former have a statistically significant positive influence on the share price performance. This was evidenced with the t-test. Table 2 Effects of Dividends on Share Prices Coefficientsa Model Unstandardized Coefficients Standardized Coefficients Sig. B Std. Error Beta 1 (Constant) 151. 362 47. 949 3. 157 .003 Dividend 45. 955 9. 186 .574 5. 003 .000 Model R R Square Adjusted R Square Std. Error of the Estimate dimension0 1 .574a .329 .316 191. 66266 a. Predictors : (Constant), Dividend Thus, the null hypothesis related to the effects of dividends on the share prices is accepted. R-squared test has revealed that the second regression had a better fit. Conclusion As the semi-strong efficient market hypothesis suggests, new information including dividend announcement is quickly reflected in the company’s stock prices.Some empirical evidences support the hypothesis (Fama et al. , 1969; Aharony and Swary, 1980). Other findings suggest that the impact of the announcements may decline in the course of time (Amihud and Li, 2006). The recent empirical studies that were reviewed support the semi-strong efficient market hypothesis and find that dividend announcements produce abnormal returns and are positively related to the share prices (Mehnidiratta and Gupta, 2010). But another event study displays different reaction of stock prices to dividend announcement in different years (Hasan et al. , 2012).The analysis in the paper was conducted in th e context of three UK based companies from different sectors. The dividend policies of these companies have been analysed. Furthermore, the relationships between the share prices and the dividends were tested. It was found that the dividends produced a positive and statistically significant effect on the share prices but no significant effect on weekly returns. References Aharyny, J. and Swary, I. (1980) â€Å"Quarterly Dividend and Earnings Announcements and Stockholders’ Returns: An Empirical Analysis†, The Journal of Finance, 31 (1), pp. 1-12. Amihud, Y. nd Li, K. (2006) â€Å"The Declining Information Content of Dividend Announcements and the Effects of Institutional Holdings†, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 41, pp. 637-660. Asquith, P. and Mullins, D. W. Jr. (1983) â€Å"The Impact of Initiating Dividend Payments on Shareholders’ Wealth†, The Journal of Business, 56 (1), pp. 77-96. Baker, H. K. (2009) Dividends and dividend po licy. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Bodie, Z. , Kane, A. and Marcus, A. (2009) Investments, Hoboken: McGraw Hill Professional. Brealey, R. and Myers, S. (2003) Principles of Corporate Finance, New York: McGraw Hill.Burberry (2011) Annual Reports and Accounts, [online] Available at: www. burberryplc. com/bbry/results-centre/respre/rep2011/ [Accessed 6 February 2012]. Fama, E. F. , Fisher, L. , Jensen, M. C. and Roll, R. (1969) â€Å"The Adjustment of Stock Prices to New Information†, International Economic Review, 10 (1), pp. 1-21. Field A. (2005) Discovering Statistics Using SPSS, London: Sage Publications. Gujarati, D. (1995) Basic Econometrics. 3rd ed. , New York: McGraw-Hill. Harder, S. (2008) â€Å"The Efficient Market Hypothesis and Its Application to Stock Markets†, Scholarly Research Paper, Germany: GRIN Verlag.Hasan, S. B. , Akhter, S. and Huda, H. A. E. (2012) â€Å"Cash Dividend Announcement Effect: Evidence from Dhaka Stock Exchange†, Research J ournal of Finance and Accounting, 3 (2), pp. 12-24. Maddala, G. S. (2001) Introduction to Econometrics. 3rd ed. , Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Mehnidiratta, N. and Gupta, S. (2010) â€Å"Impact of Dividend Announcement on Stock Prices†, International Journal of Information Technology and Knowledge Management, 2 (2), pp. 405-410. Moles, P. , Parrino, R. and Kidwell, D. (2011) Fundamentals of Corporate Finance – European Edition. UK: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Palan, S. 2004) â€Å"The Efficient Market Hypothesis and Its Validity in Today's Markets†, M. A. Thesis. Germany: GRIN Verlag. Shiller, R. J. (1981) â€Å"Do Stock Prices Move Too Much to be Justified by Subsequent Changes in Dividends? †, NBER Working Paper No. 456. Tesco (2011) Annual Report and Accounts [online] Available at: ar2011. tescoplc. com/ [Accessed 6 February 2012]. Vodafone (2011) Annual Report and Accounts [online] Available at: http://www. vodafone. com/content/index/investors/reports/ann ual_report. html [Accessed 6 February 2012]. Yahoo Finance (2012) Weekly Share Prices [online] Available at: finance. yahoo. co. uk [Accessed 6 February 2012].

Evaluative Writing Essay

This article is based on the art of attack prevention and it aims at illustrating how security attack scenarios can be used to check the effectiveness of a system in preventing a system attack. Through the use of a system known as eSAP, the authors have made a report on how scenarios of possible attacks were selected and tested giving recommendations based on their results. The article comes in handy especially at a time where the issue on information system security is quite vital for companies to maintain. This paper analyzes the article by Haralambos, Paolo and Gordon’s article as to determine its appropriateness, usefulness and validity of the study. Throughout the study, examples and comparisons will be used to evaluate the work. Further justifications will be given for all arguments put forth. Evaluation The writer starts of the paper quite well by explaining what the paper will cover in the introduction. This gives the reader an overview of what to expect because he or she already has an idea of what the article is about (Memering’, 2008). The manner in which the introduction is done is also enticing such that the reader is encouraged to read on. Further, the authors introduce the article by referring to another article from which the current one stems from. This actually encourages the reader to desire to read the previous article. For those that cannot access it however, this is a disadvantage to them. Accordingly, it would have been wise for the writers to start with a brief history of the previously completed work so that the reader does can effectively understand where they started. Failure to do this is therefore a flaw in the paper and could impact on the desire of the reader to look at the paper. The authors make use of a real life example in the article to explain how the use of scenarios can be used to analyze the information systems design. eSAP (electronic Single Assessment Process) is assessed to using possible security attacks to establish whether its three main security features which include integrity, availability and privacy can be achieved in case of an attack (Haralambos, Paolo and Gordon, 2007). Attacks such as interruption, interception and modification were used to check eSAP. The use of an example not only makes the article more interesting to read but also enhances the understandability or the reader so that he or she can grasp exactly what the writers intend to say (Memering’, 2008). Besides this, the authors make use of a diagram for illustration. According to Memering, 2007), this is an effective way of making the readers to get the idea that the author is trying to pass across at a glance. For example, when a procedure is described in steps, the reader can actually follow these steps to and understand the described process better than when only the text was available. The article by Haralambos, Paolo and Gordon is quite useful in attack prevention. In the current times, many companies have been faced with threats of system attacks hence the need to avoid them. An example is a recent attack on Kaspersky, a major anti-virus vendor which occurred on the customer support site in February 2009 (O’Donnell, 2009). Since this paper addresses the possible ways in which systems meant to handle such cases can be tested, it is of significant importance. This paper could form a useful background for information system analysts to gauge the ability of different systems to effectively address the desired security concerns. Another reason why this article is very useful is that for every factor tested, there is a recommendation given to reduce the likelihood of the occurrence of that action in real life. For example, after testing the validity of passwords and the ability of the system to keep off intruders, the authors suggest the use of one-time passwords. Such kind of advice could be used by technicians to further enhance system security and thereby protect it from attack. This study is quite relevant in the study of information system security because it is quite unique in its own way. While other studies concentrate on showing the likely situations that are may face the security system, this paper suggests ways of testing them as well. Liu and Yu (2007) are some of the authors who came closest to doing this kind of research by analyzing the possible intentions of attackers which are also contained in this paper. They however left the research at that and did not proceed to test the scenarios. According to Liu and Yu (2007), once the attackers’ intentions are identified, the countermeasures to prevent attack can then be identified. They however fail to show the criteria that would be used to prevent attacks. Through the use of the eSAP scenario, Haralambos, Paolo and Gordon bring out the concept so well and even give suggestions on how to handle attacks. It is a good way of testing the effectiveness of a system in handling various security attacks which the management can utilize to establish which system to use in attack prevention. This is in line with what Liu and Yu (2009) suggest. According to them, a system can only be useful if it performs the job it is designed for. As an example, there is no way a system can allow every employee in a department to have a password and expect that this to be a secure way of protecting their system from attackers. This is a well researched article and it would be right to say that it is valid both in terms of facts and expressions made by the authors. Before the authors could perform the test, a set of scenarios are selected which are then put through a scenario validation procedure. This is done using software inspections so that the data validity is assured. The authors also make use of numerous sources to as backup for the study which makes the information contained valid to a large extent. Conclusion A paper that succeeds in putting across the desired message is said to be appropriate. If it is of benefit, then it is useful to the leaders. Should the paper give facts that can be evidenced then we can afford to say that it is valid. The article by Haralambos, Paolo and Gordon leaves the reader with a lot of knowledge to grasp. It is well researched using various books and the results can be said to be valid as they made use of a real life situation to test the system. The authors make the article simpler to understand through the use of examples and a diagram. The recommendations given in the paper could also prove useful to future managers and system technicians in designing strategies of attack prevention. References Liu, L. , Yu, E. , Mylopoulos, J. , (2007). Analyzing Security Requirements as Relationships Among Strategic Actors, Proceedings of the 2nd Symposium on Requirements Engineering for Information Security (SREIS’02), Raleigh-North Carolina. Memering, D. (2008). The writer’s work: guide to effective composition. New York: Prentice-Hall. Mouratidis, H. , Giorgini, P. & Manson, G. (2007). Using Security Attack Scenarios to Analyse Security During Information Systems Design. Retrieved on July 20, 2009 from http://homepages. uel. ac. uk/H. Mouratidis/Paper91_CR. pdf O’Donnell, A. (2009). Kaspersky suffers attack on support site, no apparent data breach. Retrieved on July 20, 2009 from http://blogs. zdnet. com/security/? p=2511

