Alcoholism-Nature Or Nuture Essays - Drinking Culture,

Alcoholism-Nature Or Nuture? INTRODUCTION: Alcoholism can affect anyone. It has enormous costs as it pertains to societies, families, and individuals. It is not prejudicial towards any race, color, sex, religion, or economic level. Although we do have ideas as to what alcoholism is, what we do not know is the exact cause(s) of this problem. Researchers are continually seeking answers to the long-standing nature versus nurture debate. Different views are split between a biological paradigm and a physchological paradigm. No one explanation seems to be better than another is. I will present views of the effects alcoholism has on society and an insight to the factors that serve to fuel the nature or nurture debate concerning alcohol abuse and alcoholism. STATISTICS: The abuse of alcohol alone is estimated at $144.1 billion dollars annually. Every man, woman and child in America pays nearly $1,000 a year to cover the costs of unnecessary health care, auto accidents, crime and lost of productivity resulting from alcohol abuse. Alcohol deaths account for approximately five percent of all deaths occurring in the United States. Alcohol is considered to be one of the most widely used drugs as it attacks the central nervous system. Two-thirds of all adults drink alcohol; one-third of those are under the age of eighteen. The term alcoholic is commonly used to refer to a person who is severely dependent on alcohol as a result of their drinking pattern. Not everyone with an alcohol problem becomes an alcoholic. If this is true then what differentiates the social drinker from the alcoholic? A novice explanation would be that social drinkers do not experience problems when they drink, however alcoholics develop a physical dependence on alcohol and lack control over how much they drink and what happens when they drink, resulting in social problems. Can it be this simple? Why doesn't a person just stop drinking when they notice that their lives are in a downward spiral? It has taken society and the medical community a long time to consider alcoholism as a disease. This may be in part because alcohol is used primarily for recreational or social purposes and is not viewed as something that cannot be controlled. CULTURAL: Styles of drinking and attitudes toward alcohol vary across cultures. In cultural groups such as the Chinese, Greeks and Italians, drinking are maintained by social customs. Children are introduced to alcohol at an early age, but are not associated with masculinity or social power. The abuse of alcohol is looked upon with strong disapproval. Conversely the American experience is just the opposite. In colonial America habitual drunkenness was not considered to be an uncontrollable disease. In those days drinking was a social activity that took place in a close-knit family environment. But during the early 1800s drinking moved into the male dominated saloons and alcohol became a symbol of masculine independence and violence. At this point, the rates of alcoholism began to increase dramatically. This was the first sign of what was to become 19th century America's view that habitual drinkers were unable to control their drinking. These early warnings would eventually lead to al coholism being recognized as a disease. ABUSE OR ADDICTION? Several studies have confirmed that some chronic drinkers can still maintain control even when intoxicated. It is believed this is because when directed towards a goal such as job, family, etc. even the chronic drinker was able to regulate the amount of alcohol they drank. The problem with these studies is that while these chronic drinkers may be able to control their drinking, they are unable to guarantee when they can do so. They soon lose the ability to distinguish social drinking from drinking as a social crutch. As a result these chronic drinkers eventually break promises and commitments to their families and employers. In order for alcohol to become a contributor to alcohol addiction, a person must first use the 'drug' and continue to use the drug. What constitutes use from abuse with alcohol cannot clearly be distinguished. This is because alcohol taken in various amounts affects individuals differently. Some people may be considered an alcohol abuser early in their drinking experiences because of the adverse consequences they go through. From the early days that alcoholism

Historical Context of The Tempest Essays

Historical Context of The Tempest Essays Historical Context of The Tempest Paper Historical Context of The Tempest Paper Essay Topic: The Tempest Turtle Island One thing that probably influenced Shakespeare to write the Tempest was the event that happened in May 1609. A fleet of nine ships set out from England, with five hundred colonists on board. Their goal was the newly founded colony of Virginia, where the settlers intended to begin a new life. They hoped for fabulous fortunes because of everything that they had heard about the natural riches of America. But disaster struck. In the great storm, the ship carrying the expeditions leader, Sir Thomas Gates, became separated from the fleet. The ship was driven onto the rocks of Bermuda, a place feared by sailors and known at the time as the Devils islands. The rest of the fleet sailed on, and reached Virginia, and sent back news to London of the loss. This is almost mentioned in the script by Ariel, when telling Propsero what she has done with the ship. From the still-vexed Bermoothes, there shes hid The mariners all under hatches stowed, Who, with a charm joined their suffered labour, I have left asleep. And for the rest othfleet, Which I dispersed, they have all met again. However there is more to the story as a year later astonishing new arrived. The lost colonists had miraculously survived and reached Virginia! Apparently, the ship had run aground close to shore. All the passengers and crew has escaped safely, and were able to salvage most of the supplies from the ship. The discovered that Bermuda was far from being the desolate and barren place of legend. It has fresh water, and a plentiful supply of food in fish, wild pigs, birds and turtles. The survivors set about building two boats so that they could sail on to Virginia. But human nature soured on the island and mutiny broke out. Malicious rumours spread, and a bid was made to murder the governor and take over the island. When, after great difficulties, they set sail the two mutineers elected to stay behind on Bermuda. It is still thought now that the Bermuda area has a magical essence about it. Many reports of boats, planes and other vehicles disappearing into the Bermuda Triangle. Leading people to believe that there is something mystical about Bermuda having power over transport. It is possible that Shakespeare had used this story to base the Tempest on. The terrible storm that befell the colonists is similar to the storm that was conjured up by Prospero to wreck to Royals ship. The two mutineers who are similar to Antonio and Sebastion, who are plotting to kill Alonso and the fact that everyone returned safely. Aesthetic, scientific, social and philosophical texts formed an essential part of Shakespeares life and often show themselves in his plays. Whilst it is unknown how dramatists drew from such sources, consciously or subconsciously. Scholars do indicate likely connections between The Tempests language, characters, and the political, social and intellectual climates in which Shakespeare lived and worked. Many people consider Caliban to be an example of the colonists infecting the New World, which could also be drawn on from the real Tempest. Shakespeares and his audiences familiarity with American colonisation and the fact that they were poisoning the native Americans with things such as alcohol. Caliban is similar to this in the way that Trinculo and Stephano change him by giving him alcohol, in return he offered to be their slave. The plight of Rudolph II, King of Bohemia, parallels Propseros story. In 1608 Rudolphs brother usurped from him the crows of Austria, Hungary and Moravia; and in April 1611 Rudolph also lost the throne of Bohemia. His interest in the occult was widely known; in the 1580s the English magus John Dee had briefly enlisted his support in a quest for the philosophers stone. Beset by political troubles, Rudolph, much like Prospero and his cave, retreated to his palace library and consoled himself with books. Propsero is also, many say, directly related to Shakespeare. If we look back over which plays were written before the Tempest they included Othello and Macbeth. These plays are dark and depressing which could be seen as the Tempest of Shakespeares life in the play the Tempest is calmed and Prospero takes his revenge. Eventually he closes with an apology and a goodbye statement. This is Shakespeare saying goodbye to the theatre and the theatre audiences.

