Edi System

EDI Electronic Data Interchanges Electronic Data Interchanges technology is a complicated mixture of three disciplines: business, data processing and data communication. Integrated with logistics practices EDI can be defined as the electronic exchange of business data, such as purchase orders, invoices, and shipping notices, typically between one organization and another. The relationship is usually between a vendor and customer. EDI began in the 1970s and was first developed by the automobile Industry.Today is used in different industries including distribution, finance, health care, manufacturing, purchasing, retail, publishing, and shipping. EDI system is in evolution and is adapting to the current market situation. In fact, EDI is a technology that many companies are using in its logistics practices in international supply chain operations. Many businesses choose EDI as a fast, inexpensive, and safe method of sending all documents used on business. Any business application that i mplements EDI works in a fast, efficient and paperless environment.The traditional document flow for purchasing transactions starts with data entry by the purchaser to create a paper document to send by mail to trading partners. Once the trading partners receive the data, they keystroke the information received into a local application and then perform more data entry by entering a response into a local application. The resultant paper document is then mailed to the purchaser. The procedure is both time consuming and labor intensive because data from both trading partners has to be entered twice.EDI data is key in only one time, at the original point of entry. The data is then translated into a standard format electronically and sent to the trading partner electronically. Time for transmission is very fast in comparison to postal mail. Even on a slow modem connection the time is considerably shorter than through the postal service. EDI Benefits â€Å"Removing unnecessary process ta sks benefits the whole supply chain, allowing improved performance and cost management. † By using Electronic Data Interchange systems companies have made significant improvements, benefits and savings.Over 160. 000 companies have made the change to electronic data interchange to improve their efficiencies. Many of these companies require all of their partners to also use EDI. Studies have shown that manually processing a paper order can cost 70 times more than processing the same order thru EDI. The most relevant benefits are: * Much less labor time is required and fewer errors are made because computer systems process the documents rather than processing by hand. When a company reduces manual work and administration reduce the process operating costs. EDI is commonly used instead of faxing and mailing paper documents improving the efficiency of communicating documents. When the timing of the invoice to goods delivery is shortened it improves the invoice approval and streamli nes its payment. * Fewer errors occur because computer systems process the documents rather than processing by hand * Data integrity can be secured across the supply chain because suppliers' information is automatically sent to customers' systems. Improved processing efficiency increases the opportunity to negotiate early settlement discounts, reducing the cost base for customers. Business transactions flow faster: Faster transactions support reduction in inventory levels, better use of warehouse space, fewer out-of-stock occurrences and lower freight costs through fewer emergencies expedites. EDI Barriers Standards are a necessary part of EDI. Every business has application files that are used to manipulate their data in ways that are familiar to the business. The problem is that most businesses though using the same types of data do not use the same application programs or hardware and software platforms.If businesses are to be able to communicate their data to one another, they m ust have a common ground to meet on to allow the exchange of the information. Standards are the solutions to this problem. All business that conforms to specific standards can share data in the formats delineated by those standards. Data processing One of the technological fields required to implement EDI is data processing. Data processing allows the EDI operation to take information that is resident in a user application and transform that data into a format that is recognizable to all other user applications that have an interest in using the data.In the EDI environment, data processing will handle both outgoing and incoming data. The user-defined files are the files that are produced by a business application. These files may or may not be formatted by the user. These are the business files that need to be translated into the ANSI X12 or EDIFACT standard format. Standards The heart of EDI is the document standards. Every business has application files that are used to manipulate their data. The problem is that most businesses, though using the same type of data, do not use the same programs, software and hardware platforms. The solutions to this problem are the standards.The American National Standards Institute's Accredited Standards Committee X12 (ANSI ASC X12) is the accepted standard for EDI transactions in the United States. The ANSI ASC X12 committee has the mandate to develop variable-length data formats for standard business transactions. The committee was accredited in 1980, and the X12 standard has been evolving ever since. One of the requirements placed on the committee was and is to keep the standard open to inter-industry applications. This requirement makes the standard more complex than an industry-specific standard, but the advantages easily overcome the disadvantage of complexity.With a single standard, a business has multiple functionality and only has to use one standard for each business function. The International Standards Organizatio n (ISO), an organization within the United Nations, has developed the EDI standard that is used in Europe. The Electronic Document Interchange for Administration, Commerce, and Transportation (EDIFACT) is the UN standard that the whole world has agreed to eventually adopt. The actual implementation of EDIFACT within the U. S. has been moving at a snail's pace. Everyone agrees that EDIFACT is the international standard.Security One of the major roles provided by the data communications technology is the ability to apply security to EDI transactions so that the transactions will not be tampered with or observed, depending on the level of security needed. Confidentiality Confidentiality requires that all communications between parties are restricted to the parties involved in the transaction. This confidentiality is an essential component in user privacy, as well as in protection of proprietary information and as a deterrent to theft of information services.Confidentiality is concerned with the unauthorized viewing of confidential or proprietary data that one or both of the trading partners does not want known by others. Confidentiality is provided by encryption. Encryption is the scrambling of data so that it indecipherable to anyone except the intended recipient. Encryption prevents snoopers, hackers, and other prying eyes from viewing data that is transmitted over telecommunications channels. Data Integrity Data sent as part of a transaction should not be modifiable in transit. Similarly, it should not be possible to modify data in storage.Data integrity is a guarantee that what was sent by the sender is actually what is received by the receiver. This is necessary if there is a need to ensure that the data has not been changed either inadvertently or maliciously. However, authentication schemes do not hide data from prying eyes. Providing data integrity is generally cumbersome and not used unless one of the trading partners requires it. The normal mechanism fo r acquiring data integrity is for the sender to run an algorithm against the data that is being transmitted and to transmit the result of the algorithm separately from the transmission.Upon receipt of the transmission, the receiver runs the identical algorithm and then compares the results. If the results are identical, then data has not been modified. Examples of EDI implementation EDI for the Automotive Industry EDI has been in use across the automotive industry for over forty years. The smooth running of today’s car production lines rely on the seamless exchange of business documents between the car manufacturers and their supply chain. Many of the business processes used in the manufacture of today’s cars were developed from a production system devised by Toyota in Japan.A number of best practices were developed around the ‘Toyota Production System’, for example Just-In-Time and Lean Manufacturing. JIT and Lean Manufacturing processes are central to th e smooth running of many production lines around the world and EDI provides a fast and efficient way to transfer business documents in order to support these types of manufacturing processes. Providing visibility of inventory levels and notification of when shipments are due to arrive at the production line are critical to making JIT and Lean manufacturing processes a success.The global nature of the automotive industry means that it is important for car manufacturers to be able to onboard their suppliers as quickly as possible, no matter where they may be based around the World. Many car manufacturers have established a manufacturing presence in for example Eastern Europe, Brazil and China and it is important to ensure that suppliers located in these regions are able to exchange EDI documents as smoothly as possible.ICT skills across low cost or emerging markets are traditionally very low therefore the car manufacturers must ensure that they can provide simple to use EDI tools that allow even the smallest suppliers to be able to trade electronically. Due to the global nature of the automotive industry, there are numerous communications and document standards in use today, along with a number of regional specific EDI networks. EDI for the Financial Services IndustryThe success of the financial services industry relies on its ability to process payables and receivables, as well as manage investments and loans on behalf of its customers both retail and wholesale. For years many of these processes were manual and paper intensive. However, the introduction of EDI has allowed the financial services industry to automate many of the transactions required to transmit payment and remittance data from one party to another. As a result of the economic upheaval of the past few years, the world has come to recognize and appreciate the interdependent nature of the global financial infrastructure.The financial supply chain has become a reality for global business as buyers f rom one geography rely on goods from suppliers based in other regions that utilize different currencies and are governed by different regulations. EDI provides not only low cost alternative to traditional paper-based payment methodologies but also enables organizations to realize faster, more accurate and more flexible payment structures in the course of doing business. EDI enables the full alignment of the financial supply chain with the movements of the physical supply chain.A fully automated financial supply chain enables the seamless, accurate and timely exchange of financial documents between buyers, suppliers and their financial institutions. With EDI an organization can electronically transfers funds from one bank account to another designated bank account or counterparty. Electronic payments are processed to allow organizations to have access to funds more quickly and with fewer exceptions or delays due to human error. EDI for the High Tech IndustryEDI has been in use across the high tech industry for many years. The high tech value chain has become very complex with many high tech companies relying on external partners to help design and manufacture their products. Due to the nature of the high tech industry there has been a desire to try and exchange business transactions electronically, more so than many other industry sectors. The high tech industry is very consumer driven which has meant that high tech supply chains have had to become flexible to changing consumer demands.There has also been an increasing demand for introducing Vendor Managed Inventory systems to ensure that retailers have the correct levels of inventory to support for example new product launches or seasonal fluctuations in consumer demand. For this reason inventory visibility across retail networks and multi modal logistics networks is important for both the high tech companies and their trading partner community. Many high tech companies have globalised their operations to take advantage of low cost suppliers in many of the emerging markets around the world.This has meant that the high tech manufacturing companies have had to ensure that they can trade electronically with suppliers in any country around the world, even those with limited ICT related skills . EDI Stages of Implementation Many companies implement electronic data exchange as part of their customer-supplier partnerships. Both the customers and suppliers expect to gain operational and competitive benefits. A link exists between the level of implementation of EDI and the associated benefits. Benefits from EDI for a supplier company appear limited unless the company reaches an advanced stage of EDI implementation.In this stage the customer and the supplier openly sharing information on demand patterns, inventory levels, and planned production. Achieving this level of implementation is a significant challenge for those professionals involved in EDI installations. The implementation stages for sup plier companies using EDI are: * Stage 1, EDI is used for a small number of transactions with one trading partner. Some documents are handled electronically, while all others are completed manually. Electronic documents are manually entered into the MRP planning system.The benefits include reductions in paperwork, reductions in time spent sorting and filing mailed documents, reductions in input errors, faster response time and standardized information. * Stage 2, EDI is used with two or more customers for a small number of transactions. The extent of implementation relates to the volume of business transacted through EDI. The additional benefits include reductions in inventory, reductions in lead time, and improve customer relations. * Stage 3, EDI technology is integrated into the MRP planning system to update transaction-driven information without additional data entry. Stage 4, EDI is integrated with customers to the extent that the firm can inquire into a customer’s datab ase for information such as inventory status and shipments. * Stage 5, EDI transactions are found in all functions of the business organization: quality control, engineering, manufacturing, marketing and accounting. As new benefits the cost reduction and efficient business operations, effective use of personnel assigned to new tasks. Conclusions EDI is well established as effective technology got reducing costs and increasing efficiency.EDI technologies are approximately the same age as Internet technologies. In the past, the technologies have been mutually exclusive, but this is rapidly changing. As the two technological communities begin to merge and as the business community sees the advantages of this merger, EDI and the Internet will eventually become everywhere. The implementation level affects the benefits companies can expect from installing EDI. At early stages of implementation, companies can expect only those benefits that result from improvements in the transaction proce ss.As planning systems are linked, companies can expect improvements in lead time, reductions in inventory, and other benefits derived from sharing information with their customers and suppliers. EDI represents a specific class of inter-organizational systems, and the concept carries with it a unique set of strategic and implementation considerations. The most significant and, heretofore, most overlooked factor in determining the effective use of EDI is the organization’s ability to manage the changes in structure and work processes that must attend the implementation of this technology.EDI development is a process that takes time and patience, and those who start first have the best chance of staying ahead of the competition if they recognize that EDI involves a continuous process of change. There is no end to organizational change in this era of rapidly evolving information technology. References * Bort, R. , and Bielfeldt, G. R. Handbook of EDI. Boston, Massachusetts: Warr en, Gorham and Lamont. * Canis, R. J. , Value-added networks: What to look for now and in the future. Conference Proceedings EDI 2000: EDI, Electronic Commerce, and You; (pp. 141-157). * Kimberley, P. (1991). EDI.New York: McGraw-Hill. * Sawabini, S. (1995). Introduction to EDI. Conference Proceedings EDI 2000: EDI, EC, and You, (pp. 1-36). * Sokol, P. K. (1995). From EDI to EC: A Business Initiative. New York: McGraw-Hill. * Rhonda R. Lummus, The Evolution to Electronic Data Interchange: Benefits in the stages of implementation. Central Missouri State University. Warrensburg, Missouri. * Callahan, Daniel K. â€Å"The Impacts of Electronic Integration on Buyers and Suppliers. â€Å"Master's Thesis, Sloan School of Management, MIT, Cambridge * â€Å"Business Is Turning Data Into A Potent Strategic Weapon,† Business Week

