New Slide Footwear Company Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

New Slide Footwear Company - Assignment Example These are classified as fixed and variable cost: Where, fixed costs are those that remain constant regardless of production, while variable costs will vary with the production (Khan & Jain, 2008; Peavler, 2011). In practice, we have established all the fixed cost as rent and maintenance, while variable costs as wages, materials, utilities and other expenses. This will ensure that we make accurate decisions in preparing all the financial documents for New Slide Footwear Company (Shim & Joel, 2008). On the other hand, revenue assumptions for the proposed business include the pricing of the new product and potential sales during the operations. . As such, we arrived at our unit pricing through conducting an intensive market research that considered several factors such as, the potential target market, cost of materials, forecasted market share and other market pricing values used by existing competitors (FMAG, 2011). Therefore, these assumptions enabled us to prepare relevant financial documents as observed in the following sections. Marginal Costing Cost Statement. Marginal costing cost statement is a document used in marginal costing to create a platform for making all the cost and revenue assumptions (Globusz, 2001). It is a basic document that is useful in preparing financial documents such as the cash flow budget, forecast income statement, and forecast balance sheet.... It is a basic document that is useful in preparing financial documents such as the cash flow budget, forecast income statement, and forecast balance sheet (Kotler, 2000; Shim & Joel, 2008). Table 1 below represents the cost statement for the proposed business venture. Table 1: Marginal Costing Cost Statement for New Slide Footwear Company. Particulars Per Unit Per 12 Months Sales ? ? ? ? Number of Units 100,000 Sales 22.00 2,200,000 Variable Costs Direct Materials 5.06 506,000 Direct Labor 1.12 112,000 Direct Overheads 3.06 306,000 Total Marginal Cost 12.76 1,276,000 Contribution 9.24 924,000 Fixed Costs 5.06 506,000 Net Profit 4.18 418,000 The costing statement shows that the venture will have a contribution margin of ?9.24 per unit of New Slide sports shoes, which reflects to ?924,000 for the first 12 months of operation. The business will generate ?418,000 worth of net profit, after selling the first 100,000 units, which is 19% of the sales value for the whole year. After adjustme nts, the fixed costs for the venture will amount to approximately ?506,000. 3.0 Break Even Analysis. Breakeven analysis is an efficient method used in by business managers in making appropriate decision for shaping the future of a business venture (Globusz, 2001). Precisely, breakeven analysis establishes the breakeven point (BEP), which is the point where an investment recovers its investment but does not incur any profits or losses (Frongello, n.d; Kotler, 2000). The following table gives the breakeven data for the proposed venture. Table 2: Break Even Table for New Slide Footwear Company. Sales Sales Variable Contribution Fixed Total Net Units Revenue ? Cost ? Margin ?

