Thursday, October 31, 2019

Asylum in the Media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Asylum in the Media - Essay Example Humanity has to be regarded to guarantee the wellbeing of individuals who have been influenced either by natural disasters back in their home countries or political instability making them to seek refuge. However, the kind of reception that asylum seekers have been receiving is much more worrying, considering factual reasons that have made them to flee their nation .This therefore means that such misconceptions by the media and the public at large have been baseless. In reality, asylum seekers are justified to seek refuge in any nation that they feel it’s secure for them as far as they do not contravene the laws governing that nation. In Britain, there has been media and public perceptions to try and lay bare issues of asylum seekers regarding their origin, race and their impacts on the economy of Britain. Growing misunderstanding on the level with which people and the media have been overestimating the number of asylum seekers who have been awarded the status of refugees in B ritain is evident. Speculations among the people on the number of asylum seekers who have been allowed refugee status left a lot to be desired when a survey conducted in 2009, which revealed that more than 100,000 of asylum seekers had been accepted as refugees with clear and credible sources reporting that only 4,175 people had been received as refugees. This point to the status accorded to asylum seekers with marginalization and skewed numbers evident in speculations. (Castillo, 2010). Compared with other destinations that asylum seekers target, UK is far much below in the acceptance rate for the haven seekers. During the period of 2001-2006 the acceptance rate for UK stood at 7.77 per cent compared to Canada which had an acceptance rate of 47 per cent during the same period. France, United States, Germany, Sweden and Canada are ranked as main countries that asylum seekers target with UK being sidelined on the verge of it low rate of giving room for asylum seekers. There has been conflicting views about asylum seekers in Britain, with a section of citizens expressing their views that it’s an identity of their country to accept asylum seekers. Others felt that the country had accepted too many of them back in 2008 with a bigger percentage believing that providing refuge to those people who have misfortunes had been a tradition among Britain. Trust in the process of accepting asylum seekers was faulted with many people speculating their uncertainness regarding the length through which the entire process was open to abuse by the authorities and the issue of UK being so accepting (Gant, 2007). This discussion will entail clear-cut assessment of the various issues that affect asylum seekers in UK and around the world, a justification of the claims and misconceptions that the media point to the asylum seekers and how international organizations and various groups of people have advised nations to reform their laws to ensure that asylum seekers are treated w ith all manners of humanity and respect as the international law and Conventions provide in their guidelines and deliberations which these countries are party to (Gilbert, 2006). Refugee Action and Asylum in the Media Journalists and media personnel have been keen to give reports that are conflicting and to some extent tainting the whole issue of asylum seekers. Many journalists give irresponsible reports about asylum and asylum seekers, attracting a lot of

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Cash Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Cash Management - Essay Example Over the course of the last couple of years many companies have faced some serious cash and inventory related problems, largely as the result of dramatically reduced or even negative sales growth. As a result, cash now represents only 5% of the total asset base for the typical distribution based company. It is a cash position that does not leave a lot of room for error and too much money left sunk in inventory. To offset the cash challenge, most firms have looked at ways to reduce their investment in other major asset categories. One category clearly stand out as being both large and controllable and that is inventor. As a result, serious efforts have been made to drain these assets that are considered as cash traps. While reducing inventory is a laudable effort, the action is fraught with danger. In both cases it is possible, and maybe even likely, that the drive to lower investment levels will trigger further sales declines. This would be because of a higher occurrence of out-of-st ock situations.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Dunkin Donuts Target Market Demographic Segmentation

