Big Skinny

In 2010, Big Skinny CEO Kiril Alexandrov was looking to transcend from retail distribution and print advertising to the world of online marketing to achieve maximum growth. The retail sales pitch was an easy one, as Alexandrov focused on the value of the wallet and the impulsiveness of consumers (Benjamin & Kominers, 2012). Unfortunately, translating this type of sales pitch was much harder to do in the world of cyberspace. Big Skinny centered their online marketing efforts around display Ads, keyword searches, social media and relationships with online distributors and deep discounted sites such as Amazon and Groupon respectively.The expansion caused much hardship, as Big Skinny received negative feedback on the review website Yelp that stemmed from their Groupon experiment. They also faced a glitch in their online promotion that allowed 4,000 people to order free wallets from their online store. Big Skinny needs to refocus their online marketing strategy by getting rid of display A ds, refining keyword searches and severing ties with deep discounted sites. Big Skinny can create value for their product and manage their orders better by being more selective with who distributes their product and by keeping the price steady.A more seasonal approach surrounding keyword searches can create new revenue from those who are looking to make quick and impulsive purchases. Lastly, by being responsible for who distributes their products, Big Skinny can deliver their product in prompt and timely manner, which will resolve the majority of customer complaints against Big Skinny. Problem Statement Despite successful in-person sales campaigns, Big Skinny struggled to find an effective online marketing platform that would grow and connect them to their consumer base.Big Skinny also ran into glitches with their current online marketing campaigns that brought unwanted negative attention and resentment towards the company. Data Analysis When Big Skinny transcended into the world of online marketing, it had to develop a way to attract visitors to the website while attempting to convince these visitors to buy wallets. Since most of their wallets were being sold at trade shows or retail stores that centered on a straight-forward approach regarding impulse and value, the translation of this strategy to the internet proved to be a tall task.Big Skinny looked at various means of advertising such as display ads, algorithmic search, sponsored search, A/B Testing and social media. Display ads offered a two-frame animation; however, the click-through rate of general display ads in 2009 was only . 1% (Bejamin & Kominers, 2012). Algorithmic searches use algorithms that the search engine deems most relevant to the user’s query. The websites that most resemble the query appear the highest on the search engine’s list. Sponsored searches use keywords that the advertisers specify that they want to target.These are mostly sold on a â€Å"per-click† basis; however the company loses money if the clicks aren’t converted into sales. A/B testing is a marketing technique that shows different advertisements to different users to compare the response rates between the two. Lastly, social media utilizes websites such as Facebook and Twitter to try and create an interactive relationship with consumers. Alternatives 1. Big Skinny could eliminate their means of online distribution and paid online marketing, only utilizing social media and their website to conduct advertising and business transactions. 2.Big Skinny could be more selective in their selection of online distribution, while tailoring their paid sponsored searches to generate interest and sales. 3. Big Skinny could scrap their online marketing plans, with the exception of social media, and reallot their advertising money strictly on deep discounted sites like Groupon and Living Social. 4. Big Skinny could focus their efforts on expanding in more brick and mortar retail stores b y target marketing towards different demographics. They could use traditional media such as TV and radio to drive these efforts. Key Decision Criteria 1.Increase customer satisfaction and corporate image 2. Increase sales and market share 3. Improve (or at least maintain) profitability 4. Ease or speed of implantation 5. Be consistent with corporate mission or strategy 6. Within our present resources or capabilities 7. Within acceptable risk parameters 8. Minimize environmental impact 9. Maintain and build employee morale and pride Alternatives Analysis 1. By limiting their online marketing to free social media sites such as Twitter or Facebook, Big Skinny can greatly reduce their marketing costs. With display advertisements only getting clicked through .1% of the time the money is essentially thrown away. Investing in A/B testing requires the hiring of a permanent person and huge overhead. Getting rid of online distributors allows Big Skinny to eliminate the 7-15% commission they p ay to Amazon and eBay while being able to manage their order load. Social Media is more than enough because 71% of social media participants say they are more likely to purchase from a brand they follow online. 91% of local searchers say they use Facebook to find local businesses online (Bennett, 2013). The cons of this are that they are missing out on a lot of potential customers by eliminating Amazon and eBay.While online paid marketing can be expensive, there is still benefit to sponsored searches. Some of the cost per conversions are profitable and by completely eliminating these searches would be throwing away potential opportunities. 2. The pros of Big Skinny being more selective with their online distributors allows for a happy customer base. There have been several negative reviews on the Yelp site regarding slow delivery and non-existent customer service. By eliminating deep discounting sites such as Groupon, Big Skinny can manage their order load and keep customers happy.B ig Skinny would also keep the revenue from the top paid sponsored searches rather than eliminating them all together. The negatives of this are that Big Skinny could miss out on a lot of revenue by not using Groupon or Living Social. They could also miss out on the repeat customers that are generated by these sites as well as missing out on the people who want to try their product without having to pay full price. 3. Instead of eliminating sites like Groupon and Living Social, Big Skinny could embrace the huge influx of customers that it brings.According to the customer satisfaction and analytics company ForeSee, 91% of customers have already or plan to conduct business with the merchant since buying the deal (Bedigian, 2013). This strategy generates a large influx of customers in a short time while attempting to generate residual income by repeat customers. The cons of this are that company’s often lose money during the initial Groupon. The product is discounted by 50% or mo re and then Groupon takes a 50% commission on the sale price, which leaves the seller receiving only 25%of the original selling price of the item (which in some cases is less than the cost of the item). Forbes has found that 1/3rd of businesses have lost money on a Groupon deal and there is no guarantee that the customers ever return to pay full price from the merchant again (Gleeson, 2012). 4. The pros of using a more traditional advertising medium such as TV or radio would bring brand recognition for Big Skinny. Big Skinny has always had success selling in retail stores because they market their products based on value and impulse.By putting the product in more retail stores, there is a greater chance people will put it in their hands and buy on impulse. Instead of targeting just one big audience, Big Skinny should advertise by target market such as Big Skinny Sport or Big Skinny Women. By doing this they could partner with big retail chains to get into more stores and generate mo re revenue the old fashioned way. The average time an American spends watching TV is 5 hours compared to just 1 hour browsing the internet, which leads for greater exposure.The cons of doing this are that TV advertising is much more expensive than online marketing (Nielsen, 1997). Another con is Tivo allows people to record their favorite shows and then fast-forward past the commercials. The last con is that TV advertising seems to be a thing of the past, as the amount spent on TV advertising was only up 4. 5% in 2011 as compared to 21. 7% via online marketing (Gleeson, 2012). Recommendations Based on the data, it is best for Big Skinny to be more selective of their online distribution, while tailoring their paid sponsored searches to generate interest and sales.In regards to online distribution, Big Skinny should keep eBay and Amazon, however, should drop deep-discount sites such as Groupon or Living Social. To offer a Groupon deal, Big Skinny is guaranteed to be taking a loss. To be eligible to offer a Groupon, Big Skinny must discount the price of their wallet by at least 50%. This turns a $20 wallet into a $10 wallet. Groupon takes a commission of 50% on the sale price, which leaves Big Skinny walking away with only $5 for every wallet sold (Bice, 2012). Essentially, they are taking a loss with every wallet they sell on Groupon.The goal of a Groupon is to try and get repeat customers; however, the people that use Groupon are bargain-hunters. They won’t return to Big Skinny, but rather, they will return to Groupon again looking for another bargain deal. By using Groupon, Big Skinny also decreases the value of their brand (Gibbard, 2011). Why would a customer pay full price for a $40 wallet when they just bought it on Groupon for $15 or $20 just a short time ago? In addition to dropping Groupon, Big Skinny needs to manage their online distribution better because of customer satisfaction issues.On the review site Yelp, Big Skinny’s wallets are o nly receiving a rating of 2. 5 out of 5 stars. A lot of the reviews include gripes about not receiving their order for 3-4 weeks or non-existent customer service (most of the negative reviews are from users who bought a Big Skinny wallet on Groupon). If the online distributor doesn’t ship your product in a timely manner, your company risks a tarnished reputation. Whether Big Skinny didn’t have enough stock to fulfill orders or whether Groupon didn’t ship the products in a timely manner, Big Skinny is taking the fall and abuse from customers.When people do research for a product they are going to see Big Skinny’s products with poor ratings. These poor ratings can scare potential customers away. Big Skinny should only use Amazon, eBay and their website to sell their wallets. This allows them to manage their inventory, not get behind on orders and make sure their product gets shipped in a timely manner. Big Skinny has excellent Amazon ratings and should cont inue to grow their product through the sterling reputation of Amazon. They should sell the product for a higher price on their website so that people are encouraged to buy through Amazon.This is a win-win for Big Skinny because if people buy through Amazon then Big Skinny doesn’t have to waste time and effort fulfilling and shipping orders. If they choose to buy direct than Big Skinny receives a larger profit on their wallets. Lastly, Big Skinny needs to tailor their sponsored keyword searches. They need to eliminate the term â€Å"leather wallet. † They don’t manufacture a true leather wallet and the cost per conversion for this keyword is a sky-high $20. 26. Big Skinny should also bid less for the term â€Å"thinnest wallet. † The cost per conversion for â€Å"thinnest wallet† also has a high cost, which is $10.53.After replacing leather wallet and lowering the bid for thinnest wallet, Big Skinny should add keywords centered on holidays. Wallets are popular gifts on occasions such as Father’s Day and Christmas. Big Skinny should add season keywords such as â€Å"Father’s Day Wallet,† â€Å"Wallet for Dad,† â€Å"Best Wallet for Gift† and â€Å"Wallet for Christmas. † This will bring seasonal shoppers into the mix who are looking to spend quickly and impulsively. Action and Implementation Plan CEO Kiril Alexandrov will be responsible for delegating the following tasks.The Director of Marketing will pull any promotions or future plans with deep discounted sites such as Groupon or Living Social. The Director of Marketing in combination with the Director of Product Management will reach out to all of those who left negative reviews on Yelp to satisfy the customer complaints and retract the negative ratings. The Director of Sales will carefully select the online distribution channels which Big Skinny will sell through. Big Skinny will only sell through Amazon, eBay and any online outlets of the retail stores that they are currently featured in.The Director of Sales will also raise the prices of wallets on the Big Skinny Website by 10-15% to create value for the product and promote customers to purchase through the select online distribution. Doing this saves Big Skinny the time it would take to fulfill and pack orders, however, if a customer decides to purchase direct, then Big Skinny recoups the 10-15% it would pay Amazon or eBay to sell and fulfill the order. This new price point will be conveyed in a message from the Director of Sales to Big Skinny’s distribution channel.

