Love and Courtship in Federalist America Essay

The courtships and marriages of Theodore Sedgwick and of his seven children span the American Revolution and the early republic, with Theodore first marrying in 1767/68, his children being born between 1775 and 1791, and all except Catharine marrying by their thirties. In some ways, Kenslea’s findings are unsurprising, as arranged marriages gave way to individual choice: Sedgwick arranged his eldest daughters’ marriages in 1797 and 1801, while his sons enjoyed love matches within a decade. But Kenslea’s focus on the family adds a new dimension: male influence in arranging young women’s marriages apparently extended beyond fathers to brothers. Professing â€Å"so much pride and pleasure in contemplating her worth, that I want the world to know what a sister I possess† (45), Theodore II insisted Frances marry Ebenezer Watson, whom she did not love. When Watson turned out to be physically abusive, Frances’s brothers again played a significant ro le by using their influence on her husband’s business as a way to control him and offering their homes as a refuge. Just as brothers influenced their sisters’ marriages, peers played a significant role in love matches: in both cases, courtship took place in a group context. Even when love superseded paternal choice, siblings made clear that marriage to someone was necessary: as Catharine Sedgwick asked her equivocating brother, â€Å"What are you doing? Sucking your thumbs, and building castles while all the birds of the air are building their nests† (110). Friends were equally important in shaping courtship. The wonderfully named â€Å"Friendlies†Ã¢â‚¬â€a group of single and married Boston women in their twenties—not only provided the younger Sedgwicks with potential wives, but advised them on how to choose well. Kenslea demonstrates that marrying for love by no means simplified choice; instead, both men and women employed badinage as a way of ascertaining intent without committing themselves, and alliances shifted so quickly that the Sedgwick men seem to have courted all the Friendlies at once. Such â€Å"dizzingly complex† male/female relations (119)—replete with wit, romantic potential, and power plays—suggest parallels to the mixed groups Catharine Allgor discovered in the early republic’s political salons (103). At least during courtship, male/female spheres had remarkably porous boundaries, and Kenslea finds the beginnings of the â€Å"domestication of virtue† (169) in the early republic, as personal  happiness succeeded public good. As couples became engaged, they retreated from friends and family and developed relationships Kenslea finds similar to those Karen Lystra discovered among Victorians two decades later. In Harry Sedgwick and Jane Minot’s engagement of 1816-17, they quit badinage for candor, tested their relationship with a year long separation as Sedgwick established himself financially, and created new selves by employing letters as a form of physical contact and â€Å"ritual celebration of their love† (131). Like Lystra, Kenslea finds â€Å"fluidity of gender roles† (155), with Jane complimenting Harry, â€Å"you are the nearest to a woman in your feelings of any man I know† (144). The Sedgwick manuscripts, however, allow Kenslea to examine such courtships through siblings’ and parents’ eyes, rather than only from the couple’s perspective. If the Sedgwicks provide much evidence of family and friends’ roles in court- ship and the erosion of distinct gender roles, they also suggest the limits of change. The Sedgwicks occupied a narrow cut of society—Federalist, Unitarian, and upper class—but male privilege framed their lives.

Understanding Downsizing and Rightsizing

DOWNSIZING AND RIGHTSIZING Downsizing: The downward migrations of business applications are often from mainframes to PCs due to low costing of workstation. And also today’s workstations are as powerful as last decade’s mainframes. The result of that is Clients having power at the cost of less money, provides better performance and then system offers flexibility to make other purchase or to increase overall benefits. Rightsizing: Moves the Client/Server applications to the most appropriate server platform, in that case the servers from different vendors can co-exist and the network is known as the ‘system’. Getting the data from the system no longer refers to a single mainframe. As a matter of fact, we probably don’t know where the server physically resides. Upsizing: The bottom-up trend of networking all the standalone PCs and workstations at the department or work group level. Early LANs were implemented to share hardware (printers, scanners, etc. ). But now LANs are being implemented to share data and applications in addition to hardware. Mainframes are being replaced by lesser expensive PC’s on networks. This is called computer downsizing. Companies implementing business process reengineering are downsizing organizationally. This is called business downsizing. All this would result in hundreds of smaller systems, all communicating to each other and serving the need of  local teams as well as individuals working in an organization. This is called cultural downsizing. The net result is distributed computer systems that support decentralized decision-making. This is the client/server revolution of the nineties As client/server technology evolves, the battle cry is now right sizing–design new applications for the platform they are best suited for, as opposed to using a default placement. An application should run in the environment that is most efficient for that application. The client/server model allows applications to be split into tasks and those tasks performed on individual platforms. Developers review all the tasks within an application and determine whether each task is best suited for processing on the server or on the client. In some cases, tasks that involve a great deal of number-crunching are performed on the server and only the results transmitted to the client. In other cases, the workload of the server or the trade-offs between server millions of instructions per second and client millions of instructions per second, together with the communication time and network costs, may not warrant the use of the server for data intensive, number-crunching tasks. Determining how the tasks are split can be the major factor in the success or failure of a client /server application. And if the first client/server application is a failure, for whatever reason, it may be a long time before there is a second. Some variations on this theme are: 1. Downsizing: A host based application is downsized when it is re-engineered to run in a smaller or Local Area Network based environment. Downsizing involves porting applications from mainframe and mid-range computers to a smaller platform or a Local Area Network based client/server architecture. Downsizing is not as easy as buying and installing hardware and software that support client/server computing. This paper presents a case of rightsizing, with an outsourcing approach, of a mainframe based information system. A full downsizing process, is a highly complex process due to the following reasons: * The need to manage, at the same time, the old and the new technology and environment for the parallel periods; * The need to migrate in the new platform the millions of LOC (line of code) of the several applications. In this paper we describe how that process can be performed in an outsourcing framework. We discuss which are the critical factors that assure an efficient process and big savings from the cost/benefit and cost/performance point of view. There are several key factors to be considered in order minimizing the risks of failure and maximizing the success. The paper is organized in the following three parts: * The Rightsizing process; * The case study and the results obtained; * The lessons learned from the experiences done. The rightsizing Generally we can distinguish two main streams of the Rightsizing process: the downsizing and upsizing processes. The downsizing process is characterized by data and process shifting from Mainframe to desktop connected with LAN and WAN network. The following steps, instead, characterize the Upsizing process: * The integration and connection of stand alone workstations or LAN * The development of distributed applications on this new architecture The Rightsizing of the applications and systems, that is their Downsizing or Upsizing, provides a major opportunity for cost savings and improving the flexibility of the information systems. In the following figure we see the rightsizing of the case study. It is from a traditional architecture based on a MVS IBM to a new distributed Client-Server architecture. The new Client-Server applications are executed on several application servers. Down Sizing is nothing but The Process of moving an application from a {main frame ) to cheaper system, typically a (client-server) system. Downsizing and Client/Server Computing Rightsizing and downsizing are strategies used with the client/server model to take advantage of the lower cost of workstation technology. Rightsizing and upsizing may involve the addition of more diverse or more powerful computing resources to an enterprise computing environment. The benefits of rightsizing are reduction in cost and/or increased functionality, performance, and flexibility in the applications of the enterprise. Significant cost savings usually are obtained from a resulting reduction in employee, hardware, software, and maintenance expenses. Additional savings typically accrue from the improved effectiveness of the user community using client/server technology. Downsizing is frequently implemented in concert with a flattening of the organizational hierarchy. Eliminating middle layers of management implies empowerment to the first level of management with the decision-making authority for the whole job. Information provided at the desktop by networked PCs and workstations integrated with existing host (such as mainframe and minicomputer) applications is necessary to facilitate this empowerment. These desktop-host integrated systems house the information required to make decisions quickly. To be effective, the desktop workstation must provide access to this information as part of the normal business practice. Architects and developers must work closely with business decision makers to ensure that new applications and systems are designed to be integrated with effective business processes. Much of the cause of poor return on technology investment is attributable to a lack of understanding by the designers of the day-to-day business impact of their solutions. Downsizing information systems is more than an attempt to use cheaper workstation technologies to replace existing mainframes and minicomputers in use. Although some benefit is obtained by this approach, greater benefit is obtained by reengineering the business processes to really use the capabilities of the desktop environment. Systems solutions are effective only when they are seen by the actual user to add value to the business process. Client/server technology implemented on low-cost standard hardware will drive downsizing. Client/server computing makes the desktop the users' enterprise. As we move from the machine-centered era of computing into the workgroup era, the desktop workstation is empowering the business user to regain ownership of his or her information resource. Client/server computing combines the best of the old with the new—the reliable multiuser access to shared data and resources with the intuitive, powerful desktop workstation. Moving to Open and Client-Server System environments allows organizations to take advantage of several opportunities: the new cost/performance relations for the hardware components, the ? easy to use? graphical interfaces, the portability of the software, the adoption of faster software life cycles like RAD, the use of the information highways (for example internet) and so on . Most of the organizations invest in rightsizing processes to build Client/Server architectures. Actually, upsizing and downsizing process has become a phenomenon of big importance for a lot of organizations. It is possible to preview that the next years the rightsizing tendency will increase very much, and will become a rule. Anyway we must consider, from the point of view of the architectural structure, that a rightsizing process is complex and may imply an increase of complexity of the final system if it is not well planned. A typical distributed Client-Server architecture is characterized by the presence of workstations and personal computers acting as clients, by the interconnection of different groups of these computers through different local and wide networks, by the presence of several servers including eventually a mainframe as a file server. It is typical of the local network that there is a local database; the local stations of the network are able to reach this database instead of the remote database. In order to lower the complexity of the process, an outsourcing of all the IT activities, for the rightsizing period, or even more, can prove effective. The IT system after the outsourcing/rightsizing period (typically from 3 to 5 years) becomes technologically updated and easier to maintain (especially if the outsourcing/rightsizing contract provides strict guidelines for the development of the new software and for the Reverse Engineering projects). The major trend for corporate information systems this decade will be downsizing. In its broadest sense, downsizing means implementing applications traditionally deployed on mainframes or minicomputers, on personal computers and Local Area Network (LAN) platforms. Applications most often involved in downsizing are those designated as mission-critical, the success of these applications is integral to the daily operations of the organization. This shift will enable companies to use the power, affordability and flexibility of the microcomputer as the hub of their information systems, and when appropriate operate cooperatively with existing mainframe or minicomputer investments. Downsizing is enabled by a number of factors: -Powerful cost effective PC platforms. -Mature networking technology providing a communication infrastructure. Software that delivers a robust development environment for the creation of applications with mainframe-like complexity. -Economical migration paths for moving applications to the desktop. -The ability to integrate and synchronize front-end tools and back-end data sources. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. In the 1970s, the prevalent model for information management systems was a centralized hierarchical database platform. Such database s, residing on a mainframe or minicomputer, offered high performance and tight security but little if any end-user access or control. Essentially, the mainframe provided a highly sophisticated server with unintelligent clients, or â€Å"dumb† workstations. For its day, the approach was sound, giving information system managers a way to electronically store huge amounts of information that previously filled volumes of books and ledgers in company storage rooms. But it soon became clear that accessing and manipulating these databases was difficult, as well as prohibitively expensive. The 1980s saw the introduction of PCs that were used by individuals and departments within an enterprise to provide local, easy-to-use decision-making tools. Over time these users became more sophisticated in their usage, their expectations rose and they had a desire to communicate with others in their group and to have greater access to all corporate data. The solution at the time was to link these PCs through Local Area Networks, giving the users increased information access. This approach, which used a â€Å"file server† model in which the server acted as an unintelligent storage device, did offer peripheral sharing but, there was no intelligent data management capability, which severely limited the types and sizes of applications that could be used. The immaturity of this approach was reflected in the lack of well integrated and transparent connectivity to mainframe and minicomputer systems, where much of the corporate data resided (and still remains). In short, workstations were restricted in their ability to handle complex applications and to get at relevant data. Information system managers were highly interested supporting their end-user's desires and in gaining improved access to all their corporate databases through the use of PC technology. A significant concern of these managers though was a guarantee that they could maintain security, integrity of data and accessibility. The existing single platform approach would no longer work, a new model of computing architecture was needed. Downsizing: A Critical Edge By downsizing applications to the desktop, organizations can more easily deliver vital information to its users, providing a competitive edge. With the cooperative processing model these organizations can integrate their applications and information system resources with others throughout the enterprise. This approach, which blends the flexibility and power of the PC (linked more and more through LANS) with the benefits of the resident database management system, offers numerous advantages: An Open Computing Environment. Despite well-intended and energetic attempts to impose a single computing standard on the industry, the truth is that corporate information systems are and will remain heterogeneous. Standards provide for a level playing field where users can invest and be assured that their investments will be protected. And, standards provide a platform for software innovation, a mainstay of the computer industry. Integrating new technologies and approaches with existing standards should be a goal of every company. The challenge in running this type of heterogeneous environment is to find the correct balance between innovation and standards. Therefore, a information system designed to work with existing processing environments, utilize industry standards and be capable of taking advantage of emerging technologies will deliver the most effective business solutions. The desire to balance new technologies and trends with existing resources is a large part of the motivation behind downsizing. By providing a modular architecture and component pieces that easily connect, the cooperative processing model delivers an environment that enables enterprise-wide connectivity and integration of heterogeneous data formats. The alternative is to create a homogeneous environment that by its nature is limited to its native capabilities. Rapid Application Development Part of the attraction of downsizing is the ability to rapidly prototype, develop and implement applications. One of the principle shortcomings of a mainframe or minicomputer-based information management system is the application development time required and the resulting backlogs. Building a mission critical systems at the desktop is literally months and years faster than on a mainframe or minicomputer. Having robust development tools that enable the creation and implementation of systems in weeks rather than months allows organizations to benefit more from their information and realize a significant dollar savings in the process. Leveraging Existing Investments Information management systems that handle mission-critical applications represent investments of millions of dollars and thousands of man-hours of work. When faced with the need to expand or upgrade these systems, scrapping the existing investment and building a new one is simply not a financial option. Nor is it necessarily a wise one. What is required is the ability to responsibility migrate these systems to the desktop by integrating the various platforms. Development Flexibility The purpose of any software application is to provide a service that makes accomplishing a task efficient and economical. Downsizing mainframe and minicomputer applications to the desktop offers the application developer a wide range of PC-based tools to assist them in meeting needs of specific applications. The flexible nature of this environment lets the developer work faster, maintain applications with less effort, and be more responsive to the needs of the organization. Financial Considerations Developing applications on the desktop platform is a much more cost effective than traditional mainframe or minicomputer approaches. PC-based development means your hardware and software investment is less, development time and its related costs are reduced and with the ability to leverage existing information system investments, and you do not incur the large expense of starting from scratch. Other Advantages Downsizing also offers smoother application maintenance; freedom from being locked into proprietary systems that may become outdated; and the ability to scale applications to match the changing needs of the organization. Ultimately, downsizing gives users improved tools and critically needed access to data, which in turn increases productivity and the effectiveness of an organization. Rightsizing is defined as finding the correct platform for your enterprise. Compared with downsizing (moving to a smaller platform) and upsizing (moving to a larger platform), rightsizing lets a company align its information systems to its corporate goals. Rightsizing involves selecting the most appropriate computing resource to perform a task based on location, size, organizational structure, business work flow, and processing requirements.