Jaydens Rescue Alternative Ending Essay

â€Å"Well, AFGOI it’ll have to be,† said Alex. â€Å"That’s all we have. I just hope it’ll put Rechner away†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Next time we will see him we will all say AFGOI at once,† suggested Vanessa. They waited patiently to see the evil Rechner again so they could use the magic word to free Jayden. Several days went by and the time was passing very quickly at camp. Every day was full of activities. At the end of the week Sam, Vanessa, and Alex all decided to go sailing because of the water skiing accident. Alex did not want to water ski again. Neither did Vanessa after what happened to Alex last time. They kept wondering when Rechner would appear again. After spending time on the lake, it began to rain cats and dogs. They ran for shelter under a pavilion and were glad that they were off of the sailboat. Sam said, â€Å"Why don’t we head towards our cabin and call it a night.† Alex and Vanessa agreed. They began their long trek to reach the cabin. The ground was very soggy and muddy and they all got their shoes extremely dirty. They were all happy to hit the hay for a good night’s sleep. Their counselor stayed up to watch them to make sure they didn’t leave again. In the morning their counselor was exhausted so he let the campers sleep longer than usual. When they awoke, they all were starving and their entire cabin headed to go eat. After breakfast Alex, Vanessa, and Sam went back to the cabin to brush their teeth and that is when the evil Rechner finally appeared. All three of them said AFGOI at once and Rechner said, â€Å"Okay I give up and you win. Jayden gets to go back to her palace.† Alex, Vanessa, and Sam couldn’t believe what they just heard. Everyone that lived in Idyllia was so happy to have the Emerald Queen back. They pushed nine hundred dollars out of the book. Alex, Vanessa, and Sam were so excited because Jayden was now safe and they each had three hundred dollars. They were finally done with Rechner once and for all! Jayden’s Rescue Written By: Vladimir Tumanov Project by: Schmo went through 2 green lights. Mane went through 1 red light. Torch went through 3 yellow lights. This is 6 lights in all (2+1+3). Then they repeated the same path so 6+6= 12 lights passed. Torch went through 3 yellow lights twice so 3+3 = 6. Each ticket was $300 so 6 lights times $300 is $1,800. He only had $100 bills so you need to divide $1,800 by $100 and you get 18. Torch passed 4 ponds which each had a duck. These 4 ducks bit his hand each one time and each bite caused 4 red bumps. So 4 bites times 4 red bumps each is 4 x 4 which equals 16 red bumps.

Strategies for Improving Nursing Staff Recruitment and Retention Research Paper

Strategies for Improving Nursing Staff Recruitment and Retention - Research Paper Example This study did entail evaluation of the various techniques that will enhance the appreciation of this profession. It is evident enrollment in nursing is influenced by elements that are inside if not externally instigated. It was the objective of this study to examine these elements and present a comprehensive outlook of enrollment and retention of nursing personnel in the nursing occupation. Introduction According to Castle and Longest (2006), nursing is one of the fundamental professions that are necessary to facilitate the healthy continuity of existence. It entails the additional medical services over the ones that are conducted by doctors. They comprise of the prime collection of health workforce and are liable for the medical transition of patients to better form after the doctor’s treatment and prescription. It is imperative that the health segment incorporates mechanisms that will enable the recruitment and maintenance of the nurses. Schmidt (2004) asserts that this entails the issuance of qualitative attendance by the nurses hence ensuring the patient acquires efficient care. However, the issuance of qualitative attendance by the health practitioners is doubtful following the vacancies of nursing personnel in the health institutions. A proportion of the public backlash is to the management organs of the nursing institutions for their laxity in ensuring they produce com petent practitioners who are capable o handling the complications of their occupation (Schmidt 2004). The rationale that defines the objectives and principles of nursing requires being the motivation of health personnel and surpassing other interests. Problem Statement According to Castle and Longest (2006), the issue of nursing morale is becoming the highlight of the health sector. Numerous nurses are displaying their dissatisfaction with the policies and remuneration with the health sector by withdrawing their services when the patients are in dire need. Universally, nursing is undergoing critical shortages, which is undermining the â€Å"quality assurance† in the clinical services. Inadequate remuneration is a chief influence on their discontent in the health segment and remains a sensitive concern of that debate. Retention of nurses is becoming challenging to numerous health providers since they are experiencing low morale within the nursing employees. Improvement of enro llment and retention in nursing is vital for attainment of organizational goals and enable the advancement of health. This review is resulting from the increase in shortages of nurses in undertaking their tasks and is severally attributed to payment issues. This essay seeks to evaluate the various aspects that define morale in the occupation of nursing. Case report Health institutions and observers are insistent on increasing the self-esteem of health practitioners. Evidently, the input of nurses is significant in facilitating the enhancement of healthy living standards. Numerous researchers are examining the subject of nurses esteem owing to their significance in health dispensation. Their contribution is essential, in

Self Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Self Critique - Essay Example Entrepreneurs have to be extremely organized because at the beginning they are they only ones working for their business, so this means that they have to stay focused and on track at all times. In addition to my huge workload at school, I also have to make time for extra curricular activities. Finally, because entrepreneurs have to be so open to new ideas, they will inevitably have some failures along the way. As a student, I have done poorly in some of my classes but I did not let it stop me from doing well the next semester. The key was to wipe the slate clean and think of a new class as a fresh start, and I can do the same as a small business owner. In my opinion, my three greatest strengths as an entrepreneur would be the fact that I do not take advice well, have weak communication abilities, and am not very creative. Although entrepreneurs can be single-minded, there are some occasions when they need to take advice from someone else who may be more of an expert in a particular area. I am a very individual person and like to go with my own ideas because I know that I can trust them. Also, entrepreneurs have to be able to appeal to potential investors and/or partners to help with a small business. In my honest opinion, I do not sound very convincing when I am asking for help because I can feel somewhat embarrassed. Finally, entrepreneurs need to be creative and innovative because to make a difference in the marketplace they need to come up with something new. I struggle to do this because I am always afraid that something new will not be very successful, so I try to copy other designs somewhat. I can overcome my dislike of other people’s advice by keeping an open mind and remembering that I do not know everything. As long as the final decision is mine, then I am still in control and I can always change my mind if I need to. Also, I can overcome poor communication skills by practicing making pitches to other people. I need to remember

3.Can terrorism be risk managed Discuss with reference to old and new Essay

3.Can terrorism be risk managed Discuss with reference to old and new forms of terrorism - Essay Example To actualize this threat, they may decide to harm one who opposes their candidate. The fact is that voting is secret and the bully knows that to increase the chances of his candidate winning, he has to ensure that there is increased pressure and more harm. This is how terrorism activity occurs (Samuels, 2008). To begin the essay, there are many other forms of evil deeds that are often confused with terrorism. These include murder, assassination, assault, battery, destruction of property, theft, robbery, rape, extortion and espionage. All these are not terrorism, but can be utilized by terrorists to conduct terrorism (Melisow, 2008). In these modern times, terrorism is used for political gains. Politics is not an individual game; rather, it involves a group. Most of these political activities are controlled by governments. This forms a soft target by the terrorists, who want to affect government activities and change the way a government performs by scaring people in a country (Melisow, 2008). This sentiment is echoed by Hoffman who states that terrorism is all about power; it’s the pursuit of power, its acquisition, and subsequent use for political change (2013). The old terrorism was practiced during the French revolution. Despite its modern-day use, it had a positive implication. It occurred during the period of 1793-1794 during the transient anarchical period of unrest, as a result of the 1789 uprising (Hoffman, 2013). Although the current world refers to it as terrorism, during the earlier times, it was known as an instrument used by the government of a new revolutionary state. Hoffman points out that â€Å"it was designed to consolidate the new government’s power by intimidating counter revolutionaries† (2013, p.3). It constituted the committee of general security and revolutionary tribunal. They were very powerful and had the ability to arrest and prosecute by form of death, anyone who tried to oppose the revolution. The earlier

What are the main political implications of the privatisation of Essay

What are the main political implications of the privatisation of security - Essay Example Therefore, any security move for any nation cannot avoid having political implications since this act as benchmark to access the capabilities of the political leaders to offer protection to their citizens. Over the years, many nations have viewed security as the sole role of the government and hence they have seen military jobs as a different kind of job. Many have considered security as an aspect that they have paid for through tax remittances and therefore they have been the biggest opposes to the idea of privatizing security for quite some time (Singer, 2008, p. 8). In the United States, the whole concept of privatizations traces its way back in the 19th century by the use of private firms in the rail service provision. Security privatization was one of the largest privatization initiatives that the United States embarked on in the 20th century during the Second World War by privatizing part of the defense functions (Chesterman & Fisher, 2009, p.16). The motivation for this government to private collusion was the increased need for operational and technical support during that time of the war. Ever since that period, this kind of partnership has never ceased between these public and private companies. This trend in security partnership especially in the military has given rise to numerous private security firms (PSCs) which have specialized in a range of activities, which the United States government has been keen to privatize. The major areas that these companies have concentrated on include assessing security risk, offering intelligence support, strategic planning, technical assistant and operational supplement (Singer, 2008). The ramifications that the privatization of security offers all lie in the political arena since security from the onset was a government role which the political leader as the steers. Several analysts discuss that as much

