Manifestations of vandalism Essay

Some say that the youths of today are irresponsible. This view merits consideration because it is debatable. Nowadays, vandalism become a trend around the teenagers. According in the Oxford Dictionary vandalism means a destruction by vandals. This vandalism has become a culture for the teenagers. This issue is making a country so ashamed towards the others country. There are many factors, effect and resolution for this issue. We must take a action to reduce this vandalism among the teenagers. Teenagers are the product of a community system. Dysfunctional society will eventually produce a flawed product. Attitude of some people now who cared more about materialistic and indifferent to social issues certainly complicate the existing problem. According to many studies vandalism occurred in the city. Youth scribbling and damaging public property rather than not educated but the generation born in the city is difficult to control. In urban areas some people do not care for what is happening around them. By the youth feel that they are free to pursue this regardless of the negative symptoms of a sense of responsibility towards public property. Vandalism activities also have adverse effects on society. Activity causing vandalism of public property such as public telephones and so destroyed. It will be difficult for the community if they had to use public facilities for emergency purposes. Vandalism is often underestimated by the local community. They just sit back while the vandalism happened in front of their eyes. Finally people also suffer from the heinous activities. Community is difficult to make contact during emergency situations. Example public phones damaged during house is on fire. In addition, the community is not comfortable while using other public property. Example wet while waiting for the bus because the bus stop damaged roof could not stop because of the rain. Graffiti on the walls of public toilets worsen and encourage the younger generation to emulate these unhealthy symptoms. In addition, vandalism activities also affect the country. Vandalism activities cause and affect the country’s image tarnished Malaysia’s economic position. This is due to the lack of the arrival of tourists from outside to Malaysia because of the bad environment and attitudes of the  people who do not care. In effect, the country’s tourism industry will decline. Industries in tourism is among the contributors to the country’s economic position. Decline in tourism caused by losses due to unemployed people had to repair and improve infrastructure and public facilities have been destroyed. Read more:  Causes of Vandalism Essay Many vandalism phenomena that can affect the eye can see and this certainly affects the image of the country. Total losses due to this vandalism is enormous. Allocation of funds used for refurbishing and repairing damaged facilities is better if used for other projects that are more beneficial. This course will benefit the nation as a whole. There are many factors of being this vandalism among the teenagers. The first factors is peer influence. Peer influence can lead to vandalism. Teenagers usually easier to copy and influence by their peers. Peer influence will shape the attitudes, values and behaviours among the youth, especially youth who have dropped out and family problem. Usually, teenagers who commit vandalism is a teenager in the group, they do not have a purpose and when gathered arise include scribbling ideas and damaging public property. Peer influence also make the teenagers become incautious about their studies and not focus about their education. Moreover, parenting and family also one of the factors of being the vandalism among the teenagers. Parents are the impetus for the nature of vandalism among teenagers. For example, when driving parents littering or skin of fruits such as rambutan and oranges while ignoring the speed limit signs. Some teenagers who get caught in symptom vandalism comes from troubled families or families that practice negative life. According to a study carried out revenge vandalism by teenagers who want to be free and a troubled family background. Besides lack of proper control and guidance of parents also among the main factor influence youth stuck in negative symptoms. Therefore, the measures to overcome the problem of vandalism among teenagers should be implemented immediately.First of all, parents should carry out an important role in cleaning up the vandalism. They need to monitor the activities of their children so as not slipping into the negative. Not only that, but mixing children should also be monitored in order to not make a mistake in choosing a partner. Moreover, parents should inculcate in themselves divinity children since childhood. This is so because of religious knowledge can become a major fortification in preventing young people from influenced by negative elements like  vanadalisme activities. If parents fulfill their roles properly, definitely vandalism can be easily overcome. Furthermore, role of society and the school should have to help this issue to reduce the vandalism among the teenagers. Every member of society should be concerned about and pay attention to their children not to do this wrong, and people should be aware of what is happening around them. Community needs to be proactive against vandalism symptoms that occur in their area. In addition members of the community can play a vital role to provide an understanding of how bad moral vandalism. The school should provide advice and guidance to students about the importance of public property. Younger generation should be explained in detail about their responsibility for public property. Explain to students what their feelings if their school bags defaced or torn by irresponsible people such awareness will partly reflect the importance of attitude and responsibility. Therefore, all parties, particularly the parents, the community, the government and schools should work together and carry out their obligations in order to reduce the symptoms of this increasingly serious. If the intention is successfully implemented, it is possible our country can stand, sit low in developed countries. Hopefully, with this solution, we are able to realize the Vision 2020 and is famous the world over.