Dunkin Donuts Target Market Demographic Segmentation Dunkins Donut is Americas favorite food and all-day stop for coffee and baked goods. It is a leading retailer of hot and iced regular coffee by the cup in America and it also the largest coffee and baked goods chain in the world. The original Dunkins Donuts was a single cup of coffee with a donut. Now Dunkins Donut offers a wide range of coffee or coffee related beverages, baked goods and an expanding all day Oven Toasted menu. But they still use their original proprietary coffee blend recipe established by its founder (Franchise Update Media Group 2010). Throughout Dunkin Donuts Companys planning, they always keep the customers interests in mind. They frequently refer to their mission statement which is increase customer satisfaction and loyalty by providing the fastest and most accurate service, the freshest products in the friendliest and cleanest environment. They accomplish this through teamwork, communication, honesty, fun and sharing experiences as they all grow together (Riverside Management 2006). Today, this philosophy still holds true and it is the foundation that has enabled Dunkin Donuts to grow into Americas favorite everyday, all-day stop for coffee and baked goods (Dunkin Donuts 2009). Consumer Decision Process Consumer behavior looks at the many reasons why people buy things and later dispose of them. Diagram 1 is showing about consumer will go through distinct buying phases when they purchase products (Tanner, J. et al [No Date]) Dunkin Donuts has marketed itself as selling coffee for people on the go and their slogan is America runs on Dunkin. Dunkin Donuts coffee is what people drink on the way to work while on the car or on the subway (MightyStudents.com 2010). When people rush the time go to work but hungry, they will go to Dunkin Donuts because Dunkin Donuts easy take away and replenishing the energy of them. When consumer needs to buy something, they will do something information search and make automatic purchase decisions. It is because Dunkin Donuts coffee is a low-involvement product and it carries a low risk of failure and has a low price tag for a specific individual or group making the decision (Tanner, J. et al [No Date]). Consumer will receive the information of Dunkin Donuts from neighbors, colleagues, friend or advertisements. The outputs of information processing are the belief, attitude that shape decisions and the intentions that predispose certain actions. In beverage, consumers have many choices to choose which one coffee brand they want. The logo of Dunkin Donuts is pink and orange colour and these colour is memorable everywhere and also has a small cup of hot coffee (CBS Interactive 2010). The price of Dunkin Donuts coffee is less expensive pastry and beverage offerings are made to attract a fast on the move crowd (MightyStudents.com 2010). In beverage industry, Dunkin Donuts coffee will face many competitors and their largest competitor is Starbucks coffee. Consumer still will choose Dunkin Donuts coffee because they have good service for their customer. Besides that, Dunkin Donuts coffee has a reputation for brewing high quality coffee. It is because they use 100% Arabica coffee beans and has its own coffee specifications, which are recognized by the industry as a superior grade of coffee however Dunkin Donuts coffee still is less expenses for consumer (Alex Compton 2007). Finally, consumer will decide whether Dunkin Donuts coffee their purchased is everything it was cracked up to be. If not, they will like to suffer whats called post-purchase dissonance, so they will rethink their decision after purchasing products and wonder (Tanner, J. et al [No Date]). Dunkin Donuts need to try the prevent buyers remorse, so they have a customer service to help their customer to solve their problem. The customer service also will receive any suggestion from their customer and get the new idea to strengthen their business. In conclusion, consumer decision process does not end when a purchase has been made. The most important of all from a marketing viewpoint is whether the consumer will buy the selected brand again on a later purchase occasion (Baker, M.J. 1999, -). Consumer Buying Influences of Dunkin Donuts Consumers buying is influenced by four major psychological factors that are perception, learning, motivation and attitudes. Perception Perception is a process that begins with consumer exposure and attention to marketing stimuli and ends with consumer interpretation. Diagram 2 is showing about the nature of perception. Stimuli Exposure Attention Interpretation Memory Purchase Consumption Decision In Asia countries when people heard about Dunkin Donuts, they just know Dunkin Donuts is selling donuts. It is the donuts word will let them link to this beverage food main product is donuts not the coffee. But expect Asia country, they will know the Dunkin Donuts main product is coffee. This is why they need communication to reach consumers first and resulting in activating one or more senses, therefore consumer exposure is the start of preliminary processing. Dunkin Donuts coffee is well-known for their advertising and become popular culture references (WorldLingo Translations LLC 2010). Dunkin Donuts will through different ways to promote their coffee such as billboards, television adverts, magazines, sides of bus and the others. It is because they need to generate increased consumption their coffee. For example, Dunkin Donuts use the bus advertising to promote their coffee. They choose this advertising because it is large advertisement areas, novelty interest, high mobility and it can available for corporate hire (Bus Advertising 2006). Nowadays, most people live in an environment that is filled with sensory stimuli but their capacity to handle this information is limited (OpenLearningWorld 2010). So, Dunkin Donuts try to exploit that situation to their advantage before to leave an impact in their consumer (Himansu, S.M. 2009). It is why Dunkin Donuts have their own graphic logo and their shows a tall coffee cup and hot pink and orange colour company name. These two colour are energetic, dynamic and fast, consumer will easy pay attention in their coffee when consumer see these two colour (Logo Design Works 2010). On the other hand, the often situation, condition, environment or the surrounding of the consumer have an effect on its attention of certain stimuli. In America, Dunkin Donuts consumption object type is office worker and normal worker. So, Dunkin Donuts stores with limited seating as well as its less expensive pastry and beverage offerings are made to attract a fast, on the move crowd (MightyStudents.com 2010). When consumer rush the time go to work, then they remind Dunkin Donuts coffee and go to buy it. Interpretation is Dunkin Donuts coffees message which to attention the attracted and further analyses in terms of categories of meaning stored in memory (Lombard, A. 2007). Dunkin Donuts and their coffee are symbolic value for consumer and they will attempt to preserve or enhance Dunkin Donuts coffee. Hence, product and service image is very important for Dunkin Donuts in their business. Motivation In the motivation theory, we can use Abraham Maslows Hierarchy for Dunkin Donuts coffee because this theory is driven by the existence of unsatisfied needs. Through about Maslows theory, Dunkin Donuts coffee is belong to physiological needs. Food and water are very important for all of people and Dunkin Donuts is providing coffee and donut to consumer. Therefore, they can get the energy from Dunkin Donuts coffee and carry on their activity. Figure 3 is an advertisement which is cognitive preservation motive in McGuires psychological motives and it is the need for objectification of consumer. In this advertisement have a person who wear Dunkin Donuts coffee cup and run on the ways. This action is mating about Dunkin Donuts slogan and promotes their coffee, then can strengthen consumer impression Learning, Memory and Retrieval Learning is a behavioral modification that occurs through experience or conditioning and it included with thinking, conditioning and modeling (IBS Center for Management Research 2010). Advertising is a method which will be use by all of business because advertising will easy let consumer to remember their product. Consumer will easy pay attention for this advertisement because this advertisement is colourful and quite especial, then they will want know what is the mean about the America Runs on Dunkin. After that, consumer will start to analysis the product is good or not. They will use different method to measure the value of the product with other same type product. After that, consumer will remember Dunkin Donuts coffee in their mind. When consumer see people running, they will quickly association Dunkin Donuts slogan then they will got desire need to drink the coffee and go to buy. Attitudes Consumer attitudes are composite of a consumers beliefs, feeling and behavioral intentions toward some object. All of them are viewed together since they are highly interdependent and together represent forces that influence how the consumer will react to the object (Lars Perner 2010). Consumer belief Dunkin Donuts coffee can come from newspapers, television, listening radio, internet and cognitive process. America is a busy country and Dunkin Donuts coffee is what you drink when you are on the go, so consumer will go to buy Dunkin Donuts coffee when they rush their time to work or else. After consumers consume Dunkin Donuts coffee, they will get some feeling with this coffee. They will think why Dunkin Donuts coffee is so nice and the price also cheap. In addition, the advertising and another consumer comment, it can reinforce the Dunkin Donuts coffee image. Finally, they will choose Dunkin Donuts coffee because they got the affirmation from Dunkin Donuts coffee. Consumer Environment of Dunkin Donuts Culture and Subculture America is a coffee culture and American need drink coffee every morning before they start their work. Besides that, America is freedom country because all of national of America is very recognition of personal freedom. In consumption, they got entitlement to choose anything they want or need. In order to suitable this culture, Dunkin Donuts coffee given their customer many choice in their menu. Dunkin Donuts not only have different type of coffee, they also have different type of donuts, fancies, munchkins and sticks. Therefore, consumer got many different choices to choose when they need to consumption in Dunkin Donuts. Group Age group can be analyzed as subculture because they often have distinctive values and behaviors. American teenage population has been gaining affluence and fluctuating in size (Peter, J.P., et al 1999, pg304). Dunkin Donuts coffee will be flourishing in teen market because price of them very cheap but high quality. It is because its easy, filling and convenient. Nowadays in America, teenagers parent is busy in their work and they not more extra time to prepare home-cooking meal for them. Teenager also the limited budget and Dunkin Donuts is less expensive then they got the consume power. Lifestyle America is a busy country, so for the most part they want their food to be quick, convenient and cheap. Americans like thing that are fast and easy, requiring minimal personal or economic sacrifice, regardless of whether they buy it at supermarket or fast food franchise (The Kerr Center, 2010). Dunkin Donuts coffee is let people drink on the way to work, while on the car or on the subway, so Dunkin Donuts coffee is what you drink when you are on the go. Hence, Dunkin Donuts stores with limited seating as well as its less expensive pastry and beverage offerings are made to attract a fast, on the move crowd (MightyStudents.com 2010). PEST Analysis of Dunkin Donuts (P)olitical Americas government will establish Environment Protection Agency to charge with protecting human health and the environment (KOSMIXTM CORPORATION 2010). Dunkin Donuts unveiled its first LEED certified restaurant in Florida and LEED is recognized as the standard for green construction in America. LEED features are energy-efficient insulated concrete foam walls to reduce air conditioning, energy-efficient lighting, including motion sensors for restrooms and offices. They also identifying designated areas within the restaurant for storage/collection of recyclable materials. It is because they want going to do it in a way that is environmentally friendly for the people who live and work in America (DD IP Holder LLC 2010). (E)conomic America has an advanced industrial economy that is highly mechanized and the gross national product is the largest in the world. They more than meet its own economic needs and is the worlds leading exporter of food. The vast majority of businesses in America are clustered within the service industry, especially fast food business (Advameg Inc 2010). Therefore, Dunkin Donuts coffee in America will face many competitors such as McDonald, Starbucks and the other. It is because they marketing strategy are similar and all of them are attach importance to their service attitude and speed. (S)ocial The social classes for consumer analysis are upper Americans (14%), middle class (32%), working class (38%) and lower Americans (16%). Working Americans are family folk depending heavily on relatives for economic and emotional support (Peter, J.P., et al 1999, pg318). Dunkin Donuts coffee is what you drink when you are on the go, so they can save many times to do another things. It also is high quality but low cost of pastry and beverage offering are made to attract a fast on the crowd (MightyStudents.com 2010). Hence, all of American social class can consume. (T)echnological America is a technologically advanced country and it becomes an opportunity for Dunkin Donuts coffee in their business. Therefore, Dunkin Donuts coffee should always look forward to develop and improve its technological facilities in order to differentiate themselves in their use of technology. Dunkin Donuts unveiled Dunkin Run, an interactive Website and iPhone application the chain and it will enable customers to solicit and place Dunkin Donuts group orders in just a few clicks with unprecedented ease, speed, accuracy and fun. Consumers can a group to order with www.DunkinRun.com through their computer or mobile device to view the Dunkin Donuts coffee menu. All Dunkin Donuts core coffee, foods and beverages are presented using interactive product images to make personalizing an order all of them is simple and fun (Stagnito Media 2010). Global In global, many country people such as Asian will not consume on Dunkin Donuts. It is because in their first image Dunkin Donuts is selling donuts, so they will not want to consume. They prefer like to drink tea, Nescafe, Milo and others. Marketing Mix of Dunkin Donuts Dunkin Donuts adopted marketing strategies in four main areas, namely product, price, promotion, and place in America market. Table 1 is showing about Marketing Mix of Dunkin Donuts coffee in America. Product Dunkin Donuts is the largest coffee and baked goods chain in the world. They use high quality of their coffee and they have many choice can let their customer to choose. Starbucks is the largest competitor for Dunkin Donuts in the beverage business. Price In price, Dunkin Donuts is less expenses and their customer base is middle class people. Therefore, most of people can consume it. Promotion In promotion, they offer a holiday coupon in the month of December and they have their own logo and slogan. Besides that, they will prepare set lunch for their customer. Their other promotion method: television, newspaper, website, and the others. Place Dunkin Donuts is LEED certified restaurant and their stores is limited seating. STP Statement Market Segmentation As of 2009, America claimed 307,006,550 inhabitants within the area of 79.6 sq.km (US Census Bureau 2010). Besides that, America is a very urbanized population with 81% residing in cities. Dunkin Donuts key market segments are student, worker, kids and families. Location of Dunkin Donuts is restaurant outlet in the shopping mall at orchard road. Targeting Characteristics of target consumer for Dunkin Donuts coffee have three characteristics and it is age 18-25 years old, age 25 years old above and family. Table 3 is showing about characteristics of target consumer. Characteristics of target consumer Reasons for targeting: Age 18-25 years old This entire group is teenager student and young worker and they are limited budget Age 25 years old above They are heavy restaurant user group due to busy working lifestyles and they have relatively high incomes and are more flexible in their budgets. Businessman This group do not perceive Dunkin Donuts coffee is a luxury food and it is easy take away food when they rush the time go to work. Positioning Dunkin Donuts is positioning itself as a brand of choice nationally and internationally. The companys philosophy is make and serve the freshest, most delicious coffee and donuts quickly and courteously in modern, well-merchandised stores (DD IP Holder LLC, 2010). This philosophy enabled Dunkin Donuts coffee to grow into Americas favorite everyday and all day stop for coffee and baked good. It is leading retailer of hot and iced regular coffee by the cup in America and the largest coffee and baked goods chain in the world (Dunkin Donuts 2009). Today, more than 50% of Americans consume coffee on a daily basis and drink an average of 3 cups per day. Dunkin Donuts coffee is the most popular coffee franchise in America and helps to support this habit by serving nearly 1 billion cups coffee each year (Natural Bias 2009). Branding In Asia countries, when people heard about Dunkin Donuts, they just know Dunkin Donuts is selling donuts. It is because this brand calls Dunkin Donuts and the donuts word will let them link to this beverage food main product is donuts not the coffee. Dunkin Donuts brand has traditionally stood for hot coffee. Today, Dunkin Donuts is a global conglomerate that houses its own brand as well as quick service restaurant brands Baskin Robbins and Togos (Brand Channel 2010). It operates as a quick service restaurant franchiser in the coffee, bakery and ice-cream segments in the America and internationally (Bloomberg L.P 2010). In addition, their internal compass points toward their core values of honesty, transparency, humility, integrity, respect, fairness and responsibility (DD IP Holder LLC 2010). Hence, Dunkin Donuts franchiser boats high brand awareness and it ranked the first in customer loyalty in the coffee category in the Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index (AllBusiness 2009). Conclusion As a conclusion, with the launching of Starbucks, they are opening a new window towards a better future for their customer and also the company. This is why Starbucks can be leading the world in the America fast coffee market. On the other hand, Dunkin Donuts coffee has used their consumer information to determine the market trend and new ways to grow their company. This is why Dunkin Donuts will be in a better position to target their products and services at them.

Friday, October 25, 2019

The Effect of Language in Vladimir Nabokovs Lolita Essay -- Nabokov L

The Effect of Language in Lolita      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What really is reality? How can we define reality? The very nature of such a subjective subject means that there are as many answers as there are questioning minds on the planet. Therefore, reality can only be defined as what it means to each of us. We learn particular ways of looking at life from our experiences, which we gain from our interactions with others. This is the basis of an elaborate theory called "the social construction of reality." In modern America, one of the largest social groups to which we can belong, certain values are instilled into our impressionable minds; for example, not many of us would accept pedophilia. Or would we? What if our interactions with others molded our susceptible minds so well, and so discreetly, that we came to casually accept pedophilia without knowing we were being deftly manipulated? This is the magic of Lolita, which does just that. The richness and playfulness of Humbert's prose; prominent allusions; foresha dowing; and eloquence; makes it difficult to relate to Humbert as anything less than a masterful lyricist, much less a pedophilic murderer, and pushes the reader to twist ethics until the situation is no longer seen from society's eyes, but from Humbert's. In fact, the complex riddles that Vladimir Nabokov employs beyond Humbert's own words, which further include such devices as foreshadowing and obscure jokes, cause us to become so absorbed in the cleverness of the book and its author that we nearly dismiss pedophilia as second nature to the intricate use of language. Once our morals are firmly in place, it's difficult for us to imagine them being warped or even forgotten, but Lolita manages to make us question th... ...ook down and feel pity for Humbert when Lolita runs away, then realize that we felt pity when we should have felt vengeance. Works Cited Couturier, Maurice. "The Poerotic Novel: Nabokov's Lolita and Ada." 27 Jan. 2002. <http://www.libraries.psu.edu/iasweb/nabokov/coutur1.htm> Nabokov, Vladimir. Lolita. New York: Vintage, 1955. Rivers, J.E., Charles Nicol. Nabokov's Fifth Arc: Nabokov and Others on his Life's Work. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1982. Wood, Michael. The Magician's Doubts: Nabokov and the Risks of Fiction. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1994. Poe, Edgar Allen. "Edgar Allen Poe - The Academy of American Poets." 16 Mar. 2002. <http://www.poets.org/poems/poems.cfm?prmID=2212> Eliot, T.S. "Ash Wednesday by T.S. Eliot." 16 Mar. 2002. <http://web.mit.edu/ashah/www/ashwed.html>   

