Monday, September 30, 2019

Principals-Agents’ Conflict of Interest

Principals (shareholders) – agent (managers) problem represents the conflict of interest between management and owners. For example, if shareholders cannot effectively monitor the managers’ behaviour, then managers may be tempted to use the firm’s assets for their own ends, all at the expenses of shareholders. Discuss the pros and cons of this statement with regard to duties of Board of Directors. Most organisations these days are no more owned by their managers. This separation of ownership and management gives rise to what is called agency relationship. Jensen and Meckling (1976) define the agency relationship as â€Å"a contract under which one party (the principal) engages another party (agent) to perform the some services on their behalf. As part of this, the principal will delegate some decision making authority to the agent â€Å". However, it is important to mention that this relationship is not always peaceful and harmonious; rather, it usually raises some agency problems commonly called conflict of interests between shareholders and managers of the company. These conflicts occur when a person i. . the manager has an obligation not to act in his own personal interest but in another person’s interest i. e. the shareholders. This means that in whatever situation, managers must prioritise shareholders’ benefits. But is this commitment always respected in principals-agents relationships? Hopefully, between these two groups, is the board of directors; directors who are elected by shareholders to act as their representatives by monitoring and controlling managers tasks and ensuring they are in line with shareholders’ expectations. With clear evidence that conflicts of interest are almost unavoidable in any agency relationships, an attempt will be made will be made to get an insight into that issue with regards to board of directors duties. Brennan (1994) states that â€Å" agency problems emanate from the arrangement where the interests of the agents differ substantially from those of the principals because of the impossibility of perfectly contracting for every possible action of the agents whose decisions affect both his welfare and the welfare of the principal â€Å". Therefore, this raises the issue of finding ways to motivate managers to solely act in the best interest of shareholders. However, in a world where the labour market is becoming more and more imperfect and competitive, managers will be more concerned with their personal benefits at the expense of shareholders’ benefits. Since they are the one taking care of the day-to-day activities of the company, they know better than anyone any single details about how the various tasks are being performed and how that affects the company. Therefore, they might be tempted to take advantage of that by consuming some of the organisation’s resources in the form of lavish perquisites such as airplanes. Agency conflicts imply that shareholders wealth maximisation is being subordinated in managers’ goals for the company. Clear evidence of this assumption could be that top level managers are more worried about increasing their salaries, raising their status within the company, creating more opportunities for lower managers or assuring their job security and to achieve all this, their main objective could rather be to enlarge the firm by creating more subsidiaries. Such an action could produce results that do not necessarily maximise the value of the organisation for shareholders, rather, management welfare. We can notice that in conflict of interest, agents are mostly interested in achieving objectives that they feel will be profitable to them, but which are not necessarily or directly for the sake of shareholders. This occurs as a result of the distance created between the shareholders and the management team which prevent the former to effectively monitor and control managers’ behaviour. If agents do things that hurt principals, why don’t they take strong actions against that? In order to remedy to this situation, shareholders rely among others on the board of directors which they elect to look out for their interests and protect them for financial losses due to inadequate managerial actions. Bonazzi L. , Islam (2007) defines the function of the board as a â€Å" collective responsibility to determine the company’s purpose and â€Å"ethics†, to decide the direction, i. e. the strategy; to plan; to monitor and control managers and CEO activities, then to report and make recommendations to shareholders â€Å". To achieve this, they are expected to act in accordance with their four main duties which involve: the fiduciary duty, the duty of loyalty, the duty of confidentiality and the duty of care. In performing their fiduciary duties, directors assumes two roles, the first one as an â€Å"agent† which means acting on behalf of shareholders and the second one as a â€Å"trustee† which means they are in charge of controlling the organisation assets so they have to act â€Å" bona fide â€Å" which means in good faith towards the company; acting only within the scope of their powers and uniquely for the purpose that benefits the business and to avoid being involved in conflict between personal and the company’s interest. First and foremost, the board has as duty to govern the organisation by designing broad policies, and objectives which are intended to provide managers with guidance on how they are expected to run the business, i. e. prioritizing principals’ benefits, and, where they are expected to take the firm to in terms of increasing its value. They must continuously review the performance of the chief executive to ensure that managerial actions are in line with shareholders wishes and given that they are accountable to the former, they have to report to them about the overall organisational performance. Regarding their duty of loyalty, directors must prevent conflict of interest by avoiding transactions which may generate a potential conflict; those transactions according to Professor Bernard S. Black of Standford Law School in an article entitled The principal Fiduciary Duties of Boards of Directors are called â€Å" self-dealing â€Å" transactions. Representing at the same time the boss to one extend and the subordinate to another extend, directors must make sure never to act in ways that will harm either the shareholders or the executives, treat both parties with care and respect and try to make good decisions i. . that will compromise none of the parties, but which will be profitable to the firm. Also, board members have the duty to keep private all dealings, matters and information from the board meeting and the company in order to avoid the disclosure or misuse of information which may lead to a conflict. From the study of board members duties, we can state that companies’ corporate governance rests mostly on their shoulders. So, when effective, it permits the realisation of corporate objectives, risk management, the reduction of agency problems and an increase in the value of the firm. Despite the fact that conflict of interest is quite an obvious issue between shareholders and managers, it is important to keep in mind that the former are the owners of the business and thus, have great powers on the company; for instance through their voting rights at the annual shareholders meeting where they might decide â€Å"to vote with their feet† i. . selling their shares, exposing the organisation to a potential takeover that will lead managers to lose their job. Consequently, managers must at least try to satisfy their principals by aligning their actions and decisions with shareholders expectations; as well as must principals induce their agents to work for their best interest. To achieve this, they must incur some agency costs. In the 1976 Journal of Finance paper by Michael Jensen and William Meckling, it is stated that â€Å"there are three major types of agency costs: (1) expenditures to monitor managerial activities, such as audit costs; (2) expenditure to structure the organisation in a way that will limit undesirable managerial behaviour, such as appointing outside members to the board of directors or restructuring the company’s business units and management hierarchy; and (3) opportunity costs which are incurred when shareholder-imposed restrictions, such as requirements for shareholder votes on specific issues, limit the ability of managers to take actions that advance shareholder wealth†. In a nutshell, conflict of interest is a real fact in every business. Principal-agent relationship can be viewed as complex in terms of how exactly agents are expected to act towards their principals. Obviously, their acts must always be aimed at serving shareholders interest, but this statement seems to imply that either principals’ interests are always morally acceptable or managers might act unethically provided they fulfil shareholders’ expectations. Virtually, all corporate code of ethics addresses conflict of interest because it interferes with the ability of employees to act in the best interest of the firm. The fact is that, the agent is expected to act solely for the benefit of the principal in all matters and situations, yet, the kind of situation or dilemma the agent might be called upon to act in his principal interest are not easily predictable or identified. As optimal solution, it would be advantageous for both parties if they could work in concert prioritising the success of the organisation, and trying to satisfy as much as possible each group’s benefits, because it would help avoiding or at least reducing potential conflict of interest.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Narrative Report Girl Scout Essay