Knowledge English Essay

So the world I came to know started when I was six, when I moved here in the United States because of my father’s job. At such an early age, I was transported to a place where everything seems weird and different. Clueless, I wept for having no choice at all. There was no one to talk to, who would understand, and who would care. I asked myself how was I supposed to survive in this country when I do not know anybody and with little knowledge on English. The first days were a struggle – I miss my old home, my old school, my friends, everything in and about Japan. I was sick and homesick, did not want to go to the first day of grade school. But my mother forced me to. The diligent child that I am, I went to school in San Jose. I expected to be isolated; but my expectations were incorrect because I was welcomed by the entire school. People did not see my differences; they gladly accepted me. I was happy finding myself in the company of new friends, one of whom was Corey Tucker. It was lunchtime; I sat alone on the bench, crying. Someone suddenly reached over and stuck a chocolate-chip cookie in my mouth. The boy opened an interesting conversation. When I told him I came from Japan, he was excited, incessantly asking questions. With awkward smiles, I answered each of his queries even though I knew my English was not so good. By the time the lunch ended, Corey and I were best friends. He soon introduced me to his friends and was easily accepted to the school and the society I did not quite understand. They made sure I knew where the bathroom, canteen, library, clinic, and classrooms were and tutored me in the language; good thing I learned fast. As we matured, my friends did not only teach me English but also American culture, lifestyle, beliefs, and values. They have been very positive influences, especially Corey, who was always there for me and have remained my very good friends. Because of them, I came to love and appreciate life in this country. Homesickness and tears were all wiped out because I started being integrated into the society. I would come home from school tired yet happy. Thus, my parents enjoyed seeing my bright disposition, realizing I have adjusted successfully. In high school, with much proficiency in English, I persevered to perform well in my studies, regarding every course essential in my pursuit of knowledge and meaning in life. Truth is, I got disappointed whenever a classmate argues about the unimportance of studying math or physics because he or she sees no point in spending time to learn something that will not be of good use in the future. I hated this line of argument, as I deem every aspect of education as an essential tool in our lives. There is a reason why math or physics is in the curriculum and why we need to learn it. Whenever someone contends that a certain course or field of study is useless, I heat up, compelled to demonstrate the fallacy of such argument by providing specific examples from my own life or everyday circumstances. This is the world I came from. Much of what I know today, I owe to the friends who have guided me, the teachers who have taught me beyond what the textbooks said, and my family that has stayed intact and happy despite problems and difficulties. All these people have shaped my dream and aspiration to pursue a degree in math or physics. My friends knew that I am most passionate about physics and math. They have encouraged me to take this passion to a higher level. They have always joked that one day they will gladly see the Japanese friend they used to tutor become a physicist. I knew they will be happy if I pursue my dream. There is no better way of showing my appreciation for the years we have been together than showing them that the newbie they have welcomed has grown up to be a successful man. Moreover, the school world I came from have taught me not only factual knowledge but also values I need in facing bigger tasks in a bigger world. I want to make them proud that I, who was once a crybaby, feeling left out on the first day of school, am now successful in my own field and able to make a difference in others’ lives. Furthermore, the world I came from will not be the same without the family that sacrificed leaving Japan just to better provide for my needs. My aspiration of pursuing math or physics, practice it, and put into good use is largely for my mother and my father to show my appreciation for their efforts and sacrifices. Since America is my world now, I aspire to realize this here in the land I have come to call my home. I have always believed that the measure of learning is its application. Therefore, I prepare myself and try to achieve holistic development. I continuously hope that the education I have received and will receive can be used for the betterment of my world.

Cost Club Human Resources Department

Scenario Two: Cost Club Human Resources Department University of Phoenix Carlos Flores HRM/546 Human Resource Law Instructor: Christopher Fletcher February 26, 2010 Abstract The new assistant manager (AM) receives an e-mail from his the HR manager Pat Fletcher requesting downsizing the HR department from eight employees to five. He wants recommendations of the three selected employees to be terminated. An explanation of what principles of employment laws that might apply to the three employees. What action should management take in preparation if any of the three employee file discrimination case and chances of the company win. Recommended Employees Indentified for termination I have identified the employee for termination based on their work experience and job function that could be assimilated by the rest of the five remaining employees in the Human resource (HR) department. The following are: †¢Diane/Ten years of service- records specialist handling the health care issues and compensation matters for the company. Greg/Five years of service- have learned to do complex work however, not trained in real HR work. He has helped in the tech hiring process for the company. †¢Horatio/Six months of service- has been place in the HR department and has learned the basic of health and insurance however, not a full experienced employee in this area. The three employees identified are 2 male and one female. The principle employment law that are relevant to all three employee s is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964- which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Possible Discrimination case against Cost Club The possible three types of discrimination cases filed from any of the identified employees would be: †¢Race Discrimination-Horatio is Hispanic and the newest member of the HR department. He would have to prove because he is Hispanic and limited English language that the company is terminating him because of this factor. Another fact would be that he was hired based on a settlement with the EEO case and not following up with our commitment. I see this second part would not have any grounds because the company gave him an opportunity and hired him. The company in good faith placed him avoid any conflict among other company employees to place him in an office environment instead learning HR practices. He submitted an application to work in one of the stores. I view both facts non relevant because we did hire him and have placed him in a position which he did not apply for and he accepted the position and training we have given him on site†¦ †¢Gender Discrimination-Diane is female and has been with the company for some time. Diane would have to prove that we are terminating her because she is female. This would be very hard to prove because we have not discriminated based on gender and there are two other employees male and one of them is minority in the process of being terminated. Another fact is that the HR department has two other female employees. Diane is also aware that she had a minor attendance performance where we worked with her and still kept her with the company. The company also has other females working in the stores and this indicates that we do not discriminate against gender. Religious Discrimination-Greg cannot work on weekends due to his religious beliefs. He may try to file discrimination because he cannot work on weekends due to his religious beliefs. This would be difficult to prove because the company has respected and have made provisions to accommodate for him to be off on all weekends compared to the rest of the HR department that has to work on weekends when needed. The company would win in such case because we have provided attention to his needs. Management actions and Incorporating legal references Top management and the HR department should work together and be ready for any discrimination claims that any of the three recommended employee might file claims due to their termination. The HR department should meet with each of them in private in our office to explain the reasons why the company has decided to terminate them. We should explain to each employee the laws that the company follows and that the terminations is based on our economy, cost factors and reduction in workforce. Since each employee can file a different discrimination case by providing the reasons and the company projections they should understand fully of the current company situation. We should explain to them that their position will be eliminated and taken over by the more experience remaining employees in the HR department. The company should give all three each employee’s advance notice of termination so they can make necessary arrangements in seeking employment elsewhere. The HR department should provide all information as to their rights, benefits with documentation to the labor department so they can take advantage of unemployment benefits. Since this termination is beyond our control we should ensure that the process is done in a timely and professional positive manner. The HR department should have in our meeting with the employees documentation signed by all in acknowledgement of the company decision and their acceptance. In the case that one of the employee’s do not agree further explanation and any references of any government agency if needed. Discrimination charge response process The process we should follow in even the one of the employees file a discrimination case would be the following: †¢Listen to the employee and assure them the company understands their thoughts. †¢Prepare all documentation on the employee as to name, date for hire, performance reports etc. being ready in advance of such claim. †¢Consult with our legal team in the event the employee wants to fight the claim in legal battle. †¢We should cooperate fully with any claims from the federal agency on any investigation, documentation if we get notification on any discrimination case files by the employee being terminated. The HR department will retain five of the eight employees due to their years of experience with the company and some of them have already assumed a management role to support the department. The remaining employees can assume the new duties in a very short time with no negative impact toward the company mission and goals. The following employees will be recommended to stay in the HR department: Abigail, Brad, Charles, Edith and Frank. Comparison Table Employee Name Employment YearsCompany Human Resource ExperienceRecommendation to remain in HRRecommendation for termination Abigail – 7 HR Experience / Management roleRemain Brad – 35 HR Experience / Management roleRemain Charles – 20HR Experience / Recruitment roleRemain Edith – 25HR Experience / Employee RetentionRemain Frank – 15HR Experience / Multiple HR rolesRemain Diane – 10HR Experience / Insurance Compensation roleTerminate Employment Greg – 5 LimitedTerminate Employment Horatio – 6 monthsLimitedTerminate Employment References Bennett-Alexander, D. D. & Hartman, P. L. (2007). Employment law for business (5th Ed. ). New York: McGraw–Hill. Retrieved February 26, 2010

