Service Recovery Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Service Recovery - Research Paper Example In order to conduct effective service recovery, it is paramount that management institutes a cross-functional approach, which acquires a marketing perspective, management perspective and an operations perspective. This essentially entails customer recovery, employee recovery and process recovery respectively. This paper will examine the three elements of service recovery, discussing the best practice of service recovery through the extensive examination of the literature. Through the examination of the three main service recovery approaches in a number of industries, this paper will offer eight key hurdles that institutions have to overcome to bridge the gap between best service recovery practices and the actual recovery practices and suggest how to do so. Importance of Service Recovery Service recovery entails actions that a service provider institutes in response to a failure in terms of service delivery. Such a failure occurs when the perceptions of customers of the service provid ed do not match their expectations. As per this definition, it is evident that service recovery is not limited to service industries. Empirical research demonstrates that managing problems effectively entails the most vital component of a company’s reputation for excellent service delivery in institutions and industries. This means that a company that serves either internal or external customers should accept that failures are bound to happen; thus the essential thing is to institute systems and procedures that counter such failures. In recent years, a number of empirical studies have dealt with service recovery in numerous industries globally (Maxham and Netemeyer 61). Concern in service recovery has developed because companies and industries appreciate that poor service experiences are the main reason for customer switching, which also results in loss, in customer lifetime value. However, a viable service recovery system is noteworthy as it has immense, positive impacts on customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, word-of-mouth behaviour and subsequently, customer profitability. While certain studies show that great initial service is better than excellent service recovery, other empirical studies suggest that an excellent service recovery can result in even greater customer loyalty and satisfaction than if a company did nothing wrong in the initial place. This paradox is referred to as the service recovery paradox and holds true in most instances (McCollough 56). Literature on interdisciplinary services provides a rich source of insight and research on effective service recovery (Bell. and Zemke 33). The literature on service recovery shows that perceived justice is a vital element in the evaluations of service recovery. Reports on service failure show that perceived unfairness in customer treatment results, in lower customer satisfaction and loyalty. Service recovery must re-establish justice from the customer’s perspective. Justice entails th ree distinct dimensions, i.e. procedural, distributive and interactional. Distributive justice centers on the allotment of costs and benefits. This element asserts that customers weigh the benefits they gain from services with regard to the costs associated with the service.

Discuss in Scholarly Detail the Benefits and Risks Associated with Strategic Management Essay Example for Free

Discuss in Scholarly Detail the Benefits and Risks Associated with Strategic Management Essay Strategic management allows organizations to be more proactive than reactive and to initiate and influence internal and external activities to gain control over its own destiny. It allows executives at all levels to participate in analyzing a firms current practices in order to formulate and implement shorter and longer term strategies for growth and development. Historically, this participative approach has produced better results. Another benefit of strategic management has been to formulate better strategies through the use of the more systematic and proven methodologies. Organizations of all sizes have recognized and realized the benefits of strategic management. While financial benefits include increased sales, profitability and productivity, non-Financial benefits include, better understanding of competitor’s strategies and reduced resistance to change across the organization. Strategic planning with risk awareness has always been difficult. According to Rick Funston Bob Ruprecht (http://bpmmag.net), Success demands excellent risk management as a core competency. Risk intelligence enables an organization to respond to rapidly changing circumstances with greater agility and resilience. Risk handled well becomes a source of competitive advantage; handled poorly it can severely hamper a companys prospects. The greater the risk, the less complacent organization can afford to be. More often executives who are responsible for strategic planning lack an integrated view of risk due to the unavailability of business intelligence when needed. Many organizations fail to consider a range of time horizons when incorporating risk considerations into the planning process resulting in uncertainty down the chain-of-command with each expanding time horizon. Unavailability of an integrated decision-support framework that links key performance metrics with business and risk intelligence multiplies the risks exponentially.