The Glass Menagerie and the two different worlds (reality and fiction) Research Paper

The Glass Menagerie and the two different worlds (reality and fiction) - Research Paper Example Laura is enrolled in a business school in order to start establishing her own life, but due to shyness, she drops out of school and secretly spends her time wandering in the city (Oliveira 1).Tom, who dislikes his shoe warehouse jobs, finds solace in alcohol, movies and literature. This surprised his mother (Oliveira 1).Amanda and Tom plot to get Laura a suitor at the warehouse, and Tom chooses Jim O’Connor who is his casual friend. A dinner is organized for Laura to meet Jim (Oliveira 1). Just before the dinner, Laura discovers that Jim, whom she had a crash on while in high school, is the suitor. Laura however refuses to eat dinner with the family and Jim and pretends she is ill (Kolin 66). Amanda, who was dressed in her youthful dress, ends up talking with Jim throughout the meal. Later after the dinner though, Laura opens up and confesses to Jim that she had a crash on him in high school(Oliveira 1).Jim reproaches her for being shy and having low self-esteem but also prais es her for being unique. Jim mentions that he has to leave and see his fiancà ©e (Kolin 34). It is therefore discovered that he is engaged. This leaves Amanda and Laura sad, and they blame Tom for not being attentive and for being selfish dreamer, because he is the one who brought Jim (Oliveira 2).Not long after Jim had visited, Tom gets fired from his shoe ware house job and leaves his home. As he travels, years later, he finds it very hard to forget and leave behind guilt memories of Laura (Kolin 23). Tennessee Williams, author of the play struggled with homosexuality which made him feel like an outsider in his society. This and other experiences made him feel empathetic to vulnerable people of the society (Oliveira 2).This play presents similarities between the dysfunctional Williams family and the play’s family, the Wingfield family. There are similarities between the fictional Wingfield family and Tennessee Williams’s own family (Kolin 23). The Glass

Drug use and Crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Drug use and Crime - Essay Example However, had he not been high it is likely the eight young women would not have died. While Speck's case might not be a good indicator of the relationship between drug use and crime, other authorities recognize the relationship. The Drug Enforcement agency has compiled statistics for years concerning the relationship between drug use and crime. A 1997 study of violence against Law Enforcement Officers conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation showed that 24 percent of the assailants were under the influence of drugs at the time of the assault and that 72 percent had a history of narcotics violations. (Speaking out Against Drug Legalization, Drug Enforcement Agency fact Sheet 7) Far from being a victimless crime, Drug usage leads to other crime. The United States Postal Service investigated 29 incidents that resulted in 34 deaths in a period spanning thirteen years between 1986 and 1999. Twenty of the thirty-four perpetrators either had a history of substance abuse or were known to be under the influence of alcohol or illicit drugs at the time of the incident. (Speaking out Against Drug Legalization Fact Sheet 7, Drug Enforcement Agency) Unfortunately, Richard Speck isn't an anomaly. Brenda Spencer, a sixteen-year-old high school student went on a shooting rampage January 29, 1979. The troubled teenager was frequently absent from school, was involved in several petty thefts and had a history of drug abuse. She killed two school employees and wounded several students and a police officer in her shooting spree. (World Encyclopedia of 20th Century Murder, Jay Robert Nash, Paragon House Page 533) A 1994 Journal of the American Medical Association article reported that cocaine use was linked to high homicide rates in New York City. The Office of National Drug Control Policy estimated that there were 53,000 drug related deaths in that year. The Vietnam War's death toll was 58,000 for an eight and a half year period.And it isn't just murder. According to the Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics, drug use was linked to crimes against property in 26.9 percent of the reported crimes in 2002. This was an increase of 2.4 percent from just six years earlier. These crimes were committed to get money to buy drugs with. Of all crimes compiled for the report. 16.4 percent were committed to raise money for drugs in 2002, an increase of 1.3 percent from 1996 (Bureau of Justice Statistics, Substance Dependence, Abuse, and Treatment of Jail Inmates, 2002, NJC 209588, July 2005. Approximately two of every five rapes or sexual assault committed against college students, the victims perceived the perpetrator was under the influence of drugs. Of all violent crimes against college students, persons perceived to be under the influence of drugs committed 41 percent. (Bureau of Justice Statistics, Violent Victimization of College Students, 1995- 2000, NJC 196143, December 2003) The statistics become even grimmer when we look at probationers. The first national survey of adults on probation conducted in 1995 found that 14 percent of the probationers were on drugs when they committed their offense. Among those on probation 49 percent of the mentally ill used drugs or alcohol at the time of their offence and 46percent of others used drugs or alcohol at the time. (Bureau of Justice Statistics, Substance Abuse and Treatment of Adults on Probation, 1995, NJC 166611,

The effect of nitric oxide and cGMP on follecogenises Essay

The effect of nitric oxide and cGMP on follecogenises - Essay Example to female disorders, 20% of male origin, 27% resulting from abnormalities in both man and woman, while 15% of the cases could not be attributed to either partner (de Kretser, 1997). According to Evers (2002), five types of disorders leading to infertility have been recognised. They are summarised in Table 1. Ovulation disturbances are a common cause of subfertility in women (Snick et al., 1997). Ovulation problems due to disturbances in reproductive hormones present themselves as irregular or absent menstrual periods viz., oligomenorrhoea or amenorrhoea (Hamilton-Fairley and Taylor, 2003). Hormonal balance governing the ovarian cycle is a critical factor in female fertility. Several factors including stressful lifestyles, extremes in body weight, diet, certain hormonal diseases (e.g., pituitary gland tumours) and endocrine disrupting chemicals, such as PCBs and some pesticides can impact a womans hormonal balance and, thereby, the ovulatory pattern (Farr et al., 2004). Age is another important factor that influences female fertility (Maheshwari et al., 2008) which starts to decline around the mean age of 37.5 years (Hourvitz, 2009). Fecundity of a woman declines with age because of the loss of follicles from the ovary. Advancing age could lead to infertility in a woman on account of poo r oocyte quality related to a higher number of chromosomal aberrations and cytoplasmic malformations in the oocytes (Laufer et al., 2004). Furthermore, advancing maternal age could adversely influence the capacity of the oocyte to sustain early embryo development vis-a-vis biochemical and molecular processes promoting fertilisation, embryo formation and successful development to term (Gilchrist et al., 2008); Male infertility resulting in the reduced ability of the female partner to become pregnant is usually on account of low sperm counts, obstructive azoospermia or primary spermatogenic failure including reduced motility and/or abnormal morphology of sperm (Snick et al., 1997);