Investment Enhancement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Investment Enhancement - Essay Example This will help business people have adequate international portfolio diversification. Moreover, shareholders yearning to diversify a precarious investment, for example, stocks in a developing market, via international diversification, would be more profitable in areas which are negatively correlated, as well (Markowitz, 1952). Nations with stock prices moving in a different direction are perceived to be negatively correlated, while states with stock prices moving in a similar direction are perceived to be positively correlated. The principle of diversification stipulates that a portfolio comprising largely positively correlated benefits embrace the portfolio al an advanced risk than a negatively correlated stock prices portfolio. Lack of precise fortitude of stock market price progress keeps all portfolios at an advanced risk level than anticipated because of the existence of a diversifiable risk (Markowitz, 1952). This paper will look into the impact of international portfolio diver sification on an investment portfolio, investigate alternative investment vehicles, and explain how the use of derivative securities can further enhance a portfolio’s performance. ... Nonetheless, if a client would take about 30% of his money and allot it in international stock markets, the entire investment will not be dependent on how an economy or stock market is performing (Markowitz, 1952). In turn, this creates a much larger mode of diversification. Studies conducted in developing countries highlight viability of establishing investment federations to meet the participants’ political needs. Results from this study indicate the supremacy of international diversification in an investment federation over individual country investment. Another study assesses the probable advantages of a Mauritian business person when diversifying his venture into a number of African equity markets. In addition, the research looks at the gains that may result for non-African investor venturing in African markets. The result is that there is a low correlation in African stock markets. This can lessen the risk and increase earnings for both universal and Mauritian investors when they invest in chosen African nations. The advantages of international portfolio diversification incorporate many nations, even politically instable nations. Investor should invest in all countries regardless of political stability. This is because investing in politically frail countries may produce profits that more than the anticipated risks (Markowitz, 1952). Thus, it can be concluded that international portfolio diversification gives profits and reduces risks. Question B There are a number of alternative investment vehicles. They may include hedge funds, private equity firms, venture capital firm, among others. Hedge Funds Hedge funds are investment vehicles that put together investors’ funds in a broad variety of investments.

Daphne du Maurier, Don't look Now Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Daphne du Maurier, Don't look Now - Essay Example Dont look now† is the mystical and wistful story of a British couple named, John and Laura, who are on a vacation in Venice. They are on holiday in order to escape, from the pain and heartbreak of their young daughter Christine’s recent death. They are also on a rebound, striving to bring back the fun, laughter and romance in their marriage, which seems to have diminished after the tragedy. However, quite contradictory to their expectations, Venice soon becomes a hazardous place for them too, as a series of paranormal events unfold, when they meet two old Scottish sisters at a cafà ©. There comes a twist in the plot, when the blind sister claims that she can see the ghost of their deceased daughter uniting with them. All their claims make Laura extremely happy and rekindle a flame of hope in her dull and dim, sad life, and she is suddenly drawn towards the two sisters. An interesting aspect of Du Maurier’s literature was that quite unusually, she wrote from the perspective of the male protagonist, and exceptionally good at that. This story is also told from the rationalist, sensitive and edgy point of view of John, the male lead. John begins the story by describing the trauma and distress her wife is going through, after the shocking tragedy, as it is driving her to the point of hysteria, John is feeling anxious and helpless, at her ordeal and finds very hard to see the unsettling state of mind of his beloved wife. After the two sisters claimed to have seen Christine’s ghost, Laura becomes very ecstatic and that upsets John even more. The two sisters, kept referring to having the â€Å"gift† of second sight, which John instantly dismisses, as he does not believe in ghosts, instead he feels very uncomfortable by seeing Laura’s immediate interest in those women. Laura’s sudden happiness seems like a betrayal to Joh n, who is still a grieving parent and Laura’s

IT Procurement Best Practices Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

IT Procurement Best Practices - Research Paper Example In today’s competitive economic environment, every business strives to keep their costs as low as possible while improving the output despite all the challenges available. In order to achieve this, one of the areas of focus is the supply chains and procurement methods which have to adopt philosophies and processes that enable the business to compete appropriately. In order for the procurement processes and the department in entirety to perform at its best, various best practices have to be employed which, in essence, makes use of information technology. Implementing these best practices in an organization will provide a strong foundation for the organization’s supply chain excellence. The aim of this paper is to outline the current best practices that IT procurement employs in an organization in an attempt to achieve efficiency in the organization’s project procurement of software and hardware. The discussion will additionally outline some of the common procurement practices used by the US Government in its systems. Like any other process in an organization, good planning serves as a recipe for a successful IT procurement process. The level to which the planning process takes, however, is dependent on the complexity of the procurement as well as its size. For example, purchasing lesser stationaries and hardware in an organization such as printers and personal computers may not demand a very comprehensive planning process. On the contrary, procurement of complex systems such as infrastructure and software for use in large operations in organizations demands better planning. The planning process is a very important practice and step for the success of any IT procurement process. Typically, a good planning process in IT procurement entails various steps. First, the process has to define a clear description of the expected outcome in the IT

The withered arm Essay Example for Free

The withered arm Essay In Tony Kytes, Tony comes across as a bit of a player. This is because he asks all three women, all of which have had connections with Tony, to marry him, even though he is engaged to one of them; Milly Richards. Tonys attitude to marriage could be that its not really that important to the men of the 19th century, and that getting married is just to say that they are married. This is suggested when Tony is rejected by Hannah Jolliver and Unity Sallet, but Milly accepts again, just for the ability to say that he is married. However, the womens attitude to marriage was mainly that they had to get married for the social status. This is shown well through Millys acceptance to Tony. When Tony asks Milly, she replies with If you like, Tony illustrating how shes not very keen on marrying him after what just happened, but will anyway because she wants to be married. Unity Sallet comes across as an independent woman, which can be mirrored in todays times. She says take her leavings? Not I! , meaning that she doesnt want to marry someone that was rejected not one minute ago. Because she walks away from Tony, this can symbolise her independence because it shows how she doesnt always need a man there in her life. This links to nowadays because some women never marry in their whole lives, because they believe they dont need a man in it. In The Withered Arm, Farmer Lodges attitude to marriage is that marriage is for having children and carrying on the family name. Proof of this is after Gertrudes change from beauty queen to ugly duckling as Hardy describes Farmer Lodges realisation: she had brought him no child, which rendered it likely that he would be the last of a family who had occupied that valley for some two hundred years. This shows my point because it illustrates how he knows that hes it, that hes the end of the line for the Lodge name, and how he isnt very pleased that his wife hasnt given him a child. Farmer Lodge also bases marriage on appearance. This is implied through beauty was contorted and disfigured because it shows how he has fallen out of love with Gertrude ever since her arm had the curse bestowed upon it. Gertrudes attitude to marriage is very much the same of that to Millys in the Tony Kytes. This is because both Gertrude and Milly wanted to be married for the social status. From both characters, its subtle that they only want to be married for the status, but if you look close enough you can find it. Milly says if you want, Tony as though she only wants to marry him for the status and Gertrude says that lad stared at me!, also comes across as though she is happy with the attention she gets from her new marriage. Both stories have varying attitudes to marriage, but they link together sometimes. For example, Gertrude and Millys attitude to marriage is the same. Both stories attitudes link with todays attitudes to marriage because Unitys character doesnt really need a man so dont need to be married, and neither do plenty of woman in this time, and many men dont see marriage as a big deal, which is like Tonys attitude to marriage.

Lean Operation and Supply Chain Management Textile Industry

Lean Operation and Supply Chain Management Textile Industry There is an increasing concern on lean operation and supply chain management in the textile and apparel industry which has changed significantly over last decades, due to global sourcing and price competition. One of the main reason for the interest in supply chain management caused by apparel industrys unique characteristics, such as fast fashion and short product lifecycle. At present, lean operation and supply chain management played an important role in textile and apparel. This essay illustrates how an apparel company, Zara, achieved a tremendous success by take advantage of the practice of lean operation and supply chain. Lean operation mainly focuses on eliminating waste and minimizing the time between a customers order and delivery. Lean concept is a much faster, better and less-expensive way of get the right done at the right place. It not only attempts to eliminate material waste, but also the reduce time in order to enhance efficiency and improve processes. In other word, Lean operation allows Zara to get low cost advantage and short lead times over its competitors. 2.Zaras operation management practice Zara demonstrates clear advantages over its rivals by lean operations. Zara applies the latest software application and unique business strategies to ensure that its overall capabilities are developed to their full potential. This leads Zaras business procedures performing more efficiently throughout all levels of the business. This allows Zara to not only update all relevant information, but also monitor and evaluate information such as sales, returns or pricing. These enhancements mean that efficiency is improved in all aspects of the supply chain. sales can be precisely monitored at POS terminals across all stores allows Zara to recognize when necessary strategic decisions need to be made in relation to supply and demand. Such communication between stores and other levels of the supply chain . This in turn makes sure that the alignment between the demand at store level and the supply at its headquarters is optimal. Therefore stock control is more precise; shipment and replenishment is more efficient and ordering time is minimal. Zaras success is partly depend on such lean operation and effective communication from customer to store manager, from retail sector to design section and from production to distribution. it takes advantage of lean operation in order to take control of almost every aspect of design, marketing, production, retailing and distribution. A constant cooperation throughout every step of Zaras supply chain provides competitive advantages to Zaras fast fashion strategy, information flow transfer among customers, store managers, marketing employee ,designers, production employee, warehouse managers and distributors managers, and so on. Zara has made significantly efforts to ensure each progress is very efficient and information flow transfer easier to facilitate operational procedures, performance assessment, and the location of every store and office layouts. It shows that operation management is one of major activities for Zara to support its fast fashion system. it is effective solution to connect all of Zaras operations worldwide network and automating processes. this lean practices is entirely compatible to Zaras supply chain. Zara use such system to differ substantially from its competitors. Zara invests on prompt lean pratices. To keep up with fast reaction to business procedural changes, supply chain management will probably ensure flexibility and quick response. 2.1 Lean operation used in design progess Today, many people still take a narrow view of lean opearion, they view lean operation as cost reduction, mainly in terms of the costs they can save. Cost control is definitely an important part of lean operation. After all, if your rivirals can produce their products at a much lower cost, they could easily take over the market. However, some smart company view lean operation as their marketing plan and adding value for their customers. For instance, Zaras design involves in many efficient lean practices ¼Ã…’ which only design products the customer demand. All processes performed just for the sake of creating customers Value. The lean manufacturer minimizes resources that are not only raw materials but also manpower and time. The lean criteria is that all activities, movement, resources and other input convert into final product efficiently. Zara has applied such lean criteria successfully. Product development is constantly working in order to adapt to new fashion trends . Design ers and managers attend high-fashion fairs and exhibitions to obtain fashion information and then convert the latest fashion trends of the season into their designs. Other sources of design inspiration come from TV, Internet, film content or trend spotters. product development teams focus on venues such as university campuses and clubs around the world to capture fashion trends and customer preferences. Zaras product development teams have frequent dialogue via their internal IT system. Zara gave significant autonomy to each store manager in deciding the quantity of product needed by each store. Moreover, the store manager is able to decide which product to display in their stores and which product is to be sold at a reduced price. The managers responsibility is to make these decision based on market research and sales trends. Moreover, by employing young and fashionable member of staff ensures that employees also contribute by helping to report the sales analysis, the product life cycles, and the store trends to the designers. There are specialized teams in headquarters to analyze feedbacks and information from each store, then design and produce their products. These sales analyses allow the designers to develop the right products to meet consumer Demand. Design team issues up to approximately 12,000 new design styles per year. Such a design concept obviously depends on the regular creation of new design. For example, Zaras designer team came up with approximately 40,000 new designs per year, from which only slightly more than one-quarter of them for production. Zara often follows the fashion trends of the high-fashion houses and offers similar products at much lower prices by using less expensive fabric. It also attempts to offer more colors and larger range of sizes to meet the need of consumers. After a prototype of new design was selected, a computer-aided design system is used to refine colors and textures. Limited number of new items were produced and presented in certain stores for a trial period and large volumes of the product are produced only if customerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s reaction is positive. As a consequence, failure rates on new products is only 1% which is less than the average rate of 10% of other fashion retailers. 2.2 Lean Manufacture In fashion industry, the demand changes very fast due to new fashion trends and a volatile market situation. This demand is unpredictable and could vary and change completely in a short time, creating high difficulties for supply chain. To establish a lean supply chain is one crucial way for textile and apperal retailing company to enhance its performance and to gain competitive advantages. Zara has adopted lean manufacturing and combined this with practices in supply chain management for fashion retailing. In some extend, the lean manufacturing and supply chain management have become an universal solution in the apparel and textile industry. Zara has been able to obtain excellent success due to its lean manufacturing by vertical integration and fast fashion business strategies which provide Zara with a competitive advantage over traditional fashion retailers in the industry. Generally speaking, apparel retailers always try to keep lower costs by outsourcing production to developing countries where the lowest labor could reduce its manufacture cost. On the other hand, Zaraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s subsidiary retailing chain adopted a successful diverse method of doing business through working through the whole value chain by in-house design, production, distribution and retailing. Highly capital intensity and vertical integration is a distinctive feature of Zaraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s business model. From the upstream value chain, a subsidiary of Zara company, Comdietel, funnels fabric and other input supplied by external suppliers. More than half of the fabric was undyed which provide maximum flexibility to produce in-season clothes. Comdietel is able to dye and process gray fabric into certain pattern within only one week to meet the requirement of downstream value chain. Zara has 20 fully owned manufacture factories across the Europe. These factories use capital intensive production processes and provide cut garment and semi-manufactured products to approximately 500 in-house workshops. The relevant cutting machines and other systems produce semi-manufactured items and cut garments which will be transited directly into workshops. The progress looks rigmarole, but it is quite efficient because bar codes track the cut pieces through the every production steps. Workshops are located in labor-intensive areas across Europe such as Spain and northern Portugal. These workshops manufacture clothes in small scale to offer specialization in product type. The sewn clothes were sent back from these workshops to various product line under different brands. The center will inspect, iron and fold before sending finished garment to distribution center. The secret of Zaraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s success is that vertical integration leads to short turnaround times and great flexibility. By implementing in-house production, zara has obtained high level of variety, quantity and frequency of new styled clothes. Zara adopts market orientation by reducing lead-times and increasing flexibility. Zara is able to upgrade products in its stores within 10 to 15 days from design to stores. Vertical integration decreased Zaraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s stock to a minimum level and reduced fashion risk. In the mean time, providing small amount of products in a great variety of styles rendered Zara shorter lead times and high level flexibility. As a consequence of offering fewer amount of product more often, Zara obtains larger percentages of the full price due to in-season sell and thus achieve higher net margins on sales. By focusing on shorter response times to fashion trends and keeping up with fashion. Zara made efforts to make sure that its stores are able to offer latest fashion items that consumers desired at a given time. Zara can move from coming up a design to having clothes in its stores within 2 weeks. Short lead times is Zara one of the most important competitive advantages over its competitors. When Zaraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s retail stores provide consumer with latest fashion items and gain huge amount of sales, its competitors have still struggled to catch up. In comparison, HMà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s lead time is more than 20 days. Traditional retailers use 4-6 months . 2.3 Distribution Excellent supply chain management mainly focus on the understanding and balancing three key dimensions of flexibility, inventory and cost. Zara is obvious example for it by managing these trade-offs efficiently. Zaras supply chains has improved business performance and drive competitive advantage. Improving supply chain management is considered as its the business model which resulted in rapid growth and profitability. A more systematic approach to inventory distribution is another feature of Zara. Each retail chain has its own centralized distribution system. Distribution center is located in Arteixo and small satellite centers across the world. In order to keep its stores refreshed with new merchandise every two weeks, the warehouses of Zara is simply a place to transfer merchandise rather than store them. Under Indetexà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s distribution system, most of merchandise stayed at the distribution centers for only few hours. Products are inspected and shipped immediately in distribution center. Store managers can check lists of items available to be shipped to their stores. Based on their store inventories, they can request quantities and type of products. However, Zaraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸s international expansion required constant adjustment on distribution. Zara schedules the shipment by time zone to make sure distribute effectively. Zara uses this method to gain a competitive advantage by mini mizing the lead times. 3.Conclusions Zara is experiencing significant growth and has great opportunity to continue that growth by its efficient lean practice in design and manufacturing process and effective supply chain management that is completely contrary to the rest of the clothing industry; Zara has possess a competitive advantage for itself in the sense of low prices and quick cycle times, introducing new fashions. For Zara, supply chain management is a strategic differentiator that leads to a competitive edge. Supply chain management is more than a new name for logistic. Lean operation is not just concerned about cost control, Zara views its lean operation and supply chain as key strategy of its business models. The case study on Zara

An Over View Of The Beverage Industries :: Business

Formatting Problems AN OVER VIEW OF THE BEVERAGE INDUSTRIES Contributing to this industrial revolution among other industries were Manufacturing, Agricultural, Automotive, Chemical, Hotel, Banking Business Services, Real estate, Tourism and information Technology to name a few. But on such industry that has been holding onto its share of the market since its inception note in the USA - its birthplace - but all across the globe as well as the Beverage Industry. It has introduced icons that very few are oblivious to. The industry and its role in the Pakistan economy, the conditions under which it is working and the effects it has on the consumers is to remain the concern of this study. According to Richard D. Brown and George J. Petrol (1986), the history of the Beverages industry start from 1886, when Atlanta chemist Doe Pemberton developed a reddish - brown syrup with a smidgen of cocaine (for medicinal purposes) to compete with the many patent medicines and cure - all elixirs of that time. His company recommended it for the relief of hangove rs headaches, menstrual pains, and a host of other problem. One warm summer day Pemberton took some syrup down to will is venerable at Jacob's Drug Store in Atlanta. An ounce of the mixture was put into a glass, which was then filled with water and ice, creating the first Coca-Cola. The headquarters of Coca-Cola, now listed by fortune as one of the 50 top corporations in the United States, is still in Atlanta, Georgia. The actual sale and distribution of that magic elixir - which, needless to say, on longer contains cocaine - is handled largely by a number of independent bottlers. These bottlers buy syrup, mix it with carbonated water, and distribute it to retailers in their area. The number of retailers who sell Coke to the public almost exceeds counting. In this way a company with a magic formula but limited capital spread its name around the country and eventually around the globe. The organizational formula for merchandising apparently also had a bit of magic. But, of course, th e product was one that people wanted, which is perhaps the first law of success in marketing. Coke had been successful in establishing a strong loyal consumer force, on whom it still relies to this very day. Dong business was no sweat once the industry had set itself for good and the consumer's tasted veered.

Compare and contrast the view that ‘An Arrest’ is a tale of nature Essa

Compare and contrast the view that An Arrest is a tale of nature rejecting a human villain with the view that it is concerned only with a vengeful superego ‘An Arrest’ is an ambiguous story. You can look at it in different ways. One way to see it is as a tale of nature rejecting a human villain. This view is put forward right from the beginning. When the narrator uses words such as â€Å"confined† and â€Å"fugitive† to describe the state of Orrin Brower, he creates the image of an animal isolated from human society. This is because ‘confined’ is usually a word to do with animals or mad people who are not allowed to be in contact with humans Further evidence to support the argument of Orrin Brower being portrayed as a savage beast comes when the author writes that he had, â€Å"recovered liberty,† which is like an animal being released into the wild. Orrin Brower does not feel guilty for beating Burton Duff or think of the consequences of his actions, as a human would; he only feels and acknowledges his freedom which is an animal-like thing to do. When he is on the run he decides to escape to the forest which may be as he is treated like an animal he starts to believe that he is one. The fact that the narrator states ‘he had the folly to enter a forest’ suggests that even though he thinks of himself as an animal, Brower is not and therefore does not belong in the forest- this proves that nature will inevitably try to discard him. As he enters the forest, we are told that ‘the night was pretty dark with neither moon nor stars visible’ which could be seen as a nature trying to confuse Brower. We begin to doubt Brower’s animal-like image when Bierce writes, â€Å"Brower had never dwelt thereabout, and knew nothing of the lay ... ...re following him to the prison was not human at all. As I mentioned earlier Brower has committed some serious crimes which are the result of the id part of his brain taking over. The id is the part of our brain which wants all our basic needs- our Inner Desires- such as sleep, food and sex. However our superego stops us from becoming lazy, greedy or rapists. What happened to Brower is that his id took over and his superego was shunned so he committed these crimes without any guilt. At the clearing in the forest, Brower’s superego suddenly starts operating again and conjures up the image to make the guilty conscience, which comes with it, disappear by sending him back to justice. Bierce seems to have dropped many hints to leave both views arguably correct. Personally, I think Bierce has done this deliberately to leave the story as ambiguous as the title.

Art Evaluation (year10) :: essays research papers

Art book evaluation (Year 10) This year we have been studying natural forms, this has involved using many new and different materials and techniques. Firstly we started by looking at art by Georgia O’keefe who mainly painted abstract flowers this was a new style for me as I have never tried drawing in abstract style before, after this we did two paintings in acrylics one of shells and one piece of corn and around the edge of the paintings I then collaged in the background. This was a new way of doing backgrounds for me, as I have never tried using painting and colaging together. We have also tried a picture of natural objects with pastels then used chalk to make a grey background. I didn’t really like the results of the chalk background because it was so dull. Then we did a picture of fruits in pencils and shaded them this piece was very similar to the pictures I made of fruits later in my book one in watercolour pencils and one I collaged. I was very pleased with my picture in watercolour pencils but the collage didn’t turn out to well. After this I made a page of leaves drawn in 2 styles two in pencils and two in rubbings. I was pleased with the leaves done in pencil but the rubbings didn’t look that nice as you can only get a single colour and no shading. Next continuing with the vegetation theme I made a picture of Monet’s water lilies. I was pleased with this as it allowed me to experiment with pastels and enabled me to create a strong colourful picture. Next we made a copy of a picture of Jesus on the cross in acrylic this painting was done by Gauguin. This enabled me to experiment with a new style of painting with its simple lines and bright colours. The next piece of art is the piece that I’m happiest with out of my entire book. It was a copy of a print of black and white natural objects shaded with dots and lines. This was a completely new style of shading for me and it is one that I like a lot. Then I started developing my final art piece for the year I took a section of my garden and drew and shaded it in black pen after this I did 2 or 3 more pictures of this section of my garden one in pencil one in collage and one in acrylic.