Police Use of Force Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Police Use of Force - Essay Example The most important reason for the application of force by the law enforcement agency is the aspect of compliance in which the police may apply force to ensure that individuals comply with established laws. The use of force by the police may include verbal as well as physical moderation, less-fatal, and brutal force depending on the situation. The degree of force applied by law enforcement personnel is relative to the situation because police are expected to use whichever quantity of force to manage a situation. This implies that the level of force to be applied by the police is not established and they are required to asses the situating and apply that force that guarantees compliance, safety and protection. The major factors that make it necessary for the application of force by the police include, managing an incident, executing an arrest as well as defending themselves and society from danger. The use of force refers to an individual’s privilege to resolve disagreements or deter unfavorable deeds through the application of mechanisms that discourage a person from certain actions or getting physically involved to stop such actions (Alpert & Dunham, 2004). Government administrations in most countries and realms across the world permit civilians and law enforcement to apply force in deterring looming incidence of crime. Police are particularly empowered to use force in cases where the stoppage or prevention of crime and other unlawful activities is involved. Similarly, the use of force may be invoked by the administrative arm of regime via the deployment of security forces; police or army to guarantee order in the community. The application of force is enshrined in the law whereby the police are allowed and expected to apply force in certain situations as they deem fit to ensure that peace, order, and stability are not compromised. Conflict resolution can take the mode of negotiation where the people involved are of the same standard. However, in cases w here there is a conflict between a law enforcer and an offender, force may be applied to settle the conflict. This is more applicable when the offender fails to comply with orders from law enforcement or when the law breaker attempts to flee from the police; in such cases force is to be applied to handle the situation. The degree of force to be applied by police is not established though it is expected that only necessary force should be applied by law enforcement to restore order (Kuhns & Knutsson, 2010). Therefore, as regards protecting people’s lives or their property, the amount of force used should be that which is reasonable to achieve the purpose of safety under the circumstances at hand. It is left to the discretion of the police to decide which degree of force is necessary and reasonable to address the situation at hand. To that effect, there exist checks and balances over the use of force by police in the sense that in cases where officers apply force beyond the mea sure required in a given situation, they are liable to disciplinary action because they must account for their actions. Hence, it is expected that the police make ethical and considerate decisions regarding the manner in which they ought to apply force without misusing the prerogative. The degrees of force include, verbal and physical, less lethal and brutal; incases where brutal force ought to be applied other lesser degrees should be attempted first before applying the higher degree. Police use force for a variety of

The Problem of Consumer Skepticism Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Problem of Consumer Skepticism - Case Study Example However, there are many factors inhibiting development towards greener practices. One might think that any effort made by a company to be eco friendly is well received by those who are concerned about the environment. For example, Coca Cola’s effort towards greener practices has been faced by numerous setbacks. The bottles are still made of plastic and even though it is recyclable most consumers through them away leading to environmental pollution. Secondly, the green idea is no exception as it has been faced by a huge controversy inhibiting its progress. Although, the idea would have positive impacts on the environment, such as reducing rainwater runoff by 38 percent and minimize heat island impact by 26 percent, there are those who are against the idea. Critics state that the new by law behind the idea of green rooftops may dampen the efforts of the green movement, as it will limit developers’ options in constructing, as they will be concerned towards making the building eco-friendly thus increase the building costs. Consumer attitudes towards eco-friendly products limit greener practices since most of them are skeptical about paying a high price for these products.