Lufthansa airlines bankruptcy to profitable airline

Lufthansa airlines bankruptcy to profitable airline This report will take a closer look at the turnaround of Lufthansa airlines which went from near bankruptcy in 1991 to a now profitable airline. The evolutionary patterns of strategy and structure are identified in this report as well as how strategic leadership and German culture contributed to the turnaround. Furthermore, this paper will analyse the airline industry in terms of Porters five forces and will also take an extensive look at Lufthansas current situation by means of a SWOT and TOWS analysis. Additionally, Lufthansas business-level and corporate-level strategy will be identified and the Star Alliance, the worlds most important airline alliance, will be discussed in detail. 2.0   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Company Background The Lufthansa Aviation Group is considered to be one of the worlds leading air transport corporations. It includes a number of independent group and affiliated companies with business segments in passenger airlines, logistics, aircraft maintenance, catering, tourism and IT services. Lufthansas headquarter is located in Cologne, Germany and its operational centre for passenger and cargo services is situated in Frankfurt (Key data on environmental care and sustainability at Lufthansa 2002/2003). Lufthansa is 78 years old and has currently about 93,000 employees worldwide and in 2003-reported revenue of about 16 billion Euros (Lufthansa Key Figures 2003- see also Appendix I). In terms of traffic performance, Lufthansa is in third position in worldwide passenger transport. For many years the company has also been the market leader in international cargo traffic. In 2002, Lufthansas 368 aircrafts operated on routes to 327 destinations, carrying 50.9 million passengers and 1.63 million tons of airfreight. Lufthansa was also one of the founding members of the Star Alliance in 1997, when 16 partners joined into the worlds largest airline alliance (Key data on environmental care and sustainability at Lufthansa 2002/2003). 3.0 The Industry Background The organization also has to deal with cyclical risks. General economic fluctuations as well as geopolitical developments can have a large impact on the performance of the Lufthansa Group. As good examples serve the events of September 11, the Iraq conflict and the outbreak of SARS in Asia along with a stagnating global economy which seriously influenced the business activity of the entire airline industry in a negative way (Heerkens 2003). Lufthansa is also confronted with some capital market risks as its international business activities expose it to exchange rate and interest rate fluctuations in the international money, capital and also the foreign exchange markets (Zea 2003). A substantial threat is the price of fuel since fuel consumption remains one of the main cost items for the whole airline industry. In 2003, it contributed 7.6% to Lufthansas total operating expenses. Fluctuations in fuel prices can have a significant affect on the organizations operating result (Lufthansa Annual Report 2003). Furthermore there is the threat of higher costs of insuring Lufthansas fleet. Insurance costs increased dramatically after the events of September 11 and since then stayed at a very high level. The reason for that are the massive additional premiums that are being charged for insuring against war and similar events. In case of more wars and terrorist attacks the premiums are likely to increase even further (Zea 2003). There are also a number of infrastructure risks that Lufthansa will have to deal with. There are plans for an extension of the runway system at Frankfurt Airport, which is a major hub for Lufthansas operations, and is extremely important for the long-term competitiveness of the German airline. The extension project is also crucial for securing Frankfurt Airports future as an international air traffic hub, which also applies to the building of the maintenance hangar for the new Airbus A380 super jumbo that will be used from 2007 onwards. Nonetheless, a range of operational restrictions on extending the airport has recently been debated which would hinder its efficient use. In case a solution cant be found, Lufthansa would have relocate part of their business to alternative hubs. Additionally, bottlenecks in many European air traffic control systems cause many flight delays. The infrastructural limitations are a huge burden on the profitability of all European air carriers. On top of t hat, they are inhibiting the industry to keep up with the growing demand for air transport services (Lufthansa Annual Report 2003). There are also a few risks relating to the development of alliances. One of the foundations for Lufthansas commercial success was its integration into the Star Alliance, the worlds leading airline partnership system. Currently, many of the airlines worldwide are in a loss-making situation which, in the case of a few of Lufthansas partners like United Airlines and Air Canada, reached proportions that threatened their existence and also affects Lufthansa negatively. In regards to the Star Alliance, there are also challenges of coordinating and incorporating strategic activities like the establishment of a common global brand, a shared technology platform as well as joint training and personnel development (Lufthansa Annual Report 2003). Being part of the Star Alliance also poses the threat that Lufthansa might lose its identity. It is vital for them to preserve the Lufthansa brand (Bruch Ghoshal 2002). Labour unions are an additional threat; especially in Germany they have a lot of power. Labour unions can initiate strikes, which in the past have already led to delays of departures and substantial costs to Lufthansa (Steinborn 2003).   4.0 The Company Objectives Structural analysis of an industry is a useful way of determining a companys long-term profitability. Comprehending the dynamics of the competitive forces in an industry can give an insight whether an industry is attractive and whether there are any chances for returns on capital. Michael Porter, a professor at Harvard Business School, created a framework for understanding the structure of an industry. According to Porter, the five competitive forces that can have an impact on an industry are threat of new entrants, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining powers of buyers, competitive rivalry, as well as the threat of substitutes (Analysis of industries 2003). 4.1   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Threat of new entrants The threat of new entrants offers the possibility that new firms are going to enter the industry, which will consequently lead to a reduction of industry returns by generally passing more value to consumers in terms of lower prices and also increasing the cost of competition. Factors like economies of scale, capital requirements, product differentiation, access to distribution channels, switching costs as well as brand value determine the threat of entry (Analysis of industries 2003). From my point of view it currently seems very difficult to enter the airline industry as this area of business as well as the world economy is facing a period of recession. Due to large product differentiation the entry barriers are fairly high. There is a range of flag carriers, charter airlines as well as a number of low-fare airlines in the industry. All these different types of airlines offer an extensive range of products that seem to satisfy most customers needs. Additionally, entering the aviation industry requires very high capital investments because aircrafts, technical support and IT services need to be purchased or leased. This industry is also very labour and fuel intensive which requires a lot of funds. Companies with an interest in entering the market also require access to distribution channels. This means that it is necessary to gain trust within the industry so as to get access to take-off and landing spots. This can be quite challenging as national policies still p lay a major role in the aviation industry. Furthermore it is a requirement to obtain permission from governments to enter airspace. Moreover once the market is entered, it is very difficult to exit which raises switching costs to a high level. Throughout the last decade the market opened due to the deregulation policy, which provided low budget airlines with an opportunity to enter the industry. The first entrants like Ryanair and Easyjet utilized this opportunity and developed strong brand names due to their first-mover advantage. Airlines that recently entered the market that have a similar price and cost structure generally find it more difficult to generate the traffic that is required to fill the seats in their aircrafts (Jacob Jakesova 2003). All in all it can be said that the threat of new entrants is not that high in the airline industry in the current business environment. 4.2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bargaining power of suppliers Factors that are connected with the bargaining power of suppliers include the threat of forward integration as well as the concentration of suppliers in the industry. Supplier power decreases the ability for competitors in the industry to earn higher profits (Wheelen Hunger 2000, p. 64). The main suppliers within the airline industry are the manufacturers of aircrafts like Airbus and Boeing, fuel suppliers such as Shell, British Petroleum and Chevron Texaco. Furthermore there are technical support and IT services as well as the catering services. Suppliers are very concentrated in the airline industry as Boeing and Airbus supply most commercial fixed-wing aircrafts. The concentration of suppliers makes it difficult for the airlines to exercise leverage over the two manufacturers and negotiate lower prices or play one supplier against the other. Moreover, at the current stage, aircrafts for long distance travel cannot be substituted by any other product, which strengthens the bargaining power of the suppliers even more. Fuel providers have an excellent bargaining position as they can increase fuel prices without regarding the airlines as an important customer group. Forward integration, which is the expansion of a business products or services to related areas in orde r to directly satisfy the customer needs, is fairly low. The reason for this is that it can be assumed that neither aircraft manufactures, fuel providers nor technical support companies will purchase an airline and staff it with flight attendants, commercial pilots, a maintenance crew and operate flights across the world (Jacob Jaksova 2003). Nevertheless, the strong position fuel suppliers as well as the relatively strong position of manufacturers of aircrafts need to be taken into account when operating an airline. 