INTRODUCTION The Girls Scout of the Philippines Visayas Regional Junior, Senior and Cadet Encampment was held at Marina Yulo-Vargas Regional Program and Training Center or Commonly known as Camp Marina, Located at Capitol Hills, Cebu City last October 22-27, 2014. GSP is indeed a labor of love, sacrifices and dedication of the combined effort of scouters, adult leaders, school administration and the council for the purpose of the following: 1. Acquiring new learning experience with the opportunity to develop sel-stem, confidence, creativity and life skills, 2. Discover and enhance their full potential and learn to relate with other girls in camp, 3. Acquire knowledge and skills on first aid and emergency preparedness with the opportunity to respond real situation that require them to use basic human survival skills, 4. Stimulate real enjoyment and appreciation of the out-of-doors through varied and interesting activities offered during the encampment. Southern Leyte Council registered 16 senior girl scout and 5 adult leaders headed by one council executive Marlita D. Corollo. The campers must be physical fit; must have earned at least one badge each under the challenge of environment, preparedness, Arts, eco-self-sufficiency, Heritage and Citizenship; and she must attended a troop/patrol camp/ provincial camp prior to this encampment. The encampment covers six (6) days of staying under the forest, sleeping on the tent with series of challenges and activities everyday. DAY TO DAY ACTIVITIES DAY 1, OCTOBER 22, 2014 (WEDNESDAY) ARRIVAL†¦. MORNING: The central staff welcomes the delegates and gives directions on how the campers could reach their sub-camps. Each sub-camps director guides and directs the campers under her jurisdiction to reach our respective area. Markers are used to designate the area for each delegation. Southern Leyte Council belongs to sub-camp Milagros together with Ilo-ilo, Negros Oriental and Northern Samar. Each council was responsible for making our area comfortable. We were put up tents, gadgets as part of the layout. We put some caption at the entrance of our area to identify the council we belong. Everyone were helping each other and do the task well in building our tent and making our area accommodating and comfortable. The head of the Southern Leyte Council were registering the girls with the secretariat. After registration the campers proceed to our area for the lunch. AFTERNOON: Medical re-check shall be done on the first day afternoon. The adult leaders were lead the campers to the infirmary area and present their Health Examination Forms to the Camp Physician upon examination to make sure that the campers were physically fit for the series of challenges and activities. EVENING: The orientation was given by the central staff. The details about the program of activities, food services, accommodation, management and other services as well as the camp mechanics were thoroughly explained by the staff in that orientation. The campers were feel free to ask questions if they were need further clarification on certain matters. DAY 2 OCTOBER 23, 2014 (THURSDAY) MORNING: At 7:30 AM the campers were in the grounds for the rehearsal of the opening ceremony, because they were forming 50 which represent 50 year anniversary  of Camp Marina.  At 9:00 AM the campers were in the actual area wearing their type A uniform for the Opening Ceremony. The central staff was sitting on the stage together with the guest speaker while the scouters and the adult leaders were on the ground forming 50. Each council was required to introduce their troop in the form of yell. The ceremony was ended at 12:00 noon. AFTERNOON: The first activity was all about Emergency Preparedness. It was held at the administration building. They were teach us on what to do during emergency, what are the things to prepare before the typhoon and other calamities come. After the discussion, we were doing the drill. EVENING: After taking our supper we proceed immediately on the covered court for the Council Extravaganza. Each council are required to present one presentation. For the Southern Leyte Council, a modern dance number were presented headed by the Dulfo twin sister. DAY 3 OCTOBER 24, 2014 (FRIDAY) MORNING: At exactly eight o’clock we were already at the covered court because the girls were very excited to do the activity no.2 which was all about ballroom dancing. The first move that the dance instructor taught us was the chacha, next in line was boggie, followed by zumba. That time I think, we were burn 1000 calories, fats and lipids because of so many sweats comes out from our body and so much fun. AFTERNOON: Activity no. 3 was the handicraft. At the back of the National Equipment Services (NES) building is a small auditorium, where the handicraft activity was held. Each girl were given a task to make any accessories using the  given accessories paraphernalia. Most of our girls make bracelets and some of them make necklace. EVENING: The most awaited part of the camping is the campfire. Everybody was gathered in front of the covered court to witness the campfire. Every sub-camp were required tp present a dance number which represent the culture and tradition of the place where they belong. The sub-camp 1 present a sinulog dance festival, the sub-camp 2 were present an ati-atihan festival and the sub camp 3 where we belong presents dinagyang festival. The girls from So. Leyte council wearing a type B uniform with malong, barefooted joined the dinagyang festival together with Ilo-ilo and the rest of the members of the sub-camp. The fire was lighted by the Regional Executive Director Mrs. Aida Saromines together with Mrs Ruth T. Jarantilla the Regional Vice Chairperson. DAY 4 OCTOBER 25, 2014 (SATURDAY) MORNING: Right after the breakfast of the girls they were proceeds to the top of the hill to perform the activity no. 4 which was all about mural painting. Southern Leyte was represented by Anna Henli and our very own Daphne Doris Jacka to do the mural painting while the other girls were the assistants and observer of their painting. The whole morning was not enough to do the task. The two were going down to take their lunch. AFTERNOON: After eating, the two were go back to work immediately, but trouble were happen because one of the girl from Maasin City change the work of Anna and Daphne totally while they were taking their lunch in the tent, this made the whole council shocked. Tears was falling down on the face of the two because many people were admired the work of Anna and Daphne but suddenly it was change by Inna. Until such time that the allotted time for mural painting  was up, so they do not have a chance to change it back. Sadness†¦..sadness†¦.sadness†¦. occur in the camp. At 5:00 o’clock we were going again to the top to attend the Holy mass which was an anticipated Sunday mass. EVENING: Inter-camp Visit was the event for that night but the girls are seems not interested anymore due to the trouble that had happen in that afternoon. The adult leaders were encourages the girls to nevermind that trouble because that was part of growing up and still do the task and perform it well. DAY 5 OCTOBER 26, 2014 (SUNDAY) MORNING: As early as five thirty our girls were ready for the scouts own. It is a solemn ceremony for the Girl Scout.  Right after the ceremony, we were took our breakfast immediately because we were excited for the tour which was the last activity of the encampment. Before seven o’clock we were on the top of the hill waiting for the bus to take us a ride for the tour. We were passing by the Cebu Capitol and Pari-an. The first place that we visit was the Fort San Pedro, commonly known as â€Å"Plaza Independencia† Then the next stop was Sto. Nià ±o de Cebu, then going to the South to visit the Chapel of Pedro Calungsod, and the last was the roaming around the Ayala Center of Cebu. While touring ourselves, everybody were so much fun, enjoyed and busy on taking pictures†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Click†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦click†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦click†¦.. AFTERNOON: Back to the camp at almost 1 o’clock, and take our lunch from Jollibee. Chicken joy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ hhhmmm†¦ yummy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. At two o’clock the closing ceremony was done†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Then home sweet home†¦. Joining the Visayas Regional Junior, Senior and Cadet Encampment was so fantastic and awesome experience which we will never forget forever. Through this memorable experience we were grow towards a responsible girl scout and become a better person and a good leader soon†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ It is indeed a labor of love, sacrifice and dedication.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Governing carbon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Governing carbon - Essay Example Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Administration. Contempt of all facts, the cause of failure is still strange. In this incident, 87 birds and 53 marine mammals have expired. Response Officials confirmed that an extra 58 live birds and 40 marine mammals have been saved (CNN). Until now, 12,167 gallons of oily water has been reclaimed from the Pacific Ocean. Workers have taken out more than 5,000 cubic yards of petroleum-contaminated dirt, sand and vegetation (CNN). This paper argues that fossil fuels are responsible for much of the environmental damage, and that public subsidizing of fuel companies is adding to the dilemma. It is evident that global warming, air quality deterioration, oil spills and acid rain are increasing the environmental damage caused by fossil fuels. These problems exist because of our dependence on fossil fuels. Heat ensnaring gases are the most important reason of increasing temperature globally. These heat trapping gases are produced by burning of fossil fuels. Coal is the root cause of asthma and other health troubles. It ruins the atmosphere and discharges toxic mercury in an area. When fossil fuels are burned several gases are produced. Carbon dioxide is one of the most critical gases evolved. It traps more heat inside the earths atmosphere. Most of the studies have claimed that over the last 150 years, burning fossil fuels has resulted in more than a 25 percent rise in the amount of carbon dioxide in our environment.  Coal-fired power plants are considered one of the largest sources of greenhouse gases.  After 1800, there came a surprising and drastic change in temperat ure in the atmosphere. Most of the researchers have indicated that if the carbon dioxide remains increasing at this level and speed, then our planet will become warmer in the next centuries. Air pollution occurs when air in the atmosphere gets contaminated with toxic substances,

Friday, September 27, 2019

Subprime Loane Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Subprime Loane - Research Paper Example It is not the interest rate corresponding to the loan itself. â€Å"Subprime† denotes any type of loan which does not satisfy the prime guidelines of a loan. Subprime lending is a process of making loans or lending money to the borrowers who are not qualified to be given loan at the market interest rates because of their low credit ratings (Bahin, 2007). Both the borrowers and the lenders find themselves in a riskier position as a result of subprime lending. It is so because such lending is characterized by poor credit rating, high amount of interest rates associated with it, and unfavorable financial situations. The mortgage brokers played an important role in the rise and fall of financing related to subprime mortgages. The competition corresponding to the subprime loans increased as a result of increasing demand of Mortgage Backed Securities (MBSs) sought by the investment banks. The lenders were observed to be involved in activities of introducing innovative financial prod ucts which seemed to be attractive to the borrowers, and the latter were thus becoming more and more interested to borrow money from the lenders. If we consider the job responsibilities of mortgage brokers, it can be observed that they had to perform the activities related to identifying the borrowers, receiving an application for loan from the borrowers, assessing their credit worthiness, evaluating their income-to-debt ratios, and then finally sending the borrowers to the lender who meets all the criteria. However, it is worth mentioning that all these activities and processes followed by the mortgage brokers did not correspond to the actual plan. The mortgage brokers received emoluments in the form of commissions and, therefore, it worked as an incentive for them to earn greater commissions by sending even the prime credit borrowers to the subprime lenders. Even the people who had little knowledge about MBSs were attracted to them because of the increasing demand for them in the market. There were not even any kinds of licensing requirements for a person to become a mortgage broker (Sanders, 2002). All these factors led to the emergence of mortgage brokers in the market and had an impact on lowering their reputations. The lenders were exposed to such a huge number of participants in the mortgage industry that many of the borrowers received loans who should never have been lent money because they were to face financial problems while repaying the loans received by them. Based on the above evaluation of the situation it can be concluded that besides some of the minor incidents, certain specific individuals like mortgage brokers cannot be blamed for the downfall of the overall subprime mortgage lending process. The blame should actually go to the regulatory authorities and government institutions which failed to oversee the situation beforehand, to different corporate misdeeds, motivation to earn more profits, and also, to a large extent, to the borrowers them selves. Question 2 Incentive contracts or managerial incentives in a corporate organization mainly correspond with the agency theory and the problems associated with it. Jensen and Meckling (1976) are commonly associated with the term â€Å"agency theory† as found in most of the existing literature. According to Alchian and Demstez (1972), the business activities conducted by most of the organizations are mostly governed through contracts that involve voluntary exchanges.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Computer Features Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Computer Features - Essay Example For the perfect computer the processor speed should be 2 GHZ and above. This will facilitate faster performance of the system. A good computer should also have a good memory; this also affects the performance of the system. The first type of memory that is available in a computer is the random access memory that temporarily stores data. If the ram is bigger, it allows one to running more applications at one time. For the computer of choice a ram of 4 gigabytes and above is ideal. Another memory found in a computer is the hard disk that stores all the information fed into a computer. More space means high volumes of data to store, for a good computer a hard disk of one terabyte and above is perfect. All of the above mentioned are components of a good computer however, that is not all a good computer should also be able to connect to a wireless network. This type of internet connection is widely available and can be found in most public areas like schools, libraries and even coffee shops. The final piece is a disc drive. This component allows an individual to watch movies or listen to music stored in a compac t disc. It also allows one to transfer the content from a computer and into the disc for

