Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Effects of Methods of Waste Management

Question: Examine about the Effects of Methods of Waste Management. Answer: Presentation The changing patterns in the general public have made an alert because of the elevating measures of strong waste creation. Industrialization, urbanization and changing utilization rehearses are danger to squander the executives rehearses in significant urban communities. In the event that strong waste is taken care of fittingly it very well may be of incredible worth. Misbehaviors in dealing with strong waste outcomes to antagonistic impacts both to the earth and human presence. Better strategies for squander the board ought to along these lines be received for a superior future. In the ongoing past, Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, has had extraordinary worries in the expanding pace of ecological debasement. Such is a drawn out impact of delayed poor waste administration rehearses. Industrialization in this city has assumed a significant job in the front referenced outcome (Alam, 2009, p. 1090). Plants used the surface water sources as dumping locales for their non-biodegradable waste items. Water sources have been for since quite a while ago been utilized as canisters for modern waste. At residential level, family units significantly arranged their waste items at close by shrubs or even in the characteristic openings (Pokhrel, 2012, p. 560). These waste items are piece of both food flotsam and jetsam remains and plastic materials. In the urban focuses, the condition has been increasingly unfortunate. Occupants have been either hesitant to paying for private waste assortment administrations or the administrations are questionable. At certain districts the shipping administrations have not been accessible. These untrustworthy behaviors have represented an extraordinary test to the improvement of Kathmandu. This has added to the stepwise loss of the citys scene (Eicher, 2010, p. 367). The well known magnificence of the city has corrupted abundantly. The contamination in the city prove by the tremendous stacks of uncollected waste neither made the city appealing. The efficiency of agrarian land has been influenced contrarily with time because of harm brought about by the strong waste. The personal satisfaction is imperiled by the impacts of poor administration of strong waste. The contamination at the water sources upsets the flourishing of individuals. Messy water builds the helplessness to waterborne infections (Giusti, 2009, 2228). The city is done engaging therefore diminished quantities of voyagers looking to make visits. This brings down the monetary dependability of the city presenting it to catastrophes. Devastation of the beneficial horticultural land calls for speedy activity inability to which the city will wind up depending on food helps from outer sources. Such provokes should be tended to in case the development of the city goes to be a hallucination. End The centrality of compelling strong waste administration practices may not appear to be so much significant except if its belongings are uncovered. The majority should be instructed about waste administration and transportation benefits additionally profited. Authorization of fitting laws and amplification of reusing could likewise be of much assistance. To boost squander reusing, the private division ought to be locked in to ingest valuable waste. References Alam, R., 2009. Age, stockpiling, assortment and transportation of metropolitan strong waste A contextual investigation in the city of Kathmandu, capital of Nepal. Squander Management, 28(6), pp. 1088-1097. Eicher, A., 2010. Squander Management Introduction. Squander Management, 22(4), pp. 367-368. Giusti, L., 2009. An audit of waste administration rehearses and their effect on human wellbeing. Squander Management, 29(8), pp. 2227-2239. Pokhrel, D., 2012. Metropolitan strong waste administration in Nepal: practices and difficulties. Squander Management, 25(5), pp. 555-562.

Saturday, August 22, 2020

A+ Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

A+ - Assignment Example Question 2: In financial matters, the idea of assignment of assets is some of the time connected to effectiveness and value. Effectiveness and value frequently come as opposed to one another and in many occurrences both can't be kept up. There is a distinction of treatment of representatives of cutting edge firms contrasted with those of the diversifying firms. This is on the grounds that the innovative firm representatives are all the more monetarily proficient as their work has more prominent returns. This outcomes in better pay. Then again the profits of different specialists like sales rep or layman is lower contrasted with those at significant level office employments. As in financial aspects individuals incline toward effectiveness as opposed to value the individuals who are increasingly productive get more advantages. Question 3: This is again identified with effectiveness and value. â€Å"Related to the thoughts of effectiveness and value is that of social government assistance and an idea called Pareto productivity, named for the Italian business analyst Vilfredo Pareto. In the event that no reallocation of assets or exchange of products and administration can be made that builds an incentive to some person without any other individual being aggravated off, the circumstance is Pareto efficient.† (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) In this manner, as referenced above by taking into consideration impartial dissemination in certain circumstances there is an opportunity of accomplishing Pareto proficiency as well as expanding the way of life of the individuals. This may thusly build going through and will infuse cash over into the economy. Along these lines, in a whole this is gainful. Question 4: The higher fuel cost involves worry for the legislature. This is on the grounds that it will build costs and create additional swelling and distress. In this manner, the legislature will urge them to purchase half breed care. This should be possible by lessening the tax collection on these half and half vehicles. Including a help cost will likewise be a magnificent advantage. This can be additionally strengthened by expanding tax collection on the gas energized care. As the expenses of those vehicles

Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Essay on Cypop 7 Childrens and Young Peoples S Workforce...

CYPOP 7 – Promote creativity and creative learning in young Children CACHE Level 3 Diploma for the children and young people’s workforce – Jacqueline Monks Analyse the differences between creative learning and creativity. Creative learning is about how children are actively involved in their own learning, where they are given the opportunity to make choices and decisions which develops their problem solving skills and imaginative thinking. It can be achieved through providing a creative environment allowing exploration through play. For example the construction area, where children are given the opportunity to build with different objects and materials, using their imagination. Creativity is about allowing children to explore and†¦show more content†¦In order for children to be creative the environment and the experiences they are exposed to will determine their creative learning and creativity. This is closely linked with cultural approaches and role modelling. Cultural approaches This approach believes that all children can be creative but this will be suppressed if children are not given the opportunity or supported to explore and be creative in their environment. If children are given the opportunity to be creative and explore and supported then they will develop their creative learning and creativity. Role Modelling This approach believes that children will learn from watching and being with adults who are being creative. This means that they need to be shown how to be creative first and watching adults draw and paint, etc. CYPOP 7 – Promote creativity and creative learning in young Children CACHE Level 3 Diploma for the children and young people’s workforce – Jacqueline Monks Explain current theoretical approaches to creativity and creative learning in early childhood. Creativity as a process This approach focuses on creativity as a process and how new ideas emerge. Theorist Graham Wallas proposed a five stage model and focused on the unconscious mind: †¢ Preparation - Initial thoughts about a problem †¢ Incubation - unconsciously thinking about the problem †¢ Intimation - answer within grasp †¢ Insight - conscious awareness of theShow MoreRelatedLearning and Social Care Essay examples30870 Words   |  124 PagesCACHE Qualification Specification CACHE Level 3 Diploma for the Children and Young People’s Workforce (QCF) CACHE Level 3 Diploma for the Children and Young People’s Workforce (QCF) CACHE  © Copyright 2011 All rights reserved worldwide.    Reproduction by approved CACHE centres is permissible for internal use under the following conditions: CACHE has provided this Qualification Specification in Microsoft Word format to enable its Centres to use its content more flexibly within their ownRead MoreLeadership for Health and Social Care and Children65584 Words   |  263 PagesQUALIFICATION HANDBOOK Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care and Children and Young People’s Services (England) (3978-51/52/53/54/55/56) December 2011 Version 2.1 (July 2011) Qualification at a glance Subject area City Guilds number Age group approved Entry requirements Assessment Fast track Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care and Children and Young People’s Services (England) 3978 19+ There are no entry requirements Portfolio of Evidence, Practical

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Early Development of the United States Court System

Article Three of the US Constitution stated: [t]he judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The first actions of the newly created Congress were to pass the Judiciary Act of 1789 that made provisions for the Supreme Court. It said that it would consist of a Chief Justice and five Associate Justices and they would meet in the nations capital. The first Chief Justice appointed by George Washington was John Jay who served from September 26, 1789, to June 29, 1795. The five Associate Justices were John Rutledge, William Cushing, James Wilson, John Blair, and James Iredell. The Judiciary Act of 1789 The Judiciary Act of 1789 additionally stated that the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court would include appellate jurisdiction in larger civil cases and cases in which state courts ruled on federal statutes. Further, the Supreme Court justices were required to serve on the U.S. circuit courts. Part of the reason for this to make sure that judges from the highest court would be involved in the principal trial courts learn about the procedures of the state courts. However, this was often seen as a hardship. Further, in the early years of the Supreme Court, the justices had little control over which cases they heard. It was not until 1891 that they were able to review courses through certiorari and did away with the right of automatic appeal. While the Supreme Court is the highest court in the land, it has limited administrative authority over the federal courts. It wasnt until 1934 that Congress gave it the responsibility for drafting rules of federal procedure. Circuits and Districts The Judiciary Act also marked out the United States into circuits and districts. Three circuit courts were created. One included the Eastern States, the second included the Middle States, and the third was created for the Southern States. Two justices of the Supreme Court were assigned to each of the circuits, and their duty was to periodically go to a city in each state in the circuit and hold a circuit court in combination with the district judge of that state. The point of the circuit courts was to decide cases for most federal criminal cases along with suits between citizens of different states and civil cases brought by the US Government. They also served as appellate courts. The number of Supreme Court justices involved in each circuit court was reduced to one in 1793. As the United States grew, the number of circuit courts and the number of Supreme Court justices grew to ensure that there was one justice for each circuit court. The circuit courts lost the ability to judge on a ppeals with the creation of the US Circuit Court of Appeals in 1891 and was entirely abolished in 1911. Congress created thirteen district courts, one for each state. The district courts were to sit for cases involving admiralty and maritime cases along as some minor civil and criminal cases. The cases had to arise within the individual district to be seen there. Also, the judges were required to live in their district. They were also involved in the circuit courts and often spent more time on their circuit court duties than their district court duties. The president was to create a district attorney in each district. As new states arose, new district courts were established in them, and in some cases, additional district courts were added in larger states. Learn more about the US Federal Court System.