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Physical Networking Essay

When installing a cabling system there are a number of factors that come into play. Choosing the appropriate LAN device, cost of the whole job which is a major factor, and device interconnections. Knowing your codes are very important as well. When it comes to choosing the appropriate LAN device this is extremely important. Choosing the right router plays a part, some routers only work with certain types of operation systems. Choosing the right switch is important. You would want to choose a switch that has a mixture of both UTP and fiber ports. People sometimes routers depending on their price or speed. Cost are determined by the type of LAN and WAN networks you are trying to setup when setting up a network you need to consider 4 physical areas. Work area, telecommunications room, backbone cabling, and distribution cabling. Work areas are locations devoted to end devices used by individual users. Telecommunications room is where connection to intermediary devices take place. Horizontal cabling connects the telecommunications rooms with the work areas. While backbone cabling is used to connect the telecommunications rooms to the equipment rooms, where the servers are often located. If you don’t know the fire codes when it comes to wiring you shouldn’t be installing or attempting to even make wires for the network you are developing. (Cabling and Planning Networks, 2015) Works Cited Cabling and Planning Networks. (2015, January 25). Retrieved from High Tech : http://www.hightech.net

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Business Research Methods -Starbucks Essay

Starbucks Coffee Company originated in 1971 as a small coffee house in SeattleWashington. Over the years, Starbucks has grown into a global company offering its exclusive brand coffees in domestic and international markets. Unfortunately in recent years, increased competition and market saturation has caused the company to re-evaluate its business strategies often leading to the closure of many of its stores in many recently expanded areas. This business problem and optional proposal is designed to address the issues Starbucks is facing as a result of the increased competition and market saturation in the coffee industry. Using statistics to remedy the issue, Team C will develop a hypothesis to study using an appropriate sample pool as well as primary and secondary data sources. The outcome of the research will result in a final recommendation related to the problem and the hypothesis that was tested. Subject ProblemIncreased competition and market saturation has caused Starbucks Coffee Company to reevaluate its business strategies in order to eliminate the closure of many of its stores in recentlyexpanded areas. Consumers are feeling the prices in their pocket and are mindful of the next dollar they spend. Dependent and Independent VariablesA recent slump in sales and revenue has forced the coffee powerhouse company Starbucks to close several hundred stored over the last year and upcoming moths. The new sales plummet will be the dependent variable in our research of the independent variables and their effect of the overall sales. When looking at Starbucks many recent events can be attributed to its sales drought such as the huge unemployment which can be defined as our independent variables. The first independent variable to consider is the over saturation of Starbucks’s locations across the country. Each Starbucks location needs a certain amount of profit to stay open, thus several locations will have to resort to closing their doors. With Starbucks popularity early on it opened the door for other competitors such as  McDonald’s to serve a premium roasted ice coffee for a cheaper price. Also with the gas prices being steady and the economy trying to rebuild itself from this financial state it doesn’t seem economically to purchase a $4-$8 cup of coffee when you can get a similar product from McDonald’s or your local convenience store. Populations of InterestsThe two populations of interest that Learning Team C will be focusing on will be the consumers for cold coffee. The cold coffee market has grown with Starbucks being on the higher end and McDonald’s cold coffee being on the lower end of the market. We will show the comparison of these two companies’ consumers and how the overall market has been effective by the economy. Proposed Sources/Resources for Data CollectionFor a primary research source for Starbucks, data can be collected from market surveys,teleconferencing interviews, consumer questionnaires and focus group sessions by directlycontacting customers. Other information can be derived from sampling techniques and statisticalmethodologies which are documented to be 1 percent of the market profitable value. Secondaryresearch sources are in the form of data which has already been collected in preceding researchstudies. Examples include reports, press released articles, and initial market research projectsthat eventually arrive at a conclusion, governmental agency studies, and trade associations. Sampling methods to be used in researching the two hypotheses will be in simple random sampling and cluster sampling. Samples of customers will be asked to take a survey in different regions and areas of the market. The samples will include an assortment of populations including various age, race, career and education levels. Primary and Secondary DataPrimary resource data includes Starbucks’ mission statement that indicates â€Å"Our Commitment to Being a Deeply Responsible Company Contributing positively to our communities and environment is so important to Starbucks that it’s one of the six guiding principles of our mission statement.† (Starbucks, 2008) The effort that Starbucks exudes is a  positive one and working together with each employee helps them to create the above-average approach that they are known for. Analyzing surveys that were generated at the local Starbucks indicated that even though the price of Starbucks has rose in price, consumers are still willing to buy that product, especially when a competitor like McDonald’s sells it, as long as it bears the name Starbucks. The observations that have been analyzed are that Starbucks is known for providing a relaxing experience which can rival those of fast food restaurants. Starbucks has been known to modify their stores to embrace the coffee experience to entice consumers from every walk of life in local communities and throughout the world. â€Å"One of the benefits of combining primary research with secondary research is in the area of data triangulation. Data triangulation is when a piece of data, a finding, or a generalization is able to be verified with several different research methods.† (Driscoll, 2006) For example, when conducting a study on how many college students drink Starbucks coffee, results indicate that â€Å"Coffee drinking appears to be on the rise, and this might not be a fad. The Dallas Morning News recently wrote an article about a specific new trend in cold coffee. In a Sept. 4 article, staff writer Teresa Gubbins says we have a â€Å"love affair with hot coffee.†(Cooper, 2003)In this experiment, of the students interviewed, 57 percent of them reported to be coffee drinkers. Fifty-five percent had not been regular coffee consumers before college, and admitted they picked up the habit once they arrived at SMU. Because college is such a drastic change in atmosphere, schedules, class loads and stress, many students rely upon coffee as a solution to get them through the day. â€Å"I started drinking coffee because I cannot stay awake in class without it,† sophomore Shunta Richardson said. Fifty-nine percent of students said they prefer Starbucks coffee. â€Å"I drink Starbucks coffee because there are so many stores all around the country. No matter where I go I can trust that my favorite drink will be there,† junior Tyler Torres said. â€Å"(Cooper, 2003)Using secondary data sources, it is necessary to look at what kind of future Starbucks is facing. They also need to ask themselves some questions,  such as should they launch new products considering the trend of the health conscious? How will Starbucks market new products and continue to keep the price down? Starbucks must also look at the demographics of the target market to ensure the validity of concern. Starbucks must also research and use forecasting in an effort to predict future revenue. â€Å"Forecasting long-range predictions are essential to allow sufficient time for the procurement, manufacturing, sales, finance, and other departments of a company to develop plans for possible new plants, financing, development of new products, and new methods of assembling.† (Lind, Marchal & Wathen, 2004)Sample SizeStarbucks has become a well-known company for selling the highest quality coffee beans and best tasting coffee products around the world. Starbucks was one of the first companies to realize that the real money to be made was in beverage retailing, not just coffee beans. What makes Starbucks coffee stands out from the other corporations is the roasters of Starbucks coffees are extensively trained for one year before they start the production of the coffee. Starbucks is the only competitor in the coffee market that has a recognized brand image. Starbucks have introduced gourmet flavored decaffeinated coffees as well as specialty flavors and whole bean coffees for their faithful coffee drinkers. Starbucks stores operated in most metropolitan areas of the United States and have a direct mail business to serve customers in every state. One of Starbucks competitors for the premium roast coffee is McDonalds which they offer a similar product for less than the cost of Starbucks. This has posed a problem for a great deal of Starbucks retailers because customers these days are very conscious of their spending habits and figure why pay the cost of Starbucks when they can get the same product from McDonalds for a lesser cost. The sample sizing consisted of a group of 100 which the first group of 50 is Starbucks customers and the other 50 were McDonald customers. Customer surveys are one of the tools that can quantify the process and use of such tools are important to determine the need for a product and changes. The surveys can measure whether or not the marketing plan is effective, or if it needs to be repackaged and delivered in a different fashion. The initial choice of a quick, yet descriptive questionnaire is paramount to  gather needed information. Starbucks and McDonalds need to identify their customers, what are they willing to pay for this product and how do they rate the premium roast coffee. For each customer at Starbucks and McDonalds every 10th customer can complete the survey and receive 10% off their next purchase. Below would be questions that would be included in the survey for Starbucks and McDonalds customers:†¢How often is premium roast coffee purchased? (daily/weekly/monthly)†¢What is your specific age bracket? (under 18/ 18-24/ 25-44/ over 45)  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Where do you make your purchases? (restaurant/grocery store/mail order)†¢What is the cost that you are willing to pay for premium roast coffee? (less than $2/ $2 – $4/ Over $4)†¢What brand of premium roast coffee do you purchase? (Starbucks/McDonalds/other competitor)As you can see statistics can play an important role when making decisions. A manager at one of these companies can reduce the unexpected, and potentially costly, variances when making business decisions. Starbucks coffee is much expensive than McDonalds but Starbucks puts time and money into their product which ultimately increases the cost. Most consumers are excited about the competition of premium roast coffee such as McDonalds because of the lo w cost yet faithful customers to Starbucks because of the quality. When uncertainty is reduced better conclusions can be drawn that will minimize risk and maximize profit gain. Sample SelectionThe team examined secondary data within this business problem analysis, which can save a firm time and money by using publicly available information as well as information already in the firm’s database. If the company had already conducted research of the best markets within its regions and area of influence, the company would be smart to use this when deciding how to downsize its stores. While using secondary information is cost effective, the use of secondary data must be carefully considered and used only when applicable to the research question. Starbucks will need to gather accurate and reliable secondary information, which can either be sub-contracted out to a firm that specializes in market research or it can form an internal research team to explore opportunities which will start to present themselves as the company begins to downsize. A key concern for the validity of data is the age of the data. All the data is sensitive to the effect of time so any action being taken by the company must account for the  changing nature of the environmental landscape. One questions that Starbucks should ask its internal or external research team is, â€Å"How does the coffee market change once the Starbucks brand is not as strong as it used to be?† Another question would be, â€Å"What types of aftermath will come with coffee saturation in the fast food markets, will customers want quality over quantity?† Starbucks should use accurate, reliable and timely data in its decision-making processes going further. The company would be surprised to see that opportunities will arise even within the decrease of its stores. An example of this type of opportunity occurs when customers get tired of fast food production of coffee, Starbucks can offer extended hours at its current stores to maximize on profits. The team used demographic data within this analysis in which data was collected from Starbucks clientele through various surveys. Although demographic data will change and cultural habits may differ from town to town, the selection of cities with a vibrant coffee drinking base improves the odds of matching consumers that prefer Starbucks premium product line versus that of McDonalds or any other new rival. In an effort to hear from the people who matter the most, Starbucks should look to survey frequent, occasional and without a doubt new customers. When selecting age and gender criteria to survey, the team used careful consideration and attention was paid to all age groups. However, in an effort not to taint the results of this analysis, the team found that typically, pre-teens are neither decision makers, nor do they possess the spending power required for Starbucks products on a continued basis. Therefore, pre-teens were omitted from the sample. Although the teenagers have about the same spending power as pre-teens Starbucks does offer an atmosphere and products in which the company could use in the future as an opportunity. This age group was left in the surveyed population as the team conducted its analysis. Gender was annotated as a means to direct creative marketing and capitalize on the different sexes. Although the research team was efficient in its attempts to give Starbucks the best information available, statistical testing cannot prove the viability of Starbucks’ alternate hypothesis so company executives must weigh the test results using  the wealth of professional experience possessed by the Starbucks’ organization. References Corporate Social Responsibilityhttp://www.starbucks.com/aboutus/csr.aspCraving a caffeine high, SMU opens Java City on campus as coffee houses battle to attract students off the Hilltop, by Melissa Cooper, retrieved on the internet at http://media.www.smudailycampus.com/media/storage/paper949/news/2003/01/16/News/Craving.A.Caffeine.High-2273665.shtmlStarbucks Case Study (2007).