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Gulf Pharmaceutical Industries (JULPHAR) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Gulf Pharmaceutical Industries (JULPHAR) - Essay Example More than 800 products of the company are in the dosage forms, and few are yet to enter the market. The company employs more than 2800 employees around the world (Kapur, 2014). Turnover reported by the company at the end of 2013 was AED 1.36 Billion. The company reported various growth strategies in 2013. It performed a GCC wide review of its functions and operations. The new scientific office was launched across GCC under the new director. Additionally, the company launched its first manufacturing facility in Ethiopia at Addis Ababa (Julphar Extends its Global Footprint, 2015). This facility is a major part of the company’s international expansion objective and a milestone in its history (About Julphar, 2015). The objective of IAS 1 is to provide the organizations with the basis for presentation of general-purpose financial statements. It is to ensure the comparability of the financial statements of the previous periods and the financial statements of the other entities. IAS 1 is applicable to general-purpose financial statements that are prepared in accordance with the international Financial Reporting Standards. General-purpose financial statements are prepared in order to provide information about the financial performance, financial position and cash flow of the entity that is useful to a wide range of users for the purpose of making economic decisions (IAS 1, 2015). To fulfil the objective, financial statements provide the information about an entity’s: IAS 1 states that financial statements must present fairly the financial position, financial performance and cash position of the entity. This means that the entity should faithfully represent the effects of the transactions, events and condition in accordance with the criteria of assets, liabilities, income and expenses as mentioned in the framework. Going Concern: the conceptual framework requires the financial

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Film Review Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Film Review Assignment - Essay Example However, the real live Ryan wandered into an allied command center a few days after the invasion. He was not the object of a search party, and did not directly cause the conflict of man vs. mission portrayed by Tom Hanks as Captain . Rather, his story became the backdrop to create the images which were built for the silver screen. His BIs stHis His sotry His story 5h5s 1f23a-1f23sa1f23sa1f23-sa1f23-sa1f23-sa1f23-sastory allowed director Steven Spielberg to tell a much larger story of the bravery and humanity of the men who fought and died in order to establish the D-Day beachhead, and begin the ending of a War which was consuming the world. This cast for this film was lead by Tom Hanks, and with few cameo appearances by other strong leads, the rest of the cast was filled by relatively unknown actors. This approach to this film is an accurate reflection of the war itself, with a few strong men leading squads of unknown, nameless GI's across the European continent. The film covered the first few days of the D-Day landing and march inland, and is masterfully told.

Monday, September 23, 2019

History Discussion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

History Discussion - Research Paper Example Puritans and the Pilgrims were the initial settlers of New England. The economy was majorly based on lumbering, subsistence farming and manufacturing.Fishing, trade and fish building was also practiced. The pilgrims at around 1920 established a church that they wanted to be free from government interference and free from the Church of England. This ambition neccesited their movement to New England resulting to the establishment of the colony of Massachusetts Bay. The New Netherlands was the main trading partner of New England during this period. Moreover, the New England City was more prosperous and independent than Chesapeake colonies with major emphasis laid to slave labor because services were readily available due to influx of slavery. In addition, the economic base of mid colonies majorly depended on both wage and family labor. Both the male and the female slaves worked as domestics. Majority of the poor enslaved men were wagoners, artisans and carters (Jefferson 51-53). In conclusion, slavery was legalized in all thirteen American colonies prior to the American Revolution.However, slavery played different economic and social roles in each of the regions and this mainly depended on slavery management and the size of slaves enslaved. The most common factor among them all without doubt is that they all legalized slavery until the American Revolution changed

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Social Integration Essay Example for Free

Social Integration Essay India from time immemorial, people belonging to various religious faiths lived in harmony and peace. There are fundamental values and traditions in our culture that promote integration among different communities. This was helpful for the growth of a great civilization in the Indian sub-continent. It will be our endeavour as the citizens of this country to preserve the rich tradition of Social Harmony among diverse religious and ethnic groups and pass it over to the future generations. Even though communal tensions in India are well under control, there is no place for omplacency as many internal and external forces are waiting with their ulterior motives sowing the seeds of ill-will. Human needs can be found as the same everywhere in the world if we look at it from biological and psychological perspectives. Irrespective of the geographic, linguistic or religious differences humans everywhere have common biological needs like hunger, thirst, sex etc; the satisfaction of which is essential for their survival. Similarly man has psychological needs like, need for recognition, need for companionship, need for security, need for prestige etc. he fulfillment of which is inevitable for maintaining sound mental health. Man cannot satisfy most of such needs through his own individual efforts. He requires the assistance of his fellow members of the group in this regard. That is why human beings are considered as social animals. A cooperative integrated society is most congenial for leading a healthy social life. Religion is one of the social institutions found in all human societies. It assists man to establish and maintain harmonious relationships with the supernatural forces that are believed to have direct influence in the fortunes of man. Moreover religion is one of the agents contributing to the integration of society. Religion provides We feeling among its members. Performance of religious rites, participation in festivals, leadership provided by priests and religious functionaries, following many common beliefs and values, etc reinforces the unity among the members of a religion. Even though holy books and teachings of each religion claim that they help man reach God, none of them propagate hatred against other faiths. All religions in their essence assist people to live in harmony with members of the society. According to Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India the communal problem is not a religious problem, it has nothing to do with religion. Nobody can blame the presence of diverse religions for the emergence of communal problems in the world. Even though all religions proclaim the universal brotherhood of man, history is full of bloody, violent conflicts between members of different religions. Many battles were fought between Muslims and Christians, Jews and Muslims, Hindus and Muslims and so on in the past. Many such struggles are going on even now like the conflict etween Muslims and Jews in Palestine. A deeper analysis of the causative factors of these conflicts shows that in all these situations non-religious, often political and economic interests were instrumental to these problems. Religious identity was used root cause of communalism is not the presence of many religions in the country. When religious sentiments are exploited with an economic or political motive the resultant effect gives rise to the genesis of communalism. According to Madan (2001) communalism is the political expression of religion. He defined communalism as an deology, which envisages the religious community as a political group committed to the protection and promotion of its social and economic interests and cultural values. While communalism is a feeling or state of mind existing at a psychological level, communal conflict or riot is its overt expression. Once generated, communalism remains in the minds of people always, and communal conflicts emerge only occasionally when there is a total breakdown in the good relations between two communities. From a sociological perspective social conflict by its very nature cannot ontinue indefinitely. During communal violence each community used it as an occasion to harm the interests of the rival community who may be socially or economically sound. The feelings of relative deprivation felt by one community is often converted into violent attacks against a well placed community. This is what happened in 1984 when there were violent attacks against the Sikhs in different parts of the country after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi by her body guards who happened to be from the Sikh community. Investigations onducted later by sociologists and many other social scientists proved that Sikhs who were economically well placed were attacked and members of other communities who were Jealous of their prosperity looted their shops. People with vested interests to attain their ulterior goals exploited this particular context by exploiting the religious sentiments. One must not confuse communalism with communal violence, rioting etc. Poorly conceived Communal ideology leads to communal violence. Communal violence is a consequence of the spread of misunderstood and ill-conceived communal ideology. But it is not the crux of the communal situation at all. Communal ideology cannot only exist, but can grow for decades before it takes the form of violence. This book contains some of the selected papers presented in the National Conference on Social Integration and Communal Harmony organized by the Kerala Sociological Society from 1st to 3rd December 2006 at Sree Narayana College, Thiruvananthapuram. Prof. N. R. Madhava Menon in his paper Constitutionalism and Management of Diversity in Multi-cultural Societies deals with the significance of Indian Constitution o manage various problems in a multi-cultural society. He points out that secularism is a basic feature of the constitution which cannot be changed even by parliament. There is no state religion and the state is prohibited against discrimination on the basis of religion. He believes that for multi-culturalism can survive and communal harmony can prevail only when we ensure equality of status among people and second part of the paper, the author focuses his attention on the concept of social integration. He notices that the constitutional strategy to promote fraternity is helpful to attain social integration. In this context the author recommends a Uniform Civil Code for the entire nation. However, political parties do not support this view because no political party is ready to talk about it, because of the vested interests involved especially because of the vote bank politics. In her paper, Social Integration and Communal Harmony, Prof. M. Indukumari presents the multiple factors and contexts that influence social integration and communal harmony. First of all she explains the significance of this theme in the present Indian context. According to her view, the prime concern of any nation iming at development should be the attainment of social / national integration. Moreover, she argues that despite some differences at ritual, social and cultural levels among different religions, there is conspicuous commonality at the level of values that promotes communal harmony. The author lists many examples of inter religious co-operation that exist in Kerala for a long period. However, she also points out that this rosy picture of Kerala is changing gradually and this society has started showing symptoms of religious intolerance and communal violence. This paper gives due consideration towards the debate on the need for a Uniform Civil Code for India. Another concern of this paper is to show how communal violence affects the interests of the vulnerable sections like women, religious minorities, tribals, dalits etc. The author expresses confidence that NGOs can play a crucial role in maintaining communal harmony. In the concluding part of the paper she identifies certain strategies to promote communal harmony. On the whole this paper provides a comprehensive picture of social integration and communal harmony in India. M. K. George in his article on Tolerance is various faiths attempted to highlight how various faiths and religions can contribute to the building of tolerance in the world. He stresses that every religion contains components of belief, rituals, information and knowledge, behavioural consequences and the expectations that guide the whole system. The author briefly looks at Bhuddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Hinuduism and observes that in discussing religion as an instrument of peace and harmony one needs to make this distinction between religiosity, which only can ivide, and spirituality which can unite all believers. Religiosity focuses on differences, where as spirituality emphasizes what is common. Spirituality provides meaning to life and reality. Spritiuality connects, with the self, others, god and native. He stresses that the social scenario in India and the world over demands an active Youth population striving for peace and tolerance and hence the Youth needs to take this agenda. The paper Secular Legacy and Communal Paradox The case of Kerala contributed by Dr. Antony Palackal presents some unconventional interpretations of the communal ituation in Kerala. The author observes that secularism, the characteristic facet of nowadays there seems to be an alarming spread of communal and fascist forces in the State. This article marks an enquiry into the characteristics and dynamics of the emergent communalism in Kerala and tries to trace its secular legacy and the communal paradox. The first part of the paper seeks to unfold the secular legacy and the opposite reality of communalism that has engulfed it. The second part is a discussion on the unique forms of communal manifestations in Kerala. The third part s an exploration into the evolution of the growing communalism in Kerala. The concluding section briefly sketches the relation between communalism and spirituality vis-Â ¤-vis religion and the possible manner in which the growing menace of communalism may be addressed. The paper reveals that communalism gives rise to a heightened sense of identity and belongingness as it operates on the basis of the theory of polarization. Polarization results in emotional, mental or physical mobilization of individuals and groups to cause cohesion within a group . However it divides people as members of larges communities. The author feels that religious and/or caste sectarianism and communal interests dominate most of our political life today. The paper conclude with an optimistic note that a viable alternative to the prevailing communal paradox appears to be the resurgence of societal consciousness born out of neo-renaissance movements capable of regaining the lost secular legacy of Kerala. The paper Hindu Response to Conversion Threat: Questions on Conversion and Social Equality written by ShaJi. A is undertaking a historical analysis of the communal situation in 20th Century Kerala. The major focus of this paper is on The Temple Entry Proclamation of Travancore, 1936 that was a turning point in the history of modern Kerala. This proclamation put an end to the inhuman practice of untouchability and it opened a new future to the oppressed classes in Travancore. The author notices that before 1936 several low caste people of Travancore including Ezhavas converted themselves into other religions especially Christianity since they found it as the easiest way to escape from the caste tyranny. However, Sree Narayana Guru, leader of SNDP movement was successful in reventing this tide of conversion to Christianity or to Buddhism. The Ezhavas were also interested in Islam and Sikhism. When the low caste Hindus including Ezhavas started large-scale conversion to Christianity, it became an eye-opener for progressive Hindu reformers. Efforts were made to bring back the converted Hindus to Hinduism under the initiative of the Hindu Mission. By permitting entry to all Hindus to the temples, low caste Hindus including Ezhavas were retained in their religion. This paper clearly explains how Temple Entry Proclamation assisted the Hindu leaders to meet the challenges of conversion.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Huffman Trucking system Inventory Essay Example for Free