Feminism theory Essay

The article â€Å"Just Say No? † by Celia Kitzinger and Hannah Frithspeaks explains why it is important for women to be able to refuse. Special attention is paid to development of feminism perspective on sexual refusal. As the author states young girls and women find it difficult to refuse unwanted sexual relations. Therefore, the author discusses main reasons of being afraid to refuse and consequences of unwanted sexual relations. Further, it is necessary to mention that the article provides detailed overview of feminism theory, core issues and beliefs stating that it is necessary to develop refusal skills to avoid unpleasant situation. The author provides also recommendations how to prevent rape. Firstly, she defines refusals as â€Å"complex conversational interactions, incorporating delays, palliatives, and accounts†. Kitzfinger admits that nowadays training of refusal skills aims at teaching â€Å"just say no† instead of paying attention to the mentioned issues. Therefore, young women should be taught assertiveness skills along with refusal and social ones. The author claims that women should be afraid of refusing directly and unapologetically. The author presents also literature review of existing practices of refusing. Secondly, according to empirical data, â€Å"women already can explicitly articulate a sophisticated awareness of these culturally normative ways of doing refusals†. It is emphasized that the focus is only on conversational problems, though rape education, refusal skills programs and theoretical rationale are involved as well. Nevertheless, the problem of sexual coercion can’t be solved only by changing the ways women talk, behave and refuse. The author is rather persuasive, because she uses logical arguments, conclusions, facts and viewpoints of different critics to defend her position that women should be more aware of refusal skills. The article leads through abundant data presented to persuade women to be more self-respected, not to be afraid to refuse unwanted sex or simply unpleasant interactions with men. The question appears on the agenda: why women find it difficult to refuse? References Kitzinvger, C. & Frith, H. (1999). â€Å"Just Say No? The Use of Conversation Analysis in Developing Feminist Perspective on Sexual Refusals†. Discourse Society, 10, 293-312.

Analysis and Application

1. Did Officer Smith have reasonable suspicion to make the initial stop of this vehicle? Reasonable suspicion is based on the understanding of circumstances of a person experienced in the field of criminal law. Another way of putting it is a criminal justice professional acting on more than a hunch but less than probable cause [ (quiz law) ]. Based on the definition of reasonable suspicion, Officer Smith did in fact have reasonable suspicion to make an initial stop of the vehicle because not only was a tail light broken which is a traffic law violation but the vehicle matched a general description of the vehicle that was suspected in the roadside killing of another Police Officer. 2. Was the â€Å"pat-down† of the driver legal?  A â€Å"Pat Down† is a quick search of a person’s being in order to determine if any weapons are present. A â€Å"Pat Down† is necessary to ensure the safety of the law enforcement agent and other civilians [ (Kiefer, 2009) ]. According to the case Arizona V. Johnson Officer Smith’s pat down of the driver was legal. Since the description of the car was the same as car used to kill other officer, Officer Smith had reason to fear for his life, therefore had the right to check or weapons. 3. Did exigent circumstances exist for Officer Smith to give chase to this vehicle? Exigent Circumstances means emergency conditions. Circumstances that would cause a reasonable person to believe that any relevant prompt action was necessary to prevent physical harm to the officers or civilians, the destruction of relevant evidence, the escape of a suspect, or some other consequence improperly frustrating legitimate law enforcement efforts (The lectric law library, 1995-2011). According to cased United States V. McConney (United States V. McConney, 1984), Exigent circumstances did exist for Officer Smith to Chase the vehicle in question because the driver obstructed justice by not providing the officer with her license and registration. Also the driver unusual action of speeding off before the stop came to an end also gave Officer Smith reason to give chase to the vehicle. 4. Was the gun in â€Å"plain view† and legally obtained?  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Plain View† authorizes seizure of illegal evidence visible to a police officer if the officer’s access to the object has a Fourth Amendment justification [ (Cliff Roberson, 2007) ]. According to the plain view doctrine the gun was in plain view because he could see if without physically moving anything or opening anything, but not legally obtained because she was not able to consent to the search of her car due to her being injured in an accident stemming from the chase. 5. Will the marijuana baggie be admissible evidence?  The marijuana will not be admissible in court unless the driver is found to be under the influence of the substance at time of accident because the previous exigent circumstances and reasonable suspicion would be deemed irrelevant due to the fact that the original reason for the stop which was the broken tail light was not in fact broken making the stop improper. Without the stop the officer would not have recognized that the vehicle fitted the description of suspect vehicle and Officer Smith would not have patted down the driver or asked for the driver’s license or registration, which in turn the driver would not have sped off inviting a chase from Officer Smith. Basically, with the reasonable suspicion and exigent circumstances the evidence found is irrelevant.

Early years education Essay

1.1 – Summarise entitlement and provision for early year’s education There are many different types of early year’s provision which has been funded by the government for early years education. All three and four year olds are entitled to 15 hours of free early year’s education entitlement per week across the 38 weeks of the annual year. Theirs are five different settings where Parents can choose to give their child for their Free EY Entitlement they are: †¢Pre-school playgroup-. It is an early childhood program in which children combine learning/education with play and it is an organization that is provided by fully trained and qualified staff †¢Private Day nursery- A facility provided for the care and learning for children from the birth to 5 they are usually run by a business or a private organisation and are not linked with the government. †¢Child-minder (who belongs to a registered child-minder network)-child minders are self-employed providing the care for children in their own homes , they offer full time or part time places or flexible arrangements. Child minders are registered with the Ofsted and are inspected in accordance with the Ofsted procedures and regulations to ensure that he child-minder is providing and safe and suitable environment for the children. †¢Maintained nursery school- is a school for children between the age of 3 and 5. It is run by fully qualified and trained to staff who encourage and supervise education play and learning rather than just providing childcare. It is part of early childhood education. †¢Nursery or reception class in a primary or independent school -Nursery schools provide a more direct and structured education for early years children aged 3 to 5 Some may be part of an independent school for older age groupseg infant and primary schools. Reception classes are run by a qualified teacher. 1.3 – Explain the post 16 options for young people and adults.

Changes in the American Federal Government from 1876 to the New Deal

On numerous occasions since the end of Reconstruction, the American political system has demonstrated its ability to adapt to changing domestic and foreign policy requirements, often by extending the reach of its power. An examination of the actions of the federal government during three periods (the Progressive Era, World War I, and the New Deal) reveals some of the new functions and responsibilities that the federal government assumed. In the years directly following Reconstruction, attention was necessarily focused on domestic matters.A shift from an agrarian economy to an industrial one created new sets of needs and expectations for the American population. Progressive era reformers, notably Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Wilson, responded to these needs by calling for reform: breaking-up monopolies; addressing corruption; enacting laws to protect women, children, and the large immigrant population; overseeing food and drug safety; and establishing regulations for sanitation a nd hygiene.These reforms often required the establishment of new governmental institutions (for example, the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Labor ). Many of these institutions are still in operation today. Beginning with the United States’ involvement in World War I, attention was redirected to foreign matters. Americans became increasingly involved in world affairs, not only through their involvement in the war efforts but also through the expansion of imperialist endeavors.Though these campaigns had begun earlier, they rapidly increased following the acquisition of Guam, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico in 1898. These actions extended the reach of the federal government to overseas territories. With the Great Depression, attention once again necessarily shifted to domestic matters. In order to alleviate the effects of the Depression, Franklin Roosevelt instituted massive changes referred to collectively as the New Deal.These policies included massive rel ief efforts for the employed, the establishment of a minimum wage, the creation of Social Security, and the expansion of federal regulation of agriculture, industry, finance, and labor relations. One major result of FDR’s administration was the government gained the legal power to regulate the economy. During much of his administration, FDR kept the federal government’s focus on domestic matters as he sought to enact neutrality legislation to keep America out of the war in Europe.vi It is significant that in times of economic crisis (such as those that directly preceded the Progressive era reforms and the New Deal), the federal government of this country turns its attention to combating corruption, regulating the economy, instituting public works projects, and enacting legislation that directly affects the lives of American citizens. In so doing, Wilson and F. D. Roosevelt focused their attentions primarily on domestic policy at the expensive of foreign policy.

A formal analysis of history of art-Africa Essay

A formal analysis of history of art-Africa - Essay Example there is a protrusion which can only be a nose and that is set close to two ovals that also contain indentations that could be interpreted as marks for the pupils of the eyes. It is difficult to be sure if the eyes make the nose more obvious or vice versa but the overall effect is clearly a human face. However, there is no discernable mouth which is perhaps the artistic license taken by the individual who created this object. Below the face, there are is an almost square hollow created which could represent the legs or the neck of the figure. Going beyond what is obvious, the colors of the object give it the sheen of aged wood or leather. The top part of the object which appears to be dark brown and cracked in places gives the impression of leather while the bottom most part has chipped away in places to reveal a softer shade of brown and that gives the impression of wood being used in the construction. The bottom part is something which does not appear to fit in the shape since it contains a hollow within it while the rest of the object is quite solid. In essence, it seems that the bottom of the object is moving against it. On the other hand, the shapes behind the face and the curved top fit together quite well since the graceful curves complement each other and accent the most prominent feature of the artwork i.e., the human face. Since the object can also be split up into three distinct regions, of which the first is the curved shape at the top, the middle being the face and the bottom region containing the square hollow, it is easy to say that the object is made to be stood, presented and viewed vertically. The overall shape of the object in terms of being oval or not is difficult to define. Without taking the square hollow into the picture, graceful curves and oval shapes would have dominated the object and it would have been easy to say that the object is circular. However, the violent presence of sharp angles that make the bottom most part of the object

Healthcare Factors that Differentiate the Status of Health in a Essay

Healthcare Factors that Differentiate the Status of Health in a Population - Essay Example Social factors include the resources that improve the living standard of a human being. However, it can be concluded that availability of health sources are dependent on the social factors that enable a person to avail all the resources necessary for having a healthy lifestyle. Such resources include proper healthy food, medicines, prompt healthcare facilities and other necessary basic amenities of life. In case of Texas, majority of people are left unprivileged due to inadequate health resources and low health insurance coverage due to poor socio-economic structure of most people in Texas. As a result, it has been observed that every year 2500 Texans die due to inadequate health facilities, lack of proper food and unavailability of medicines (Code Red Texas, 2012). To ensure good health status in the state of Texas, it is highly important for the state and social welfare organizations to ensure economic stability and awareness regarding health in the area. The state government shoul d take imperative steps to determine all the social factors that are contributing in poor health outcomes. As a result, the government should formulate a plan to enhance and improve the life standard of the people in Texas. This can only be achieved by funding and investing in economic activities, offering better employment opportunities to the people and instilling sense of social responsibility in the minds of people. References US Department of Health and Human Services (2012) Healthy People 2020 retrieved from http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/QoLWBabout.aspx Lomas, J. (1998). Social capital and health: implications for public health and epidemiology. Social Science & Medicine, 47(9), 1181-1188. Code Red Texas (2012) Code Red; the critical condition of health in Texas 2012. Retrieved from http://www.coderedtexas.org/files/Code-Red-2012.pdf #Health Literacy Health literacy provides an important platform for handling health related issues for people with low income and low l iteracy rate (Marmot et al, 2006). Health decisions according to Marmot, (2007) are established basing on appropriate standards as required in accordance with existing health policies. Healthcare decisions are therefore valid and valuably relevant especially when considering proper use of newer technologies (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2012). The core substance defined according to societal needs is based on unique health actions. I have analyzed HRSA to study the health communication and the use of technology in health and how it benefits different people. The website (HRSA) provides coherent and in-depth information on each and every disease and other health related issues. It targets the audience within the US and also provides assistance to people living outside of the US through emails and online support. For people unfamiliar with English, it provides all the details in Spanish as a second language. Visuals have been applied and have offered a better level of a ttaining the required information. The use of pictures provides better understanding even to the non healthcare readers to acquire the first hand knowledge and the concept. It could have been more understandable for them if the pictures contain further information regarding a specific disease. The readability ratio on the

The Suicide tourist Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Suicide tourist - Essay Example In countries such as Switzerland, legally operated clinics such as ‘Dignitas’ offer suicide assistance to patients who face an inevitably long and painful death in the not so distant future. The moral question that have been raised so far, revolve around the right for persons to end their own lives. This is evident in situations when death is imminent due to terminal illness. Moreover, the assisted suicide procedure has elicited controversial issues concerning the respect for personal rights and desires versus the threat for abuse. At the heart of this controversy is Dignitas and its patients seeking assisted suicide services. Evidently, Switzerland is the only country that permits foreigners to come and seek the services of assisted suicide. To this end, this paper will seek to establish the moral basis and acceptance of the right to end one’s life as an act preventing further suffering. Consequently, an innate understanding of Craig Ewert’s case in Ã¢â‚¬Ë œThe Suicide Tourist’ will provide insight into judging the morality of his actions. The Suicide Tourist is a compelling and moving documentary that narrates the last days and eventual assisted suicide of Craig Ewert. The documentary raised pertinent questions about the quality of life and the moral precinct of ending one’s life (Fuchs, 2010). To this end, Craig articulately posed strong and logical arguments regarding his decision to end his life. Craig was a 59 year old American citizen who relocated to England with his wife. As a professor of Computer Science, and his wife enrolled for a PhD in Law, things were going quite well until Craig was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease, also known as ALS ( Fuchs, 2010). The condition was a neurological terminal disease that would rapidly waste away his motor functions. To this end, he was given at most five years to live. However, 6 months after the diagnosis, Craig’s health had rapidly deteriorated to the po int that he could not walk, swallow food or breathe on his own without a ventilator. At this point, Craig decided to end his life and avoid a prolonged painful suffering and inevitable death. Upon discussion with his family, they came to accept that he was suffering and acknowledged that his death was imminent. Ultimately, Craig family supported his wishes to end his life. To this end, Craig sought the services of Dignitas clinic in Switzerland. The clinic offered suicide assistance to terminally ill patients that were faced with an inevitable death after prolonged pain and suffering. At this point, it is important to note the facts that led Craig’s decision in choosing to end his life rather than wait for his inevitable death. In his own words, Craig noted that his degenerative state would render him paralyzed without any functions of his motor functions. He knew that he would be essentially trapped in his own body without the luxury of being able to communicate or even move any part of his body. Consequently, he was aware that he would be trapped in his own body just waiting for death. To this end, time was of the essence since he had to solely partake the lethal dosage that would ultimately end his life. Furthermore, Craig asserted that he was not tired of living but was tired of the disease. In addition Craig delved in the moral concern raised over assisted suicide and its judgement based on

Change Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Change - Essay Example In business, resistance is the obstacle to surmount or conquer, especially when it comes to introducing new ideas, policies, protocols and products. This paper seeks to highlight resistance as a natural condition, and its application in successful product change in business with special emphasis on sales personnel. A business’ sole purpose is to make a profit at the end of the day’s activities, and when market conditions change, it requires businesses to formulate new ways of conducting business. Most businesses have a sales perspective that involves designated individuals who carry out the task of marketing and actualizing product(s) sale. According to Jaramillo et al, sales persons are more predisposed to resist change if they think it will increase their workload. For a business entity to achieve a successful product change, especially where its sales team is concerned, it needs to ensure that the team maintains its self-efficacy and autonomy (Jaramillo et al. 549). This would ensure that these individuals continue to maintain a harmonious and beneficial relationship with their customers. According to research conducted by Jaramillo et al, resistance to change exerts a negative influence on a salesperson’s performance and customer responsiveness. Managers in all business levels can help reduce resistance by explaining how proposed changes positively affect their workload. Businesses can also provide greater job autonomy to sales persons, which give them the opportunity to implement these changes according to the nature and situation of their respective fields of service. Positive reception of change by a sales team in a business translates to effective and efficient achievement of goals that prompt the need for a change. Jaramillo, F., Mulki, J. P., Onyemah, V. & Pesquera, M. R. Salesperson Resistance to change: An Empirical Investigation of Antecedents and Outcomes. London: International Journal of

Environmental Scan Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Environmental Scan Paper - Essay Example This research centres on the environmental scan of the internal and external environments of two real-world organizations, their competitive edges and firm strategies for developing value and sustaining competitiveness. Scanning of the environment particularly the internal organizational environment mainly looks at culture of the firm, the relations between employees, management and the shareholders. Moreover, it will also focus on the organizational structure, access to natural resources and product awareness. On the other hand, scanning of the external organizational environment dwells on the industry analysis, national and macro-environment. Industry environmental analysis evaluates the level of competition of the company and that of its rivals. The national environment examines the effect of the national framework for enabling an organization accomplishes competitive edge on the international scale. The macro-environment reveals the social, legal, political, economic and political effects on the functioning of an organization. Apple Inc. is a global organization with deals with computer software, consumer electronics and communication servers (Kang, 2013). The primary apple products include iPad, iPod, iPhone, and Macintosh computer. The company was officially registered by its original founders in 1977 in California and has been operating since its incorporation. Apple employs environmental scan to evaluate its business. The firm has been effective in the technology industry in which it operates. The success of this company is mainly attributed to its revolutionary ideas and capability to bring ideas to reality, revealing a sound business strategy. Internal environment The internal environment of Apple is characterized by dynamism, creativity, and flexibility. The organization internal environment has been built such that it promotes its workforce to participate in branding of the company image (Kang, 2013). Apple appreciates its employees for

What Impact did Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case have on Coursework

What Impact did Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case have on the reduction of racial discrimination in America - Coursework Example ideration of the rights of every American citizen thereby overturning the discriminative legislations that existed in the country’s education system before as the discussion below portrays. The Supreme Court ruling declared that other previous laws that informed the institution of separate schools for both black and white communities null and void. Apparently, American laws sustained discrimination in every sector of the economy with the country’s education system having systematic laws banning the integration of the two communities. An 1879 Kansas law permitted the creation and operation of separate elementary schools among other educational facilities for both the whites and the blacks1. The law however did not restrict the formation and composition of the schools. This portrayed the state’s recognition of the discriminative social structure thus the creation of equally discriminative social structures. In the ruling, the Warren court made a unanimous ruling overturning such laws by stating "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal†. The ruling was fundamental since it determined that the de jure  racial segregation  was a violat ion of the Equal Protection Clause  in the country’s Fourteenth constitutional amendment. The ruling was a major success to most of the civil rights activists and the abolitionist campaigners thereby setting stage for integration of communities in the country. The plaintiffs in the case were a group of thirteen parents who instituted the case against the Board of Education in Topeka, Kansas. The parents represented twenty children who experienced various instances of racial discrimination in the city. Oliver Brown joined the case thereby becoming the main plaintiff in the case after deliberation with the other thirteen parents. Apparently, Brown’s daughter Linda studied at Monroe Elementary school situated about two kilometer away2. The young girl would walk for more than six blocks before boarding a bus to

Do We Need More Gun Control Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Do We Need More Gun Control - Essay Example The debate on gun control escalated in the United States as a result of different massacres carried out on innocent civilians, for example, the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech and other subsequent shootings in various schools has escalated the debate on the use of gun among the citizens. However, there is a controversy between the Christians and the non-Christians on gun control, thus the aim of this paper is to highlight the ethical perspectives regarding gun control in the United States. Hence, the questions many ask, â€Å"do the US citizens need more Gun Control, and is it the Government's ethical responsibility to legislate it, and what are the Christians view on this issue?† The Bible was written decades before any form of guns were invented, therefore, the term â€Å"gun control† cannot be allocated anywhere in the bible despite the fact that the Bible reports several accounts of wars, battles, and the use of weapons in addition to self-defense, and the proper mindset with these things. In Mark 13:7 and James 4:1, the conflicts are highlighted as unavoidable elements of living in a collapsed world and weapons are essential parts of the conflict. In the bible, weapons were used for personal protection, therefore, owning a weapon for self-defense is never condemned in the Bible, actually, it was cited in a positive light by Jesus Himself on one occasion (Esv Study Bible Luke 22:35-38).   Debates over guns control or how much to control them, depend on political, ethical and philosophical arguments, and not moral ones, however, this does not mean that there is no moral element regarding this issue (Feinberg, Paul, and Aldous, 18).