Customer Delight In Banking Sector Marketing Essay

Customer Delight In Banking Sector Marketing Essay One important question which arises in every single managers mind is how he/she can leave an ever lasting mark in the mind of a customer, to make sure he/she comes back and remains loyal to ones organization. Now as services uniqueness life has shortened, every single Bank is providing the same services like its competitor. The only solution for the said question is to delight the customers, which competitors and said banks have failed to do so. Achieving the customer delight and experience requires the organization to realize that it is dynamic and merely represents moving targets or ambitions. However, there is no flat target to accomplish customer delight. This is the age of customer delight where customers receive more than they deserved or have ever imagined. Customer delight in banking sector was never researched till now, as we have found out how the account holder of banks can be delighted not just by their services but by reaching beyond the expectations of the customers. Our research started with exploratory investigation to indentify the elements, which create delight in the mind of customers, which enable us to create a customer delight model with eight variables. They become the fundamentals of a customer delight model. Delight model was tested on Bank account holders, which provided us the successful validation of our research. Customer delight model in Banking provides fundamental elements for creating customer delight for the Bank account holders as Management can focus on eight variables for making sure the customers remain Loyal and remain profitable for the organization. Keywords: Customer Delight, Beyond Customer satisfaction, Delight is banking Table of Contents Table of Contents 3 INTRODUCTION 4 Literature Review 6 Research Methods 16 Qualitative Development of Delight measure 16 Exploratory Investigation 16 Focused Interviews 16 Insights from Exploratory Investigation 17 Insight from Focus Interviews 17 Establishing of Customer Delight Model 18 Customer Delight Model 19 Quantitative Testing of Delight measures 21 Empirical Study 21 Data Collection: 21 Respondents profile 21 24 Data Analysis 24 CONCLUSION AND FUTURE RESEARCH 28 References 29 INTRODUCTION The authors investigated the concept and factors which influence delighting the customers in banking. Exploratory research investigated the factors and elements, which will create customer delight, researched based on focused group interviews, which lead to establishing a customer delight model and later on tested on 300 respondents. This recognized a concrete successful validation of the customer delight model. For establishing a delight model, Customer delight researched based on eight variables, which were investigated by asking open ended questions from various customers, which brought them to the state where they have felt over excited from service or in other words felt delighted from Bank services. Once all the data was gathered then every answer was categorized into Specific categories, which brought us the eight variables. These brought the customer delight in the mind of customer from bank services. Can bank delight its customers with its services? Seems like a simple question but in fact is a hard one to answer as every single bank is providing the same service and life cycle of creating competitive edge which has shortened a mile! Currently banks are concentrating on satisfying the customer from their services but in todays fast moving world, customers cant only be satisfied in just 1 single way in order to remain royal to the bank as all the banks are providing the homogenous services. Even if a single bank comes with unique service then its competitive advantage life time shortens as all follow suit. If the customers cannot remain loyal by being permanently satisfied then how can they become (removed word) permanently loyal to their bank? The solution to that is to delight the customers from their services, now how banks can delight the customer? This, the banks are still unable to discover, this is what actually our research is all about. Eight variables filtered by our initial exploratory research, create the customer delight in the mind of bank account holders from their banks. We emphasize that if these 8 variables are implemented in banking system for their customer; it will create delight and will create an ever lasting effect on the customer, instead of all of the banks providing same services which can not create a room for halting the change loyalty from one bank to another. Customer satisfaction the individuals perception of the performance of the product or service in relation to his or her expectations (Schiffman and kanuk, 2004) era has end and now customer delight profoundly positive emotional situation generally resulting from having ones expectations go beyond to a surprising degree. (Oliver, Rust, and Varki 1997) has started implementing on customers retention. Customer delight is the ever long-lasting answer to success. Customer cannot be delighted if until or unless he/she is not satisfied from the presented services, the factors or eliminates of delightness comes after the fulfilling of satisfying consumer needs. The delighted customer is more valuable for the company as it will help the organization to compete with its competitors. The age of customer delight has started where a customers satisfaction is no longer considered as Bank success or the service provided by it. Competitive edge is no longer applicable because almost every bank is providing the same services in term of quality as well as in quantity. The difference which makes between the banks success is how they fulfill their customer required services at the time when they required the most. Customer delight creates the ever lasting edge for the bank in Red Ocean of banking sector. Now the question arises on how to delight the customer when every bank is providing the same services which cannot be distinguished from each other. This question has a unique set of characteristics because it contains the customer delight process which has never been researched until now. Delighting a customer is not just a simple question to answer because customer delight is not just for overall customers; its for every individual customer of the bank. Literature Review Delighting the customer is very debatable topic as critics has suggested that if once raised the customer expectation bar, later it becomes impossible to give same level of experience to that customer, which in long run will also hurt the companys reputation as explained by Oliver and Rust 2000. Customer delight is a rising concept in marketing and little work has yet been done on it. As such, no consensus is reached about delight but it is generally posited as customer response to unexpectedly good performance from a service firm (Keiningham and Vavra 2001; Kumar 1996). Customer satisfaction is extensively recognized as a key authority in the formation of customers future purchase intent (Taylor Baker, 1994). According to Patterson (1997) customer delight involves going beyond satisfaction to delivering what can be best described as a pleasurable experience for the client. Michael Arthur Johnson explained on his customer delight website that When some one create WOW then you have place a very special peg in the recollection of the customer that is easy to recollect. It creates the opportunity of the customer telling the story regarding their WOW incident to many friends, acquaintances and strangers. It creates the free publicity that you cant place a temporary value to. Customer delight creates a cycle of coming back again and again for the customer. It creates the word of mouth publicity to draw new customers without spending any extra money on advertisement. It brings the firm at the top of the list among the competitors with a unique place in the mind of customers and differentiates one firm from the rest. It permits you to sell your products or services for additional money than the competition. It allows you to make extra return on your investment. Delighted customers are those where you foresee their needs; present solutions to them before they request and where you monitor to see if new or supplementary expectations are mandatory to be deployed. Whats wrong with just providing the customer service to customers when they require as explained by Michael Arthur Johnson. Michael Arthur Johnson says the difference between success and failure is only customer delight. Traditionally delight has been thought of a blend of joy and surprise (Kumar, A., Olshavsky, R.W. and King, M.F. (2001). However a recent study suggests that customer can be delighted without being surprised (Kumar et al., 2001). Although joy remains an important element of delight, the study suggests that a greater number of people are exhilarated, thrilled and to a lesser extent exuberant (Kumar et al., 2001). Satisfied customers are not necessarily leave with a firm; they are purely at ease. Delighted customers on the other hand have greater admiration for the firm and its services. Paul (2000) states: Unfortunately, people dont talk about adequate service. Instead, they tell anyone who will listen about really bad or really delightful services. Paul says that delight generate more positive word -of- Mouth for the company. Being only satisfied with a firms product or services does not necessarily mean that customer will prefer the company or rejects it but its just simple expression of acceptance. Delighting customers is about providing a product and services that are outstanding and stimulates customers preference towards a firm or its services. Companies are also realizing that loosing a customer means loosing more than a single sale: it means loosing the entire flow of purchases by the customer made over a lifetime of purchase. It has also been anticipated that as the level of satisfaction increases, so does customer become loyal to the firms product and services (Kotler and Amstrong 2001). Kumar et al., 2001 explain that these studies found that customers who where extremely satisfied were more loyal than customers who says they where satisfied. From many years customer satisfaction is used for the indicator of organization health and success. In recent times it has been argued that in order to succeed in red Blue Ocean of competitive environment it become a necessity to do more than just satisfy the customer but now organizations have to delight the customer for staying alive in the competition.. Delighting customers is a splendid ideal, but what kind of impact does it have on the company? Does customer delight lead to increased success and good monetary health of the firm? According to Rust and Oliver (2000) Research reviewed here strongly suggests that delight cannot be accomplish without surprisingly positive levels of performance, which as noted previously, require additional effort on the part of the firm or its agents. As Rust and Oliver (2000) explain that delighting the customer for organization can be harmful as the expectation of the customer extends and the customer does not get the level of services he is expecting from the organization. In the end the customer become dissatisfied from the organization. Satisfied customers will also tell others about their favorable experiences and therefore connect in positive word of mouth advertising (Richens, 1983; File Prince, 1992). Customers, who are dissatisfied, are most likely to switch brands and become active in the negative word of mouth advertisement of the brand. Furthermore, behaviors such as replicate purchase and word-of-mouth straight influence the feasibility and profitability of a firm (Dabholkar, P.A., Thorpe, D.I. and Rentz, J.O, 1996), A study was conducted by the Levesque and McDougall (1996) confirms and resistant the idea that unsatisfactory customer service results in a drop of customer satisfaction and hesitation to recommend the services to others. This would lead to large number of customer switching rate of customer to another brand as well as the negative word of mouth. A well known academic article on customer delight is by Oliver, Rust and Varki (1997). The authors give delight both hypothetical and an applied perspective, Delight appears as resulting from a Blend of pleasure and arousal. In their article they have presented a model and a test which has both delight sequence and a satisfaction sequence which leads to intentions of the customers. Model was tested using two consumption experiences a recreational wildlife theme park and a symphony concert. In the test the direct and indirect effects on both consumption experiences and on intentions of delight were not constant to its experiences. His indicates the probable effect of the moderating variables on the impact of delight on behavioral intentions. The model tested in Oliver, Rust and Varki is essentially a conceptual psychological model of the process of delight that can occur within consumption experiences of the customers. From the model of Oliver, Rust and Varki (1997) provide the evidence that delight has three direct antecedents such as Surprising consumption, Arousal or Heightened activation and Positive affect, all these three leads to customer delight. Model develops new insight concerning that produce delight when situation triggers surprise in a content of positive effect and arousal. The conservative wisdom is that if you have satisfied customers then you will have loyal customers. It sounds right, but actually its wrong said by Dr. John T. Self. Not only satisfaction of customer can create loyalty but its more than just satisfying the customers. As further he explains that in his opinion loyalty frequently develops when customers get concerned with the company over the ordinary transaction. Means that all the companies are providing the homogenous services and now customers require other than normal services provided by the company. Hence, customers looking beyond expects more from the services so that they can feel delight and be over whelmed. Berman, B. (2005), suggested that organization have to do more than what the customer expects from them and delighting the customer rather than just satisfying them. Berman differentiate customer delight and satisfaction. As satisfaction relate to the meeting the expectation of the customers or exceeding their expectations as customer delight on the other hand customers receive a positive surprise or delight that is afar their expectations. While comparing the satisfaction, customer delight is more toward the customer positive and emotional response against the service. In customer delight the emotional response as compare to the satisfaction has less memory for customer as compare to the delight. Delight a phenomenon that represents the highest level of satisfaction, leading to a stronger intent to repurchase (Jones and Sasser 1995).Customer delight has never happened without high performance and such performance brings not only benefits to customers but also makes them excited (Kwong and Yau 2002). To delight customers, it necessitates a superior and endless effort from firms to deliver extraordinarily high-quality services. This effort has to be recognized and cherished by customers. The major reason to chase delighted customers is the belief that they are more profitable to serve because they are more loyal, that is to say, they tend to have a stronger intent to repurchase. In general, they are apostles who give unfailing support to the firm (Oliver H. M. Yau and Kenneth K. Kwong 2007). Behaviourally, delighted customers tend to view the firm positively and prefer to buy from it (Keiningham et al. 1999; Schneider and Bowen 1999).Rust et al has stated financially, this preference translates to a profit and represents a stream of future income to the focal firm (Rust et al. 1994). In sum, these positive propositions imply that customer delight is a valuable business goal to pursuit (Rust and Oliver 2000). Customer service is what organization do for the customers but customer delight is what the customer has experience when he has been indulgence with way he wanted to. Customer delight does not come from giving additional services but comes from the quality of services make available to customer at the time he or she required most. Opportunities to delight customers also lay in service provider capability to go above and beyond in service delivery. Long-term relationships with customers offer the opportunity, through personalized service, to go beyond the customers expectations and delight them (Zeithaml and Bitner, 2003), Delight is more likely to occur in state where customers are vastly involved, where service quality is uneven, and where overwhelmingly exceptional performance is unexpected (Oliver et al., 1997). According to Peter, P.J. and Olson, J.C. (1996) Pre-purchase prospect are beliefs about predictable performance of the product; disconfirmation transfer to the variation between pre-purchase prospect and post purchase perception. Customer satisfaction is usually illustrate as the full meeting of ones expectations (Oliver,1980).but Delight is a positive consequence of exceeding the customers expectations (Keiningham and Vavra, 2001),Customer delight create the difference between the only satisfied customer and overwhelmed customer who are more loyal to organization Jack Mitchells latest book Hug Your Customers (2003) provides many instances that illustrate the long-term financial benefits that derive from construction those emotional bonds with customers. He suggests that competitive advantage is built in the course of providing both physical and psychological hugs to customers, eventually delighting them with consistent, zealous and committed customer service. Delighted customers are more likely to inform others that they are delighted, which in turn may draw other consumers to do business with that organization. The delighted customers might also be more likely to increase their own spending with the delighting organization, and exhibit increased customer faithfulness (Keiningham and Vavra, 2001). The possibility of delighted customers to repeat a purchase is known to be about six times more than satisfied customers (Reichheld and Sasser 1990). It represents the highest level of satisfaction, leading to a stronger intent to repurchase (Jones and Sasser 1995). Customer delight is never happened without high performance and such performance brings not only benefits to customers but also makes them excited (Kwong and Yau 2002).This effort has to be acknowledged and appreciated by customers. Customer delight is, therefore, defined as an emotional response creating a much pleasured state concerning a firms soaring performance in service delivery, which is then highly praised (Kwong 2006).Behaviorally, delighted customers tend to view the firm positively and prefer to buy from it (Keiningham et al. 1999; Schneider and Bowen 1999). Financially, this preference translates to a profit and represents a stream of future income to the focal firm (Rust et al. 1994). Long-term relationships with customers present the opportunity, through personalized service, to go beyond the customers expectations and delight them (Zeithaml and Bitner, 2003).Therefore, despite the fact that delighting the customer can be a profitable business practice (Rust and Oliver, 2000), Delight is going beyond simply satisfying the customer to delivering a higher level of satisfaction through exceeded expectations (Oliver et al., 1997). This concept of a higher-level of satisfaction is seen by many practitioners as the way to provide a distinct advantage to the company that does it first and does it well consistently (Chandler, C.H. 1989, p. 30, quoted in Oliver et al., 1997). Delighted customers are more likely to tell others that they are delighted, which in turn may attract other consumers to do business with that organization. The delighted customers may also be more likely to boost their own spending with the delighting organization, and exhibit increased customer loyalty (Keiningham and Vavra, 2001). Prof. Kano, the Kano Model categorizes customer needs into three types of feature. Customers are asked a series of questions that identify the importance of their needs and the following typology of features can be arrived at durability of a car might be considered Basic qualities. They do not satisfy when present, but do dissatisfy when absent. (Elmar Sauerwein, Franz Bailom, Kurt Matzler, Hans H. Hinterhuber 1996) Oliver, Rust and Varki (1997) squabble that delight is a combination of pleasure and arousal (whereas satisfaction is a mixture of pleasure and disconfirmation), and show that both satisfaction and delight can manipulate repatronage intentions. According to Berry, L.L., Parasuraman, A. Zeithaml, V.A. (1988) service quality has become a great competitor and the most powerful competitive weapon which many leading service organizations possess. Service business success has been associated with the ability to deliver superior service (Gale, 1990; Rudie Wansley, 1984). Leading service organizations strive to maintain a superior quality of service in an effort to gain customer loyalty (Zeithaml Bitner, 1996).Evaluating the impact of service quality through customer retention will help companies to gauge the financial impact of service quality (Zeithaml et al., 1996). Customer satisfaction no longer constitutes the convincing focus for success; it has been replaced by customer delight (Brown, W.S., Bowen, D.E. Swartz, T.A. 1992). In todays competitive environment, customers expectations and technological innovation demand that service leaders distinguish them selves from the competition by truly delighting the customer (Kandampully, 1997). Customers perception of exceptional service is often associated with the personal interaction of the employees (Kandampully, 1993). Services management literature has repeatedly emphasized the significance of the human element in the delivery of higher service (Crosby Stephens, 1987; Gronroos, 1990b; Parasuraman et al., 1985; Solomon, m.r., Surprenant, c., Czepiel, j.a. Gutman,(1985)). We now live in a service economy where relationships are becoming more important than physical products (Albrecht Zemke, 1985a), in terms of both our business and our personal lives. Business is nothing but relationship (McCormick, M. 1988) and, within service industries, this relationship is an interactive process (Booms Bitner, 1981). The challenge for todays organizations is not merely to reach the top, but to stay there. If that is an organizations aim, its primary focus should be not just to attract customers, but to gain their loyalty and, thus, their patronage, not merely for the current, but also for the long term. This loyalty, however, is the end result of an on-going, long-term relationship. Such relationships are founded on an organizations ability to maintain and extend its relationships with customers (Gummesson, 1994). According to Levitt (1983), buyer ± seller interaction is similar to a marriage; the quality and duration, however, depends predominantly which the organization manages the relationship. Customer supplier relationships are central to exceeding customer expectations (Parasuraman et al., 1991c). Thus, it is apparent that customers cannot `try out services; they purchase a service prior to experiencing it and must trust it to deliver the perceived service promise (Berry Parasuraman, 1992). According to Kanos theory of attractive quality (2001), success cannot be gained only by listening to what customers say. What needs to be gained is a deeper under-standing of the customers latent needs. He has described the factors that influence customer purchase decisions as a model with three main factors: basic (must-be), performance (more is better or one-dimensional) and delight (excitement or attractive). Additional factors are indifferent and reverse, but these add relatively little to this context. The basic factor must be met; otherwise the customer will react with disappointment or disgust. If all basic factors are met, the customer reaction is neutral. Research generally supports the claim that word of mouth is more influential on behavior than other marketer-controlled sources. Indeed, it has been observed that WOM can be more influential than neutral print sources such as which and Consumer Reports (Herr, P.M., Kardes, F.R. and Kim, J. (1991). Arndt, J. (1967) was one of the earliest researchers into the influence of WOM on consumer behavior. He characterized WOM as verbal, person-to-person communication between a receiver and a communicator whom the receiver perceives as non-commercial, concerning a brand, product or service. Customer delight can be defined as an emotion, characterized by high levels of joy and surprise, felt by a customer towards a company or its offering (product/ service) (Kumar 1996). Thus, customer delight is defined as a rather positive emotional state towards the purchase/consumption experience, generally derived from the surprisingly positive disconfirmation level of perceived performance (Oliver et al. 1997; Rust and Oliver 2000). Delight would be characterized as an emotion made up of cognitive and affective aspects, including here surprise (Kumar 1996). In this sense, Izard, Carroll E. (1977), clarifies that even the cognitive concepts inherent in satisfaction and, consequently, in customer delight such as need and desire -, and its comparative standards are considered affective by nature or, at least, as having an affective component. The differentiation basically occurs at an arousal level of the positive emotional response: at a low level there lies satisfaction; at a high level, delight (Oliver and Westbrook 1993). As Plutchiks, Robert (1980) research and the circumflex model of emotions appears to be one of the earliest and most common source for labeling delight as a mixture of joy and surprise, we review the work of which led Plutchik to conclude that delight was comprised of joy and surprise.Plutchik carried out two studies to determine what emotions resulted from the different combination of pairs of basic emotions. Basic emotions were supposed to be emotions that were instinctual and universal among all the human begins (or even among all mammals) and Plutchik had eight emotions which were considered basic and made up one layer of his circumflex model of emotion. Research Methods Qualitative Development of Delight measure Exploratory Investigation Till now the literature for customer satisfaction has only been studied and proved but the customer delight has never been researched upon. For sound conceptual background and for investigation of customer delight in the banking sector, qualitative study was undertaken to investigate the delight concept especially in the minds of their customers. Almost all the banks are providing homogenous services; our main emphasis is on the customer reaction towards the services provided and the experience they faced when they felt excited and delighted from their banks. Focus interviews with the customers was the main part of our research. This provided us with the exact moment or situation, which created customer delight in the mind of a customer. Creating the base for our focused interviews, we distributed an open ended questionnaire, in which the customers were asked to write down the situation where they felt excited or delighted by the service which their respective bank has provided to them when they really required it. We received many situations described by the customer, where they received the service which made them delighted or when they felt excited. Every single response was carefully studied and put under a category, where situations were the same. Focused Interviews Focused interviews consisted of respondents from all walks of life including Housewives, Businessman, Employees, and students. Every focused interview was based on the category which responded a particular response in the questionnaires. Discussions regarding their response to the questionnaire provided the opportunity for the respondent to explain in detailregarding their moment(removed letter) of getting excited or delighted from their banks service. Discussions were based to bring the respondent to the exact reason or moment on why the customer felt delighted. Every respondent was provided the opportunity to elaborate their experience to reach the moment or reason of delight that they felt from the service. Insights from Exploratory Investigation From the exploratory investigation a remarkably completely different pattern of customer delight came out, which was totally different from the nominal services provided by the banks to the customers. Account holders were satisfied from the service provided by the bank as almost all the banks are providing the same type and quality of services but what made the customers delighted, were the occasion when they were offered or received an out the way service from their bank ,which they never expected or ever received before. All the delights of the customers were situations and occasions based on what they had experienced in their daily routine. Outcomes were categorized into the related fields as to what made a customer feel delight from the service. Insight from Focus Interviews Interviews were summarized in categories of the situation or the time when a customer felt delighted from the banks service. Outcomes were surprising as the customers felt delighted not from the homogeneous services provided by the banks but from the acts which customer had received from the banks other than their normal routine practice. Account holders explained in detail regarding the situations that they have felt from their bank, which caused delight. Customers replies were investigated to reach the exact moment in the time in which they received a delightful service from their bank. As the respondents were from different walks of life so their perception toward delight were also different. If the respondent was already getting same service from his bank then there was no reason to be delighted from the instrument we have purposed. Reactions were very important of customer toward the situation they were asked about, as delight is all about the over whelming experience for the customer. Every focused interview session were categories under eight variables, which become the fundamental elements of the customer delight model. Respondent reached the concession that eight variables, which were the outcome from the exploratory studies were eliminates, made them delight from the service. Establishing of Customer Delight Model After completing the focused interviews and gathering the data of the interviews, we came to an understanding on how to establish the customer delight model as per the outcome of the respective customers interview. Model, which consists of eight variables, was sub defined as per the perception of the respondents. Among these eight variables, six of them had clear understanding in the minds of the customers that it is the factor or eleme