Contemporary Issues in Strategic Marketing

Contemporary Issues in Strategic Marketing Contemporary Issues in Strategic Marketing Your manager has been to a marketing seminar on The Service Dominant Logic. He has asked you to produce a paper on the implications of implementing an SDK programme within the firm embraces both the strategic and tactical implications and the costs and the benefits. Implications of service-dominant logic Nowadays, we need to set up strategies and tactics in a new way due to the huge changes happening in both consuming and marketing environment. Due to the more and more important role marketing plays in corporate operation, understanding and implementing strategy from marketings view could offer firms a useful means to reconfigure corporate value and management concept. In 2007, the revised definition of marketing by AMA (American Marketing Association) illustrates that marketing is a system of vale transaction in essence. Briefly, all forms of goods should be regarded as service. Goods are the physical expression of one or more capabilities, and product is the main type that companies offer, while service, according to Vargo and Lusch (2004), is the application of specialized competences (knowledge and skills). Stephen L. Vargo Robert F. Lusch (2004) also explained that marketing has shifted from the goods-dominant logic (G-D Logic) to service–dominant logic (S-D Logic) which is applicable to all marketing offers (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). They further identified that in fact, all economy is the service economy, and product is just the carrier and physical appearance of the service (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). Apparently, what firms offer is the physical product, but in fact all what they supply is just one kind of service, one solution. Kotler (1977) indicated that the real importance of product to us is not the ownership but the service that we could get from them. Also, there is a growing focus o n services in the marketing because service industry dominants the worlds economy nowadays, for example, eighty percent of the current U.S. GDP is derived from the services industry, which employs over 80% of all employees (Ford and Bowen, 2008). The S-D logic intimates a very different kind of purpose and process for marketing activity and for the firm as a whole: to provide service to stakeholders, including customers, stockholders, and employees (Lusch and Vargo 2006, p. 283). All companies should notice that the real implication of serve-dominant logic is the customer satisfaction not the continual innovation and improvement of products, unless this kind of innovation and improvement is for better satisfying customer needs. Firms blind focus on improving products quality and technology would let them ignore the change of customer needs, which will keep them away from customers. Whenever companies can have the service-dominant view, they will be more rational to make strategies. Especially when managing production innovation, firms will not only keep an eye on the product itself but develop the production more efficient based on the services need to be satisfied. So under the serve-dominant logic, firms should firstly be c ustomer-oriented, continually satisfy customer needs; then firms should enhance the service consciousness and improve service quality, which is a fundamental approach to attract new customer, build customer satisfaction and cultivate customer loyalty (Brodie and Little, 2006). A significant change over the 100 years is that customers could actively choose their favourite products from only passively accept corporate product. This is the result of the market competition, is the inevitable phenomenon among the transformation from the sellers market to the buyers market. In the traditional product times, corporate implement the market-and-sell producing value, producers and consumers are completely separated (Baker, 2003, P454). In the past, companies blindly manufacture, ignoring whether or not customers will accept, what they only care is selling products out for profit. However, this method isnt effective anymore because current customers have a lot of alternative choices, part of them are even finicky, they will only choose the product and service satisfying their needs, they will not waste any interest on anything they dont like. In consideration of this situation, more and more companies become smarter. They abandon the obsolete production concept, turn ing to use the sense and response marketing view as the guide, put customers in the core position of the corporate operation. More than that, firms start to involve customers in the process of product design, producing, evaluation. During the whole process of value creation, customers is no longer a passively accepter, but be regarded as the co-producer. The key element of value creation is to cooperate with customers (Normannand Ramirez, 1993). Thus it can be seen that, customer participation is extraordinary important to companies, the interaction between customers and firms is extremely important, especially for the future corporate. In his book â€Å"future shock†, Alvin Toffer explained the upcoming â€Å"experiential industry†, in which customers would not only satisfy with the basic functions products and services offer, they would be willing to allocate high percentages of their salaries to live amazing experiences (Toffler, 1994). In this kind of â€Å"experience economy†, companies will never again simply produce goods, but become an experience platform, co-create value with the customers. Dell and Starbucks are both good examples. Corporate could be regarded as an aggregation of various resources, validly managing these resources could create profit and value. Firms used to believe that tangible resources such as the land, equipment, and materials are the most important assets, because without these resources, companies are unable to organize manufacture. However, in the current service-dominant times, the key resources have changed to be intangible resources like knowledge, experience, technology and innovation etc (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). It can be said that they are base of corporate competence and core capability. This is not to say that those tangible resources are not important any more, but that their importance has comparably diminished, which is because that the buyers market is the dominant in the current economic environment, customers have unprecedented wide range of choices and their needs are escalating, only the high knowledge and technology based products will be favoured by customers. On the o ther hand, simple physical product without high knowledge and technology is losing competence, which prompts companies to transfer to the knowledge and technology intensive ones. Constantin and Lusch (1994) defined the physical and natural resources to be the operand resources, while the knowledge, technology and innovation kind of resources are be defined as the operant resources (Constantin and Lusch, 1994). This transaction of the focus of resource reveals one fact which is that current corporate competition is no longer the simple competition based on the product, but the full competition based on the knowledge, technology and human resources. If company want to be the winner in such intensively competitive environment, it must set up its own core capability and competitive advantage. Modern corporations more and more emphasize on transferring value from the tangible resources to intangible resources, insisting on creating corporate value through operant resources (Vargo and Lus ch, 2004). S-D Logic emphasizes that knowledge is the fundamental source of competitive advantage, as based on a firms ability to make differentiated use of information flow throughout its value creation chain of suppliers, distributors, and customers (Ford and Bowen, 2008). Also, the transaction of focus of resources requires corporate to make an important change on strategies, which is to be the learning organization. Only learning could increase the group knowledge, experience etc intangible assets in the organization, could create core value. Firms not only need to carry out the internal learning, but also turn its attention to the broader external environment and the whole value chain. Not only requires adaptive learning but also innovative learning. It is indicated by S-D Logic that customer value is created through service experiences and relationships, especially in the co-creation and sharing of resources, including skills and knowledge (Aitken and Ballantyne etc all, 2006). Within the S-D Logic, the customers is a prosumer and co-creator of value, which can lead benefits to both themselves and service providers (Baker, 2003, P461). In the product times, value is almost decided by the producer, value is included in the tangible resources, reflect on the product; however, in the current service times, value is decide by the consumers. Whether or not one product is valuable, how much value it has, thats not producers call, after consumers judgement, its value is embodied in the consumers recognition and acceptance. So this is like that a drop of water is much more valuable than a diamond in the dessert, which is determined by peoples needs. The definition of Customer Perceived Value (CPV) given by Kotler (2003) is the differenc e between the prospective customers evaluation of all benefits and all the costs of an offering and the perceived alternatives (Kotler, 2003, P60). So it can be seen that value relies on customers perception and judgement to a large extent. Customers will make their most important judgments of value received through direct service interactions with firms and on service-ability of goods-in-use (Ballantyne and Aitken, 2007). It can also be said that the time-logic of marketing exchange is open-ended, from pre-sale service interaction to post-sale value-in-use (Ballantyne and Varey, 2006). Baker (2003) said that: â€Å"all marketing is about value proposition.† (Baker, 2003, P452). The service-dominant logic brings marketing innovation to the fore through the sharing of new ideas and knowledge within the firm, and between the firm and key customers and suppliers (Aitken and Ballantyne etc all, 2006). The effect of transition of value determination on strategy is that corporate must implement the innovation process and service progress based on the customers, play close attention to their need, opinions and suggestions, which means that marketing research, product test need to be taken regularly, ensuring customer needs could be satisfied. It is the only way to receive customers recognition and acceptance and let the value of product could express. Also, firms need to maintain stable long-term relationship with customers, set up various social, structural and emotional connections to enhance customer loyalty and customer lifetime value (Aitken and Ballantyne etc all, 2006).Lean solution which fits the S-D logic and the customers role as co-creator could be applied by companies make hands-on strategies, such as continuing improvements, do it right the first time, and management commitment (baker, 2003, P467). Also, there are some principles should be followed (Baker, 2003, P467; Womack and Jones, 2005b, P61): Solve the customers problem completed by ensuring that all the goods and services work, and work together. Do not waste the customers time. Provide exactly what the customer wants. Provide what is wanted exactly where it is wanted. Provide what is wanted where it is wanted exactly when it is wanted. Continually aggregate solutions to reduce the customers time and hassle. In the service times, companies more and more recognize the importance of customers who are the direct origin of profit. Old trading ideas do not emphasize the relationship with customers, ignoring customer needs and satisfaction lead to companys reducing profit and increasing costs. With the further deepen understanding, more and more emphasize on the core position of customers, companies gradually recognize the importance to keep the relationship with customers. This is also one result of the continual development of marketing theories applied to practices. During the process of development, many new concepts have been put forward, such as the Customer Lifetime Value (CLV), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), and Customer Equity (Kotler, 2003). Managers find out it is possible to reduce costs on one side, and attract more new customers by word-of mouth to receive more profit on the other side through building relationship with customers and maintaining customer loyalty. Strategically, corporate choose customers more carefully, they find out that it is not effective to be indiscriminate customer choosing. Companies discover that not all of the customers are profitable; some customers will even bring negative gearing to them, which is because the too high cost to get customers and/or too short customer lifetime circle, and this is called the lost-for-good customers type. Sherden proposed to change the â€Å"20-80† rule with the following: â€Å"20-80-30†, first 20% of customers contribute with 80% to the enterprise profit and half of these profits are used to cover the enterprise losses generated by the last 30% of the unprofitable customers (Sherden, 1994). According to this situation, companies start to consider how to measure customer value, how to identify profitable customers, which lead to the CLV evaluation. What companies could do is to model profit on both an annual basis and on a CLV basis to determine customer value in terms o f potential profits and CLV (Christopher, Payne and Ballantyne, 2002, P63). For example, Electro plc collected data analyze its customer acquisition and retention economics at the segment level, by doing so it can clearly identify which segment need to be concentrated on and which one is the waste of investment (Christopher, Payne and Ballantyne, 2002, P53). Through this assessment, companies could find out the most important customers and abandon those unprofitable customers. And adopt different marketing strategies and different resource distribution (such as different pricing policies, quality and level of service) to different categories of customers. Firms very focus on building up stable long-term relationship to achieve the supplier-customer win-win relationship (Baker, 2003, P469). IBM is good at it CRM, it can make the best use of every opportunity contacting with customers to impress them and increase loyalty to company, and finally enhance corporate profit and reduce cost (IBM, 2009). For example, its CRM outsourcing service provide reliable methods, new ideas and innovative thinking to help firms enhance customer-oriented marketing, sales and the effectiveness and efficient of services (IBM, 2009). When companies are pursuing the long-term development, especially when we hope to build a permanent operating institution, we must have a broad view, not only focus on customers current value, but also create and enhance customers lifetime value. Firstly, companies need to ensure the quality of its products could satisfy customers need; then, companies need to be able to provide good â€Å"consumption experience† to attract customer participation and build their loyalty to your brand. Tactics could be that firms not only provide after-sale service, but actively offer lifetime service, cultivate â€Å"lifetime customers†, create lifetime value in further (Lusch, Vargo, and Malter 2006). CRM regards that the total value of the firms customer base is an important driver of company profitability (Kotler, 2003, P52). In order to set up a comprehensive customer database, high-quality, timely, and accurate information need to be collected such as customers demographics, past purchase etc and then put into a data warehouse. And the database could be used by companies on marketing like to identify customer response, make attractive or timely offers ect. However, Kotler (2003) also identified three problems of database marketing: firstly, companies need to spend a large investment in computer hardware, database, software, analytical programs, communication links, and skilled personnel to build and maintain a customer database; secondly, it is difficult to get everyone in the company to be customer-oriented in and to use the available information; thirdly, customer may not want to keep a relationship with the company, some of whom may even think that their personal informatio n should not be collected (Kotler, 2003, P55). And some real examples tell us that the database marketing is not helpful to every companys CRM, reasons of failure of CRM implementation could be the high cost, poorly designed system, ignorance by collaborators (Kotler, 2003, P56). Conclusively, we are facing a totally different consumption and marketing environment, so we should also change our ideological foundation of making strategies. Major changes include that marketing has shifted from the goods-dominant logic to service–dominant logic; customers could actively choose their favourite products; the key resources have changed to be intangible resources; customers become a co-creator of value; maintaining customer relationship becomes more and more important to companies. So strategic and tactical implications to companies are: be customer-oriented, continually satisfy customer needs; enhance the service consciousness and improve service quality; increase customer participation; marketing research, product test need to be taken regularly to ensure customer needs could be satisfied; carry out adaptive learning and innovative learning within the company. Two main types of benefits could be brought to companies: reduce costs and increase profit and valu e through CRM. However, the initial investment is expensive, and it is hard to make ensure everyone one in the company could be customer-oriented, also, some customers may refuse to maintain relationship with firms. Strategy is the direction and scope of an organization over the long term, and the tactics is the specific actions implementing strategy(Johnson and Scholes, 2002, P 10). New Definition of Marketing (est. in 2007): Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large( AMA, 2007). â€Å"Future shock† is a book written by the sociologist and futurologist Alvin Toffer in 1970 The Pareto principle ( also knows the â€Å"20-80† rule) states that it is possible for 80% of the companys profit to be provided by 20% of the total number of customers (Sherden, 1994). Customer lifetime value (CLV) is defined as the net present value of the future profit flow over a customers lifetime (Christopher, Payne and Ballantyne, 2002, P62) According to Bill Inmon (1992), a data warehouse is a database that contains the following four characteristics: subject oriented, non-volatile, integrated and time variant (Todman, 2001, P32). Bibliography: Kotler, Philip (1977), Marketing Management: Analysis, Planning, Implementation, and Control, 3d ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Crosby, Philip (1979). Quality is Free. New York: McGraw-Hill. 0-07-014512-1. New Scientist, 19 March 1994, pp. 22-25. Harvard Business Review, 71, July/August, 1993, pp. 65-77 Sherden W.A. (1994) Market Ownership: the Art and Science of Becoming no 1, New York,Amacon Chris Todman (2001) Designing a Data Warehouse: supporting customer relationship Management. Hewlett-packard Company, Prentice Hall PTR, Upper saddle river, New Jersey 07548 Johnson, G. and K. Scholes (2002). Exploring corporate strategy : [TEXT ONLY]. Harlow, Financial Times Prentice Hall. Martin Christopher, Adrian Payne, David Ballantyne (2002) Relationship marketing : creating stakeholder value. Oxford : Butterworth-Heinemann, 2002. Kotler, Philip (2003), Marketing Management 11th (international) ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Baker, Michael John (2003) The marketing book (5th Edition) Oxford :Butterworth-Heinemann. Printed and bound in Great Britain by the Bathe Press, Bath S. L. Vargo and R. F. Lusch (2004). Evolving to a new dominant logic for marketing. Journal of Marketing, 68:1{17, January 2004. Brodie, R.J., Glynn, M.S. and Little, V. (2006), â€Å"The service brand and the service-dominant logic: missing fundamental premise or the need for stronger theory?†, Marketing Theory, Vol. 6 No. 3, pp. 363-79. Robert F. Lusch, Stephen L. Vargo (2006) Service-dominant logic: reactions, reflections and refinements Marketing Theory, Vol. 6, No. 3, 281-288 (2006) Robert Aitken, David Ballantyne. Phil Osborne and John Williams (2006) Introduction to the special issue on the service-dominant logic of marketing: insights from The Otago Forum Marketing Theory 2006; 6; 275 Lusch, R.F. and S.L. Vargo, Eds. (2006). The Service-Dominant Logic of Marketing. Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe. Lusch, R.F., S.L. Vargo, A. Malter (2006). â€Å"Marketing as Service-Exchange: Taking a Leadership Role in Global Marketing Management,† Organizational Dynamics (forthcoming). David Ballantyne and Robert Aitken (2007)Branding in B2B markets: insights from the service-dominant logic of marketing, Journal of Business Industrial Marketing Volume 22  · Number 6  · 2007  · 363–371 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited [ISSN 0885-8624] AMA (2007, December 17, 2007 ). AMA Definition of Marketing . Retrieved 7th Nov 2009, from http://www.marketingpower.com/Community/ARC/Pages/Additional/Definition/default.aspx. ROBERT C. FORD and DAVID E. BOWEN (2008) A Service-Dominant Logic for Management Education: Its Time. Academy of Management Learning Education, 2008, Vol. 7, No. 2, 224–243. IBM (2009) Build sustainable competitive advantage and accelerate time-to-benefit in marketing, sales and service http://www-935.ibm.com/services/th/index.wss/offerfamily/gts/e1028096 (Available) Accessed on 13th Nov, 2009

