Royal Enfield

Royal Enfield – Brand Rejuvenation of Motorcycle in India The year 2000 could have been decisive. That was when the board of directors at Eicher Motors decided to either shut down or sell off Royal Enfield – the company's Chennai-based motorcycle division, which manufactured the iconic Bullet motorbikes. For all its reputation, the sales of the bike was down to 2,000 units a month against the plant's installed capacity of 6,000; losses had been mounting for years. Just one person stood up to the board, insisting Royal Enfield should get another chance.He was Siddhartha Lal, a third generation member of the Delhi-based Lal family, promoters of the Eicher group of companies. Lal, then 26, was an unabashed Bullet fan: he even rode a red coloured Bullet while leading the baraat (procession) to his wedding venue, instead of the traditional horse. â€Å"The board agreed to give me a chance,† says Lal. â€Å"It was not because of its confidence in me, but because the b usiness was doing so badly it could hardly get any worse. † Lal felt Royal Enfield could still be saved. The bike had its reputation, a cult following, an instantly recognisable build, and aspirational value.Changes had to be made to keep up with the times and make the bike more acceptable, and there in lay the problem. Royal Enfield fans liked the bikes exactly the way they had always been. â€Å"We needed changes to attract new customers but by doing so risked losing existing ones,† says R. L. Ravichandran, whom Lal brought in as CEO in 2005 as part of his revival effort. Ravichandran had earlier worked with both TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto. â€Å"We were in a peculiar situation,† he adds. Rejuvenating Times The change had to be a calibrated one.The mistaken notions of prospective customers had to be addressed, and any reservations about Bullet and Thunderbird, which was launched in 2002, removed. At the same time, Lal and Ravichandran were clear that the individu ality of Royal Enfield bikes should not be compromised. â€Å"We did not want to go down the commuter route, but instead looked at the leisure segment,† says Ravichandran. Retaining the bikes' rugged looks was a given, including the build, the design of the head lamp and the petrol tank. But should the gears be shifted close to the rider's left foot – as in most bikes – or retained on the right side?The question gave Lal and his team many sleepless nights, since long time users were dead opposed to the change. The engine was another thorny question. The old cast iron engine was a relic of the past. Its separate gear box and oil sump design made it prone to oil leaks and it seized up very often. Its ability to meet increasingly strict emission norms was also suspect. A modern aluminium engine would eliminate these problems, but it would lack the old engine's pronounced vibrations and beat – which Royal Enfield customers loved.Laws of physics made it imposs ible to replicate these with the new engine. The new engine had 30 per cent fewer parts and produced 30 per cent more power than the old, with better fuel efficiency. By 2010, all Royal Enfield models had begun to use the new engine. Two other problems needed to be addressed: the quality of some of the components Royal Enfield bikes were using, and the sales experience. The case is prepared by Prof. Sanjay Patro and Aby Abraham, XLRI Jamshedpur for academic purpose only. It is not to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a business situation To tackle the first, shop floor process were fine e ses e-tuned, whil suppliers w exhorte to le were ed improve qua ality levels. R Royal Enfield also embar d rked on a larg scale inter exercise to tone ge rnal e up performa ance. â€Å"We de eclared 2006 as the year o getting bac to the bas of ck sics,† says Ravichandra â€Å"We also formed a fie quality ra an. eld apid action fo to bridg the gap bet orce ge tween custo mer expectations an the reality nd y. † Slowly, the tide turned. E t Engine relate problems and oil leaka ed ages in the b bikes were tackled first.By 2008 de ealers were reporting lo ower worklo oads in the workshops. Warranty c claims fell sharply too. Royal Enfi ield also beg conduct gan ting marquee rides to promote leisu biking. e ure â€Å"Such steps removed the fears abou our produc reliability some customers may h ut cts' y have had,† says Venki Padmanabh han, who su ucceeded R Ravichandran as CEO e n earlier this year after Ravichandra was eleva an ated to the b board of Eich Motors. To improve sales exper her e rience new expanded. company-ow wned sho owrooms were la aunched and dea alershipsIn October 2008, Roya Enfield lau al unched in G Germany its newly desig gned 500cc Classic mod – inspire by J2, a del ed 1950 model Bullet – wit the new engine. It was a success, th admired fo its pe for erformance and fuel economy. Emboldened Lal launch it in In d, hed ndia in Nove ember 2009 initially as a 350 cc b bike, priced at Rs 1. 20 lakh. This proved a hit too. â€Å"Now, our capacit utilisation is 100 per t , ty n cent. Yet there is a six month waiting period for hs deliveries,† says Venk â€Å"We pla to doub our cap ki. an ble pacity soon to 1. 5 lak bikes. kh Changing T Times According to industry body, the Soc ciety of India Automob Manufac an bile cturers, the In ndian twost l e wheeler industry is expected to pos an annual growth of 11-12 per cent, and the market is expected to double ever four years till 2020. A ry s According to data from Nomura and Crisil, as o d 0 wo-wheelers were sold in India 20 011-12. Vehi icles in the executive many as 10 million tw segment form the bulk of sales at 6. 5 million, f med k 6 followed by the economy segment (1. 8 million) y and premium segment (1 million). m 1. The recent series of hike in the price of petrol h s es have played a significant role in the sa of twoale wheeler s, ac ccording to S SIAM, as mo first-time four-wheel buyers in rural India and tier II ost e ler n and tier III c cities have d deferred their purchases. Two-wheelers account for a very h high 76 per cent of mar rket share in the autom n mobile sector in Asia’s third-largest economy. Passenger r t vehicles account for 16. 2 per cent. 25 According to a recent H t Human Deve elopment Re eport by UN NDP, India i one of the youngest is e nations with the median age being 29 yrs by the year 2020.A the pene h And etration figur of 35% res Urban and 1 14% rural in ndicates that there going to be a per g riod of grow in the tw wheeler wth wo market. Challenging Times g The compet tition in high ‘cc' two wheeler seg her gment is heat ting up. Bajaj (Pulsar 35 NS, Rs 50 1. 75 lakh), Yamaha (Sp ports bike F FZ1, a 998cc motorcycle, at a price tag of Rs 8. 7 lakh), c e Kawasaki N Ninja 650, etc are burning the rubber t enthrall In c g to ndian youths. 2 Rajiv Bajaj, Managing Direc tor of Bajaj Auto, the 2nd Largest Motor cycle manufacturing Company of India, said â€Å"We have recognized the different needs of the customers of our high end bikes.To cater to these needs we have established separate stores called as â€Å"Bajaj Probiking Showrooms at in the major cities across the country. The Kawasaki Bajaj Ninja is available exclusively through Probiking Showrooms. † Bajaj has joined hands with KTM of Austria a bike manufacturer since 1934 and has brought higher end motorcycles in India under the brand KTM Duke. Hero Moto Corp after separation of its ties with Honda has become more aggressive. Honda charting out its solo journey wants to bring the best of the world to one of the fasted growing market of India. These are the few competitors to name.Many more will follow. Entry of Harley Davidson into India added new flavour to the higher end segment. HarleyDavidson India commenced operations in August 2009 and appointed the first dealership in July 201 0. Since early 2011, Harley-Davidson has been assembling motorcycles in India at its CKD (Completely-Knocked-Down) assembly unit at Bawal in Haryana. India is the second country where Harley-Davidson has CKD assembly operations outside the US, after Brazil. Harley-Davidson currently offers a range of 14 models from each of its 5 families – Sportster, Dyna, Softail, V-Rod and Touring.Each of the five Harley-Davidson motorcycle families boasts of a distinct character and caters to the varied sensibilities of the broad range of customers. Road Ahead Siddharth Lal observed that it grew at 42% and could sell 74,626 bikes during the year 2011. Venki is excited about the fact that demand has more than doubled and Enfield can supply and he is not bothered about the market share figures as they see themselves in a different league. In his words ‘it is more about the context of the product†, the product-market ‘. â€Å"Royal Enfield is a leisure brand that it enables customer to enjoy leisure†. It is an involving and engaging motor cycle† . The bike demands for continued caring kind of interaction from its riders that leads them to develop a emotional bond. Today, Royal Enfield's problems are of a different kind. It needs to scale up without diluting brand equity. From being the most expensive bike on Indian roads, today it faces challenges from iconic global brands such as Harley-Davidson which has entered the Indian market. With other competitors getting battle ready,how can it hold on to customers through the waiting period of six to eight months.Driving change when the chips are down is easy, when there is no other option. In Royal Enfield's case the? What would be your recommendations to Mr. Venki Padmamnabhan, CEO, with regard to its future roadmap, Product strategy, Brand Management /engagement and Marketing strategy? 3 Exhibit 1 Production figures for 2012 Jan-12 Hero Motocorp Ltd. 458848 7303 Royal Enfield 76 Harley David's Feb-12 479927 8005 116 Mar-12 502208 9004 104 Apr-12 485325 9013 104 May-12 515627 9256 100 Jun-12 517848 9265 74 Jul-12 469951 10057 90 Aug-12 401194 10237 86 Sep-12 367869 10255 87 Oct-12 426307 10606 78Exhibit 2 Harley Davidson Bikes Price list India Harley Davidson Super Low Price In India : 5. 5 lakh Harley Davidson IRON 883 Price In India : 6. 5 lakh Harley Davidson 883 Roadster Price in India : 7. 5 lakh Harley Davidson Forty-Eight Price In India : 8. 5 lakh Harley Davidson Nightster Price In India : 9. 95 lakh Harley Davidson XR1200x Price In India : 11. 95 lakh Harley Davidson Street bob Price In India : 13. 95 lakh Harley Davidson Super Glide Custom Price In India : 15. 45 lakh Harley Davidson Fat Boy Price In India : 19. 2 lakh Harley Davidson FLSTFB Fat boy Special Price In India : 19. lakh Harley Davidson Haritage softail classic Price In India : 20. 2 lakh Harley Davidson Night ROD Special Price In India : 19. 55 lakh Harley Davidson Road king Price In India : 22. 45 lakh Harley Davidson Street glide Price In India : 24. 2 lakh Harley Davidson CVO ultra classic electra glide Price : 34. 95 lakh Exhibit 3 Royal Enfield Bikes Price List in India 2012 : Royal Enfield Classic Chrome – 1,67,000 Royal Enfield Desert Storm – 1,57,000 Royal Enfield Electra 5 S – 69,000 Royal Enfield Bullet 500 Classic 1,23,000 Royal Enfield Thunderbird K.S. 89,000 Royal Enfield Bullet 350 ES – 85,600 Royal Enfield Machismo 350 – 78,000 Royal Enfield Electra 4 S – 93,100 Royal Enfield Machismo 500 – 1,04,000 Royal Enfield Thunderbird S. S – 1,07,000 Royal Enfield Bullet 350 UCE – Rs. 99,500 Royal Enfield Electra Twinspark ES – Rs. 1,11,000 Royal Enfield Electra Twinspark KS – Rs. 1,07,000 Royal Enfield Thunderbird Twinspark – Rs. 1,16,000 Royal Enfield Thunderbird 500 – Rs. 1,66,000 4 -2: l Exhibit- Bajaj: Driving the Power Revolution with Pulsar 5 Exhibit: 3: Harley Davidsonâ€⠄¢s Advertisements in india t 6