Mauna Loa: The Fiery Mountain :: essays research papers fc

Mauna Loa: The Fiery Mountain Mauna Loa is Earth’s largest volcano and most massive mountain as it takes up nearly half of the flourishing landscape of the island of Hawai’i. This island is actually made up of five volcanoes, Kohala, Mauna Kea, Hualalai, Mauna Loa, and Kilauea, all in such close proximity that they fused together to form one whole island. Mauna Loa is located in the south central area of Hawai’i, in the Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park and its coordinates are 19 °5' N, 155 °6' W. It is 13,680 ft above sea level, but if one measures from its true base on the ocean floor, it is estimated to be 30,080 feet tall. Its name is quite fitting as it means â€Å"Tall Mountain†. Mauna Loa is located on a hot spot in the Pacific Ocean. It is not near a plate boundary, in fact it is 3,200 km from the nearest plate boundary, and is situated in the middle of the Pacific tectonic plate. This is actually a rarity, as 90% of volcanoes are along a tectonic plate boundary. A hot spot occurs where long, stationary vertical pools of magma rise up and towards the plate. Movement of the tectonic plates above the hot spot created Mauna Loa, along with the other Hawaiian volcanoes. The older Hawaiian Islands were once above this stationary hot spot, but have been carried northwest by the slowly moving Pacific plate. As the plate moves, it carries the previously formed, older, volcanoes with it, creating a trail of younger, new volcanoes behind. The islands are lined up along the Hawaiian Ridge-Emperor Seamounts chain, which is 3,750 miles and includes Kauai, Maui, Oahu and Hawai’i, from north to south, respectively. There are around 80 volcanoes in this chain; most of them underwater, consequently the term seamount refer to submarine volcanoes. Three volcanoes of Hawai’i, Mauna Loa, Kilauea and Loihi seamount, are all currently sharing the Hawaiian hot spot. Although, recent evidence has shown that all three volcanoes use have separate plumbing systems to expel the lava from the pool of magma deep below them. It has also been suggested that Loihi is slowly moving Mauna Loa from the center of the island, thus shifting directly over the hot spot. The closer to the hot spot a volcano is, the more active it will be. The Hawaiian hot spot has laid down layers of lava, building up enormous islands from the ocean floor.