Fundamental of marketing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Fundamental of marketing - Assignment Example This makes it the most outstanding paste in the New Zealand markets. With these features, XSensor will be a product for use by all family members across New Zealand given that it calls for the most simplified applications ever. In regard to customers demand it will have a special pouch for provision of other services like tooth picks to be used alongside the brushing technique this will give potential customers a better satisfaction that is worth the value of their money. To ensure that customers are satisfied, our product will offer the best service owing to the fact that its battery will have a prolonged life span this will ensure increased efficiency and effectiveness. This will also ensure that this product lives up to the expectation of the consumer. It is maintenance cost is going to be low because of less contamination by hands. In fact, XSensor does not call for touching like other manual dispensers. You only place your tooth brush at the point of dispensation and tooth paste of the right quantity comes into place. Secondly, this product will benefit customers through proper product positioning which will include: Conducting interviews with our target customers in their niche so as to gain relevant insight and to ensure that they get hands on experience of the product. Developing thorough understanding of the customer’s needs this will include guidelines on how to use the device and facilitate any modifications that customers may deem fit in their brilliance. Capacity The product is in large scale and customers will not at any one time miss it out in the market so as to cope with the success of services offered. The buying criteria will be simple as this product comes in one piece and will not require assembly once delivered. This is holistically backed by the following characteristics and benefits: It will be fast to use because its dispensing speed is fast, it will have a long life span, and no hand contact. Pricing methods will be friendly to consumers to ensure the product is affordable to all the people in New Zealand. Discounts will be offered to customers who purchase in large quantities. This may include traders or even domestic users willing to buy for their other family members. Cumulative quantity discount will also be given to resellers who purchase large quantity over time but who may not have the capacity to buy in bulk at once. Seasonal discount will be offered based on the period of time or season that the purchase is made to reduce variations of seasons in sales. Then there will be cash discount offered to domestic users who buy promptly on cash basis. Finally there will be promotional discount once in a while to stimulate customers during low seasons (Feinschreiber, 2004). Also it is evident that customers will require products that are of better quality .These are products whose worth is not compromised by the cost offered. Performance must also be put into consideration because XSensor will fall under el ectronic goods. All these are applicable qualities to go by. Additionally, the following pricing objectives must be put into consideration for the survival of the organization. Current Profit Maximization The product on offer is new and will require generating profit in order to sustain customers and employees. It is important that new consideration is given to negative long impacts to

Performance Management and Human Resource Development Research Paper

Performance Management and Human Resource Development - Research Paper Example This paper tells that performance management served to be the answer because this system is specifically designed to drive profitable growth. Nevertheless, organizations encounter the problem that their daily activities are not associated with their strategy, initiatives, resources and risks; that is why they developed the strategy-related process known as performance appraisal. The main thrust of this paper is to explain what is meant by the term performance management and show the importance of performance appraisal scheme. Performance Management (PM) Performance management (PM) has no exact definition for it is emotive, â€Å"meaning different things to different people and dependent on which level in the organization they occupy† (Cattell, 2005, p.157). Likewise, several research studies with regard to the handling of employees are not consistent with their performance indicators because of diversity in individual needs and workplace expectations that differ from country t o country. This process is a systematic approach that is interested in motivating employees’ performance and productivity, monitoring, and assessment of performance through performance appraisal system. PM has two management fields that is focused on the progress and success toward goal achievement, and these are individual behaviour toward the organization and organizational strategies. The first aspect is all about organization as a whole, its performance and the performance of the top executives (managers and heads). The second aspect is the performance of individual system; they are the individual employees that worked for the achievement of organizational goals and objectives. These two aspects are distinct from each other in terms of the covered scope and resources. PM on employee’s level is really necessary to the company and this process would be effective if planning work and setting goals are consistent all throughout the execution. Through these, appraisal w ould be much clearer to the employees particularly on what aspects they will be evaluated, and the consequences behind the good and bad performance. Because of these consequences, coaching/feedback is given to the employees right after their evaluation. This is what Hackman and Oldham (2002, p.123) inculcated in their job design theory which â€Å"contends that a person’s intrinsic motivation is affected by his or her psychological state...† The only way to correct de-motivated behaviours of employees is to reward them intrinsically by giving them positive or negative feedback. However, there are instances that performance management is hard both to the managers and to the employees of the organization. Managers in their part, they tend to avoid PM process because they are afraid that their connection with their employees will be put to risk once they give feedback. Also, on the part of the employees, they felt embarrassed with the negative connotations from their mana gers especially if their performance did not meet with the expectation, and so their pay or advancement will be jeopardized (Chladek, 2006).  

Business Administration class Strategy Formulation Essay

Business Administration class Strategy Formulation - Essay Example This is because in each stage, certain vital activities are done. In Strategy formulation, certain features of the organization are presented. The features are analyzed both internally and externally. These features include the vision, mission statement, objectives, and tactical objectives of the organization. The process starts by first looking at the mission and objectives which describe the companys business goals as well as measurable financial and strategic objectives. Secondly, an environmental scan is done. This includes an internal analysis of the firm as a whole, and its industry (task environment). An external analysis, also known as the PEST analysis follows (â€Å"Pest Analysis†, 2010). In strategy formulation, the information acquired from the environmental scan is used to match the firm’s strengths to its opportunities while addressing its weaknesses and external threats. In strategy implementation, programs, budgets, and procedures are used as means of implementation and this makes it important for success to be guaranteed. In the final stage which is evaluation and control, parameters to be measured are defined. The next step involves defining targets for the measured parameters, performing the measurements, and finally, comparing the measured results to pre-defined standards and make necessary changes. This second stage of strategic management supports the mission and objectives of the organization by creating sustainable competitive advantages. The stage is organized into six sections. Some of these sections are; Corporate-Level Strategy, Competitive Strategy, Functional Strategy, Choosing Strategies, and Troublesome Strategies (Rex, n.d.). Each of these sections has got its own methods of formulation. The level of Corporate-level Strategy is concerned with the direction of the company. It provides a channel for the organization to make some changes and improve their growth objectives and achievement. In the second level, Competitive