Tragedy and Redemption in Toni Morrisons Beloved Essay -- Toni Morris

Tragedy and Redemption in Beloved "This is not a story to pass on."(1) With these enigmatic words, Toni Morrison brings to a conclusion a very rich, very complicated novel, in which slavery and its repercussions are brought into focus, examined, and reassembled to yield a story of tragedy and redemption. The "peculiar institution" of slavery has been the basis for many literary works from Roots to Beloved, with particular emphasis on the physical, mental, and spiritual violence characteristic of the practice of slavery in the South. A far greater shame than slavery itself is the violence that was directed against slave women in the name of slavery. Slave women bore the heaviest burden of slavery, forced to be not only fieldhands and domestic workers, but to satisfy their masters' sexual appetites. Frederick Douglass wrote that the "slave woman is at the mercy of the fathers, sons or brothers of her master."(2) Slaveowners considered their slave women to be fair game, forcing themselves on their female slaves with impunity, and any resulting children were considered property, to be sold like the calves from a cow. The family institutions of the slaves meant nothing to their owners; the children of slaves were likewise considered property and could be sold at their owners' whim. Schoolteacher referred to Sethe and her children as "...the breeding one, her three pickaninnies and whatever the foal might be..."(279) Slave children often did not know who their fathers or even their mothers were... ...gain. Beloved is an unsanitized picture of slavery and its consequences, a condemnation of the violations that humans impose upon each other. That the presence of Beloved is still felt, long after the players have left the stage, is representative of the scars that remain on the hearts and minds of women, that such horrors could be visited upon their sisters once. Notes 1. Toni Morrison, Beloved (New York, 1987) 337. All subsequent quotes from Beloved are followed by page numbers in parentheses. 2. Frederick Douglass, My Bondage and My Freedom (New York, 1968 [1855]) 60, qtd. in Blassingame 83. Works Cited 1. Blassingame, John W. The Slave Community: Plantation Life in the Antebellum South. New York: Oxford University Press, 1972. 2. Morrison, Toni. Beloved. (New York: Penguin Books USA Inc., 1987)

Analyze the different techniques used in the openings of Sommersby and Of Mice and Men films

Creating a successful film often lies in creating a successful opening. By using different camera angles and lighting styles, as well as music techniques the director can set the scene and alter the mood in any way he wants. Here I am going to analyze the different techniques used in the openings of both films as they progress. Credits Somersby starts with an air of mystery to it. We are shown this perspective by the lighting styles and camera angles that used. The camera shots show close-ups of firstly a man who we assumed is dead then of another man who's face is shrouded in a shadow of which enables hardly any of his face to be seen at all. This enables as to question his identity an also question the relationship of him and the other man. The music is also suitably grim but is of fairly poor standard, however the music does suggest the time period as the music is slightly patriotic. In the next scene the music fades and we get another close up of the mans face and hands. The hands are shown as they have importance as it is clearly shown they are covered in blood which when linked with the previous scene allows the viewer to jump to a rough conclusion to what has happened. The music is cut to show us that this is a seriousness of the scene. The close up scene soon fades we are taken to the credits, which are played over scenes of this man traveling through different climates, the variety in the climates shows us that he is traveling of long distances. This also asks us the question was is he going and why is he going. The camera still has not shown us a clear image of this mans face, which still gives us an impression of mystery to the character and also shows us that the character is probably deliberately trying to conceal his identity. The camera also pauses at the point when the man passes what looks like a group of soldiers. This emphasizes there is some important connection between the character we have been shown and these soldiers which helps us as viewers to try and fill important gaps in the profile of this character. In direct contrast ‘Of Mice and Men' is played out in a completely different style. The credits are immediately at the beginning and there are no scenes played underneath it only a blank background. Similar to Somersby however, is the music. Whilst ‘Of Mice and Men' music is of a higher standard it sets the scene for the movie. The music is very sad and solemn which can immediately tell us that this film is not going to be a happy film . As the credits continue further we get sound effects that immediately tell us roughly where this scene is set. The noise happens to be of a train so immediately us as viewers are told a) the scene is on a train and b) the characters in the film may be traveling. The camera pans in showing us light coming through gaps in the carriages, this captures the same dark atmosphere as shown in the opening of Somersby but through a different technique. To add to this gloomy effect the music fades so that only the sound effects can be heard. The director has done this to such an effect that it sort of brings us into the movie and lets us feel the cold, dark, and harsh sounds that anyone would be hearing at that time. This brings user involvement into the film and is also relevant in the next few seconds in experiencing the thoughts of the characters. As the credits start to fad the music starts up again and the camera pauses in front of an outline of a figure. The lighting here is used in the same effect as ‘Somersby' were it does not reveal the character but allows us instead to ask questions about the character instead, for instance why is he traveling on this train and why is he lurking in the shadows. And this effect is obviously used in the same context in ‘Somersby' when we see him with the body for the first time. The music then changes dramatically and immediately the credit scene ends and the movie moves on. This effect of the music changing dramatically also highlights the point that the movie is continuing along a different path as apposed to the music in ‘Somersby' that tends to stay constant throughout the opening. It also gives the effect that this maybe a flash back due to the sudden changes in scene and location. Opening In ‘Somersby' continues on to a new location. The location is obviously vastly different so we can say that the character may have traveled a great distance. The music is still shown as grim and adds tension and emotion to the scene. The scene focuses on the firstly a close-up of the hand being wrapped in a handkerchief. The angle is displayed as a first person view so as to give us a better perspective of the characters feelings, and the obvious close-up of the wrapping of the handkerchief shows us there is some relevance in the scene. We are then shown a third person shot of him taken the coat of he has been hidden under, which shows us that firstly he feels ready to reveal himself and secondly that he had a uniform on showing a connection between him and the soldiers. We are then shown the first full picture of him. The music is now suitably brighter to obviously help lighten the characters mood. We are then taken to his first meeting with another character. The music fades to suggest that this maybe quite an important part of plot development. We are also shown the main character through the other characters eyes to show that at that point the concentration of that character would have been minimal. As the scene carries on the music changes to being much more confident which shows us that the tense atmosphere at the beginning of the scene has faded. Of Mice and Men' once again changes to a different style. The music firstly has become more frantic and the scene first shows a women running. At this point she has no part in the story yet the camera follows her so that we know that it must link to the plot somehow. We are then shown to characters running away from the camera. Immediately this tells that because the woman was running toward the camer a they are running away from each other. This type of camera work is not used at all in ‘Somersby' as it tries to capture a different mood. However as the chase scene ends the same first person view as shown in Somersby is implemented to give us a clearer impression of the characters thoughts feelings at this time. To conclude it is obvious that both films implement similar styles however to get the correct mood they want they have often altered techniques to suit that scene creating the same sort of mood but in different ways. This kind of variation adds variety to the film and makes it much more enjoyable to watch.