Academia and Classroom Essay

Question 1 1. 1 Conflict> The practice of recognizing and dealing with disputes in a rational, balanced and effective way. Conflict is an expressed struggle between at least two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals, scare resources, and interference from others in achieving their goals. † 1. 2 Decision- making > Is the choice of the most suitable way of solving a problem or handling a situation . 1. 3 Communication> Is a means by which the teacher and pupils’ different needs, feelings and attitudes are conveyed to each other in order to establish cooperation and achieve goals. 1. 4 Motivation> Is the process by means of which motives are provided by, amongst others, a manager or situation in order to bring about certain actions and thus to achieve certain goals. 1. 5 Leadership> Leadership consists of actions that help the group to complete its tasks successfully and maintain effective working relationships among its members. Leadership is a set of skills that anyone can acquire Question 2 2. 1. 1 AUTOCRATIC CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STYLE When dealing with pupil behaviour the teacher will intervene and try to control the behaviour of the pupils. The teacher is mainly interested in the pupils’ completion of tasks and learning performance . Pupils’ participation in the classroom situation is limited to listening, working and doing. The following are some advantages of this approach: ? Some pupils may feel secure in this kind of situation. ? Because the teacher lays down fixed rules and procedures, pupils know what is expected of them and what they can expect in the classroom. The following are some disadvantages of this approach: ? The classroom atmosphere is characterised by competition, unwillingness to work together and poor discipline when pupils are left unsupervised. ? Creative thinking is suppressed. ? There is no cooperation. ? Pupils may develop a negative attitude towards the subject. 1 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 2. 1. 2 DEMOCRATIC CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STYLE A democratic style of classroom management correlates with an interactive teaching style. This teaching style requires that teachers should have a sound knowledge of their subject and of human nature so that they can encourage their pupils to participate actively and meaningfully in teaching and learning activities. The control of pupil behaviour in the classroom is jointly controlled by the pupils and the teacher. As a management style it requires the teacher to maintain a balance between the task aspect and the human aspect of the classroom situation. Teaching and learning tasks are completed with the pupils’ willing cooperation and co responsibility which are the hallmarks of democratic classroom management. The following are some advantages: ? ? ? Pupils participate confidently in classroom activities. It encourages initiative and creativity. The classroom atmosphere is relaxed, yet productive. ? Pupils feel that they are involved in teaching activities. 2. 2 Five styles of conflict management ? Avoidance: avoiding conflict is a short-term solution because the conflict will not go away. Sometimes, however, avoidance could be a temporary measure to calm emotions. ? Giving in or accommodating: teachers who badly want the pupils to accept them use this style. With this style the real differences are underemphasized. Sometimes teachers have to give in to avoid hostility in the classroom and to ensure that the work can get done. ? Domination: teachers who want to impose their will on pupils use this style. In the long run this style is seldom effective, although teachers sometimes have to dominate. ? Compromise or settle: this style is marked by a search for compromises and settlement. The teacher will try to meet everyone halfway and to let the majority view prevail. Because a settlement might not satisfy everybody, the dissatisfaction could again cause conflict at a later stage. ? Integrate or collaborate: this style is also known as the problem-solving approach. The parties cooperate in order to find a satisfactory solution. 2. 3 A proper balance between the: task-oriented and the human relations aspects, required in every teaching-learning situation , enables teachers to create a teaching-learning situation with a positive atmosphere. Maintaining a balance between the structural (formal) and human relations (informal) aspects requires a holistic approach to classroom management. The combination and integration of these two dimensions represent the actual structure of the classroom situation, which includes all areas of the teacher’s management task. These studies revealed a clear correlation between classroom atmosphere and pupil performance of grade 9 and grade 10 pupils in 12 secondary schools in Ontario as follows: ? Classroom atmosphere has a significant influence on pupil performance. ? Although the personal and social characteristics of pupils are important factors in their school performance, classroom atmosphere is sometimes more important. ? The psychosocial and academic aspects of teaching are interrelated. 2 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 ? Variables that relate directly to teaching-learning activities in the classroom have a special, unique influence on pupil performance. The following are the guidelines for teachers to cultivate positive attitudes in their pupils: ? Put the pupils in the centre. ? Respect pupils’ opinions and treat all pupils respectfully. ? Give pupils a group feeling. ? Help pupils to feel secure in school. ? Make sure that pupils understand their assignments. ? Realise that pupils are children, not adults. ? Deal with individual behaviour problems in private interviews with the pupil rather than in front of the whole class. ? Involve pupils in decision making where appropriate. ? Do not label pupils. 3 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 2. 4 CLASSROOM POLICY 1. In all instances, civility and respect for classmates and the instructor are expected. 2. Book bags, briefcases, etc. are not allowed on your desk during class. They must remain on the floor near your chair. 3. You may not use cell phones in class. a. All ringers must be turned off. b. You may not text message, place or answer calls. c. All earphones, headphones, headsets or any other accessory for your cell phone may not be used in class – that means, out of sight and not on your head or in your ear. 4. You may not use any device (for example, IPod, MP3 player) to listen to or view music or other programming in class. 5. You will be asked to leave class if you disregard classroom policy. ATTENDANCE / WITHDRAWAL POLICY 1. Since the course is conducted in a seminar format, your attendance is mandatory. 2. You will sign the Attendance Signature sheet at the beginning of each class. 3. Your class participation points may be reduced from if you are late in class. 4. You may be withdrawn from COS 133 if you are absent from 20% of the class. LATE WORK 1. No late work will be accepted. MAKE-UP QUIZ POLICY 1. There are no quiz make-ups. No exemptions. GRADING POLICY 1. Your grade for COS 133 will be based on the points you accumulate for assignments, quizzes, and class participation. 2. Your grade for COS 133 is calculated as follows: Topic 1. Assignments 2. Quizzes 3. Classroom Participation Weight 30% 55% 15% 4 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493. Topic Weight A 94 -100 1. Assignments 30% A- 90 – 93 2. Quizzes 55% B+ 87 – 89 3. Classroom Participation 15% B 84 – 86 B- 80 – 83 C+ 77 – 79 C 74 – 76 C- 70 – 73 D+ 67 – 69 D 64 – 66 D- 60 – 63 F < 60 1. Assignments = 30 Points COS assignments consist of a variety of activities designed to promote a successful college experience at MCC. Your assignments will consist of reading textbook chapters and answering related exercise questions. In addition, you may be using your MCC student email to submit Web assignments. Assignments are due at the beginning of the class. However, you may submit your assignments before the due date. Distribution of points are as follows: 10 textbook assignments (3 points each) = 30 points 2. Quizzes = 55 Points Quizzes are based on your chapter reading assignments. o You may use your textbook to answer the questions. However, be well prepared for a very challenging quiz. o If you are late for class and miss the quiz, you will receive a zero for the quiz. Distribution of points is as follows: o 11 textbook quizzes (5 points each) = 55 points 3. Classroom Participation = 15 Points Classroom participation points are earned by behaviors that demonstrate o prompt attendance for class 3 o active listening o positive involvement in small group work o thoughtful contributions during whole class discussions o civility and respect for classmates and the instructor Distribution of points is as follows: o 1 point per week = 15 points o You cannot earn classroom participation points if you are absent. MCC REGULATIONS AND POLICIES Academic Honesty Policy In the academic process, it is assumed that intellectual honesty and integrity are basic responsibilities of any student. However, faculty members should accept their correlative 5 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 responsibility to regulate academic work and to conduct examination procedures in such a manner as not to invite violations of academic honesty. Such violations consist mainly of cheating and plagiarism. For more details regarding MCC’s Academic Honesty policy regarding definitions, disciplinary action, and procedure for appeal check the MCC Catalog and Student Handbook or MCC Website. Policy Statement on Sexual Harassment 1. Monroe Community College strives to recognize human dignity and therefore does not tolerate sexual harassment or any other type of harassment within or connected to this institution. 2. Sexual harassment is illegal and unfairly interferes with the opportunity for all persons, regardless of gender, to have a comfortable and productive education and work environment. 3. We are committed to taking all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment and to discipline those who do harass. Code of Conduct The following actions or conducts are prohibited. 1. The obstruction or disruption of any College function or activity, including the classroom instructional environment, administration of the parking program and service functions and activities. 2. The detention, physical abuse or intimidation of any person, or threat thereof, or any 4 conduct which threatens or endangers the health, safety, or welfare of any person on College-owned or operated property or at College-sponsored activities. 3. The use of obscene or abusive language or any other means of expression, language, or action which may reasonably be expected to provoke or encourage physical violence by other persons. 4. The refusal to obey any reasonable or lawful request, order, or directive of a College public safety officer, a teacher, College administrator, or any other identified representative of the College. MCC LEARNING CENTERS 1. Monroe Community College has a number of Learning Centers at Brighton (for example, Accounting, Math, Psychology, Writing, the Electronic Learning Center, etc. ) and at Damon (for example, the Integrated Learning Center, Electronic Learning Center, etc.). 2. Learning centers are staffed with instructional personnel and may be equipped with computers and software to assist students. 3. It is recommended that students use the Learning Centers to get additional help with concepts learned in the classroom and with their homework. SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES 1. Students with a documented learning difficulty should make an appointment with the Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities on the Brighton or Damon Campus to arrange for support services. 2. All deaf or hard of hearing students should contact the Counseling and Advising Center. 3. You must provide the instructor with appropriate documentation regarding accommodations within the first two weeks of class. EMERGENCY CLOSINGS 1. If the College is closed due to inclement weather or some other emergency, all Rochester area radio and television stations will be notified no later than 5:30 a. m. 2. In addition, the homepage on the MCC website (www. monroecc. edu) will display a message indicating the College is closed. 3. Please do not call the College to avoid overloading the telephone lines. 5 6 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 CLASS CANCELLATION To access a list of daily class cancellations, you may 1. Call the Public Safety Department (292-2066) at MCC, press 1 for a list of cancelled classes at Brighton and press 2 for a list of cancelled classes at Damon; 2. Go to the Internet, access MCC, go to the A-Z listing to C for Class Cancellations and see the list of cancellations; 3. Check your student email for a cancellation notice from your instructor 6 COURSE SYLLABUS AGREEMENT Detach and return this signed sheet to Professor Rodriguez. ______________________________________ M00______________________ Student’s Printed Name Student MCC College ID Number COS 133 Section Number: _________ Semester / Year: _____________ The Course Syllabus 1. The Course Syllabus (course information sheet) is a written legal covenant between you and your professor. 2. It clarifies the professor’s expectations and your responsibilities. Your professor expects you to meet deadlines for assignments, papers, projects and tests. 3. It is your responsibility to review the course syllabus and clarify any aspect of the syllabus. Therefore, read it carefully and ask questions you may have about its content. Check the appropriate box. I have read the course information sheet for COS 133 – Introduction to College Studies. I understand my responsibilities for this course. I do not have any questions. I do not understand the requirements stated in the COS 133 Course Information Sheet. I will schedule an appointment to discuss my questions with my professor. List your questions for discussion here: ______________________________________ _____________________ Signature Date. Academia and Classroom Essay Question 1 1. 1 Conflict> The practice of recognizing and dealing with disputes in a rational, balanced and effective way. Conflict is an expressed struggle between at least two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals, scare resources, and interference from others in achieving their goals. † 1. 2 Decision- making > Is the choice of the most suitable way of solving a problem or handling a situation . 1. 3 Communication> Is a means by which the teacher and pupils’ different needs, feelings and attitudes are conveyed to each other in order to establish cooperation and achieve goals. 1. 4 Motivation> Is the process by means of which motives are provided by, amongst others, a manager or situation in order to bring about certain actions and thus to achieve certain goals. 1. 5 Leadership> Leadership consists of actions that help the group to complete its tasks successfully and maintain effective working relationships among its members. Leadership is a set of skills that anyone can acquire Question 2 2. 1. 1 AUTOCRATIC CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STYLE When dealing with pupil behaviour the teacher will intervene and try to control the behaviour of the pupils. The teacher is mainly interested in the pupils’ completion of tasks and learning performance . Pupils’ participation in the classroom situation is limited to listening, working and doing. The following are some advantages of this approach: ? Some pupils may feel secure in this kind of situation. ? Because the teacher lays down fixed rules and procedures, pupils know what is expected of them and what they can expect in the classroom. The following are some disadvantages of this approach: ? The classroom atmosphere is characterised by competition, unwillingness to work together and poor discipline when pupils are left unsupervised. ? Creative thinking is suppressed. ? There is no cooperation. ? Pupils may develop a negative attitude towards the subject. 1 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 2. 1. 2 DEMOCRATIC CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STYLE A democratic style of classroom management correlates with an interactive teaching style. This teaching style requires that teachers should have a sound knowledge of their subject and of human nature so that they can encourage their pupils to participate actively and meaningfully in teaching and learning activities. The control of pupil behaviour in the classroom is jointly controlled by the pupils and the teacher. As a management style it requires the teacher to maintain a balance between the task aspect and the human aspect of the classroom situation. Teaching and learning tasks are completed with the pupils’ willing cooperation and co responsibility which are the hallmarks of democratic classroom management. The following are some advantages: ? ? ? Pupils participate confidently in classroom activities. It encourages initiative and creativity. The classroom atmosphere is relaxed, yet productive. ? Pupils feel that they are involved in teaching activities. 2. 2 Five styles of conflict management ? Avoidance: avoiding conflict is a short-term solution because the conflict will not go away. Sometimes, however, avoidance could be a temporary measure to calm emotions. ? Giving in or accommodating: teachers who badly want the pupils to accept them use this style. With this style the real differences are underemphasized. Sometimes teachers have to give in to avoid hostility in the classroom and to ensure that the work can get done. ? Domination: teachers who want to impose their will on pupils use this style. In the long run this style is seldom effective, although teachers sometimes have to dominate. ? Compromise or settle: this style is marked by a search for compromises and settlement. The teacher will try to meet everyone halfway and to let the majority view prevail. Because a settlement might not satisfy everybody, the dissatisfaction could again cause conflict at a later stage. ? Integrate or collaborate: this style is also known as the problem-solving approach. The parties cooperate in order to find a satisfactory solution. 2. 3 A proper balance between the: task-oriented and the human relations aspects, required in every teaching-learning situation , enables teachers to create a teaching-learning situation with a positive atmosphere. Maintaining a balance between the structural (formal) and human relations (informal) aspects requires a holistic approach to classroom management. The combination and integration of these two dimensions represent the actual structure of the classroom situation, which includes all areas of the teacher’s management task. These studies revealed a clear correlation between classroom atmosphere and pupil performance of grade 9 and grade 10 pupils in 12 secondary schools in Ontario as follows: ? Classroom atmosphere has a significant influence on pupil performance. ? Although the personal and social characteristics of pupils are important factors in their school performance, classroom atmosphere is sometimes more important. ? The psychosocial and academic aspects of teaching are interrelated. 2 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2. 719493 ? Variables that relate directly to teaching-learning activities in the classroom have a special, unique influence on pupil performance. The following are the guidelines for teachers to cultivate positive attitudes in their pupils: ? Put the pupils in the centre. ? Respect pupils’ opinions and treat all pupils respectfully. ? Give pupils a group feeling. ? Help pupils to feel secure in school. ? Make sure that pupils understand their assignments. ? Realise that pupils are children, not adults.? Deal with individual behaviour problems in private interviews with the pupil rather than in front of the whole class. ? Involve pupils in decision making where appropriate. ? Do not label pupils. 3 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 2. 4 CLASSROOM POLICY 1. In all instances, civility and respect for classmates and the instructor are expected. 2. Book bags, briefcases, etc. are not allowed on your desk during class. They must remain on the floor near your chair. 3. You may not use cell phones in class. a. All ringers must be turned off. b. You may not text message, place or answer calls. c. All earphones, headphones, headsets or any other accessory for your cell phone may not be used in class – that means, out of sight and not on your head or in your ear. 4. You may not use any device (for example, IPod, MP3 player) to listen to or view music or other programming in class. 5. You will be asked to leave class if you disregard classroom policy. ATTENDANCE / WITHDRAWAL POLICY 1. Since the course is conducted in a seminar format, your attendance is mandatory. 2. You will sign the Attendance Signature sheet at the beginning of each class. 3. Your class participation points may be reduced from if you are late in class. 4. You may be withdrawn from COS 133 if you are absent from 20% of the class. LATE WORK 1. No late work will be accepted. MAKE-UP QUIZ POLICY 1. There are no quiz make-ups. No exemptions. GRADING POLICY 1. Your grade for COS 133 will be based on the points you accumulate for assignments, quizzes, and class participation. 2. Your grade for COS 133 is calculated as follows: Topic 1. Assignments 2. Quizzes 3. Classroom Participation Weight 30% 55% 15% 4 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 Topic Weight A 94 -100 1. Assignments 30% A- 90 – 93 2. Quizzes 55% B+ 87 – 89 3. Classroom Participation 15% B 84 – 86 B- 80 – 83 C+ 77 – 79 C 74 – 76 C- 70 – 73 D+ 67 – 69 D 64 – 66 D- 60 – 63 F < 60 1. Assignments = 30 Points COS assignments consist of a variety of activities designed to promote a successful college experience at MCC. Your assignments will consist of reading textbook chapters and answering related exercise questions. In addition, you may be using your MCC student email to submit Web assignments. Assignments are due at the beginning of the class. However, you may submit your assignments before the due date. Distribution of points are as follows: 10 textbook assignments (3 points each) = 30 points 2. Quizzes = 55 Points Quizzes are based on your chapter reading assignments. o You may use your textbook to answer the questions. However, be well prepared for a very challenging quiz. o If you are late for class and miss the quiz, you will receive a zero for the quiz. Distribution of points is as follows: o 11 textbook quizzes (5 points each) = 55 points 3. Classroom Participation = 15 Points Classroom participation points are earned by behaviors that demonstrate o prompt attendance for class 3 o active listening o positive involvement in small group work o thoughtful contributions during whole class discussions o civility and respect for classmates and the instructor Distribution of points is as follows: o 1 point per week = 15 points o You cannot earn classroom participation points if you are absent. MCC REGULATIONS AND POLICIES Academic Honesty Policy In the academic process, it is assumed that intellectual honesty and integrity are basic responsibilities of any student. However, faculty members should accept their correlative 5 Student no : 43713009 EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 responsibility to regulate academic work and to conduct examination procedures in such a manner as not to invite violations of academic honesty. Such violations consist mainly of cheating and plagiarism. For more details regarding MCC’s Academic Honesty policy regarding definitions, disciplinary action, and procedure for appeal check the MCC Catalog and Student Handbook or MCC Website. Policy Statement on Sexual Harassment 1. Monroe Community College strives to recognize human dignity and therefore does not tolerate sexual harassment or any other type of harassment within or connected to this institution. 2. Sexual harassment is illegal and unfairly interferes with the opportunity for all persons, regardless of gender, to have a comfortable and productive education and work environment. 3. We are committed to taking all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment and to discipline those who do harass. Code of Conduct The following actions or conducts are prohibited. 1. The obstruction or disruption of any College function or activity, including the classroom instructional environment, administration of the parking program and service functions and activities. 2. The detention, physical abuse or intimidation of any person, or threat thereof, or any 4 conduct which threatens or endangers the health, safety, or welfare of any person on College-owned or operated property or at College-sponsored activities. 3. The use of obscene or abusive language or any other means of expression, language, or action which may reasonably be expected to provoke  or encourage physical violence by other persons. 4. The refusal to obey any reasonable or lawful request, order, or directive of a College public safety officer, a teacher, College administrator, or any other identified representative of the College. MCC LEARNING CENTERS 1. Monroe Community College has a number of Learning Centers at Brighton (for example, Accounting, Math, Psychology, Writing, the Electronic Learning Center, etc. ) and at Damon (for example, the Integrated Learning Center, Electronic Learning Center, etc. ). 2. Learning centers are staffed with instructional personnel and may be equipped with computers and software to assist students. 3. It is recommended that students use the Learning Centers to get additional help with concepts learned in the classroom and with their homework. SERVICES FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES 1. Students with a documented learning difficulty should make an appointment with the Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities on the Brighton or Damon Campus to arrange for support services. 2. All deaf or hard of hearing students should contact the Counseling and Advising Center. 3. You must provide the instructor with appropriate documentation regarding accommodations within the first two weeks of class. EMERGENCY CLOSINGS 1. If the College is closed due to inclement weather or some other emergency, all Rochester area radio and television stations will be notified no later than 5:30 a. m. 2. In addition, the homepage on the MCC website (www. monroecc. edu) will display a message indicating the College is closed. 3. Please do not call the College to avoid overloading the telephone lines. 5 6 Student no : 43713009. EDA 201W Ass no : 2 719493 CLASS CANCELLATION To access a list of daily class cancellations, you may 1. Call the Public Safety Department (292-2066) at MCC, press 1 for a list of cancelled classes at Brighton and press 2 for a list of cancelled classes at Damon; 2. Go to the Internet, access MCC, go to the A-Z listing to C for Class Cancellations and see the list of cancellations; 3. Check your student email for a cancellation notice from your instructor 6 COURSE SYLLABUS AGREEMENT Detach and return this signed sheet to Professor Rodriguez. ______________________________________ M00______________________ Student’s Printed Name Student MCC College ID Number COS 133 Section Number: _________ Semester / Year: _____________ The Course Syllabus 1. The Course Syllabus (course information sheet) is a written legal covenant between you and your professor. 2. It clarifies the professor’s expectations and your responsibilities. Your professor expects you to meet deadlines for assignments, papers, projects and tests. 3. It is your responsibility to review the course syllabus and clarify any aspect of the syllabus. Therefore, read it carefully and ask questions you may have about its content. Check the appropriate box. I have read the course information sheet for COS 133 – Introduction to College Studies. I understand my responsibilities for this course. I do not have any questions. I do not understand the requirements stated in the COS 133 Course Information Sheet. I will schedule an appointment to discuss my questions with my professor. List your questions for discussion here: ______________________________________ _____________________ Signature Date 7.

Ratio analysis can help in measuring business performance and setting objectives/ goals Essay

Ratios are calculated from an organisation’s financial statements and are an effective business tool in measuring its performance. By comparing the ratios to those of the previous year it is possible to determine whether a business is doing better this year than last year. It is also possible to compare ratios of one organisation against those of another in a similar industry. This helps identify areas in which one business is either under performing or indeed is out performing another. Undertaking ratio analysis and making comparisons to market leaders within your industry will help focus on areas which require attention. By carefully selecting the most suitable ratios business owners and managers can use the results to gain a better understanding of how their organisation is performing. The same ratios can also be used to set future targets. Ratios are calculated from an organisation’s financial statements and are an effective business tool in measuring its performance. By comparing the ratios to those of the previous year it is possible to determine whether a business is doing better this year than last year. It is also possible to compare ratios of one organisation against those of another in a similar industry. This helps identify areas in which one business is either under performing or indeed is out performing another. Undertaking ratio analysis and making comparisons to market leaders within your industry will help focus on areas which require attention. By carefully selecting the most suitable ratios business owners and managers can use the results to gain a better understanding of how their organisation is performing. The same ratios can also be used to set future targets. Ratios are calculated from an organisation’s financial statements and are an effective business tool in measuring its performance. By comparing the ratios to those of the previous year it is possible to determine whether a business is doing better this year than last year. It is also possible to compare ratios of one organisation against those of another in a similar industry. This helps identify areas in which one business is either under performing or indeed is out performing another. Undertaking ratio analysis and making comparisons to market leaders within your industry will help focus on areas which require attention. By carefully selecting the most suitable ratios business owners and managers can use the results to gain a better understanding of how their organisation is performing. The same ratios can also be used to set future targets.