4.3   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bargaining power of buyers Buyers can have significant power, as they are able to push down prices, and negotiate for better quality and service. Buyer power is determined by relative volume of purchase, switching cost, standardization of the product, brand identity, elasticity of demand as well as quality of service (Del Vecchio 2000). Since customers are not very concentrated and generally dont purchase plane tickets in large volumes they do not have a strong bargaining position. A single purchase of an airline ticket does not represent a significant fraction of the amount offered. Switching costs are quite low as consumers have a range of choices when selecting an airline. Due to the Internet, information about prices is also less fragmented and much easier to compare. Quite frequently, a customer can find price differences for the same flight and one seat is generally not any better, since everyone arrives at the destination at the same time. Considering the worldwide recession as well as the psychological effects of September 11, airline companies are under substantial pressure as customers switch to alternative transportation like trains. Vacation travelers also tend to shop around for the best price. Traveling by plane is quite expensive and can make up the largest part of the expense of a family vacation. For that reason, demand is quite elastic for some buyers. As soon as the price drops, the demand increases. However, airlines can move their prices in tandem with other airlines, which forces customers to purchase tickets for the market price until a price war starts (Analysis of Industries 2003). Nevertheless, all in all it can be said that the bargaining power of buyers is relatively low. 4.4   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Threat of substitute products The airline industry is threatened by a number of substitutes. This threat is quite substantial within Europe, where Lufthansas main customer base is located. Many European countries have an excellent railway system with high-speed trains like the ICE in Germany and the TGV in France. These trains can travel up to 300km/h fast and can cover large distances within the countries in just a few hours. Trains can be considered the largest threat as they offer a variety of advantages over flying. From my point of view it seems that flying is much faster, but on a domestic flight in a European country there is not much of a difference in comparison to trains. The reason for that is that it always takes a while to get to the airport, as they are mostly located further away from cities; check-in and security checks usually require being there at least an hour before take-off. After the plane has landed, it usually takes at least another 30 minutes to get out of the plane, claim the baggage an d organise transportation to leave the airport. Railway stations on the other hand can be much more easily accessed than airports, there is no check-in and security check required and the destination railway station is generally in a very central location close to hotels or offices that need to be visited on a business trip. Furthermore, trains offer generally great scenery while travelling and also offer more legroom. Most importantly the prices are generally lower than those of prestigious airlines like Lufthansa. Alternatively, travellers could use their own car, which would be more time consuming, but would have the advantage of increased flexibility and having transportation at the destination location and not having to use public transportation or taxis. Depending on the distance, this substitute can be either more costly or less expensive (Jacob Jaksova 2003). Moreover, short international trips to major European capitals are often done by bus and also by ferry if it is a tr ip to the United Kingdom. From my experience this is the most inexpensive way of travelling throughout Europe. However, there is no real substitute to flying if the desired destination is overseas. The only alternative to planes would be ships and unless the customer is looking for a relaxing trip on the oceans, it will just take too long to reach the destination. Recently there is also a tendency of larger companies towards purchasing corporate jets rather than flying first class. According to Costa et al. (2002) corporate jets might reduce first class traveller by 10% by 2005. 4.5   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Competitive rivalry Highly competitive industries are generally less profitable as the cost of competition is high or customers are receiving the benefits of lower prices. Competitive rivalry is affected by industry growth, brand identity, fixed costs, as well as barriers to exit (Wheelen Hunger 2000, p. 63). It can be said that the airline industry is highly competitive and that industry growth is fairly moderate with airlines struggling in taking away market share from each other. The barriers to exit are considered to be very high. Planes that are grounded dont earn any returns and it is quite complicated to dispose of these assets. Due to bankruptcy laws, airlines that are in financial stress can often remain competitors for a long time (Del Vecchio 2000). In Lufthansas home market, the European airline industry has seen some recent changes with the development of low budget airlines that compete with the more mature airlines. Additionally, recent airline crises like September 11 put even more pressure on all competing airlines. This leads to a process of consolidation and the creation of strategic alliances. Airlines within one alliance dont tend to compete directly with each other anymore, which lead to a slight decrease of the pressure (Jacob Jakesova 2003). By utilizing a range of strategies a company can have an effect on the five forces of competition and thus reform the attractiveness of an industry. Historically, various strategies shifted the principles of competition and future events like war or new inventions are likely to reshape the airline industry again. Lufthansas ability to be very cost effective is also of advantage. As part of its strategic change, Lufthansa implemented Program 15, a strategic cost management program. The goals of this program included an improvement of the competitive position through a reduction in cost, internationalisation of cost-structure and making staff conscious of reducing costs in their daily work. This cost management contributed substantially to Lufthansa making profits again in 1999 (Bruch Goshal 2000). Generally it can be said that Lufthansas change management during its crisis was outstanding. Its management was able to identify the signals for the potential problems, showed great strategic leadership through CEO Jà ¼rgen Weber and transformed the organization into a profitable company. This experience in strategic change management is very valuable and will surely help the organization with any challenges in the future (Bruch Sattelberger 2001b). Furthermore, Lufthansas management is very conscious of the need for innovation and customer service. They developed the brand ambassador concept where employees with use of personality and dedication create brand loyalty through day-to-day interactions with the customer (Rubens 2004). They recently also introduced a range of innovations and quality improvements at their passenger airlines and some innovations will be implemented in the near future. A special focus is on the business class on long-haul routes as this segment is the most profitable one. The key feature of Lufthansas new business class is a technically sophisticated seat that converts into a flat bed, which is 2 meters long, the longest bed in this class (Manuelli 2003). Lufthansa is also the first airline in the world that offers broadband Internet access on board its planes (Anonymous 2003). On the ground, they are also improving procedures for their status customers with Lufthansas Priority Service by relying on the Internet, mobile phones and check-in terminals simplify reservations and ticket sales as well as to reduce check-in times. A good example of Lufthansas innovative strength is their new terminal at Munich Airport, which was build to optimise operational procedures. In accordance with the best international standards they reduced the minimum connecting time to 30 minutes (Lufthansa Annual Report 2003). An additional strength of Lufthansa is that it has a policy of operating a young and modern fleet. They recently started a fleet renewal program in 2003 and by 2005 they will replace older aircrafts with ten new Airbus A340-600 jets, as well as ten new Airbus A330-300s. By 2007 the new Airbus A380 super jumbo will go into service that can carry 40% more passengers than the currently largest aircraft. The average age of Lufthansas fleet is just under 9 years, which puts them into a good position in comparison to airline world average of almost 15 years (Lufthansa Annual Report 2003). Another strength, which gives Lufthansa a comparative advantage, is the use of a premium executive jet service on North Atlantic routes like Dà ¼sseldorf-Newark and Munich-Newark. This involves flights in Boeing and Airbus aircrafts that were remodelled so they fit 48 business class seats only and no economy class. Lufthansa introduced this service, because they identified that these routes were in high demand for business class travellers (Ghazvinian Fragala 2002). Lufthansa also offers a very good website that has a lot of features the customers can utilize. Online bookings have more than doubled in 2003. Lufthansa are also constantly expanding their destinations, which can be reached with etix, the companys electronic tickets that offer convenient paperless travel. The number of passengers that use etix is gradually increasing as it can be used to fly to 70 per cent of Lufthansa destinations (Lufthansa Annual Report 2003). Lufthansas Miles More customer loyalty program is also a great tool to encourage customers to fly Lufthansa again. The program has grown in popularity since it was introduced ten years ago and developed into the leading frequent flyer program in Europe (Miles More). Furthermore, Lufthansa is one of the founding members of the Star Alliance, the worlds leading airline alliance. The alliance was voted Alliance of the Year in 2003 on three different occasions (Lufthansa Annual Report 2003). The Lufthansa group consists of seven independent subsidiaries. Lufthansa centrally coordinates their strategy development process. A principal element of the Lufthansa group is clear customer-supplier-relationships between the seven companies. However, the relationships between the individual companies are a weakness, as they dont function as planned. Lufthansa has not reached the required relationships for a market-based internal coordination. So far, the internal customers dont act as normal customers yet since the demand conditions, which they would never demand with other external business partners (Bruch Ghoshal 2000). Another weakness is that the openness for change has almost vanished since Lufthansas amazing turnaround was achieved. During the turnaround, changes were implemented very quickly, but today it takes a very long time for small innovations to take place. Lufthansa also admits not to be perfect in the areas of punctuality, luggage safety, waiting periods, technical reliability and telephone availability, but is in the process of improving this situation (Bruch Ghoshal 2000). Another weakness could be that Lufthansa does not do anything about their low-budget competitors in the European market. Lufthansas management claims that they would not start a low-fare airline under its name, as it would cannibalize its own traffic and damage its brands (Anonymous 2002). 