Although It Is a Ghost Story, a Christmas Carol Is an Uplifting Tale Essay

Although it is a ghost story, A Christmas Carol is an uplifting tale. To what extent do you agree? A Christmas carol by Charles Dickens is a significant novella written in the Victorian era. The protagonist Ebenezer Scrooge is used to demonstrate the upper class society and their attitude towards the poor. Throughout this redemption story, Dickens combines a descriptions of hardships faced by the poor with a heart-felt sentimental celebration of the Christmas season. The novella contains a dramatic and comic element as well as a deep felt moral theme. The text promotes the values of Ebenezer Scrooge, delving into his past, present and supposed future as well as contrasting between the enriching and depressing story; specifically evaluating the authors message, the Cratchit family, Scrooges nature and alternatively the ghostly circumstances outlined in the parable. Dickens message and the spirits of Christmas is one that intends to inspire and uplift the reader. The author has carefully constructed Ebenezer Scrooge as a â€Å"covetous old sinner† to demonstrate the uplifting meaning of the novella. Although Scrooge is an extreme example of a miser perhaps Dickens is saying there is a little of Scrooge in all of us whether it is an unwillingness to share our money with the poor and disadvantaged or our time with people in need. This idea is represented when two portly gentleman visit Scrooge and he explains, â€Å"I help to support the establishments I have mentioned, they cost enough.† In this instance Dickens strives to promotes the idea that no matter how crooked, anyone can change through the learning of appropriate lessons to inspire the reader. The author manipulates the readers emotions by enriching the sympathy of the Cratchit family. The Cratchit family are the perfect example of the difficulties faced by the poor in Victorian England. As Scrooge is visited by the ghost of Christmas Present, â€Å"a jolly giant, glorious to see,† and the life of the Cratchits and Tiny Tims condition is revealed there is an almost instantaneous transformation in Scrooge. We see this when Scrooge pleads, â€Å"Tell me if Tiny Tim will live†¦ Say he will be spared!† We can see from this that Scrooge shows compassion and that Dickens is aiming to elevate the feelings toward Scrooge and the ghostly story. The author illustrates that Scrooge who is depicted as â€Å"hard and sharp as a flint† is a greedy miser whom is so old and coldhearted that nothing other than his profits will phase him. Dickens uses the scene when the ghost of Christmas past, â€Å"a child-like old man† uses flashbacks to show Scrooge of the memories he once made to show the nature of the much younger character. This is evident when Fan â€Å"a little girl much younger than Scrooge† had brought out the affection of her older brother as they planned â€Å"to be together all the Christmas long, and have the merriest time in all the world.† What is important about this example is not just that it shows the compassion Scrooge once felt but also that Scrooge is not truly crooked and horrible to the core establishing the uplifting and inspiring feeling to readers. The title of the novella, A Christmas Carol, is immediately recognized by the reader as hardly appropriate for the first stave. Stave one does not resemble the happy and cheerful world of Christmas trees and presents, but instead the reader is exposed to, what can only be described as, ‘ghost story’ features. Ghost stories are meant to be scary, typically the ghosts that appear in this genre bring nothing but evil, but in this particular parable the trio of ghosts aim to help Scrooge. This is why the opening sentence â€Å"Marley was dead, to begin with† is particularly strange. Even though it is a ghost story, the ghostly circumstances of the tale help to highlight the uplifting messages and examples in the story. Dickens message to readers, The Cratchit family and Scrooges nature are all vital in the fulfilling and uplifting story of A Christmas Carol. The heart felt theme and comic element are all used well in order to inspire and influence the readers emotions towards each character. Dickens has achieved this using gothic literature and the ghostly features of the story. Overall, the author has used the learning of appropriate lessons to inspire and uplift the reader. Why has the title A Christmas Carol been chosen to represent what seems to be a ghost story?

Periodic Classification of Elements

Periodic Classification of Elements Classification of Elements according to electron configuration ( type of subshell being filled) *valence electrons –outer electrons of atom which are those involved in chemical bonding ; accounts for similarities in chemical behavior among elemens within each of this groups * Representative elements/ Main Group elements * Group 1A-7A * Incompletely filled s/ p subshells Display a wide range of physical and chemical properties * Most reactive and most predictable with respect to periodic properties * most abundant elements on the earth, in the solar system, and in the universe * Group number equals the number of electrons in the highest / outermost energy level H  Ã‚  Ã‚  1s1| Li  Ã‚  Ã‚  2s1| Na  Ã‚  Ã‚  3s1| * Noble Gases * Group 8A * Completely filled p subshell (exc. He) * Great stability * Except krypton and xenon, elements in noble gases are totally inert chemically * The noble gases are all found in minute quantities in the atmos phere, and are isolated by fractional distillation of liquid air. helium| 1s2| neon| [He]2s22p6| argon| [Ne]3s23p6| * Transition Metals * Group 1B and 3B-8B * Incompletely filled d subshells * Readily produce cations * ductile and malleable, and conduct electricity and heat * exhibit several common oxidation states * Less predictable properties * 2B (Zinc, Mercury etc. )- neither representative elements nor transition metals * Transition metal compounds are  paramagnetic  when they have one or more unpaired  d  electrons. Sc 4s23d1| Ti 4s23d2| V 4s23d3| * Inner Transition Metals Lanthanides/rare earth series- Follow lanthanum Actinides- follow actinium; most of these elements are not found in nature but have been synthesized * Incompletely filled f subshells * Cerium: 1s22s22p63s23p64s23d104p65s24d105p66s24f2 Praseodymium:1s22s22p63s23p64s23d104p65s24d105p66s24f3 Electron Configurations of Cations and Anions Ions derived from Representative Elements Cation- electrons removed Anion- electrons added Isoelectronic – ions or atoms and ions that have the same number of electrons, and hence the same ground state electron configuration Cations derived from transition Metals Prepared By: Monina Te

Marketing Plan for beauty salon The Tulip Term Paper

Marketing Plan for beauty salon The Tulip - Term Paper Example Threats 4.0 Objectives and Issues†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦7 i. Objectives ii. Issues 5.0 Marketing Strategy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..8 i. Positioning ii. Product/Service Strategy iii. Pricing Strategy iv. Distribution Strategy v. Marketing Communications Strategy vi. Marketing Research vii. Marketing Organization 6.0 Action Programs..................................................................................................................11 7.0 Budgets†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚ ¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦..12 8.0 Controls†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 9.0 Conclusion†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 10.0 Appendices†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Marketing Plan for beauty salon â€Å"The Tulip† I. Executive summary â€Å"The Tulip† beauty salon is devoted to providing customer satisfactio n by offering them an extremely pleasant experience with top notch service and products in a soothing and serene atmosphere at an exceptionally reasonable cost. Mission: To supply products and services aimed at enhancing beauty while providing an atmosphere for the customers to unwind in. â€Å"The Tulip† beauty salon aims at a market that is ripe for its kind of service and product provision. In this fast paced capitalist world, people more than ever need time to unwind and tend to their bodies and â€Å"The Tulip’ provides them with just the opportunity. An idyllic location has been short listed for â€Å"The Tulip† that is located in XYZ shopping mall very close to Qatar’s main business district. This will allow for women with busy corporate lives to still be able to make time for their beauty regimen due to sheer convenience of location. Customer demand will also be generated from the neighboring residential districts where employed as well as unempl oyed women will make â€Å"The Tulip† their regular choice for beauty salon. â€Å"The Tulip’s† owner, Lucy Jane Marie is a beauty and cosmetology expert who is renowned in her field and has widespread understanding of this business. Due to the owners past success and fame, she will be able to attract additional loyal customers for â€Å"The Tulip†. â€Å"The Tulip’s† competitive edge lies in several factors. First and foremost is its central location, which is within easy access of the target market and gets a lot of foot traffic due to being located in a large and successful shopping mall. Secondly, the beauty salon provides and atmosphere and ambience that is contributes to relaxation, pleasure and beautification of the customer while radiating professionalism. Moreover, there is the convenience factor which is enhanced by setting salon hours around the general schedules of working women. For added convenience â€Å"The Tulip† beau ty salon provides a wide range of products and services so that the customers can avail all beauty related services at the same place and not have to go to different salons for different products and services. Finally, â€Å"The Tulip† beauty salon has the added advantage of gaining from the reputation of its owner Lucy Jane Marie who has been renowned in this industry for many years. II. Current Marketing Situation A. Market