The Glass Menagerie

A persons life isn’t always what it’s expected to be. Every ones lives tell a completely different story, whether it’s sad or it’s joyful. Tennessee Williams shows a great example of three peoples lives in his play â€Å"The Glass Menagerie†. In The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams uses several different themes throughout the play, including control in Amanda, Laura and Tom’s lives. Laura is one of the characters that gets a lot of control in her life, by her mother Amanda. â€Å"We have to be making some plans and previsions for her. She’s older than you. † (Williams 763) Amanda is the one speaking in the quote above, she is speaking to Tom. Amanda is saying that they need to be making plans and changes in Laura’s life. She technically wants to control Laura’s life. Amanda is the mother of Tom and Laura but she tries to control everything they do. Amanda is the controller of her son and daughter, Tom and Laura. She either controls what they do or tries to control their future. â€Å"†¦ it would be nice for your sister if you brought home some nice young man from the warehouse†¦ (756) Amanda says that to Tom. â€Å"Laura, are you going to do what I asked you to , or do i have to get dressed and go out myself? † Amanda says this to Laura. As you can tell Amanda is very bossy, she wants Tom to get Laura a nice young man from the warehouse and commands Laura to go somewhere for her. Laura usually does what her mother says but Tom sometimes yells back her and makes a big ar gument start. On the other hand Tom gets controlled by his mother, Amanda, but he tries to defend himself. Whenever Tom and Amanda argue Tom tries to defend himself by talking back to her, for example, â€Å"House, house! Who pays the rent on it, who makes himself a slave to-† (759) Tom is complaining to Amanda how he is the one who pays the rent when she is trying to accuse him for doing nothing. In every argument that they have, Tom doesn’t let it go, he keeps it going. Williams had several different themes in The glass Menagerie. Control was one that stood out to me. Obviously Amanda was the overall controller. She tried to control Laura and Toms lives. â€Å"You smoke too much. A pack a day at fifteen cents a pack, how much would that amount add up to in a month? † (764) Amanda tries to control Toms smoking habits, but he’s a grown man and he decided to smoke and she has to deal with it now. She is not always going to have control over him or even Laura’s life. When i read this play, i could kind of relater to Laura’s life. Control is also in my life, from my parent. They simply want me to have a better life, sort of like Laura in the play. â€Å"I want you to be someone in life and want you to have a career that you enjoy doing. (My parents) My parents don’t want me to end up working at a fast food restaurant for the rest of my life, they want me to continue my education so i can end up with a career that will pay me the big bucks. I’m pretty sure anyone has some kind of control in their lives. Control was one of the themes that Tennessee Williams used in The Glass Menagerie. Control in this play is important becau se it is one of the main themes, and shows how peoples lives can be when we might think it’s the total opposite. The Glass Menagerie A persons life isn’t always what it’s expected to be. Every ones lives tell a completely different story, whether it’s sad or it’s joyful. Tennessee Williams shows a great example of three peoples lives in his play â€Å"The Glass Menagerie†. In The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams uses several different themes throughout the play, including control in Amanda, Laura and Tom’s lives. Laura is one of the characters that gets a lot of control in her life, by her mother Amanda. â€Å"We have to be making some plans and previsions for her. She’s older than you. † (Williams 763) Amanda is the one speaking in the quote above, she is speaking to Tom. Amanda is saying that they need to be making plans and changes in Laura’s life. She technically wants to control Laura’s life. Amanda is the mother of Tom and Laura but she tries to control everything they do. Amanda is the controller of her son and daughter, Tom and Laura. She either controls what they do or tries to control their future. â€Å"†¦ it would be nice for your sister if you brought home some nice young man from the warehouse†¦ (756) Amanda says that to Tom. â€Å"Laura, are you going to do what I asked you to , or do i have to get dressed and go out myself? † Amanda says this to Laura. As you can tell Amanda is very bossy, she wants Tom to get Laura a nice young man from the warehouse and commands Laura to go somewhere for her. Laura usually does what her mother says but Tom sometimes yells back her and makes a big ar gument start. On the other hand Tom gets controlled by his mother, Amanda, but he tries to defend himself. Whenever Tom and Amanda argue Tom tries to defend himself by talking back to her, for example, â€Å"House, house! Who pays the rent on it, who makes himself a slave to-† (759) Tom is complaining to Amanda how he is the one who pays the rent when she is trying to accuse him for doing nothing. In every argument that they have, Tom doesn’t let it go, he keeps it going. Williams had several different themes in The glass Menagerie. Control was one that stood out to me. Obviously Amanda was the overall controller. She tried to control Laura and Toms lives. â€Å"You smoke too much. A pack a day at fifteen cents a pack, how much would that amount add up to in a month? † (764) Amanda tries to control Toms smoking habits, but he’s a grown man and he decided to smoke and she has to deal with it now. She is not always going to have control over him or even Laura’s life. When i read this play, i could kind of relater to Laura’s life. Control is also in my life, from my parent. They simply want me to have a better life, sort of like Laura in the play. â€Å"I want you to be someone in life and want you to have a career that you enjoy doing. (My parents) My parents don’t want me to end up working at a fast food restaurant for the rest of my life, they want me to continue my education so i can end up with a career that will pay me the big bucks. I’m pretty sure anyone has some kind of control in their lives. Control was one of the themes that Tennessee Williams used in The Glass Menagerie. Control in this play is important becau se it is one of the main themes, and shows how peoples lives can be when we might think it’s the total opposite.