What inferences can you draw from this passage What are the Assignment

What inferences can you draw from this passage What are the implications - Assignment Example Such persons will work with very limited supervision and does quality work thus improving the firm’s reputation. Such hardworking employees often get promoted to higher ranks (Peterson, 1988). On the other hand, an ambitious employee feels motivated and yearns to achieve the set goals. Such a person strives to ensure that he meets the required standards of his work place and acts as a motivating factor to other workers. Such motivated workforce leads to improved output of the organization. Moreover, a contentious employee is also dependable (Peterson, 1988). They are willing to work with each other in the firm. They can help fellow workmates in doing their duty in case there is need. Conversely, if a person is not conscientious, he will be lazy, non-dependable and not ambitious (Peterson, 1988). Such persons are a nuisance to the organization and will lead to a decline in the general output of the organization. Furthermore, another important trait is emotional stability. Just like the first case, a person who is calm, self-controlled and secure will have great positive implications to the organization (Peterson, 1988). A person who is self-controlled will always work with other employees at all situations. They know how to control their emotions and can help each other solve their problems. A secure employee works with more confidence in him (Peterson, 1988). Such employees will yield more positive results to the firm. Calmness is a virtue that calls for gentleness. Such a person earns great respect from the clients and workmates thus an improvement to the firm’s reputation (Peterson, 1988). Conversely, an employee who lacks self-confidence, is not secure, and is rude. Such will lead to destruction of the firm’s reputation thus impacts in low income to the

Final exam Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Final exam - Essay Example However, Muslims should explore the following issues in order for them to attain programmatic changes. To begin with, Muslims deploy a Marxist analysis that discourages Marxist discourse and that never allows exploitation of common citizens by anonymous current changes that include market forces (Karam, 16). This appeal can enable Muslims to fill the gap or vacuum left by the country leading to a more conservatism characterized by situations where people know and trust each other. They create circles where everyman is responsible, change any mentality of assault, and resolve problems that act as an obstacle to Muslim’s social prestige. Identify and observe their wealth and fight to get back of those marginalized by the republican ethos. Muslim community should also consider viability in order to attain the change that they aspire. They should uphold the effort to integrate what they view as unacceptable yet compliant in other communities as their weakness and in the meantime act to implement it. For example, they should continue to uphold the importance of dialogue and a high level of understanding in areas where the society requires women’s concerted efforts. Women in Muslim societies are getting opportunities that include; rights activism, involvement in the government’s development projects, and advancing education further. These cases reveal that, the society has changed and unlimited their network to help achieve programmatic change in the society. Nevertheless, this can radically improve more if Muslim heads of state and families can invest more heavily on women and give them more opportunities that fully exhaust their energy in view of realizing transformation. Analysis show that women work for two-thirds of the world’s working hours but yet live in extreme poverty and only earn the least percentage (10%) of the world’s total income. Muslims should surpass that world margin of

Health history interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Health history interview - Essay Example The patient mentioned that he felt relief when he wears warm clothes and drinks warm water. The coughing was worst when he had to do heavy work or walk for a long distance. Kevin was disturbed by the fact that the drugs he had taken for the last one week had not caused substantial relief to his health. Kevin had a severe case of measles at the age of three. He was hospitalized for three days. He received an immunization for pneumonia six months before coming to hospital. Kevin had been diagnosed with HIV a year before and he has been on a daily dose of ARVs. The patient was in the hospital for a CD4 count on 3 Jan 2012. He was on a high vitamin diet to boot his immunity (Reeders, 2001). The mother suffered from varicose veins at the age of sixty-five. There is no history of diabetes, heart problems or tuberculosis. The skin of Kevin was moist, flexible and pink with some skin rashes near the elbow of the left arm. He bears a scar on the knee of the left leg from a fall he had when he was ten years old. The nails of the two toes on the right foot have clubbing. His hair is black and clean. It does not have scales or lice. The cornea is white and clear with no patches. The ears did not have any discharge or tenderness. The nose and sinuses do not have swellings or tenderness. The lips had cracks and there were small white wounds on the lower lip (Irwin, 2003). The lower and upper parts of the mouth were pink and it was not dry. The neck has tender lymph nodes and the lungs have fluid around them (Jamison, 2006). Kevin had a regular heart rate of 69/min. and his sexual health was normal. Kevin was full of confidence and had high expectations that the tuberculosis would be cured. He stopped his morning jog and has not done it for two weeks because he says that it worsens the cough. He sleeps more often because he is more tired than normal. He also said that he felt better after a good rest. He was

Critical Evaluation Of The Three Approaches To IHR Essay

Critical Evaluation Of The Three Approaches To IHR - Essay Example Thus, â€Å"globalization is a process of interaction and integration among the companies as well as the people of different nations, a process which is mainly process driven by international trade and investment for the benefit of the investor as well as the host country† (Herbig 2008, p.6). Thus, in a way the globalisation from the last decade of the 20th century has optimized the opportunities for the companies, particularly the Multinational Companies (MNCs) to enter foreign countries, give employment to the local population as well as sell their products or services at competitive prices. In addition, firms cannot keep on operating in a saturated home market to achieve success. They have to break geographical boundaries as well as their economical limits to tap those opportunities in the foreign markets or countries, by following the process of internationalisation. Thus, internationalisation is a happening concept which is being used by many firms to expand their reach g lobally. â€Å"As the global economy expands, as more products and services compete on a global basis and as more and more firms operate outside their countries of origin, the impact on various business functions becomes more pronounced† (Briscoe and Schuler 2004, p. 20).... ing, researching, applying and revising all human resource activities in their internal and external contexts as they impact the process of managing human resources in enterprises throughout the global environment† (Briscoe and Schuler 2004, p. 20). When this management of human resources or employees in the international context is focused, it can be categorized into three approaches: cross-cultural management; comparative human resource management; and multinational perspective in human resource management. The first approach of cross-cultural management focuses on understanding the cultural differences and similarities that may exist between the entering firm or the home country and the local employees or the host country. Each country will have distinct and unique cultural traditions, and so the employees will also imbue it in them and exhibit during the organizational processes. Thus, these cross-cultures of the firms as well as employees have to be managed under the auspi ces of IHRM approach of cross-cultural management. As Cieri, Fenwick and Hutchings (2005, p.588) states, cross-cultural management focuses on â€Å"identifying the likely impact of cross-culturally similar and different human behaviour on the functional elements of HRM, including recruitment and selection, training and development, performance management and reward management.† Even before the foreign firms enter new countries, the employees in those firms will not be all similar, as they could come from different background. Those employees could have been made into a unit through the formation of common organizational culture and other strategies. When these firms with their employees enter new countries, it will be more challenging for them. Most of the countries around the world will have

Poverty in the United States Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Poverty in the United States - Research Paper Example He cited the example of children, who have been raised in underprivileged environment, faces noticeable shortcomings in terms of cognition, academic achievements and emotional wellbeing. Poor individuals, he says have a lower mortality rates and unhealthy lifestyles, they have small opportunity of good education and an unstable family background. He is of the opinion that declining levels of poverty results in enhancement of healthy economy as it increases the purchasing power of the masses which in return boosts the economic growth and living standards. Also, he states, poverty provokes social disorder and sets the stage for criminal acts and furthermore, it reduces public confidence in the constitution (2-3). It is important to note, however, that poverty has always remained existent in the world since its inception, the unequal distribution of resources, social ostracism, inequality in justice and the accumulation of wealth within a few have been characteristics of mostly all huma n settlements. Lawson and Lawson shares that a basic diet consisting of the required amount of calories, shelter and clothing is the need of the humanity, they further elaborate that poverty varies from time to time and to location, as the dietary standards and conditions of clothing and shelter changes, therefore, the parameters of poverty in the United States is completely different from that of poverty in Somalia (15). In the seventeenth century, the English government wanted to relief themselves of their poor population and convicts, and was of the intention to unload them in the new land, the Americas. A company called the Virginia Company, chartered by King James I, financed the transportation costs in return for labor; many convicts migrated (Axelrod 10). Axelrod further states that for some of these new colonizers, the risk paid off and they were employed as contracted laborers, finished their period of service and became freed farmer, but others found barren land and broken promises in the new land. Reef describes the conditions of these free indentured servants, she says, it was a matter of great hardship for them to move up from being the most underprivileged society since they lacked the necessary resources, it is estimated, she revealed, that a mere tenth of indentured servants became wealthy farmers, another tenth artisans and the rest, if their death did not occur, became labored workers or nomads, who roamed from cities to cities in the quest for food, employment and change of fortune (4). According to Lawson and Lawson, the Industrialization began in America at the end of eighteenth and the beginning of nineteenth century and accompanied some very drastic changes in the American society. They argue that even though, the industrialization era brought about greater productivity and capital to the nation, but it also invited poverty and rendered a number of people homeless. They stated that the increasing population of emigrants from Europe who s ettled in America, increased competition in terms of employment and accommodation amongst the colonizers; this led to increased form of demarcation in relation to race, ethnicity, class and poverty (17). Reef reveals that between the period of August 1619 to January 1808, when the act of importing slaved to the United States became illegal, the traders, smuggled about 400,000 African