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Proposition 8 Free Essays

Do you believe society should have the ability to determine if same sex partners should marry? Determining your soul partners should be a privilege for all, such as homosexuals, lesbians, gays, bisexuals etc. and not society. Homosexuals are not abnormal humans, so there is no reason to treat them any different, after all they are citizens who oblige to the same jurisdictions. We will write a custom essay sample on Proposition 8 or any similar topic only for you Order Now In the brief article, 8 Is Not Hate: The Meaning of a proposition by Jennifer Roback Morse, Morse explains how marriage is a gender-based institution that attaches mothers and fathers to each other and to their children, but I disagree with her theory of marriage. I believe marriage is based on the love, trust, and the ability to provide for one another. If you were brought into this world as a homosexual then who are you to deny marriage to same sex partners, because although you deny marriage to same sex couples they’re not going to change their beliefs and values just because society does not accept them for who they are. Same sex couples should have the ability to choose their own spouses, without having to deal with ignorant bigots such as those who won’t accept others preferences, because of religious beliefs and values morals. If homosexuals have the same responsibility, consequences, and obligations as straight people then there is no reason to keep marriage away from same sex partner. Being homophobic is having fear of or contempt for lesbians and gays. Proposition 8 is seen as a discriminating proposition towards to gays and lesbians, because same sex couples are judged by almost all who don’t accept their sexual desires. Not only are homosexuals judged but they are also verbally assaulted, physically harmed, and even threatened by homophobic bullies who have hate against same sex couples. I experienced this discrimination and bullying three months ago. I have a co-worker whose name is Rene and that is gay and I got to be good friends with him over the summer. He described how he would go to school and he would have students call him names, and at times physically harm him because of his sexual preference. I asked him when he realized he was gay and he told me he always liked girl accessory for some reason. It’s like if he was born gay so what can he do about it? He is a very confident young man and explained how he wants to marry his boyfriend, so why can’t he choose who to marry his soul mate. I don’t believe anyone should have the ability to decide on other people’s ability to marry, only god can decide that and apparently he doesn’t mind because he put homosexuals into this world so why deny the love they share for each other. If gays/lesbians don’t have ability to decide if straight people could get married then I don’t believe straights should decide who homosexuals should marry. Proposition 8 is denying same-sex partners to marry through civil law then there should be no implementations on the religious side. Morse also describes how, â€Å"The court changed the jurisprudence of sexual orientation discrimination cases, giving same sex-couples the highest level of protection. This means that in contest between religious liberty and sexual orientation discrimination, religious liberty would almost always lose. † (p. 83) Morse is describing how the court ruled over religion because in reality same-sex couples that get married through civil law have nothing to do with religion. If same-sex partners do not get married under religion, then there is no reason for people who believe in religion and marriage as only heterosexual couples to decide if homosexuals have the ability to marry. In the bill of right of the United States the first amendment states how congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting free exercise thereof. If being a homosexual is a free exercise and no law Is made to respect religion, then there shouldn’t be a proposition banning the same- sex marriage, because it is only in the bill of rights to do as you please as long as it’s in the jurisdiction bounds. . Our society is not as tolerant as it used to be, but that doesn’t mean it should be tolerant towards certain issues such as the one on proposition 8. Homosexuals will not stop fighting this issue because marriage is a part of life and if religion does not have anything to do with this issue because they are getting married through the civil law, then let them live just like they let us live. Voting no on proposition eight is what everyone should do not only because it’s the right thing to do but also because in the end they will not turn straight just because society does not let them marry. Same-sex couples will not stop fighting this issue that has to do with their realties and not ours, so let them be. How to cite Proposition 8, Essay examples

