Electronic Portfolio Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Electronic Portfolio - Assignment Example Generally, my education was more closely aligned to the Jeffersonian model of education as compared to others. I joined Virginia University at the age 15 years, obtaining a post-graduate four years later. Naturally, I am an analysts and bibliophile, all to which I give credit to my teachers and parents. I am strong opponent of division within the society and as such, an advocate of an equitable society. Nonetheless, I disdain ethno-racial abhorrence. My thoughts are largely influenced by Marx’s ideas. Additionally, my perceptions are inspired by a distinguished educationist, Horace Mann. I have risen across various professional levels to reach my current position. I started out as an army recruiter in 1997 after completing my degree in General Studies from Central Texas College, Grantham University. Consequently, I have risen across ranks to reach the current position, JROTC Instructor. In general, I am an accomplished professional possessing experience directing logistics, an d transportation of freight for the US Army and Federal Express. Where I stand today: I believe life has given me immense opportunities to reach where I am today. I have nothing to regret about my past. Today, I am lucky to be amongst the few Indians to attend IB schools. This is a great opportunity for me. Educational/learning philosophy I believe education offers every individual a unique opportunity to explore and make use of their potential. Each person is uniquely endowed with some intrinsic potential which if well nurtured within an educational setting, can offer immense benefits to the society. An educational setting must therefore offer a secure and stimulating environment which allows emotional, physical, social and intellectual growth to the individuals. It is my belief that a good educational environment should have a guide (teacher), a curious learner (student), and more importantly, respect from both parties. Other than the aforementioned, it is my sincere belief that e ducation is only useful if learners have the opportunity to build knowledge through a self-discovery opportunity and access to practical skills in realistic environments. Offering learners a hands-on approach and sufficient time and space to make use of their potential and knowledge gained. In essence, I hold a strong opinion that self-discovery is just as important as is the opportunity to study and implement new ideas. Such should revolve around meaningful and relevant educational experiences. In general, school act as a pillar, social institution in human life, which provides individuals with a comprehensive learning program, and trains them on the ways necessary to lead a cultured and disciplined life. Given that the educators takes learners through disciplines in formal ways and fulfills their educational necessities, it assists them get qualified and ready to participate in economy building. Professional training accumulated during my career I must say my work experience has b een unique and one of its kind. Through this uniqueness, I have been able to accumulate immense professional training. I started out as an army recruiter and I must say dealing with different people from different backgrounds taught me a lot. Not only did I learn the importance of being able to accommodate and tolerate different cultures but also ways through which you can delve into these cultures and find that potential your organization really needs. Coming from the army recruiter position, I

Social Networking on Facebook Essay Example for Free

Social Networking on Facebook Essay Social Networking on Facebook Arlene Pascual MIS Facebook (FB) is one of the latest trends in social networking (Facebook. com). Facebook (FB) is one of the most popular social networking sites among college students. FB started out as a site designed for and available to students at Harvard University to help them get acquainted with other students living in the dorms. But, it is now a public site. FB has become the number one choice of communication with college students, ranking higher than phone and email. FB attracts many students because it provides a place where students can have space of their own to express themselves and communicate freely with peers. This site provides an easy way for students to build their social networks, show the world who they are, make new friends and keep up with old friends. Facebook is not just a tool for only college students anymore. In September 2006, FB went public. Before then, only people with an . edu email address could access the site. Now anyone with a valid email can become a registered user of the popular social networking site. In addition, Computer Mediated Communication is communication that occurs via computer technology. CMC includes participating in chat room discussions, instant messaging, email, virtual teams, virtual communities, and voice activated messaging. CMC is also an excellent way to participate in social networking. Social networking is an important part of everyday life that assists people in planning and cultivating business, social contacts, and personal relationships. CMC is often preferred over face to face communication because it is convenient, easy, fast and highly effective in many situations. Newspapers, news magazines, and television news have highlighted the dangers of Facebook and other social networking sites such as MySpace, such as online predators, dangers of revealing personal information on profiles, and the posting of obscene or illegal activities. Yet the positive aspects of social networking on the internet make these sites so appealing to millions of users. Given the widespread of FB use among college students, the main goal of this study is to explore how students are social networking on Facebook. The following research questions are as follows: 1: How are students setting up their Facebook accounts? 2: How much time are students spending on Facebook? 3: How are students using Facebook? and 4: What kinds of negative experiences have students encountered on Facebook? Despite the negative press surrounding social networking sites, this study revealed that students are using Facebook for positive and appropriate networking. Everyone at their university can view their profiles, which allows more connections and interactions. Students also reported that their profiles were accurate representations of themselves. Since students tend to allow everyone to see their profile information, telling lies about themselves can be obvious. However, some students reported that their profiles only â€Å"somewhat accurately† represent them. Students may think that they are able to stretch the truth about certain areas of their lives. Although data were not gathered about what parts of students’ profiles are less accurate than others, this paper guessed that misrepresentations are most likely to occur in the â€Å"About Me† section. In this section, students write about anything they like, from their favorite things to how they view themselves. In many ways, the â€Å"about me† section is similar to a personal ad whereby students attempt to portray themselves in the most positive light possible. In addition, most students are not much concerned about privacy and they accept new friends request who they don’t know because that is the reason they join FB: to meet new friends. Majority of the respondents spent about 10 minutes a day. The most common uses of FB were sending messages to friends and viewing photos. Students want to keep in touch and get to know others better. On the other hand, one clear finding of this study is that students do not use FB for overt romantic relationship development. Students do not want their dating attempts to be public. Students also did not use FB to advertise academic or social events or to recruit for their organizations. Overall, negative experiences on FB were relatively few and far between given the frequency and variety of student use. In case of â€Å"stalker issue†, although FB is now open to the public, the default (and loosest) privacy setting enables student profiles to be viewed only by people at their own universities. Therefore, students must â€Å"confirm† that others outside their universities are their â€Å"friends† before people can view their profiles. These kinds of privacy safeguards might aid in keeping away stalkers. Concepts from two theoretical frameworks appear to be useful applications for explaining social networking on Facebook. First, Uncertainty Reduction Theory (URT) posits that people do not like uncertainty in initial encounters and therefore attempt to reduce that uncertainty through verbal and nonverbal communication in these initial face-to-face meetings. Students on FB definitely attempted to reduce uncertainty with strangers (e. g. other students in their classes, residence halls, sororities, and clubs) through direct messaging on FB and through indirect means such as observing others’ profiles on FB (networks, pictures, and wall posts). Relational Maintenance (RM) provides insight into the strategies that established relational partners use to maintain their relationships. RM can help enhance an existing relationship, repair a conflictual one, or maintain a relationship at its current level of engagement and satisfaction. Relational maintenance was prevalent on Facebook. Sending messages, updating profiles, and uploading pictures helped students feel connected with friends from high school and college. The RM strategies of positivity, self-disclosure, and assurances were all easily accomplished through FB and students perceived FB to be maintaining their relationships in important ways. FB can also foster closeness among users by sharing pictures that make events more personal and immediate.

