Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Nursing Care

Nursing Diagnoses: (include 1 psychosocial)1. Impaired Gas Exchange related to thoracotomy as evidenced by O2 via NC, L side chest tube, Hx of asthma, Obesity, chest x-ray showing congestion and atelectasis in the left lower lobe, and SOB on exertion.2. Acute Pain related to surgical incision as evidenced by patients verbal report of pain (rated at a 10 on a scale from 1-10), positioning to avoid pain, elevated systolic blood pressure, facial grimace, decreased ambulation and movement to avoid pain.3. Impaired Skin Integrity related to a thoracotomy procedure as evidenced by a L lateral incision post Thoracotomy for resection of mediastinal cyst and report of pain in the affected area.4. Infection related to thoracotomy as evidenced by elevated WBC’s (17.8) and traumatized tissue from surgery.5. Knowledge deficient related to lack of exposure of surgical procedure recovery as evidenced by patient’s statement, â€Å"I did know I would be in the hospital this long† .Nursing Diagnosis # 1: Impaired Gas Exchange related to thoracotomy as evidenced by O2 via NC, L side chest tube, Hx of asthma, Obesity, chest x-ray showing congestion and atelectasis in the left lower lobe, and SOB on exertion.Goal: Pt. will have adequate oxygenation and absence of shortness of breath within 2 days.Interventions:1. Auscultate breath sounds every 4 hours and note adventitious sounds, note respiratory rate, depth, and use of accessary muscled. Encourage the use of the incentive spirometer and deep breathing exercises every hour, stressing the important role it plays in her progress.2. Review and compare chest x-rays once a day, review notes written in final report.3. Monitor Intake and Output every 2-4 hours4. Elevate the head of the bead every day to maintain open airway.5. Encourage deep breathing, coughing exercises, and the use of incentive spirometer every hour.Nursing Diagnosis # 2: Acute Pain related to surgical incision as evidenced by patients verbal report of pain (rated at a 10 on a scale from 1-10), positioning to avoid pain, elevated systolic blood pressure, facial grimace, decreased ambulation and movement to avoid pain.Goal: Pt. will verbalize pain is relieved within 30 minutes to an hour after analgesic administration.Interventions:1. Determine the severity, location, description, and possible pathophysiological causes of the pain every time you interact with the patient. (Use pain scale)2. Provide comfort measures every 2 hours to prevent aggravation of the pain; explore touch, repositioning, imagery, distraction, presence, or heat packs.3. Medicate as ordered with analgesics at scheduled times to maintain patient’s pain goal. Use timely interventions every time you interact with the patient and asses pain to be successful in alleviating pain. Notify physician if regimen is inadequate to meet patients control goal.4. Evaluate the client’s response to analgesia an hour after administration.Nursing Diagnosis # 3: I mpaired Skin Integrity related to a thoracotomy procedure as evidenced by a L lateral incision post Thoracotomy for resection of mediastinal cystGoal: Pt. will display timely healing of surgical wound by discharge.Interventions:1. Note the incision for color and texture including observations of any bleeding or discharge every 4 hours.2. Inspect the surrounding skin for erythema, induration, and maceration every 4 hours.3. Use appropriate barrier dressings every day as ordered.4. Keep incision clean and dry and prevent infection by hand washing and standard precaution every time you come in contact with the wound.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Lady of Bath vs. Desdemona

ENGL 220 – Scott Mackenzie December 8th, 2010 Breaking the Socially Acceptable Behavior of Women in Chaucer and Shakespeare To say that men in the centuries leading up to the twentieth believed a woman must be â€Å"seen but not heard,† is a fair statement. Women during the times of Chaucer and Shakespeare were second class citizens with little rights. They were considered properties of their masters (fathers and husbands), and had no use other than birthing and mothering. A woman was supposed to be meek, chaste, and have no opinion.However, the characters Desdemona in William Shakespeare’s Othello and Dame Alison from The Wife of Bath’s Prologue in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales seemingly go against common conventions of women, as they are bold characters who have strong opinions and exert dominance. Dame Alison, the Wife of Bath, is a character created by Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales. She is a merchant who has an interest in profit, an d uses sex and her many husbands to gain that profit. Alison has been married five times, and she is open to more, as sex is extremely important to her. Welcome the sixte, whan that ever he shal! / For sothe, I wol nat kepe me chast in al,/ Whan myn housbonde is fro the world anoon. † (51-53) Alison is boldly stating that she will continue to remarry because she cannot remain without sex, a statement that blatantly goes against the ideal woman, a lady who has one husband and is chaste at all times. Alison challenges this ideal when she says, â€Å"but that I axe, why that the fifthe man/ was noon housbond to the Samaritan? 1/ How manye mighte she have in mariage? / †¦ God bad us for to wexe and multiplye. (21-23, 28) In Alison’s time, the messages in the bible were considered the truth and 1 Referencing a story in the bible where Jesus told a Samaritan that though she had five mates, only one was her husband. were not to be challenged, especially by a woman. Withi n the first one hundred lines of her prologue, Dame Alison is breaking traditional womanly conventions by admitting her love of sex and questioning why the bible says she can only have one husband. Traditionally, husbands worked to make money and wives took care of the household.However, in The Canterbury Tales, we find out that Dame Alison is a business woman who â€Å"of cloth-making she hadde swich an haunt,/ she passed hem of Ypres and of Gaunt. † (Prologue to Canterbury Tales, 449-50) And though she is a successful business woman in her own right, Alison also uses sex to control her men and receive material gifts from them. She states that her first husbands were so old that â€Å"they had me yeven hir gold and hir tresoor;/ me neded nat do lenger diligence/ to winne hir love, or doon hem reverence. (204-206) In this quote, Alison is saying that they gave her land, money, and love without her having to have sex with them, a quote that shows readers she is open about sle eping with men to get what she wants. She reaffirms this notion of using sex to get what she wants by stating, â€Å"a wys womman wol sette hir ever in oon/ to gete hir love, ther as she hath noon. / But sith I hadde hem hoolly in myn hond,/ and sith they hadde me yeven all hir lond/ what sholde I taken hede hem for to plese/ but it were for my profit and myn ese? (209-214) In the lines following that quote, Alison goes on to mention that she had her husbands wrapped around her finger and that they were happy to please her. This is a direct contradiction to the social expectations of women in the time of Chaucer. Women were supposed to be at their husbands beckon and call, to ask for nothing, and to provide sex when needed by the husband. However, Alison’s husbands are at her beckon and call, she asks repeatedly for things, and she only has sex when she wants something. By using sex to her economic advantage, Alison is further breaking the socially acceptable behavior of wom en.Dame Alison challenges the bible in reference to virginity. Challenging the bible was generally taboo, especially when it came from a woman. Alison poses strong arguments and questions about virginity. Firstly, she says that Saint Paul’s talk of virginity and remaining celibate throughout life â€Å"al nis but conseil. †(82) Secondly, in lines 105-114, she is saying that virginity is a kind of perfection, and though Jesus was perfect, virginity is only meant for those who strive for absolute perfection, like Jesus was. Alison, on the other hand, says that â€Å"[she] wol bistoew the flour of al myn age,/ in the actes and in fruit of mariage. (113-114) Thirdly, Alison questions the design of the physical body. â€Å"Telle me also, to what conclusion/ were membres maad of generacioun/ and for what profit was a wight y-wrought? † (115-117) In this quote, Alison is asking why genitals were made perfect for each other if they weren’t mean to be used. Quest ioning why the bible and society have such strong opinions on virginity, a subject that is not generally discussed by women, is yet another reason why Dame Alison, the Wife of Bath from The Canterbury Tales challenges the socially acceptable behavior of women.Desdemona, the main female character in William Shakespeare’s Othello is another example of a character who is breaking female behavior norms. In the first act, Brabantio, Desdemona’s father, makes note of what a proper Venetian woman should be. He says they should be â€Å"of spirit still and quiet†¦ never bold. † (I. iii. 95-97) Contrary to Brabantio’s statement however, Desdemona is arguably bold. Her father, Brabantio, has long decided Desdemona will marry a business man. She, however, finds them boring, and thus marries Othello.Othello, though a celebrated general of the Venetian arm, is a moor2 and is therefore somewhat of a 2 A person who usually comes from northern Africa or Arabia and i s therefore black or dark skinned. societal outcast in the predominantly white Venice. Desdemona blatantly defies her father, something proper women never do, by marrying a social outcast. Any proper woman in Othello’s time would have been meek and polite both in public and in private, characteristics that are not displayed by Desdemona in either place.When confronted by her father about her marriage to Othello, Desdemona fights back, stating â€Å"I am hitherto your daughter: but here’s my husband/ and so much duty as my mother show’d/ to you, preferring you before her,/ so much I challenge that I may profess/ due to the Moor my lord. † (I. iii. 185-189) Desdemona is maintaining a strong stance on her marriage to Othello and is not cowering away because of her angry father. She publicly argues with Brabantio, an act that easily challenges the socially acceptable behavior of women as women were supposed to be submissive, never arguing with their fathers ( or any man for that matter), specially in public. Like Dame Alison, Desdemona is a temptress who uses sex to get what she wants. Trying to convince Othello to forgive Cassio, Desdemona states, â€Å"tell me Othello, I wonder in my soul/ what you would ask me that I should deny,/ or stand so mammering on? † (III. iii. 68-70) By referring to her unquestionable desire to please Othello in every possible way, Desdemona is saying that Othello cannot possibly love her as much as she loves him if he denies her wishes. In this one instance, Desdemona is subtly defying the socially acceptable behavior of women as she is using her sexuality to get what she wants.Overall, both Desdemona from Othello and Dame Alison from The Wife of Bath’s Prologue are characters who defy the socially acceptable behavior of women in their respective time periods. Desdemona acts bold by defying and arguing with her father, and uses her sexuality to manipulate. Similarly, Alison uses her sexuality f or economic gains from her five husbands, has a successful business of her own, and challenges the bible’s stance on multiple marriages and virginity. Therefore, both Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare challenge the ideals of the behavior of women in the early 14th and 17th centuries respectively.