Nike in China

Executive Summary Overview Nike is the market leader in athletic shoes in the United States. The Oregon based company has always utilized offshore facilities in low-income countries to produce at minimal costs followed by importation into predominantly the US for sales. Nike is quick to divest from emerging markets as costs rise and has recently signed short term production contracts with a long term strategy of production in China. Unlike Nike’s previous global endeavors, the political and cultural atmosphere in China has made the collaboration more demanding. Opportunities As the South Korean standard of living continued to improve, expected wages grew forcing Nike to look elsewhere for low cost shoe production. Market research identified China and India as the best long term possibilities for the new production facilities based on finances. Due in part to a trusting relationship between Nike and the Chinese government based on the family lines of vice president David Chang, China was determined to be the optimal location to grow. The possibility of a joint venture giving Nike access to a possible billion customer market was another opportunity that could only be found in China. Issues in China Nike has spent the last four years building facilities, training staff, and developing relationships in China. Unlike other facilities in low GDP countries that had been utilized previously, the China collaboration has been less than successful. The current infrastructure combined with landlocked facilities made transportation logistics difficult. The Chinese government had certain expectations and standardization requirements that were misaligned with Nike’s incentives in terms of quality, pay, pricing, and employee motivation. The PRC government also created difficulties in import/export restrictions causing logistical problems with raw materials, specifically anything entering the country through South Korea, a major Nike supplier. While a foothold in China could eventually lead to an enormous new customer base, the current global strategy was ill suited to take advantage at the current time. Options * Shift strategies in China from global to multi-domestic to take advantage of the market. This option would require the formation of a joint venture with the Chinese government. Move factory locations to reduce transportation and logistics issues. * Pull out of China completely. Recommendations We believe the government regulations will make quality improvement and cost effectiveness highly unlikely in China. Furthermore, a multi-domestic strategy requiring a high investment rate would be required to take advantage of the Chinese population as a new customer market. With low expendable income and a forced jo int venture with the government necessary to sell Nike in China, we determined that selling in China is not currently an option. As such, the team recommends an urgent identification of new possible production environments with a concerted and eventual total divestiture in China. Questions a. How has Nike conceptualized the athletic shoe industry: global or multi-domestic? Justify your answer. What are the implications of this conceptualization? Nike instituted a global strategy, as opposed to a multi-domestic strategy, from the company’s onset to compete in the athletic shoe industry. Knight identified opportunities abroad to reduce costs in the upstream functions of the value chain. Through the coordination of overseas operations integrated with US downstream functions focused on local US markets, Nike’s utilization of a Porter-defined global strategy has brought the company to China. The Far East’s Role in the Value Chain Beginning with the first Japanese facilities, Nike factories located in the Far East, Europe, and South America have accounted for approximately 93% of shoe production with only minor assembly in the US. The identified regions within this concentrated configuration were almost exclusively production-only facilities without the R&D, sales and marketing, and other downsteam services required for a successful multi-domestic strategy. The countries had been targeted due to low costs with certain factories being divested over the years due to increasing wage rates and political uncertainty. Competition to reduce costs between different countries was key to identifying new opportunities and deciding on which factories would remain open as economic factors changed. While reducing costs was the main concern in global production, Nike could not accept a subsequent loss of quality. Previous experiences in Far Eastern plants had proven successful via quickly accepted technology transfer and ratios of grade-B shoes falling below 5% at rapid rates. Without the combination of high value and low cost, the strategic competitive advantage would be lost. Assumptions and Implications of a Global Strategy Nike moved to China based on their strategic history of standardizing the operations life cycle. Knight believed China would mirror other Far Eastern locales. Cost cutting assumptions included pay based on relative Chinese wages (as opposed to relative Nike production wages), employee incentives capabilities, minimal import/export barriers, and an infrastructure for facile distribution logistics. For each unforeseen difficulty encountered along these assumptions, Nike’s costs would increase and could drive margins down to a point where China would no longer be financially competitive. The Olympic team public relations venture attempted to further the relationship between Nike and the Chinese government, not to present a new product for the public. The millions spent were misaligned with a low cost model and were identified with past exploitations by the West. While the possibility of two billion feet was enticing, Nike was in China to produce, not sell, shoes. There was no plan to market, distribute, or sell in China. Accordingly, the idea of a joint venture should not be on the table under the current strategy. However, the PRC strongly pushed JVs and the lack of a true collaborative environment could be detrimental in an environment so heavily regulated. b. Speculate on the reasons for Nike wishing to enter China. Before the entry do you think these reasons were valid? Justify your answer. China’s Excellence in Manufacturing China is known for their excellence in manufacturing. Nike intended to exploit this excellence in order to drive down their supplier costs, while maintaining their customer’s willingness to pay constant which creates value for Nike’s customers and shareholders. Prior to entry and based on Nike’s due diligence, this was a valid reason. However, Nike either underestimated or did not entirely comprehend the challenges of conducting business is China. From the difficulty of sourcing local materials to the inconsistency in quality of the finished product, China was not the optimal manufacturing location for Nike. Rapid Growth of the Athletic Footwear Market in the 1970’s (& Bad Forecasting) Perhaps Nike did not do enough high quality market research to see that the growth was slowing in their market. Nike may have become complacent due to their dominance in the industry or Nike may have discounted the market trends in the athletic footwear industry that showed a decline in the rate of growth, when comparing the 1970’s to the 1980’s. The bottom line is that Nike did not accurately forecast and adjust their strategy to the athletic footwear industry trends and market conditions. Prior to entry and based on Nike’s due diligence, this was a valid reason. Nike chose to enter China, in part, to meet the demand of the growing market. However, perhaps they should have spent more time and resources on market research, which would have revealed that the growth rate was declining, and perhaps additional suppliers were not necessary to carry out their business plan after all and that a different international location might better meet their sourcing needs and goals. Rising Costs from Existing Suppliers One of the reasons Nike planned to enter China was due to the costs of conducting business in other countries (for example, South Korea and Taiwan) had been increasing. Nike thought that they could source product from China at a lower cost than their current offshore producers. Prior to entry and based on Nike’s due diligence, this was a valid rationale. Due to the multiple issues that Nike faced in China, the costs associated in producing a pair of shoes were actually higher in China than their other international producers. See Table A in the appendix for a landed cost comparison from the case. Two Billion Feet Although the case clearly specifies this is not a reason for entry into China, one of Chang’s motives may have been to sell directly to the Chinese. The size of the Chinese population is over three times the size of the United States. Even though the shoes produced in China were for the US, Chang may have considered producing a low cost shoe for the Chinese. Perhaps Nike’s long term strategy was to navigate the Chinese political system, develop a strong local production presence, and then ultimately sell low cost footwear directly to the Chinese market. This reason was not valid prior to their entry. Nike’s product was not produced for the Chinese, as the average Chinese consumer could not afford the product. b. How did the decision to enter China complement Nike's overall strategy? Nike’s decision to enter China was based on flawed information. Nike underestimated the inherent challenges (political bureaucracy, materials sourcing, shipping and transportation, quality control and the Chinese culture of non-motivation and non-commitment) they faced when conducting business in China. Nike also failed to accurately forecast the demand in the athletic footwear industry. The decision ultimately hurt Nike’s overall strategy, as their production costs rose, while the demand for their product was declining. Higher cost and declining demand both negatively affected Nike’s bottom line. c. Identify the entry and ownership strategies used by Nike in entering China. Do you think they were appropriate? Base your analysis on the entry and ownership strategies outlined by Robock and Simmonds, referenced above. Justify your answer. As costs started to rise in other Asian markets, Nike made the strategic decision to open new full-scale manufacturing facilities in China, with the goal to reduce production costs. Nike’s entry strategy into China created obstacles in achieving their long-term goals, which they should have foreseen. Below are a few factors that contributed to the obstacles. External Factors Nike underestimated the scope of the Chinese bureaucracy. Nike’s only choice was to hire a consultant to navigate the issue. This consultant increased Nike’s costs of doing business in China. Furthermore, Nike overestimated the size and future growth potential of their target market. Nike should have conducted additional due diligence and more thorough market research before deciding to move into China. In addition, Nike did not forecast the materials sourcing issue, which added to product costs. Internal Factors Nike failed to forecast/implement some key factors when deciding to enter China. Nike lacked the necessary internal operations to actively manage and solve production problems in real time. Also, Nike had great difficulties communicating the issue of quality control to the Chinese. Furthermore, the Chinese managers and workforce lacked motivation to perform their jobs to levels satisfactory to Nike. Ownership Nike chose to be wholly owned. Nike did not pursue the joint venture route, even though China tried to persuade Nike otherwise. Nike did, however, hire a consultant as a strategic partner to help them navigate the challenging bureaucracy. Given the political climate in China, perhaps Nike should have approached China with a joint venture agreement. Having China as a partner may have saved Nike time and resources when launching a new manufacturing platform. Or, perhaps Nike should have formed a strategic partnership with a local footwear manufacturer in order to bypass some of the issues with starting an entirely new facility and would have had some assistance in navigating the local market. d. Would you say Nike's entry into China was a success? Give reasons for your view, explaining why the entry was successful or a failure. At the time of case study, Nike’s entry into China was not a success. This evaluation is based on several reasons primarily due to the cultural clash between Nike and Chinese production. By 1984, Nike encountered a range of problems—from quality issues (only 80% of Chinese shoes were A-Grade), to inventory management (records kept on a guess method of expected usage), lack of flexibility from Chinese managers, motivational issues with management and workers, as well as complex and difficult government relations. Quality Issues in Product and Management When China’s reformist leader, Deng Xiaoping, opened China to foreign investment and global market opportunities, Nike seized the opportunity to buy a finished shoe product from the PRC as a long-term, low-cost supplier. However, despite China’s opening to the global market, it still existed as a socialist state with severe trust issues and obstructions to the free flow of information. These factors compounded to cause an array of production difficulties. Due to the Chinese factories still producing 20% B-grade shoes (significantly higher than both South Korea and Taiwan), Nike management not only wasted additional time arguing with Chinese managers on the quality problems (rather than actually improving the problem) but Nike also had to hire additional inspectors for each factory. While the money spent to hire these inspectors was relatively low, this illustrates the need for oversight and the lack of faith and trust in the Chinese managers to run the factories to Nike’s standards. Governmental Regulation Additionally, as a socialist state, Chinese workers lacked motivation to increase production (factories at a standstill by midday) and to adhere to production schedules since they would be paid the same regardless of output. Even attempts by Nike of monetary incentives only appeared to have an effect for approximately 60 days. Because of the central planning system, the Chinese managers were used to stable prices. Price negotiations proved extremely difficult as none of the actual participants in the negotiations (foreign trade bureau, factory directors, local production bureau leaders) had the authority to make price decisions—everything relayed to authorities in Beijing. Compared to Korea or Taiwan, negotiations were slow which was extremely detrimental in a global and ever-changing environment. The levels of bureaucracy in China were much higher than those encountered in South Korea or Taiwan. Although Nike tried to establish a positive relationship with China (through contributions to the country’s sports activities and hosting various Chinese officials visiting the U. S. ), meeting with the high-live leaders in China did not prove useful. The Chinese bureaucracy made making decisions difficult as it was never apparent who was in charge of what and Chinese officials did not show the same level of interest in establishing a relationship with Nike (leaders sometimes did not show up for appointments). Ultimately, all of the cultural difficulties resulted in extremely low production numbers (Nike originally targeted production growth to 1,000,000 pairs per month by mid-1980’s but annual production in 1984 was only 700,000 pairs), significantly lower than both South Korea and Taiwan. Although Nike had ultimately hoped for a 20% price advantage over Korea, they were still losing $1. 00 on each pair of PRC shoes while the quality was much lower on these shoes as well. e. Identify the options available to Nike regarding its operations in China. If you were Chang at the time of the case, what future course of action would you recommend in China? Options Some of the options available to Nike regarding its operations in China are to pull operations out of China completely or consider entering into a joint-venture agreement with China. As of 1984, Nike’s foray into China has not been a success due to a variety of reasons (listed above). If Nike were to pull operations out of China, they would risk losing all of the equipment investment as well as damaging the sensitive and already tenuous relations ith the government. Other countries would have to be evaluated as a low-cost source of production. Some possible countries could be Indonesia or shifting a greater percentage of production to Taiwan as their comparative changes in unit labor cost, although increasing, were significantly lower than Korea or Taiwan. However, if Nike did decide to stay in China and enter into a joint-venture agreement, this step would potentially be viewed as a sign of trust and evidence of commitment by China. Nike would also be allowed to sell its products in China—a significant market to consider with a population of 1 billion people. Nike would also have additional freedoms with regards to hiring and dismissing personnel. The costs of a joint-venture agreement though, were estimated at $500,000 per factory and worker salaries would be about 20% higher than local factories. Recommendations to Nike If we were Chang at the time of the case, the future course of action that we would recommend to Nike would be to pull out of China operations. Although the possibility of access to a market with 1 billion people seems counter to this decision, China’s great strides in opening to global markets indicates the likelihood that Nike will be able to access this consumer at some point without having to make the commitment of a joint-venture agreement. Additionally, while recognizing the sunk-costs bias, we feel that the potential costs to continue operations in China would result in Nike still losing money on each pair of shoe produced instead of cutting their losses and finding another profitable production avenue. Conclusions Nike saw China, as well as the many impoverished nations where previous production had occurred, as a part of the supply chain with a cost effective advantage. Korea and Taiwan had become increasingly expensive and China was a long term option. Unfortunately, Nike did not understand the political or cultural implications for utilizing China as part of a global strategy. The political environment and infrastructure in China created unforeseen difficulties for Nike in building an efficient production system. Government controlled wages reduced the influence of incentives for both work efficiency and quality. Strained relationships with the South Korean government made importation of materials slow and expensive. Transportation logistics and regional cultural differences made the government suggested sites for initial factory locations less than ideal. China’s two billion feet did not align with Nike’s global strategy. The Chinese public could not afford the high costs for the Nike brand and current ROI expectations could not be achieved. The Chinese government’s relationship approach to external companies would have much greater acceptance towards a mutually beneficial joint venture. Some saw Nike’s global strategy as exploitation. The financial impact of Nike’s strategy could not be delivered in China. The collaborative relationship desired by the Chinese government was misaligned with Nike’s needs. Together, it becomes apparent that the best option for Nike is to locate a better location for production urgently and completely divest in China.