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Introduction to business process management - MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Introduction to business process management. Answer: Introduction to Leaders and their role in the organization: Leader 1: Margaret Cushing Meg Whitman is an American business executive, philanthropist and political activist. She is currently serving as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Hewlett Packard Enterprise (Hansen, Ibarra Peyer, 2013). She belongs to New York and graduated from Princeton University and Harvard Business School. She was also the Vice President of Strategic Planning in The Walt Disney Company ("Forbes Welcome", 2018). She also served as the President and chief executive officer of eBay. Her leadership style is of transformational type. Leader 2: John Joseph Fallon is a British business executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer at Pearson PLC. He completed his graduation from the University of Hull in economics, sociology and politics. He started his career as a researcher for the Labour politician then he became the Director of Communication of Pearson. His leadership style describes him as a transactional leader. Organization and its change: Hewlett Packard Hewlett Packard (HP) is a widely known American Information Technology company which has its headquarters in Palo Alto, California (Congdon, 2014). It provides various services to the consumers and a wide variety of software as well as hardware components. The various hardware components produced are printers, digital cameras, scanners, workstations and computers for business and home uses. The organisational change that took place in HP was the increment of employees and streamlining of administrative operations. Thus, the realignment meant to improve the focus of the company on the consumers. The change was transformational and was meant to evolve the fortune of HP. Pearson PLC Pearson PLC is a British multinational publishing and education company. It has its headquarters in London and was founded initially as a construction company. The service provided by the company includes Educational assessment, School management and higher education. The company publishes books, magazine and newspapers. It also includes online study materials, textbooks and latest digital technologies which enhance the scope of learning and understanding. The organizational changes that took place in Pearson were the introduction to reward and recognition which enhanced the employees performance and also played an important role in motivating the employees. Transactional leadership vs. Transformational leadership A transactional leadership is a style that involves rewards for good performance and punishments for not meeting the targets (Clarke, 2013). It basically involves the concept of embedding motivation among the employees. It enhances employees motivation by putting their self interest in the first place. The leader lays great emphasis on the relationship he/ she maintains with the employees. It is best suited for a settled environment and has only one leader. It is mostly focused on planning and execution. A transformational leadership is a style in which the leader incorporates enthusiasm to motivate and inspire his followers (Conchie, 2013). The motivation tool stimulates followers by setting group interest as a priority. The leader gives emphasis on ideals, morals, values and need of the followers. It is best suited for restless environment. It may have more than one leader and is basically focused on innovation. Identifying leadership styles: Transformational Leadership Margaret Cushing Meg Whitman, CEO of Hewlett Packard is considered as a transformational leader because she is focused on inspiring members and team building. She aims on earning trust, respect and confidence of the members such that it becomes easy for the members to adapt the changes incorporated by her. Example: Meg Whitman tends to gain immense trust and respect of the employees by breaking down the wired fences in the parking lot. The fencing created a separate area of parking for the executives and normal employees. The divisions in the office were also omitted. She never engaged herself into lavish offices and always supported her employees. She tried to inspire employees rather than forcing them to work. Transactional Leadership: John Fallon, the CEO of Pearson PLC is considered as a transactional leader since a transaction leadership is meant to provide motivation among the employees in terms of rewards and recognition, thereby ensuring the normal flow of operation in the organization. He also approached the method of involving the employees in decision making so as the employees do not feel neglected. Example: John Fallon decided to pay incentives to the employees whose works would benefit the organization. On the other hand for enhancing the professional skills of the employees he also decided to provide them with web based learning benefits to the employees for a year. Application of Leadership to manage changes in the Organization: Transformational leadership to manage changes in the Hewlett Packard: Meg Whitman the Chief Executive officer of HP, possess the transformational leadership style. She had a clear idea that she was to undertake a company that had suffered huge competitions in the past decade. The major competitors were low cost providers. She bought about a massive change in the production system and also changed the way of selling the software and hardware products. The transformational leadership is a leadership style which gives more attention to values and morals. The main focus is to motivate the employees. She constantly keeps on inspiring the employees for the betterment of the organization by guiding and supporting them. As, transformational leadership incorporates innovation the company dubbed the public cloud. This resulted to be beneficial as it was simple and easy to use. It proved to be an innovation for both the business model and technology. Transactional leadership to manage changes in the Pearson PLC: John Fallon, the CEO of the Pearson PLC has a transactional leadership style. This style involves giving rewards and recognition to employees whose performance enhanced the companys financial status or had good impact on its reputation. This in turn provides the employees motivation for further enhancing their performance. He provided the employees professionally so as to attain good skills. However, he was unable to meet his target, but still he continued to train his employees since he is a goal oriented person, such as to attain the accurate implementation of the target. The employees were provided with good motivation so as to increase their potential as well as efficiency. Incremental change vs. Radical change: Incremental change is a process which refines, modifies and adjusts the condition or the status of the organization through minor changes. These changes are simple changes so are not meant to bring changes to the core. It can also be referred to as first order change. Incremental changes are minor adjustments in the organization (Benn, Dunphy Griffiths, 2014). These are small adjustments in the hierarchies, products, services and processes. On the other hand, Radical changes are those changes that involve extreme changes within the organization (Dumas et al., 2013). They can also be called as transformational change. These huge changes have considerable effects on the function and structure of the organization. The change should be implemented when the employees agree and are satisfied. Organizational Change at Hewlett Packard: The major organizational change that took place in Hewlett Packard with Meg Whitman taking position as the CEO of HP was streamlining of the administrative procedures and employment of new employees in the company. The company also started investing in cloud services. This is considered as a radical change. Organizational change at Pearson PLC: The change that took place in the Pearson PLC is an incremental change as it required slow changes to take place and showed slow success in the organization. The CEO John Fallon introduced type concept of developing the professional skills of the employees by providing free web based learning. Initially, the concept of enhancing the professional skills failed, but later it showed great advantages earning huge amount of revenue to the company. Thus, the incremental change worked in the future and he is still working for the better future of the organization. Incremental change as Radical change and its management by the organization leader: The changes within the organization can be either incremental or radical. This can make significant changes in the performance and techniques of working of the employee. When new employees enter in the organization, they face difficulties in understanding the working culture of the organization. Thus, the higher authorities need to manage these employees. The managers need to change the managing techniques in order to train them, can be the radical change the manager needs to adopt. The manager is aware of the sale division of the products but when new products are introduced can lead to vast change in the managers perception. Meg Whitman divided employees into groups and teams such that it would be easier for them to manage such changes easily. Gradual implementation of Radical Change: It can be accurately said that radical changes can be implemented gradually. One of the reasons behind the relationship between Faxconn and Hewlett Packard was the introduction of Cloud Computing and the changes implemented in it. It is a radical change but was brought to action gradually. The employees were given specific learning access with the assessment of cloud solutions experts, such that it would bring quick customer response. Overcoming Barriers: Barriers faced by Meg Whitman: The various barriers faced by Meg Whitman are mentioned as follows: Growth through Acquisition: The Company is acquiring new technologies and acquiring new human resource is more prone to create challenges to the CEO. The new employees find it difficult to tackle with the harsh decisions of the higher authorities. Even the employees refrain to perform new tasks until they attain confidence in doing so. This leads to financial loss of the company and a major challenge for the CEO. Supervisory Oversight: The new employees required continuous supervision of the higher authorities such that they would attain proper guide. However, if the supervisor due to unavoidable circumstances is unable to supervise the employees, the organization will face difficulties in managing the new employees and thus, create another challenge for the CEO. Criticism faced by Meg Whitman: The CEO of Hewlett Packard (hp) decided to split hp into hp enterprises. This was done basically to involve new employees. The employment of new employees would lead to innovation but it has lead to certain issues in the administration. Thus, the leader faced certain barriers as the organization was not ready to accept the change. Strategies to overcome the barriers: The above stated barriers definitely lead to the hindrance of the proper working of the organization. Thus, it becomes necessary to adopt certain ways to resolve those issues such that the organization does not face problems. Some of the strategies adopted by the CEO of Hewlett Packard Meg Whitman to resolve these issues are listed below: Training: The introduction of new technologies brought greater chaos among the employees as it was difficult for them to get adjusted in the cloud service environment. Thus, training programs needs to be implemented so as to train the employees to gain expertise as well as benefits in the new field (Jehanzeb Bashir, 2013). Survey: The radical changes were not readily accepted by all the employees. Thus, a survey needs to be conducted so as to know the exact count of the employees who accepted the strategy readily. This would also help the leaders to design much proper way of delivering the changes to the employees. Hiring experts in cloud service domain: Hiring more experts from the cloud service domain would help the employees get better training and the aim of implementing better changes in the company. Effecting Change Using Lewins 3-step to manage change: Kurt Lewins Change Management Model defines motivation as a cause of change. He devised change as a 3-step model. The 3-steps consist of Unfreezing, Changing and Refreezing (Hayes, 2014). These 3 steps are required to bring changes in the organization. Unfreezing: This is the first step in the Lewins 3-step model. It lays emphasis on the idea of communicating the changes to the employees and makes the idea acceptable to them and also the methodology. For example, the CEO of hp explained her plan of implementing cloud services in the organization. She also explained how the plan would be beneficial to them as well as the company in the long run. Changing: This is the second step in Lewins 3-step model to manage changes. This step is the transition from the unfreeze stage to freeze stage. In this stage, the employees are reminded of the major reasons behind the changes being implemented. For example, the CEO of Hewlett Packard explained the employees the new opportunities and scope of the change being implemented in the organization such as that of the implementation of the cloud services. The CEO also explained the new options that would arise with the implementation of cloud services. Hence, it lead to change in the notion of employees during the implementation of radical change. Refreezing: This is the final step in the Lewins 3-step model to manage change in the organization. It guarantees that the change is solidified and there should be no revert backs from the new changes. It also makes sure that the employees follow the new guidelines stated and the new plan of action. For example, in the organization sited, Hewlett Packard, in the final stage majority of the employees were satisfied with the implementation of the cloud services in the organization as it provided greater opportunities and also incorporated innovation and it also provided latest web services to the employees. Thus, the change was successful. Kotters 8 stage change model for implementing change in Hewlett Packard: The world renowned change expert John Kotter, gave 8 stage change model for implementing the changes within the organization (Sarayreh, Khudair Barakat, 2013). The 8 steps are mentioned below: Create Urgency Creating urgency is the first stage in Kotters model to implement changes within an organization. Creating urgency is meant to create necessity for the change to be implemented in the organization. It also implies that for a change to be implemented there must a need for such changes and it should be urgent. For example, in the organization cited Hewlett Packard there was no cloud services implemented. The cloud services are in great demand in modern day hence, a change needed to be implemented to such that the company is in accordance with latest technologies. Thus, there was urgency for the change for its implementation and the change was implemented. Formation of Coalition The second stage in the Kotters change model is the formation of coalition. This stage involves the selection of employees having appropriate leadership qualities to perform the task. The major characteristics involved in effective guiding coalition are credibility, confidence, positional power and expertise in decision making. For example, Meg Whitman CEO of Hewlett Packard planned to hire experts in cloud services for better training of the employees. Creating vision for change The third stage is the creation of vision for change which consists of enhancing, developing and improving the vision of employees towards the change that needs to be implemented within the organization. This stage accounts for the following functions: Efficient co-ordination among the employees of different departments. Increased motivation among the employees towards the achievement of vision. Simplified directions to the employees from the leaders. For example, Meg Whitman vision for the betterment of Hewlett Packard was to make it a better product provider and gain maximum profit in the market. Her feasible vision and leadership skills led her achieve her goal and also incorporate cloud services in the organization. Communicate the vision Communicating the vision is the fourth stage in the Kotters Change Model. The leader faces various challenges in communicating his/ her vision to the employees. However, to attain the goal the leader has to overcome these issues. For example, interacting regularly with the employees helped the leaders to communicate new ideas to them. Organising workshops also played a major role in communicating visions of the leader to the employees. Remove Obstacles: The removing of obstacles is the sixth stage of Kotters Change Model. Obstacles lead to hindrance in change model. Hence, obstacles demands to be removed. For example, there were many major barriers that Meg Whitman has to deal with in order to implement the changes in the organization. However, due to her leadership skills she was able to handle those obstacles. Creating short-term wins The sixth stage in the Kotters Change Model is creating short term wins. It basically means to celebrate the small achievements of the employees and in whole the organization. Celebrating small achievements motivates the employees to perform better and work to the maximum potential to achieve the best. For example, Meg Whitman is a transformational leader and she gives more importance to motivation, values and respect. Celebrating small success also is a part of motivating the employees. She divided the sessions into various parts and on completion of the part; the employees were rewarded and congratulated for good performance. This added to the motivation that she used to provide to the employees because of which they thrived to perform even better. Build on the Change The seventh stage of the Kotters Change Model is to build on the change. Building on the change incorporates the execution of the change for some time. It is meant to keep in pace with the change. The implemented change is said to be successful only if it implemented for a certain amount of time. The leader should properly check that the change has been implemented for some time rather than declaring the change to be successful too early. For example, with the implementation of the cloud based service, Meg Whitman set targets for the employees to attain such that the changes are firmly maintained. Anchoring the changes in corporate culture This is the eighth stage in the Kotters Change Model. The final stage incorporates the core idea of daily work environment. The positive change will be recognized by the culture of the organization. For example, the organization Hewlett Packard implemented cloud based services which enhanced the accessing capability of the company and provided better services. The change was implemented successfully. References: Benn, S., Dunphy, D., Griffiths, A. (2014).Organizational change for corporate sustainability. Routledge. Clarke, S. (2013). Safety leadership: A meta?analytic review of transformational and transactional leadership styles as antecedents of safety behaviours.Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology,86(1), 22-49. Conchie, S. M. (2013). Transformational leadership, intrinsic motivation, and trust: a moderated-mediated model of workplace safety.Journal of occupational health psychology,18(2), 198. Congdon, P. T. (2014).U.S. Patent No. 8,826,385. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Dumas, M., La Rosa, M., Mendling, J., Reijers, H. A. (2013). Introduction to business process management. InFundamentals of Business Process Management(pp. 1-31). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Forbes Welcome. (2018).Forbes.com. Retrieved 24 January 2018. Hansen, M. T., Ibarra, H., Peyer, U. (2013). The best-performing CEOs in the world.Harvard Business Review,91(1), 81-95. Hayes, J. (2014).The theory and practice of change management. Palgrave Macmillan. Jehanzeb, K., Bashir, N. A. (2013). Training and development program and its benefits to employee and organization: A conceptual study.European Journal of business and management,5(2). Sarayreh, B. H., Khudair, H., Barakat, E. A. (2013). Comparative study: the Kurt Lewin of change management.International Journal of Computer and Information Technology,2(4), 626-629.