ADULT DEV CASE3 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

ADULT DEV CASE3 - Research Paper Example Shreeve (2008) presented literature on educational models that are designed to solicit active participation from learners. The lecture-based learning (LBL) is the conventional method wherein information are conveyed through lecture and objective examinations (Shreeve, 2008). Critics of LBL presented that most students does not exhibit true learning, instead, they are more concerned on passing the objective examinations (Shreeve, 2008). On the other hand, adult-based learning (ABL) serves the purpose of imparting knowledge based on the adult’s need (Shreeve, 2008). Through recognition of the relevance of the topic to their lives, the adult learner can be more diligent in studying (â€Å"Adult Learning†). Another model cited by Shreeve (2008) is the problem-based learning (PBL), wherein the emphasis is on the adults as participants. In this model, the teacher acts as a simple coordinator, while the students are the ones responsible for initiating, diagnosing and concludin g the discussions (Shreeve, 2008). While the three models mentioned mostly dealt with people discussions and lectures, another model has its foundation based on experience. A Professor of Organizational Behavior, David Kolb formed experiential learning theory (ELT) in consideration to the works of renowned theorists Piaget, Dewey, and Lewin (Smith, 2001). ELT highlights the learner’s experience instead of focusing on the instructor (Shreeve, 2008). Another educational model which is relatively new, as described by Shreeve (2008) is Appreciative Inquiry (AI). In this method, a cycle is implemented wherein the learners are entitled to participate in a discussion. This method closely resembles PBL and ELT, the difference is that AI is leaned more on the positive side of every discussion (Shreeve, 2008). It also identifies the past and is more focused on developing potentials. Through examination of all educational models,

New technology in the workforce Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

New technology in the workforce - Article Example This is why Google is trying to penetrate its product called Google Glass in the workplace and organizations. Google Glass can be a very helpful technology in enhancing the productivity at the workplace. It can be used as a tool for providing on the job training. This device can help in providing instructions to the employees while they are working on their tasks. In turn this device will save the time and amount of money that employees spend on training in settings that are outside their organizations. This device will decrease the interruptions that employees and employers experience as a result of providing outdoor training to their employees. This device will act as similar to a computer that provides instructions to employees. The difference between the two is that while using this device the hands of the employee will be free to perform their tasks while taking instructions. The article titled as â€Å"The Future Of 3D Printing And Manufacturing† has been authored by Rakesh Sharma and in this article the author talks about the future of manufacturing organizations and how their manufacturing units will be influenced by 3D printing (Sharma, 2014). The author states that in future prototypes will be developed in consistency with the needs and wants of the consumers with the help of 3D printing and this will allow manufacturing organizations in differentiating as well as developing goods according to the needs of individual customers. The author states that organizations that are larger in size and have more human resources will be able to gain more benefit from 3D printing. The author states that 3D printing will play a role of providing research that will help in fighting issues such as poverty and changes in climate. The R&D organizations will use 3D printing to develop products that they will provide to businesses. 3D printing in future

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Renewable Energy- - Research Paper Example Over the time, the researchers have analyzed that there is a prompt need for the adaptation of renewable energy. For instance, the usage of solar, biomass and geo-thermal energy is important throughout the world to generate sustainable energy and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions (Nnadi et al, 2011). Oil, coal, water and woods have been used since long to produce energy. However, as the technological advancement takes place, there are new methods of producing energy that are flourishing. The world may face a major energy crisis in the future if the natural resources and energy production is not organized. The energy production is a highly technical field which needs skilled people and machinery. Once the energy is produced, it has to be used efficiently so that it is not exploited or wasted. Thus, it is our duty to focus on the important pathways of producing, using and conserving energy so that the future crisis is resolved. Before the energy is produced or used in any country, a detailed study should take place by their scientists to ensure the processes are carried out in the proper ways. There are certain countries in the world that are in a bad condition due to energy shortfalls which impacts their future progress immensely. It is important to adopt measures that are efficient and reliable to make sure the energy resources of a country are not exploited but used up efficiently. The countries suffering a crisis can overcome it by using natural resources to fulfill the everyday energy demands. Nigeria is an example of the countries that are suffering an energy crisis (Nnadiet al, 2011); China is the country that has made active use of its renewable energy resources and India fights the energy crisis it faces and uses up their renewable energy to the fullest (Ravikrishna, 2011). Nigeria is one of those countries that are rich in natural resources. Their natural resources are water,

Environmental Scan & SWOT Analysis Research Paper

Environmental Scan & SWOT Analysis - Research Paper Example The approach by the company in the last five years has been the milestone in the establishment of a global brand. Through focusing on brand pyramid and dynamics encompassing silky design, pleasurable experience, and the interplay between driving pleasure and serenity, the corporation established consistency and high level alignment in the sector (Anushree, 2012). Additionally, the global financial position has been useful in the strength creation which is vital in the wadding off competition. One major financial indicator is the overall growth of the corporation. From the financial year of 2002 t0 2006, Nissan experienced an average growth in revenue of 13.8%, net income growth of 11.33%, and a net asset growth of 15. 62%. The values indicate the financial strength of the organization (Cleland & Ireland, 2006, p. 22). Weakness Despite the positives, the company has several key weaknesses that could lead to serious problem in case of the increase global financial crisis. The company r elies heavily on overseas markets which may be affected by the increasing financial crisis and recess. The second major weakness is the product innovation time lag. For instance the company launched two new or redesigned vehicles. This is low compared to 14 in the three previous years. The result of the misjudgment may affect the brand visibility due to the increasing competition. Thirdly, the Japanese market does not use diesel as such diesel vehicles accounts for only 0.4% but the usage of diesel engines in the euro zone is high. The major problem is that the company has not invested in the development of the diesel engine leading to the technological drawback (Boone & Kurtz, 2011). Opportunity The major opportunity existing in the Asian market is low penetration and improved income levels leading to continuous jumps in the demand for vehicles. This is an opportunity that can be grasped to increase profitability. Secondly, the relocation of the manufacturing units to regions with lower production costs leads to the better and improved profits for the corporation. Additionally, manufacturing units in America and Europe have huge capacities in line with their vast domestic automobile output (Chilton & Bloodgood, 2010). The creation of the Renault-Nissan purchasing organization in 2001 helped in the combination of resources to create an efficient organization. Threats Cross-cultural disharmony is created through the integration of Renault and Nissan. The occurrence of disharmony creates a challenge for the corporation and may result in serious problems if not properly solved (Cleland & Ireland, 2006). Additionally, the rising commodity price is a major threat for the company because it increases the production cost. The rise of cost of raw material such as steel will create a vital threat to the corporation. Finally, market saturation can affect the corporation in line with the changes in the market demands. The rise of the SUV market is a testament of the chan ge in the product and market innovation, which in turn affect the market composition (Anushree, 2012). Environmental Scan Environmental scan addresses the issues of political, economic, social, legislative and environmental concern for the company. After the global financial crisis experienced in 2007 to 2009, changes have been instituted in the financial and banking sectors.

Multinational Business of Big Bazaar, First Solar, and Tata Motors Case Study

Multinational Business of Big Bazaar, First Solar, and Tata Motors - Case Study Example The  Big Bazaar Company is planning to spread into the Middle East countries like Yemen as there is a huge opportunity in this market due to the nonpresence of any global retail chains there and availability of domestic supplier. The location of Yemen is at the southern end of Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East. The Arabian Sea, Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden have made boundaries its southern and western side of the country. Two neighbour countries also bordered i.e. Saudi Arabia in north and Oman in the east. The population of this country is very poor and a large percentage the population is rural people. But in the last decades, it has been large scale urbanization in the country and now near about half of the population lives in town. There is a good incentives scheme by the Yemen government in any large foreign investment project. The purpose of this is to attract potential foreign investors to the prospective sectors of the country by minimising the risk of initial investment . Government also provide free exchange of currency from strong currency to Yemen or vice versa. To start a project in Yemen no need of nationalisation and reservation are required. Foreign investment projects are exempted from paying profit tax up to 7 years which is expandable up to 16 years if it helps to strengthen the sector. There is lack of well-developed commercial business centres in Yemen even in coastal cities; therefore, the country has poorly developed retail market. Most of the shops are in the major cities and maximum of these are family owned. The producers or manufacturer of retail products and goods are only the seller. No professional retail outlets or chains are there who sells by getting supply from producers. This is why the retail market is not at all penetrated even in urban areas of the country. But there is a good demand of retail chains which can provide the finished retail goods across the country and as the per capita income has been increasing and the p urchasing power as well as buying behaviour has been developing since the last decades. Big Bazaar is a India based supermarket chain and it get the supply of retail products from institutional supplier as well as direct from the producers of good branded product and sell those after retail pricing those products according to its profit margin strategy. But in Yemen as there is no such kind of institutional supplier. So the company needs to tie up with the home-based producer of the retail product like garments, food products, and other daily needed products which have a good demand in the urban market. First Solar’s multinational business can be analysed by doing a PESTEL analysis of the international business environment and the potential market analysis. Political: It represents how the government represents the economy and a certain business i.e. the way of representing and the extent. Political factors of a country represented by certain areas like taxation policy, labou r law, trade restrictions, tariffs and govt. stability. So, market attractiveness towards foreign investors will be high if the entire areas of political environment are business-friendly. Economical: Economical factors are influenced and comprised by the economy of a country, and the World economy. These factors are interest rates, inflation, economic growth i.e. exchange rates and currency strength.  