Monday, July 29, 2019

The Failure of Gatsby’s American Dream

The Failure of Gatsby’s American Dream In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is portrayed as being an admirable, wealthy, kind, and genuinely impressive man. However, that being said, he is also portrayed as pretentious, deceptive, criminal, and most importantly to the plot, completely insatiable. Even though the novel’s narrator, Nick Carraway, heavily sympathizes with Gatsby, he has many character flaws that ultimately assure the failure of his â€Å"dream†, and even lead to his untimely demise. The first bit from the novel that demonstrates Gatsby’s inability to be content, is the fact that he is not Jay Gatsby. It is learned about halfway through the novel that Jay Gatsby from California is actually a man names James Gatz, who comes from Chicago. The fact that Gatsby fabricated his past and lives his life under an alias shows that he is unable to be content even with his own origins. To go through the trouble of making up an entire past for himself rather than simply revealing the truth shows that either he was too ashamed to tell of his family for his financial background, or as is more likely, he found it to be boring. By very nature, Gatsby craves excitement and adventure. In order to make himself seem more exciting and adventurous, he became Jay Gatsby. After examining that, it’s best to look at Gatsby’s chosen vocation. Although Gatsby claims to have his money from being born of a wealthy family from the West, he is later revealed to have earned his money from the illegal business of manufacturing and selling bootlegged liquor. Seeing Gatsby use criminal means to achieve wealth and the â€Å"American Dream† demonstrates how desperately he wants to be taken seriously. Using his fake persona and fool-proof criminal processes to get wealth and social status means to him that most certainly, he could not be looked down upon or judged for being born of a lower class family and not having any of his own wealth to speak of. Working in the criminal underground also means, however, that he would make very few social connections, and have few true friends, bringing me to my next point. Gatsby desperately longs for personal relationships. This is apparent in everything from the way he desperately clings to his love of Daisy to his willingness to allow Ewing Kilspringer, whom Gatsby barely knows, to sponge off him and virtually live at his mansion. Since the adventure and excitement of his fake persona and his criminal lifestyle are not enough to satisfy Gatsby, he figures that the only way to obtain true happiness would be through interactions with people, who can be around him and always admire his accomplishments and somehow complete him. However, Gatsby is unable to make social connections because of his own social awkwardness, which as becomes more and more apparent, he compensates for with his wealth and possessions. The best example of this is Gatsby’s parties, in which the guests all have an excellent time, and know of Gatsby, but know almost nothing about him, even to the point where nobody seems to know where he even came from. Gatsby’s awkwardness and fear of real people causes him to close himself off even at his own parties, and hope that somehow the good time people have will make them admire him more (which, oddly, seems to work). The desire for intimate personal relationships becomes Gatsby’s own version of â€Å"The American Dream† which manifests itself most strongly in his â€Å"love† for Daisy Buchanan. Daisy and Gatsby were briefly lovers before Gatsby was sent off to the First World War. Having been the last person who Gatsby felt any true emotions toward, Daisy becomes the object of his desire, affections, and now, his energy and will to achieve. Gatsby’s dream however is crushed by the realization that Daisy is not the ideal person who he thinks she is. Since Gatsby is a lover of fantasy and exaggeration, he holds all people to an impossible standard of how he thinks people should be, even himself. The real Daisy is almost too shallow to really love, as is most evidenced by the way she is so emotionally moved by some silk shirts that Gatsby has, calling them the most beautiful things she has ever seen. Despite the fact that Daisy is not who Gatsby wants her to be, he clings to her, either realizing his impossible standard, or so far into his delusion that he is unable to see her as anything but ideal despite her major character flaws. Beginning an affair, the two plot to stand up to Daisy’s abusive husband Tom, and run away together. When the plan finally has the chance to come to fruition, however, Daisy is unable to tell Tom that she does not love him. The reason for this is not because Gatsby is undeserving, but because he is so insatiable, and unstoppably ambitious to the point that he doesn’t know what he truly wants, that he is unable to actually achieve anything that might make a true difference in his life. Tom on the other hand, while rude and pushy and genuinely unkind, knows exactly hat he wants and has no problems in simply taking it. After a car crash kills Tom’s lover, Myrtle, Gatsby attempts one more act of gallantry in order to prove his worth and determination. He takes the blame for Myrtle’s death in an attempt to save Daisy, who was really to blame. As Gatsby stops to finally take in all that he has accomplished, and finally appreciate what he has (symbolized by him f inally using his pool) he is murdered by George Wilson, Myrtle’s husband who then takes his own life. Oddly enough, after Wilson’s murder/suicide, the reader is then struck by the striking similarities between Wilson and Gatsby. They both tired of being taken advantage of, they both loved a woman who was not real, and they both longed for true companionship. The only difference is that one of them was able to achieve greatly on a more worldly level, which despite his large personal shortcomings, made him into that person of his own creation that he had so desperately wanted to be: The Great Gatsby.

What are some of the main challenges facing contemperary egyptian Essay

What are some of the main challenges facing contemperary egyptian society - Essay Example Mubarak had inherited power after the assassination of Anwar al Sadat in the early 1980s. Mubarak continued to hold full power in Egypt up until the Arab Spring and the successful demonstrations, protests, and strikes that it entailed forced his regime from power and ushered in a new era for Egyptian governance1. Once Mubarak was ousted, the military of Egypt came to power in order to provide a transitional period under which democratic reforms could be enacted, democratic parties formed and elections held. The election process saw two main candidates outperform a field filled with rivals. These two main candidates, Ahmed Shafik and Mohammed Morsi, then went on to compete in a runoff election on the 25th of June, 2012 which saw Mohammed Morsi win the majority of the votes as well as the presidency of Egypt. One of the main reasons that Mohammed Morsi won this election was due to the fact that he was able to successfully cast Ahmed Shafik as little more than remnant of Hosni Mubarakâ €™s government. In this way, tipping the scales in his favor among the general population was a much simpler task. However, many individuals remain unimpressed with Mohammed Morsi due to the fact that he represents the interests of the Islamic Brotherhood, an entity that has been vying for a greater share of power in Egypt since its inception in the late 1920s.2 Egypt was only Middle Eastern country to sign a peace treaty with Israel following the 1967 War. However, now that the Muslim Brotherhood’s political party has come to power; the nature of this unique relationship has been called into question. Previously, Israel had successfully lobbied the Egyptian government to close border crossings from the Sinai into Gaza; however, with the ascendency of the party of the Muslim Brotherhood, these crossings have subsequently been reopened.3 This

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Accessory Report Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Accessory Report - Assignment Example As the brain behind the stall, the owner accounts how they derive their motivation from seeing smartly dressed and satisfied clients. The Glamour land boutique deals in a broad range of clothing merchandise. From men’s clothes to children’s shoes and ladies attires, they have stocked variety and brands to suit the entire household. However, the boutique specializes in lady’s clothes. To sum it up, the stall is a one-stop-shop for any woman who wants to buy all types of attire; dresses, skirts, tops, underwear, office suits, holiday wear and many others. The stall deals in classic trend. The kind of clothes and other related wares stocked in the boutique could last for several seasons and some for years. The products are also acceptable by many customers. Some customers declared that the boutique has been their choice for many years. The Glamour boutique, according to its customers, offers very competitive price. Most of its product are discounted so to attract and maintain their clients. Very few products had their price tags reading US$500. The general display is very alluring. Outfits are separated into categories, each category being placed in its section. Items are folded creatively to enhance engagement with the customers. In general, the Glamour boutique is very tidy and model. Not very far from the Glamour land boutique, has the City Paradise store stood. The owner eludes the Biblical paradise as the internal drive towards establishing the stall. The stall deals in assortment of ladies’ attires. Unlike the Glamour boutique, the City paradise store does not stock men and children clothes. The shop places a lot of emphasis on ladies’ tops, trousers and leather jackets. The stall deals in fad trends. Though highly fashionable apparels are stocked in the stall, most of them are designed to last for only one season or maybe less than a season. A

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Abraham Lincoln. His Life and Achievements Research Paper

Abraham Lincoln. His Life and Achievements - Research Paper Example He was a man of character, integrity and strength. In the present discourse, an attempt is being made to understand Lincoln’s life, achievements, struggles, failures and their impact on America based on existing literature. Lincoln’s childhood: Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12 1809 in Kentucky to Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks. His childhood was something that even Lincoln was never excited about because of the poverty and other challenges he had to face (Charnwood, 13). Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States of America. His enduring struggle was to end slavery in America and to economically transform the nation. As a young boy, Abraham Lincoln was involved in helping his father and his neighbors (p. 15). Lincoln owes his mental qualities to his mother as well as his step mother. Lincoln’s step mother was instrumental in the minimal education that he received with parental support. Lincoln has the ability to attract crowd even from his earlier years of adolescence. This is evident from Charnwood’s statement, ‘Lincoln was a person of high consideration among the lads of his age and company’ (p.20). Literature related to Lincoln’s reading habits highlights his immense love for reading and reading habits. During his teenage, he read books like Aesop’s Fables, Robinson Crusoe, The Piligrim’s Progress, A History of the United States, Weem’s Life of Washington and even Revised Statuses of Indiana (Charnwood, 21). Even before he reached the age of 20, Lincoln had a deep understanding of how his nation functioned, the principles policies and its governance (Tarbell, 34). Lincoln left his home at 22 and settled in New Salem, Illinois, which were the foundational years for his future. Based on his own efforts, Lincoln acquired some formal education for next few years; he entered the legal profession at the age of 27 (Wilson, 15-19). His achievements in the field of law studies and the profession are attributed to his own hard work and constant struggle. His struggles in the profession of law as well as politics have been immense and are epitome of an ideal le ader and a winner ever since he was elected as the President. Political affiliation: Abraham Lincoln’s first successful electoral is associated with the Sangamon County as the surveyor in 1834 and followed by the Illinois house of representatives as a representative for the Sangamon County in 1836. Lincoln was elected for the Illinois legislature during subsequent 3 years (Chin, 34). As explained by Mansch, Lincoln’s entry into politics is associated with the Nebraska Bill and did succeed in winning a seat in the Illinois legislature around 1854 (p.41). But, Lincoln resigned this post because he wanted to challenge Stephen Douglas, who was responsible for opposing anti-slavery. At this time, Lincoln struggled to gain political identity. Lincoln was deeply moved by the group fighting against slavery, known as free-soilers or anti-Nebraskans that was formed during 1854. At this time, Lincoln knew that he wanted a stable party that shared his political ideals and could be lieve in creating a prominent party of the future. Two years later, i.e. in 1856, different groups with these ideals supporting anti-slavery gathered in Bloomington, which Lincoln attended. Lincoln appropriately used this opportunity to bring together various groups that were fighting against slavery, poverty, and for democracy. Lincoln’s deep desire to abolish slavery and achieve a liberal democracy had made him say, ‘I have no objection to ‘fuse’ with anybody provided I can fuse on ground which I think is right’ (qtd. in Mansch, p.41). Lincoln’s personal experiences with the blacks were minimal, yet he was aware of the slavery