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

buy custom Adoption of Community Outreach Health Policy Plan essay

buy custom Adoption of Community Outreach Health Policy Plan essay This report will be directed to the public relations manager McDonalds Corporation, seeking to explain and recommend a community outreach health program aimed at proposing change in the companys outreach policy to accommodate rising health issues specifically the rising case of overweight and obese people. Topic: community health outreach policy program review The program will recommend a get back to the people program that will facilitate healthy living among the people many of whom are potential as well as existing customers. The health policy of the company ensures that the foods promote healthy living for example through low calorie foods. Even with these standards, it has emerged in the recent past that there is increasing number of overweight and obese people because of individual unhealthy practices regarding eating habits and choice of foods. Since the community forms an integral part of the McDonalds Corporation, the public relations manager should adopt this community outreach review program in the companys outreach policies(CDC, 2010). Purpose of the report The purpose of the report is to give a recommendation on the best way to deal with obesity and related overweight problem in the community. According to the Natioal Health and Nutrition Survey, one in every three Americans is obese. Obesity has resulting complications like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, heart diseases, stroke and even high cholesterol. The rate is more alarming too in children and therefore as part of giving to the community, this recommendation will add to other existing outreach programs and will therefore will assist in trying to get a permanent solution to the problem(CDC, 2010). Resources required To implement this future community health program recommendation, resources will be required to facilitate it. The McDonalds Corporation will have to review its budgetary allocations to the community outreach programs since this will an additional program with its own unique financial requirements. The adoption of the program will need public education and awareness programs as well as assisting those already affected. Public awareness can be through advertisements or specific area to area training. The company can also get involved in getting other corporate bodies to get involved including influencing insurance companies to offer remuneration to affected people by covering in their insurance policies. All these require financial input from the MacDonald Corporation dedicated to each activity(Egeland, 2010). Information gathering techniques For the justification report recommending this new health outreach program, information will be gathered to give data and details for the proposed change. Some of the ways of collecting this information include direct observation, for example for the case of observing an affected groups of people with associated problems since obesity results in other problems like diabetes. A one-on-one interview with the person affected is yet another method. The internet has proven to an important research tool and this will help in reviewing the outreach policy. Facilitated sessions can also help collect information because they involve bringing a larger group of people with weight problems together with an aim of getting information faster (Egeland, 2010). Information evaluation criteria Some of the factors to consider in the evaluation criteria include the direct effect of the program to the community. These include checking the healthy living of the people who might have gone through weight loss programs, the measure of reduced obese cases and even the reduced obesity related complications and deaths. Another evaluation criterion is motivational concept of the consumer or customer reaction. This includes the direct effect of the program on the McDonald Corporation in terms of sales as well as the community reaction to the program(Egeland, 2010). Buy custom Adoption of Community Outreach Health Policy Plan essay

Monday, October 21, 2019

Peter Weir essays

Peter Weir essays Combine an auteurist approach with a generic approach to discuss the films of a particular director in social, cultural, and ideological context. Briefly outline how this auteur uses genre in the films, and critically appraise the ways the auteur uses these generic elements to comment upon American society, culture, and ideology at particular periods in 20th century American history. Peter Weir is an Australia born film director working in the United States and has himself stated: "Frankly, I've never fit in anywhere." This perspective is reflected in Weirs films, in which, as an auteur, he presents the perspective of an individual who is on the outside looking in. His characters are all isolated from society in their own way. Some examples of such characters are: Max, a plane crash survivor who can no longer relate to the people or world around him in Fearless (1993); Allie Fox, an individual dissatisfied with the materialist society in which he lives in The Mosquito Coast (1986); and in a reversed approach, Truman Burbank, who is unaware that he is the world's biggest television star; he is the individual on the inside and everyone else is looking at him, in The Truman Show (1998). There are other more specific psychological and ideological questions raised by Peter Weir's films, as well as general commentary on American society in the twentieth century. Weir shares with his contempories - the Scorseses, Spielbergs, and Lucases - a kind of popular culture that is fundamentally American (Quart, 1991: 112). In Weirs personal point of view, The artistic personality belongs deeply nowhere ... it's the person who goes from court to court and plays before the king but never signs up to any particular group and remains a comment on society. Some of the comments that Weir makes in the films already mentioned are: there is a disparity between what is presented in society as reality&apo...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Capital Punishment Cheapens the Value of Human Life

Today, the most serious crimes (especially murder and rebellion) are preserved and the death penalty (or similar death penalty) is a judicial order to execute a prisoner as a punishment for capital crime (defined by each country). The cruel killing of citizens by the state can be traced back to ancient times. Indeed, from an objective point of view, the judgment of the Gospel before 2000 and the subsequent crucifixion can be regarded as a classic death penalty procedure. The death penalty or capital punishment means state penalty for convicted criminals, ie the most serious crime - the death penalty. The word capital comes from the Latin capital and means around the head, so the meaning of death (symbolic meaning) will be distracting. Death penalty and murder by law are completely different Murder is caused by individuals for personal purposes. But human life has the greatest value. Regimes using numerous death sentences, particularly political or religious crimes, infringe the most important human rights, ie the rights to life. Abusers believe that the death penalty is the most serious violation of human rights, as human rights violations are the most important and the death penalty infringes it, it is not necessary and it hurts the condemned psychological torture. Human rights activists oppose the death penalty and call it cruel and inhumane and punishing punishment. Amnesty International views this as ultimate irreversible human rights denial. Most countries, including almost all the first world countries, have abolished capital punishment or practical death penalty. Notable exceptions are the United States, China, India, Japan, and most Muslim countries. America is the only Western country still using the death penalty Seek killing of others' daily life. The death penalty is a vicious circle. Regardless of media, politicians and others, someone will provoke the masses of the United States and then claim that the people will support the death penalty. This h as led to the expansion of media coverage of capital lawsuits which in turn stimulated the population and continued its cycle. People should be compared to sheep in a way; by themselves, this person may be smart, but collective consciousness is formed under many other existences. Under the influence of the group, this wise person can imagine acting in ways not normally considered. The death penalty further weakens our lives by becoming a means of legitimate discrimination. Southern countries are more likely to convict a black man than a white male, especially if the crime is against a white man. If it turns out that the minority group is supported much, everyone will be excluded from the punishment of the law. essay.com/TITLE: Capital punishment: justice or murder? Theme: Koch's Death and justice: how punishment of death confirms life vs Brooke's punishment for death Title: Capital punishment: Is it justice or murder? Theme: Koch's Death and justice: how punishment of death confirm s life vs Brooke's punishment for death

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Job Selection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Job Selection - Essay Example announcing the opening of the jobs in major newspaper and online job services, FEMA will also post such job opening at the universities to cater to students who are about to finish their Master’s degree whom FEMA could entice to join the organization. The job requires of an Information Technology Specialist requires an aptitude for Information Technology, and as such applicants without a background in Information Technology shall be given least preference. Applicants with Master’s degree in Information Technology or a security certification shall be given priority. The function of an Information Technology Specialist requires a high aptitude in computer and programming and it is critical that those skills should be present among the possible candidates. A test that determines a candidate’s competency in computer shall be administered in stages until the applicant’s skill and knowledge in computer is established. Applicants who passed the examination shall be evaluated further in an interview. Experience, attitude and other characteristics that contributes to an ideal job performance shall be evaluated during the interview. The informations that the candidate provided shall be evaluated for accuracy. This is necessary because FEMA involves national security and it is imperative to determine that the candidate is exactly what he or she said she