Influence of Moral Reasoning Essays - Graham Spanier, Jerry Sandusky

Influence of Moral Reasoning Essays - Graham Spanier, Jerry Sandusky Influence of Moral Reasoning CRT/205 April 13, 2014 Captain E.F. Rollins Influence of Moral Reasoning What were the actions taken by the person you chose? Penn State President, Graham Spanier, failed to report alleged incidents in which Penn State football assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky, had inappropriate contact with minors that ranged from groping to anal sex (Amiel, 2011). Spanier chose to ignore these allegations because he did not investigate to see if there was any foundation to these claims. What was the impact of those actions? The impact of Spaniers actions was that these allegations were ignored and left to grow in numbers unchecked. This failure to investigate or report and ignoring the allegations led to Spanier appearing to be guilty of covering up for Sandusky. He appeared to be guilty by association because he did nothing. Another impact of Spaniers actions was that Penn State was portrayed negatively in the press and, therefore, viewed as an unsafe place for children or young adults. If you had held the same position, what action would you have taken? If I had held the position of Penn State President, I would have placed Sandusky on leave of absence and conducted an investigation of these allegations to see if there was any truth in these allegations or if these allegations were just from students that were trying to get back at Sandusky. At the end of my investigation, I would report my findings and the allegations to the police. I would not have covered this up because covering something up makes you appear to be guilty. How did your moral reasoning impact your decision? My moral reasoning impacted my decision in the fact that my moral values are against harming a child in any way whether physically or verbally. I believe that it is wrong to harm defenseless children especially by authority figures since children are taught to respect authority. People in positions of authority that take unfair advantage of children are misusing their authority for their own selfish desires. These predators realize that children are taught to respect authority and are less likely to resist or report the abuse because the children will be scared and feel like it was their fault. REFERENCES Amiel, Barbara. "This isn't the way to protect our children." Maclean's 5 Dec. 2011: 14. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 7 Apr. 2014. Retrieved from http://ic.galegroup.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/ic/ovic/MagazinesDetailsPage/MagazinesDetailsWindow?failOverType=&query=&prodId=OVIC&windowstate=normal&contentModules=&mode=view&displayGroupName=Magazines&limiter=&currPage=&disableHighlighting=false&displayGroups=&sortBy=&search_within_results=&p=OVIC&action=e&catId=&activityType=&scanId=&documentId=GALE%7CA275312158&source=Bookmark&u=uphoenix_uopx&jsid=b028a910b6fe8f269458ce36c476ebda

the shephard essays

the shephard essays Throughout time there has been at least one constant that I am aware of. That constant is art. One particular piece of art stands out and catches the eye. That piece of art is The Shepherdess and Her Flock constructed and perfected by Jean Francois Millet. When one makes a certain judgment on a piece of art, one must be precise and certain about that judgment. When observing Millets piece I will take in to consideration three things to make my judgment: use of color, theme, and meaning. The Shepherdess and Her Flock catches the eye very quickly. The painting consists of a shepherdess tending to her sheep in some remote hills perhaps and most likely in Western Europe. The shepherdess herself is standing just a few paces ahead of her flock while they are all grouped together tightly apparently feeding. She is holding a staff while studying the ground. The look on her face makes her seem like she is disturbed for some unknown reason. The shepherdess is wearing many articles of clothing. Her first layer is blue and reaches down to her ankles. The next layer appears to be some kind of shawl. The shawl is cream colored and only reaches just past her waist. The final piece of clothing is red and only covers her head. The grass beneath the shepherdess, which covers the entire land, has bald spots and contains dandy lions giving it great character. This is the grass on which the flock is feeding on. Watching over the sheep is a shepherd dog stand just to the rig ht of the flock. The dog stands very proudly and has a great pride in his job. The sky in this work is covered entirely with clouds. The only bare spot in the sky is at the very top of the painting where the clouds begin to split. Millets work appears to be set early in the morning. Looking beyond the flock as far as the painting will allow, one can see some hills and trees and perhaps a small village or town. This p ...

Important Facts About the Plateosaurus

Important Facts About the Plateosaurus Plateosaurus was the prototypical prosauropod, the family of small-to-medium sized, occasionally bipedal, plant-eating dinosaurs of the late Triassic and early Jurassic periods that were distantly ancestral to the giant sauropods and titanosaurs of the later Mesozoic Era. Because so many of its fossils have been unearthed across the expanse of Germany and Switzerland, paleontologists believe Plateosaurus roamed the plains of western Europe in sizable herds, literally eating their way across the landscape (and staying well out of the way of comparably sized meat-eating dinosaurs like Megalosaurus). The most productive Plateosaurus fossil site is a quarry near the village of Trossingen, in the Black Forest, which has yielded the partial remains of over 100 individuals. The most likely explanation is that a Plateosaurus herd became mired in deep mud, after a flash flood or a severe thunderstorm, and perished one on top of each other (in much the same way the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles have yielded numerous remains of the Saber-Toothed Tiger and the Dire Wolf, which likely got stuck while trying to pluck out already-mired prey). However, its also possible that some of these individuals accumulated slowly at the fossil site after drowning elsewhere and being carried to their final resting place by the prevailing currents. Features One feature of Plateosaurus that has caused raised eyebrows among paleontologists is the partially opposable thumbs on this dinosaurs front hands. We shouldnt take this as an indication that the (fairly dumb by modern standards) Plateosaurus was well on its way to evolving fully opposable thumbs, which are believed to have been one of the necessary precursors of human intelligence during the late Pleistocene epoch. Rather, its likely that Plateosaurus and other prosauropods evolved this feature in order to better grasp the leaves or small branches of trees, and, absent any other environmental pressures, it wouldnt have developed any further over time. This presumed behavior also explains Plateosaurus habit of occasionally standing on its two hind legs, which would have enabled it to reach higher and tastier vegetation. Classification Like most dinosaurs discovered and named in the mid-19th-century, Plateosaurus has generated a fair amount of confusion. Because this was the first prosauropod ever to be identified, paleontologists had a hard time figuring out how to classify Plateosaurus: one notable authority, Hermann von Meyer, invented a new family called platypodes (heavy feet), to which he assigned not only the plant-eating Plateosaurus but the carnivorous Megalosaurus as well! It wasnt until the discovery of additional prosauropod genera, like Sellosaurus and Unaysaurus, that matters were more or less sorted out, and Plateosaurus was recognized as an early saurischian dinosaur. (Its not even clear what Plateosaurus, Greek for flat lizard, is supposed to mean; it may refer to the flattened bones of the original type specimen.)

Darwinian Evolution of ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Darwinian Evolution of ethics - Essay Example Of these, ethics is the most vulnerable to change as it merges with beliefs, morals, science, religion, and character of each individual. As a result, the evolution of ethics has a direct relationship to what Charles Darwin believes is the human species’ inherent desire to survive in a culture that alters regularly. This ultimately demonstrates that the underlying principle of the evolution of ethical systems remains upon the survival of the human species. Darwin’s stance on morality suggested morality as the evolutionary process’s product. Darwin was of the view that such social instincts as the tendency of humans to display kindness, sympathy, and have an urge for social approbation originate in the human nature. In reality, other social species also constitute the rudiments of such behaviors. Even though, Darwin thought that these instincts tend to contradict the natural selection’s imperatives e.g. the rise of selfless behavior from the selfish genesâ €™ machinations. Among a vast majority of the Darwinian theorists, Darwin was the first to deal with this conundrum. â€Å"Darwin proposed to account for our sociality with a combination of selection for individual reciprocity (reciprocal altruism), "family" selection (a.k.a. kin selection) and "group selection" -- that is, the positive selection of traits which provide an advantage for groups that are in competition with other groups† (Corning). In addition to that, nothing but the human beings possess the true morality because of their ability to superimpose the reasoned constraints of culture upon their motives. Darwinian theses that have implications for moral philosophy include: humans being the natural selection’s product, humans being forged to serve as social organisms by that process, and the presence of an innate moral sense among the mechanisms governing human sociality (Joyce 1). Although the first two theses are not questioned seriously, yet the thesis of moral nativism sparks doubt. However, Darwin has personally approved of all three theses in The Descent of Man. The evolutionary account of moral sense provided by Darwin emphasizes upon the importance of moral emotions, thus overlooking the morality’s essence as pure rationality (Arnhart). Interest in Darwinism’s moral implications rose after the Origin’s publication as the truth of Darwinism was suspected to undermine the traditional ethics. Darwinism’s biological thesis attracted some resistance from its incompatibility with the traditional morality that led to the perception of rejection of Darwinism. The founder of the Social Darwinism ethical system is Herbert Spencer, who argued that the fittest in a proper society are the ones who are successful while the unfit are placed at the bottom. These ideas are challenged today, especially the argument that helping the needy leads to unfavorable consequences since it helps the ones who are demonstrated to be unfit survive (â€Å"Evolution and Ethics†). There was an obvious oversimplification of the adaptation of Spencer to Darwinism to the social situations. Such virulent anti-Darwinian perspective is inspired by social Darwinism and its logical following from the evolutionary theory. However, the ideas of Spencer do not necessarily follow from Darwinism logically. Humans adapt to survive and they do so by creating standards and rules of