External Influences on Lenovo

External Influences on Lenovo The main purpose of this report is to show the way of Lenovo from just project to international corporation and to analyze their way using such methods as PEST and SWOT analysis as well as Porters Five Competitive Forces. Using PEST makes possible to determine the impact of external environment (politics, economics, society and technology) and indirect factors on company. SWOT reveals the strengths and weaknesses of given organization. Combining these two methods makes analysis even more precise. In its turn, Porters Five Competitive Forces helps to understand the competition within the industry. Lenovo is a great example of a company which used innovation and creativity, obstinacy and communication with customer as a tool to make their way to the top. Today Lenovo is one of leading PC vendors. They manufacture tablets, laptops, ultrabooks, All-in-One PCs, desktops, nettops and own accessories. Lenovo creates unique and durable products at really aggressive price point. And they are here to stay. Introduction Lenovo. The company was established in Beijing, China in 1984 by eleven members of the Computer Technology Research Institute, they called it the Legend Holdings. But in 2003, decision to expand outside Chinese market led to another one change the name of the company. Legend changed their name to Lenovo. Name of Lenovo is combination of Le- (as part of Legend) and novo Latin ablative for new. In Chinese it can also be understood as connected thinking or creativity. Despite the fact that current name of the company was introduced just in 2003, Lenovo already gained trust and loyalty of millions of customers. The company has started from budget of 200ÂÂ  000 yuan commissioned Liu Chuanzhi (founder of Lenovo) by Chinese government in order to distribute computers which are made in other countries. Lenovos first office was about 17 square meters. Mr. Chuanzhi once said: It wasnt easy. The lowest thing you could do in the early 80s, as a scientist, was to go into business. China had a strict planned economy and there was barely room for a freewheeling company like ours (Liu Chuanzhi for Asiaweek, June 13, 1997). First major win was a circuit board which enabled IBM computers to process Chinese characters Han-card. Later on Lenovo started to create and distribute computers using its own brand. In May 1988, Lenovo looked for employees for the first time. They have placed ads on the cover of the China Youth News. Out of all respondents, 280 were selected to sit for a written exam. About 120 of the candidates were interviewed in person. Despite interviewers had authority to hire only 16 people, 58 were given offers. 18 people of these had graduate degrees, 37 had undergraduate degrees, and three students did not have university-level education at all. Their average age was 26. Future CEO of Lenovo Yang Yuanqing was among this group who introduced new name and expanded company on Europe and USA. In 1994 Lenovo became a publicly traded company after listing in Hong Kong. Later in 2002 Lenovo Group made partnership with Xiahua Electronics Stock Company, giving the start of Lenovo mobile phone business. In 2008 Lenovo has sold its mobile department but then would pay $200 million to buy it back in November of 2009. Now Lenovo Mobile ranks third in terms of market share of mobile phones market in China. On May of 2005 Lenovo Group announced the completion of the $1.75 billion deal of acquisition of IBMs PC unit. That made companys annual revenue almost quadruple. Company which used to have $3 billion in annual revenue now had nearly $13 billion. They became the worlds third-largest PC vendor, behind Dell and Hewlett-Packard. But revenues are not the only benefit Lenovo got from this deal. They have acquired the ThinkPad brand. ThinkPad is ultra-resistant due to special casing, special keyboard structure that let water drain through the laptop. Moreover it was one of first laptops with hard disk block system, which could turn on emergency brakes thereby save data from being just lost because of physical damage of the disk when laptop is dropped. Later Lenovo would face the closest rival on their way to the top Dell. It was a hard competition, it was a complex competition. The main problem of Lenovo back in the days was a bit more conservative way of making business. Dell used new and innovative methods to produce, distribute and promote products. They spent on ads twice as more than Lenovo, their prices were lower and market share grew more and more. Dell even captured segments which used to be favorite ones of Lenovo. To overcome the enemy Lenovo started to increase value of brand. That means they started to raise name awareness among the customers, they delivered maximum possible customer satisfaction. They are still using those principles as core philosophy of the company. Nowadays, Lenovo has three main categories of laptops. ThinkPads are powered for productive work experience, uncompromised secured and ultra-reliable, solid and durable. IdeaPads are optimized for entertainment and multimedia. They have some enchantments in audio, video performance and possess both functional internal and beautiful external designs. The third lineup is Essential. These products have nothing unnecessary; they are always up-to-date, portable enough and reliable. The tablets are also divided on Idea and Think lineups as well as All-in-Ones and desktops. The principal stays the same. Idea for creativity and entertainment, Think for business and work. In 2012 Lenovo became the fastest growing company in the USA for 8 quarters in a row. Actually, they are the only one who has a growth. In the third financial quarter of 2012, shipments of the company expected to reach 15.7 per cent of world-wide PC shipments. Lenovo would surpass Dell and HP. The Mission and Vision of Lenovo Mission is the main goal, beliefs which push company to develop into new something more than just business. Mission is the reason why company does actually exist. Lenovos origins are in China; their name has meaning so their mission is strong and inspiring as well. Lenovo has a desire to become the leading company of new world that is respected for break-through innovation and award-winning designs, quality, to be loved for an ecosystem of devices, services. Become recognized as one of the best, most trusted and most well-respected companies to work for and do business with. And they are on the right way to reach the goal. Company strives to be one that creates extraordinary, innovative and exceptionally great PCs for its customers. They do not have formal restrictions and bonds which could distract or interfere from manufacturing best possible machines. Lenovo claims that they design exciting and innovative products, services to meet customers needs. And sometimes they even manage to exceed level of the expectations. Lenovo wants to do business from their own global point of view, own perspective and own commitment to building great technology for people who view technology as a tool to accomplish fascinating things. By having few categories of products, Lenovo does not put any effort on useless departments therefore does not waste resources and time. David Schmoock, President of North American Lenovo department said: What I want to do is get to number one and be sustainable as number one. At the very basic level of the company there is one core principle that is extremely important: We do what we say and own what we do. So far the main goals company wants to reach are serving customers, trust and integrity, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit. Lenovo. New World, New Thinking PEST Analysis PEST analysis in general measures a market, its potential, indicates growth or decline, thereby market attractiveness. Actually, PEST analysis helps to determine SWOT factors. PEST analysis is a model that can be used for describing the framework of macro environmental factors that a company should have in mind forming its long-term strategic plans. Of course, the external factors may vary in significance to a given company based on the products and services that it produces and also on the industry it is in. For any company which wants to win in the competitive marketing, such methods of analysis of the external factors and environment are the way to succeed. In this report PEST will be used in order to focus on analyzing external environment of the Lenovo Corporation and try to foresee major influence of those external factors in their business environment. The letter P stands for political factors influencing companys market. Those are level of bureaucracy, laws and regulations, legalization and policies, rule of law, freedom of press, tariff controls and trade. Nowadays, computers are tightly linked with peoples life. From the last century computers were used in business and other areas and help factories, hospitals and other structures to increase production and interest. At the same time, new technology caused some new problems such as pollution of the environment, health and energy consumption. Considering these problems European Union, China and other countries encourage the Green IT. That means computer must not produce noise pollution more than specified, energy consumption must be no more than required. In Lenovo groups, the isopsophic index is lower than 30dB. Therefore, Lenovo has achieved in noise pollution section. Since China has a population of one and a half billion, there is more than enough labor and payment would not be too high. That is the reason why many of assembly lines are Chinese, so Lenovo placed factory in China as well. When China joined WTO in 2005, the export tariff for IT products has decreased to 9.1%. So thes e policies are encouraging business organization developing to global. Next one is E. It stands for economic factors such as interest rates and inflation, disposable income, labor cost and supply, impact of globalization. Letter S is for social culture. It is social studies and education, lifestyle attitudes and choice, population growth rate and age profiles, etc. And the last letter is T. That is for technological factors such as impact of energy technologies, increase in remote working, and current level of technological development, impact of technology on the work process and productivity. For economic, influence by the 2008 economic crisis, the world economic tends to going down. But in the worst time, Chinese government published the new economic policy which was positive financial policy and loose and comfortable monetary policy. The government also offered four-hundred million RMB stimulates economic development (The Marketing Surveillance Center of China, 2008). For Chinas IT industry, this is a great opportunity to develop them. Then change the focus to the economic development. In 1950, the total trades of China include import and export was 11.3 hundred million dollars, but in 2008, it enhanced 25616 hundred million dollars. Also at home, the GDP increased with a high speed: So according to this chart, it very clear that Chinas GDP has achieved satisfactory level and the disposable personal income has increased also (stats, 2009). So the demand of products will increase with the economic enhancing. In the other words, the IT market becomes bigger and Lenovo also has strength to competitive the market share because Lenovo not only produce computers, mobile phone also produced by them. For society culture, the population growth, lifestyle choice and attitudes, population health, education, social mobility and attitudes are influence the demand of high technology products. 