Disablement Models Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Disablement Models Paper - Essay Example is/her environment meaning that impairments do not have to result in functional limitations and functional limitations do not have to result in disability. [1] [2] [3] NCMRR’s model expanded upon the Nagi model by including a specific component related to societal influences as contributors to disability. It defined disability as the limitation in performing tasks, activities, and roles to levels expected in personal and social contexts. The major difference between the Nagi and NCMRR disablement models is that the latter includes the concept of societal limitations as a distinct dimension of the disablement process. [1] [2] [3] Instead of explicit dimensions and the subsequent relationships between those dimensions as in the Nagi and NCMRR models, the ICF is a two-part model organized through more complex classification of health and health-related domains. In part 1 of the ICF model, the domains body functions and structures and activity and participation attempt to account for function at the levels of the body, individual, and society. Part 2 of the ICF model includes contextual factors that are particularly important because they address the significant impact of environment and personal factors on overall level of functioning and disability. [1] [2] [3] NCMRR and Nagi model require a similar setup in terms of the assets and liabilities. Since both NCMRR is just an expansion of Nagi, it focuses on a bigger scope. By comparison to ICF, its requirements are moderate while ICF requires heavy investment and recurring costs to analyze its complex procedures. Nagi’s model was being initially used for most patients as it was a trendsetter. Since NCMRR is similar to nagi’s model, people who have been using Nagi would be well acquainted with its implementation process and can handle it much more efficiently. The ICF model due to its complexity would require proper training and change in mindsets towards a much more modern approach. NCMRR is easy to use and

Key Consumer Psychology & Buying Behavior Essay

Key Consumer Psychology & Buying Behavior - Essay Example This essay stresses that marketers view each consumer as a single decision-making unit. They collect information relating to a product or service from various sources and through various dimensions analyze it. The decision resulting from their analysis is the buying or rejection of the product. Marketers look to understand the types of stimulating information that arouses the favorable consumer action towards their product and the extent of their understanding affects their success. This process is in fact based on the underlying philosophy of â€Å"consumer sovereignty† which dictates that the consumer plays the role of the king responsible for all decisions and the activities done by the vendors should therefore be focused on satisfying these customers. This should go along with the primary business objective of making profits. This paper makes a conclusion that the process of decision making means the underlying steps the consumers experience in order to select between the different market alternatives. Alternative products include, for example, different choices to achieve the same set of goals, like whether to fly by plan, travel by train; whether to select regular briefs or boxers etc. This is mainly a five step process. Each step occurs in succession to the previous step without any gaps. These steps are briefly discussed hereunder. Depending on the circumstances the consumer may undertake a heavy research, a little search or no further research on the needs and the available products.

Application of theory paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Application of theory paper - Assignment Example For this reason, a wide gap between practice and hypothesis continues to persist in the field of nursing. However, this is not always the case, in certain cases the difference in expected and observed result is due to human error or negligence on the part of professionals. No matter who postulates the theory, or to what background he or she belongs to, there are four basic concepts that are considered essential for every theory of nursing; they include the person, the environment, health, and nursing. Most of the theories attempt to explain the relationships that prevail between these notions and in doing so bring forth ideas that are novel and contributory towards the practice of nursing. Despite the importance of each of the four concepts with regards to nursing theory, the focal point of the nursing theories remains to be â€Å"the person". Further, nursing theory can be divided on the basis of generalizability principles. The categories of nursing theories on generalizability are Metatheory, Grand theory, Middle range theory, and Practice Theory. Metatheory can be considered as theory of theory or theories. It focuses on a specific phenomenon of abstract nature. Grand theory provides a conceptual framework, through which principles and concepts o f a discipline can be identified. Meanwhile, in Middle range theory, the area of focus is limited or too specific with respect to situation, and variables associated with it. Practice theory is usually applied to determine the goals that are to be achieved in result of a particular practice, and also the mode of attaining these goals. The standards of healthcare continue to transform every now and then as new technology evolves to replace the previous one. Similarly with the emergence of new health related challenges, the need to modify the process of nursing care continues to arise. This is not only important to ensure

Consumer's Safety Concerns When Using Smart Meters Dissertation

Consumer's Safety Concerns When Using Smart Meters - Dissertation Example We will be exploring the advantages and benefits of Smart Meters and the widespread acceptance of them by various governments and power corporations / power distribution agencies across the globe. Data will be presented from numerous studies on the Smart Meter and its effectiveness will be showcased. The prime concerns of â€Å"Consumer health† due to RF waves emitted and â€Å"Compromise of Consumer Privacy† and â€Å"Safety Concern† due to the detailed statistical and itemized electricity usage will also be discussed in detail. Ways and means of countering these severe drawbacks will also be discussed and a practical solution will be proposed. A new idea on making Smart Meters more consumers friendly and robust in terms of protecting consumer privacy will be discussed as well. Acknowledgement I heartedly acknowledge and thank my supervisor Dr. Georgios Theodorakopoulos for his valuable guidance and console. I also appreciate the co-operation of my family member s for facilitating my research study. Table of Contents I.Introduction 8 1.1Project Rationale 9 1.2Purpose of Study 10 1.3Objectives of Study 11 II.Literature Review 11 II.1Introduction 11 II.2What are Smart Meters 12 II.3Working of Smart Meters 13 II.4Functionalities of a Smart Meter 15 II.5Smart Meters vs. Conventional Meters 15 II.6Benefits of Smart Meters 16 II.6.1Benefits to Consumers 17 II.6.2Benefits to Utilities 17 II.6.3Environmental Benefits 18 II.6.4Economic Benefits 18 II.7Safety Issues of Smart Meters 19 III.Research Methodology 19 III.1Introduction 19 III.2Research Strategy 20 III.3Ethics 20 III.4Limitations 21 III.5Conclusion 21 IV.Findings and Analysis 21 IV.1Introduction 21 IV.2Findings 22 IV.2.1Issue of Consumer Health 22 IV.2.2Issue of Consumer Privacy 27 IV.2.3Discussion 29 IV.2.4Conclusion 32 IV.3Remedial Models for Safety Concerns of Smart Meters 32 IV.3.1Healthcare Models 32 IV.3.2Privacy Models 34 IV.4Analysis 37 IV.5Conclusion 41 V.Conclusion and Recommendat ion 41 V.1Introduction 41 V.2Conclusion 42 V.3Recommendations 43 VI.Personal Reflection 45 VII.Bibliography 47 I. Introduction Smart meters have been the focus of attention of a considerable number of electricity providers in European Union as well as United Kingdom. A number of smart meter projects are underway in Italy, Japan, Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, USA and Northern Ireland (Gerwen, 2006). This unwavering attention given to these smart meters is because of the benefits that the ‘smart’ technology offers. Not only are these new smart grid/meters designed to be more reliable and more efficient but they also give more accurate readings than the existing electrical meters. Smart meters facilitate the operations of meter companies, grid operators, energy suppliers, governments and the consumers (Gerwen, 2006). Despite the large scale advantages offered by the smart meters, there are primarily two issues regarding the effect of these smart meters on the consumer welfare. These two issues alone have created a wave of concern amongst the consumers regarding the usage of smart meters. Owing to some of the reviews published by the environmental and health bodies, the use of smart meters can produce harmful health effect and disrupt the privacy of consumers (Murrill et al., 2012; Dean

Nobel prize winner Franco Modigliani Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Nobel prize winner Franco Modigliani - Essay Example Instead, he opted to study law because that was the most famous field of education during that time in Italy. While studying law, he won first prize in an essay competition that was on economics; and this laid foundation for him to pursue economics in future. However, he had known that economics would not provide much opportunity for him in Europe because of fascist movements. Modigliani left Italy because of the fascist movements and the pact between Hitler and Stalin. From Rome, he moved to Paris and then to the United States just before the World War II began. He left for the United States to pursue his studies on Economics after realizing that his efforts in Europe would be futile due to political turmoil. He joined the New School for Social Research in New York that provided him the scholarship to study. There, he completed his PhD in social science in 1944 and worked as assistant professor in mathematical economics and econometrics in 1946. Between 1946 and 1960 he was associat ed with University of Chicago, University of Illinois, Carnegie Institute, Harvard University and Northwestern University. In 1948, he was awarded the Political Economy Fellowship of the University of Chicago. ... iting professor, Modigliani also worked on various other important and futuristic aspects of international finance, international payment system, impact of inflation, into various fields of finance such as credit rationing, the term structure of interest rates and the valuation of speculative assets. Modigliani, along with his student Richard Brumberg in 1954, formulated the life-cycle hypothesis of saving that was later developed by Modigliani and Albert Ando in 1963 with the use of many empirical studies. Modigliani’s work on this hypothesis was revisited again in 1980. This hypothesis debates upon Maynard Keynes’ General Theory or the consumption theory that directly relates current consumption with current income. Contrary to Keynesian theory, the life-cycle theory postulates that individual consumption in any time period depends on: resources available to the individual; the rate of return on his capital; and the age of the individual (Dwivedi, 159-160). On broader level, this hypothesis relates to the national economy in the way that national saving is directly linked with national income and mass of national wealth will be in proportion with the length of life span of working. This hypothesis made along with Brumberg was not empirically proven, and hence did not gain significance until Modigliani proved this hypothesis along with Ando and other associates. Modigliani’s hypothesized that in general, individuals tend to keep their expenditure and lifestyle constant, irrespective of their varying levels of income. This means, individuals tend to save more money when their earnings are higher and save less when their earnings drop. When their income is higher, they tend to spend more without assessing potential risks in future to their incomes; however, if