Friday, October 18, 2019

What makes people like to stay on their jobs Essay

What makes people like to stay on their jobs - Essay Example Based on developed level of satisfaction and happiness, employees determine whether to continue working for an organization or not. The factors also determine the employees’ productivity level, should they choose to remain in an organization. It is therefore important to investigate conditions that determine employees’ happiness and satisfaction to stay in jobs and reasons why employees may not like their jobs. Non-monetary factors Non-monetary factors are essential determinants of employees’ utility in a workplace. As a result, they are able to make an employee happy or not. An employee will for instance be happy if considered non-monetary factors meet his or her expectations. A match between job descriptions and an employee’s traits or abilities is one of the non-monetary factors that determine a person’s happiness in a job. This is because of the different expertise that each type of job requires and the involved strain in performing a job, shoul d an employee lack the required skills or traits. Matching employees with jobs that require their skills, level of experience and traits therefore eliminates strain in work, improves utility, and induce happiness. Employees in such working conditions like their jobs and would prefer to remain in the jobs and work effectively towards productivity. Mismatching employees’ ability with job requirements however identifies strains and incompetence in work that may discourage employees and lead to job dislike (Gaurav 9). Appreciating and recognizing employees are other non-monetary factors that influence employees’ happiness (Gaurav 9). This is because of the associated self worth that leads to self-confidence and internal motivation among employees. Examples of appreciation include congratulating an employee for an achievement such as meeting set objectives or doing an outstanding work. Recognition is, however, achieved by identifying an employee’s performance or char acteristics before peers. An appreciated or recognized employee therefore develops a self worth into satisfaction and happiness while lack of appreciation and recognition demoralizes employees who may consequently develop negative attitude towards their jobs. Presence of stress in a work environment is another non-monetary factor that determines employees’ happiness and developed attitudes towards a job. Stress primarily reduces people’s level of happiness and utility. Stressed employees will therefore be unhappy and would not like their jobs while employees who work in a stress free environment are likely to be happy and like their jobs (Gaurav 9). Monetary factors Monetary factors define direct financial advancements to employees. Remunerations, rewards, and appraisal-based advancements are examples. Even though not regarded as principal determinant to employees’ satisfaction in a job, money is instrumental. Employees will for example be comfortable when their basic remunerations match their competence and their level of input to an organization. A relatively low remuneration level would therefore not satisfy an employee and would lead to unhappiness. An underpaid employee will also most likely not appreciate the job and would be ready to leave for an opportunity that can match competence with pay. An organization’s reward system is another monetary factor to employees’ satisfaction and happiness that is directly associated with non-monetary aspects of appreciation and recognition. A performance-based reward for example indicates an organization’s appreciation of an employees’ performance and initiates the employees’ satisfaction in the work. Rewarded employees will therefore be happy and satisfied in their work. Similarly, those who have

The Killing of Jordanian Pilot Moaz Kasasbeh Essay

The Killing of Jordanian Pilot Moaz Kasasbeh - Essay Example In his article in the Los Angeles Times, Miller provides an objective headline that stamps his views over the issue. â€Å"Will Islamic State pay for killing a Jordanian pilot?† is an objective headline that illustrates the writers opinion for revenge or stern action in response to the inhumane act (Miller). On the other hand, Woodward depicts an outright thought and approach to solving the challenge. The headline â€Å"Patience is better than revenge† describes the writer’s view that there exists a peaceful approach to dealing with the situation (Woodward 1). Woodward draws his sentiments from the report by Mitchell Prothero about the killing. He then explains the chronological events as they happened after the assassination. In addition, he gives his perspectives about Jordan’s rejoinder of prisoner’s execution and concludes that it is not an appropriate move. To justify his facts that revenge is not right, Woodward compares the prevailing situation to the Quran teachings of peace and love. Conversely, Miller relates the potential outcomes of the ISIS acts to past events. Notably, he points out the Arab Spring and events triggered World War I. Both insights show that the writers are well equipped with historical facts and data about conflicts. Nonetheless, they provide alternative approaches to handling the situation. Woodward message to the readers comprises of importance of peace and collaboration to solving world problems. He also stamps his peaceful approach to solving conflicts by teaching his readers the spiritual aspect of conflict resolution. On the other hand, Miller to an extent wants the readers to pressurize the state to seek revenge. He gives an analysis of the on-going operations and points out areas of faults. In doing this, he is informing the readers about the seriousness or lack of focus on the side of the federal government and other concerned states. For example, he explains

Thursday, October 17, 2019

You should discuss some artworks in music from the 20th century Essay

You should discuss some artworks in music from the 20th century - Essay Example One of the major developments in music artworks were in electronic music using several electronic instruments such as the guitar; and one of the best composers of this era was Edgard Varese who experimented with electronic music. The 20th century musicians and composers had greater global influence as transportation had become faster which allowed musicians to travel more frequently and interact with a wide range of people or fans. Amplification was another technology which allowed people with the cheap tickets to listen to huge concerts and enjoy high quality music performances. As in all art forms, in music as well there were some great works recorded and distributed in this era. This era was also an era of psychological awareness as well as the after-effects of the First World War which had brought horror, fear, and disturbance of destruction and death for the people of Europe. In response to such influences, there were composers who focused on expressionistic music such as Arnold Schoenberg and some who used experimentation in new forms of music such as Edgard Varese. These composers received lesser fame and recognition but their techniques influenced the composers who followed them (Mabry 45). Electronic music was one of the major developments in music artworks in the 20th century. It was developed in Japan, Europe, and America in the 1950s. The composers of this era dealt with the magnetic tapes which allowed them to record sounds and manipulate them in several ways. The electronic music consists of transmission through loudspeakers; however there are two major types; acousmatic music and live electronic music. Acoustmatic music is the one which is recorded and available for loudspeaker listening and live electronic music is the one in which electronic devices are used to initiate, transform, and trigger the music sounds in huge concerts and

Midterm Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Midterm - Assignment Example Rene Descartes belief in this theory borrows heavily from epistemology and rationalism. Epistemology study’s scope of knowledge and nature. In line with the Descartes belief on existentialist, it is possible for him to doubt that he has two hands (Fairfield 211). In addition, that he is sitting on a chair reading words printed on paper and summation of two and three to make five. Firstly, there is no possible way to ascertain numbers either two hands or summation because there is no reason given why the hands cannot be four or three or summation cannot be seen. In other words, these are facts whose truth and falsehood cannot go beyond mere conviction. Besides, Descartes reasoning is based on the rejection of Universalism of facts and figures. In order to have the truth, there should be a way of testing the perceived truth. In relation to reading printed words in a paper, his school of thought on universal belief falsifiers, he is convinced that a chair, paper and body posture is Universalism. He says it holds no truth, nor false, he believe that individual opinion as he perceives and disagree with universal knowledge. There is no observation without involving mental processes. It is, therefore, substantially true that the objects we perceive with our eyes are the actual reflection of the mind processes. In other words, the inward perception of on how we see people, objects or what we feel about circumstances will determine our actions or inaction. Evidently, the mind frame the situation and external body execute a course of action based on the interpretation of the inner self. With this explanation, the theory holds truth in relating experiences to mind (Campbell 68). The empirical explanation in this case is that, the objects as they appear are neither material nor material. In addition, fear, sadness and physical description of an object or a person

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Stratigic Management - McDonalds Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Stratigic Management - McDonalds - Assignment Example The analysis of these factors can reveal the internal strengths and weaknesses of a company (Barnat, â€Å"Internal Organizational Analysis†). McDonald’s is one of the biggest fast food restaurants with customer base of 47 million. McDonald’s operates in almost 119 countries in the world. It has complicated distribution channel and its supplier’s network is spread throughout the world. McDonald’s marketing strategy aims to raise the sales and to maintain its brand image. McDonald’s constantly alter the strategies according to the customer’s tastes, standard of living and opinions. McDonald’s is quite approachable in countries where people are sensitive towards consuming various foods, for example, the market of India (Scribd, â€Å"Internal Analysis on Macdonald’s†). ... In the year 2006, McDonald’s had faced criticism in Japan because of including forbidden foods and dishonest coloring of apple pies. Another critic stated that McDonald’s and its other fast food competitors demoralized native cooking and developed identical international culture. Besides, McDonald’s had faced bad reputation because of unhealthy food and bad employee relation in many of their outlets. There was objection against McDonald’s for making people work for lower wages (Gibison, â€Å"McDonald’s: A Good Image with Bad Ethics†). Section 3: In-depth Internal Analysis Resource Based View of McDonald’s The marketing strategy of McDonald’s is based on the internal resources. Tangible Resources: Product: With regard to fast food products there are many choices for a customer. Thus, McDonald’s focuses on creating a menu that most of the consumers require as well as prefer. McDonald’s always examine the preferences of customers as the preferences change from time to time. To facilitate the change in preference, McDonald’s continuously develop new products and replace old products (McDonald’s Corporation, â€Å"Marketing at McDonald’s†). Intangible Resources: Brand Reputation: McDonald’s has good brand reputation. In the year 2008, it was ranked number eight among other international brands. It had ranked in first position among other fast food international brands. The brand value was calculated to be around 49,499 million USD. In the fast food markets of North America, McDonald’s brand was ranked in seventh position (Millward Brown Optimor, â€Å"Top 10 0 B rand Ranking†). In the year 2010, McDonald’s brand was ranked sixth in the year 2010, among ‘most valuable global brands’ (Social Brand Value, â€Å"Brand

Midterm Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Midterm - Assignment Example Rene Descartes belief in this theory borrows heavily from epistemology and rationalism. Epistemology study’s scope of knowledge and nature. In line with the Descartes belief on existentialist, it is possible for him to doubt that he has two hands (Fairfield 211). In addition, that he is sitting on a chair reading words printed on paper and summation of two and three to make five. Firstly, there is no possible way to ascertain numbers either two hands or summation because there is no reason given why the hands cannot be four or three or summation cannot be seen. In other words, these are facts whose truth and falsehood cannot go beyond mere conviction. Besides, Descartes reasoning is based on the rejection of Universalism of facts and figures. In order to have the truth, there should be a way of testing the perceived truth. In relation to reading printed words in a paper, his school of thought on universal belief falsifiers, he is convinced that a chair, paper and body posture is Universalism. He says it holds no truth, nor false, he believe that individual opinion as he perceives and disagree with universal knowledge. There is no observation without involving mental processes. It is, therefore, substantially true that the objects we perceive with our eyes are the actual reflection of the mind processes. In other words, the inward perception of on how we see people, objects or what we feel about circumstances will determine our actions or inaction. Evidently, the mind frame the situation and external body execute a course of action based on the interpretation of the inner self. With this explanation, the theory holds truth in relating experiences to mind (Campbell 68). The empirical explanation in this case is that, the objects as they appear are neither material nor material. In addition, fear, sadness and physical description of an object or a person