5.0 Economic strategy of Lufthansa According to Hitt (2003, p. 122), a Economic strategy is an integrated and coordinated set of commitments and actions the firm uses to gain a competitive advantage by exploiting core competencies in specific product markets. The literature suggests that there are a number of different business-level strategies. However, I believe that in the case of Lufthansa an integrated cost leadership/differentiation strategy is used. The reason for this is that Lufthansa operates globally and therefore it is vital for them to implement cost leadership strategies as well as differentiation strategies in order to develop competitive advantages. Lufthansas Program 15 serves as a good example of a cost leadership strategy. After Lufthansa had undergone privatization they implemented this extensive strategic costs management program with the goal of reducing overall unit cost by 20% within five years (Bruch Sattelberger 2001a). In terms of a differentiation strategy, Lufthansa constantly tries to come up with a range of innovative ideas to stay ahead of the competition. A list of these ideas could be seen in the strengths section of my SWOT analysis of Lufthansa. It can be concluded that Lufthansa has made the right decision to implement an integrated cost leadership/differentiation strategy, since the literature also suggests that there is a relationship between the successful use of this strategy and above-average returns (Hitt 2003, p. 135). 5.1   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Corporate-level strategy of Lufthansa According to Hitt, a corporate level strategy involves specific actions by a company to gain a competitive advantage by having a group of different businesses competing in several industries (2003, p. 183). In the case of Lufthansa, the organisation consists of seven economically independent subsidiaries that include LH Passenger Service, LH Cargo AG, LH Skychef, LH Ground Services, LH Technical Services, Thomas Cook Travel Agency and LH IT services. The individual Lufthansa companies are quite successful. LH Technical services, LH Skychef and LH Ground Services are number one in their market (Bruch Ghoshal 2000). Product diversification, a primary corporate-level strategy deals with the scope of the industries and markets in which the company competes in addition to how managers buy, establish and sell different businesses to equal skills and strengths. In regards to Lufthansa, the organisation uses a related diversification corporate-level strategy which means that Lufthansa generates more than 30% of its sales revenue outside a dominated business and its businesses are related to each other since Lufthansa centrally coordinates their strategy development process. Lufthansas motives for such a corporate level strategy are likely to be issues such as taking advantage of economies of scope, sharing activities, transfer of core competencies, and an increase in market power as well as blocking competitors through multipoint competition (Hitt 2003, p. 187). 5.2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Strategic Alliances While concentrating on internal costs and structural redevelopment, Lufthansa also worked on its external relationships by implementing the strategy: growth through partnerships (Bruch Sattelberger 2001b). While in other industries globalization triggered a wave of mergers of companies that operate internationally; airlines had to look for alternatives because national ownership regulations do not allow cross-border mergers. No airline worldwide has the capacity infrastructure to offer a suitable network by itself. Only through cooperating and alliances can the industry cater for the mobility requirements of the world economy. Therefore, founding the Star Alliance was a logical consequence and Lufthansa was one of the key-founding members of the first airline network in the world (Global Network Five years of Star Alliance). The purpose of the Star Alliance is to realize higher revenues and decrease costs by exploiting synergy effects. The synergies range from shared use of ground facilities like check-in-counters, a city office in Paris and also airport terminals. At the airports in Frankfurt, Copenhagen, Shanghai and Beijing the Star Alliance has its own check-in area with staff member of partner airlines. In addition the first Star Alliance Lounge went into service 2001 at Zà ¼rich airport. Other advantages include common frequent flyer programs, joint travel agency contracts collective market research and joint purchasing of materials and equipment (Economic effects for the airlines). Alliance members can also use code sharing a system by which two or more airlines agree to use the same flight number for a flight in order to attract more business by means of extending their networks through partner airlines (Collis 1998). Besides cost-saving synergies, the combined networks of Star Alliance members also offer many customer benefits. In comparison with other industry alliances, the Star Alliance is the recognized market leader (see Appendix 2). For 82 % of all offered flight connections, the Star Alliance is the fastest network. Every four seconds an aircraft of the Star Alliance starts or lands somewhere in the world and it possible to fly once round the world in 36 hours with Star Alliance airlines. Other fundamentals of its brand value include the presence of its members in important home markets and large international hubs, a high degree of customer recognition, excellent service and good cooperation between the frequent-flyer programs of the individual airlines. Furthermore each airline has its individual strengths with a strong market position in its home bases and regional hubs like Lufthansa in Germany. Due to the good cooperation, a whole network of these hubs was established and regional str engths complement each other (see Appendix 3). Additionally, most members also have regional alliances with smaller airlines, which improve the Star Alliance network even further (Global Network Five years of Star Alliance). Research has also shown that alliances result in lower ticket prices and more flight connections. It is suggested that there is a price advantage of an average 6% in comparison with conventional tariffs. In terms of the Star Alliance this leads to estimated passenger savings of between 50 and 82 million dollars per year. Additionally due to the sharing of terminals service counters of the airlines are more easily seen and found and walking distances are decreased. Having counters in the same area at airports also creates a single contact point and improves changes and baggage loading. Staff members of partner airlines can also help and advise customers with enquiries on behalf of the entire alliance. For the alliance to work properly certain level of quality needs to be ensured. This is achieved through frequent mutual quality checks. Jointly agreed quality standards in the areas of security, services and environmental protection are checked on a regular basis (Global Network Five years of Star Alliance). 5.3 Strategic Leadership and German Culture Strategic leadership, which is the ability to anticipate, envision, maintain flexibility and empower others to create strategic change as necessary (Hitt 2003, p. 386) was extremely important in Lufthansas turnaround. The main responsibility for effective strategic leadership generally rests at the top, especially with the CEO, but also with other recognized strategic leaders like members of the board of directors and the top management team. In the case of Lufthansa, the formulation and implementation of strategies was also in the hands of the top-level management, in particular Dr. Jà ¼rgen Weber, who was Lufthansas CEO at the time. In 1992 Jà ¼rgen Weber realized the full extent of Lufthansas problems and called for a crisis management meeting with 20 carefully selected senior managers. The outcome of this meeting was Program 93, 131 key actions aimed at drastically cutting about 8,000 jobs, lowering non-personnel costs, reducing the aircraft fleet as well as increasing revenues by DM 700 million to reduce the losses of DM 1.3 billion. The Executive Board then appointed a number of different teams that had the task to achieve the implementation of these 131 projects. Line management was responsible for the implementation of the staff cuts. It was seen as important for the success of Program 93 that line managers took that responsibility to realize the unavoidable cuts, on the one hand, but also to motivate the remaining employees, on the other hand. Jà ¼rgen Weber also created the OPS team (Operations Team) as a forceful engine in the process of implementing the 131 actions. They constantly monitored, created activities, advised and supported the line managers who were ultimately responsible for the implementation process. Weber showed his total support for the OPS team and personally supported them in many ways. He also implemented visible actions like a 10% reduction of the salaries of all Executive board members (Bruch Ghoshal 2000). Furthermore, to convey and spread these actions, Lufthansa implemented Town Meetings, which were initially an idea by General Electric. A typical agenda of a Town Meeting would mainly involve a talk with the particular Lufthansa units management about problems a