Analyse critically how research and practice developments can be Essay

Analyse critically how research and practice developments can be disseminated to enhance the quality of the student learning exp - Essay Example Evaluation is a process that examines a program in a critical manner (Danielson & McGreal 2005). Evaluation includes things such as looking for information and criticizing that information to ascertain the program activities and the results of those programs. The reason for evaluation is to identify whether a program is effective and if not, you look for areas where you can make improvements (Stephanie, 2010). Evaluation also helps when making decision about the program; it is often a synonym to assessment, but evaluation is more important because it enable the tracking of the student’s performance, hence informing of the need to change the approach of the current methods applied and having no positive results in students (Danielson & McGreal 2005). Evaluation is also a means of gathering information for the improvement of learning opportunities for the child. Research and practice development can therefore, be effectively disseminated to students through evaluation. It is eff ective to disseminate through evaluation because evaluation involves close monitoring and tracking of students. It also makes it easier to identify an area of weakness among the students hence making it possible to make corrections. Through evaluation you can make judgment on whether research and practice development is working out well with the student through constant examining (Danielson & McGreal 2005). ... the evaluator the feedback that will convince him beyond any reasonable doubt that the students have actually made progress (Danielson & McGreal, 2005). The student’s learning experience is an area that must be improved if learning has to be effective at any level and standard. Student learning experience will determine if a student will be able to learn effectively and be able to improve in its area of study (Macdonald 2002). Good learning experience is equal to good motivation for the students. Through a rigorous evaluation strategy, one will be able to examine the progress of the student at certain stages. These stages have a certain time limit so that after a certain stage, you can examine the progress of the student before going to another stage (Danielson & McGreal, 2005). It has to be rigid so that too much time is not wasted and that student knows that at a certain stage he will be evaluated. The rigorous evaluation also helps in comparing the progress of a student wit h previous students and drawing comparisons (Macdonald 2002). First, as a mentor, one should be fully aware of the role because it is them who determine whether a student will be registered as a nurse or not (Macdonald 2002). Student performance should be monitored continuously on the day-to-day basis. To ensure students are learning, mentor has to build confidence within the students themselves. They also have to develop a very good and professional relationship with the students. As a mentor, one should also be able to within a stipulated period, be able to provide feedback that is true, and always suggests for students where to make improvement (Ginny & Forrest, 2000). Mentor should provide the best supervision and being able to assist students in planned learning experience. They should

Pop Culture Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Pop Culture - Essay Example She normally lights a spark in people that grows into a flame. That flame then reaches out and lights up another. It is pop starts like her who directly affect the hearts and mind of fans. In effect, those fans display their love by backing up the music, contributing to causes touted by that celebrity. Regularly, a fan understands more about what happening in the world since they heard it from their favorite pop star rather watching the evening news. They give and take relationship becomes consecrated to the fans, and precious to the pop start. Britney Spears is most understandable examples of mind control in the entertainment industry (â€Å"Britney Spears’ 30 Most Outrageous Outfits† 1). Since she exploded into the music industry in 1998, Britney Spears has turned to be a pro at turning heads on red carpets, in addition to concert platforms. Whether she was dressed up for an awards event, or dolled up for Starbucks run, what Britney was donning became nearly ass celebrated and assessed as the hits she sang. Whereas we wait to see what outstanding garments brings out the closest during the promotion of her subsequent album. Britney normally looks very pretty and stylish in her outstanding outfits. Britney Spears has courageous fashion decisions that leave most people delighted at the sight of her outfits. Britney Spears also takes his time to gesture at his fans, recognize them and reassure herself that in spite of the situations, she is still beloved and that fans have not neglected him. Her gesticulation is normally spontaneous and typical (â€Å"Britney Spears† 1-2) Pop queen Britney Spears is known to wear famous brands, such as Diesel, Louis Vuitton, Dolce&Gabbana, etc†¦ She does not like to be seen wearing, in what some people would think is, ‘’normal clothing’’. As a pop queen, her expectations are way high up in the sky. She has a huge ego, and her self-esteem is up.

Value Innovation at Johnson and Johnson Case Study

Value Innovation at Johnson and Johnson - Case Study Example For a large international corporation this would include the ability to manage across multiple dimensions of the business and having open communication throughout the organization. Without strong communication and the ability of skills and creation to move through the organization the value innovation would fail in Tidd, Bessant, and Pavitt's explanation of value innovation. Davilla, Epstein and Shelton (2006 p 15) examine that value innovation is technological: "research and development (R&D), or new product development" and strategic: "defining the business model." The Davilla, Epstein and Shelton (2006) definition offers a linear explanation, where there are two roads to value innovation. However, unlike Tidd, Bessant, and Pavitt (2005), Davilla, Epstein and Shelton (2006) do not examine the need to mobilize across multiple dimensions. They treat value innovation as a bilateral necessity, where one sector of management would focus on innovation of research and development while another management team focuses on strategic value. As with Tidd, Bessant, and Pavitt (2005), communication between the two divergent management sectors would be vastly important to creating and implementing any value innovation. Without it, technology may take a separate road than strategy. This would create confusion for the organization and for the consumer in deciding whic h ideals are concrete and which are fluid throughout the company. In contrast, O'Brien compares business strategies and defines a value innovation strategy as "Finding new ways of doing business" (O'Brien 2004 p 43). According to O'Brien, value innovation includes "the development of unique products and services, or entry into unique markets or market niches [and] making radical changes to the business processes for producing or distributing products and services that are so different from the way a business has been conducted that they alter the fundamental structure of an industry" (O'Brien 2006 p 42). O'Brien's definition is yet again different, where the focus is on the business as a whole and not as a segmentation of skill sets, technology resources, or strategy. Synthesis and Evaluation Is the assumption that value innovation must rely on technology and strategy to maintain a competitive business presence correct Authors Kim and Mauborgne (1999 p 58) do not believe that value innovation should rely on technology and strategy innovation. In fact, they treat value innovation as a separate concept. Kim and Mauborgne (1999 p 58) focus on the need of consumer value, where the "Value innovation links innovation to what the mass of buyers value." Kim and Mauborgne offer a more encompassing definition of value innovation, stating: "Value innovation also differs from technology innovation [] technology innovation is not a requisite for value innovation; value innovation can occur with or without new technology" (Kim and Mauborgne 1999 p 57). This is further supported by Holme, Mangusson and McKelvey (2007 p 32) who state that "One shortcoming is the narrow focus on

Competitive Advantage Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Competitive Advantage - Case Study Example This paper will compare and contrast the competitive advantages of renowned engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce Plc (Rolls-Royce) and retail store giant Tesco Plc (Tesco). Traditionally, the competitive advantage business organizations can be fully identified by conducting a value chain analysis. However, recognizing the numerous changes in the businesses' market environment, this paper will also complement value chain analysis with a method introduced by Shawn Cartwright, the value web analysis. It should be noted that this tool brings into consideration the analysis of competitive advantage of dotcoms or firms whose operations are conducted online or whose brick and mortar strategies are complemented by online presence (Cartwright and Oliver 2000). This report will be organized as follows. The first section will take a look at the operations of Rolls-Royce Plc. A brief organizational profile will be presented together with the company's identified core competencies. The paper will then evaluate Rolls-Royce's competitive advantage in light of the value chain and the value web analysis. The second section will also evaluate Tesco Plc in the same manner. This paper will conclude with a comparison and contrast of the previously identified competitive advantages. Rolls-Royce is currently the world's second largest airline engine manufacturer beh... Aside from aero-engine, the company is also involved in other industries like defence, marine, and energy markets. The business organization traces its origin in 1971 and was founded by Henry Royce and CS Rolls. With its humble beginning, it has now ascended in the global business marketplace with its cutting edge technology and diverse product offerings. The company is not just a provider of high-quality products but also offers unmatched after sales service to its clients. Its market base spans over 120 countries around the globe, becoming a significant supplier of engine to important customers worldwide. Also, in order to complement its product, Rolls-Royce has established online presence through Aeromanager in offering aftermarket services. 2.1 Core Competencies The success of Rolls-Royce in the global aero-engine industry is attributed to its core competencies. A core competence, according to Prahalad and Hamel (1990) is something that a firm can do well and meet three specific conditions: "it provides customer benefit; it is hard for competitors to imitate; and it can be leveraged widely to many products and market." A company's core competencies are the capabilities which the company needs in order to build a competitive advantage. In the case of Rolls-Royce, its core competency is apparently in the production of engine. It should be noted that the expertise of the business organization in the creation of aero-engine is applied to a wide range of industries where it operates such as defence, marine, and energy. With the company's expertise in the production of a single product engine, Rolls-Royce, with its technological is able to transform this engine into one which can be used in other industries. It should be noted that all the end

High School Essay Example for Free

High School Essay 0 year i was born on 1998/7/5, in shanghai, china. 9 month i learned how to walk. 3 years old my first day of kindergarten. i cried but i also met a lot of cool kids. i learned to read. 4 years old i started to dance and i love dancing. 7 years old i went to elementary school and i was very exciting. i played violin for one year and then i quit. 9 years old lost my first tooth, im scared. 10 years old i got a first C in my life. rode my bicycle. 12 years old I went to a good middle school, and most people are very good at study. i felt im so lonely and tired. But after 2 weeks, i made a lot of friends and i love my life in my high school. my feet hurt, my doctor told me that i cant dance anymore, play any spots or P. E. class. 13 years old i moved to america because i got a bad score in my middle school. my parents think that i cant get into a good high school in china. most my classmates cried, i cried. i really missed them went i first came to here. but after few days, i adjusted my new life and i like my new school taylor middle school. however, i still miss my family members in shanghai and my friends. i still contact them. i also took a lot of classes after school to improve my english. 14 years old i became a eighth grader, i felt im so mature. i learned a lot from this year. i started to play guitar. 15 years old i went to mils high school. i got a good grade. 19 years old i went to UC berkeley. i met my boyfriend. had a good time in UC berkely. 24 years old graduated from UC berkeley, became a good psychologist. 26 years old i got married, have a good life. 27 years old got a lot of money and had my first child. 32 years old got my second child. 70 years old i got stomach cancer. 82 years old i died from gastric cancer, i donated my organs.

Analytic Report - Outsourcing Essay Example for Free

Analytic Report Outsourcing Essay Offshore outsourcing, the sending of jobs to lower wage countries, has become a very popular practice amongst U. S. companies seeking ways to cut back on their operating costs. The idea of outsourcing has made for a highly emotional situation because of two dramatically different effects: it leads to layoffs and dislocations for workers. Well-educated workers in other countries are willing to work for a fraction of the wages paid to Americans, resulting in massive savings for American companies. The U. S. mports goods that would cost higher to produce domestically, and it creates and sells to other countries goods that would cost more for them to create on their own. The immediate problem resulting from outsourcing jobs is workers in the U. S. can become unemployed. The problem that causes a debate over outsourcing is even though it promises a better life for all involved; it causes hardships on the American workers when they are laid off. Economists argue that outsourcing is a bad choice because of the workers that are being laid off and displaced. In analyzing the Case Study IV-3 IT Infrastructure Outsourcing at Schaeffer (A): The Outsourcing Decision, both sides of the outsourcing debate are well represented. Once the Schaeffer board assigned the highly ambitious growth goals to Reitzel, the Vice President of Human Resources made the recommendation that they outsource some of its IT processes and resources. During the initial evaluation of the possibility of outsourcing, Schaeffer determined what the benefits would be of having a vendor manage their IT. They determined that they would be able to focus on core activities during growth periods, which would help them to meet the goals set forth by the board. Outsourcing IT will allow them to remain focused on those business activities that are important without sacrificing quality or service to their customers. Next, they would be able to achieve reduced overhead costs and better operational control. An outsourcing company could bring better management skills to a company than what would otherwise be unavailable to them. Another added benefit would be staffing flexibility. Outsourcing will allow operations that have seasonal or cyclical demands to bring in additional resources when needed and release them when they are finished. Outsourcing these functions can provide the additional resources for a fixed period of time at a consistent cost. Continuity and risk management would also be greatly improved because when you have periods of high employee turnover which add uncertainty and inconsistency to the operations, outsourcing would provide a level of continuity while reducing the risk that a substandard level of operation would impact the company and its customers. They also determined that outsourcing could help diversify and develop the staff by bringing in people with skills that are needed within the company and by providing training opportunities that had not previously been available for current staff. Once the idea of outsourcing was presented, a task force was created to analyze their current processes and map them in as great a detail as possible. This would help them to determine exactly what their outsourcing needs were going to be. They brought on an outside consultant who provided them with advice on how to proceed as well as detailed templates to assist them in gathering the necessary information to help them create the Request for Proposal (RFP). They determined that they wanted to outsource the data center, distributed computing (all desktops), voice (telephones), data networks, and the helpdesk. It was also determined that they did not want to outsource their development resources. The task force spent a year gathering data and filling out the templates so that they had a complete picture of their current services to better understand their outsourcing needs. They then spent several months preparing a 200-page RFP that could be provided to possible outsourcing vendors. After receiving two strong proposal responses, it was determined that ABC Corporation would be the best fit for Schaeffer’s outsourcing needs. There was a lot of negotiation to be able to bring the price within the needs of the company, but after several weeks of back and forth an agreement was reached. The next step was to get Schaeffer’s top management’s buy-in to the task force’s recommended solution. However, once the task force report was circulated internally, there were a lot of perceived disadvantages raised by its managers. One of the first concerns that was brought up with the consistency and priority of service that Schaeffer would receive. Most outsourced IT contracts are for a relatively long time-period. This is because of the high cost of transferring assets and employees as well as maintaining technological investment. The long time-period of the contract can cause three particular problems. One, difficulties in getting out of a contract if the supplier turns out to be unsuitable; two, problems in foreseeing what the business will need over the life of the contract hence creating difficulties in negotiating new services; and three, almost insurmountable problems in re-creating an internal IT department after the contract period is over or the relationship is terminated. Another major concern that was discussed was the impact to employee morale with the inevitable reduction in Schaeffer IT personnel, where some would be absorbed by the vendor but most would be given a severance package and laid off. And the employees who remain may distrust management after outsourcing because they will become fearful that their position could be targeted next. Administration should treat morale problems seriously and will need to work with staff to rebuild their trust and loyalty. The company is a major employer in the area so the decision to outsource could also have a ripple effect in the community by damaging their reputation. The vice president for finance of the Colbert division brought up the concern that the major benefits of outsourcing would only be beneficial to the Reitzel division whereas the other two divisions would incur additional costs without additional benefits. This concern led to a third alternative being suggested; outsource the IT infrastructure just for the Reitzel division. Based on the information included in the case study for all three alternatives, outsourcing should be the chosen solution. It is the most flexible solution for their growth goals. Outsourcing would allow for them to expand in areas more quickly without all of the time and costs associated with startups. The vendor already has the infrastructure to support the areas that they most want to expand into, allowing for quicker turnaround times in meeting customer needs and wants, especially for new business growth. If they kept the IT in-house, they would need to make a substantial investment of both time and money in expanding their services and support that would be needed for new business and it would need to be done very quickly to be able to meet the goals set by the Board of Directors. If they tried to adopt the third alternative, of only outsourcing the IT for the Reitzel division, it would negate all of the time and cost savings of the consolidation of the divisional IT groups into a shared services solution. It would then cause duplication of work and processes between the in-house IT team and the outsourced group, which would be impactful to the overall costs for all divisions. Each solution had its own pro’s and con’s, and needed to be evaluated against the best interest in achieving Schaeffer’s overall goals in the marketplace. Like it or not, change is an integral part of todays business climate. In the workplace, changes can occur as a result of new thinking, advances in technology, innovation and progress, knowledge and communication, as well as mergers, takeovers, layoffs, and downsizing. A lot of the concerns and disadvantages were voiced after the task force’s recommendation had been developed, presented, and circulated within the company. Communication is key! This could have been avoided by having better communication throughout the life cycle of the whole process, from the information gathering, to the development of the RFP, and the presenting of the final recommendations. A lot of people probably felt blindsided by the proposed solution to outsource the IT infrastructure because they have been conditioned to fear change. We must not lose sight of the fact that change is normal, and most of us will experience unpredictable changes throughout our professional lives. However, there is no doubt that everyone views change from a different perspective than everyone else. Many employees believe that management doesnt understand their side of the story, and managers often feel it is the employees who dont understand why the change is necessary. This is why communication is so vital during any change circumstance. Its been said that lack of communication is the number one reason why relationships deteriorate between employers and employees. Change will require open communication on both sides. None of us want to acknowledge that we doubt our ability to integrate new ideas, use new technology, or adapt to new organizations. We dont even want to think about whats ahead when outsourcing a whole department: new management structure, new processes and procedures, new terminology, new titles and job descriptions, not to mention the loss of longtime co-workers, friends, and family. The more we fight and resist the change, the more painful and frightening the changes will be. Resisting doesnt keep a new idea from taking hold; it simply makes the process longer and more painful. Change will happen no matter what. We will handle it better when we learn to move with the change – not against it. Its natural to fear the unknown and lack of control when it comes to embracing a new concept such as outsourcing that goes completely against the traditional workplace structure. There will be a lot of struggle during the transition period. We know we will have to work a lot harder. Are we willing to let go of the present to embrace the future? We may not know what the future will bring, but we are responsible for what we bring to the future.

Advertising is a form of communication intended to persuade an audience

Advertising is a form of communication intended to persuade an audience Advertising is the non-personal way of communication of information more frequently than not paid proposed for and usually influential in nature about products, services or ideas by renowned sponsors through the a variety of media. It is a presentation of idea, manufactured goods, or organization, in order to induce persons to approve, buy, or support of it. Advertising is also defined as paid form of any promotion conveyed from side to side an accumulation medium that viewers are more likely in the course of paying attention and consideration in the subject matter of the advertising conceded through their selected medium and it is explained to be part of the marketing mix in the promotional tools. The globalization of competition, saturation of markets, and development of information technology have enhanced customer awareness and created a situation where long-term success is no longer achieved through optimized product price and qualities. Instead, companies build their success on a long-term customer relationship. According to former studies, it can cost as much as six times more to win a new customer than it does to keep an existing one. Hence, the increase and retention of loyal customers has become a key factor for long-term success of the companies. The main emphasis in marketing has shifted from winning new customers to the retention of existing ones The Von Restorff effect was identified by Hedwig von Restorff in 1933. She conducted a set of memory experiments around isolated and distinctive items, concluding that an isolated item, in a list of otherwise similar items, would be better remembered than an item in the same relative position in a list where all items were similar. There can also be a reverse effect here. You remember the unique item, but the attention that it grabs from you is removed from other items thus you may in fact remember less overall. Hedwigs work relates to Gestalt, where she related it to the Figure and Ground principles. Attention is usually captured by salient, novel, surprising, or distinctive stimuli. These may be used to enhance the von Restorff effect. In the attention age, when the plethora of media around us is constantly battling for a moment of our time, advertisers make much use of this principle, each vying with the other to stand out from the crowd and hence be remembered by the target audie nce. The Von Restorff effect is also called the Isolation Effect or the Distinctiveness Principle. The same principle has also been described as prominence effects. Traditionally there are two approaches to treating customer loyalty trough advertising. Some researchers have investigated the nature of different levels of loyalty through retention; others have explored the influence of individual factors on loyalty. In this paper, both treatments are combined to investigate which specific factors in the telecommunication sector influence the loyalty rate of the various customers segmented by loyalty. The potential for establishing loyalty depends on the object (i.e. product or vendor), on the subject (customer) or on the environment (market, other suppliers, etc.). In broader term, for both, customer and manufacturing products firms, a firms ability to distinguish its products as of competitors and to build success brands is critical for achievement. As a consequence, firms may use more on their marketing infrastructure to raise the sales by attracting more consumers to the product group as a whole as healthy as by convincing current consumers to switch their purchases as of competitors products to the firms brand. Moreover, firms by means of strong brand names may be clever to charge best prices based on the additional worth of the brand which would too improve the firms profitability. Therefore, firms that connect in heavy marketing communication activities in advertising may show performance that is improved than those investing less powerfully in marketing infrastructure. In a bigger scenario the advertisement is treated from two viewpoints: as advertisement specialists and customers. Advertisement specialists create decisions incident to preparation, creation and transmission of the advertisement. Customers on the other hand act in response to the advert which advertisement specialists have produced and the presented them. Following incorporating these two perspectives we be able to state that constant communication of advert and customer is experiential in the advertisement procedure. As marketing specialists move particular message to the customers while advertise incredible, the advertisement might be called communication procedure There are several other reasons for a customer to respond absolutely to advertising. Advertising has the apparently magical property that persons whose tastes are most excellent served by a known brand are those most probable to observe an ad intended for that brand. Advertisers decide the media in which they advertise in fraction to maximize the purchase likelihood intended for their brand. In result the producer distributes his advertisements among media so that the communication is seen by persons who are most probable to repeat buy the particular brand. Advertising efficiency depends on users receptivity towards an ad and on their approach towards advertising. For turn out advertisement found out, persons respondents with more positive attitudes towards advertising recalled a higher numeral of advertisements the day exposure. In the internet, it is recurrent that advertising is used with levels of forced contact than only static banners whose level would contrast to print adverti sing of some type. Since higher intrusiveness leads to ad evasion and irritation, a fewer favorable attitude among customers advertising can be supposed. Presumptuous that the overall approach towards internet advertising is fewer favorable than towards print advertising, lower ad reminiscence can be expected. Customer Preference and acceptance in optimistic conditions mean the identical obsession but it is positive to keep the fad in mind with penchant notice to indicate choices between unbiased or valued options with receipt representing a readiness to stand the condition or less desirable options Advertising is an imperative social phenomenon. It stimulates economic activity models, consumption, life-styles and an assured value orientation. Customers are confronted with daily amount of advertising in numerous media. With the constant hit of different marketing media, it is presumable that it will have an effect on society and individualism as a whole. Commercial advertisers often seek to generate increased consumption of their products or services through branding, which involves the repetition of an image or product name in an effort to associate related qualities with the brand in the minds of consumers. Different types of media can be used to deliver these messages, including traditional media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, outdoor or direct mail; or new media such as websites and text messages. Advertising may be placed by an advertising agency on behalf of a company or other organization. Companies understand that marketing has an important role in their overall accomplishment. They recognize that if there are any functions near to customers its either Marketing or Sales. Sales develop into a direct interface among products of companies and customers, and on the other hand marketing is an indirect function between company and customers. Most researchers have implicitly assumed that a consumer uses the same criteria to evaluate all brands in a product class in Von Restorff effect. This study views the consumer as a more flexible information processor. The attributes an individual recalls or uses to evaluate a brand in a product class may vary. To some extent, attributes may be influenced by the advertisement the consumer sees for the brand. There has been a strong support for the espousal of consumer retention in as one of the key performance indicators in Von Restorff effect. It has found that there is a high association between customer retention and the profit earn by the industries. The fragmentation of media choices and the active nature of the marketplace, tied with an enlarged number of additional demanding and prosperous consumers, brought bigger challenges to marketing practitioners in keeping hold of their regular customers. An advertisement may provide information about a brand on several attributes. Attention getting services such as bold type and arrows can draw attention to a particular attribute and away from others. Advertisement induced recalls may or may not translate into product use during a subsequent brand evaluation. Marketers have implicitly assumed that people who see advertisements encouraging recall of specific brand attributes will increase their use of that information for brand evaluation. One example of this is using recall of a claim to test advertisement effectiveness. Yet research in social cognition indicates that enhanced recall of an attribute does not necessarily imply increased emphasis on that attribute during a subsequent brand evaluation in Von Restorff effect. In advertising, to get the attention of the packaging is the most important medium of communication because it reaches almost all buyers in the category and is present at the crucial moment when procurement decision is made; and buyers are actively involved with packaging as they examine it to obtain the information they need. A well suited packaging material works as an instrument to differentiate a product from a wide range of other products having similar qualities and helps customers to finalize his buying behavior. It can be claimed that package performs a vital role in marketing connections and can be treated as one of the most major feature to pursue consumers purchase judgment. In this context, seeking to optimize the effectiveness of package in a buying place, the researches of package, its elements and their impact on consumers buying behaviour became a relevant issue. Due to emergent self-service and altering customers standard of living, their life style the awareness in package that includes size, quantity, color, shape as a mechanism of sales advertising and stimulator of spontaneous purchasing behavior is rising more and more. So package carries out an imperative role in advertising communications, in particular in the spot of sale and it is treated as the most significant features influence purchase decision of consumers. Earlier study has shown that there is no agreement on categorization of package basics as well as package impact on purchase decision of consumers. The effects of prominent information in an advertisement may be mediated by several individual and situational factors that may mediate the relationship between prominence in an ad and the evaluative criteria used. Advertisements are read both by consumers who are interested in evaluating the advertised brands (brand processing) and by those who are not (non brand processing). Attribute information in an advertisement may be processed differently under brand processing and under non brand processing conditions. Color is one of the most important non verbal signs. The impact of colors for the marketers through advertisement is very well recognized. When it is about products, it is become aware as one of the foreseeable signs of the whole look of products that also have an impact on the sales success of a product. Nowadays, it is fairly clear that products must not be designed just in order to meet up the functional needs of the customers but at the same time it must be attractive and eye catching as well. That is the main reason design is accentuate as a key marketing element. Conversely, colors do not merely lie in the aesthetics as it is strained that colors have two additional essential functions from a marketing viewpoint. The first use, it is suggested that colors draw attention to themselves by implying that color is the most necessary visual element in advertising. The subsequent purpose of colors that is highlighted is the position of colors as a way of communication. Hence, it is de clared that colors have the skill to express meanings predominantly while it comes to such marketing phenomenon as advertising and packaging. The graphics are any lines, metaphors, symbols, snaps, and text that narrate to the brand name. The most ordinary graphics in advertising are applications of figurative representation and abstract symbolization with the exclusion that make use of design drawings the most. Characteristics of design fundamentals may be grouped as functional and visual elements. Visual include form, text, pictures, colors and decorations and functional elements comprise structural designs (store, protect, reclose and open), material designs (display value and emotional appeal), volume designs (economy). Advertisement must also draw customer attention with visual elements that please consumer psychosomatic desires other than their main functionalities Consumer attitude is a blend of perceptions, values and attitude. The customer must initial distinguish the product and then focus beliefs and values on top of the product and make a choice and then decide to purchase or not. Beliefs are more susceptible to marketing than values for the reason that beliefs are subject matter to emotion and knowledge. Self perceptions of familiarity may affect the individuals use of stored product class knowledge to interpret and integrate new brand information. This approach to familiarity is phenomenological; it focuses on the individuals subjective perceptions rather than on an objectively verifiable reality. There is evidence that self perceptions of familiarity are not equivalent to objective measures of expertise or knowledge and that these self perceptions affect processing. If prominence directs subjects attention to a key attribute, it may direct attention away from other, non prominent attributes in the ad and this may, in turn, decrease recall of non prominent attributes. An individuals evaluation task while viewing an advertisement may affect the processing that occurs during exposure. Brand and non brand tasks may involve different processes, but both may facilitate the use of prominent information. Prominent information may greatly affect processing for those using a brand processing strategy. If prominent aspects of a stimulus are weighted more heavily in evaluations because they receive more attention during exposure, they might be used more by consumers who are focusing on the brand and its attributes-in other words, those processing for brand evaluation. Work in political science has found that people who are interested in politics and must decide for whom to vote are more likely than other people to be affected by the agenda-setting ability of mass media Prominence may direct attention to particular stimuli or to particular aspects of stimuli. Under some circumstances, prominent stimuli may affect evaluations by directing processing. Researchers in political science provide some evidence by examining the agenda-setting role of the media during elections. The press may not be successful much of the time in telling people what to think, but it is stunningly successful in telling its readers what to think about. Numerous empirical studies demonstrate that readers perceptions of issue importance-as measured by self-report rating scales and open-ended elicitations reflect the emphasis these issues have received in the media to which they have been exposed. This does not mean that the media have affected voters priorities; perhaps people seek out media that concentrate on issues they feel are important. In addition to uncertainty about the direction of causal influence, we must also as-certain the strength of the link between issues people say are important and those they actually use to evaluate and elect candidates. Evidence shows that this link may be rather strong. If this is so, the agenda setting function of the media may provide an example of prominence affecting the degree to which some issues affect attitudes although, of course, media effects may also be due to direct arguments asserting that particular issues in news stories are the important ones. Customer satisfaction and retention are the key elements for the planning of the marketing in view of the fact that satisfaction does sway customers intention to re-patronage the restaurant. Therefore, marketers are supposed to look into the issues that would have an effect on customer satisfaction intensity. Besides, as customer prospect are altering over time and it is advised to determine the customer satisfaction and expectation on regular basis and grip complaints timely and effectively. An individuals evaluation task while viewing an advertisement may affect the pro-cessing that occurs during exposure. Brand and non brand tasks may involve different processes, but both may facilitate the use of prominent information. Prominent information may greatly affect processing for those using a brand processing strategy. If prominent aspects of a stimulus are weighted more heavily in evaluations because they receive more attention during exposure, they might be used more by consumers who are focusing on the brand and its attributes-in other words, those processing for brand evaluation. Work in political science has found that people who are interested in politics and must decide for whom to vote are more likely than other people to be affected by the agenda-setting ability of mass media. Prominent information may also greatly affect processing for those using a non brand processing strategy. Someone called upon to evaluate a brand after processing the ad with such a strategy may simply use whatever information about the advertised brand pops into his head first-that is, whatever is most easily recalled. In such a case, if prominence affects the attributes recalled, it may affect the criteria used to form attitudes as under low involvement, advertising influences brand choice by changing the salient attributes of the advertised brand. Self perceptions of familiarity may affect the individuals use of stored product class knowledge to interpret and integrate new brand information. This approach to familiarity is phenomenological; it focuses on the individuals subjective perceptions rather than on an objectively verifiable reality. There is evidence that self-perceptions of familiarity are not equivalent to objective measures of expertise or knowledge and that these self perceptions affect processing. Those who consider themselves familiar with a product (high subjective familiarity) may feel they have stored criteria for brand evaluation. They are aware of their stored product knowledge and may use it to interpret and integrate attribute information presented in an advertisement. In contrast, consumers who consider themselves unfamiliar with a product (low subjective familiarity) may feel they lack stored evaluative criteria. Such consumer may not attempt to use whatever knowledge they do have when presented with da ta about a new brand, feeling that it is useless to try to evaluate such information. Product specific attributes may seem confusing and meaningless; instead, they may use information in the advertisement that is not product-specific. In some cases, they may use information about attributes that are normally used to evaluate objects in a more general class of products to which the unfamiliar product belongs or is related. For example, a consumer who feels s/he doesnt know anything about shaving cream might use attributes appropriate for evaluating toiletries in general-such as scent-or those frequently found useful in evaluating products in general, such as price. In other cases s/he may, consciously or unconsciously, base brand attitude on evaluation of the advertisement itself. Thus self-perceptions of familiarity may affect the use of attribute information in an advertisement, and consumers who consider themselves unfamiliar with a product may be relatively unaffected by prominence. They may find all product-specific attributes too confusing and meaningless to use, regardless of accessibility. In contrast, consumers who consider themselves familiar with a product may be affected by prominence; they may find it easy to integrate a new piece of information with stored data and may have the confidence to do so. If prominence affects the accessibility of this information, it may affect its use by this group. A brands advertising can affect both the brand attributes recalled and those used for subsequent evaluations. In addition, advertisement induced recall due to an attention focusing tactic does not necessarily imply increased emphasis on that attribute during a subsequent brand evaluation. This suggests that it is useful for marketers to distinguish between processing which leads to recall and that which leads to attitude formation. The results imply that availability and use in attitude formation are not equivalent; elicitation procedures may not be appropriate techniques for obtaining the attributes used to evaluate brands. Advertisers must always be on the lookout for new techniques or approaches to adequately disseminate their messages, and brand placement is becoming a more widely used form of communication. This practice has been a standard in the film and television industry and is now making its mark in the video game industry. Traditional media are losing speed, and thus the use of non-traditional media as a form of communication is becoming much more interesting for advertisers. To compete, it is almost becoming a must for advertisers to be present in these new forms of media and entertainment. Young adults are watching television less and less. This phenomenon is due to the emergence of new technologies such as personal video recorders (PVR), leading people to watch their favourite TV channels off line. Once viewers have recorded these programs, they can watch them without any advertising breaks. The audience fragmentation resulting from the emergence of specialized channels has also complicate d the task of any advertisers attempting to reach mass numbers of people. Brand placement is defined as the inclusion, for promotion purposes, of a product, brand or company name within a film or television program content. The objective of this strategy is to increase brand recognition, and ultimately lead to a positive impact on purchase preference or intent. Most research on brand placement has focused on two major themes, namely placement effectiveness with four identified criteria that prominence, clarity, integration within scenario, location on screen. For years advertisers and consumer behaviour researchers have studied the effects of advertisement on recall, attitude, and other evaluations related to the ad and the brand. This includes cognitive responses, such as attention, recall, brand preference, and brand evaluation. These areas of research reflect the growing convictions of many advertisers that consumers liking and disliking of an ad can influence its effectiveness regarding attention, recall, brand evaluations, other cognitive related responses, and reactions. For decision alternatives, consumers consistently acquire product information on product brand attributes available to them. Such information in marketing communications is often conveyed either in numerical and verbal modes or both. Results from past studies on information mode showed that judgments of numerical estimates and verbal expressions vary considerably across subjects. Despite the increasing importance of numerical information in marketing, the marketing and advertising literature is scant on the effects of numerical attribute information on consumer evaluation of products. In addition, research on the relationship between presentation forms and information mode has not been reviewed in the past, despite the growing importance of numerical attribute information and the persuasive nature of vividness in advertising. Hence, the importance of vividness in terms of ad evaluation is of interest. Although the effects of presentation form, vividness, in terms of its persuasive communication has yielded mixed results, this research attempts to examine and discuss the role of vividness and the mode of information used with the inclusion of a moderator, consumer knowledge, as a determinant of how consumers respond to product advertisement. Consumers product knowledge is likely to affect product attribute information evaluations and recall in ways that are not entirely predictable. For example, consumers make judgments and decisions about products and services under conditions of uncertainty and only rarely complete information is available for all important features and benefits of a given product for them to make a decision. Studies have shown that the general interpretation of knowledge depends on individuals currently active knowledge structures. In the knowledge literature, accessibility of attribute information guides the interpretation of that information about the possible relationships among elements of product class. Furthermore, highly accessible attributes related to product information in the ad are likely to guide the encoding of the information. Different consumers use different skills and strategies to evaluate information implying that variables such as individual difference in knowledge may be important moderators in information processing. Individuals might differ in their responses to arguments the message contains, with some people analyzing and reacting to each argument and others reacting mainly to the communications overall point rather than to the argumentation. It is hardly surprising that reactions to communications are highly variable, because individuals differ in disposition and in prior experiences they have had in relationships to the attributes in the ads, product category, and overall presentation contexts in which influence is exerted. This can affect their attitude and responsiveness to advertising. Possibly, a reason attributed to this responsiveness is that a consumers decision-making approach is made via different patterns as they gain knowledge through experience with a product. The moderating effect s of consumer knowledge on processing and evaluation of numerical and verbal product attributes, and their interaction with vivid and non-vivid attribute information in advertising have also, until now, received little attention in the consumer behaviour literature. The effects of vividly presented information, for instance, vivid verbal or vivid numerical in an advertisement in general may be moderated by several individual and situational factors. Effects of advertising have been examined in the past, although, the influence of numerical versus verbal information content in advertising has not been examined. Studies in the area of information mode have primarily compared numerical information to verbal information with respect to information processing, memory, preference, and comparative judgments. Although studies have examined various aspects of advertising message content and format, none of the studies in the literature cited has made an attempt to measure subjects attitude toward to ad, and recall tested for all verbal and all numerical modes. On the other hand, some studies have compared the differences between visual and verbal information and their effects on brand attitude prior to the studies focusing on the comparison of verbal and numerical information. Other researchers have examined the differences between verbal message format and visual formats in terms of their effects on information processing, memory and ev aluations concerning the product. Advertisers are aware that consumers are exposed to numerous amounts of uncertain information and that they must also use this information for making decisions irrespective of just choosing a specific mode of communication. It is therefore reasonable to expect that preferences for a particular mode of information will influence how the information is encoded, retrieved, and then processed during decision-making situations. Online marketing is altering the way advertising is conducted and provides firms with a new lay of capabilities. This is able to be attributed to online advertising no longer seen as an optional component for business, other than a strategic platform. Therefore, businesses should aspire for online marketing to be an integral fraction of the business disadvantaged. The presence and accessibility to a web site is middle to online marketing. Though, as the number of companies exploiting online advertising and the use of explore engine marketing grows, it is flattering more hard for businesses to attract web site traffic The availability heuristic estimates frequency or probability by the ease with which instances or associations could be brought to mind. Some of this may be relatively easy to access, although other information is less accessible. This accessibility or ease of recall is termed as availability. If one can easily retrieve examples from memory, one infers that the event must be fairly frequent or common and/or well rehearsed. In order to make evaluations one needs to recall relevant information from memory. Information that is more available in memory will be utilized more in making the evaluation than information that is not readily available. In the areas of social cognition and evaluative processes the availability of information in memory has been seen to influence estimates and judgments. Accordingly the techniques devised for assessing efficiency tend to be leaning to the way TV advertising is thought to effort. But there is evidence of effective advertising in turn out media like newspaper, magazines, pamphlets , bills also, and this account summarises a small of it . There is to apply more extensively to bills or any print advertising campaigns the disciplines of monitoring next to pre-strong-minded objectives. This applies both to periodical campaigns and too mixed-media campaigns which characteristic magazines as a substantial fraction of the mix. Furthermore in certain compliments the techniques of monitoring and of pre-difficult need to be modified to the distinctive method magazines work, than simply adopting the assumptions applied to TV. The variation in the efficiency of encoding and retention of information will certainly depend on the combined efficiency of a large amount of different complex processes. However, when opportunities arise for recall of the processed information, the availability of the information is emphasized. How then, might such properties and memory efficiency be related to other cognitive abilities? Is comprehension or interpretational ability just one aspect of general learning and memory? The issue of what, if any, relation exists between expertise and the ability to comprehend information for recall and evaluation is a complex one, to which relatively little research attention has been given. The objective is to detect the ability to manipulate information, perceived relations, and extract it from the memory for judgment. Consumers are aware of their stored product knowledge and may use it to integrate a new piece of information and properly retrieve them to interpret attribute information presented in the ad. On the contrary, consumers who are novices may lack the stored evaluative standard, and they may not use whatever knowledge they have when presented with a new piece of information about the product. Th ey may feel it is useless to exert any kind of effort to process and evaluate the new information. Therefore novices use ad specific cues that are not product attribute oriented information because product attribute information may seem confusing and meaningless to them Customer satisfaction is defined as the consumers fulfillment response. Customer satisfaction leads to the customer loyalty so it is necessary to s

Perfect, but not too Perfect :: essays research papers fc

PERFECT, BUT NOT TOO PERFECT Once in a village long, long ago, there was a home with a family inside of it. And in that family was a father, a mother, a brother, a sister, and a grandmother. In this village it rained all the time. More than London, or the Amazon or all the rainforests in the world combined. In this village also were a church, a store, a mill, and a monument for the chief: Jades Samoa. This wasn’t a village like in Africa or Cambodia, but a very nice village. The people wore amazing clothing. Better than any fashion brand today. The buildings wore made perfectly with smooth glass, smooth brick, and the smoothest wood. These buildings could withstand anything from a simple hurricane to a giant monsoon. The villagers drank the purest water and the finest wine. They were elegant, graceful, civilized, and always stood straight up. There were fantastic parties thrown every night and the people gathered and talked and laughed bout there lives. There beautiful and perfect lives. All the children were given the finest educations by the most brilliant adults; whom were smarter than Leonardo DaVinci and Albert Einstein would ever fathom to be. The streets were made of pure diamond and the lampposts of ivory. The cars never used any energy and never depreciated. They had plush seating made of soft leather. Every home was built according to the family, but every home was very large and spacious. They contained the finest furniture and the finest robotic staff that never became tired and always completed every demand made by their masters.

African American Hate Crimes in Gwendolyn Brook’s Poetry Essay

The murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri , the murder of a black teen for playing loud music in Florida, the Little Rock integration and all other forms of abuse or hate crimes done against African Americans will always be engraved in our history and in the hearts of all African Americans as a period of injustice. It was a common tragedy to lose a family member to one of the many riots assembled by the Ku Klux Klan or simply by a group of Caucasians determined to exterminate â€Å"niggers.† Many were able to see how detrimental hate crimes were through media. African Americans who owned magazines, newspapers and so forth were finally able to voice their opinions and tell their side of the story to balance out the usually biased media run by Caucasians. As a result of the exposed cruelty towards African Americans, blacks felt justified, some whites became enraged, and yet other whites began to feel guilty for devaluing the lives of African Americans. Brooks’s ballad â€Å"A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi. Meanwhile, a Mississippi Mother Burns Bacon† illuminates the hate crime committed against a young African American boy and the guilt that consumes the speaker after she realizes her involvement caused his death. Brooks’s poem acts as a metaphor to convey how America (during the period of injustice) attempted to overlook the truth of the immoral crimes committed against African Americas, but as a result of publicized brutality, realized they were wrong. Background information regarding the death of Emmett Till will allow the reader to better understand how Brooks uses the ballad as a metaphor to represent Americas attempt to overlook the immoral acts committed against African Americans. According to â€Å"The Murder of Emmett Till,† an article addressing Emmett Till’s death and the media coverage on it, Till’s death was a prank gone wrong. â€Å"After picking cotton with his cousins all day, Till and his cousins took a joy ride with the family car to Bryant’s Grocery store where his cousins dared him to talk Carolyn Bryant (Brian). What happened as he was leaving is fiercely debated. Some white witnesses claimed he either said, "Bye, baby," or whistled at her, while others say that she became enraged after he simply put his change in the womans hand. Emmett Till’s alleged â€Å"fresh behavior† spread like wildf... ...acism seen in closed-minded individuals through Brooks’s use of fairy tale language and the depiction of the husband. Likewise, America is made up of both types of individuals, and through the use of publicized media, we can only hope to increase the knowledge of the senseless violence we known as hate crimes. After reading Brook's ballad one can only hope that Emmett Till and other victims of hate crimes will act as a reminder and provide an inclining of hope that another tragic death will not follow. Works Cited Brooks, Gwendolyn. â€Å"A Bronzeville Mother Loiters in Mississippi. While Mississippi Mother Burns Bacon.† Selected Poems. New York: Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2006. Print. Favat, F. Andrà ©.. Child and Tale: The origins of Interest. Urbana, Ill.: National Council of Teachers of English, c1977. Print. Mootry, Maria K. â€Å"Brook’s a bronzeville mother loiters in Mississippi. Meanwhile, a Mississippi mother burns bacon.† Explicator 42.4 (1984): p51, 2p Academic Search Complete. Web. 13 July 2011. Thorton, Brian. The Murder of Emmett Till. Journalism History 36.2 (2010): p396-104, 9p Academic Search Complete. Web. 13 July 2011.

Why Accountability Is Important

Why Accountability Is Important It is important to note first, what accountability is. I will state why it is important as well as go over scenarios in dealing with accountability. Accountability means being liable to being called to account; answerable. A good military definition of the word would be and usually means to be liable for paperwork and or property, and personnel; usually of lesser grade and rank. When dealing with army leadership and duties; being a soldier and or a leader means being accountable for what you do or don’t do as well as implied duties and responsibilities.As a leader, being one means to be accountable not only for one’s actions, but for the actions of the soldiers for which you are assigned. One is to be accountable for equipment that is assigned to one’s-self as well. The department of defense states and defines accountability to be an obligation imposed by law or lawful order or regulation on an officer or other person for keeping a ccurate record of property, documents, or funds. The person having this obligation may or may not have actual possession of the property, documents, or funds.Accountability is concerned primarily with records, while responsibility is concerned primarily with custody, care, and safe-keeping. But again, let us not get the definitions confused. The term accountability differs from the term of responsibility. There is a big difference. There are reporting procedures and processes for recording and accounting for personnel and equipment. There are different types and ways of reporting within different sizes and types of elements of a command.There are also ways in which one will report to one who is in a designated duty position and or of higher rank and grade within different elements of commands. The ways in which a soldier may report can be orally or written in order to account for property, equipment, and or personnel. Soldiers must always be accountable for their actions. For every action there is a reaction. Soldiers are to be held to accountable for their actions because they represent the United States of America within the states as well as overseas in other parts of the world.Sometimes, we are the only source of information as to how people may think what our behavior is and how all other Americans may behave in their own country based off of even one soldier’s sole actions whether negative or positive. We must be accountable for what we do or don’t do. If we, as soldiers, are assigned a task that is to be completed, but we fail and do not get it accomplished, then we have to account and answer for it. If we lose a piece of equipment, it becomes lost or destroyed, we have to be held accountable for it and solve the problem to correct the situation however it may need to be corrected.Mission readiness is the answer to why accountability is so important. We must accomplish the mission at all costs with the least amount of loss whether it be so ldiers or equipment. Without all of the soldiers or equipment present the mission may not be able to be accomplished. Even if only one soldier or piece of equipment is not present the mission may not be fully capable of being accomplished as the lack of either one would be detrimental to the mission.If a piece of equipment or a soldier is not on time at the start or finish of a mission, it may determine the outcome of the mission in regards to it being accomplished and a success or not. Either way, to be accountable for the pieces of equipment or the lack of soldiers present means providing an answer to someone else whom will have to be accountable for them to another. One will wish to know why a mission was not accomplished. A superior ranking individual will wish to know for sure. One who is accountable must have an answer.If we are not held accountable for our actions then someone else takes the blame or we never except responsibility for them and may become a pattern. If this ha ppens, then we cannot correct the problem that causes the accountability error from the start. This would be due to a cognitive lethargic display of thought processes and or apathy. If it is not the sole cause, but a contributing factor then other problems that affect a soldiers or leaders life may be the main causal factor in not being held accountable for their actions. Someone is always accountable and answerable to the next one in a chain of command.When the answer is needed, an entire chain of command as to why and how a mission did not attain a status of successful or completed, it affects the entire chain of command and the army itself when you really think about it. One could debate about it in regards to the butterfly effect; or the chaos theory. The theory that one small move such as the flap of a butterfly wing or a car accident effects all of us on a world-wide level even though it may seem miniscule in nature. Leaders must be accountable for discipline, leadership, and training of the soldiers.While soldiers are accountable for their actions, equipment, and sometimes when directed, the actions of others; so are leaders for their subordinates actions and so forth up the chain of command. This is all an example of accountability. If we did not have this accountability in process as a standard in the United States Army then we would not be the successful fighting force that we are today. Leaders are under the most stress as they are held accountable for more actions than their soldiers. They are also responsible for training and mentorship of soldiers.They must lead and develop them to become better soldiers and future leaders themselves. Leaders have many duties and responsibilities that they must be accountable for. Keeping accountability of not only people, but equipment also helps cut down on waste. Fraud waste and abuse is a big deal in the army as there are rules and regulations to address these concerns within the army as it is written doctrin e. Do you have any idea how much it would cost to replace all the equipment and people lost if leaders simply never noticed they were gone and constantly had to replace them?One of the United States military's biggest concerns is to never leave a man behind, dead or alive. It is perhaps this knowledge that they will never be left which keeps many troops confident in their job. How hard would you fight if you knew that your life was expendable and should you go missing, you would be written off and forgotten? I know for myself that I would not fight very hard if nobody cared about me in general. Accountability is one of those ways to show subordinates that you do care about them. Others may look at it in a negative way.They may say that, â€Å"Man, he is always on my case about where I am and this and that†, but this is a way to know that one is being cared for. Knowing where items and troops are keeps superiors able to know what can be accomplished and planned as far as missi ons and tasks. How could a plan be carried out to its full potential if the equipment type and capability and an account for soldiers is not known as well? It would be impossible to get an accurate account in order to plan with without knowledge of this information. Having an account of this information also keeps the army nformed of how many more or less soldiers are needed to accomplish a mission or task. There is paperwork to be processed to help keep accountability for all of the personnel and equipment within any given unit or command group. If property is lost damaged or stolen, one will be held accountable for those issues in regards to them as well. If there is an investigation on the soldier(s) or piece(s) of equipment, CID will be in charge and held accountable for the investigation. Everyone plays a part in accountability on some level, one way or the other.