60 years ago, 80% people in China were illiteracy, but under the new government value, in 2008, the Einschulungsrate f. of different education level has achieved a satisfactory level: It is clearly that the education level has increased and the demand of high technology products also enhancing (Communist Party Learning, 2009). This situation also offered a huge market for Lenovo. On the other hand, because the globalization and influenced by the developed countries lifestyle, the Chinese people also become more international which live with a high level life and influenced by the education level, the lifestyle of Chinese people become more out-going and open enough (Human Geography Research Center, 2003). So the consumption custom of modern Chinese people also offers a good developing environment to Lenovo. Also in the next five to ten years, this situation will be increase. At the same time, the social culture of China has changed from traditional feudalism to modern lifestyle which is more science and high technology in life. For technological, Lenovo was set by 11 scientists who worked in Chinese Academy of Science which is a governmental organization. So this situation offered a good technology support. In 2005, Lenovo has finished the purchase IBM, so the technology transfer from IBM also helps Lenovo make the Research Development activities and produce high quality products with high technology (Lenovo, 2005). At the same time, with the technology development, the communications costs and increased remote work can help the different corporations share their techniques and also good for Research Development activities. So all of these technological factors can help Lenovo increase their competitive ability in the next five to ten years and the marketing share of IBM also belongs to Lenovo. For the legal section, here just mention two articles which can support Lenovo. Firstly, in light of article 6, Peoples Republic of China Consumer Protection, the government encourages and supports every person and organization supervises the illegal action which damages the consumers legal power (National Peoples Congress, 1993). So this law can reduce other organizations use illegal method to competitive in the marketing and its also a protection for Lenovo. On the other hand, in light of article 6, Peoples Republic of China Law on Product Quality, the government encourages apply scientific management method, advanced science and technology, support the products achieved or beyond the industry standard or international standard. And give the award to the organizations whose products achieved or beyond the international standard (National Peoples Congress, 1993). So as an international corporation, Lenovo links the technology of IBM, they will produce the high quality products and r eceived the government supports from the legal. Finally, for the ethical, because the increased of education level, the peoples diathesis also enhanced. So protect the legal power has become normal in the modern society. Then if the organization make illegal actions, it will be ejected from the market by customers, such as never buy their products. Also for an organization, the ethical problems are faith, fair and good service. As Lenovo, their value are serve consumers, innovation, faith and fair (Lenovo, 2005). So this entire ethical development tendency is good for Lenovos business environment in the next five to ten years. In summary, the policies which about green IT from European Union and the export tariff which from Chinese government are good for Lenovos improvement; at the same time, the economic development of China and the increased disposable personal income also offering a big market to Lenovos development in the future; as the modern society, the population of the world was achieved 67-hundred million in 2007 (Unctad Report, 2008). It offers a huge number of customers; also because the education increase, the lifestyle of modern customers is tend to high technology and high quality. On the other hand, the purchase of IBM also offers the technology transfer and the development mechanics of communication saved the communications costs and its good for international Research Development activities and international cooperation. At the same time, the law of Chinese government also supports and the ethical factors in the modern society are good for Lenovos improvement. So based on the analysis, in the next five to ten years, the likely major influences in Lenovos business environment are environment protection, international cooperation, the economic development, technology communication and Research Development, legal protection and ethical problems. But all of these tend to good for Lenovo in the future. So if the strategy department managers based on the external environment to make the strategic planning, Lenovo will take a great leap for their business in the next five to ten years. The PEST analysis is a model for reviewing and surveying a companys strategy or its position in the market. It measures the market, along with its competitors from the viewpoint of a particular business. It is also used to describe the framework of macro environmental factors that a company should regard and take into consideration. Of course, the external factors may vary in significance to a given company based on the products and services that it produces and also on the industry it is in. Political factors Economic factors Economic factor relates to the economy of the country itself, as well as market and trade cycles. Over the past years Walmart has had a stable economic condition and had 11% growth totalling in $6.5 billion. Why Walmarts figure has been doing so well so far is because it takes into account not only the economy of the company, but also of the countrys economy in which they are setting up their business. Another reason for its success is that Walmart prefers to first check the economical factors of the county before actually doing any business there. The main economical factors that are worth considering are economic stability and peoples purchasing power. Its crucial to acknowledge these factors for doing business in the third world countries because any change in economy can increase the actual price of the goods and services, which the company offers to its customers and of course the demand for these products will go down. Social Factors Social factors are made up of lifestyle trends, major events and various influences, religious and ethnic factors. Walmart has a tendency of evaluating and measuring social factors, just like economic factors, of a country they have chosen to do business in. Social values and frugality are also quite important factors. Walmart appeals to consumers with a rather low income, nevertheless, it ensures that the goods, products and services that they provide are apprised and accepted by their customers. It is a known fact that Walmart doesnt supply its stores with goods that are likely to cause various complaints from the clients and customers. The company makes good relationships with its customers in engaging and taking part in various public activities. Technological Factors Technological factors generally include various factors like maturity of technology, global communications and innovations, as well as technology legislation. Nowadays technology plays an immense part in the whole society. As a matter of fact, technology hugely improves quality of the products, however it tends to decrease the amount of time to promote and advertise the goods and services. Walmart was quick to accept new technology and to make effective and best use of it. It operates most of its logistics with the usage of a modern system called hub-and-spoke of its distribution centres. Customers that shop at Walmart stores get the most benefits out of it. Walmart believes that by introducing natural products on the market, it can have a big and positive impact on the atmosphere around us and the worlds natural resources. Walmart exploits the newest technology such as brad new cash register and security system. In short, Walmart keeps up with technology innovations and adjusts very well to the changes in the world. Porters Five Competitive Forces Porters Five Forces model is generally used in order to understand better the context of the industry in which the company is operating in and to see the attractiveness of an industry structure. By using this model we can see that Walmart is a strong independent company that has a stable growth, professional management and reasonably competitive prices. This model helps to look into the company more closely by assessing the potential threat of new entrants, the competitive rivalry within already existing companies, the threat of substitute products and goods, the bargaining power of suppliers and finally, the bargaining power of customers. Threat of new entrants Theres always a possibility of new companies coming into existence, however in order to compete with such strong company as Walmart they will need a relatively large capital. Walmart is expanding rather fast and it practically leaves neither chance nor room for other new companies to enter the competitive market. Above anything else, Walmart has excellent distribution systems, for example hub-and-spoke system that I mentioned before, as well as good locations and an enormous capital to be actually able to compete with new entrants. Competitive rivalry Walmart is a much larger and more profitable company than its competitors, so the competition inside the retail industry poses no threat whatsoever to it. However, there are a few other strong competitors such as Target, which can bring out some fair competition to Walmart. To sum up, Walmart is generally ahead of its competitors; it is a global leader in the retail industry and has a firm position in the competitive market. Threat of substitute products There arent a lot of direct substitutes to Walmart, because stores in the retail industry sell products for everyday use mostly. However, there are some substitute products that can be a threat to the sales of branded products. Another threat can be put from specialized retail stores like electronics and various garments. There are stores such as Carrefour and Target, which can offer same goods at a similar price or even lower. Still, when it comes to Walmart, there arent many other stores that can actually replace its convenience and attractively low prices. Bargaining power of suppliers Walmart is a huge customer to its suppliers and, thus, it has a lot of power, because in case it decides to switch to a different supplier, this would create a very scary tactic for its suppliers. It also has an option to purchase goods from many various suppliers so if they decide to drop out some, this wont make a significant difference. Walmart definitely takes advantage of being one of the largest customers to such international companies as Kraft Foods and Gillette. Because of its strong position in the market, suppliers are more than willing to satisfy Walmarts requirements, as well as provide them with favourable terms of payment and various discounts. We can see this good relationship between Walmart and its suppliers through its enhancing success. Bargaining power of buyers The customers will surely always be a threat to Walmart mainly because there are so many competitors. The buyers decision tends to be based on the price and quality of the product, and also on the convenience. Usually consumers are price sensitive and their decisions are based mainly on the price itself. And if products are similar this will increase the rivalry in the industry, which will lead to lower prices and thus, lower profit. Also, Walmart is not in a monopolistic market, but a competitive one, so the goods it offers can be replaced or substituted by its rivals. However, the company strives to please its clients by making the prices of their products and services similar to those of their competitors. Its profitability has proved that consumers are pleased with the chains reasonably low prices and its very convenient locations. Conclusion The purpose of this report was to analyze the external factors that have a certain impact and influence on Walmart. There are some significant factors that became clear after the PEST analysis and Porters Five Competitive Forces analysis have been made. I found out that Walmart is one of the global leaders in the retail industry, which has a great influence on various sectors. Walmart is still expanding to new locations and it is a growing strong company that has a firm position in the domestic market in the US and abroad as well. Unfortunately, Walmart, just like any other organization, isnt protected against the negative influence from various environmental factors, which may decrease the companys total revenues or even weaken the popularity of the whole company. However, despite all of the negative factors mentioned above, the positive impact of the external factors is much greater. Walmarts intention to help people save money so they can live better moves the company on the top position in the retail industry and makes it more attractive and appealing to existing and future consumers. Recommendations In my personal opinion the future success and survival of Walmart will depend on changing its attitude and becoming even more customer focused, as well as building even closer relationships that would broaden the product range and competitive prices. The company should take into consideration that the market is still rather new to foreign companies and that other retail stores are also expected to appear in the nearest future, which will probably result in reduction of clients Walmart is considered as one of the international leaders in the retail industry and I think it will keep its position for a certain period of time. However, I have to make a point that the company should also consider its promotion and shouldnt rely in the fact that they are one of the best in the market. Whats more Walmart should take into consideration that the market is still rather new to foreign companies and that other retail stores are also expected to appear in the near future, which will probably result in reduction of clients.