English - Huckleberry Finn Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

English - Huckleberry Finn - Research Paper Example Huck outcome of his adventures is he finally owns a lot of money which he puts in the bank for safety purposes. Huck used to live with a widow called Miss Watson who was a kind but oppressive woman. They were staying together with Miss Watson sister after he was adoption (Twain 109). The start of the book depicts Huck sadness with the new life after his adoption. The level of cleanliness, mannerisms, attendance of both school and the church, does not thrill him. However, he perseveres after his friend challenges him to stay respectable if he wants to join Tom new gang. Huck lives a comfortable life until the reemergence of his drunken father who surfaces in town and claims a share of Huck money. The neighboring judge ,but a new judge who comes to their town believes in Hucks biological fathers’ right and goes to an extent of accommodating him in his home with a view of reforming him. He does all these so as to give custodial rights to Huck father; the judge fails as Pap, Hucks father revert to his past unethical behavior. He stays in town for some months distressing his son as he has already learned reading and tolerance of the widow habit to transform him into a better person. Outraged by Pap’s behavior, the widow orders him to keep away from her residence. This results in Pap kidnapping Huck and puts him across the riverbanks in a small cabin. The father locks Huck in the cabin and goes to drink and thereafter beats him mercilessly when he comes back home drunk. Huck escapes after the confinement and aggressive daily beatings. He accomplishes to escape to freedom after slaughtering a pig and spreading blood in the cabin in the pretext of his death. He hid on a highland found at the heart of Mississippi river as he watches people from the town search for his corpse. He meets Jim, who is a slave of Miss Watson, a few days later on the island. He has chosen to escape listening to the widow conversation on her intention to sell her to another planta tion near the river. He is afraid of inhumane treatment in the other plantation and separation from his family. They join forces despite Huck conviction on the moral obligation of offering his help to a fugitive slave (Twain 145). During one of their camping expedition in the island, they come across a dead man with bullet shots. They find him inside a house on a raft as they try capturing it with an aim of looting the house. Jim prohibits Huck from having a glimpse of the face of the dead man. They are forced to move out of the island after Hucks gets information that another man suspects that Jim stays in the highland. The man justifies his statement by stressing the smoke that emanates from the island. They proceed to the states that condone slavery up the river. On their way to St. Loise, they come into contact with robbers on a ruined steamboat. They finally escape with the thieves’ loot. One night, both Huck and Jim, meet a group of young men in search of fugitive slave s. Huck lie to the group by informing them that his father is suffering in the raft infected with small pox. The men offer Huck money and disappear as they are afraid of the infectious disease. Their raft is hit by a steam boat, and the two of them are alienated. He finds himself in Grangerford’s family. The elopement of a Grangerford daughter elopes with Shepherdson son resulting to a gun cross fire that leads to the murder of numerous

Dell Computers - Supply and Demand Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Dell Computers - Supply and Demand - Assignment Example Consumers have an option of purchasing cheaper products because there are numerous suppliers in the market. Moreover, the monopoly force is low within the industry. Customer service affects demand especially within an industry that is experiencing stiff rivalries. This is because customers are likely to purchase from industries that offer satisfactory services. Consequently, elements such as online services and convenient procedures have the potential of affecting the demand of Dell’s products. Lastly, an improved economy leading to increased consumer income would increase the demand of Dell’s products (Mankiw, 2011). The main factors affecting the supply of Dell products include state of technology, political disturbance, the future price level, and the price of related products (Mankiw, 2011). Technological development is likely to reduce the cost of production as manufactures utilize economical and efficient procedures. This enhances production rates, which increases supplies. Furthermore, political disturbances affect supplies because they affect the product’s production and distribution. Political instabilities discourage the production and distribution of products causing a decrease in supplies (Frank & Bernanke, 2012). Future expectation of increase prices leads to shortages in supplies because distributors are likely to hold products. Lastly, changes in the prices of other related products may increase or decrease the supplies of Dell’s products depending on the relationship (Mankiw,

Amazing Grace And Amazing Revelations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Amazing Grace And Amazing Revelations - Essay Example The entire book is devoted to moving real life stories of the poor and deprived of the district and mind boggling figures of poverty. Perhaps, the main reason behind the success and effectiveness of the book is that it does not put forth long, confusing scientific charts and graphs to explain the poverty and give related figures but exposes the situation by introducing the reader to real life characters - people who live and breathe in that district and are stuck in such a vicious cycle of poverty that is simply beyond our imagination. Kozol's prime focus is women and children. He tries to show that poverty, racial discrimination and lack of basic civic amenities affects this weak and vulnerable stratum of our society the most. For instance, Kozol points out how widespread AIDS actually is by simply stating that almost everyone knows someone who has died of or is currently suffering from AIDS. By 1993 alone, nearly 2000 children had lost their mothers due to AIDS (194). Health care facilities are almost non-existent and hospitals are over-crowded. Patients suffering from serious and at times terminal diseases actu ally have to wait at the hospital for days before they can get a bed or a room. Kozol relates the incident when he had a conversation with David about his sick mother. When asked if she got approval for SSI, David replies in the negative, simply saying, "They say she isn't sick enough" (99). The hygiene and sanitation conditions are so terrible that toxic barrels are strewn everywhere and a great majority of the children suffer from asthma due to the garbage incinerators operating in the residential area. Perhaps the most horrifying section of the book is when Kozol speaks of the problem of rat infestation. Kozol's relation of the incident when a child's fingers are eaten away by rats is too sickening (114). The poverty problem in the area is so acute that soup kitchens and shelters are crowded with mothers elbowing violently and hoping that their child might get some food today. During winter there is acute shortage of warm clothing and sometimes the city government is benevolent enough to hand over sleeping bags. The distressing words of a father of four haunt one by the ruthless honesty of their tone, "You just cover up ... and hope you wake up the next morning" (4). The extreme poverty and totally hopeless circumstances has given rise to widespread depression amongst the children. The seriousness of the problem can be gauged from the fact that the school psychiatrists have long waiting lists of patients. Kozol relates many cases, for instance, of a child staying awake late at night simply to smack cockroaches and of children who cry a lot without knowing or being able to explain why. Kozol's friends at Mott Haven are vehemently critical of the governments policies regarding the poor and are furious at Mayor (fmr.) Rudolph Giuliani for cutting back on a few basic and precious facilities provided to the poor (100). They claim Giuliani's policies, which aim to cut back on sanitation facilities, food programs, drug-rehabilitation programs etc., are unfair and will hurt the poor exceedingly. Saying that the book is an eye opener will be a terrible under statement. The first thought that comes to mind

Experience The Arts Essay Example for Free

Experience The Arts Essay Art has a huge impact in making our lives endlessly rich. I cant imagine, only for a moment, a world without art in light of the fact that art have such an effect on design from our most loved features. Moreover, art invigorates distinctive parts of our brains to make us giggle or prompt us to uproar, with an entire range of feelings in the middle. Art also provides for us an approach to be inventive and convey what needs be. For some individuals, art is the whole reason they get up in the morning. You could say, art is something that makes us more mindful and balanced people. Then again, it is such an expansive piece of our regular lives that we might scarcely even stop to consider. Our shoes could be look as art, as well as our clothing. General all utilitarian configuration is art. Art normally includes correspondence. Ostensibly, specialists need individuals with whom they can impart their observations. At the point when Art and people associate, numerous conceivable outcomes emerge. As an admirer of the specialty of dance it has dependably been something I delighted in viewing or enjoyed as an adolescent. In spite of the fact that dance was a sublime past time I never feel in adoration with it until I encountered another manifestation of workmanship called praise dancing. Praise Dance is a type of formal or profound dance, it is a manifestation of move in which the attention is on love. Acclaim dance experts utilize their bodies to help express the expression and soul of God. Praise Dance is actually considered by numerous places of worship to be a satisfactory manifestation of Christian articulation, as well as being regularly utilized before  assemblies to make energizing and enthusiastic environments. In some cases praise dance can be a piece of a greater generation in which a whole story is told. Praise dance, rather than different manifestations of love move, is commonly performed to a much quicker and energetic music rhythm. The dancers express the music by waving their arms over their heads, applauding uncontrollably, influencing their bodies, and moving their heads to the mu sic. It can also be an interpretation of delight that uses the human body to extend, which are express with both their bodies and their confronts, illuminating their gathering of people with the delight they feel inside their souls. When praise dance is my presence my body would shivers; while tears role down my eyes, on the grounds that they were hitting the dance floor with such power, and the message they were yielding was compelling. Besides, the entertainers were serving and worshiping through move and welcoming the crowd to give love to the lord. Praise dance definitely have to be the most excellent critical experience of art I have ever felt on the grounds that it brought me into an alternate measurement, one where I had an otherworldly involvement with a higher force. Therefore, I will always cherish those moments, since it was truly the most true, genuine, and most alive experience I have had in my life. Praise dance is in fact extraordinary, enthusiasm and daring, for one self to express an unforgiving approach to acquire art it really bring out art in undiscovered spots. I am truly convinced and idealistic that praise dance will attract individuals in a great big form of art, which would inspires, encourages and uplifts humanity all around the world. Reference: Sporre, D. J. (2013). Reality Through the Arts (8th ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database. www.thepraisedancelife.com