Levis in Walmart Essays

Levis in Walmart Essays Levis in Walmart Paper Levis in Walmart Paper Problem Faced with 5 years of declining sales, should Levi’s sell a brand to mass discount retailer, Wal-Mart? Executive Summary Quick! Name the first company that comes to mind for the following products: facial tissue, photocopiers, and jeans. Did you answer Kleenex, Xerox, and Levi’s? I bet you did. The #1 apparel brand for brand awareness and recognition, â€Å"Levi’s† is virtually synonymous with â€Å"jeans. † In the past several years however this strong brand recognition has failed to translate into sales growth and in fact the company has seen a progressive decline over the last 5 years. Faced with the declining sales, Levi Strauss Co. ’s CEO, Phil Marineau, has been considering selling a Levi’s brand to mass discount retailer, Wal-Mart. Bad idea. Clearly this would be brand suicide or, brandicide if you will, sacrificing long-term survival for short-term growth. Levi’s should instead put an end to its brand’s dilution and concentrate its target on trend-setting members of Generation Y by positioning itself as an ultra cool brand with a social conscience. In addition to working closely with its current retail outlets to re-invigorate the brand image, Levi’s should work on growing the number of Original Levi’s Stores worldwide in order to retain as much control as possible over the positioning of the brand. The forecasted financial results show that choosing to revitalize and refocus the brand rather than diluting and devaluing it further by selling a value brand to Wal-Mart will cost the company 50 million dollars in the first year. However, within 3 years the efforts are expected to payoff with a 330 million dollar revenue increase over 2002 vs. 270 million dollar projected revenue loss for the Wal-Mart choice. Plus, Levi’s will be able to hit the triple bottom line by remaining socially and environmentally responsible while increasing shareholder earnings. Situation Analysis Strengths Worldwide recognition of its brand name #1 for apparel brand for brand recognition and brand awareness. Global presence Owns 12 proprietary specialty stores. Long-standing relationships with many retailers, enabling it to work across several channels of distribution. Continued success of Dockers. Commitment to ethical conduct and social responsibility. Reputation as the brand that started the blue jean revolution Weaknesses Presence across several retail channels with a number of products aimed at different segments with price points â€Å"from the $250 level to the $25 level† diluting the brand. Being used as a loss leader in several chain and department stores is devaluing the brand. The average price paid for Levi’s at retail dropping. History of Levi’s 1994 Canadian dispute with Wal-Mart may be a barrier to rekindling a relationship with the mass retailer. Recent product releases have met with poor results, particularly in the US. Major stockholder’s deficit Ineffective marketing efforts (30% of sales spent on marketing, yet sales continue to drop) Opportunities The jeans mark et is growing Teens continue to be biggest jeans buyers Mass merchant channel largest and fastest-growing retail channel for jeans and apparel Threats Competitors at all levels of spectrum including high-end segment, vertically integrated retailers in middle segment, and private-label brands offering comparable designs at reduced prices. Apparel sales down in 2001 Average price of jeans has dropped over the past 10 years due to the proliferation of off-pricing and private-label brands 40% of jeans sold below $20. Issues facing the organization As the jeans market has polarized towards the low and high ends, the Levi’s brand has found itself caught in the middle. Priced between $30 and $50 a pair, the jeans do not offer the same image or design as the high-end brands, or the complete wardrobe selection of the vertically integrated retailers. Also, they do not offer the inexpensive alternatives found through private labels. Further, while the jeans market continues to grow, to stand out in the cluttered market, a company must have a real competitive advantage. In the case of Levi’s it seems that mere brand name recognition isn’t enough. And with 5 years of declining sales, Levi’s has to reinvent itself or die. After reviewing the situational analysis of the company, several alternatives can be considered. Alternatives 1. â€Å"Do nothing† and hope to sell more. Faced with a 5 year decline in sales, doing nothing isn’t a very sound strategy. However, perhaps current initiatives such as new product offerings and specialty retail channels need more time to catch on. 2. Enter a new market with a new product. Sell a Levi’s value brand to mass retailers such as Wal-Mart, a retail channel that accounts for 31% of all jean sales. The potential increase in sales from this new channel is probably very good in the short term, however the risk is that entry into the discount market even with a Levi’s value brand that’s differentiated from the main product line, will further devalue and dilute the brand, making it unattractive to its current retailers. If Levi’s gets dropped from chain, department stores, and independents because its brand is no longer relevant to its customers, then the potential loss could offset a good deal of any potential gain. Further, once the brand loses its â€Å"shine,† through dilution, discounting and devaluation, the benefits to Wal-Mart of carrying a higher profile â€Å"national brand† are lost. A likely scenario is that in the long-run, Levi’s would only be carried in discount stores, its brand image too tarnished for chains and department stores, and even in mass retailers used as a loss-leader for the store’s own private labels. 3. Another alternative, which is similar to the last, also involves Develop and sell a non-Levi’s branded line of jeans to Wal-Mart. The advantage of this is that Levi’s could open up a major new retail channel without devaluing the mother brand. However, this scenario is probably far less interesting for Wal-Mart that would be looking to leverage the nationally recognized brand to improve its own brand image. Interestingly, this scenario is probably far less interesting to Levi’s too, since if Wal-Mart did pick up the generic brand, chances are that it would fall under the â€Å"better† or more likely the â€Å"good† end of the spectrum rather than the â€Å"best,† and the price point would either be unprofitably low or set unreasonably high in order to drive purchases of Wal-Mart’s private labels. 4. Stop extending the brand to the point of complete dilution. Update brand personality and marketing mix to make Levi’s a fresh and relevant brand that resonates with trendsetting youth and speaks to Levi’s management’s perceived competitive advantages, such as commitment to ethical conduct and social responsibility, and the focus on product innovation, quality, and value, rather than simply trying a new channel for a distressed brand. In speaking to a specific target, rather than trying to be everything to everyone, marketing dollars can go a lot further. And by focusing on the demo with the most influence on trends, youth, who have the most dollars going towards jeans per person per year, the chance for growth is good. Plus, by focusing less on the product and the retail outlets and more on the Levi’s experience, there is major potential for organic brand extensions and growth. On the other hand, the risk is that the brand has already been too neglected and diluted and is so â€Å"old school† that it’s too late and will never be perceived as cool by the youth market. In this case getting the last bit of life out of a dying brand by distributing it through mass market channels may be the only answer. Recommendations The financial analysis (appendix A) compares projected results of taking a value brand into Wal-Mart with not taking the brand to mass market and instead concentrating the target, dialing up the cool factor and re-positioning the brand to resonate with the 20% of consumers who have the potential to bring in 80% of revenue (the 20/80 rule of business) – the tween, teen young adult market. As we see, introducing a value-brand at Wal-Mart is expected to sacrifice long-term revenue growth for short-term gain since the devaluation of the brand through its association with a discount mass retailer would likely cause department stores and chains to drop the brand one by one. Once the brand has no life beyond the discounter, its value goes down and is likely to command lower price points and less sales even at the mass level. Within three years, we predict that going the Wal-Mart route over the re-positioning route will cost Levi’s 660 million dollars and ensure that the brand is headed towards extinction. On the other hand, while sales are not likely to grow while the brand is in the process of the transition to focus on becoming relevant to the younger, influential market, we see that after the first year, increased price points and distribution, particularly in its specialty outlets should translate into steady long-term growth for the company. Therefore, in order to turn sales around while protecting the integrity of the brand, the best alternative is the last one, which relies on a market penetration strategy, increasing share among existing customers by focusing promotional efforts, combined with a product development strategy, to identify the best products to appeal to the target demographic. The first step in reviving the brand is to choose to fight brand dilution through concentrated targeting. Levi’s must identify the marketing segment that is most important to Levi’s present and future growth and identify the characteristics, needs and motives of that segment in order to develop and maintain a highly specialized marketing mix. By choosing Generation Y (young people born between approximately 1979 and 1994), also called the Net Generation, or the Millenials, as the main target to lead the brand revitalization efforts, Levi’s would leverage several attributes of this group. First, it represents a demographic of about 76 million in the US. Second, they are in the â€Å"young single† stage of the life cycle, which means they have few financial burdens and therefore more disposable income. Young people are also an aspirational reference group for fashion. If young, hip, trend-setters choose to adopt the brand, this would significantly improve the brand image. Levi’s apparently understands this in theory, selling a few higher-end brands aimed at fashion-forward youngsters in the 15- to 24-year-old range, however the problem is that these brands aren’t resonating well enough with this influential demo to have the intended halo effect on the rest of the jeans line. In order to gain success with this group Levi’s must first change neutral or negative beliefs about product attributes into positive ones. For example, Levi’s needs to go from being â€Å"your parents’ jeans,† to a brand that has relevance in the lives of these young people. Brand is very important to this demographic and they are willing to pay a premium for it. In addition, Gen Y likes and expects personalization and customization. Further, this is a segment that has a much bigger environmental and social conscience than does the generation preceding it. Other important considerations when marketing to the tween and teen demographic, according to Paul Kurnit during his presentation on Understanding Youth, in order to build a relationship with the brand are to: make it lifestyle relevant, give it badge value, generate buzz, make it authentic, let them own it (â€Å"I’ve created this†), and keep it fresh in the long term. By re-positioning the Levi’s brand as a stylish brand with a social and environmental conscience, Levi’s can become extremely relevant to this demographic. And this positioning is actually very close to what management already claims are its competitive advantages, including commitment to ethical conduct and social responsibility, ad the focus on product innovation and quality. The re-positioning will simply take these perceived competitive advantages, shout about them, and give them relevance for a very targeted segment. Some recommendations for the marketing plan to achieve this re-positioning and turn around Levi’s fortunes are: Product Higher-end fashions that appeal to Generation Y Environmentally friendly fabrics used in products (e. g. organic hemp weave) Use manufacturers worldwide that practice fair employment practices use environmentally friendly production processes. Bags for merchandise should be paper, made of recycled materials and be cool and of high quality so that consumers will want to reuse them for other things. At flagship stores, offer customized tags with percentage of proceeds going to charity. Place Ori ginal Levi’s One stores to be leaders in shaping brand re-positioning. Increase presence by opening more specialty stores in urban areas. Image department stores high end chain stores. Independent jeaneries Promotion Associate differently coloured tags with key charities so that people can express their social conscience. Support traditional media buys (television print) with the untraditional advertising and promotion methods that Gen Y seeks out. Leverage the popularity of consumer-generated content by giving consumers online tools, including popular music, and video clips, to make their own ads featuring Levi’s styles that they can share with their friends. Create an international online community to leverage the positive image of the brand among trend-setters in other countries and to integrate into young people’s lifestyles. Using guerilla marketing tactics that create buzz such as sending small armies of models dressed only in jeans through city streets in fashion-forward urban areas. Sponsoring mobile phone services like concert alerts. Everything in the store should speak to the young person’s lifestyle, including music. Price The high-end styles should but be priced a little bit lower than other designer and fashion-forward jeans to give a slight cost advantage while the brand is re-building. The recommended target price range is between $50 and $80, but skewing towards the $50 price point as an average price in the first year as the brand regains its â€Å"cool factor. † Conclusion It is easy to understand why Phil Marineau, faced with 5 years of declining sales, would consider getting Levis into the discounters that are grabbing a rising share of apparel sales. Certainly there is a good deal of sales potential of such a move in the short term. But the marketing risks are considerable for a company that has historically strived for a constant injection of cool. Even if Levi’s creates a new brand for Wal-Mart, it would likely still use the Levis name somewhere on the tag, which would quickly destroy any relevance the brand has for fashion-conscious shoppers and signify the beginning of the end for this iconic brand. Instead, Levi’s should turn its perceived competitive advantages like product and promotion innovation and social responsibility into pillars of the brand and sharply focus its target on the segment that spends the most on fashion-forward apparel, the Generation Y. Next steps for implementation In order to fulfill its triple bottom line promise, in its first year of re-positioning, Levi’s should audit current manufacturers for social and environmental best practices and develop plans to improve production processes where necessary. Next, build relationships with key charities that would want to partner with Levi’s on the charitable coloured tab idea. Then, it should begin work on redesigning flagship stores to fit youth lifestyle and work with top retailers to revitalize presence at department stores to fit with fresh branding. Finally, it should introduce the new customizable, altruistic tag jean launch it with a global online community that gives young consumers a chance to express themselves and make the brand their own. Appendix A We will focus on sales, based on the information provided in this case, and assume that the additional costs that might be associated with re-positioning the brand (in particular adjusting manufacturing processes or changing manufacturers and opening new stores, since promotion and product development costs would be similar to previous years, just directed at a new target) would equal approximately to the costs associated with moving into mass market (distribution system changes, especially re-configuring supply chain system to be compatible with Wal-Mart, could be costly) Projections based on Levi’s introducing value brand to Wal-Mart Projected profit on each unit of Levi’s value branded jean (based on highest price of top national brand at Wal-Mart, Dickies $26 – 6$ to retailer): $20 50 million pairs of jeans are sold at discounters out of the 569 million pairs of jeans sold in the US, representing 10% of all jeans sales each year. Assuming that Wal-Mart was se lling half of these 50 million pairs each year, then a Levi’s value brand is likely to take a 20% of these 50 million pairs, or 10 million units . We will base our projection on this: 10 million units in year one, with a 10% drop in number of units sold after the first year (due to brand devaluing as it is taken out of other retail outlets) (9 million in second and third years). Currently, the top 10 customers for Levi’s account for approximately 60% of its total 4. 2 billion in sales (approximately 2. 5 billion dollars). If we assume that 1. billion of this comes from Levi’s jeans sales and if each of the 10 customer’s business is worth approximately 1/10th of that amount, than losing even one customer would cost Levi’s 150 million in jeans sales. Assuming that 1 customer stops carrying the Levi’s brand each year, which is a conservative assumption since, as industry insiders agree once â€Å"you have mass distribution now, we can’t make money on you, you’re gone. † Projections based on Levi’s re-positioning brand targeting Gen Y specifically By keeping its current retail channels and re-positioning its brand, we project that in the first year, Levi’s will have flat sales while the brand is being revitalized, however we project a conservative 10% growth in sales from the current retail channels (from above calculation, this will be 10% of 1. billion in estimated jeans sales) in the 2nd year due to more units being sold and a higher price point and 20% growth in the 3rd year due to expanded Levi’s Original Store sales (with higher margins) and continued growth in traditional Levi’s retail outlets. Year 1Year 2Year 3 Revenue increase from sales Levi’s Wal-Mart value brand$200,000,000$180,000,000$180,000,000 Revenue decrease from removal from other retail outlets 150,000,000300,000,000450,000,000 Total projected sales increase/decrease from entering Wal-Mart50,000, 000(120,000,000)(270,000,000) Revenue increase from re-branding efforts0150,000,000330,000,000 Net gain/loss from choosing to re-position brand rather than selling a value brand to Wal-Mart(50,000,000)270,000,000600,000,000