The Award Phase - You Decide Essay Example for Free

The Award Phase You Decide Essay Unfortunately the catering business did not generate the expected profits therefore you are in the process of dissolving the business. You have no use for the high quality cooking equipment that was leased for the catering business. You assume the chefs will continue in the cooking business and can use the equipment. It would be all right with you if they took over the lease. You understand there is no charge to remove your names from the lease agreement. However, you think the best all around solution is to terminate the lease for the kitchen equipment. You also do not think that the chefs deserve the capital because they caused the business to fail. You need to recoup as much as your investment as possible to open an alternative venture. You recently began to look at the possibility of opening a flower shop, although you have not yet done extensive planning for it. To do so you need capital. How will we split the $15,000 left in the investment? To be fair to our partners we will use the same capital distribution that was used at the beginning of the investment, Chris and Pat Smith, put $25,000 and the chefs put $10,000 up to total $35,000 for 100% of the shares. Each share is worth $350, therefore we own 55. 5% of the company while the chefs own $45. 5%. We are down to $15,000 in working capital, which has to be split amongst the partnership. If we split this capital according to the ownership percentage, we should receive $8,325 and the chefs should receive $6,675. We do not think the chefs deserve this share because they caused the business to fail due to elaborate high-cost dishes being sold at a low-price. Also we will need capital for our new flower shop venture; therefore we will give the chef’s $3,000 and keep the remaining $12,000. As negotiation leverage we will use the kitchen equipment lease agreement options. We cannot use the kitchen equipment in our flower shop, but it could be useful for the chefs to continue business. How to handle the lease on the kitchen space, which has 18 months more to run? We will need a rent space for our flower shop, and the store front of the catering business is large enough for us. The chef’s will want to keep the space because of the kitchen that is attached and the established business and customers who are familiar with the location. Therefore we should offer them to amend the lease in their name only and they should pay the $500 cost for this amendment. This would be the best solution due to the dissolve of the business relationship and difference in management styles. How to handle the lease on the van, which has 18 months more to run? We can use the van leased for our flower shop deliveries therefore we will keep the van. We will remove the chefs names from the lease for the van and offer them that we will pay the $500 for the amendment cost. To eliminate termination fees and to also redefine responsibility correctly for the van, this is the best option for our exit strategy. How to handle the lease on the kitchen equipment, which as six months more to run? All in all, you think it is better to leave the lease alone and just promise the chefs that you pay it rather than pay the fee for changing the names on the lease, terminating it, or paying the fee to assign it to them. You are concerned that if they took over the lease and then later could not make payments, you would still be responsible. We cannot use the kitchen equipment in our new flower business, so this makes a good negotiation point for us. Since the chefs will continue in the cooking business we will offer them to amend the lease in their name only in return of getting more capital for our new business. They can keep the kitchen equipment lease in their name if they agree to be paid $3,000 from the capital. This would be the best solution due to the dissolve of the business relationship and the chef’s getting the kitchen space. In conclusion for our exit strategy meeting with the chefs we will dissolve the business $15,000 in capital distribution; $12,000 will go to the entrepreneurs and $ 3,000 to the chefs. In regards to the well known store front, the chefs will take over the lease and pay $500 to amend the names. The van will go to the entrepreneurs and they will take over lease and pay $500 to amend the names. On the equipment the chefs will have immediate use for it and will take over the lease in conjunction with the kitchen space. We feel this is the most fair and best breakdown of the investment for both parties to move forward successfully.