Friday, July 26, 2019

Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 7

Philosophy - Essay Example It can be studied as a property of brain. All the human activities are controlled by the instructions from the brain. Cognitive capacities include; the ability to analyze a situation, the ability to evaluate the do’s and don’ts, implementation of actions, understanding and analysis of ideas to form clear pictures about an incident, hypothesis formations, generalizations, anticipation of new possibilities, ability to understand the cause-and-effect linkages among a system etc. The intellectual levels of different human beings are different and hence the cognitive capacities also will be different from person to person. â€Å"According to the computational theory of mind (CTM), mental capacities are explained by inner computations, which in biological organisms are realized in the brain† (Gualtiero Piccinini). Human mind activities are more or less similar to that of a computer. A computer is providing us the output after a lot of computations. Whatever the instructions supplied to a computer is been processed inside the Central Processing Similarly our mind also will undergo lot of computing process before taking a decision. The instructions to the computer is been supplied through the keyboard or mouse while in the case of human being the instructions are obtained through the senses, ear, eyes, nose, tongue and skin. In the case of a computer the information will be processed in the CPU while in the case of human it is processed in the brain. For computers the instructions supplied from the keyboard or mouse will reach the CPU through address buses while in the case of human the instructions from the senses reaches the brain through nerves associated with the senses. Consider the case of a purchasing decision of a car by a person. He will decide about the car to be purchased only after lot of computations such as analyzing the data about different models of cars, evaluation of price factors, fuel economy, maintenance costs, resale value, his

Thursday, July 25, 2019

The Impact of Communication Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Impact of Communication - Essay Example (2003) information is transmitted from the source to a receiver through a technology gadget where the sound wave produced by a sender is caused by a diaphragm in the gadget to vibrate in an electric field. The vibrations are converted into electrical impulses, which are then transmitted to a receiver. The electrical impulses at the receiver’s end produce the vibration in the magnetic field to produce the original message (Rogers & Syenning, 2009). Sharma and Patterson (2009) assert that wireless network does not use any form of cable but rather radio waves, for instance, cordless phones or Bluetooth headset (Chidambaram and Jones, 1993). On the other hand wired network have cables to enhance connection between devices. However the use of wired network is lower but it provides a high performance due to the fact that they used together with routers which allow them perform at a higher speed. According to Rogers and Syenning (2009), the choice of a form of a communication depends on the activities of an individual. However, wireless communication has become the choice for all. This adoption coupled with the use of internet and technology at large has made communication easy, reliable and a life full of pleasure (Chidambaram and Jones, 2003). The advancement of communication in the United States has built a strong connection with its activities. Chidambaram, L., & Jones, B. (2003). â€Å"Impact of communication medium and computer support on group perceptions and performance: A comparison of face-to-face and dispersed meetings.† MIS quarterly, 465-491. Sharma, N., & Patterson, P. G. (2009). â€Å"The impact of communication effectiveness and service quality on relationship commitment in consumer, professional services.† Journal of services marketing, 13(2),

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Admail case assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Admail case - Assignment Example results into fatigue, is another problem that project managers face on a regular basis coupled with the aspect of balancing quality delivery as well as growth and expansion of the business (Mitchell et al., 2003). The Canadian Post has over time served the Canadian citizenry correctly through all of their products and services. However, the Admail, which is tasked with the delivery of advertising messages, has in the recent past been on the spotlight due to inefficiency. The ineffectiveness has been brought about by the fact that on certain occasions, Admail helpers have not been delivering messages in time (Kernaghan et al., 2000). The once competitive and highly profitable part of the Canadian Post has faced a myriad of problems in the past, most of which have materialized due to the poor organization within the section. In handling this assignment, I am going to provide a vivid description of how to structure and manage the firm, which would compete effectively with Admail, and av oid the problems that it has been facing. This exploration is based on environmental analysis, organizational culture, planning as well as decision-making. Admail, which is run by the Canadian Post serves well over thirteen million customers within Canada. It has managed to achieve such a customer base due to the influence of the Canadian Post, which is its parent organization. In order to put up another firm, that can compete with Admail as it expands, I would settle on the central Canadian region, notably Ontario to serve as the hedquarter. Apart from being strategically located to serve the entire country, Ontario has a large population, which would act as the perfect customer base with which to begin. For purposes of this assignment, the new firm would be referred to the Mail Daily. Mail Daily would be headed by a chief operations officer, who would be tasked with the responsibility of overseeing the daily tasks that concern the organization. Similarly, the organization would be

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Advanced Financial Accounting Assignment - Accounting by employers for Essay

Advanced Financial Accounting Assignment - Accounting by employers for employees' retirement benefits - Essay Example Actual returns on plan assets are reduced from this pension cost for purpose of its recognition on income statement. SSAP 24 requires that pension cost is the long term funding costs that is evaluated by actuaries and should be spread over the total period in order to smoothen the cost from year to year. Similarly actuary evaluated scheme surpluses are also spread out over the total period and the net charge of each year is expressed as percentage of payroll. On the other hand the approach under FRS 17 emphasis that ‘what is shown as the cost in the profit and loss account is the cost of buying one year’s benefits for the scheme members i.e., the benefit accrued during the current accounting period.’(Standard Life, page 4)1 SSAP 24 requires that a consistent valuation method be used to calculate best estimate of pension cost, and a regular and standard contribution rate is computed to meet the estimated pension costs. Surplus or deficits of pension costs are spread out over remaining working lifetime of current memberships. But SSAP 24 does not specify any amortization method. With the result there were prepayments on balance sheets when the company was in deficit and provisions when the company was in surplus. Accordingly a number of dubious assets and liabilities used to be created on application of this standard rate. Balance sheet was therefore not a fair representation of assets and liabilities under the pension plan. With implementation of FRS 17 ‘this spreading or accrual based approach was abandoned and instead proper recording of balance sheet assets and liabilities has become the focus of revised accounting standard.’(Robert Kirk, page 237)2 Every year the actual returns on plan assets are compared with the expected returns on plan assets. The expected return is generally equal to the fair value of the plan assets at the beginning of the period multiplied by the expected

Death of a Salesman and Fences Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Death of a Salesman and Fences - Essay Example There indeed is a highly valid reason for stating so. In both the plays, these characters, Willy in â€Å"Death of a Salesman† and Troy of â€Å"Fences† have negative shades, for they not just are obsessed with the past at the cost of neglecting the present, but they (father characters) also share a highly hostile relationship with their respective sons. It is not just that; both Willy and Troy denote as being impediments in terms of the goals of their sons. (1) In fact, in â€Å"Death of a Salesman† Willy’s obsession with the past is so high that he reaches the stage where, he is unable to draw a line between reality and fantasy. Perhaps, the most prominent common feature of the characters (of fathers) is that, both do not have a respectable position in the society. (1) After that, it indeed would be worthwhile in having a look at the characters of sons: Biff in â€Å"Death of a Salesman† and Cory in â€Å"Fences†. As mentioned earlier, both Biff and Cory are the victims of the day-dreaming of their respective fathers. It also has to be noted that, solely because of the false approach adopted by Willy and Troy, even Biff and Cory have been subjected to severe mental conflict. As a matter of fact, Biff is redeemed of this mental turmoil only after he musters the needed courage to rebel against Willy’s dominant approach. However, it is observed that, notwithstanding all the unpleasant experiences, Biff still has a soft corner for his father. This is evident from the words that he speaks at the funeral of his father â€Å"there were a lot of nice days†. Also, Biff adds that the intentions of Willy were good, and it is just that the dreams were erroneous. (1) When the play â€Å"Fences† is taken, the unpleasant relationship shared by Cory with his father is clear by the words spoken by the former â€Å"You ain't never gave me nothing! You ain't never done nothing but hold me back. Afraid I was gonna b e better than you. All you ever did was try and make me scared of you.† Cory is aware that, apart from creating fear in his mind, Troy has done nothing else for him! Despite the fact that Cory has lot of talent for playing baseball, Troy never permits him to make a mark for himself in this game. And similar to â€Å"Death of a Salesman† even in â€Å"Fences† the son gets his total freedom only after his father’s death. (1) When the characters of the sons are considered in both the plays, one surely notes a key difference. In the play â€Å"Death of a Salesman† Biff thinks about his father in a positive manner, after the latter’s death. But when â€Å"Fences† is considered, Cory expresses no such sentiments. On the contrary, it is seen that he is highly reluctant to even attend the funeral. Owing to these points, it can conveniently be inferred that, when both Willy and Troy are compared, it is only the former who is having at least a f ew positives. That is why his son was able to pay respects at the funeral. On the other hand, Cory has nothing but utter dislike for his father. (1) Now, the focus needs to shift on to examining the characters of Linda, wife of Willy, and Rose, the spouse of Troy. To begin with, it has to be stated that Willy and Troy do not have a sound relationship not only with the sons, but also with their respective spouses. Also, both of them (Willy and Troy) indulge in adultery. In â€Å"Death of a Salesman† though Linda is unaware about the extra-marital affair of her husband, yet; his adulterous acts tell upon their relationship. This can be understood by an example. When Willy

Monday, July 22, 2019

Natives and the Justice System Essay Example for Free

Natives and the Justice System Essay The Angus viewed the relationship between Aboriginal people and the Europeans in various ways. The Europeans in the particular context appeared to be superior since they had instigated many activities during the fur trade. An interaction between the particular cultures existed. It saw the union of marriage arise between a young girl of Ojibwa origin and a certain Scottish fur trader. She resided on the shores of the Georgian Bay. The union derived various benefits to her community but the marriage life of Ikwe was marked with isolation and destitution. The Scottish people did not approve the union. Various values and customs often contradicted and drove the relationship that existed between the Scottish trader and Ikwe. The Europeans had at that time embraced and adopted oppression with slavery and forced trade being the mode of operation. The marriage was not perceived well since there was no unity at that time between the European settlers and the Africans. Any collaboration between the Aboriginal people and the European settlers was viewed negatively by the indigenous people who resided in that particular community. The white settlers and traders ruled the lands at that time and treaties were a rare occurrence. Marriage between a trader and an aboriginal girl had various perceptions and it was evident that no form of collaboration would exist between the two families there by dismantling the very basic principles of marriage and family. From Angus perspective, various elements stayed hidden between the Aboriginal people’s relationship with the Europeans. The tension that existed between the people superseded the benefits that the community derived from the Europeans. The local traditions feared for the life of Ikwe since she would adopt new ways and forget the customs within which she was bread. Angus did not view Aboriginal people to be equal to the Europeans. According to him the Europeans were more superior. In the movie, the aboriginals were offered less attention by the government compared to the Europeans. The Europeans were given priority in the public offices1. The others were perceived and treated as inferior and irrelevant. The aboriginals had low paying jobs and others were enslaved by the Europeans. This explains why the Europeans opposed the marriage between Ikwe and the trader. Ikwe was an aboriginal and they were regarded as inferior and less intelligent compared to the Europeans. The aboriginals were seen as workers and employees of the Europeans and they criticized the marriage especially the Scottish trader for stooping too low to marry an aboriginal. This clearly depicts that the European society was considered to be superior and more appreciated compared to the other people. In the film, the aboriginals were alienated and separated from the Europeans. They had separate residential areas where the Europeans leaved under better and conducive areas compared to the aboriginals. The aboriginals have restricted movement and they mainly staid in shanties where the living conditions were very poor and high level of poverty and insecurity. In the places of work, the Europeans were considered for the bigger positions and responsibilities. Only Europeans took the leadership positions and the aboriginals were treated as minorities whose rights were ever infringed. In the video, Angus views the aboriginal people as inferior to the Europeans. They are alienated and treated as minorities with no rights. The Europeans considered themselves superior and more intelligent1 References   Milward, David. Aboriginal Justice and the Charter: Realizing a Culturally Sensitive Interpretation of Legal Rights. UBC Press, 2012. Ikwe. Directed by Norma Bailey. 1986. Source document

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Internet Freedom of Speech and Censorship

Internet Freedom of Speech and Censorship The United States, a bastion of democracy to the world, has long recognized the importance of freedom of expression to safeguard democracy and grow as a nation. It is a right enshrined in the very first provision of the United States Constitution. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution, adopted in 1791, provides that Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Although freedom of speech enjoys heightened protection from the government, this protection is not really absolute. The Supreme Court imposes some very narrow restrictions which are deemed not fully protected under the First Amendment. These include advocacy of imminent illegal conduct, defamation, obscenity, and fraudulent misrepresentation. In any of these categories, the speech should be suppressed because of its harmful content (Wang, page 1). Freedom of speech is equally a dangerous right because with it goes the freedom to deviate against established rules and norms or to go against the status quo and advocate change. As such, all over the world, it is also the most threatened right. Many in the United States today, that include several citizens groups with specific advocacies, are pushing for censorship of the freedom of speech which interestingly finds expression in many varied forms. The internet is one arena that has lately been the target of these efforts as it provides practically everyone with the ability to communicate their ideas to wide audiences and conveniently escapes the ability of the state to control it. The internet, composed of millions of computers and telephone lines that are inter-connected and networked, have scant rules regarding what can be said and done with no one tasked to supervise the users as well no certain authority that controls it Time and again, court cases have ruled against censorship but many still continue to fight to limit the freedom of expression. Government, for one, regularly undertakes efforts to regulate, restrict, or even prohibit a great many types of speech, often with popular support from the public. One reason for censorship of speech that is gaining strong following among the citizenry is the widespread proliferation and publication of extremely offensive materials that glorify violence and pornography. In his essay â€Å"Censorship Can Be Beneficial,† Thomas Stork says, â€Å"Now if we can identify certain evils and if advocacy of those evils seems likely to encourage people to commit them, then why should we not take the next and logical step and prohibit such advocacy†¦ Must the authorities be helpless to restrain the source of the evil?† (As cited in Planet Papers, page 1). The general American public certainly wants not only to be protected from violence, but they also want to keep material out of the hands of those who are unable to handle the ideas and themes presented in such material. For instance, it can not be argued that small children do not have the maturity to view pornographic material or be exposed to extreme violence on television and that exposing them to such kind of â€Å"entertainment† is detrimental to their development. Many believe that pornography is equally harmful to adults. The issue of censorship versus free speech has been, since time immemorial, a hotly contested subject.  With the dawn of the electronic age, the birth and progress of the internet and the increasing use of electronic media for the dissemination of information, new questions over First Amendment rights are being raised.  A lot of issues and concerns have been raised that borders around Web access to pornographic materials by minors, gambling on the Internet and the posting of abusive content on newsgroups. Web sites have been created promoting censorship in the Internet like â€Å"Filtering Facts†, an online source for information on making Internet access in libraries safe for children and communities and â€Å"Enough is Enough† which aims to protect children and families from illegal pornography on the Internet. Filtering, rests on the premise that technology can solve the problem technology created. Filters block out Web sites with offensive content, usually based on keywords or lists complied by the filter developer. Filter supporters say the technology is ideal because it empowers parents and blocks out speech without silencing the speaker. In February 1996, Congress moved to pass a law, the Communications Decency Act (CDA) which prohibited the posting of indecent or patently offensive materials in a public forum on the Internet including web pages, newsgroups, chat rooms, or online discussion lists. The Children’s Online Protection Act, tried to ban material harmful to minors and In 2000, the U.S. Congress passed the Childrens Internet Protection Act (CIPA) which requires schools and public libraries receiving federal funding to install internet filters or blocking software. Another way of making Internet communications more secure is encryption, which is a technique for encoding messages, making the person who has the encryption key the only one who can read the message. These programs have been available for years, but law enforcement officials were concerned that criminals and terrorists will use the programs to send messages they cant break. Under heavy pressure from the technology industry, and after a 1999 appeals court ruling that said creating encryption programs is a form of free speech, the federal government essentially gave up trying to control encryption technology. In the wake of Sept. 11, the debate over encryption has been reopened, and Congress has made it easier for authorities to use electronic surveillance. Forums and Chatrooms frequently have moderators, who will edit or remove material against the rules of that community. The scope of these rules varies from community to community some will want material to be suitable for a specif ic audience, whilst others only require discussions to be kept within the law. In a landmark decision on June 26, 1997, the Supreme Court ruled that the Internet is a unique medium entitled to the highest protection under the free speech protections of the First Amendment giving it the same free speech protection as print. It was a victory for the Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition (CIEC), a broad coalition of library and civil liberties groups, online service providers, newspaper, book, magazine and recording industry associations, and over 56,000 individual Internet users which represents the entire breadth of the Internet community. The CIEC was assembled in February 1996 to challenge the CDA on the grounds that the Internet is a unique communications medium, different from traditional broadcast mass media which deserves broad First Amendment protections. Rejoicing with the CIEC in their victory are the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT) which has been promoting the future of the First Amendment and free expression in the Information age and the Electronic Frontier Foundation which protects rights and freedom in the electronic environment. Clamor for censorship of the freedom of speech, whether in broadcast or print media, in television or motion picture, in culture or arts, or in the electronic medium of the Web or the Net, are mostly based on moral and ethical considerations which can be highly subjective depending on the individual’s beliefs, culture, principles, and many other factors. However, if we are to read and understand every word in the First Amendment, there was no mention of any restriction whatsoever; the emphasis rather was on providing equal rights to everyone. If this is so, neither the government nor individuals have the constitutional right to censor the other on the basis that his or her statements may be hateful or prejudicial because the law guarantees the right to express one’s thoughts vocally or in writing without fear of retaliation. What one may say need not be popular or correct. I really do not think that censorship is a solution to the atmosphere of violence, obscenity and other social concerns pervading American society today. Censorship may even be harmful as it gives a temporary feeling of false security. Freedom of speech is just among the many rights guaranteed under the Constitution. The risk, however, is allowing our other rights to be diminished in the end. This is in contravention to the fundamentals of democracy and right to dignity which have been specifically enshrined in our Constitution for us to exercise our liberty and live without fear and prejudice. Today, millions of people are combating internet censorship through writing Blogs as well as by forming organizations that raise the people’s awareness regarding Internet censorship. An example would be the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) which opposes Internet censorship and as such, has filled several lawsuits against censorship laws. In 2007, the Childrens Online Protection Act (COPA) which made information that can be harmful to minors illegal even if the same information is necessary to adults, was brought to the federal court by the UCLA saying that it was unconstitutional. The development of a new medium always creates new anxieties. Gutenbergs press prompted two centuries of debate over whether the spread of books would corrupt society. Privacy and free speech are already among the nations most difficult social issues; and it would be startling if the Internet did not raise new concerns about both of them. Even the Internet itself is only the beginning. The electronic age is creating an entirely new medium, one that combines the interactive Internet with older media like TV, radio, print, mail, and the telephone. he questions of how to balance personal privacy and public safety have become all the more urgent since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The â€Å"war on terrorism† evolves daily, even as the technology continues to evolve. The publics opinions about this medium are in flux and their views on free speech and privacy were far from settled to begin with. A Planet of Publishers Press critic A.J. Liebling once said that freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one. Thanks to the Internet, millions of individuals now have the power that formerly only belonged to the owners of printing presses and broadcast licenses the power to spread their views, whether profound or profane, to a worldwide audience. That has prompted a remarkable burst of creativity, but it has also provided hate groups and pornographers with a low-cost way of spreading their messages to anyone, including children, with a personal computer. So far, the U.S. government has supported two approaches to dealing with offensive content: regulation and filtering. Two major attempts at regulation have been struck down by the courts, either in whole or in part. The first, the Communications Decency Act of 1996, would have made publishing indecent or patently offensive material on the Internet a federal offense. The U.S. Supreme Court, in ACLU vs. Reno, came down firmly on the side of granting the highest free-speech protection to the Internet and struck down the indecency portions of the law. A second law, the Children’s Online Protection Act, tried to ban material harmful to minors. The Supreme Court sent the law back to a lower court for further review in May 2002, effectively blocking enforcement for the time being. The other tactic, filtering, rests on the premise that technology can solve the problem technology created. Filters block out Web sites with offensive content, usually based on keywords or lists complied by the filter developer. Filter supporters say the technology is ideal because it empowers parents and blocks out speech without silencing the speaker. Critics say filters are a crude tool at best because they depend on keywords that could crop up on perfectly legitimate sites devoted to breast cancer, AIDS prevention, or the novel Moby Dick. A third federal law would have required all public libraries to use filters, but a federal court threw out the law in 2002, saying filters would block porn and protected speech alike. Your Personal Fish Bowl The Internet itself may seem anonymous, but it is far from private. E-mail can be easily intercepted by anyone with enough technical skill, and Web sites can track substantial information about users, either by voluntary registration or involuntarily through the use of cookies files quietly stored on a visitors computer that will identify them to the Web site on their next visit. One way of making Internet communications more secure is encryption, the technique for coding messages so they can only be read by someone who has the encryption key. Encryption programs have been available for years, and businesses contend that strong encryption is critical to keeping online commerce secure. But even before Sept. 11, law enforcement officials were concerned that criminals and terrorists will use the programs to send messages they cant break. Under heavy pressure from the technology industry, and after a 1999 appeals court ruling that said creating encryption programs is a form of free speech, the federal government essentially gave up trying to control encryption technology. In the wake of Sept. 11, the debate over encryption has been reopened, and Congress has already made it easier for authorities to use electronic surveillance. But the ability of Web sites and hackers to collect information pales next to the newfound power technology gives to governments and marketers. Data warehouses are able to mix information from different sources to create a single, detailed profile of an individual, including vital statistics, how much they earn, what they buy, the state of their health, their interests, what they read, and more. And all of that information is for sale to direct marketers, current and potential employers, or just anybody willing to pay for it. Already, as part of the war on terrorism, the federal government and financial services companies are discussing how to use their databases to flag suspicious activity. Current privacy laws are rarely enforced and would offer spotty protection even if they were. The Supreme Court has upheld a federal law barring states from selling information they collect, such as voter registrations and motor vehicle records, to direct marketers. References: Communications Decency Act. Center for Democracy Technology. 2008. 2 May 2008 . â€Å"Speak Your Mind: The Censorship Controversy in American Culture. Planet Papers. 2006. 1 May 2008 http://www.planetpapers.com/Assets/5616.php â€Å"Supreme Court Rules CDA Unconstitutional.† Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition. 2008. 2 May 2008 . Wang, Xinyi. Freedom of Speech in the United States Constitution. Perspectives. 30 Apr 2001. 2 May 2008 .

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Malaysian Airline vs Airasia: An Analysis

Malaysian Airline vs Airasia: An Analysis Introduction 1.1.1 The first air service route is conducted between Penang and Singapore during the colonial of British and this led to the incorporation of Malaysia Airways Limited (MAL) in year 1937 by the British government. With the emergence of Malaysia in year 1963, the airline changed its name to Malaysian-Singapore Airlines then to Malaysia Airline Limited in year 1973 and eventually to Malaysia Airlines in year 1987. 1.1.2 AirAsia was set up in 1993 and started up its business on 18 November 1996. The founder of Airasia was a government-owned conglomerate DRB-Hicom. Airasia has incurred a lot of debt and liability at that time and former Time Warner executive Tony Fernandess company Tune Air Sdn Bhd decided to purchase Airasia based on market share price at time of RM1 on 2 December 2001. Mission and objectives Malaysia Airlines vision is to become An Airline of Excellence. Its mission is to become a consistently profitable growth airline through the strategy of business transformation plan and its objective is to flying to win customers and convert the airlines IT operations to deliver fantastic internal customer experience. The mission of Airasia is to form ASEAN brand of Airline Company that is widely known around the globe and to arrive at the lowest cost so that everyone can afford to fly with AirAsia. It also aims to keep its company on track with the latest industry developments and to incorporate excellence practices into their operations that will benefit their customers. The brands or products manufactured Malaysia Airlines Domestic benefits, international benefits, annual benefit travel insurance Malaysia Airlines management team has offer three product plan options: Basic Plan, Value Plan and Premier Plan for domestic traveler, overseas traveler, and frequent traveler. Frequent flyer program Malaysia Airlines has two frequent flyer programs: Grads for Students (Grads) and Enrich. Grads is a frequent flyer program with benefits designed for students whereas Enrich is specifically designed for frequent travelers especially businessman will enable them to gain privileges of obtaining discount or free flights when travelling around the world. Airasia 1.3.2.1 AirAsia Insure Travel Protection is exclusively designed to protect and insure the respective traveler during the duration of flying with Airasia. It comprises In-Flight Plan and Comprehensive Plan. In-Flight Plan was insurance program specifically designed for one-way journey passenger. However, Comprehensive Plan was devised for two-way journey passenger. Types of products Malaysia Airlines offered products such as travel insurance, air cargo services, international and domestic flight services, classes of cabin seats, MAS magazines, MAS souvenirs and value fare packages like Get-the-Deal, and Balik Kampung. Airasia is offering products such as Airasia courier services, Airasia souvenirs, Airasia credit card, Airasia self-produced magazines and Airasia cargo delivery service. Logo and tag-lines The appearance of the corporate logo is designed to be moon kite, with a sheared swept-back look. The word MALAYSIA is italicised to lean parallel with the logo to emphasize on speed as well as direction. The letters MAS bear red clippings in the font style to symbolize the initials of the statutory name of the airline, Malaysian Airline System (MAS). The introduction of blue to the original red to the moon kite logo has national meaning. Moreover, the red and blue divide equally in the middle has a sense of equilibrium. Moreover, the tag-line emphasizes that MH is more than just an airline code; in fact MH is Malaysian Hospitality. Airasia logo is Airasia in italicized form with the characters shaded by red color background whereas its tag-line is Now Everyone can fly. The red color logo is a strong message to the world about environmental problem. Current business development Type of business Topic Sentence: Both Airasia and Malaysia Airlines engaged in trading and services industry. Supporting detail 1: Malaysia Airline is a Malaysia-based company service whereas Airasia is a Thai-based company that engaged in air transportation and their related services. Supporting detail 2: They engaged in operation such as cargo and courier service, goods retailing as well as passenger carrier. Strategies Topic Sentences: In order to be competitive in the industry, Airasia has practised cost leadership strategies whilst Malaysia Airlines(MAS) involved in business transformation plan. Supporting detail 1: Airasia tend to focus on short route to a certain destination in order2 to reduce operating cost. Supporting detail 2: Business transformation program is competitive strategy used by MAS to fight over the big threat such as intense competition, rising cost of fuel in airline industry 2.3 Investor relations Topic Sentences: Airasia and Malaysia Airlines are public listed company traded on the main board of Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. Supporting detail 1: The stock of Airasia and Malaysia Airlines are ordinary shares offered to be transacted in primary market and secondary market. Supporting detail 2: Airasia recorded revenue of RM941 million year over year with a 26% growth while Malaysia Airline incurred an operating loss of RM 286 million in the second quarter of year 2010. Public relations Topic Sentence: Airasia launched AirasiaMegastore, an online shopping gateway for consumers while Malaysia Airlines established PINTAR visit mainly for students Supporting detail 1: Airasia Mega Store open 24 hours every day and it offers a wide variety of branded product at discounted price Supporting detail 2: MAS provide students with academic tour to Malaysia Airlines and tourist spot in Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya because they are concerned about the academic progress of students in Malaysia. 3.0 Marketing strategies. 3.1They market their product by using different strategies in order to gain competitive advantage in the markets. 3.1.1 They use market segmentation strategy to split out the market they want to serve. For example, Air Asia segments the market with different income groups and serves the low income group. However, MAS serve the high income group initially, but because of the emerging of Air Asia, it also moves into serving the low income group of customers. 3.1.2 In order to serve the market they have targeted, they positioned themselves differently to gain a different brand image in the mind of customers. Air Asia is using price or quality positioning strategy. On the other hand, MAS tend to use product class positioning at first, but it changes to a mix positioning strategy of price or quality and product class. 3.2 They compete with their competitors with 4P strategies which are commonly applied in marketing. 3.2.1 They use different price strategies that reflect their positioning strategy and price objective to compete in the market. Air Asia is using everyday low price strategy and trying to compete in Blue Ocean. However, MAS use prestige pricing strategy at first, after then which it change to mixed pricing strategies included meeting competitors pricing. 3.2.2 They use different product strategies, so that they can provide different kind of services to compete. Air Asia provides non-frills services in order to keep the cost as low as possible. While MAS provides excellent and luxury services at first, after which it also come out with low price product to compete with its competitors. 3.2.3 They use different promotion strategies to fight against their competitors promotion strategies. Both come out with a variety of special promotions to attract customers. For example, MAS come out RM 1 for ticket to compete with free seat of Air Asia and sometime the fare of MAS is even lower than Air Asia. 3.3 Advertising methods have played an important role to attract the attention and perform the function of informing, persuading and reminding the customers. 3.3.1 They are involved in different advertising channel like television, newspaper, MATTA fair, sponsorship, internet, radio and even performing social corporate responsibility to grab the public attention. 4.0 Conclusion 4.1 The unpredictable changing environment and fierce competition are challenging their company stability. 4.1.1 The increase of fuel price globally has challenged their ability to control the operating cost. Both companies performance was also seriously affected. 4.1.2The management of resources has to be managed effectively and efficiently to remain agile in the market. Air Asia has to control the punctuality index and customer services which were resulted from the behavior of over save cost. In contrast, MAS has to control its behavior of being uneconomical. 4.2 Recently, both of them have developed so well to proceed to their vision, mission and objective. 4.2.1 They have made a lot of improvement on customer services standard to please their beloved customer. Air Asia has adopted complex information system such as state-of-the-art booking system to process various booking. At the same time, MAS has also invested few hundred millions on passenger service system to shorten and provide faster services. 4.2.2 They have expanded their service world-wide in order to provide more choices to customer. Air Asia has joined VietJet airline from Vietnam, and Jestar airline from Australia to expand their routes. However, it also involves in other business, like hotel sector, online purchase and so on. MAS also expand their routes to more area, and involve in online shopping. 4.2.3 They have performed corporate social responsibility to contribute to the society. Air Asia has supported MERCY Malaysias relief mission in Padang, Indonesia whereas MAS has put effort to reduce the carbon dioxide emission to promote a greener environment. 4.3 They are continuing their effort to achieve their vision and promise to do better! 4.3.1 Both companies do not reveal any specify future plan about 2011. But by referring to previous ongoing plans, we tend to know fairly how and where these two companies will move in their future plan. MAS will continue their steps of business transformation plans 2 in this case, such as maintaining 5 stars quality of services and low cost, attracting more customers, building up the network and capacity through service providing. In the future, Air Asia will provide more low cost journey and increase the regularity of fly. It will also continuously keep the cost as low as possible and enable more people to fly! Prepared by: Betty Yong Siew Ning (0902327) Wong Chin Hong (0902068)

Children Coping With Stress :: essays research papers

CHILDREN COPING WITH STRESS While some stress is normal and even healthy, children today seem to encounter many stressful life events at earlier ages. Stress shows itself in children by complaints about stomachaches, being nervous, trouble sleeping, anger flares, and infections. There are a variety of reasons for children to feel stress. Death, divorce, remarriage, moving, long illness, abuse, family or community violence, natural disaster, fear of failure, and cultural conflict may each heighten stress. Under stress, the heart rate and breathing are at a higher speed and muscles are tense. Multiple stressors worsen the stress level and the length of the stress. Our bodies need relief from stress to reestablish balance. Reactions to stress vary with the child’s stage of development, ability to cope, the length of time the stressor continues, intensity of the stressor, and the degree of support from family, friends, and community. The two most frequent indicators that children are stressed are change in behaviors and regression of behaviors. Children under stress change their behavior and react by doing things that are not in keeping with their usual style. Behaviors seen in earlier phases of development, such as thumb sucking and regression in toileting, may reappear. Typically, preschoolers lack self-control, have no sense of time, act independently, are curious, may wet the bed, have changes in eating habits, have difficulty with sleep or speech, and cannot tell adults how they are feeling. Preschoolers under stress each react differently. Some behaviors may include irritability, anxiety, uncontrollable crying, trembling with fright, eating or sleep problems. Toddlers may regress to infant behaviors, feel angry and not understand their feelings, fear being alone or without their parent, withdraw, bite, or be sensitive to sudden or loud noises. Feelings of sadness or anger may build inside of them. They may become aggressive or angry, have nightmares, or be accident prone. Just as children’s reactions are each different, so are their coping strategies. Children can cope through tears or tantrums or by retreating from unpleasant situations.

Friday, July 19, 2019

The Fall of the House of Usher Essay -- Literary Analysis, Edgar Allen

In the story â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† by Edgar Allen Poe, the character Roderick Usher is the last male member of the Usher family. The Usher family has a nearly impeccable direct line of descent as stated in paragraph 3 of the story. Roderick has only one living relative, his sister Madeline. This means that the Usher family is in jeopardy of disappearing because neither Roderick nor his sister has any children. Therefore there is a possibility of incest between Roderick and Madeline. However this could result in many difficulties and problems for the potential children and possibly on the consciences of Roderick and Madeline. In the story Roderick sings a poem entitled â€Å"The Haunted Palace† to the narrator of the story. Since Roderick Usher is having doubts about the security of his family line he uses the poem as a way of expressing these emotions without stating them explicitly. The organization of the stanzas in â€Å"The Haunted Palace† shows a lot about the poem’s overall meaning. The poem is literally about a palace in a beautiful valley. The palace is inhabited by spirits and a ruler of the valley. The valley is a happy place until it is attacked by evil spirits and their ruler dies. The attack of the spirits leaves the palace a dark and gloomy place. But this literal translation of the poem does not show its metaphorical meaning. A metaphor of the poem can be found through the organization of the poem as a whole. Stanza I describes the setting of the poem: â€Å"In the greenest of our valleys† (1.1). It also mentions the palace which is in the valley. Stanza II describes the palace in more detail, labelling it as a beautiful place. Stanza III gives information on the tenants of the palace; spirits live inside with â€Å"the ru... ...oderick refers to the spirits as good and says that they sing about: â€Å"The wit and wisdom of their king.† (4.8). â€Å"The ruler of the realm† (3.8) whom the spirits are singing about could represent the house of Usher, but not the literal house of Usher, instead they are singing about the Usher family. It is known that this is a name often given to both the house and the family: â€Å"†¦the ‘House of Usher’ – an appellation which seemed to include, in the minds of the peasantry who used it, both the family and the family mansion.† (Poe par.3) Therefore Roderick could be saying all of this because he is proud of his family and believes that he is letting down the â€Å"House of Usher† by not continuing the direct line of descent that his family has continued for so many years. Thus when the king dies in the poem (5.3-4), Roderick could think that his family line has already died.

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Investigating Cameron Balloons Essay

Cameron Balloons The first business I have chosen is Cameron Balloons. I have chosen this business because it seems interesting to me about investigating a hot air balloon manufacturer. Activity Cameron Balloons manufacture Hot Air Balloons, Inflatables and also Airships, which are also known as Blimps. Cameron Balloons are also known for their special shaped balloons, which they created. Cameron Balloons have diversified into making medical products for hospitals and nursing homes. Jim Howard from Cameron Balloons and surgeon Harry Espiner teamed up to make Espiner Medical Products Ltd, which were supplied with materials by Cameron Balloons. One of their medical products is called ‘Laparoscopic Sacs’, or ‘Lap Sacs’ in short. They help with tissue retrieval. They also produce hyperslide transfer sheets which easily help transfer patients from wheel chairs to beds. This means that Cameron Balloons operates in the secondary sector, because they do not get raw materials themselves, but they manufacture the materials and sell them. They have also diversified into making medical products and supply hospitals. Other businesses in this sector include: * Aerospace manufacturing * Car manufacturing * Clothing industry * Electronics * Engineering * Energy industries * Metalworking * Software engineering * Telecommunications Industry * Tobacco industry * The main customers involved with Cameron balloons would be hot air ballooners * The main competitors involved would be other hot air balloons manufacturers (See D1 – Cameron Balloons External Influences – Business Competitors for a list of cameron balloons’ worldwide competitors) * Cameron balloons only used to make hot air balloons just like any ordinary balloon manufacturer. In 1975, Cameron balloons began making special shaped balloons. Cameron balloons have also recently began making medical products * When Cameron balloons began making special shaped balloons, they became the biggest manufacturers of hot air balloons. They also expanded by diversifying into making medical products Location Cameron balloons’ location is in St. Johns Street in Bedminister, which is in Bristol. It has many travel links (for different common types of transport) and also has many points of interest nearby. Cameron balloons have chosen a good place for the business because: * There are many transport links close to the Cameron Balloons site. Lots of major roads, including the A38 and the A4, are close to the site, Bristol Airport is 9 kilometres away along the A38, the rail station next to the site, and the M32 is 5 kilometers away. These links are important for Cameron Balloons’ suppliers, customers and staff. Good rail links mean that heavy equipment and supplies can be brought in easily; good road and rail links give employees easy access to the site. Bristol’s air and sea links are also important as more than 80% of Cameron Balloons’ output is exported. * The site in Bedminster is large enough to allow the business to expand when it needs more space. * Cameron Balloons need employees with convenient access for them to get to work. It also needed a certain amount of experts in the aeronautical industry, which was quite simple as the airport was so close to the site. * Because Cameron Balloons is one of the biggest and best ballooning companies, the reputation of it helped to attract both skilled employees and new customers. * Because there are many points of interest nearby, it should be easy to find the location of the business It was a coincidence that the location of Cameron balloons was in Bristol, as this was where Don Cameron first started his business as a sole trader. Here is a map of Cameron Balloons’ location along with a smaller map showing the main roads: Here is another map showing areas of points of interest and travel links: Ownership Cameron Balloons is a private limited company (Ltd.). When Don started the business, he was a sole trader. Owners usually make their businesses private limited companies because there are more advantages than disadvantages. The advantages and disadvantages of a private limited company are: Advantages Disadvantages Protection of Limited liablilty Profits have to be shared out amongst a potentially larger number of people Owner isn’t personally responsible for companies debts No benefit from scale economies (e.g. bulk buying, cheaper borrowing e.t.c.) If business name is licensed, it cant be duplicated by someone else Owner is accountable to shareholders for the operation and profitability of the company More capital can be raised as no limit on number of shareholders Detailed legal procedures must be followed to set up the business – consuming time and money Cheap and easy to set up If the owner has to sell any of his shareholding, he could lose his business Owner is major shareholder Financial information can be inspected by any member of the public once filed with the registrar, including competitiors Owner can raise money from friends and family Owner can sell the business if he wants to Control of company cannot be lost to outsiders – shares only sold if all shareholders agree Easier to borrow money The business will continue to run even one of the owners dies, shares being transferred to another owner Aims & Objectives The main aims of Cameron Balloons are: * To make a profit * To expand * To be the biggest balloon manufacturers * To make 500 balloons in a year and hit a turnover of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½10,000,000 * To improve the efficiency of their balloons to help improve performance and care for the environment * To provide hospitals with medical products to help patients There are objectives for each aim. Cameron Balloons are a successful company, so they don’t have to worry about surviving at the present time unless they get hard competition from another business and start making losses, so the business mainly focuses on making a profit. They are currently aiming to make 500 balloons a year and hit a turnover of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½10,000,000, which is about à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½3,000,000 more than what they made in 1996. They want to make more sales than their competitors, and they have currently achieved this by manufacturing special shaped balloons. They are always trying to make a new special shape or improve the performance of their current balloons Cameron Balloons are an expanding company. They have diversified into producing medical products for hospitals. Marketed by Espiner Medical Products, Cameron Balloons have been producing ‘lapsacs’ which helps in tissue retrieval in operations. They also produce ‘Hyperslide’ patient transfer sheets, which are made from balloon fabric. The surface has no friction which helps to easily move patients from wheelchairs to beds. This could help Cameron Balloons as well as hospitals as Cameron Balloons can use their own balloon fabric, and if they have spare or scrap fabric after making balloons, they can make use of it, make profit and make less waste, which is good for the business, hospitals and the environment. Cameron Balloons wanted to become the largest balloon manufacturer in the world, which soon turned into a success after producing the first special shaped balloons. The first special shape balloon was built in 1975 and the company has produced more than 400 designs, including Disney’s Fantasia castle, a dragon, a space shuttle, several cows and numerous cans, houses and bottles. Cameron balloons always need to keep checking whether they are meeting their objectives. Only then will they be able to meet their aims. A way to help to check if Cameron ballons are meeting their objectives is by having objectives which are measurable. For example, if an objective of Cameron balloons is to make 40 balloons per month, then they can see after each month whether they are meeting their objective or not. If they are not meeting their objective, then they will know that they won’t meet their aim unless they make more balloons next month until they reach their objective and account for the previous month. But if an objective of Cameron balloons is to make more balloons than their competitor each month, then if they are meeting their objective, they still might not be successful. This is because even though Cameron balloons is ahead of their competitor, Cameron balloons won’t be making many balloons if their competitor is failing. Richer Sounds The second business I have chosen is Richer Sounds. I have chosen this business because I already have some knowledge about the business. Activity Richer Sounds sell entertainment systems. They sell their goods in three ways, which are from the stores directly, by mail order and over the internet. They had tried to diversify into selling telephones, musical equipment and videos. However, these were all unsuccessful. Richer Sounds is in the tertiary sector because it gets supplied by products but Richer Sounds don’t make the products themselves. Other businesses in this sector include: * Franchising * Restaurants * News media * Hotels * Consulting * Hospitals * Waste disposal * Real estate * Personal services * Business services * richer sounds’ main customers could be anyone as most people buy what richer sounds sell * richer sounds have lots of competitors. a competitor of richer sounds could be a retailer of anything that richer sounds sells. The main competitors could be the ones that are close to richer sounds. Richer sounds still have to keep in mind about other competitiors as well as lots of businesses sell their stock online. * Richer sounds have tried to diversify into selling other equipment, but failed, so they stay as a specialist of what they always sell * Because richer sounds hasn’t changed and stays as a specialist of certain equipment, it means they can provide better, specialist customer service, which is one of their main qualities Location Richer Sounds have 44 stores nationwide. Their first store was opened at London bridge walk in 1978 because Julian Richer was working in that area and bought the shop. After that, a store was opened in Stockport because people from Manchester were going to the London store, so if they made a store closer to them, it would mean less hassle for more people and more profit for Richer Sounds. Their main warehouse is in Lancashire. It has more than 74,000 sq ft of storage space. The products get distributed to all the stores or customers who bought something from Richer Sounds from the internet. The distribution director is Solomon Essah Essel. He and the employees that work with him are responsible for the storage and distribution of the goods in the warehouse. The warehouse is in a good location as it is near central England, and because richer sounds is a nationwide company, it means that the shops and customers can be supplied with not much hassle. It also has good travel links to hel p with delivering. Ownership Richer Sounds is an unlisted public limited company (Plc.). They became a public limited company so they could get limited liability benefits, so Julian Richer doesn’t become personally liable for the companies debts. But they do not put their shares on the stock market. This is because they do not need to get additional capital by giving their business away to people outside the business. The advantages and disadvantages of a Plc. are listed below: Advantages Disadvantages Same as Ltd. Expensive set up cost of all forms of business organisation considered Increased potential for raising finance by share issues or through other financial investors Due to public transfer of shares, more open to hostile takeover bids Due to size they can gain from Economies of Scale Tighter levels of regulation The Plc. can use its power/size to dominate a market, (e.g. purchasing competitors) Public ownership by minority shareholders does not provide them as owners with any real control of the business Large Plc.’s may suffer from diseconomies of scale By having limited liablility, the owner’s personal possessions (e.g. his/her house, car e.t.c.) can’t be taken to repay for the business’s debts. Many owners prefer choosing this type of liability. There is also unlimited liability. This can apply to sole traders, small businesses e.t.c. their personal posessions can be taken from them if their business gets into debt. Aims & Objectives Richer Sounds have aims and objectives to help keep the business moving forward. This is why they have a mission statement, which is shown below: RICHER SOUNDS MISSION STATEMENT 1. To provide second to none service and value for money for our customers. 2. To provide ourselves with secure well paid jobs working in a stimulating and equal opportunities environment. 3. To be profitable to ensure our long term growth and survival. Richer Sounds have many aims. The main one is to provide good customer service and provide good value products. Richer Sounds aim to reward employees and to be equal with everyone. Another main aim is to make a profit, which is the same with all profit making organisations. Richer Sounds don’t just pay salaries. They like it, and are generous in giving it. They also have bonus schemes for employees. Julian Richer, the chairman and David Robinson, the group managing director decide on ten goals for the business for the next 12 months which they want to achieve. One of Richer Sounds objectives is to keep the business fun. This keeps employees motivated and makes them work to their full potential. They also want to continually improve on customer service and produce new services. They also change the business to help it work more efficiently. Employees also get the chance to submit suggestions to richer sounds and they also get rewarded for it. Richer sounds also provide services for homeless people, by having touch screens available to them to help them find places where they can stay. Richer sounds need to make sure their objectives are measurable. For example, if richer sounds aim to get a certain amount of profit by the end of the year, then their objectives could be to get a certain amount of profit by the end of the month. This can help them to keep track and to help them see if they need to work harder or if they need to set a higher aim. A2 Activity One of the main differences between Cameron Balloons and Richer Sounds is that Cameron Balloons is a manufacturing company and Richer Sounds is a retailing company. Cameron Balloons also managed to successfully diversify into manufacturing medical products. Richer Sounds, however, tried to diversify into making telephones, musical equipment and videos, but failed. Location Cameron Balloons is situated in Bristol. It is good for this type of business because it has good transport links and it exports products as well, so it has a good location for doing business internationally. However, it isn’t a that much of a good position for doing business nationally, although it does have good road links. So overall, it does have a good location. The warehouse for Richer Sounds is located in Lancashire, which is a good position as it is near the midlands. It doesn’t do business internationally so they have chosen a very good position for the warehouse. It is also good to have the warehouse to be situated there because they deliver to stores all over England so it would be best to have the warehouse near the midlands. Ownership Cameron Balloons is a private limited company. The advantages and disadvantages for a Ltd. company are: Advantages Disadvantages Protection of Limited liablilty Profits have to be shared out amongst a potentially larger number of people Owner isn’t personally responsible for companies debts No benefit from scale economies (e.g. bulk buying, cheaper borrowing e.t.c.) If business name is licensed, it cant be duplicated by someone else Owner is accountable to shareholders for the operation and profitability of the company More capital can be raised as no limit on number of shareholders Detailed legal procedures must be followed to set up the business – consuming time and money Cheap and easy to set up If the owner has to sell any of his shareholding, he could lose his business Owner is major sharholder Financial information can be inspected by any member of the public once filed with the registrar, including competitiors Owner can raise money from friends and family Owner can sell the business if he wants to Control of company cannot be lost to outsiders – shares only sold if all shareholders agree Easier to borrow money The business will continue to run even one of the owners dies, shares being transferred to another owner Richer Sounds is an unlisted Public limited company. The advantages and disadvantages for a Plc. are: Advantages Disadvantages Same as Ltd. Expensive set up cost of all forms of business organisation considered Increased potential for raising finance by share issues or through other financial investors Due to public transfer of shares, more open to hostile takeover bids Due to size they can gain from Economies of Scale Tighter levels of regulation The Plc. can use its power/size to dominate a market, (e.g. purchasing competitors) Public ownership by minority shareholders does not provide them as owners with any real control of the business Large Plc.’s may suffer from diseconomies of scale The boxes in underlined italics do not apply to Richer Sounds as Richer Sounds is an unlisted public limited company Aims & Objectives Cameron Balloons’ main three aims are: * To survive or make a profit * To expand * To be the biggest balloon manufacturers Richer Sounds’ main three aims are: * To provide second to none service and value for money for their customers * To provide themselves with secure well paid jobs working in a stimulating and equal opportunities environment * To be profitable to ensure their long term growth and survival Richer Sounds make it easy for people to understand their aims and objectives because they have a mission statement. Cameron Balloons do not have a mission statement. A3 Activity Cameron Balloons have expanded by diversification into making medical products. They could also diversify again using their materials to make something else. Richer Sounds could keep trying to diversify until they manage to successfully diversify into doing something. It could benefit them just like it benefits Cameron Balloons. I think the main reason why it is easier for Cameron Balloons to diversify is that Cameron Balloons is a manufacturer, and Richer Sounds is a retailer. Location Cameron Balloons have expanded their business by diversification into medical products. They could also expand by opening a new site. This will double the amount of products they sell. They could also open it in the north since their current site is in the south. This will make it easier for national deliveries. Just like what Cameron Balloons can do, Richer Sounds could make another warehouse as it could be hard and complicated for them to distribute goods to 45 stores. As their warehouse is situated in the midlands, they could have their next warehouse in the north or south, the busiest area would be a suitable location. Ownership Cameron Balloons could become a plc as there are less major disadvantages. I think Richer Sounds shouldn’t change their type of ownership but keep it as it is because they don’t want anyone to buy their shares and because of this, they have less disadvantages as a plc., and would be better off as a plc Aims & Objectives The only similarity between Cameron Balloons’ main three aims and Richer Sounds’ main three aims is to make a profit, as they are both profit making organisations. From the other two aims, Cameron Balloons only focuses on the success of the business. However, Richer Sounds focuses on the wellbeing of the employees and the satisfaction of their customers. Both of the businesses need to have a mix of the aims. Cameron Balloons need to think more about the employees and their customers and Richer Sounds need to think about how the business could improve in the long term. B1 I will be describing three functional areas at Richer Sounds. The three functional areas I will be describing are: * Store Operations * Marketing * Customer Service Store Operations The head of the store operations is John Clayton, the operation and training director. He gets help from employees working in operations, distribution, the store service and repairs, stock control and Hi-Fi Direct. Some of the responsibilities of store operations are: * Setting each store’s budget * Checking