Queen Elizabeth I Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Queen Elizabeth I - Research Paper Example But not many people really know that much about her, regardless of how recognizable she might be. However, Queen Elizabeth I was much more than a just a leader and inspiration, as well as, patron of the fine arts. She was, also, in many ways, a woman well ahead of her time. She defied, both, the expectations of her â€Å"weaker† genders’ ability to lead and the societal and biological conventions expected of her gender. History King Henry VIII is remembered as the British King who grew quite round and had a rather large number of wives; several of whom he had executed. Henry’s first wife, a devout Catholic, gave him his eldest child, Mary. He had this marriage annulled, which ended, both, his married relationship but, also, the relationship of England with the Catholic Church. His second marriage, to Anne Boleyn, produced his second daughter, Elizabeth, born on September 7, 1533. Anne Boleyn, sadly, was beheaded on her husband’s order for the crime of adul tery, when Elizabeth was only two years old. In a solely political move, Henry had both of his daughters legally eliminated from consideration as his heirs; he did this, most likely, to make room for a male heir. It was Henry’s wife, Jane Seymour, who finally produced him his only male heir, Edward, in 1537. Edward would take the throne with his father’s death in 1547, however, he ruled for only 6 years before his own young life ended in 1553. Edward had named, his cousin, Lady Jane Grey, to be his heir. Mary, whose legitimacy to take the throne had been reinstated, disagreed with her half brother’s choice. She, ultimately, took the throne, from Lady Jane Gray, within nine days of her taking power. Mary became Queen; her primary agenda became to stamp out the Protestantism, which her father had promoted during his reign, and reinstate Catholicism as the national religion of England. (Wilde) Until this point, Elizabeth’s life was rather typical of any Prot estant child of English nobility. She received a good education; she excelled in the areas of music and languages. When Mary took the throne, Elizabeth has supported her half-sister’s decision. However, Protestant plots against Mary, encouraging the placement of Elizabeth on the throne, resulted in Elizabeth being, technically, arrested. She was released quickly, having had no involvement in any such plots. However, It has been thought that Mary remained suspicious of Elizabeth until her death in 1558.(Wilde) Elizabeth’s life changed rapidly as she became Queen Elizabeth I, sovereign of England and Ireland; the beginning of what would be a, nearly, 45 year rule.(Prichard 618) Discussion Thrust into the crown, Elizabeth immediately inherited all of Mary’s problems as she took the throne. The two most paramount concerns were the religious division of England and the current war with France. In one of her first actions as Queen was to put an end to the religious tu rmoil; during her time as Queen, Mary, had burned Protestant churches and executed 300 Protestants as heretics. Elizabeth quickly passed the â€Å"Act of Supremacy,† which reestablished the Church of England and the â€Å"Act of Uniformity,† which established the formatting of a universal prayer book.(Wilde) She ended the war with France and imprisoned, her cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots, for conspiracy against her and attempts upon her life. Mary, Queen of Scotland, also, had a blood connection to the throne and supporters that

Early Medieval Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Early Medieval Culture - Essay Example War in the medieval era was the role of the knights. They were trained from their young age to fight both from the horseback and fighting on foot. They were the combat pinnacle of that era. Cavalry warfare was dominant in the medieval era. It was believed that this was the most effective tactic in that era. It is a strategy where the knights used to fight on the horses’ back. It was an unbeatable tactic. The knights used to wear expensive custom fitted with armor. The armor would also stop a lance strike as well as deflect off arrows. The knight’s horses were singularly important. A good war horse had to be exceptionally trained since an untrained horse can easily throw a knight down in the battle field. The horses were also supposed to be well armed. It is worth noting that war tactics were changing with time.Around 14th and 15th centuries, the European warriors developed very powerful combat style. This style proved to be very victorious on the battlefield both in per sonal defense and suppressing riots. The fighters were supposed to be exceptionally trained (Barbier et al, 2014). They would artfully duck, dodge and trap the opponents. They utilized graceful footwork alongside graceful techniques. Their techniques were supposed to be ruthless and very efficient. Their main objective in the battle field was to put down their opponents within the shortest time possible. If a trained medieval fight would meet an unskilled or semiskilled fighter, it took him about 10 seconds to finish him.

Crowdsourcing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5250 words

Crowdsourcing - Research Paper Example This paper analyzes the term â€Å"crowdsourcing† and its various aspects. This paper will discuss the pros and cons of crowdsourcng, features of crowdsourcing, components of crowdsourcing, crowdsourcing process elements, economic benefits of crowdsourcing and the ways where crowdsourcing is being implemented within various disciplines. CrowdSourcing: An overview The word crowdsourcing is basically concerned with the performance of a business or organization completing a task which is formerly carried out by its own employees and subcontracting or outsourcing it to an indeterminate (as well as usually big) system of community as an open call. This is able to acquire the type of peer creation (as the task is carried out jointly), although is as well frequently assumed by exclusive persons. However, the decisive condition is the utilization of the open invitation system and the huge system of prospective employees. To some extent crowdsourcing is perceived as a word which is eas y to interpret, but identifying the significance of the 2 words those usually form the term i.e. crowd and sourcing and it does not actually clarify its implication. In simple words, ‘crowdsourcing refers to the sourcing or extracting somewhat from a crowd or community, or somewhat that it manages outsourcing, that is eventually a right meaning. Moreover, crowdsourcing is an attractive trend that most of the businesses can apply to increase the efficiency of their functions or operations those would usually be managed through internal sources. Some of these functions comprise design/devising, software programs and product solutions, to study the progress policies of the companies... This essay stresses that the word crowdsourcing is basically concerned with the performance of a business or organization completing a task which is formerly carried out by its own employees and subcontracting or outsourcing it to an indeterminate system of community as an open call. This is able to acquire the type of peer creation, although is as well frequently assumed by exclusive persons. However, the decisive condition is the utilization of the open invitation system and the huge system of prospective employees. As the report declaress to some extent crowdsourcing is perceived as a word which is easy to interpret, but identifying the significance of the 2 words those usually form the term i.e. crowd and sourcing and it does not actually clarify its implication. In simple words, ‘crowdsourcing refers to the sourcing or extracting somewhat from a crowd or community, or somewhat that it manages outsourcing, that is eventually a right meaning. Moreover, crowdsourcing is an attractive trend that most of the businesses can apply to increase the efficiency of their functions or operations those would usually be managed through internal sources. Some of these functions comprise design/devising, software programs and product solutions, to study the progress policies of the companies. Crowdsourcing formulates the easy listening of ideas or inspirations. Placing an idea is rapid and easy task to do. Excluding electing, we are able to as well add to a plan by stating it more precisely.

Discussion Board 8-3 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discussion Board 8-3 - Assignment Example They include but not limited to Person centered therapy, solution focused therapy, family system therapy, Reality therapy, narrative and feminist. These approaches to psychotherapies used in client treatment in the 21st century have been motivated by similar therapeutic goals, which revolve around symptom reduction, crisis stabilization, stabilization, and self-exploration. There is great benefit in learning more than one approach to psychotherapy. This is because the 21st century to has brought into play some new rather specific changes that continue to affect clients in different ways. We all reside in the same world but each individual seems to make different sense of what he/she see and experience (Murdock, 2013). With practitioners equipped with various counseling techniques and skills learned from different approaches to psychotherapy and counseling, they are often well placed to construct meaning from the lives of their clients more effectively during sessions unlike in cases where the therapist specializes in only one approach to therapy. In other words learning different approaches to psychotherapy and counseling boost the therapist understand different factors that affect clients lives ranging from clients interior psychological processes, behavioral and biological factors, societal and professional influences as well as cultural and communit y factors. All these challenges and views of the client’s life cannot be learned and understood using a single approach to counseling and psychotherapy, which only utilizes specify techniques, which may overlook certain needs of the

Income Statement for Leak-Stoppers LLC for the Year Ended 31st Essay

Income Statement for Leak-Stoppers LLC for the Year Ended 31st December 2013 - Essay Example As the discussion outlines, the accrual concept states that revenue is recognized when it is earned and realized or realizable while expenses are recognized in the period in which the related revenue is earned. In the case of Mr. Mansoor, the insurance premium expenses can only be realized when revenue is earned and therefore the prepaid premium of 200 is subtracted from 800 to obtain premium expense of 600. Also the interest expense for the cash borrowed from Mustafa is an example of accrued expense. The principle states that a company should report an expense on the income statement in the same period that the related revenue is earned. For instance, the depreciation expenses for the non-current assets such as plumbing equipment and van are only recognized to the current year i.e. at the end of 2013 when they might have earned revenue. The prudence concept states that the transactions that the company is uncertain about should not be overstated or understated. Mr. Mansoor has exercised the prudence concept since he has created allowance for the doubtful debts that should be written off i.e. 10% of the accounts receivable. Since the company was able to record a net profit of $12,926, this shows that its currents expenses are less than its revenues/income. Therefore, the company is able to meet its short-term financial needs. Additionally, the income statement shows that the company is liquid and can be able to meet its daily/short-term needs. The balance sheet reflects a snapsho t of the performance of the company on a single date; it’s usually on the last date of the financial year. Judging from the income statement, the company’s financial performance as at 31st Dec 2013, the company’s current ratio i.e. current assets/current liabilities, 10,887/1,773=6.14 shows that the company is able to pay the bills.  