Monday, March 30, 2020

Financial Crisis in Iceland Essay Example

Financial Crisis in Iceland Paper This assignment is part of ECM04 Economics of Capital Markets module on phase 2 in MSc. Finance and Investment at University of Brighton 2008-2009. The assignment is to analyze the Icelandic financial crisis which eventually led to the collapse of the Icelandic banking system and the economy as a whole. In order to analyse the Icelandic financial crisis we will begin to look at the background and what we regard as the causes, look at the consequences and future prospects. In the end we compare the Icelandic financial crisis to a model which Kindleberger covers in his book Manias, Panics and Crashes. Kindleberger (1978) describes financial crisis in the following way: What happens, basically, is that some event changes the economic outlook. New opportunities for profits are seized, and overdone, in ways so closely resembling irrationality as to constitute a mania. Once the excessive character of the upswing is realized, the financial system experiences a sort of distress, in the course of which the rush to reverse the expansion process may become so precipitous as to resemble panic. In the manic phase, people of wealth or credit switch out of money or borrow to buy real or illiquid financial assets. In panic, the reverse movement takes place, from real or financial assets to money, or repayment of debt, with a crash in the prices of commodities, houses buildings, land, stocks, and bonds in short, in whatever has been the subject of the mania. Background Causes European Economic Area Icelandic government control over the economy has reduced over time. The most dominant decision was when Iceland entered the European Economic Area (EEA) in 1994. When Iceland joined the EEA it got access to European markets and adopted European regulations. We will write a custom essay sample on Financial Crisis in Iceland specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Financial Crisis in Iceland specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Financial Crisis in Iceland specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Joining the EEA had a positive impact on the economy, however opening an insular economy to the EEA without significant institutional reforms carried with it dangers. Neither the Icelandic authorities nor private firms were prepared to operate in such an environment. This is especially relevant in the case of banking where the aim of Icelandic government was to build up financial centre in Iceland. To be able to build up financial centre it was very important to join EES in order to have access to European markets and adopt European regulations. This was new experience for Iceland to have the access to foreign capital because for most of the 20th century the economy was heavily regulated. (Dani elsson Zoega, 2009) Free Capital Transfer and Privatization of the Banks In continuance of EEA agreement, Icelandic government decided to privatize the three biggest banks which started 1997 and was fully completed in 2003. The new owners of the banks had little or no experience of international banking, the same applied for the Icelandic government. When Iceland accessed EEA, it faced full freedom in export and import of capital transfer among other things and the new owners of the banks began to expand the old commercial banks into investment banking. The new investment banks could get cheap capital which was easy at that time. Figure 1 shows how foreign debts have increased since Iceland got independent and it is interesting to see how the foreign debts increased dramatically when the banks had been fully privatized in 2003. (i lafssson, 2008) Figure 1: Shows foreign debts of the Icelandic economy gross dept, long term debts and net foreign debts, in proportion of GDP. Source: i lafsson, 2008 Figure 1 illustrates how easy it was to get capital at that time and the new owners of the banks forced ahead on the capital markets to finance their investments abroad. Foreign debts of the Icelandic economy were seven times GDP just four years after privatization of the banks. The study of financial economics teach us that when foreign debts increase enormously, real estate and stock price rise, there is obvious signs of increasing risk of financial crisis. (Kindleberger, 1978) Figure 2: Shows net debts of the national economy year 2005, in multi-national comparison foreign and domestic debts in proportion of GDP. Source: i lafsson, 2008 Immediately in 2005, two years after the privatization of the banks, Iceland had become most indebted OECD country in the world, as can be seen from figure 2 (i lafsson, 2008). According to the picture the situation in Iceland was already worth of criticism in 2005, with net foreign debts around 125% of GDP. (Siguri sson Svavarsson, 2007) The banking expansion was the source of the rapid economic growth that took place between 2003 and 2007. It enabled households and firms to take advantage of the abundance of low-interest funds in international capital markets to finance domestic investment and consumption, as well as the acquisition of domestic and foreign firms. Because the banks got fund in the international wholesale market this was an externally financed boom. The inflow of capital had a predictable effect on the exchange rate, the stock market and the current account as can be seen in table 1 in Appendix B. (Dani elsson Zoega, 2009) Speculation Capitalism in Iceland The objects of speculation will differ from boom to boom and crisis to crisis. The alternative explanation of the un-sober upswing goes back to Irving Fisher, which emphasizes that the real rate of interest was too low. Prices rise on the upswing, while interest rates lag. This implies a fall in the real rate of interest. With real interest rates falling, and profit prospects either rising or steady, rational investors expand. Speculation often develops in two stages. In the first, sober stage of investment, households, firms, investors, or other actors respond to a displacement in a limited and rational way. In the second, capital gains play a dominating role. The first taste is for high interest, but that taste soon becomes secondary. There is a second appetite for large gains to make by selling the principal (Kindleberger, 1978). The Icelandic bubble fits well within the framework of Kindleberger regarding the destabilizing effects of speculative finance. The Icelandic bubble started with the excitement generated by the privatization and deregulation of financial institutions, and appear unlimited access to foreign capital markets at low interest rates. The capital inflows stimulated economic growth, the outlook brightened, further increasing the willingness to borrow. Asset prices started to rise. Euphoria developed, increasingly high-risk borrowers found easy access to capital, risk appetites increased, and firms and individuals started to borrow for speculative reasons. Borrowing on the margin to buy equities became a popular activity. Banks competition for market share intensified and they lent to increasingly high-risk borrowers. A real estate bubble ensued, fuelled by seemingly unlimited bank lending. Many of the largest asset shareholders of the Icelandic banks, was highly leveraged, were facing difficulties. Investigations has detected that largest shareholders resorted to borrowing from their own banks to buy bank stock, with a view to prop up the price. The collateral behind the loans was only the bought bank stocks. In the end, of course, the entire structure collapsed. (Dani elsson Zoega, 2007).