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

The Importance of Character Essay Example for Free

The Importance of Character Essay According to Booker T. Washington, American educator and civil rights activist (1856-1915) â€Å"Character, not circumstance, makes the person† – it is the things you choose to do that shape your personality and develop good character. Your character is the deciding factor of what you choose to do in any circumstance. Character is built throughout a person’s lifetime and often what you learn as a teenager is what is used to lay the foundation of your adult self. Self-control builds character. As human beings, each of us has desires – some of them innocent; others morally wrong. Humans are the only animals who are actually able to make individual choices. Making the right choice is a feature of self-control. You may not always get what you want when you want it but the presence of self-control means you are able to wait patiently. Citizenship is a way for a person to give back to their community. It is important not only for the good of the community, but for the good of the individual. It teaches cooperation and selflessness in that giving back to those who support you is a way to build your own character. Patriotism goes hand in hand with citizenship except that it involves not only the good of the community, but of the nation that we are fortunate enough to live in. The nation must be protected so that the rights of its people are also protected. Being involved with the community and the nation is a great way to keep a teenager involved in worthwhile activities. Honesty is a trait found in those of strong character. At times it is hard to be honest but the development of character means doing the right thing, no matter the cost or pain to yourself. To fully enjoy relationships with others, you must care enough about them to promise nothing less than honesty. Lying is easy; facing the truth and stating it without fear is often the harder, less traveled road to take. The concept of fairness means that you need to treat all people as equals. Give others the benefit of the doubt and assume they are being honest. It shows your own good character to treat others the same as you expect to be treated. Courage is a component of all the aspects of a person’s character. Only with courage can you speak the truth, do what is morally right and live up to your own high expectations of the type of person you should be. There is no one thing that makes a person’s character. Strong character is a mixed bag of admirable traits, any of which can be pulled up and relied upon when necessary. It is character that will see a person through the toughest of times knowing that he is able to rely on his own self-control, honesty, courage and sense of fairness to do what is right, not only for himself but in service of his community, and nation.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Power Abuse in Government

Power Abuse in Government Question: You have been introduced to several definitions of power. How do these definitions help you to understand power as you see it exercised in the world around you? Please give examples to illustrate your answer. At the creation of time, as per the book of Genesis in the Holy Bible, a command was given to Adam and Eve to not eat of the Tree of Knowledge. As they both did so, they became acutely aware of â€Å"right† and â€Å"wrong† and were subjected to the punishment of their Almighty, Powerful God; and so began the understanding of power. How power is used often reflects the values and beliefs of the user. As a noun, the word â€Å"Power† has numerous meanings. The Oxford Dictionary (2013) defines power as the capacity to direct or influence the behaviour of others or the course of events. Hobbes (in Nagel, 1998) identifies power as a person’s means to obtain some future good and Heywood (2007: 456) posits that power is â€Å"the ability to influence the behaviour of others, typically through the power to reward or punish†. This essay is an attempt to enlighten the reader of the concept of power and will explore this rationale further with specific concen tration on the teachings of Heywood and of Kenneth Boulding in conjunction with his book The Faces of Power, where he reveals his premise that there are three categories of power: threat power, economic power, and integrative power. At some point in time, every person wishes to possess power in some degree. Whether that is power over a brother or sister, the ability to influence friends or work colleagues, or, perhaps, running for political office. Because power is, at its core, the ability to obtain a described outcome, at some level the objective, according to Russell (1938), of all members of an organization is to obtain power. In his book Politics, Heywood (2007:11) comments that â€Å"Power can be said to be exercised whenever A gets B to do something that B would not otherwise have done. However, A can influence B in various ways†. It is these ways or â€Å"faces of power† that Heywood (2007) describes the first face of power as that of decision making and how actions, in some shape or form, influence decisions. Decision making is an ongoing process that occurs on a daily basis. On a small scale, a local shop owner is constantly making decisions that will have a direct impact on the success o r demise of his/her business. On a much larger scale, is the decisions making of a government. It is here that the teachings of Boulding (1989) have the most influence when he claims that power has three categories or faces. The first face is the power of threat—the stick—the power to destroy. Boulding goes on to state that the existence, and especially the possession, of the means of destruction, such as weapons, enhances the probability that they will be used and a very good example of the power of threat is to look at a situation in 2010 by Mexican drug cartel members on the families living in El Porvenir, Mexico. The cartels, according to an article written by Gibson and published on Examiner.com in 2010, threatened to kill every child in the border town unless the parents paid a fee for their protection or left the town. As a result of this threat, the families either paid the fee or, as a majority indeed did, fled for a neighbouring town. Another of Boulding’s faces of power that conforms to Heywood’s theory is Economic Power—the carrot—the power to produce and exchange. Globalisation has made trade with foreign nations a much easier opportunity compared to previous decades. However, tensions can, and do, run high in businesses and governments. An illustration of economic power could be that of China. It could be said that China has an economic power over a large portion of the World in that a majority of consumer products are produced in China. If international relations between China and the U.S.A. were to take a turn for the worse and in turn China were to place an embargo on exports to the United States, one of China’s largest importers, this could have a crippling effect on the U.S. economy. Boulding’s (1989) third face of power is that of integrative power—the hug—the power to build relationships. He explains that integrative power is when B does an act for A out of love or respect or want and not because A has the power of making B do said act. A very good case to demonstrate integrative power is that of a volunteer wishing to enlist in military service. Although there are countries where conscription is still in place, the majority of States rely on men and women volunteering to serve their country. It is improbably, but still possible, that an individual decides to dedicate X amount of years being browbeaten or vituperated to learn a trade or to achieve professional qualifications. Indeed, this could be obtained by attending university or a local trade school with much less difficulty. The individual enlists his or her service out of love or from a sense of duty to their nation. Yet another concept of power that is introduced by Heywood (2009) in his thesis is the power of agenda setting. The media seems to be one of the major players when agenda setting is the issue. Fox news in the United States is commonly referred to as a right-wing media outlet. As Ackerman (2001) explains, â€Å"When it comes to Fox News Channel, conservatives dont feel the need to work the ref. The ref is already on their side.† Alternatively, MSNBC is typically described as left-wing opinionated. An illustration of the type of coverage that is reported is the topic of Obamacare in the U.S.A. When Fox News covers the topic, the primary information that is passed along to its viewers is how much Obamacare will cost the U.S. citizens via way of taxation and that the Democratic President is trying to force unconstitutional laws on the American public. On the opposite side of the spectrum, when MSNBC reports on the subject, the argument is how the healthcare bill will benefit the p oor and the individuals that presently cannot afford primary care. This, undoubtedly, swings in the favour of President Obama. The final argument that Heywood posits is the power of thought control which he describes as influencing others in what they think, want, or need. To demonstrate this, attention is turned to television; children’s television to be more specific. Children’s television channels are consistently bombarded with commercials for the latest toys and any parent dealing with a child pleading for them to buy that latest toy knows perfectly well how influential those commercials can be. When watching these commercials, the parent is typically harassed with comments such as â€Å"Dad, I want that!† or â€Å"Mom, I NEED that!† when in reality, the product being advertised could simply be the identical doll or toy truck that the child currently owns but in a different coloured dress or paint style. As declared by Barnes (1988:1), â€Å"Power is one of those things, like gravity and electricity, which makes its existence apparent to us through its effects, and hence it has always been found much easier to describe its consequences than to identify its nature and its basis†. It has been put forth in this essay that power, as described by Heywood and Boulding, has numerous faces and the development when these powers are enacted has positive and negative consequences. It is assumed by many that governments use and abuse their power on a continual basis. However, as it can be seen from this work, governments are not the only actor to use and occasionally abuse their power. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ackerman, S. (2001) ‘The Most Biased Name in News’, FAIR [online], 01 July, available at: http://fair.org/extra-online-articles/the-most-biased-name-in-news/ [accessed 12 January 2013]. Barnes, B. (1988) The Nature of Power, Cambridge: Policy Press. Boulding, K. (1989) Three Faces of Power, London: Sage Publications. Gibson, D. (2010) â€Å"Drug cartel threatens to kill every child in Mexican border town† Examiner [online], available at: http://www.examiner.com/article/drug-cartel-threatens-to-kill-every-child-mexican-border-town [accessed 10 January 2014]. Heywood, Andrew (2007). Politics, 3rd ed., Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. Nagel, J. (1975) The Descriptive Analysis of Power, London: Yale University Press. Russell, B. (1938) Power: A new social analysis, New York: Norton.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Creating Madness in The Yellow Wallpaper -- Yellow Wallpaper essays

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As summer progresses in the story "The Yellow Wallpaper," John's treatment of the narrator as though she were a helpless docile child becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy; she sheds the skin of her adult self and gives birth to her inner child via the wallpaper. From the moment she implies she is sick, his behavior becomes more and more parental and authoritarian. Under this guise he slowly disintegrates any resemblance of an adult wife he had. At the end he's victorious because he does beget a child. Simultaneously, he's a loser because the behavior of this childlike being mirrors his own attitude toward his wife: she's defiant and assertive and runs right over him. The tables have reversed. In the beginning of the story, John laughs at her feelings about the queerness of the estate he has rented for the next three months. He acts as if her imagination has gone wild. Clearly he does not see her as his equal but as an undeveloped being who would entertain such nonsense. John "has no patience with faith" and "he scoffs openly at any talk of things not to be felt and seen" (Gilman 178). John does not have the patience to deal with a lesser being's outlook. It takes a great deal of patience for a parent to deal with the inner workings of a child's imaginative mind.    John and his brother-in-law, both physicians, refuse to believe she is really sick. Instead they assume she has "a slight hysterical tendency" (178). In their eyes depression is not an illness but a symptom of being a female. John has "forbidden her to 'work'" (179). Very often parents don't believe children when they say they are sick. Adults think that children blow things out of proportion in order to get their parents' attention. His prescription for... ...his infantile creation "had to creep over him" (191) as she escapes from the womb of the wallpaper.    Works Cited Gilman, Charlotte P. "The Yellow Wallpaper." An Introduction to Literature. Ed. Sylvan Barnett, Morton Berman, and William Burton 10th ed. New York: Harper Collins, 1993. 178-91. Golden, Catharine. "The Writing of 'The Yellow Wallpaper': A Double Palimset." Studies in Short Fiction 17 (1989): 193-201. Hume, Beverly A. "Gilman's Interminable Grotesque: The Narrator of 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" Studies in Short Fiction 28 (1991): 477-83. Johnson, Gregg. "Gilman's Gothic Allegory: Rape and Re-demption in 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" Studies in Short Fiction 26 (1989): 521-30. King, Jeanette, and Pam Morris. "On Not Reading Between The Lines: Models of Reading in 'The Yellow Wallpaper.'" Studies in Short Fiction 26 (1989): 23-32.   