Who Are Aware of the Demands of Religious Commitment in Everyday Life.’ in What Ways Does Classroom Re Achieve This

The outcome of religious education is religiously literate young people †¦ who are aware of the demands of religious commitment in everyday life. ’ In what ways does classroom RE achieve this? The quote in this essay title not only states that children who experience religious education become religiously literate young people; but that they also begin to know the importance of religious commitment in everyday life. This however is an easy proposition to state, but to achieve this in classroom Religious Education can be a demanding and challenging realisation.For a child to become religiously literate they need to be able to understand and have knowledge about Religion, but to become aware of the demands they not only need to learn about Religious Education, they need to learn from it. Religious Education in catholic schools is not only learning from classroom RE but from the wider community: from parents and the parish. It is important when learning catholic religion in a catholic school the teacher links the learning in the classroom to the wider community so the children can become aware and possibly adapt the demands of the catholic everyday life.As the Catholic Education Service says ‘If in Catholic schools, we are able to play our part in the moral development of the young people in our charge, we need to agree among ourselves, with parents, what are shared values are and how we plan to put them into practice. A school contributes or fails to contribute, to the moral development of its pupils, by the broad values that are upheld by the school generally. ’ (1995,20) Catholic Education inspires children to be able to make their own decisions, as Catholics believe we were all made in the image and likeness of god.Religious Education should be portrayed to children as a journey, where children can use their free will to choose their own religious path. They should be able to understand that everything we do our talents, gifts and expe riences help us to lead a life in the image of God; this is a huge commitment Catholics make in their everyday lives. Children in Classroom religion should be able to reflect on this and become aware of the demands of religious responsibility. As it states in the Bishops conference, ‘The catholic vision of education promotes the dignity and freedom of every person as created in the image and likeness of God.This vision inspires and encourages the beliefs and values which are lived out in the daily life of the catholic school. ’ (1996,10) When teaching Religious Education in a catholic school the teachers aim should be to develop the children’s knowledge about religion and help them understand it. It should be able to allow children to investigate and have opinion on some of the biggest question asked. However even when teaching in a catholic school not all children may have been exposed to religion and this may be their first look into it.Some children will have come from very catholic backgrounds and when they look into Catholicism deeper it may heighten their faith. However to some children it may make them realise that they don't want to commit to the religious way of life. Whatever the children's beliefs it is important in a catholic school children are able to understand the religion and what it is about, as Grace and O’Keefe suggest ‘For some, classroom religious education will deepen and enhance their personal faith; for many it may well be the first presentation of the Christian beliefs†¦. he freedom of conscience must be respected. ’ (2007, 262) Although Religious Education is not subject to nationally prescribed attainment targets there are two attainment targets for Religious Education they are: Learning about Religions and Learning from religion. Learning about Religions covers skills necessary for pupils to develop knowledge and understanding of a variety of religions. Even in a Catholic school it is im portant children learn about other religions to give them a broader knowledge of the world around us.Learning from religion encourages reflection and allows learning from each other and listening to what the children bring to the class, by them sharing their own thoughts and ideas. Learning from religion allows children to ask questions about life's meaning and purpose and explore and share human experiences. Religious Education encompasses many things and can be linked to many cross curricular subjects. It is important that religion helps develop children morally and spiritually.Religion can be linked to many subjects such as English, History, PSHE, I. C. T, Art, Drama and Mathematics. Linking Religious Education to these subjects helps children grasp topics more easily and makes the lessons more varied. For example when I was on placement in a Catholic school I taught an RE lesson, the learning objective was to learn about the different stories the bible tells us about the birth o f Jesus. We looked at the Annunciation and The Visitation, when we looked at the Visitation we looked at Luke 2:8-20 and Matthew 2:1-12.The children then drew on their tables using a whiteboard pen a Venn diagram to show the differences and similarities between the two versions of the story. This brought maths into the lesson and the children stayed engaged all the way through as they were doing something different. Afterward we then did some freeze frames of the stories, if the children were tapped on the shoulder they would become the character and say how they were feeling at the time.This encompassed drama into the lesson, and the children were able to get up and involved in the lesson, it really helped them understand the story and become part of it for a few moments. Another way to keep the children engaged and bring variety to Religion is by going to visit a place of worship, for example if we were studying Islam the children could be taken to Mosques this will allow reflecti on and add reality to the learning experience. McCreery, Bowen and Berminghem suggest ‘The presence of such places will reflect the religious and cultural make-up of the local community.A place of worship is the source of a first-hand learning experience in which children can begin to recognise that their community is made up of diverse groups of people. ’ (2007,93) One subject to which Religious Education particularity links to is PSHE and they complement each other well; together they can help moralistic development. Children can learn from faith about many contemporary issues, for example forgiveness in the playground, helping others, living life in the image and likeness of Jesus.Much can be learnt from parables in the bible; one parable that in particular gives a clear message across to the children is the parable of the good Samaritan. This shows children that no matter what we are doing or who is in need of help, it is important that we always lend a helping hand to the people around us; just like the Samaritan did. The Samaritan helped the man on the side of the road even though he was a Jew; people would think he would have done the opposite as Samaritans disliked the Jews.Whereas the priest and the Levites just walked past, it is important children understand this is the wrong thing to do and they would follow in the Samaritans footsteps. They can think as if they were walking past the old man what would they do? This is not just teaching the children about the parables but linking it to real life situations, making them aware of the commitment to Catholicism in everyday life. For children to completely understand ‘the demands of religious commitment in everyday life’ it is important that they can link religion to everyday and the world around us.A good way to do this would be to talk about media, for example earlier this year Stephen Lawrence was murdered and his mother after loosing her son was willing to forgive the murde rers however she said in an article â€Å"I don't forgive the boys who killed Stephen. They don't think they have done anything wrong. They took away Stephen's life and there is nothing in their behavior or anything to show they regret what their actions have done and the pain it has caused us as a family. It is important especially in a KS2 RE classroom to talk about the way the mum would be feeling? The fact she’s forgive the murderers if they showed any remorse, is this a Christian way to behave? This allows children to develop their knowledge and understanding of, and their ability to respond to, Christianity in Britain. Although achieving a standard in an RE classroom where children can become ‘religiously literate young people’can be challenging; I believe with the right attitude and variety it is very possible.Using other subjects to keep the children engaged and links to the world around us, children will become aware of the demands of a religious life. However whatever is taught in the classroom must be seen through the life of the catholic school, through charity work, kindness and forgiveness. Religious Education is not part of the national curriculum, however if working in a catholic school I think teaching Religious Eduction is vital and will develop children morally and spiritually, as the learn from and about religion.Catholic Education Service (1995) Spiritual and Moral development across the curriculum. Matthew James Publishing Hoodless, P, Mccreery, E, Bowen, B and Berminghem (2007) Teaching humanities in primary schools. S Learning matters ltd The Bishop’s Conference of England and Wales (1996), Religious Education Curriculum Directory for Catholic Schools, London, Catholic Education Service. Grace,R and O’Keefe, SJ (2007) International Handbook of catholic Education. Springer