Anesthesiology Essay -- essays research papers

The work of an anesthesiologist is fulfilling with many benefits. A person would desire to become an anesthesiologist because there is a high standard of excellence due to a low percentage of doctors in this special field, not to mention the high salary. This occupation benefits the doctor through a feeling of personal gratification while receiving a great education. The community benefits through his or her help relieving the pain accompanied by surgery. Becoming an anesthesiologist involves extensive education and training, while also having many requirements and a good salary range. Anesthesiology, the medical field dealing with anesthesia and related matters, including recovery and pain, developed as a specialized field because of the dangers of anesthesia. Anesthesia involves the use of carefully graduated doses of strong poisons to deaden pain. Gradually surgeons and physicians saw anesthesiologists as tools to broaden the surgical horizons by allowing surgeries seen as inconceivable to be performed. Anesthesiology entails the practice of medicine associated with: The management of procedures for rendering a patient insensible to pain and emotional stress during surgical, obstetrical, and certain other medical procedures. The support of life functions under the stress of anesthetic and surgical manipulations, and the clinical management of the unconscious patient, while managing problems in pain relief. Along with the management of problems in cardiac and respiratory...

Library Statement of Goals Essay

I have submitted my application for admission into the Kent State School of Library and Information Science as an avenue for professional growth within my current career. As a former Spanish teacher and currently a computer technology teacher, it is important to pursue the MLIS as current librarians seek retirement and technology continues to infiltrate libraries across our nation. I am currently interested in pursuing the MLIS plus the K-12 licensure in order to serve in an urban school library setting. My current teaching assignment of computer technology lends itself to a smooth transition from the classroom to a librarian position as our school district places more emphasis on digital media. I remain fully committed to providing instruction to students; however, with teachers and school librarians retiring in droves, I fear that our schools will be left with overworked teachers and no librarians in our schools. By completing the MLIS degree, I will be accomplishing an additional career objective. I remain committed to my career goals that were previously established many years ago. My first goal was accomplished by completing my undergraduate course of study at the University of Cincinnati. My second career goal was to obtain my M. Ed. In School Administration and I accomplished that particular goal in the year 2000. My third goal, albeit somewhat personal, was to earn my private pilot’s license, and I successfully completed that task in 2001. My fourth career oriented goal was to transition from teaching Spanish to teaching computer science with an ultimate goal of finishing the required courses to earn the MLIS degree. I am currently in the middle of this goal. After speaking to our retiring librarian, she suggested that I apply my technology expertise and apply for the vacant school librarian position. Our current librarian highly encouraged me to seek at least the minimum courses for K-12 certification. After speaking with Dr. Sarah Harper and educating myself about the MLIS program and learning about the additional career opportunities associated with the MLIS, I have decided to pursue this additional graduate degree. The role of the librarian appears to be shifting from the traditional aspects of managing a library to more of the role as a librarian media technologist. An important current issue of the library is to also serve as a digital media center due to the increased technology needs facing libraries. I am greatly interested in this transition as many school librarians almost double as the digital media technologist. Colleges and universities are also adopting the model of librarian media technologist to enhance the needs of such educational institutions. As our digital technology library needs grow, I foresee a point where the current traditional school librarian could potentially be at a slight disadvantage without minimal technology background. I firmly support digital media; however, print media is equally as important. It will be the role of the librarian to determine which media shall remain in print edition for students, and which media will transition to digital media. Another current issue that is important is to fully integrate the school library as an extension of the classroom. It is important to fully utilize the library beyond the common routine of â€Å"pulling books† for a specific course. Instead, it would be beneficial to teachers and students if the library were to be established as an academic department. Establishing meaningful collaboration between the library personnel and teachers will foster a learning environment conducive to learning. As a school librarian, a goal should be to create a library setting that embeds the role of the library into the classrooms. Instead of thinking of the library as an independent space of a school, the library now serves as an extension of the classroom. However, it is equally important to keep in mind, the school librarian is not able to provide content specific instruction, but rather, instruction on how to locate the resources required for the specific content. It is important for the librarian to serve as an instructional partner in the learning process. Finally, another current issue that I believe is important is increasing the mobility of the library. Technology has advanced to where it is no longer required to leave the house and go to the library to seek and acquire information. With nearly all of our students owning a mobile device, whether it is a cellular telephone, iPad, Nook, mobile devices are changing the way information is delivered and accessed. While students easily have access to the internet through mobile devices, it is equally important that students have access to digital records housed in the library. Furthermore, many library users have learned the convenience of downloadable e-books. As teachers, students, and others navigate away from the traditional book delivered in print, it will be important for the librarian to explore new ideas and collaboratively implement a plan to cost effectively deliver more data via mobile devices.

Chinas Boxer Rebellion of 1900

China's Boxer Rebellion of 1900 The Boxer Rebellion,  a bloody uprising in China at the turn of the 20th century against foreigners, is a relatively obscure historical event with far-reaching consequences that nevertheless is often remembered because of its unusual name. The Boxers Who exactly were the Boxers? They were members of a secret society made up mostly of peasants in northern China known as I-ho-chuan (Righteous and Harmonious Fists) and were called the Boxers by the  Western press; members of the secret society practiced boxing and calisthenic rituals that they thought would make them impervious to bullets and attacks, and this led to their unusual but memorable name. Background   At the end of the 19th century, Western countries and Japan had major control over economic policies in China  and had significant territorial and commercial control in northern China. The peasants in this area were suffering economically, and they blamed this on the foreigners who were present in their country. It was this anger that gave rise to the violence that would go down in history as the Boxer Rebellion. The Boxer Rebellion Beginning in the late 1890s, the Boxers began attacking Christian missionaries, Chinese  Christians  and foreigners in northern China. These attacks eventually spread to the capital, Beijing, in June 1900, when  the Boxers destroyed railroad  stations and churches and laid siege to the area where foreign diplomats lived. It is estimated that that death toll included several hundred foreigners and several thousand Chinese Christians. The Qing Dynastys Empress Dowager Tzu’u Hzi  backed the Boxers, and the day after the Boxers began the siege on foreign diplomats, she declared war on all foreign countries that had diplomatic ties with China.   Meanwhile, a multinational foreign force was gearing up in northern China. In August 1900, after nearly two months of the siege, thousands of allied American, British, Russian, Japanese, Italian, German, French and Austro-Hungarian troops moved out of northern China to take Beijing and put down the rebellion, which they accomplished. The Boxer Rebellion formally ended in September 1901 with the signing of the Boxer Protocol, which mandated the punishment of those involved in the rebellion and required China to pay reparations of $330 million to the countries affected. Fall of the Qing Dynasty The Boxer Rebellion weakened the Qing dynasty, which was the last imperial dynasty of China and ruled the country from 1644 to 1912. It was this dynasty that established the modern territory of China.   The diminished state of the Qing dynasty after the Boxer Rebellion opened the door to the Republican Revolution of 1911 that overthrew the emperor and made China a republic. The Republic of China,  including mainland China and Taiwan, existed from 1912 to 1949. It fell to the Chinese Communists in 1949, with mainland China officially becoming the Peoples Republic of China and Taiwan the headquarters of the Republic of China. But no peace treaty has ever been signed, and significant tensions remain.

Russias Economic Crisis essays

Russias Economic Crisis essays In November of 1997 markets fall worldwide, marking the beginning of the worldwide economic recession. On March 23, 1998 Yeltsin sacked his Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and replaced him with not so well known Kiriyenko, the energy minister to Viktor Chernomyrdin. May 12, 1998 coal workers strike over unpaid wages. They block the Trans-Siberian railway. This turns foreign investors off. Stock prices fall in the same month after the passing of a law calling for the removal of all foreign investment in Russia's largest energy company. The IMF pulls back aid, claiming that the government wasn't doing enough to collect taxes. On June 15, Russia asked for more aid from the IMF to stave off financial collapse. After Yeltsin and the Duma fail to compromise on an anti-crisis tax package, property tax was raised. On August 14, Yeltsin reclaims that the ruble will not be devaluated. Three days later Yeltsin devaluated the currency to nine and a half ruble per dollar. August 21, The Duma holds a special session, calling Yeltsin to resign. All world markets down on the news, investors fear of instability. August 23, Yeltsin sacks the Kiriyenko, recalls Chernomyrdin, world markets fall again on the news. Two days later, the ruble fell forty percent, its worst in four years. Yeltsin suspends ruble trading, the rubles officially at 7.9 per U.S. dollar, yet U.S. Dollars on the streets of Moscow go for up to 12 rubles. Later, that week Chernomyrdin was rejected as the premier of Russia. Veteran Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov is appointed Russia's Prime Minister. Yeltsin's choice of the former spymaster and Middle East hand was seen as the best hope of uniting hard-line Communists and Reformers behind an emergency program to deal with an acute financial crisis. These are the causes over one year which led to the collaps...

Malvolio Essay essays

Malvolio Essay essays In the play "Twelfth Night" the character, Malvolio, is an ill mannered steward. Although Malvolio is ill mannered I truly believe he was treated way to harshly be the others. Malvolio's departure also leaves a loose end in the plot which weakens the play. Even if Malvolio was ill mannered, he's treatment by the others was way to harsh. There is no reason for a person to suffer such treatment for being accused of being a "puritan" and so the characters pranks at his expense are more mean than their playfulness suggests. Wishing for Olivia's love and to be more than his current rank and his continuous disapproval of Sir Toby and Sir Andrew's drinking, earns him their hatred and quickly becomes their pawn in a complex romantic ruse. At first I thought the prank was funny and was just to have a little laugh. Sending a letter telling Malvolio that Olivia loves him and that if he wants to make her happy he should do certain foolish things such as wear yellow stockings is the kind of harmless prank we see often enough in our society. If the prank would of ended there it would of been just fine but since they want further and they locked him and tied up in a dark chamber for excuse saying he had gone mad. I don't believe anyone shoul d be locked in a chamber like that even less when they didn't do anything wrong and even worst they accused him of being mad. Malvolio doesn't deserve none of this all his done was be pretty boring and maybe a bit ill mannered which I don't think is all that bad, and they could of at least tried to talk to him about it if it bothered them so much. At the end, Malvolio is released and he leaves threatening to have revenge on the whole pack of them. I don't think he overreacted because I probably would of done something like that. This leaves a loose and in the plot because we don't know what will happen with him, he might just leave and never come back or not leave at all but ...

Business Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Business Report - Essay Example This helps us to engross in a business scenario design and recommend substitute strategies ensuring a comprehensive market appraisal. Later in the document contains the endorsements for the modifications in the structure of the organization, bearing in mind the finest probable manner of handling the business collection and human possessions. An investigation is commenced with the financial assets and broad-spectrum corporation possessions as well as product expansion founded on the gaining of innovative understanding (Augustin, 2011). Consequently, the document recommends designing the impression of strategic alteration in operational administration, and scrutinizes any global plans for the firm. Precisely, this analysis offers in depth strategic SWOT analysis of the corporation’s businesses and operations. The firm’s explanation delivers a perfect and impartial opinion of the company’s key strengths and weaknesses and the prospective opportunities and threats. T his will aid to express strategies that supplement the trade by allowing you to comprehend their followers, patrons and competitors better. Introduction Sainsbury was established in 1869 and nowadays functioning in over 1,106 hypermarkets and suitability stores. The company has around 157,000 employees in all over the World. The slogan of the company is that we (the company) place our clients at the heart of the whole thing we fix and have devoted in their stores, their contemporaries and their channels to distribute the greatest likely shopping experience. Their resilient philosophy and values are the part of their uniqueness and essential to their success (Rowley, 2003). Core values The core values of the company are given as: Accomplishment improved every day – the company emphasizes on enlightening its facilities. Countless services drive sales, however, there is a condition that better provision is pointing to higher sales. Discrete accountability team delivery even thou gh teamwork is invigorated, right a distinct in the firm has accountability in the conference service standards. Retain it modest, humble and well-organized services are obtainable (j–Sainsbury, 2013). Admiration for the discrete employee – each discrete worker within the company is appreciated for his extravagance services. The income of the business is intended for dissemination and improvement of the corporation (Yong, James, Kevin, and Donna, 2011,). Strategy The values of the J Sainsbury are the section of their extended term strategy of development. The company is ready to review and reinforce their strategy, in order to create a decent business sense and provision of an actual competitive benefit (Wrigley, 2000). Business Performance The J Sainsbury has had one more efficacious year, outdoing the flea market in what residue a hard trading atmosphere. Their segment of the grocery shop is the uppermost for an era at 16.8% and they are at the moment the UK’s second major grocer ensuing 35 uninterrupted quarters of like for like sales progress. We endure to aid customers Live Well for Less and stared like for like auctions up 1.45 for the 28 weeks up to 28 the September 2013 (Francis, 2011). Business case The J Sainsbury recognizes as true as their values and their 20 x 20 sustainability obligations play an immense part in their accomplishment. They deliver opportunities for the employees to discriminate themselves with client, dealers,

In France, appropriate conduct, trust and understanding of social Essay

In France, appropriate conduct, trust and understanding of social status are vital factors for success - Essay Example International business management comprises learning different cultures of the nations where a company intends to enter. Cross-cultural management helps to gain understanding about business tactics, human personality and leadership/management style that are significant for possessing effective business relationships with people in foreign countries (Bowie, 2008). The paper describes the business environment and culture of France and China for conducting business of a retail fashion organisation in the United Kingdom named River Island. The objective of the paper is to recognise the cross-cultural aspects of China and France with respect to leadership style and business practices which need to be considered by River Island in order to conduct business in foreign nations. Furthermore, the paper analyses the business environment and legal structure of both nations for assessing the suitability of conducting business. Business Environment of France France is regarded as the international cultural capital. It is one of the biggest and most diverse nations in Europe. France is also recognised as a modern nation among the European countries with respect to technology and business. France has always been the core of international business and trade. France is an extremely consolidated nation. Among many larger cities in France, Paris plays a significant part with respect to governmental regulations and business opportunities. France has advanced rail network and structured road transport system that offer smooth access to major capitals and metropolises (Nouel, 2005). Economic Environment France is known as the world’s fifth biggest economy with respect to gross domestic product (GDP). In the year 2007, the GDP of France was almost â‚ ¬1892 billion and inflation rate was about 1.5%. In the year 2002, France had accepted Euro as its domestic currency (Moore Stephens International Limited, 2009). France is also considered as one of the biggest exporters of the world. In the year 2008, France had exported US$767 billion worth of goods (MGI World, 2009). France not only has progressive industrial economy, but also is advanced in automobile industry, aerospace, information technology, electronics, chemicals and fashion industry. France is one of the significant members of G8 leading industrialised nations (MGI World, 2009). Fashion Retail Industry of France France plays a vital role in catalysing enthusiasm about fashion all through the nation. The fashion industry of France has acquired its acceptability from high-end and high creative sector. The brand management capability, affluence and commercial aptitude of France gradually dribbled over the mass fashion retail market segment by motivating the appearance of international brands (Girod, 2012). In the year 2009, the total income of French apparel retail industry was worth US$48,956.4 million which accounted for compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 0.6% (Datamonitor, 2009). In order to

Supply chain management of dunkin donuts (academic journal sources Essay - 1

Supply chain management of dunkin donuts (academic journal sources must be used) - Essay Example By 1960, Rosenberg founded The International Franchise Association, which today has more than 800 fanchisors and over 30,000 franchisee members, accounting for almost 50% of retail business in the United States (DD-Our Founder, 2008). Today, Dunkin Donuts claims to be the largest coffee and baked goods chain in the world, selling 1.5 billion cups of coffee per year, with many varieties of donuts and a wide range of baked products such as muffins, bagels, croissants, pizza, flat bread sandwiches, cookies, apple pie and donut-hole treats called Munchkins, as well as hash browns, salads and soups. Aside from freshly brewed coffee, which today, Dunkin Donuts serves in nine flavors, shops also offer iced coffee, coffee lattes in various flavors, iced tea, ice blend fruit juices called Coolatta, hot chocolate and packaged coffee. Today there are close to 8,000 Dunkin’ Donuts distribution points in 30 countries, with 5,800 in North America. The rest are in key international markets including Asia-Pacific and Latin America (DB-Featured Products, 2008; DB-Dunkin’ Donuts, 2007). This study presents the working structure of the supply chain management system that has made Dunkin’ Donuts one of the most successful brands in the world. The scope of the study is limited to the product supply chain of Dunkin’ Donuts food and beverage items. It does not include other products used for promotional purposes but are also sold to customers, which are mainly non-food items. A supply chain is an interrelated collection of processes and associated resources that starts with the acquisition of raw materials that will be used to manufacture a product, and ends with the acquisition, purchase or delivery to an end-customer of that product. The chain typically includes suppliers, manufacturers, logistics service providers, warehouses, distributors, wholesalers, retailers and all other entities that lead up to delivery

Report on the Role of Project Management in the Modern Business Essay

Report on the Role of Project Management in the Modern Business Enterprise - Essay Example 3.1. The author used the books listed in the appropriate section marked Reference List. Each book was reviewed and their relevant contents included in this report. In-text citations refer to direct quotations lifted or paraphrased from these references. 4.1.1. A Project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to achieve a particular aim. Every project is time-bound, constrained by time and resources, temporary and unique, may involve human resources from one department or from the whole organisation, and require planning, execution, and control (PMI, 2004, p. 3-4). 4.1.2. Project Management is the "application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to a broad range of activities to meet the requirements of the particular project. Project management knowledge and practices are best described in terms of their component processes: Initiating, Planning, Executing, Controlling and Closing" (PMI, 2004, p. 8). 4.1.2.1. A project management team established to work on the project has the task of balancing and satisfying several (often competing) stakeholder interests as to the project's scope, deadlines, financial requirements, risk, and quality while achieving the project's objectives (PMI, 2004, pp. 9-10). 4.1.3. Efficiency and Effectiveness are respectively defined by Drucker (2003, pp. 66-67) as "doing things right" and "doing the right thing". He adds that balancing both is the mark of a business enterprise that is managed properly. 4.1.3.1. Modern business enterprises are characterised by complexity, the need for reaction speed to changes in the marketplace, and business competition. 4.1.3.2. Project management use in modern business enterprises range from the mundane (organising an employee party) to the extraordinary (moving the head office to another location), and from the simple (investigating the failure of a new product) to the complex (launching a marketing information system). All these involve the use of resources (people, finances, materials, and facilities) that need to be managed through a set of activities to achieve a defined objective within a specific timeframe and each provides a venue for the application of project management tools. 4.1.3.3. Several project management tools available to modern business enterprises enable them to manage projects with efficiency and effectiveness. Most of these tools developed in the 1950s from the scientific management theories of F.W. Taylor established in the late 19th century were

Australia in the Asia Pacific Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Australia in the Asia Pacific - Essay Example This, along with democratic institutions, cultural diversity and a record of constructive international engagement, underpins Australian participation in world affairs. Key components of Australia's security strategy include a strong national defense capability; the alliance relationship with the United States; bilateral defense and security relationships with Asia Pacific countries; and multilateral security links, especially through the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum. Australia is closely engaged in international counter-terrorism efforts both regionally and around the world." According to the World Bank, the East Asia Pacific region consists of more than 20 countries and the region is home to more than 2 billion of the earth's people. The countries included in this region are; Cambodia, China, Fiji, Indonesia, Kiribati, Korea, the People's Democratic Republic of Lao (Lao PDR), Malaysia, Marshall Islands, FS Micronesia, Mongolia, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Vanuatu, and Vietnam. (http://www.worldbank.org) One of the main reasons why Australia needs to focus on the South Asian Pacific region is that it is a lucrative potential market for our country. "Close engagement with Asia is an imperative for Australia, and bilateral political, security and people-to-people links between Australia and many Asian countries are strong and sophisticated. Extensive two-way trade and investment and the development of comprehensive bilateral free trade agreements characterize economic relations with a number of countries in Asia. Japan and China are Australia's largest and third-largest export destinations respectively." (http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/australia_foreign_trade_policy.html) As with all the rest of the world; Australia likes to maintain close-knit relations with Pacific Asia. The following map helps to determine the layout of the South Asian region on the world map.Source: http://www.lexisnexis.com Source: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTEASTASIAPACIFIC/Images/eap-map.jpg In the 2006 opening address to the Energy Security in Asia Pacific Policy Forum, Australian Treasurer, the Honorable Peter Costello MP stated the following statistics, "Australia has 8 per cent of the world's total reserves of coal. It has been the world's largest exporter of coal since 1986. In 2004, Australia accounted for 55 per cent of total world exports of metallurgical coal and 20 per cent of total world exports of thermal coal. It has 2 per cent of the world's natural gas reserves. Since 1989, it has emerged as one of the world's largest exporters of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG). Australian firms have become known as noteworthy long-term suppliers of LNG to China. Australia's Northwest Shelf endeavor has been chosen by China to be the sole provider of LNG. The agreement will worth between $A20 and $A25 billion in export revenue for Australia. This is Australia's largest solitary export deal. Australia has 40 per cent of the world's proven reserves of uranium and is the world's second largest uranium