Restorative Justice Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Restorative Justice - Dissertation Example This means there must be a deep respect for both the plaintiff and defendant to encourage a sense of testimony without compromise. It is also important to consider the cost and efficiency of the selected legal system in different contexts. For instance, the individual should ascertain whether the process satisfies the victim and the offender. Alternatively, the person should also find out if the system reduces crime or recidivism in the community. In other words, are the set goals and objectives set for a legal framework met? And if there are attained within a given time frame, then what is the way forward? That is why there is restorative justice and its many processes. This mechanism is preferable because it encourages a lot of neutrality between the warring parties. It also sets high standards of communal justice when dispensed with fairness and equality (Seligram, 2000). The justice system also has varied options of handling cases unlike the natural courts where the law is the sa me. Another technicality is the acrimony of victims against offenders and vice versa that is not common in restorative justice. Instead, there are family group conferences, victim mediation processes and teen courts that achieve a level of neutrality without any compromise. Furthermore, the legal process is cheaper and requires legal expertise to maneuver than the normal system According to Vance (2007), restitution entails the laws of gains-based upturn and is in contrast with the law of compensation. The law of compensation entails the law of low-based revival and is the opposite of restitution. Vance argues that restitution is a legal response that has obligations in the payment of compensation to real world events. Therefore, the author attests that if there is a court order for restitution, it means the surrenders his gains to the claimant. Alternatively, restitution may also mean the receivership by the claimant for his /her loss from the defendant following court orders. On t hat account, there is a restoration of the conferred benefits in the context of non-breaching party who is the plaintiff. This suggests that the plaintiff has the benefit of receiving the value of what is conferred in the contract to the defendant. However, there are two boundaries to the recovery such as the total contravention of the contracted when it is required and the capped damages. In the same view, Vance mentions restitutions for wrongs such as a common law tort, a statutory tort, an equitable wrong and a breach of contract. There are also the criminal offenses in the category of restitutions of wrongs that should reverse unfair enrichment. On the other hand, in Emmer’s ideologies (2002), community service is an activity conducted by a person or a group for the advantage of society or its various institutions. In other words, community service is also donated service because an individual renders his/her services to an entity. Therefore, because such persons always a ct out of free will, it suggests the presence of an authority in the activity. For instance, according to the author, it may be the government because it is a citizenship requirement or as part of the military service. Additionally, the community service may arise from the courts because of sanctions emanating from criminal justice such as a punishment for a conviction. Furthermore, community service sometimes is instituted by the school to attain the conditions of a class that in this case may be service learning or graduation requirements.

An Expatriate Tour in El Salvador Essay Example for Free

An Expatriate Tour in El Salvador Essay The case provides that John Lafferty has accepted an opportunity to be a Program Officer of the United Nations based in El Salvador. John has previously worked as development economist in different parts of Latin America and his experience and passion for helping refugees make his adjustment to this new environment easy. However, John has recently been married to Joanna, a Human Resource Management consultant based in Toronto, Canada. Although, the couple both agreed to move together to El Salvador, the challenge of the case lies on how Joanna would be able to adjust to a new environment. In preparation for her departure, Joanna studied Spanish and studied Salvadoran history and politics as much as she could. She also contacted a friend, Joan, an expatriate in Guatamela for two years to get feedback about the conditions of living abroad. In a study of Luthans in 2002, he emphasized the importance of cultural learning to avoid premature return by an expatriate. In this case, Joanna should have undergone cultural learning that is specifically tailored for Salvadoran expatriates. This could have prepared her in understanding and accepting the culture and values of Salvadorans. She could have expected living with a housemaid who would serve her and do all the house chores for her. Joanna could have been more comfortable understanding that â€Å"barrios marginales† are generally accepted in their neighborhood and receives only $6 a day. Joanna can mend her situation by learning more about the culture of El Salvador to make her feel more comfortable in her new environment. Upon adjustment, she could find a career opportunity in the UN that is also based in El Salvador where she could practice her HR skills. Joanna’s experience can be valuable in developing a cultural learning program that will help other expatriates. The new employment for John is a great opportunity for him to advance in his career. John’s skills in relating with refugees and his passion to protect them are valid arguments why he should accept the position in El Salvador. John and Joanna may be newly married but their career fulfillment should not be sacrificed. They have to discern well and balance the advantages and disadvantages of moving to El Salvador together or separately. Joanna can decide to stay in Canada and pursue her career as HR consultant. However, the opportunity to experience a different culture and the prospect of gaining a new knowledge in the field of training expatriates are both promising. Joanna should embrace this chance to advance her learning in Human Resource Management. In an article written by Varner and Palmer in 2002, they have identified three factors that can make expatriation successful. These are: 1) integration of expatriation with international operations to attain the organization’s strategic objectives, 2) the training and development of expatriates integrated with organizational goals and 3) the management of the international knowledge expatriates acquired. In this case, the organization that employed John should have provided training to him and to his spouse, Joanna. The training should explain carefully to John and Joanna the situations they may encounter within the organization and its surrounding environment. Further, the organization should have a program for spouses like Joanna that can track her adjustment and assist her in finding a career in a foreign land. It is the responsibility of the organization to ensure that the employee’s spouse and children are comfortable and well adjusted in their new environment. If the employees would have a problem in their families, there is a great possibility that they will discontinue their service with the employer and go back to their home country. Gravenkemper and LaPla (2008) suggested several measures for successful expatriation of the employee’s families: 1. The family of the employee should be interviewed and examined for overseas assignments. 2. Prior to settlement, the family of the employee should be given the chance to visit the foreign land. 3. The organization must select only those employees whose spouse and children are willing to relocate. List of References Gravenkemper, S. and LaPla, L. (2008) Expatriate Assessments. Universal Advisor Issue No. 2. Available from http://www. plantemoran. com/Services/Consulting/OrganizationalDevelopmentPersonnelAssessment/Resources/Articles/Expatriate+Assessments. htm 9 April 2009 Luthans, K. W. (2002) Expatriate development: the use of 360 degrees feedback. Journal of Management Development 21, 10 Varner, I. and Palmer, T. (2002) Successful expatriation and organizational strategies. Entrepreneur. Available from http://www. entrepreneur. com/tradejournals/article/87211787. html 9 April 2009

Business Plan Essay Example for Free

Business Plan Essay IV. Description of Venture a. Services BC Property Forum is dedicated in selling properties of the acquired assets of the banks through bidding. Our main goal is to help our clients especially to those who are working abroad to have a good investments in owning a property. Our area partners are specially trained in doing sales talk in their clients by providing helpful information about the property. Like property location, property size, and any other information describing the property. We will provide our outmost service to provide the needs of our clients. b. Size of Business BC Property Forum is a small size business that has 20 to 99 employees. This business is privately owned by partnership type of business. c. Office Equipment and Personnel The office equipment needed First are computers for recording, keeping and back-up of files and records. Second Telephones and Faxes for communication with the clients. Third are printers for printing of records and files. Fourth are photocopying machines for copying of files and lastly are air cons to make people comfortable. The business strictly chooses our personnel especially for our area partners and in-house partner. We will have are partners that are good in doing sales talk and well trained. We will also hire people for Secretary, IT and Messengers. As owners, we do not want to have problems with our clients that will lower our client’s trust. d. Background of Entrepreneur President Jenifer Velarde Jenifer Velarde is graduated Magna Cum Laude with the degree of Bachelor of Science in Business Management at the University of the Philippines. She was chosen to be the president because of her abilities of handling a business very well and resolving problems. Vice President – Enrico C. Veluz Enrico C. Veluz is locally known to have many small businesses within areas in Manila. He also graduated at the University of the Philippines and took up Business Management. He also received an award as an Outstanding Entrepreneur last year. Financial Manager – Elenaire Puzon Elenaire Puzon is a graduate of Financial Management in the Mapua Institute of Technology. He is an experienced collector and good in preparing of financial statements and accounts in different companies. Secretary – Bea Faye Libiran Bea Faye Libiran is a graduate of Adamson University and took up Marketing. She is an experienced secretary since she has worked on different big companies such as RCBC and Makisig Group of Companies. Area Partners – Jake Esguerra and Ryan Redecto Jake Esguerra is a graduate of University of Makati and took up Marketing. He is a In-House Partner – Frangelo Alejandro and John Orneza IT – Lawrence Penalba and Mikko Ray Victoria Messenger Jomaric Santos Jomaric Santos is a graduate of University of Makati and took up V. Marketing Plan (Condominium Units, House Lot, Lot, Building, Res/Commercial) a. Pricing As we reassess the acquired assets of the banks, we will be meeting halfway with the bank to provide a better price. b. Distribution Since we offer service, distribution is not relevant. c. Promotion BC Property Forum will conduct promotion through advertising. The type of advertising will be using print advertising like magazines, newspaper, posters, brochures and flyers. This would help our company to be recognized by our customers since we offer services for them. We will also plan to develop our own website of the company to promote the services we have. Those promotions will be of great help to our company to be well established in the business industry. d. Product and Forecasts The 1st month will be for the set up of the business. On the 2nd month, the company office will be in order ready to start. On the next month, many costumers are satisfying the services to an increase in sales every year. e. Controls Based on the market segmentation that BC Property Forum has established, we will require constant updates in terms of the potential sizes, distributions, and purchasing patterns of the quality conscious, technology utilizing executive markets. We will use our historical performance to establish a customer database containing this information. This will allow BC Property Forum to target customers more efficiently as a result of actual experience. Furthermore, as our customer service and follow-up are keys to establishing retained customers, the marketing database will allow us to divide the potential needs of customers.