Inclusion of Children with Disabilities Essay -- Education School Spec

Inclusion of Children with Disabilities Along with many other topics of special education, the topic of inclusion has been surrounded by uncertainty and controversy for as long as the concept has been around. This controversy may stem from the fact that inclusion is expensive and experts disagree about how much time disabled students should spend in regular classrooms (Cambanis, 2001). Although this topic is controversial, it cannot be ignored. Inclusion will, at some point, affect 1% of all children born each year, who will have disabilities and the families and educators they will come in contact with (Stainback, 1985). There are two major federal laws that deal with the education of children with special needs. One of these laws is, The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, also known as IDEA (W.E.A.C, 2001). This law passed in 1975, was the first act to guarantee all students with disabilities a public education (Kluth, Villa & Thousand, 2001). This law requires that the school district supply an IEP, individualized education program (Merritt, 2001), for every child with disabilities. This law also requires that the IEP team consider placing each child in the least restrictive environment possible (W.E.A.C, 2001). The least restrictive environment possible refers to the environment that would benefit the handicapped student the most, both academically and socially. The IEP team usually considers three possibilities for the student. One possibility is that of a self-contained classroom, where the student would be in a class with all disabled students and be taught by special education teachers. A second possibility is that the student be placed in a general education classroom for half of the... .... Learning Disability Quarterly, 24(4), pp.265-74. Retrieved March 11, 2002 from WilsonSelect Database. Palmer, David S., Fuller, Kathy., Arora, Tina. (2001). Taking Sides: Parent View on Inclusion for Their Children with Severe Disabilities. Exceptional Children, 67(4), pp.467-484. Retrieved March, 11, 2002 from WilsonSelect Database. Choate, Joyce S. (1997). Successful Inclusive Teaching- Proven Ways to Detect and Correct Special Needs. Massachusetts: Allyn& Bacon. Stainback, Susan & William. (1985). Integration of Students with Severe Handicaps into Regular Schools. Virginia: The Council for Exceptional Children. Special Education Inclusion. (2001). Retrieved February 25, 2002 from http://www.weac.org.htm Active Inclusion-Facilitating Active Inclusion in Secondary Education. (2000). Retrieved February 25, 2002 from http://www.faise.com