Discuss How Service Operations are Different from Manufacturing Essay

Discuss How Service Operations are Different from Manufacturing Operations - Essay Example Waste in the process or fail points are not obvious in service operations that efforts to reduce cost and control quality before they reach the customer can be very difficult (Wienclaw 2008). This makes the operations of many service oriented companies costly with many customers dissatisfied with the service they received. The need to align service delivery in accordance to customer expectations and the market imperative to reduce cost to remain competitive in the market, however, compels the operations of service oriented industry to adopt and implement manufacturing approaches and systems. By implementing manufacturing approaches and systems, the cost of operations in service oriented companies are being reduced such as the case of McDonalds as stated in this paper. The implementation of quality control system such as Six Sigma also enabled Bank of America not only to increase the level of its customer’s satisfaction but also saved the company $2 billion in expenditures rela ted to areas where Six Sigma was implemented. II. How service operations are different from manufacturing operations.   The most obvious difference between a service operations and manufacturing operations are the products they produce. Service operations sell service that has no physical presence while manufacturing operations produces concrete products that has a physical existence. Unlike manufacturing operations that produces concrete products whose quality can easily determined by its specifications, service operations differs from manufacturing operations because its output is often evaluated in terms of customer experience. Activities of a service operation are often based on the quality, speed, competence and courtesy of its delivery that is not easily quantifiable that could be subjected to the relativity of customer’s experience (Wienclaw 2008). The factors that determine a good service cannot be easily quantified because of the difficulty of operationally definin g what makes a good service delivery. Unlike in manufacturing where fail points in its process can be easily determined and substandard products can be readily rejected before reaching the customer, service operations outputs are subjected to perceptions and expectations of the customer which are relative (Wienclaw 2008). For example, walking through a novice customer in a step by step computer troubleshooting procedure may be very helpful that would constitute a good customer service but the same could also be annoying to a technically proficient customer that could affect the overall customer satisfaction. The differences of service operations from manufacturing operations can be categorized in the factors of intangibility, heterogeneity, inseparability and perishability that make services difficult to control and improve. Intangibility – plainly, service cannot be recognized by any of the five senses. Unlike in manufacturing operations whose outputs are concrete, services rendered by a service oriented company cannot be seen, touched, smelled, heard, or tasted (Kotler et al. 2004). It can only be

Design Thinking Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Design Thinking - Thesis Example But the designer bubble burst during the 50s and 60s when designers began to be looked upon as tools of capitalist society till they redefined their role in the 70s as developers of culture and lifestyle. Today: "The word "design" has a lot of different meanings when people think of design they think of an artefact that's been designed well such as a chair, a car or a building. Or they thin1k of design as style or fashionThe term "design thinking" has gained popularity because it makes it easier for those outside the design industry to focus the idea of design as a way of thinking about solving problems, a way of creating strategy by experiencing it rather than keeping it an intellectual exercise, and a way of creating and capturing value"2 Design consultant Linda Naiman states that, "The revolution taking place in design - as it emerges from its traditional role of serving commerce - to a role of leading, shaping and directing the way we live and work, presents tremendous opportunities" For the purpose of this paper we will focus on the definition, "Design is the thought process comprising the creation of an entity," Archer too saw design as a complex and shared rational logical sequential activity that would solve problems and bring innovation and change. Today designing is a skill required by architects, fashion designers, urban architects, products and industrial design, engineers, landscape designers, the automobile industry and interior decorators. But the culture of design has been with us from the stone age when man first began to create tools to shape and control his environment but these primary inventions happened in a disorganized and an unplanned way. Designer thinking today by contrast blends aesthetics as well as ergonomics to improve our lifestyle and develop culture. The great architect and designer Charles Eames, Lawson states, " the culture of design was greater then the creation of a new chair. It was part of a much bigger socio-cultural process of 'adding valuethrough an injection of creative individualism that distinguished designer goods' frommass production." 3 And so Nike and Yves Sainte Loraine were born as virtual personality cults of Design Culture.2 Since designers redefined their role as the developers of culture they had a wide scope since, "culture should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society it encompassesart literature, lifestylesvalue systems traditions and beliefs." 43Today from being just architects or product refiners and innovators, designers are the definers of good taste, better lifestyles and efficiency in diverse fields, all of which embrace the designer culture that was vigorously promoted by advertising companies as a key international marketing strategy in

Pyscological Disorders Essay Example for Free

Pyscological Disorders Essay Behaviourism has many different strengths and weaknesses. One strength of the approach is that is has successfully applied classical and operant condition to its theories. This is strength as it is used in different therapies such as systematic desensitization, which is a type of behaviour therapy to help overcome phobias and other anxiety disorders; it is based on classical conditioning. Another strength is that it uses scientific methods of research making it much more objective, measurable and observable as well as being able to obtain reliable results. An example of this is Banduras’ bobo doll of study of aggression. However, there are also weaknesses to this approach. The Behaviourism approach focuses too much on the â€Å"nurture† side of nature/nurture debate and suggests that all behaviour is learned. However, research has shown that cognitive and biological elements have been proved to affect individual’s behaviour. For example, people learn behaviour by observing others getting rewarded for certain actions. Another weakness is the ethical issues raised by using animals in experiments. This is because animals cannot consent to take part and are unable to withdraw themselves from experiments, for example, Pavlov’s dog studies. A major strength of this theory is that it is quick and affordable. As the behaviourism theory focuses on the future and what is happening now instead of the past, treatment can be quick and effective as they are not discussing past experiences which may be time consuming. However, because this theory ignores past experiences and influences, it may cause problems as individuals may need to discuss past experiences in order to sort their emotions out. Because this theory ignores them and focuses on present experiences it can cause a major problem as people may not be able to benefit from the therapy as they need to discuss their past. * Social Learning Theory: The Social Learning theory was developed my Albert Bandura who believed that we can learn by observing others. This theory however, has different strengths and weaknesses. One of the great strengths of the social learning theory is that it combines important models of learning. This therefore makes it a good education theory. Another strength is that children are seen are easy to teach and any child can be taught. Albert believed that motivation comes largely through praise. The praise, however, is seen indirectly, since it is the model that is praised, not the child. Once motivated, the model provides the bulk of teaching. The general concept is that children just the right environment to begin learning useful skills. Another strength is that it is an easy theory to grasp and it seems to be generally proven by actual experience. For example, when learning to play football, individuals often first watch a game on TV, which provides the inspiration and motivation to learn to play. However, there are weaknesses that question if this theory is correct. The main weakness of this theory is that is does not include the child’s cognitive development. While there are some cognitive insights in the social learning theory, they are not explained. Albert believed that a child was seen as a sponge, absorbing information through modelling. However, the child’s contribution to how models are absorbed is processed and worked out through time and is not present to any extent in the theory. Another weakness is that is does not have any given cause. The social learning theory explains that motivation exists though praise. However, it seems that motivation is socially conditioned, and therefore relative. The social learning then takes the basic social structure as normative and standard, without judgement. * Psychodynamic: This theory was developed by Sigmund Freud and Erik Erickson and believed that we are not always aware of all aspects of ourselves. They ignored all science theories and focused going â€Å"inside the head†. However this theory has different strengths and weaknesses. One strength of the psychodynamic theory is that is focused on the effects that childhood experiments have on the personality. This is a strength because Freud was the first psychologist to realise the importance of childhood. It also led to other psychologists including Piaget developing theories on childhood. Another strength is that it takes both nature and nurture into account. This is a major strength as is emphasise the importance of both. For example, Freud’s assumption of childhood experiences focused on nurture whereas the ID, Ego and Super-ego focused on nature. However, a weakness of the psychodynamic approach is that it is capable of being tested. This is a weakness because the assumptions cannot be scientifically measured or proved wrong, for example, is the idea of the mind being split into three parts. This cannot be proven so therefore questions if its valid information. Another weakness is that it suggests that all behaviour is pre-determined and people do not have free will. * Biological approach: The biological approach was developed by Arnold Gessel who explained the developmental process and stages involved from conception onwards. A strength of this theory is that it is very scientific. This is a major strength because the experiments used are measurable, objective and can be repeated to obtain reliable results. Also, the researcher has more control over the variable. Another strength of the approach is that it increases the likelihood of being able to treat people with abnormal behaviour and provides explanations about the causes of behaviour. This is a major strength as it can be used to improve people’s lives. However, a weakness of the biological approach is that is focuses too much on the â€Å"nature† side of the nature/nurture debate. It argues that behaviour is caused by hormones, neurotransmitters and genetics. Another weakness of the biological approach is that it develops theories about disorders and generalises them to apply to everyone. It does not take into account the view that humans are unique. An example for is that general adaption syndrome assumes that everyone responds in the same way to stress but does not take into account that some people have or need more support than others. * Cognitive: The Cognitive theory was development by Jean Piaget who believed children are born with a very basic mental structure, genetically inherited and evolved, in which all subsequent learning and knowledge is based. One strength of the cognitive approach is that is looks at thought processes which were ignored by other psychologists, especially behaviourists. It looks at processes such as memory, attention and perception which all have an effect on our behaviour. Another strength of this approach is that its theories have been applied to cognitive therapies such as rational emotive therapy which is a therapy that focuses on resolving emotional and behavioural problems and helping people to lead happier and more fulfilling lives. This therapy has been successful in changing irrational thoughts so that behaviour improves. However, a weakness of the cognitive approach is that it reduces human behaviour down to individual processes such as memory and attention. This is a weakness because the human is a product of all the processes working together and not just individual parts. Another weaknesses is that the approach is too mechanical, it compares the human to computers and suggests they have similar though processes. This is a weakness as humans are much more complex than computers. * Humanistic: The humanistic approach was developed by a psychologist called Abraham Maslow who observed the study of the whole person. He looked at human behaviour not only through the eyes of the observed, but through the eyes of the person doing the behaving. A strength of this theory is that is focuses on both the positive nature of humankind and the free will associated with change. Another strength is the way in which many of its aspects fit well with other approaches. Many therapies have provided a more humanistic undertone in their work with clients. Even though they may argue that the humanistic theory does not go far enough, they see the benefit in helping people change. However, a weakness of this theory if that is appears to centre on its lack of concrete treatment on specific issues. With the basic concept behind the theory being free will, it is difficult to develop treatments and study the effectiveness of this theory. Secondly, there are those who believe that the humanistic theory does not help those with more severe personality or mental health problems. Another weakness is that this theory is still not complete as there are different questions that are still unanswered. For example, are people basically good or are their some individuals who are not capable of this? As these questions are still unanswered it questions if the theory is effective.