Saturday, October 12, 2019

The Life of Queen Elizabeth I Essay -- Biography Biographies Essays

The Life of Queen Elizabeth I Queen Elizabeth was born in Greenwich Palace on September 7, 1533. She died on March 24, 1603, of natural causes. Her father was Henry VII. His second wife, Anne Boleyn was Elizabeth's mother. King Henry wanted a son, but received a daughter, instead, from his second wife. Before Elizabeth's third birthday, Henry had her mother beheaded on charges of adultery and treason. Elizabeth was brought up in a separate household at Hatfield (not known). King Henry's third wife gave birth to a son. This boy was named Edward. Edward was declared first in line for King Henry's throne, while Mary (Daughter of Henry's first wife) was declared second, and Elizabeth was declared third and last in line for the throne. Elizabeth received a thorough education that was normally reserved for men. She was taught by special tutors of whom, the most known, was a Cambridge humanist by the name of Roger Ascham. Roger Ascham wrote about Elizabeth, "Her mind has no womanly weakness. Her perseverance is equal to that of a man and her memory long keeps what it quickly picks up. With the help of these tutors, she was not only fluent in two languages, but in four languages. She was fluent in the languages of Greek, Latin, French, and Italian. When Henry died in 1547, her brother, Edward, took over the throne at ten years of age. Edward, with a short reign on the throne, died in 1553, and Elizabeth's half, older sister, Mary took the throne. Mary, like Edward, died on November 17, 1558, after a short time on the throne.In October 1562, Queen Elizabeth almost died of small pox. In 1584, Europe's other major protestant leader, William of Orange, was assassinat... ...ious, and economic forces and over her representation of herself began to show severe strains. Bad harvests, continued inflation, and unemployment caused strain and a loss of public morale. Charge of corruption and greed led to widespread popular hatred of the Queen's favourite, to whom she had given large and much-resented monopolies. Queen Elizabeth continued to make brilliant speeches, to exercise her authority. But she suffered from bouts of melancholy, ill health, and showed signs of increasing debility. As Sir Walter Raleigh remarked, "a lady surprised by time." On march 24, 1603, having reportedly indicated JAMES VI as her successor, Queen Elizabeth died quietly. The nation accepted the new King quite enthusiastically. But long before her death, she had transformed herself into a powerful image of female authority.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Case Solution

Problems Q. 1 Consider a five-year coupon bond with a face value of $1000 paying an annual coupon of 15%. (i) If the current market yield is 8%, what is the bond’s price? (ii) If the current market yield increases by 1% what is the bond’s new price? (iii) Using your answers to part (i) and (ii) , what is percentage change in the bond’s price as a result of 1% increase in interest rates. Q. 2 Consider the following FI balance sheet: M. Match Ltd Assets| Liabilities| –year Treasury bond $175,000| 1-year CD$135,000| 15-year corporate bond$165,000| 5-year deposit$160,000| Notes: All securities are selling at par (equal to book value). The two-year Treasury bonds yield 5%; the 15-year corporate bonds yield 9%; the one-year CD issue pays 4. 5% and the five-year deposit pays 8%. Assume that all instruments have annual coupon payments. (a) What is the value of M. Match Ltd’s equity? (b) What is the weighted average maturity of FI’s assets? (c) What i s the weighted average maturity of FI’s liabilities? d) What is the FI’s maturity gap? (e) What does your answer to part (d) imply about the interest rate risk exposure of M. Match Ltd? (f) Calculate the values of all four securities on M. Match Ltd’s balance sheet if all interest rates increase by 2%. (g) What is the impact on the equity of M. Match Ltd? Calculate the percentage change in the value of equity. (h) What would be the impact on M. Match Ltd’s risk exposure if its liabilities paid semi-annually as opposed to annually? Q. An insurance company issues a $100,000 one-year bond paying 7% annually in order to finance the acquisition of a $100,000 one-year corporate loan paying 9 % semi-annually. (a) What is the insurance company’s maturity gap? What does the maturity model state about interest rate risk exposure given the insurance company’s maturity gap? (b) Immediately after the insurance company makes these investments, all interes t rates increase by 3%. What is the impact on the asset cash flows? What is the impact on the liability cash flows?

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Organizational Management and Operations Paper

ORGANIZATIONAL MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS PAPER Juan Malfavon CJA/484 v2 July 13, 2012 Gregory Baugh * Criminal Justice Trends Paper * The Policing component is only one part of the criminal justice system (triad of justice) that includes Policing, Courts, and Corrections, and it is the primary tier that generates criminal arrests, prosecutions, restraints, criminal activity, and protects the peace. * This paper will review the policing function of the criminal justice system and will identify, compare, and contrast the policing function at the local, state, and federal organizational levels of the criminal justice system.An analysis of the organizational, management, administration, and operational functions at these three organizational levels will be assessed for similarity of leadership and differences. * According to â€Å"Police Crunch† (2012), â€Å"To be an effective police/law enforcement officer, one must understand where we (law enforcement) has been, where society believes we are and what the heck is going to happen in the future† (Para. 1). For society to continue a policing effectiveness, one must also understand the leadership aspects associated with managing personnel, and equipment at all levels of law enforcement.Keeping the peace; be it local or national requires tremendous resources, and an acutely instinctive leadership base. * Police Function Comparison Defining law enforcement capability also requires identifying agencies that work in the same capacity of law enforcement; that is, protecting the pace, enforcing laws, and combating crime. In the article Trends and Practices in Law Enforcement and Private Security by the Law Enforcement-Private Security Consortium (2009).The Consortium defines law enforcement as the following agencies; Public law enforcement agencies, including local, state, and tribal police departments; sheriffs’ departments, and federal agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U. S. Secret Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and many others. The purpose of identifying these agencies is to support the reader’s perspective of what law enforcement agencies are; be they local, state or federal.Policing at any level of civil capacity requires an arduous amount of time, resources, and most important; dependable personnel, and quality leadership. Technology and all its capabilities not only, but also help the law enforcement community to track and prevent possible crimes, and with the implementation of the county, state, and federal policing system, have arisen many positive attributes, one in particular is that policing agencies should model the same common goal.The prevention of crime and protection of life, to uphold and enforce the law, to combat public fear of crime, to promote community safety, to control traffic, to encourage respect for the law, and to protect the civil rights, and liberties of individuals (Heath & Terry, 2008). However; Costs associated with policing communities, educating police officers and keeping in line with the policing functions as depicted by Sir Robert Peel, are skyrocketing in the face of ever increasing criminal activity.To add to the decreasing structure of law enforcement, the lack of uniformity of leadership within these legal communities is a remarkable forfeiture in manpower development, and leadership continuity, which only serves to strengthen the criminal community. There are many varieties of police department operational functions that include: diversity in the hiring of the police officers as well as the type of training received.Many police agencies develop their own forum for training their officers in accordance with local policies. Unfortunately; not all police departments maneuver the same, and in most cases do not even operate under the same principles of policing or leadership development, thus the locale, state, and federal policing agencies have some policing similarity, but operate under completely diverse training, and operational standards, which account for operational mistakes, and unnecessary costs.One theory in relation to how some agencies are controlled is called the organizational theory, this theory argues that; a police officers’ conduct and deportment is shaped by his or her fellow officers and the culture of policing in that area. This can be true for all levels of law enforcement, and leadership at any regional setting. Some of these models are very rigid, and orderly, such as the quasi-military style model, where the organization functions much like a ilitary unit, such as the swat teams do, where battle dress uniforms are worn and military style tactics are employed for all training, this style of policing is more widely accepted at the local and state level of policing. During the authors tenure as a United States Marine, and acting in the capacity of a Military P olice Officer; training is based on military structure and much ridged, even when handling civilian personnel on or off base, the training was directive and demanded absolute aggressiveness, be it verbal or physical.There are also other less rigid programs of leadership such as the dominant style of policing model, the task force policing model, and the zero tolerance policing models (Walker & Katz). These models gravitate to a more civil capacity in handling personnel and civil issues and are more widely used by small town police forces or federal agencies. Just as people are different; so too are supervisory roles, mission statements and leaderships. Every policing organization has its common goals to adhere to such as, crime prevention, traffic, crime control, safety, and education, to name a few examples.The values and principles of policing are largely dictated by the area’s leading director, and the types of crimes that are associated with the local precinct. This uncan ny process of regional legal factors should serve to re-enforce, or to strengthen possible gaps in policing agencies, their logistics, training, and personnel issues through information sharing and innovative leadership, which is more commonly used and practiced nationwide. Organizational Similarities * With the aid of technology, and new law enforcement relationship’s established throughout the continental United States.Policing programs such as, the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and several other American agencies have established joint partnering programs with local law enforcement agencies (Fact Sheet: The USA Patriot Act – A Proven Homeland Security Tool,  2005). * This new form of joint policing has been made possible in large part because of the 911 terror attacks, and the signing of the USA Patriot act, authorizing law enforcement agencies to share information across state lines.This policing program structure has brought a significant punch to the w orld of policing at the national and international crime fighting arenas. * Although the law enforcement community has had a financial boon with the passage of the USA Patriot act, budgetary and management issues continue to have an impact on the policing community at all levels of legal enforcements, and the other tiers of the criminal justice system are also feeling the manpower, and financial pinch. It is for this reason that training programs like that of the Law Enforcement-Private Security Consortium. (2009), have established literature to support the uniformity training standards from which all law enforcement agencies can retrieve training guides, ideas, support, and assistance in improving the programs in their community and in their fight to combat crime, and secure the peace within their region or policing level, be it local, state, or federal.This program handbook is available to every policing agency and is published by the department of justice to ensure a uniformity s tructure among all policing agencies. Although there is a distinct difference between the uniforms that local, state, and federal agencies wear, there is little distinction in the mission of each agency, which is to maintain civil compliance with local, state and federal laws and to ensure the safety of its citizenry, but the underlying fact is that all agencies operate differently in leadership and with different goals. Leadership Characteristics * The federal level of law enforcement, which for the most part operates on the same level as the lower level agencies is tasked with bringing higher levels of criminals to justice such as, interstate drug traffickers, human trafficking as well as serial killers, and internationally wanted criminals. This type of program requires more funding, intelligence gathering, better equipment, and resources as well as leadership, intellect, discipline, and experience.An officer at this level should be thoroughly equipped and supported by all other agencies within the judicial system. * The state and local level leadership programs should focus on internal issues and implement programs to support the federal level agencies and to learn from the programs, and leadership characteristics that enable national and international enforcement agencies to handle such varied criminal traffic. * Close The future of law enforcement at the local, state, and federal level will have to convert to a more strategic in environment for law enforcement organizations because of the overwhelming amount of cybercrimes, human smuggling, drug trade and increased egregious crimes against humanity that are emerging within the United States and other countries. Information sharing will becomes easier and strategic in combating all crimes for law enforcement agencies, and will be the spear head to eradicating potential crimes at local, state and federal agencies. As law enforcement organizations at the local, state and federal level learn to compare, adju st, and recalibrate leadership responsibility, connect with information sharing programs and learn to work in unison to facilitate a uniformity style leadership programs, criminals and their factions will eventually start to follow a systematic shut down. * This study reviewed the policing functions at the local, state, and federal levels.An analysis of the organizational management, administration, and operational functions of these three regional law enforcement agencies revealed how law enforcement agencies at all levels have the same mission yet carry it out it in varied ways. * A view of the leadership characteristics and responsibilities showed how agents at the federal level require more training, funds, equipment and communication with lower level programs to adequately accomplish the mission of national and global policing. * * * * * * ReferencesLaw Enforcement in the 21st Century, Second Edition, by Heath B. Grant and Karen J. Terry. Published by Allyn & Bacon. Copyright à ‚ © 2008 by Pearson Education, Inc. * Law Enforcement-Private Security Consortium. (2009). Trends and Practics in Law * Enforcement and Private Security Collaborations . : U. S. Department of Justice. Police crunch. com. (2012). Retrieved from http://policecrunch. com Walker, S. , & Katz, C. M. The Police In America: An Introduction (6th ed. ). New York, New York: McGraw Hill. *