Visual Persuasion: The Role of Images in Advertising Essay

Advertising is part of our daily lives as advertisers use numerous ways to attract the customer’s attention. Advertising can be referred to as non-personal communication on a corporation or its products that are broadcasted to viewers through a mass medium. All efforts to inform and convince must respect the principles of human freedom for them to be right. Highest ethics should be practiced when advertising to children. Advertisers should shape their subject to attract audiences of the scope and demographic structure sought. Advertisers should practice transparency. There should be the need for proper conduct and rapport with consumers ought to be honest and fair. . All advertisements normally use rhetoric images as well as visual effects that make these products appealing to consumers. The question is, what is the purpose for the advertisements and what makes a consumer to see the images and want to try the alcoholic product. Advertisements are normally done on TV, magazines and the radios hence are accessible to the target market in this case of whiskey advertisement the young adults.  The advertisement industry has grown rapidly in the past years as effective advertisements has led to increase in sales for companies, hence the need for companies to study all means that an advertisement can attract the attention of the potential buyer of any product. One of the most common ways of advertising in alcohol products but controversial is the use of sex to sell alcoholic products (Carstarphen et al, 114). To analyze  the advertisement of Evan Williams’ whiskey, a rhetorical triangle is used. Also included are ethos, pathos as well as logos. The target audience for this advertisement was young males and females in their late teens, mid and late twenties. The advertiser uses pathos in the advertisement by evoking emotional feelings especially from the men.To get the male side of the equation, the advertiser draws attention as well as interest, by the use of a striking, attractive young lady on the right side of the advertisement, in bright colors to draw attention to a bottle of whiskey that is right in the center of the page. The thing that makes the attention of people to stick is that the attractive young lady is in fact posing next to nothing despite being incredibly good looking. There is also a way to get female attention to the advertisement. This is done through showing a plain girl, seeming a typical girl during the younger years. Besides that, there is an image of the same little girl but now she has become a woman, very attractive, more powerful, and full of confidence and self-esteem. Then the only way to achieve that is by drinking Evan Williams Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey. (Williams) The purpose of the advertisement is to attract the young adults to consume the advertised whiskey. The first very important information that is sent across to all potential buyers is that the whiskey has been brewed for seven years before being brought to the market. With a longer period of brewing, it means that the whiskey is matured and of quality hence being attractive to potential buyers. The use of this point illustrates the advertiser’s use of logos in the advertisement as they expect the consumer to be rational in their analysis of the advertisement such that they can tell the time period the whiskey took to mature. The advertiser uses sexual stereotypes that include a blonde hair, with blue eyes as well as breasts that are large in size. The whole thing leads to the impression that sex sells (Carstarphen et al, 114). This is the advertiser appealing to the ethos. Also cannot see the trustworthiness of this advert writer and most likely there is a snobby attitude as it seems that the only way that people care about others is if they are good looking and  the less attractive are viewed unequal. This fails to comply with the ethos such that it is not ethically right. It is also difficult for the woman who is less attractive on the right side of the advertisement to  achieve similar opportunities  than the one  who appears sexually enticing to the audience.  I believe that the advertisement is showing poor ethics hence failing to comply with the industry ethos. Logically the advertisement is essentially sexual. There is the use of a scantily clad lady, who looks so attractive in bright colors, standing just next to a bottle of whiskey. The  advertiser also tries to use a slogan that will go with the product as well as its application in a completely different situation including a woman. They also show how better it gets when aged seven years. It is degrading to the woman  who appears in the advertisement since it shows  her being  ugly in the first image, and then again  in  another shot, she appears years  later  with less clothing and  make up  done,  suggesting that  she now looks better.  The problem with it is that only few women look like that hence setting the bar too high to reach for ordinary people. I would also mention that there is nothing wrong with girl on the left as she is plain and simple.  The collective responsibility of the society is drained away through wearing close to nothing in order to catch attention as well as impress.  The photo on the left looks worse because they have not done the hair. The lady also wears a shirt that’s wrinkled, simple earnings as well as a simplistic vest. The advertiser  tries to get sexual emotions in most of their alcohol advertisements. Here they have used an attractive woman standing close to a bottle of whiskey. t. The advertisement is able to connect emotionally with the consumers who eventually buy the products. The campaign makes it more differentiated in product in comparison to its competitors. The effectiveness of the advertising campaign can be seen in the responsiveness of the consumers such that they are able to consume more of the products hence an increase in the products sales revenue. This thus highlights the effectiveness of the advertisement. The target audience of this campaign is the general public more specifically, home. The effectiveness in the delivery of the advertisement is quite successful. To me, the delivery of the advertisement is easy to relate to and because of that. I could be easily convinced do consume the product. The effective delivery of the advertisement makes its more appealing to the target audience hence helps in the achievement of their desired marketing goals.There is the impression that drinking this product will make the person to get this particular woman. There is the attraction on the female emotional side whereby there is the talk of how a young decent looking woman goes on to become attractive, the impression created here being that this product makes women become very attractive. This is appealing to consumer ethos. In the advert, the younger girl who looks less attractive  seems to be less confident  but in the older picture she looks more attractive. In the newer picture, she looks more vibrant and her clothing is more sexually proactive than in her older self, where she used to cover up and dint show any skin. Therefore the advert shows that a person becomes happier if they are good looking and sexually dressed unlike when they are not good looking persons Conclusion             In conclusion, I think the use of sexual appeal is a terrible way of advertising. The problem is that all companies have adopted this way of advertising and this has led to consumption of alcohol even for the under aged. I have also noticed that the different angles of this advertisement are similar as sex is used to sell everything. The society also seems to have adapted to this type of advertisement and therefore no changes will occur any time soon hence sexually racy ads will continue to be seen in the magazines (Sell now, 89). Hopefully companies will one day do away with these types of ads and make ads that are suitable to our culture. References Carstarphen, Meta G, and Susan C. Zavoina. Sexual Rhetoric: Media Perspectives on Sexuality, Gender, and Identity. Westport, Conn: Grenwood Press, 1999. Print. Messaris, Paul. Visual Persuasion: The Role of Images in Advertising. London: Sage Publications, 2002. Print. Sellnow, Deanna D. The Rhetorical Power of Popular Culture: Considering Mediated Texts. Los Angeles: SAGE, 2010. Print. Williams, Evan. ThinkUP Cube. 2012. Web. http://www.thinkupcube.com/portfolios/evan-williams/ BIBLIOGRAPHY l 1033 n.d. Evan William Whiskey Advertisement. . Source document