Stress and Burnout Essay Example for Free

Stress and Burnout Essay Companies and organizations deal with issues in their business life cycle. All companies share the same issues, successes, and dilemmas, but one of the issues that seem to be more prevalent in high-stress jobs, such as sales or other fast-paced jobs, is that of stress and the burnout associated with it. Stress is something that affects different employees in different ways, from getting depressed to not eating and can be detrimental to their well-being and to the company also. Companies are also affected negatively with how employees perform, the rise of absenteeism is higher and the work performance takes a huge dip financially and with negative outcomes. There are many things that can be done to try and assist with this issue and try and help employees. How does stress and burnout come to happen? Many times individuals are placed into different types of roles in their company or organization that they work at and that sometimes comes with different jobs that need to be completed by a certain date or they are placed in an environment that is just stressful for them. Individuals can find stress in many things in their daily lives. It can be the individuals you work with, the daily traffic in the morning or after work, the manager or director that heads your department, and also the relationships you have with co-workers, to name a few. The unfortunate result from dealing with these stressors is how it affects the individual and those around him or her. They can be depressed, angry all the time, full of anxiety and those sometimes translate to physical changes also, like weight gain or loss and other issues that may arise from this. Companies eventually are greatly affected by this also because they deal with these employees and their work on a daily basis. Healthcare for those employees also goes up, which means that the companies will tend to spend more on individuals which are not healthy as supposed to those that feel better and are well-off. â€Å"A study of 46,000 employees concluded that health-care costs of high-stress workers were 46% higher than were those of their less-stressed coworkers†(Dessler, p. 309, 2011). As previously stated, many type of jobs or careers are more prone to stress and burnout. Everyone usually tries and associate successful, high paying jobs with stress, like someone working in a high-paced market like the stock market or sales. Although any type of job can be stressful, from being a teacher to working in healthcare, there have been studies of how some healthcare fields are more stressful than other, such as working a social work environment as supposed to a pediatrician. Social work tends to involve those works in certain situations that can weight a lot on individuals. â€Å"Such empirical research as is available suggests that social workers may experience higher levels of stress and resulting burnout than comparable occupational groups. † (Lloyd, King, and Chenowth, p. 1, 2002) One of the trickiest issues with identifying stressors is to actually see what it is that if affecting certain individuals, it can be tough to pinpoint an exact issue and try to fix it as soon as possible. Burnout stems from being stressed out to the point where the individual feels like he has no strength anymore, both physical and emotional from always working too hard and striving to do the best and it eventually catching up to those individuals and they shutting down. Unlike stress, where it can affect someone immediately, when someone burns out, it happens gradually over time, things building up and stacking more and more upon the last thing. It eventually will hit the individuals, even though to get to that point is gradual, people shut down suddenly. It is most seen in high-stress jobs and companies involved in such industries will look out for signs to not let individuals fall through that issue. Companies and organizations are trying to find ways in order to deal with these issues because it helps the employees feel better, it provides a more positive outcome for the company and the employees, and healthcare cost can go down because of this. Companies have started implementing different things for employees to help assist with stress and burnout prevention. There are many things companies can do to assist, from providing on-site gyms to help relieve some stress to providing workshops on teaching individuals how to work around stress and burn out and make sure that they are taking care of themselves. Specialist and other say that it is easier to prevent burnout and stress than to come back from it cleanly. Stress-related work leaves comprised 49% of all disability claims in 1999, twice the number recorded a decade earlier† (Elizabeth, p. 2, 2002). There are many ways to be able to assist in preventing burnout and stress. Like previously stated, companies provide many things to be able to make sure that the employees are the main priority in making sure that they are healthy, physically and emotionally, because this eventually translates into good performance in the work environment. Workshops are also held to be able to assist individuals on helping them organize their lives better and implementing things like exercise, building better relationships at work, and other things to help alleviate the stress of the daily life and prevent burnout from happening. Companies have to deal with their employees to make sure that they do not go through any issues, because they are identifying those issues that affect them and understand that the employee is the main component of any company. It saves money, helps with employees feeling better about themselves and ultimately it produces good things for the company as a whole.