The Challenge of motivating employees

The Challenge of motivating employees Challenge of motivating employees Organization has been deemed to be the strength of any viable business. The more organized and efficient the different components in the business are, the better it functions. The breaking down of tasks associated with each component in a particular organizational system has now led to the concept of job design or performance charters. Motivation is simply a process which encourages and guides behavior. Robbins and Judge define motivation as, â€Å"the process that accounts for an individuals intensity, direction, and persistence of effort towards attaining a goal†. Motivation therefore, is a goal directed behavior with factors which energize, direct and sustain employee behavior. Laurie J. Mullins (2007) states that, â€Å"the relationship between the organization and its employees is influenced by what motivates them to work, the rewards involved and the fulfillment they derive from it†. Employees today are motivated by various things of which some are considered as a needed entity or as a desired. Worldwide, organizations have focused on theories that motivate employees to be the best they can be and most of these theories of motivation have proved to be true to date. Since motivational theories were formulated in the 1950s, they have been divided into two categories; Content theories Process theories Content theories are said to be, â€Å"what motivates people† further explained as what arouses, energizes, or simply starts behavior, i.e. individual physiological and psychological needs and this focus is on internal needs. Motivation results from an individuals attempts to satisfy these needs. 1. Maslows Hierarchy of needs states that; Adult motives are complex Needs form a hierarchy lower needs to be satisfied before higher order needs People always seek growth because they want to move up the hierarchy of needs Research evidence in the Maslows Hierarchy of need theories has been said to be; Flexible hierarchy of needs Satisfaction of one need level may not decrease its importance and increase importance of the next need level It has also been found that needs vary according to; The size of the organization A persons career stage Geographical location Across cultures By employing Maslows Hierarchy of needs, several managerial implications exist; Physiological needs food and wages Safety needs a working environment that is safe as well as job security Social needs opportunity to interact, teamwork Esteem needs recognition, challenging tasks, status symbols and participation Self-actualization encourages creativity and innovation 2. Herzbergs two factor theory encompasses dual factor motivation-hygiene as it portrays two different factors. Hygiene factors: related to the context of the job Motivational factors: related to the content of the job Research in the 1950 Herzbergs two factor theory asked people to describe situations in which they found their job exceptionally good or bad. Research conclusion; Job satisfaction intrinsic factors. Builds high level of motivation and stimulates superior performance. Dissatisfaction extrinsic factors. Environmental as well as external factors to the job build a zero level of motivation if maintained. Herzbergs two factor theory research evidence also states that the theory fails to; Account for individual differences Link motivation and needs to both satisfaction and performance Consider cultural and professional differences 3. Alderfers ERG theory was developed by Clayton Alderfer and his theory collapses Maslows five categories into three categories: existence needs, relatedness needs and growth needs. ERG theory states that more than one need category may be activated at the same time. Existence needs the desire for physiological and material well-being Relatedness needs desire to satisfy interpersonal relationships Growth needs desire for continued personal growth and development The ERG theory research evidence is encouraging because it offers a more flexible approach to understanding human needs. The comparison of content theories is very interesting to analyze as it gives a more precise breakdown of theories put together. Figure 1 below is a depiction of all three theories put together. Herzberg Maslow Alderfer Higher order Intrinsic Needs Motivation Lower order Extrinsic Needs Motivation Process theories are focused on the cognitive process that influences behavior, i.e. Why an individual behaves in a particular manner and specifically deals with ‘how to motivate. This process illustrates how people choose behaviors to satisfy their needs. Victor Vrooms expectancy theory states that a persons motivation is a multiplicative function of expectancy, instrumentality and valence. Expectancy is the probability assigned by an individual that work effort will be followed by a given level of task accomplishment. -Instrumentality is the probability assigned by an individual that a given level of achieved task performance will lead to various work outcomes. -Valence is defined as the value attached by an individual to various work outcomes. Vrooms expectancy theory has various implications as regards motivation. -Motivation is sharply reduced when expectancy, instrumentality or valence approach zero. -Motivation is high when expectancy and instrumentality are high and valence is strongly positive. The expectancy theory has been seen to have managerial implications where as managers should be seen to act to maximize expectancies, instrumentalities and valence that support various organizational objectives. Research evidence on the expectancy theory has received substantial empirical support though the multiplier effect is subject to some question. It may also be useful to distinguish between extrinsic and intrinsic rewards. The expectancy theory does not specify which rewards will motivate particular groups of employees thereby allowing for cross-cultural differences. Lastly, the Porter Lawler model tries to establish a relationship between the efforts, performance and satisfaction of an individual. The most important variables in this model include effort, performance, rewards and satisfaction. In todays digital age, a large number of employees are well educated to some acceptable standard and for that most demand a reasonable salary as well as worthwhile working conditions. As motivation has conformed to some socially acceptable standards of behavior, it has been assumed to be an individual perspective. Every individual is unique because we have different desires, potential, values, goals and attitudes. The most important aspect that most employees are concerned with is their needs and wants. Todays managers have a challenge or the opportunity to influence the motivation of their employees through the design of their performance charters. Well outlined performance charters help accomplish two important goals: getting the necessary work done in a timely and competent manner, motivating and challenging employees. Both the organization as well as the employee is a beneficiary of a successfully done performance charter. Performance charter is the specification of the contents, methods and the counter relationship of jobs to fulfill organizational requirements. Mostly, employees are motivated when they are lead to accomplishments of which they can proud whilst recognizing what they have done. Warren Blank (2001) states that, â€Å"a motivational environment enables people to feel like winners†. Todays performing managers have the responsibility of designing employee performance charters. If a manager ignores this responsibility, employees will definitely design their own. It wouldnt be a surprise to see that performance charters designed by employees are more likely to be adjusted to their experiences and preferences than to the goals of the organization. It has been said once before that you cannot motivate anyone but you can provide the environment in which they can grow to their full potential. Management by objectives (MBO), â€Å"is a style or system of management that attempts to relate organizational goals to individual performance and development through the involvement of all levels of management†, encompasses time period with feedback as well as goal progression. According to Laurrie J. Mullins, the phrase ‘Management by Objectives (MBO) was first introduced by Peter Drucker in 1954 as a strategy for managing people whilst focusing on teamwork based on their ability to complete individual as well as team goals. MBOs have been seen to be effective as it helps in the alignment of an employees efforts around an organizations collective objectives. The MBO process begins with an organization defining its objectives. This is where the process of strategic planning, goal setting, visioning which generates from its process a set of objectives that the organization should always strive to achieve. The main principal underlining Management by Objectives is mainly to create empowered employees who will have clarity of the roles and responsibility expected from them, and once the objectives set are understood, it helps in the achievement of personal as well as organizational goals. Some advantages of MBO include specifically ‘clarity of goals. With clarity of goals, came the birth of SMART goals concept which Intel Specific various key factors should be present in the set objectives for them to be effective. This is where the word ‘specific is outlined because this simply describes specifically the desired results. Measurable This simply states that the objectives should be clear as to whether the objectives were met. Achievable when objectives are set, it should be seen that they are achievable. Realistic Realistic objectives in its own right is explained as goals or objectives that can be achieved coupled with the tools at an employees disposal to achieve the said objectives. Time based time based simply means a set objective has a time frame attached to it which acts as a guideline. SMART objectives ensure the delivery of greater results because they clearly and specifically address performance goals rather than broad emotions or behaviors. This concept also requires that objectives are created in collaboration with supervisors so as to be aware of their subordinates goals and supportive of their completion as well as ongoing tracking and feedback in the process to reach desired objectives. As noted in Robbins and judge, â€Å"MBO popularity should not be construed to mean that it always works†. This is normally as a result of lack of commitment by management as well as the inability in allocation of rewards based on accomplished objectives. Management by Objectives therefore, can be as a process of determining exactly what an employee is to do on the job, the tasks, duties, responsibilities, decision-making and the level of authority. The challenge being faced by managers now is that of employing the new strategies with all its opportunities in ways which not only meet an organizations needs but also the expectations as well as aspirations of the employees. Dennys Restaurant review Leadership Qualities â€Å"If you can become the leader you ought to be on the inside, you will be able to become the person you want on the outside. People will want to follow you, and when that happens you will be able to tackle anything in this world.† John Maxwell We at Dennys are constantly striving to identify quality minority and women businesses to support the needs of our company. Because we see diversity as an asset, we will attract and develop talent from the full range of the worlds rich cultural base. Dennys Vision mission. Despite having a clearly stated vision and mission, its management failed to publicly communicate the causes of the discrimination incidences they were amassed with as well as the actions Dennys management was taking to counter check the reoccurrence of those incidents. A leader is said to be an individual with suitable knowledge and desirable skills to lead groups to achieve their goals willingly. It is noted in Lasting Leadership that, â€Å"the spirit of the people† is a big part of what management experts mean when they talk about corporate culture. The beliefs and values that guide employee behavior can improve performance by motivating workers toward a common goal and instilling in them a sense of purpose. There are several indicators, which can help us to outline the strength of our leadership. The most important leadership quality that one needs to exhibit in todays world is ‘honesty. A leader should always be honest to his task, his products or services, his people and most importantly to his customers. This quality of leadership should not only exist but also should be seen to exist in by all stakeholders in the organization. John C. Maxwell in an extract of his book by George Wells states that, â€Å"while leaders need to connect publicly with large groups of people, the same thing needs to happen on a one-to-one basis between individuals. Maxwell tells how his staff used to groan when he would say People dont care how much you know until they know how much you care because he quoted the saying so often, but it is true. You develop credibility with people when you connect with them and show that you genuinely want to help them. Everybody wants to be somebody† If you treat every person you meet as if he or she were the most important person in the world, youll communicate that he or she is somebody to you. Of course, the respect needs to be genuine at all times otherwise people will rapidly sense that they are being manipulated otherwise. Dennys Restaurant management should have been able to realize that customer complaints are company failures and these require immediate attention. Ultimately, spending money in hopes of making money is an organizations goal but every dollar paid out to offset various customers who were dissatisfied is a signal that an organization must change in some decisive way. The Vidsoft Triangle Every little thing we do has positive, negative or neutral impact on teams motivation. Vidsoft case is one among the few companies that come across case of team based management problems that are faced by employees. Analysis of Vidsoft Vidsoft technologies was an internet company designing enterprise software and in June 1999, its quarterly revenues grew from $50M to over $250M year ending 2000 while employee base rose from 500 to 2,000. Babatunde graduated from Darden graduate of business administration in may 1998. He moved to California to get a job with Vidsoft technologies as senior technical support engineer. Alex Hsu was employed as technical support engineer and reported directly to babatunde. Even though Hsu was not good at team work, he was hired to bring varied culture as well as experience to vidsoft due to his previous record Babatunde made a public decision of promoting one of his engineers to be manager. Hsu reported some displeasure about his new supervisor Jennah Li as she was deemed to be an inexperienced manager and babatunde was unsure of what decision to make as he was the overall among the two despite having fears about taking sides. Keith Nash as CEO of vidsoft developed a culture that encourages its employees to speak their minds as excellence of employees was followed with promotions. Vidsoft as an organization encouraged teamwork and thus were awarded bonuses for collectively working together. Keith Nash believed in the culture of promoting from within as a motivational tool for employees until after vidsoft went public because this brought a mass influx of talent as well as wages became high. Vidsoft ended up falling back on its employees in terms of hiring due to costs so as to train them to keep up with the pace. Babatunde initially employed a micro-management style of management where he kept a close eye on all his employees in hopes that his team succeeds but this had to change as employee numbers rose. He then changed his style of management by using set objectives for each team to achieve desired goals. As babatundes responsibilities grew, he saw it necessary to change his reporting structure to reduce the number of people reporting to him so to manage more effectively. This led to him promoting one of his engineers ‘Jennah Li to manage one of the product lines. Jennah Li in regards to Hsu was hired for her skills in managing customer relations despite English not being her strength; she was awarded for being the best team player. In vidsofts operational history, White was one of the first employers to run the technical support department and set stringent goals to be met by his fellow employees. He took an active role in ensuring that any team under his command did well to meet his standards. James White made a decision to hire babatunde because of his MBA training and trusted him to an extent of giving him all powers to make various decisions affecting the organization with his guidance. THE SOLUTION Babatunde at this point should be able to realize that workplace conflicts and unresolved differences can be the cause of negative performance of teams or generally employees. Furthermore, existing physical and psychological differences can escalate if conflict remains unaddressed by vidsoft managers as well as team members. From the onset, babatunde was aware that Hsu was not a team player and this should have been a starting point of making things clear to him that for him to succeed, he had to work in collaboration with other team members. It was observed that being a team player for Hsu as observed is a road he hasnt travelled and requires some skill and effort from babatunde. Hsu should be made to realize that teamwork is about assuming positive intent and seeing things from all sides in detail. Everyone has unique gifts and abilities. Recognizing these and appreciating them can be very useful especially in the case of two people with different skills because they can complement each other very powerfully when they work together. Its about acknowledging and accepting differences, and exploring alternative solutions that meet everyones needs and concerns as it is important to everyone, and all sides ‘Hsu and Ali need to be committed to the solution. Both parties should agree that the goal is to fix the problem not to assign blame, hurt, humiliate, or threaten the one another. Babatundes job now is to focus on the issue, present and future, and on solutions available. They should be made aware that the situation must change and identify consequences if it does not. Keith Nash as CEO of Vidsoft should make things clear from the onset of employment that individuals are different at times as regards to each others needs. Sometimes workplace issues are evaded or ignored completely but generally, this is not a useful long term solution as the workplace is never small enough to avoid someone completely. Some guidelines should be put in place to for conflict resolution. Every employee upon being taken under vidsoft should be made aware that; Conflict and grievances are present within the workplace Improved communication within the workplace will avoid conflicts Establish performance expectations and consequences if expectations are not met. Lastly Vidsoft should have a written resolution and agreement regarding behavior within the workplace which should be adhered by both the employer as well as the employee. Babatunde should provide the leadership that enables his teams to productively work together and as much as possible, work with employees individually and encourage them to address the conflict directly with each other.