Essay on Lord of the Flies

Essay on Lord of the Flies Essay on Lord of the Flies Savage Garden People have been writing books for thousands of years. Many topics and ideas have already been written about, so some authors write a new story that restates a book or idea. William Golding’s Lord of the Flies is an allegory to the story of the Garden of Eden from the Bible and restates many of the topics and ideas from that story. In Lord of the Flies, the basic setting and characters parallel the Garden of Eden. In the story, a group of boys crash land in a beautiful and peaceful island paradise that directly resembles the Garden of Eden as described in the Bible. The island the boys land on is heart shaped, filled with beautiful trees and fruit, and abundant with animals just like the Garden of Eden. Soon the boys even find a clearing in the forest that is nice and quiet which parallels the tranquility of the Garden of Eden. The boys in Lord of the Flies start off innocent, but soon become very savvy. It is as if the island is imparting its knowledge ju st like the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden. The boys soon know how to kill pigs and then humans. Because these boys are twelve years old at the oldest, this is not something one would expect them to know. At that age, boys are still thought of as young and innocent, but these boys are cunning and resourceful. Like Adam and Eve, they transition from an innocent to a sinful existence. After a few days on the island, the boys think they see a beastie which ties in to the story of the serpent, or the devil as it turns out, from the Garden of Eden. First, the boys think the beastie is a pig and then they think it is a dead man with a parachute. Then one of the characters comes up with the conclusion that the beastie is inside each of the boys, and that they are all evil in some way. Some of the boys display this beastie inside them when they brutally kill and eat a sow. Eating the sow, which they should not eat since it is a sacred mother, is like Adam going against God a nd eating the sacred apple. The boys eventually

frankensteine3333 essays

frankensteine3333 essays In Shelly's novel, Victor Frankenstein learns how to "infuse a spark of being into lifeless things". He uses this knowledge and creates a living thing. The creature is so hideous that "not even Dante could not have conceived". From the moment he is animated, the wretched creature is an outcast. He is not human; he was not born to a mother or father, or was created by God. Throughout the novel several situations occur that allow the readers to see that the monster isn't normal. In one instance he causes havoc in a village by simply appearing to the villagers. But Shelley also allows us to see many of the "normal" characteristics the creature has. While observing the De Laceys, the monster learns how to speak and read. Shelley showed that nothing is normal. The creature at first was very different from the humans, but at the end he was the most human character in the novel. There was a major personality change in the creature. He at first had serene thoughts, and also never performed any bad deeds. For example, instead of eating animals, he ate nuts and berries. He thought they shouldn't be harmed because they did nothing to him. But later in the novel the creature learned to hate, a vice that differentiates humans from animals. An animal is not able to hate another, but a human can. At this instance we know the creature is normal because he acts like a human, thinks like a human, and feels like a human. ...

Data Analysis Methods and Tools Research Proposal

Data Analysis Methods and Tools - Research Proposal Example On the other hand, lower morals would lead to lower level of employee satisfaction from the job and thus negatively influence the performance of the organization as well. For this reason, the management of the businesses keeps a critical sight on the performance of each individual employee in order to identify the contribution that each employee is making towards achieving organizational goals and objectives. For this reason, the author of the proposed research work will try to identify and understand the effect of performance appraisal systems on motivating and retaining strategies of the organizations (Seldon, Ingraham, & Jacobson, 2001). In the literature reviewed for this research work, the researcher has identified the true meanings of job satisfaction. While elaborating on the concept of job satisfaction, a number of researchers has agreed that it is actually the addiction or fondness that employees inherit from the working environment within the organization, and those elements at work place which motivates employees to show commitment with the organization (Thompson & Phua, 2012; Maslow, 1943; Herzberg, 1966; Vroom, 1964; Adams & Freedman, 1976; Malik et al., 2010). For this purpose, businesses have identified appraising employees’ performance as an essential tool to provide them utter support and appraise their contribution in organizations’ progress and growth (Anthony et al., 1996; Schneier et al., 1991). While the employees are satisfied from their employer and working condition, their attitude towards job is positive and motivates them to put extra efforts in their work, so that they can rece ive greater benefits by the employer (Karimi, Malik, & Hussain, 2011). As for the proposed research work, these views and ideas of past researchers will be used by the author of this research proposal, to identify the relationship between performance appraisal system, motivation of employees

Coke vs Pepsi Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Coke vs Pepsi - Research Paper Example Due to a primal fear of losing ground to the competition, these contracts with suppliers are in fact the very backbone of what defines the domestic and to a large part, international success of the firms. The second of the five forces that has such a profound and noticeable effect on the marketplace is that of the supreme intensity with which the competitive rivalry takes place. As will be discussed at length later in this analysis, this high level of competition means that both companies have behaved in highly competitive and aggressive ways both as a means to closely mirror the product offerings of one another and to ensure that if one is expanding within a given region a level of reciprocity within the other firm is also exhibited. b. Which of the 5 Forces would you expect to have had the most impact on the industry for the 10 years after the case ended? Why? If only one of the 5 forces had to be considered as the one that would be the most likely to have a strong impact on the in dustry for the 10 years after the case ended, it would have to be that of the bargaining power of the suppliers. As was detailed in the case, Pepsi Cola has only recently sold its controlling interests in both KFC and Taco Bell. As a function of this, these two large fast food chains, represented by thousands of chains throughout the US and the world, are not at a degree of freedom to go with the soft drink supplier that they deem to most represent the needs of the firm and of the consumer base. As a function of this, it is the bargaining power of the suppliers which has come to an even higher level of importance. c. Would your answers above be different if applied separately to Coke and Pepsi, or were they impacted similarly? Explain. It is the belief of this author that even if the answers were provided separately with relation to Coke and Pepsi, the end results would be similar. The reason for this is due to the fact that both companies mirror each other so closely; they compete in the same markets, the offer similar products, the compete for the same customers, and subsequently the same forces impact them (Lemley 2012). As a result of these similarities, the results to the answers would be very much the same even if done separately. Question 2: Competition/Barriers to Entry (3points) a. Keep in mind these are competitive forces in one of the most profitable businesses in the history of the industrial world. Coke and Pepsi control approximately 75% of the market share. Why have so few other firms been able to successfully enter this industry? Your answer should include some analysis about barriers to entry! One of the largest reasons that a level of further competition does not exist within the given industry is the fact that Coke and Pepsi have so thoroughly dominated the supply chain, vender contracting, and restaurant affiliation. As a function of these barriers to entry, it is almost impossible for a new, little known, start up to penetrate into such a well protected and highly contested market. Moreover, another factor that reduces the level of competition that is noticed is the fact that when a valuable start up does experience a level of success, they are oftentimes quickly picked up by either Coke or Pepsi and co-opted into their brand; an obvious case in point would of course be Naked Juice (Jacobson 2011). Question 3: