BCG Growth Matrix Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

BCG Growth Matrix - Assignment Example Market growth is the percentage at which the market is growing over a given period of time. Market or demand growth indicates opportunity. Low growth products or markets have greater competition and vice versa. Marketers and ecommerce owners can use industry analysis, published reports and third party tools to track sale rates to gauge market growth. Marketers should plot the market share and market growth at least annually for each product category on the BCG Matrix. The BCG Matrix has four quadrants. Products in the Dogs quadrant are those in the lower right quadrat. They have low growth and low market share. These products should be closed out. The Cash Cow products are those in the lower left quadrant (Roggio, 2014). They have good market share and low growth. These products are harvested from with the revenue being invested elsewhere. The Question Marks products are those in the upper right quadrant. They have low market share and high growth. These products are promoted and advertised. The Stars are the upper left quadrant. They have strong market share and high growth. Marketers hold on to the Stars and try to continue to grow with moderate advertising and marketing. The benefits of the BCG Matrix include helping marketers evaluate balance between the quadrants, seek experience and volume effects, prepare for the future, and manufacture new products at low enough prices to lead in the market share. BCG Matrix is also easy and simple to use. The limitations of the BCG Matrix is that it neglects synergism between product lines, the Dogs can earn more than Cash Cows sometimes, getting data can be a challenge, high market share sometimes does not reflect on profitability, low market share products can be profitable and small competitors with fast growing market shares are neglected. Roggio, A. (2014). Using the BCG Matrix for Ecommerce Marketing Decisions. Practical ecommerce. Retrieved from

An Exploration Of Victorian Society English Literature Essay

An Exploration Of Victorian Society English Literature Essay From start to finish The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson portrays harsh contrasts: good and evil, rich and poor, morality and immorality, love and repulsion and the upper and lower classes. However it is only when Christian ethics (previously little challenged by other religions or science), the Victorian obsession with respectability, the class system and other stereotypical Victorian attitudes are explored with these contrasts that it is made clear how duplicitous the era was. The novella acts as an engaging exploration into other Victorian attitudes, interests, fears and obsessions. These include: fear of social unrest, disability discrimination, sexism, a desire for resolved endings in literature, a need for biblical references, and clashes between science and religion. The obsession with wearing an air of respectability (as Jekyll is said to hold) is one of the greater reasons why Jekyll finds joy in jumping between his two personalities. It is likely that he would indulge in passions his peers would not have approved of a mixture of heavy drinking and sex. He also went to prostitutes, a life he found hard to reconcile [] with [his] imperious desire to carry his head high. This is undoubtedly also the reason why very few members of the lower classes hold important roles in the story. In fact the only lower class character to properly feature in the novella is the head-servant, Poole. Much closer to his master (he is referred to as Dear Poole on one occasion), he has authority over the other servants and certainly is not the lowest of the low; this is probably the main reason why Stevenson considered Poole fit for such a role as he plays. The way in which the characters dress themselves, furnish their homes and talk of one another is also evidence of this obsession. Jekylls home wore a great air of wealth and comfort to such an extent as that Utterson was wont to speak of it as the pleasantest room in London. The novella reveals a lot about the class system, the cause of many social problems, and its iron-grip on every Victorian citizen. The upper classes in the book are portrayed as being upright and respectable, living in grand abodes, the spoils of well-paid professions Jekyll is a doctor and Utterson a respected lawyer. We are also told that Jekyll was born to a large fortune, endowed besides with excellent parts [and] fond of the respect of the wise and good among [his] fellowmen. When young he had seemed headed for an honourable and distinguished future. The lower classes could not be portrayed more dissimilarly. Other than servants, the novella indicates they would be unemployed, criminals or prostitutes working in Sohos sex district. They either live in small quarters in their masters houses or amongst slatternly passageways in the dismal quarter of Soho. In the Victorian era people grew up knowing which class they belonged to; and, as this was usually defined by birth it provide d great benefits for the rich (who stayed rich) but caused the poor to either lose faith in social mobility, or else, to revolt. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde did not just illustrate the class systems divisions but can serve to strengthen it. It portrays Sir Danvers immediately before his death as an old [but] beautiful gentleman with white hair. This could merely be an attempt by Stevenson to heighten the murders tension but I feel this symbol of goodness and purity through the character commanding the highest social position is an attempt to highlight the insolubility and inferiority of the lower classes to those above them. The lower classes feature little in the story, only ever appearing as vehicles through which Stevenson could move the plot forward, or working under the instruction of their employers. This means the upper classes were expected to make the decisions whilst the lower classes ran errands in ineffectual lives. In the book this is demonstrated by the strict rule for addressing members of another class. Addressing an employer Mr or Sir is expected. Upon the rarity that an employer should dignify their servant with a name it would be their surname as the Christian name was considered too familiar and affectionate. Being seen as such could be damaging to reputations so a more usual form of address would be Hold your tongue! A hierarchical structure manifested from fear of scandal is also evidenced. Were scandals to be directed at upper class personage they could mean a decimated reputation. Yet through a circle of mutual fear the upper classes were able to indulge in whatever secret pleasures they wished, such as those that Jekyll confesses to and Hyde commits. The fear of scandal is most strong on page 37, where Utterson is worried the good name of another would be sucked down in the eddy of a scandal. On page 38 Uttersons butler discovers information labelling Jekyll as a murderer. Utterson urges Jekyll to make a clean breast of this in confidence and when the butlers master asks him to keep the matter quiet he calmly says I understand. Therefore the mutual fear and loyalty in this scandalous system is even stronger than moral duty. Once Jekyll perfects his potion he must work alone to protect his standing, he sets up a room with the most studious care in a separate house in Soho for Hyde to reside in and found a silent and unscrupulous woman to keep house there. He even goes to the length of familiarizing all his servants with Hyde and writing a will leaving everything to Hyde in the event of his death or disappearance. It is implicit that the lengths Jekyll takes would mirror other respected characters. The novella portrays a society divided into two; it is not only Jekyll that is committed to a profound duplicity of life all the rich and powerful live in ignorant luxury, ignoring the suffering lower classes. Stephensons work also shines light on the system that kept the upper classes illegitimate indulgences hidden. Fear of revolutionist ideology was strong amongst members of the upper class. To find evidence of such in this story, one must read into the ways in which the poor are neglected, for example in voting, health, rights and legal representation; and how these factors could lead to a massive uprising (such as was seen in France). Members of lower classes are left almost unrepresented in our story, the many servants, that would have moved quietly within the house, are rarely observed, when they are they are whimpering quietly. The idea of them whimpering shows them as inferior and over-emotional. If not for the more gradual changes in opinion over the class systems role from this under-representation to a world where all classes show some degree of solubility within society Britain may have seen a revolution on the very scale many Victorians had feared. The Victorians had strong expectations of the content and plots of their eras literature. Stephenson abstains from direct descriptions of immorality, instead only alluding to the novels graphic scenes. They also expected resolved endings the righteous prevailing, the evil punished. Many of Hydes crimes are only vaguely alluded to, particularly sexual ones. Others, such as Sir Danvers murder, are described briefly and inexplicitly, only that Hyde was hailing down a storm of blows. To heighten the shock factor of each crime Stevenson instead describes at length the earlier tranquillity and through later mentioning that a purse and gold watch were found upon the victim, illustrating that this attacks motive was purely sadistic. This idea of sadism, an utter, deeply entrenched evil is important to the novellas message and Jekylls hypothesis that evil is not simply brought about by necessity such as a beggared boy turning to pick pocketing but is more deep-rooted and harks back to the idea of original sin and that man is no different to any other beast. Jekyll, reflecting on mankind, All human being [] are commingled out of good and evil. Perhaps the abstinence from graphic description is due to the fact that Stevensons wife destroyed the first draft for its explicit descriptions of sex, violence and references to homosexuality. Suggestions that Jekyll/Hyde were homosexual are so watered down that many disregard them: Hyde always enters by the rear door. This dilution typifies the desire for morality and the disgust at graphically intense descriptions; a point which, if further extrapolated, reveals the desire of the upper classes (at whom the novel was targeted) to ignore or hide the huge social problems of their nation. Victorian novels predominantly are resolved. I personally find archetypal works in which those that exhibit qualities like: perseverance, god-centeredness, humility, generosity and dignity always win out in the end; and where virtue is rewarded whilst wrongdoers are punished disappointing because they are too idealized. This concept is clearer in many earlier novels where even the toils of the poor are rewarded. One vivid example of this is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte in which Jane falls desperately in love with and (by the books completion) marries Mr Rochester despite his blindness and frailty. At first the tale of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde seems to have strayed from this structure because Dr Jekyll does not manage to separate himself from the evil side of [his] nature. However the closure of the novel is more complex. Upon re-examination of the concluding chapters it seems to be the case that Jekyll destroyed Hyde along with himself: the doom that is closing in on both of us has alr eady [] crushed him Victorian literature is usually rife with examples of biblical references, the most prominent here being I incline to Cains heresy'. This refers to Genesis 4:9 which describes Cain murdering his brother Abel. God is said to have asked him where Abel was to which Cain said: Am I my brothers keeper? Utterson simply re-phrases this to: I let my brother go to the devil in his own way. The phrase has become synonymous with peoples unwillingness to accept responsibility for the welfare of their fellows and is used by Stephenson to advance the plot and broaden Uttersons character. The need for biblical allusion in literature is one component in the mechanism by which Stevenson sheds light on the struggle between science and religion. On one hand, we see religion reflected in words throughout the novel: Poole uses the phrase I give you my Bible word to demonstrate his solemnity to his observation of Jekyll and Hyde but this contrasts with the emerging science. It is worth remembering that many Victorians saw science as an atheistic concept, Lanyon calls Jekylls works scientific heresies in an almost oxymoronic juxtaposition (in an atheistic world there would be no God for science to yield heresies about).The era brought many improvements in science yet some seemed to threaten the literal meaning of the Bible. Most simply found ways to re-interpret the Bible in the light of such discoveries with little damage to their faith. However people especially struggled with ideas set out in The Origin of Species because they seemed too direct an attack on religion. It sa id that all life evolved from more primitive forms. Darwins theory is referenced many times such as when Hyde is said to possess ape-like fury, he is also described as troglodytic and degenerate perhaps concurrent with a hypothesis of reverse evolution into a more primitive form. People now felt they had to choose between the dangerous new scientific theories and the more venerable option of religion. From the viewpoint of any man choosing the latter, Jekylls experiments would be considered meddling in Gods affairs and something only God should have control over. The structure of parts of the book, also, reflects a more scientific approach to situations which would before have been tackled with superstition and the words of the bible. On pages 41 and 63, this is demonstrated by sections of text that take each event methodically, as if they were notes from an experiment. Hydes transformations are also listed like scientific observations. Chemistry is also in evidence, as an emerging science, not yet tested. To exploit the curiosity of his audience to the complex moral implications of modern science Stephenson chose Jekyll as the novellas protagonist and uses many words connected to Jekylls profession to add depth and mystery to the plot: the glazed presses full of chemicals, a graduated glass and a red tincture [] and powders. Jekyll uses chemistry to transform into Hyde, and part of the reason Stevenson thought this more feasible was that nobody had yet fully explored chemistrys possibilities. Perhaps, if he were to write Jekyll and Hyde, today, the means of transformation might be genetic engineering/quantum physics. Drug and alcohol abuse are witnessed at horrendous levels. Utterson describes a gin palace; a woman passing out for her morning glass indicates the low price of gin and how this ravaged many lives. Drugs are only hinted at although the convulsive action of Hydes jaws and gagging described by Lanyon is now recognized as a symptom of cocaine abuse. For me the most powerful symbol of sciences advancements is in Jekylls transformations which symbolise both progress and devolution making them a cause of fear. It is worth remembering Pooles hasty return to the comfortable reassurance of religion, with the words God grant there be nothing wrong. In his novella, Stevenson repeatedly tells of some unnameable deformity that makes Uttersons blood run cold. Words like dwarfish all tell a similarly negative story of Hydes countenance. Enfield describing Hyde to Utterson said simply: There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable. The present day sees disability viewed less critically than the era that saw the publication of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. It could be argued that Hyde is scary purely because of his tendency towards evil, but is this true? In my opinion Yes would be too shallow an answer. Stevenson plainly states such in the text: evil [] had left on that body an imprint of deformity. Like so many fictional villains impairment and deformity contribute even to modern-day fearfulness of Hyde. Prejudice to the disabled/deformed is resultantly one heinous Victorian attitude that lingers still. Such prejudicial views were not just limited to the disabled; women were also considered less valuable, sexism engrained in society. On page 55 Hyde is described as weeping like a woman; this succinctly illustrates how women were considered too frail. It was believed they lacked the cranial capacity in emotionally disturbing events. In The Last Night the cook was crying out, Bless God! Its Mr Utterson', the housemaid broke into hysterical whimpering, and then proceeded weeping loudly. Such instances were considered to demonstrate how women were unable to cope with complex or emotional situations. With such weak foundations in place, women were thought unsuitable for important jobs like government posts; having said such, the head of the monarchy was a woman. However this did not result in any relaxation of the feminine ideal; indeed only upper class women were not restricted to housework, and raising as many children as possible. This stereotypical idea of faintheartedness as oppose d to intelligent thinking and decisions is also exemplified on page 30, after Sir Danvers murder: at the horror of these sights and sounds, the maidservant fainted. Man is not truly one, but truly two. These words the conclusion to Jekylls life and research capture the essence of the entire novella and the stereotypical Victorian attitudes reflected in it: most notably hypocrisy, from the division of the class system, other discriminatory bandings including sex and disability, and the division of faith between science and religion. So great were the contrasts in the novella that terms evolved from Dr Jekyll Mr Hyde have become part of modern life. The phrase is used by newspapers to describe disturbing murderers; with personalities not dissimilar to the characters or character, depending on how you look at it that are central to our story. As with the infamous Jack the Ripper (another affluent murderer) the stereotypically dark or primitive society that is too oft reflected by Victorian horror stories fails to fully explore the core the Jekyll in this instance a core of civility, respectability and prosperity. In this way the novella acts as an engaging, yet inaccurate exploration that only reinforces old stereotypes about Victorian society.

Epidemiology Of Varsity Sports :: essays research papers fc

Epidemiology of Varsity Sports   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Varsity sports is in many schools as important as academics, especially in the United States. These schools rely a great deal on the success of their teams for financial stability and enrollment interest. The athletes as well take their sport very seriously, if only for the sake of their pride.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It therefore follows that each team strives to be the very best, and only 100% effort is enough. Unfortunately, when competition climaxes, more often than not injuries result. This study is a synopsis of the data collected in a number of past articles concerned with injuries incurred by collegiate athletes in many different varsity sports. For the purpose of this study, an injury has been defined as any abnormal condition that has caused an athlete to be removed from practice or competition for one or more days, because performance has been impaired (Hanes and Murray, 1982). The following statistics will deal with injuries of collegiate sports incurred by athletes involved in Men's and Women's Basketball, Baseball, Gymnastics and Track and Field, Men's Soccer, and Wrestling, and Women's Field Hockey.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  BASKETBALL The study of the nature and extent of athletic injuries Occuring in Women's Basketball by Hanes and Murray in 1982 found an injury rate of 41.7 per 100 players. Of these injuries 56.9% were ankle sprains, 24.1% were muscle strains. 76.2% of the sprains and strains occurred to the lower extremities. Injured fingers ( which were the only upper extremity injuries) accounted for 14.3% of the injuries and 4.8% of the injuries were reported as facial.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  All information for this study was collected through the use of injury forms completed by the coaches, and information forms by each player, injured or not. In a separate study for the American Journal of Sports Medicine by Clarke and Buckley in 1980 on injuries incurred in collegiate Women's Basketball, there was an injury rate of 20.3 per 100 players. There was a reported incidence of 53% sprains, and 4% strains. 40% of all injuries sustained were to the lower extremities. In the same study Clarke and Buckley found similar results in Men's Varsity Basketball to that of the Women's. The men reported 20.7 per 100 players suffering injuries, 54% of those being sprains, 6% being strains with 37% of the injuries Occuring to the lower extremity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  All the data collected by Clarke and Buckley was received from the National Athletic Injury/ Illness Recording System (NAIRS).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  BASEBALL Clark and Buckley have also examined Men's and Women's Baseball in their study The reported injury rate for this particular sport was 9.2% (men's) and 8.7% (women's). Sprains occurred 37% and 40% respectively, strains accounted

Major trends in HRM: Final Exam Essay

1. (TCO A) Discuss two major trends that are currently affecting the practice of human resource management. Provide examples of how a company’s HRM practices might be affected by each trend. 2. (TCO B) To be a strategic business contributor, human resources must enhance organizational performance, expand human capital, and be cost effective. Discuss how HRM professionals must balance the competing demands made on them. 3. (TCO C) Explain the most significant impact of a union on human resource management. 4. (TCO D) In developing human resource strategies, businesses face several important challenges. Identify and describe four of these challenges. Link these challenges back to the HRM department’s strategy plan. 5. (TCO E) While layoffs may seem prevalent in our work environment today, many companies still face the challenge of retaining top performers and the skills needed to complete the job. Explain how you would create a proactive retention program for a company. Describe the steps you would take and substantiate each step. 6. (TCO F) Substantiate the value of employee performance evaluations to the business and the employee. Describe the factors/components you would include in a performance management program and validate those items. 7. (TCO G) Pay for performance plans vary in design. Some are designed to reward individuals as well as team results. Describe both types of pay plans. Evaluate the value of both plans as it relates to the organization/business. 8. (TCO H) Explain how human resource technology can improve efficiency and effectiveness of HRM functions. How, specifically, can technology support the business? Provide an example.

Addiction in Adults and It’s Effects on Their Children Essay

When thinking about drug addiction in adults, one often thinks about and wonders how and when an adult starts or becomes addicted to drugs. Studies have shown that people who have become addicted to drugs from various causes of society. Daily stress of everyday life, some people are forced to start drugs in certain situations, the process and life of a person dealing with drug addiction during pregnancy, the use of drugs during pregnancy, and the effects of drug use during pregnancy; just to name a few. See more: Foot Binding In China essay According to Authors: Lawrence Robinson, Melinda Smith, M. A. , and Joanna Saisan, M. S. W. Last updated: January 2012, â€Å"Many first try drugs out of curiosity, to have a good time, because friends are doing it, or in an effort to improve athletic performance or ease another problem; such as stress, anxiety, or depression. Drug abuse and addiction is less about the amount of substance consumed or the frequency, and more to do with the consequences of drug use. No matter how often or how little you’re consuming, if your drug use is causing problems in your life—at work, school, home, or in your relationships—you likely have a drug abuse or addiction problem. † Drug addiction leads adult down the road of consequences, which such consequences could lead to pregnancy and childbirth. Some addicts may try to clean up during pregnancy however; there are plenty of people addicted to drugs so bad that it consumes their mind. Society has to take in account that there have been studies done on the effects of a parent addicted to drugs raising children. One can find facts that have found that there are parents that are considered functioning drug addicts. Some drug addicted parents are not involved in their children’s life. Now this leads society to wonder about some of the effects that the child may experience. Some children may have serious or several health issues when they are born addicted to drugs. Experts have also shown that some children may not have a medical issue but may experience mental and emotional issues at the same time. According to Lisa Levin, student of psychology, the University of Umea, Sweden, under guidance by Gunborg Palme, certified psychologist, certified psychotherapist, teacher and tutor in psychotherapy, â€Å"The American psychologist Janet G. Woititz was one of the first who paid real attention to the situation for adult children of addicts, with her book â€Å"Adult Children of Alcoholics†. In this book, she elucidated various characteristics that she found in many of these adult children. † Drug ddiction in adults can lead to a world of destruction for both the parents and children. Children can be removed from the home and placed in foster care. Sometimes these children experience terrible situations such as molestation and abuse. However, in other circumstances where some drug addicted adults willing give their children up to family members to rise. At times some of these children can lead down the path of drugs as well. It is being proven that some kids born addicted to drugs have also done drugs as a teenager and adult. In cases children will even sell drugs, work in adult clubs and entertainment, participate in prostitution, and even have children at early ages. But still one can find some of these children also can have a successful story and go down a completely different path, such as success, college, financial stability, or even religious background. The individual is the one that makes the choice on what path they will take in life. Lisa Levin also stated, â€Å"Children of addicts are more likely to develop their own substance abuse and social behavior problems than other children. According to certain researchers, the risk is twice as high, while others estimate the risk to be 4-9 times higher. † Personal thoughts on drug addiction in adults and the effects it has on their children would have to be so many that run through my head. I believe that children have the chose to make two options in their lives. Since dealing with family members who were and are addicted to drugs and their children have graduate from college, work a good job which pays good money, are married and have a family. I have at the same token had cousins that have also been addicted to drugs, prostitution, selling drugs, end up in jail, and have even died following the wrong path in their life. We all have to be responsible for ourselves and live life accordingly. I don’t believe that all children have bad effects of drug addicted parents. I believe they can choose to live a better life and change their situation for the better. One must always find the confidence, drive, and determination to want to make their life what they desire. When being a witness to both sides of the fence, bias is up in the air for now.

The eNotes Blog On the Nightstand What Books Did You Get ForChristmas

On the Nightstand What Books Did You Get ForChristmas One of the things I like best about Christmas is that I always get new books to read that I did not have to pay for myself. While I do have an e-Reader, there is still something about the heft, touch, and smell of a book that I especially prefer for a bit of pre-sleepytime reading. This year, I mustve been very good as I got several titles, among them two I am trying to savor slowly, like the last few Godiva chocolates left in the sampler (Oh, okaywho am I kidding? Those were consumed before the day was over). This Christmas, I got two books that I have been pawing over:   Arguably Essays by (the late, great,   much-missed) Christopher Hitchens and   Smoke and Mirrors by (the incomparable) Neil Gaiman. Here are a five of the most popular titles, likely given as gifts, culled from the New York Times Best Sellers list for the week of 12-11 to 12-25, about the time your own elves were out shopping and wrapping for you. Did you receive any of these books? If so, have you read them yet? What do you think? Or, what did works did you receive that you love (or hate)? Were interested to hear what everyone is reading! The Drop by Michael Connelly Description from Amazon.com:   Harry Bosch has been given three years before he must retire from the LAPD, and he wants cases more fiercely than ever. In one morning, he gets two. DNA from a 1989 rape and murder matches a 29-year-old convicted rapist. Was he an eight-year-old killer or has something gone terribly wrong in the new Regional Crime Lab? The latter possibility could compromise all of the labs DNA cases currently in court. Then Bosch and his partner are called to a death scene fraught with internal politics. Councilman Irvin Irvings son jumped or was pushed from a window at the Chateau Marmont. Irving, Boschs longtime nemesis, has demanded that Harry handle the investigation. Relentlessly pursuing both cases, Bosch makes two chilling discoveries: a killer operating unknown in the city for as many as three decades, and a political conspiracy that goes back into the dark history of the police department. 11/22/63: A Novel   by Stephen King Description from Amazon.com: On November 22, 1963, three shots rang out in Dallas, President Kennedy died, and the world changed. What if you could change it back? Stephen King’s heart-stoppingly dramatic new novel is about a man who travels back in time to prevent the JFK assassination- a thousand page tour de force. The Help by Kathryn Stockett Description/Review from Sybil Steinberg of   The Washington Post:   Southern whites guilt for not expressing gratitude to the black maids who raised them threatens to become a familiar refrain. But dont tell Kathryn Stockett because her first novel is a nuanced variation on the theme that strikes every note with authenticity. In a page-turner that brings new resonance to the moral issues involved, she spins a story of social awakening as seen from both sides of the American racial divide. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson Description from Publishers Weekly:   This first of a trilogy introduces a provocatively odd couple: disgraced financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist, freshly sentenced to jail for libeling a shady businessman, and the multipierced and tattooed Lisbeth Salander, a feral but vulnerable superhacker. Hired by octogenarian industrialist Henrik Vanger, who wants to find out what happened to his beloved great-niece before he dies, the duo gradually uncover a festering morass of familial corruption- at the same time, Larsson skillfully bares some of the similar horrors that have left Salander such a marked woman. Larsson died in 2004, shortly after handing in the manuscripts for what will be his legacy. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson Description/Review from Janet Maslin, The New York Times: †Skeptic after skeptic made the mistake of underrating Steve Jobs, and Mr. Isaacson records the howlers who misjudged an unrivaled career. â€Å"Sorry Steve, Here’s Why Apple Stores Won’t Work,† Business Week wrote in a 2001 headline. â€Å"The iPod will likely become a niche product,† a Harvard Business School professor said. â€Å"High tech could not be designed and sold as a consumer product,† Mr. Sculley said in 1987. Mr. Jobs got the last laugh every time. â€Å"Steve Jobs† makes it all the sadder that his last laugh is over.

Customer Loyalty in a Business To Business Context Essay Essays

Customer Loyalty in a Business To Business Context Essay Essays Customer Loyalty in a Business To Business Context Essay Essay Customer Loyalty in a Business To Business Context Essay Essay Customer trueness is considered to be a powerful tool for most organisations in guaranting that they gain a competitory advantage in their several industries ( Lam. Shankar. Erramilli. A ; Bvsan. 2004. p. 294 ) . Customer trueness is necessary for guaranting that organisations remain profitable while besides accomplishing growing through making out to new market evidences. The importance of client trueness in the universe of economic science has developed bit by bit as an country of survey particularly concern to concern ( B2B ) environments. This is due to the demand to analyze and place factors that guarantee client trueness is maintained and even increased. harmonizing to Haghkhah et Al. . ( 2013. p. 156 ) . Haghkhah. et Al. . ( 2013. p. 156 ) farther noted that increased competition for clients in the market signifies that concern ought to respond even faster and more specific to the demands and wants of clients in order to win their trueness. For this ground. sellers in most organisations tend to concentrate on client keeping techniques and besides to put an accent on increasing their trueness degrees. In order to accomplish this. B2B has offered huge chances to guarantee that most organisations achieve their aims of client keeping and trueness. Therefore. the latter shows the importance of understanding client keeping and trueness as an of import country of the research survey. Customer trueness is viewed as a behaviour of insistent purchasing and farther developed traveling frontward with factors such as ancestors. effects. and factors. This has led the research worker to derive an involvement in carry oning farther research on client keeping and trueness. hence. this research paper will be on the assorted ways and techniques that organisations can implement in order to increase client trueness in a B2B context Customer trueness Harmonizing to Haghkhah. et Al. . ( 2013. p. 157 ) a high rate of trueness in a B2B environment is a competitory advantage to the marketer due to the client’s willingness to pay a higher monetary value for goods and sensitive since they start going less monetary value medium as a consequence of trust that has been gained. This means that the income generated is likely to increase and stay stable to travel frontward Customer trueness is viewed as a scheme that aims at guaranting clients gain behavior of insistent buying from the same company. Customer trueness in a B2B environment achieves a common wages that benefits both the client and the organisation. It is normally considered as ways of deriving competitory advantage by an organisation over its rivals. Assorted companies have applied the scheme of keeping client trueness since it is considered cheaper in respect seeking to derive new clients in order to increase their gross base. Cater. T A ; Cater. B ( 2010. p. 1322 ) position client trueness based on activities such as contract reclamation. doing recommendations to clients and increasing backing in a concern to concern environments. They further note that these factors will probably act upon the degree of trueness to clients of an organisation. In other research. client trueness in a B2B environment is based on the experiences of the client. the future outlooks that a client may hold about the organisation and the frequence at which a client buys goods and services from the organisation ( haghkhah. Abdul Hamid. Ebrahimpour. Roghanian. A ; Gheysari. 2013. p. 158 ) . Further. ( Cater A ; Cater. 2010 ) notes that in order to act upon the trueness of clients in a B2B context. and so the organisation has to understand the behavior of the client and the attitude of the client. Literature reappraisal 2. 1 Limitations and Gap in Literature The field of client trueness is one that has much information. but really small attending has been given to business-to-business scenarios. Most old research has chiefly focused on the customer’s point of position ( Mascareigne. 2009 ) . This could be because most position client keepings as a behavioural factor. ( Ranaweera A ; Prabhu. 2003 ) In any economic system. concerns have to transact to execute their day-to-day operations. Some concerns. such as audit houses. exist to function other concerns. Extensive research on this country could help other concerns to larn the kineticss of client trueness amongst themselves. A major restriction that was besides experienced in the research was the complete generalisation of the research based on a B2B context. Since different concerns have different operations and schemes. some facets may works for a certain sector that may non needfully work for another. For illustration. constructs that may be used to increase client trueness in the banking sector. may non work in the fabrication sector. Harmonizing to Buttle ( 2008. p. 267 ) committedness is defined as the relationship that exist between the two houses and is likely to be terminated at a sensible hereafter day of the month. In a B2B environment. the committedness shared by the two houses is normally on a common understanding. Doma ( 2013. p. 72 ) notes that committedness between two houses is normally bonded by trust among the two houses. The degree of trust that is normally shared by the two or more houses that conduct concern affects their committedness model. The more a house is committed to another increases the degree of trueness shared by the two houses. Moorman A ; Rust ( 1999. p. 183 ) in their research notes that committedness is normally the degree of attempt that is put by houses in guaranting a valuable relationship enjoyed by the two houses is maintained in the long term. The relationship normally has economic benefits for the two houses in their command to guarantee they remain profitable in their operations. For this ground. there exists a belief among organisations that the relationship has economic benefits ; therefore attempts are put in keeping it. However. harmonizing to Hennig-Thurau ( 2004. p. 463 ) provinces that many bookmans tend to reason that there is no major difference between trueness and committedness. That school of idea has been dismissed by Morgan A ; Hunt ( 1999. p. 24 ) who argued there is a difference between trueness and committedness. They. nevertheless. noted that the two are related. with a committedness being an ancestor of trueness. This means that committedness is a factor in B2B environment th at will increase the degree of trueness. This besides meant that the being of committedness had a strong positive impact on the degree of committedness. Shabbir et Al. ( 2007. p. 280 ) in their research demonstrated that committedness is an ancestor of trueness. They argued that committedness in the B2B environment. it played a cardinal function in guaranting that trueness is ever maintained and even increased to higher degrees. Sharma. et Al. ( 2006. p. 77 ) in their survey note that committedness is the state of affairs whereby there is a desire to do a relationship stronger with another individual or even group due to acquaintance or even friendly relationship has that has been developed over clip due to the personal interaction that has occurred between the two over a period of clip ( Eakuru A ; Mat. 2008. p. 125 ) . Therefore. committedness should be as a consequence of placing the values that are shared normally between two organisations. It is important to observe that the client will retain a relationship with another party due to the positive consequence they have with the provider. At times. a client may be forced to go on remaining in a relationship with another party due to miss of valuable options that may be available to them ( Fullerton. 2005. p. 1388 ) . However. most relationships are maintained with a committedness as a consequence of the benefits that both parties will profit from ( Brandi. 2001. p. 67 ) . When committedness is the steering rule of B2B environment. and one organisation performs ill in comparing to the incumbent organisation. so due to the degree of committedness shared the spouses are improbable to exchange to other options ( Stephan. 2002. p. 20 ) . This makes a committedness an implicit in factor that will assist in act uponing the degree of trueness in a B2B environment ( Stephan. 2002. p. 33 ) . Akin ( 2012 ) gives an illustration. in comparing the loyal between clients with low trueness and clients with high trueness and explains that clients with high trueness will be non be swayed by discounted monetary values from other providers. Therfore. the higher the degree of committedness that will be shared between organisations an addition in trueness degrees between the organisations will be experienced. If the degree of committedness is increased through activities such as contract reclamation and devising of recommendations to the other organisation. it will in bend addition the degree of trueness enjoyed by the two houses. Therefore. if organisations want to increase the rate of issue by their clients. so they have to construct a relationship that will be founded on a committedness. Commitment will in bend addition the degree of trueness in a B2B environment. This will guarantee that the hereafter of the organisation is maintained as it will go on doing net income. In a survey conducted by CITATION Gus05 cubic decimeter 1033 ( Gustavsson A ; Lundgren. 2005 ) they give an illustration whereby air hose companies use their frequent circular plans as a agency to heighten perennial purchase through proviso of economic inducements to guarantee that they increase and besides maintain loyal among their clients. 2. 2 Theories and Methodologies A common rule that has emerged from the entire quality direction ( TQM ) motion is that the decisive way. to retaining clients. is to fulfill their demands ( Colby. 2013 ) . The theory holds that if by placing what clients expect and by run intoing these demands and outlooks. these clients are less likely to choose for the services given by a rival. Past research conducted by Colby ( 2013 ) has shown a positive relationship between satisfaction and trueness. In other words. if a client is satisfied with the services offered by a concern. the client is bound to be loyal to the concern. Other surveies have besides identified a positive relationship between service quality and client trueness ( Van Es. 2012 ) . However. a certain degree of satisfaction does non ever vouch the coveted trueness. In a certain study. Colby suggested four indexs of client trueness and this include ; demographics. past behaviour. perceptual experience of addition or loss of exchanging to a different trade name and attitudes towards openness to new trade names. Analyzing these four indexs can give a better apprehension of client trueness. For case. if a concern expects to salvage on costs by transacting with another concern. so they are most likely to be loyal to that peculiar partnership. The attitudinal attack takes a position of purchase behaviour and tends to explicate in footings of values. beliefs and attitudes. Deterministic theory entails the logical relationship between variables and research workers in this field are responsible for placing which variables affect client trueness. It appears to be acceptable to most cognitive research workers that attitude comes earlier behavior in a scenario that involves buy backing a merchandise and is really of import because attitude comes before a pick. The behavioural attack holds that internal procedures can non be measured and. hence. have no topographic point in research ( Bennet A ; Bove. 2002 ) . Understanding client trueness in a B2B scenario is a long term relationship regardless of the importance of the minutess. Both methods may differ in positions but can be both used to understand the construct. Although client trueness research has evolved over the old ages. most of this research uses a logical empiricist paradigm ( Paavola. 2006 ) . Information about client trueness has been derived chiefly from cognitive psychological science. with theories about attitude organizing most of the work. Current theoretical model could. hence. convey a new position into the trueness research. Paavola ( 2006 ) uses the societal constructionism paradigm to analyze the impression of client trueness critically. The survey gives a elaborate description of client trueness that is based on the societal world of clients. The consequences imply that different types of trueness should be taken into considerations when doing managerial executions. Classification can besides be really good when it comes to future trueness research. Most theories. which are associated with trueness surveies. trade with issues such as trueness plans. client satisfaction. client value. service quality and societal bonds ( Jacobsen. Olsson. A ; Sjovall. 2004 ) . A theoretical account constructed by Jacobsen. Olsson and Sjovall ( 2004 ) shows that societal bonds have the most important consequence on client trueness with companies in the banking sector. The survey shows that the most of import factors. in keeping client trueness in the banking sector. were societal bonds and forces. This is because. banking services are really similar and to last in such as market. strong competitory forces are required to do the right connexions. The same survey revealed that pecuniary benefits are non a important factor in that country of concern. Harmonizing to Kuusik ( 2007 ) . the factors. trustiness. satisfaction. importance of relationship and image are of import factors that play a function in the different degrees of client trueness. Traditionally. most research has focussed on either the influence of single factors on trueness or the nature of different degrees of trueness. It is of import to non merely position trueness through behavioral standards. but besides attitudinal standards every bit good. Behavioral clients could be divided into ; forced to be loyal. functionally loyal and loyal due to inertia ( Kuusik. 2007 ) . For case. in a B2B context. when a certain company is a monopoly. acquiring supplies from them is the lone logical reply. and this forces a company to be loyal by force. Businesss can be loyal by inactiveness due to the importance of a certain procedure. If the procedure is of low importance. so there is practically no demand to acquire another spouse. This can go on in state of affairss where the dealing is everyday such as trash- pickup. Functionality trueness is gained from when organisations have to spouse with other organisations because they have an nonsubjective ground to be. Research has shown that inactiveness is a state of affairs antonym to loyalty CITATION Aki12 cubic decimeter 4105 ( Akin. 2012 ) . For illustration. a concern may choose another concern since they require minimum attempt to make them. Dahlgren ( 2005 ) used multivariate informations analysis techniques to construct a nexus between dimensions of trade name trueness and to capture the different degrees of client trueness. The consequence showed several differences in the trueness dimensions. In a similar survey. Kuusik ( 2007 ) uses a LOGIT arrested development theoretical account to find the important factors that affect client trueness. The theoretical account comprises of assorted factors that affect client trueness. The survey reveals that image. satisfaction. importance of relationship and trustiness are the most important factors in trueness research. Harmonizing to East et Al. ( 2005 ) the definition of trueness is utile if they can be used to foretell phenomena such as hunt. keeping. and recommendation. The writers set up that combination steps of client trueness frequently act as hapless indexs of consumer trueness as compared to other remarkable indexs such as recommendations. Apart from sing these combinations to be of limited value. the research besides establishes that there is no signifier of trueness that ever predicts different trueness results and a general construct of trueness should be abandoned ( East. Gendall. Hammond. A ; Lomax. 2005 ) . For case. alternatively of utilizing indexs such as trueness plans and money wagess. research workers should either expression for keeping of clients and any recommendation given by them. 2. 3 Identifying relationships between thoughts and pattern to increase trueness in a B2B context Assorted thoughts have been drafted in order to increase client trueness in a B2B context. For illustration. from the above reappraisal. it is noted that designation of the company’s chances and moving on them will assist in increasing the trueness. However a company can present on all the demands of their clients. but the bringing of their services will act upon the degree of trueness traveling frontward. If when presenting all the demands of their client. and they produce a hapless bringing service. so this will probably take to a lessening in trueness degree. For illustration harmonizing to Akin ( 2012 ) factors that aid increasing the trueness of clients is high-ranking service quality delivered by houses that will take to a high degree of client satisfaction. In another scenario. companies tend to seek and happen ways in which they can act upon the frequence at which their clients entree their web sites for information. However. research indicates that half of the clients get information from their web site. The deficiency of companies to put and supply web sites that are easy to entree and supply the necessary information to their clients will take to a diminution in the degree of trueness. For this ground. there is a clear differentiation between the thoughts developed to increase trueness and the patterns a company will follow. Decision From this literature reappraisal. it can be shown that assorted researches have tried to set up the being of a positive relationship between trueness and facets such as service quality and client satisfaction. Some surveies have employed the usage of correlativity analysis to look into this relationship. Correlation research allows a research worker to find whether a relationship between variables exists. it allows one to specify the extent of the relationship between the variables ( Gall. Gall. A ; Bord. 2005 ) . Qualitative and quantitative research methods both have their benefits and drawbacks. For case. when the correlativity between two variables has been established. it still does non state the research worker what should be done. but instead what can be done. Qualitative methods. as used by Paavola ( 2006 ) . can besides convey out cognition that is non familiar with other research workers. The consequences can besides be influenced by the researcher’s personal prejud ices. However. some of these surveies tend to cover broad countries that may take long periods of research. The benefits of client keeping have been recognized by many research workers ( Feihua. 2011 ) . In the concern to concern scenario. certain facets of retaining a client bring out themselves than carry oning concern with the ordinary clients. For case. paying attending to the ordinary. like go toing meetings on clip is non a necessary. but a important wont to see. In a B2B relationship. the parties are more defined. and this is based on the premise that both parties are seeking common benefits in the relationship ( Oy. 2010 ) . In a normal concern to client relationship. the disintegration of the relationship ends up in the consumer go forthing the services of the supplier. In the B2B apparatus. the terminal of the relationship is thought in footings of a procedure while in exchanging is thought every bit merely as a alteration in the relationship. In client trueness research. possibly it would be of critical importance to see the industry in which the research is being conducted on. In industries where the concerns provide similar services. societal bonds could be the prevailing factor that promotes consumer trueness between concerns. In other industries. where the services offered are different. likely trueness plans and pecuniary wagess could be the manner to win client trueness. Mentions Akin. E. ( 2012 ) . Literature Review and Discussion on Customer Loyalty and Consciousness. European Journal of Economics. Finance and Administrative Sciences. 158-170. Brandi. J. ( 2001 ) . Constructing Customer Loyalty: The 21 Essential Elementss †¦ in Action. Texas: The Walk The Talk Company. Buttle. F. ( 2008 ) . Customer Relationship Management ( 2nd ed. ) . New York: Routledge. Doma. S. A. ( 2013 ) . Relationship Quality as Predictor of B2B Customer Loyalty. SYSTEMICS. CYBERNETICS AND INFORMATICS. 111 ( 1 ) . 72-78. Gustavsson. S. . A ; Lundgren. E. ( 2005 ) . Customer Loyalty. Lulea University of Technology. Haghkhah. A. . Abdul Hamid. A. B. . Ebrahimpour. A. . Roghanian. P. . A ; Gheysari. H. ( 2013 ) . Committedness and Customer Loyalty in Business-To-Business Context. European Journal of Business and Management. 15 ( 19 ) . 156-164. Lam. S. Y. . Shankar. V. . Erramilli. M. K. . A ; B. M. ( 2004 ) . Customer Value. Satisfaction. Loyalty. and Switch overing Costss: An Illustration From a Business-to-Business Service Context. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. 32 ( 293 ) . 294-311. Bennet. R. . A ; Bove. L. ( 2002 ) . Identifying the Key Issues for Measuring Loyalty. QUT Digital Repository. 1-29. Cater. T. . A ; Cater. B. ( 2010 ) . Merchandise and relationship quality influence on client committedness and trueness in B2B fabrication relationships. Industrial selling direction. 39 ( 8 ) . 1321-1333. Colby. C. ( 2013. December 9 ) . A New Paradigm for Understanding Customer Retention. Retrieved from Rockbridge: hypertext transfer protocol: //rockresearch. com/a-new-paradigm-for-understanding-customer-retention/ Eakuru. N. . A ; Mat. N. ( 2008 ) . The application of structural equation mold ( SEM ) in finding the ancestors of client trueness in Bankss in South Thailand. The Business Review. Cambridge. 10 ( 2 ) . 129-139. East. R. . Gendall. P. . Hammond. K. . A ; Lomax. W. ( 2005 ) . Consumer Loyalty: Remarkable. Linear or Synergistic? Australian arketing Joural. 10-17. Feihua. Q. ( 2011 ) . Customer Retention in E-commerce concern. Haaha-Helia University imperativeness. 1-56. Fullerton. G. ( 2005 ) . How commitment both enables and undermines marketing relationships. European Journal of selling. 39 ( 11 ) . 1372-1388. Gall. J. . Gall. M. . A ; Bord. W. ( 2005 ) . Using educational research: A practical usher ( 1st ed. ) . Boston: Pearzon. Hennig-Thurau. T. ( 2004 ) . Customer orientation of service employees: Its impact on client satisfaction. committedness. and keeping. International Journal of Service Industry Management. 15 ( 5 ) . 460-478. Jacobsen. D. . Olsson. M. . A ; Sjovall. A. ( 2004 ) . The Creation of Customer Loyalty. Kristianstad University. 1-71. Kuusik. A. ( 2007 ) . AFFECTING CUSTOMER LOYALTY: DO DIFFERENT FACTORS HAVE VARIOUS INFLUENCES IN DIFFERENT LOYALTY LEVELS? Tartu University Press. 1-29. Mascareigne. J. ( 2009 ) . Customer Retention. Lulea University Press. 1-88. Moorman. C. . A ; Rust. R. T. ( 1999 ) . The function of selling. The Journal of Marketing. 180-197. 63. Morgan. R. M. . A ; Hunt. S. D. ( 1999 ) . The commitment-trust theory of relationship selling. The Journal of selling. 20-38. Oy. O. ( 2010 ) . IMPROVING CUSTOMER LOYALTY THROUGH A REGULAR CUSTOMER PROGRAM. TAMPEREEN AMMATTIKORKEAKOULU University Publications. 1-45. Paalova. H. ( 2006 ) . Classs of Loyalty. Toward Meaning-based Theory of Customer Loyalty. European Advances in Consumer Research. 420-428. Ranaweera. C. . A ; Prabhu. J. ( 2003 ) . The influence of satisfaction. trust and exchanging barriers on client keeping in a uninterrupted buying scene. international diary of service industry direction. 374-395. Shabbir. H. . Palihawadana. D. . A ; Thwaites. D. ( 2007 ) . Determining the ancestors and effects of giver ?perceived relationship quality- A dimensional qualitative research attack. Psychology A ; Marketing. 24 ( 3 ) . 271-293. Sharma. N. . Young. L. . A ; Wilkinson. I. ( 2006 ) . The commitment mix: Dimensions of committedness in international trading relationships in India. Journal of International Marketing. 64-91. Stephan. B. ( 2002 ) . Customer Loyalty Programs and Clubs ( 2nd ed. ) . London: Gower Publishing. Ltd. Van Es. R. ( 2012 ) . The Relationship between Service Quality and Customer Loyalty. and its Influence on Business Model Design. Universiteit Twente. 1-85. Beginning papers

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La Sagrada Familia, the great unfinished cathedral begun by Gaudi in 1882, and La Sagrada Familia school, for the children of the construction workersCasa Vicens, Gaudis Gothic/Moorish house designed for a Spanish businessmanGuell Palace and Guell Park, Gaudi commissions from patron Eusebi Gà ¼ellColegio Teresiano, one of Antoni Gaudà ­s first commissionsCasa Calvet, a rather traditional design for GaudiGaudi-designed wall around Finca Miralles, as wavy and abstract as Frank Gehrys workCasa Batllà ³, a very colorful remodeling job by Gaudi, is located in Illa de la Discordia or the Block of Discord. 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Everything youve ever heard about Gaudi architecture may be found in the surreal summer home El Capricho. Visiting the Leà ³n Area The city of Leà ³n is roughly between Bilbao and Santiago de Compostela, in the vast Castilla y Leà ³n region of northern Spain. Casa Botines, one of only three projects Antoni Gaudà ­ built outside Catalonia, is a large, neo-Gothic apartment building.San Miguel de Escalada, a magical medieval monastary from the 9th century, a short drive from Leà ³n near the famous pilgrimage route, Way of St. James. If youre traveling from Leà ³n southeast to Madrid, stop by the Church of San Juan Bautista, Baà ±os de Cerrato near the city of Palencia. Well-reserved from 661 AD, the church is a fine example of what is called Visigothic architecture- an era when nomadic tribes dominated the Iberian peninsula. Closer to Madrid is Salamanca. The Old City of Salamanca is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Rich in historic architecture, UNESCO sites its importance in Romanesque, Gothic, Moorish, Renaissance, and Baroque monuments. If youre headed north from Leà ³n, the ancient capital city of Oviedo is home to many early Christian churches. These Pre-Romanesque Monuments of Oviedo and the Kingdom of the Asturias from the 9th century are UNESCO World Heritage sites, along with La Foncalada, a public water supply, an early example of civil engineering. Visiting Santiago de Compostela City of Culture of Galicia, an ongoing project headed by Peter EisenmanCathedral of Santiago de Compostela, a pilgrims destination at the end of the Way of St. James Visiting Valencia City of Arts and Sciences, a complex of educational buildings by Santiago Calatrava Visiting the Madrid Area The Monastery at El Escorial, in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, about 35 miles northwest of Madrid, is a UNESCO world heritage site for its historic association with royaltyCaixaForum, a Madrid museum by Swiss architects Herzog and de MeuronRoman aqueduct, 50 AD, in Segovia, northwest of Madrid Visiting the Seville Area Alcazar PalaceAlamillo Bridge Cà ³rdoba, about 90 miles northeast of Seville, is site to the Great Mosque of Cordoba in the Historic Centre of Cordoba, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Mosque/Cathedral is an architectural hybrid, claims UNESCO, that joins together many of the artistic values of East and West and includes elements hitherto unheard-of in Islamic religious architecture, including the use of double arches to support the roof. Visiting Granada Ornamentation at the Alhambra in Granada, Spain. Sean Gallup/Getty Images (cropped) Travel east of Seville a mere 150 miles to experience the Alhambra Palace, a tourists destination not to be missed. Our Cruise expert has been to Alhambra Palace and our Spain Travel expert has been to The Alhambra in Granada. In Spanish language, visit La Alhambra, Granada. It seems that everyone has been there! Visiting Zaragoza About 200 miles west of Barcelona, youll find a pedestrian bridge over the Ebro River designed in 2008 by Pritzker Laureate Zaha Hadid. This modern bridge stands in stark contrast with the historic architecture of this ancient city.

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English Literature - Essay Example He largely catered to the symbolic interpretations of his literary and made sense in understanding some aspects of the human soul. Of his works, it notably considered that Songs of Innocence and Experience made a great distinction between the contrary states of the human soul. Primarily, it is said that Songs of Innocence is different from the Songs of Experience which apparently combined and made as one. Songs of Experience is published in 1794 which is a poetry collection. It is the second book and some parts are moved to the first book which is the Songs of Innocence.1 Through the literary collection, the author contested the two books wherein on the Songs of Innocence, he showed the flourishing of human spirit with its freedom while on the other book, he showed the downfall of the human spirit after it had been forced to obey the rules. The beliefs of the author for freedom depicted his literary works such as opposing to the belief of the Anglican Church in suppressing thyself to the church’s beliefs. It is merely reflected to the book of Songs of Experience.2 Blake described the contrary of soul through the two books that signifies different themes for each. The first book, Songs of Innocence is comprised of poems that depict the innocence and happiness of the world that highlights freedom and love. It believes that being close to God means joy and enlightenment of the human soul. The author generally maintained a light theme in order to catch its readers that basically points out to children. One of the poems in the book is The Divine Image, where in Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love are the main topic. Accordingly, those are found in human with the presence of God. Through the faith to God, it is said that people can get joy and happiness that brings unity to each.3 Blake’s representation of the four virtues has been vital to the objects that cause human to be in a chaotic situation. But, this can be

The Treatment of Investments in Intellectual Property at Apple Research Paper

The Treatment of Investments in Intellectual Property at Apple - Research Paper Example While these attributes have become the focus of regulation of SFAS 2 and subsequent standards SFAS 68 and 86, the objective determination thereof remains elusive and indeterminate, and therefore open to managerial discretion. The study also comments on the differences in accounting treatment among standards, such as between the SFAS and the IAS, concerning R&D expenditures. In the past it has been found that regulations allows for large write-offs of acquired R&D in favor of the acquirer, which have been tightened by recently developed standards embodied in SFAS 141 and 142. From published reports, Apple appears substantially and formally compliant with these regulations; however, greater detail and information on specific projects unavailable in the published reports would be required by a sitting and competent body to assess whether these treatments are fully compliant with the letter and spirit of SFAS. ... How close to actuality a firm assesses the value of its assets depends upon how faithfully the accounting treatment mirrors the nature of the asset. Tangible assets are easily valued; intangible ones are more ambiguous. Of all intangible assets a technology corporation, the most important – and most difficult to assess – is its intellectual property, and the research and development effort that goes into building it. Research efforts, when successful, lay the foundation for the company’s incomes for the long-term, and therefore should be capitalized; however, since a good amount of R&D efforts are not successful, there is also a possibility that these costs would have short-term implications that does not justify depreciation into the future. This research paper will search for answers to the question: How does a high-technology company with its own proprietary research and development treat its R&D expenditures treat its research and development costs in its fin ancial reports, given that research and development efforts may or may not result in marketable products? The study shall focus on the procedure applied in Apple, Inc., the company of choice because of their high-profile, highly successful new technologies in personal communication devices, for both hardware and software. U.S. GAAP for Research and Development Expenditures The U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles is the body of accounting rules and standards according to which financial statements for companies in the U.S. are prepared, particularly publicly traded and held companies and non-profit organizations. The U.S. GAAP is embodied in the

English Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

English Literature - Essay Example He largely catered to the symbolic interpretations of his literary and made sense in understanding some aspects of the human soul. Of his works, it notably considered that Songs of Innocence and Experience made a great distinction between the contrary states of the human soul. Primarily, it is said that Songs of Innocence is different from the Songs of Experience which apparently combined and made as one. Songs of Experience is published in 1794 which is a poetry collection. It is the second book and some parts are moved to the first book which is the Songs of Innocence.1 Through the literary collection, the author contested the two books wherein on the Songs of Innocence, he showed the flourishing of human spirit with its freedom while on the other book, he showed the downfall of the human spirit after it had been forced to obey the rules. The beliefs of the author for freedom depicted his literary works such as opposing to the belief of the Anglican Church in suppressing thyself to the church’s beliefs. It is merely reflected to the book of Songs of Experience.2 Blake described the contrary of soul through the two books that signifies different themes for each. The first book, Songs of Innocence is comprised of poems that depict the innocence and happiness of the world that highlights freedom and love. It believes that being close to God means joy and enlightenment of the human soul. The author generally maintained a light theme in order to catch its readers that basically points out to children. One of the poems in the book is The Divine Image, where in Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love are the main topic. Accordingly, those are found in human with the presence of God. Through the faith to God, it is said that people can get joy and happiness that brings unity to each.3 Blake’s representation of the four virtues has been vital to the objects that cause human to be in a chaotic situation. But, this can be

Okonkwo Essay Example for Free

Okonkwo Essay Some regard the arts as having an extra-artistic cognitive function, that they have a message about mans place in the world which might have social or political implications. For example, there might be a case for supposing that the arts have an important function as a medium for social criticism and transformation. In any case, there is a widespread belief that the arts have a higher purpose to educate by encouraging introspection and sometimes making us think about how we should live our lives. Two heads are better than one. Learning nd working in groups involves shared or learned values, resources, and ways of doing things. Group projects can reinforce skills that are relevant to both group and individual work, including the ability to: break task into parts, plan and manage time and gain communication skills. What strategies were used? Many of my classmates including myself would have preferred to work on this project individually, however every now and then more hands make for lighter work. When my partner and I got together to begin our project we had decided to split the project in half. Same an equal amount of work. I wouldnt say we used and specific strategies to begin the Mexican Revolution project. We did however follow the some of the guidelines of the design cycle to begin which included: plan, investigate, design and create. What knowledge was acquired? Because my partner had so much knowledge of the Mexican Revolution, she was able to help me clearly understand/clarify certain things that had occurred that I was uncertain of. Because we had to do some research on our own I gained more on the revolution, to the porfiriato era where porfito Diaz himself introduced railroads, to ow important the constitution was for the people. What skills were utilized and developed? Group projects can also help students develop skills to collaborative efforts, allowing students such as myself to: delegate roles and responsibilities, share perspectives, knowledge and skills, hold one another and be held accountable. (We were able to use pervious knowledge from class and what we have been taught to be able to complete the project. I was able to develop and gain more knowledge of the Mexican revolution because of my partners knowledge. ) What will be done ditterently in the tuture? A lot of things will be done differently in the future. Time management of course. We ended up doing it the same week it was due which caused some stress on each of us individually. Although we completed out project in time I would have liked to have started planning the week she told us Just to have had a head start and know what we were doing then actually doing it last minute and not really knowing what we were going to do. Even if we decided to split the work, I would have wanted to still worked together since it was a group project. But above all, it was a great experience working with another individual. 378

Organisational Structure of Geodrill Limited

Organisational Structure of Geodrill Limited Introduction Geodrill Limited is an exploration drilling contractor, which was incorporated in the Isle of Man in June 1998 and centers its attention on the mining industry in West Africa. It operates in 3 West African countries, which are Burkina Faso, Ghana and the Cote DIvoire through an entirely owned subsidiary, Geodrill Ghana Limited. The Head Office is located in Accra, Ghana and manages operations throughout the West African region. However, there are only two operating entities, Geodrill Ghana Limited and Geodril CI SARL in Cote DIvoire . Geodrill Ltd (Isle of Man) operates contracts in Burkina Faso. The two entities are whole owned subsidiaries of Geodrill Ltd ( Isle of Man). Geodrill Ltd. has 2 issued shares owned by Blue Croft Limited and Red Croft Limited. All drill rigs were bought new except ore 650/1 which was bought second hand in the year 2000. Geodrill started operations in Ghana in 1998 with one UDR 900 multi-purpose drill rig and in 1999 added another. At the end of December 1999, Geodrill owned 10 UDR multi-purpose Drill rigs all with boosters, auxiliary compressors, modern fleet of MAN trucks, track support vehicles and light vehicles. Geodrill also owns three core only Sandvik DE 710 crawler mounted drill rigs and two Auztex Air core truck mounted rigs. Current expansion in 2010 includes two additional rigs bringing total fleet to seventeen. It is envisaged that by the end of 2010 the fleet size in terms of drill rigs will be twenty. The rigs to be added in 2010, while still of the UDR make (have recently changed to Sandvik) depart from existing strategy by being specialized drill rigs. Two of the rigs will offer RAB services while the other offer Air Core. The entire maintenance operations of Geodrill Limited is carried out at Anwian Kwanta a suburb of Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. It is based on a 10 acre land which has a modern workshop, offices and accommodation for both expatriates and nationals. The workshop strictly adheres to world class safety standards. Our health and safety and environmental program was designed by Tracmin to at a minimum comply with Australian safety standards. Ownership and Directors Geodrill Limited has a Trust set up by Dave Harper, currently the Managing Director of the group. He is also the Chairman and CEO of Geodrill Ghana Limited, the operating entity in West Africa. The Trust is held by the City Trust firm based in Douglas, the Isle of Man, on behalf of the Harper Family Trust of Perth, Australia. It has 2 issued shares. The other director of Geodrill Ghana Limited is Terry Burling who is also the Operations Manager of the firm. Figure 1: Organisational Structure of Geodrill  [1]   The Organisational Structure Management Dave Harper is the Managing Director and CEO. He has about 30 years of experience in the drilling industry having worked both in Australia and West Africa. He started working in Ghana in 1991 as General Manager of SMS, an exploration drilling firm. Mr. Harper, a driller by profession, resigned in 1996 and set up Geodrill 2 years later. The CEO is directly responsible for project flow and contracting with clients, client relations, invoicing and acquisition of major equipment. He also leads in setting corporate and business strategy. He is assisted by 2 departmental managers. Terry Burling is the Operations Manager with 20 years of experience in the drilling industry. He previously worked with SMS in New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and in Ghana. Fortunately for the company, Terry Burling is an expert in both the mechanical and exploration aspects of the profession. His skills span drilling, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and fabrication. Greg Conroy is the FA Manager. He has worked in that capacity at several exploration drilling and mining firms including SMS (Ghana), Equigold CI SARL (Ivory Coast). He has over 20 years of experience in the industry. Conroy started working with the company in December 2008, having taken over from a Ghanaian who had been in the position since Geodrill was established and also previously worked with SMS. The FA Manager is directly responsible for managing relationships with all external stakeholders except clients. The Structure of the Firm Geodrill has about 120 staff organized into 2 departments, Operations and Administration. There are 4 sections under Operations: Exploration, Maintenance, Stores and HSE. Exploration performs the drilling required by clients; the core activity of the company. The Exploration workers are organized in crews of 4 per rig per shift of 12 hours, therefore 8 per workday. A Site Supervisor manages all aspects of the project being undertaken including a cash expense budget, accommodation, liaises with the clients representation usually a geologist, and supervises the crew. If its a large project with 2 or more rigs present, a store is set-up and stocked with consumables. In this case too there may be one or more supervisor. The Exploration staff typically constitutes about 80% of the staff strength. Maintenance provides engineering back up services for repairs and maintenance. This section also fabricates a lot of equipment including heavy duty, pneumatic vehicles. They work out of one of the most advanced workshops in West Africa and drive out to offer on-site support in their modified and well-equipped Land Cruiser pick-ups. The Store section manages the stock of consumables, fuel and spare parts. Though many firms in the industry treat stock as finance and accounting function because of its effect on profitability, Geodrill has placed its Store as Operations to better ensure closer integration with the core functions of the business. Decisions on purchases are made with paramount regard to the necessity of the item for project execution rather than cost or any other consideration. Requests routinely originate from the Supervisors and are validated by the Operations Manager. The Health, Safety and Environment section oversees the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of Health, Safety and Enviornment standards that, at a minimum, are required to conform to Australian mandated standards. The Australian standard is regarded as the most stringent for drilling firms globally and much higher than what is required in Ghana. Setting that as the minimum standard is a purely discretionary decision by Geodrills Chief Executive Officer. The Administration department is made up of Accounts, Human Resource, Information Technology and Logistics. The Accounts section is responsible for all financial reporting including management reports and statutory reports. Geodrill tracks income by drill rig and by project. Major direct expenses such as fuel are tracked by drill rig and project. The Accounts section also manage the monthly cash budget. Human Resource section coordinates with departmental managers in the recruitment process, the setting of salaries and promotions. Salary levels are determined according to the hierarchy (organizational structure) and each band has 3 sub-levels. Junior employees earn a basic salary and overtime for work done beyond 8 hours in a weekday. For senior employees, a fixed salary that consolidates both a base pay and overtime is determined and their pay does not vary by the hours done. The section prepares the payroll and executes payments. The Logistics section act as a go-between with Stores, and the rest of the company to ensure that procurements, imports and exports and immigration requirements for expatriate workers are smoothly executed. Services Geodrill provides Reverse Circulation and Core Drilling services. The object of all prospective drilling is to get samples from different depths below the surface. The two basic methods are cuttings recovery and core recovery. Reverse circulation drilling falls in the first category and diamond core drilling in the second. Reverse Circulation Reverse Circulation is the method of choice for obtaining consistently high quality rock chip samples with speed and efficiency. Geodrill provides reverse circulation drilling using the latest Face Sampling hammers and equipment drilling holes with 140mm diameter to depths of between 50 400 meters. In terms of pricing, this drilling methodology is positioned in the middle. It is more expensive than RAB and Air Core drilling but less costly than diamond drilling. It is the most commonly used method. It collects samples from depth by pulverizing the rock which is then blown up through an inner tube and collected in a sample bag. Diamond Core Drilling This technique is used to drill to about 1500m deep. A diamond-impregnated drill bit cuts a core of rock hence the name Diamond core. The core sample is removed at intervals and catalogued. This is a much more expensive drilling method. Directional Drilling Geodrill provides the Deep Directional drilling using Down Hole Motor and Wedging; to control deviation so target is achieved, to intersect targets below inaccessible locations, to alter course of a drill hole to intersect target and to allow multiple target intersections by deviating branch holes from a parent hole. Two other types of drilling, common in the industry but not previously offered by Geodrill, are RAB and Air core drilling. These are most ideal for shallow depths, are speedier and cheaper for clients. THE EXPLORATION INDUSTRY IN WEST AFRICA Market and Industry Geodrills current client list includes Newmount Ghana Gold, Golden Star Resources, Keegam Resources, Perseus Mining, Azumah Resources, Castle Minerals, Lihir Equigold, in Cote dIvoire, Ampella Mining and Gryphon Minerals both in Burkina Faso. Geodrill is currently the market leader in Ghana with about 35% of the market share. In 2009, 50% operating capacity in Ghana, 20% in Cote dIvoire and 30% in Burkina Faso. Geodrill hopes to increase operations in Burkina Faso in the near future as that industry is less saturated than Ghana in terms of competition and there are a lot of contracts readily available. For 2010, the order book is full including 2 new rigs on order. Geodrill is still receiving invitations to tender on contracts all over West Africa in Gold and base metals. Geodrills competitors in Ghana are Boart Longyear, AMS exploration, Pontil Minerix, Drillmasters and Burwash. In Cote dIvoire, their competitors are Boart Longyear CI, Ore-ex and Drill ex. In Burkina Faso, its Boart Longyear BR and West Africa Drilling Services. Current industry challenges include price competitiveness, and the labour market beginning to tighten. Opportunities include gold and commodities boom, an influx of active exploration companies into West Africa and improving political stability in the region. The mining, energy and infrastructure markets are expected to see the hightes neer to medium term growth in the sub Saharan African region. In general, mining companies with a higher percentage of long term renewable contracts are viewed as being lower risk and Geodrill prefers to deal with such clients. Analysis of the Industry There is no substitute for exploration drilling services in the mining industry. The exploration process progresses from initial studies of the geological structure of an area, a history of mining and other indicators of prospective potential. However, actual samples must always be collected both from the surface and at depth to determine the actual presence of mineral. This collection of samples from depth can only be done by drilling down into the ground. The threat of new entrants probably offers competitive pressure to existing firms in the West African market. The mining industry is made up of many small firms but dominated by a few very large firms. Exploration drilling, though it has a tangible end product in the form of samples, is really a service and depends as much on relationships as on the quality of the sample. It is a capital-intensive business but any entity that can get access to about $3m in start-up capital can start with a second hand rig, some spare parts and consumables. The exploration drilling firms usually operate under the umbrella of the client and so are indirectly regulated hence regulatory issues will not hinder a start-up. The exploration drilling business is characterised by short drill programmes (contract duration of 3 months to 1 year). Each drill programme can be properly viewed as a real option, and determines the next step for the client. The level of activity is driven by the ease of fundraising on the capital markets and the price of gold as it determines the value of any find. The drilling service is homogenous in nature, hardly differentiated except by the speed and efficiency of execution and the safety record of the drilling firm. There is not much collaboration among the firms. Suppliers of major inputs such as drilling consummables are quite powerful when the industry is booming. When the price of gold falls or the capital markets are not doing well, there is usually an excess of serviceable second hand equipment available. This dilutes the power of the suppliers somewhat. The sources of consumables are many hence the suppliers here are much less powerful than the suppliers of equipment. There are two types of clients: Mining firms and exploration firms. The mining firms have operating mines and earn revenue from selling the gold that they mine. The exploration firms hold concessions and carry out drill programs to determine their potential. Exploration firms do not earn operating revenues; they earn a return eventually by selling the concession if it is proven to have the potential to yield some gold. Therefore, exploration firms finance their drill programs by raising equity on the capital markets. The clients are very powerful and price sensitive. Drill programs tend to be one of the largest costs of the client. For both types of clients, it determines the life and value of the business. Accounting Policies Drill rigs undergo major rebuilds to extend their life span every 3 5 years. The cost is capitalized. Depreciation rates are 10% for drill rigs, 20% as plant and equipment, 20% on motor vehicles, 20% on furniture and fittings and 5% on land and buildings. Currency of record is the US dollar. Audited financial statements are submitted to the internal revenue service and taxes are paid in US dollars. Geodrill is permitted by the Minerals Commission and Bank of Ghana to receive at least 50% and Bank of Ghana to receive at least 50% of its drilling income in US dollars. Financial year ends on 31st December. Organisation Strategy From inception, management decided it did not want a Workers Union. Management instead formed an informal workers committee which is made up of senior employees and who are nationals for that matter. Management then acts as a union and seeks to ensure the general welfare of workers in consultation with the workers committee. This is itself is unique in an industry where unions are common. 2. Geodrill operates only in West Africa whereas its key competitors operates globally. From Ghana the chairman who also doubles as the chief executive officer oversees everything. This gives Geodrill the advantage to follow the market more closely and adopt quickly. For its competitors, there might be a general manager heading a particular region who will lack final authority on decision making. 3. Geodrill adheres to a strict healthy, safety and environment policy and as much as possible used brand new equipment which are serviced regularly and kept in top shape by the operations department from its workshop which is fitted out with the most advanced equipment needed. Competitors often deploy other rigs that have been in service in other parts of the globe and this gives Geodrilll an edge over competitors when it comes to contract execution. 4. Geodrill has more nationals in their top hierarchy than its competitors. Locals are found in management positions usually reserved for expatriates among their competitors. This enables management to keep the wage bill lower than that of their competitors because nationals severally earn lower than expatriates while at the same time motivating nationals to give off their best because they know the top positions are not kept for only expatriates. 5. Geodrill pays higher than market rates and keeps job content interesting so as to attract the best men available and also maintain them. To lay off full time permanent employees however, is difficult under the labour laws of Ghana and other West African states hence Geodrill keeps 80% of nationals on 2 year contracts renewable so far as the company has contracts to support number of staff. If rigs become idle then the workers on that rig can be laid off with a months salary in lieu of notice and are recalled when a contract is secured for that rig.

Comparing Imagery in Frosts Acquainted with the Night and Sexton s He

Imagery in Frost's Acquainted with the Night and Sexton 's Her Kind In order to maximize meaning and overall total effect of a piece of work, writers use various literary devices. These techniques enhance the author's work and add a dimension that results in higher reader satisfaction. Throughout the poems I have read this quarter thus far, I have discovered the use of imagery as a prominent source of literary embellishment. In particular the image of night is used in poems "Acquainted with the Night," written by Robert Frost, and "Her Kind," written by Anne Sexton, to portray a dark and lonely tone. All through both poems there is a dark feeling due to word selection and associations to evil things. The use of night in both cases helps to solidify the idea of loneliness. Each poem puts to work the same image to create the same affect but each work has slight differences and similarities in the way it makes night apply to loneliness. Imagery can be presented in many different ways. A strong image of night exists all over Robert Frost's piece, "Acquainted with the Night," due to a very descriptive representation of things that happen or belong to the night. By simply describing the details of night Frost can paint a picture of a lonely man. The key to using imagery is to choose images that have very distinct characteristics that associate themselves with that image. Frost's idea of choosing night to portray a sense of being alone is due to the connections of cold, dark, wet and unknowns that go along with the night. The same affect would not be able to be created if the ... ...unt the night with power. Through the use of imagery the writer is able to apply several different meanings by using one simple image. This makes the poems overall affect more efficient in making its point. The composition has become less wordy and is able to make a vivid scene with out the need of extensive descriptions. Examining the differences and similarities of the two different applications of night as an image of loneliness, is a good way to determine what the overall feel of the poem is. When reading these works one must take the existing mold of an image and see if there are any dual meanings of why the author chose that particular concept. The use of an image as a literary devise allows the piece to touch its readers on a more personal level.