Information Systems In Business Development

Information Systems In Business Development The implementation of the information system in the development of the business is most necessary now days. For most business, there are varieties of requirements for information. In every organization different level of management need different type of information for development of business. For example, senior management needs information to help with their business planning. Middle management needs more detailed information to monitor and control business activity. The employees at lower management need information to help them to perform their duties. In this global world information systems are playing important role in any organizations to meet their strategic goals. For the development of the business it very important to have good information system in each department of organization such as accounting, finance, marketing and human resource department to perform business operations. In addition, the technical terms of information system refers to the interaction between alg orithmic process and the technology(Brown, 1991). The meaning of the information system is not just the technology used by organization, but also it refers the way in which organization uses the technology for their business process. Information system is sets of interrelated component that collect process and store information to companys management in decision making. Companies that are using up to date information system to evaluate internal and external information are gaining advantage over the firm. For example, a sophisticated information system helps companies to monitor employees, to keep manager and employee to coordinates activities among divisions. Furthermore good information system provides the facilities of direct communication between firm and suppliers, manufacturers, dealers and marketers. Using Information system together, they can create a valuable chain in organization. An information system enables companies to store, retrieve and control valuable information. In upcoming years, the use of good information system in organization will be no longer an option. It will be compulsory in development and success of business. There are various kind of information are available, which can be implement in organization for the development of the business. The main kinds of information system use in businesses are Executive support system (ESS), Management Information system (MIS), Decision support system (DSS), Knowledge Management System (KMS), Transaction processing system (TPS) and Office Automations System (OAS). The different level of management in organization needs different level of information system. The following diagram shows the relation of the information system with the different level of the organization. The main kinds of information system, the implementation of that can be helpful in development of businesses are described as follow. Executive Support System (ESS) The Executive support system helps to senior management to decide business strategic plan and to make decision based on strategy. ESS helps to gather and analyses the internal and external information used in businesses. ESS is a like instrumental panel in air craft cockpit which is showing the status of all the key business activities to senior management team of organization (Brown, 1991). ESS typically involves lots of data analysis and modeling tools to help in strategic decision making. In addition, some ESS provides the analysis tool that predicts a series of performance outcomes overtime using input data. This type of ESS is useful to executive staff, it provides possible outcomes and quick reference to statistics and numbers needed for decision-making .Now days there are software wanders who offer pre design Executives support system packages suitable to one particular organization. They also provide the facilities to customize the Executive support system to meet needs of pa rticular organization. The solid example of the company which is using computer based ESS is Woolworths. Woolworths is second largest retailer of Australia. Company has spent $US11billion and select JDA softwares Arthurs enterprise suite which is including performance analysis tool and information manager databases to support its Big W department chain.(ARIZ ,2001). Management Information System (MIS) A management information system is a system or process that provides the information necessary to manage organization effectively. MIS is planned system of collecting; processing and storing Management information system is mainly concern with the internal source of information in organization. Management information system analyzes data captured from transaction processing system and creates reports based for decision making. The report generate by MIS will be used by middle management and operational supervisor.MIS is very useful to generate reports for example, financial statements , inventory status report, performance report for routine or non routine processes. It is very important to manage the flow of information in organization for the future development of the business. The Management information system helps to big organization to manage the information interchanging between different departments such as store and distribution center. For example Coles super market is one of the biggest retailers in Australia. Coles has recently implemented new version of the computer based information management system named LETTUS to provide significant inventory management benefit to store and suppliers. The Following Diagram illustrating how Coles manage information flow between organizations. Decision Support System (DIS) Decision Support Systems (DIS) are specifically design to help management for decision making in situation where there is uncertainty about possible outcomes of those decision. It is important to implement decision support system in business because it supports business and organizational decision making activities. The properly designed decision support system is an interactive software based system intended to help decision maker to compile useful information from raw data (smith, 2001). Decision support system helps to enhance the abilities of decision maker or group of decision maker to make decision in favor of companys development. Furthermore, Decision support systems are call of computerized information system that supports decision making activities. The decision support system can be classified in to five different types which are: Communication driven DSS Data driven DSS Document driven DSS Knowledge driven DSS Model driven DSS The above different types of decision support system are used to make decision based on different situation. The implementation of Decision support system in business helps to make effective decision in order to make business development. Knowledge Management System (KMS) Knowledge Management system helps businesses to create and share information. This types of system used in organization where employee creates knowledge and expertise which can then be shared by other people in organization to create commercial opportunities. The examples of the knowledge management systems are Firms of Lawyers associated with organization, Accountants and management consultants Knowledge system generally built around which allows efficient categorization and distributions of knowledge. Knowledge Management system enables employee to have ready access of organizations documents based of fact. Now days, it not an optional to use knowledge management System for an organization whether it is public or private big or small. Knowledge management system provides aid to organization to creating sharing and processing knowledge. Transaction Processing System (TPS) Transaction processing system used to process routine transaction efficiently and accurately. One organization may have more than one transaction processing systems for example billing system to print invoice for customer, payroll and text calculation system, raw material requirements calculations system, Stock control system, Transaction processing system helps to manage data that must be in consistent state. In addition, the daily transaction done by the Transaction processing system can help to upper level management to make decision for the future business. For example, by analyzing customer transaction data management can identify the customers purchasing behaviors. TPS also help to maintain relationship with customers based on transaction. There are many super markets which are using transaction processing system to maintain their daily transaction. Coles Supermarket is a very good example which is using fully computer base transaction processing system. TPS used by Coles store their day to day transaction in central data base. Higher level management determines this stored data to identify customer value and maintain relationship with customer to expand the business. Office Automation System (AOS) Office automation systems are systems that help to improve the productivity of employee who are responsible to process data and information. There are many office automation system exist in market which can be easily implement in organization to improve the productivities of employee. The examples of the well know office automation system are Microsoft office, Microsoft works and more.OAS helps in optimizing or automating existing office procedure. Most of companies are using office automation system to create data sheet, reports, and statements. The well known Office automation system used by most of organizations is Microsoft Package including (MS Office, PowerPoint, and Excel.) In nutshell, now days the revolutionary change in the area of information technology has changed the way of business in each industries. Complete computer based information systems provides the support to organization to maintain internal and external source of information. In addition, to over come cut throat competition to it very important for each organization either to implement computer based information system or to adopt existing computer based information system package. The use of information system gives advantage to each level of management in organization to plan strategy and decision making. The use of Computer based information system will not be optional anymore in future. It will be compulsory for organization to implement information system for business development