Huffman Trucking system Inventory Essay Material System Inventory Select and complete one of the following assignments: Option 1: Virtual Organization System Inventory Option 1: Virtual Organization System Inventory Select one of the following Virtual Organizations: Smith Systems Consulting Huffman Trucking Kudler Fine Foods Complete the following chart, filling in information for each system used at that Virtual Organization. Add rows to the chart as necessary. System Name Brief Description Department to Use the System Purpose of the System Connects With Development Details Corporate Intranet This system supports the Business Infrastructure consisting of 72 clients with 15 printers and 1 plotter. The phone system is a Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) with 68 stations throughout the company. Executive offices, Marketing, Sales Dept. , HR, Accounting departments This system allows the company to communicate, run the business, update HR information and accounting Full mesh WAN, running an OC-2 encryption, fiber based dedicated VPN- Ohio Office, Remote Administration, Remote IT operations, Remote Trucking Operations, Hub facilities in Cleveland, OH, Los Angeles, CA, St. Louis, MO, Bayonne, NJ Huffman Trucking is a native of Cleveland Oh. and was founded in 1936. The growth of the company was due to the WWII and the demand for carriers services from the factories to the ports. Mission statement: To be a profitable, growing, adaptive company in an intensively competitive logistical services business environment. Vision Statement: To be a model company to our stockholders, employees, customers and all stakeholders. System Name Brief Description Department to Use the System Purpose of the System Connects With Development Details SAP ERP This system supports the financial systems that are used in the accounting department, inventory management, HR, CRM, Accounting, HR, Trucking operations Allows the corporation to record the financial aspects, Human Resources, Benefits, trucking operations Corporate Intranet Huffman employees over 1,350 personnel, supports over 800 road tractors, 2,100 trailers and 260 â€Å"roll on/off units. This system can adapt to a medium to large corporate infrastructure and meet all financial needs as well. 50 KVS A UPS This is the backup power supply for the corporations computer mainframe, servers Corporation IT Operations To provide power to the IT operations in event of a power outage, failure Corporation Network This system can be updated to support a larger network if needed and additional or larger UPS systems can be installed. Trucking Operations: MTC Fleet Maintenance Pro 12 The MTC Fleet maintenance keeps the corporation with a schedule of maintenance, and repairs for the individual vehicles Trucking operations To keep a schedule of maintenance for all corporate vehicles, Corporation Network This system allows the company to track and conduct the preventive maintenance for the 800 plus tractors and additional equipment at an interval of 25,000 miles. SW Package for MTC Fleet Maintenance Used for management of the warehouses Warehouses Allows the company to keep track of the inventory at any given time or place Corporation Network Motorola MC 9090-C RFID / Bar code scanner system Used for tracking the location of all vehicles owned by the corporation Operations employees Allows the company to keep the inventory up to date for parts Satellite locator and monitoring comm. ystem SW package for traffic management Traffic management Truck drivers Allows the company to track the trucks and to assign bar codes to the Motorola 2 way radios Satellite locator and monitoring comm. System, Motorola VC 6096 Network Backup system Used for backup of all computer systems configurations and information Administration and IT department Allows the company to restore their records and transa ctions performed on a daily basis Corporation Network System Name Brief Description Department to Use the System Purpose of the System Connects With Development Details

Friday, September 20, 2019

Vodafone Planning Principles in competition

Vodafone Planning Principles in competition Introduction Marketing is the core of all business. To outperform the competition requires solid marketing knowledge and precision in marketing decision making. To market companys product or service, it is necessary to get positioning, positioning of its products and services depend on the formulation and implementation of intelligent and aggressive strategic marketing plans. As this assignment requires choosing an organization which fosters strategic marketing management process; therefore, Vodafone: multi-national UK-based mobile network operating company has been picked. About Vodafone The Vodafone group is a mobile network operator headquartered in  Newbury, England. They made their first phone call just minutes after  midnight  on the 1st  of January in 1985. In 1987 it was already recognized as the largest mobile network in the world. Today it is the biggest telecommunications network provider in the world by turnover and has a market value of about one hundred billion pounds. It is a FTSE 100 company and is ranked 3rd overall just behind Royal Dutch Shell and the BP group.   Vodafone currently has equity interests in twenty-five countries and has other partner networks with assets in another forty one countries. It is the second largest mobile telecom group in the world behind China Mobile and has more than ten million customers in the  United Kingdom,  Germany,  India,  Italy,  Spain,  Turkey,  Egypt  and the  United States. At a glance of Vodafone [1]: Type : Public Limited Company (PLC) Industry : Telecommunications Founded : 1984 Headquarters : Newbury, United Kingdom Area Served : World wide Website : www.vodafone.com [1] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vodafone Task 1 1.1 Vodafone Marketing Planning Principles Vodafone market planning involves deciding on marketing strategies that will help the company attain its overall strategic objectives.  Ã‚  A detailed marketing plan is needed for each business, product, or brand. It has external and internal environments where plenty of strategic elements are involved. As part of marketing planning principles, macro-environmental scanning will be conducted by analyzing significant macro factors affecting the telecom industry while Porters five forces, SWOT analysis (SW-for micro environment and OT-for macro environment) will be utilized to assess the micro-environment surrounding telecom industry. Later, BCG matrix as part of Vodafone portfolio analysis technique is explained. 1.2 Vodafone Plan Development Using Analytical Tools and Techniques 1.2.1 Macro-environmental factors: To analyze the macro factors of the Vodafone Plc, PESTEL analysis, SWOT analysis (OT is detailed in macro environmental issues) is described. 1) PESTEL analysis: Political factors: Regulations- Mobile phones licenses are tightly controlled and are very expensive. In some cases tight measures are implemented by the government in order to decrease mobile phone use for children because of health issues. Infrastructure- To build up an infrastructure to support the network usually requires permission from the government and other regulative bodies. Economical factors: The recession has decreased the amount of money customers are willing to spend, therefore there is a price war between leading network providers to drive down costs of calls and SMS to attract more customers. Cost of licensing-When the technology of 3G was introduced there was a bid war amongst leading companies which ended up in a high expenditure of acquiring this technology Social-cultural factors: Fashion- In some countries especially in  Europe  it is in fashion to have a mobile phone. The market in  Europe  is so big that all kind of phones are being sold here. These days in iphone by Apple has conquered most of the market and is the best seller in the  UK  at the moment Demographics- Mobile phones tend to be used by the younger members of society.   In a country where the population is ageing, which is the trend across the EU, the demographics may shift to a more aged population who may have less use for mobile phones. Technological factors: 3G (3rd Generation)-The introduction of this technology have helped Vodafone to interact easier through their phone and they were able to offer services like the mobile internet or famous social networking sites like facebook directly accessible from the phone. It is now much easier for business customers to arrange meetings and get information directly on their handset. Vodafone also offers tailored price plans for business customers. GPS (Global Positioning System) It is now possible to get a navigation programme on the handset where supported. Instead of buying expensive navigation systems the customer can pay one off fees and use the system The technology advancement in general will help Vodafone to cope with the growing competition all over the worked and will help them increase to attract more customers through these technology developments. Environmental factors: Vodafone have established a recycling programme for phones in order to help the environment and recycle and reuse the materials used in the handset. They give incentives in terms of money to customers hand in their old phone in exchange for a new one. Legal factors: Law-There are some laws which regulates the actions of business e.g. The Sales of Goods Act 1974 stating all products must be fit for the purpose they are intended. A mobile phone must therefore work. These laws are created to regulate particular industries for example the ban on mobile phones while driving. This significantly increased the sale of headsets. 2) SWOT analysis (PART 1: OT under macro environment): Opportunities: Emerging markets offers Vodafone to introduce their unique services to that market where the market has high rate of growth. They can become a market leader as they are the biggest network provider in the world and their experience could help them to achieve that. At the moment having a mobile phone is a necessity for many people and the trend is going up that people are tending to have one or more mobile phone. This could turn out positive for Vodafone as the market tends to increase by size and volume in terms of sales. Threats: Competition could be a threat organization as more different products and services are being offered by different companies. The iphone for example introduced by o2 has significantly decreased sales of other products and services because they reserved the rights to be the only distributor of the phone in the  UK. The effect of rules and regulation by the government can also be threat to Vodafone as they could ban or set price regulations. 3) Marketing Mix Vodafone uses its advantage as being a large global organization and implements differentiation and cost leadership strategy as they benefit from economies of scale. This allows them to have a competitive advantage and adding more value to their range of services to the customers compared to other competitors. The marketing mix consists of many different factors, which are grouped together into four main categories: product, place, price and promotion. Product-Vodafone offers different type of products to different type of customers and so can segment their market in this field. Since the introduction of 3g services they can offer more than just voice calls and messaging. Customers are able to access he internet and other multimedia applications on the go and can benefit from the unique quality of Vodafone. Price-They are able to offer different services for different customers like pre pay phones, pay monthly contracts and business solutions for businesses. This allows them structure their pricing method towards different needs of the customer. Place-Vodafone operates mainly through their retail stores all over the  UK. There are over 300 retail outlets and they also offer their services through independent retailer like Phones4u. Promotion-Vodafone affectively operated a solid marketing structure which includes advertising poster on the street, TV campaign and also use famous celebrities like David Beckham to advertise their products. This ensures people are aware of their special offers and discounts. 1.2.2 Micro environmental factors: 1) SWOT analysis (PART 2: SW under micro-environment): Strengths: The size of the organization plays an important factor when we are speaking about their strength. Their global presence and network makes it easy for them to be more competitive even on a global scale. Vodafone is reputable company and there are famous for being the best in their field. Their brand image is very important when it comes to sales and increasing them. Standardized customer relation management is also a feature of Vodafone.   The company is developing a group-wide standard in customer relation management to ensure an awareness of its customer base and their preferences in order to help the efficient sales of its new services and products. Weaknesses: Developing new technologies can turn out very expensive. If these technologies fail to succeed in the market this could end up in a huge loss which would be hard to recover from. They can not introduce new technologies where it is not possible this could be because they are facing the legal issues within that country. 2) Porters 5 forces: By using the five forces model of completion, competitor analysis network   by understanding how the threat of new entrants, the bargaining power of buyers, the bargaining power of suppliers, the threat of substitutes and the competition of other firms and how they affect the company directly. Competitive Rivalry   The competition in the  UK  for example is very much intense and big organizations like O2,  Orange and T-Mobile have a significant impact on revenues. Bargaining power of buyers   Customers have the choice of many different type of product at present time due to the high level of competition. In terms of different type of packages and different prices people tend to go for other companies and buy their product. Bargaining power of suppliers   Vodafone is one of the largest network providers in the world and therefore they are able to use the benefits of economies of scale and reduce their production costs. This allows them to increase their profit margin compared to other companies and offer better a price to value ratio to the customer. Threat of substitutes   There is a low risk of substitutes for Vodafone as they have established a good brand image. Apart from that as they benefit from economies of scale they can sell their services at the same price like their competitors. Threat of new entry   As there is no threat for other companies to enter the market because of rules and regulations and the high cost of licenses required to operate a network, Vodafone has to continue being efficient and reducing costs in order to price match their competitors. Threat of New Entrants Bargaining Power of Buyer Competitive Rivalry (O2, Orange, 3 mobile, T-mobile) Bargaining Power of Supplier Threat of Substitution Figure 01: Porters 5 forces of Vodafone [Figure Source: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_08.htm] 4) BCG (Boston Consultancy Group) Matrix: Question Marks Stars Dogs Cash Cows High Market Growth Low Low Market Share High Figure 02: BCG (Boston Consultancy Group) Matrix of Vodafone   Stars   The star of their products which is the main product they offer are the monthly contracts they offer as these are very popular amongst the customers. Cash Cows   this is the product which generated revenue but is at a stage where it does not grow. The messaging services they offer generate good revenue for them and as there is no opportunity to expand as that this service is their cash cow. Dogs   This would be their analogue services as they do not really generate revenue because of too much competition. Question Mark   This product is the one with high growth potential and low market share. In this case it would be the 3g serves they offer. As there are other companies offering the same services it hard to gain a higher market share. Task 2 2.1 Strategic Marketing Options for Vodafone Marketing strategy always considers options where it can be applied. In Vodafone, the following marketing strategy options can be applied though both matrixes have got some advantages and disadvantages as well. General Electric/McKinsey (GE) Matrix: GE matrix is used mainly for market attractiveness. The examination and understanding of market attractiveness is very important in determining investment strategies in a country of operation. The advantages and disadvantages of GE matrix are given as follows: Advantages Disadvantages Thorough competitive analysis provides a basis for ranking relative strength of business units in their particular environment. Formal definition of components is not clear or simple (Johnson 1985) Analysis is difficult for outsiders to reproduce (Johnson 1985). Determinants: Industry attractiveness and business strength. The following figure shows the concept of GE Matrix. Figure 03: General Electric (GE) Matrix [Source: www.marketingteacher.com] Shell Directional Policy Matrix [2]: The Shell Directional Policy Matrix is another refinement upon the Boston Matrix. Along the horizontal axis are  prospects for business sector profitability, and along the vertical axis is a companys competitive capability. As with the GE Business Screen the location of a Strategic Business Unit (SBU) in any cell of the matrix implies different strategic decisions. However decisions often span options and in practice the  zones  are an irregular shape and do not tend to be accommodated by box shapes. Instead they blend into each other. Advantages Disadvantages Considers both, international capabilities of the company and competitors capabilities. Market Position is restricted to market share.  Ã‚  Assumes countries have stable political, social and economic environments.  Ã‚  Only regulatory aspects pertaining to Shells products have been addressed. Determinants: Companys competitive capabilities and business sector prospects. The following figure shows the concept of SDP Matrix. Figure 04: Shell Directional Policy Matrix [Source: www.marketingteacher.com] [2] http://www.mbaknol.com/strategic-management/shells-directional-policy-matrix/ 2.2 Evaluation of Marketing Strategy Options for Vodafone Despite the shortcomings of previous studies and models, attempts at reaching an understandable model for determining international business strategy have been ongoing.  Ã‚  The marketing literature presents a number of models designed to guide managers in making strategic investment decisions for Vodafone Plc.  Ã‚  Included in that number are matrix approaches such as Shell directional policy matrix (Robinson, Hichens, and Wade 1978), and GE/McKinsey (Taylor 1976).  Ã‚  These models have each provided a unique contribution to the strategy process but each also has distinct disadvantages.  Ã‚  The advantages and disadvantages of each are, particularly; concerned for firms interested in the international market is the fact that these models do not take into consideration the international environment.  Ã‚  Many multinational companies still confront the problem of integrating environmental assessments into decision making in a systematic and objective manner.  Ã‚  The task facing them is how to translate recognition of the business situation into action.  Previous models are limited in their generalizability across different types of industries and actual environments worldwide. Task 3 3.1 Current Changes in the Marketing Environment in Vodafone As Vodafone is a worldwide company and operates in over 27 different countries, this makes analyzing the external environment fairly difficult using a PEST analysis. The PEST analysis in this report is mainly directed at Vodafones UK external environment in terms of strategic marketing management policy. PEST analysis: Political Political factors can have a direct impact on the way businesses operate. Decisions made by the government  affect  our everyday lives and can come in the form of policy or legislation.   The Governments introduction of a statutory minimum wage affects all businesses, as do consumer, Health Safety laws and so on. The current increase in global petrol prices is having a profound impact on major economies, it is estimated that  £200bn has been added to the global fuel bill since the price increases started. Another political factor is OFTEL, the telecommunications regulator in the UK whose purpose is to ensure phone companies, meet their obligations under telecoms and competition laws and regulations.  Ã‚  The UK government regulates this industry through OFTEL.   Economical All businesses are affected by economical factors nationwide and globally. Interest rate policy and fiscal policy will have to be set accordingly. Within the UK the climate of the economy dictates how consumer may behave within society. Whether an economy is in a boom, recession or recovery will  also affect consumer confidence and activities. Economies internationally also have an impact on UK businesses, cheaper labor abroad affects the competitiveness of UK products nationally and globally.   An increase in interest rates in the USA will influence the share price of UK stocks. A truly global player like Vodafone has to be aware of economic conditions across all borders and ensure they employ strategies and tactics that guard their business and marketing investment. Socio-cultural: Within society forces such as family, friends, and media affect our attitude, interest and opinions. These forces shape who we are as people and the way we behave and what we ultimately purchase. The end users of wireless products are becoming increasingly aware of quality and expect a product that is reliable during use. GSM has been an unqualified success because it works, offers definite advantages over first generation and is at a price where everyone can access the technology. One problem that has been apparent over recent years is the high market exposure given to new features and technologies, which are not well proven and tested before launch. WAP was a prime example of this. A great deal of effort has been injected into WAP to make sure the early teething problems have been overcome, but the public can sometimes demonstrate memory akin to an elephant and changing opinions is a much harder marketing nut to crack. The market expectation for Bluetoothà ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢ and 3G has been raised considerably so now we are at a critical stage in fulfilling the advertised dream. Technological Advanced technology is changing the way businesses operate. The Internet is having a profound impact on the marketing mix strategy of organizations. Consumers can now shop 24 hours a day, comfortably from their homes. Vodafone has been using the Internet for advertising like a lot of other organizations trying to sell their business. There is renewed interest by many governments to encourage investment in research and development and to develop technology that will give their country the competitive edge. The one-stop-shop customer need, and the manufacturers success in integrating cellular, cordless and internet user applications into a single unit has meant that a wireless test company has to consider all major technologies and review each for their commercial benefits. In some instances some technology advancements will not create a profitable business in isolation. Vodafone has introduced new technology such as Vodafone Live, and now the introduction of the new 3G mobile phones means Vodafone will implement the new technology into their system to bring the service to the customer. 3.2 Analyzing Vodafones Potential Responses to the Strategic Marketing Changes 3.3 Recommendation and Conclusion