The US as a Sole Superpower Essay Example for Free

The US as a Sole Superpower Essay During the Cold War that happened after World War II, there are distinctions that happened between and among countries all over the world. There is the First world countries which is composed of the United States and its allies, the Second world which is composed of the Soviet Union countries and the Third world countries which represents most Asian countries. This phenomenon has evolved to be the politics of development. Countries classified as first world or developed countries have managed to claim victorious their stance as superpower nation. History attests to the efforts of many developed countries, particularly the United States to impose their own generic formula of development to less developed countries. The Western influence of primarily the United States has embodied their character as the fast rising superpower of the universe. Yes, the West led by the United States is emerging as the country which will claim to be the sole superpower of the world in more years to come. The United States as a sole superpower will cause jealousy, corruption and anti-Americanism. The United States as a sole superpower will cause jealousy because being the sole superpower means that one has it all. And when one has it all, everybody will want to have a taste of what you are having. Jealousy transcends to insecurity and envy. When the U. S becomes the sole superpower, it is inevitable that the countries that once has pledge their loyalty and alliance will question their own capabilities to become a superpower country. In that realization, they too will aspire to share the seat of the U. S. When jealousy arises, more attempts to destroy the U. S as a leading superpower will come about. Different nations aspiring to become the superpower will devise their own tactics and plans to seat out the U. S in their hope to replace the U. S. Call it destabilization plots, military tactics to get into the head of U. S leaders and uncover the secrets in achieving such great success. Jealousy entails that one country is determined to destroy what the U. S has and envision his country to replace the stance of the U. S. The United States as a sole superpower will cause corruption. To quote Lord Acton, a 19th century British politician and academician, the aphorism â€Å"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely† exemplifies what will happen in the U. S when they become the superpower of the world. (Hofstede, 2002b) Judging from other countries, poor countries tend to have higher corruption rates because of poverty and the need to survive. But such in the case of the U. S when it experience such wealth and resources, will cause corruption in their own turf. And this is not caused by the need to survive alone, but rather greed. The U. S as a superpower will cause corruption in its own government because leaders would want to benefit for what they have contributed to the country. Everybody would want to reward themselves with what the U. S have because it is their deemed right to do so. And that speaks of corruption. The power of the U. S will cause corruption because judging from history, almost every nation who had experienced unopposed level of power has fallen because they have abused it. Different empires since the Greeks have exemplified this downfall and absolute power shall tend to corrupt the U. S too once they emerge to become the sole superpower. (Messerrli, 2006) The United States has begun to demonstrate this action when they try to impose their own developmental formula to other countries and imposing it as a humanitarian effort to help third world countries. This action is clear when they tried to impose democracy in the Iraqi regimes without any concern for the world treaties imposed by the International Criminal Court or the United nations. The abuse of power will certainly lead to more invasions, and reenact what old invasion of the Greeks and Persians demonstrated in the earlier centuries. It will then prove to become a vicious cycle wherein the most powerful nation in the world will come to pursue other territories and own every resource to maintain their position being a sole superpower. The U. S as a sole superpower will cause Anti-Americanism in almost all ways possible. From our logic, when jealousy and corruption persist, more countries will tend to hate the U. S for the wealth they are experiencing. More so, they will hate Americans for the great boost of morale they have being number 1. (Messerrli, 2006)They will hate the Americans for imposing in them the idea that they are the leading race of the world and they have the power to command other nations and race in their actions. They will hate the Americans for always characterizing success with their country. Being number one entails that you are placed under scrutiny all the time, and criticized for every action that you take. The United States will embody what every other nation aspires to be. Even if the U. S envisions helping other poor countries, people from those countries will see otherwise. (Hiro, 2007)They will imply other hidden motives other than pure and ideally trusting action of the U. S in helping them, rather they will think that the U. S is planning to conquer the world. Terrorism will be recorded at an all time high. (Messerrli, 2006) And the U. S will not only strengthen their own economy but along with that comes great regard for the protection and security of its military forces to keep the position of number 1 all over the world. U. S leaders will prioritize their military forces to ensure that the 9/11 attacks will remain to be a history and that the U. S will remain to be the sole superpower. Even if the U. S maintains to fight the dictators of most countries as they believe greatly in democracy of a country and its people, many natives and nationalist of those countries will side their leaders and refuse to adhere to the U. S intention to liberate them. In the end, the only thing that will be seen is a powerful nation â€Å"bullying† other smaller nations. Despite all these negativity seen if the U. S becomes a sole superpower, fact remains that the U. S has mass resources it can use to help other countries alleviate poverty and hunger. It can also urge other progressive countries to help in this effort by improving other civilizations than just strengthening their military defenses. The U. S can serve as a protector of those countries needing help and can influence other wealthy nations to help with its social programs for other nations to benefit. The U. S is the embodiment of democracy and liberty. No other nation can brag of more equal opportunities for women and minorities than the U. S. The country can serve as a great example to other striving nations to achieve a country that is diverse and which upholds the dignity of every individual. Human rights is very well protected in the U. S and when the U. S becomes a sole superpower, and every other nation will try to imitate its standard, then ideally the other countries are imitating a quality standard of success. Also, the rights entailed by the Constitution of the United States give power to the greater American public. Freedom of speech is practiced and people, through the First Amendment can openly criticize the government for violating any human rights or abusing the authority of the government. Transparency and accountability is practiced as all times. Democracy which entails power of the people to decide on matters of the states will somehow prevail than the greed and abuse of power of some politicians. The economy of the U. S can also influence other economy-driven countries to format theirs as well. The strength of the U. S lies with its influence on other currencies, how the U. S dollar becomes the standard currency that influences other economies all over the world. This power can be a factor to regulate and stabilize other economies as well. With its intention to have a healthy diplomatic relations among other countries, the U. S cannot and will not afford to destroy that knowing that abusing its own power can lead to the destruction of its own economy as well. If the provision of the future entails the United States as the sole superpower of the world, there will always be two sides of the coin. With its great resources and ideal view of democracy, and can bring a new sense of civilization, stability and prosperity among other nations. But this strength can also result to other country striving to become better than the U. S, other country aspiring to unseat the number 1 country, and people of those nations hating the U. S because of jealousy and envy. As a conclusion, it all depends on the future leaders and the morals they hold being the leader of the sole superpower of the world. There will come a time that abuse will be realized, corruption practiced, and jealousy prevailing. But with a leader who has all the right and moral intentions to do well, and use the success of the U. S as a catalyst for social change, the world will be better off with a superpower such as the United States. Let us all just hope that their intention to hold the ideal concept of democracy and respect to the human rights of the people will prevail, or else, the world will only see two distinctions: the United States and its conquests, or the United States and the developing countries. Reference: Hiro, D. (2007).The Sole Superpower in Decline: The Rise of a Multipolar World [Electronic Version]. TomDispatch. Retrieved December 9, from http://www. zmag. org/content/showarticle. cfm? ItemID=13586 Hofstede, G. (2002b). The economic and cultural dynamics of corruption 2001 data. The Universal and the Specific in 21st-Century Global Management, 28(1), 34-43. Messerrli, J. (2006). Is it good for the world to have the U. S. as the sole superpower? [Electronic Version]. Retrieved December 9 from http://www. balancedpolitics. org/sole_superpower. htm