Portrayal of Women in William Shakespeares Plays Essay -- Female Wome

William Shakespeare's characterization of women varies immensely from one comedy to another. In his works, Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice, and Much Ado About Nothing, he portrays both dominant and submissive women. Ultimately, Shakespeare examines the complexity of women by displaying the vast array of attitudes, emotions, and their treatment and reaction to men as well as refuting the typical subservient wife role. In Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, the difficulties of marriage and submission take center stage. When the determined Petruchio marries the domineering Katherine it sets the scene for a battle of willpower. Eventually, Petruchio successfully 'tames' Kate at the expense of losing a potentially loving and affectionate wife. In fact, Kate behaves more like a fearful puppy dog longing to please her husband than a respectable wife. Though Kate contrasts other female characters in Shakespeare?s comedies by submitting to her husband, her obedience is merely the product of an authoritative husband?s demands and threats. Her submission is merely a faà §ade of obedience. Before marriage, Kate is notorious for her ill temper and resistance towards men. A character named Grumio calls Kate, ? ?Katherine the curst,? a title for a maid, of all the worst? (Shakespeare 57). Men fear Kate because of her violent nature and unstable emotions. But after Kate is subjected to Petruc hio?s torments, she relents to him and gives in to his ways for the benefit of sustenance and sanity. In the end, Petruchio beckons Kate to teach the other wives to be subservient to their husbands. Kate explains, ?Such duty as the subject owes the prince, even such a woman oweth to her husband; and when she is forward... ...Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea, 1988. Newman, Karen. ?The Taming of the Shrew: A Modern Perspective.? The Taming of the Shrew. William Shakespeare. New York: Washington Square Press, 1992. Novy, Marianne L. ?Patriarchy and Play.? William Shakespeare?s The Taming of the Shrew. Harold Bloom ed. New York: Chelsea, 1988. Paster, Gail. ?Much Ado About Nothing: A Modern Perspective.? Much Ado About Nothing. William Shakespeare. New York: Washington Square Press, 1992. Rossiter, A.P. ?Much Ado About Nothing.? Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea, 1986. 163-176. Shakespeare, William. Much Ado About Nothing. New York: Washington Square Press, 1995. ---. The Merchant of Venice. New York: Washington Square Press, 1992. ---. The Taming of the Shrew. New York: Washington Square Press, 1992.

My Five Year Plan After Graduation Essay -- Personal Goals

My Five Year Plan After Graduation Five years after graduation I plan to obtain a master's degree in law enforcement. Right now I'am really not sure what I really want to truly do for the rest of my life. The only thing I like doing is finding clues and figuring out the criminal in mystery books. I know that sense I like doing that, it leads me to desiring a position as a detective or something dealing with the FBI. Im thinking that its most likely that I will go to a university. If I do, I will go to the University of Phoenix. I’m attending the University of Phoenix for a few reasons but I’m ultimately going to the university to become a detective. I want to be successful and rich so I can have all the good things in life. I want to be able to have a family without financial stress and worries. My entire life my mom has and still is working two or three jobs just to make ends meet. That’s not where I want to be with my future. I want a sense of comfort that no matter what happens I’ll have the money to take care of it. I don’t exactly need a luxurious lifestyle, but I’d like to partake in a life of nicer cars, extravagant home, and cash in the bank. So after all I guess I would like to have a few dollars. It’s often hard to grow up without a substantial amount of money in the family. I’m going to make sure that my husband (who will be work ing just like me), and kids don’t have to go through all of that. On a more selfish side of the scale, I want to get out of that whole situation as well. I’d like to drive expensive cars and wear the clothes, and most of all, I always want to have money in my pocket. Like everyone else, I just want the good life. In addition to all of that, a master's degree or any kind of degree looks good on any application. So many more doors are opened to you if you have a degree instead of just a high school diploma. With the popularity of college lately, there is so much more competition in the workforce. With a degree you would not only have that on your applications, but you’d have the knowledge that you would need to attain the right job. A university or college is my chance to make something of myself, no one in my immediate family has graduated from college yet so I’d like for them to be proud of me for that achievement. I used to think I was going to be a professional basketball player but I’m too slow and not t... ...ell I plan to receive an academic scholarship, get students loans, and borrow money from a relative. I can aquire an academic scholarship by getting into the top five percent of William B. Travis Highschool of class 2007. I can get student loans by applying to the College Funding Services. I will get my money fast and make no payments until after graduation. Plus I have a grandpa that says he can pay for some of my college money. College is going to start my own life on a foot that is ready to leap because my career is going to take off right out of the gate. All-in-all I’m going to college for three main reasons. My immediate family is a reason because I want them to be proud of me for doing something right for once. My future family is also one because it’s a big part of my life that I want to be happy and always feel comfortable. Finally for my personal financial well-being, so I can be able to treat myself to all the luxuries I want for myself. Going back to line one, all of these things are a part of my future. Isn’t that what college is for after all, to prepare people for their own futures and what they bring? A university is not my future, it’s only the beginning of it.

Argumentative Against Death Penalty

Abolishment of Capital Punishment Capital punishment should be abolished for the following reasons. 1) It violates the Eight Amendment of the use of cruel and unusual punishment, for which the Supreme Court has vacillated. 2) It is a form of premeditated murder. 3) It promotes racism. 4) It can be administered to innocent individuals through tainted evidence. 5) The death penalty does not deter criminals from committing violent crimes. The death penalty is a form of cruel and unusual punishment that violates citizen’s Eighth Amendment which has forced the Supreme Court to step in and evaluate this form of punishment.The death penalty has not always been practiced in the United States; however, there have been about 13,000 people who have been legally executed since colonial times. In 1972, the Supreme Court effectively nullified the death penalty. However, in 1976 another Supreme Court found capital punishment to be Constitutional (White 1). One must wonder why they made this decision. In 2007 the court put executions across the country on hold for eight months while it examined whether lethal injection, the most common means of executing prisoners, violated the Eight Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment (Lacayo).How can they not see this form of punishment as cruel and unusual? Individuals are killed by electricity seeping through their bodies, or drugs that cause their organs to shut down one at a time. It’s difficult to unerstand what the government perceives as cruel and unusual punishment. Maybe to them this would mean lining individuals up and killing them at point blank range. What could be crueler than strapping individuals to a chair and sending electricity through their bodies essentially cooking their insides, or putting a lethal dose of drugs into their body that causes organ failure.The method of taking another human’s life is cruel no matter how it is achieved. This gives too much power to individuals in society. The death penalty is a form of premeditated murder. According to dictionary. com, murder is the killing or slaughter of an individual inhumanely or barbarously. What gives the state or normal everyday citizens the right to determine whether or not an individual lives or dies? This is essentially doing what the criminal did and justifying it by hiding behind the law. Murder is murder whether it is committed by the drug dealer on the street or y the executioner who administers the lethal dose of medication into the inmate’s veins. Some individuals feel that the death penalty gives way to racism and class oppression. African Americans and Latinos represent the majority of inmates on death row. Because of this, executions are exclusively for the poor. Ninety percent of those awaiting execution cannot afford to hire a competent trial attorney (â€Å"Reasons to Abolish Death Penalty,†). Too often those convicted are unable to afford a dream defense team and must set tle for court appointed attorneys.These attorneys are often overworked and underpaid. In many cases the appointed attorney has little at stake regardless of the outcome. The biggest problem with the use of the death penalty is that often innocent individuals are sentenced to this heinous form of punishment. There are a staggering number of cases where individuals have been wrongfully convicted. Over the past few years, there have been several stories of individuals who have been convicted of horrific crimes and been sentenced to death only to be freed years later by DNA evidence. Here is a prime example of one of those individuals.Earl Washington spent almost ten years on Virginia’s death row. He was exonerated by DNA evidence and pardoned by the governor. The same DNA test that cleared Earl, implicated a known serial rapist, yet law enforcement and prosecution continue to claim Earl guilty, apparently believing that Earl raped the victim leaving another man’s sperm. N ationwide over 100 condemned Americans have been exonerated since 1976 and walked off death row as free men (Ballard). Even though we have come a long way with DNA there will always be police officers who are pressured to solve cases too fast.Some may use whatever tools are necessary including planting evidence or falsifying documents to establish guilt. As with the case above most police officers, as well as district attorneys, do not want to admit when they are wrong, even if it spares the life of an innocent human. It is heard time and time again that capital punishment helps to deter similar crimes. Evidence does not support this claim. Representative Maxine Waters stated that she does not believe you deter the taking of lives by others by having a death penalty.She went on to say that in the final analysis it does not work fairly if there’s any such thing as being fair about killing people (â€Å"Reasons to Abolish Death Penalty†) Society tends to follow the trend s and mindset of those around them. They often feel that since the Supreme Court has upheld the death penalty, it does not violate the rights of those citizens who have been tried and convicted of crimes that warrant this type of punishment. They presume that justice is being carried out in accordance with the laws that the United States government has set forth.Then there are those who feel the death penalty is an appropriate means of punishing individuals who commit heinous crimes. Many people often refer to this biblical verse, â€Å"Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand and foot for foot† (King James Version, Exodus 20:28). Too often they feel that this gives them the right to take justice into their own hands. Some individuals feel as though criminals should die by execution if the crime fits the punishment. Talk show host Larry Elder stated that society has the right to judge who lives and who dies.He says â€Å"criminals have made the ultimate sin against societ y and society is making a moral statement about your conduct† (Ballard, 2003). People who support the death penalty laugh at the notion that they are promoting racism. Statistics about race indicate that 90% of crimes are committed against whites. The study also stated that African Americans committed 7. 5 times more violent than whites (Sheehan, 1995). The conclusion is drawn that they are not targeting race as a factor when handing out death penalties, they are punishing the perpetrator of the crime without taking the race of the individual into factor.The fact that innocent people are placed on death row has not deterred judges from handing down this punishment. Many do not discount the fact that several people have been placed on death row only to be exonerated. The justice system allows every individual convicted of a crime so many appeals before the sentence is carried out. To the supporters of the death penalty this allows those wrongfully convicted the opportunity to p roduce evidence that will exonerate themselves. Supporters of the death penalty feel as though this helps to deter other criminals from committing the same act.According to a dozen studies, execution saves lives. The study stated that for each inmate executed three to eighteen murders are prevented (Liptak, 2007). Two law professors from Harvard also agree that the evidence of deterrent effect from capital punishment seems impressive. They seem to agree that capital punishment will save lives. After examining the information available for both the supporters and the non-supporters of capital punishment, it is clearly evident that capital punishment should be abolished. This form of unishment is cruel and unusual. It also allows our peers to commit murder by standing behind the law, which is no different than the criminals that are being put to death. Too often this form of punishment is passed down to innocent individuals who spend years trying to clear their name, and often do not get the chance to do so. Furthermore, there is not enough evidence to support that the death penalty deters other criminals. After all, there are better ways that tax money could be spent on individuals who commit crimes against society.The question that the government needs to ask themselves is if this form of punishment is worth the cost of innocent life that comes with it. Works Cited â€Å"Another Reason to Abolish the Death Penalty. † Workers. com. 2009. 11 Mar. 2013. . Ballard, Scotty . www. findarticles. com. 2003. 11 Mar. 2013. . Lacayo, Richard . â€Å"The Tide Shifts Against the Death Penalty. † www. time. com. 3 Feb. 2009. 12 Mar. 2013. . Liptak, Adam . â€Å"Does Death Penalty Save Lives?A New Debate. † The New York Times. 18 Nov. 2007. 12 Mar. 2013. . Sheenan, Paul . â€Å"The Race War of Blacks Against Whites. † heretical. com. 20 May. 1995. 11 Mar. 2013. . The Holy Bible, King James Version. New York: Oxford Edition: 1769; King James Bible Online, 2008. http://www. kingjamesbibleonline. org/. White, Deborah . â€Å"Pros and Cons of Death Penalty and Capital Punishment. † About. com US Liberal Politics. 12 Mar. 2013. .