Promoting School Support Throughout Your Community

Promoting School Support Throughout Your Community Every school would benefit from increased community support. Research has proven that schools with a greater support system thrive compared to those who do not have such support. School support comes from a variety of places both internally and externally. An effective school leader will leverage a variety of strategies to get the entire community to support the school. The following strategies are designed to promote your school and gain more community support from a variety of stakeholder groups. Write a Weekly Newspaper Column How: It will highlight the school’s successes, focus on individual teacher’s efforts, and give student recognition. It will also deal with challenges that the school is facing and needs that it has. Why: Writing the newspaper column will allow the public the opportunity to see what is going on within the school on a weekly basis. It will allow them the opportunity to see both the successes and obstacles that the school is facing. Have a Monthly Open House/Game Night How: Every third Thursday night of each month from 6-7 p.m., have an open house/game night. Each teacher will design games or activities geared towards the particular subject area they are teaching at the time. Parents and students and students will be invited to come in and participate in the activities together. Why: This will allow parents the opportunity to come into their children’s classroom, visit with their teachers, and participate in activities about subject areas that they are currently learning. It will allow them to be more actively involved in their children’s education and allow them to have more communication with their teachers.​ Thursday Lunch With the Parents How: Each Thursday a group of 10 parents will be invited to eat lunch with the principal. They will have lunch in a conference room and talk about issues that are current with the school. Why: This allows parents the opportunity to become comfortable with the principal and to express both concerns and positives about the school. It also allows the school to be more personalized and gives them the opportunity to provide input. Implement a Greeter Program How: Each nine weeks students will be selected to participate in the greeter program. There will be two students greeting per class period. Those students will greet all visitors at the door, walk them to the office, and assist them as needed. Why: This program will make visitors seem more welcomed. It will also allow the school to have a more friendly and personalized environment. Good first impressions are important. With friendly greeters at the door, most people will come away with a good first impression. Have Monthly Potluck Lunch How: Each month the teachers will get together and bring food for a potluck lunch. There will be doors prizes at each of these lunches. Teachers are free to socialize with other teachers and staff while enjoying good food. Why: This will allow the staff to sit down together once a month and relax while they eat. It will provide an opportunity for relationships and friendships to develop. It will provide time for the staff to pull together and have some fun. Recognize Teacher of the Month How: Each month, recognize a special teacher. The teacher of the month will be voted on by the faculty. Each teacher who wins the award will receive recognition in the paper, their own personal parking space for the month, a $50 gift card to the mall, and a $25 gift card for a nice restaurant. Why: This will allow individual teachers to be recognized for their hard work and dedication to education. It will mean more to that individual since they were voted on by their peers. It will allow that teacher to feel good about themselves and the jobs that they are doing. Conduct a Yearly Business Fair How: Every April, invite several businesses in the community to participate in the annual business fair. The entire school will spend a few hours learning important things about those businesses such as what they do, how many people work there, and what skills are needed to work there. Why: This allows the business community the opportunity to come to the school and show kids what all they do. It also allows the business community the opportunity to be a part of the students’ education. It provides the students with opportunities to see if they are interested in working a particular business. Presentation by Business Professionals for Students How: About every two months guests from within the community will be invited to discuss the how’s and what’s of their particular career. People will be chosen so that their particular career relates to a specific subject area. For example, a geologist might speak in the science class or a news anchor might speak in a language arts class. Why: This allows businessmen and women from the community the opportunity to share what their career is all about with the students. It allows the students to see a variety of possible career choices, asks questions, and find out interesting things about various careers. Begin a Volunteer Reading Program How: Ask people in the community who would like to get involved with the school, but do not have children who are in school, to volunteer as part of a reading program for students with lower reading levels. The volunteers may come in as often as they wish and read books one-on-one with the students. Why: This allows people the opportunity to volunteer and get involved in the school even if they are not the parent of an individual within the school district. It also provides students the opportunity to better their reading abilities and to get to know people within the community. Start a Living History Program How: Once every three months a social studies class will be assigned an individual from the community who volunteers to be interviewed. The student will interview that person about their lives and events that have happened during their lives. The student will then write a paper about that person and give a presentation to the class over that person. The community members who have been interviewed will be invited to the classroom to hear the students’ presentations and to have a cake and ice cream party afterward. Why: This allows students the opportunity to get to know people within the community. It also allows members of the community to assist the school system and to get involved with the school. It involves people from the community that may not have been involved in the school system before.

An Analysis of Why Settlers Had Conflicting Approach in Regards To British Rules

An Analysis of Why Settlers Had Conflicting Approach in Regards To British Rules Why Did Some Colonists Want to Break Away More Than Others? Although it was the consensus that most colonists opposed being British subjects, some opposed it more than others. Sailors and those in commerce as well as the common family farmer both were some of the most provoked. The colonists were not used to the British imposing their rule as much as it was after the Seven Years War. Wars cost money, this is a fact. The British needed some income in order to pay for it. Being British subjects and being seen as a â€Å"cash cow† the British demanded that the colonists pay their fair share of the war. â€Å"To finance the wars, Britain’s public expenditures, taxes, and national debt rose enormously.† Taxes were imposed on the colonists and became lovingly known as the â€Å"Intolerable Acts†. Some acts passed really weren’t that bad. For example, the Stamp Act, weren’t necessarily bad. It only raised the price of paper nominally, but the British controlled the supply of paper. The British knew who was buying paper and why. The colonists didn’t like this invasion of privacy in the slightest. Some acts, like the Boston Port Act, were much more serious. The closure of the harbor put a major dent in colonial commer ce. This angered sailors. These Intolerable Acts caused uprise in the colonies. Sailors and slaves were so angered a â€Å"motley crew† formed. As Rediker and Linebaugh describe it, they were â€Å"eighty strong and warm with drink and anger† . This group came to protest at the house of Henry Laurens. Laurens was a wealthy Charleston merchant that also happened to be storing the paper that the colonists would be forced to buy from the English. The way of life of sailors and other merchants were threatened and they didn’t take kindly to it. Simple family farmers also heavily opposed these new taxes and the way the colonies were headed as a whole. Obtaining land was becoming harder and British taxes made farm life difficult. Subsistence farming revolved around the idea of self support. These people had no need for money, so they didn’t have much. They produced for themselves and bartered for what they didn’t have. Taxes which were to be paid in real money was difficult. This annoyance angered the farmers. The farmers were particularly aggravated. They left England in order to farm free from government interference and that is exactly what was beginning to happen. Though, there was a group known as Loyalists that did not want to break free from England. For reasons that will be explained shortly this group wanted to remain loyal to the British crown. For reasons ranging from business to politics this group did not want to break away from England. Some held business interests in England and feared breaking off would permanently break them off from one of the biggest markets in the world. Some were employed by England for regulatory reasons. Some were simply too afraid of the uncertainty that came with going up against one of the biggest empires in the world. Elites enjoyed their role in British society and feared in a new society that wouldn’t be so lucky. The common colonists saw a further and further divide between themselves and the British. The British soldiers were crude and uneducated. The colonists at this point were several generations from being British born. This generation was raised in the colonies by colonists. They identified more with other colonists than with the British ruling them. They were reminded of the rigid British class system observing officers and common soldiers interact. They had left England in an attempt to avoid this. This growing feeling of separation as well as the British overstepping their bounds allowed anger and resentment to simmer to the point of revolution. The colonists were about to take on the most powerful empire in the world.