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Eating Disorder Case Study: Chhaya Essay example -- Adolescent Role As

Chhaya is a senior in high school whose self identity problems began as a child with her mixed ethnic background. She blames her parents’ constant fighting (and threats of divorce) on her own behavior and, in turn, strives to become the perfect daughter. Chhaya consequently throws herself into her schoolwork where she repeatedly increases her goals despite the lack of disapproval of others. Social relationships and leisure activities are thrown to the wayside because Chhaya feels guilt whenever she experiences pleasure in non goal-directed activities. Although Chhaya has seemingly tried to control many aspects of her life, this tendency turned into an eating disorder, anorexia nervosa, after two major life events: finding out she did not receive valedictorian and the relationship with her first male interest ending. These events occurred within one month of each other at the end of Chhaya’s junior year in high school. Aside from her self-esteem and self-confidence plumm eting, Chhaya also felt worthless and out of control of her life. When she discovered that she is very good at losing weight, she began using restricting her dieting to an extreme. She has been hospitalized and is now receiving occupational therapy at the children’s hospital. In order to learn more about Chhaya’s roles, expectations, occupations, and the affect of these life aspects on her eating disorder, the occupational therapist used the Adolescent Role Assessment (Black, 1976) to interview Chhaya. This assessment is meant for clients who range in age from 13 to 17 years and has shown sufficient internal consistency reliability (0.75), test-retest reliability (0.91), and content validity (via a literature review of multiple areas of study) (Burke & Lomba, 200... ...onal Therapy 2nd ed (pp. 277-285). Thorofare, N.J.: Slack, Inc. Kazarian, S. S. & McCabe, S. B. (1991). Dimensions of social support in the MSPSS: Factorial structure, reliability, and theoretical implications. Journal of Community Psychology, 19, 150-160. Piers, E., Harris, D. B., & Herzberg, D. S. (2002). Piers-Harris children's self-concept scale, second edition. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services. Rigby, P., Cooper, B., Letts, L., Stewart, D., & Strong, S. (2005) Measuring environmental factors. In M. Law, C. Baum & W. Dunn (Eds.), Measuring Occupational Performance: Supporting Best  Practice in Occupational Therapy 2nd ed (pp. 315-344). Thorofare, N.J.: Slack, Inc. Zimet, G. D., Dahlem, N. W., Zimet, S. G. & Farley, G. K. (1988). The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Journal of Personality Assessment, 52, 30-41.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Essay --

According to our research, our analysis and our experiences, we can assume that the following statements could help us to have a better understanding on how and why there is such a big difference of suicide rate at workplace between two companies competing in the same sector: The following statements are based on Geert Hofstede organizational dimensions model and on Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner’s different researches about organizational culture and management style. Between those two research projects, not all of the statements would be relevant for our research, so we will highlight the ones that can give us some answers about the reason of a higher suicide rate in France Telecom than in Claro even though both are competing in the same sector. 1. Means vs Goal oriented culture This first aspect is directly related to the effectiveness of the organization. Hence, in a means oriented culture, people identify with the â€Å"how†, in other words, how they will carry on a project, while in a goal oriented culture, people identify with the â€Å"what†, that is to say that they need to achieve a specific task or results within the organization. According to our research, we can say that Claro (Colombia) is a means oriented culture while France Telecom (France) is a goal oriented culture, the â€Å"what† and the obsession of achieving goals no matter how, gives stress and pressure to the employee. â€Æ' 2. Internally driven vs externally driven With this aspect, the idea of satisfaction is not about the employee, but about the customer. In an internally driven culture, honesty and business ethics matters, while in an externally culture, the only important thing is to meet the customers’ requirements. In Colombia, the employee feel like that if they r... ...anagement orders, while the solar system tends to have an impersonal bureaucracy and a high individualism within the different management levels. 8. Deal vs relationship management In deal-oriented cultures, managers tend to focus on the task and on the project itself and want to keep the head down to business. At the extreme, some of those managers may even avoid discussions with their employees. France is a good example of deal oriented culture; indeed, managers care more about business than about people. On the other hand, in a relationship oriented culture, as it is in Colombia, managers care more about people and put value on relation with them. It is important for managers to build a trustworthy relationship with their employees and to get to know each of them in order to understand how each of them work and therefore create a nice atmosphere within the team.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Project Management Chapter Notes

These tools provide basic project management features and generally cost I than $200 per user. Smartened and tablet APS are available for much less, but the y often have Limited functionality. Low end tools are often recommended for small projects and single users. Most of these tools allow users to create Gaunt charts, which cannot be done easily us inning current productivity software. Midrange tools: A step up from low end tools, midrange tools are designed to handle larger rejects, multiple users, and multiple projects.All of these tools can produce Gaunt c harts and network diagrams, and can assist in critical path analysis, resource allocation, project tracking, and status reporting. Prices range from about $200 to $1,000 per user, or less per MO nth for online tools. Several tools require additional server software for using workup feat rues. Microsoft Project is still the most widely used project management software in this ca destroy, and t has an enterprise version, as desc ribed earlier and in Appendix A.Students and deed actors can purchase software like Microsoft Project at reduced prices from sites like www. Journey yet. Com ($139. 95 for Project Professional 2010 in 2012), and anyone can download a trial verse on from Microsoft's Web site. Many other suppliers also provide trial versions of their product Weighed tools: Another category of project management software is high end tools, sometimes referred to as enterprise project management software.These tools provide robust c abilities to handle very large projects and dispersed workups, and they have enterprise an d portfolio management functions that summarize and combine individual project information t o provide an enterprise view of all projects.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Product Mix and New Product Development Strategies Essay