BestBuy case study

In pursuit of the new model, the company was making efforts but struggling to shift their focus on marketing operation from selling products to customers (product-out approach) to addressing customer needs (market-in approach) while still leveraging its scale merit in merchandising. Before customer- eccentricity model, Busty was a merchant driven company. Merchant organization primarily had responsibilities for buying, pricing, assorting, and managing Inventory planning (Ala, 2006, p. 0). With introduction of customer-eccentricity model, Segment organizations were newly formed around key target customer segments to better Inform the merchant teams and store organizations of the customer needs. Although the new model required the three functions to work in harmony, the company was ending it difficult to align different perspectives and goals of the three organizations due to a lack of clarity on which functions was the true owner of customer insight (Ala, 2006, p. 2-13). Eventually, t he company found itself getting stuck into â€Å"focus on everything strategy' being unable to effectively leverage Its scale power to optimize the merchandising strategy (Ala, 2006, p. 14). In order to remain competitive in the market, future challenge for the company after the introduction of customer- eccentricity model was to find a new governance structure (I. E. Introduction ofIntegrated business teams) that enables alignment of the three organizations to focus resource and scale merit of the company on profitable key customer segments. In sustaining competitive advantage in increasingly competitive consumer electronics market, Best Buy should continue to pursue customer-focused solutions with multi- channel sales strategy by leveraging existing store and distribution network, and online sales platform. Nation-wide store network is one of the biggest competitive advantages of Best Buy.These stores should be fully leveraged to provide customers tit tangible in-store experience (touch products and compare them to other models) as well as differentiated end-to-end solutions by knowledgeable sales force and technical staff (e. G. Geek Squad). In the course, Best Buy should further evolve its marketing strategy to more rigorously narrow down in-store target customer segments to those who look for higher-end products with more quality end-to-end services. This would help put the company In differentiated market positioning among the competitors (e. . Wall-Mart) and help avoid inefficient scale/power game to make profits with efficient use of resources (Figure 1). While continuing to crystallize the in-store operations, Best Buy should also be committed to continue investments in online sales platform, not only to expand access to customer segments which are not covered In the stores efficiently, but also to defend erosion of In-store sales form other online retailers in such cases where customers come in to stores, experience 1 OFF eventually order on-line fr om one of those competitors. Briggs, 2013) Owning strong network of physical stores, strategically located distribution centers and online sales platform, Best Buy is well positioned to pursue unique new market offerings that average synergies between the two sales channels and distribution networks. For example, Best Buy has launched â€Å"ship from stores† service in 2013 that utilizes existing stores as â€Å"mint-warehouse† to improve the speed of delivery. While Amazon continues to build warehouses nationwide to improve the time for deliveries, Best Buy has Just leveraged existing infrastructures of stores and distribution centers.As a result, Best Buys average total days to delivery became shorter than Amazon (Stella Service, 2014). In another example, Best Buy can consider incorporating a system in TTS online sales platform, with which customers are able to book Geek Squad services for products they purchased on the website. As in these examples, Best Buy has ma ny opportunities to differentiate itself from the competitors by offering customer- focused solutions leveraging its multi-channel sales strategy (Figure 1).In conclusion, if Best Buy can make all these can happen with engaged and customer-focused employees, the level of customer-eccentricity is hard to be imitated by the competitors like Amazon and Wall-Mart. Levels toward strategic use of IT In 2005 Best Buys use of IT was Level 2 â€Å"offensive. In customer-eccentricity model, one of the key competitive advantages was its brick-and mortar stores where majority of sales were generated. To gear up for on-line sales, Best Buy remodeled its website in 2004 (Dickinson, 2004).In distribution system, Best Buy bar-coded and scanned all inventory for tracking purpose, and used a computerized inventory replenishment program for managing inventory level at each store (Best Buy Annual Report, 2005, p. 7). Furthermore, in order to obtain better and reliable information, Best Buy initiated a three-year project to revamp its IT system (Cottrell, 2006). Geek Square, computer purport service in the stores and at home, expanded its service to network installation and server maintenance (Ala, 2006, p. ). Best Buy applied IT system in order to convert some selected stores to customer-eccentricity operating model. However, its adoption was easy to be imitated by competitors and its competitive advantage was short-term. It was neither strategic enough and nor embedded into the core business. The Competitive Forces Framework Out of five forces, Best Buy faced four threats; industry competitors, substitutes, suppliers and buyers. Threat of potential entrants was not particularly observed.Industry competitors->High: Best Buys direct rivalry was Circuit City, followed by Wall-Mart and Target, big-box retailers, and DELL, direct on-line computer manufacturer as shown in Exhibit AAA (Ala, 2006, p. 18). Substitutes->High: E- commerce electronic retailers such as Amazon and e-Bay were growing threats to Best Buy. Their use of IT was essential to operate their core business. They provided customers with more detailed product information on a timely manner and offered the discount price.Suppliers->Medium: Both bargaining power of suppliers and its five major suppliers accounted for nearly 33% of the total merchandise offered. Best Buy did not usually have long-term written contracts with these major suppliers (Best Buy Annual Report, 2005, p. 8). On the other hand, products were not differentiated in general, and switching cost was not very high. Since Best Buy owned large number of stores, its bargaining power towards suppliers was influential. As a result, threat of suppliers was medium. Buyers->High: Bargaining power of buyers increased in a great deal.Cost-sensitive buyers could research and buy products at cheaper price on-line. Because consumer electronics became commoditized, prices were more or less the same regardless of whether these were old on line or stores. In other words, switching cost for buyers was very low. Potential entrants->Low: Consumer electronics market was saturated where there were major competitors such as Circuit City, Wall-Mart, and Amazon. While buyers gained increasing bargaining power, potential entrants were hesitate to enter the market.Three strategy models in the context of IT Best Buys three strategies were consistent and strongly supported Best Buys transformation to customer-eccentricity model. Best Buys business strategy was â€Å"to bring technology and consumers together in a retail environment that focuses on educating consumers on the features and benefits of technology and entertainment products, while maximizing overall profitability' (Best Buy Annual Report, 2005, p. 2). This clear direction was set for the following reasons. First, there was a growing fear of losing competitive advantage over rivalries.Secondly, customer put more emphasis on customer service and support instead of technical as pect of the product (Ala, 2006, p. 3). Lastly, the statistics showed that one third of customers left the stores with dissatisfaction (Citric, 2006). Clearly â€Å"one style fits all† approach no longer irked. IS business strategy was to build loyalty with profitable segments customers and leverage the company's existing assets (Ala, 2006, p. 4). To provide shopping assistance to customers, Best Buy required better information system on pricing, technical aspect of products, and availability.In customer-eccentricity model, it was crucial to understand unique needs of customers and behavior accurately and quickly. Best Buy also required information system to share their experience with customers among all stores. IT strategy was to give employees flexibility when interacting with customers. First, through reporting system, daily â€Å"chalk talk† helped communicate the sales goal every morning between department supervisors and sales staff (Ala, 2006, p. 9). Secondly, i n order to maintain quality service at store, on- line training was introduced to share the best practice.Third, the use of price optimization software helped the stores to make rational pricing decision (Wolf, Bibb, p. 20). Finally, Best Buy re-engineered the global supply chain and technological infrastructure such as RIFF tag. According to Wolf (AAA, p. 20), â€Å"Best Buy invested $200 million in infrastructure, including a new point-of-sale (POS) yester that provides more precise customer data and analytics. † traditional IT in order to connect with customers. Best Buy has been actively using social media such as Twitter, Backbone, Blob, and other platforms.However, it is not recommended that Best Buy develops further its social media strategy because no additional values have been created to generate profits. Best Buys extensive engagement in social media has been well acknowledged. Unlike other companies, Best Buy has multiple Twitter pages, including Best Buy Deals an d Best Buy Mexico, to cover different segment of customers. Internally Best Buy has several forums to hare information among employees, which energies the organization as a whole (Bulls, 2010).However, the long tail, as one of the advantages of social media, may adversely affect its customer-eccentricity model. Because the long tail phenomenon contributes to accessing greater audience, Best Buy must understand and analyze broader customers' needs. A few challenges have been observed in interacting with customers on Backbone. Technology-related issues are difficult to explain. Also Best Buy cannot control the feeds on Backbone. Customers post complains about their bad experiences at stores. Monitoring and responding to such posts are costly.