Revenue Leakages, Prevention and Internal Controls in MMDAs

Revenue Leakages, Prevention and Internal Controls in MMDAs APPLICATION OF THEORIES TO REAL LIFE SITUATION 3.0 Introduction This chapter is organized into four parts, with the first part dealing with explanation of the nature of problem in LEKMA, the second part is on the solutions provided by the researchers to the problem, the third part talks about the contributions of the students to LEKMA revenue mobilization and prevention with the last part drawing conclusion on the chapter. 3.1 Explanation of the Nature of Problem in Organization There had been an increasing demand for fiscal decentralization in both developed and developing countries due to the inherent benefits in terms of infrastructural development and quality service delivery. The pertinent question here is, has this been properly implemented at LEKMA? What are the challenges and the way forward with regards to fiscal decentralization in LEKMA? In view of the strategic location of the Assembly in the country, thus, its exact position between Tema an industrial hub of the country, and Accra, the capital city of Ghana, LEKMA is well placed to generate enough internal Revenue to meet its recurrent expenditure and local infrastructural development needs. However, the situation in the Municipal Assembly (LEKMA) regarding Internally Generated Funds (IGF) performance showed huge gaps between projected revenues and reported actuals. Initial projected figures had to be revised downwards through mid- year budget review process in order to meet Functional Organizational Assessment Tool (FOAT) benchmarks as a result of massive revenue leakages from the system. This reflection does not depict the full potentials of the Assembly and the analysis below give evidence to back the statements made above using 2014 and 2015 composite budgets of LEKMA. The 2014 composite budget of LEKMA projected GHÈÂ » 5,710, 975.00as initial revenue target to be collected internally (IGF). However, only 54.13% of the projected figure was realized representing GHÈÂ » 3,091, 081.06by the end of the fiscal year. The trend in 2015 fiscal year was not anything different from the previous years achievement. Out of the budgeted revenue of GHÈÂ » 6,889, 512.00t o be collected internally, only 62.51% was realized, representing GHÈÂ » 4,306, 966.40in nominal figures. The worse performance which threw the whole Municipal Assembly into disarray was recorded in 2013 fiscal year. The Municipal Assembly had in its Composite budget GHÈÂ » 4,907, 779.40 as the amount to be mobilized internally. Only 44.87% of the projected amount was achieved, representing GHÈÂ » 2,202, 178.08in absolute terms. The Internal auditors report (2013) of the Municipal Assembly revealed that, revenue collectors were indulging in under carboning. This is just one of the numerous revenue mobilization malpractices confronting LEKMA. Sixteen revenue officers of the Municipal Assembly were interdicted in connection with the above mention financial fraud. The report of the auditors also showed a lot of revenue leakages in the system due to weak internal controls and prevention mechanisms. The gravity of the situation also stems from the fact that, the units who are responsible for these internal controls are also handicap in terms of financial and non-financial resources. This prevented them from executing their constitutionally mandated duties and hence the massive leakages of IGF revenue. This worrying situation calls for an empirical researched that prescribes concrete solutions to the problems. To resolve this problem, a study design which gives the broad objective framework of the researchers enquiry (Brown, 2006) provided a basis for collecting and analyzing the data to inform policy direction. In order to put the nature of the problem in the right perspective and better analyze for solutions, a descriptive study was employed. The main purpose of the study was to describe the already existing strategies, challenges and the causes. In view of this, descriptive approach is best suited for the study. According to Miller and Brewer (2003), qualitative technique aids the investigator to explore further potentials and challenges to achieve the desire objectives of the study. The researchers wanted to explore other strategies that could be used to improve revenue mobilization and reduce leakages in the system. According to Neuman (2007), the subjects or concerns in the research design includes the purpose of the study, the type of investigation, the type of the sample which will be used, the methods by which the required data will be collected, as well as the process that will be followed for the analysis. The study used the exploratory and descriptive approach to evaluate revenue mobilization challenges in LEKMA. The research technique provided an opportunity for the researcher to interact with respondents in the field of study, which enabled the researcher to generate valid data and information using multiple sources of evidence. According to Stake (1995), interviews techniques enables the researcher to achieve reality by drawing closer and getting involve in the phenomenon under study in order to understand the environment and its participants. Robinson (2002, p.178) defines case study as a strategy for doing research which involves an empirical investigation of a particular contemporary phenomenon within its real life context using multiple sources of evidence. The topic under study is a case study because it is impossible to study all MMDAs in Ghana c oncerning their revenue mobilization. The research also aim at putting the theory into empirical test and unearth the challenges confronting LEKMA in terms of their revenue and expenditure. 3.1.1 Data Sources Data used for analyses by the researchers came from both primary and secondary sources. The interview schedule was used to collect primary data. In using this instrument, the researcher considered all laid down ethical procedure in research (Stake, 1995). Primary data included interviews conducted by the researchers. Core management staff of the assembly as well revenue collectors and rate payers were interviewed to allow for more in-depth evaluation. The researchers conducted 34 interviews comprising key personnel in revenue mobilization across all the responsible departments of the Assembly, revenue collectors and rate payers. These are stakeholders play vital role in the efficient mobilization of revenue for the Assembly. In addition to this, key officers interviewed have the capacity to formulate and implement policies concerning IGF mobilization of the Assembly. The documentary analysis was done because documentary information is relevant in a case study research (Yin 2003). See king answers to the research questions required an examination of the organizations annual budgets and financial statements. 3.1.2 Target population and sampling technique The target population for the study was core management staff of the assembly, revenue collectors and rate payers. Purposive and convenient sampling technique was employed to select the respondents who could provide relevant required information and who were available to participate in the study. A small sample size was chosen because of the constraints; time and money. Furthermore, the small sample was used as the study did not set out to test hypotheses but to gather expert opinions necessary in answering the research questions. Interviews were conducted with these persons. Excerpts of interview have been replicated as evidence in this report. A level of measured but subjective interpretation, in line with the subjective view and interpretive position taken by the researcher, was applied in analyzing respondents responses. 3.2 Solution Provided for the Problem Upon our review and analysis of both primary and secondary data gathered, the following are the proposed solutions to the challenges. LEKMA should adopt and implement software that will generate and assign a Unique Tax Identification Number to every tax payer in the database. This becomes a permanent code that identifies the business and the rate payer in case of none payment. Rates should be collected electronically through mobile money and other banking system. LEKMA should partner with the Banks which will provide an opportunity for tax payers to use their Unique Tax Code to pay at the bank and obtain receipt. This will prevent fraud through physical cash handling as reported in the challenges. LEKMA should employ the use of Geographical Information System (GIS) to identify old and new business and properties within the municipality. Through this computerized system, a comprehensive database will be built which will then improve the revenue collection. LEKMA should adopt one community one stakeholder meeting project in addition to the town hall meetings for every fiscal year. This will promote awareness creation, transparency and accountability. Through this, rate payers and other stakeholders will get to know what their taxes are used for. Challenges such as lack of education, sensitization, transparency and accountability will be minimised. Refresher training for revenue collectors and contractors should be done on a regular basis in areas such as communications skills, customer relation ethics, revenue mobilization strategies, local governance Act, Assembly by-laws and other control mechanisms to ensure efficiency. LEKMA should advocate for the printing of General Counterfoil Receipt (GCR) with adequate security features so as to avoid duplication of the receipt by revenue collectors and contractors. Revenue targets should be set for collectors and contractors which should be closely monitored and supervised to ensure that the overall target of the Assembly is achieved. LEKMA should intensify the prosecution of rate defaulters in accordance with the bye laws of the Assembly to ensure that rate payers meet their civic obligations as well as serve as a deterrent for future defaulters. Regular field monitoring and supervision should be carried out by the superintendents to ensure that revenue collectors and contractors are deterred from engaging in fraudulent activities. All revenue collectors should be bond and stiffer punishment meted out to those found in financial fraud. 3.3 Contribution of Students to Organization The contributions of the students to Ledzorkuku Krowor Municipal Assembly in terms revenue mobilization, leakages and prevention techniques cannot be over emphasized. Students professional and personal skills, experiences and capability are being leverage on to augment the expertise of the Assembly staff handling revenue mobilization and expenditure portfolios. The students also contributed immensely to the organizations revenue and expenditure policy decisions by collecting detailed information on revenue mobilization leakages and prevention to enable top management design and implement strategies with high level of efficiency. This has become very crucial given that LEKMA hardly meet their IGF revenue projections. Students also contributed to the deepening of fiscal decentralization in Ghana, Africa and the world at large through the findings and the recommendation from this study. The prime objective of decentralization is to take governance closer to the people, improve on qualit y service and infrastructural provision and to promote transparency and accountability in the expenditure of public funds. Students prescribed solutions in this regard which will increase revenue of the Assembly and subsequently leads to quality service delivery. 3.4 Conclusion This chapter has discussed the application of theories to real life. The researchers discussed in detail the research design, approach, strategy, time horizon, methods and procedures employed in data analysis. The descriptive research design guided the researchers evaluation of revenue mobilization leakages, prevention and internal controls in Ledzorkuku Krowor Municipal Assembly. In order to collect more detailed and evidence based data, a multi-method data collection technique involving both qualitative and quantitative data collection techniques were employed. Students employed convenient and purposive sampling approaches to select respondents who could provide relevant required information and who were more available to participate in the study. CHAPTER FOUR LESSONS LEARNT AND CHALLENGES 4.0 Introduction This chapter discusses the lessons learnt from undertaking this project and challenges the researchers confronted and how they were resolved. Analyses and interpretations of data collected had also been covered in this chapter. Excerpts from the interviews are integrated as confirmation of respondents perspectives which is accepted in social research theory (Yin, 2009). To ensure ethical requirement in this kind of research namely; assuring anonymity of identity and confidentiality of respondents, generic terms like officer, rate payer, among others are used in place of personal names (Yin, 2009). 