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Poetry Coursework Essays

Poetry Coursework Essays Poetry Coursework Essay Poetry Coursework Essay Love is an important literary tradition, in that it, it has been written about by poets down the ages. Choose at least three love poems you have studied and comment on the different ways in which, the subject has been dealt with.Out of the poems I have studied, I have decided to choose His Coy Mistress written by Andrew Marvell, My Last Duchess written by Robert Browning and finally The Flea written by John Donne. In my essay I will explain what is going on in the poem, what relevance it has to the poet etc. The way the poem is structured and how it is written.Finally I will compare the poems and link them using similar things involved with love etc. Then I will write a final conclusion to the comparisons.The first poem that I am going to discuss is To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell. This is a poem of seduction; the man is trying to persuade his mistress to have sex with him. He starts off by saying how he would treat her if he had all the time in the world. In the first stanza, there is even reference to Noahs Ark, in the line Love you ten years before the Flood. He uses the idea of waiting by saying, Till the conversion of the Jews, my vegetable love shall grow. To people in those times this would be extremely humorous. The man says he would do anything in the world to gain her love. From our point of view it seems the man does not love her, but it is rather a case of lust. He also describes it as being a race to be run or a hard fought battle, giving a more dramatic view on him trying to seduce her. He then praises her in the lines Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze, two hundred to adore each breast, and thirty thousand to the rest. This is a show of praise from the man that is clearly an attempt to impress her by using such adoring phrases.Moving on to the second stanza, he is trying to get the message across to her that they dont have all the time in the world to do these things and that they must do them right at that instant or else time will run out and no one shall experience the mistresss true beauty. At the start of the second verse the lines read And yonder all before us lie, deserts of vast eternity. This stanza includes mostly words that look to the future and what lies ahead for them (the man and his mistress). He gives the indication there is no hope for either of them if they do not have sex. Included in the next few lines of the verse is the image of death. The man is trying to almost frighten the woman by using adjectives or phrases to do with death. This is contained in lines twenty-five to thirty two. An extract from lines twenty-five to twenty six, in which the man says, My echoing song; then worms shall try, that long preserved virginity.This is the strangest thing suggested by the man. He is saying that the woman would lose her virginity to the worms when she is buried after death. This would obviously occur if she did not have sex with him or so the man insists. All in all the man is trying in a way to pers uade her to have sex with him but in a strange way, by trying to frighten her.Moving on to the third stanza, the man is indicating to his mistress that because of all the things he has explained, that they should do what he says. He is telling his mistress in many ways that they should give into their desires and have sex. However later on in the verse he mentions the iron gates of life, this is seen to many of us as the gates of heaven and hell of morality on whether to have sex or not.. Then in the last two lines of the poem he is stating that you cannot stop time, but if you enjoy it goes quicker, another indication to give into their supposed desires.The second poem that Im going to talk about is The Flea which was written by John Donne. This is another poem that is to do with a man wanting to have sex with a woman. In this poem however the couple are soon to be married. He is again trying to persuade his future wife whenever he spots a flea.In the first stanza the man spots th e flea and makes a point that the flea has his blood and her blood in it after biting them and sucking it out. He is making the point that they are one in this flea, so why cant they have sex. He tells her that it is no sin to lose your virginity before marriage. He makes the point that the flea has had more freedom on her body than he has. This is the clear point he is trying to make in the first verse, that they should have sex. He repeats his theory of using the flea to try and persuade her still.He is trying to use the idea of the flea again in the second stanza, he says in the first line of this stanza Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare. What this means is that if she kills the flea it is like killing not only the flea but also both of them. He then continues this theory by saying the flea is a temple of their marriage. We then understand that the womans parents dont approve of the man marrying their daughter. He still goes on about his theory of killing the flea; we begin to think that the woman is getting annoyed with him being so supposedly stupid. We suspect she is going to kill the flea to end this annoying and silly episode. He now starts pleading with her not to kill the flea. He starts off jokingly saying he could kill him by killing the flea and then goes on to say that not only will she be killing the flea and himself but her as well. He says this as if she is really going to kill herself, he also demands that it would be sacrilege to kill this flea for it would kill all three, the flea, him and her.The woman now at the start of the third stanza has actually killed the flea. The man begs the question why have you killed innocent living things meaning the flea, himself and her. He then accuses her of being cruel. He criticises her by saying she is weaker than he is by killing the flea. The man says his hope is pointless as she has now killed him in killing the flea and to some extent that she has broken his spirit.In comparison with the first poem His Coy Mistress it is a similar poem to that, with the men in both poems trying to persuade the woman to have sex with them. Also in both, the man uses things or ways to try and seduce the woman. In His Coy Mistress the man uses many different ways to try and seduce her while in The Flea the man uses a only one way which is plainly and simply the flea. Both poems last word of each line rhymes with the previous line. Most of the lines are also the same length so both poems contain rhyming couplets. We think that in both poems the men are more for lust than love. They are both using strange ways to seduce their woman. Using an unusual object to signify something else, for example the flea used in the poem was known as conceut.The third poem Im going to discuss is called My Last Duchess. Robert Browning wrote this. This poem is an example of a Dramatic monologue. This is a poem about a man who tells woman what to do and when he wants her to do it. This is an example of how socie ty was when this poem was set; the man had a massive empowerment over his wife.At the start it seems that someone is looking at a painting of a duchess. He then starts talking to him about the painting. We guess that this man knows a lot about that duchess that is depicted in the painting. He says it looks as if she where alive, this makes us think that this woman is now dead. This man who is talked about is clearly proud of the painting in what is said in the first few lines.We then begin to learn of the story of an arrogant duke who knows what he likes and gets what he wants, this is down to the fact that he does not admire the beauty of the woman no more but the work of Fra Pandolph who painted the picture. The way the poem is written (involving the poems rhyme scheme) suits the dukes arrogance. The duke talks about how beautiful she looked, wearing one of his many gifts to her. The gift, a broach shows how much affection the duke has for the woman. We learn that the duke is unim pressed with the duchess reaction to the gift he has bought for her. The duchess does not rank his gift.This is the part of the poem where the duke changes his complexion and becomes angry and frustrated with the duchess. He is annoyed with her response to the gift he has given her. The duke says she is cruel to his familys name, he says it is a gift. This is because his family name is well known name in the aristocracy. He continues talking about this by saying his family name is a 900 years old and is a great legacy. The duke is becoming more and more frustrated. The duke now seems to have control of her and almost owns her. This was a common situation for the time the poem was written in as in that society a man controlled what his wife did or didnt do. The duchess again goes against the dukes wishes.The duke now decides to execute the woman as he claims she has no respect for him or his family name. To us this seems cruel and harsh on the lady because all of this has been done a gainst her own will and her right to live. The duke is making a point in executing her by saying you dont cross him or he will punish you severely. The duke is in effect dehumanising her. We learn then that the duke is about to get married again and has added her to his list of possessions etc. He treats her like an object not a human. We then realise what the moral too the poem is. It is that the duke collects his wives like he collects his paintings and makes the point again that the woman is simply just an object and one of the mans possessions.Unlike the other poems the duke demands rather than trying to persuade or seduce the woman like in The Flea or His Coy Mistress. The woman pays the ultimate price for this and is executed. This poem was written more than two centuries later than the other two poems. It also has a rhyme scheme that suits the dukes arrogance because the poem is presented in one big block, with assertive full stops and dominance unlike the other two poems in which the poem is split up into a few stanzas. In My Last Duchess the poem is written as one big verse. But similar to the other two poems it contains rhyming couplets.In conclusion all the poems deal with the situation of a man wanting to have sex with a woman, in all the poems we think the man was more for lust than true love. Some poems describe how society was in the time the poem was written. This is especially so in My Last Duchess. Since these poems were written there is now a better attitude to women than there was a long time ago as depicted in these poems. Women now have greater rights than they used to and when they are married they are not owned by their husband. They have the free right to do what they want. Finally, I think that all these three poems show clearly how much mans attitude to woman has changed over the past centuries. They are no longer married because of money etc. but for love.

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Cash and Working Capital Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Cash and Working Capital - Essay Example These four phases consist of the following management requirements; cash management which is identifying the cash balance available to run the day to day expenses of the business or firm so as to reduce the cash holding costs (Padachi, 2012). Inventory management is identifying the inventory levels that will enable the business to run smoothly without investment in raw materials. This requires the lead times being lowered to reduce Work in Process (WIP) and the finished goods should also be kept as low as possible. This will lead to the reduction of the reordering costs and hence increase cash flow. Debtor’s management this requires identifying the best credit mechanism for the business or the firm. The credit mechanism chosen should be able to attract customers to the firm and also make sure the firm is getting the payments on time from the credit customers. This will be optimized by increasing the revenue thus increasing the Return on Capital. Another aspect of working capit al management is the Short term financing, it is achieved by identifying the most appropriate source of short term funds to run the business this can be achieved through credit granted by the supplier. It may also be necessary to use a bank loan or an overdraft (Banos-Caballera, 2010). The working capital cycle phases require short-term decisions. ... This normally refers to the time which the firm’s money is tied up in operations and therefore working capital phase normally aims at making sure the time is as short as possible (Block-Hirt, 2008). The primary sources of short term funds Short term funds refer to money needed to run the company in a period of less than a year. They are normally used for the day to day running of the business or firm. There are a number of short term funds available to a company which require different levels of interest rate expenses, collateral and personal guarantees. This is required to provide working capital. The short term funds are used for purchasing of raw materials or finished inventories, payment of wages, salaries and other short term expenses (Brealey, 2002). The three primary sources of short term finance include trade credit, which is normally gotten from the suppliers. It is a loan in the form of goods and inventory. The credit time period is normally 15 days to 3 months and t his is normally granted on the basis of good will of the purchaser. This credit facility is given buy a supplier to the buyer of goods and by a whole seller to a retailer. When the time limit is reached the credit should be paid lack of payment can lead to seizing of the goods in the inventory (Block-Hirt, 2008). Another major source of short term loans and advances is from the commercial banks. This are mainly in the form of bank overdraft from the bank which the business has an account in. the overdraft allows the business to withdraw from its current account exceeding the available cash balance. The business is charged an interest rate that is based on the amount overdrawn and the length of time overdrawn (Cleverley, 2011). The advantage of