Post project appraisal of Woody 2000 (project of The Custom Assignment

Post project appraisal of Woody 2000 (project of The Custom Woodworking Company) - Assignment Example Professional project management and control techniques were not used during execution and close-out. The project encountered time and cost overruns, and project cash flows were not financed efficiently. The Custom Woodworking Company launched project Woody 2000 in the spring of 1989. The project encountered several problems in conception and execution with substantial cost and time overrun. After the completion of the project, an external project management consultant was hired to conduct post project appraisal. A typical project include three phases, viz., Initial, Intermediate, and Final. The first phase involves conceptualization and planning, while the intermediate phase constitutes execution and monitoring, and the final phase includes project close out. The cost and staffing is lower at the initial phase of the project. During this period, the level of uncertainty is the highest and the risks of failing to achieve the objectives are the greatest. The certainty of completion progressively gets better as the project continues. The ability of the stakeholders to influence the project is highest at the initial phase and gets lower towards the final phase. The contribution of the project to the strategic goals of the company was never objectively quantified. ... 2. Woody project failures The major problems identified during the audit are detailed below. Conception & scope: The contribution of the project to the strategic goals of the company was never objectively quantified. Gate reviews were not conducted and the cost estimation and risk mitigation efforts were half-baked. The cost estimation for the project was done during a single meeting without considering any supplier quotes and probably without involvement of estimation professionals. Risk analysis was not done, and no contingencies were added at this stage. The project scope was not defined objectively, and seemed to have been influenced by personal bias; there was no reason to include office renovation within the scope of this production capacity enhancement project. Planning & control: The contingency was developed after the project was authorized, and was done without any formal assessment of risk. The monthly cash flow was done on an ad-hoc basis without the involvement of the project manager. The cash flow was developed without reckoning the project schedule and the actual spending pattern. Without this vital information, there was no way Spencer could have actually mobilized the necessary funding for this project. This cash flow was never used for the purpose of monitoring and controlling. There was no project plan to address the key issues, and no Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) or project schedule was prepared. In absence of a baseline plan it became impossible to monitor the project progress. There was no cost control process in place; without use of proper cost performance index, it was impossible to predict to cost overrun. Contracting strategy: Spencer decided on a cost plus basis for contracting the work.

Report on the Role of Project Management in the Modern Business Essay

Report on the Role of Project Management in the Modern Business Enterprise - Essay Example 3.1. The author used the books listed in the appropriate section marked Reference List. Each book was reviewed and their relevant contents included in this report. In-text citations refer to direct quotations lifted or paraphrased from these references. 4.1.1. A Project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to achieve a particular aim. Every project is time-bound, constrained by time and resources, temporary and unique, may involve human resources from one department or from the whole organisation, and require planning, execution, and control (PMI, 2004, p. 3-4). 4.1.2. Project Management is the "application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to a broad range of activities to meet the requirements of the particular project. Project management knowledge and practices are best described in terms of their component processes: Initiating, Planning, Executing, Controlling and Closing" (PMI, 2004, p. 8). 4.1.2.1. A project management team established to work on the project has the task of balancing and satisfying several (often competing) stakeholder interests as to the project's scope, deadlines, financial requirements, risk, and quality while achieving the project's objectives (PMI, 2004, pp. 9-10). 4.1.3. Efficiency and Effectiveness are respectively defined by Drucker (2003, pp. 66-67) as "doing things right" and "doing the right thing". He adds that balancing both is the mark of a business enterprise that is managed properly. 4.1.3.1. Modern business enterprises are characterised by complexity, the need for reaction speed to changes in the marketplace, and business competition. 4.1.3.2. Project management use in modern business enterprises range from the mundane (organising an employee party) to the extraordinary (moving the head office to another location), and from the simple (investigating the failure of a new product) to the complex (launching a marketing information system). All these involve the use of resources (people, finances, materials, and facilities) that need to be managed through a set of activities to achieve a defined objective within a specific timeframe and each provides a venue for the application of project management tools. 4.1.3.3. Several project management tools available to modern business enterprises enable them to manage projects with efficiency and effectiveness. Most of these tools developed in the 1950s from the scientific management theories of F.W. Taylor established in the late 19th century were

Post project appraisal of Woody 2000 (project of The Custom Assignment

Post project appraisal of Woody 2000 (project of The Custom Woodworking Company) - Assignment Example Professional project management and control techniques were not used during execution and close-out. The project encountered time and cost overruns, and project cash flows were not financed efficiently. The Custom Woodworking Company launched project Woody 2000 in the spring of 1989. The project encountered several problems in conception and execution with substantial cost and time overrun. After the completion of the project, an external project management consultant was hired to conduct post project appraisal. A typical project include three phases, viz., Initial, Intermediate, and Final. The first phase involves conceptualization and planning, while the intermediate phase constitutes execution and monitoring, and the final phase includes project close out. The cost and staffing is lower at the initial phase of the project. During this period, the level of uncertainty is the highest and the risks of failing to achieve the objectives are the greatest. The certainty of completion progressively gets better as the project continues. The ability of the stakeholders to influence the project is highest at the initial phase and gets lower towards the final phase. The contribution of the project to the strategic goals of the company was never objectively quantified. ... 2. Woody project failures The major problems identified during the audit are detailed below. Conception & scope: The contribution of the project to the strategic goals of the company was never objectively quantified. Gate reviews were not conducted and the cost estimation and risk mitigation efforts were half-baked. The cost estimation for the project was done during a single meeting without considering any supplier quotes and probably without involvement of estimation professionals. Risk analysis was not done, and no contingencies were added at this stage. The project scope was not defined objectively, and seemed to have been influenced by personal bias; there was no reason to include office renovation within the scope of this production capacity enhancement project. Planning & control: The contingency was developed after the project was authorized, and was done without any formal assessment of risk. The monthly cash flow was done on an ad-hoc basis without the involvement of the project manager. The cash flow was developed without reckoning the project schedule and the actual spending pattern. Without this vital information, there was no way Spencer could have actually mobilized the necessary funding for this project. This cash flow was never used for the purpose of monitoring and controlling. There was no project plan to address the key issues, and no Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) or project schedule was prepared. In absence of a baseline plan it became impossible to monitor the project progress. There was no cost control process in place; without use of proper cost performance index, it was impossible to predict to cost overrun. Contracting strategy: Spencer decided on a cost plus basis for contracting the work.

A Class Struggle in Desperate Times Essay Example for Free

A Class Struggle in Desperate Times Essay John Steinbeck’s novel entitled The Grapes of Wrath is a story which depicts the spirit and dignity of a person during the most desperate of situations. The novel is a fictional account of the life of the Joad family on their way to the Promised Land of California from the Dust Bowl in Oklahoma during the 1930s (Steinbeck 2). The family, similar to several other sharecroppers and farmers living in Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, and other states at the time of the dust bowl and the Great Depression were forced to leave their lands (Steinbeck 3). When it was first published in April 14, 1939, it quickly became a bestselling novel (Steiner 2). Although there were those who criticized the novel for apparently being basically sentimental and still others dismissed it as another example of social journalism or documentation more than it is a novel, most critics recognize the literary value of Steinbeck’s work. In fact, the author even received a Pulitzer Prize for his work the following year (Steiner 2). The novel is an attack on capitalism as it is about the plight of the migrant workers. It condemned cruel industrialism and monopoly capitalism (Choi 90). The theme of finding a home entwined with the political issues of the time is of the essence. This is because even though the story primarily has a political undertone, the author nevertheless explores the reason behind the migration of people, how they struggle to find their new homes while seeking to find out how it can really be done. The novel was written at a time the United States was struggling to survive a severe economic depression (Steinbeck 3). People all over the country have practically lost everything they own. The farming areas located at the Midwest experienced the worst consequence of such crisis. Soil depletion was brought about by poor farming practices. As a result, farmers who depend on it for survival were forced to seek for other ways to support their families. Moreover, the prices as well as markets for the crops have dropped. These events produced a significant change in agriculture of the region. Small farm lands merged with bigger and more commercial ones. Manual labor has been replaced by mechanical means. The country experienced dry soil erosion brought about by mighty wind blows and endured serious food crisis during middle part of the 1930s. The condition produced what came to be known as the â€Å"dust bowl† in Colorado, Kansa, Texas, and Oklahoma. The farmers together with their families were driven out of the land they depend on for years of survival. They traveled all the way to California, whose fertile land presents the promise of a better life. Unfortunately, life in the so-called Promised Land has not been good to them either. They suffered oppression, resentment, low wages, and unemployment. They were accused as communist in a land they counted on to rescue them from the ill-fated life they left back home (Steinbeck 3). Steinbeck traveled with the migrants to gain a first-hand experience of the unfortunate life they had to live. In writing the novel, the author sought more than just to illustrate the class struggle at the time of the Great Depression. He even presented a critical analysis of the policies that had been the root cause of their misfortune. In this regard, the characters portrayed in the story usually come out as classic heroes or romanticized models. He did this on purpose instead of utilizing his characters to investigate the individual human psyche. Rather, he presents his characters as personification of the universal struggles and principles of the human race. Hence, The Grapes of Wrath serves as an account of the Great Depression as it was an assessment of the social and fiscal system that contributed to the emergence of this particular period in American history. Works Cited Choi, Jungsun. â€Å"John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath: Home-Seeking and the Ambiguity of the Ending. † Journal of British American Studies 14 (2006): 89-110. Steinbeck, John. The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin, 2002. Steiner, Bernd. A Survey of John Steinbeck’s â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath. † Munich: GRIN Verlag, 2007.