4.1 Lessons Learnt In both empirical and theoretical literature, designing and implementing policies, programmes and strategies aimed at ensuring effective and efficient revenue mobilization are not without limitations. In our interview with the officials of the Assembly, it came out evidently that the Municipal Assembly has some revenue mobilization strategies in place. This was what the Municipal Finance Officer (MFO) said with regards to revenue mobilization strategies of the assembly. We have revenue mobilization strategies in place and they include; Building the capacity of revenue collectors, frequent sensitization and education of rate payers, involvement of rate payers in the budgeting process, holding stakeholders meetings with rate payers to determine their ability to pay, involving revenue collectors in annual revenue projections, enforcement of revenue, establish a data base of all economic activities in the municipality, mobilization laws, using Assembly members in the hard to collect areas, etc. Upon further investigation and evaluation of the revenue mobilization challenges, we realized there were implementation issues. Revenue collectors were not involved in coming out with annual IGF targets, they were not frequently trained, no up to date data base on economic activities within the municipality and enforcement of revenue by-laws were poorly handled. Another key management staff has this to say on why they are not able to enforce the by-laws to the later as an assembly. The limitation we have in this area has to do with political interference. Especially when we are getting closer to an electioneering period, for fear of losing the election they do not allow to punish those who flout the laws to deter others. We are constrained but all cannot be attributed to politicians, we are also to be blamed for our inefficiencies. The researchers learned further that, logistics constraint, especially on the part of revenue collectors, contributed to the poor implementation of the strategies as well as the enforcement of the by-laws. The next objective of the study was to evaluate the existing internal controls in the Municipal Assembly. Selected officers were interviewed which included the internal auditor of the organization. In this section, the researchers wanted to know the exact internal controls the Assembly has and how they are implemented and the challenges faced. This is what the Municipal Internal Auditor had to say on internal control issues during our interview. This is a legal and a well-established institution and therefore have internal controls in place ranging from revenue mobilization to expenditure. The LI 1961 outlined the functions of each unit and department at the local level. However, ensuring effective internal controls is a shared responsibility. Let me give you internal controls we have as an Assembly; Daily checks of their general counterfoil receipt and verifying the daily banking of cash into the Assemblys account, Field audit and periodic inspection of value books, Regular monitoring of revenue activities, revenue collectors are to submit their returns daily for verification, Weekly auditing of revenue collectors cash books, we do periodic field audits, monitoring of reports by rate payers, Weekly performance of field audit, tracking of the value books to ensure that the value books used are from the Assemblys stock and duly registered in the stock register of the Assembly, that the revenue collected paid to the Assemblys account within the 24hrs. With regards to the challenges they faced by the Assembly in their implementation of revenue strategies, the following were the major concerns raised; revenue collectors attitudes towards revenue collection, rate payers connivance with collectors to under pay the required rate bill and logistic constraints. These three concerns surfaced in our interviews with the key management staffs as being the major causes of revenue leakages from the system. However, a lot of progress had been made in these areas to remove barriers and bad nuts from the system to improve IGF performance. This was evident via the interviews and our personal verification from the 2016 fiscal year revenue performance. Key revenue items such as business operating permit (BOP) and property rates showed an upward trend. Another key objective of the study was to identify the channels of revenue leakages from the system and what causes it. In view of this we had interviews with some rate payers and revenue collectors. It was very interesting during our interview with one of the rate payers and commenting on the channels, of leakages this is what she has to say; People who come for the taxes sometimes come at the wrong time when we does not have any money with huge bills, so they take bribe from us and go. Sometimes they come back to take again and others do not come again. We also realized they have their own receipts different from assemblys receipt which they issue sometimes when they take the bribe. Our taxes collected goes into individual pocket, so at the end the Assembly do not receive the supposed revenue and that is why we sometimes do not pay. I will not give my money to someone to spend. We did not limit our interviews to only individual rate payers, institutions were also added since they pay both BOP and property rates and more especially we needed varied opinions from different perspectives. During our interview with one of the executives of a bank, this was what he had to say concerning the causes of revenue leakages. They do not give us enough education on what the taxes are used for and moreover, they failed to use an electronic system to mobilize the revenue. Taxes paid in cash to revenue collectors or task force causes corruption and mistrust. For the purpose of obtaining a comprehensive view of the situation on the ground, the researchers had interviews with some key revenue collectors of the Assembly. Two major concerns runs throughout our interviews with them namely; inadequate motivation and lack of frequent trainings on the job. In summary the lessons leant through this project work include; Educating rate payers that it is their civic responsibility to pay taxes and also on the uses of their taxes are vital in local government revenue mobilization processes. Training revenue collectors on the new revenue mobilization tools, techniques and the revenue mobilization strategies of the Assembly is essential. Stakeholder consultative meetings which involve rate payers in fee-fixing and rate imposition of the Assembly is very important in facilitating effective and efficient revenue mobilization within the local government system. Another important lesson is the issue of transparency and accountability. Local authorities or duty bearers within the sub-national governments, ability to account to the citizens or local constituents builds trust between rate payers and the Assemblies. Proper accountability promotes effective revenue mobilization and increase the willingness to pay. Electronic technique of revenue mobilization cannot be disregarded. Automation of the tax collection system discourages corruption, temptation to steal and increase efficiency in the revenue mobilization drive. The responsibility to secure electronic equipment to migrate local authorities to this stage is a collective effort. 4.2 Challenges encountered Executing this project work was not all that smooth. We were confronted with a lot of challenges ranging from research design to its execution. The first challenge we faced had to do with the research instrument and the interviews thereafter. As mentioned earlier in this work, we wanted to explore a lot of areas within the local government revenue mobilization scheme so as to prescribe solutions which will greater impact on the revenue mobilization of the Assembly. There are laid down ethical considerations that must be adhered to in social science research namely; anonymity and confidentiality. Our major challenge was how to get interpretations for our respondents who were not literate in order to preserve anonymity and confidentiality. In view of this we have to make several trips to them which was a herculean task. Added to this, designing an instrument to cover a lot of areas on the topic was not that easy considering the complicated nature of fiscal decentralization and the various stakeholders involved. Furthermore, our analysis of the situation employed both secondary and primary data. Retrieving or getting access to annual composite budgets and financial statements of the previous years for the necessary reviews was a big challenge. Several calls and personal visits were made before those documents were made available. Reviewing and analyzing the data therein was also challenging and exciting. One key issue was the incorrect postings (2015 fiscal year) and some revenue items which had no unique codes. This inconsistency post a big challenge to us in the analysis and the Key Officers had to come in to rectify the situation. We were told that, this problem occurred on the field as revenue collectors were not able to describe the business well. CHAPTER FIVE CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 5.0 Introduction This last chapter of the study gives the conclusion and recommendations. In this chapter, the researchers give the conclusions and recommendations of the study. 5.1Â  Conclusion Findings from the project work supports both theoretical and empirical literature which says that, sensitization and education of rate payers on their tax obligation and the uses of their monies have a positive impact on revenue mobilization. Transparency and accountability as well as the provision of efficient service and developmental projects to the local residents increases their willingness to pay and decreases if the reverse is applied. This suggests that citizens are now more concern about accountability and cannot be taken for granted. Fiscal decentralization is very crucial in the decentralization process and demands central government commitment to ensure its success. Linking fiscal federalism theory to the findings from this study, revealed that some core components or elements in the theory has not been applied. Components such as effective revenue mobilization scheme, efficient service delivery, and efficient internal controls to prevent revenue leakages have not been fully executed. This was clearly shown when local constituents were demanding physical projects to showcase for the taxes they pay. Notwithstanding that, the findings also support theory from the public commodities with a different geographical pattern of consumption. The results showed that residents were asking for projects and services that suit their consumption pattern. 5.2 Recommendations The main objective of this study was to assess revenue leakages, internal controls and prevention in local authorities. The study did found that there exist revenue mobilization leakages and thus has few dynamic policy recommendations for LEKMA, policymakers, and stakeholders in local governance system. Transparency and accountability from local authorities or duty bearers must be enforced. LEKMA must therefore design and implement policies which gives enough punishment to corrupt local government official and those who fail to properly account to their local constituents. Furthermore, involving ratepayers in fee-fixing and rate imposition through stakeholders meeting is very crucial in revenue mobilization within the local government system. This calls for a policy direction to make their involvement mandatory. Assembly members at LEKMA should pass a resolution to this effect. Capacity building should not be limited to top management of Assembly but must be extended to lower ranks as well. Building the capacity of revenue collectors is vital in local government revenue mobilization and the promotion fiscal decentralization. Management of LEKMA should direct policy to make their training a priority. They are implementers of revenue mobilization strategies formulated by LEKMA and therefore need to be equipped with the latest techniques in revenue mobilization. Automation of revenue collection process is another important way of achieving efficient revenue mobilization and prevention of fraud. LEKMA should adopt and implement policies that mandates it to migrate onto automated system of rate paying REFERENCES Aryee, J.R.A. (2003). Towards Effective and Accountable Local Government in Ghana. Ghana Centre for Democratic Development (CDD), Accra. Arowolo, D. (2011). Fiscal Federalism in Nigeria: Theory and Dimensions. Afro Asian Journal of Social Science, 2 (2.2), 1-21. Badu, R., A. (2007) Mobilization of Internally Generated Funds in District Assemblies in Ghana: A Case Study of the Shama Ahanta East District Assembly. Unpublished Document Submitted to the Department of Planning, KNUST, Kumasi. Bird, R.M. (2009). Fiscal Federalism. University of Toronto, Canada. Ernest Adu-Gyamfi (2014) Effective Revenue Mobilization by District Assemblies: A Case Study of Upper Denkyira East Municipal Assembly of Ghana: Public Policy and Administration Review, American Research Institute for Policy Development. Joseph, K. N., John, P. T. and Job Asante (2013). The Relationship Between Financial Control Systems and Public Sector Efficiency in Ghana: International Journal of Advanced Research in Management and Social Sciences, Vol.2|No. 7 Korten, D. and Klaus R. (1984). People-Central Development, Connecticut: Kumarian Press. Kesner-Skreb, M. (2009). Fiscal Federalism: Financial Theory and Practice. 33 (2), 235-237 Oates, W.E. (1999). An Eassy on Fiscal Federalism. Journal of Economic Literature, 1120-1149 Oates, W.E (1972). Fiscal Federalism. New York, Harcourt Brace, Jovanovich, Olson, M. (1996). The Theory of Regulatory Federalism: The Case of Environmental Management. In The Economics of Environmental Regulation, pp319-31. Ozo-Eson (2005). Fiscal Federalism: Theory, Issues and Perspectives. Daily Intdependent. Musgrave, R. (1959). The Theory of Public Finance. New York, Mcgraw Hill Sharma, C.K. (2005). The Federal Approach to Fiscal Decentralization: Conceptual Contours for Sulley Gariba, (2009), Political Decentralization Ghana: Policy Issues, Legislation and the Way Forward. Presented at the first Annual Parliamentary Workshop on Local Government Reform and Decentralization organized by the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) in Koforidua, November 6-8, 2009. James Edwin Kee (2003). Fiscal Decentralization: Theory as Reform, The George Washington University, Cheema, G.S, Dennis, A.R. (1983). Implementing Decentralization Policies: An Introduction. In G. Shabbir Cheema and Dennis A. Rondinelli (Eds.). Decentralization and Development: Policy Implementation In Developing Countries Beverly Hills; New Delhi: Sage Publications. Pp 9.37. Cleeve, E. (2008), How effective are fiscal incentives to attract FDI to Sub-Saharan Africa?, The Journal of Developing Areas, 42 (1), 135-153. Adenike A. Adedokun (undated). Local Government Tax Mobilization and Utilization in Nigeria: Problems and Prospects; The Polytechnique, Ibadan, Nigeria. Stake, R. (1995). The Art of Case Study Research. Thousand Oaks, London, New Delhi: Sage Publications Inc. Brewer, J. D., and Miller, R.L. (2003). The A-Z of Social Research: A dictionary of Key Social Science Research Concepts. Thousand Oaks, London: Sage. Neuman, L. (2007). Basics of Social Research: Qualitative and Quantitative Research Approaches, Second Edition. University of Wisconsin Whitewater Pearson Education Incorporated, USA