Property Land Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Property Land - Essay Example For instance, a block of self-sufficient retirement flats would be let on tenancies, whereas individual rooms or flats in a house or premise with shared bathroom and kitchen would be let on licences. As compared to the tenants under the rental agreement, a licensee has less protection as he can be asked to vacate the premise at any time provided by service of four weeks written notice on them by the landlord. For evicting the tenant, in some cases, a landlord can approach the court for getting a possession order. The licensing system for houses in multiple occupations (HMOs) was introduced by the Housing Act 2004 and came into full force on 6 April 2006, and the Act offers an exhaustive definition of HMOs and stipulates norms of management for this class of property. A HMO is basically different from a household, as in household either members of the same family reside in a house or by a single person. It also includes persons who are living together or married couples and people in same-sex relationships. There are licensing requirements for some HMOs.1 In case of HMOs, the landlord should obtain a licence from the local council to rent out his premise as a house in multiple occupations (HMO). Thus, a HMO is a premise which is rented out to atleast three persons who are not hailing from a same family or from one â€Å"house hold† and should be prepared to share the facilities like common kitchen and bathroom. Even a landlord who has a property with less than three storeys and who has rented it out to less than five people, then such landlord can let that premise as HMO, but he has to obtain a licence which foots upon area and differs from council to council. A HMO licence issued by a council will be valid for a period of five years, and a landlord of a HMO has the obligation to renew the licence well before it expires. If the landlord has more than one premise and he has let them as HMO, then, he

The Taxation of Household Savings as Presented by the Mirrlees Review Case Study

The Taxation of Household Savings as Presented by the Mirrlees Review Volume 2 - Case Study Example In essence, while considering the economics of the tax system was essential in ensuring that it was effective, the commission acknowledged that approaching the tax reform from an economics perspective only would have created more problems than solutions (Mirrlees 2011, pp. v-vii). The Mirrlees review considers at length the apt method for the taxing savings. Thoughtful deliberation was applied to opinions on taxing savings normal returns (Chote 2012, p. 12). Four issues emerged in the review. The first issue was that the choice to defer consumption provided information on earning capacity. The second issue was that cognitively competent individuals were more likely to engage in a saving culture. The third issue was that taxing independent saving could have influenced the decision to pick financial saving on capital investment. This was especially true when there were credit limitations, and calculating and offsetting the full cost of the capital investment was challenging. The fourth issue was that taxing savings was likely to raise the labor supply of savers to counter to the likelihood of losing their earning capacity but who discern that, based on actual results, they did not need to save for the original reason. Or it may be that future consumption is a co mplement to current leisure (Mirrlees et al. 2012, p. 670). Mirrlees (2011, p. 283) reports that savings taxation plan plays a key role in the evaluation of the tax system. This is because it; is a characteristic of the tax base, is a determinant of tax system recognizing interpersonal differences in incomes, differentiates personal income from company profits, affect both incomes and savings, and affects saving habits. The report further recommends that savings resultant from variances in the timing of donated incomes comparative to the preferred time stream of consumption, or in time inclinations for consumption should not be taxed.

Is it better for companies to have too much data or too little data Essay

Is it better for companies to have too much data or too little data Why - Essay Example The data of an organization includes all sort of information that is recorded either in paper or in computer system. The business activity is mainly depended on data and information. Documentary evidence is required for most of the important activities in a business. The size of the data requirement of an organization increases by the increase in the size of the business. â€Å"Every process uses data and almost all business rules are enforced by data† (B2T training, 2008). The rules, regulations and limitations of the business are always made in a document form. Documentary evidence is required for every activity of the business. When any relevant data is lost in the business certain activities get interrupted. This is harmful for the day to day working of the business. Therefore data maintenance is a very critical activity in a business. The data requirements of a business also differ by difference in the nature of the business being carried on by it. For example in the case of an insurance company the relationship between the company and the client is evident only from the document that is agreed upon by the client and the company. Therefore, in a large business entity data management is a separate specialized activity. The data that are used in the company are both external and internal. â€Å"Once internal data is understood, a detailed review of available external vendor data should be conducted† (Lucker, 2005). What the companies should focus on while maintaining data is that only relevant data should be maintained. Relevant data refers to the data that are required for the daily running of the business and the data that has to be maintained by the company as per the statute. But the question under discussion is that whether the companies should maintain too much or too little data. Too much data is both beneficial as well as harmful for the organization. Too much data will contain

The effect of Dropping of the Atomic Bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki Essay

The effect of Dropping of the Atomic Bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki - Essay Example Bombing the two cities have altered the moral implications of the president who authorized the bombing, President Truman, from the will to continue in the war and since then has become the subject of intense and passionate debate even for generations to follow. Bombing the two cities caused intense harm and killed many people as well as destroying the environment and the offspring of the survivors. Many people have suffered deformities and mental disabilities as well as causing other forms of cancer ( Fleming and Yamazaki 5). This article describes the effects of the atomic bombings that were dropped in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945, respectively. It also contains all the authentic information, which is available on the damaged structures, the injuries contained in personnel, and the moral effect of the bombing. According to Kyoko (5) dropping, the atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima at 8:15 A.M. on August 6, 1945, caused devastating damages to the cit y. More than 4 square miles of the city were instantaneously and completely destroyed. In addition, more than 66,000 people lost their lives in addition to causing injuries to more than 69,000 people. Later on August 9 the same year, exactly three days after the first bombing was carried out in Hiroshima, another bombing was carried out in Nagasaki at exactly 11:02 A.M. ... The resultant devastation led the country of Japan to be allowed to surrender under the terms of the Potsdam declaration of July 26 1945 that the country had previously ignored (Kyoko 5). Bombing both cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had similar effects. Fabricated structures as well as other inanimate structures were destroyed. The destruction of the above structures was because of blasts or pressures waves, which is mostly similar to that of normal waves. However, the waves caused by these bombings were intense due to the strategic location that they were dropped, a few meters before hitting the ground where by the pressures would be at their maximum. Moreover, this allowed the bombings to exact pressure on a large geographical area that in turn affected more people. Moreover, the destruction was because of primary fires, which started promptly due to the high temperature radiated from the atomic explosion. The high temperatures and fire caused many burns on the people of Hiroshima causing severe scalds that later caused loss of lives to the people of Hiroshima (Manhatt The Manhattan Engineer District 5). Bombing both Hiroshima and Nagasaki cities caused the collapse of buildings, damaging effect to electrical systems laid previously by the people of Japan, toppling of stoves, and other primary effects of the blast. Collapse of buildings caused many people to lose their lives, as the buildings would collapse on their dwellers killing them instantaneously. Moreover, people died because of the spread of fire from the bombing in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The reaction of the atom when it was exposed to open oxygen caused an ignition that lighted the fire thus burning the burnings and the people in them. Many casualties in Nagasaki suffered severe

Sociological imagination Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Sociological imagination - Essay Example This paper shall discuss the basis of the secondary schools and how these shape up the beliefs and ideologies of the students in a number of different ways. It will take a look at how the sociological imagination within their ranks develops and what more could be done to bring sanity within the related ranks in the future. Social Identity Defined Social identity is defined as a method within the domains of social psychology where individuals are earmarked to differentiate between a number of levels or in terms of their identity types. The social identity philosophy is made use of by people from different disciplines where economics and political science stand out within the related realms. The inter-group relations are discussed at length within the social identity domains and this is the reason why it has been largely highlighted in the studies that deal with identity building across a number of platforms. Role of Secondary Schools in Shaping up Social Identity How the secondary sch ools shape up the social identity domains of the students is something that needs to be understood. This is the age when the students exploit their strengths and want to know more and more about the worldly affairs than was ever the case in the past. This is the time when they will get to know about things that they have never discussed in the earlier stages of their lives. It is true to state that the social identities start getting advanced with each passing day and the significance for this is provided through the acts and behaviors of the students themselves. They believe that they should get to know more about the world around them, and thus discern the real basis of humanity by all means of imagination. Their sociological perspectives start getting developed, where they explore how things work and shape up in different situations, and how these embody the basis of success for their own selves in the long run. In short, there is a great amount of breakdown of thoughts and perce ptions that were there within their minds in the past. What they see now is filled with experiments that they have had at this stage. They will get to find out about things up close and personal, and thus experience the same through their hands. They will see the reality basis of things and thus change their perspectives. Relationship of Social Identities with Educational Under-attainment Since the secondary schools make the students realize where they are going to be as regards to their future domains, it is only natural to think of the students in the same light. This is because the social identity issues deem a great deal of significance for the students when it comes to gaining an understanding of the educational quarters. These educational regimes receive a kick since under-attainment can easily be witnessed by the people who matter the most within the affairs of these secondary schools – the top management which is concerned with the propagation of education. The social identities with educational under-attainment come about as a reality because the students start believing in the fact that there could be much more than education at this age. They delve into other zones of life and decipher the meaning of such acts in a wholly different way. There is a good amount of confusion happening within their fore and this is the reason why the

Is it better for companies to have too much data or too little data Essay

Is it better for companies to have too much data or too little data Why - Essay Example The data of an organization includes all sort of information that is recorded either in paper or in computer system. The business activity is mainly depended on data and information. Documentary evidence is required for most of the important activities in a business. The size of the data requirement of an organization increases by the increase in the size of the business. â€Å"Every process uses data and almost all business rules are enforced by data† (B2T training, 2008). The rules, regulations and limitations of the business are always made in a document form. Documentary evidence is required for every activity of the business. When any relevant data is lost in the business certain activities get interrupted. This is harmful for the day to day working of the business. Therefore data maintenance is a very critical activity in a business. The data requirements of a business also differ by difference in the nature of the business being carried on by it. For example in the case of an insurance company the relationship between the company and the client is evident only from the document that is agreed upon by the client and the company. Therefore, in a large business entity data management is a separate specialized activity. The data that are used in the company are both external and internal. â€Å"Once internal data is understood, a detailed review of available external vendor data should be conducted† (Lucker, 2005). What the companies should focus on while maintaining data is that only relevant data should be maintained. Relevant data refers to the data that are required for the daily running of the business and the data that has to be maintained by the company as per the statute. But the question under discussion is that whether the companies should maintain too much or too little data. Too much data is both beneficial as well as harmful for the organization. Too much data will contain