The Coca-Cola versus Pepsi competition is perhaps the most well known rivalry in the history of marketing. Coke has long enjoyed the home field advantage, having become entrenched as the most popular and identifiable cola throughout the world. Although it has carved itself a substantial portion of the market, Pepsi has struggled to match the sales revenue of Coca-Cola; until recently. Although Pepsi has never come close to equaling Coke cola market share, they have become more aggressive and adept than Coke in cornering the non-carbonated beverage market. It is in this market that Pepsi is seeking to obtain a sustainable competitive advantage over Coke. It their quest to acquire and develop new products, will the use of the PTSTP method help Pepsi develop new products in order to obtain a sustainable competitive advantage?A product is defined in three levels; core, actual, and augmented. The core of the product is the benefit it offers the consumer. For the example of colas, it could be refreshment, energy (sugar and caffeine), alertness, or just pleasure. The soda itself is the actual product. The augmented product for a cola could be the recognition and status gains perceived by drinking that particular brand. Or it could even be the weight loss from sticking to diet colas. For the development of new products, we first need to identify what consists of a new product. There are six categories of new products:1.New-To-The-World. This is a product that has no like product offered elsewhere. For example, when the first personal computer was offered to the public, this would be a new product. 2.New Product Lines. This is when similar products exist, possibly even under the same brand, but a new line of the product offers some tangible difference to those products already offered. For example, offering diet colas in addition to regular colas under the same brand. 3.Product Line Additions. This is the addition of a product that is directly related to one offered. For example, offering Vanilla Coke for sale alongside Coke. 4.Improvements/Revisions. This is a product which has already been offered,  but some change or revision has been made to the products properties. For example: New Coke, or anything labeled â€Å"new and improved.†5.Repositioned Products. The same product offered in a new market or directed towards a new target market. For example Pepsi bringing Sabritas chips into the US to target the Hispanic market. 6.Lower-Priced Products. This is simply reducing the price of an existing product to stimulate sales. New products affect the product mix of a company. Product mix is generally defined as â€Å"the total composite of products offered by a particular organization.† The product mix includes both individual products and product lines. A product line is a group of products which are closely related by function, customer base, distribution, or price range. To use Pepsi as an example, Pepsi’s product mix includes beverages and potato chips. The beverage product line consists of carbonated, non-carbonated, and water. Pepsi, Gatorade, and Aquafina all are individual products. PTSTP is a mnemonic for the five step process underlying Target Marketing and Positioning. The five steps are as follows:1.Identify competitive Products. 2.Define the Target market. 3.Determine the basis for Segmentation. 4.Determine if any Target markets are underserved. 5.Develop a Product for the underserved market. By using this method, a company can identify a gap in a particular market segment. This gap may be present because there is no product to fill it, or because the current product is reaching the end of its life-cycle, thus creating an opportunity for new growth. To answer the previous question, we will contrast the PTSTP method to Coca-Cola and Pespi’s development of the non-carbonated beverage market. Pepsi has continually struggled to match Coke’s market share in colas and other carbonated beverages. Coke enjoys a 44% slice of the market compared to Pepsi’s 32%. During their 108 year rivalry, Pepsi has never come close to selling as much soda as Coke. Much of this is due to Coke’s brand recognition. Although in 2006 Pepsi, for the first time, beat Coke in beverages sold. This was due to Pepsi’s embracement of the non-carbonated beverage market, where it led the market with a 24% share over Coke’s 16%. Pepsi was able to recognize and take advantage of the growing non-carbonized market much earlier than Coca-Cola. Although cola sales have recently stagnated to less than 1% growth, non-carbonated beverages grew 8% in 2004. Much of the failure of Coke to expand into this market can be traced back to the stubbornness of Coke executives to expand beyond the soda market. Coke had an opportunity to acquire Quaker Oats in the 1990’s, but passed on the opportunity. Instead, Pepsi acquired Quaker Oats in 2001. Among Quaker Oats assets were Gatorade and Snapple, both leaders in their markets. Although these product lines were already established, they represented new products to Pepsi, as they represented Pepsi’s introduction into the non-carbonated beverage market. As a result, Pepsi owns a commanding lead in the sports drink market, with Gatorade holding an 80% share to Coke’s Powerade at 15%. Until 2001, Coca-Cola had been reluctant to embrace new products. They were not willing to extend their company and take the chance in the non-carbonated market, until they saw the success Pepsi was having. In addition to passing up on Quaker Oats, Coke lost a bidding war for the Sobe line of enhanced juices, and their bid for the Planet Java line of coffees and teas was not embraced by their independent bottlers. However, since 2000 Coke has been actively seeking new products in this market, including the acquisition of the successful Minute Maid juice line. The difference in philosophy has made the difference for Pepsi. In fact, losing the cola wars may have been the best thing for Pepsi. This forced Pepsi to look outside the soda realm in order to increase profits. As Pepsi’s CEO, Steven Reinemund believes that his company’s growth is due to their constant quest for change, that â€Å"Innovation is what consumers are  looking for, particularly in the small, routine things of their life.† Pepsi’s willingness to embrace new product lines has given them the edge over Coke for the first time in history. Their offerings of Quaker Oats’ beverages, Sobe, and Aquafina have all been firsts for a soda company. As a result, they have gained the brand recognition over Coke’s subsequent offerings, leading to an increased market share. In order for Pepsi to maintain their competitive advantage over Coke, they need to follow the advice of Reinemund, by remaining innovative. PTSTP can help them sustain this advantage. By identifying potential markets, and developing products for these markets, they can continue to capture new market shares. The beverage market is saturated with options for the consumer, with new products appearing everyday. Many of these products are variations on existing products. For example, energy drinks have become very popular in the past few years. As a result the market has become flooded with options. It will become increasingly difficult to introduce new products in this category. By using PTSTP, Pepsi can identify a new niche in this market, or a different market to exploit. Using the energy drinks as an example, the competitors range from Fuze, Red Bull, and many others. By defining the target market, they can identify that the same demographics both tend to buy sodas and energy drinks. Pepsi can then segment the market into young males (18-30). They then determine that the target market of combined soda energy drinks is underserved. They then develop a product to serve this market. Thus Pepsi Max is born. By using PTSTP, Pepsi has created a new product in soda energy drinks, Pepsi Max. It is this type of creativity and innovation that is embraced by Reinemund, and will serve to keep Pepsi with a sustained competitive advantage over Coke. Only by using a method such as PTSTP, can underserved markets be identified and exploited. References 1. http://business.enotes.com/business-finance-encyclopedia/product-mix2. Brady, Diane (). A Thousand and One Noshes: How Pepsi deftly adapts products to changing consumer tastes. Business Week. 14 Jun 20043. Foust, Dean. Things Go Better With †¦ Juice: Coke’s new CEO will have to move quickly to catch up in noncarbonated drinks. Business Week. 17 May 20044. Brooker, Katrina. How Pepsi outgunned Coke: Losing the cola wars was the best thing that ever happened to Pepsi — while Coke was celebrating, PEP took over a much larger market. FORTUNE 1 Feb 2006http://money.cnn.com/2006/02/01/news/companies/pepsi_fortune/index.htm5. http://www.marketingteacher.com/Lessons/lesson_three_levels_of_a_product.htm

Sunday, September 15, 2019

What Are The Most Important Issues Discussed In The EU-Russia Dialogue

In your opinion, what are the most important issues discussed in the EU-Russia dialogue, and why? How can the problems in the relations be solved? Experts believe that today Brussels and Moscow go through worst times in the history of bilateral relations. On the one hand, both sides are interested in collaboration, development of joint projects and strengthening of friendly ties. But on the other hand it’s really hard to come to a mutually agreeable solution, because of strained relations between Russia and individual EU member states and unwillingness to listen to each other. The most contentious issues for both sides are:visa-free arrangements; violation of human rights; economic and energy cooperation.Discussions about first issue last long and one can’t say when they will come to the end. EU concerns about it are understandable, because in the case of visa-free regime a lot of immigrants from former USSR will captivate Europe. And not only them, but also criminals w ill come there. As to second problem, there is contradictory point of view. On the one hand, Russia is independent state with own laws and rules and nobody can intervene in its affairs.But also we shouldn’t forget that Russia signed lots of conventions and treaties, dedicated to different aspects of human rights, and it has to adhere them. The last one is very important for both sides. Statistics say that more than half of Russian foreign trade accrues to European Union. At the same time Russia is the partner number three for EU economy. And the problem of energy supplies is still actual. Solutions:To tell the truth, problems between EU and Russia can’t be solved in one moment. It will take a lot of time, energy, lots of mutual agreements before they will be able to settle their problem. Also from my point of view, both sides should forget about egoism and try to understand that now when whole world is globalised and interdependent the most precious skill for all state s is to make concessions.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