Beowulf: A Christian and Pagan Poem Essay -- Epic of Beowulf Essay

Beowulf – a Christian-Pagan Poem  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Beowulf the pagan aspect is revealed through many passages and many heathen rites or customs in which the form of expression or the thought suggests pagan usage or beliefs. The Christian aspect is revealed through 68 passages in which the form of expression or the thought suggests Christian usage or doctrine (Blackburn 3). The Christian element seems to be too deeply imbedded in the text of Beowulf for us to conclude that it is due to additions made by scribes at a time when the poem had come to be written down. The Christian element had to be included by the original poet or by minstrels who recited it in later times. The extent to which the Christian element is present varies from about ten percent in the first part to much less than that throughout the rest of the poem.    In Christianizing the local culture which produced Beowulf, Catholic missionaries to Britain in the early centuries took many words belonging to heathen beliefs and practices and adopted them into the church (Blackburn 3). For example, Hel was at one time the goddess of the world of the dead; Catholic missionaries used Hell to indicate the place of the dead, later of the damned. Likewise with words such as Yule, Easter, God, haelend, nergend, drihten, metod, frea; the latter ones have fallen from usage. We see these words used in Beowulf as well as other Anglo-Saxon poetry.    The theology which appears in the Christian allusions in the poem is very vague and indefinete: there is no mention of Christ, the saints, miracles, Mary His Mother, specific doctrines of the church, martyrs of the church, the New Testament (there may be one possible brief exception), rites or ceremonies of the church... ...l Interpretations: Beowulf, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.    Chadwick, H. Munro. â€Å"The Heroic Age.† In An Anthology of Beowulf Criticism, edited by Lewis E. Nicholson. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1963.    Chickering, Howell D.. Beowulf A dual-Language Edition. New York: Anchor Books, 1977.    Frank, Roberta. â€Å"The Beowulf Poet’s Sense of History.† In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987. Robinson, Fred C. â€Å"Apposed Word Meanings and Religious Perspectives.† In Beowulf – Modern Critical Interpretations, edited by Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987. Ward & Trent, et al. The Cambridge History of English and American Literature. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1907–21; New York: Bartleby.com, 2000   

Fractals: A New-Age Mathematics to Explain Our World :: Fractals Mathematics Math Papers

Fractals: A New-Age Mathematics to Explain Our World Fractal art is a new-age art that tantalizes the eyes and mind with patterns, shapes, colors, and abstract imagery. Artists have once again found a way to harness the abstractedness of mathematics and integrate it into their work. So where does this new art form of fractal design stem from? The reality is that fractals themselves are relatively young in the mathematical world. Of course since the beginning of art and history and mathematics, self-similar objects have existed and been intriguing to the human mind. However it has only been recently that mathematicians have begun to explain them. So the question is posed, what is a fractal? Fractals are actually very simple. A fractal is any design that contains self-similar images within itself. One real-life example would be a circulatory system. Each single blood vessel resembles the overall shape of the system. [2] The main characteristic of the fractal is its self-similarity. That means that each part that makes up the whole resembles the whole. A fractal is then generated from millions of smaller images that together form a larger similar image. Nowadays, most fractals are done with the computer. This is because it is very slow and tedious to do the work by hand. However, some simple fractals such as a Koch curve or a Sierpinsky triangle can be created by hand. The Koch curve for example starts out as a straight line. Then, in the middle of the line, an equilateral triangle is formed. From that point, every straight line becomes split by an equilateral triangle. This step would be repeated over and over until a snowflake forms. The result of repeating the process five times is shown below. [3] This is a very simple fractal. Fractals like the ones pictured below can only be produced with a computer. [1] Notice the self-similarity in the picture. See how the smaller objects relate and mimic the whole picture. That is the essence of fractal art and fractal geometry. Similar to any branch of math or science, new concepts do not simply generate all of a sudden. Fractal ideas can be traced back to the late nineteenth century, however if one looks past that, they will see that the anchient Greek mathematicians also dabbled in the world of fractals.

Becoming A Stronger Person :: essays research papers

â€Å" Becoming a Stronger Person†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a story about a Black female growing up in the American South during the 1930’s and 40’s. Maya Angelou, the narrator and author of this book, writes about growing up in a society filled with racism and hatred. From rape to racism, Maya Angelou has experienced an immense amount of hardships and grievances her whole life. Through these experiences, Maya learns the true meaning of courage, independence, and trust; she realizes that the hardships and various experiences in one’s life can only make that person stronger in the end.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As a child, Maya was a very quiet and passive girl who rarely spoke her mind. When she was younger, a couple of â€Å"powhitetrash† girls went into her grandmother’s store and harassed her. Maya was so scared that all she could do was curl herself up into a small corner and start crying; unable to stick up to those girls. However, her sudden development of courage is exemplified when she goes to visit her father in California. Maya gets into an argument with her father’s girlfriend, Dolores, and apparently, Dolores ends up calling Maya’s mother a whore. The â€Å"new† Maya, filled with anger, responded by slapping Dolores across the face. The small, reticent child had turned into a courageous, young woman.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the early years of her life, Maya had always been pretty dependent on her grandmother or brother. However, when she got older, she realized that she needed to do something on her own. As a result, she went out and found herself a job. Being a black girl, finding a job was not simple, but she managed without giving up. Her sedulous work granted her the position as the first black trolley conductor in San Francisco. She had succeeded independently and did not give up without putting up a fight.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Maya’s one month stay in the junkyard taught her how to trust again. After the rape incident, Maya became very insecure and kept to herself most of the time. However, in the junkyard, she built a special camaraderie with her fellow run-away friends and was able to trust again. The open acceptance by her peers wiped away the feeling of insecurity that she had felt for such a long time. They initiated her into â€Å"the brotherhood of man†. They accepted Maya for the person she was inside; completely disregarding the color of her skin. Becoming A Stronger Person :: essays research papers â€Å" Becoming a Stronger Person†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a story about a Black female growing up in the American South during the 1930’s and 40’s. Maya Angelou, the narrator and author of this book, writes about growing up in a society filled with racism and hatred. From rape to racism, Maya Angelou has experienced an immense amount of hardships and grievances her whole life. Through these experiences, Maya learns the true meaning of courage, independence, and trust; she realizes that the hardships and various experiences in one’s life can only make that person stronger in the end.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As a child, Maya was a very quiet and passive girl who rarely spoke her mind. When she was younger, a couple of â€Å"powhitetrash† girls went into her grandmother’s store and harassed her. Maya was so scared that all she could do was curl herself up into a small corner and start crying; unable to stick up to those girls. However, her sudden development of courage is exemplified when she goes to visit her father in California. Maya gets into an argument with her father’s girlfriend, Dolores, and apparently, Dolores ends up calling Maya’s mother a whore. The â€Å"new† Maya, filled with anger, responded by slapping Dolores across the face. The small, reticent child had turned into a courageous, young woman.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the early years of her life, Maya had always been pretty dependent on her grandmother or brother. However, when she got older, she realized that she needed to do something on her own. As a result, she went out and found herself a job. Being a black girl, finding a job was not simple, but she managed without giving up. Her sedulous work granted her the position as the first black trolley conductor in San Francisco. She had succeeded independently and did not give up without putting up a fight.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Maya’s one month stay in the junkyard taught her how to trust again. After the rape incident, Maya became very insecure and kept to herself most of the time. However, in the junkyard, she built a special camaraderie with her fellow run-away friends and was able to trust again. The open acceptance by her peers wiped away the feeling of insecurity that she had felt for such a long time. They initiated her into â€Å"the brotherhood of man†. They accepted Maya for the person she was inside; completely disregarding the color of her skin.

Sustainable Tourism: a Hope or a Necessity?