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

How to Replace the LCD Screen in a Laptop Assignment

How to Replace the LCD Screen in a Laptop - Assignment Example The manual also enable the technician to understand how the system works. This manual outlines the steps followed when changing a laptop LCD screen. The first part gives instruction on how to remove the LCD screen while the second part shows how to assemble the laptop This is the first and the most important step. Different manufacturers have different methods of assembling the LCD screen. It is necessary to go through the laptop manual to identify the requirement for opening the laptop and its internal structure. Before opening the laptop, all the power cables should be disconnected. This prevents the risk of shock and also prevents the computer from short circuit which damages the mother board, the processor and other gadgets. Remove the laptop battery, this battery is located at the side where the LCD screen is hinged to the main laptop body. Removing the battery ensures no damage of the delicate electronic circuitry of the laptop. Remove the rubber seals at the all the sides of the laptop screen. These rubber seals can be identified readily as they are in the form of rubber projection. In some laptop designs, countersunk bolts are used without a rubber seal cover. These bolts can be seen by carefully observing the edges. Removing the seal exposes the bolts. A sharp object is used to remove the seals. Figure 2 showing the removal of the rubber seals. ... 7 July 2009 http://www.fonerbooks.com/laptop_6.htm ) (D)Remove the rubber seal Remove the rubber seals at the all the sides of the laptop screen. These rubber seals can be identified readily as they are in the form of rubber projection. In some laptop designs, countersunk bolts are used without a rubber seal cover. These bolts can be seen by carefully observing the edges. Removing the seal exposes the bolts. A sharp object is used to remove the seals. Figure 2 showing the removal of the rubber seals. (Adapted from Fona Books. Dell Laptop Screen Repair - Illustrated how to replace a Latitude notebook backlight and LCD. 2009 7 July 2009 http://www.fonerbooks.com/laptop_6.htm ) (E) Unscrew the bolts Unscrew the exposed bolt. Use a Phillips 'star' screw driver. Keep the bolts in a safe place as they will be used when the set is reassembled. It is important to check position of each screw as some are not the same size. Picture 3 showing unscrewing of the bolts during laptop repair (Adapted from: Fona Books. Replacing LCD Laptop Screen - Illustrated how to replace a laptop screen on PowerBook 180.2009. 7 July 2009 http://www.fonerbooks.com/laptop_6.htm ) (G)Remove the front and side seals Adapted from: Fona Books. Replacing LCD Laptop Screen - Illustrated how to replace a laptop screen on PowerBook 180.2009. 7 July 2009 http://www.fonerbooks.com/laptop_6.htm Remove the side seal; this exposes more bolts, again take note of the bolts positions. Different bolts used have differing lengths and thread types. (H)Removing the LCD bezel Remove the LCD bezel. Do this by wriggling the bezel so that it is released by the latches. Latches are made of plastic. Unhook the bezel from latches

Monday, January 27, 2020

Comparison between hmv and itunes stores

Comparison between hmv and itunes stores Introduction: In the past 10 years the internet or e-technology has altered how the industries operate. More affected by the new technology is the music and video industry later the book industry with eBooks. Traditionally consumers have purchased music, video or a book from a store. If it is a music or a video it is bought on CD / DVD and but with the internet came new ways of getting digital content. Apple has launched ITunes for delivery of digital content directly to the consumer, with no physical presence. HMV is using a mixed strategy of maintain a physical store as well as having a website for selling the digital content but the delivery is through shipment of CD/ DVDs. They both operate under the same model B2C. But they have different ways of delivering the goods / services to customer. HMV HMV is the UK and Irelands leading specialist retailer of Music, DVD/Video, Computer Games and Related Products. The company operates around 200 stores in key shopping locations nationwide, equating to over 1million sq. ft. of trading space, as well as a successful online store at www.hmv.co.uk, operated by HMV Guernsey1. HMV sells content in physical from and operates in physical as well as virtual space. ITunes Store The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple Inc. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase; it was as of April 2008 the number-one music vendor in the United States. As of January 2009, the store has sold 6 billion songs, accounting for 70% of worldwide online digital music sales and making the service the largest legal music retailer. As of Sep 2009 the sales of ITunes are 8.5 billion songs, 1+ million HD movies and TV episodes, 2 billion apps with a combines revenue of $ 6.7 Billion 2 . ITunes sells digital content and has virtual presence only. SWOT Analysis: HMV Strengths: * Has both online and physical store presence. Customer can access any of the 2 ways to interact with HMV. * Can sell any item MUSIC/ DVD/ GAMES, no need for any arrangement with HMV. * Can deliver physical items like gaming consoles, posters/ cards etc. Weakness: * Cannot sell individual items in music albums or individual episodes in TV shows. * Not available all the time (except online, which requires shipping of product) Opportunity: The opportunity for stores lies in enhancing the customer experience at the stores. Threat: The physical stores are fast losing significance; the rivals like Zavvi, Woolworths have closed most of their physical stores. Becoming obsolete is the threat faced by the stores of HMV. Itunes: Strengths: * Suits the needs of the current generation. * Content is immediately available for consumption. * Available anytime and anywhere. * It is backed by one of the best companies in the tech world, Apple. Weakness: * Can sell only the products like music that it has been agreement with companies and is authorized to sell. * Cannot sell and deliver online physical items like posters/ cards etc. * Cannot sell items that are huge in size in terms of memory. Games DVDs are usually of a size of 4 Giga Bytes or more and are difficult to download online. * Not available in all the countries. Opportunity: The opportunities lie in expanding into other segments of digital content like eBooks. The Ibooks which is a past of iStore is planning to sell eBooks directly to the customer. Threat: The model of ITunes is easily replicable. The threat is from rivals like Amazon and HMV who want to sell digital music to sell directly to customers same way as ITunes does now. SLEPT Analysis Before creating any business strategy or while evaluating an existing strategy it is extremely important to scan the external environment. SLEPT analysis is an investigation of the Social, Legal, Economic, Political, and Technological influences on a business3. Social: The changing demography of the people will have an impact on the business. The social changes can be psychological, demographical etc. The psychological change that is witnessed is the need for making things happen fast. People do not want to wait for placing an order and waiting to receive it by post. Most of the music albums have one or two hot songs and todays consumers are not willing to pay for the entire album. They want to pay only for the songs they like. Legal: Since the advent of new technology the music industry has been losing its revenue. The illegal file sharing has eaten into the revenues of music companies. Music companies have been suing the file sharing sites like Napster and more recently the piratebay. Even the individuals are sued by the industry; Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has successfully sued a Minnesota woman for copy right infringement and illegal file sharing4. Legal battles resulted in buying of digital content by the consumers. The legal issues lead to the online stores like ITunes that sell music legally online. Legal structure is well in place to support the business of ITunes and HMV. Economical Economy and business cycles affect the business. We are in the middle of an economic recession. Customers will be counting every penny they spend. The most the costs associated with dealing a company the more the customers shy away from that company. HMV: The costs associated with purchasing content from HMV are far more compared to buying music from iTunes. Customer needs to visit a store, browse through a variety of catalogues before zeroing on the music / video to buy. This involves time and travel cost. ITunes: customer can access iTunes by sitting in their homes. Carry the music with them in an iPod. Buying a single song instead of buying an entire album is always cheaper. Political Political changes are related to the influence that government has upon the industry. The political changes usually do not affect much the entertainment industry. In rare cases the governments may feel that some music / video content may be decided to be inappropriate for their country or will hurt the sentiments of the people. They ban the particular content from distribution and delivery. Technological: If there is any singular factor that changed the dynamics of an music industry, it is technology. With the ubiquitous internet, people are able to share digital content freely, which includes music, videos etc. Technology also facilitated the illegal copying and distribution of music and video. Technology also deintermetized the content delivery. As the music is directly delivered to the consumers there is no need for the manufacturers or suppliers of CDs/ DVDs. Technology made it possible to carry the content with us in our IPods, Laptops, Phone etc. Digital content everywhere and on any device is the MANTRA of technology. Companies that fast adapt to this tsunami of technology changes survive while others perish. BCG MATRIX: Boston Consulting Group (BCG) MATRIX is developed by BRUCE HENDERSON of the BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP IN THE EARLY 1970s. According to this technique, businesses or products are classified as low or high performers depending upon their market growth rate and relative market share ITunes: Growth: The Itunes is the undisputed star in the BCG matrix . Between 2000 and 2009 the population using internet has become 1.7 billion from 360 million5. High internet users mean high growth potential for the itunes. Cashflows: Itunes revenues are steadily increasing every year. Strategy: The strategy to be adopted for stars is to hold or invest for growth. Apple is investing in ITunes store by adding app store, which sells games and applications for mobile and computers. With the launch of Ipad Apple is adding the fastest growing segment , eBooks to iTunes , calling it as iBook store as a part of Itunes. HMV: Growth: The growth of the HMV stores has been moderate and better. The increase in sales also partly due to the demise of its closest rivals like Zavvi , Woolworths6. Cashflows: The cash flows for the physical stores are steady but not exactly encouraging. The online stores sales are increasing, hmv.com grew by 16% and waterstones.com grew by a phenomenal 60%7. Strategy: The recommended strategy is to hold or add market share. The company is losing sales as well as sales in the physical stores domain but is growing in the online space. That is why HMV is launching its own delivery of music and other content through direct download from its own website. Shopping Experience: The shopping experience is diametrically different for both HMV and itunes HMV Customer has 2 ways of interacting with HMV. A physical store visit and through online at the website of HMV for purchasing content. its own web site, which operates a sales model of e business. Customer can walk into the HMV stores, touch and feel the products and buy them. This is required especially while buying products like cards and posters. They can seek assistance from the store assistants, whenever they need it. When a customer visits the website www.hmv.com he can buy CDs that are delivered to him by post. When a customer buys any product directly from the store he can use it immediately, but when ordered online using the stores, he needs to wait till he receives the product by post to start using the product. The payment methods are cash or card for physical store payments and only through cards for online payment. ITunes To be a part of ITunes customers need the following: 1. A computer 2. Access to Internet 3. Download iTunes software 4. Have credit / Debit card 5. Error free internet connection. Customers are connected virtually. Customers can search the item they are looking for in no time. Customers can buy the item and start using them immediately, no need to wait for any shipment to arrive. The payment method is only through cards and NO CASH payments. Pricing of goods: HMV: The pricing of goods is entirely dependent on the content (CD/ DVD) that customer is going to buy. Music is sold through albums and the price is fixed per album. The individual items in a Music album or individual episodes in a TV show are not available for purchase. ITunes: The items are sold as bundled products like albums or sold separately as individual items. For example a customer wanting to buy music has an option of buying the complete album or individual songs in the album. Return Procedures: HMV The return policy is dependent on the kind of product purchased. Unwanted, damaged and incorrect or faulty items can be returned to HMV and customer can get a refund or get a damaged item replaced. ITunes When shopping with the iTunes Store, all sales are final. The customer needs to decide what are the items he wishes to buy and add them to the shopping cart. As soon as he clicks the BUY button, the purchases are charged to his account. The money is taken from his debit or credit card account. Once the order is placed there is no way a customer can cancel the order or get a refund. It is the responsibility of the customer to check for compatibility of the items purchased. Type of technology for website: HMV: The technology used by the HMV is * A browser interface for content viewing, no need to for any software (like iTunes). Anyone can view the content with the help of popular browsers like IE, Firefox or Chrome. * Order acceptance via website. No user account needed for buying items from HMV.com * Handles acknowledgement of payment and shipment delivery details for the order ITunes: The technology used by ITunes is Apple proprietary. Items are not sold through a web browser interface like other ecommerce sites. Anyone wanting to access ITunes need to download the software from APPLE and all the actions are through the software. The ITunes comprises of: * An interface for viewing the music/ video catalogs * An order processing system via iTunes account and credit card/ debit card * A delivery system via download from iTunes. ITunes restricts the sale of digital content to those people who are not having iTunes software. HMV and ITunes and E-Business Ladder Technology has changed the way the business happens. E-business is any process that a business organization conducts over computer-mediated network channels. Business organizations include any for-profit, governmental, or non-profit entity. Examples of these processes are on-line purchasing, on-line sales, on-line logistics, customer support, employee training and recruiting, and vendor-managed inventory, production design and control 8. The e business ladder is the ladder that shows where the organization stands with respect to what is possible to achieve in terms of available technology. The ladder shows how effectively the organization is using the advantage of technology and has integrated with business strategy. We will see where HMV and ITunes stand with respect to e -business ladder model of Cisco e-Adoption Ladder (DTI, 2000) HMV needs to move up the ladder to compete with Itunes. HMV is making moves towards this. HMV is adding another business dimension to its website www.hmv.com. The new delivery channel is by means of downloads directly from the website of HMV. This is currently under construction and will be available soon9. Which means HMV is moving up the ladder from just taking orders online and processing them offline to accepting orders and delivering through internet. ITunes is at the top of the ladder. It has tie ups with all leading content providers (music production companies, TV studios, movie producers etc). The customers just need to visit iTunes store to buy any content. This is a seamless integration of suppliers and buyers by iTunes acting as a intermediary facilitating B2C transactions. Emerging Technologies in e-business The emerging technologies that can be used for e-business are * Cloud computing * Mobile computing. ITunes has already made inroads into mobile computing by offering iTunes in its iphone. But iTunes is available only for iPhones. HMV can use the other platforms for mobile computing like Android from Google, Windows Mobile from Microsoft for building applications to sell content on mobiles. Cloud computing is the area that both iTunes and HMV needs to explore. The current business model is delivering the content to the customer by means of download or physical delivery of CD/DVD. Apple restricts the number of machines that can play the content that is downloaded from iTunes. We cannot play the content on more than 5 machines and those machines need to be authorized using the users iTunes account. With cloud computing the content is not necessarily delivered but it can be accessed from anywhere when connected to internet. A customer who buys a music album or songs need not download it to his computer but can access from anywhere and from any computer or any device, say , mobile. Cloud computing is possible only when the connectivity is always established with internet, which is not impossible in near future. How can HMV and ITunes increase market share HMV 1. Showing growth in the existing websites which is possible by new offerings like making downloads available 2. Introducing new product range like selling e readers and new gaming hardware like DSI 3. Introducing loyalty cards. 4. Strong tie up and product sharing with group company Waterstones for selling books and eBooks. 5. Live ticketing , HMV wants to sell tickets for events of the artists along with albums. 6. Starting Pay to Play gaming centers as the new gaming fever catches up across all age groups for games like Call of Duty. ITunes 1. Make it accessible to more people, via browser interface. 2. Make eBooks available 3. Remove the restrictions on the usage of the content bought from iTunes. Conclusion There are valuable lessons to be learnt from the strategy and models adopted by HMV and ITunes. Companies need to be aware of the forces that affect their business including competitors, customers, technology, suppliers, and at times most importantly new entrants into the market. The ITunes has once again proved that, the how ever dominant is the firm in the market it is never safe. Companies must be aware of the technological circumstances that surround the business in order to be on the cutting edge of new developments in the market. New entrants must also be aware of the technology that can give them the advantage over firms that are already dominating the market. Disintermediation is one important way that firms can use technology to streamline production and increase profits. And most importantly, a firm must never become complacent; they must always be on the lookout for new markets in which to expand. References http://hmv.com/hmvweb/navigate.do?pPageID=1083 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITunes_Store http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/theory/theoryslept-analysis235.php http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/business/69220.html?wlc=1264844838 http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm http://www.moneyweek.com/news-and-charts/company-news/rivals-demise-boosts-hmv-100114-0729-31157.aspx www.hmv.com www.census.gov/econ/estats/papers/digitalecon.pdf http://hmv.com/hmvweb/navigate.do?pPageID=1530