Procter Gamble: Organisation And Development

Procter Gamble: Organisation And Development INTRODUCTION Procter Gamble was created in 1837 by William Procter who was a candle maker and James Gamble who was a soap maker. Since then the company was growing bigger and bigger as years past by. Nowadays, Procter Gamble is a multinational organization operating in more than 180 countries and producing over 300 products. Firstly, at this report, the strategic development of PG will be clearly evaluated and it will be followed by the evaluation of its resources and competences. Then, the evaluation of the companys external environment will be analyzed through the use of swot analysis, pest analysis and 5 forces analysis. Subsequently, a strategic group analysis of the industry that PG is engaged to will be carried out to illustrate their differentiate characteristics from other companies. Finally, the longer term strategy of PG will be clearly demonstrated with some future recommendations that could be supportive. Pattern of strategic development Since 1837 when Procter Gamble was founded, the company continued to grow and following the changes at the external environment, the corporate strategy of PG was changing as well. From 1945 to 2020, PG has three stages of corporate strategy, which are: Product diversification strategy (1945-1980), Globalization strategy (1980-2003), and Sustainable Development Strategy (2003-2020). Product diversification strategy (1945-1980) In 1946, PG introduced Tide washing powder. Tides performance was better than the similar products in the market and so it soon got as a big success. Subsequently, PG launched a lot of new products. The first fluoride toothpaste Crest Obtained certification by American Association of Dental Prevention, then it became the leading toothpaste brand quickly. In 1961, PG introduced Pampers which is disposable baby diapers, it is still one of the top product that PG sells (Ifeng Finance, 2010 ). The disadvantage of this strategy is that it is too difficult for the company to control and manage so many products and the company may over pursuit the market share and might not pay attention to develop the star products which have core competitiveness. As a result, the original core competitiveness is weakening and the company does not have its own characteristics, the concept of the companys image and product become blurred. Globalization strategy (1980-2003) Through the acquisition of Norwich Eaton pharmaceutical company  ¼Ã‹â€ 1982 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° and Rechardson-Vicks company ¼Ã‹â€ 1985 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¼Ã…’PG is active in personal care products industry. In the late 80s, early 90s, through the acquisition of Noxell ¼Ã…’Max Factor ¼Ã…’and Ellen Betrix, PG plays an important role in cosmetics and fragrances industry (Ifeng Finance, 2010 ). These acquisition activities have accelerated the process of PG globalization. Moreover, Pampers, Whisper, Pantene, Tide, Ariel, Crest, and Olay and other brands has become a world-renowned brands. However, the biggest problem when a company involved into other countries, is the cultural differences which will lead to different reactions on product on the consumers, thus the marketing strategies need to be changed accordingly. Also, the different national legal systems and the differentiation in consumers budgets is also greatly affecting the conduct of globalization strategy. Sustainable Development Strategy (2003-2020) At the current stage, the tenet of PGs organization strategy is sustainability which means improving peoples life quality. In order to achieve this strategy, PG to start work from the following aspects: Products: PG developed and sold sustainable innovation products which can significantly reduce environmental pollution. In 2007, PG replaced the packaging of detergent as half of the originals, and adjusted the solution to double concentrated formula. The method saved the use of packaging materials and reduced wastes. PGs purpose is to make the environment a better place (Adweek, 2007). Operations: PG established the sustainable development team in the offices. Through green recycling box, the company recycled more than 4800 kilograms of waste paper, and in exchanged for 69,000 new pieces of paper, moreover, the companys power consumption dropped by 10%, saving 17 million kWh which is equivalent to 560 families a months electricity consumption. In addition, in some factories and distribution centers, PG also installed solar power and rainwater collection and processing device, to further reduce energy consumption. (21ST CENTURY BUSINESS HERALD, 2009) Social Responsibility: In 2009, PG signed United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and developed a global reduction in carbon footprint by 2012, and that will be published the results of carbon reduction stage. (21ST CENTURY BUSINESS HERALD, 2009) So far, all of the efforts which PG has done are win-win situation of business and environment. When the company set up the environmental value chain, it will get financial gains from using energy efficiency and reducing wastes. Resources and Competences PG as we know it, is one of the worlds largest consumer products company but what does makes PG so successful while it competes in the huge consumer products industry? This part of the report is mainly focuses on the PGs resources and competences and how the resources and competences works together creating a competitive advantages for the firm. Resources Tangible resource The tangible resource is easy to be identified by looking at the financial report. Their net sale was $ 78. 9 billion in 2010, which is markedly stable by compared with the last two years net sales ($ 76.7million in 2009 and $79.3 in2008 respectively). The net earnings were $ 12. 7 billion and net operating income was $16 billion in 2010. This illustrates that PG has enjoyed a stable and healthy profits. Intangible resources The intangible resources are the brand equity, corporate culture and human resources. PG is the 6th Most Admired Company in Fortunes 2010 list; it was also one of the most valuable brands in the world. The corporate culture is unique, tough lives and improve life every day is PGs philosophy which encourages the PGners engaging to improve consumers life. PG is also very good at research develop. PG has invested $2 billion in consumer research over the last decade in order to understand consumers needs and to improve customers satisfaction. Additionally, at the same time RD increases the product innovation. Competences Marketing strategy Product differentiation: each product has different brands, for example shampoo has Rejoice, Pantene, and Head Shoulders. Only one product has more than three brands and detergent has as many as more than nine brands. Product differentiation can lower risk in case if one brand goes wrong. Various functions: one product has different functions and different packaging, for example, some of detergents have fragrance and others with the function of strong cleaning. This strategy will increase the market share for PG, such as in china along, the market share increased from 30% to 40% in 2010. Advertising: PG tends to use celebrities to advertise its products in order to attract young customers. Localization is another strategy that PG has adopted, for example in china, the company sells shampoo by suing Chinese girl who has black long hear, because this can represent the Chinese culture. Consumer understanding PG is a company that did most investigations in consumers and market research. More than 15,000 researches has been conducted each year. PG invested $350 million a year in consumer understanding in order to improve the customer needs. PG is the first company to focus on customer feedback. Innovation PG is the Innovation leader in the consumer products industry. Over the past 15 years, 125 PG innovations have earned a spot on the top 25 Pacesetters list more than six largest competitors combined. Innovation program: connect develop (C+D): PG is always seeking the opportunity to collaborate with people or company who has innovative ideas. The VRIO framework evaluates the competitive advantage from four aspects: valuable, rare, inimitable, and organized. From the evidence above the corporate culture was the Competitive parity. Because each organization has its unique cultures, it is inimitable. Human resources are the short term competitive advantage of the company. People are not fixed assets of one company, they can go to other company as well if they wish to. PGs competitive advantages are its brand equity, RD, marketing strategy, consumer understanding and innovation. External business environment At this part of the report, the evaluation of PGs external environment will take place. This evaluation will be contacted through the SWOT analysis, PEST analysis and Porters Five forces analysis. SWOT Analysis (Opportunities and Threats) SWOT analysis is a way to analyse an organisation and its environment. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Strengths and Weaknesses are the internal factors, Opportunities and Threats are the external factors. At this report we are only consider about the external factors. Opportunities The increasing demand for the section of male health and beauty goods is one of the biggest opportunities of PG and with the acquirement of Gillette, PG is growing rapidly at this particular market. Moreover, PG has a huge opportunity with its reaction to the enormous technological growth of the internet by utilizing different marketing techniques and online social networks. What is more, taking into consideration their long-term aims, they have been disconnected from some products such as the oral-care toothpaste of Gillette, Zest brand have been acquired by Brynwood Partners, etc. so PG will pay their full attention at brands of their interest. PG is persistently growing into more and more countries so at the moment operates in 80 countries and now due to the recession it is easier to acquire any smaller firms because of their financial problems (Canadian Business 2011, Worldlingo 2011). Threats PG as a global giant company have a lot of competitors like Kimberly Clark, Unilever, Johnsons Johnsons, etc. who in various countries causes large threat at the market share. Moreover, the competitors of PG are increasing their goods range through getting hold of other smaller firms. As a result of the recession, the consumers budget has been decrease and therefore their spending power is limited as well. Also, raw materials prices are rising thus the production cost is rising and the different currency rate place a huge threat on PG. PEST Analysis PEST analysis stands for Political, Economical, Social and Technological factors and it is used by the analysers to identify the external factors that may affect the organisation in an opportunity or as a threat. Political Factors ProcterGamble have created the PG Political Action Committee (PG PAC), which is a scheme that it was created to give the opportunity to the employees of PG to support candidates at the federal, state and local level who contribute to the quality of life at the communities. Moreover, PG by offering economic support contributes in the political process (Procter Gamble 2011). Economical Factors PG is designed to go through any type of economy as they are very capable and they have a commitment to the consumers. Subsequently, even at the time of the recession PG had margins to reduce costs and offer products to consumers ( Business Week 2011). Social Factors With the creation of Live Learn and Thrive Program, PG helps children in need to drink clean water so it helps them to have a healthy beginning in life. Moreover, it is making places, tools and programs available to them for better learning (Procter Gamble 2011). Technological Factors PG as a big organisation and as it is specified in a lot of different markets, they are focusing on more sophisticate technology and they have managed to reduce any unwanted errors. PG have managed to create new products and further improve their existing products (Procter Gamble 2011). Porters Five Forces Model (SlideShare INC. 2011) Porters five forces model is a framework that was created by Michael E. Porter in 1979 and it is consider with the buyers power, supplier power, the treat of new entrants, the treat of substitute and the rivalry of a firm. Buyer Power Consumers are well informed for all different brands of a specific product that are available mostly through advertising. Brand name is very important but consumers are very perceptive with price level as well. Thus, buyers power is high so PG organisation must remain competitive to keep being successful. Supplier Power The power of the suppliers to PG organisation can be low because the raw materials are easy to be find from different suppliers and what is more, such big firms have the opportunity to produce their own raw materials. Threat of New Entrants The threat of new entrants is very low since PG and their well known competitors are already huge global firms with very famous brand names and consumers will not just change their brand goods as easily. Moreover, setting up this kind of firm will cost millions. Threat of Substitutes The threat of substitutes that PG have to face is high. That can be seen from the retailers shops and sometimes the substitutes have cheaper prices and same performance. Degree of Rivalry The variety of the goods between different companies started to be similar to each other so the firms must begin a differentiation with offers, vouchers or even better/cooler advertises. Strategic group analysis PG is one of biggest multiple customer goods company in the world. Thus each product could have its own competitors. However, the main competitors of PG are Kimberly-Clark Co, Johnson Johnson and Unilever. Net sale of PG and Unilever The chart above illustrates the net sale of PG and Unilever in the last six years. As it can be seen, Unilever has about 10 billion more sales than PG in 2005. Interestingly, as it can be seen from 2006 to 2010, the net sale of PG is considerably more than Unilever. Furthermore, in 2008, PG reaches the peak showing 20 billion Net Sales more than Unilever ¼Ã‹â€ PG official website 2010, Unilever official website 2009 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° Product range and geographical scope Procter Gamble, Johnson Johnson, Unilever and Kimberly-Clark are the major international companies that sells their products all over the world. But as regard their geographic scope we can see huge differences. PG has been selling its products in more than 180 countries. Johnson Johnson is almost the same as Unilever, and they are both over 170countries. However, Kimberly-Clark has been developed up to 150 different countries. The product range of PG holds into 5 main product categories which are: Personal Beauty, House Home, Baby Family, Health Wellbeing and Pet Nutrition. Although the categories of PG are very similar with Unilever ¼Ã…’the food product of Unilever (Hearbrand, Lipton, sim-fast) gained an advantage over the other three companies. However, Johnson Johnson focuses its products on paramedical such as baby care, wound care and vision. In addition, Kimberly-Clark specializes in Health care products (PG official website 2010, Unilever official website 2009, Joh nson Johnson official website 2010, Kimberly-Clark official website 2010) Market share of shampoo in China With the development of shampoo market, the organization of PG became the leader of shampoo in Chinas market. PG basically owns five main shampoo brands which are Rejoice, Head Shoulders, Pantene ¼Ã…’Sassoon ¼Ã…’and Clairol; With these brands PG became the dominant position in many countries. Take china market as an example, PG take up nearly 60% shampoo market share in 2010. However, Unilever only accounted for 23%. The domestic brand C-bon only had 6.3% until 2010 (Bai Du website 2010). Successful factors PG adopts multi-brand strategy. When PG entered the China market, it launched Rejoice, Head Shoulders, Pantene, Sassoon and Clairol successively. What is more, each of these brands has its traits; for instance, the function of Head Shoulder should emphasis getting rid of surf and the function of rejoice is to soften the hair. Adopting the multi-brand strategy could have two advantages; Firstly, multi brand strategy can focus on different target market. Secondly, brand management can became very independent. In addition, at the same time it can reduce the risks. Supposing that one brand of PG frails, it will not affect the reputation of PG too much. On the other hand Unilever adopts the Monolithic Brand Strategy which with this method can save money on many advertisement fees, it lost the market share. PG always build the brand image with a massive advertising campaign. It is not only in newspaper, magazines, but also on major television channels. The advertisement of PG is very pertinence, because each of their brands are emphasizing its unique function (Bai Du website 2010). Long term strategy development of the organization References: Bai Du website (2010 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ °Brand of shampoo strategy in China. [online] available from [20 January 2011] Bai Du website (2010 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ °marketing analysis of PG and Unilever [online]available from [20 January 2011] Bai Du website (2010 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ °PG took up more 60%market share in China. [online]available from [21 January 2011] Business Week (2011) PG is up [online] available from [19 December 2010] Canadian Business (2011) Brynwood Partners [online] available from [7 January 2011] Docstock (2010) PG Analysis [online] available from [29 December 2010] Ifeng Finance. (2010) Procter and Gamble Profile [Online] Available from [10 January 2011] Johnson Johnson. (2010) official website [online]available from [16 January 2011] Kai, H. (2009) Procter Gamble: Environmental Friendly Promoting Innovation. Newspaper of 21st Century Business Herald, 26 Kenneth R. Andrews. (1980) The Concept of Corporate Strategy. Richard D. Irwin, Inc Kimberly-Clark ¼Ã‹â€ 2010 Official website [online] available from [18 January 2011] PG (2010) Official Website [online] available from [5 January 2011] SlideShare INC. (2011) Fluff Pulp Fiction [online] available from [5 January 2011] Sustainable Packaging Coalition. (2007) PG Canada Liquid Laundry Concentrate [Online] Available from [8 January 2010] Unilever (2009) Official Website [online] available from [14 January 2011] Worldlingo (2011) List of Procter Gamble brands [online] available from [6 January 2011]