Sustainable Tourism: A Hope or a Necessity? The Case of Tofino, British Columbia, Canada The purpose of this research was to examine different stakeholder perspectives of tourism in Tofino in order to determine impacts and challenges relating to tourism development and long-term sustainability. This paper seeks to explore the current situation and recommendations for the future development of Tofino through a multi-stakeholder process.It builds upon previous research conducted by Welk (2006) and by Dodds & Basu (2008). The aim of this paper therefore is to examine stakeholder theory and resource dependence theory as it applies to a tourism destination with a key focus on water as it is a vital resource for successful tourism. Additionally the stage of life cycle of the tourism destination as well as the concept of Limits of Acceptable Change is discussed to provide context. 2. 1 Theories: Tools to Manage?Many islands depend heavily on the natural resources of an area and it is these resources authors believe that sustainable tourism is the responsibilify of all stakeholders Stakeholders are defined as any individual or group who can affect the firms' performance or who is affected by the achievement of the organization's objectives (Freeman, 1984). is important to understand the views of stakeholders as they can motivate or impede sustainabilify in organizations. dentified motives and barriers to sustainabilify such as economic considerations, political power and salience, coordination between stakeholders, accountabilify of all stakeholders, lacks of will and integration between govemment bodies (Ioannides, 2001; Dodds, 2007a; 2007b). The life cycle model describes six stages of an evolutionary sequence that a tourist area passes through: exploration, involvement, development, consolidation, stagnation and rejuvenation or decline.The life cycle outlines, that as airports, accommodation and other tourist facilities are provided, awareness grows, but visitors wi ll eventually decline as capacify is reached. Each stage is accompanied by changes in the nature and extent of facilities provided and the local/non local provision of these. Limits of Acceptable Change is a management tool for setting limits or managing totirism are assessing carrying capacity, or developing indicators for totirism optimization.Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC) attempts to assess stress in both the natural and social and economic environment and to define the maximum degree of change that is tolerable. Tourism Development in Tofino focused on marketing efforts rather than assessing resource or other livelihood issues. From a lifecycle analysis. rapid growth of tourism increased infrastructure in and around Tofino, this has often resulted in negative social and ecological impacts such as the lack of adequate inft-astructure to cope with garbage and sewage, isolation or lack of adequate community facilities and disruption to livelihoods due to the cost of living.In a ddition, according to the provincial govemment, the region has been experiencing drier than normal conditions. lack of water Methodology interviews were held with 38 stakeholders. sampling approach, Findings Economy outside influences (e. g. competition, environment disaster such as a mudslide or road closure due to one road access). Capacity/Infrasfructure promoted without supporting the infrastructure needed for growth. Water, According to the District Treasurer, Sewage. Govemance Development ow tax base that greatly affects the income back for repairing infrastructure Communify Benefits Accessibility to tourist Second Homes accommodations and staff housing. that B&B and second homes are providing tourist accomniodation but not contributing taxes. First Nations Treafy Negotiations Don’t ignore indigenous people Conservation over the increase in garbage bears due to beach areas overflowing with garbage from high use. Effect for nature animals . Transport Labor skilled labor shortage and with the advent of tourism, many staff are unskilled.Low pay. Media could affect its historically good image. Tofino's Future educational initiative was seen by many respondents as innovative, however it should be noted that conservation of water and energy is standard practice year-round in most accommodations worldwide. Change is incremental: Water: response to water shortage rather than standard practice. Some efforts have been made during water shortage to educate the visitor and regular water monitoring. Waste: Recycling efforts are slowly growing although limited.Energy: green building code. solar energy. Most boating operators have made efforts to reduce fuel consumption Local sourcing: nitiative and ‘green breakfast sidents are attending workshops on local food production and food securify. Public transport: Education: negative impacts of development as it has limited natural and social resources . critical stage of its lifecycle. very elements that attrac t tourists are dependent on its natural and build resources. Water shortages, sewage treatment, transport and housing.The media has outlined a number of issues that has drawn a negative. This finding supports recent findings by Dodds and Basu (2008) in that there is no overarching plan for a different model of tourism and no strategies or specific promotion of sustainable tourism practices for visitors or businesses to follow which may help alleviate infrastructure and social pressures. planning and considerations for sustainability First, a cohesive and comprehensive plan, which includes planning for long-term development.Secondly, there is the need to identify and defme Limits of Acceptable Change to govem for the long-term sustainabilify through a Master Plan. Third, Tourism Tofino as the key marketing and promotional agency, and one that represents many tourism business interests, should play a representative role for businesses in the govemance and development of tourism Fourth , there is a need to generate income for infrastmcture and livelihood requirements for the residents Fifth, there is a need to diversify indusfries to attract year round businesses and professionals.

Marketing Considerations and Plans Essay

McDonald is one of the most internationally recognizable companies within the hospitality industry. Although I have not worked with McDonald ever, I am quite familiar with it as one of closest friends has been working with the marketing team of this restaurant chain for last four years. He keeps telling me about his company, how it runs its business so that it can maintain its top position within the fast food sector world wide. Apart from listening to my friend about his company, I also do research on McDonald by reading stories relating to McDonald published in various magazines, newspapers and on various websites as I am a fond of McDonald food staffs and love this fast food restaurant chain. McDonald Corporation listed in New York stock exchange has emerged as one of the world’s largest chain of fast food restaurants. It is most popular for its hamburger. Its customer base is so huge that worldwide it sells its products to around 47 million people on daily basis. The menu of McDonalds includes various sorts of burgers like hamburgers, cheese burgers etc. , products made of chicken, different sorts of breakfast items, French fries, various kinds of shakes, desserts and soft drinks. Mcdonald’s, however, quite often gets criticized over the healthiness of its products. These products are considered to be one of the important factors which are taking active part in increasing obesity in the western countries. The company, however, has made some effective measures in response to the rising obesity trend in the western countries and the criticism over the healthiness of its signature products. It has made some modifications to its menu by introducing several healthy food items like different types of salads, wraps and fruits. In spite of getting criticized over the healthiness of its products and having increasing competition within the industry, McDonald has been able to maintain its strong position within the industry it operates in. Its popularity has not decreased. Thus it would be quite interesting to look at the sources of its competitive advantage which have helped it to win the competition. In order to examine the sources of competitive advantage of McDonald, the strengths of the company will be analyzed in detail as strength of any company can be defined as a distinctive competence of the firm that gives it a competitive advantage in the market place. A firm can gain its strength from its financial resources, the image of its brand, leadership quality within the market and buyer-supplier relationships. (Competitive advantage, 2010; Ghosh, et al. n. d) In case of McDonald’s, its biggest strength is its brand image. Since McDonald’s is one of the most known chains of fast food in the world, its brand recognition seems to be its biggest strength. Its marketing campaign always focuses on brand recognition through continuous promotion of the brand name. Through its extensive marketing campaign world wide the company has been able to create an image in the people’s minds and introduce them to the fast food culture. Its customer base ranges from kinds to old generation. It has nearly 30,000 branches in as many as 120 nations across the world. However, 80 percent of its revenues are generated from the market of eight countries including US, UK, Japan, Australia, Canada, France, Brazil and Germany. The company has been able to expand its stores on the basis of three core strengths- cleanliness, delivery speed and customer care. McDonald has created a corporate symbol and through its highly successful marketing campaigns all round the world it has been able to develop a brand image and establish its logo in the minds of the people across the world. People are attracted to this logo and brand image and this attraction brings them to the stores. Although a number of competitors have emerged in the fast food industry, its rigorous marketing campaigns which are based on the company’s internal resources, external conditions and its relations with its shareholders have been able to strongly maintain its brand value in the market. (Ghosh, et al. n. d; Vijayarani, n. d. ) The brand name will not work in longer run unless brand value is mixed up with high quality product value. In order to obtain and maintain a strong position in the market, every company needs to use an appropriate marketing mix and product occupies one of the most significant positions within the marketing mix. Product value has been one of the greatest strengths of McDonald’s. When a customer enters into a McDonald’s store he/she know what to expect. The company places huge importance on its human resource and takes appropriate steps to satisfy it customers as well as its employees. As far as the product related issue is concerned, the company is also found to be quite innovative in introducing new products according to changing trends and tastes of the people. Not only that, it also offers different menu to the people living in different countries according to their tastes and the country’s culture. Fro example, in India it offers a menu which is completely different from its international offerings. In the stores situated in India, it has eliminated ham, mutton and beef burgers from the menu. India is found to be the only country where McDonald offers vegetarian menu. Which is more interesting is sauces, cheese etc, are also completely vegetarian in India. In India according to changing taste and preference of the customers, it has introduced Chicken Maharaja Mac. Thus the biggest strength of McDonald lies in the fact that it brings an internationally reputed brand with high class food quality and brilliant customer specific product features. This strength provides the company with huge competitive advantage. Vijayarani, n. d. ; Ghosh, et al. n. d) Till now only the sources of competitive advantages of McDonald have been discussed. But in order to survive amidst strong competition a company has to possess sustainable competitive advantages. Hence, it is now the time to look into sustainable competitive advantages of McDonald’s. For a company, its sustainable competitive advantage can be defined as the advantage which seems to be difficult or unfeasible for other co mpanies to own or infiltrate. The brand value, cost structure, vibrant customer care or its patent can be considered as sustainable competitive advantages for a company. An advantage should be considered as sustainable advantage only if the advantage has a distinct character or it is proprietary in nature. The sources of sustainable competitive advantages for McDonald’s can be as follows: ( Reidenbach and Goeke, 2006; Vijayarani, n. d) – In order to build sustainable competitive advantage there should be a good integration and coordination between the company’s managerial and organizational process. If such integration takes place then there would be created the essential value as everyone will be chasing a common goal. In order to develop sustainable competitive advantage an organization is required to learn and introduce changes according to the need of the time and it should always be flexible towards changes that takes place in the external environment of the company, such as changes in customer’s taste and preferences, changes in government or legal restrictions, and development in the areas of technology. For McDonald’s, one of the principal reason behind surviving within current market competition is that the company is placing its focus on sustainable competitive advantages by making efforts to integrate organizational behavior with managerial expertise. McDonald’s, however, did not recognize the need of building sustainable competitive advantage previously. Earlier McDonald’s used to ignore this advantage as it was more interested in expanding its outlets across the globe than focusing on its core advantages. As a result of it, the company did not experience any massive change in its revenues with opening up of new outlets. In fact, it suffered huge loss unless it recognized the importance of building sustainable competitive advantage. The company was right in detecting the need of the hour and bringing about changes in its management process in order to possess completive edge over its competitors. ( Lamb et al. 2008; Levy and Weitz, 2001) – A company can obtain an excellent position in the market through its financial, structural, and technological assets. All these assets significantly help in building sustainable competitive advantage for an organization. McDonald’s has been able to obtain a strong position in the market by its abundant financial resources along with plentiful structural and technological assets. Since 2003, the company has started to concentrate on identifying and implementing these assets in right direction that would bring improvement to the company. Thus these assets build one of the greatest advantages for the company. (Lamb et al. 2008; Levy and Weitz, 2001) Apart from all these, the vision and mission with which the company started its journey can be considered as one of the biggest competitive advantage fro McDonald’s. McDonald’s ability to sustain its dream over the years has provided it with a huge competitive advantage over its competitors. When a brand revolves around its vision in order to sustain and work in lieu with it, this results in developing significant sustainable competitive advantage for the brand. The McDonald’s started its business in order to help those people who did not have much time to cook or were too busy to go to an appropriate restaurant. The vision of McDonald’s was to offer quick service, and high quality food staffs at cheap rate. Over the years the company has been able to sustain this vision. Lamb et al. 2008; Levy and Weitz, 2001) Thus to sum it up it can be said that McDonald’s has been able to implement its best value based strategy by utilizing all its advantages which are unique to it and can not be copied by any of its competitors and thus it has build its competitive advantages which the company has been able to sustain over the years.