that all the stores achieve their targets and taking action if targets aren’t being met * Communicating with stores * Deciding the minimum staffing level * Sorting out any problems with employees * Sorting out any other problems * Checking orders of stock * Organising store visits * Checking that store managers undertake health and safety risk assessments * Helping store managers and employees * Making stores suitable for the area that they are in. Marketing The marketing director is Claudia Vernon. The things that she does with the employees under her control do can be split into 4 main categories. These are: * Marketing * Design * Point of sale * Their website Customer Service John Clayton is the director of customer service, who is also the operations and training director. These are some of the things they have for customer service: * Knowledgeable and friendly staff * A national call centre * A corporate sales section * Mail order and web sales * An order line for free catalogues * Specialist customer service staff * A service and repairs section * Well laid out, welcoming stores with easy access * Demonstration rooms * Pets welcome policy * Competitive prices * 100% satisfaction guaranteed or money back * New products by known manufacturers * Full access to technical back-up and spare parts * Computerised stock control system * Web access in stores * Part-exchange scheme * A clear product key code * All repairs covered by a three month warranty * Till receipt customer questionnaire * Informative in-store catalogues * Free seasonal refreshments * Free delivery scheme * Mystery shopper scheme B2 How the three functional areas work together to support the business Operations keep everything organised and under control so there are no problems. This can help the other functional areas work better. The marketing area will be able to do its bit easier as the stock order has been checked and they know what they have to sell. The customer service area will then begin and they will try to help the customer as much as possible and resolve any problems. Example 1 (Operations) Operations organise visits to the stores to make sure everything is in order. If a store isn’t visited then something could happen without operations knowing. If an employee in the marketing department has an argument with another employee from the customer service department, and if the operations department does not sort this out, then both of the employees could be slacking on their jobs. If they slack on their jobs then the marketing department won’t be able to reach its targets. The customer service could also be a failure which would harm the business more as it involves interacting people from outside the business. This could cause losses in the store as less people could be going to it. The store may then close down. This would all be because the operations didn’t do their job properly. Example 2 (Marketing) Marketing is split up into 4 groups. If one of these areas doesn’t perform well, then that could affect the other groups and could affect the whole marketing area. The operations will have to sort this out as if it isn’t sorted out, then more work will be put on the customer service area, and if they can’t handle it, then the store could close down as above. Example 3 (Customer Service) If the customer service area isn’t performing well, then this could have a major impact on the business. This is because the employees are interacting with people from outside of the business. The business could lose a lot of customers in a short amount of time if customer service isn’t good as customers wouldn’t like the service and would stop going there and wouldn’t recommend others to go there. This could also make the store close down. If any store is disliked for some reason, then it could affect other Richer Sounds stores as well because they will be losing their reputation. B3 Richer Sounds’ main three aims are: * To provide second to none service and value for money for their customers * To provide themselves with secure well paid jobs working in a stimulating and equal opportunities environment * To be profitable to ensure their long term growth and survival How the functional areas work together to achieve the aims Aim 1 – To provide second to none service and value for money for their customers The operations area keeps things organised and make sure that stores aren’t performing less than expected. They also keep in contact with stores and the stock/prices of products are sorted and organised for the stores. Depending on the location of a store, it will be customised to adapt to the environment it is in. Any problems with store managers or employees will get sorted out. This makes things easier for the marketing area. The marketing area tries to make products sell by advertising, making them look attractive e.t.c. The customer service area tries to keep the customer satisfied. Aim 2 – To provide themselves with secure well paid jobs working in a stimulating and equal opportunities environment The operations area makes the jobs easier for the marketing area and the customer service area. They sort out any problems with store managers or employees. They set budgets for stores so they can sell products, but not buy too much. They make sure that the stores are achieving their targets, otherwise something will be done about it. They keep in contact regularly with stores and also visit them. The market area tries to make products sell and want the business to be successful. The customer service area tries to satisfy the customers so the business has an increase in their reputation. Aim 3 – To be profitable to ensure their long term growth and survival The operations area sorts and organises stock/prices of products are for the stores. Setting a budget for each store can help make a profit as well as preventing a loss. Setting targets for each store makes the employees work to their potential. Advice to store managers or employees can help a lot as it could get rid of a major problem, which could help the store improve. The market area tries to make products sell as much as they can. The customer service area try to keep customers satisfied as much as they can. C1 Richer Sounds do not call their employees by ‘staff’ or ’employees’. i think they do this because they want everyone to feel equal as much as they can, and not treat them like slaves. Also, instead of saying ‘head office’ they say ‘central office’ because ‘head office’ makes it sound more important to the others. Even though ‘central office’ makes it sound more important aswell, it is better than saying ‘head office’. Richer Sounds also use the term ‘career key timer (CKT)’ instead of ‘part-time’ as ‘part-time’ could make the part-tme employees think that they are only partly involved in the business. Instead of approaching customers by saying ‘can I help you?’ the employees use a better way which is by offering the customers a free cup of coffee or ice lolly. This is a good way to appraoch a customer as the customer will be happy that they are receiving free refreshments and at the same time can get help if they need it. Some different types of communication are: * Writing a letter * Recording a message * Reports * E-mail * Fax * Phonecall * Posting information on the internet * Meetings * Surveys * Face to face * Oral/Written feedback An example of written communication The employees are given the directors’ home numbers. This is because if they have a complaint then they can talk directly so the problem gets sorted out quickly. This helps the employees have private conversations aswell, which is why this method would be used for any problems or complaints. This also shows that the employees are trusted with these numbers and that they wont misuse them or give them out to any unknown person. An example of oral communication Meetings gather people together so that they can talk face to face and elaborate on any issues. This is an effective way of communication as more than just one person is bieng communicated, which saves time. People can also debate and have problems sorted out quickly ad effectiveley. How ICT is used to communicate and operate ICT is used in a variety of ways. Some of them are: * Customer service. This includes staying in contact with the customer until they are satisfied, helping them with product issues such as insurance, product support e.t.c. * Posting information on the internet, which could be on their website for customers, or other sites for others to see * Sending e-mails to people. Sometimes, this would be easier than going to meet the person as they could be a long distance away, or they may need to know the information as soon as possible. * Sending and sharing files with others. This saves time as people know where all the shared files are, and people don’t need to bother others for information * Having a network for ease of access for employees inside the business * Advertising * Organising products, prices, quantities e.t.c. More than one department is needed to sort these things out, so it is important that they keep in regular contact with each other * Support (this includes people from inside the business and outside the business). This also ranges from different types of communication, but ICT can be used a lot. Employees could help others who are facing a problem with ICT, they can sort out problems within the business and also outside the business C2 The functional areas need to keep in contact with each other and so do the staff inside a functional area for the business to avoid any problems.Examples of how communications methods are used inside a functional area include: * Employees could phone each other for convienece if they are a fair distance away * Someone may need to show a report to the other employees to help with improving the functional area * Someone may need to send an e-mail to another employee for privacy, or for more convinience * A meeting could be held for more convienience as instead of explaining the same thing to each employee repeatedly, it can just be explained once to all the employees together. This will also allow the employees to show their opinions regarding what is being said * Talking face to face can be useful for people talking in private, or if people arent far away so it would be easier to talk to them This is effective enough to run the functional area but it can be improved. Examples of how communications methods are used between functional areas include: * A manager could write a letter to another manager of a functional area * Julian Richer records a message weekly which all the managers can hear * Someone may need to show a report to others to help with improving the functional areas * Someone may need to send an e-mail to another employee for privacy, or for more convinience * A Fax could also be sent for the same reason as an e-mail * Employees could phone each other for convienece if they are a fair distance away The business needs to keep in contact with its customers and the other businesses it is involved with. Communcications methods used outside the business include: * An employee could write a letter to a customer for customer service * An e-mail could also be sent to a customer or another business such as a supplier * Phonecalls could be made to customers and other businesses for customer service or to sort out transactions e.g. with suppliers * Posting information on the internet may be useful for anyone. However, this can be a bad thing as rival businesses can find out about Richer Sounds and improve their own business * Surveys can be given to customers so Richer Sounds know where to improve on thei customer service * Talking face to face can help with transactions and helping customers * Advertising shows customers attractive products and prices. But this can also help rival businesses to improve on their advertising to get more customers aswell C3 Improvements which could be made to communications inside functional areas may include: * Being connected to a network so that people can stay communicated with each other and share files more easily Improvements which could be made to communications between functional areas may include: * Being connected to a network so that people can stay communicated with each other and share files more easily * Having surveys between employees to help improve on functional areas * To have a chat area for Richer Sounds’ employees only, so that they can all stay conneced to each other and help each other with problems within the business Improvments which could be made to communications outside the business may include: * Feedback. If Richer Sounds do this then they will know how to improve on their services * Having a chat area in which Richer Sounds’ customers and employees can have general conversations. This could be done by allowing people to register onto the Richer Sounds site and having an available chat area D1 Cameron Balloons External Influences Business Competitors Cameron balloons have worldwide competitors. This is because they are a large company, exports goods to customers abroad and they also have a partner in the United States, which is called Cameron Balloons US. Here is a list of some of the competitors of Cameron balloons Europe – UK Lindstrand Rest Of Europe – Excluding UK Ballonbau Worner Balony Kubicek Ultramagic Balloons US Aerostar Avian Balloon Corporation Firefly Balloons Head Balloons Australasia Kavanagh Balloons Germany Schroder As I have shown above, Cameron balloons has about nine competitors. However, Cameron balloons is a very successful company so it is hard for some companies to compete with Cameron balloons. This can narrow the list of competitors down for Cameron balloons. So Cameron balloons’ main competitors are: * Lindstrand * Ultramagic Balloons * Aerostar * Schroder Economic Conditions * Changes in interest rates * Changes in exchange rates * Inflation * The amount of unemployment * Changes in government tax Environmental Constraints * Noise Pollution * Air Pollution * Waste Pollution * Global Warming Richer Sounds External Influences Business Competitors Richer sounds have many competitors. This is because they have a large amount of products with different manufacturers. They sell products from approximately 140 different manufacturers and also sell approximately 50 different types of products. This means that their list of competitors would be very big. Although richer sounds have many competitors, they still have an advantage over some of their competitors. This is because richer sounds are specialists in certain equipment. Economic Conditions * Changes in interest rates * Changes in exchange rates * Inflation * The amount of unemployment * Changes in government tax Environmental Constraints * Noise Pollution * Waste Pollution * Global Warming * Waste Electricity D2 + D3 Impact Of Changes In External Influences To Cameron Balloons And What Is Done About It Business Competitors Cameron balloons is a very successful company and is about twice as big as its main competitor. It has also diversified into making medical products. So there isn’t much to worry about unless the competitor starts to rapidly gain more profits and expand. Economic Conditions * If interest rates go higher, and if Cameron balloons make a loan, then they will have to pay more back to the financiers. This would put them in a big dilemma if they stopped making profits. So if interest rates go lower, then that would be the best time to make a loan * If exchange rates change, then this can affect Cameron balloons depending on whether the pound is stronger or cheaper. For example, if the pound is stronger than the dollar, then the prices of imports from America will be cheaper and the prices of exports will be more expensive to American customers. But if the pound is weaker than the dollar, then imports from America will be more expensive, and exports will be cheaper to American customers. So Cameron balloons will benefit more if the pound is stronger. This is because they order materials in the UK, so there is no need for imports, but if they did import, then it would be cheap, and also, when they export, they would get more money from their customers * Inflation will mean that Cameron balloons will have to pay more for materials and will have to sell their products at more expensive prices if they want to keep getting the same amount of profit * An increase in government tax would mean that Cameron balloons would have to pay more for materials and so they would have to sell their products at more expensive prices if they want to keep getting the same amount of profit * If there is a large amount of unemployment, then Cameron balloons can let go of the employees that aren’t doing their job properly, and they could get better employees. They could also make new jobs to make space for more employees. If there is a low amount of unemployment, then Cameron balloons will have to hold onto their employees and will have to train them if necessary, which will mean that it will cost time and money Environmental Constraints * Cameron balloons don’t have to worry much about the amount of noise pollution as they have a large site and the equipment they use isn’t very noisy * Air Pollution isn’t a major factor for manufacturing the balloons but Cameron balloons have to make sure that their balloons work properly and don’t cause too much air pollution when in use * Cameron balloons have come across a solution to lower the amount of waste pollution. Using their balloon fabric, they produce medical products. They could use their scrap or leftover fabric for this so they have less waste and, at the same time, more profit * Because Cameron balloons are manufacturers, they have to make sure that they don’t contribute too much to global warming Impact Of Changes In External Influences To Richer Sounds And What Is Done About It Business Competitors If one of richer sounds’ competitors cuts prices on their products then richer sounds will cut their price as they monitor competitor’s prices. They also offer a price reduction on any product if a customer finds the same product cheaper at a different store. I think it may be hard for richer sounds to do this as they will have to constantly find cheaper suppliers otherwise they may end up with losses that could end up in bankruptcy. Economic Conditions * If interest rates go higher, and if richer sounds make a loan, then they will have to pay more back to the financiers. This would put them in a big dilemma if they stopped making profits. So if interest rates go lower, then that would be the best time to make a loan * Exchange rates don’t affect richer sounds as they are only a national company * Inflation will mean that richer sounds will have to pay more for supplies and will have to sell their products at more expensive prices if they want to keep getting the same amount profit * An increase in government tax would mean that richer sounds would have to pay more for supplies and so they would have to sell their products at more expensive prices if they want to keep getting the same amount of profit * If there is a large amount of unemployment, then richer sounds can let go of the employees that aren’t doing their job properly, and they could get better employees. They could also make new jobs to make space for more employees. If there is a low amount of unemployment, then richer sounds will have to hold onto their employees and will have to train them if necessary, which will mean that it will cost time and money Environmental Constraints * Richer sounds don’t allow any sound systems to be played in the store as someone could be affected and may complain or leave the store. This doesn’t just include customers, as employees could be affected as well. People with hearing disabilities could also be affected. That is why if a customer wants to listen to a sound system, they have to go to a demonstration room, which is sound proof, to listen to it. Richer sounds help to protect peoples hearing by having warnings in their stores and also by selling ear-plugs. * Richer sounds also try to keep waste pollution low. They accept old sound systems as part exchanges for their products. This helps keeping customers’ waste low as well as putting the systems to good use. Cardboard and wood which aren’t needed are recycled * Lights, heating and all equipment are turned off at the end of the day so richer sounds don’t contribute much towards global warming * Electric forklift trucks are used at the warehouse to prevent air pollution