Introduction Of Company Petronas Commerce Essay

Introduction Of Company Petronas Commerce Essay PETRONAS is the acronym for Petroliam National Berhad. PETRONAS not only focused on oil and gas, and provide education. PETRONAS is an incorporated public organization and has it separate legal entity. PETRONAS was incorporated on the 17th of August 1974 and was owned and controlled by the government of Malaysia. PETRONAS has a set of vision, mission and values. PETRONAS is a well known worldwide company that has ventured into 32 countries including Argentina, Russia and Egypt. PETRONAS practices a culture that stresses mainly on being environmental friendly and people orientated. It currently employs over 30, 000 employees of 38 nationalities. PETRONAS with the fully integrated oil and gas multinational, it has involved the entire petroleum activities. From managing the sharing contractors of the foreign production, we have been change into developing our own capabilities in the upstream sector allow us to take the lead in the exploration and production of the nations oil and gas resources. Besides that, we also ventured into downstream activities. We seek to maximize value creation and strengthen of our operations all the way down the value chain. The range of our downstream activities includes oil refining, gas processing and liquefaction, gas transmission pipeline operations, petrochemical manufacturing and marketing, property investment, shipping, marketing of liquefied natural gas, marketing and distribution of petroleum products, and trading. Furthermore, PETRONAS has operated service station in Malaysia, South Africa, Sudan, Thailand and Indonesia. It has distribution of automotive and industrial lubricants globally, including the PETRONAS Syntium and Sprinta premium grade engine oil. Internal Environment There is a high level of interdependence between an organisation and its internal environment. The internal environment comprises elements that have a direct influence on the day to day operations of the organisation. They have an impact on the achievement of the organizations goals. The Micro forces of the environment are: Vision and Mission PETRONAS is a big organization and a corporation which is widely known to the world as its a company that exports Malaysian oil. Being a big organization, PETRONAS has of course its very own vision and mission to achieve its common goal and to serve its customers the best service they can provide. As we all know vision is a long-term plan that almost every company or organization has. PETRONASs vision statement is to be a leading oil and gas multinational of choice. As an organization they are hoping to become a worldwide known organization and to become the first choice among all other oil companies present so far. Their mission statement, on the other hand, is as follows: We are a business entity. Petroleum is our core business. Our primary responsibility is to develop and add value to this national resource. Our objective is to contribute to the well-being of the people and the nation. (intext citation) Their mission and vision we believe has made them grow tremendously since they were incorporated in the month of August on the 17th in the year 1974. PETRONAS has become a fully-integrated oil and gas corporation and is ranked among FORTUNE Global 500s largest corporation in the world. They have now ventured globally into more than 32 countries worldwide in its aspiration to be a leading oil and gas multinational of choice. Organizational structure Organizational structure is the internal, formal framework of a business that shows the way in which management is linked together and how authority is transmitted. (Stimpson, 2006) structure.jpg Figure 1: The Corporation Organisational Structure of PETRONAS (Picture taken from http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/files/6389_ggmalaysia.pdf) PETRONAS adopts the functional organization structure. It enables specialization, allowing employees to focus on their respective areas. There is cross functional bonds between the respective divisions and departments. It is the bond and process of specialization that has led to the success of the organisation. Team work is encouraged, all the departments work together to achieve the companys goals and targets. This has proved to rewarding for the organization as a whole and the employees, customers, suppliers and the community as a whole. The line of authority is clearly drawn, orders are sent from the top most level, the president and the CEO. PETRONAS has also hired consultants to improve business and organization results. Functional Strategies    Human Resource  division Its main objective is to meet the organizational needs of the company it represents the needs of the people hired by that company. The most important function of the human resource department is recruitment, selection and training of employees among others. PETRONAS selects the best and brightest of employees through talent searches amongst local and overseas graduate. PETRONAS trains and molds its own employees through technical training and innovative program provided in University Technology PETRONAS. Finance division The Finance Function provides the company with its accounting and financial reporting backbone of the company. Its role is to identify financial sources willing to finance the operations of the company and to locate profitable areas where the business can invest their money to get higher returns. PETRONAS is involved in the sports world through its investment with Mercedes F1team. PETRONAS has also contributed towards the development of Turkmenistan economy, by investing US dollar $ 1.8 billion in the oil and gas industries. Corporate Planning and development division This division plans long term and short term business strategies which lead to the development of the organisation. Technical Services division This division is set up to drive and manage the technological activities of PETRONAS. Education division This division undertakes the responsibility of all the educational activities PETRONAS is associated with. It involves the scholarships provided by University technology PETRONAS and the education programs provided to the underserved community. Shareholders Shareholders of a firm can directly influence its policies and activities. PETRONAS shareholder is the government. It generates income and value for its shareholder. PETRONAS gave the government RM 52.3 billion from its RM86.8 billion pre-tax profit, in the form royalty, dividends, corporate tax, income tax and export duty. PETRONAS provides shareholders with the opportunity to gain first hand exposure on the Companys operations by organizing several visits to its Gas Processing Plants. Such two-way communication increases corporate transparency and helps shareholders take a longer term view of their investment based on a better understanding of the companys corporate strategy and operation PETRONAS recognizes the importance of timely and equal dissemination of information to shareholders. Therefore they arrange the Annual General Meeting (AGM) which is a crucial mechanism in shareholders communication. Employees PETRONAS must be committed to enhancing the capability of its employees, as a corporation is only as good as the people who work for it. This phrase is from PETRONAS mission statement. Employees are the most important asset of an organisation, since it is the dedication, motivation and skills of an employee that make a business successful. PETRONAS highly values its employees and understands the importance of their motivation. Therefore PETRONAS arranges various programmes to encourage and support its employees by involving them in voluntary work. Programmes such as Sentuhan Kasih and Jalinan Insan allow our employees to contribute directly to homes for disadvantaged children and orphans in the areas of their operations. These programmes provide the employees with job satisfaction, which in return highly motivates them to perform better. Community Lord Holme and Richard Watts used the following definition. Corporate Social Responsibility is the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large The culture now is to be generous by giving back to the community. Therefore organisations have certain responsibility towards the community they work in. PETRONAS is a responsible citizen of the community, thus is has successfully imitated and supported various social, environmental and community projects. PETRONAS and Education PETRONAS is committed is developing the people and they operate in by providing education particularly in the field on science and technology. They are determined to create a skilled human resource base for Malaysia through various schemes. Scholarships University technology PETRONAS (UTP) Provides hands on technical training and innovative programs to help employees build skills and competencies. PETROSAINS provides a rich and stimulating environment for the public to learn about science and technology PETRONAS benefits from this program since they are molding their own workforce, by educating them in standards which are important to PETRONAS. PETRONAS and Environment PETRONAS recognizes the importance of conserving biological diversity in order to ensure people, animals and plants. Therefore they developed the KUALA LUMPUR CITY CENTRE (KLCC) PARK, to balance the challenging demands of growing urban populations, with the environmental conservation. A much needed public park and green lung for the city of Kuala Lumpur. External Environment External environment refers to the factors that happen outside the business which cannot be controlled by the business. These factors will influence the internal functions of the business and its strategies to adapt itself to the changing environment. Political Environment The Malaysian government chose to create a state company, rather than using taxes, production limits, leasing, or other familiar instruments of supervision. The government sought to assert national rights over the use of the countrys resources. A state company, having both supervisory powers over the majors and production activities of its own, was a workable compromise between allowing the majors full rein and excluding them, along with their capital and expertise, altogether. Petronas is given fulltrust by Malaysia government to conduct business independently from the government. Government holds 100% of Petronas and formulates and implements energy policies including oil gas. The company cooperates with the government for the common purpose to develop the country to achieve the level of advanced countries. Regarding the relationship between Petronas and the government, one executive at Petronas said, There is a world, especially in the Third World, where only the government and the government (GG) can open the first door. He claimed that there is the world which does not function well with the absence of mutual trust between the government and NOC. Legal Environment PETRONAS is a multinational organisation. Therefore the company is subjected to laws in all of its host countries, such as taxation and consumer rights. Government taxation A large sum of the profit is usually paid off to government in the form of income tax, dividends etc. Despite the lowered net profit, PETRONAS paid RM 30.0 billion as dividends, RM20.3 billion as income tax, RM 9.1 billion as corporate income tax, RM 2.2 billion as export duties and RM 6.2 billion as royalties. Health and safety at work This aims to protect the workers from any kind of physical injuries. It requires the working environment to be safe with adequate equipment and sanitation. These requirements usually add up to the business cost. Consumer rights This law protects the consumer from products that do not reach a reasonable level of safety. PETRONAS sternly practices this as to ensure maximum popularity amongst other oil and gas company as well as looking after customer satisfaction. It generates income and value for its shareholder. PETRONAS gave the government RM 52.3 billion from its RM86.8 billion pre-tax profit, in the form royalty, dividends, corporate tax, income tax and export duty. Economical Environment Economical environment refers to the economic factors that affect the business in terms of recession, interest rates, exchange rates and global economic factors. Recession Recession results in the fall of demand for certain products, as income is reduced. To keep the demand on going, the prices of products is lowered. PETRONAS has net profit declined by 13.9% due to high production costs and low oil price that has been caused by the recession. Interest rates During inflation, there will be increase in the supply of money associated to the amount of goods available. This will result in a rise in prices of goods and services in the economy over a period of time. The high interest rates and fall of purchasing power would consequently affect the cash flow of the organization. Globalisation Technological Environment In order to adapt itself to the rapid growing technological environment, an organisation has to be versatile and recognises the value of technology to its business growth. PETRONAS is a technology dependent organisation that promotes and uses technology vastly for research and development. PETRONAS focuses its technology on advancing operational excellence through better plant and Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) performance. It also aim to create niche technologies to improve the performance of its core businesses. In the upstream sector, PETRONAS focuses on technological development to increase hydrocarbon resources and to enhance productivity and recovery of its fields. On the other hand, downstream, PETRONAS maximises yield in oil, gas and petrolchemical operations by applying appropriate technology. It also creating a renewable energy lab to enable itself to move further forward and become a technology-driven company. Competition PETRONAS PRIMAX 3 is designed to provide maximum protection and performance for your car. Based on comprehensive tests,  PETRONAS PRIMAX 3 unique cleaning formulation will  starts to work right from the first time you fill it up, ensuring that your engine is always at its most powerful. By formulating with unique additive components, PETRONAS PRIMAX 3 efficiently protects your engine against injector fouling and corrosion, reinstating your car to its peak performance to  improve fuel economy. However, Shell is the leader in developing high  quality fuels. Shell Super with fuel economy formula is specially designed by Shell experts to give you extra miles at no extra cost. It is formulated with Shells Synthetic Viscous Friction Improver, designed to reduce friction in this crucial part of your engine, helping to improve its efficiency. On the other hand, all Caltex petrols now include technologically-advanced, patented fuel ingredient, Techron ®. Caltex Techron with cleaning agent is unsurpassed at keeping engines clean and cleaning up deposits to help reinstate original performance. It contains powerful detergents which help in removing deposits from fuel injectors intake ports and valves. The key benefits for using Techron ® are improved performance, enhanced reliability, smoother drive, restored fuel economy and lower emissions. Social culturePressure group Sponsorship Programmes: PETRONAS will offer academic sponsorships to deserving students for studies in secondary schools and institutions of higher learning every year. There are more than 19,000 students have benefited from PETRONAS   tertiary education sponsorship programmes at the Foundation, Undergraduate and Postgraduate levels. Besides that, more than 11,000 secondary school students have received sponsorships from PETRONAS. Students can get the sponsorships by obtaining excellent results in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examinations for undergraduate studies at established universities, both in Malaysia and overseas. On the other hand, students can choose to pursue technical and non-technical courses that are related to the industry. In addition, scholarships are offered to Malaysian secondary school students. Employees and Community: In reaching out to society, PETRONAS promised to serve disadvantaged groups and communities around the world goes the extra mile with the proactive participation of their employees at the grassroots level as volunteers. PETRONASs employees dedicated their time and energy to help ease the needs of the disadvantaged communities in Malaysia and abroad. Group-wide, PETRONAS organized different programmes to encourage their employees in their voluntary efforts to connect with the communities that need help the most. PETRONAS organized annual programmes like  Sentuhan Kasih  and  Jalinan Insan  for allowing their employees to contribute directly to homes for disadvantaged children and orphans in the areas of PETRONASs operations. In addition, the  PETRONAS Volunteer Opportunity Programme  works together with selected NGOs and relevant parties to scout for volunteer opportunities and provide necessary training, direction and support to develop skills useful in programmes such as disaster rehabilitation and education outreach activities. Conclusion PETRONAS has managed its business environment well because it is now has ventured to 32 countries. Therefore, PETRONAS has to be innovative and creative to adapt the dynamic environment of business in order to maintain and expand its business. As the result of well planning and well utilizing of technology, PETRONAS has grown to become a massive power to succeed in petroleum industry from the past to the present. Great organisation of power and technology had become the main factor of this success. With the strategy of integration, adding values and globalization, PETRONAS has the new routes to deliver excellent performance to the stakeholders, employees, nation, and host countries and communities where PETRONAS operate. PETRONAS will continue to develop the businesses in Malaysia and overseas as the journey towards comprehend our vision To be a Leading Oil and Gas Multinational of Choice.