Pestel Analysis of the IKEA Corporation

Pestel Analysis of the IKEA Corporation In this research report Author have identify business strategy about IKEA as an organization, the first part of this research is about introduction of IKEA which explain all initial information and its process from Supplier to customers. Next part contain literature review that try to identify what is the different between operational and tactical planning, it also analysis and rational with IKEA. Middle part of this research contains SWOT and PESTEL analysis of IKEA with theatrical background and explains each and every factor which can effect in business operational and tactical planning. In last Author has concluded this research with conclusion about over important of strategy in business. Introduction: Business strategy itself shows that strategy needs for every business. To achieve object in certain time period, each and every organisation required strategy and to stay top on the table need better strategy then the other competitors (Houston, 2002) The reason to make strategy is to make business fit into its environment. So that every time you should change strategy according to environment (Houston, 2002) Business strategy is nothing but make a plan and take decisions, and using that plan and decision achieve greater profit and success in decided time (Kourdi, 2009) By making strategy organisation can know where resources like finance, people, effort, technology should be concentrated (Kourdi, 2009) Literature Review: Swot analysis: When an organisation is in hard market situation it needs measurement to find out current situation and find the right strategy to achieve object (Bohm, 2008) Where is the company right now? Whats the strength of the company through which company have an edge than others. To neutralize weakness of the company any organisation should know which the weaknesses are and how its damage the success ratio (Bohm, 2008) Its also important to know which possible threats and opportunities can be expected from around the world. Through SWOT analysis any organisation analyse companies strengths, weakness, possible threats and opportunities. Opportunities and threats investigates internal and external as well as positive and negative factor of a corporation (Bohm, 2008) Strengths -supplier -Production -Distribution Weaknesses -What are our weaknesses as well as should know competitors Opportunities -What opportunities are in front of us based on market size, consumers requirements and their chaining trends, gaps in our product line, service and distribution Threats -Internal threats -External threats -Based on our weakness and competitors Strengths, changes in technology. Figure1.1. Elements of the SWOT analysis: (Mello, 2002) PESTEL Analysis: Expansion and improvement in business totally depends on any organizations Pestel analysis. Pestel analysis is very useful tool to measure and examine the environmental influences of political, economic, sociological, technological, environmental and legislative (Craig, 2005) Political Environment Sociological Environment Economic Environment CORPORATION OR INDUSTRY Technological Environment Environmental Environment Legislative Environment The activities of competitors, suppliers, customers always leads organisation to force the change the strategy. Customers who change their requirements by the time, competitors who merge within the industries may require the organisation to improve the structure, culture or other internal feathers to stay and compete (Craig D. J., 2005) It is important to have business strategy to a number of stakeholders. Groups or individuals having an interest in the activities of an organisation, stakeholder groups are relatively simple for commercials organisation and more complex and countable for not-for-profits organisations (Strategy, 2005) Requirements to implement a new strategy: As requirements of consumers are always varies, for that reason every time it is important to implement a new strategy to sustain in market among the competitors (Houston, 2002) Implement a new strategy means change current strategy in all factor means technological, change in production line, improving in storage and distribution. Organisational Analysis: Ikea is very well-known private limited company, which offering well designed and functional home furnishing products at low price. So many people can afford to buy. Ikea the brand name is basically associated with founders name, Ingvar Kampard who is born in southern Sweden and raised on Elmtaryd a farm near the small village of Agunnaryd. Inter Ikea system B.V.1999 2010 The founders main goal is To create a better everyday life for the many people. In the early age of five founder starts to selling matches to his nearby neighbours and the age of seven he starts to sell matches in bulk at a low price but still make good money. After that he expands to selling flower seed, greeting cards, Christmas tree decorations and later pencils and ball-point pens. In 1943 Ingvar Kampard established his own business and in 1951 first Ikea catalogue is published. In 1953 first Ikea showroom is born and within short time of period more than 35 countries has more than 315 stores. Ikea mainly decide the price and according to price they design the product. Ikea offered a low price of any product because of customers contribution. Customers come in the stores and choose their products with an easy-to-read and clearly mentioned all needed information on the tag and collect and transport and assemble by themselves. That is the idea behind: You do your part. We do our pa rt. Together we save money. (Hartline, 2008) Inter Ikea system B.V.1999 2010 Ikea is also well known for its charity work, Ikea working together with UNICEF to save the children around the world. Ikea donate one euro for every soft toy sold in stores during a certain period each year. In India they providing medicines and essential requirement to children and trying to stop child labour. Inter Ikea system B.V.1999 2010 SWOT analysis for Ikea In this tuff economic condition and with the number of competitor around the world, any organisation must know their Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and Threats. Ikea uses SWOT analysis to reach its objectives. Strengths and Weakness are internal factors of the business. They are controlled by within the business. Opportunities and Threats are external factors, which are outside the control of business. Marketing, product cost, finance, manufacturing, business structure and strategy are counted in internal factors. Likewise environment, economic condition, competitor, technology advances, social changes, culture, political law are consider as external factors (Hartline, 2008) Strengths: One of Ikea main strengths are they develop products with flat packing and easy assemble by consumer. So not require massive storage and transportation is very ease for supplier and consumer. Good quality with a wide range of choice at all times that makes customers always willing to buy. Ikeas business strategy is produce environmental friendly products means they using renewable and recyclable raw materials such wool, cotton, glass, metal and rattan. Inter Ikea system B.V. 1999 2010 A well planned design products which works very functionally and reduce the price and attract the customers (Hartline, 2008) Ikea create loyal suppliers by committing to buying in large volumes for long period. So that they can negotiate for low price for customers likewise security for suppliers of having guaranteed orders (Hartline, 2008) In Ikea all are same. Ikea treat everybody same way. So companys anti-bureaucracy weeks helps to create good corporate culture (Hartline, 2008) Ikea has own designer to design the product according to cost. So Ikea can keep price low as they want. Inter Ikea system B.V. 1999 2010 Some of their products are produced in some countries where labour cost is very low compare to other countries. Inter Ikea system B.V. 1999 2010 Weakness: Ikea should know their weaknesses to improve their services and expand the business around the world. The expansion of the business always creates difficulties to maintain the standard of quality and customer satisfaction. Its also difficult to keep environment healthy for a large organization. Ikea has the business in more than 35 countries. Supply products with same good quality are hard for them. Ikea must keep communication to suppliers and consumers to maintain the standard of business, for a large business is not easy. As a business of furniture and all household products made from the plastic, wood, glass, rubber, paper, chemicals, it is hard to maintain environmental standards. Ikea believe in low price and good quality. For that Ikea needs to differentiate how they can be chipper with a good quality than the competitor (Hartline, 2008) Do it your self-system: Ikea is believes in self-serve approach but some customers who earning more salary, may not like to go warehouse and picking out their furniture. Some customers may not have time to assemble their furniture once they get it home (Hartline, 2008) Opportunities: Ikea should use its strengths and brand name to take advantage coming opportunities in the world. Making environmental friendly products can be useful in price sensitive market. As the company states: There is a true business potential for IKEA in providing solutions that enable customers to live a more sustainable life at home. IKEA is developing effective solutions for customers in order to support them recycling or reusing used products, aiming at no products ending up at landfill and the recycled materials used in producing new IKEA products. (The Times 100) Ikea should produce more and more products from materials that can be recycled and should develop technology to reduce carbon footprints and use of water. Ikea should use more and more renewable energy so they can keep price low as much as they can and attracts the more consumers in current financial climates. By providing better customer services by their co-worker, by telecommunication or by media or taking opinion from peoples they can sustain in the market. Threats: By knowing the possible threats each and every organization can be prepare for better business strategy. Ikea should know the external and internal threats. Competitor: competitor consider as an external threats. Having with better business strategy like low price with better quality, better customer services, good communication with consumer and supplier (Hartline, 2008) Competitor can come with better technology edge. So to avoid this threat Ikea should be more adoptable (Hartline, 2008) Culture: Culture is also playing part as major threats. Ikea has a large business around the world where people with a different culture and different attitude. This culture can be changed by different methods like training programme, changing people or giving them satiable jobs, totally giving new structure or appearance (Pfeiffer, 1993) PESTEL analysis for Ikea Political: It is important to make number of observation regarding political changes in the world or country where you doing business because uncertainty of political environment could have massive impact on business (Britton, 2009). Changes in political environment also emanate from a countrys institutional arrangements (Britton, 2009). Ikea should analysis of political environment because each and every country has own rules. In some country political is very stable and providing good infrastructure for the business. Economic: Economical effects means any business organization concerned with imports or exports will be affected by many ways like taxation, interest rates, employment levels and Inflation, Economic condition of ones countries means spending ability of consumer force to change any organizations strategy and products services. In some countries you should concern about economic condition before starts the business. Business strategy should be fine according to countries economic condition so most of consumer can afford to buy your products (Craig, 2005) Ikea can achieve its vision to create a better everyday life for the many people by considering economic condition of countries. Sociological: Sociological effects means particularly any countrys demographic profile such as the increasing birth rate or decreasing death rate or unbalance in genders or increasing population can affect any business (Craig, 2005) To finds more flexible people just because of their geographical or social condition leads the shortage of skilled worker. This can pressurise organisation to move new location just to find out technological solution (Craig, 2005) Technological: Technological developments in recent years are significance. If you want to sustain in the market among the competitors you must have edge in technological improvement (Craig, 2005) Any organisation should be ready to adopt new technology. The business depends on how you marketing the product, which technology you are using for production and distribution and for storage (Craig, 2005) Environmental: Every country is very concern about their environmental condition. Change in climate for last couple of years just because of human activities has made aware everybody. To expand the business every organization should analysis of environment. (Britton, 2009) In every country requirement of products is always varies according to their environmental condition. Organisations required being in the leading position of making possible changes rather than coming from a catch-up position. Every organisation needs to respond to green issues are voiced by customers or community groups. (Robert Dransfield, 2004) Legislative: Legislation includes certain factors like employment law, taxation law, companys own law, health and safety law, patent law, industry regulations (Sinclair-Hunt, 2005). In business strategy you should concern legislation. Legislation is a part of business. Reducing union power was perceived as economically essential for freeing the labour market and hence rejuvenating the economy through the free play of market forces (Undy, 1996). Conclusion: As a worlds biggest retailers Ikea should counts numbers of thing to capture the maximum market among strong competitor. They should use more and renewable energy for their business to reduce the price of products and to reduce carbon foot-print. Ikea have good name around the world for their products with good price with good quality and to sustain the image they should know their internal and external threats and should try to come over. As a large business they should have good communication with suppliers and with consumers. By adopting latest technology they can be ahead of competitors. Using waste or damaged material they can produce product and can save environment.

Oliver Twist Essay -- Essays Papers

Oliver Twist A Criticism of Society or a Biography With all of the symbolism and moral issues represented in Oliver Twist, all seem to come from real events from the life of its author, Charles Dickens. The novel’s protagonist, Oliver, is a good person at heart surrounded by the filth of the London streets, filth that Dickens himself was forced to deal with in his everyday life. It’s probable that the reason Oliver Twist contains so much fear and agony is because it’s a reflection of occurrences in Charles Dickens' past. Oliver Twist also brought to light the evils of social injustice and the victims of it. During his childhood, Charles Dickens suffered much abuse from his parents. This abuse is often expressed in his novel. For example, while suffering from starvation and malnutrition for a long period of time, Oliver was chosen by the other boys at the orphanage to request more gruel at dinner one night. After making this simple request, the master (at the orphanage) aimed a blow at Oliver's head with a ladle and placed him confinement. As noted by Patricia Marks in her article on Dickens, â€Å"childhood experience and suffering had emerged as a significant new topic in romantic poetry, and Dickens was personally impelled towards it by memories of his own pre-teenage years when, with the rest of his family in prison and himself alone, he was thrown into manual labour.† Dickens was even quoted as saying, â€Å"I might easily have been, for any care that was taken of... Oliver Twist Essay -- Essays Papers Oliver Twist A Criticism of Society or a Biography With all of the symbolism and moral issues represented in Oliver Twist, all seem to come from real events from the life of its author, Charles Dickens. The novel’s protagonist, Oliver, is a good person at heart surrounded by the filth of the London streets, filth that Dickens himself was forced to deal with in his everyday life. It’s probable that the reason Oliver Twist contains so much fear and agony is because it’s a reflection of occurrences in Charles Dickens' past. Oliver Twist also brought to light the evils of social injustice and the victims of it. During his childhood, Charles Dickens suffered much abuse from his parents. This abuse is often expressed in his novel. For example, while suffering from starvation and malnutrition for a long period of time, Oliver was chosen by the other boys at the orphanage to request more gruel at dinner one night. After making this simple request, the master (at the orphanage) aimed a blow at Oliver's head with a ladle and placed him confinement. As noted by Patricia Marks in her article on Dickens, â€Å"childhood experience and suffering had emerged as a significant new topic in romantic poetry, and Dickens was personally impelled towards it by memories of his own pre-teenage years when, with the rest of his family in prison and himself alone, he was thrown into manual labour.† Dickens was even quoted as saying, â€Å"I might easily have been, for any care that was taken of...