Sunday, January 19, 2020

British Telecommunications and the Drivers of Globalization

Globalization is a phenomenon most often discussed among economists. Most of us have often heard that business is no longer restrained by political or cultural boundaries. Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) expand with little regards of geographical or cultural distance among their target markets. All decisions within a company are made with the additional consideration of how the international world will affect the results of that decision, a factor that most businesses ignored in some earlier decades.As indicated above, discussions about globalization are mostly about its effects toward the business environment, rather than its causes. Companies are more interested toward how a phenomenon will affect their financial conditions rather than where or what the phenomenon is actually coming form. Within this paper however, I will discuss several drivers of globalization. The drivers will be taken from various perspectives about globalization. To provide more connection to the internationa l business environment, we will use the British Telecom, one of the most successful MNEs in the global communication industry, as a reference to help define and justify the drivers of globalization.Furthermore, this paper will discuss the view of whether MNEs are actually competing globally or only regionally. There are arguments among scholars that the global economy do not actually existed. Globalization has taken us through national boundaries but it stopped in regional limits. In other terms, MNEs are not actually operating with global factors within their considerations, but rather regional factors. This view will be examined as we discuss the development of British Telecom.I. Literature ReviewII.1Corporations as Principle DriversAccording to Ron Blackwell (2002), corporations are the principle drivers of globalization. In the process of increasing their market share, corporations found that they need to expand further that their national boundaries allowed. While rapidly inter nationalizing their operations, most corporations fundamentally altered their structure and strategies, boosting the change of their national economy into a more globalize economy.This phenomena might not be observable in the US or European soil, because the process of corporations breaking through national boundaries have occurred several decades ago. However, the phenomenons are still happening today within the Asian and other developing economies. Economist have long predicted that Asia will be the center of massive economic growth in the near future, and the prophecy is fulfilled as China and India are increasingly integrated to the global economy.II.2Political, Technological and Social ConditionsIII.2.1 Market Oriented-PoliciesBeside the principle factor mentioned above, many arguments brought forward other causes of globalization. One of the popular ones is the influence of market-oriented policies. In China for example, the change of governmental policies regarding foreign in vestment and trade was the greatest factor that supported growth of the economy. Several decades ago, China was a country considered to have a ‘closed economy’. Today, the country is the largest recipient of the world’s Foreign Direct Investment and recognized as the most potential market in Asia (Diaz, 2001).III.2.2 Communication and Transportation TechnologyTechnological changes have also contributed to the process of turning the world into a single global economy. The internet spawned the e-commerce, which displayed a tremendous increase in its role in business and trade. As people in modern countries crave the ease of trade provided by the internet, the growth of e-commerce is predicted to last indefinitely. Furthermore, advanced transportation equipment also has a significant role in accelerating the globalization process.II.2.3  Ã‚   Global PhenomenaSocial conditions that supported globalization process consist of several important phenomena. One of those phenomena is the end of the cold war. The reduction of conflicts causes competitive environment for business development and population growth. It was recorded that the number of people on the planet is more than doubled since the 1960’s (Kohl, 2000). Both the reduction of conflicts and the increasing population created more economic, social and environmental linkages, which in the end, spawned globalization. Further analysis and identification of the drivers of globalization will be performed using the British Telecom plc.II. British TelecommunicationsIII.1  Ã‚  Ã‚   Corporate BackgroundBritish Telecommunication Plc is responsible for approximately 25 million telephone lines in the United Kingdom. The company is an international corporation which own and runs most of the telephone exchanges, trunk network and local loop connections for the vast majority of British fixed line telephones. The company, British Telecom is formed in 1981 and has developed itself into five larg e business divisions today, they are: BT Retail, BT Wholesale, Openreach, BT Global Services, BT Exact/One IT. The divisions provide communication services ranging from retailing telecoms to consumers to research & development and consultancy.There are several reasons why the observation on British Telecom is connected to the study of globalization and considered interesting by many. First, the UK telecommunication market was among the first telecommunication market that was deregulated in the early 1980’s. Several of the most influential regulatory innovations, like the price cap regulation was also developed and first implemented in UK telecommunications. Second, the British telecom was the first communication company in the world that was privatized in the early 1980’s. Third, because the UK telecommunication market was the first to be exposed to public interference, communication within the industry is ten years ahead of other European countries.III.2 Corporate Int ernationalizationIII.2.1 Role of Government PolicyAccording to the theories mentioned in the second chapter, there are several drivers of globalization with different emphasize on their significance. Generally, economists acknowledge that companies are the strongest driver of globalization and its processes. Despite the fact that this statement might be true for most MNE’s, regarding the British Telecom, I found that governmental policies are the most influential factor comparatively.Before its privatization in 1984, the British Telecom was granted the right for a monopoly over the fixed line network operations. This boosted the development of the company long enough to provide itself with strong infrastructure to face competitions. Having a major early start at the game, since its privatization, the company has been known as one of the strongest companies in UK. Government monopoly policies which then followed by the market oriented policies helped brought the company to its current position as a market leader in communication (Summanen, 2002).II.2.2  Ã‚   The Role of Corporate ExpansionThe second largest factor, which I believe was the effort within the corporation itself, came in some time after the company was privatized. In 1993, the company announced a joint global alliance through a new joint venture company. This new company is considered as the bridge which leads British Telecom into leading the global telecommunications operator. In order to expand the business by obtaining multinational clients, BT formed and acquired stakes of several joint venture companies overseas. Some of them were Albacom in Italy, Viag Interkom in Germany, Telenordia in Sweden, Dacom in Korea, etc. All of this was performed after there is a leadership change from Sir George Jefferson to Sir Iain Vallance as chairman of the group. This displayed the tremendous role of managerial decisions in the process of BT’s internationalization (Summanen, 2002).II.2.3  Ã‚   Role of Technology and Social FactorsThe changing culture and the increasingly rapid growth of the economy boosted telecommunication business. The 2001residential fixed telephone volumes were recorded to double as much as it was in 1996. Within the same period, local call volumes decreased and national and international call volumes increased. Furthermore, the role of technology in the development of British Telecom can be observed through the statistics also. From 1997 to 2001, calls to mobiles have been recorder to increase tremendously. This increase continues until today (Summanen, 2002).II.2.4  Ã‚   Competing GloballyIn terms of strategic market share, the British Telecom displayed a global approach throughout its lines of business. BT’s overseas activity targets were set to various markets in the world, divided into three segments: the North America market, the Mainland Europe market and the Asia-Pacific region. In North America, the company partnered with MCI to s upport growth. The largest focus is still in its home market and the mainland Europe using its core brands and the market Asia-Pacific region is still being developed (Sumanen, 2002).BibliographyBlackwell, Ron. 2005. ‘Hearing before the US-China Economi ad Security Review Commission Regarding Corporate Globalization Strategies China and the Future of Globalization’.Diaz-Bonilla, E and S Robinson eds. 2001. ‘Shaping Globalization for Poverty Alleviation and Food Security’. 2020 Vision Focus * Washington, D.CKohl, R and K, Orourke. 2000. ‘Whats new About Globalization: Implications for Income Inequality in Developing Countries’ Paper for Organizations for Economic Cooperation and Development Conference on’ Poverty and Income Inequality in Developing Countries’ Paris.Summanen, Tuamo. 2002. ‘British Telecom: Searching for a Winning Strategy’. Available at: msl1.mit.edu/CMI/furd_2002_a/btcase.pdf

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Psychology and Christianity Integration Paper Essay

Psychology and Christianity: two subjects that have seem to become almost impossible to talk about hand in hand. Psychology has become one completely different subject than Christianity (theology) and both have lost all contact with the other. Psychology is strictly a science and Christianity is solely based on faith and religion and the two can not be integrated together. The real question is why? Why can’t psychology and Christianity be integrated and used together as one? This paper will give some dictionary definitions of both subjects, will provide definitions based on the authors opinion, and will discuss the authors viewpoint on the integration of the two. The American Heritage dictionary defines psychology as â€Å"the science that deals with mental processes and behavior† (American Heritage Dictionary, 2000) and defines Christianity as â€Å"the Christian religion, founded on the life and teachings of Jesus† (American Heritage Dictionary, 2000). As you could see, both definitions used the words science and religion placing both subjects in their own categories. In modern days, religion and science can not be compared but rather contrasted. The integration of the two does not make sense for those who believe there should be empirical evidence for everything or people who are dependent on the Christian religion and this is where society runs into a problem. The author of this paper, however, believes there should be no problem integrating the two. In her eyes, psychology is the study of the mind and behavior, not necessarily a science but more a study. She does not use the word science because she understands that there are things in the field of psychology that have no empirical answer and therefore can not necessarily be a science, because all things science can be tested and proved. Being a Christian, she believes Christianity is a name for the faith in her Lord Jesus Christ. Because she is a Christian, her window to the world has been shaped through the Word,  her experience and what she knows to be true. In her eyes, God is the creator of the Earth and the Heavens and all things work because of Him. She believes that all things can be integrated with Christianity (theology) because God brought everything to this world. She has confidence in the fact that psychology and Christianity can be integrated. She sees the faults that can come of it but she also does not see a reason for complete separation. According to the American Heritage Dictionary (2000) defines integration as making something a whole, unifying different things as one. The author of this paper understands the integration of psychology and Christianity like this†¦psychology is the head (mind) and Christianity is the heart (soul) but neither one can work without the other. Because of the progression of the world, with technology, science and the need to prove all things empirically, faith has, in a way, been pushed away and not as important, but this is wrong. God is the one that has placed people on this Earth to provide progression and advances and without Him all things would not be possible. So, in order to fully understand these different non-theological subjects it is important to understand that faith and religion are the reason for all other subjects and that integration is actually completely necessary. But there are limitations to this. The advances of science and technology have molded the human mind into thinking that there is a need for proof because are very few things that cannot be proven and why would believe in something that cannot be proven when there are so many things that have been empirically proven? This is where the idea of integration gets messy because there is no experiential way to prove the existence of God and his all-mighty power. But this argument can be debated even further. Let’s take a peek at the idea of the unconscious mind. Clearly this is a psychology topic but why can’t it be related to faith because indeed the unconscious mind has not been completely proven. There is proof that there is such thing as the unconscious but no tangible proof of what goes on and what controls the unconscious. For example, there is no way to prove or disprove the topic of ones dream. A scientist can set someone up to an EEG and measure their brainwaves while they are dreaming but there is no way to prove or measure the content of  their dream. This is much like faith. One can be tested on the existence of their faith and religion but there is no true way of proving it; but there is also no true way of disproving it. So what now? Well in the eyes of the author there is no answer. Either you believe in the possibility of integration or you do not, and a majority of people who do have had an experience that has allowed them to see the true importance of said integration. The other problem that arises with integration is that some Christians are overly explicit with their beliefs. This is bad because people, in these days, are afraid of explicit people so these type of Christians are shut out by people in the scientific realm, because yes God created science but for those that do not understand that going after it in that way turns them off. Psychology has its domains and Christianity has its domains but there is some overlap†¦it is when to approach that overlap that gets messy. There is also the secular stand of â€Å"Christians being hypocrites.† There is a chance that psychology and Christianity have become so separated because some Christians do not want to be judged by other Christians. Back in the day, Christians would go to their pastors for help but now, because of fear of judgement, Christians want an outside view, a psychologist. Now, in this context, it is hard for integration. But this is not what integration needs to mean. Integration is simply unifying two things as one. Understanding that God created the Earth and the Heavens and that all things are made and work in God’s power allows for integration to happen.   So what do we need to do? Do we need to come up with both a psychological and theological definition for integration? No. We simply need to come to the conclusion that Christians will believe in Christian ways and scientists will believe in scientific ways and how both understand integration will be dependent on each individuals life, experience and truth. Because on both ends of the spectrum, there are unanswered questions and there will always be unanswered questions. Questions like who is God? what is sin? how do we measure God’s truth? who says Scripture is true? what does faith look like? what is the unconscious? how do we measure the content of dreams? how do we  measure the idea of â€Å"seeing the light?† These are all important questions but questions that without extreme progression and world advances will not be answered. That type of progression will not exist in the lifetime of this author so what she has concluded is that God created the world and the Heavens and that he creates all things in it. Therefore, in order for science to work, in order for psychology to work, there must be an acceptance of it being God’s world. Because if there is no God, there were did all this stuff come from?