Sociological imagination Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Sociological imagination - Essay Example This paper shall discuss the basis of the secondary schools and how these shape up the beliefs and ideologies of the students in a number of different ways. It will take a look at how the sociological imagination within their ranks develops and what more could be done to bring sanity within the related ranks in the future. Social Identity Defined Social identity is defined as a method within the domains of social psychology where individuals are earmarked to differentiate between a number of levels or in terms of their identity types. The social identity philosophy is made use of by people from different disciplines where economics and political science stand out within the related realms. The inter-group relations are discussed at length within the social identity domains and this is the reason why it has been largely highlighted in the studies that deal with identity building across a number of platforms. Role of Secondary Schools in Shaping up Social Identity How the secondary sch ools shape up the social identity domains of the students is something that needs to be understood. This is the age when the students exploit their strengths and want to know more and more about the worldly affairs than was ever the case in the past. This is the time when they will get to know about things that they have never discussed in the earlier stages of their lives. It is true to state that the social identities start getting advanced with each passing day and the significance for this is provided through the acts and behaviors of the students themselves. They believe that they should get to know more about the world around them, and thus discern the real basis of humanity by all means of imagination. Their sociological perspectives start getting developed, where they explore how things work and shape up in different situations, and how these embody the basis of success for their own selves in the long run. In short, there is a great amount of breakdown of thoughts and perce ptions that were there within their minds in the past. What they see now is filled with experiments that they have had at this stage. They will get to find out about things up close and personal, and thus experience the same through their hands. They will see the reality basis of things and thus change their perspectives. Relationship of Social Identities with Educational Under-attainment Since the secondary schools make the students realize where they are going to be as regards to their future domains, it is only natural to think of the students in the same light. This is because the social identity issues deem a great deal of significance for the students when it comes to gaining an understanding of the educational quarters. These educational regimes receive a kick since under-attainment can easily be witnessed by the people who matter the most within the affairs of these secondary schools – the top management which is concerned with the propagation of education. The social identities with educational under-attainment come about as a reality because the students start believing in the fact that there could be much more than education at this age. They delve into other zones of life and decipher the meaning of such acts in a wholly different way. There is a good amount of confusion happening within their fore and this is the reason why the

Different Styles of Imitation Essay Example for Free

Different Styles of Imitation Essay In The Transmission of Knowledge by Juan Luis Vives, Vives describes his idea of proper imitation. His basic theory is that people are not innately born with skills of art or rhetoric and therefore, these skills are obtained through the imitation of other skilled artists or rhetoricians. This idea is parallel to those of Petrarch and Alberti. Petrarch and Vives both say that proper imitation should be analogous to the way a son resembles his father. Vives says A son is said to be like his father, not so much in that he recalls his features, his face and form, but because shows to us his fathers manners, his disposition, his talk, his gait, his movements, and as it were his very life, which issues forth in his actions as he goes abroad, from the inner seat of the spirit, and shows his real self to us. (190) Petrarch says, similarly, As soon as we see the son, he recalls the father to us, although if we should measure every feature we should find them all different.(199) The father to son resemblance is the basis of imitation to both these authors. They both believe that a good writer should use imitation in a way where what they imitate resembles the original, but does it not duplicate it. For Petrarch and Vives, this can be achieved by properly integrating reading with writing. They both believe that by reading something and being able to digest it thoroughly, one can transport the overall idea and feeling of what he read onto his own writing. This creates a deep imitation, rather than copying what a writer says in different words. Both authors use the father to son metaphor to show that imitation should be meaningful and evocative. Petrarch supplements this idea by claiming that reading should be an alterative to experience. As one would in a sense experience the father through the son, one should similarly be able to experience the author a writer imitates. To illustrate this he referrers to wandering and transport throughout his works. Specifically, Petrarch interchanges writing with experience when he describes climbing Mont Ventroux. He says But nature is not overcome by a mans devices; a corporeal thing cannot reach the heights by descending and, further, there I leaped in my winged thought from things corporeal to what is incorporeal and addressed myself in words like these (39) The physical and spiritual are linked so closely together that they transport and overlap one another. According to Petrarch, characteristics like this are traits of a good imitator. Vives also relates to the kind of imitation which interchanges the bodily action with spiritual. He describes an oration, which links actions with rhetoric. He says But these modern imitators regard not so much the mind of the orator in his expression, as the outward appearance of his words and the external for of his style. (191) Both writers believe that by interchanging techne which psyche, one can properly imitate and transcend a deeper significance of what the writer is imitating. Although Petrarch and Vives share similar ideas, they also hold a contradictory belief: Petrarch only imitates Cicero, while Vives believes that one should imitate several models to create a single work. Although Vives clearly states that Cicero is the best model for writing in the conversational style: Caesar and Epistles of Cicero will come into the first rank of conversational style, (192) he also states that one should comprise writing by mimicking several writers: The more models we have and the less likeness there is between them, the greater is the progress of eloquence. (190) Foremost, Petrarch is not writing in the conversational style, instead he using the plain style. Therefore, he should mimic another writer from the list Vives has specified. Also, Petrarch is only interested in imitating one writer, Cicero. He defends the Ciceronian tradition by writing only in Ciceros style. For this reason, Petrarch does not read other writers, like Dante, because he is afraid that he will become the product of what he reads, ideas and style. Instead he immerses himself in Ciceros style by reading his work in such depth that he essentially writes in Ciceros style without knowing he is doing so. Vives respects Ciceros work, but he does not believe that Cicero is the best writer. Other than Vives belief that Petrarch should have imitated several conversationalists, Vives also states that imitation of Ciceros work is useful and safe, but not of his style; for if anyone cannot achieve success in the attempt he will degenerate into redundant, nerveless, vulgar and plebeian kind of writer. (191) Therefore, the difference between Vives and Petrarch is that Vives believes that one should imitate several writers and that Cicero is not the best writer. Further, he offers a list of writers which should be imitated when trying to achieve a certain style. Petrarch, on the other hand, writes in Ciceros style and believes that Cicero should be imitated while engaging in every kind of writing. Alberti was an author who was more like Vives in this sense. He also believed that one should embrace all the things which would make something beautiful into one. For example, he says that all arts are linked to painting somehow, and that all arts take from incorporate the skills associated with painting into their works: The architect, if I am not mistaken, takes from the painter architraves, bases, capitals, columns, faà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ades and other similar things. All the smiths, sculptors, shops and guilds are governed by the rules and art of the painter. It is scarcely possible to find any superior art which is not concerned with painting. so that whatever beauty is found can be said to be born of painting .(Book II) Furthermore, it was important to Alberti to imitate the laws of nature, rather than nature itself. He pointed out that an architect should mimic the structure of reality and the geometry hidden in reality. Like Vives and Petrarch, Alberti joined the bodily with the spi ritual to create the perfect art. But, he resembles Vives, in the sense that he believes that one should imitate several things to create one thing. One difference between Alberti and Vives is that Vives believes that one should start out imitating a person who is not the best at what he does, but someone who is better than the imitator. Eventually, according to Vives, one should be able to move up in rank and imitate the best. He says it is a wise precept of M. Fabius Quintilian that boys should not at first attempt to rise to emulation of their master, lest their strength fail them. An easier and quicker method will be to let them imitate someone more learned than themselves among their fellows, and contending with him let them gradually rise to copying their master himself. (189) Alberti does not mention this method of imitation. Instead he says that when it comes to art, on must have the favors of nature. (Book I) In other words, Alberti strongly believes that one should have a natural talent for what he is doing, and that the gradual chain of improvement is not necessarily an established method, as Vives indicates. Also, Alberti uses a style that is short and to the point. He says I beg that I may be pardoned if, where I above all wish to be understood, I have given more care to making my words clear than ornate. I believe that which follows will be less tedious to the reader. (Book I) This type of frankness is a distinguished style of writing. He uses simple rhetoric so that his audience can grasp the idea quickly. This kind of style corresponds to the type of art he is writing about. He says that he writing about a new type of art: We are, however, building anew an art of painting about which nothing, as I see it, has been written since this age.(Book II) His new style is imitating his concept of having a different type of manual towards art. Also, his main is to gear away from the Ancients and more towards the Florentine. By changing his style of writing he is achieving this, not only through what he saying about graduating art from mechanical to liberal, but also through his style and techne. Both Alberti and Vives spend time discussing subject matter. Vives splits up who should be imitated based on the subject of the piece being writer. Similarly, Alberti pays attention to the subject matter of the painting. He says that an image can only bring pleasure of the subject matter of the painting brings pleasure. Alberti believes that one must imitate the feeling he wants the viewer to have in the subject of his painting for the artwork to be successful. This is what Vives is saying when he illustrates that one must pick the best writer in the subject that he wants to write about and imitate that style to be successful. Both Petrarch and Alberti can be compared with Vives and his ideas on imitation. To all three writers imitation plays a huge role on how to present written and artistic works. All three of them believe that imitation of others will lead to success. Further, they believe that imitation is the only way to learn how to write properly. Alberti adds another assumption: he says that to be the best, one must imitate, but before the imitation process takes place, one must have a natural talent for art. Petrarch and Alberti both believe that one must mimic what they believe is the right tradition through their styles. Petrarch believes in the Ciceronian tradition and follows in Ciceros footsteps by imitating his style. Alberti is more concerned with understanding than the use of eloquent language. Overall, to all three writers imitation plays a huge role in their understanding of how written works influence their audiences.