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Construction Management

Bonds LaShundra Hines Indiana Wesleyan University Personal Finance BUS 150 Keith Smith July 22, 2009 Construction Management The function of a construction manager is to advise and consult a client or owner concerning the programming and design of a project. This would include cost estimation, coordination of the work schedule , equipment and material deliveries. A concern in the managers advisement and consultation is trade jurisdiction of the various contractors and the activity coordination of the engineers and architect. One of the most important functions of a construction manager is to offer critical analysis as it relates to the design, economics, and constructibility being proposed by the architect while always keeping in mind the initial budget and the ultimate goal of providing the best possible facility. Demographics In the analysis of demographics and its impact on commercial spending, consideration should be given to the cause of Dayton residents who flee to neighboring communities,increasing crime rates. The lack of employment opportunities, and the infiltration of less desirable residents who fail to take proper care of their property, are some reasons for this flight,which robs Dayton City limits of responsible consumers whose spending would otherwise enhance retail development and progress. It is true, that those disadvantaged families who have been victimized by alcohol and substance abuse, economic down turns and criminal activity, need decent residents like anyone else. However; given the current economically depressing conditions, law enforcement, city inspectors and other institutional overseers are obliged to be more diligent in minimizing problems that arise under these circumstances. Urban Retail Strategy Proper use of land based resources dictates that urbanism advocates mixed-use development which combines residential, commercial, cultural, and recreational uses, rather than segregating these uses into separate zones or traditional single-use zoning. This strategy also facilitates the presence of a variety of demographic entities as per age, sex, income, etc. These varied consumers would be available in the area of retail development and would also cancel some concerns of isolated criminal activity. Environmental Concerns Asbestos legal firms advertising to represent victims of asbestos contamination , appear hourly on tv commercials. This fact emphasizes that asbestos is still a dangerous threat to the population at large. It is a carcinogenic with a prolong incubation period (30+) years, that incapacitates the lungs and breathing process by the infiltration of hook-like fibers for which there is no cure. The state of Ohio is reminded of the devastation caused by asbestos in the city of Mansfield. Exposure to construction materials that were manufactures there, consisting of asbestos caused the death of workers and their families. This occurred prior to governmental warnings and regulations of asbestos containing materials; and has resulted in a host of multi- billion dollar class-action law suits. Dayton is likewise, littered with older structures and vacant buildings that present a similar threat and must be dealt with in consideration of any urban renewal strategy. Environmental Considerations Type I and type II environmental research and analysis involves a careful walk-thru grid pattern of the land area to investigate the presence of illegal dumping, oil and chemical leakage, the presence of underground utilities and other buried materials. Various municipal departments and the fire department , should be consulted as to the historical use of a particular parcel. The type II process involves the abatement of such research which include taking bulk samples of hazardous materials for lab analysis and later air samples during and after abatement to determine atmospheric quality. For many decades throughout the country we have seen large segments of the general populace favor suburban residency. This same phenomenon has affected the downtown and inner-city areas of the city of Dayton for many of the same reasons: I- The increase of inner-city crime, home invasions, robbery,drug traffic, drive-by shootings. II- Unhealthy industrial environment : violation of EPA(Environmental Protection Agency). Federal standards pertaining to harmful emissions and chemical contamination, as well as accidents due to violation of OSHA(Occupational Safety and Health Administration) standards. III- Atmospheric pollution and traffic congestion. IV- Relocation of business parks and shopping centers to the outgoing suburbs. In the case of Dayton in particular, the demise of NCR, GM, DHL, HEWITT SON FACTORY, have all contributed to massive unemployment and relocation and displacement of the city's residents. Large National and international retailers and franchises such as Kroger, Wal-mart, McDonald's have traditionally, perceeded their decisions to locate in a metropolitan area, based upon a impact assessment of the location. Such assessment have been based upon most of the considerations that I have just itemized, and include others such as geographical flood and storm histories, traffic patterns, age, income, and educational demographics and statistical analysis. Judging from this itemized list it becomes obvious why Dayton lacks the presence of some of these franchises in certain areas. My target date for completion of the proposed report shall be 60 days maximum or less after contract award. My recommended fee for completing the requirements of the contract is $175,000( one hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars). A lesser amount can be considered by myself as an independent consultant, and in consideration of the city's budget limitations. A schedule for intermediate reports and presentations shall be available on a bi-weekly time-table. Construction Management Bonds LaShundra Hines Indiana Wesleyan University Personal Finance BUS 150 Keith Smith July 22, 2009 Construction Management The function of a construction manager is to advise and consult a client or owner concerning the programming and design of a project. This would include cost estimation, coordination of the work schedule , equipment and material deliveries. A concern in the managers advisement and consultation is trade jurisdiction of the various contractors and the activity coordination of the engineers and architect. One of the most important functions of a construction manager is to offer critical analysis as it relates to the design, economics, and constructibility being proposed by the architect while always keeping in mind the initial budget and the ultimate goal of providing the best possible facility. Demographics In the analysis of demographics and its impact on commercial spending, consideration should be given to the cause of Dayton residents who flee to neighboring communities,increasing crime rates. The lack of employment opportunities, and the infiltration of less desirable residents who fail to take proper care of their property, are some reasons for this flight,which robs Dayton City limits of responsible consumers whose spending would otherwise enhance retail development and progress. It is true, that those disadvantaged families who have been victimized by alcohol and substance abuse, economic down turns and criminal activity, need decent residents like anyone else. However; given the current economically depressing conditions, law enforcement, city inspectors and other institutional overseers are obliged to be more diligent in minimizing problems that arise under these circumstances. Urban Retail Strategy Proper use of land based resources dictates that urbanism advocates mixed-use development which combines residential, commercial, cultural, and recreational uses, rather than segregating these uses into separate zones or traditional single-use zoning. This strategy also facilitates the presence of a variety of demographic entities as per age, sex, income, etc. These varied consumers would be available in the area of retail development and would also cancel some concerns of isolated criminal activity. Environmental Concerns Asbestos legal firms advertising to represent victims of asbestos contamination , appear hourly on tv commercials. This fact emphasizes that asbestos is still a dangerous threat to the population at large. It is a carcinogenic with a prolong incubation period (30+) years, that incapacitates the lungs and breathing process by the infiltration of hook-like fibers for which there is no cure. The state of Ohio is reminded of the devastation caused by asbestos in the city of Mansfield. Exposure to construction materials that were manufactures there, consisting of asbestos caused the death of workers and their families. This occurred prior to governmental warnings and regulations of asbestos containing materials; and has resulted in a host of multi- billion dollar class-action law suits. Dayton is likewise, littered with older structures and vacant buildings that present a similar threat and must be dealt with in consideration of any urban renewal strategy. Environmental Considerations Type I and type II environmental research and analysis involves a careful walk-thru grid pattern of the land area to investigate the presence of illegal dumping, oil and chemical leakage, the presence of underground utilities and other buried materials. Various municipal departments and the fire department , should be consulted as to the historical use of a particular parcel. The type II process involves the abatement of such research which include taking bulk samples of hazardous materials for lab analysis and later air samples during and after abatement to determine atmospheric quality. For many decades throughout the country we have seen large segments of the general populace favor suburban residency. This same phenomenon has affected the downtown and inner-city areas of the city of Dayton for many of the same reasons: I- The increase of inner-city crime, home invasions, robbery,drug traffic, drive-by shootings. II- Unhealthy industrial environment : violation of EPA(Environmental Protection Agency). Federal standards pertaining to harmful emissions and chemical contamination, as well as accidents due to violation of OSHA(Occupational Safety and Health Administration) standards. III- Atmospheric pollution and traffic congestion. IV- Relocation of business parks and shopping centers to the outgoing suburbs. In the case of Dayton in particular, the demise of NCR, GM, DHL, HEWITT SON FACTORY, have all contributed to massive unemployment and relocation and displacement of the city's residents. Large National and international retailers and franchises such as Kroger, Wal-mart, McDonald's have traditionally, perceeded their decisions to locate in a metropolitan area, based upon a impact assessment of the location. Such assessment have been based upon most of the considerations that I have just itemized, and include others such as geographical flood and storm histories, traffic patterns, age, income, and educational demographics and statistical analysis. Judging from this itemized list it becomes obvious why Dayton lacks the presence of some of these franchises in certain areas. My target date for completion of the proposed report shall be 60 days maximum or less after contract award. My recommended fee for completing the requirements of the contract is $175,000( one hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars). A lesser amount can be considered by myself as an independent consultant, and in consideration of the city's budget limitations. A schedule for intermediate reports and presentations shall be available on a bi-weekly time-table.