Communications Sector Infrastructure

Communications Sector Infrastructure Communication exchange system has become a crucial component in our lives today. Many businesses have thrived in connection with a viable communication system. This is a way in which a marketer has seen his firm optimize and maximize profits as a real interaction between him, and the consumer is enabled by the availability of communication system. Apart from that communication sector prevails in areas such as security department, finance department, transport department and many other critical sectors (Lewis, 2014). The finance department requires communication infrastructure in conjunction with other junior departments in harmonizing financial records as well as monetary gains from the business. Transportation department currently is being controlled using communication infrastructure in setting arrival and departure time for various journeys (DHS, 2015). Communication connections are mostly run by the private sector in the presence of Continuity Guidance Circular (CGC) which offers directions to the Non-Federal Governments (NFGs) on how to ensure the effectiveness of the program (FEMA, 2013). This circular encompasses all forms of organizations from tribal, local government, territorial and other non-governmental forms. All forms of communication are integrated into one unit and fed into the system using the internet (FEMA, 2013). This communication platform has evolved in proportional to cyber-attack. This is a threat lagging private sector behind in dissemination of quality services to its members. It is no doubt that many firms do not consider to carry out research on how well to protect their communication systems in case of an attack. All that they concentrate on is the profits to be collected (Etzioni, 2011). This is one of the many weaknesses many firms face and the issue needs to be addressed. Still, the transitions in the co mmunication technology platform have positively yielded success on the part of hackers who are in the frontline of innovations progress (DHS, 2015). Due to increased cases of hacking, the private sectors are left with no idea in which to discharge their responsibilities properly. Interconnection of computers to perform a central task has proved unworthy irrespective of many experts put in place to control the system (Raed Keating, 2014). This implies that consumers do not get their ordered products on time or else they lack information concerning a new product which might have been introduced in the market by their respective firms. This form of cyber-attack may come in as a result of competition for market domination by various antagonistic investors (Etzioni, 2011). Program Goals United States retains two guiding programs Continuity of Government (COG) and Continuity of Operations (COOP) which lay a foundation upon which every goal and vision of a given organizations are determined (DHS, 2015). This also ensures that citizens are offered only those services essential to them. In this case, all objectives, goals, and visions of the firm need to be reviewed. The private sector cannot solve the problem of cyber theft if the entire member companies do not comprehend the driving force to their business venture (Stergiopoulos et al., 2017). In 2008, George W. Bush signed Comprehensive National Cyber Security Initiative (CNCI) to secure communication attack for current and future economy. He urged all the stakeholders to focus on one goal, and that is cyber threats reduction (Hennig Rollins, 2009). Also, the agreement was cemented on the grounds of how the member firms and federal governments shared benefits. All goals of a business are met by satisfying the consum er needs. This assessment is important to the stakeholders in sending the right information to the government for the arrangement of support provision. It also indicates how many objectives the firm has been able to achieve during the operation period (Hennig Rollins, 2009). Discharge of Duties and Monitoring of Staff National Institute of Standard and Technology (NIST) department to set peculiar critical standards upon which communication infrastructure would be conducted (DHS, 2015). The key issue is how leadership is done and closes monitoring of the staff. Todays private sector should incorporate all the necessary information concerning the best infrastructure platform which would otherwise cope with cyber-attack menace (Knapp Langill, 2014). This is possible through the in-depth search of information the hackers might be using in lagging the economy behind. Once this information is collected, a firm background in collaboration with the government should be laid. This could only be achieved by enhancing a new database with new security coding system that could easily be manned from a central point (Knapp Langill, 2014). The databases should be enabled with data tracking mechanisms to detect all the specifications and the identity of any intruder into the system (Kotzanikolaou et al., 2013). The operating staff and their information should be easily monitored; should there be information leakage, tracing of the culprit will be easy. The government in line with the private sector should impose harsh rules that will apply to anyone who tries the cyber attack on all grounds (DHS, 2015). Again the consumers should be included in decision-making to ensure that the implementation of new communication system doesnt throw them out of business on the grounds of its operation and the guidelines. Communication Technology Assessment In every aspect of business operation, the introduction of a new mechanism of services is bound to yield setbacks which in this case are referred as risks. One of the greatest risks a private sector should be aware of is the ability to lose some of the stakeholders (Yan et al., 2013). This comes with new principles that would guide the operations of the system in securing a given department. For instance, change in the systems in the security department may imply that some of the operators have to be axed since the new system is capable of operating various sections that were earlier performed by different personnel. This is a significant threat since the fired individuals might be containing critical information that would interfere with the safety of department in case they decide to retaliate. Risk Evaluation The magnitude of a threat to the new system should be evaluated. In the security department, for instance, the axing of various departments and their operation staff should be closely reviewed. Because these experts still contain many secrets of the entire security staff, the option to send them home is utterly inappropriate. This is supported by the argument that in situations of retaliation by this group. In the government sector, a threat may impact severe consequences due to its broadness in management level and corruption scenario which remains to be a significant threat to success. Risk assessment can still be determined by the loss a firm will incur regarding devotion and money. Risk Management This is another area that requires attention in determining how the cyber-attacks can be managed. Application of approaches that lead to quality progress and effectiveness of the program should be the guiding principle of the government (FEMA, 2013). Registering, scanning and monitoring every step the operating team undertakes is another important measure to mitigate cyber theft. Still, on that ground, security department should strictly observe the person entitled to run the system (May Koski, 2013 The mission to improve the communication system targeting their counterparts will probably be aborted mainly through leaking of information. The system should be designed in a manner that it wont access any codes from outside the base. Just in case the hackers succeed in collapsing the system, the whole system should be set in a manner which destroys everything. This will assist in controlling cyber attacks in many fields of operation. Assessment of Programs Readiness The success of the whole operation should be measured by looking at how the business is running. In the case of improved profit margins and customer satisfaction, the operation of the system should prove applicable. This is contributed by strong leadership originating from senior positions at the junior level (Younis Kifayat, 2013). On the other hand, if the system runs in a reverse manner, it implies that the cases of cyber threat were not controlled. The firm and the government should work on adding more knowledge and pooling resources together to curb losses which would deteriorate the economy. It is crucial for business and security firms to move with technological advancements that are changing on a daily basis. It is a wise decision to do away with out of date technologies that are prone to cyber-attacks and embrace those which are secured against such threats. Communication infrastructure forms an integral part of any company and has a direct impact on performance. As such, maintaining the integrity of the infrastructure is critical. The Continuity Guidance Circular (CGC) offers directions to Non-Federal Governments (NFGs) on how to ensure the effectiveness of the program. The CGC provides a guideline on the dissemination of duties, continuous assessment of the infrastructure, risk management, and evaluation and also the assessment of the programs readiness (FEMA, 2013). References Department of Homeland Security, (2015). Communications Sector-Specific Plan an Annex to the NIPP 2013. Retrieved from https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/nipp-ssp-communications-2015-508.pdf Etzioni, A., (2011). Cybersecurity in the Private Sector. Issues in Science and Technology. Retrieved from http://issues.org/28-1/etzioni-2/ Federal Emergency Management Agency, (2013). Continuity Guidance Circular 1 (CGC 1) Continuity Guidance for Non-Federal Governments (States, Territories, Tribes, and Local Government Jurisdictions). Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/1386609058803-b084a7230663249ab1d6da4b6472e691/CGC-1-Signed-July-2013.pdf Hennig, A Rollins, J., (2009). Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative: Legal Authorities and Policy Considerations. Congressional Research Service. Retrieved from https://fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R40427.pdf Knapp, E. D., Langill, J. T. (2014). Industrial Network Security: Securing Critical Infrastructure networks for the smart grid, SCADA, and other Industrial Control Systems. Syngress. Retrieved from http://library.books24x7.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/toc.aspx?bookid=77754 Kotzanikolaou, P., Theoharidou, M., Gritzalis, D. (2013). Assessing n-order dependencies between critical infrastructures. International Journal of Critical Infrastructures 6, 9(1-2), 93-110 Lewis, T. G. (2014). Critical Infrastructure Protection in Homeland Security. Somerset: John Wiley Sons, Incorporated. Retrieved from http://ebookcentral.proquest.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/lib/apus/detail.action?docID=1813343 May, P. J., Koski, C. (2013). Addressing public risks: Extreme events and critical infrastructures. Review of Policy Research, 30(2), 139-159. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/doi/10.1111/ropr.12012/full Raed, M. J., Keating, C. B. (2014). The fragility of oil as a critical infrastructure problem. International Journal of Critical Infrastructure Protection, 7(2), 86-99. Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/745d/aa0b70a3e6ced165add2435036ab903bc999.pdf Stergiopoulos, G., Kotzanikolaou, P., Theocharidou, M., Gritzalis, D. (2017). Risk Mitigation for Critical Infrastructures: AUEB INFOSEC Lab Initiatives. Retrieved from https://infosec.aueb.gr/Publications/Risk-Tea%202017A%20CIP.pdf Yan, Y., Qian, Y., Sharif, H., Tipper, D. (2013). A survey on smart grid communication infrastructures: Motivations, requirements, and challenges. IEEE Communications Surveys Tutorials, 15(1), 5-20. doi:10.1109/SURV.2012.021312.00034 Younis, M. Y. A., Kifayat, K. (2013). Secure cloud computing for critical infrastructure: A survey. Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, Tech. Rep. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Younis_A_Younis/publication/262817790_Secure_Cloud_Computing_for_Critical_Infrastructure_A_Survey/links/5465ed3e0cf2f5eb180130d5.pdf

Literacy Narrative Essay -- Personal Narrative Literacy Education

Throughout my childhood, the idea of having a college education was greatly stressed. As a result, it was my duty as the next generational child, to excel in my studies and achieve a life of prosperity and success. Learning became the basic foundation of my growth. Therefore, my youth was overtaken by many hours spent reading and writing what was known to be correct "Standard" English. I first found this to be a great shortcoming, but as I grew older, I began to realize the many rewards acquired by having the ability to be literate. During adolescence, I began reading and writing through a fundamental learning program called, "Hooked on Phonics." This program consisted of long hours spent reading short novels and writing elementary phrases which were commonly taught in the second and third grade. With the motto, "Improve your child's reading and writing skills in just four weeks!" I was bound to become the next Mark Twain. The method of this course specialized in the improvements of word acquisition rates as well as reading speed; however, it lacked in the area of teaching comprehension. At a young age, I was instilled with the dire need to be highly educated and although I was unable to experience a fun and adventurous childhood like many other children, I am grateful for being raised with a greater knowledge and wisdom than that ingrained in many. From my past experiences, I have grown to prefer reading over writing. When I am reading, I can visualize the text in any way that I see fit. It is almost as if I am rewriting the novel using the illusions that I feel express the words in a passage. For example, in the current independent novel I am reading, it portrays a woman of high stature who is able to lure ... ... that sort of reaction to the reading. Lastly, I can read at my own pace. I have no obligation to read speedily in order to seem as though I have no complications with the words in the text. In my opinion, people should be given the right to speak and read in any language that they wish. Although, it may benefit them to be knowledgeable in the speech that is being taught and spoken in the common country, everyone has their own cultural background and each has the right to be literate in the way that they desire. They were given the right to freedom of speech through the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights and therefore, have the right to speak in their own native language. Literacy plays a major role in the lives of humans today. It gives us the power to read, speak and write and is therefore a valuable asset to society and the development of its economy.

A Christmas Memory: Truman Capote :: essays research papers

A Christmas Memory: Truman Capote This story, "A Christmas Memory," is a nonfiction reminence of one fond memory of Capotes'. A distant relative of Truman Capote's, Sook Faulk, took care of him through his childhood. Sook dubbed Truman with the nickname "Buddy," after a former best friend. During one November morning, when Buddy was seven, Sook decided it was fruitcake weather. She called him to get their buggy and her hat to go pick pecans. Queenie, their terrier who has survived illness and snake bites, follows them on their errand. After picking pecans for three hours, Buddy and Sook began hulling their buggyload. The discussion during dinnertime was the need of materials to make the cakes, and the lack of funding to do so. Sook and Buddy begin reminiscing about how they managed to gather their meager sums. People in the house donate a dime or two. Buddy and Sook make some money by selling jams and jellies, rounding up flowers for funerals and weddings, rummage sales, contests, and even a Fun and Freak museum. The secret fund is hidden in an old beaded purse under a loose board in the floor. They never remove the purse from under Sook's bed unless making a deposit or a ten-cent withdrawal on Saturdays. She allots Buddy ten cents to go to the picture show each Saturday. Sook has never visited one before, but asks Buddy to go instead to come back and tell she the stories of the picture show. After dinner, Sook and Buddy retire to a room in a faraway part of the house where her sleep's at night, to count their treasure. When finished counting, Buddy declares the total was thirteen dollars. Sook, being a very superstitious person, throws a penny out of the window. The next morning Sook and Buddy go to town to purchase the necessary ingredients for the cakes. Whiskey, the most expensive and hardest to obtain ingredient was needed to complete the day's shopping. Since whiskey sale was forbidden by law, they had to travel to Mr. Haha Jones for it. Mr. Haha owned a "sinful" bar near the river. When Sook receives a bottle of whiskey in exchange for a fruitcake, she decides to add an extra cup of raisins in his cake. The two go home and begin to make their cakes. These cakes where intended for friends or acquaintances, not necessarily neighbor friends. They sent most to people they have met once, or maybe not at all. The thank-you note cards sent in return made them feel connected to the world.

Detective Fiction Essay

The famous horror writer ‘Edgar Allen Poe’ first introduced detective Fiction in 1841 with ‘murder in the rue morgue’. Although Mr Poe was the creator of detective Fiction, he was not the one to make it as popular as it is today. Readers were more intrigued by Poe’s creative genre ‘Horror’. Poe’s ‘murder in the rue morgue’ had also introduced the five traditional elements, the most important of all was ‘the superior detective’ known as ‘C. Auguste Dupin’, he had a method of deduction and was very eccentric. Now in every detective Fiction story or TV programme their contains the Five traditional elements ‘the perfect crime, the wrongly accused suspect, superior detective, dim witted police and the surprise ending, each one more essential than the other. Detective fiction was at its peak during the late nineteenth century for that was the time of ‘Jack the Ripper’, a cunning murderer who was never found. The mobs were intrigued by this whole situation, how it started and how it ends. To quench their appetite for mystery and suspense they would read detective fiction books. The most popular out of all the writers would have been ‘Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’. His stories had a different focus point. While other writers are focusing on the plot, Sir Doyle would have been showing of his detective’s intelligence. The superior detective would have solved impossible cases, have ridiculous and controversial theories, suspect clues with little or no evidence but at the end of the day he was the one to catch the criminal. The superior detective was known as ‘Sherlock Holmes’ with his right hand man Dr Watson. In any one of Sherlock’s stories Sir Doyle would have focused his attention on Holmes, the story would revolve around him on his thoughts and actions. One of Sir Doyle’s famous stories was the ‘Speckled Band’ that was about a young woman who died in a perfectly humane situation however there is little evidence to who or what did it. The ‘Speckled Band’ contains all the essential criteria, the perfect crime. Etc. The perfect crime committed was the death of Julia Stoner. Their was very little evidence of murder and how it could have been committed, For example her bedroom door was locked, her windows were barred and their was no sign of blood, bruises or any other form of violence. The Superior detective was clearly stated after making remarks to Dr Grimsby Roylett about the ticket leaning over his pocket and the state of his coat. This gives us an example of Sherlock’s excellent observational skills and his superiority.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"†¦I observe the second half of a return ticket in the palm of your left glove.† From observing this Sherlock realises that he arrived here on public transport. In my view the wrongly accused suspect were the Gypsies and the sister of Julia. The reason for the Gypsies is because they are complete strangers to the family, who knows what they were capable of doing. The reason for Julia’s sister is because when she was speaking to Sherlock, he found her to be tense and he had the feeling as if she was hiding something from him. â€Å"†¦Have you told me all†. Sherlock had found her tense by observing her body language. This also shows us the intelligence of Sherlock. The ending came to quite a surprise, however I wasn’t completely shocked to hear that the culprit was â€Å"†¦a swamp adder†. I knew that Dr Roylett kept exotic animals and I also thought Dr Roylett did it. My theory was correct about it being the Dr, but not completely. The snake killed the girl but the mastermind behind the death was the Dr.  Although the story did not contain any police, the story itself states police as dim witted for example Julia’s sister goes to Sherlock to solve the crime. Here she knows the police haven’t got the intelligence to solve the crime. Doyle’s rural setting of where the incident happened was colourful and natural. You would never think anything sinister could happen however when setting eyes on the location of the death, there was a huge contrast. Watson describes the setting â€Å"†¦there was a strange contrast between the sweet promise of the spring and this sinister quest upon which were engaged†. The surrounding was very colourful, no prisons, no insane asylums, there were no sinister vibes except for the ones coming from the house. I suppose the setting makes it to be a perfect crime but when Sherlock and Dr Watson set their eyes on â€Å"Stoke Moran† it would of narrowed down the suspects to those in the house. Although the outside atmosphere was pleasant Watson felt a huge contrast between both. † The building was of grey †¦two curving wings†¦in one of these wings the window was broken, and blocked with wooden boards†. Stoke Moran seemed to be mysterious but the only thing about unusual about it was the presence of that Dr Roylett who was a strong bitter man who kept wild animals in his premises. Another one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s books was the ‘the blue carbuncle’. In this Sir Doyle emphasizes a great deal on Sherlock, his predictions and theories. When reading ‘the blue carbuncle’ you get so much information from one piece of evidence that story loses the plot. When Sherlock is examining the evidence Sir Doyle is trying to tell the readers that Sherlock is so intellectual there is nothing he can’t solve. The piece of evidence Sherlock was examining was a hat, although to a normal intellectual being like Dr Watson you wouldn’t find any clues about that hat. Sherlock came up with a great deal of conclusions and suggestions from a plain black top hat. Some of the conclusions made towards the hat by Sherlock would now be very controversial â€Å"†¦it came right over the forehead and settled upon the bridge of his nose†. Here Sherlock suggests that he is an intellectual man just by the size of his head â€Å"†¦It is a question of cubic capacity†¦a man with so large a brain must have something in it†.  There were also suggestions about the hat that were more believable and more obvious to see â€Å"†¦ goes out a little, middle-aged, has grizzled hair which he has had cut within the last few days, and which he anoints with lime-cream† but even Dr Watson failed to see these clues when glancing at it, first time.

Practicum: Tour Guide and Elementary School

We talked ab place the destinations, readjustment and the budget for separately group, because were divided into 8 groups. The 4 groups argon going to Sad and the other 4 are going to locos Norte and Sure. March 26, minute of arc mean solar mean solar day Sir Mann told me went to De La Sale in Taft Avenue to pass his papers and later that I went to Bambina and bought round medicine for our medical kit that we bequeath be victimization for our lap. March 27, Sir Mann told me went to Magmata to meet Mr.. Carlo, he is aBusinessman and my channel is to get his full payment for the Honking go game, I remember that guy because he gave me a tip and treat me in a high class restaurant. I take he gave me the payment and it cost approximately forty five thousand pesos in cash so that day I feel Anxious and when I came behind in our office I took a rest because we were having a stoppage on the next day. May 28, I fall in the locos Holy calendar week limp Sir office San Marti n and I were partner and we brought 50 go gameist or Clients.They came from different group so our mission is to make them friends before the Tour ends. Im he one whos in-charge in notes transactions, checking-in the tourist on their of our tour and my travail for this day is to serve and remind the hotel to cram their breakfast and to be a master photographer because we coordinator are the one to took them pictures if they put across only. March 30 last day of our locos tour, we went to Vagina heritage to buy few stuffs and shirts and after that back to Manila. workweek 2 April 2- 8, 2013 April 2, we trainees taught to make a play along email address and we make an account in slit. Com to promote roughly tour packages that we are offering. April 3, Sir Mann taught us how to wait on phone calls and how to make a backlog for those clients asking for a tour or close to promos that we are offering. April 4, Mama progression taught me how to deposit, withdraw and other ba nking transactions, the truth is I have no composition how banking transactions is processed and I sort kayoed slightly receipts and bills.April 5, Sir Ryan our Marketing specialist taught me how to make an ads and how to compute those tour price, accommodation and flight path tickets that they are offering. April 6, another locos tour is came so automatically we trainees are joined. We did the said(prenominal) thing handle the last tour but this tour is the most persistent tour, because one of our clients sends a message to our company directly to Mr.. Mann our normal Manager, the client complains are 1 . What a kind of Tour eviscerate you have? 2. Your tour guide is making money on us. 3.The tour guide of your company is not swell dressed. The complainant used other energetic number for us not to pick out who she/he is, by that day I dont know what to do, because Im not expecting that would be happened. WEEK 3 April 9-12, 15, 2013 April 9, this is Holiday from locos t our we came here at manila by 2 oclock in the ironing and by 3 oclock in the morning we went to Lucian, Guenon for our achievement in the past Holy week tour and also an incentives because almost of our clients apprehended my effort in that tour and I am very thankful to those clients.April 10, 11, 12, I did more or less paper works like sort out receipts, print some documents, arranged the files, books, Fliers, Directories, Posters, help phone calls. April 15, we trainees cleaned up the on the whole office and put some wall designs because some unexpectedly visitors from surgical incision of Tourism would come. WEEK 4 April 16-19, 2013 April 16, on this day we are projectioned to make some research about Minor travelers and airline codes, airport codes, airport rules. We did for the whole day is to read what we searched.April 17, this is the day of our try out I remember that is a 100 items quiz but only two questions (its unearthly right) I got 96 and my co-trainee got 94 so he failed and I got passed but Im not putting up myself Im ripe euphoric because I didnt expected that I will passed the quiz. April 18, we were tasked to made a tour course from Zebu-boll-campaign, I have no idea in that place so the whole day Im focused n that task and sir and I talked one-on-one about the travel plan I made and fortunately , I passed again because I defend my repartee correctly and exactly it made my self-assured boost.April 19, Sir Mann asked me and my co-trainee to repost all of the ads we post in Slit, the declare oneself of reposting those ads is to make the clients easily look for that April 22, Just the same thing I did some edit and fix some files and ads on website. April 23, Deposit those payments of the clients in the bank, sort out those receipts again, answering phone calls. April 24, Mr..Mann taught us how to speak fluently and e told me some tips and reminders for me to knew that in the future we need to puzzle comfortable and hospitable in our clients nevertheless though our clients is not in a good mood, do paper works, answer phone calls and other matters. April 25, tomorrow would be our last day so I review those tour packages that theyre offers and repost it again. April 26, taking pictures of the facilities, self-collected those information that I need for the effect of my practicum report and finished my 300 hours of tour and unforgettable experienced in Tuesday Tours and Travel. General Perception of the training