A Mind Full, a World Shattered :: Personal Narrative Writing

A Mind Full, a World Shattered At the end of a long road one will look back and ponder the experiences that time has moved along the path. There is no doubt I am leaving high-school a different person and I doubt there are few ideas that I once held that have remained the same. At times I miss the simple lessons, the easy test, the mindless homework assignments. I wasn't sure what I expected in high-school, but I am leaving with a mind full, and at times, a world shattered. I'm not sure education meant much to me when I began this path. Perhaps it meant a little more when I had to work for the knowledge I chose to keep or dismiss. I have come to realize that high-school was no more than life lessons, ways to cope, how to deal with people, and a way to test my boundaries mentally and emotionally. It took me awhile to realize that those test given prove nothing, those papers written in structured form prove little else than the thesis statement on the paper topic demanded by teachers. As I look back I can say I will take this with me: Understanding who I am is understanding what I have learned, what I have failed at, what I have questioned, and what I believe. I have learned to distrust words but adore their depth. I have learned to follow directions and to break the rules. I have learned that teachers are just people, with their own minds and beliefs that, in some way, have infiltrated the class room and what I have been taught. At times this has been a tremendous gift, other times a great tragedy. I have learned that a brilliant person is not one who can memorize facts or maintain a high GPA. I have learned grades do not reflect who I am and my abilities. Grades are only maintained to because people are afraid to just "be" and just "learn." I have realized that grades and competition may be the system used to induce hard work and dedication, but I also know that there are better ways because the system fails on a moment to moment basis. I have realized the most important people of this world are not those walking around with the most money or graduating from the best high-schools.

Splash Pages can be a Good Addition to Your Website :: Sell Websites Buy Websites

Splash Pages can be a Good Addition to Your Website The first question a beginning web developer should ask him or herself when designing a splash page for the website is not what image to use, but should a splash page be created in the first place. A splash page is â€Å"a branding page before the home page of your Web site† (O’Rourke). While this page can be good and serve as â€Å"gateways into web content† (â€Å"Internet Marketing Glossary†), one may choose not to use a splash page. Such a page can detract from the professionalism of the site; if a person or company wants to appear professional and wants the website to portray this, a splash page can ruin this desire. To seem professional, the rule in most cases is the simpler, the better, and a splash page does not simplify websites. In fact, these pages can be slow and add an additional step in the viewer’s process of arriving at the actual homepage. Designers of websites must keep in mind that viewers often decide in a matter of seconds wheth er they will stay at that site or not, and splash pages, if done incorrectly, can waste this time (Kyrnin). However, splash pages can be a good addition to a website. They gain immediate responses from the viewer, which can entice the viewer to enter the site. Also, if the designer is particularly proud of some graphic, animation, or other object that he/she has created, the splash page can be a good method to display this work. Similarly, it shows the designer’s skills with technology – a splash page that includes an original animated graphic tells the viewer that the designer not only can create websites, but can create animation. If the web developer does in fact want a splash page for the website, there are several issues to be discussed. First and foremost should be relevance. If the splash page shows a design of a political cartoon, the viewer would assume that the page is a political satire page, or at least a page related to politics. So if a viewer decides that, based on the splash page, he/she will continue on to view a site about politics, he/she would be upset and confused to see a site about guitars. The splash page sets the mood for the rest of the website, so designers should make sure that the appropriate mood is set.

Nanny 911 Discussion

Discussion No. 3- Nanny 911 This clip of Nanny 911 was about a family who had two young boys. The mother and father were having trouble controlling their son’s behavior, one with his high energy and teasing, and the other with sleeping issues. The family was evaluated by the nanny and she brought many issues to light. Some of the offenses dealt with in this episode were the father wrestling with his sons, the oldest son, Ryan, pushing his mothers buttons all day long, and the youngest son not going to bed in his own bed at night, often times screaming and crying for hours on end.The nanny put the family to the test with her strategies to reclaim order in the home. First, she brings up two points from her nanny book. The first, which is aimed at Christopher’s nighttime sleeping patterns, has a solution of giving the boy more independence as he is getting off to bed. The dad would wait at the door for 5 minutes instead of lying next to Christopher in bed. This was a sort of weaning off strategy that eventually paid off. Next, the issue with Ryan and his mother nagging him, and he retorting with immaturity. The mother was to stop â€Å"nitpicking† and start positive acknowledgement of the boy’s achievements.This helped create a friendlier relationship between Ryan and his mother, as he began easing up off of the immature badgering and bantering that he had previously been involved with. The type of conditioning displayed in this video segment was of course operant conditioning. The boys were being conditioned by their father in the wrestling and sleeping patterns, and by their mother in the nagging and smart replies back segments. All the conditioning was ultimately resolved when the nanny broke the cycle of the parents setting bad influences on their children. The children followed suit and began to obey their parent’s requests.The reinforcements displayed were positive reinforcement for the boys with their baseball chart, a cha rt displaying good behaviors represented by a baseball for each good act. This chart is a positive reinforcement because it gave the children their freedom to enjoy their privileges as opposed to losing them. The father displayed Bandora’s â€Å"Bobo Doll† behavior by wrestling with the boys. When someone gets hurt, the father entitles the hurt boy to hit the other with a â€Å"free shot†. This behavior caused the boys to associate hitting with a form of handling situations.This caused more fighting and issues controlling the boys further. The law of frequency was seen here with Ryan reacting to his mother’s comments on what the boys did wrong. Every time she said something, he would chime in, thus escalating the situation. His mother then would punish Ryan for his talking back, which helped to illustrate a discrimitive stimuli example. Overall, the work of the nanny helped to offer a peace and balance to the family with their problems and going forward t he parents now know what to do with their behaviors and ultimately will lead to a much happier and healthier home.

Lou Holtz Convocation

Chase Wells Dr. Donald A. Hoy BA 198 B 2 September 2012 Lou Holtz a Convocation to Remember Lou Holtz: motivational speaker, hall of fame football coach, magician, devout Catholic, and Benedictine supporter. This last week I was blessed with the chance to hear him speak. His speech was based on the idea that by following three rules, you can live a just life with no regrets. Throughout the speech Holtz cracked joke after joke, keeping it constantly interesting.At one point, he even shocked the crowd with a very impressive magic trick. By combining an excellent message with humor, and magic he had the entire crowd’s attention for the full duration of his speech. Holtz’s three rules were: do the right thing, do your best, and show people you care. The three rules seem easy enough to follow, and the motivation to go along with them has inspired me to follow them. Lou was truly passionate about what he preached. He clearly contributed much of his success to these rules.Thro ugh stories of life experience Holtz persuaded, and motivated the crowd. I think every person in the gymnasium left with the knowledge to improve themselves as a person, and the motivation to perhaps do it. Lou Holtz is truly an extraordinary person. He’s a 5’9’’ man that talks with a lisp, and role model for thousands. That in itself is impressive. Not to mention his excellent track record as a football coach, New York Times best selling books, Motivational speaking accomplishments, and more.His life long mission of making not only decisions he can live with, but the right ones has cast him into success. Having never been one to watch college sports I walked into the convocation with little knowledge of who Lou Holtz was, and low expectations for his speech. I walked out stunned, surprised, and impressed. Lou Holtz is an amazing person. His speech gave me knowledge, and motivation to improve my life, and for that I am grateful.

The History of Bradford

Bradford began as a minute village but at the turn of the 19thcentury the population increased at a rapid rate, this lead to death rates to augment which meant that a cemetery was urgently needed. Time took its toll and life in Bradford became worse and by 1854 the Undercliffe Cemetery was created. This cemetery contains such facets that are very idiosyncratic and display Victorian life in a unique way. The main focus of this paper will be on the different features of the site and how they support and contradict the Victorian values and attitudes, along with my research I will also be extracting evidence from the burial ground and analysing both primary and secondary sources in order to find out how the site has interpreted and shown the Victorian attributes Value 1: Social Status For those in the upper classes of society etiquette was an essential way of living, Victorian society was prominently concerned about every aspect of their life. From the moment the upper-class left their beds their day was ruled over by many do’s and don’ts. Victorian society although may have been strict on an array of rules, it could also be quite pleasant but only depending on your financial status. The cemetery itself supports the idea of the high class holding onto their social position for example in site 4 the Illingworth mausoleum portrays many characteristics such as the tomb itself being built inside with lavish marble in order to keep the bodies cool and the sphinx guarding the tomb gives the impression that they were in some cases showing off that they had travelled to a foreign country. This mausoleum in particular is a great feature of the cemetery that represents how important social status was to the Victorians this is because the tomb itself contains such descriptive detail that evidently shows the Illingworth’s were beginning to show their status in society. Their grave appears to show their importance and wealth due to its intricate design and detail such as the sphinx. This evidence of the illingworth’s mausoleum is a pure example of how the cemetery contains a feature which supports the Victorian values and attitudes regarding the social status of the upper class Victorians. While gathering my evidence of the Victorian value’s I came across a source in form of an image that in some aspects supports as well as contradicts the way the cemetery has portrayed social status and social class. A painting by J. Ritchie which was produced in 1858 that goes by the name of ‘A summer’s day in Hyde Park’ contains various activities that can be seen and amidst them various people that portray different classes in 19th century society. Although this source was written four years after the cemetery was created it provides illustrative substantiation that the affluent citizens wanted to stand out therefore they are painted with a white colour bringing out their importance whereas the workers and servants are daubed with a dull colour which shows how they were kept in the dark and were not to be seen. Along with the rich being highlighted the image brings out some metaphorical evidence which can be seen within Undercliffe Cemetery, in the painting the upper class are placed in the centre of the image this idea supports the cemetery because the rich are in fact the most dominant and are placed within the centre of the burial ground to show their importance. Social status was a very important value that the Victorians held onto it was their way of expressing who they were, the cemetery’s features can in fact support the idea of social status being one of the main features that are thoroughly explained, this source in particular has added to my understanding that this burial ground is in fact categorised and certain sites within the cemetery were only for certain classes. My own research on the source and on social status gives the impression that the cemetery supports the indication of Victorian society being very cautious on their title and position. Value 2: Family Values Although position in society was of importance to Victorians they also had another value which can be seen throughout the cemetery this was their family. There were many rules regarding the family which would consist of the father being the head of the house and he was always to be obeyed. In public, children were expected to be seen and not heard. At Undercliffe Cemetery I observed a tomb located in site 3 which belonged to The Behrens family, they had decided to include everybody’s name that was in their family implying that they were all buried together. This grave brings out a feature of the cemetery that supports that family values were an important element in the Victorian life. It also provides evidence that this value was seen as some importance due to the way it was shown in the cemetery. The family during the 19th century was very similar between the Upper and middle class but also differed in many ways. Each member of the family had its own place and children were taught ‘to know their place’ Most days the middle and upper class children saw very little of their parents. The children would spend most of their time in the nursery and would be brought up by their nanny. This information helps me understand insight into a child’s life from an opulent background it shows how the family values in Victorian times were very stringent and the cemetery doesn’t give any evidence of the luxurious wealthy having this sort of background it only shows the extravagance of the graves and this enquiry on the actual rules on family etiquette was something no outsider was expected to know about. Although family values did appear to be harsh a very well-known British painter named William Powell Frith did a very good depiction of how important family was to the average Victorian family. His painting which was produced in 1856 and is named ‘many happy returns of the day’ suggests that Frith’s personal life was happy and yet secretive. It shows that although the household was important to the man of the house this didn’t deter him away from the Victorian hypocrisy. This interpretation of Victorian hypocrisy can be seen in the corner of the painting near the man himself he is seen sat next to another mistress with children from him, this suggests that family values obviously couldn’t have been as important to the husband as he may have made them out to be and scandals such as these were something that should have been avoided at all costs. This exact source regarding values of family in various ways contradicts what the cemetery is trying to display. The source has given me a different sort of understanding that the cemetery doesn’t provide although the burial ground shows one grave with family values it’s the source that shows the true life of Victorians whereas Undercliffe cemetery has a feature that although stands out it doesn’t 100% give accurate evidence of the importance of family values to Victorians. Value 3: Paternalism Many husbands in the Victorian epoch were considered to be paternalists they believed that they were the men of the house and women were seen as inferior ones. This notion of men being the dominant can clearly be seen at the cemetery and it therefore makes it a very distinctive feature. While studying the memorial park I came across two graves in particular one which supported the Victorian value in respects to paternalism but another which totally controverted paternalism. These two people were in fact located on the main avenue in site 3. Firstly Robert Milligan who was a merchant and had been the MP of Bradford had a grave which was mostly dedicated to him and a small memoir regarding his wife, not only did this reveal vanity it also showed how he believed he was the man in charge and how mediocre his wife was compared to him. On the other hand a middle class man who owns the tallest pedestal within the cemetery had decided to put his wife first his name is in fact William Sharp. He was not a paternalist but in fact quite the opposite. Paternalism was a value within the Victorian times that every man governed over, the cemetery corroborates that paternalism was in fact a facet that helps one understand where men were within society. In a more general format the cemetery’s main feature shows that paternalism was the most dominant element of the Victorian life due to the various graves that begin with the husbands or fathers name first. Another source which was observed at the cemetery itself was William sharps grave it gainsays the cemetery as being paternalist as he decided to put his wifes name first. This displays a man who had gone against some ways of how a Victorian had lived, firstly he wasn’t an upper class gentlemen yet he is the one who worked his way to the top. This grave helps me apprehend that not everybody followed all the rules in the Victorian times some people wanted to work in order to be in a higher position in life and didn’t want to feel like they were supposed to be a certain way In order to fit in. Even though being the man in charge, William sharp felt that his wife had the same equal rights as him and that even if he was dominant she was his wife and he loved her. In order to show his affection he may have decided to place her name before his. Paternalism does stand out well in the cemetery and William Sharps grave does indeed provide evidence that some Victorians in terms of paternalism shouldn’t be generalised as not all men believed to be the most dominant in the house. Value 4: Role of Women While studying the site at Undercliffe Cemetery another Victorian value which I believe is a feature of the cemetery that stands out is the role of women, the site shows me that women were considered to be nothing but an ornament for one to admire, the many graves that were at the cemetery began with the husbands name this interpreted that women were seen as sub-standard compared to the males. I researched further into what life was like for genuine Victorian woman and the rights were very appalling. To begin with women weren’t given any suffrage rights, they weren’t given any rights to own property and education for them wasn’t considered important as long as they could get a husband. This Victorian value helps me understand that life for Victorian women was quite limited they were only allowed to do certain things and were considered to be feminine and courteous. An extract from Mrs Beetons book which talks about household management and reinforces the role of women and how they should set a timetable for every aspect of their daily life. She begins by saying ‘As the commander of an army, or the leader of any enterprise, so it is with the mistress of a house’ This woman is trying to explain that although women aren’t superior they still have the command over the house and its their duty to make sure everything is in order. This source helps me understand that during the Victorian times the woman was supposed to keep herself busy and at the same time avoid doing chores or getting involved in business, finance or even politics they were allowed to have social gatherings and plan parties but they weren’t allowed to venture into the world of work. The cemetery shows that women were inferior but it doesn’t give any more information of what women went through during the Victorian times therefore it in some ways supports the cemetery. This value in the Victorian era helps me understand through both the sources and my own research that women did not receive any equality and to some extent the cemetery supports this evidence. In conclusion to all of the above Victorian values in which I have studied I can say that there are many features of Undercliffe Cemetery that support the attributes and many sources that were from that period of time that support and also contradict evidence seen at the cemetery. In my opinion I believe that although the burial ground’s features display Victorian attitudes and values to some extent they are quite inaccurate as they don’t give the full information as the true insight into the Victorian life. Therefore I believe that my own study of the sources and research has helped me understand the features of the cemetery that stand out.

Discussing psychologist perspectives and their use Essay

Cognitive- This approach is portrayed by two theorists; Jean Piaget and George Kelly. This perspective refers to age-related changes in knowledge and acts of knowing plus understanding. Research shows that this approach is the best treatment practised for almost every single disorder, another positive point to this perspective is that it’s really quick with lasting changes; it also helps people become more confident and boost people with learning difficulties self-esteem. It’s also very easy and works for a majority of people. The negatives to this perspective are that it can be seen as non-person centred, it’s not effective for lower functioning clients, and some clinicians feel that it doesn’t address other issues. This can be used in health and social care through helping individuals who misread situations, as this approach mainly helps people with learning difficulties so it can help certain individuals come to terms with some irrational thoughts they may have. Biological- This perspective is about the view of personality that focuses on the way behaviour and personality are influenced by neuro-anatomy, biochemistry, genetics or evolution. This perspective also helps people understand how and why we have a certain diseases. The positives to this approach; the more we know about the brain, the more we should be able to explain how we operate and to understand what makes us ‘tick’. Also the main strength to the biological approach is that chemotherapy, ECT and psychosurgery can be used to treat the symptoms of abnormal behaviour directly and in a very short time. The negatives to this approach are the risk of side effects- e. g. in case of chemotherapy there is the risk that patients may become psychologically and physically dependent on the drugs involved. Symptoms often recur when the treatment stops, so many patients have to be re-admitted to hospital. It also raises serious ethical issues. Other things people look upon as negative is the fact that it’s hard to determine the extent to which genetic inheritance influences behaviour. This perspective can be used in health and social care through the use of developmental norms, this means making sure that a young child is developing properly, so that their behaviour and understanding matches that if their chronological age.