Perdue Case Analysis Essay

Perdue, in the case, seems to have the biggest dilemma: to enter or to not enter the industry of chicken hot dogs. But even within that dilemma, Perdue is faced with even more petty dilemmas should they decide to get into chicken hot dogs or not. In this paper, I do not intend to give a summary of the case and will not beat around the bush by giving my analysis and recommendations spot on. Judging from the facts and figures provided for by the case, I strongly believe that Perdue should get into chicken hot dogs. Why chicken hot dogs The first reason why I believe that Perdue should enter the scene is due to the fact that Perdue has a very good brand perception. From the case, when Poole blind tested consumers, Perdue proved to be an even better brand than the leader, Oscar Mayer. The fact that Perdue hasn’t really gone serious into hot dogs and was still the more preferred, gives us an idea that the brand itself is very crucial or would somewhat suffice when it comes to marketing. Perdue is a brand that is trusted by consumers, only, the brand hasn’t risked much to meet that valuable trust halfway. Another reason why they should venture into the hot dog industry is the stark difference of Perdue from other competitors: everyone has gone to processing foods. Perdue is still tagging behind, heavily dependent on its superb yellow chicken that is not even prepackaged. While they are at an advantage for now because processed meat products would need the supply of raw meat, Perdue should also take into s erious consideration that the competitors will soon have to acquire, and they will, their own supply of chickens through hatcheries. The high demand of processed food will push the competitors to buy out supply to sustain the business. This trend in the industry must be thought over by the Perdue management. They cannot be a brand that is resistant to change, even if they claim to be a very strong one. With that, Perdue has since been at the backburner. Their supply of chickens for the franks is not even enough simply because they are not into the hot dogs business. Competitors will soon gain their own hatcheries and will unseat Perdue in no time. In connection to that, Perdue lacks the facilities for growth. They cannot pack chickens like other poultry companies do for grocers and they do not have the capacity to process the meat into franks. This very much limits Perdue. They have been forever an old provider of fresh chicken and that is all they are about. While it is not entirely wrong, I just think that Perdue should use its good brand image to take chances and without having to necessarily tarnish their good image which they have acquired over a long time. Next, venturing into chicken hot dog does not mean that they have to face the same problems they are having with their current business. Distribution would be not constricting anymore. They can go institutional because that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Lastly, Perdue is competing in a market wherein they have always been stagnantly leading and growing. To think about it, Perdue is stagnating as a company. It has been stuck with the same business for long, as if that is what they can only do with chickens. They are only at retail level, again emphasizing the fact that they are very dependent on this type of business. The reason why they do not do institutional is the fact that they have no means to. But with the chicken franks, they can venture into that segment because they would have to sell the processed meat in places where people usually buy them from: supermarkets. The expansion or growth problem can be solved then. (See The 4P’s on page 6) But Perdue hesitates. They cannot be always like this because a good company accepts change, else it will die out. Perdue, I strongly predict will soon die out. Not all brands can be successful and still be rebellious of some kind, refusing to conform to the industry trends. Entering into the Chicken hot dog industry Even with the strong contentions, I see where the Perdue management is coming from. They’re not experts in the hot dog industry and even after having formulated the best chicken hot dog, dubbed as in the case as â€Å"better than Oscar Mayer†, the smaller dilemmas still prove to be risky to be uncertain of the answers for. So here goes my proposition for Perdue when entering into the chicken hot dog industry. Be autonomous First, I think that rather than leasing two facilities to make the franks, they should just buy their own plants. If Perdue cares so much about their image, how can they risk still leasing out facilities which in turn produce franks different from the desired prototype? Isn’t that an even bigger risk? Destroying the trust and in turn the relationship with the consumers will fatalize Perdue’s very good brand image. If I were a Perdue fan, I would be sad to know that they do not make their own hot dogs and thus, nullifying all the good things I associate them with. Frank Perdue’s three requirements for the would-be hot dog should be followed, after all, father knows best. The franks should be better and costs will definitely be covered by the revenues (as a complete product recall is so much more expensive in the long run than acquiring equipments). I think this is what they have to consider first and foremost. Moreover, judging from the industry and its players which Poole described as terrible or companies that didn’t do much advertising but still made a hit in the industry, the chicken hot dog industry has minimal entry barriers. Longacre and Weaver should be their example. If it was easy for such unknown firms to flourish, how much more for an established brand like Perdue? Another reason why they should have plants is because their competitors do and in the long run, Perdue will lose out in this game of processing costs. More importantly, it has been reiterated in the case that even the supply will need to catch up with the demand. With those projections, production is of utmost importance. Hence, all the more reason to have their own equipments or plants. With that, they have more control over production and of the quality, of course. A very good reason why they are better off entering the chicken hot dog market with their own equipments or plants is that they can tailor-fit their production according to their franks’ needs. Cockrel meat is necessary for the formulated frank, but it is hard to process and needs a stronger machine or else, production costs will increase due to excess capacity, second shifts and will be burdensome due to the very high demand. So that in the case, Moriarty or Perdue need not compromise on the prototype in order to solve other less important issues than product quality. Defy the odds MDM is 85% of the Perdue frank. However, as how this was pointed out in the case, MDM can spell a big difference because it might destroy the brand image Perdue has and of course, it might lessen their power to demand for a premium. But according to studies and official food and drug authorities, MDM is actually safe. There were really just some few extreme cases where negligence gave it all the negative impact. If MDM standards were followed by all, coupled with an extra effort to really not put the consumers to harm by not including meat that cannot be used anymore (because it is worse than scrap already), then people wouldn’t care as much. We all have to know that we eat mostly processed food and not really organic. Even strawberries are dangerous to eat, even more dangerous to eat than a hotdog. The market is very quick to judge that a slight mistake will be detrimental to the industry. Yet they fail to recognize the fact that even the supposedly healthy foods we strive to eat every day have their own impurities. In this case, I think Perdue should push through with their tested prototype. If the taste is better, the people will buy it. Moreover, this is not in the business of supplying fresh chicken meat anymore, this is in the processed meat industry already. And processing meat has to have some impurities but Perdue should limit it to MDM. I think the Perdue management have some erroneous thinking about this case. They automatically equate using MDM as destroying their customer’s loyal base. MDM does not mean that Perdue put some hormones in their chicken. It does not also mean that they changed them in every bit of way. The franks will still be 100% Perdue meat! MDM is just a matter of getting the meat, a processing that anyone in the industry should strategically do. But because there are some stubborn consumer groups who know better than to mind the â€Å"healthy† foods they are eating, Perdue has to counter this possible dulling of brand image too. But this is where Perdue should put its good brand image to use and for marketing sake. The Perdue chicken hot dog The Perdue chicken frank should be processed very sternly, following all the necessary rules and restrictions and should be 100% Perdue meat. The frank should also have nutrients present in chicken and in bone marrows such as iron and the recommended doses of calcium. The frank also has to be exactly the same as the tested prototype because it is supposed to be made of 100% Perdue chicken, and Perdue chicken is the best-tasting, so the frank should be the best in taste too. (see The 4P’s on page 6) Marketing The 4P’s Product * Exactly the same as the prototype * Not devoid of natural nutrients of the chicken and bone (iron and calcium) * 100% Perdue chicken * Cannot be compromised (the ingredients) so as to minimize costs * No second-class of the product to retain Perdue’s good brand image| Place * Distribution (include concessionary) can be expanded because this is entirely a different industry already: processed meat * Not just in the current market of Perdue, but in all other places as where the competitors are (supermarkets)| Price * The recommended price for them to profit at $1.23 per pound| Promotion * Should be promoted by showing off the frank’s attributes not found in the competitors’ * Should emphasize the fact that it is â€Å"carefully processed†, even if it contains MDM meat The marketing will be driven in such a way that Perdue’s stand on having the best chickens is utilized in a different manner: this time the best in quality for chicken hot dogs. Perdue should do a lot of reassuring. Perdue can even make a story just to set the mood: that hot dogs are unhealthy, but cheap and easy to cook that’s why people love them. But Perdue cannot bear the fact that its consumers are not eating healthy or are being cheated on. Hence, the Perdue chicken frank! Perdue can maintain and even expand its horizons by getting into chicken hot dog. They just have to use the right words in their packaging such as â€Å"100% Perdue chicken† and â€Å"passed all processing codes† and they can even go so far as employing a research institute to assure consumers, particularly loyal customers that Perdue hot dog is actually different from the rest. Think of Safeguard with PAMET and other shampoo brands each to their own hair gurus. The marketing should be aggressive and should focus more on how these chicken franks is a product of Perdue so that one will only expect the best from it. Perdue can also have Mr. Perdue to be in an ad, the same way that got their loyal customers hooked. Since Perdue had the highest advertising-to-sales ratio, I think that Perdue’s ads are very critical to this project’s success. Instead of focusing on the quality of chickens for the ad, this time, Mr. Perdue can say about how Perdue thanks its loyal customers for their ever strong support and that the company is expanding by doing different products, such as this chicken frank. He can also go on to say that in Perdue, everything that they make is of superior taste and quality, just like the chickens they sell. I also propose the tagline: â€Å"Only the best chickens make great franks. Only Perdue can.† Positioning So the crucial question is whether this new chicken frank should be positioned as an entirely new product or as an alternative to conventional meat hot dogs. I think that Perdue should position it as the latter. Poultry is far healthier than pork and beef, and chicken franks are not that main stream yet. So, Perdue’s goal of reaching out to the light-users and non-users who are wary of hot dog nutritional content will be realized through this. They should position the Perdue frank like this because I believe this is in line with Perdue’s motto of providing only fresh quality chickens. This will help them maintain if not better their brand image while expanding to this other business of chicken hot dog. Positioning it as a new product is futile in a way because there are companies that have been selling chicken franks. So putting it as new is much more challenging and does not really bring about substantial benefits to the company. Perdue is not known for innovating things, it is known for its superior quality of chickens and it is in line with this that they should propose a favorite food, a frank, that is very much attached to their philosophy as a company. The real chicken is Perdue Perdue risks its growth by thinking too much on maintaining their brand image and their finances in the wrong way. They are afraid to move forward, fearing that they may not be ready for such a launch but also failing to realize that staying under the shadows will make the brand lacklustre. They prefer to risk growth for conventional wisdom that is obsolete. While Perdue can remain to be as it is, competitors will soon become like them and even much more with the franks. It is a no-brainer that the competitors will do some backward and vertical integration too. ——————————————– [ 2 ]. Johnson, Mark H. â€Å"Perdue Farms, Incorporated.† Diss. Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia, 1978. University of Virginia Darden School Foundation. p.19

Barn Burning Essay -- Literary Analysis, William Faulkner

The conflictions of the Snopes family in this story are of anger, fear, and despair. Abner Snopes, the father, is an angry man. He believes that he is always right, he is abusive, and is always being short-changed by life. Even though his wife is impartial to his actions, she looks at him with an â€Å"anxious face at his shoulder,† which describes how weary she is when in the presence of her husband (Faulkner 1961). Sarty’s whole family lives under a blanket of fear and anxiety due to his father’s insecurities, and resentment for people who belittle him. Sarty’s older brother is easily impressed, and follows their father’s manipulative ways of dysfunction: the brother said â€Å"Better tie him to the bedpost† (Faulkner 1965). Abner uses manipulations and violence to keep them in a sense of hopelessness and fear, never feeling safe. Sarty is too immature to put his young thoughts into words, thinking â€Å"They are safe from him. People wh ose lives are a part of this peace and dignity are beyond pain’s rifle. He cries out for his dead father as a young child would, but makes an adult decision to run away from everything and his family. Sarty ran into the woods for safety. He never knew how long he kept running away from the despair and fear of the choices that he and his father made that day. Little did Sarty recognize that running through that door at the de Spain mansion led to freedom for himself and his family: â€Å"Perhaps, it will take a Sarty Snopes to enter through another front door and, though promptly sent away, learn that he has the capacity and the willingness to make moral decisions that will lead him, not to death, but to life† (Samway 103). Sarty, knowing he would never feel the terror and despair of his father actions again, he chose to grieve, and made an adult decision to move forward to a new beginning in life with his integrity intact.