No Child Left Behind Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

No Child Left Behind - Essay Example uarantee that every child is skillful in reading skill that is directed for interpretational purpose and mathematical skills for basic and every-day actions. This is to be accomplished by the end of the session 2013–2014 as per the school year. An explanation provided by NCLB regarding this strategy involves various political domains from lower to higher authorities i.e. from schools to district and to state authorities so that children master the skills in every possible manner. This step not only will be of prime significance from the point of view of children but also it is highly imperative step for the development of the nations and therefore qualification of teacher is highly imperative for the success of the strategy formulated under NCLB. Step by step procedures are adopted for assessing adequate yearly progress (AYP) (State and Local Implementation of No Child Left Behind, II & III). No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is a federal law which was established in 2001 to highlight the importance of basic and higher education for every child. The major task of this law is to exhibit aptitude and advancement according to answerability criterions set by the country and accepted or permitted the Department of Education of United States (Accountability Resource Center Hawaii). The law necessitates states to execute a system that is responsible enough to measure the progress and performance of the system in development of the child. For instance, a responsible system to measure Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in mathematics, reading skills, contribution and aptitude. It also encompasses the way teacher teaches and how qualified the teacher is to teach and meet the standard. These accomplishments are reported annually at the individual level, school level and also at the state level (Accountability Resource Center Hawaii). NCLB was implemented as a law in January 2002 as "An Act to close the achievement gap with accountability, flexibility, and choice, so that no

Career Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Career Plan - Essay Example In this respect, graduates possessing degree in FCS are facilitated with the opportunity of building an effective career in different professional areas relating to dietetics, hospitality, education, communication and interior design among others. Additionally, individuals after the completion of their FCS course are recognized to have high career demand in the present job market. (Iowa State University, â€Å"Family and Consumer Sciences Education and Studies (FCEdS)†). In this context, I have planned to pursue course in FCS with the aim of possessing better career opportunities. Professionals with FCS graduates have developed their career path successfully with a better competitive position. The FCS professionals are also facilitated with the opportunity of having better career options in their career life owing to diversified specialization options. Presently, graduates on completion of FCS course are able to build successful career path with better job security as well as sustainability. I am an undergraduate student at present and I have planned to pursue graduate degree course in the field of FCS with the intention of having better career opportunities after completion of graduate degree. I have planned to develop a career in FCS, as the course program will aid me in developing skill sets in different areas that include communication, creativity, critical thinking and collaboration. Subsequently, the skill sets acquired from FCS course are mostly demanded in job market. The coursework and skill sets will also facilitate me in enhancing life quality of different individuals. Additionally, the course will also aid in building interrelationship amid people within communities in different economic, physical as well as social environment. The report published by the ‘U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) signified that graduates in FCS pursuing profession as nutritionists as well as dietitians are

Marketing Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Marketing Strategy - Essay Example Marina Bay Sands targeted the ‘Meetings, incentives, conventions and events’ and business travellers as their major markets but the hotel is now aiming at the family and leisure markets as well. The hotel appears to be entirely matching with regard to their products, experience offered and their facilities. For this reason, they appear to be attracting and containing quite distinguishable market segments. Therefore, for future markets, the economic growth and population growth in China implies that China is no longer a huge and poor market. Marina Bay Sands like many other companies should now try to locate and target the most outstanding market for them (Jauhari and Rishi, 2012). This is because previous studies of China economy have not entirely acknowledged the remarkable growth of the middle class. Research done using data from Asia Pacific and MasterCard Worldwide showed that middle class reached 87 million by 2005 from just about zero ten years ago, and is expected to rise to 340 million by 2016. This means that the middle class will occupy the 60 percent of China’s urban households by 2016 which already clocked 39% by 2006. The other markets that constitute notable target include Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam (Cui and Song, 2009:38-41). Over the years brand positioning has also been an essential part of marketing strategy and thus, the hotel industry has accepted and embraced its value in marketing and in particular when there is extensive brand segmentation. Just like several others Marina Bay Sands has developed multiple brands in order to serve multiple market segments (Burkard, 2011). This strategy of segmentation involves the idea that the brand name is a component of the process of illustrating tangibility to what basically appears intangible. This provides a shorthand way of setting up a particular property’s value when a customer is given significant information about the service or product. With resp ect to this, the brand’s quality is based on the awareness of the potential quests, their perception of the quality and the overall satisfaction of the customers. This concept that brand positioning provides added value to both the hotel and quests, is what a reasonable growth of brand positioning relies on. When hotel brand is managed well, the hotel tends to get a rising market share from a corporate strategy point of view. Cai and Hobson (2004) say that a brand can create a distinguishable identity by establishing a given set of promises to its customers where functional features of the products are not considerably differentiated. A personality that a brand creates may be relevant reason for a consumer to select one brand over the other. A brilliant brand personality is likely to make the brand more tangible thus reducing the intangibility associated with the hotel industry. Since there is the idea that brand positioning creates a personality for an intangible unit it is, therefore, related to the consumer emotions. Burkard (2011) explains that these emotional connections to a brand come about in part from the promises mentioned above. This means that the customers rely on brand names so that they can minimise the risk that is associated with unknown brands. Therefore, the hotel’

Role of Strategic Entrepreneurship in forming Temporary Competitive Dissertation

Role of Strategic Entrepreneurship in forming Temporary Competitive Advantage resulting in Value Creation - Dissertation Example rce orchestration 36 2.8 Theory construct of entrepreneurship 37 2.9 Theory construct of strategic entrepreneurship 38 2.10 Conceptual framework 40 2.11 The association between strategic entrepreneurship and competitive Advantage 43 2.12 Limitations of prior research 44 2.13 Summary 44 3 Research methodology 46 3.1 Introduction 46 3.2 Research philosophy and approach 47 3.2.1 Positivism 47 3.2.2 Deductive approach 49 3.3 Research strategy for qualitative and quantitative research 50 3.2.1 Qualitative research approach 50 3.2.2 Quantitative research approach 52 3.2.3 Biases in using case study, qualitative methods quantitative methods 53 3.3.4 Eliminating biases in case study methods, qualitative methods and quantitative methods 54 3.4 Research method and design 55 3.4.1 Case study 55 3.4.2 Interview 56 3.4.3 Survey 56 3.4.4 Observation 58 3.5 Sampling 59 3.5.1 The sample size 60 3.5.2 Simple random sampling 60 3.6 Data collection and analysis procedures 60 3.6.1 Structural equation m odeling 61 3.7 Summary 62 References 64 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Michael Porter promotes the idea that in order to grab hold of competitive advantage, competitive strategies are necessary for a certain organization to realize its corporate goal that would lead the firm to become a cut above the other (Porter 34). Porter tries to justify this point by embarking on the potential theoretical concepts associated with how a firm would achieve its competitive position in its industry or marketplace. As long as competitive advantage is a primary consideration, there is a relevant truth pertaining to the ultimate capacity of competitive strategies to help an organization realize its prevailing plans and objectives, as it could be either defensive or offensive actions that could ensure defendable position in the industry (Porter 34). The existence of competitive strategies is common everywhere today because of the tough competition, particularly in the realm of business. Strategic entrepreneur ship is one detailed subject in this area, where strategic management perspectives are present in order to pursue sound and excellent entrepreneurship for an existing firm’s competitive advantage, the very reason why many studies surfaces in order to understand why other firms generated successful performance and others do not (Rezaian and Naeiji 3). Strategic entrepreneurship is a common theme especially in the age of global economy, by which the organizations have the chance to explore a vast stretch of market area. Competition has become so tough, but one ultimate way out in order to make a difference is to secure a move towards strategic entrepreneurship to achieve competitive advantage. This is relevant to some existing companies at present where they initiated global strategic alliance for instance in order to define more critical point of doing entrepreneurship that would make a difference in their industry or specific market niche. They have strong orientation towards competitive advan

Western Civ Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Western Civ - Essay Example However, this failed because the powers of the Europeans were limited. The New Imperialism occurred between the periods of 1870 to 1914. This followed the increasing interests of the industrialized European nations to venture more into other nations and colonize them. The New Imperialism majorly focused on Africa as well as Asia (Canterbury, 2010). During the period of New Imperialism, these two continents were faced with several political challenges involving decline in empires as well as wars. These left them so vulnerable thereby enabling the superior nations to colonize them. New Imperialism was caused by several reasons. These causes can be categorized into economic causes, social causes and political causes (Canterbury, 2010). Economically, there was need for the superior nations to access more natural resources and exploit them from such colonies. This meant that such countries with such resources had to be colonized in order for such countries to gain access to those resources. The other economic reason that led to New Imperialism is the need to create new markets for the goods from the colonizers (Canterbury, 2010). This aimed at expanding the market bases of the colonizers thereby contributing to strong economies back in their countries of origin. The colonies were to provide this market to the colonizers thereby informing the rise of New Imperialism. The New Imperialism also arose due to the need for the growing population in the superior countries to get places for settlement (Canterbury, 2010). The population pressure back in their countries of origin forced them to colonize other countries thereby expanding their territories. This follows that as a population increases, the place to accommodate such increases become limited. Therefore, there was need to expand the territories to accommodate the increase in population. The colonizers had massive and superior weapons that aided them in conquering the

Role of Strategic Entrepreneurship in forming Temporary Competitive Dissertation

Role of Strategic Entrepreneurship in forming Temporary Competitive Advantage resulting in Value Creation - Dissertation Example rce orchestration 36 2.8 Theory construct of entrepreneurship 37 2.9 Theory construct of strategic entrepreneurship 38 2.10 Conceptual framework 40 2.11 The association between strategic entrepreneurship and competitive Advantage 43 2.12 Limitations of prior research 44 2.13 Summary 44 3 Research methodology 46 3.1 Introduction 46 3.2 Research philosophy and approach 47 3.2.1 Positivism 47 3.2.2 Deductive approach 49 3.3 Research strategy for qualitative and quantitative research 50 3.2.1 Qualitative research approach 50 3.2.2 Quantitative research approach 52 3.2.3 Biases in using case study, qualitative methods quantitative methods 53 3.3.4 Eliminating biases in case study methods, qualitative methods and quantitative methods 54 3.4 Research method and design 55 3.4.1 Case study 55 3.4.2 Interview 56 3.4.3 Survey 56 3.4.4 Observation 58 3.5 Sampling 59 3.5.1 The sample size 60 3.5.2 Simple random sampling 60 3.6 Data collection and analysis procedures 60 3.6.1 Structural equation m odeling 61 3.7 Summary 62 References 64 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Michael Porter promotes the idea that in order to grab hold of competitive advantage, competitive strategies are necessary for a certain organization to realize its corporate goal that would lead the firm to become a cut above the other (Porter 34). Porter tries to justify this point by embarking on the potential theoretical concepts associated with how a firm would achieve its competitive position in its industry or marketplace. As long as competitive advantage is a primary consideration, there is a relevant truth pertaining to the ultimate capacity of competitive strategies to help an organization realize its prevailing plans and objectives, as it could be either defensive or offensive actions that could ensure defendable position in the industry (Porter 34). The existence of competitive strategies is common everywhere today because of the tough competition, particularly in the realm of business. Strategic entrepreneur ship is one detailed subject in this area, where strategic management perspectives are present in order to pursue sound and excellent entrepreneurship for an existing firm’s competitive advantage, the very reason why many studies surfaces in order to understand why other firms generated successful performance and others do not (Rezaian and Naeiji 3). Strategic entrepreneurship is a common theme especially in the age of global economy, by which the organizations have the chance to explore a vast stretch of market area. Competition has become so tough, but one ultimate way out in order to make a difference is to secure a move towards strategic entrepreneurship to achieve competitive advantage. This is relevant to some existing companies at present where they initiated global strategic alliance for instance in order to define more critical point of doing entrepreneurship that would make a difference in their industry or specific market niche. They have strong orientation towards competitive advan

Inevitably is always better than large organizations at making Essay

Inevitably is always better than large organizations at making innovations - Essay Example Small and medium-sized enterprises are business enterprises which are seen to variously exhibit some common characteristics, which are; these business enterprises employ an average of up to about 250 employees, they have an annual turnover that is approximated as being not more than ?50 million and their management is also seen as largely independent in addition to being free from any outside control and influence in taking various principal decisions (European Commission, 2013). The Role/Place of Small and Medium-sized Business Enterprises in the Economy SMEs are important to all the different economies in the world, this is especially so to those economies found in the world’s developing countries that happen to be struggling with income distribution and employment challenges. During the 1980s, the total turnover, stocks and employment in most of the firms operating a wide range of business activities and services in the United Kingdom was seen to record spectacular growth. This growth was witnessed in the operations of all the large and small business enterprises. ... The number of SMEs within the United Kingdom has managed to record rapid growth during both the 1980s and the 1990s with estimates showing growth margins of from 57 percent to an average of 67 percent (Analoui and Karami 2003). The United Kingdom’s over 3.7 million SMEs are approximated to account for about 40 percent of the country’s total GDP. The SMEs also generate an annual turn over of about one trillion pounds in addition to employing approximately over 12 million people. Of the 2.3 million jobs that were created in the United Kingdom by the formation of new businesses between the years ranging from 1995 through to 1999, SMEs account for about 85 percent of this figure while they also accounted for more than 50 percent of the more than 3.5 million jobs that were gained as companies in the United Kingdom expanded over the same time period (Analoui and Karami 2003). Despite small firms accounting for such a large portion of the country’s GDP, Britain has been show to be relatively poorly endowed with small firms (Nelson, 1993). As a consequence of the trend showing constant growth of SME’s both in the United Kingdom and the world, SMEs have been noted as accounting for an average of about 99 percent of all businesses in the United Kingdom, while globally, SMEs are seen to account for business enterprise in excess of 99 percent of all the businesses that have been established. It is due to this that SME are considered to be the largest contributor to both the gross domestic product and the employment rates of all the countries in the world (Nwankwo and Gbadamosi, 2010). In order for SMEs to compete successfully and improve their chances of

Bottom Of Pyramid Market Business Essay

Bottom Of Pyramid Market Business Essay This paper traces the development of concepts related to the Bottom of the Pyramid which are described as a poverty alleviation perspective. The BOP thesis states that multinational companies (MNCs) can reach profitability and help to eradicate poverty, at the same time, by designing and implementing sustainable solutions for the BOP consumers. At the same time, numerous academics and business managers have suggested that rather than focusing on the poor as consumers, MNCs have to view the poor as producers, and started by increasing their income to reduce poverty. The number of people who occupying the lowest tier in the worlds economic pyramid has been estimated to be between 3 and 4.5 billion. However, multinational companies are currently unfamiliar with the BOP market and the tendency is that MNCs ignore the BOP market and prefers to focus on markets already developed. This gives an indication of the existence of a weakness that can potentially disrupt innovations in the BOP market. Hence, the main objective of this paper is to identify the particular challenges that companies found in the BOP market and in what forms innovation thrives in BOP markets. The literature review of this paper is mainly based on journal articles published in peer-reviewed journals related to innovations at the BOP and on case studies of companies which have implemented BOP projects. Keywords: Bottom Of Pyramid Market Innovations at Bottom Of Pyramid Sustainable Product Design Declaration I declare that I have personally prepared this article and that it has not in whole or in part been submitted for any other degree or qualification. Nor has it appeared in whole or in part in any textbook, journal or any other document previously published or produced for any purpose. The work described here is my own, carried out personally unless otherwise stated. All sources of information, including quotations are acknowledged by means of reference. C:UsersSà ©bastienPictures3 Identità ©Signature (2).JPG Sà ©bastien Escalier Nottingham Trent University, UK Introduction (700 words) General Area This paper explores the theological roots of the BOP market theory and the current trends in multinational company to venture into these markets. Influenced by some ideas drawn from the work of Prahalad on Bottom of Pyramid, the author has tried to put in perspective the issue of innovation in developing countries. Since the mists of time many people have reflected and worked on the issue of poverty, Mandela (2005, p.3) argues that like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is manmade and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. Even earlier it has been argued (Ghandi 1940) that poverty was the worst form of violence. But the sentence Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) was first introduced by Roosevelt, on the 7th of April 1932 in his radio address: The forgotten Man. Later, in the late 1990s Prahalad and Hart from the University of Michigan have suggested that multinational corporation companies (MNCs) can help to reduce the poverty. They defend the idea that if multinational companies create suitable and affordable product for the low-income people, they can both help reduce poverty and generate new benefits. Then, they have introduced the concept of Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP), which refers to the 4 billion people living on an income of 3 US $ or less per day in purchasing power parity (PPP) (Prahalad, 2004). However, although this concept has generated a strong interest in the corporate world and in lot of academia, the reality of this idea remains controversial (Karnani, 2007). During the last twenty years, the economic debate on solutions to the problem of poverty in developing countries has left an increasingly important role for the private initiatives (like NGOs, microfinance or social entrepreneurship for example). But poverty stays at an unacceptable level across the globe with over 1.4 billion people living below the poverty line of 1.25 dollars per day in purchasing power parity (PPP) (Chen Ravaillon, 2008) and it exists a big contrast with the approximately 500 million people who live at the top of the Economic Pyramid with an average purchasing power of more than US$ 10,000 per year (see Rocchi 2006). Specific Area Nowadays, the context in which the MNCs operate experiences very important changes and the idea of the BoP as virgin market, easy to conquer by the company, has disappeared. Issues related to environmental sustainability or social responsibility of companies is more and more ubiquitous (Diamond 2005). Whether through consumer pressure or through government regulation, companies can no longer ignore these trends. In this context of questioning of the conventional business models, ideas of Prahalad and Hart around the wealth at the base of the pyramid have interested many multinational companies, and we have seen a proliferation of initiatives of these ones to attempt to penetrate this market set aside. These initiatives have as the main objective to obtain knowledge of the market and generate long-term benefits, but they are also part of the issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR), because they incorporate social aspects to developing countries. Thus, in most cases the BoP initiatives use a social partner. However, we can separate the social businesses and the projects managed as usual projects of the company. On one side, in Bangladesh, the Grameen Danone Food and Limited (GFDL) project aims to reduce poverty by providing access to healthy food, an innovative business model that relies on the creation of health yogurt micro-factories. The company Veolia have also created a project which consists in the selling of clean water in Bangladesh, where the water is naturally enriched in arsenic. Both projects are focused on the reputation of the business in question, and are directly related to consumers (B2C). They are defined as social businesses and they have received the support of Yunus, Nobel Prize for Peace in 2006 and known for having founded the first microcredit institution: the Grameen Bank. On the other hand, some companies have developed new business models with local contractors. These projects are slightly more discreet, because companies are addressed to an intermediary and ask him to go out of his usual scope of action (B2B). In India, in 2004, the optical firm Essilor has established partnerships with local hospitals by financing other ophthalmic test series in landlocked regions, the company also offer eyeglasses for less than 5 euros in this area. In 2009, Schneider Electric, the world specialist in energy, has developed the BipBop Program (Business, Innovation People at the Base of the Pyramid). This program aims to provide access to green energy to billions of people who use kerosene lamps, in developing more local and more individualized solutions. Research question However, as they still know little about the BOP market, large companies are few to engage in this type of large-scale projects and must continually learn to succeed in developing appropriate solutions. This subject of innovation at the bottom of the pyramid will be the focus of this journal article. The starting point is the paradox which can be observed at the BOP between the real creation of suitable products and the return to more basic products. Thus, on the one hand, Schneider Electric has succeeded in developing a new LED lamp: In-Diya, for poor people who have little access to electricity in India, an innovative lighting solution which is reliable and affordable. But on the other hand, the Grameen Danone production unit in Bangladesh is based on plans that are no longer used since a long time in developed countries, therefore a solution that was not designed exclusively for the BOP market. The company Essilor doing the same thing because it also reserves its most basic eyewear models for the projects in India. The reality is more complex than this first observation. However it highlights the issue of the place and the form of innovation in the BOP strategies, topic that will be studied here. To investigate this question, the author begins with some background by describing the key concepts of the base of the pyramid market and its main characteristics. The specific challenges that companies face which approach this market will lead the author to consider what forms of innovation are developed in this market. Having consider this, and to demonstrate that innovation is possible in these parts of the world, the author will draw on case studies of multinational companies, such as Danone or Schneider Electric which have implemented BOP projects. To put in perspective the issue of innovation in developing countries, the link between innovation in developed and developing countries will be addressed. Having shown this interplay between innovation in developing countries and developed countries the author will explain in a conclusion the issue of innovation in the global economy of the world.