Moving Between Different Cultures in Poetry Essay -- Half Caste Search

Moving Between Different Cultures in Poetry For my essay I will be looking at two poems which deal with the experience of moving between different cultures, these are Half-Caste and Search for My Tongue. These poems are written from experience. John Agard the author of Half-Caste was born in Gugana and moved to Britain in 1977. He is half-caste himself and his poem expresses his feelings about the term half-caste. Sujata Bhatt the authoress of Search for My Tongue was born in India in 1956, her family moved to the United States of America in the 1960's and she now lives in Germany. In her poem Search for My Tongue she explains how she feels about having two different languages her birth language, Gujerati and her second language, German. Half-Caste and Search for My Tongue, create very vivid images, which makes it easier for the reader to interpret and understand both the poems and the authors' opinion on the different cultures. Half- Caste creates many images, by using descriptive language and humour. It creates such images as a man, 'standing on leg' and having 'half mih ear' because he is only half-caste so he only has half what a normal person would have but it also creates images about objects 'mix a red an green is a half-caste canvas' and even music 'mix a black key wid a white key is a half-caste symphony'. This helps the reader to understand how the author is feeling about the term half-caste, and can also come to a conclusion about the term themselves. All the imagery in this poem makes the reader think about how anybody who has ever been called half-caste feels. Search for My Tongue creates a very vivid image using very descriptive metaphors, 'it grows back, a stump of a shoot, grows ... ...age which creates vivid images for the reader. Using gujerati in the middle of the poems shows that her mother tongue, her birth language, is still strong and at times, even stronger then her second language. In conclusion both of these poems deal with the issues faced when moving between different cultures in their own ways. They both use language and imagery to express their messages Half- Caste explores the way that we use the term 'half-caste' in our vocabulary and exaggerates it. This is to a great effect as it makes the reader think more about racial issues and the way that we treat people from different cultures. Search for my Tongue deals with moving between different cultures by actually writing about the language barriers and losing your identity. This is how we can link the poems together and show how people move between different cultures.

EASY ON THE RELISH :: English Literature

EASY ON THE RELISH The two characters I have chosen to write about, apart from Tofler, are Ray and Brian. The reason for my choice is that both of these characters play a large and significant part in the play, particularly Ray. They compliment each other because, Brian is serious, whereas Ray is carefree and has a sense of humor. RAY is 18 years of age and was a butcher’s apprentice, until he lost his job. He is a cockney, fairly well built and a jack-the-lad type of character, who no one pushes around. He detests rules and regulations. In Act One, Scene 1 he says, ‘No smoking in the locker room. What is this, bleadin Alcatraz?’ Despite his objection to working in a burger bar instead of an organization that sells real meat not ‘donkey flavoured camel turds’, his lack of education gives him no option than to work at Binders. An example to support this theory is in Act Two, Scene 3 during a conversation with Kishori. ‘Well, I’m not sayin’ I’m not pissed off, cos I am. But no sense in causin a ruckus. I mean, I need the money. I’ll take money from anyone. Yanks included’. Ray is also a male chauvinist. In Act Three, Scene 1 he proves this because he has second thoughts about joining a union, as suggested by Kishori, when he says to Francis ‘Well she’s a bird’. Further into the conversation he continues his reasons saying ‘A bit of skirt stirring it up like that. Men’s work, unions. Always has been’. Ray is a racist. At the beginning of the play in Act One, Scene 1 he objects to wearing the hats provided as part of Bunter uniform and says that the hat reminded him of a fez. ‘I’m not wearin no gypo gear, ‘gainst my religion’. His racist attitude if further evident in Act Three, Scene 1. He not only objects to Kishori because she is a woman telling him what to do, but also because she is of ethnic origin and called her a Paki bird. Ray is a generally likeable but ignorant character, who is not very bright and whose lack of education is evident because of his poor use of English language and grammar. He is easily led into situations without thinking out the consequences first and generally likes to go with the flow of things. However, he appears anxious that Brian is also keen to join the union and picket the burger bar which suggests that he is not as confident as he would like those around him to believe and feels more self assured with Brian’s support.