Marketing and Citibank Essay Example for Free

Marketing and Citibank Essay ACKNOWLEDGMENT Alhamdulillah, first of all i would like to thank God as finally I was able to finish my assignment that have been given by Marketing lecturer to me. Besides that, not forget also a to my friends Muhammad Kharusani because without his guide me assignment cannot be done properly like this. He always gives supports and guide to me how to do the assignment in purpose to produce a good outcome from research that been studied. Credits also are given to friends class HND1B which help each other to complete this task. Topic that been given by me are regarding concept and process of marketing citibank company. Finally, thank to our beloved friend that always stick together and also work hard to produce a good assignment with all afford and responsibility. Hope that all the effort will give a lot of benefits to me . Not forget also for those who help me complete this assignment direct or indirectly. ABOUT CITIBANK Citibank, a major international bank, is the consumer banking arm of financial services giant Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, later First National City Bank of New York. As of March 2010, Citigroup is the third largest bank holding company in the United States by total assets, after Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase. Citibank has retail banking operations in more than 160 countries and territories around the world. More than half of its 1,400 offices are in the United States, mostly in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Washington, D.C. and Miami. More recently, Citibank has expanded its operations in the Boston, Philadelphia, Houston, and Dallas metropolitan areas. In addition to the standard banking transactions, Citibank offers insurance, credit cards and investment products. Their online services division is among the most successful in the field, citation needed claiming about 15 million users. As a result of the global financial crisis of 2008–2009 and huge losses in the value of its subprime mortgage assets, Citibank was rescued by the U.S. government under plans agreed for Citigroup. On November 23, 2008, in addition to initial aid of $25 billion, a further $25 billion was invested in the corporation together with guarantees for risky assets amounting to $306 billion. Since this time, Citibank has repaid its government loans in full. Q1. Present two definitions of marketing and compare both definitions. Provide relevant examples which relate to Citibank case study. Based on Philip kotler definition, Marketing is a social and managerial process whereby individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating and exchanging products and value with others. In other words, customer will exchange what their value (e.g money), only if their want is met. Based on my opinion, Philip kotler saying that people change what they want is to gain profit and use their valuable item to change it. In daily life also, we need to satisfy our demand by used exchanging process otherwise we cannot improve in a way of how we live. In wanting to possess such a product, we have to pay a price (cost). Hence, in making a decision to purchase an item, the customer will consider both the value and the price. After we have decided on the product, it can then be procured via the process of exchange or transactions. Based on Citigroup, they are using this strategy to satisfy their customer needs and wants. Based on Rochelle Rucker, Citibank faced a few problems to initiate manual fund problems. When they want to send money from their accounts, they call their banker and then fax, phone or mail in requests to have the transaction processed. Because the process was so complicated, customers complained. Most of the complaints lodged with the department dealt with the time it took to complete the process. So, in order to overcome this problem, Citibank use six sigma program methods to solve it. Six Sigma is a business management strategy seeks to improve the quality of process outputs by identifying and removing the causes of defects (errors) and minimizing variability in manufacturing and business processes. Six sigma used a simple method which is Pareto chart. This chart gives data which has the highest problem occur most often. A team composed of bankers and operations people identified the entire funds transfer process, tabulating defects and analyzing them using a Pareto chart. One of the methods is using internal call-back procedure, which required staff to call the person requesting the funds transfer to make sure that the instructions were correct and hadnt been altered. So in this way, Citibank can ensure that their customer has no problem and problem solved. By using this six sigma method Citibank strives for perfect processes to satisfy customer. In Citibank Malaysia, they have proved their commitment for their customer and community live. A large aspect of Citibank’s corporate citizenship in Malaysia focuses on helping people of all ages better understand and practise financial management. In 2010, Citibank Foundation allocated grants totalling USD208,000 for their community-based projects. They have worked with Radio Television Malaysia (RTM) and invited a new collaboration with ERA Consumer Malaysia to launch the second season of the â€Å"Stretching Your Ringgit† program on TV1, TV2 and Radio RTM. The initiative followed encouraging survey findings that showed more than 70% of Malaysians polled realised the importance of financial management, especially those in the low-middle income bracket. According to American Marketing Association Board of Directors Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customer s, clients, partners, and society at large. In this case, AMA said that marketing occur when both of the company involve when there is activity among them. Citibank use the same concept which they provide services to their customer to save the money and make it easier. Citibank also provide bank loan, Credit card, Deposits, Investment, Citigold which gives benefit to customer. Citibank also use communicating to contact with their customer to provide services or solving problem. Citibank provide services to customer which can give both benefit. for example Citibank provide bank loan and this can reduce burden for people which has low income. As for the Citibank also, they make interest for those who borrow bank loan and this will give benefit to the firm. Both of definition gives the same meaning in different way. Philip kotler emphasize of the customer needs and wants. We can say Citibank really care about their customer so they will try the best to overcome any problem that customer faced. In india Citibank care their customer, this can be shown by their customer â€Å"I can safely say that Citi provides the best card services for India, which is why most of my spend is on Citi and I recommend it to my friends. A lot of the success is the result of having passionate, committed, service oriented people like Manish. My kudos to him†. (J sajeev, 2011).American Marketing Association which more to creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society. The difference between this concept is AMA is more to set of activity which no related to customer needs and wants. Citibank satisfy their customer and this is the key of how Citibank more success than the others banker in Malaysia. Compare to Maybank Malaysia, Citibank is much older than the others banker in Malaysia. We can say that Citibank is more experience in handling money. Q2. Identify at least three main characteristics of a marketing-oriented organization of Citibank case study and provide an examples for each characteristic. What is marketing orientation? Marketing orientation is a philosophy focused on discovering and meeting the needs and desires of its customers through its product mix. Unlike past marketing strategies that concentrated on establishing selling points for existing products, market orientation works in reverse, attempting to tailor products to meet the demands of customers. In essence, market orientation can be thought of as a coordinated marketing campaign between a company and its customers. Nowadays, business firm use this concept to make their customer stick with their product. We can say that the idea that companies can create a product and sell its features to an eager buying public is no longer concrete. With an increasingly global economy and more and more choices for consumers, companies must be willing to adapt their mark et orientation to stay competitive. Based on my opinion, nowadays in Malaysia, we can see a lot of bank is available. So the competition becomes higher than before. In order to attract more people to use their services, Citibank has to adapt with current situation. Citibank use marketing oriented business to identifying customer, consumer needs and wants. In Malaysia, Citibank provide Islamic banking way to satisfy their customer. By using PEST analysis, we can say that Malaysian people are majority muslim and the idea of Citibank to provide Islamic banking which satisfy customer are brilliant. So people can enjoy with low interest rates given. Citibank in Malaysia facing a problem regarding high interest rate offered, so they make a research and develop a new system which enable customer use their Islamic banking. Another services that they provide is Citibank Guard Savings is The first savings account in Malaysia that’s enhanced with free Takaful coverage against critical illness. Citibank Home i Partner provide Capped Rate, Flexible Payment and Daily Calculation, Citibank Checking Account I is a system provided by checking account that honours the Islamic banking principle of guaranteed safe custody approved by the Shariah body. Based on the services provided by Citibank, we can conclude that Citibank care about their customer needs and develop a new system according to community lived. Just like the others bank, Citibank online will make all the transactions become much easier as customer can save valuable time and money. No more hassles with long queues, parking and travelling. As we can see, Citibank developing products to meet customer needs and wants. So they come out with product and services which give benefit to their customer Credit Cards, Ready Credit, Home Loans, Loans, Deposits, Investments, Insurance, Islamic Banking. So this is basic need in any of bank in Malaysia. What is the differences between Citibank and the other bank? So let’s take an example of Citibank ready card. Citibank Ready Credit is an Unsecured Personal Overdraft with Checking Facility that allows you to access cash easily in any amount in excess of your credit balance up to the approved overdraft limit. With ready card, we can access our balance in credit card even if the amount has exceeds the limits. As a fact, Maybank did not have their owned ready card. Citibank ready card is benefit to their customer as it is convenient to pay, pay for amount that we use. Another characteristic of a marketing oriented business is making the product is available to customer at a righ t time and place. We already know about product and services of Citibank as Credit Cards, Ready Credit, Home Loans, Loans, Deposits, Investments, Insurance, Islamic Banking. Let’s take an example of Credit cards, before this Citibank only produced normal credit for their customer only. But now, Citibank produced a new credit card Citibank at work. Citibank at Work takes Citibanks world-class consumer banking products and services right to the doorstep of employees at their workplace. Apart from enjoying customized privileges across a wide range of products including banking accounts, credit cards, loans, deposits and insurance on-site, employees of these companies also have access to financial seminars and lifestyle events, tailored to their specific profiles and needs. By using Citibank at work, business company can do their job efficiently as they have their own business credit card. Q3. Explain four elements of the marketing concept and relate your answer with Citibank case study. FOUR ELEMENTS OF MARKETING ORIENTED ORGANIZATION Production Concept is a concept where goods are produced without taking into consideration the choices or tastes of your customers. It is one of the earliest marketing concepts where goods were just produced on the belief that they will be sold because consumers need them. It holds that customers will prefer products that are widely available and inexpensive. Manager focusing on this concept concentrate on achieving high production efficiency, low cost, and mass distribution. From my opinion, production concept emphasize on distribution of product. This type of concept are easier to use. Based on the case study, Citibank provided more credit card for their customer. Each customer could have more than one credit card. Product Concept holds that consumers will favor those products that offer the most quality, performance, or innovative features. Managers focusing on this concept concentrate on making superior products and improving them over time. They assume that buyers admire well-made products and can appraise quality and performance. However, these managers are sometimes caught up in a love affair with their product and do not realize what the market needs. Related to the case study, Citibank improved their product to satisfy customer need. Before this, customer got problem to use their credit card where credit card can be used for loan only. But after an improvement, Citibank come out with Citibank Premier Miles card, Platinum, Citi business, Air-Asia Citibank gold. Next elements use is selling concept. It holds that consumers and businesses if left alone, will ordinarily not buy enough of the selling company’s product. Selling concept also is an idea in marketing that if customers are left to themselves, they will not make the effort to buy a companys products. Therefore, it dictates, companies must be aggressive in pushing their sales. Based on my opinion, if company want to sell their product by using selling concept, they have to be aggressive in promoting their product. Not like the older ways where they promote their product by using agents. As for the Citibank case study, nowadays they advertise their product through internet and media more efficiently. Marketing concept is a business philosophy that combines above three business orientation. It holds that the key to achieving it’s organizational goals consists of company being more effective than competitors in creating, delivering, and communicating customer value to it’s selected target customers. These three philosophies are the product, selling, and marketing philosophies. Even though each philosophy has a particular time when it was dominant, a philosophy did not die with the end of its era of dominance. In fact, all three philosophies are being used today. The best way to meet the organizations goals is also by meeting customer needs and wants. The marketing concepts emphasis is to understand the customers before designing and producing a product for them. With the customers wants and needs incorporated into the design and manufacture of the product, sales and profit goals are far more likely to be met. What are Citibank do to satisfy their customer needs based on marketing concept is they make swot analysis to know what can be done to attract more customer in Citibank. Citibank (2009) has mention that their customers can have their banking activities in the Islamic principles. This not only able attracts more customer but Citibank are show that they understand their customer need in the daily banking activities. This principle have apply in Citibank branch in Malaysia. â€Å"What are the reasons behind the recent growth in Islamic finance? One is the strong demand from a large number of immigrant and non immigrant Muslims for Sharia-compliant financial services and transactions.† (Low chee hua, 2010) In order to compete in the rising of the demand of Islamic Banking, Citibank has introduced the Islamic Banking to their customers. So basically, marketing concept is satisfy customer problem and solved it by looking of what customer need. The societal marketing concept was an offshoot of the marketing concept wherein an organization believes in giving back to the society by producing better products targeted towards society welfare. Some have questioned whether the marketing concept is an appropriate philosophy in an age of environmental deterioration, resource shortages, explosive population growth, world hunger and poverty, and neglected social services. The marketing concept possibily sidesteps the potential conflicts among consumer wants. Citibank also take part in their societal marketing. Citibank became a major sponsor of the Sydney Swans in 2005, who is play in the AFL. The marketing concept is about matching a companys capabilities with customer wants. This matching process takes place in what is called the marketing environment. Businesses do not undertake marketing activities alone. They face threats from competitors, and changes in the political, economic, social and technological environment. All these factors have to be taken into account as a business tries to match its capabilities with the needs and wants of its target customers. An organisation that adopts the marketing concept accepts the needs of potential customers as the basis for its operations. Success is dependent on satisfying customer needs. So basically, Citibank use marketing concept to attract more customer to use their services. One of the techniques used is credit card promotion such as Instant Rewards at Shell, Domino’s pizza, Samsung S3, Asia web direct. Before this, if customer wants to pay bill or loan they have to go to Citibank. But nowadays, they upgrade their system to online banking so that customer can pay instantly and reduce waste time. Q4. Provide an indication of the likely costs and benefits to Citibank case study in adapting a marketing approach. In Citibank, there are many advantages and disadvantages of a marketing approach. Customer Satisfaction In customer satisfaction, it refers to which a product’s perceived performance matches a buyer’s expectation. It is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation. We can see based on their services of Citibank do for their customer. In Malaysia, Even the Citibank atm machine is less than the other bank, but their services to customer is good. Citibank will try their best to solve problem of customer credit card so that they will not lose their customer. Customer Care Customer care is a phrase that is used to describe the process of taking care of our customers in a positive manner. The term is used in place of complaint handling due to its positive focus, and is a reminder that customer satisfaction is a priority. Related to Citibank case study, they care about their customer. we can see that Citibank provide customer services so they will know any problem of customer faced. There is a few customer having problem regarding Citibank delay card. As banks are losing their customer fast, they are coming up with different strategies to retain their customers. ‘When/where was the last time you made the transaction with the card?’; I told him I don’t remember anymore since I have a few cards and I have not been using Citibank Card for a while. He insisted me to answer that question before he can proceed, and I insisted I that I don’t remember and suggested him to ask another verification question†. (Kclau, 2010) Quality of services and products. In company, they must have their own quality of services and products. It is designed to constantly improve the quality of their products, services and marketing concept. In Citibank, their main objective at Citibank is to provide reliable and quality services to our customers. Our customer service policy has the overall aim of ensuring that our customers are provided with services which are reliable and best suited to their needs. They have to manage and ensure that quality control standards for services are met. Citibank also have online credit card services so they can login anytime, anywhere to view their account details and activities. DISADVANTAGES OF CITIBANK There is one reason and one reason only that it’s so easy to get a store credit card: they are confident that they will make money off of customer purchase. The interest charged on store cards, as compared to bank credit cards, is at least several percentage points higher and often as much as 10-15% higher. As well, annual fees or sign-up fees may run twice as much as those of standard credit cards. Means that, Citibank charged is higher than the other banks in Malaysia, so that’s why only businessman use Citibank. It involved high cost in retaining the customers. And also, the target market for Citibank is higher because they only target their customer on businessman. CONCLUSION As overall conclusion, Citibank is one of the multinational companies that successful in online based financial institution that operate in Malaysia. Citibank able to understand the culture of local citizen (promo Islamic Banking Services), able to gain their market share by solved the geographical problem (online banking services), able to cost cutting by promo the online banking culture to their customer, and able to compete with the local financial institution. We know that Citibank is really cares about their customer and try their best to satisfy customer needs and wants. Based on this concept of marketing, Citibank now are well known in all around the world. Although it is a foreign company but Citibank is a good model to local financial institution to learn their strategies to increase their competitive capability to compete in the global market.